New Drugs for Gout and Ulcerative Colitis
New drugs for gout and ulcerative colitis, two diseases that plague millions of people worldwide have been found.
 
Identifying the Signs of Breast Cancer
The early stages of breast cancer may not have any symptoms. That is why you must learn how to identify the signs of breast cancer before it's too late!
 
Full Body Detox
Lose 10 - 50lbs in 3 week with detox!
 
Do I Have Healthy Prostate Gland?
Don't wait until it's too late! Make sure you have healthy prostate gland.

Thursday, February 23, 2006

Unclogged Pores: What’s New in the Treatment of Acne

(ARA) - Who hasn’t suffered an embarrassing breakout at a socially sensitive time? Affecting nearly 85 percent of all people at some point in their lives, acne is the most common skin disorder in the United States.

While it is a well-known rite of passage for adolescents and young adults, some people in their 30s and 40s continue to suffer from this skin problem. There is no cure for acne. However, new treatments target the cause of acne and help patients keep their skin healthy and clear.

“Patients, regardless of age, today have more choices than ever before to treat acne,” said dermatologist Wendy E. Roberts, M.D., assistant clinical professor of dermatology at Loma Linda University Medical Center in Loma Linda, Calif. “Since what works for one person may not work for another, it’s advantageous for patients to work with a dermatologist who can create an effective individualized treatment plan.”

A recent American Academy of Dermatology poll shows that while people are starting to learn the truth about what causes acne, there are still some areas of confusion. Although 53 percent understand that acne is not caused by poor hygiene, myths still exist about the role of diet and stress. Sixty-two percent of respondents still believe that acne is caused by stress, while half continue to believe acne is caused by diet.

In fact, acne is caused by three major factors: overproduction of oil by enlarged oil glands in the skin, blockage of the hair follicles that release the oil, and growth of bacteria called P. acnes within the hair follicles. Research has led to many new acne therapies and changes in existing treatment options.

Topical and Systemic Therapy

Depending on the type and severity, acne can be treated with oral or topical antibiotics, or topical retinoids. “These treatments are a cornerstone of therapy and can achieve good results in patients, even those with moderate to severe inflammatory acne,” said Dr. Roberts. Since some topical ingredients can stain or bleach, Dr. Roberts recommends applying the treatment before going to bed and using white towels when washing to avoid staining clothes or colored towels.

In some patients, the effectiveness of topical retinoids can be enhanced when combined with oral treatments. These combination therapies allow all the factors causing acne to be targeted, making the treatment plan more successful. “Combination therapies should be discussed with a dermatologist who can recommend the most effective treatment after evaluating important factors such as the type and degree of acne, the patient’s skin characteristics and environmental factors,” noted Dr. Roberts.

Cosmetic Procedures

Combination therapies using oral and topical antibiotics or topical retinoids, in conjunction with a chemical peel, also have been found effective in managing acne. Chemical peel solutions with glycolic acid or salicylic acid are applied to the skin to exfoliate and help unblock the pores, open the blackheads and whiteheads, and stimulate new skin growth. This helps the skin absorb topical medications and also may treat blemishes which result from breakouts.

Similar to chemical peeling, microdermabrasion results in superficial exfoliation of the skin. “Chemical peels and microdermabrasion are minimally invasive, produce almost no discomfort and involve almost no recovery or down-time for the patient,” stated Dr. Roberts. “These procedures are best used in combination with other acne treatments. And because these procedures help smooth the skin’s surface, they can help diminish scars created by acne.”

Laser and Light-based Therapies

New laser and light treatments can specifically target two of the factors that cause acne. Lasers use heat to damage the oil glands, while photodynamic therapy, a light-based treatment, uses the combination of a medication on the skin that is then treated with a light to target the oil glands and P. acnes bacteria. Both these therapies reduce the overproduction of oil, which helps diminish, and in some cases completely remove, acne.

“These therapies cause minimal pain and discomfort to the patient,” said Dr. Roberts. “Lasers also promote collagen formation and renewal, which regenerates new skin and also can be used to treat acne scarring.”

“To help prevent acne scars, do not pop, squeeze or pick at acne, and seek treatment early for acne that doesn’t respond to over-the-counter medications,” advised Dr. Roberts. “There are many treatments available today and a dermatologist can guide a patient to the most effective treatment for his or her type of acne.”



