May by Ahmed Times

GUIDE TO

Living with Arthritis Arthritis is inflammation of the joints (the points where bones meet) in one or more areas of the body. There are more than 100 different types of arthritis, all of which have different causes and treatment methods.

he symptoms of arthritis usually appear gradually but they may also occur suddenly. Arthritis is most commonly seen in adults over the age of 65 but it can also develop in children and teens. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, arthritis is more common in women than men and in those that are overweight (CDC). What Causes Arthritis? Cartilage is a flexible, connective tissue in joints that absorbs the pressure and shock created from movement like running and walking. It also protects the joints and allows for smooth movement. Some forms of arthritis are caused by a reduction in the normal amount of this cartilage tissue. Osteoarthritis, one of the most common forms of arthritis, is caused by normal wear and tear throughout life; this natural breakdown of cartilage tissue can be exacerbated by an infection or injury to the joints. The risk of developing osteoarthritis may be higher if you have a family history of the disease. Another common form of arthritis, rheumatoid

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arthritis, occurs when your body’s immune system attacks the tissues of the body. These attacks affect the synovium, which secretes a fluid that nourishes the cartilage and lubricates the joints. Rheumatoid arthritis can eventually lead to the destruction of both bone and cartilage inside the joint. The exact cause of the immune system’s attacks has not yet been discovered, but scientists have discovered genetic markers that increase your risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis tenfold. What Are the Signs of Arthritis? The most common symptoms of arthritis involve the joints. Joint pain and stiffness, mostly in the morning, are typical signs, along with swelling of the joints. You may also experience a decrease in range of motion of your joints or redness of the skin around the joint. In the case of rheumatoid arthritis you may feel tired or experience a loss of appetite because of the inflammation caused by your body’s attacking immune system. You may also become anemic (experience decreased red blood cells) or have a slight fever. Severe rheumatoid arthritis can cause joint deformity if left untreated.

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How Is Arthritis Treated? The main goal of treatment is to reduce the amount of pain you’re experiencing and prevent any additional damage to the joints. Improving your joint function is also important, and you may be prescribed a combination of treatment methods to achieve the best results. Medication Medications that can help arthritis symptoms include: Medications that control pain, like hydrocodone (Vicodin) or acetaminophen (Tylenol), are effective for pain, but don’t help decrease inflammation. Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) help control both pain and inflammation, but they have been linked to a higher risk of stroke or heart attack. If you take tan oral form of NSAIDs, they can upset your stomach. Menthol or capsaicin creams may be used to impede your joint’s pain signal transmission. If you have rheumatoid arthritis your doctor may put you on corticosteroids or disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) that suppress your immune system.

Exercises will decrease pain, improve and increase the range of motion in joints, strengthen the muscles surrounding a joint, and thus reduce the symptom of pain, besides helping us to endure it better. On the other hand, inactivity, which can lead to muscle weakness, can cause instability in a joint. The ‘right’ exercises are those that will build and strengthen the muscles around a joint without damaging the joint itself, and include exercises such as walking, cycling, low-impact aerobics and swimming. High-impact exercises and those that involve repetition of the same movement are best avoided. The use of alcohol and tobacco should be cut down or stopped. Tobacco weakens the connective tissue, thereby increasing joint laxity and alcohol can make you overweight besides altering your sensorium, making you more helpless and susceptible to injury. Further, statistics show that arthritis is associated with other health problems such as heart disease, hypertension and Diabetes. By no means should the treatment of these diseases be ignored on account of the pain and suffering of arthritis.

Surgery Surgery to have your joint replaced with an artificial one may be an option. This form of surgery is most commonly performed to replace hips and knees. If your arthritis is most severe in your fingers or wrists, your doctor may perform a joint fusion. In this procedure, the ends of your bones are locked together until they heal and become one. Physical Therapy Physical therapy involving exercises that help strengthen the muscles around the affected joint is a core component of arthritis treatment. Weight loss and maintaining a healthy weight can reduce the symptoms in those that have osteoarthritis, and they are also effective in reducing the risk of developing osteoarthritis.

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Foods that should never cross your lips

he U.S. spends twice as much per-capita on healthcare as most other wealthy nations, yet trails every one when it comes to the death rate from preventable diseases, according to the nonpartisan health-research foundation The Commonwealth Fund. One reason: Most healthcare dollars are spent on drugs and therapies that treat health problems after they develop and not on prevention strategies that could ward off them off in the first place. What’s more, many Americans have unhealthy lifestyle habits that contribute to heart disease, cancer, diabetes, Alzheimer’s, and other conditions. But Dr. Evelyn Higgins tells Newsmax Health there is a better way. As a doctor, author, and syndicated radio show host, she has built a career preaching the gospel of wellness and prevention. She argues that health is more than simply the absence of disease and 70-80 percent of ailments are lifestylebased — from eating the wrong foods (including seven you should never consume) and not exercising enough. “In Western Medicine, we use a disease model. In other words, you’re healthy or you’re sick … there’s no in-between,” she says. “And what I’m saying is that all the living that we do in-between brings us either closer to health or to disease. And that’s what I’m trying to teach people to really understand — how it is we become

