Thursday, September 30, 2010
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
Knowing your deepest intention can be your guiding force in the creation of a better life.
Scientist Says ‘Fountain of Youth’ Pill Coming Soon - Fountain of youth pill 'is just two years away from shop shelves'
Researchers believe they have discovered the “Holy Grail” of anti-aging, and say a pill that will add decades to our lives will be on store shelves in two years.
Professor Vladimir Skulachev, a Russian scientist from Moscow State University, said the drug would stop the aging effects of oxygen on body cells, thus adding years to our lives.
“Ninety-nine percent of the time oxygen turns into harmless water,” he told the Daily Mail, “but there's that 1 percent that turns into a super-oxide that later turns into very poisonous elements. The task was to find an antioxidant that stops that process.”
It may sound like science fiction but researchers believe they have discovered the 'Holy Grail' - an anti-ageing pill that will add decades to our lives.
Furthermore its creator Professor Vladimir Skulachev said it should be available to the public within two years
The Russian scientist from Moscow State University, said the drug works by halting the damaging effects that oxygen can have on the body's cells.
This would stave off dangerous age-related illnesses thereby adding years to our lives.
The dream of eternal life has been woven into numerous myths over thousands of years. According to legend, the Holy Grail - a cup that was supposedly used by Jesus at the Last Supper - would give immortality to whoever drank from it.
But while many may dismiss the 69-year-old's claims as outlandish, his findings have been backed up by the international scientific community including Nobel prize winner Dr Gunter Blobel.
Dr Blobel from Rockefeller University said: 'It has been shown that oxidative damage is huge. But we do not have an anti-oxidant of the type that Professor Skulachev has developed.
'He is clearly the world's best bio-chemist and bio-energetic scientist.'
The cells in our bodies need oxygen to exchange energy but oxygen can also cause cells to die if it takes on active and poisonous forms.
Natural anti-oxidants have been found to help slow this fatal process but are not strong enough to have a lasting impact.
Professor Skulachev said: 'Ninety-nine per cent of the time oxygen turns into harmless water, but there's that one percent that turns into a super-oxide that later turns into very poisonous elements.
'So the task was to find an anti-oxidant that stops that process.'
Professor Skulachev said he has created innovative anti-oxidants nicknamed 'Skulachev's ions' after 40 years of hard work.
They neutralise the dangerous form of oxygen inside the cells and have been designed to travel to within a few nanometers of the position where they will have most impact in the
Natural antioxidants slow the aging process, but are not strong enough, Skulachev says. It took 40 years for him to create pioneering antioxidants nicknamed “Skulachev’s ions.”
Skulachev has already achieved acclaim in the scientific community for showing how antioxidants could double the lifespan of mice, and for creating eye drops that restored sight to blind horses, dogs, and rabbits. He even tested the drops on himself, successfully removing a cataract from one of his eyes.
Nobel prize-winning scientist Dr. Gunter Blobel from Rockefeller University said: “It has been shown that oxidative damage is huge. But we do not have an anti-oxidant of the type that Professor Skulachev has developed.
“He is clearly the world's best bio-chemist and bio-energetic scientist.”
The professor said the most difficult part of the process has been trying to prevent any side effects.
However, he said thousands of people have registered to take part in human trials and that the treatment will be available after around two more years of clinical testing.
In previous work the professor received acclaim for showing how special anti-oxidants could double the average lifespan of mice and keep them healthier for longer.
He has also created synthesised eye drops that restored sight to a group of blind horses, dogs and rabbits.
Professor Skulachev even used himself as a human guinea-pig and removed a cataract from one of his eyes.
Biologist Maksim Skulachav, son of Professor Vladimir Skulachav said: 'Finally, we hope that we will manage to convince people that a single pill treats many threats of ageing. So, it must be doing something with the ageing itself.
'Then, if authorities will accept this logic, maybe we could somehow market it as anti-ageing drug.'
Actually, many researchers are working on such pills.
Professor Vladimir Skulachev, a Russian scientist from Moscow State University, said the drug would stop the aging effects of oxygen on body cells, thus adding years to our lives.
“Ninety-nine percent of the time oxygen turns into harmless water,” he told the Daily Mail, “but there's that 1 percent that turns into a super-oxide that later turns into very poisonous elements. The task was to find an antioxidant that stops that process.”
It may sound like science fiction but researchers believe they have discovered the 'Holy Grail' - an anti-ageing pill that will add decades to our lives.
Furthermore its creator Professor Vladimir Skulachev said it should be available to the public within two years
The Russian scientist from Moscow State University, said the drug works by halting the damaging effects that oxygen can have on the body's cells.
This would stave off dangerous age-related illnesses thereby adding years to our lives.
The dream of eternal life has been woven into numerous myths over thousands of years. According to legend, the Holy Grail - a cup that was supposedly used by Jesus at the Last Supper - would give immortality to whoever drank from it.
But while many may dismiss the 69-year-old's claims as outlandish, his findings have been backed up by the international scientific community including Nobel prize winner Dr Gunter Blobel.
Dr Blobel from Rockefeller University said: 'It has been shown that oxidative damage is huge. But we do not have an anti-oxidant of the type that Professor Skulachev has developed.
'He is clearly the world's best bio-chemist and bio-energetic scientist.'
The cells in our bodies need oxygen to exchange energy but oxygen can also cause cells to die if it takes on active and poisonous forms.
Natural anti-oxidants have been found to help slow this fatal process but are not strong enough to have a lasting impact.
Professor Skulachev said: 'Ninety-nine per cent of the time oxygen turns into harmless water, but there's that one percent that turns into a super-oxide that later turns into very poisonous elements.
'So the task was to find an anti-oxidant that stops that process.'
Professor Skulachev said he has created innovative anti-oxidants nicknamed 'Skulachev's ions' after 40 years of hard work.
They neutralise the dangerous form of oxygen inside the cells and have been designed to travel to within a few nanometers of the position where they will have most impact in the
Natural antioxidants slow the aging process, but are not strong enough, Skulachev says. It took 40 years for him to create pioneering antioxidants nicknamed “Skulachev’s ions.”
Skulachev has already achieved acclaim in the scientific community for showing how antioxidants could double the lifespan of mice, and for creating eye drops that restored sight to blind horses, dogs, and rabbits. He even tested the drops on himself, successfully removing a cataract from one of his eyes.
Nobel prize-winning scientist Dr. Gunter Blobel from Rockefeller University said: “It has been shown that oxidative damage is huge. But we do not have an anti-oxidant of the type that Professor Skulachev has developed.
“He is clearly the world's best bio-chemist and bio-energetic scientist.”
The professor said the most difficult part of the process has been trying to prevent any side effects.
However, he said thousands of people have registered to take part in human trials and that the treatment will be available after around two more years of clinical testing.
In previous work the professor received acclaim for showing how special anti-oxidants could double the average lifespan of mice and keep them healthier for longer.
He has also created synthesised eye drops that restored sight to a group of blind horses, dogs and rabbits.
Professor Skulachev even used himself as a human guinea-pig and removed a cataract from one of his eyes.
Biologist Maksim Skulachav, son of Professor Vladimir Skulachav said: 'Finally, we hope that we will manage to convince people that a single pill treats many threats of ageing. So, it must be doing something with the ageing itself.
'Then, if authorities will accept this logic, maybe we could somehow market it as anti-ageing drug.'
Actually, many researchers are working on such pills.
Is a Gluten-free Diet Right for You?
Gluten-free diets have been around for years for those who have celiac disease, which is an inability to digest gluten, a protein found in wheat, barley, and rye. Recently, more people have become gluten-free fans, claiming they have more energy after switching to the diet.
Could a gluten-free diet be right for you? Dr. David Brownstein, Newsmax contributor and author of “The Guide to a Gluten-Free Diet,” provides answers.
“Gluten is a large protein that can be very difficult to digest for those who have celiac disease or gluten sensitivity,” Brownstein says. “Statistics show that one in 133 people has celiac disease, but my experience shows the number is much higher.”
Sensitivity to gluten is associated with numerous autoimmune disorders, including thyroid problems. “I see it occurring with increasing frequency, and I have found it very difficult to treat anyone with thyroid problems who doesn’t remove gluten from their diet.”
The obesity epidemic, says Brownstein, may be associated with the increasing amount of gluten in American diets. “We’re getting more in our diets than years ago.” Plants are bred to produce more gluten, which allows breads and bakery products to rise higher.
Brownstein has found that people who are sensitive to gluten have trouble losing weight. “I’ve found it is impossible to lose weight if one has a gluten sensitivity. One of the first things I do is put people on a gluten-free diet.”
Would everyone benefit from eliminating gluten? “No,” says Brownstein. “Most of us can tolerate gluten, but a significant portion of people — I would estimate 5 to 10 percent — would benefit.”
If you have digestive troubles and try a gluten-free diet, diarrhea and bloating often clear up quickly. Immune problems, like arthritis and fatigue, also begin to ease. But, Brownstein warns, it takes about six weeks for your system to rid itself completely of gluten antibodies.
“If you are going to go gluten-free, you need to give it a trial of six weeks without cheating,” he says. “If you mess up, you’ll have to give it another six weeks to get the best results.”
Could a gluten-free diet be right for you? Dr. David Brownstein, Newsmax contributor and author of “The Guide to a Gluten-Free Diet,” provides answers.
“Gluten is a large protein that can be very difficult to digest for those who have celiac disease or gluten sensitivity,” Brownstein says. “Statistics show that one in 133 people has celiac disease, but my experience shows the number is much higher.”
Sensitivity to gluten is associated with numerous autoimmune disorders, including thyroid problems. “I see it occurring with increasing frequency, and I have found it very difficult to treat anyone with thyroid problems who doesn’t remove gluten from their diet.”
The obesity epidemic, says Brownstein, may be associated with the increasing amount of gluten in American diets. “We’re getting more in our diets than years ago.” Plants are bred to produce more gluten, which allows breads and bakery products to rise higher.
Brownstein has found that people who are sensitive to gluten have trouble losing weight. “I’ve found it is impossible to lose weight if one has a gluten sensitivity. One of the first things I do is put people on a gluten-free diet.”
Would everyone benefit from eliminating gluten? “No,” says Brownstein. “Most of us can tolerate gluten, but a significant portion of people — I would estimate 5 to 10 percent — would benefit.”
If you have digestive troubles and try a gluten-free diet, diarrhea and bloating often clear up quickly. Immune problems, like arthritis and fatigue, also begin to ease. But, Brownstein warns, it takes about six weeks for your system to rid itself completely of gluten antibodies.
“If you are going to go gluten-free, you need to give it a trial of six weeks without cheating,” he says. “If you mess up, you’ll have to give it another six weeks to get the best results.”
