Month: April 2022

Warning: Could Your Gout Medication Actually Be Harmful to You?

Is your gout medication really safe? While its always a good idea to visit a doctor if you have gout, you should be aware of any side effects or potential problems you may experience from prescription gout medication.

Non-steroidal Anti-inflammatory Drugs (NSAIDs)

NSAIDs are developed solely for reducing inflammation and are taken orally. The most commonly prescribed are indomethacin and naproxen. While doing a good job of getting rid of the inflammation they do not treat the underlying cause of gout, which is the build up of uric acid in the system and the crystals if forms in the joints.

Also, while this is the most commonly prescribed form of gout medication there is a limit to how much pain can be reduced with NSAIDs and no matter how much more you take it won’t reduce any more pain. This could lead to an overdose if you keep taking them in hopes of relieving the pain once the limit is reached. Overdose symptoms include mild to moderate pain, fever, inflammation and stiffness.

Corticosteriods

Taken either orally or injected, corticosteriods are anti-inflammation hormones that can usually clear up a case of gout within a week. Prednisone is the most commonly used corticosteroid for gout. The drawbacks for this particular drug is that it decreases the ability to fight off infections and to heal open wounds. Not only that, corticosteriods can even cause bone thinning, making them a poor choice for ongoing gout management.

Colchicines

When NSAIDs or Corticosteroids are ineffective or not an option, colchicines are often used. This is the most potent form of gout medication and usually works best if taken within 12 hours of an onset of gout. As with most powerful drugs it can also have powerful side effects such as abdominal cramping, diarrhea, nausea and vomiting.…

Acne – The Adolecence Plague

One of the most prevalent problems affecting our teens today is acne, affecting in excess of 15 millions people in the United States alone. It can result in a severe lack in self-esteem and problematic interpersonal relationship skills. One must keep in mind that we did not get acne overnight and it will not go away overnight so be patient with yourself.

Acne normally begins when puberty starts and is mere a disorder which involves hair follicles and the sebaceous glands. In simpler terms, acne is the result of a build up of toxins causing the sebaceous glands becoming clogged and leads to pimples and cysts forming. Factually speaking when a teenager reaches puberty the males sex hormones or androgens are produced in a higher number causing the sebaceous glands to over-produce resulting in sebum produced in much higher quantities.

Normally, acne forms in the areas of their body where the sebaceous glands are in high proportion. The areas are your neck, face, chest upper back and shoulders. The oil produced by the sebaceous glands (sebum) normally rises to the skin surface through ones hair follicles but can be blocked by skin cells that also blocks the sebum causing bacteria to grow resulting in Propionibacterium Acnes. Partial blockage normally results in blackheads and complete blockage results in what is commonly referred to as white-heads. The depth of the acne can vary depending upon the quantity of oil and the nature of ones skin and has a variety of causes.

Rising hormones in teens as a result of puberty is only one cause of acne, other factors include drug intake, type of cooking oil utilized, cosmetics and having too much oil on ones scalp. Although the symptoms may differ the most common symptoms are formations of blackheads, lesions filled with puss, painful lesions, white-heads and nodules. It is always a good rule of thought to consult a professional for the best method of treatment. In the meanwhile, there are certain things that you can do every day when you are plagued with acne.

First you will want to insure that you are getting your daily allowance of rest! This is truly difficult for a great many of us for a variety of reasons. Seven to eight hours of sleep is essential for the majority of us and is truly necessary for us to relax, make the time because you are more than worth it.

Secondly, you really are what you eat and a balanced diet is crucial to your success in riding yourself of acne. By all means you must skip the sugar snacks, fast foods, and sodas. Fresh fruit and salads are much more acceptable and you will be amazed as the difference in how you feel, just try it for two weeks and you will see for yourself.

The last thing but equally important is staying hydrated. Acne largely a result of dehydration and by drinking plenty of water you will see a noticeable difference in 10 days or less. As previously stated, it is always recommended to seek a professional to give you specific accurate information on your specific disorder and how to treat is effectively.…

Holistic Approaches to Treating Infertility in Women

How Nutrition Effects Fertility

Holistic and Chinese traditional medicine offer a breadth of options for treating infertility in women. The most basic approach is for the woman to monitor and maintain a healthy diet, as this can actually help correct hormone imbalances. Alcohol, caffeine, and smoking are all known to reduce fertility, and so should be avoided. It is important that women pursuing holistic fertility treatments maintain adequate levels of Folic Acid, Zinc, and Vitamins B6 and E. The herb angus castus has been shown to aid in fertility, although it cannot be taken with Western fertility medications, as complications may result. While Chinese traditional medicine does not offer any individual herb for treating female infertility, there is a wide variety of formulas consisting of approximately one dozen ingredients that are chosen from over 150 plants that have been used successfully for centuries. The most common ingredients in these formulas include gardenia, ginseng, phellodendron, and astragalus. Because of the complexity of these formulas, it is important that the use of Chinese herbal treatments be supervised by an experienced practitioner of Chinese traditional medicine.