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healthy, we prevent disease, we stay healthy, and conversely, the other side of that.” Dr. Higgins notes that United States consumes two-thirds of the entire world’s pharmaceuticals, yet we are 35th in terms of life expectancy. “So the answer doesn’t lie in a pill,” she explains. “And that’s not … to say don’t ever take pharmaceutical drugs [or] don’t ever have surgery. Far from that; they serve a purpose. [But] we think that that’s the answer to everything instead of saying, ‘OK what do I need to do for myself each and every day to get closer to that health that I’m really after.’“ To that end, she recommends steering clear of the following seven foods and seeking out healthier alternatives to reduce your overall health risks: Canned tomatoes: The linings of tin cans contain bisphenol-A (BPA), a synthetic estrogen linked to reproductive problems, heart disease, diabetes, and obesity. “What happens is with the acidity of the tomatoes [BPA] leaches out and your body takes in those BPAs when you eat the tomatoes from the can,” she says. A better option: Go with glassbottled tomatoes, which are loaded with cancerfighting lycopene and other health-boosting compounds.

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Corn-fed beef: Farmers feed their animals corn and soybeans, which make the beef less nutritious. Instead, choose grass-fed beef, Dr. Higgins advises. A recent study conducted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Clemson University found grass-fed beef is higher in beta-carotene, vitamin E, omega-3 fatty acids, conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), calcium, magnesium, and potassium than corn-fed beef. “You want the grass-fed cows,” she says. “A lot of the good benefits aren’t there [in corn-fed beef ] anymore.” Microwave popcorn: Chemicals, including perfluorooctanoic acid, in the resins lining microwave popcorn bags may cause infertility, according to research by the University of California-Los Angeles. Animal studies have also linked the chemicals to liver, testicular, and pancreatic cancer. The healthier alternative: Pop natural kernels the old-fashioned way — in a skillet. “Let’s go old school, like you used to do in the skillet, when we were kids,” Dr. Higgins recommends. “That’s the healthy way to do it, because popcorn is really a low calorie, good [whole] food to fill you up.” Non-organic potatoes: Root vegetables absorb pesticides, herbicides, and fungicides used by farmers to grow them and washing won’t remove those chemicals. Your best bet: Buy organic potatoes, which are only slightly more expensive than conventionally grown spuds. “Spending that extra dollar or two dollars to buy

organic is definitely worth it when it comes to potatoes,” she says. Farmed salmon: Farmed salmon are fed fish foods that contain more carcinogens — such as PCBs, brominated flame retardants, pesticides, dioxin and DDT — than wild fish consume, studies show. A better alternative: Wild-caught Alaska salmon, which is a nutritious low-fat source of protein loaded with heart-boosting fish oils and omega-3s, Dr. Higgins notes. Milk produced with artificial hormones: Dairy cows are treated with recombinant bovine growth hormone (rBGH or rBST) to boost milk production. But it can increases udder infections and can lead to higher levels of a hormone called insulin-like growth factor that may contribute to breast, prostate, and colon cancers, research shows. A healthier option: Go for milk labeled rBGH-free, rBST-free or organic. “You want to buy the milk that doesn’t have the hormones in it,” Dr. Higgins advises. Conventional apples: Apples are sprayed more frequently with agricultural chemicals than many other types of fruit for various reasons. While the industry maintains that these residues are safe, studies show farm workers have higher cancer rates. The upshot: Buy organic apples or be sure to wash and peel conventional fruit. “That’s another thing, like the potatoes, [where it’s] really worth it to buy the organic.”

Childhood bullying effects can last a lifetime: Study The negative social, physical and mental health effects of childhood bullying are still evident nearly 40 years later, according to research by British psychiatrists. In the first study of its kind to look at the effects of childhood bullying beyond early adulthood, the researchers said its impact is “persistent and pervasive,” with people who were bullied when young more likely to have poorer physical and psychological health and poorer cognitive functioning at age 50.

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“The effects of bullying are still visible nearly four decades later ... with health, social and economic consequences lasting well into adulthood,” said Ryu Takizawa, who led the study at the Institute of Psychiatry at King’s College London. The findings, published in the American Journal of Psychiatry on Friday, come from the British National Child Development Study which includes data on all children born in England, Scotland and Wales during one week in 1958.

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Massage can improve circulation for 3 days, researchers find

later. In contrast, those in the group that didn’t receive a massage said they were sore 24 hours after they exercised.