Genetic discovery could lead to brain treatments
LONDON (Reuters) - British scientists have discovered a genetic mechanism in the development of the nervous system that they say might one day be part of new treatments for stroke, Alzheimer's disease or brain tumors.
In a study in the journal Nature Neuroscience, the scientists found that a gene, named Sox9, is key to the development of neural stem cells in the human embryo - master cells that in turn develop into brain or spinal tissue.
In experiments in mice, they found that by using the gene they could kick-start the development of these cells, raising the prospect of one day being able to replace or regenerate damaged brain cells in humans.
"With the knowledge that the gene Sox9 plays a central role in the development of our nervous system, we are one step closer to being able to control stem cells in the brain and regenerate different kinds of nerve cells," said James Briscoe from Britain's Medical Research Council, who led the study.
"Being able to correct damaged nerve cells would be a huge leap forward for the millions of people with Alzheimer's, stem cell-related brain tumors or who have suffered from a stroke," he said in a statement, although it is likely to be many more years before such treatments for humans are developed.
Human embryos begin to develop their nervous systems just after two weeks from conception, the researchers explained.
From this stage until about five weeks, the nervous system is largely made up of so-called neuroepithelial cells, which grow rapidly and lay the foundations for brains and spinal cord.
It is only after this stage that the various types of nerves and supporting cells that make up the central nervous system begin to appear. These come from stem cells.
In their study, Briscoe's team found that Sox9 is needed for the neuroepithelial cells to turn into these stem cells.
It also continues to be needed to allow stem cells in the adult brain to retain their properties, such as the ability to self-renew and differentiate.
The scientists also found that a gene known as Shh is needed for Sox9 to work.
By artificially adding Sox9 or Shh to neuroepithelial cells in mouse embryos, they found they were able to kick-start the process of converting them into neural stem cells.
They also found that if there was a genetic defect in Sox9, it was much harder for the mice in their experiments to be able to renew damaged nerve cells later on.
The potential of different kinds of stem cells is being examined by experts around the world for many diseases. But the technology is controversial, in part because some stem cell lines are derived from embryos or foetuses.
SOURCE: http://link.reuters.com/xyf65p Nature Neuroscience, online September 27, 2010.
In a study in the journal Nature Neuroscience, the scientists found that a gene, named Sox9, is key to the development of neural stem cells in the human embryo - master cells that in turn develop into brain or spinal tissue.
In experiments in mice, they found that by using the gene they could kick-start the development of these cells, raising the prospect of one day being able to replace or regenerate damaged brain cells in humans.
"With the knowledge that the gene Sox9 plays a central role in the development of our nervous system, we are one step closer to being able to control stem cells in the brain and regenerate different kinds of nerve cells," said James Briscoe from Britain's Medical Research Council, who led the study.
"Being able to correct damaged nerve cells would be a huge leap forward for the millions of people with Alzheimer's, stem cell-related brain tumors or who have suffered from a stroke," he said in a statement, although it is likely to be many more years before such treatments for humans are developed.
Human embryos begin to develop their nervous systems just after two weeks from conception, the researchers explained.
From this stage until about five weeks, the nervous system is largely made up of so-called neuroepithelial cells, which grow rapidly and lay the foundations for brains and spinal cord.
It is only after this stage that the various types of nerves and supporting cells that make up the central nervous system begin to appear. These come from stem cells.
In their study, Briscoe's team found that Sox9 is needed for the neuroepithelial cells to turn into these stem cells.
It also continues to be needed to allow stem cells in the adult brain to retain their properties, such as the ability to self-renew and differentiate.
The scientists also found that a gene known as Shh is needed for Sox9 to work.
By artificially adding Sox9 or Shh to neuroepithelial cells in mouse embryos, they found they were able to kick-start the process of converting them into neural stem cells.
They also found that if there was a genetic defect in Sox9, it was much harder for the mice in their experiments to be able to renew damaged nerve cells later on.
The potential of different kinds of stem cells is being examined by experts around the world for many diseases. But the technology is controversial, in part because some stem cell lines are derived from embryos or foetuses.
SOURCE: http://link.reuters.com/xyf65p Nature Neuroscience, online September 27, 2010.
3 Ways to Improve a Low-Carb Diet
If you're eating low-carb to lose weight, you may want to change your focus from meats to soy to live longer.
A new study by the American College of Physicians looked at 130,000 people over 26 years. The researchers found that those who followed the traditional "low-carb" diet, often high in fatty meats, had higher rates of death from conditions like heart disease and cancer than people who took an "eco-Atkins" approach—more soy-based proteins and low-starch vegetables. What does this mean for you?
1. Try using tofu instead of meat, such as in a stir-fry.
2. Eat more low-carb veggies like broccoli, spinach, asparagus and Brussels sprouts.
3. Incorporate heart-healthy nuts into your diet, like almonds, cashews and macadamia nuts.
The key is to consume more unsaturated fats and dietary fiber to increase your intake of the good stuff—vitamins, minerals and phytochemicals—while you're losing weight.
A new study by the American College of Physicians looked at 130,000 people over 26 years. The researchers found that those who followed the traditional "low-carb" diet, often high in fatty meats, had higher rates of death from conditions like heart disease and cancer than people who took an "eco-Atkins" approach—more soy-based proteins and low-starch vegetables. What does this mean for you?
1. Try using tofu instead of meat, such as in a stir-fry.
2. Eat more low-carb veggies like broccoli, spinach, asparagus and Brussels sprouts.
3. Incorporate heart-healthy nuts into your diet, like almonds, cashews and macadamia nuts.
The key is to consume more unsaturated fats and dietary fiber to increase your intake of the good stuff—vitamins, minerals and phytochemicals—while you're losing weight.
Treating a Frozen Shoulder
Question: Do you have any help for a frozen shoulder?
Dr. Hibberd's Answer:
A frozen shoulder is a very descriptive term for exactly what has happened to an otherwise usually hyper-mobile and very versatile joint. Clearly, a plain X-ray is best first to exclude an obvious fracture. Then an MRI can be very useful to exclude an underlying rotator cuff tear or rupture when the shoulder is frozen and examination is limited due to pain and restrictive movement.
When shoulder injury occurs, it is very important to seek professional assistance in its management, especially if symptoms are unusually uncomfortable or not improving after several days, or you may become the next victim of a "frozen shoulder."
The shoulder is stabilized by a rotator cuff consisting of group of four muscles and their tendons. The shoulder joint itself has a ball and a shallow socket. Injury to any of these structures will affect shoulder function to varying degrees.
Unattended, some minor injuries such as a lowly tendonitis can escalate to a major disability when the shoulder is held immobile and with restricted range of motion for too long, resulting in a "frozen shoulder."
Usually an MRI will help delineate the damaged tissue and aid with treatment planning.
Often, a frozen shoulder is released by a combination of physical therapy and anti-inflammatory medications. Rarely, if the joint freezes totally, adhesive changes are broken down by manipulation under anesthesia, or occasionally, via an endoscope. Local corticosteroids are often used, but as in any constrictive joint problem, complications are always possible.
The lesson here is seeking attention for shoulder injuries early, so an appropriate treatment plan can be prescribed to minimize the possibility of developing a frozen shoulder.
The good news is that I have yet to see a frozen shoulder that could not be eventually released, though sometimes not without considerable time, effort, and resources. Often there is an underlying rotator cuff injury or fracture that set the stage for the frozen shoulder. Not all of these conditions need surgical management, but a skilled orthopedic consultant is useful.
Dr. Hibberd's Answer:
A frozen shoulder is a very descriptive term for exactly what has happened to an otherwise usually hyper-mobile and very versatile joint. Clearly, a plain X-ray is best first to exclude an obvious fracture. Then an MRI can be very useful to exclude an underlying rotator cuff tear or rupture when the shoulder is frozen and examination is limited due to pain and restrictive movement.
When shoulder injury occurs, it is very important to seek professional assistance in its management, especially if symptoms are unusually uncomfortable or not improving after several days, or you may become the next victim of a "frozen shoulder."
The shoulder is stabilized by a rotator cuff consisting of group of four muscles and their tendons. The shoulder joint itself has a ball and a shallow socket. Injury to any of these structures will affect shoulder function to varying degrees.
Unattended, some minor injuries such as a lowly tendonitis can escalate to a major disability when the shoulder is held immobile and with restricted range of motion for too long, resulting in a "frozen shoulder."
Usually an MRI will help delineate the damaged tissue and aid with treatment planning.
Often, a frozen shoulder is released by a combination of physical therapy and anti-inflammatory medications. Rarely, if the joint freezes totally, adhesive changes are broken down by manipulation under anesthesia, or occasionally, via an endoscope. Local corticosteroids are often used, but as in any constrictive joint problem, complications are always possible.
The lesson here is seeking attention for shoulder injuries early, so an appropriate treatment plan can be prescribed to minimize the possibility of developing a frozen shoulder.
The good news is that I have yet to see a frozen shoulder that could not be eventually released, though sometimes not without considerable time, effort, and resources. Often there is an underlying rotator cuff injury or fracture that set the stage for the frozen shoulder. Not all of these conditions need surgical management, but a skilled orthopedic consultant is useful.
Diagnosing Stomach Problems
Question: My wife has been tested and shows some intolerance for glutens, eggs, milk products, and soy. She has been suffering from stomach problems since she had an ulcer in the lower stomach two years ago. She has had appointments with a cross section of doctors with no real analysis.
She has been on a diet with no gluten, soy, egg, or milk for two weeks with no relief. She has nausea, dry heaves, and, in the evening, she seems to throw up anything she has eaten. She’s lost at least 20 pounds in the past two months. What should she do next?
Dr. Hibberd's Answer:
I see that you have sensibly worked though an elimination of dietary precipitants, but I see no mention of any systematic investigation of your wife’s symptoms.
Celiac disease affects 2 million people in the United States alone, and is a genetic disorder where gluten intolerance is prominent. Not all people with celiac disease have symptoms.
Treatment with gluten elimination will stop symptoms within several days, but the small intestine usually takes three to six months in children, and up to several years in adults to heal sufficiently to fully absorb nutrients from food into the bloodstream.
Celiac disease is often misdiagnosed since its symptoms are easily confused with irritable bowel syndrome, inflammatory bowel diseases, intestinal infection, and chronic fatigue syndrome.
Diagnosis rates are increased now that effective blood tests are available (tTGA anti-tissue transglutaminase or EMA anti-endomysium antibodies). These tests are best performed while eating gluten, because the tests may be negative if a person stops eating foods with gluten before being tested.
