Health and Medicine – How To Stay Safe When Going To The Hospital

Writen by Brandi Clark

Each year two million Americans acquire hospital infections and over 90,000 of those people will die. This is an alarming statistic to say the least. Hospitals are where one goes to get well not feel worse. But unfortunately, while a hospital is a place of healing it can also be a safe haven for germs.

For instance, when the doctor goes to a patient’s room they usually either shake hands with that patient or they have to touch the patient when performing a medical exam. Assume that patient has a contagious illness and the doctor accidentally forgets to wash his hands when he comes into your room. He performs the necessary medical exam on you and of course his hands and that other person’s germs are on you! When a doctor comes into your room politely ask them if they have washed their hands before the medical exam.

It is also imperative that you as the patient wash your hands constantly while in the hospital. Remember, that before you were in that room someone else that was sick was in that room and may have had spreadable germs. So when you touch the bathroom door handle, the telephone, the tv remote, or the nurse call system, remember that you are potentially picking up unwanted illnesses. These items will have all been cleaned each time a patient is discharged from the hospital but we all know that no cleaner kills 100 percent of all germs.

Hospital spread infections have become a serious problem. As the patient, it is your responsibility to watch out for your health care. It is vital that you reduce the chance of infection as best as possible so that you will not develop any unwanted medical illnesses.

Brandi Clark is a 26 year old female who underwent a double lung transplant at the age of 14. Needless to say she has been in her share of hospitals. Visit Going To The Hospital and learn of her daily struggles and triumphs in dealing with a double lung transplant and recently being diagnosed with bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome.

How To Order "Salt-Free" in Restaurants

Writen by Hilde Bschorr

Most Americans today eat too much refined salt. While our bodies do need some sodium to survive, the amount is very little. Many health experts say that 220 milligrams (mg) to 500 mg per day is more than enough.

The federal Dietary Guidelines now say that Americans should eat no more than 2300 mg of sodium per day. That’s just less than one teaspoon of added salt.

While it’s easy to cut down on salt at home, what about when you eat out in restaurants? There you could get several days allotment of salt in a single meal. But with a few easy guidelines, you can keep your salt intake well within reason and still enjoy a delicious meal.

How Refined Salt Affects Your Health

Salt, as it occurs in the Earth, is a complex crystal containing eighty-four elements that are vital to life. These include sodium, magnesium, silicum, chloride, calcium, titanium, manganese, iron, copper, zinc, selenium, zirconium, silver, iodine, platinum, gold, and many more. These nutrients are the same elements originally found existing in the “primal ocean” where all life originated, and the same elements our bodies need for good health.

By contrast, refined table salt contains none of its original minerals. To make refined table salt, natural salt from the sea or mines is refined to pure sodium chloride. Then sodium ferro cyanide and green ferric ammonium citrate are added as anti caking agents. If you purchase iodized salt, it also contains potassium iodine, dextrose (that’s refined sugar) to help stabilize the iodine, and sodium carbonate to preservative the color of the salt. Instead of building health, eating refined salt destroys body health.

Whether or not we are aware of the dangers of sodium chloride, our bodies recognize sodium chloride as an unnatural substance–a poison–and try to eliminate it as quickly as possible. The problem is, we eat more salt than our bodies can process out. Here in the United States, our average daily consumption of table salt is between 0.4 ounces and 0.7 ounces. Our bodies are only able to excrete 0.17 ounces to 0.25 ounces a day through our kidneys, depending on our age, constitution and sex.

Our bodies then try to neutralize whatever sodium chloride is left in the body by surrounding it with water molecules in order to break it down into sodium and chloride. For this process, our bodies take water from our cells. Without water, our body cells die.

The result is edema, or excess fluid in the body tissue. This is why doctors tell us to avoid salt. If there is more sodium chloride in a body than it can neutralize by pulling water out of cells, the body get rids of the excess sodium chloride by making it into new crystals. These are deposited directly in the bones and joints and are known as arthritis, gout, and kidney and gall bladder stones. Refined salt also contributes to high blood pressure, which greatly increases the risk of developing heart disease or stroke.