For more information about acne and skin care, visit the Academy’s Web site at www.aad.org or contact the Academy toll-free at (888) 462-DERM (3376).

Courtesy of ARA Content

Glaucoma Takes Sight Without Warning

(ARA) - What has the power to steal your eyesight without warning, affects an estimated 4 million Americans and has no cure? Glaucoma.

Glaucoma is a group of eye diseases that presents no obvious symptoms in its victims in the early stages, but can eventually lead to total blindness. It is estimated that half of the people affected by glaucoma may not know they have it.

Glaucoma is often a very misunderstood disease. In spite of the lack of a cure, it responds well to treatment if detected early.

What is glaucoma?

Glaucoma causes damage to the optic nerve. The optic nerve is responsible for carrying images from the eye to the brain, creating the ability to see. With glaucoma, that nerve is damaged, causing irreversible vision loss.

There are typically no symptoms or early warning signs. Glaucoma is painless and causes gradual vision loss. Early on, glaucoma can cause a subtle loss of contrast between objects and their backgrounds. For example, not being able to distinguish the curb from the sidewalk.

How can I prevent glaucoma?

The truth is: Glaucoma isn’t preventable and cannot be cured. Nevertheless, it can be controlled in most patients. American Optometric Association (AOA) doctors of optometry urge Americans, especially those over the age of 60, to get an annual comprehensive eye exam. A doctor of optometry can not only evaluate the functional status of the eyes and visual system, but can also detect certain chronic and systemic diseases such as glaucoma and diabetes.

With a disease like glaucoma, where there are typically no early symptoms, an annual eye exam is essential in helping sustain your overall eye health. If diagnosed and treated early, glaucoma is manageable. A doctor of optometry can help patients maintain their quality of life.

Who is at risk for glaucoma?

Everyone is at risk for glaucoma, but certain groups run higher risks than others. These include:
  • African-Americans: Glaucoma is the leading cause of blindness among African-Americans. It is six to eight times more common in African-Americans than in Caucasians.
  • People over 60: Glaucoma is much more common among older adults. People over the age of 60 are six times more likely to get glaucoma than those under 60.
  • Family members: The most common type of glaucoma, known as primary open angle glaucoma, is hereditary. If members of your immediate family have that type of glaucoma, you are at a much higher risk than the rest of the population. Family history increases a person’s risk of glaucoma by four to nine times.
  • Eye injury: Injury to the eye may cause secondary open angle glaucoma. This type of glaucoma can occur immediately after an injury or years later. Blunt injuries that bruise the eye (called blunt trauma) or injuries that penetrate the eye can damage the eye’s drainage system, leading to traumatic glaucoma. The most common cause of secondary open angle glaucoma is a sports-related injury such as baseball or boxing.
Other risk factors

In addition to the above groups of people and categories of risk and injury associated with glaucoma, other risk factors that make people more prone to the disease include:
  • High myopia (nearsightedness)
  • Diabetes
  • Hypertension
What can you do to reduce your risk?

The most helpful advice concerning glaucoma is to keep in mind the importance of early detection through annual eye examinations from your doctor of optometry.

Medicare patients at high risk for glaucoma can receive dilated eye examinations as a benefit of Medicare coverage. The 2006 Medicare Fee Schedule expands the definition of an eligible beneficiary under the glaucoma screening benefit to include Hispanic Americans age 65 and over effective Jan. 1, 2006. Currently eligible beneficiaries are individuals with diabetes mellitus, individuals with a family history of glaucoma and African-Americans age 50 and over. The AOA provides a Glaucoma/Diabetes Hotline program which matches patients with participating optometrists in their area. For more information about the AOA Glaucoma/Diabetes Hotline, please call (800) 262-3947.



Courtesy of ARA Content

The Skinny on Male Eating Disorders: Increasing Numbers Raise Awareness

(ARA) - The prevalence of male eating disorders has become alarmingly more apparent in recent years, leaving medical and psychological establishments attempting to pinpoint just what has led to this escalation. On the heels of a University of Toronto study in 2000 suggesting that one out of every six people who qualified for a full or partial diagnosis of anorexia was male, researchers assembled their line of usual suspects to account for the significant departure from the one in ten frequently reported.