Those effects can last for more than 72 hours, researchers found. People with poor circulation or limited ability to move are among those who could benefit most from massage therapy, they noted.

Because muscle injury from exercise has been shown to reduce blood flow, researchers say, they also measured the participants’ “brachial artery flow mediated dilation” in their arms. This standard measure of general vascular health was taken 90 minutes as well as one, two and three days after exercise.

assage therapy can help ease sore muscles and improve blood flow for people who are active as well as for those who do not exercise, a small study finds.

“Our study validates the value of massage in exercise and injury, which has been previously recognized but based on minimal data,” Nina Cherie Franklin, study first author and a postdoctoral fellow in physical therapy at the University of Illinois at Chicago, said in a university news release. “It also suggests the value of massage outside of the context of exercise.”

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levels at 72 hours.

In the study, the researchers asked 36 healthy but inactive young adults to use a leg press machine until their legs became sore. Half of the participants were given a Swedish leg massage after they exercised. All of the participants rated their muscle soreness on a scale from one to 10. A third comparison group did not exercise, but got a massage. Although both exercise groups were sore right after their workout, the people who got the massage said they had no soreness 90 minutes

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The people who got a massage after they exercised had improved blood flow at every testing interval and the benefits of the massage didn’t dissipate until after 72 hours had passed, researchers found. People who did not receive a massage after exercise had reduced blood flow after 90 minutes and returned to normal

“We believe that massage is really changing physiology in a positive way,” Franklin said. “This is not just blood flow speeds -- this is actually a vascular response.” And massage doesn’t just help people who exercise, the researchers also found. The study found that participants’ blood flow was changed far away from the sore muscles. Researchers concluded that massage benefits are systemic and not confined to one specific area of the body.

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Five bad skin habits to avoid!

ou cleanse, moisturise and you do everything you can to keep the skin, especially on your face looking supple, soft and young. But it doesn’t help and you wonder why your skin still looks patchy, dull and dry besides doing so much. May be it’s because you do not follow the correct skincare techniques. Below are some bad skincare habits that you need to avoid: Over exfoliating: Regular exfoliation can help you avoid blemishes. But overdoing it can actually exacerbate oil production and worsen breakouts by spreading bacteria.

to share makeup with other people. Sharing makeup is really harmful as it is essentially swapping germs. Also, people have become infected with diseases like pink eye from sharing makeup. Picking at your skin: Avoid picking at blemishes, pimples, moles and other spots as doing so can cause bleeding, creating an open wound that’s susceptible to bacteria, and leave you with scars. TIIPS FOR YOUR SKIN CARE Smoking makes your skin look older and contributes to wrinkles. Smoking narrows the tiny blood vessels in the outermost layers of skin, which decreases blood flow. This depletes the skin of oxygen and nutrients that are important to skin health. Smoking also damages collagen and elastin — the fibers that give your skin its strength and elasticity. In

Not using sunscreen: To keep your skin from getting wrinkled and saggy, use a sunscreen with an SPF of 30 or higher. Apply all over your face and other parts of the body exposed to the sun. Not just in summer, but we should know that sunscreen should be worn every day and everywhere. Using the wrong products: Using products that is wrong for your skin type is an enormously common mistake. So go for a product that will suit your skin type. Sharing makeup: It is highly advisable not

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quit.

addition, the repetitive f a c i a l expressions you make when smoking — such as pursing your lips when inhaling and squinting your eyes to keep out smoke — can contribute to wrinkles. If you smoke, the best way to protect your skin is to

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Foot wounds are major threat to diabetics: Researchers

or people with diabetes, one foot ulcer is very likely to lead to another, according to a new study that finds even minor lesions create a major risk of more severe foot wounds. The best defense, Dutch researchers say, is to treat even minor sores carefully and to protect feet from pressure and injury with specialized footwear. “I hope medical specialists, and other health care practitioners will use this knowledge and implement it in clinical practice,” said senior author Sicco Bus, staff scientist with the Academic Medical Center at the University of Amsterdam. People with diabetes often lose feeling in their feet as a result of nerve damage, known as myelopathy. The lack of sensation makes diabetics prone to injure their feet without realizing it, and allows small wounds to grow into serious ulcers that can eventually lead to infection or gangrene. In the U.S., 26 million Americans have diabetes. Every year, 65,700 of these patients have lowerlimb amputations. Past research has shown that having had a foot ulcer is a significant risk factor for having more of them. “Ulcer recurrence is a debilitating condition for the patient, risking further complications such as infection and

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amputation, and influencing loss of patient mobility and quality of life,” Bus said. To find out what factors most strongly predict who will develop foot ulcers, Bus and his colleagues analyzed data from a large trial of specialized footwear for diabetes patients with nerve damage in their feet. For the new analysis, the researchers focused on 171 participants, all of whom reported having a foot ulcer at least 18 months before the study began. For a period of 18 months, each person was checked for new ulcers every three months, and interviewed about their daily habits. The pressure on their feet while walking barefoot and in the special footwear was also measured. During one week, sensors in the shoes reported how often the participants wore their shoes and how many steps they took. Patients who wore shoes customized to the pressure points of their feet, however, had a 57 percent lower risk of developing a new ulcer compared to those who didn’t. Currently, to prevent ulcers, doctors and nurses have to check the feet of diabetic patients every day for wounds or use specialized tools for determining pressure points that might be prone to blisters.