Why So Much Salt is Used in Restaurant Foods

About 93 percent of the salt produced throughout the world is used directly for industrial purposes. It is essential to make products such as laundry detergent, varnish, plastics and other products.

For these industrial uses, chemical processes require pure sodium chloride. To obtain sodium chloride, all the essential minerals and trace elements that make natural salt so vital to life are removed discarded as impurities.

Since sodium chloride is already being produced for industry in massive amounts, it is easily available as an inexpensive food preservative. This is why so many ready- to-eat food products are heavily salted with industrial sodium chloride. The sodium chloride inhibits the natural breakdown of the food, increasing its shelf life of foods that would naturally spoil very quickly. Since foods break down in our bodies with the same processes nature uses to break foods down outside of our bodies, sodium chloride in food products also makes them more difficult to digest.

Refined Salt in Restaurants

Refined salt is present in many foods in restaurants. Most restaurants cook with refined salt, and it is also an ingredient in most packaged prepared foods that restaurants use.

Because many people are now on low-sodium diets, restaurants are now accustomed to their customers wanting to minimize salt.

Here are four simple tips for reducing your intake of refined salt while eating in restaurants.

1. Choose restaurants that make dishes from fresh ingredients rather than “fast food” establishments that serve pre-prepared dishes. While you will spend more on the meal, you will save on medical bills.

2. Choose dishes that are likely to be prepared from scratch and ask that your dish be prepared without salt.

3. Watch out for condiments such as catsup, pickles, mustard, mayonnaise, and salad dressings that contain a lot of refined salt (ask for oil and vinegar or lemon juice for your salad or ask for the dressing to be served “on the side”.

4. Watch out for ingredients that contain a lot of salt, such as bacon and ham, and avoid them. Canned soups and soups made with bouillon cubes also contain a lot of salt, so only order soups that are made from scratch in the restaurant’s own kitchen.

Bring Your Own Natural Salt

Now, just because you are reducing the amount of refined sodium chloride you eat doesn’t mean that you need to eat completely salt-free. The health affects associated with salt–edema, arthritis, gout, kidney and gall bladder stones, high blood pressure, heart disease and stroke–are the result of eating refined sodium chloride, not from eating natural salt.

When we eat natural, living salt, which contains all it’s original elements, our bodies receive the salt it needs to thrive. Though you probably won’t find natural salt in the shaker at most restaurants, you can carry a small amount of natural salt with you to use when you eat away from home. The perfect container for carrying salt is a small cotton bag (4″ x 3″) with a drawstring (don’t use metal or plastic containers, such as a pill box, as they may leach toxic components into the salt).

By carrying your own natural salt, you can enjoy the enhanced flavor of foods with salt that will add to your good health, naturally.

Hilde Bschorr is the Owner of Himalayan Living Salt, an online purveyor of natural, unrefined, living salt products.

Read more about healthful salt at http://www.himalayanlivingsalt.com/

Heart Burn Symptoms

Writen by Patsy Hamilton

Spicy foods, large meals, sodas, coffee, citrus fruits, tomatoes and fried foods can all lead to heart burn symptoms. You can try a burn heart home remedy, but if you have not had these symptoms evaluated by a doctor, they could be related to a more serious condition. Common heart burn symptoms include a burning sensation in the throat or the chest. Non-burning chest pain, heaviness, pressure or nausea associated with chest pain should be checked out immediately by a physician.

If your heart burn symptoms are the more common type, you are not alone. Many people, particularly in the Western world suffer from heart burn symptoms everyday. Lifestyle, the foods we eat and obesity can all lead to heart burn symptoms. If you are looking for a burn heart home remedy other than the many over the counter antacids that are available, there are several botanicals that may be effective.

Gingerroot is a commonly available burn heart home remedy, as are peppermint and rhubarb. Some botanicals that may not be as easy to find, but that may relieve heart burn symptoms are bayberry, birch, dandelion, fennel, liverwort, pasture brake, pleurisy root, red clover and sweet rush root. These botanicals were all used by Native Americans to treat indigestion and heart burn symptoms. Consult an expert in herbs and natural remedies for usage instructions.

