Principal Health News is powered by Consumer Health Interactive (CHI), a company that has won more than 50 awards for its content and Web design. CHI develops customized Web sites for major health plans. It has created hundreds of original stories on health topics you're most interested in, along with interactive health tools and quizzes, a health encyclopedia and drug and herb databases, health plan information, and thousands of news and journal articles on the latest in health and medicine. The result is the dynamic, award-winning site you're looking at right now. For more information, please see our editorial guidelines below.

Consumer Health Interactive is a wholly-owned subsidiary of CVS Caremark Corporation. CVS Caremark is the nation's premier integrated pharmacy services provider, combining one of the nation's leading pharmaceutical services companies with the country’s largest pharmacy chain. The company fills or manages more than one billion prescriptions per year, more than any other pharmacy services provider.

You can find more information about the CVS Caremark Executive team here. For more information about CVS Caremark, you can visit us online at www.cvs.com.

This site is owned by Principal Financial Group. For more information about the Principal Financial Group®, please click here. Or you can write us at:

Principal Financial Group
711 High Street
Des Moines, IA 50392

When considering potential partners and vendors for our Web sites, Consumer Health Interactive seeks companies that adhere to scrupulous business practices and clinical guidelines. CHI also thoroughly reviews the clinical content of all third party vendors. For example:

•CHI's editorial team and medical director review all third-party clinical content for quality, accuracy, balance, and tone.

•CHI expects vendors to provide annual updates of all content. Articles may be updated more frequently on a case-by-case basis.

•CHI's medical director signs off on clinical tools after changes have been incorporated. Interactive tools may also be evaluated by members of CHI's medical review board.

Gold Standard

Gold Standard is a leading developer of drug information databases, software, and clinical information solutions. With Gold Standard’s easy-to-use Clinical Pharmacology medication management tools, you can become more knowledgeable about the medications you and your family members are taking, reduce potential medication errors, ensure that you follow a safe drug regimen, and get the important health information you need. The Clinical Pharmacology Drug Database is written in easy-to-understand language, and available in both English and Spanish. The tool provides information on all commonly prescribed U.S. prescription drugs, as well as on alternative medications, such as herbals, vitamins, and over-the-counter products. You can also get thorough explanations about what the medication is taken for, what to know before taking it, how to take it, where to store it, possible side effects, and more.

The Clinical Pharmacology Drug Interaction Alert safeguards against dangerous interactions between prescription and over-the-counter medications, as well as herbal and nutritional products. The tool can also screen for interactions against specific lifestyle factors, such as whether you have a feeding tube, and whether you drink caffeine, alcohol, or grapefruit juice. In seconds, you can easily create a report that shows potential interactions within your drug regimen. The report also provides detailed explanations of these interactions, complete with severity rankings and the steps you should take in the event of an interaction.

HealthStatus.com, Inc.

HealthStatus.com, Inc. was formed in 1998 as a closely held company for the purpose of bringing quality Internet-based assessments and calculators to market.

The data you provide which is collected by Health Status for use in tabulating the Health Assessments is available to us only in generalized, aggregate reports. It cannot be tied to information that identifies you or any condition you may have. Health Status does however store information you submit in the assessment for the purposes of creating a risk assessment for you. You will want to review Health Status' privacy policy which is found on their public website.

Evaluation Process:

HealthStatus.com, Inc. evaluates data and algorithms based on whether the information is:

•Generally accepted as a practice, recommendation, rule, algorithm or question set that has been in use by the medical profession routinely for more than five years

•Endorsed or recommended by the U.S. Surgeon General

•Published as a peer reviewed study that is substantiated by at least one other published peer reviewed study

•In accordance with the goals of Healthier People 2010 (a national preventive program managed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services)

•Used as a baseline from a federally funded resource that reflects the most current data available

Every six months, HealthStatus.com, Inc. reviews all aspects of the messages and recommendations generated by the HealthStatus.com assessments and calculators to ensure they meet at least one aspect of the criteria listed above.

The following references were used by HealthStatus.com, Inc. in creating the various health assessment tools found on this site:

•General Health Risk, Algorithm from Healthier People Health Risk Assessment published by the Carter Center of Emory University. Composite mortality data for years 1995, 1996, 1997, and 1998 compiled from detailed mortality data supplied by the Centers for Disease Control.

•Expert Panel on Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Cholesterol in Adults. Executive summary of the third report of the National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) expert panel on detection, evaluation, and treatment of high blood cholesterol in adults (AdultTreatment Panel III). JAMA. 2001.

•Dupuy HJ. Chapter 9: The Psychological General Well-Being (PGWB) Index. Selected test instruments. IN: Wenger NK, Mattson ME, et al. Assessment of Quality of Life in Clinical Trials of Cardiovascular Therapies.

•American Heart Association -- Dietary Guidelines for Healthy Americans.