In the face of such studies, implications that damaging effects of cultural and media pressures that glorify thinness and endorse narrow definitions of beauty have surfaced. “Research has shown that the media play an impressive role in shaping, instead of merely reflecting, conceptions of the ideal body,” says Dr. Lou Rappaport, eating disorders expert and associate dean of the school of psychology and behavioral science at Argosy University/San Francisco Bay Area in Point Richmond, Calif. “I think marketing of a certain body image and clothing is part and parcel of eating disorders.”

Similar to women who have been compelled to uphold images of twig-thin models for years, men are more likely today to be swayed with depictions of thickly-packed muscular torsos, visible ripples of abs, and narrow waists. Experts point out that these pictures only reinforce the perception that “normal” bodies are not culturally-acceptable. “We live in a world in which men wear designer underwear,” Dr. Rappaport adds. “Images matter. I can’t say that they don’t, and men are not immune to their effects.”

While the bulk of media messages advancing an unnatural slenderness or muscle composition may be counterproductive to a positive self-image, it is not the proverbial silver bullet. Dr. Rappaport warns that the media cannot be viewed as the sole cause of male eating disorders. “There are also too many variables. For example, organized sports in elementary and middle school, such as boys needing to be below a certain weight to play on a football team, are also a part of this. The Greeks and Romans went down this road of glorification of the body. They are gone, and we seem to have learned little from that lesson.”

So what other factors are contributing to the upswing of male-eating disorder cases reported in studies? For one, more professions today, such as male actors or athletes, demand body types that promote unhealthy weight loss and excessive exercise. Research reveals that incidents of eating disorders are particularly common among those whose weight is critical to their job prospects.

Analysis of eating-disorder sufferers often has yielded four prominent factors thought to provoke the onset of the affliction: genetics, low self-esteem, trauma, and cultural influences. However, given that most of the studies and research focused largely on females, some in the field were skeptical that low confidence and cultural pressure could influence male eating habits. After all, it seemed difficult to absorb – with today’s popular culture flush with macho male archetypes and caricatures – that the relentless marketing of the “ideal body” might affect men in a similar manner as women.

It also looks as if health professionals are gradually becoming more adept at recognizing male eating disorders, inevitably leading to higher numbers of reported cases. In the past, men were often identified as suffering from depression with associated appetite changes rather than diagnosed with an eating disorder. Furthermore, mounting sentiment among researchers suggest that there has been an increase in the number of men seeking medical and psychological attention. Traditionally, men have been reluctant to pursue treatment, perhaps in response to the effeminate stereotype that surrounds the disorders.

But as the myth of the eating disorder as a “women’s disease” becomes discredited and education develops to incorporate a male perspective, more men appear ready to accept their problem instead of denying or covering it up. Experts contend that male eating disorders may have been as common throughout the past quarter century as the University of Toronto study indicates they are at present. Only now, they suggest, the medical community is better equipped to take notice.



Courtesy of ARA Content

EDITOR’S NOTE: Argosy University/San Francisco Bay Area is one of 13 Argosy University (www.argosyu.edu) campuses and four extension sites across the nation offering undergraduate, graduate, and postgraduate degrees in the disciplines of business, education, health sciences, and psychology and behavioral sciences. Argosy University is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission and is a member of the North Central Association (NCA) (30 North LaSalle Street, Suite 2400, Chicago, IL 60602, 1.312.263.0456, www.ncahlc.org).

The parent company of Argosy University, Education Management Corporation (www.edmc.com), is among the largest providers of private post-secondary education in North America, based on student enrollment and revenue. Student enrollment exceeded 66,000 as of fall 2004. EDMC has 71 primary campus locations in 24 states and two Canadian provinces. EDMC's education institutions offer a broad range of academic programs concentrated in the media arts, design, fashion, culinary arts, behavioral sciences, health sciences, education, information technology, legal studies, and business fields, culminating in the award of associate's through doctoral degrees. EDMC has provided career-oriented education for over 40 years.

Thursday, February 16, 2006

Cancer sufferer loses drug fight

A woman has lost her High Court battle to force her local health authority to pay for breast cancer treatment with the potentially life-saving drug Herceptin.

