Although it is too early to assess the dollar damage of Florence, rank of 2005's Katrina on the list of the costliest U.S. tropical cyclones after accounting for inflation, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration: 1
Estimated cost of Katrina: $160 billion
Ranks of 2017's Harvey ($125 billion), 2017's Maria ($90 billion), 2012's Sandy ($70.2 billion) and 2017's Irma ($50 billion): 2, 3, 4, 5
Source: NOAA.
Percentage of Americans who consider the cost of prescription drugs in the United States to be "unreasonable," according to a poll from the West Health Institute, a nonpartisan, nonprofit health care research organization: 75
According to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), national health spending in 2016: $3.3 trillion
Amount going toward prescription drugs: $328.6 billion
Source: West Health Institute.
Percentage of Americans who pronounce "caramel" as "CARE-ah-mel," according to a survey commissioned by HI-CHEW and conducted online by the Harris Poll: 57
Percentage who pronounce it as "CAR-mel": 36
Source: HI-CHEW.
Percentage of cannabis consumers who currently get their supply from a friend, according to a nationwide poll conducted by SoapBoxSample: 52
Percentage who go to a dispensary: 37
Percentage who shop online for cannabis: 18
Source: SoapBoxSample.
Ranks of family, career, fitness, hobbies and social life on the list of what fitness-conscious Americans consider most important in their lives, according to a study commissioned by Zoom: 1, 2 (tie), 4, 5
Percentage who said they do or plan to teach fitness as a priority to their children: 84
Source: Zoom.
Percentage of workers who said their typical lunch break lasts 30 minutes or less, according to research from staffing firm OfficeTeam: 56
Length of the average lunch break, down from 43 minutes in 2014: 39 minutes
Percentage of employees who confessed to working during lunch: 29
Source: OfficeTeam.
Percentage of first responders who agree that mental health is as important as physical health, according to a University of Phoenix survey: 93
Percentage who believe that people who receive counseling generally get better: 83
Source: University of Phoenix.
Average amount that Americans in the lowest income bracket (under $30,000 per year) spend annually on restaurant food, prepared drinks (such as coffee, tea and smoothies) and lottery tickets, according to a Bankrate.com report: $2,118
On average, percentage of their annual income such financial vices comprise, the largest percentage of any income bracket: 13
Source: Bankrate.com.
Percentage of Americans who report that they are clean, according to an Ipsos poll: 99
Percentage who say maintaining good hygiene is a top priority: 92
Source: Ipsos Public Affairs.
Amount of credit card debt that American consumers racked up during the second financial quarter of 2018 (the fourth-biggest Q2 increase ever), according to research by WalletHub: $29.8 billion
Amount extra that a Federal Reserve interest rate increase on Sept. 26 would cost people with credit card debt in the next year alone: $1.6 billion
Amount of credit card debt owed at the beginning of the year -- the most ever: $1 trillion-plus
Source: WalletHub.
Idle Thought
"To stimulate life, leaving it free, however, to unfold itself, that is the first duty of the educator." -- Maria Montessori, educator
(Readers can contact John MacIntyre at johnmacintyre@bwr.eastlink.ca.)