Acupuncture & Infertility

Acupuncture has also been shown to be effective in the treatment of female infertility. Sessions are focused on the Kidney meridian, which is the center of a woman’s energy, the Heart meridian, which governs menstruation and blood energy, and the Liver meridian, which governs the psycho-emotional state. Acupuncture of the ear has been shown to be effective in cases in which the infertility is caused by a malfunction of the ovary. It takes at least three months for an egg to mature, so fertility treatments should be given, at minimum, a four-month period to take effect. Some traditional treatments may take as long as 18 months to reach their full potential. The most effective approach to the use of holistic treatments for female infertility involves combining diet, herbal medicine, and acupuncture into a collective, multifaceted strategy. Acupuncture and Chinese medicine provide an effective, drug-free alternative to Western treatments. Because they treat the body as a whole and aim to correct the root of the problem rather than the symptom, many women who have not been able to conceive using Western treatments experience success with these holistic approaches.…

Help Mood Swings During Puberty

Is your child behaving differently as she used to? Your sweet little girl is now giving you trouble, and upsetting you because of her changing behavior. Your boy doesn’t listen to you anymore? Does she/he having emotional burst out these days? Don’t blame them for all these mood swings and emotional upsets. They are going through changes in her body and mind due to the hormones production at the time of puberty.

Sex hormones are produced during puberty. These include testosterone in boys and estrogen and progesterone in girls which are responsible for physical as well as sudden emotional changes in you teens. They don’t understand what is happening with them and fight within themselves against these changes. All these things lead to mood swings during puberty.

Don’t leave your child dealing with these mood swings alone. Don’t forget that once you have also gone through these changes and your parents helped you to take care of these things. You can do lot to help them.

Just don’t blame your teen child for everything and start more discipline for their behavior. Try to understand their situation, what they are going through. Take time to look at the situation. You will understand that these things are normal for every teenage. It is difficult for your child to deal with all the sad feelings when you don’t support them.

Now what you can do? You can help her/him to know what is happening by pointing out the signs of her mood swings. Tell your teenager that he/she is not alone who is going through all this. You also went through this situation year’s back and almost everyone goes through it during their teenage.

Give your teen some tips to cope up with these bad feelings. Tell them to count back from 10 when any stressing situation arises, watch TV or listen to favorite music and go out for a walk. By teaching them these coping skills, you can help your teen to be prepared for future episodes of mood swings.

Try to have a happy and supportive environment at your home so that your teen doesn’t start feeling out of place. Try to have healthy life style at home by giving them healthy food and some rest as it helps in combating bad mood. By this, you can also inculcating appropriate behavior in your child. Indulge your teenager into some activity or hobby of his/her interest. This can help him to stay in positive mood for longer periods of time. This improves creativity of your teen and coping with mood swings. Give some privacy to your teen. May be he/she needs some time to come up from bad mood. Give all the assurance and tell your teenager that you are always there if he needs to talk or share something with you. Some parents have a hitch for talking about sex and sexuality matters. Give your teenager proper education about sex so that he doesn’t fall prey to wrong habits for his sexual needs and changes occurring in him.

Just follow these simple tips and help your teenager have a happy teenage life. Keep in mind that he needs you more as a friend at this time rather than a more disciplined parent.…

Flea Removal – Debunking the Myths of Fleas on Cats and Dogs

Effective pet flea control starts from a thorough understanding of the type of pets you have, fleas life cycle, and all about parasitic infestation. A successful flea removal regime involves more than application of flea and tick medicine on your pets. There are many myths that many owners do not know or have common misconceptions which will be put to correction here.

Fleas are most common in home pets like dogs and cats. A lot of owners do not feel that their pets are prone to these parasites and stubbornly believe that even in infestation, they can be easily gotten rid of. These fallacies could well cost the health and even in some cases, the life of their beloved pets due to their sad ignorance. Indeed, the problems brought about by these parasites could be extensive to say the least.

You might think that your pets are healthy and hence not subject to parasitic infestation. This is however, not true as any animal can be infested but keeping them clean and healthy with effective pet flea control measures in place are all activities that owners should do.

Also, keeping strays away from your own dogs and cats could greatly help fight against infestation. Hence, the myth that your dog or cat can only be infested if it goes outdoors is debunked. In addition, fleas are great are hitch hiking and can easily move around even in areas of small openings.

So if you see only a few fleas jumping around on the fur of your dog or cat, you might think that that is no cause for infestation worry. Well, you could be very wrong about it. It is often only the tip of the ice berg and the reality of the situation could be much more serious than you expect.

The main reason is that these parasites are capable of multiplying extensively at a speed of 50 eggs per flea per day. Imagine if your pet has about 50 fleas on it, you will be faced with an infestation within a matter of a few days or weeks depending on how conducive the breeding environment is. Often, the eggs are well hidden away deep into skin and fur of the animal where the right amount of warmth and humidity form the best conditions for incubation.

