Archive for Living With Medicine
June 9, 2008 at 11:53 pm · Filed under Living With Medicine
Obesity is gradually spreading its wings across the globe. The dreaded ailment has taken under its grip nearly one-third of the adult American population (approximately 60 million), and is on a rapid increase world-wide. The saddest part is that it’s gradually taking the shape of an epidemic and in the process causing a big threat to our life.
Obesity is usually referred to as an excess of body fat frequently resulting in a significant impairment of health. Obesity normally occurs when the size or number of fat cells in a person’s body increases. A normal-sized person has between 30 and 35 billion fat cells. When a person gains weight, these fat cells initially increase in size and later in number.
Most of us who are extremely fond of fast food and seldom participate in exercise are highly prone to obesity. The ailment is often linked to a lack of physical activity and high calorie food intake. An individual is usually considered obese if he has a Body Mass Index (BMI) >30, and extremely obese with a BMI >40.
We should never take obesity lightly as it puts us at the risk of developing serious and grave conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, stroke, gallbladder disease and some cancers. The occurrence of various medical conditions increases in the case of overweight and obese men and women. It makes our life vulnerable and fragile.
Many people suffering from obesity have taken diet pills such as Phentermine to get rid off the ailment. These diet pills work as appetite suppressants and help you lose weight without any effort. The diet pills work very fast but their result is not everlasting. Therefore you need to implement a proper diet plan and some form of exercise in your routine life to make your weight loss an everlasting affair.
Stuart William is a contributing author to the Phenterminehome.com for distinct article sites/journals. Visit the website http://www.phenterminehome.com for more information on Phentermine Diet Pills. For questions, please send an email to stuart.william001@gmail.com
June 6, 2008 at 2:07 am · Filed under Living With Medicine
The beta-carotene is in fact famous for the help it gives to human’s body.
One of the most known claims for beta-carotene is that it prevents cancer
and heart disease and can boost our immune system.
Beta Carotene is plentiful in vegetables and fruits. The 600 carotenoids are
important for our health and is found in yellow, red, and deep green
vegetables and fruits.
Studies shows however that taking supplements for a long duration may in
fact cause harm, such as the damage to our liver or increased risk of cancer
which can determined only by long, large, well-designed studies.
Large amount of Beta Carotene however can turn your skin slightly yellow or
orange-, which is in fact harmless.
Beta-carotene is an antioxidant. Antioxidants help deactivate free radicals,
unstable molecules that are by products of cells “burning” oxygen for
energy. Free radicals can in fact damage the basic structure of cells and
therefore leading to chronic diseases, such as cancer and heart diseases. In
addition, it can accelerate the aging process.
However, smokers should not take this the pill of beta-carotene because
studies show that smokers have an increase of the risk of lung cancer when
they take beta-carotene pills. According to studies, taking Beta Carotene
even not on high dose actually has a higher rate of developing lung cancer
and higher mortality rate than those taking a placebo. However, the risk is
only for smokers who smoked more than a pack per day and who drank more than
the average amount of alcohol.
Therefore, the moral lesson here is:
• Do not think that any supplements “can’t hurt, might help” or that
antioxidants are always beneficial. There is a delicate balance of
antioxidants and free radicals in our body. Smoking was a complicating
factor with beta carotene but who knows what factor such as sun exposure,
alcohol, medication, intense exercise might make supplement X< Y and Z
dangerous?
• Don’t Smoke
• Don’t take Beta Carotene Pills if you smoke or if you are a former smoker,
or if you are a heavy drinker.
• Eat a lot of fruits and vitamins- Even if you do not smoke, it is much
better to obtain beta-carotene from foods not from the pills. There are no
any evidence that beta carotene in foods can cause any danger
Beta Carotene is one of the orange dyes that are found in most green leaves
and in carrots. Beta Carotene is a member of family of molecules called
carotenoides. Beta Carotene is made up of eight isoprene units, which are
cyclised at each end.
Beta Carotene is the pigment that gives carrots, sweet potatoes and other
yellow vegetables their yellow coloring. Beta Carotene is also used as a
colorant in margarine because the absence of it would only make margarine
white.
Almost all beta-carotene in supplements are synthetic consisting of only one
molecule that is called all Trans beta-carotene. Natural beta-carotene found
in foods is made up of two molecules - all Tran’s beta-carotene and
9-cis-beta-carotene.
Beta Carotene s the most potent precursor to vitamin A, but its conversion
to vitamin A in the body is limited by a feedback system.
Beta-carotene has two roles in our body. It can indeed be converted into
vitamin A if the body needs more of the vitamin. In addition, beta-carotene
acts as antioxidants, which protect cells from damage caused by harmful free
radicals.
The richest sources of beta carotene are yellow, orange, and green leafy
fruits and vegetables such as carrots, spinach, lettuce, tomatoes, sweet
potatoes, broccoli, cantaloupe, and winter squash to name a few. The more
intense the green, yellow or orange color is, the more beta-carotene it
possess.
Cooking makes it easier for beta-carotene to be fully too absorbed by the
body does not destroy beta Carotene.
