There are many reasons why it can be tricky to find the right car insurance. One of the most common, especially for certain types of drivers, is that their insurance premiums are too expensive.

So, how can you obtain an insurance policy that gives you the right coverage with the best premiums?

The answer – telematics insurance.

Read on to learn what car telematics insurance is, how it works, and how it can provide you with personalized insurance premiums.

What is car telematics insurance?

Car telematics insurance is a special type of policy for your car, that analyzes your unique driving behavior and provides this information to your insurer.

With most types of insurance, your premiums will be based on your likelihood of being involved in an accident, and therefore, making any claims on your insurance.

The purpose of telematics insurance is to give your insurer a more accurate picture of how safely you drive, so they can give you a personalized premium cost that closely reflects your driving.

How does telematics insurance work?

Telematics insurance works using advanced technology to assess your driving, providing this data to your insurer.

The technology uses telecommunications (phone lines, cables, cellular networks) and informatics (computer systems that structure data) to transmit the data from your car to your insurance provider for evaluation.

To do this, most insurers provide a computer chip that’s installed in your car windshield. However, some insurers do this through an application that’s downloaded onto your mobile device instead.

If you choose the latter, it’s important that you have your location services switched on at all times, both inside and outside of your vehicle.

To analyze your driving, both forms of telematics will use motion sensors and global positioning system (GPS) to accurately register every movement whilst you drive – and also track this against your positioning on the road.

This information is then sent to your insurer.

How does telematics insurance give you personalized insurance premiums?

The main benefit of telematics insurance is that you receive personalized insurance premiums as a result of your unique driving being analyzed. Here are some of the ways this is achieved with the technology:

• Measuring your driving speeds – This measures how fast you’re driving on different roads, and compares it to the legal limit of your location. If you’re driving too fast, the system will pick it up.
• Recording how well you maneuver your car – The technology can also analyze how well you execute a range of different car maneuvers. For example, this could be how safely you’re turning your vehicle around corners (i.e., at what speeds). Also, it can asses whether you’re colliding with anything whilst parking.
• Assessing your braking – The software will be able to tell how well you’re stopping the car in time. If, for instance, you get distracted and need to brake harshly at the last minute, the system will pick up on this.
• Seeing if you use any devices on the move – It’s important to give the road your full attention when driving, so your telematics will register if you’re using your phone whilst on the move.
• Tracking the times of day you drive – It’s well regarded that later times in the day pose more of a risk to drivers, so the system will keep track of the specific times of the day you drive your car.

With all this essential data, your insurer gets a full picture of your driving behavior, and as a result, tailors your premiums to reflect this.

The safer you drive, the cheaper your premiums will be!

As many businesses and employees look towards the coming months to recover from the impact of COVID-19, it’s impossible to ignore the loss that this pandemic has brought about. Following restrictions, businesses have closed and those that have remained open have been put under tremendous stress, leading to unemployment levels not seen since the early 20^th century. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, there has been a decrease of 12.1 million working hours and 142,000 workers from the work force between April and May 2020.

In addition to providing income and financial security, employment is linked to an individual’s sense of self, providing structure, a sense of purpose and social stimulation. It follows that, unemployment can lead to poorer physical and mental health including anxiety, depression and generally poorer psychological wellbeing outcomes (Harris & Harris, 2009). This is especially devastating for individuals who loved their job or had spent a significant amount of time building their career. It is therefore not uncommon to experience an overwhelming sense of loss and grief upon job loss. Some may even experience what psychologists refer to as ‘identity crises’ that results in the knowledge of who I am becoming unclear or unrecognisable to an individual (Maitlis, 2020).