Stay tuned for the next part of the series Flea Removal – Debunking the Myths, where you will learn more about the true meaning of pet flea control which is not simply applying your flea and tick medicine every time you see a few of those jumping parasites.…

Explaining Puberty to a Young Girl

There comes a time in every parent of girls’ life that is anticipated and dreaded in perhaps equal amounts, and that is the onset of puberty. Suddenly, and in a way overnight, your little girl becomes a woman with all that implies and infers. She is starting the transition into sexual maturity, even though the emotional maturity which needs to accompany that sexual awareness is missing in a child of ten or twelve. As a parent you need to advise your daughter both on the practicalities and the emotional implications of what is happening to her.

Puberty for a young woman means growing pubic and armpit hair, growing breasts and the onset of menstruation, along with sexual feelings, confusion and teenage angst. Gone is the innocent little girl who plays with dolls and has no interest in boys, here comes the sassy, confused, sometimes irritable and irascible teenager battling pimples and raging hormones.

Girls are growing up in this way earlier and earlier, so it is essential for any good parent to prepare her reasonably early for what will happen to her. Of course there is no need to be lecturing a four year old about periods, but by the time a girl reaches 8 or 9 it would be wise to let her know a little more about the transition to womanhood. This is usually best coming from a mother, who has experienced all this herself, and can speak from personal experience. If the only parent available is male, then this does not preclude him from telling his daughter about what’s coming. There are excellent books on the subject which can enlighten her, and finding her another woman in whom to confide or ask questions would be a great idea.

It is to be hoped that the days when girls started their periods in fear of bleeding to death are over. When a girl sees traces of blood she should be prepared and ready, and fully understand what is going on, and that it is nothing to be afraid of. She should be educated in the use of sanitary products and be ready to deal with the issue of menstruation in a practical and pragmatic way. She should be pleased to be making the transition from child to woman, and you as a parent should be instrumental in this.

Menstruation is coming to girls earlier and earlier, and there are various theories as to why this is. Most of these are about the superior and more substantial nutrition available to Western children of late. Be ready in case your daughter “starts” at seven or eight, as it is very young for a girl to fully comprehend what is happening to her.

Breast development is another issue – be aware of this as young girls can become quite obsessed with this. Peer pressure can be fierce, and locker rooms abound with girls comparing themselves to their colleagues – she’s already got breasts, she’s wearing a bra, I have nothing there, what’s wrong with me, all this stuff. It should be a proud and pleasurable time between a mother and daughter when they go shopping for the girl’s first training bra.…

A Guide to the Best Workouts for Baseball Players

To understand how to condition yourself for the game of baseball, you must think a little about the way the game is played. Baseball is a game of speed and quick bursts of power and energy. For this reason, anaerobic exercises focusing on promoting quick, powerful movements are much better for you as a baseball player than aerobic exercises like running, swimming, or jogging. Some of the best workouts for baseball involve what are called plyometric exercises.

Plyometrics is a type of exercise training designed to produce quick, powerful movements generally for the purpose of improving performance in baseball players. Plyometric movements involve loading and contracting muscles in rapid sequence to help you run faster, throw harder, and hit harder. Plyometrics are all about creating explosive power in athletes.

One of the most effective tools for performing plyometric exercises is the medicine ball. If you don’t know what a medicine ball is, it is simply a weighted ball about the diameter of your shoulders used in a variety of different exercises. My three favorite medicine ball exercises for baseball are called Slams, Figure Eights, and Russian Twists.

To perform slams, stand with your feet parallel and your knees slightly bent. Pull the medicine ball behind your head and quickly throw the ball down to the ground as hard as possible. Catch the ball after it bounces from the ground and repeat several times.

To perform Figure Eights, simply stand in the starting position by holding the medicine ball with your arms extended over you right shoulder. In a continuous motion, bring the ball down diagonally to the left until it is just above knee high on the left side of your body. Then, stand back up straight and raise the ball straight up over your left shoulder. Next, bring the ball down diagonally to the right until it is just above knee high on the right side of your body. Finally, stand back up straight and raise the ball straight up over your right shoulder. Repeat this motion several times with each complete repetition forming an imaginary “figure eight” in front of you.

To perform Russian Twists, stand with your feet shoulder width apart. Hold the medicine ball with both hands with your arms slightly bent. With your hips, quickly swing the ball to your right side and extend your arms. Once you are turned all the way to your right side, pull the ball back into your body and use your hips to swing the ball around to the left side and extend your arms. Keep your abdomen muscles firm during this exercise and repeat several times.

It should be noted that you need to warm up thoroughly before performing plyometric exercises to avoid injury. Proper stretching is recommended before any exercise routine that involves quick bursts of energy.

As noted above, to condition yourself correctly for the game of baseball, you must concentrate on quickness and powerful bursts of energy. Plyometrics, and specifically medicine ball exercises, are the best workouts for baseball players. Perform these exercises regularly to step up your game.…