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Water exercise leads to fitter frame: Expert

orking out and staying fit is a lifestyle many people desire, but many of them just find the environment of the gym intimidating and boring. An expert suggests that water exercises can be a nice variation to lose weight and stay active. Cristiana Pipoli, aqua aerobics trainer at Jaypee Vasant Continental, feels that aqua aerobics can work wonders for those who do not believe in “working out” in the conventional way.

expert: * Cross Country Sky - excellent for lifting the heart rate. Movement of both arms and legs. * Back Curl - great exercise for glute. * Straight Leg Lift Forward - Excellent to raise heart beat. * Side Leg Left - for legs and inner thighs * Frog Lift - inner thighs one can do this thing only in water * Knees to Elbow Twist - for waist and for strong core.

“This water workout reduces the weight of a person by up to 90 percent, thus reducing the stress burden on your body’s joints. The water also provides a natural resistance to your movements, making your aerobatics workout intense without you realising it. Aqua Aerobics also provides you with cardiovascular and strength training,” Pipoli said in a statement. “Another great advantage of Aqua Aerobics is that water makes you less prone to the exercise injuries. It does not matter what age you are, or at what level of fitness you are, it is suitable for all and is an enjoyable method of exercise, that can be altered to your specific needs and or fitness levels to ensure a safe and effective workout,” Pipoli said in a statement. Some of the water exercises suggested by the

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Circumcision lowers prostate cancer risk: Study

hen performed on men over the age of 35, circumcision could reduce the risk of developing prostate cancer by nearly half, according to a Canadian study published in the British Journal of Urology International. The study’s authors emphasize that the effect was particularly significant among black men. In addition to having strong cultural and religious significance, circumcision has been shown to reduce the risk of sexually transmitted infections. The removal of the foreskin is even recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNAIDS as a preventative measure to limit the risk of HIV transmission, particularly in Africa. Now proponents of circumcision have yet another argument in their favor. A study conducted by researchers at the University of Montreal and by the INRS Armand Frappier Institute indicates that the operation could significantly reduce the risk of prostate cancer when performed on men over the age of 35. Andrea Spense, working under research directors Marie-Elise Parent and Marie-Claude Rousseau, interviewed a sample population of 2,114 men, half of whom had been diagnosed with prostate cancer. All the men answered a questionnaire on various aspects of their lifestyle and medical history. On the whole, the data showed that circumcised men were 11% less likely to develop prostate cancer. Men who were circumcised as infants were 14% less at risk than others. But for men circumcised over the age of 35, the risk dropped by no less than 45%. The researchers point out that prostate cancer is rare among Jewish or Muslim men, the vast majority of whom are circumcised. More surprising, however, were the findings related to the study’s 178

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black men (78% of whom were of Haitian origin). The 30% of the black study participants who were circumcised were 60% less likely to have prostate cancer. The researchers noted that ethnic origin -- along with age and family history -- is a significant factor in determining an individual’s risk for prostate cancer, and that black men are generally more likely to develop the disease than those from other ethnic groups. While further research need to be conducted to confirm the link between circumcision and reduced risk of prostate cancer, other recent studies seem to point to similar conclusions. Benefits of Circumcision Many older men, who have bladder or prostate gland problems, also develop difficulties with their foreskins due to their surgeon’s handling, cleaning, and using instruments. Some of these patients will need circumcising. Afterwards it is often astonishing to find some who have never ever seen their glans (knob) exposed before! Cancer of the cervix in women is due to the Human Papilloma Virus. It thrives under and on the foreskin from where it can be transmitted during intercourse. An article in the British Medical Journal in April 2002 suggested that at least 20% of cancer of the cervix would be avoided if all men were circumcised. Surely that alone makes it worth doing? Protection against HIV and AIDS. Another British Medical Journal article in May 2000 suggested that circumcised men are 8 times less likely to contract the HIV virus. It is very important here to say that the risk is still far too high and that condoms and safe sex must be used - this applies also to preventing cancer of the cervix in women who have several partners.

