Current Events in April 2014

If the father is obese, are his children at risk of autism and other developmental disorders?

On the surface, it doesn't sound likely. Several studies have previously looked at the role of maternal obesity but now, Norwegian researchers say they have found that paternal obesity could be an even greater risk factor -- but caution that much more must be learned.

“We have a long way to go. We must study genetic factors in the relationship between obesity and autism, as well as environmental factors associated with switching the genes on or off - so-called epigenetic factors,” said Dr. Pål Surén of the Norwegian Institute of Public Health.

Surén and his fellow researchers used data from the Norwegian Mother and Child Cohort Study (MoBa). The researchers studied questionnaire data from over 90,000 Norwegian children at 3, 5 and 7 years of age.

The mothers had answered detailed questions about their own mental and physical health, and about their children. The fathers completed a questionnaire about their mental and physical health while their partner was pregnant. 

Surprising findings

Of the sample, 419 children, approximately 0.45%, had an autism spectrum diagnosis (ASD). 

In the sample, 22% of the mothers and 43% of the fathers were overweight, with a body mass index (BMI) of between 25 and 30. Approximately 10% of mothers and fathers were obese, with a BMI of 30 or more.

The researchers found that maternal obesity had little association with the development of autism in the child. However, they found a doubled risk for development of autism and Asperger’s syndrome in the child if the father was obese, compared with a normal-weight father.

“We were very surprised by these findings because we expected that maternal obesity would be the main risk factor for the development of ASD. It means that we have had too much focus on the mother and too little on the father. This probably reflects the fact that we have given greater focus to conditions in pregnancy, such as the growth environment for the fetus in the womb than both environmental and genetic factors before conception,” says Surén.

The researchers adjusted for variables that may also be associated with the development of autism in the child. In addition to adjusting for maternal obesity, they considered education, age, smoking, mental disorders, hormone therapy before pregnancy, use of folic acid, maternal diabetes , pre-eclampsia and the baby's weight at birth.

Risk genes

“Our findings therefore suggest that there may be a genetic link between obesity in the father and the development of ASD in the child,” says Surén.

He points out that genetic mutation may play a role in the development of both extreme obesity and autism. Researchers have shown, for example, that if a section of chromosome 16 is missing this can lead to morbid obesity or developmental disorders in children. Mutations may be a basis for the development of a number of complex syndromes and diseases.

Another explanation may lie in epigenetics. Epigenetic changes do not mean that the gene is altered, but that the gene is activated or inactivated as a result of environmental conditions. Switching a gene on or off at the wrong time and place can lead to adverse consequences for the individual and the epigenetic changes can be passed on to the next generation.

“We still know very little about how epigenetic changes in germ cells are affected by obesity or other environmental factors but animal experiments have shown that obese males have offspring with altered gene expression in early growth regulation,” Surén said.

The first study is published in the May issue of Pediatrics. 

Airlines are doing better than ever.

That's the assessment of the Airline Quality Rating (AQR), which says airline performance last year was the highest since the ratings began in 1991.

The AQR is a joint research project funded as part of faculty research activities at Wichita State University, Wichita, Kan., and Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Prescott, Ariz., campus. 

And this latest report says that of the 15 carriers rated for performance in both 2012 and 2013, 8 improved, 6 airlines declined and 1 is new to the rankings.

The good and the bad

The industry improved in 2 of the 4 elements of the AQR: involuntary denied boardings and customer gripes. However, performance declined in on-time performance and baggage handling.

The airline industry has performed well in recent years, according to the researchers. In addition to 2013 being the best year ever, Dean Headley -- associate professor of marketing at the W. Frank Barton School of Business at Wichita State University -- says the strong performance by Delta shows that a large, merged airline is able to compete with the best performing smaller airline.

"Bigger hasn't always been better,” he notes, adding “but in Delta's case we are seeing a large airline perform at levels usually only seen by smaller low-fare carriers."

The AQR score reflects commendable efforts by the airline industry to serve customers in a capacity-limited air travel system.

"When you look at the past 14 years, you find that the airline industry performs most efficiently when the system isn't stressed by high passenger volume and high number of airplanes in the air," said Headley. "With continued capacity limits and consolidation, one would hope that a less congested system would perform better. The challenge is whether airline performance quality improvements at this level can be maintained as more people choose to fly. Or does the infrastructure and air traffic control technology limit what the airlines can actually do?"

Customer satisfaction?

"While airline operational performance is at an all-time record high, this does not translate to customers being happy,” said Brent Bowen, dean of College of Aviation at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University's Prescott, Ariz., campus.

"Because airlines are solving operational issues and advancing in AQR elements, it is time to begin a new focus on serving travelers and expanding customer service,” Bowen said. "These results show that airlines that intend to do better, are doing better and improving. Those losing focus have declined.