•National Cholesterol Education Program NHLBI Information Center.

•Alcohol, Dietary Guidelines for Americans from Fifth Edition, 2000, US Department of Agriculture, US Department of Health and Human Services.

•Cardiac Risk, "Anderson KM, Wilson PWF, et al. An updated coronary risk profile," Circulation. 1991; 83: 356-362 data from the Framingham Study and the cardiac section of the Healthier People Health Risk Assessment published by the Carter Center of Emory University.

•Diabetes Risk, "American Diabetes Association. Take the test and know the score," 1997

•Fitness Assessment, ACSM's Resource Manual for Guidelines for Exercise Testing and Prescription, Fourth Edition, Thomas S, Reading J, Shephard RJ. Revision of the Physical Activity Readiness Questionnaire (PAR-Q). Can J Sport Sci. 1992; 17:338-345. Shephard R, Bailey DA, Mirwald RL. Development of the Canadian Home Fitness Test. CMA Journal. 1976; 114: 675-679

EBSCO

Complementary and Alternative Medicine Center of Excellence (CAM) is a complementary and alternative medicine database designed specifically for the consumer-health researcher. This database provides current, up-to-date information that will satisfy an ever-growing demand for accurate, unbiased information on natural health. The database contains more than three hundred articles on medical conditions, presenting in an evidence-based manner the alternative medicine therapies proposed for use in their treatment. It also contains detailed, evidence-based information on herbs and supplements, functional foods, and other alternative therapies such as acupuncture and homeopathy. An additional section, linked to the others, provides comprehensive information on drug/herb/supplement interactions. The articles contained in the database are entirely based on double-blind, placebo-controlled studies and other forms of meaningful scientific evidence. At present, more than 12,000 such studies are cited in the material, and new studies are added regularly. The evidence-based content has been developed and reviewed by a team of physicians and pharmacologists with the goal of providing consumers with reliable information.

Vanguard

We use Vanguard Software's Vista survey product to provide fun, interactive surveys and quick poll questions to our eNewsletter subscribers and site visitors. Survey responses are always anonymous, designed to capture a snapshot of our visitors' thoughts and attitudes about our Web site, our services, and healthcare topics. Although the results are unscientific, they help us improve our services and the healthcare information we provide based on actual user feedback. Vista surveys work with all browsers and security settings. Vanguard Software is a privately-held corporation founded in 1995.

Yesmail

Our eNewsletters on general health and various conditions are produced by Consumer Health Interactive, and are delivered to subscribers by Yesmail, Inc. We use Yesmail's software and services to deliver valuable health information right to our subscribers' e-mail mailboxes. Yesmail is an infoUSA company and is part of the Donnelley Marketing Group.

Our content management guidelines are designed to maintain the highest standards of editorial credibility and integrity and to offer clients engaging, trustworthy, and accurate content. To ensure this, our editorial and advertising policies follow the editorial guidelines adopted by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors, Medscape, Health on the Net, and other e-health online ethics organizations, which take into account medical ethics, journalism ethics, business ethics, and the ethics of medical editing. These guidelines, which appear below, call for a clear and consistent separation of editorial and promotional content:

•Advertising should comply with the laws of the United States. Any other CHI sites established in other countries should also comply with the laws of the country where the site is built and maintained.

•Under no circumstances shall CHI's acceptance of an advertisement be considered an endorsement of the product advertised or the company that manufactured it.

•CHI retains the right to reject advertising and will not accept advertising for any products or services that makes unsubstantiated claims or are known to be harmful to health, such as tobacco products, and will not knowingly accept advertisements or grants from companies that manufacture such products.

•CHI maintains editorial independence and makes a clear distinction between advertising and the editorial process and decision-making. Current or potential sponsors may not influence the editorial content, or its tone or approach, that appears on the CHI site.

•CHI readers should be able to easily distinguish between promotional and editorial material. To ensure that this happens, all content developed by a sponsor or advertiser and other "advertorial" content will be clearly labeled as such.

•Any Continuing Education programs posted on CHI will be developed in accordance with the guidelines of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education.

•CHI will not sell advertising for a product on the condition that it appear in the same location and at the same time as a specific article mentioning that product.

•Advertisers will not influence the way search results by keyword or topic are displayed on the site.

•Within the bounds of appropriate editorial context, CHI will consider for publication criticisms of content and/or advertisements or CHI stories and/or advertisement policies.

•Occasionally you may find links to other websites on this site. These links are provided for information only, and when possible, we link to nationally recognized health association, medical associations and other reputable health sites. Links to these third parties are not the result of advertising or other relationships with these parties, and do not constitute endorsement of these sites. Any links to third parties that are the result of an advertising relationship will be clearly identified as such.