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These 4 things happen right before a heart attack your heart is trying to tell you with warning signs like those discussed in Dr. Crandall’s video Although developed as an educational tool, this video rapidly went viral, surpassing 5 million viewers in just a few months. Newsmax Health Publisher Travis Davis attributes the viral sensation to the fact that the content hits close to home for many Americans, especially because heart disease is America’s #1 killer. In fact, in the U.S. alone, nearly 1 million people suffer their first heart attack each year. Dr. Crandall, chief of the cardiac transplant program at the renowned Palm Beach Cardiovascular Clinic in Palm Beach, Florida, practices on the front lines of interventional, vascular, and transplant cardiology. Despite what you may believe, heart attacks rarely happen “out of the blue.” In fact, your body may be trying to warn you of an impending heart attack for days, weeks, perhaps even a month or two before it occurs. Unfortunately, by the time you actually recognize you’re suffering a heart attack, it could be too late to prevent death or debilitating heart damage. So-called silent heart attacks, with signs and symptoms that are mild or seem unrelated to the heart, have long concerned cardiovascular expert Dr. Chauncey Crandall. So Dr. Crandall recently created a special free video presentation about the four most sinister warning signs to watch for. Statistics show a clear link between a delay in heart attack treatment and death or disability. That’s why it’s essential to know exactly what

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Decades of clinical experience have afforded him the chance to detect little-known warning signs and symptoms like the four he addresses in the video. Plus, in the video Dr. Crandall also tells the reallife story of one man who suffered a “widowmaker” heart attack after ignoring the warning signs — and almost paid the ultimate price. The story is scary but eye-opening, because Dr. Crandall outlines what could have been done to actually prevent this from progressing to the life-threatening stage. Dr. Crandall, medical editor of the Newsmax publication Heart Health Report, has a positive message: you don’t have to be a sitting duck for a deadly heart attack. In fact, according to Dr. Crandall, heart disease can be prevented — and even reversed — with the right information and simple lifestyle adjustments.

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Chronic inflammation associated with aggressive prostate cancer

he presence of chronic inflammation in benign prostate tissue has been found to be linked with high-grade, or aggressive, prostate cancer, and this association was found even in those with low prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels. An analysis of prostate tissue biopsies collected from some participants of the placebo arm of the Prostate Cancer Prevention Trial (PCPT) found that those whose benign prostate tissue had chronic inflammation had 1.78 times higher odds of having prostate cancer, and 2.24 times higher odds of having an aggressive disease (characterized by Gleason sum of seven to 10), compared with those whose benign prostate tissue had no inflammation. “We had the unique opportunity to investigate biopsy tissue from patients who had no indication to prompt a biopsy,” Elizabeth A. Platz, Sc.D., MPH, professor in the Department of Epidemiology at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore, Md said.

“Participants in the PCPT who were not diagnosed with prostate cancer during the trial were recommended to undergo prostate biopsy at the end of that trial, which meant that prostate tissue was available not just for men who had the diagnosis of prostate cancer, but also for those who did not have the diagnosis. “We found that men who had at least one biopsy core with inflammation had a higher likelihood of having high-grade prostate cancer compared with those who did not have any inflammation in their biopsy tissue,” Platz said. “While we know that inflammation is common in prostate tissue from men who have some indication to prompt a biopsy, such as high PSA or an abnormal digital rectal examination [DRE], we were surprised to find that the prevalence of chronic inflammation in the men who didn’t have any such indication was really high, about 78 percent,” she added. The study is published in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research.

Useful tips to prevent skin cancer Skin cancer is a cancer that begins in the skin. One of the most common of all cancers, skin cancer affects people of all colours and races. However, those with lighter skin are more prone to it. Most skin cancers are preventable, but can result in disfigurement and even death when allowed to progress and not diagnosed, treated early. Below are a few tips to help prevent skin cancer: Avoid tanning beds as lights used in tanning beds emit ultraviolet rays and can increase skin cancer risk. Apply sunscreen with SPF 30 or higher (both UVA and UVB protection) generously on all exposed skin. Apply 15 minutes before going out and

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reapply every two hours. Wear protective clothing that covers your arms and legs as sunscreens don’t give complete protection from UV rays. Wear a hat with broad brim that covers your face, ears and neck. Wear sunglasses that block both UVA and UVB rays. Stay in the shade and avoid midday hours between 10 am and 4 pm as the sun’s rays are strongest during these hours. Using a mirror, carefully check all of your skin once a month.

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How immune system protects children from malaria revealed

It was found that immune cells collected before the malaria season responded by producing large amounts of molecules that cause inflammation, fever and other malaria symptoms.

A new study has revealed that children who live in regions of the world where malaria is common can mount an immune response to infection with malaria parasites. According to the study, that the immune response may enable kids to avoid repeated bouts of high fever and illness and partially control the growth of malaria parasites in their bloodstream. The researchers have claimed that the findings may help in developing future interventions that prevent or mitigate the disease caused by the malaria parasite. To better understand why, researchers analyzed immune cells from children in Mali who are bitten by malaria-infected mosquitos more than 100 times per year, yet experience malaria fever only two times per year on average. The scientists collected blood samples from children on three occasions: before the start of the six-month malaria season; seven days after each child had been treated for his or her first malaria fever of the season, when symptoms had cleared; and after the subsequent six-month dry season, when little to no malaria transmission occurs.