Sometimes the best burn heart home remedy is prevention. Once you experience heart burn symptoms, you can try a botanical or over the counter med, but evaluating the foods that you eat and your lifestyle may prevent the heart burn symptoms from recurring. I love tomatoes, but noticed that whenever I ate them, I experienced heart burn symptoms. All foods do not affect all people the same way, so it is necessary to evaluate your own diet personally. Heart burn symptoms that occur after a large meal may not be related to a specific food, but just to the fact that the stomach is overly full and acid has backed up into the lower throat or esophagus. It is the stomach acid that causes the burning sensation.

Lying down after a large meal can lead to heart burn symptoms. Proper digestion does not occur in this position, so another good burn heart home remedy is a leisurely walk after dinner. Other forms of exercise after a large meal may only increase the heart burn symptoms. Even repeatedly bending over to pick up the kids toys or loading the dishes in the dishwasher may cause the acid to rise up out of the stomach and lead to heart burn.

Smoking can cause heart burn symptoms. Smoking dries out the saliva in the mouth and throat that would normally neutralize stomach acid. If the other risks associated with smoking have not made you quit, maybe your heart burn symptoms will. Neutralizing the stomach acid is the goal of any burn heart home remedy as well as the over the counter and prescription meds. Sometimes a calcium supplement will work. Calcium carbonate is the active ingredient in many common antacids.

Another way to avoid heart burn symptoms is to drink water with your meals instead of soda, in fact drinking soda before bed can lead to night time heart burn symptoms. Night time heart burn can be particularly distressing and may lead to coughing fits and disturbed sleep. Drinking water is not a burn heart home remedy, but may prevent the heart burn symptoms form occurring in the first place.

Chronic heart burn symptoms should be reported to and evaluated by your doctor. Acid reflux disease is often first diagnosed after a person reports frequent heart burn symptoms. While occasional symptoms may be effectively treated with a burn heart home remedy, chronic heart burn symptoms may require additional treatment.

For more information about heart burn symptoms or other digestive disorders, visit the Digestive Disorder Guide.

Best Abdominal Exercises to Get the Sexy Six Pack You Deserve

Writen by Rajesh Shetty

The key to getting those sexy abdominals lies mainly on what abdominal exercises you choose to perform.

Here are the best yoga Exercises for Removing Abdominal Fat Permanently!

1)Dhanurasana-Bow Posture

Technique:

1. Begin lying down on the stomach, reach back and grasp the ankles. Inhale.

2. Lifting legs, head and chest, arch the back into a bow. Retain breath, then exhale and lie flat.

3. Repeat three or four times.

More advanced:

While in the Bow position, rock back and forth, then from side to side. Slowly release and exhale.

Benefits:

1. Massages abdominal muscles and organs. 2.Good for gastrointestinal disorders, constipation, upset stomach, sluggish liver. 3.Reduces abdominal fat.

Warning:

Not for persons suffering from peptic ulcer, hernia, or cases of thyroid or endocrine gland disorders.

2) Naukasana-Boat Posture:

Position:

Lie on the back as in Shavasana position, stretch the legs with your feet together and raise them about 10″ to 12″ above the ground.

Stretch the arms around the head on the ground and raise the arms along with the chest upwards after taking a deep breath, while balancing on the buttocks at the same time.

Now, let both the arms lie horizontally to the ground with fingers pointing towards the knees. The body in this position looks like a floating boat.

Breathe normally in this position and return to Shavasana position slowly after 10 to 30 seconds. Perform Naukasana at least 8 to 10 times per session.

Benefits:

It helps strengthen the muscles of the abdomen, neck and shoulder. It also relieves constipation.

Caution:

Severe backache and hip joint disorders are contra-indication for this asana.

3) Kapalbhati:

This is one of the best abdominal exercises for removing abdominal fat.

How to do it.:

Sit comfortably in a cross-legged position.Breathe normally for about a minute. Once composed, you can begin.

First, Exercise the diaphragm by exhaling suddenly and quickly through both nostrils, producing a “puffing” sound. Don’t focus on inhalation. It will be automatic and passive.