This year's ratings

Below is the 2013 numerical ranking of the nation's leading 15 airlines, according to the Airline Quality Rating, with the 2012 ranking in parentheses:

1. Virgin America (1)
2. JetBlue (2)
3. Hawaiian (5)
4. Delta (4)
5. Alaska (6)
6. Endeavor (new to the rankings this year; formerly Pinnacle)
7. US Airways (9)
8. Southwest (8)
9. American (10)
10. AirTran (3)
11. Frontier (7)
12. United (14)
13. ExpressJet (13)
14. SkyWest (12)
15. American Eagle (11)

Virgin America and JetBlue remained No. 1 and 2 in 2013. Hawaiian, US Airways and United all improved two spots in the rating, to No. 3, 7 and 12 respectively. The biggest drop was AirTran from No. 3 to 10. Frontier and American Eagle each dropped four spots in the rating for 2013.

On-time performance

Hawaiian Airlines had the best on-time performance (93.3%) for 2013, and American Eagle had the worst (72.1%).

Only 2 airlines improved their on-time arrival performance in 2013. Six of the 15 airlines rated had an on-time arrival percentage of better than 80%. On-time performance for the industry in 2013 was 78.4% versus 81.8% in 2012.

Denied boardings

JetBlue and Virgin America are clearly the industry leaders in avoiding denied boarding incidents with a rate of 0.01 and 0.04 per 10,000 passengers, respectively. SkyWest had the highest involuntary denied boarding rate at 2.55 per 10,000 passengers.

Eight airlines improved their denied boardings rate in 2013. United recorded the greatest improvement, and Frontier had the largest decline.

Overall, the industry had 0.89 denied boardings per 10,000 passengers in 2013, compared to 0.97 in 2012.

Baggage handling

Virgin America had the best baggage handling rate (0.97 mishandled bags per 1,000 passengers) of all airlines, and American Eagle had the worst baggage handling rate (5.90 mishandled bags per 1,000 passengers).

Only 5 airlines had improved mishandled baggage rates in 2013. The industry rate increased from 3.07 per 1,000 passengers in 2012 to 3.21 in 2013.

Consumer grievances

Southwest again had the lowest consumer gripe rate (0.34 per 100,000 passengers) of all airlines. Frontier had the highest rate (3.09 per 100,000 passengers).

Customer gripes per 100,000 passengers decreased from 1.43 in 2012 to 1.13 in 2013. The majority of reports to the Department of Transportation were for flight problems (35.9%), customer service (14.4%) baggage (14.2%) and reservations, ticketing and boarding (12.8%).

The full report is available at http://www.airlinequalityrating.com/

Sprouts Farmers Market is recalling Organic Black Peppercorns sold under the Sprouts brand name from all stores.

The product has the potential to be contaminated with Salmonella.

No illnesses have been reported to date.

The recalled product was distributed to Sprouts Farmers Market stores in Arizona, California, Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico, Nevada, Oklahoma, Texas and Utah.

The product comes in a 2.12-ounce, clear glass jar marked with lot #3287 on the bottom of the container and with an expiration date of October 2016. Each container is identified with an individual label showing the Sprouts Farmers Market company logo, the description: Organic Black Peppercorns.

The following products are being removed from store shelves and and bulk departments:

Customers who have purchased any of these products should not use or consume them, but return them to any Sprouts Farmers Market for a full refund.

Consumers with questions may contact Sprouts Farmers Market’s Customer Relations Department Monday through Friday 8am to 5pm PST at (480) 814-8016 or by email at customerrelations@sprouts.com.

Tyson Foods of Sedalia, Mo., is recalling approximately 75,320 pounds of frozen, fully cooked chicken nugget products.

The firm has received consumer complaints that small pieces of plastic were found in the products.

Tyson has received reports of minor oral injury associated with consumption of these products.

The following products are subject to USDA recall:

• 5-lb. bags of “Tyson Fully Cooked White Meat Chicken Nuggets – 16142-928” with a “Best if Used By” date of “Jan 26 2015” or Feb 16 2015.” The manufacturer codes “0264SDL0315 through 19” and “0474SDL0311 through 14” can also be found on the bags. These products were produced Jan. 26, 2014 or Feb. 16, 2014 and shipped nationwide to one retail warehouse club chain.
• 20-lb. bulk packs of “Spare Time Fully Cooked Nugget-Shaped Chicken Breast Pattie Fritters w/Rib Meat – 16142-861” with identifying case codes of “0264SDL0315 through 19” and “0474SDL0311 through 14.” These products were produced Jan. 26 and Feb. 16, 2014 and were shipped for institutional use in Indiana and Arkansas.

The product bags bear the establishment number “P-13556.”

Consumers with questions about the recall may contact Tyson Foods Consumer Services toll free at (866) 328-3156.  

Evenflo Company is recalling 1,368,649 convertible and harnessed child restraints, models Momentum 65 (including LX and DLX), Chase (including LX, DLX, and Select), Maestro (including Performance), Symphony (including 65, LX, 65 E3, and DLX), Snugli All-In-One, Snugli Booster, Titan 65, SureRide DLX, and Secure Kid (including LX, DLX, 100, 300, and 400).