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According to the authors, this immune response, which appears to depend on ongoing exposure to malaria parasites, may have evolved to protect young children from potentially life-threatening inflammation and unchecked parasite growth in the face of repeated malaria infections, before they acquire antibodies that reliably protect against the onset of malaria symptoms. To simulate malaria infection at these time points, researchers exposed the immune cells to malaria parasites in a test tube. They found that immune cells collected before the malaria season responded by producing large amounts of molecules that cause inflammation, fever and other malaria symptoms. Conversely, cells collected after the first bout of malaria fever responded by producing molecules that control inflammation and destroy the malaria parasite. The third set of immune cells (those taken after the dry season when there is an absence of malaria exposure) lost their ability to produce molecules that control inflammation, leaving children susceptible again to malaria fever. According to the authors, this immune response, which appears to depend on ongoing exposure to malaria parasites, may have evolved to protect young children from potentially life-threatening inflammation and unchecked parasite growth in the face of repeated malaria infections, before they acquire antibodies that reliably protect against the onset of malaria symptoms.

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Marital spat blame your low blood sugar Is your spouse biting your head off at the end of a long day? It may be hunger more than anger that’s fueling the bad mood, according to a new study that used voodoo dolls and air horns to test spousal aggression. For the research, 107 middle-aged, married couples were given glucose meters to keep tabs on their blood sugar. They checked it once in the morning on an empty stomach and then again just before bed every day for 21 days. The couples had been married, on average, for about 12 years. Each husband or wife was also given a voodoo doll and told it represented their mate. At the end of each day, couples were asked to stick pins in the dolls to reflect the level of anger they were feeling toward their partners. They could use up to 51 pins at a time. They were asked to complete this task privately since a glimpse at a much-punctured doll might set off a spat all by itself, thus skewing the study results. Each spouse recorded the number of daily pins used in the dolls. At the end of the study, the couples visited a lab where they completed an additional test. The test pitted each spouse against each other in a video game. The winner of each round of the game was allowed to blast the losing spouse with an unpleasant noise through headphones. Within certain limits (researchers only let the noise level go about as loud a fire alarm), winners could choose how long and how loudly to blare the noise, which researchers recorded as another measure of aggression.

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At the end of the study, the researchers compared daily and average blood sugar levels with each partner’s aggressive tendencies. The result? People with lower blood glucose readings -- those that fell under 98 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL) -- tended to be more aggressive toward their partners than those with evening readings over 121 mg/dL. In a nutshell, the researchers said that means a hungry spouse is also more likely to be an angry spouse. Their take home advice for marital bliss? Eat before you speak. “Make sure you don’t talk to your spouse about something important when you’re hungry because hungry people are often cranky and irritable and angry, and we know that angry people are impulsive. Impulsive people say and do things they later regret,” said lead study author Brad Bushman, a professor of communication and psychology at the Ohio State University. The study appeared online April 14 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

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High Blood Pressure / Hypertension What is High Blood Pressure? High blood pressure (hypertension), often called a silent killer, is the pressure of the blood in the arteries. Blood pressure is typically recorded as the systolic pressure (as the heart beats) over the diastolic pressure (time between two beats). A consistent blood pressure reading of 140/90 mm Hg or higher is considered high blood pressure. Untreated, high blood pressure will cause heart attacks, strokes, kidney failure, injury to the brain and eyes. Common causes of High Blood Pressure • Obesity • Causes of High Blood Pressure: Obesity • Lifestyle • Genetic factors • Excessive alcohol • Birth control pills • Pain relievers Other underlying causes may include: • Kidney diseases • Adrenal diseases • Abnormal blood vessels • Eclampsia / Pre-eclampsia in pregnant women • Thyroid diseases Home Remedy - 1 Celery contains high 3-N-butylphthalide, a

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levels kind

of of

photochemical that helps a lot in controlling high blood pressure level. You can eat a few stalks of celery as a simple snack daily. Home Remedy - 2 Vegetables such as carrots, spinach and parsley play a significant role in lowering blood pressure. Take a glass of juice made of these vegetables twice a day to help keep your blood pressure under control. Home Remedy - 3 Indian gooseberry (Amla) is an effective home remedy for high blood pressure. Mix 1 tablespoon of fresh amla juice with an equal amount of honey. Take this mixture daily in the morning before your breakfast. Home Remedy - 4 Boiled potatoes are essential for lowering blood pressure. The magnesium and potassium present in the vegetable are very effective in lowering blood pressure. Home Remedy - 5 A clove of garlic is highly recommended for high blood pressure. Consume one to two cloves of garlic daily with your meals. Home Remedy - 6 Make a mixture of 1 teaspoon each of honey and ginger juice with 1 teaspoon of cumin powder, stir well and consume this mixture twice a day for treating high blood pressure.