The air is exhaled completely from the lungs with a sudden, vigorous stroke while simultaneously drawing inwards the abdominal muscles.

The breath should be expelled fully. Inhaling is automatic – the abdominal muscles will relax automatically.

This abdominal exercise should be done in three rounds, each consisting of 10 strokes (for the beginner). Each round should take about a minute.

A little rest can be taken in between the rounds as convenient. Throughout the exercise, the chest should be kept still without expansion or contraction. Only the diaphragm is used for breathing and not the upper chest.

Over a month, the number of strokes per minute can be gradually increased from 10 to about 30.

Benefits:

Clears toxins from your body and lungs.Tones the abdominal muscles and burns fat.

Practising the above mentioned yogic exercises regularly will take 10 minutes of your time daily, but they have a profound, long-term effect on your overall health and fitness.

Abdominal flab lost in this manner doesn’t return easily and you remain happy and young for a long long time. Hence it’s definitely a smarter way to look sexy and stay healthy.

Get more cutting edge fat burning secrets in my Free 5 day email ecourse delivered straight to your inbox by subscribing to my newsletter at: www.eweightlosstips.com/weightlossltr.htm

Rajesh Shetty

Expert in weight loss principles of Ayurveda Medical Science and Author of the Best selling book, “Proven weight loss secrets revealed”.

http://www.eweightlosstips.com/weightlossltr.htm

Five Easy Tips for Beating Festive Season Fat Traps – Without Starving Yourself

Writen by Alan Cooper

Remember that feeling of delicious excitement that we used to feel as kids at the approach of the end of year holidays? Sadly, for many of us it’s been replaced with a sense of dread and not just at the prospect of opening our credit card bill in January!

For some an even bigger fear awaits – the prospect of facing the bathroom scale after weeks of festive food and drink.

It wasn’t for nothing that they once called holidays like Christmas “feast days”. Back in medieval times these feasts were rare islands of indulgence in oceans of famine lasting for months.

In the developed world these days, the closest we get to famine is when we work through lunch. It can be a battle to keep our weight under control in the face of everyday food temptations. End of year feasts can tip us right over the edge.

But it need not be like that. Here are five simple tips to beat the festive season fat traps and the inevitable guilt that follows. You’ll be relieved to hear that none of them involves starving yourself. In fact, the first tip actually advises the exact opposite

1) Eat a good breakfast

This may seem counter-productive, but this advice applies to everyday life, so why change it over the holidays? Many people sleep in and skip breakfast during the holidays. By the time lunch or dinner comes along they’re ravenous and cram far more into their mouths than they would normally.

I’m assuming, of course that your usual breakfast is a sensible, healthy one. Starting off the day with a stack of pancakes, grits, bacon and six eggs is NOT a good way to start the day, holiday or no holiday!

2) Drink at least eight glasses of water a day

You should be drinking plenty of water each day anyway. Over the holidays this is even more important.

We all tend to drink more alcohol or sugary sodas over holiday periods. I’m not going to be a killjoy and suggest you deny yourself these indulgences, but try to alternate each “bad” drink with a glass of water. If it’s a glass of sparkling mineral water, with a slice of lime in it, you won’t look or feel out of place. Your head and stomach will thank you the next morning.

3) Fill up on fiber

Drink one of you eight or more glasses of water half an hour to forty minutes before the main meal, along with a fiber supplement. There’s no need to buy an expensive, over-hyped diet aids like ZetaCap or FiberThin, either. A product like Metamucil is far cheaper and just as effective.

You’ll feel fuller by the time the food arrives, so you’ll eat less. And thanks to the additional fiber in your diet, the food won’t hang around in your digestive system for as long, which means less of it will be absorbed to eventually find its way onto your waist or thighs.

4) Pace yourself

This applies to the festive season as a whole and to each of the big meals you encounter over this period. By all means enjoy these feasts, but resist the temptation to turn every day between Thanksgiving and New Year into a feast day.