Once the blood tests suggest celiac disease, a small intestinal biopsy is usually performed by scope to confirm the diagnosis and to check for damage to the villi. Celiac disease can be triggered by surgery, pregnancy, viral infection, or even severe emotional distress. It seems to affect its victims differently and is often associated with other immune-mediated diseases.
Gluten is a protein in wheat, rye, and barley, and is often contained in many medications, vitamins, and lip balms. When patients with celiac disease eat gluten, their immune system responds by damaging or destroying the villous lining of the small intestine resulting in malabsorption and diarrhea, cramps, abdominal pain, bloating, and sometimes vomiting, etc., and eventually malnutrition and weight loss.
Weight loss with recurring nausea and vomiting is extremely concerning and needs to be investigated and evaluated by a medical professional without delay.
Usual baseline investigations will include a CBC (complete blood count) as well as a CMP (comprehensive medical profile). Your physical examination will guide your doctor's choice of imaging. At the very least, it will involve a noncontrast CTT (cat scan) of the abdomen and pelvis to ascertain site(s) of inflammation, infection, abscess, or mass/obstruction(s). If no surgical condition exists, you can expect endoscopic evaluations of the upper and lower digestive tracts to be in order.
Despite all studies, I want to emphasize that recurring vomiting is extremely stressful on our bodies, and it doesn't take too much, even over a short period of time, to induce internal organ failure and even cardiac arrest and coma when electrolyte balances are sufficiently disturbed.
She has been on a diet with no gluten, soy, egg, or milk for two weeks with no relief. She has nausea, dry heaves, and, in the evening, she seems to throw up anything she has eaten. She’s lost at least 20 pounds in the past two months. What should she do next?
Dr. Hibberd's Answer:
I see that you have sensibly worked though an elimination of dietary precipitants, but I see no mention of any systematic investigation of your wife’s symptoms.
Celiac disease affects 2 million people in the United States alone, and is a genetic disorder where gluten intolerance is prominent. Not all people with celiac disease have symptoms.
Treatment with gluten elimination will stop symptoms within several days, but the small intestine usually takes three to six months in children, and up to several years in adults to heal sufficiently to fully absorb nutrients from food into the bloodstream.
Celiac disease is often misdiagnosed since its symptoms are easily confused with irritable bowel syndrome, inflammatory bowel diseases, intestinal infection, and chronic fatigue syndrome.
Diagnosis rates are increased now that effective blood tests are available (tTGA anti-tissue transglutaminase or EMA anti-endomysium antibodies). These tests are best performed while eating gluten, because the tests may be negative if a person stops eating foods with gluten before being tested.
Once the blood tests suggest celiac disease, a small intestinal biopsy is usually performed by scope to confirm the diagnosis and to check for damage to the villi. Celiac disease can be triggered by surgery, pregnancy, viral infection, or even severe emotional distress. It seems to affect its victims differently and is often associated with other immune-mediated diseases.
Gluten is a protein in wheat, rye, and barley, and is often contained in many medications, vitamins, and lip balms. When patients with celiac disease eat gluten, their immune system responds by damaging or destroying the villous lining of the small intestine resulting in malabsorption and diarrhea, cramps, abdominal pain, bloating, and sometimes vomiting, etc., and eventually malnutrition and weight loss.
Weight loss with recurring nausea and vomiting is extremely concerning and needs to be investigated and evaluated by a medical professional without delay.
Usual baseline investigations will include a CBC (complete blood count) as well as a CMP (comprehensive medical profile). Your physical examination will guide your doctor's choice of imaging. At the very least, it will involve a noncontrast CTT (cat scan) of the abdomen and pelvis to ascertain site(s) of inflammation, infection, abscess, or mass/obstruction(s). If no surgical condition exists, you can expect endoscopic evaluations of the upper and lower digestive tracts to be in order.
Despite all studies, I want to emphasize that recurring vomiting is extremely stressful on our bodies, and it doesn't take too much, even over a short period of time, to induce internal organ failure and even cardiac arrest and coma when electrolyte balances are sufficiently disturbed.
Best Treatment for Ringworm
Question: What is the best treatment for ringworm?
Dr. Hibberd's Answer:
Ringworm is actually not a worm infection, but is a fungal infection of our skin that can be caused by any one of several different kinds of fungi. It is spread by direct contact, but usually needs repeated contact or even abrasion to gain a foothold beyond our skin defenses.
Ringworm is referred to as "tinea" in medical lingo, and is very easy to treat. Treatment is customized to the location affected, be it scalp, body, pubic area, or feet. Often a topically applied antifungal agent is sufficient, but scalp involvement, and sometimes foot involvement, may need a simple oral antifungal medication course of treatment if topical treatment fails.
These infections may take weeks to clear, so unlike bacterial infections, we need to be a little more patient with anti-fungal treatment … at least two weeks and six to eight weeks in resistant cases of scalp/foot involvement.
Animals can transmit ringworm to us by direct contact with their skin. This includes domestic animals such as dogs, cats, and especially kittens and puppies. Other animals such as horses, pigs, cows, and goats may also spread ringworm to us. It can also be spread by people, especially by their clothing.
When being treated for ringworm, be sure to wash all clothing and bedding in hot soapy water, and turn your mattress as an added precaution.
Sometimes a simple agent, such as Selsun shampoo or lotion, will work well and usually requires repeat applications. Other very limited cases may need a combination of medications for 14 days such as Lotrisone to provide additional relief beyond Lotromin alone.
Newer generation oral drugs are needed infrequently; some that are not too expensive are Lamisil or Nizoral. Griseofulvin may be used as an oral medication. It is effective and inexpensive, although may take slightly longer to clear.
Be sure to consult your doctor before using these oral medications in order to avoid drug interactions with other medications.
Dr. Hibberd's Answer:
Ringworm is actually not a worm infection, but is a fungal infection of our skin that can be caused by any one of several different kinds of fungi. It is spread by direct contact, but usually needs repeated contact or even abrasion to gain a foothold beyond our skin defenses.
Ringworm is referred to as "tinea" in medical lingo, and is very easy to treat. Treatment is customized to the location affected, be it scalp, body, pubic area, or feet. Often a topically applied antifungal agent is sufficient, but scalp involvement, and sometimes foot involvement, may need a simple oral antifungal medication course of treatment if topical treatment fails.
These infections may take weeks to clear, so unlike bacterial infections, we need to be a little more patient with anti-fungal treatment … at least two weeks and six to eight weeks in resistant cases of scalp/foot involvement.
Animals can transmit ringworm to us by direct contact with their skin. This includes domestic animals such as dogs, cats, and especially kittens and puppies. Other animals such as horses, pigs, cows, and goats may also spread ringworm to us. It can also be spread by people, especially by their clothing.
When being treated for ringworm, be sure to wash all clothing and bedding in hot soapy water, and turn your mattress as an added precaution.
Sometimes a simple agent, such as Selsun shampoo or lotion, will work well and usually requires repeat applications. Other very limited cases may need a combination of medications for 14 days such as Lotrisone to provide additional relief beyond Lotromin alone.
Newer generation oral drugs are needed infrequently; some that are not too expensive are Lamisil or Nizoral. Griseofulvin may be used as an oral medication. It is effective and inexpensive, although may take slightly longer to clear.
Be sure to consult your doctor before using these oral medications in order to avoid drug interactions with other medications.
Lauding Leadership, Scolding Obstruction in the Senate
Posted: 29 Sep 2010 02:00 PM PDT
There is good news and bad news from Capitol Hill.
On the up side, the U.S. Senate last night gave unanimous approval to legislation to crack down on animal crush videos—the vile depictions of staged scenes in which scantily clad women maim and torture animals for the sexual gratification of viewers. I’ve written about it several times before, and the first reaction of any decent person is shock that anyone could possibly be so cruel to participate in making or watching this perversion. All good people are rightly outraged and disgusted by the idea of someone torturing and killing animals just for the sexual titillation of others. The bill, pushed by Sens. Jon Kyl, R. Ariz., Jeff Merkley, D. Ore., and Richard Burr, R. N.C., must now go back to the House, and we hope that chamber approves it in rapid fashion.
The other good news is that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D. Nev., not only allowed the crush video legislation to come up for a vote, but he also personally offered motions to pass five other bills that had already been approved by the House: S. 1748—Southern Sea Otter Recovery and Research Act, S. 850—Shark Conservation Act, S. 859—Marine Mammal Rescue Assistance Amendments, S. 529—Great Cats and Rare Canids Act, and H.R. 388—Crane Conservation Act.
The bad news is that Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., blocked all of the bills, denying final congressional action on a series of humane measures that deserve approval. Coburn did so under the pretense of fiscal restraint. But these measures cost very little, and they were all advanced to protect wild creatures from cruelty and in some cases from extinction. It’s worth the very modest investment to prevent such awful outcomes.
One can understand Sen. Coburn’s interest in fiscal restraint. But in his case, it is an obsession, and it borders on a mania. Lawmakers serve the public to balance a variety of interests, and not to see any topic in isolation or to magnify it and distort it. Cautious spending is an important value, but so is the defense of animals from cruelty, the rescue of marine creatures injured by human actions, or the protection of wild species from extinction. Coburn has corrupted a laudable principle of fiscal conservatism, and used it to negate and nullify valuable initiatives designed to protect vulnerable species at serious risk. In that sense, his is a fanatical devotion to a principle, and a misuse of power.
There’s another principle at work, and that’s the subversion of democratic decision-making. The Senate is a body of 100 individuals, elected by the people of all 50 states. Though it generally operates by the principle of majority rule, the Senate has a tradition of allowing individual lawmakers to place “holds” on legislation, allowing a single lawmaker to block consideration even of an enormously popular and bipartisan measure. Sen. Coburn uses the “hold” like most of the rest of us drink water, going to the well time and again. He is abusing this Senate privilege, and in the process he is subverting democratic lawmaking. When 99 senators favor reform and one does not, it is wrong for the one to prevail because of the upside-down procedures of the Senate.
While Sen. Coburn’s action allows real harm of living creatures to continue, there are many other lawmakers of both parties who do care and want to see the responsible treatment of all of God’s creatures. Sens. John Kerry, Maria Cantwell, Jeff Merkley, David Vitter, Richard Burr, Barbara Boxer, and others backed the measures Sen. Reid advanced. They didn’t appreciate Sen. Coburn’s obstructionism, but were powerless to stop the naysaying of one man obsessively focused on one narrow belief.
Today, I am especially grateful to Sen. Reid for his leadership, and we hope he’ll work to get these measures enacted in the lame-duck session to follow the election. I am pasting below the speech he gave on the Senate floor last night.
Mr. REID. Mr. President, one piece of unfinished business we have here in the Senate is to move a series of good, commonsense bills that would benefit wildlife and domestic animals.