The affected seats have model number prefixes of 306, 308, 310, 329, 345, 346, 371 or 385.

The defect involves difficulty in unlatching the harness buckle. In the convertible car seats and harnessed booster seats, the buckle may become stuck in a latched condition so that it cannot be opened by depressing the buckle's release button.

That could make it hard to remove the child from the restraint, increasing the risk of injury in the event of an emergency in which a prompt exit from the vehicle is required.

Evenflo will notify registered owners in April 2014, and start providing replacement buckles along with installation instructions.

Owners may contact Evenflo at 1-800-490-7591 or online at www.buckle.evenflo.com .

A complete list of the production dates of the affected seats is available at http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/acms/cs/jaxrs/download/doc/UCM453080/RCDNN-14C003-7777.pdf

Not all seats within the date ranges listed are included, so consumers should contact Evenflo at the above number or website with the seat's model and date of manufacture to confirm that their seat is included.

There's been a huge increase in the last few years in the number of calls to poison centers involving e-cigarette liquids containing nicotine.

A CDC study published in the agency's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report says calls shot up from 1 per month in September 2010 to 215 per month this past February. And, the report says, the number of calls per month involving conventional cigarettes did not show a similar increase during the same time period.

Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) called the increase in poisoning cases "alarming" and said the report "should serve as a wake-up call to the American people that it is time for the FTC and the FDA to regulate these products to help prevent more tragedies."

"I am particularly concerned that many e-cigarettes are packaged in bright colors and flavored to smell like candy or fruit, which puts children at higher risk of poisoning," Boxer said.

In February, Boxer introduced the Protecting Children from Electronic Cigarette Advertising Act to prohibit the marketing of e-cigarettes to children and teens. 

The trade group for e-cigarette manufacturers, the Smoke Free Alternatives Trade Association (SFATA), said it supports stronger safety measures. In a statement, executive director Cynthia Cabrera said the manufacturers "support federal age restrictions on the purchase of vapor products, childproof caps and proper labeling to safeguard against accidental ingestion of e-liquid by minors or adults."

Kids at risk

More than half (51.1%) of the calls to poison centers due to e-cigarettes involved young children 5 years and under, and about 42% of the poison calls involved people age 20 and older.

The analysis, which compared total monthly poison center calls involving e-cigarettes and conventional cigarettes, found the proportion of e-cigarette calls jumped from 0.3% in September 2010 to 41.7% in February 2014.

Poisoning from conventional cigarettes is generally due to young children eating them. Poisoning related to e-cigarettes involves the liquid containing nicotine used in the devices and can occur in three ways: by ingestion, inhalation or absorption through the skin or eyes.

“This report raises another red flag about e-cigarettes -- the liquid nicotine used in e-cigarettes can be hazardous,” said CDC Director Tom Frieden, M.D., M.P.H. “Use of these products is skyrocketing and these poisonings will continue. E-cigarette liquids as currently sold are a threat to small children because they are not required to be childproof, and they come in candy and fruit flavors that are appealing to children.”

A sweeping study

Data for this study came from the poison centers that serve the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. Territories. The study examined all calls reporting exposure to conventional cigarettes, e-cigarettes, or nicotine liquid used in e-cigarettes.

Poison centers reported 2,405 e-cigarette and 16,248 cigarette exposure calls from September 2010 to February 2014. The total number of poisoning cases is likely higher than reflected in this study, CDC says, because not all exposures might have been reported to poison centers.

“The most recent National Youth Tobacco Survey showed e-cigarette use is growing fast, and now this report shows e-cigarette related poisonings are also increasing rapidly,” said Tim McAfee, M.D., M.P.H., Director of CDC’s Office on Smoking and Health. “Health care providers, e-cigarette companies and distributors, and the general public need to be aware of this potential health risk from e-cigarettes.”

The report shows that e-cigarette liquids containing nicotine have the potential to cause immediate adverse health effects and represent an emerging public health concern. That, according to CDC, makes developing strategies to monitor and prevent future poisonings critical.

Kids love sugary cereal, the sweeter the better. It's just a fact of life.

Children, or course, don't usually buy cereal, their parents do. So to sell sugary cereal, cereal companies have to find a way to persuade children to lobby their parents to purchase a particular brand.

In the past, food companies relied heavily on advertising on television programs aimed at children. While you still see these ads, they're not quite what they once were.

Researchers concerned about food marketing influences on children remain vigilant and vocal when they find evidence of what they see as undue pressure. So the latest findings from a pair of researchers at Cornell are fascinating.

Brian Wansink, Director of Cornell’s Food and Brand Lab, and post-doctoral lab researcher Aner Tal have completed a study of the characters on the front of cereal boxes and how the boxes are displayed in grocery stores.

