Tag: asthma

Overlooking Acid Reflux Disease in Children

An 11-year-old boy in Boston developed a Gastro esophageal reflux Disease (GERD). According to his mother, Cathy, it was the end of June in the year 2005 when his son developed a cough which usually happens during sleep, and even during daytime. It is only a short dry cough symptom. His pediatrician thought it was only allergy, however, when his son was tested, result showed that his son had no allergy. According to her, it was his sons asthma that relates to GERD.

Studies show that GERD is likewise normal to infants and children like in adults, though this fact is often times being overlooked. The symptoms come in continual sickness, coughing, and other respiratory trouble.

Children are vulnerable to GERD because of their immature digestive system. Truth is majority of the infants grow out of GERD once they reach the age of one year old.

The medical specialists further stated that symptoms for children may come in difficulty in swallowing foods, or failure to grow. The doctors recommended that in situation like this it is best to lessen the amount of acid in the childrens stomach before it could lead to acid reflux, since this disease is not very curable in children.

However, the doctor suggested some approaches to avoid acid reflux on children; an example of these is burping the infant quite a few times during feeding, or letting the infant stay in an erect position for 30 minutes after nourishing.

Although, for a child ages three and up, doctors suggested to keep them off from sodas that includes caffeine like soft drinks, carbonated drinks, spicy foods like peppermint, acidic foods like citrus fruits, too much chocolate, and fried and fatty foods. Ideally, establishing a healthy eating habit diet can really decrease the acid reflux in children.

It is also suggested that children will eat smaller meals before sleeping, if possible, do not allow them to eat two to three hours before sleeping, also, elevate the head of their bed for at least 30 degrees.

Further treatments include the use of H2 blockers; this is available in any drugs store. Prevacid, proton plump inhibitors, can also be used in treating acid flux for children.

However, if these treatments fail to stop the symptoms, other treatment method needs to be done. It is very atypical, but doctors recommends surgery, this is so far the best treatment for relentless symptoms which do not anymore counter to other treatments.

The Esophageal reflux surgery for children is designated for children who have had unsuccessful medical treatments, and continuous surgery is essential as the child grows.

Now, if you get confused whether when is the time to consult a pediatrician regarding acid reflux. The answer is you observe, observe the amounts of vomiting of the child, if it already comes out in green or yellow or appears to be like blood or coffee grounds, there difficulty in breathing after vomiting, and there is pain in swallowing, immediately consult a pediatrician before the symptom gets aggravated.

So to prevent the occurrence of this disease, stay away from the habit of leaning forward after eating, or worse, sleeping after taking a large amount of food.

Take note, advanced acid reflux disease has a great possibility to end serious medical complications, and it may lead to hospitalization.

Be keen of the possible symptoms so will not overlook it. Take care of your kids.

Smoking Related Health Problems in Adolescents

Smoking is the cause of many diseases and kills about four hundred and forty two thousand people every year in the United States. In spite of anti smoking campaigns and billboard warnings, more and more people are joining the bandwagon of smokers every year. Out of the total number of new smokers, ninety percent are children and adolescents, replacing smokers who have quit or died early due to a disease caused by smoking. Smoking is the top cause of preventable and premature deaths, followed by obesity.

Smoking not only increases the risk of lung disease, but also increases the risk of contracting lung cancer, oral cancer, emphysema, stroke and heart disease. Certain statistics by the American Lung Associations show alarming results. Over five thousand adolescents smoke their very first cigarette every day, out of which over two thousand turn into regular smokers. Presently there are nearly five million adolescents smokers. Twenty percent of the twelfth graders smoke cigarettes regularly.

Smoking has many harmful affects on the health of a human being. It damages the cardiovascular system, causes high blood pressure, increases heart rate, increases the risk of ischemic stroke, increases the risk of formation of blood clot formation, and decreases the oxygen amount which reaches the tissues in the body, reduces coronary blood flow & cardiac output, and damages the blood vessels. Smoking not only affects physical health, but mental health too. It causes psychological distress and depression.

Smoking not only affects the person who smokes but also other people who surround him/her. According to the American Heart Association, nearly thirty five thousand passive smokers die of smoke inhaled from a lit pipe, cigar or cigarette. People who do not smoke directly and inhale smoke from a cigarette smoke by his/her neighbor is known as passive smoker, secondary smoker or indirect smoker. Among the passive smokers, women, children and infants are at a higher risk. Infants and children who are exposed to smoke develop asthma, frequent ear infections and may even experience infant death syndrome. The symptoms experienced by secondary smokers are coughing, excess mucus formation in the airways, chest discomfort, chest pain, and lung irritation. They even feel irritation of throat, nose and eyes. If the passive smokers experiences chest pain, it can be an indication of a heart disease. Sometimes the symptoms of secondary smoking can coincide with the symptoms of other medical conditions. Hence, it is recommended to contact the doctor immediately after the surfacing of the symptoms.