When presented with a table groaning with all manner of delectable treats, the natural response is to heap your plate high with as much of everything you can fit on it. Go instead for more, but smaller helpings. Have a slice of turkey with some greens. Then go back for a slice of gammon and potatoes. Hmm, that sauerkraut looks good

Chew slowly and talk to your friends and family. Feasts are by their nature leisurely affairs. Use this to your advantage and take your time. This way your stomach will have plenty of time to register that it’s full, which is not the case when you scoff down a huge plate of food.

The bonus is that you actually get to enjoy dessert, rather than forcing it down out of sense of obligation.

5) Take a hike

Yes, the holidays do offer more culinary temptations. But they also offer more opportunities for fun, fat burning activities.

Go for a leisurely swim or walk on the beach if you live in a warm climate. If not, take a relaxing hike in the woods with your kids. Or cuddle up to your significant other in front of a blazing fire which is sure to lead to one of the most effective and enjoyable forms of exercise!

Happy holidays!

Alan Cooper is a journalist with 20 year’s experience and the publisher of http://www.ObesityCures.com, a site with the ambitious aim of being a “one-stop-shop” for impartial information on obesity and weight loss solutions – including fad diets, prescription weightloss pills and natural weightloss aids.

Do You Eat Right Before Bed Time?

Writen by Peter Salazar

Acetyl-L-Carnitine

Liquid life night time diet contains 100 mg of acetyl-L-carnitine per serving. It is a naturally occurring product in animals. It shows neuroprotective activity in the human body.

Protein

Liquid life night time diet contains 5 g of proteins. Proteins comprise of amino acids which are composed of oxygen, nitrogen, sulphur, hydrogen, and carbon. Amino acids link together in the form of chains. This structure is known as peptides. Each protein type differs from the other on the basis of the structure of the amino acids present in them. When we eat food, the proteins in them are digested. During digesting the protein is broken down into amino acids which are absorbed and are used inside our body to produce newer proteins. There are a total of 8 amino acids that are essential for humans out of many types. These are isoleucine, leucine, threonine, valine, phenylalanine, methionine, lysine and tryptophan. Proteins are required for the repair and development of organs, tissues, muscles and for use in almost every biological function.

L-Lysine

Liquid life night diet contains 100mg of L-Lysine which is a protein type amino acid and is essential for human bodies. It is found in abundance in milk, meat and poultry.

L-Glutamine

Liquid life night time diet contains 250mg of L-glutamine which is a semi-essential amino acid and should be supplied in daily diet. It is one of the most important amino acids when the body is subject to harsh metabolic conditions such as cancer or trauma. In these conditions this protein becomes essential and proper supplementation can provide the required amounts. It is used in many body reactions and is also required to maintain the acid base balance in the body.

L-Arginine

Liquid life night time diet contains 250 mg of L-arginine which is a semi-essential protein which means that body can synthesis it as required. In certain conditions it is not produced. It is necessary for people with genetic disorder in which the amino acids cannot be synthesized and in young children it may not be produced. It becomes essential when excessive metabolic stress is given to body in cases of cancer, burns and trauma.

Carbohydrates

Liquid life night time diet contains 3 g of carbohydrates per serving which are very important and most readily available source of energy.

Why do we need vitamin C?

Liquid life night time diet has 60 mg of vitamin c which is used for production of collagen, and fighting off free radicals.

Vitamin B5

Liquid life night time diet contains 10 mg of vitamin b which is also known as pantothenic acid. It is one of the eight b vitamins that are soluble in water. It helps in healthy nervous system, hair, skin and liver.

Vitamin B6

Liquid life night time diet contains 10 mg of vitamin b6 which is required for carrying out many processes including metabolism of carbohydrates, fats and proteins. It is also required for healthy nervous and immune system and promotion of heart system.

Peter Salazar’s source for quality supplements is http://www.utopiasilver.com

To go directly to this product go here: http://utopiasilver.com/products/supplements/liquid_life_night_time_diet.htm

All products have a MONEY BACK GUARANTEE

Chair Yoga Vinyasa Flow

Writen by Paul Jerard

Here is an option for your Chair Yoga classes. There are seated flows and standing flows from the back, or side, of the chair. “The flow,” which we know as “Vinyasa,” is synchronized breathing with movement. This brings to mind vigorous Yoga classes for young, energetic, and fit Yoga students.