These wildlife conservation and animal welfare bills have already passed the House of Representatives, and for a good reason. They also have bipartisan support. Most importantly, all of these measures are supported by the American people. These aren’t Democratic or Republican issues; they are issues of good moral conscience.
I have worked over the years on many bills connected to animals and wildlife. Not long ago, Senator Cantwell and I worked with a number of our Republican colleagues to pass a felony level penalty bill for dog fighting and cock fighting. This was a bipartisan rejection of animal cruelty. Today, we have the opportunity to help a great number of species. One bill ready for action, the Shark Conservation Act, will improve Federal enforcement of an existing prohibition on the killing of sharks just for their fins. Because of a loophole in the existing law, animals are still caught, their fins are severed, and the dismembered shark is sent back into the ocean to die. But they don’t just die, they suffer a horrible and protracted death—all of that cruelty for a bowl of soup.
Another important bill is the Marine Mammal Rescue Assistance Act, which will strengthen programs that provide emergency aid to seals, whales, and other marine creatures that get struck by boats or tangled in fishing lines. This happens all the time.
Other bills, such as the Crane Conservation Act, the Great Cats and Rare Canids Act, and the Southern Sea Otter Recovery Act, will protect some of the most rare and remarkable creatures anyplace on Earth. Without our help, many of these creatures could disappear within a generation.
I also wish to draw attention to the efforts of Senators Merkley and Kyl today to clear an important bill that will end the appalling practice of animal crush videos. It is hard for me to comprehend what some people do. They torture animals and take pictures of them and sometimes sell those pictures. There are people sick enough to want to watch a little animal or a big animal be crushed and killed. They call them animal crush videos. The law we passed in 1999 outlawing these videos was struck down by the Supreme Court in April of this year. Senators Kyl and Merkley have worked to write a more narrowly tailored bill that respects the first amendment while still punishing those who seek to profit from the torture of puppies, kittens, and other helpless animals.
As I understand it, the Supreme Court said you can’t stop people from buying these videos to watch. But we can stop people from doing these terrible things that people want to watch.
I hope we can work these out and pass these by unanimous consent. Why do we need debate on these issues? These are good bipartisan bills that deserve to be passed.
There is good news and bad news from Capitol Hill.
On the up side, the U.S. Senate last night gave unanimous approval to legislation to crack down on animal crush videos—the vile depictions of staged scenes in which scantily clad women maim and torture animals for the sexual gratification of viewers. I’ve written about it several times before, and the first reaction of any decent person is shock that anyone could possibly be so cruel to participate in making or watching this perversion. All good people are rightly outraged and disgusted by the idea of someone torturing and killing animals just for the sexual titillation of others. The bill, pushed by Sens. Jon Kyl, R. Ariz., Jeff Merkley, D. Ore., and Richard Burr, R. N.C., must now go back to the House, and we hope that chamber approves it in rapid fashion.
The other good news is that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D. Nev., not only allowed the crush video legislation to come up for a vote, but he also personally offered motions to pass five other bills that had already been approved by the House: S. 1748—Southern Sea Otter Recovery and Research Act, S. 850—Shark Conservation Act, S. 859—Marine Mammal Rescue Assistance Amendments, S. 529—Great Cats and Rare Canids Act, and H.R. 388—Crane Conservation Act.
The bad news is that Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., blocked all of the bills, denying final congressional action on a series of humane measures that deserve approval. Coburn did so under the pretense of fiscal restraint. But these measures cost very little, and they were all advanced to protect wild creatures from cruelty and in some cases from extinction. It’s worth the very modest investment to prevent such awful outcomes.
One can understand Sen. Coburn’s interest in fiscal restraint. But in his case, it is an obsession, and it borders on a mania. Lawmakers serve the public to balance a variety of interests, and not to see any topic in isolation or to magnify it and distort it. Cautious spending is an important value, but so is the defense of animals from cruelty, the rescue of marine creatures injured by human actions, or the protection of wild species from extinction. Coburn has corrupted a laudable principle of fiscal conservatism, and used it to negate and nullify valuable initiatives designed to protect vulnerable species at serious risk. In that sense, his is a fanatical devotion to a principle, and a misuse of power.
There’s another principle at work, and that’s the subversion of democratic decision-making. The Senate is a body of 100 individuals, elected by the people of all 50 states. Though it generally operates by the principle of majority rule, the Senate has a tradition of allowing individual lawmakers to place “holds” on legislation, allowing a single lawmaker to block consideration even of an enormously popular and bipartisan measure. Sen. Coburn uses the “hold” like most of the rest of us drink water, going to the well time and again. He is abusing this Senate privilege, and in the process he is subverting democratic lawmaking. When 99 senators favor reform and one does not, it is wrong for the one to prevail because of the upside-down procedures of the Senate.
While Sen. Coburn’s action allows real harm of living creatures to continue, there are many other lawmakers of both parties who do care and want to see the responsible treatment of all of God’s creatures. Sens. John Kerry, Maria Cantwell, Jeff Merkley, David Vitter, Richard Burr, Barbara Boxer, and others backed the measures Sen. Reid advanced. They didn’t appreciate Sen. Coburn’s obstructionism, but were powerless to stop the naysaying of one man obsessively focused on one narrow belief.
Today, I am especially grateful to Sen. Reid for his leadership, and we hope he’ll work to get these measures enacted in the lame-duck session to follow the election. I am pasting below the speech he gave on the Senate floor last night.
Mr. REID. Mr. President, one piece of unfinished business we have here in the Senate is to move a series of good, commonsense bills that would benefit wildlife and domestic animals.
These wildlife conservation and animal welfare bills have already passed the House of Representatives, and for a good reason. They also have bipartisan support. Most importantly, all of these measures are supported by the American people. These aren’t Democratic or Republican issues; they are issues of good moral conscience.
I have worked over the years on many bills connected to animals and wildlife. Not long ago, Senator Cantwell and I worked with a number of our Republican colleagues to pass a felony level penalty bill for dog fighting and cock fighting. This was a bipartisan rejection of animal cruelty. Today, we have the opportunity to help a great number of species. One bill ready for action, the Shark Conservation Act, will improve Federal enforcement of an existing prohibition on the killing of sharks just for their fins. Because of a loophole in the existing law, animals are still caught, their fins are severed, and the dismembered shark is sent back into the ocean to die. But they don’t just die, they suffer a horrible and protracted death—all of that cruelty for a bowl of soup.
Another important bill is the Marine Mammal Rescue Assistance Act, which will strengthen programs that provide emergency aid to seals, whales, and other marine creatures that get struck by boats or tangled in fishing lines. This happens all the time.
Other bills, such as the Crane Conservation Act, the Great Cats and Rare Canids Act, and the Southern Sea Otter Recovery Act, will protect some of the most rare and remarkable creatures anyplace on Earth. Without our help, many of these creatures could disappear within a generation.
I also wish to draw attention to the efforts of Senators Merkley and Kyl today to clear an important bill that will end the appalling practice of animal crush videos. It is hard for me to comprehend what some people do. They torture animals and take pictures of them and sometimes sell those pictures. There are people sick enough to want to watch a little animal or a big animal be crushed and killed. They call them animal crush videos. The law we passed in 1999 outlawing these videos was struck down by the Supreme Court in April of this year. Senators Kyl and Merkley have worked to write a more narrowly tailored bill that respects the first amendment while still punishing those who seek to profit from the torture of puppies, kittens, and other helpless animals.
As I understand it, the Supreme Court said you can’t stop people from buying these videos to watch. But we can stop people from doing these terrible things that people want to watch.
I hope we can work these out and pass these by unanimous consent. Why do we need debate on these issues? These are good bipartisan bills that deserve to be passed.
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
What Bowel Movements Say About Your Health
To 3-year-olds, bowel movements are a work of art. To grown-ups, they’re a picture of how our bodies are working. Find out what changes in color, texture and frequency say about our health…
Most of us just flush and forget it. But bowel movements can reveal whether we’re eating right, staying hydrated and maintaining our systems.
“Daily attention can tell you whether you eat enough fiber or have health problems like cancer or inflammatory bowel disease [a group of conditions such as colitis and Crohn’s disease that inflame the colon and small intestine],” says gastroenterologist Anish A. Sheth, M.D., assistant professor of medicine at Yale University School of Medicine in New Haven, Conn., and author of What’s Your Poo Telling You (Chronicle Books).
What you’re looking for are changes in look, color and smell, Sheth says. This simple step can help you identify health issues sooner than you would have otherwise.
It’s normal to have anywhere from three bowel movements a day to three a week. (Any fewer and you’re skirting constipation, according to the National Institute of Digestive Diseases). So you have plenty of chances to keep an eye out for the following issues.
1. Pebble poo
What it means: You’re not getting enough fiber in your diet, so your bowel movements won’t clump in larger lumps.
“The recommended daily amount of fiber is 25-35 grams a day. That will take care of pebble poo,” Sheth says.
Reaching that amount is easier than you think: Eat a cup of raspberries and a half-cup of lentils (8 grams each); a half-cup of cooked greens (4 grams) and a cup of whole-wheat pasta (6 grams).
Small poo clumps could also mean you’re not drinking enough fluids, says Mariam Fayek, M.D., a gastroenterologist at the Center for Women’s Gastrointestinal Services, Women and Infants Hospital in Providence, R.I.
“Women have long colons, so the waste has a longer transit time," she says. "And the longer it’s in the colon, the harder [and drier] it gets.”
Drink at least six 8-ounce glasses of water a day if you suspect that’s the issue.
When to worry: By itself, pebbly poo isn’t worrisome, says Sheth. But if you also feel that you’re not emptying your bowels completely, something could be wrong with your rectum.
For example, pregnant women’s pelvic-floor muscles weaken, which can cause an internally herniated, or protruding, rectum. Waste can get stuck in the pocket the hernia creates, exiting only in pebbles, says Fayek.
Pelvic-floor exercises can help, or this may need to be repaired with surgery.
2. Leaky poo
What it means: Runny stools can signal several issues: infection, virus, intolerance (to lactose-rich dairy foods, for example) or a gastrointestinal condition like colitis (inflammation of the colon) or Crohn’s disease, a chronic inflammatory condition of the intestinal tract.
It’s more common after childbirth or as we get older, says Sheth.
“During childbirth, women may experience small tears in the sphincter muscles that keep stool inside. As these muscles weaken with age, in the 40s and beyond, women may have more [leakage].”
You can strengthen the muscles around the rectum by practicing tightening them. That’s usually done in a biofeedback program, says Sheth, a process during which a machine monitors changes in the body, like muscle tension.
Lack of fiber could also be a factor.