In Maitlis’ (2019) research, it was found that individuals were able to move through their loss and grow in the following three phases:

Phase 1: Managing distress and regulating emotions

After the loss of a job, there can be overwhelming feelings of anxiety[1], grief[2], anger[3] and shame, etc. that can be difficult to regulate. Emotional responses are heightened in this period due to increased levels of cortisol and adrenaline, which can also make it difficult to focus on other things. Both of these hormones can help us to react in the moment, however when emotion-based processing takes over, this can be less helpful over time. In these circumstances, our clear thinking and self-regulation can be inhibited. To counter the potentially negative effects of emotion-based processing, we can start to process job loss or under-employment by seeking support from others or practicing relaxation techniques (e.g. mindfulness or breathing exercises) that allow us to acknowledge these emotions.[4]

Recovery from the shock and grief of sudden unemployment is difficult and takes time. Moreover, looking towards new possibilities, especially with the added challenges of reduced social support, hiring freezes and increased mental and financial stress is not always an immediate solution. Part of navigating the experience of grief and shock experienced through employment changes can involve ‘sitting with’ the psychological discomfort and allowing oneself time to process these experiences. Supportive self-care strategies and small psychological thinking shifts during this time could include:

• Prioritising self-care: eating healthy foods, getting the recommended 7-8 hours of sleep each night and, moving your body each day;
• Seeking and maintaining positive social connections: with peers, friends, family, local community groups, etc., and;
• Giving yourself permission: to grieve for what you feel has been lost, what you are grateful for in this moment, and allow yourself time to imagine what possibilities there could be in future if options were limitless.

Phase 2: Sensemaking

This process begins after we are able to regulate our emotions and involves working to make sense of the loss. Part of this is mentally creating a narrative for ourselves around the experience of what has happened, and what this means to us as an individual. Making sense of something unexpected and traumatic can allow the individual to regain that sense of control and security that they lost when removed from their job. This can involve reframing the experience of job loss and re-evaluating job experience, skills and qualities for a new role or career, which can be supported by talking to trusted advisors about our experience.

Phase 3: Experiment and integrate

As a follow up to sensemaking, we can make opportunities to experiment and grow our self-identity. These experiments can involve working on new or past hobbies, listening to talks, meeting new people or taking on short-term work. As we experiment, we can continue to reflect on these experiences and what they might mean for us, whether it is reflection of these new experiences in the context of our career or personal life.

While unemployed individuals are looking towards the job market to secure their next job, they may be competing against others who are also seeking a change in career. The time removed from the office and routine allows for some reflection to take place, wherein we can take a moment to think about what may or may not be missing from our usual routine. As a result, we may come to realise that our career or organisation are no longer able to meet our psychological or material needs. This could promote a desire for more flexibility, professional development opportunities or even highlight a mismatch in preferred work styles or values. Some strategies that individuals may look to adopt under these circumstances could include:

• Exploring career coaching opportunities (e.g. accessing registered psychologists that provide such services through the ‘Find a Psychologist’ function on the APS website[5]);
• Returning to education and training to explore valued domains;
• Reimagining career pathways in the same or even a different organisation, or;
• Exploring opportunities to satisfy your value-needs outside of work (e.g., beginning a ‘passion project’, volunteering in your community, spending more time with family, etc.).

In the long term, it is worth considering how to minimise the negative effect of unemployment on mental health. It has been suggested that a change in government and organizational policies could have a role in shifting the significance of employment on the perception of individual worth. For example, recognizing social roles (such as caregiving as work) may encourage parents and other caretakers to find pride and meaning in these roles in addition to their roles in paid work (Rao, 2020). Organisations could take lessons learnt from online and remote working experiences in the past few months to shift expectations around availability and ‘face-time’ by adopting a focus on promoting flexible work policies, wherein utilising such policies is seen as acceptable and does not impinge upon perceived or objective career success (Rao, 2020).

While unemployment can be distressing and put financial and mental stress on the affected individuals, there are steps that can be taken to move through this difficult time and grow in the process. Resources and support from registered psychologists can be accessed on the APS website.  Whereas many psychologists will focus on the provision of support for managing psychological distress and grief, organisational psychologists can provide outplacement services, career development, leadership and career coaching services. Individuals looking to seek support can access ‘Find a Psychologist’ to search for psychologists by location, specialised psychological issues, language spoken and Medicare eligibility.

This article was first published in Psychlopaedia

In this article, let us understand what Saral Jeevan Bima is, along with its features and benefits.

What Is Saral Jeevan Bima?