However, Vinyasa can be gentle, too. If introduced correctly, Vinyasa Flows can be fun for students of all ages and most health conditions. The exception to this is extremely severe arthritis. Unfortunately, excess movement is not encouraged for this particular group.

Do not give medical advice, and explain to your students that you are a Yoga teacher, not a medical doctor. If one of your Chair Yoga students does not like their physician’s advice, he or she has the right to seek a second medical opinion from a qualified physician, but do not give medical opinions.

Many physicians advise their patients, with severe arthritis, to stop exercise altogether. Constant friction, in the joints, without lubrication, is an existence of constant pain. This particular group would even be taxed in a gentle restorative style Yoga class or while performing isometrics.

So far, I have met a rare few, who have a severe level of arthritis, and they held postures for a long time with very little movement. That was all they could realistically endure, due to the level of pain they constantly live with. The fact that they try gives them mental comfort.

Again, in the above case, most physicians do not recommend any kind of exercise; however, Pranayama and meditation were a big relief. Vinyasa, of any sort, was “out of the question.” So, let’s concentrate now on the 99% of your Chair Yoga students who are looking for a little stimulation in the form of Vinyasa Yoga.

Your Chair Yoga students can hold a posture for one complete breath. That is one full inhale and one full exhale, while holding a posture. This will be much less vigorous, but your Chair Yoga students will love it. This is not a race and is also mildly aerobic. The benefits are mentally uplifting, as well.

For a fit crowd, an inhale on one posture, and an exhale on the following posture will be fine, but the breath should still be complete. The Chair Yoga teacher is not a “drill sergeant,” so the pace of any Chair Yoga Vinyasa flow should be slow, thorough, and controlled. Chair Yoga Vinyasa Flow is not a race. The absolute and top priority is to keep Yoga practice safe. Fun is one thing, but safety overrides fun every time.

© Copyright 2006 – Paul Jerard / Aura Publications

Paul Jerard is a co-owner and the director of Yoga teacher training at: Aura Wellness Center, in North Providence, RI. He has been a certified Master Yoga teacher since 1995. He is a master instructor of martial arts, with multiple Black Belts, four martial arts teaching credentials, and was recently inducted into the USA Martial Arts Hall of Fame. He teaches Yoga, martial arts, and fitness to children, adults, and seniors in the greater Providence area. Recently he wrote: Is Running a Yoga Business Right for You? For Yoga students, who may be considering a new career as a Yoga teacher. http://www.yoga-teacher-training.org/index.html

10 Options in Treating Mesothelioma

Writen by Paul W Wilson

As with any cancer, treatment for Mesothelioma depends on the location of the cancer, the progression of the disease, the age as well as state of health of the patient.

It is the oncologist who specializes in the disease who will decide on the line of treatment. The disease is difficult to treat and in most cases the prognosis is poor. Treatment options include:

1. If the diagnosis is done in the early stages surgery may be recommended to remove all cancerous tissues. This means thoracoscopy, VATS or video assisted thoracic surgery, mediastinoscopy (used for staging), or laproscopy. Often, doctors will advise palliative procedures like chest tube drainage and pleurodesis, thoracoscopy and pleurodesis, pleuroperitonial shunt, or pleurectomy, which treat the symptoms of mesothelioma rather than the disease.

2. Radiation is prescribed aggressively for mesothelioma patients and is often given in combination with surgery or in order to control symptoms, palliatively. Research on using radiation therapy using implants or UV light therapy is in progress as traditional radiation therapy damages surrounding healthy tissue.

3. Chemotherapy is an option and around 12-20% of patients respond to the drugs. Anti-cancer drugs destroy cancer cells and prevent their spread. In mesothelioma, chemotherapy is not considered to be curative. The aim is to prevent spread of the disease; shrink the tumor prior to surgery, known as neoadjuvant therapy; to annihilate any remains of the tumor in the body post surgery; and to relieve pain and other discomfort, palliative chemotherapy. Experts recommend prescribing premetrexed along with cisplastin. These drugs have shown positive results and this is now standard care for Mesothelioma not treatable by surgery.