Mr Justice Bean said that he could not deem the policy adopted by Swindon primary care trust, Ann Marie Rogers's local National Health Service trust, of refusing to fund treatment in the absence of "exceptional circumstances" as irrational and, therefore, unlawful.

He also said the mother-of-three had failed to show Swindon PCT's stance breached guidelines from Patricia Hewitt, health secretary. "Despite my sympathy with Mrs Rogers's plight, I must dismiss the claim for judicial review," he said.

Yesterday's decision is the first time an English court has ruled on the lawfulness of a primary care trust policy that refuses to fund treatment in the absence of "exceptional circumstances" and could have widespread implications for hundreds of other women in a position similar to Mrs Rogers. But Mr Justice Bean did give Mrs Rogers, 54, permission to appeal against his decision, and also ordered that temporary funding of her treatment, which has been allowed while the legal battle was under way, should be continued until the end of March.

Read more...

FDA defines whole-grain food

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced a new draft definition Wednesday of whole-grain foods, designed to help consumers make healthier eating choices.

FDA is intended to clear up confusion about which food products actually contain whole grains and which do not -- but make that claim.

To qualify as “whole grain” under the proposed definition, the food product would need to contain the three principal parts of the fruit of the grain -- the starchy inner endosperm, the germ at the heart of the kernel, and the fiber-filled outer bran shell -- in the same relative proportions as they exist naturally, the FDA said.

Whole grains are a key source of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and fiber, the Whole Grains Council explains.

Read more...

Extra calcium for women takes some clinical knocks

A large, seven-year study of healthy women over the age of 50 found no broad benefit from calcium and vitamin D supplements in preventing broken bones, despite widespread endorsement by doctors for the supplements.

The study, whose results were being reported Thursday in the New England Journal of Medicine, also found no evidence that the supplements prevented colorectal cancer, and it found an increased risk of kidney stones.

The study's leaders said there were hints of benefits for some subgroups in the study. But the supplements' only positive effect in the overall study population - 36,282 normal, healthy women ages 50 to 79 - was a 1 percent increase in bone density at the hip.

Read more...

Monday, February 06, 2006

Vaccinate Your Children – Not!

Yesterday, one of the leading stories on the news was a plea for everyone in the US to have their children vaccinated. This brazen attempt to instill fear, and cause mothers to rush their children out to get flu shots, greatly angered me.

The advocates of the flu vaccine have never proven that anyone is really helped by their products. They have never proven that giving your child a flu shot will prevent or protect them from getting the flu.

It is however a fact that many have died after taking the flu vaccines.

The proponents of vaccinations offer a lot of rhetoric. But their entire philosophy is built on disproven theory.

Remember this; “You cannot be poisoned into health”.

The idea of gaining immunity from the flu virus is appealing and something to be desired. The truth is that it is nothing but wishful thinking. It has no basis in truth.

Yes some people die who get the flu. They die from the treatments for the flu, not the flu itself. The poisons used to fight the flu are what are dangerous. No amount of additional poison, called vaccine, can make you immune from the additional poison given as treatment for flu symptoms.

The flu is a self-limiting healing crisis, instituted by the body, to rid itself of toxic poisons. Any attempt to stop the symptoms is very risky. All the body needs during the flu is rest, temperature maintenance, clean air, and pure water.

If I have a cold or flu, I don’t fight it. I rest, drink enough water to prevent dehydration, stay warm, and wait. In 24 to 72 hours all symptoms are gone. If I do anything else the symptoms can linger on for many days, and often get worse.

I am not prescribing a form of treatment. I am only informing you about the truth. If you believe and make use of this information you are prescribing for your self, which is your right.



Charles Snyder is a health minister and teacher of Natural Hygiene. He ministers to people all over the world, teaching them how to get well and stay well without drugs or surgery.

He has many resources available on his website including the Health Seekers Yearbook by Victoria Bidwell, and the book on Vaccinations by Michael Dye.

Before you consider vaccinating your children or getting vaccinated yourself you should read "Vaccinations" by Michael Dye. This book is a well doccumented, eye opener.

http://www.arthritis-back-knee-pain-free-health-restored.com/books.html

Chuck's Health by Design course is available free on his website.

