Tag: Diseases

Help With Quitting Smoking

Enhancing the quality and length of your life by quitting smoking is a worthwhile effort. It is definitely not an easy task, but it can be accomplished with time and patience. To quit smoking successfully, finding out what your options are. Knowing where to go for help is a wise first step. Quitting smoking is the best move that you can make for your health and the health of all of those around you. Just about everyone knows by now that smoking causes diseases that shorten your life or those that may even end it. Diseases such as lung cancer, throat, esophagus, bladder, and kidney, and pancreas cancers are some horrible things caused by smoking for a start. Not to mention some leukemia, stomach, and cervix cancers, and newly added by the Surgeon General is pneumonia. People who smoke are more than three times as likely to die due to heart attack as non smokers. Smoking is a major risk factor for a disease that narrow the blood vessels that transport blood to the limbs and muscles called peripheral vascular disease as well as the disease that causes some strokes.

If thats not enough to convince you to stop smoking, lets look at your appearance. Premature wrinkling of skin, chronic bad breath, discolored fingernails and hair, and an increase risk of macular degeneration a leading cause of blindness in the elderly. Smoking over the age of thirty-five if you are a woman can put you in a high risk group for stroke, heart attack, and blood clots of the legs, low birth weight of babies and miscarriages. But the hopeful portion of this message is that if you decide to quite regardless of how long youve smoked or how much, quitting will help you to live longer. In as little as twenty minutes after quitting smoking the heart rate and blood pressure drops and in one to nine months following quitting smoking, circulation in your hands extremities and lung function increases. Shortness of breath decreases and your lungs begin to function properly, cleaning the lungs and removing mucus that causes infection. Fifteen years of non smoking and your risk of heart disease is that of non smoking persons. These benefits can be obtained from quitting smoking even if you are suffering from a smoking related illness already. Smoking is less socially accepted now more than ever. Smoking bans have been placed in just about every workplace in the nation along with airports, public buildings. Even friends may insist that you not smoke in their houses or cars. Some people may even find dating more difficult because of a bad smoking habit. So the social impacts of not smoking will probably change your life for the better if you quit.

If you have a family, that is another great motivation to quit smoking. The main reason is that the secondhand smoke could pose serious health problems for others who do not deserve such things. You should also consider what kind of role model you are being to any small children that you live with, whether they are your own kids, siblings, nieces and nephews, or any other relation. You may be living with kids who look up to you as an authority figure, and if you teach them that smoking is alright you will feel very guilty later in life.

Some of the many new products used to help an individual to stop smoking are really very effective. Counseling services, reading materials, medicines, and patches are all widely available and have produced some amazing results. Educational materials alone may be the best beginning start to an attempt to quit because once you know what kind of damage you are doing to your body the prudent and reasonable person will definitely see that it is the very best thing to do. However, it has been documented and researched that the highest success rates occur when a combination of methods are used simultaneously. Take the time and do it for yourself and your loved ones, quit for life.

Tonsils and Tonsillitis in Children

Tonsils are two tissue balls located at the back of the throat. They play a vital role and are an important part of the bodys infection fighting mechanism by helping to fight germs and diseases. Tonsils deal with the germs before they reach mouth, throat, or sinuses. When these infection fighters are infected by viruses or bacteria, the condition is known as tonsillitis.

The symptoms of tonsillitis are: as the time passes, eating, drinking and swallowing things become difficult. The pain can be accompanied with fever, earache and headache. The tonsils can be seen too. Just open the mouth wide open and the two masses of tissues at the either side of the throat are tonsils. They are usually dark pink in color, but when they get infected they turn red. A white or yellow coating can also be formed on the tonsils. There is an obvious change in voice as it becomes hoarser. The infected child can also develop bad breath. The infected kid can also get abdominal pain and can throw up what he eats. Tonsillitis is caused by both bacterial infection and viral infection. Bacterium known as streptococci causes infections which require special treatment.