Eye contact

First, the researchers found that consumers are 16% more likely to “trust” a brand of cereal when the characters on the boxes – whether a photograph of a real person or a cartoon rendering – look them straight in the eye.

Next, the researchers went to supermarkets to see how cereal boxes were displayed on shelves. They found the characters on boxes of cereals aimed at adults looked straight ahead.

Not surprisingly, those boxes were displayed on upper shelves, at a typical adult's eye level.

But when they looked at the figures adorning boxes of children's cereal, the characters were looking down at about a 10 degree angle. Wansink demonstrates in the video below.

Avoid the cereal aisle

“If you are a parent who does not want your kids to go ‘cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs,’ avoid taking them down the cereal aisle,” said Wansink.

If you think products are displayed in grocery stores in a haphazard fashion, you are mistaken. Stores invest a lot of money in LED lighting, for example, to make produce look more appealing. Little is left to chance.

Tal says supermarkets are using psychology to influence what consumers buy.

“By studying more than 80 breakfast spokes-characters, we found that kids’ cereals are positioned at the same height as kids -- about 23 inches off of the floor and adult cereals are positioned at about 48 inches off of the floor,” Tal said.

Tool for good?

While all this may strike you as a little creepy, Wansink says it does not have to have negative connotations. There are plenty of healthy cereals and other food products out there for kids.

He urges marketers of those products to employ the same tactic. It could be a powerful tool, he says, to persuade both children and adults to choose a healthier breakfast cereal.

Wansink may be onto something here. There do seem to be plenty of healthier breakfast cereals.

A recent study by the Yale Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity found that cereal companies have actually improved the nutritional quality of most cereals that are marketed to children.

However, that same study found that the companies have stepped up advertising to children for many of their least nutritious products.

“Children still get one spoonful of sugar in every three spoonfuls of cereal,” said lead researcher Jennifer L. Harris, director of marketing initiatives at the Rudd Center.

The 2012 study examined the nutritional quality of more than 100 brands and nearly 300 individual varieties of cereal marketed to children, families and adults.

Bad news for frequent fliers: the Supreme Court has ruled 9-0 that airlines have the right to kick you out of their frequent flier program if you complain “too much.” And how much is too much? Apparently, whatever the airline says it is.

Last September, we reported that the Supreme Court had agreed to hear the case of Rabbi S. Binyomin Ginsberg vs. Northwest.

The Minnesota rabbi was a frequent flyer on Northwest airlines until 2008, when Northwest (which later merged with Delta) stripped him of his Platinum flyer status, allegedly for complaining too much.

Ginsberg admitted he did complain about things like lost luggage, but told the Minneapolis City Pages that “This happened at the time that Northwest and Delta were merging …. The suspicion was that they had too many frequent fliers at the higher status in their roll, and they were showing too much of a liability on a balance sheet for the accumulated miles by those passengers. So they had to creatively find ways of getting rid of people."

(In other news, last February Delta announced changes in how it would award frequent flyer miles in its SkyMiles; the majority of Delta customers complained that the new changes left them considerably worse off thn before).

Good faith, fair dealing

Lawyers for Public Citizen argued Ginsberg's case. The basic question before the court was whether the Airline Deregulation Act, which prohibits regulating airline prices or services, pre-empted Ginsberg’s contract claim based on the covenant of good faith and fair dealing.

Ginsberg and Public Citizen argued no, but on Wednesday the Supreme Court unanimously decided otherwise.

Justice Samuel Alito wrote that travelers still have protection from being mistreated by airlines, because "They can avoid an airline with a poor reputation and possibly enroll in a more favorable rival program …. Moreover, the Department of Transportation has the authority to investigate complaints about frequent flyer programs." Basically, you-the-consumer can still sue an airline for breach of contract, but not for breaking or violating a covenant.

Adina Rosenbaum, the Public Citizen attorney who represented Ginsberg, insisted that despite the retained ability to sue for breach of contract, the Supreme Court ruling “gives airlines greater freedom to act in bad faith in performing their contracts with consumers, to the detriment of the millions of consumers.”

If you have a Sam's Club or Walmart credit card (as opposed to pre-paid money card), you'll see a different logo next time you're issued a new plastic rectangle — though whether you'll see changes in your account's financial specifics remains to be seen.

However, stockholders in Walmart or various financial companies have good reason to take interest in the news that, starting this summer, Walmart credit cards will be branded with the MasterCard logo, rather than Discover.

The Wall Street Journal (followed by other business-news sites) announced the changes Friday morning:

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. co-branded credit cards will soon carry MasterCard Inc.'s logo under a deal the retailer struck with General Electric Co.'s banking arm to switch from Discover Financial Services.

As of early Friday afternoon, Walmart stock rose slightly in value, whereas the stock price of every other company involved in the deal actually dropped, which might be bad news for investors.

But what about consumers — if you have a Walmart or Sam's Club card, what if any changes will you see after switching to MasterCard?