In active smokers, smoking, apart from building up high cholesterol in blood, increases the risk of cardiovascular disease, obesity, high blood pressure, physical inactivity and diabetes. So smoking cessation will not only reduce the risk of coronary heart disease, which is top of the list, but also decreases the risk by fifty percent of heart attacks and deaths caused by it. But quitting smoking undertakes lots of physical and mental efforts. The person should be made mentally relaxed and stress free. In case of adolescents, they can be asked to exercise regularly and sleep adequately. The American Lung Association and The American Academy of Otolaryngology have developed certain tips which can be of great help to the smokers who are thinking of quitting. The smokers must first be made to understand the reason for quitting. Stress only makes even more difficult to quit smoking, so a stress free period should be chosen to quit. Family and friends encouragement and support are extremely necessary to persuade the smoker to quit. If the support isnt sufficient, smokers can join a smoking cessation program or a support group to attain their goals. A balanced diet is a must, along with lots of rest.

Sometimes taking nicotine replacement products, such as nicotine chewing gum, nicotine inhalers, and nicotine patch, are a great help to smokers who want to quit. By using these products the smokers can satisfy their nicotine craving. The good thing is that these nicotine replacement products can deduct the poisonous gases and tars emitted by the cigarettes. But nursing and pregnant women should consult a doctor before trying nicotine replacement products. For such people non-nicotine alternative is available in the market.

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Looking For A Challenge?

Ever wonder what are the most challenging places for
allergy sufferers to live?

The Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America wondered
that too. So theyve been researching and publishing a
yearly report.

Each spring and fall, they gather information based on
3 factors. They check the pollen scores, the number of
allergy medications used and the number of allergy
specialists per patient.

Their report lists the top 100 places an allergy
sufferer would find the most challenging. Thats just
a polite way of saying the 100 worst places to live
with allergies.

Looks like Texas tops the list. They have 7 cities in
the top 70. Austin is number 1 with a score of 100.
This is one time a score of 100 and the number 1 spot
isnt a good thing. San Antonio isnt far behind
Austin with a score of 98.75. That puts it in second
place.

Third place is claimed by Oklahoma City, OK. They get
a score of 96.25. But its not all bad in Oklahoma.
Tulsa with a score of 83.00 is the only other city to
make the list.

Florida has 11 cities in the top 100, with Lakeland
leading the way with a score of 93.75. Orlando is
right below them with a 93.20.

Los Angeles isnt far down the list. It ranked 11th,
scoring 82.75. And our nations capital ranked 70th
with a score of 51.45. Seattle, WA. finishes the list
with a nice low score of 25.45.

Asthma Homeopathy

Health conditions have alternative treatments. Admit it, not everyone can afford to pay for expensive medicines and other medical costs. If you want a cost-effective way to treat asthma, why dont you try asthma homeopathy?

Homeopathic asthma treatments are quite effective especially among recently diagnosed patients. Children and babies can benefit greatly from this type of treatment. There are times when the symptoms of asthma disappear when the child grows older but during their adulthood, the condition returns. If this happens, you can also use the homeopathy treatments.

Always keep in mind that many studies have already proven the effectiveness and efficiency of conventional medical treatments for asthma. In fact, it has already saved millions of lives for many years. If youre using a conventional asthma treatment, try to talk to your doctor and tell him/her that you want to try the homeopathic treatments. Oftentimes, the doctor will tell you to continue your conventional medications and use the homeopathic treatments as a supplement. By combining the two medications, the patient will be able to address the symptoms successfully.

Why is homeopathy very popular? Well, the reason is quite obvious. The homeopathic treatments dont have side effects, natural, and affordable. Because of these reasons, many people are comfortable in using them for babies, kids, and the elderly. The homeopathic treatments consist of organic products, minerals, and plants. It is prepared in a very special form which deals with the symptoms for better relief.

The effects and results of using asthma homeopathy differ from one individual to another. For instance, a certain homeopathy treatment works well for your friend but when you tried it, it did not exhibit the same effects. When youre using homeopathy, you should not expect immediate results but you will surely benefit from it over the long run. Use the treatments regularly and properly; that way, the results can be seen in a few weeks. You can consult homeopathy specialists or practitioner in your area so that you can start using the alternative treatments. Asthma medications can be very expensive but you can make a difference if you use an alternative asthma treatment like the homeopathy treatments. The homeopathy practitioner will design a treatment plan which depends on your individual requirements.

As you can see, you cant use homeopathy treatments used by other people. The practitioner will tailor your needs depending on your current condition. Several factors will be considered such as your age, the severity of the asthma attacks, etc.

There are lots of information resources online about the homeopathy practitioners. With a bit of research, you can easily find a local practitioner who can help you with your problems. Try to check the background of the homeopathy practitioner and dont forget to look at the testimonials of past customers. This is one way to find out if the practitioner is a good one. Always remember that there are lots of scammers online and you need to stay away from them.

Use the internet now and find a local homeopathy practitioner who will help you in treating the asthma symptoms. Dont forget to visit your doctor and inform him about your decision to use homeopathy treatments. If something goes wrong, visit your doctor right away. Be very careful in using conventional medicines and alternative treatments together because it might cause certain reactions. Seek medical help first.