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SUMMER DIET

Hog on fruits, veggies to stay active Soaring temperatures make people lazy, so it’s time to make some dietary changes to stay fit during this summer. Experts suggest that adding selective fruits and vegetables to everyday diet can show up great results. Laurence Beeken, food information executive at Weight Loss Resources, enlists some seasonal superfoods that can do wonders if taken religiously throughout spring and summer, reports femalefirst. co.uk. Strawberries: Strawberries are packed full of health benefits. Compared to other fruits such as apples and bananas, strawberries have more nutrients, and are known to burn stores fat (the anthocyanins stimulate the burning of stored fat), and are good for weight loss. Spring onions: Spring onions contain allicin, which may keep you from overeating by stimulating satiety in the brain. Spring onion has a milder, sweeter taste than the dried white bulbs you buy later in the season. Enjoy it diced on a salad for a fat-fighting side or lunch.

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Asparagus: One of the first foods that signals the start of spring is the appearance of fresh asparagus at local farmers’ markets. Asparagus is a good source of fibre and protein, both essential for good digestion and immunity. It also contains a unique carb called inulin, which remains undigested until it raches the large intestine, where it helps to absorb nutrients better. Fennel: Most often associated with Italian cooking, be sure to add fennel to your selection of fresh vegetables in early spring when it is readily available and at its best. Just an ounce of the bulb in your salads adds a gram of fibre for only nine calories. Fennel bulb is also a very good source of vitamin C, folate and potassium. Lettuce: Lettuce has been called ‘the perfect weight loss food’ because it contains fibre and cellulose. Besides filling up, fibre improves your digestion. Improving your digestion is important for longterm weight control. Fibre also helps remove bile salts from the body. When the body replaces these salts it breaks down cholesterol to do so. Broccoli: Love it or hate it, broccoli is great for you! It is known as a smart carb and is high in fibre, which aids digestion, prevents constipation, maintains low blood sugar, and curbs overeating. Furthermore, a cup broccoli has as much protein as a cup of rice or corn with half the calories.

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Red meat could up heart disease risk Researchers have found a link between heme iron, found only in meat, and potentially deadly coronary heart disease. The study found that heme iron consumption increased the risk for coronary heart disease by 57 percent, while no association was found between nonheme iron, which is in plant and other non-meat sources, and coronary heart disease.

involving 292, 454 participants during an average 10.2 years of followup. The body treats the two kinds of iron differently. It can better control absorption of iron from vegetable sources, including iron supplements, but not so with iron from meat sources.

Hunnicutt said the link between iron intake, body iron stores and coronary heart disease has been debated for decades by researchers, with epidemiological studies providing inconsistent findings.

“The observed positive association between heme iron and risk of CHD may be explained by the high bioavailability of heme iron and its role as the primary source of iron in iron-replete participants,” the researchers wrote. “Heme iron is absorbed at a much greater rate in comparison to non heme iron (37 percent vs. 5 percent). Once absorbed, it may contribute as a catalyst in the oxidation of LDLs, causing tissue-damaging inflammation, which is a potential risk factor for CHD.”

The new IU research, a meta-analysis, examined 21 previously published studies and data

The study has been published online in the Journal of Nutrition.

Along with first author Jacob Hunnicutt, a graduate student in the school’s Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, the study’s coauthors are Ka He and Pengcheng Xun , faculty members in the department.

Feeling sick? Sleep is your doctor When you get sick, what is the first thing you should do? Pop a pill? No. Better hit the sack. Sleep as much as you can as research suggests that long naps can boost immune system and help fight infection better. Researchers from University of Pennsylvania found that in fruit flies, sleep enhances immune system response and recovery to infection.

was quoted as saying. The results provide new evidence of the direct effects of sleep on immune response and of the underlying mechanisms at work. In experiments on fruit flies, the researchers found the flies with more sleep showed faster and more efficient rates of clearing the bacteria from their bodies.

“It is an intuitive response to want to sleep when you get sick,” lead author Julie Williams from the university’s Perelman School of Medicine

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‘Unproven treatment of spinal injuries can cause paralysis’

he rampant unauthorised and unproven stem cell transplant for spinal cord injury can leave a person paralysed below the level of injury, health experts said Thursday. Issuing a statement to caution people about such practices and create awareness on the issue, the Association of Spine Surgeons of India (ASSI) said: “There is an urgent need to create awareness on the issue, and advise the spinal cord injured and their families to make informed decisions regarding the plethora of ‘effective’ stem transplant treatments being offered across the world.” “Over the past decade, various clinics in India and abroad have started offering experimental treatments, often involving transplants of stem cells, which are advertised as having beneficial effects, even though there is little or no evidence supporting such claims,” said ASSI president Ram Chaddha. He added these stem cells transplant procedures attempt to establish credibility by citing experimental studies that have no direct relation to the spinal cord injuries. Sajan Hegde, consultant spine surgeon at

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Apollo Hospital who also heads its orthopaedics department, said the only accurate way to determine that a treatment is beneficial is to carry a properly designed study with an appropriate control group.