That remains uncertain, although it is theoretically possible you'll see a slight improvement (drop) in store prices due to another recent news story involving Walmart and credit cards: at the end of March, Walmart filed a lawsuit in Arkansas (where the company is headquartered) against the VISA company, claiming that the “swipe fees” it charges merchants are too high.

In court documents, Walmart argued that “The anticompetitive conduct of Visa and the banks forced Wal-Mart to raise retail prices paid by its customers and/or reduce retail services provided to its customers as a means of offsetting some of the artificially inflated interchange fees.”

Pay it off

Regardless of what company logo is on your credit card or what stores you patronize as a shopper, it's important to pay off your credit card bill in full every month, lest you pay interest rates high enough to wipe out any presumptive savings from shopping at a cheaper store.

If you can't afford to do this, and have no choice but to carry a balance on the card from month to month, then at least avoid putting further charges on the card until you get it paid off, because you will be charged high interest on every additional purchase you make.

Despite those swipe fees Walmart complained about in court, the fees credit card companies collect from merchants whenever customers use their cards, the bulk of credit card company profits come from interest payments. Don't let their extra profits empty your pocket.

Toyota is joining Hyundai and Honda in planning to introduce hydrogen-powered fuel cell cars in California, possibly as early as next year. 

Bloomberg today quotes Toyota North American CEO Jim Lentz as saying the so-far unnamed four-door sedan will generate demand when consumers get a look at its performance, packaging and -- perhaps -- pricing.

“After we’ve seen the product, understand its range, its driving dynamics, its refueling, we’re a lot more bullish than Japan -- probably about fivefold more bullish,” Lentz said in an interview at The Wall Street Journal’s ECO:nomics conference in Santa Barbara, Calif. “It’s just a question of how many can be produced now.”

Energy lab

California, with its massive market and tough clean-air rules, has become the laboratory for new low-emission technologies. The Prius is often described as the unofficial state car and plug-in electrics and hybrids like the Nissan Leaf and Chevrolet Volt are becoming commonplace in the state's sprawling urban areas.

Most significant for fuel cell cars is California's plan for a statewide network of hydrogen refueling stations, without which the cars are impractical.

The difference between a fuel cell car and a battery-powered model like the Tesla S is that the battery models store electricity in their battery. The fuel cell cars generate it onboard in a chemical reaction between hydrogen and water.

Plug-in and hybrid electrics aren't truly zero-emission, as the electricity they use to charge their batteries has to come from somewhere -- a power plant fueled by coal or nuclear energy in most cases. Also, most hybrids and some plug-ins have back-up gas engines which are no different than the gas engines that power traditional cars.

Hydrogen-powered cars, on the other hand, emit nothing from the tailpipe except water vapor. 

300-mile range

While emissions are important to many environmentally-conscious consumers, range is vital to everybody. The Leaf has been found lacking by some Los Angeles-area motorists. They've found the car's storage isn't up to the enormous distances a trip across the region can entail. 

The Volt, on the other hand, has a battery range of only about 35 miles but when that's exhausted, a gas engine kicks in and acts as a generator for the electric motors, providing a total range of a little more than 300 miles, comparable to gas-only cars. 

Toyota says its hydrogen-powered car will also have a range of about 300 miles. 

We have taken our Chevrolet Volt test car on trips of up to 200 miles around the Washington, D.C., area this year, so far purchasing gas only twice and maintaining an average of about 100 miles per gallon. Surveying Los Angeles freeways this week, where a daily commute can easily exceed 100 miles, we've seen many more Volts than just a few months ago. 

And what will all this cost? Toyota hasn't figured that out yet, or at least it isn't providing an estimate. Not long ago, it cost about $1 million to build a fuel cell car, but Lentz said that cost has fallen by 95% in recent years, which would bring it down to about $50,000, somewhere between the Tesla, which retails for $90,000 or so, and the Volt and Leaf, which are slightly under $40,000.

Tax incentives may also lessen the bite for consumers.

With the arrival of spring homeowners eager to sell may be looking for signs that this is the year they can make a profitable deal. More homeowners who have been “underwater” since the housing crash are finally seeing some positive equity.

But home sales slowed over the winter. Will spring be any different?

Every real estate market is unique, of course, but there are some national trends that may bode well for sellers. A significant drop in foreclosures mean there are fewer low-priced “distressed” properties providing competition.

Big drop in foreclosures

The latest evidence comes from CoreLogic, a property data service, in its February National Foreclosure Report. It shows there were 43,000 completed foreclosures in the U.S. that month, down from about 51,000 from February 2013.

The month-to-month decline, from January to February, was also encouraging. Completed foreclosures were down about 13%.

What may be even more hopeful is what CoreLogic identifies as a reduction in “shadow inventory” of foreclosures. Shadow inventory refers to property that is in some stage of default – but has not reached the stage where the lender has seized the home.

That's different from completed foreclosures, which are seized properties that have either been auctioned off or placed on the market for sale. Since the financial crisis began in September 2008, there have been approximately 4.9 million completed foreclosures.