Research shows that diets that are low in beta-carotene and carotenoids can
increase the body vulnerability to damage from free radicals. As a result,
long-term diets with low in beta-carotene may increase tissue damage from
free radical activity and increase risk of chronic disease and cancer. Low
in beta-carotene may also lead to the reduction of the effectiveness of the
immune system.
http://www.for-your-vitamins.com/
May 21, 2008 at 4:58 am · Filed under Living With Medicine
Home Remedies - Facts or Quacks?
That’s what I recently asked myself. Myths and legends often have their basis in a grain of truth. So I wondered if home remedies, alternative treatments, and folklore cures might also be based on truth. A little research provided these astounding results about a cure for an unstoppable disease.
Itching For A Cure
Edward Jenner is widely credited as the father of the smallpox vaccination. However, twenty years earlier in 1774, a quick-thinking English farmer named Benjamin Jesty saved his family from smallpox using some pretty unorthodox methods.
Waiting Until The Cows Come Home
In 1774 the highly infectious and deadly smallpox disease was epidemic. Farmer Jesty, immune to the disease because he had survived it in childhood, feared for the lives of his pregnant wife and children. Many country folk knew that people who had previously caught the milder disease of cowpox from an infected cow did not catch the normally-fatal smallpox disease.
A Desperate Plan
Frantic to find a solution before his family caught the disease, Jesty took his family to a nearby farm where cows were infected with cowpox. He injected his family with diseased cowpox cells from the cows. Because vacca is Latin for cow, this procedure later became known as vaccination.
This Isn’t Bull
The mild cowpox disease came and went in the children. His pregnant wife had complications and required the aid of the local doctor. His family did not catch the deadly smallpox disease, but word leaked out. Poor Jesty was ridiculed by his neighbors, who expected his family to turn into cows, or at least grow cow udders or horns!
Edward Jenner was a tireless crusader in promoting the benefits of smallpox vaccination. However, it was a desperate farmer who used his quick wit and country folklore to save his family 20 years earlier.
Regardless of who history credits, this home remedy definitely rates as a fact rather than a quack!
Doug Smith is a Chemical Engineer and the webmaster of http://www.SuperHomeRemedies.com You’ll find dozens of free home remedies for skin tags, nail fungus, warts, head lice, heartburn, cold sores, yeast & more. Stay up to date with hundreds of articles in our home remedies blog.
Copyright 2005 by Doug Smith. You may reuse this copyrighted article provided no content is changed - other than line length - and the author’s box is intact. All links must be active hyperlinks or made active.
May 15, 2008 at 6:02 pm · Filed under Living With Medicine
The phrase “detox diets” specifically refers to a class of diets that help in discharging toxins accumulated in the body. One of the major reasons for a detox diet is overeating during special occasions.
The human body is exposed to toxins of undefined nature either from the food they eat, the environment, and its own waste. As these toxins increase, the human body is exposed to a number of illnesses like weight gain, cellulite, headaches, dull skin, fatigue, aches and pains, and a lowered immunity.
Detox diets are said to be very helpful in purging the toxins from the body. In a detox diet, people consume only fruits, vegetables and unprocessed natural food. Fresh homemade vegetables are also used along with a detox diet. Detox diets are said to destroy the environmental toxins contained in water, food, and the air that are found in the human body.
The ingredients of almost all detox diets can be described as liver tonics (milk thistle, barberry, dandelion), digestive aids (ginger, globe artichoke, peppermint) and laxatives (fennel, Psyillum) and diuretics (birch, dandelion). Some Detox diets consist of lemon in warm water, flaxseeds, and bentonite clay for breakfast. Lunch consists of salads of tomato, lettuce, cucumber, peppers, corn, kidney beans, low fat cheese, and peas. For dinner, the detox diet recommends apples, low fat free yogurt and fruits like apple, oranges, nectarines, and peaches.
A detox diet contains approximately 600-750 Kcals per day. It strictly forbids meat, fish, alcohol, and stimulants like coffee. Detox diets are known to make a person feel better, even lighter, but there is little scientific evidence of any good coming out of it.
The basic flaw with detox diets is their concept that meat has a higher level of toxins than fruits and vegetables. In reality, some fruits like cabbage and onions have high toxic levels, while fish and meat have fewer toxins. The liver can effectively break down and eliminate toxins under a protein high diet.
A healthy daily diet contains fruits, vegetables, and meat in equal portions. It should contain meat, dairy products, carbohydrates, and portions of fruits and vegetables.
Detox provides detailed information about detox, colon detox, and more. Detox is affiliated with Low Blood Pressure.
May 7, 2008 at 1:12 am · Filed under Living With Medicine
Mesothelioma is an uncommon form of cancer, commonly linked with prior exposure to asbestos. In this disease, cancerous cells grow in the protective lining (mesothelium) covering the internal organs of the body. This disease is commonly located in the outer lining of the chest cavity and lungs (pleura). It can also be found in the lining of the abdominal cavity (peritoneum), or the sac that envelops the heart (pericardium). People who contract this disease have invariably worked on jobs that put them in close contact with asbestos.