He is the author of the book Six Months to Live, a fiction adventure story that incorporates what he teaches on health into an exciting story based on real people, set into a fictional setting.

You can contact Chuck through his website.

http://www.arthritis-back-knee-pain-free-health-restored.com/books.html

The Mediterranean Diet - What Is It?

It has been found that people living in Mediterranean Countries such as Southern France, Spain and Italy live longer than people in other parts of the world. Why is this?

It’s what they eat and how the Mediterranean’s cook their food that makes all the difference.

From Mediterranean Country to Mediterranean Country, the way the food is cooked may differ so although the flavours are varied, the foods used are the same.

What is the Mediterranean Diet?

The diet is mainly foods that come from plants; grains, vegetables especially green leafy vegetables, fruits, beans legumes, nuts, and olive oil. So the foods that are common in the Mediterranean Countries are olives, grapes, wheat and what can be made from these foodstuffs. Added advantages of these foods are their nutritional value; they provide antioxidants, fibre, vitamins and minerals.

The Mediterranean Diet can help people avoid what is called the ‘Diseases of Affluence.’ These diseases are common in Westernised, industrialised nations and include Heart Disease, Obesity, Type 2 Diabetes and some Cancers.

Isn’t Olive Oil A Fat And Fats Are Bad For Us?

Yes olive oil is a fat, but it’s a good fat. The body needs good fat.

· Good Fat is monounsaturated or polyunsaturated.
· Bad Fats are saturated fats.

FATS are found in Meat and Dairy Products and some Vegetable Oils.

The body needs a certain amount of fat to be sure everything is working properly. But there are two kinds of fat that we get from our food.

SATURATED FAT causes the fat to settle on the inside walls of the Arteries. The FAT in the Arteries is called Cholesterol. It’s the Cholesterol that makes the Blood Vessels narrow so the blood is unable to pass through properly. The heart then has to pump harder to allow the blood to pass round the body, the result can be the heart is weakened, so causing Heart Failure, High Blood Pressure and Strokes.

BAD FAT is called LDL (Low Density Lipoprotein).

If you can cut ALL the BAD FAT out of your diet, you will be doing yourself and your body a big favour.

But whatever you do, don’t mistakenly leave out the GOOD FAT from your diet. Because the UNSATURATED FAT has been found to actually liquefy the Cholesterol and pass it out of the body by natural means.

The GOOD FAT is called HDL (High Density Lipoprotein) this GOOD FAT can be found in Plants and Animal Products. Therefore if you eat more fruit and vegetables you will be on the right path to living a healthy lifestyle.

Ancel Keys aged 96 believes his long life is due to the Mediterranean Diet. As a young scientist 50 years ago, he found that people in countries where fresh fruits and vegetables are in abundance and olive oil flows freely, Southern Italy, Southern France, Greece and parts of North Africa and the Middle East, Heart Disease is rare.

Three Tips for Eating The Mediterranean Diet
  • Fill your plate with fresh fruit and vegetables they are low in calories and fats and full of much needed nutrients.
  • When buying bread go for flour made from whole grains.
  • For dessert choose fruits.
So besides preventing heart disease etc eating the Mediterranean Diet way; as an added bonus, you might even lose weight.

by Eva Moffat

Friday, February 03, 2006

Diabetes and Tai Chi Therapy

I was quite surprised when I began searching for research on Tai Chi’s benefits for diabetes . . . it was very difficult to come by. Because on its face, Tai Chi seems to possibly offer many benefits to someone with diabetes. Tai Chi is known to stimulate microcirculation in practitioners, and is a highly effective stress management technique, and very gently burns a significant amount of calories. In fact, Tai Chi may actually help the body find homeostatic chemical levels. For example, in a study on sex hormones Tai Chi was found to have a “balancing effect” on the hormonal chemistry of participants, lowering the abnormally high estrogen levels in older men, while raising the abnormally low estrogen levels in older women.

These findings in other research led me to believe that there had probably been substantial research done on Tai Chi & Qigong’s benefits for those with diabetes, given that these findings in other studies at least initially suggest Tai Chi & Qigong may offer much to the diabetes patient. But, as I said, it doesn’t appear there is much out there in terms of “tai chi & qigong as an adjunct diabetes therapy,” at least from Western institutions.