You may need more roughage to bulk up your poo, says Kevin Dolehide, M.D., a gastroenterologist at Advocate South Suburban Hospital in Hazel Crest, Ill., and assistant professor of medicine at Midwestern University in Downer’s Grove, Ill.
When to worry: If you know it’s the flu, stay well hydrated, says Dolehide. If not, and it lasts more than a day, see your doctor to determine the cause.
3. Black or red poo
What it means: Certain medicines – such as Pepto Bismol and iron supplements – can turn poo black.
Red in the stools may be the calling card from beets or tomato sauce.
If blood is causing the color, it could mean hemorrhoids, rectal bleeding or even cancer.
When to worry: Blood is always a concern and requires a doctor’s visit.
If stools are black and you’re not taking iron or Pepto-Bismol, “you need to rule out gastrointestinal bleeding,” Dolehide says.
This would show up as black, tarry and foul-smelling stools, according to Sheth. Read the next entry for more on these warning signs.
4. Unending-Wiping Poo
What it means: Sticky, gel-like stools could be a sign of gastrointestinal bleeding, especially if it’s dark and has been happening for only a short time, says Sheth.
Large hemorrhoids – enlarged blood vessels in the rectal area – can also make it hard to clean after a bowel movement.
When to worry: If the signs point to gastrointestinal bleeding, see a doctor as soon as possible.
If not, you should still see a doctor to confirm whether you have hemorrhoids and to rule out other conditions, such as cancer.
If you’re over age 50, your doctor may schedule a colonoscopy – a visual exam of the colon with a colonscope – to be sure, says Sheth.
5. Loose stools
What it means: Diarrhea can result from too much sugarless gum or soda.
“The artificial sweetener sorbitol and fructose [a sweetener] used in sodas [act as a laxative]," Fayek says. "They pull water into the colon because they can’t be absorbed, which makes bowel movements loose."
Cutting down on those habits and bulking up your stool with fiber supplements such as Benefiber or Citrusol will help.
And watch your diet: If diarrhea always happens after you eat dairy food, you could have lactose intolerance, an inability to digest milk products.
If the cause seems unclear, recurring diarrhea could indicate an infection, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) or celiac disease (caused by intolerance of gluten, an ingredient in wheat).
When to worry: If you’re losing weight, have a family history of IBD, find blood in your stool or have just returned from a foreign country, make an appointment. These all point to the more serious conditions mentioned above.
6. Painful poo
What it means: If you’re straining like a heavyweight on the toilet, you’re probably constipated – and your efforts may have caused hemorrhoids or tears in your sphincter muscle, says Sheth.
Soothe yourself with over-the-counter remedies like Preparation H or an acetaminophen (Atasol) suppository, says Dolehide. A stool softener like docusate sodium (Colace) or polyethylene glycol (Miralax) will make stools easier to pass.
When to worry: If the over-the-counter treatments above don’t resolve the problem within two weeks, and you have ongoing pain, call the doctor.
Large tears may require surgery to repair.
7. Constipation
What it means: You’re eating too many hamburgers and fries. The typical Western diet doesn’t give us enough fiber, says Fayek.
Constipation can also be caused by medications, like those for high blood pressure.
As with pebble poo, eating 35 grams of fiber a day – lots of beans, fruits, vegetables and whole grains – and drinking enough water can ease constipation, according to Sheth.
Regular exercise aids regularity too.
And go when you have the urge: The longer you wait, the drier the stool becomes, and the tougher it is to pass.
When to worry: If constipation doesn’t get better for several weeks, causes pain or is accompanied by other changes such as bleeding, see your doctor, says Sheth – especially if you’re around 50 and haven’t yet had a colonoscopy.
8. Light-colored poo
What it means: Stools get their color from bile (fluid secreted by the liver), so a light gray or tan poo could mean an obstruction, like a stone, in your bile duct, says Dolehide.
More seriously, it could indicate pancreatic cancer or a liver disorder.
When to worry: One day of light-colored poo isn’t a problem. That could just be a shift in bacteria, says Fayek.
But if it continues, see your doctor to rule out other health conditions.
9. Greenish-yellow poo
What it means: “If you’ve eaten a can of spinach or green Jell-O, that’s probably enough explanation,” Sheth says.
But if it’s happening consistently and you’re going to the bathroom more often, “green-goblin poo is a classic symptom of infection,” Sheth says. “And there’s a particular kind of colitis that causes seaweed-green poo.”
When to worry: Isolated incidents? Stay calm. But if the green continues, see a doctor.
If colitis is the culprit, you’ll probably also have fever, cramping and diarrhea.
10. Pencil-thin poo
What it means: Again, not enough fiber is the likely cause. But if it lasts over weeks or months, it could mean rectal cancer, which narrows the rectal opening, says Sheth.
When to worry: If you’re eating enough fiber and the stool is still thin, see your doctor to rule out cancer.
11. Smelly Poo
What it means: Well, it all smells. That normal odor comes from mercaptans, sulfur-containing compounds. Brussels sprouts, onions and red wine produce more of them, says Sheth.
But if it’s unusually foul – that could signal conditions like gastrointestinal bleeding or trouble digesting fat, possibly from other problems.
“Fat makes its way into the stool and causes a terrible aroma," Sheth says. "People with pancreatic or liver problems can’t digest fat appropriately.”
When to worry : If your poo smells worse than usual and it can’t be traced back to dietary changes, see your doctor.
12. Mucousy Poo
What it means: “Most of time, I see [this sort of stools] in young women with irritable bowel syndrome,” Fayek says.
This gastrointestinal disorder, which can cause pain, diarrhea and/or or constipation, is most common in young women and at least twice as likely in females than in men.
It could also be a sign of inflammatory bowel or celiac diseases.
When to worry: If it happens all the time, and you’re losing weight, have rectal bleeding or abdominal pain, or you have a family history of inflammatory bowel disease or celiac, see your doctor, says Fayek.
Women’s Health: How Much Do You Know?
There's no substitute for good health, and when it's gone, it's often gone for good. Don't let it pass you by.
Most of us just flush and forget it. But bowel movements can reveal whether we’re eating right, staying hydrated and maintaining our systems.
“Daily attention can tell you whether you eat enough fiber or have health problems like cancer or inflammatory bowel disease [a group of conditions such as colitis and Crohn’s disease that inflame the colon and small intestine],” says gastroenterologist Anish A. Sheth, M.D., assistant professor of medicine at Yale University School of Medicine in New Haven, Conn., and author of What’s Your Poo Telling You (Chronicle Books).
What you’re looking for are changes in look, color and smell, Sheth says. This simple step can help you identify health issues sooner than you would have otherwise.
It’s normal to have anywhere from three bowel movements a day to three a week. (Any fewer and you’re skirting constipation, according to the National Institute of Digestive Diseases). So you have plenty of chances to keep an eye out for the following issues.
1. Pebble poo
What it means: You’re not getting enough fiber in your diet, so your bowel movements won’t clump in larger lumps.
“The recommended daily amount of fiber is 25-35 grams a day. That will take care of pebble poo,” Sheth says.
Reaching that amount is easier than you think: Eat a cup of raspberries and a half-cup of lentils (8 grams each); a half-cup of cooked greens (4 grams) and a cup of whole-wheat pasta (6 grams).
Small poo clumps could also mean you’re not drinking enough fluids, says Mariam Fayek, M.D., a gastroenterologist at the Center for Women’s Gastrointestinal Services, Women and Infants Hospital in Providence, R.I.
“Women have long colons, so the waste has a longer transit time," she says. "And the longer it’s in the colon, the harder [and drier] it gets.”
Drink at least six 8-ounce glasses of water a day if you suspect that’s the issue.
When to worry: By itself, pebbly poo isn’t worrisome, says Sheth. But if you also feel that you’re not emptying your bowels completely, something could be wrong with your rectum.
For example, pregnant women’s pelvic-floor muscles weaken, which can cause an internally herniated, or protruding, rectum. Waste can get stuck in the pocket the hernia creates, exiting only in pebbles, says Fayek.
Pelvic-floor exercises can help, or this may need to be repaired with surgery.
2. Leaky poo
What it means: Runny stools can signal several issues: infection, virus, intolerance (to lactose-rich dairy foods, for example) or a gastrointestinal condition like colitis (inflammation of the colon) or Crohn’s disease, a chronic inflammatory condition of the intestinal tract.
It’s more common after childbirth or as we get older, says Sheth.
“During childbirth, women may experience small tears in the sphincter muscles that keep stool inside. As these muscles weaken with age, in the 40s and beyond, women may have more [leakage].”
You can strengthen the muscles around the rectum by practicing tightening them. That’s usually done in a biofeedback program, says Sheth, a process during which a machine monitors changes in the body, like muscle tension.
Lack of fiber could also be a factor.
You may need more roughage to bulk up your poo, says Kevin Dolehide, M.D., a gastroenterologist at Advocate South Suburban Hospital in Hazel Crest, Ill., and assistant professor of medicine at Midwestern University in Downer’s Grove, Ill.
When to worry: If you know it’s the flu, stay well hydrated, says Dolehide. If not, and it lasts more than a day, see your doctor to determine the cause.
3. Black or red poo
What it means: Certain medicines – such as Pepto Bismol and iron supplements – can turn poo black.
Red in the stools may be the calling card from beets or tomato sauce.
If blood is causing the color, it could mean hemorrhoids, rectal bleeding or even cancer.
When to worry: Blood is always a concern and requires a doctor’s visit.
If stools are black and you’re not taking iron or Pepto-Bismol, “you need to rule out gastrointestinal bleeding,” Dolehide says.
This would show up as black, tarry and foul-smelling stools, according to Sheth. Read the next entry for more on these warning signs.
4. Unending-Wiping Poo
What it means: Sticky, gel-like stools could be a sign of gastrointestinal bleeding, especially if it’s dark and has been happening for only a short time, says Sheth.
Large hemorrhoids – enlarged blood vessels in the rectal area – can also make it hard to clean after a bowel movement.
When to worry: If the signs point to gastrointestinal bleeding, see a doctor as soon as possible.
If not, you should still see a doctor to confirm whether you have hemorrhoids and to rule out other conditions, such as cancer.
If you’re over age 50, your doctor may schedule a colonoscopy – a visual exam of the colon with a colonscope – to be sure, says Sheth.
5. Loose stools
What it means: Diarrhea can result from too much sugarless gum or soda.
“The artificial sweetener sorbitol and fructose [a sweetener] used in sodas [act as a laxative]," Fayek says. "They pull water into the colon because they can’t be absorbed, which makes bowel movements loose."
Cutting down on those habits and bulking up your stool with fiber supplements such as Benefiber or Citrusol will help.