When the child gets tonsillitis, the parent should give lots of fluids to drink. Smooth food should be consumed to ease the pain caused by swallowing coarse, crunchy, and hard food. Food like soups, ice creams, applesauce, and gelatin are a good option. Spicy food should also be avoided. A humidifier or cool mist vaporizer can be placed in the childs room as that will make breathing more easily. The kid must be given maximum rest and complete bed rest for at least two days is recommended. The bacteria and viruses cause tonsillitis to spread by sneezing, coughing or touching. The infected child must cover his/her mouth while coughing and sneezing. A disposable tissue can be used instead of a towel or handkerchief. Things such as utensils, towel, clothing, etc. of the sick kid should be separated so that the rest of the family doesnt get affected.

The doctor inspects the tonsils using a wooden stick known as tongue depressor, which will lower the tongue, so that the doctor can have a good look at the tonsils. After that the doctor checks the ears and nose. Heartbeat will be checked. If the doctor suspects strep, he/she will take a sample of saliva from the back of the throat using a long cotton swab, which can gag up the child a bit. After a day or two the results are received. Some doctors conduct a similar test known as rapid strep test, which give results within few minutes. Antibiotics are given when the test results come positive for strep. The bacteria get killed only when the course is completed and the correct dosage is taken at correct time.

If virus is the cause of infection, there is no medicine for it and instead the body is capable of fighting the virus on its own. When the tonsils infection becomes frequent and the child finds it difficult to breath because of tonsillitis, it is recommended to get the tonsils removed. But it is the last resort after all other treatments do not do the trick, because tonsils are very important to the bodys immune system.

The tonsils are taken out by surgery known as tonsillectomy. After the surgery, the child wont suffer from sore throat and breathing problems anymore. The surgery wont even leave any scars. A day before the surgery, the child cannot eat or drink, to keep the child from throwing up during the operation. The operation is very short and last for only twenty minutes. Because of the anesthesia, the child wont feel a thing during the operation. And during the surgery, the tonsils are removed using an electric cautery, which is a burning tool, or a cutting tool. After the surgery, the child is given lots of fluids and after a day soft foods can also be given. Usually it takes about two weeks to completely recover from the surgery and the child can return back to normal activities.

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Dont Shortchange Your Efforts Diet Is Important

Accomplishing your fitness goals is the goal when it comes to fitness. We all know by now that all foods are not created equally. The best of food sources is fruits and vegetables free from toxic by products and other negatives like saturated fats, high sodium, and nitrates. Years of research has repeatedly shown that grains, fruits and vegetables are the bodys preferred food sources for optimum performance. Full of nutrients that the body needs to heal itself and operate properly the top of the food pyramid will give you the most bang for your buck when it comes to essential nutrients.
Reasons to increase your intake of fruits and vegetables include, helping to supply our bodies with much needed energy, improving immunity to diseases, and overall mind health. Read on to find out how to take advantage of a great diet.

Much like a car your body is built for performance thus proper maintenance, fuel, and care is needed. Simple, right? Then why is it that increases in obesity and other diet related illnesses still exist in abundance. We just are not taking care to what it is that we are putting in our bodies and expecting results that are simply unrealistic. We need to be champions and caregivers to our bodies and perform the fundamentals of overall body care by committing to better diets for overall better health. Our choices in nutrition and level of activity are partially a learned behavior. We can learn to eat a variety of foods from all of the food groups to help maintain weight, increase cardiovascular fitness, and increase energy levels naturally. Lowering blood cholesterol can be accomplished by increasing your intake of whole grain foods; fish can decrease the risk of death from coronary artery disease. The benefits of a healthy well balanced diet are endless and should be taken very seriously for optimum health.

Base your food choices on these patterns:
Lean meats and poultry without skin and added saturated and trans fats
Low fat dairy products
Low dietary cholesterol
Cut back on added sugars
Use little or no salt
Drink in moderation
And take care when eating out

Naturally these will be altered if you have any abnormal circumstances (for example, if you are very thin and you work out a lot, then you can ignore many of the rules related to fat and cholesterol, since your body can actually use them).