However, a couple of Chinese medical institutions studies had very exciting results. A Beijing University of Chinese Medicine and Pharmacology study found that blood sugar could be lowered successfully by doing QiGong exercises. 42.9 percent of patients in the study were able to take less medicine while having more staple foods. Also, a Nanjing University study found that Tai Chi exercise helped to regulate metabolic disorder of type 2 diabetes mellitus with geriatric obesity by regulating the nervous-endocrine system in the body. So, why isn’t there more Western medical research on this?

Unfortunately, less than one half of one percent of NIH funding goes to research all alternative or “complimentary” health techniques. Meaning that yoga, meditation, herbology, homeopathy, etc. etc. all share that tiny, tiny slice of the NIH funding pie. Until the NIH provides adequate attention / funding for Tai Chi & Qigong (Chi Kung) research, many of the benefits people with various maladies have enjoyed from Tai Chi & Qigong will not be enjoyed by the millions of others with such conditions. Because physicians will lack the knowledge necessary to inform their patients of Tai Chi & Qigong as a possible viable therapeutic option, until adequate research is done.

Never the less, you might ask your doctor to do some research on this for you. But, for now, let’s look at current recommendations for diabetes therapy, and then compare Tai Chi benefits systematically to see if it might be a good therapeutic match for diabetes. As always, I remind everyone not to self-treat. These articles are meant to stimulate a dialogue between you and your physician, and your physician and medical research institutions to lobby on your behalf to get powerful natural health therapies like Tai Chi fully researched so that you have the maximum possible options for your health protocol.

In an article posted on Post Graduate Medicine Online, Dr.s Adam B. Mayerson, MD; Silvio E. Inzucchi, MD, state that “Diet, exercise, and the attainment of ideal body weight are the central components of any therapeutic [type 2 diabetes] regimen . . .”. Tai Chi is proven to be an effective exercise that not only provides cardiovascular benefit (roughly equal to moderate impact aerobics), but surprisingly given Tai Chi’s gentle low impact nature, burns a significant number of calories, in fact more than surfing, and nearly as much as downhill skiing. To achieve such caloric burning benefits, and cardiovascular benefits, with such a gentle exercise as Tai Chi may be important to those with diabetes.

The health site Top5plus5.com’s information on diabetes explained that the type of exercise a patient practices is crucial to their well being, stating “Patients with active diabetic retinopathy should not participate in exercises involving straining or heavy lifting since these activities can provoke eye damage. Patients should also be aware that nerve damage caused by high blood sugar levels can lead to a loss of sensation in the feet, with a subsequent increased risk of blistering and ulceration. Patients with progressive heart damage from high blood sugar should be warned about the risk of sudden heart failure and death.” Tai Chi may offer promise regarding heart health so important to diabetes sufferers. On the 9th of October, 2004, BBC News - Saturday, reported “Tai Chi 'can treat heart failure.” The British Heart Foundation said the study was "excellent news" and Tai Chi could be adopted into treatment programmes in the UK in the future.” news.bbc.

Again, one should never self-treat, and should always approach all possible therapies in conjunction with their physician. Our articles at World Tai Chi & Qigong Day are meant to stimulate discussion between you and your physician, and hopefully between your physician and health institutions. Our hope is that this will lead to a more realistic apportionment of medical research funding towards Tai Chi & Qigong (Chi Kung), and other natural health therapies. One caution is, we hope that researchers will approach Tai Chi & Qigong with a desire to find out “why it helps many people” rather than with an agenda to prove that it doesn’t work. The way that studies are done is just as important as if studies are done.

Our vision for the future is that physicians too, will begin to discover for themselves what Tai Chi and Qigong health technologies have to offer on a personal level as Tai Chi is increasingly offered through medical universities to aspiring nurses and physicians. The future of healthcare should not be a war between alternative therapies and standard therapies, but an expansion of standard therapies to include whatever works best for the patients. Many in the medical field are great advocates of such a vision, and World Tai Chi & Qigong Day celebrates their efforts.