Shadow inventory down

When it comes to shadow inventory, 752,000 homes fell into that category in February. That's still a lot but significantly fewer than the 1.2 million homes making up the shadow inventory in February 2013. All in all, pretty positive news for sellers.

“The stock of seriously delinquent homes and the foreclosure rate are back to levels last seen in the final quarter of 2008,” said Anand Nallathambi, president and CEO of CoreLogic. “The shadow inventory has also declined year over year for the past 3 years as the housing market continues to heal, including double-digit declines for the past 16 consecutive months.”

Sales still weak

However well that might bode for the future, it has yet to translate into stronger home sales. In late March the National Association of Realtors (NAR) reported February's pending home sales – home contracts signed but not yet executed – fell for an eighth straight month, continuing a sluggish period in the housing recovery.

But Lawrence Yun, NAR's chief economist, sees some market stability in the numbers, especially over the last three months.

“Buyer traffic information from our monthly Realtor survey shows a modest turnaround, and some weather delayed transactions should close in the spring,” he said.

So, while chances appear to be improving that you can sell your home in a timely manner, it will be important to keep price expectations reasonable. A report by Clear Capital found that during February, nationwide home prices gained ground, but at a much slower pace.

The survey found the average home's price increased 1%, down from 2.5% a year earlier. According to the company, 2014 is only expected to see 3%-5% growth in prices.

The last bits of snow and ice have melted from lawns in most of the United States, meaning it's time to try to crank up the old lawn mower or, possibly, beat it over to the nearest big box store and pick up a new one.

Gas-powered appliances that are left outside or in an unheated garage can be pretty reluctant to start up each spring. Draining the gas and oil each fall can help but some springtime maintenance may still be needed. If you're not feeling up to that, buying a new one may save time and trouble.

Consumer Reports has taken some of the guesswork out of shopping for a new lawn mower, reviewing more than 40 models in its May 2014 issue, along iwth reviews of tractors, riding mowers, string trimmers, leaf blowers and other gadgets and lawn care products. Honda and Toro get top marks from the magazine.

“A great-looking lawn is easy if you have the right tools,” said Peter Sawchuk, test program leader for home improvement at Consumer Reports. “The best mowers and riding machines can help get a lawn back into shape in time for summer.”

In the self-propelled, gas-powered mower category – the type of mower most people buy – models from Honda and Toro earned Consumer Reports’ highest scores, including the Honda HRR2169VKA, $400, and the Toro 20381, $520, which were both CR Best Buys. The Cub Cadet SC100 11A-A92J, $250, also a CR Best Buy, topped the gas push-mower category and the Ego, LM2000, $500, earned the highest scores among the electric battery mowers tested.

While most lower-scoring lawn mowers Consumer Reports tested performed passably, several left ugly clumps in their wake, including two models from Earthwise (a plug-in mower and a self-propelled cordless) and a gas-push version from Murray.

The arrival of spring seems to have brought with it a surge in job creation.

Government figures show total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 192,000 in March, with professional and business services, health care, and mining and logging leading the charge.

As it released the latest figures, the Labor Department (DOL) revised its February number higher -- from 175,000 to 197,000.

The unemployment rate, meanwhile, held steady at 6.7%, with the number of people without jobs essentially unchanged at 10.5 million. Both measures have shown little movement since December. Over the year, the number of unemployed people and the unemployment rate fave fallen by 1.2 million and 0.8%, respectively.

The demographics

The unemployment rate for adult women rose to 6.2 % last month, and the rate for adult men fell to 6.2%. The rates for teenagers (20.9%), whites (5.8%), blacks (12.4%), Hispanics (7.9%) and Asians (5.4%) showed little or no change.

The number of long-term unemployed (those out of work for 27 weeks or more), was 3.7 million -- changed little in March, accounting for 35.8% of the unemployed. Still, the number of long-term unemployed was down by 837,000 over the year.

Both the civilian labor force and total employment rose in March, with the labor force participation rate (63.2%) and the employment-population ratio (58.9%) showing little change over the month.

Where the jobs are

The professional and business services sector was the March leader in job creation, adding 57,000 positions, followed by food services and drinking places (+30,000), health care and construction (+19,000 each), and mining and logging.

Employment in government was unchanged as a decline of 9,000 jobs in federal government was mostly offset by an increase of 8,000 jobs in local government -- excluding education. Over the past year, employment in federal government has fallen by 85,000.

Employment in other major industries, including manufacturing, wholesale trade, retail trade, transportation and warehousing, information, and financial activities, changed little over the month.

The complete March employment report is available on the DOL website.

Emparedados Boricua of Bayamon, Puerto Rico is recalling "Emparedados Boricua - Chicken and Cheese."

The products contain eggs, an allergen not listed on the label.

There have been no complaints or reports of adverse events associated with this problem

The recalled product is packaged in units of 6.5-oz. And was distributed to stores at gas stations in Puerto Rico from March 17, 2014.