4. Biological therapy using interleukin 2.

5. Immunotherapy where the body’s own immune system is stimulated to fight the disease. Biological response modifiers, BRMs, are used in treatment. These enhance the functions of the immune system; regulate metabolic reactions that promote growth of cancers; alter cancer cell division; block or reverse processes that lead to formation of cancers; and prevent spread of cancer.

6. Gene therapy, where attempts are made to correct the gene sequence that causes the cancer. This is of two kinds, replacement gene therapy and knockout gene therapy.

7. Administration of lovastatin, a cholesterol lowering drug.

8. Photodynamic treatment where a photosensitive medication is activated using a laser. This is done during the surgical removal of cancerous tissues.

9. Draining of fluid in the chest or abdominal cavity followed by introduction of medications into the cavity to prevent fluid accumulation is done for patients who have uncontrolled fluid accumulation and intense discomfort stemming from it.

10. Combination therapy or Trimodal therapy which means surgery accompanied by radiation and chemotherapy.

Often, complementary medicines are also used. Termed to be holistic this kind of treatment focuses on a patient’s physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual well being.

In the case of Mesothelioma which is untreatable one can opt for clinical trials of new treatments that are in progress in several research laboratories and centers. The best advice on the line of treatment would be that recommended by the oncologist or physician.

Paul Wilson is a freelance writer for http://www.1888Discuss.com/health/ , the premier REVENUE SHARING discussion forum for Health Forum including topics on health care, Children’s Health Issues, addiction, Cancer, fitness equipment, Burns & Injuries and more. His article profile can be found at the premier Health Article Submission Directory http://www.1888Articles.com/health-articles-8.html

Cystic Fibrosis Life Expectancy

Writen by Kent Pinkerton

Cystic fibrosis is a serious genetic disorder with reduced life expectancy. A common genetic disorder among Caucasian people, this disease occurs in one of every 3,200 Caucasian births. The mutation in the gene varies according to the geographical background. Cystic fibrosis occurs in one out of every 15,000 African-American births. The life expectancy of cystic fibrosis patients has been increasing over the past 40 years. In the 1980s life expectancy of people with cystic fibrosis was 14 years.

10 years back, the life expectancy of a person with cystic fibrosis was around 18 years. Today it is 35 years. The median life expectancy of a newborn with cystic fibrosis has increased from 4 years to 32 years. It has been estimated that there has been more than 10 year increase in the average life expectancy of affected people in North America. Over 90% of the affected infants now survive beyond one year. Studies show that life expectancy of children will exceed 40 years. Life expectancy of individuals with adequate pancreatic function can be more than 50 years.

In the United States, approximately 30,000 people have cystic fibrosis. Around 1,000 new cases of cystic fibrosis are diagnosed each year. One child of every 3,500 is born with cystic fibrosis. In Canada, the overall cystic fibrosis birth rate from 1971-1970 was stable. From 1988, cystic fibrosis birth rate increased to a rate of 1 in 3,608. Cystic fibrosis birth rate is stable for the last few years. In the UK, cystic fibrosis birth is about 1 in 2400 and 4% of the people are cystic fibrosis carriers.

80% of patients are diagnosed by the age of three. 10% of patients are diagnosed at the age of 18 and 3% patients are diagnosed in adulthood. Vast improvements in treatment have increased the life expectancy of cystic fibrosis patients.

Exercise & Self Image: How to Feel Better in More Ways than One

Writen by Tanja Gardner

A RECIPROCAL RELATIONSHIP

There seems to be an almost magical relationship between exercise and a healthy (or at least improved) self-image. Research shows that one of the best predictors (not the only one, but one of the best) of whether someone will achieve their fitness goals is a key aspect of self-image called self-efficacy. Self efficacy is the degree to which you believe you’re able to control what you do, and what happens to you).