One of the characteristics of mesothelioma is that symptoms can appear very late, sometimes 50 years following first contact with asbestos. Symptoms of pleural mesothelioma, the disease’s most common form, include discomfort in the chest and difficulty in breathing. Symptoms of peritoneal mesothelioma, another form of the disease, include weight loss, abdominal swelling and pain. Blood clotting, bowel obstruction and fever are other symptoms of this type of mesothelioma. If the malignancy has spread to other body parts, then symptoms may include pain, face swelling and difficulty in swallowing food. However, it is important to remember that these symptoms are not exclusive to this disease; they can happen with other less severe conditions as well.
Over the past two decades, the rate of mesothelioma cases has gone up. Still, in the larger picture, it is a relatively rare cancer. The percentage of cases largely depends on the populations’ exposure to asbestos. In the United States, it has been reported that that frequency may have hit the highest point at 15 per million in 2004. This trend is thought to continue in other parts of the world. Interestingly, mesothelioma is more common in men than women. The risk of this disease augments with age, but a person of any age or gender can be affected. About one-fifth to one-third of all mesothelioma cases are peritoneal.
Mesothelioma Asbestos provides detailed information on Mesothelioma and Asbestos, Mesothelioma Asbestos Diseases, Mesothelioma Asbestos Treatment, Asbestos Mesothelioma Cancer and more. Mesothelioma Asbestos is affiliated with Mesothelioma Diagnosis Support.
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April 29, 2008 at 4:16 pm · Filed under Living With Medicine
Contrary to common belief, your weight is not really the
indicator of a weight problem - the actual percentage of body
fat is the true indicator. You need to know what percent of you
is actually FAT. How are you going to monitor your weight loss
if you do not know what percent of your body is fat, before you
begin your program?
Let me give you an example on measuring body fat, this is
important in understanding weight loss, or should I say FAT
LOSS. This is actually what we are trying to lose, right? FAT!
Lets say someone weighs 200 pounds and when we measure their
body fat we find out there body fat is 40%
This means that 40% of the members body is made of fat (80 lbs).
The other 120 lbs is muscle, bones, organs, water, etc.
(everything but fat).
Now any true weight loss program should include some form of
strength training customized to their personal abilities
(Another reason you need someone who truly understands the whole
body and how it works). Because if you can gain some of that
muscle mass that we lose with age, our bodies will burn more
calories and therefore burn more FAT!
Now it’s a few weeks into the program and this person steps on
the scale and they now weigh 198 lbs. They are a little
disappointed because they thought they were doing better. Their
clothes fit better, they have more energy, and they are feeling
better.
But they are still depressed because they only lost a lousy 2
pounds! Right? Are we sure???
We now check their body fat and it is now 36% not 40%. Let’s do
a little math.
200 lbs at 40% body fat means that 40% of them is fat, which
equals 80 lbs of FAT, and 120 lbs are muscles and everything
else (called the lean body mass).
198 lbs at 36% body fat means that 36% of them is fat which
equals 71 lbs of FAT, and 125 lbs of lean body mass.
This person actually lost 9 pounds of FAT (the stuff we are
trying to lose) and gained 5 pounds of lean body mass (mostly
muscle mass, which is a good thing because this will allow their
body to burn more calories!)
You need to measure and focus on PERCENT OF BODY FAT, AND NOT
WEIGHT!
But don’t worry, when your body fat goes down, as your body fat
decreases so will the numbers on the scale!
April 28, 2008 at 3:21 pm · Filed under Living With Medicine
Wrap sandwiches are one of the new trends in health food, and they have become popular with all sorts of people, whether on a diet or not. Low-carb wraps are now the newest craze on the health food market, and they are just one more of the new food items that diversify the range of choices for carb-counting dieters.
Leading the pack is fast-food chain Subway. For years, Subway has marketed itself as a health-oriented fast food restaurant, and its new low-carb wraps continue that trend. Now, Subway markets itself as the low-carb fast food restaurant, meeting your dietary needs. In December 2003, Subway reached a licensing agreement with Atkins Nutritionals, Inc., allowing Subway to offer Atkins-friendly wraps in stores nationwide.
Special wheat and soy grains are used to make the new low-carb wraps, which are high in fiber and protein. Additionally, the new wraps contain approximately two-thirds less carbohydrates than Subway’s regular 6-inch sub sandwiches, and they will cost customers about 50 cents more.
Subway is not the only place to find these low-carb wraps; many restaurants carry such items, and grocery stores stock the ingredients necessary to make your own. Behind this new food craze is the larger movement toward low-carb diets, a trend that has Americans everywhere counting their carbohydrates and finding new ways to enjoy alternative, low-carb breads, pastas, fruits and the like.
There are currently two low-carb wraps at Subway right now, and the number of carbs varies from source to source. The first is the chicken bacon ranch, with approximately eight grams of net carbs. There is also the turkey and bacon melt. This has a bit more net carbohydrates. There are about 10 net carbs in the turkey bacon melt, but it’s still low enough to easily fit into your low-carb diet.
Again, restaurants aren’t your only source for low-carb wraps. Many grocery stores carry the ingredients necessary to create your own, and you can find recipes for the making the tortillas themselves in cookbooks and on the Internet.