A regular term life insurance plan can keep the loved ones of the insured person financially safe in case of the uncertain demise of the insured. But the insurance companies usually consider various factors before offering a term plan. These factors may include income, gender, occupation, place of residence, or educational qualifications. Due to these initial checkpoints, many people fail to get the term life cover with the intended sum insured. 

The idea of the Saral Jeevan bima was that a standard life insurance product with simple features and benefits would enable policy buyers to make easier and informed choices. The benefits, exclusions, inclusions and features of the saral bima yojana remain the same, no matter which insurer you choose. Although claim settlement rates, prices, service levels may vary from company to company. 

Features Of Saral Bima Yojana

A term life insurance is a must-have policy for everyone, and Saral Jeevan bima is a policy created to make sure that it is straightforward and accessible to the policy buyers. Here are some of the key features of the Saral Jeevan bima: –

• The policy buyer has the flexibility to choose the premium payment term. You can pay the premiums for 5 to 40 years to get adequate life cover
• Saral bima yojana offers long term coverage. The term insurance coverage may be offered up to the age of 70.
• Saral Jeevan Bima is easy to understand. It is a pure term life insurance plan with death benefits but no maturity or survival benefits.
• It is a term plan coverage for all individuals. There are no restrictions based on education, occupation, place of living, or gender.

Benefits Of Saral Jeevan Bima

Saral Jeevan bima is a standard term life insurance plan that can be purchased easily at any insurance company. The benefits remain the same across insurers. Here are some of the benefits offered under Saral Jeevan Bima: –

• Coverage Of Death Due To COVID-19

Saral Jeevan Bima was specifically designed by the IRDAI, keeping in mind the COVID-19 pandemic situation. Saral Bima Yojana is the protection plan that covers death due to coronavirus. 

• Death Benefit

Being a standard term plan, Saral Jeevan Bima offers the sum insured to the nominee in the event of the unfortunate death of the insured person. The death benefit can help the loved ones of the deceased to cope with the financial challenges. They will not have to compromise their basic requirements due to the lack of funds.

• Waiting Period

Saral Bima Yojana offers a waiting period of 45 days from the date of the beginning of the risk. The waiting period may not be applicable in case the policy is renewed. It also provides death cover due to accidents during the 45 day waiting period.

• Tax Benefits

Under section 80C of the Income Tax Act, the premiums paid for Saral Jeevan Bima are eligible for tax deductions. It means that by buying this policy, you gain financial protection and tax benefits.

Things To Remember While buying Saral Jeevan Bima

Here are a few things you should keep in mind while buying Saral Jeevan Bima: –

• The maximum maturity age is 70 years.
• The minimum sum insured is 5 lakhs, and the maximum is 25 lakhs.
• A person in the age range of 18 years to 65 years can easily buy Saral Jeevan Bima.
• Loans are not allowed against this policy.
• No maturity benefit is provided under Saral Bima Yojana.
• The premiums can be paid yearly, half-yearly, or monthly. There is also an option to pay a single premium in lump sum amount.
• The case is considered void if the insured dies by suicide.

Saral Jeevan Bima is the term plan that offers coverage to all individuals without any restrictions. Some common myths of term insurance plan are floating around, and you must avoid them. Even though the features and benefits offered for Saral Jeevan Bima by all insurers are the same, premium amounts may vary. You can consider buying Saral Jeevan Bima from Max Life Insurance. They offer the policy at affordable premiums with extensive benefits to ensure the financial security of your loved ones.

What evidence should we take into account while addressing this question? The question is how the world has evolved, which is why we need to look at it from a historical standpoint. And because the subject concerns the entire planet, the answer must take everyone into account. The solution must take into account the history of global living circumstances, as well as the history of everything. Poverty on a grand scale is one of the world’s most pressing issues today. Is it possible to make progress against this issue? To understand where we come from, we must travel across time. Thirty or even fifty years is insufficient.

When you simply analyse what the globe looked like throughout our lifetime, it is easy to infer that the world is static (with better portions of the world here and poorer sections there) and that it was always this way. This will be the case. When you look at things from a different viewpoint, it becomes evident that the world is far from static. We have the power to transform the world. Just a few generations ago, the wealthy countries were impoverished. To avoid statically depicting the globe – the North is always considerably wealthier than the South – we must go back 200 years before living circumstances altered dramatically.