Consumers with questions or concerns may call 787 635-6938.

Late-model cars usually have Bluetooth connectivity so that cell phones can be used hands-free. It's considered a safety feature by most drivers.

But is it? The National Safety Council doesn't think so. It cites more than 30 studies it says demonstrate that hands-free devices are no safer than hand-held, as the brain remains distracted by the cell phone conversation.

But if you ask most people, they'll tell you that the hands-free feature makes talking on a cell phone safer behind the wheel. In fact a recent National Safety Council poll shows 80% of consumers consider talking hands-free to be safe.

"While many drivers honestly believe they are making the safe choice by using a hands-free device, it's just not true," said David Teater, senior director of Transportation Initiatives at the National Safety Council. "The problem is the brain does not truly multi-task. Just like you can't read a book and talk on the phone, you can't safely operate a vehicle and talk on the phone.”

Confused

Part of the confusion, says Teater, stems from state laws. While a dozen states have outlawed driving and talking on a handset, the laws don't outlaw hands-free devices.

“No wonder people are confused," he said.

But a 2013 study by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is not quite so clear-cut. It finds that the main risk of cellphone use in the car is when hands-free use evolves into hand-held functions, what it calls visual-manual (VM) functions.

“VM subtasks are a concern because they require drivers to take their eyes off the road and their hands off the steering wheel to be performed,” the authors write. “Newer cell phone interfaces have been designed to simplify use by allowing drivers to initiate and end calls with voice commands or with a single button press.”

Easier to text

But the NHTSA report concedes that using these hands-free features has made it easier for drivers to use their phones for other purposes – like texting.

“There is a growing subset of the population whose primary goal of cell phone use is text messaging,” the report warns.

The NHTSA study looked at distraction-affect crashes that claimed 3,092 lives. Of those, 408 people – 13% – were killed in crashes in which at least one driver was using a cellphone.

Researchers for AAA's Foundation for Traffic Safety say even technology that allows a driver to dictate a text without using their fingers or looking at the device has dangers of its own. Their study found that mentally-distracted drivers miss visual cues, have slower reaction times, and even exhibit a sort of tunnel vision.

Carmakers' position

As for carmakers, they don't claim that their built-in hands-free technology is completely safe. For example, Toyota says that the safest choice is to avoid cell phone conversations while driving, but adds its hands-free features “may be the next best thing.”

The National Safety Council isn't pleased with the trend of carmakers equipping their dashboard infotainment systems to allow drivers to make hands-free calls as well as send text messages, email and update social media statuses.

It believes it sends the wrong message to consumers, pointing to its poll results showing 53% of respondents believe hands-free devices must be safe to use if they are built into vehicles as Exhibit A.

You've surely heard various pro-individuality proverbs like “Be yourself” or “To thine own self be true,” but if you're trying to get the best rate for your auto or homeowner's insurance policy, maybe it's a better idea to “Be somebody completely different or at least act like it, so insurance companies won't use 'price optimization' against you.”

That's the one-sentence summary of this considerably more detailed report/editorial which the Consumer Federation of America (in conjunction with the Center for Economic Justice) released last week, saying “Insurance commissioners should bar industry practice of raising rates on customers based on shopping habits,” and calling upon insurance regulators to “stop insurance companies from using so-called 'price optimization' techniques when setting rates and premiums.”

Dynamic pricing

“Price optimization” is similar to “dynamic pricing” -- basically, charging different people different prices for the same item or service, for no other reason than “They'll pay more because they don't know they can get it for less.”

For example: in 2012, the Wall Street Journal discovered that people who visited the Orbitz website on a Macintosh were shown more expensive offerings than PC users, on the theory “Macs cost more than PCs, so Mac users must be richer.”

As early as 2000, Amazon shoppers discovered that new customers were often charged lower prices than repeat shoppers -- a disparity that disappeared when return customers cleared out their computer “cookies” letting Amazon identify them as repeat business.

According to the CFA, car and home insurance companies engage in price optimization by “charg[ing] higher premiums to those consumers least likely to shop for a new policy in the face of a rate increase.”

Driving record

Bear in mind that, where insurance companies are concerned, there are many legitimate (read: not “price optimization”) reasons for insurance companies to charge different premiums, to reflect varying levels of coverage or risk — all else being equal, a person with a flawless driving record will pay much lower car insurance premiums than someone who's racked up a few accidents and speeding tickets in the last couple of years, for example.

Insurance companies are legally obligated to charge varying premiums based on variable risks like that. However, the CFA and CEJ say that price optimization charges certain people higher premiums not because they're higher risks, but simply because they're less likely to shop around and look for a better price:

The products use “price elasticity of demand” research – which incorporates sophisticated market analyses to determine which customers would be likely to accept price increases and which customers, in the face of an increase, would shop around.  This enables companies to predict whether or not they could get away with rates higher on certain groups of customers.  The consumer groups noted that low-income customers – who have fewer market options due to geography, time available, and financial literacy, tend to shop less than wealthier consumers.  These low-income consumers are the ones most harmed by price optimization.