Spinal Cord Injury Health and Wellness Tips The following are some basic tips for living with a spinal cord injury. Eating Well Good food and good health go hand-in-hand. How much should I weigh? Because muscle size is reduced after a spinal cord injury, your ideal body weight may be less than before. A dietitian can help you determine your ideal body weight. What is the big deal about fiber? Fiber is the part of the plant that you cannot digest. Because it passes right through our systems, it is great for helping us to have bowel movements, and keeping us regular. Good sources of fiber include beans, bran, fruit, whole grains (not white bread), vegetables and popcorn. www.ahmedtimes.com

Irregular periods common in menopause, study finds

xtended and heavy menstrual bleeding during menopause is common, according to a new study.

more days, 88 percent reported spotting for six or more days, and more than three-quarters had heavy bleeding for three or more days during menopause.

“For most women in their 30s, menstrual periods are highly predictable. With the onset of the menopausal transition in their 40s, women’s menstrual periods can change dramatically,” study author Sioban Harlow, a University of Michigan professor of epidemiology, said in a university news release.

More than one-third of the women had as many as three episodes of 10-plus days of bleeding over six months, according to the study published April 15 in BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. The women in the study -from Michigan, Los Angeles and northern California -- were white, black, Chinese and Japanese. Previous studies have been mostly limited to white women, the investigators noted.

“These dramatic changes can be disconcerting, and often provoke questions about whether something is wrong,” she added. The findings should reassure women who worry about what is and isn’t normal, she said.

They said further research is required before their results could be used to change patient care.

When a woman’s ovaries stop producing the hormones estrogen and progesterone, she enters menopause. This life stage can last anywhere from two to 10 years, the researchers said. Menopause usually occurs after age 45. “Women need more descriptive information about the bleeding changes they can expect. We need clear guidance to help women understand what changes in bleeding patterns do and do not require medical attention,” she added. The researchers looked at 1,300 American women, aged 42 to 52. They found that 91 percent had experienced bleeding for 10 or

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Still, one expert welcomed the study. “We think this paper will be helpful to professionals, both clinical and investigational, as it describes in much more quantitative terms the range of bleeding patterns women may normally experience through the menopausal transition,” Dr. John Randolph Jr., a U-M professor of obstetrics and gynecology, said in the news release. The findings might reassure some doctors that “watchful waiting is an acceptable option” when women patients report changes in bleeding patterns, Randolph added.

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Mothers! Take a break from fish for healthier babies After one year of replacing fish with vegetables in her diet, a woman would reduce prenatal exposure of her kid to a POP called polychlorinated biphenyl-153 (PCB-153) by nine percent, a team of environmental scientists found. Five years of substituting vegetables for fish could reduce prenatal POP exposure by 37 percent, showed the findings.

otential mothers need to fast from fish for many years to avoid passing on certain harmful chemicals to their offsprings, an alarming study indicates. Fish and shellfish contain high-quality protein and omega-3 fatty acids that benefit children’s health, but the could also pass on certain harmful chemicals like persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and methylmercury.

“If the potential mother replaces fish with vegetables for 30 years prior to childbirth, she could reduce prenatal POP exposure of her kid even by 85 percent,” the researchers said. In people, POPs have been linked to reproductive, developmental, behavioural, neurologic, endocrine and immunologic adverse health effects, according to the Environmental Protection Agency in the US. The study appeared in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives.

Bone marrow can cure blood disorders A leading specialty hospital has demonstrated that bone marrow stem cells can cure blood disorders like leukemia, thalassemia and aplastic anemia, a bone marrow failure. “Bone marrow transplant has emerged as an effective cure for cancerous and genetic blood diseases through transfusion of its stem cells from a healthy donor to an affected patient,” Narayana Health City consultant hematologist Sharat Damodar told reporters here Tuesday. The corporate hospital in the city’s southern suburb claims to have performed about 300

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bone marrow transplants with over 80 percent success rate. Bone marrow can be collected from a related donor (siblings), matched unrelated donor (non-family members) and haploidentical donor (father or mother). “As it is a challenge to find donors in India, there is need for greater awareness to donate bone marrow to needy patients,” said Damodar. A person suffers from leukemia when the bone marrow starts producing abnormal white blood cells.

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