Living on less than $1.90 per day is considered ‘severe poverty’ by the United Nations. This is a very low poverty level used to highlight the world’s poorest people.

Non-monetary means of income are included in these poverty estimates, which is crucial for poor families now and in the past, especially because many of them are subsistence farmers who rely on their food production. The extreme poverty gauge is also adjusted for price fluctuations over time (inflation) and compensated for varying price levels in different nations; poverty is assessed in the so-called ‘international dollar.’ In 2011, an international dollar had the same purchasing power as a US dollar as a result of these modifications.

Estimates of the fraction of the world’s population living in extreme poverty are shown in the first graph. Only a small elite had improved living conditions in 1820, but the great majority of people suffered in what we now term abject poverty. Since then, the percentage of severely impoverished individuals has progressively decreased. As more parts of the world became industrialised, productivity grew, allowing more people to escape poverty: in 1950, two-thirds of the world lived in extreme poverty; in 1981, it was still 42 per cent. The fraction of the world’s population living in extreme poverty fell below 10% in 2015, the most recent year for which we have statistics.

The $1.90 poverty level is extremely low because it only applies to the world’s poorest people. In terms of the most impoverished people, the globe is likewise making progress. In reality, regardless of whose poverty level you choose, the number of people living in poverty has decreased internationally (see here).

For me, as a scholar who studies growth and inequality, that is maybe the most significant achievement of the previous two centuries. This is especially impressive given that the world’s population has grown by a factor of seven in the previous two centuries: disable the ‘Relative’ option in this visualisation to view the number of individuals in and out of poverty. Multiplying the population by 7 would have resulted in ever-decreasing earnings for everyone in a society without economic progress, and it would have been enough to plunge everyone into abject poverty. However, the exact reverse occurred. At a time when the world’s population was growing at an unprecedented rate, our globe was able to deliver greater wealth to more people and continue to elevate more people out of poverty.

Increased production was crucial because it reduced the scarcity of essential commodities and services such as food, clothes, and housing. Productivity is the link between the outcome of our work and the input we put into it. As productivity improved, we gained more output but also fewer inputs: weekly working hours were significantly decreased.

Economic development was also significant since it altered people’s relationships. During the long period when the world was stagnant, the only way to improve was for someone else to deteriorate. It was a no-win situation. Your good fortune was due to the misfortunes of your neighbours. Growth in the economy altered that; it allowed you to be better off while others were better off. Some people benefited from the inventiveness of those who created the technologies that improved productivity—modern transportation, manufacturing machines, and communication technology—while others saw their productivity and earnings rise. It is difficult to emphasise how different life is in a positive-sum economy versus a zero-sum economy.

Unfortunately, the media is too preoccupied with covering one-off events and mishaps to pay enough attention to the long-term trends that are transforming our society. We may outline what a medium for reporting on global development might look like using this empirical fact on poverty reduction. ‘The number of people in severe poverty has reduced by 130,000 since yesterday,’ the headline might read, and it would be repeated every day since 1990 when there were 130,000 fewer people in extreme poverty on average every day. The figures are considerably more stunning if you choose a higher poverty threshold.

Taking care of your elderly relatives is something that people rarely think of or plan for. Many people think of their parents as indestructible and so it can be hard to see them need your help. Worse than this it can be tough if you don’t really know what to do. There are lots of things that you can do for your relatives when they start to age that won’t rob them of their independence and will still make sure that they are safe. Here is a list of things that you can do just to get you started before you tailor their care to them. 

Medical systems

A handy gadget you can get installed in your senior relative’s house is a mobile medical alert system. This will keep track of your relatives’ vitals and health. When something goes wrong, it will alert you and the nearest medical emergency services to ensure quick and speedy aid is given. This can make all the difference to someone who is older. They are a tad expensive, but it means that you can rest easy when you are at work or away from them knowing that you will be alerted if something goes wrong. 