And watch your diet: If diarrhea always happens after you eat dairy food, you could have lactose intolerance, an inability to digest milk products.
If the cause seems unclear, recurring diarrhea could indicate an infection, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) or celiac disease (caused by intolerance of gluten, an ingredient in wheat).
When to worry: If you’re losing weight, have a family history of IBD, find blood in your stool or have just returned from a foreign country, make an appointment. These all point to the more serious conditions mentioned above.
6. Painful poo
What it means: If you’re straining like a heavyweight on the toilet, you’re probably constipated – and your efforts may have caused hemorrhoids or tears in your sphincter muscle, says Sheth.
Soothe yourself with over-the-counter remedies like Preparation H or an acetaminophen (Atasol) suppository, says Dolehide. A stool softener like docusate sodium (Colace) or polyethylene glycol (Miralax) will make stools easier to pass.
When to worry: If the over-the-counter treatments above don’t resolve the problem within two weeks, and you have ongoing pain, call the doctor.
Large tears may require surgery to repair.
7. Constipation
What it means: You’re eating too many hamburgers and fries. The typical Western diet doesn’t give us enough fiber, says Fayek.
Constipation can also be caused by medications, like those for high blood pressure.
As with pebble poo, eating 35 grams of fiber a day – lots of beans, fruits, vegetables and whole grains – and drinking enough water can ease constipation, according to Sheth.
Regular exercise aids regularity too.
And go when you have the urge: The longer you wait, the drier the stool becomes, and the tougher it is to pass.
When to worry: If constipation doesn’t get better for several weeks, causes pain or is accompanied by other changes such as bleeding, see your doctor, says Sheth – especially if you’re around 50 and haven’t yet had a colonoscopy.
8. Light-colored poo
What it means: Stools get their color from bile (fluid secreted by the liver), so a light gray or tan poo could mean an obstruction, like a stone, in your bile duct, says Dolehide.
More seriously, it could indicate pancreatic cancer or a liver disorder.
When to worry: One day of light-colored poo isn’t a problem. That could just be a shift in bacteria, says Fayek.
But if it continues, see your doctor to rule out other health conditions.
9. Greenish-yellow poo
What it means: “If you’ve eaten a can of spinach or green Jell-O, that’s probably enough explanation,” Sheth says.
But if it’s happening consistently and you’re going to the bathroom more often, “green-goblin poo is a classic symptom of infection,” Sheth says. “And there’s a particular kind of colitis that causes seaweed-green poo.”
When to worry: Isolated incidents? Stay calm. But if the green continues, see a doctor.
If colitis is the culprit, you’ll probably also have fever, cramping and diarrhea.
10. Pencil-thin poo
What it means: Again, not enough fiber is the likely cause. But if it lasts over weeks or months, it could mean rectal cancer, which narrows the rectal opening, says Sheth.
When to worry: If you’re eating enough fiber and the stool is still thin, see your doctor to rule out cancer.
11. Smelly Poo
What it means: Well, it all smells. That normal odor comes from mercaptans, sulfur-containing compounds. Brussels sprouts, onions and red wine produce more of them, says Sheth.
But if it’s unusually foul – that could signal conditions like gastrointestinal bleeding or trouble digesting fat, possibly from other problems.
“Fat makes its way into the stool and causes a terrible aroma," Sheth says. "People with pancreatic or liver problems can’t digest fat appropriately.”
When to worry : If your poo smells worse than usual and it can’t be traced back to dietary changes, see your doctor.
12. Mucousy Poo
What it means: “Most of time, I see [this sort of stools] in young women with irritable bowel syndrome,” Fayek says.
This gastrointestinal disorder, which can cause pain, diarrhea and/or or constipation, is most common in young women and at least twice as likely in females than in men.
It could also be a sign of inflammatory bowel or celiac diseases.
When to worry: If it happens all the time, and you’re losing weight, have rectal bleeding or abdominal pain, or you have a family history of inflammatory bowel disease or celiac, see your doctor, says Fayek.
Women’s Health: How Much Do You Know?
There's no substitute for good health, and when it's gone, it's often gone for good. Don't let it pass you by.
Heart-healthy diet doesn't have to be costly
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Spending more on food isn't the only way to buy the healthiest diet, new research shows.
"Increased spending on nuts, soy and beans, and whole grains, and less spending on red and processed meats and high-fat dairy, may be the best investment for dietary health," Dr. Adam M. Bernstein and colleagues from the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston and colleagues conclude.
The trick, according to the researchers, is to spend more on plant-based foods.
Several studies suggest that living on junk food can be cheaper than eating lots of fresh fruits and vegetables, the researchers note in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Research from the UK, France, Spain, and the Netherlands has also found that eating a healthy diet costs more. However, there is some evidence that "healthy diets can be obtained at different levels of spending," the authors write.
To compare the relationship between food spending and diet healthfulness, the team assessed diet and spending data for 78,191 women participating in the Nurses' Health Study. They rated the women's eating habits and multivitamin intake according to the Alternative Healthy Eating Index (AHEI), a tool they developed, with points awarded for consuming healthier items.
Those with the healthiest diets, whose average AHEI score was 59, spent about $4.60 per day on food, compared to about $3.70 per day for the women with the least healthy diets, who had an average AHEI score of 30.
But when the researchers divided the women into five groups based on how much money they spent on food, they found a wide range in AHEI scores within each spending group. The AHEI score difference between the bottom 10 percent and the top 10 percent within each spending group ranged from 25 to 29, the researchers point out.
In previous research, they add, a 20-point AHEI score increase has been linked to a 25 percent lower risk of heart disease.
Spending more on nuts, soy and beans, and whole grains was associated with a higher AHEI score, the researchers found, while spending more on red meat, processed meat and high fat dairy were associated with a lower score. "Fish and poultry, vegetables, and fruit and fruit juice offer the next best investment," Bernstein and his colleagues say.
They conclude: "Although spending more money is associated with a healthier diet, large improvements in diet may be achieved without increased spending."
SOURCE: http://link.reuters.com/jez35p American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, online September 1, 2010.
"Increased spending on nuts, soy and beans, and whole grains, and less spending on red and processed meats and high-fat dairy, may be the best investment for dietary health," Dr. Adam M. Bernstein and colleagues from the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston and colleagues conclude.
The trick, according to the researchers, is to spend more on plant-based foods.
Several studies suggest that living on junk food can be cheaper than eating lots of fresh fruits and vegetables, the researchers note in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Research from the UK, France, Spain, and the Netherlands has also found that eating a healthy diet costs more. However, there is some evidence that "healthy diets can be obtained at different levels of spending," the authors write.
To compare the relationship between food spending and diet healthfulness, the team assessed diet and spending data for 78,191 women participating in the Nurses' Health Study. They rated the women's eating habits and multivitamin intake according to the Alternative Healthy Eating Index (AHEI), a tool they developed, with points awarded for consuming healthier items.
Those with the healthiest diets, whose average AHEI score was 59, spent about $4.60 per day on food, compared to about $3.70 per day for the women with the least healthy diets, who had an average AHEI score of 30.
But when the researchers divided the women into five groups based on how much money they spent on food, they found a wide range in AHEI scores within each spending group. The AHEI score difference between the bottom 10 percent and the top 10 percent within each spending group ranged from 25 to 29, the researchers point out.
In previous research, they add, a 20-point AHEI score increase has been linked to a 25 percent lower risk of heart disease.
Spending more on nuts, soy and beans, and whole grains was associated with a higher AHEI score, the researchers found, while spending more on red meat, processed meat and high fat dairy were associated with a lower score. "Fish and poultry, vegetables, and fruit and fruit juice offer the next best investment," Bernstein and his colleagues say.
They conclude: "Although spending more money is associated with a healthier diet, large improvements in diet may be achieved without increased spending."
SOURCE: http://link.reuters.com/jez35p American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, online September 1, 2010.
Diabetes risk may fall as magnesium intake climbs
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Getting enough magnesium in your diet could help prevent diabetes, a new study suggests.
People who consumed the most magnesium in foods and from vitamin supplements were about half as likely to develop diabetes over the next 20 years as people who took in the least magnesium, Dr. Ka He of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and colleagues found.
The results may explain in part why consuming whole grains, which are high in magnesium, is also associated with lower diabetes risk. However, large clinical trials testing the effects of magnesium on diabetes risk are needed to determine whether a causal relationship truly exists, the researchers note in Diabetes Care.
It's plausible that magnesium could influence diabetes risk because the mineral is needed for the proper functioning of several enzymes that help the body process glucose, the researchers point out. Studies of magnesium and diabetes risk have had conflicting results, though.
To investigate the link, the researchers looked at magnesium intake and diabetes risk in 4,497 men and women 18 to 30 years old, none of whom were diabetic at the study's outset. During a 20-year follow-up period, 330 of the subjects developed diabetes.
People with the highest magnesium intake, who averaged about 200 milligrams of magnesium for every 1,000 calories they consumed, were 47 percent less likely to have developed diabetes during follow up than those with the lowest intakes, who consumed about 100 milligrams of magnesium per 1,000 calories.
He and colleagues also found that as magnesium intake rose, levels of several markers of inflammation decreased, as did resistance to the effects of the key blood-sugar-regulating hormone insulin. Higher blood levels of magnesium also were linked to a lower degree of insulin resistance.
"Increasing magnesium intake may be important for improving insulin sensitivity, reducing systemic inflammation, and decreasing diabetes risk," He and colleagues write. "Further large-scale clinical trials are needed to establish causal inference and elucidate the mechanisms behind this potential benefit."
SOURCE: http://link.reuters.com/xuz35p Diabetes Care, published online August 31, 2010.
People who consumed the most magnesium in foods and from vitamin supplements were about half as likely to develop diabetes over the next 20 years as people who took in the least magnesium, Dr. Ka He of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and colleagues found.
The results may explain in part why consuming whole grains, which are high in magnesium, is also associated with lower diabetes risk. However, large clinical trials testing the effects of magnesium on diabetes risk are needed to determine whether a causal relationship truly exists, the researchers note in Diabetes Care.
It's plausible that magnesium could influence diabetes risk because the mineral is needed for the proper functioning of several enzymes that help the body process glucose, the researchers point out. Studies of magnesium and diabetes risk have had conflicting results, though.
To investigate the link, the researchers looked at magnesium intake and diabetes risk in 4,497 men and women 18 to 30 years old, none of whom were diabetic at the study's outset. During a 20-year follow-up period, 330 of the subjects developed diabetes.
People with the highest magnesium intake, who averaged about 200 milligrams of magnesium for every 1,000 calories they consumed, were 47 percent less likely to have developed diabetes during follow up than those with the lowest intakes, who consumed about 100 milligrams of magnesium per 1,000 calories.