A healthy diet and life style will provide you with all of the energy, stamina, and endurance to met and exceed the challenges of everyday life. All you really need is provided by nature and at the top of the food pyramid in whole grains fruits and vegetables. So if you are trying to stay in shape, get in shape, maintain good shape or the like remember to handle your body like you handle the care of your automobile. Choose the right fuel to keep your engine running for a long time. Dont shortchange yourself or your life by fueling your body with damaging food sources and other activities that will diminish your chances for a long healthy happy life.

These principles hold true for anyone in the world. Seniors will reap many benefits from healthy lifestyles, as will young people. Sometimes it can be hard to be sure what the best intake for your body is, but if you start experimenting with different diets you will surely be able to adjust the different levels to their ideal amounts. You can also consult the advice of a dietician or a doctor, or simply find a calculator on the internet that will tell you what kind of food you need to be eating. Once you have found something that works for you, stick with it for the rest of your life. You will be glad that you did.

Childhood Obesity And How To Combat It

This chronic condition has increased rapidly over the past years has finally gained national recognition. Many more children between the ages of two years old and five years old are already on there way to becoming the next generation of obese teens, and eventually obese adults and obese seniors. With obesity being one of the leading causes of morbidity, disability, discrimination, and employment problems, it has become one of the biggest public problems since tobacco use and exposure. Bad eating habits are not the only culprit, genetic diseases that can predispose children to become overweight cannot be forgotten. Diseases such as Bardet-Biedl syndrome and Prader-Willi syndrome are common in obese children, however still playing a larger role in the general overall population is bad eating and exercise habits.

It is the hope of many health educators, and medical professionals from psychologists to medical doctors that increased public awareness and preventive policies will eventually improve the situation. Professionals are treating this as a major public health concern that is threatening to damage our most precious resources, the children. Introduction of healthy play, healthy food choices, and recreation that promotes physical activity is on the top of the list for discussion and plans of battling this epidemic. Having caretakers take pro active measures to keep the child on the right track and setting good examples are key elements to helping these children to learn a healthier behavior and attitude towards their own health.

The annual National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has come to the conclusion that as many as one third of U.S. children are overweight or at high risk for childhood obesity. The health problems that will begin to manifest themselves from the heavy weight of such young children will start kids down a road the problems such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and increased risks of diabetes. These are diseases usually reserved to adults, not children. Combating this troubling condition must however, begin at home with the caregivers for these children. Improving overall diet, not dieting, and exercise is the key to resolving the problem. Protecting childrens health now and in the future will depend greatly on education of parents and caregivers to implement healthy daily living strategies.

Preventing an at-risk child from becoming overweight can start a process of healthy and active lifestyles to ensure longevity and energy throughout the childs life. Little things such as: not getting into power struggles with the child over food, never use food as a behavior modification tool, and setting a good example are some starting places. This only perpetuates the same behavior and may cause psychological behaviors that are unwanted. Critical commenting, and taunting rarely if ever handles the situation with a positive outcome. Emphasizing whats positive and benefits of changing behavior can make all of the difference in the world. Just fostering the childs natural inclination to please you, have fun, and explore are perfect opportunities to introduce fitness routines, and reduce such incidents like eating out of boredom. If these things are done with every child in danger of becoming obese, then the numbers suffering will likely decrease.

Therefore, you should always keep in mind the health of yourself and your children. By keeping in shape yourself and displaying a good diet, you can impress upon them the importance of being a health-oriented individual. These habits will stay with them for all of their lives. You will also have quite a few benefits from eating healthy and slimming down. If you shed your extra weight, you will feel much better about yourself. If you want to find out more information about how you should change your diet habits, you should go to your local library for a book about diet and health. You can also talk to your doctor if you want some recommendations that are specific for your current health.