The Consumer Health Interactive (CHI) editorial team brings decades of experience and a Pulitzer Prize to the task of creating reliable and engaging health content. Our writers and editors have worked for many of the nation's largest daily newspapers, medical trade journals, consumer health magazines (including the award-winning magazines Hippocrates and Health), and for several of the largest online providers of health information. Our editorial staff thoroughly researches and fact checks all the content we write, including primers, special reports, quizzes, health diaries, interactive tools, and calculators. Everything we create is also reviewed for accuracy and safety by our medical advisory board.

Anyone who serves on the CHI staff is expected to report accurately and without bias on any news story. All writers and editors (including freelancers) must avoid financial or other interests in any drug, biotech, medical-device, or health-care company, or any other company perceived to have influence in the health-care industry. If staff members have any such interests, they must be disclosed to their immediate supervisor at the time they are hired, or at the time that the financial or other interest develops. The supervisor will determine whether the interest presents a conflict to accurate reporting and, if so, what must be done to eliminate it.

Consumer Health Interactive is a division of Caremark, the nation's largest pharmacy benefit management company (PBM). As stated in CHI's editorial guidelines (in the "About Us" section of the site), CHI maintains editorial independence and requires a separation between editorial and commercial interests at all levels.

For a listing of our writing and editorial staff, please click here.

1. Stories are assigned to an experienced health and medical writer, many of whom come from Time Inc. Health, Hippocrates, the Washington Post, and other nationally recognized publications. Some are physicians or medical researchers themselves.

2. The reporter researches the story, doing interviews with researchers in the field (usually nationally recognized or affiliated with a leading medical school or research project) and combs through medical studies, government reports, and other data. After writing the story, he or she sends a factchecking packet that includes names and phone numbers for his sources and primary source materials (peer-reviewed journals, interview notes, government or academic reports, excerpts from textbooks, and so on).

3. An editor at Consumer Health Interactive reviews the story and does a line and structural edit. The story then goes to the executive editor or another senior editor for top edit.

4. After top edit, the story goes to the research editor and factcheckers, who take the writer's factchecking materials and check the story against them, line by line. He or she also calls the sources and checks their titles, affiliations, and points of view expressed in the article. At the same time, the story is sent to a copy editor, who corrects its grammar, punctuation, spelling, and syntax; he or she also checks for consistency in tone and approach.

5. An editor incorporates the factchecking and copyediting changes into the piece.

6. An editor sends the story, now factchecked and copyedited, to a medical reviewer on CHI's medical review board (Editorial Board). Reviewers are typically board-certified physicians, pharmacists, or other health providers in clinical practice; many are nationally recognized experts and researchers in their field from universities such as Harvard and Yale. An oncologist specializing in breast cancer would review articles on breast cancer, and so on. Their comments are incorporated into the story and sent back for a final sign-off. If there are additional comments, those are incorporated, too.

7. The piece is sent back to the writer for approval. If the writer suggests any changes, they have to be run past the medical reviewer again.

8. The piece is then posted on CHI's Consumer Direct sites, with appropriate artwork and graphics.

We offer readers both a daily health news service and articles from dozens of peer-reviewed medical journals. Health news on the site is refreshed daily on:

•The home page

•Channel pages such as Women's Health

•Dozens of topic pages on everything from heart disease to mental health

In addition, CHI content is continually updated through the following:

•Standard updates

•Editors review all the original content on CHI sites annually and update the stories as necessary.

•Immediate updates

CHI content is updated immediately whenever urgent new information renders existing articles out of date. Such information may include:

•Major drug and supplement recalls and alerts

•Changes in federal guidelines for disease management

•Major medical studies with the potential to affect treatment guidelines

CHI defines credibility as providing content that is authoritative, trustworthy, timely, and accurate. We continually strive to improve the quality of our site content through:

•Professional editing, research, fact-checking, medical review, and updating

•Continually creating new stories, special reports, audio, and interactive tools with the goal of helping consumers improve their health

•Monitoring daily, weekly, and monthly traffic patterns on the site to track reader trends and interests

•Holding quarterly focus groups and doing regular surveys of clients and site visitors

•Having an ongoing dialogue with clients

•Regularly upgrading our home page graphics with topical news photos

•Attending public health conferences and seminars

•Reading more than 25 print and online health publications to keep abreast of the latest in health and medical news.

These include:

•The Harvard Mental Health Newsletter

•The Johns Hopkins White Papers

•The Medical Letter on Drugs and Therapeutics

•Tufts University Health and Nutrition Letter

•New England Journal of Medicine

•JAMA

The medical reviewers for Consumer Health Interactive include physicians and other clinicians who work at the National Institutes of Health or teach at Harvard Medical School, Yale, Stanford, and other top universities and health agencies across the country. Most of CHI's reviewers are practicing clinicians and department heads; most are researchers who have published widely in their field; and many have either written textbooks or served as reviewers for the leading peer-reviewed journals in their field. CHI is lucky to have such a diverse, talented, and hard-working board.