He and colleagues also found that as magnesium intake rose, levels of several markers of inflammation decreased, as did resistance to the effects of the key blood-sugar-regulating hormone insulin. Higher blood levels of magnesium also were linked to a lower degree of insulin resistance.
"Increasing magnesium intake may be important for improving insulin sensitivity, reducing systemic inflammation, and decreasing diabetes risk," He and colleagues write. "Further large-scale clinical trials are needed to establish causal inference and elucidate the mechanisms behind this potential benefit."
SOURCE: http://link.reuters.com/xuz35p Diabetes Care, published online August 31, 2010.
Obesity Rates Remain ‘Disturbingly High’
Chances are slim to none that the United States will meet its public health goal of sharply reducing the number of obese adults by this year, according to federal health officials with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta.
While just 13 percent of adults were obese in the early 1960s, more than 30 percent were by 1999. In Healthy People 2010, a series of health objectives published in 2000, the U.S. government set forth the goal of reducing the percentage of obese Americans to 15 percent by 2010.
To investigate trends over the past decade, and determine whether the United States had any chance of meeting this objective, Dr. Earl S. Ford and his colleagues from the CDC's National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion looked at data on nearly 23,000 people aged 20 and older from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey for 1999-2008.
In 1999-2000, the researchers found, 27 percent of men were obese and 39 percent had abdominal obesity. By 2007-2008, those percentages had risen to 32 percent and 44 percent, respectively. The number of obese women inched up from 33 percent to 35 percent over the same time period, while abdominal obesity prevalence rose from 56 percent to 62 percent.
Abdominal obesity, defined as having a waist size of about 35 inches for women and 40 inches for men, has been tied to a wide range of health problems, including heart disease, diabetes, and high blood pressure.
Average body mass index (BMI) — a measure of weight in relation to height used to gauge whether a person is at a healthy weight — also increased. Men's average BMI increased from 27.8 to 28.5. For women, average BMI rose from 28.2 to 28.6.
"The prevalence of obesity and abdominal obesity remains disturbingly high among adults in the United States, and our trend analysis shows that both may still be increasing among men," Ford and his colleagues write in the International Journal of Obesity.
The rising tide of obesity "has all but ruled out" the chances that the United States will meet its Healthy People 2010 goals, they add, noting that public health officials are now at work on developing new goals for Healthy People 2020.
In order to whittle U.S. obesity rates down to 15 percent, Ford and his team say, the average American would either need to consume 500 fewer calories a day, walk for nearly two additional hours a day, or burn off the equivalent amount of calories doing some other type of physical activity.
"The path to achieving such changes in energy intake and physical activity is unlikely to be an easy one," the researchers conclude.
Carrying extra weight around your middle is scientifically proven to increase your risk of heart attack, stroke, and early death.
While just 13 percent of adults were obese in the early 1960s, more than 30 percent were by 1999. In Healthy People 2010, a series of health objectives published in 2000, the U.S. government set forth the goal of reducing the percentage of obese Americans to 15 percent by 2010.
To investigate trends over the past decade, and determine whether the United States had any chance of meeting this objective, Dr. Earl S. Ford and his colleagues from the CDC's National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion looked at data on nearly 23,000 people aged 20 and older from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey for 1999-2008.
In 1999-2000, the researchers found, 27 percent of men were obese and 39 percent had abdominal obesity. By 2007-2008, those percentages had risen to 32 percent and 44 percent, respectively. The number of obese women inched up from 33 percent to 35 percent over the same time period, while abdominal obesity prevalence rose from 56 percent to 62 percent.
Abdominal obesity, defined as having a waist size of about 35 inches for women and 40 inches for men, has been tied to a wide range of health problems, including heart disease, diabetes, and high blood pressure.
Average body mass index (BMI) — a measure of weight in relation to height used to gauge whether a person is at a healthy weight — also increased. Men's average BMI increased from 27.8 to 28.5. For women, average BMI rose from 28.2 to 28.6.
"The prevalence of obesity and abdominal obesity remains disturbingly high among adults in the United States, and our trend analysis shows that both may still be increasing among men," Ford and his colleagues write in the International Journal of Obesity.
The rising tide of obesity "has all but ruled out" the chances that the United States will meet its Healthy People 2010 goals, they add, noting that public health officials are now at work on developing new goals for Healthy People 2020.
In order to whittle U.S. obesity rates down to 15 percent, Ford and his team say, the average American would either need to consume 500 fewer calories a day, walk for nearly two additional hours a day, or burn off the equivalent amount of calories doing some other type of physical activity.
"The path to achieving such changes in energy intake and physical activity is unlikely to be an easy one," the researchers conclude.
Carrying extra weight around your middle is scientifically proven to increase your risk of heart attack, stroke, and early death.
House-Training a New Dog
Regardless of your new dog's history, start with the assumption that it is not house-trained. Always approach house-training from the dog's perspective. Your dog does not understand that it is wrong to eliminate in the house!
Feed your dog on a schedule.
Instead of free feeding, feed your dog at set meal times. Most adult dogs do well with two meals a day, but puppies need more frequent meals. Stick to a high-quality, dry dog food and keep your dog's meal times as close to the same times each day as possible. Give them access to food for about 20 to 30 minutes at each meal. Remember to walk them after they eat!
Take your dog outside to eliminate as often as possible, and reward it whenever it eliminates outside.
If you are considering a young puppy, remember that they need to eliminate every hour. Regardless of your walk schedule always take your new dog outside after playing, napping and about 20 minutes after eating. Try to use the same spot each time. Keep walks brief, and encourage your dog to sniff (this is an important part of the canine elimination sequence). Praise the dog as soon as it begins to squat and as it eliminates. Do not play or take long walks with the dog until after it has eliminated outside.
Pay attention to your dog's body language when inside.
Behaviors such as pacing, whining, circling, excessive sniffing or squatting indicate that the dog may need to eliminate. If you catch your dog exhibiting any of these behaviors, interrupt the dog and immediately take it outside. If it eliminates outside, praise it profusely.
Catch it in the act!
If, and only if, you catch your dog eliminating in the house can you correct it. The correct must take place at the same time as the undesirable action (preferably as the act begins). The most effective correction is to startle the dog with an unpleasant stimulus (a loud noise, squirt of water, etc.) as soon as it begins the unwanted behavior. You can then redirect its behavior. This means that after interrupting it, you should immediately take it outside to eliminate. Praise it if it goes outside. Remember to always use the weakest stimulus possible to interrupt your dog. Your goal is not to scare the dog, but to startle it.
Punishment
Punishment has no role in house-training and can actually intensify the dog's undesirable behaviors. Dogs make immediate associations.
Crate Training
One of the first decisions you have is whether to use a crate. The crate has two main functions. First, it keeps your dog and your possessions safe while you are away, and second, it encourages your dog to inhibit the urge to eliminate.
For example, if you come home and find a puddle of urine on the floor, show it to your dog, and punish your dog (either physically or vocally), your dog will associate the punishment with you and the puddle of urine and not with the act of urinating in the house. This may seem like the same thing to you, but for your dog there is a huge difference between the act of urinating and a puddle of urine.
Since your dog does not understand that it was its act of urinating that contributed to the punishment, it may in the future cower or act guilty when you come home to find another puddle or urine on the floor. Your dog's guilty behavior is merely canine submission and it is its way of telling you that it acknowledges your anger, but does not understand its cause.
In fact, punishing a dog for eliminating inside has been known to lead to other behavioral problems. A classic example is the dog who after repeatedly being punished for eliminating inside, develops coprophagia (the nasty habit of eating feces). In this case, the dog views the feces as the cause of punishment and attempts to get rid of it by eating it. Again, the dog did not understand that its defecating caused the punishment.
Clean any soiled areas with mild soap and an odor eliminator.
If your dog has an accident (and most will have at least one), getting rid of the underlying odor is crucial. Dogs use scent cues when deciding where to eliminate, and the average dog as 215 million more scent receptors than you. Thus, even if you cannot smell that spot on the rug, chances are that your dog can. Never use an ammonia-based product to clean up after your dog. Many of these products just smell too much like urine for your dog to resist. Always place your dog in another room before cleaning up a mess. You do not want this to become a game.
Health and Behavior
If your dog continues to eliminate inside after repeated attempts to house-train or if your house-trained dog begins to eliminate inside, it may have a medical problem or behavioral problem that needs to be addressed. First, have your dog thoroughly examined by your veterinarian (including urinalysis and fecal exam) to rule out any medical problems. If your dog is healthy and the problem persists, ask your veterinarian to refer you to a qualified animal behavior specialist.
An alternate to crate training is to confine your dog to one area of the house using a baby gate or door when left unsupervised. Just make sure that the area is puppy-proof. You can gradually expand its access to the rest of the house. If you use a crate, remember the following: No dog should be crated for more than four consecutive hours! Your dog may still have accidents in the crate. The crate must be large enough for the dog to completely stand up and turn around in, and your ultimate goal is not to use the crate.
Paper Training
Teaching a dog to eliminate indoors, even on paper, makes it more difficult to ultimately teach the dog to eliminate outdoors. If you do not have to paper train your dog, then don't. This said, there are some circumstances when you might want to consider paper training. For example, if your dog is very young or very old and you can not take the dog outside to eliminate as frequently as it needs, you may need to paper train. Small dogs can even be litter box trained. It is possible to house-train a dog that has been paper trained, but it may take more time and vigilance on your part.
Feed your dog on a schedule.
Instead of free feeding, feed your dog at set meal times. Most adult dogs do well with two meals a day, but puppies need more frequent meals. Stick to a high-quality, dry dog food and keep your dog's meal times as close to the same times each day as possible. Give them access to food for about 20 to 30 minutes at each meal. Remember to walk them after they eat!
Take your dog outside to eliminate as often as possible, and reward it whenever it eliminates outside.
If you are considering a young puppy, remember that they need to eliminate every hour. Regardless of your walk schedule always take your new dog outside after playing, napping and about 20 minutes after eating. Try to use the same spot each time. Keep walks brief, and encourage your dog to sniff (this is an important part of the canine elimination sequence). Praise the dog as soon as it begins to squat and as it eliminates. Do not play or take long walks with the dog until after it has eliminated outside.
Pay attention to your dog's body language when inside.
Behaviors such as pacing, whining, circling, excessive sniffing or squatting indicate that the dog may need to eliminate. If you catch your dog exhibiting any of these behaviors, interrupt the dog and immediately take it outside. If it eliminates outside, praise it profusely.
Catch it in the act!