The higher someone’s self-efficacy, the better their chances of starting and sticking to an exercise programme. At the same time, one of the most well documented psychological effects of regular exercise is a marked improvement in self-efficacy. The longer we engage in regular exercise, the better we feel about ourselves. This means is the better our self-esteem, the more likely we are to exercise, and the more our self-esteem rises, so the more we want to exercise and so on. Although the conclusions are fairly clear, there doesn’t seem to be much study of why the relationship exists. There are, however, a lot of theories.

PHYSICAL REASONS

Firstly, there are the biochemical results of exercise (see our article on Exercise and Stress for a more in-depth look at these). Have you noticed that a given situation can look totally different depending on how good you feel physically? From the flood of endorphins through your bloodstream to the flushing out of stress hormones, a good workout (or even just a good walk) makes your body feel wonderful. This, in its turn, tends to improve the way you view yourself – just as it would improve the way you viewed any other situation.

Continuing on this line, I want you to try something. Hunch your shoulders, cross your arms across your chest, look down at the ground, scowl, and say ‘I feel in control.’ Not very convincing? That’s because an estimated 80% of our communication is non-verbal, and this applies internally as well. Now try sitting up, putting your shoulders back, taking a couple of deep breaths, and repeating the experiment. Different? Now you’re communicating a totally different non-verbal message. Then consider that exercise helps strengthen your muscles and improve your posture – all of which communicates nonverbally to your mind how you’re feeling.

PSYCHOLOGICAL REASONS

Moving away from the physical, there are psychological reasons that reaching a specific exercise goal would increase self-efficacy. Self-efficacy is best improved by doing things. Every time you do something you haven’t been able to do before, the part of you that holds your beliefs about what you’re capable of (your self-efficacy) has to change to incorporate this new piece of information. So every time you achieve a new goal, your self-efficacy increases. This makes you more likely to set and achieve new goals, simply because, having tasted success, you know it’s possible.

Then there’s the way that other people react to the results of your exercise programme. You might get compliments on the physical effects – perhaps you’re losing weight, looking less tired, or suddenly have more energy. Or, what you’re actually *doing* might draw positive comments. A friend might say ‘You’re so good – you’ve kept this programme up for months now!’ Someone might approach you at the gym and tell you they admire your dedication. (For extra ’self-esteem brownie points’, look for opportunities to *give* these kinds of compliments sincerely to other people. You’ll be amazed at how much better you feel about yourself). Getting compliments from other people isn’t the best reason to take up exercise – but if you surround yourself with supportive people, they *will* notice the difference – and any compliments they give you are a nice side-effect!

Lastly, there’s a reason I haven’t seen anyone else mention, but it’s such a big one for me that it needs to be mentioned. Exercising, by its nature, requires us to get rid of all our makeup, our tailored-to-hide-every-flaw suits, and everything else we hide behind to fit the magazine-imposed restrictions for beauty. And while letting that go can feel intimidating, it can also be incredibly freeing. Because exercising does the exactly same thing to everyone else.

If you want to once and for all destroy the illusion that everyone else but you looks like a model under their clothes, stand in a gym changing room and really *look* at the bodies there. There will be women who are ‘too skinny’, ‘too short’, ‘too fat’ – too ‘whatever’ to fit magazine standards – and most of them will be wandering around totally un-self-consciously, with far more important things to think about than the ‘flaws’ in their own, or each other’s bodies. *This* is reality. *This* is what healthy women – of all shapes and sizes – look like. And when this realisation finally sinks in, it can be more freeing than any pat assurances that ‘everyone’s shape is different’.

THE BOTTOM LINE?

So what’s the bottom line? Well, it’s wonderful news – both for those of us who have difficulty sticking to a workout programme, and for those of us who know our self-image could use a little TLC. Work on your self-image, even a little, and you’re going to want to exercise more to take better care of yourself. Add that little bit more exercise into your weekly routine, and you’re going to see your self-image improving. Work on them both – just a little – at the same time, and watch the magic truly happen!

If you have any questions about this week’s article, please don’t hesitate to contact me on mailto:tanja@optimumlife.co.nz. Otherwise, until next time, may every day bring you closer to your Optimum Life.

Copyright 2005 Tanja Gardner