Bathroom modifications

One of the most dangerous rooms in the home, especially for a senior member of the family, is the bathroom. It is full of slips and trips with the added danger that everything is usually wet and slippery. However, don’t fear you don’t need to make huge adjustments to the bathroom to make it safer. You can install a waterproof seat in the shower and a raised toilet seat with grab handles to help them get on and off. These simple changes can go a long way to making things safer. 

Rugs

This may not be something that people want to get rid of, but rugs are a trip hazard, especially for those who struggle with their mobility. This is really true of those that needed a walking stick or walking frame. You should discuss removing rugs as they are a real trip and slip hazard. If this is not an option, then you can perhaps secure the edges so that they are pinned down and are less of a threat. 

Create a support network 

This is something that you need to establish. Not only will it take the pressure off of you but ensure that if an accident does occur someone will be able to make their way over to your relatives. However, don’t feel that you are limited to just your friends and family. There are often local networks that provide emergency services if you cannot be a full-time carer. Investigate these as an option to provide that extra security for your relatives.

Making things safer

Getting older happens to us all. it can be easy to look at your relatives and try and smother them with protection. However, you can make slight changes to their lifestyle to make sure that they can continue to have a good quality of life without feeling like a burden.  

The ability to lactate exists in a variety of male animals, though male milk production is typically a rare occurrence. However, male Dayak fruit bats are commonly known to lactate. So what about human male lactation? Believe it or not, men can, in fact, lactate. Possessing all the necessary equipment (see: Why Do Men Have Nipples), the main reasons men don’t have it happen very often is mostly just a lack of sufficient amounts of a single necessary hormone.

Milk is produced in small hollow cavities in breast tissue called alveoli, where the linings contain cells that secrete milk when properly triggered. While there are a variety of things that go into someone lactating, including various hormones, the main trigger for milk production is sufficient amounts of the hormone prolactin, which is primarily produced by the pituitary gland, though also by the prostate in men and a layer of the uterine wall known as the myometrium in women, among other places.

Both men and women have alveoli, but typically have markedly different levels of prolactin. In fact, a normal non-pregnant woman has around one third to twice the hormone than the average man at any given time. Late in a pregnancy and after giving birth, prolactin levels can peak as high as ten times more in these women compared to what you’ll typically find in males.

So how can men lactate without the necessary processes involved in child birth triggering a ramp up of prolactin production?

Prolactin is ultimately metabolized by the liver helping to regulate its concentration in the body in conjunction with certain mechanisms in the hypothalamus. When the liver isn’t functioning properly, abnormally high levels of certain hormones may build up. This is what is thought to have happened to hundreds of male POWs during WWII, who, after suffering months of starvation, began lactating during their recovery; experts opine that the stress and deprivation interfered with the liver and certain hormone producing glands’ normal activities. Once properly fed, the liver took longer to recover than the hormone producing glands- pertinent to the topic at hand resulting in a build-up of concentration of prolactin in the POWs’ bodies, causing them to start lactating.

More recently a report in the Canadian Medical Association Journal documented a case of a man who had a pituitary tumor that resulted in, among other things, overproduction of prolactin, causing him to lactate.

In fact, there are numerous reports throughout history of men lactating, including in The Talmud, where a poor man whose wife died while their baby was quite young had “a miracle . . . his breasts opened and he nursed his child.”

In Numbers 11:12 in the Bible, (whether claiming it was a known literal occurrence or not isn’t clear) it notes, “Have I conceived all this people? Have I begotten them, that thou shouldest say unto me, Carry them in thy bosom, as a nursing father beareth the sucking child, unto the land which thou swarest unto their fathers?”

In Anomalies and Curiosities of Medicine (1896), Gould & Pyle report that both a male South American native and male Brazilian missionaries nursed children after their wives lost the ability. And a similar much more modern and well documented report was made in 2002 of a Sri Lankan man, Mr. B Wijeratne, who took up breastfeeding his 18 month old daughter after his wife died giving birth to their second child. He initially had attempted to feed the older child formula upon her mother’s death, but this was summarily rejected by the toddler. He later stated, “unable to see her cry, I offered my breast. That’s when I discovered that I could breastfeed her.”

If you’re wondering how this is possible, it’s known that expectant fathers and those with newborns also see a spike in prolactin compared to their normal levels.