Copyright 2006 Bill Douglas

Living With COPD

A patient diagnosed with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) usually goes into a state of shock and despair, as the disease has no cure. However, the good news is COPD is not the end of the world. A person can still lead a reasonably happy life after being diagnosed with COPD. All it takes is to be willing to make some sacrifices and adapt to a new lifestyle.

To control COPD, a person has to give up smoking immediately, as it’s the main cause of COPD. There are many methods that help smokers and start a whole new life. If COPD is caused by smoking, smoking cessation is the only way to check the rapid progression of the disease.

Naturally, once a patient is diagnosed with COPD life can be stressful. Stress can raise havoc on a COPD patient, and they need to know how to cope. Learning what causes stress and how to live with it is essential. Joining a support group or speaking to your family and friends is another way of keeping the stress in check.

For a patient affected with COPD, lots of calories are burnt doing simple activities such as breathing. It is important to conserve energy by doing your day-to-day activities smartly to save energy. Planning your work in advance, maintaining an easy schedule and avoiding difficult physical tasks are the keys to conserve energy. Controlled breathing techniques such as pursed-lip and diaphragmatic breathing can also help.

Eating habits will also change. Take a rest before you eat and eat small, nutritious meals at short intervals, instead of three big meals a day. Take your time while eating and breathe evenly while chewing. Exercising regularly, after consulting your doctor, will also help in keeping the COPD in check. If you are traveling, always keep your medicines with you. If you are using equipments like compressors or oxygen therapy cylinders, it is advisable to carry portable devices. If you are traveling long distances, consult your physician and take the necessary precautions.

Remember, COPD is not the end of your life. It’s just a beginning of another life -- life where your activities and tasks may be controlled, but your capacity to enjoy life will remain the same!


by Elizabeth Morgan
COPD provides detailed information about chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, COPD and life expectancy, COPD medication, COPD stages and more. COPD is the sister site of Primary Pulmonary Hypertension Attorney.

Dealing With Diurnal Enuresis

Diurnal enuresis is a type of incontinence that affects young children during their waking hours. The condition cannot be diagnosed unless the child is over five years old and is younger than sixteen. Diurnal enuresis is a very distressing condition for both the child and the parents.

There can be several reasons why a child develops diurnal enuresis. The first thing that needs to be medically established is whether the child has contracted a urinary infection. This involves the child providing a urine sample for testing. The doctor will also discuss family history, including toilet-training; bowel habits; and the regularity and nature of urinary stream.

As well as a urine infection, diurnal enuresis can also be caused by a brain hormone, known as antidiuretic hormone, not working properly. The presence of this hormone determines how much water can be held in the body. If the child has too little of this hormone being released into their body, their bladder may not be able to cope with the level of urine being stored.

Other things to consider if your child has developed diurnal enuresis is whether they have an overactive bladder - this is more common in girls and it can be a sign of infection. Quite often young children can become so caught up in an activity that they don't want to stop to go to the toilet. They then leave it too late and this can result in their bladder overflowing before they make it to the toilet.

Discovering with your doctor what it is causing your child's diurnal enuresis and working out how to help you and your child cope in this situation is crucial. It may be that a medical treatment isn't necessary and many children do grow out of the condition. But whatever the treatment your child needs you. There is an estimated 75% chance of a child with diurnal enuresis having a parent or sibling who has previously had the same condition. If it also happened to you, share the information with your child so that they know they are not the only one.

There are many things you can do to help your child with diurnal enuresis. The most important thing is reassurance. Tell your child, and remind them often, that it isn't their fault. Never allow their siblings to tease them. Recognise the warning signs: the child may start fidgeting or holding themselves in the perineal area. Encourage the child to go to the toilet and never punish them if they have an 'accident'.

It is important to know that whatever is causing your child to have diurnal enuresis, it is not the child's fault. The child isn't being lazy or naughty - it is a condition that they have no control over. While emotional stress does not cause diurnal enuresis, a result of having diurnal enuresis can lead to the child having emotional stress and losing self-esteem. Avoid this happening to your child.

Copyright © Jared Winston, 2006. All Rights Reserved.

Learn more about enuresis and more importantly how to control this embarrassing and uncomfortable condition once and for all at Bedwetting Relief.com =>http://www.bedwettingrelief.com