You can say one thing in defense of traditional "dynamic pricing" websites: Sleazy as it was when (for example) certain businesses used dynamic pricing to charge Mac users higher prices than PC, at least those companies sought extra money out of people they figured were most able to afford it, rather than soaking those least able to absorb the extra costs.

Walmart may be the biggest grocer in the country but it's far from first in the hearts and minds of its customers, at least according to a Consumer Reports survey.

The magazine said Wegmans, Trader Joe’s, Publix, Costco & Sprouts got the highest consumer satisfaction scores overall among 55 of the nation’s major grocery stores.

The biggest gripe about Walmart? Not enough open checkout lanes, cited by 19% of shoppers included in the survey of  27, 208 subscribers, published in the May issue of Consumer Reports.

Since Michael Lewis appeared on CBS' 60 Minutes last Sunday talking about his book “Flash Boys,” the issue of “high frequency trading” (HFT) has been on the tip of every tongue on Wall Street. It has gotten its fair share of attention in the mainstream media as well.

What is HFT and does it affect you? Let's answer the second question first. Unless you are an institutional investor, buying a million shares at a time, probably not.

HFTs use their proprietary computer algorithm to see others' stock purchase orders a split second before they are executed, allowing them to jump in front and buy the shares first, at a lower price. A split second later, they sell them to the original buyer.

Pennies can add up

The HFT, however, may only be making a penny or two profit per share – sometimes even less than a penny – on the transaction. But the transaction may be for one million or more shares, providing a hefty profit for a transaction that took less than a second to complete.

For the average consumer with a portfolio of stocks in a retirement account, this is hardly a blip. Most of these investors rarely buy or sell shares of stock, and a penny a share on 100 shares of IBM isn't going to make much difference in capital appreciation over the long haul.

But what about mutual funds, you may ask? If investors have their retirement accounts mostly in funds, the stocks in the funds are bought and sold in large blocks and trades are more frequent.

True enough, but that might be just another reason to avoid owning mutual funds in the first place. The fees charged by these funds may be a bigger detriment to your portfolio than HFT.

Lewis' book, and the charge that the market “is rigged,” may be of much more concern to the people who make vast fortunes on Wall Street than to the average consumer – or even the average day trader.

Floor fight

Tuesday, when CNBC interviewed Brad Katsuyama, who leveled the “market is rigged” charges in Lewis' book, he was joined on the set by William O'Brien, president of BATS Global market. The exchange was so heated and bitter it actually stopped trading on the floor of the New York Stock exchange.

The issue cuts deeply across the world of Wall Street. If you happen to be one of the HFTs, you see nothing wrong with it. If you aren't part of that world, however, you're likely to see it as grossly unfair.

Investigations

Is it illegal or unethical? New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman has shown interest in that question.

He recently announced an agreement with Marketwired, a news distribution and reporting firm, to stop selling to high-frequency traders direct feeds of the information that Marketwired distributes on behalf of clients, a move he says will end advantages to high-frequency traders.

“High-frequency traders who drain the value out of market-moving information in the milliseconds before it becomes widely available to other investors erode confidence in our markets and skim from the rest of the investing public, which hurts the entire market,” Schneiderman said.

Meanwhile, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is looking into the legality issue. SEC Chair Mary Jo White told a House Appropriations subcommittee this week the agency has several on-going probes involving market integrity, including a close look at HFT.

You might think of watermelon as a summertime treat but a new study finds it's a beneficial snack year-round, especially for obese people with high blood pressure.

The study by Florida State University Associate Professor Arturo Figueroa, published in the American Journal of Hypertension, found that watermelon could significantly reduce blood pressure in overweight individuals both at rest and while under stress.

“The pressure on the aorta and on the heart decreased after consuming watermelon extract,” Figueroa said.

The study started with a simple concept. More people die of heart attacks in cold weather because the stress of the cold temperatures causes blood pressure to increase and the heart has to work harder to pump blood into the aorta. That often leads to less blood flow to the heart. 

Thus, people with obesity and high blood pressure face a higher risk for stroke or heart attack when exposed to the cold either during the winter or in rooms with low temperatures.

So, what might help their hearts? It turned out that watermelon may be part of the answer.

Figueroa’s 12-week study focused on 13 middle-aged, obese men and women who also suffered from high blood pressure. To simulate cold weather conditions, one hand of the subject was dipped into 39 degree water (or 4 degrees Celsius) while Figueroa’s team took their blood pressure and other vital measurements.

The results showed that consuming watermelon had a positive impact on aortic blood pressure and other vascular parameters.

Notably, study participants showed improvements in blood pressure and cardiac stress while both at rest and while they were exposed to the cold water.

“That means less overload to the heart, so the heart is going to work easily during a stressful situation such as cold exposure,” Figueroa said.