While not anywhere close to enough to cause lactation in men normally, you may be aware that nipple suckling can result in women who didn’t just have a baby ultimately lactating anyway. What’s less well-known is that the receptors responsible for triggering the brain to in turn stimulate the pituitary gland to produce more prolactin and trigger the release of oxytocin, which is necessary to get the milk flowing, exist and function in both men and women.

This process can commonly be observed in cases of women adopting babies and wanting to breastfeed them. They are able to achieve this via regularly having the child suckle and further using a breast pump every few hours over the course of several weeks. According to the Goldfarb Breastfeeding Clinic, in a small study they conducted looking at 228 women attempting this, 31% were able to produce enough milk to provide the full caloric and nutritional needs of the baby. While that may seem a small percentage, it should be noted that nearly all 228 women were at least able to provide some milk to their adopted babies.

This same thing can also be observed in various animals, including sometimes used to cause goats who have never had kids to produce milk. (Editor’s note: I personally had a dog once who never had puppies herself in her near 20 years of life, but for several years in her youth new litters of kittens produced by various barn cats would inevitably see her breasts engorge as she took over breastfeeding the many kittens. She’d even eventually become extremely protective of them, ultimately not letting the actual mother cats go near them anymore. Sort of bizarre, but the kittens never seemed worse for wear and grew up to be seemingly healthy cats.)

In any event, for men, as with women, the net result of having a baby around and regularly using a breast pump / letting said baby suckle results in a prolactin spike. For some men, this may be high enough to trigger milk production, allowing the male to breastfeed a baby. (Whether that’s what happened in the case of the Sri Lankan man or if he had some other condition isn’t clear, with his physician, Dr. Kamal Jayasinghe, simply noting to the media, “Men with hyperactive prolactin hormone can produce breast milk.”)

There are also some drugs that occasionally have the side effect of increased prolactin concentration in the body sufficient to cause male lactation, such as the antipsychotic chlorpromazine (marketed under the name Thorazine and Largactil) and the heart medication digoxin (marketed under the name Lanoxin, among other names).

It should also be noted here that some teenage and adult men produce milk without babies or drugs. Called male galactorrhea, it often develops during the hormone surge of puberty, but can also be caused by hypothyroidism, among other conditions. Videos documenting such lactation, such as Bodybuilder Chest Milk, abound on the web.

In addition, approximately 5% of newborn babies of both sexes secrete milk from their breasts. Colloquially called Witch’s milk, it is believed to be caused by the combined effects of prolactin and growth hormones from the mother’s milk, along with thyroid and pituitary hormones from the baby. The milk produced is similar in composition to a typical woman’s milk. The condition usually subsides within a couple of months.

Finally, as I’m sure there are some men out there interested despite the social stigma (and potentially some women who’d kill for their men to be able to help out on the breastfeeding front), outside of the aforementioned nipple suckling technique boosting prolactin levels, a more effective solution for men would be to simply introduce more prolactin into the body directly. However, while this is sometimes done to induce lactation in animals, at least as far as I can find, it doesn’t appear to be a treatment available to human males wanting to breastfeed their children, and potential side effects of sustained extremely high levels of prolactin in males doesn’t appear to be something well studied. However, it is known that abnormally high prolactin levels can cause a loss of libido in men and women, and in men potential problems with impotence while said levels remain high. Further, prolactin is involved in at least 300 known processes in the body, including playing a role in one’s metabolism and immune system, and in men potentially lowering testosterone levels.

It should also be noted that the general consensus is that, due to certain physiological processes during puberty, even with sufficient prolactin it is unlikely a breastfeeding father would produce nearly as much milk as a woman with equivalent levels. That said, while that seems to be the general consensus of the medical community, I couldn’t actually find any study looking at volume of milk production in lactating males that have been studied.

And if you’re wondering about the nutritional value of human male breast milk compared to female breast milk, in a 1981 study of a lactating human male, it was determined that, much like the milk found in both male and female lactating babies, “The concentrations of lactose, proteins, and electrolytes in the breast secretion of this man are within the range of colostrum and milk obtained from normal lactating women.”

This article has been previously published on Today I Found Out. You can follow them on their YouTube channel.