If, and only if, you catch your dog eliminating in the house can you correct it. The correct must take place at the same time as the undesirable action (preferably as the act begins). The most effective correction is to startle the dog with an unpleasant stimulus (a loud noise, squirt of water, etc.) as soon as it begins the unwanted behavior. You can then redirect its behavior. This means that after interrupting it, you should immediately take it outside to eliminate. Praise it if it goes outside. Remember to always use the weakest stimulus possible to interrupt your dog. Your goal is not to scare the dog, but to startle it.
Punishment
Punishment has no role in house-training and can actually intensify the dog's undesirable behaviors. Dogs make immediate associations.
Crate Training
One of the first decisions you have is whether to use a crate. The crate has two main functions. First, it keeps your dog and your possessions safe while you are away, and second, it encourages your dog to inhibit the urge to eliminate.
For example, if you come home and find a puddle of urine on the floor, show it to your dog, and punish your dog (either physically or vocally), your dog will associate the punishment with you and the puddle of urine and not with the act of urinating in the house. This may seem like the same thing to you, but for your dog there is a huge difference between the act of urinating and a puddle of urine.
Since your dog does not understand that it was its act of urinating that contributed to the punishment, it may in the future cower or act guilty when you come home to find another puddle or urine on the floor. Your dog's guilty behavior is merely canine submission and it is its way of telling you that it acknowledges your anger, but does not understand its cause.
In fact, punishing a dog for eliminating inside has been known to lead to other behavioral problems. A classic example is the dog who after repeatedly being punished for eliminating inside, develops coprophagia (the nasty habit of eating feces). In this case, the dog views the feces as the cause of punishment and attempts to get rid of it by eating it. Again, the dog did not understand that its defecating caused the punishment.
Clean any soiled areas with mild soap and an odor eliminator.
If your dog has an accident (and most will have at least one), getting rid of the underlying odor is crucial. Dogs use scent cues when deciding where to eliminate, and the average dog as 215 million more scent receptors than you. Thus, even if you cannot smell that spot on the rug, chances are that your dog can. Never use an ammonia-based product to clean up after your dog. Many of these products just smell too much like urine for your dog to resist. Always place your dog in another room before cleaning up a mess. You do not want this to become a game.
Health and Behavior
If your dog continues to eliminate inside after repeated attempts to house-train or if your house-trained dog begins to eliminate inside, it may have a medical problem or behavioral problem that needs to be addressed. First, have your dog thoroughly examined by your veterinarian (including urinalysis and fecal exam) to rule out any medical problems. If your dog is healthy and the problem persists, ask your veterinarian to refer you to a qualified animal behavior specialist.
An alternate to crate training is to confine your dog to one area of the house using a baby gate or door when left unsupervised. Just make sure that the area is puppy-proof. You can gradually expand its access to the rest of the house. If you use a crate, remember the following: No dog should be crated for more than four consecutive hours! Your dog may still have accidents in the crate. The crate must be large enough for the dog to completely stand up and turn around in, and your ultimate goal is not to use the crate.
Paper Training
Teaching a dog to eliminate indoors, even on paper, makes it more difficult to ultimately teach the dog to eliminate outdoors. If you do not have to paper train your dog, then don't. This said, there are some circumstances when you might want to consider paper training. For example, if your dog is very young or very old and you can not take the dog outside to eliminate as frequently as it needs, you may need to paper train. Small dogs can even be litter box trained. It is possible to house-train a dog that has been paper trained, but it may take more time and vigilance on your part.
Break Your Dog's Bad Habits
Like many 13-year-olds, Josh was a handful. Bursting with energy and boundless enthusiasm, Josh could not get enough of people, and throughout his life greeted everyone he met with a hearty jump onto their laps.
The difference between Josh and other 13-year-olds, however, is that Josh was a dog, a standard poodle. And though dogs of Josh's breed can be rambunctious, his 70-year-old owners had reached their breaking point.
"Josh only knew what I call the 'dark ages' of dog training," says dog trainer Tamar Geller. "You can't just give a dog a command and a correction and then praise, because it's not fun for the dog. No one wants orders barked at them, not even a dog."
After one session with Geller, Josh learned to stop jumping on people. Whether a dog hogs the bed, jumps on guests or uses the dining room rug as its bathroom, Geller says you'll see results if you exercise patience, consistency and a respect for nature.
Geller's top tip to teach your dog anything
Geller insists that teaching a dog anything is a matter of behavior modification. A dog needs a good reason from its owner to engage in a behavior that goes against its instincts.
"We all evaluate between doing things that bring us pleasure or bring us pain," she says. "You want to teach a dog that doing what you want would be a more pleasurable experience for him."
To illustrate, Geller explains how to fix a common problem: getting a dog to sleep in its own bed.
First, place a towel on your bed, and instruct the dog to lie on the towel with a friendly, "Go to bed!" As soon as it reaches the towel, give it a small treat, such as a biscuit or small bone. Next, move the towel to another location on the bed and repeat the process. As soon as he associates the towel with a treat, Geller suggests moving the towel to the floor or onto a dog bed.
Instruct the dog to "go to bed," and if the initial training worked, it should associate the towel with the command, "go to bed," no matter where you place the towel. Continue to work with your dog until it makes the connection. Once it does, reward it with what Geller calls a "gold-level treat," such as a bite-size piece of chicken.
"Now the dog understands what you want him to do," Geller says. "He knows that when you tell him to go to bed, he's going to get a treat. You're just working with the concept of pain versus pleasure. You don't need to yell or get choke chains to teach your dog what you want him to do."
Dog training is an opportunity, not a chore
Dog owners need to view training their dogs as an opportunity, not a chore, Geller says.
"People forget that dog training is about nature," she says. "You're given this chance to connect to a higher self. How your dog behaves is a barometer for how in tune with nature you are. People who aren't resourceful use power and force. They don't realize it's about working in harmony to meet their needs and the dog's needs."
To modify a dog's behavior, Geller says an owner must rethink her relationship with her dog. "Whenever you're in a relationship and someone is doing something you don't like, you work together to find a solution and resolve conflict," she says. "With dogs, it's no different. You have to work together to meet each other's needs."
Geller suggests that dog owners use the following techniques when training their dogs:
Use a calm, friendly tone. "You want to sound like you're celebrating," she says.
Use specifics to let the dog know you're pleased or displeased with his behavior. Geller discourages people from using "good boy" or "good girl" as a reward for doing something like sitting. Instead, respond with "Good sit!" or saying "sit" in a cheerful tone.
Choose three different levels or qualities of treats—bronze, silver and gold—to reward your dog. By doing this, you reinforce behavior with a treat that is compensatory to what the dog has accomplished. "No one does anything for nothing, even dogs," Geller says. "People who say it's not fair to reward with treats, I tell them, 'You get paid for your work, don't you?'"
Be consistent and patient. "You don't get a plant, water it for three weeks and think you're done," Geller says. "When you're inconsistent and you lose interest because it's hard, you've lost your gratitude for the gift you have in your dog."
Though some people become discouraged at the prospect of training an older dog, Geller says older dogs are actually much easier to train because they're more interested in connecting with their owners.
"You don't have to get a puppy," she says. "[Older dogs] are always willing. You wouldn't give up on someone just because they're 50, would you? No! When you're training an older dog, you're finding new ways to have fun with them."
Excerpt from The Loved Dog
Tamar Geller is a trainer who emphasizes good manners in every dog she works with, treating each one as part of the family. Read a chapter from her book, 'The Loved Dog.'
The difference between Josh and other 13-year-olds, however, is that Josh was a dog, a standard poodle. And though dogs of Josh's breed can be rambunctious, his 70-year-old owners had reached their breaking point.
"Josh only knew what I call the 'dark ages' of dog training," says dog trainer Tamar Geller. "You can't just give a dog a command and a correction and then praise, because it's not fun for the dog. No one wants orders barked at them, not even a dog."
After one session with Geller, Josh learned to stop jumping on people. Whether a dog hogs the bed, jumps on guests or uses the dining room rug as its bathroom, Geller says you'll see results if you exercise patience, consistency and a respect for nature.
Geller's top tip to teach your dog anything
Geller insists that teaching a dog anything is a matter of behavior modification. A dog needs a good reason from its owner to engage in a behavior that goes against its instincts.
"We all evaluate between doing things that bring us pleasure or bring us pain," she says. "You want to teach a dog that doing what you want would be a more pleasurable experience for him."
To illustrate, Geller explains how to fix a common problem: getting a dog to sleep in its own bed.
First, place a towel on your bed, and instruct the dog to lie on the towel with a friendly, "Go to bed!" As soon as it reaches the towel, give it a small treat, such as a biscuit or small bone. Next, move the towel to another location on the bed and repeat the process. As soon as he associates the towel with a treat, Geller suggests moving the towel to the floor or onto a dog bed.
Instruct the dog to "go to bed," and if the initial training worked, it should associate the towel with the command, "go to bed," no matter where you place the towel. Continue to work with your dog until it makes the connection. Once it does, reward it with what Geller calls a "gold-level treat," such as a bite-size piece of chicken.
"Now the dog understands what you want him to do," Geller says. "He knows that when you tell him to go to bed, he's going to get a treat. You're just working with the concept of pain versus pleasure. You don't need to yell or get choke chains to teach your dog what you want him to do."
Dog training is an opportunity, not a chore
Dog owners need to view training their dogs as an opportunity, not a chore, Geller says.
"People forget that dog training is about nature," she says. "You're given this chance to connect to a higher self. How your dog behaves is a barometer for how in tune with nature you are. People who aren't resourceful use power and force. They don't realize it's about working in harmony to meet their needs and the dog's needs."
To modify a dog's behavior, Geller says an owner must rethink her relationship with her dog. "Whenever you're in a relationship and someone is doing something you don't like, you work together to find a solution and resolve conflict," she says. "With dogs, it's no different. You have to work together to meet each other's needs."
Geller suggests that dog owners use the following techniques when training their dogs:
Use a calm, friendly tone. "You want to sound like you're celebrating," she says.
Use specifics to let the dog know you're pleased or displeased with his behavior. Geller discourages people from using "good boy" or "good girl" as a reward for doing something like sitting. Instead, respond with "Good sit!" or saying "sit" in a cheerful tone.
Choose three different levels or qualities of treats—bronze, silver and gold—to reward your dog. By doing this, you reinforce behavior with a treat that is compensatory to what the dog has accomplished. "No one does anything for nothing, even dogs," Geller says. "People who say it's not fair to reward with treats, I tell them, 'You get paid for your work, don't you?'"
Be consistent and patient. "You don't get a plant, water it for three weeks and think you're done," Geller says. "When you're inconsistent and you lose interest because it's hard, you've lost your gratitude for the gift you have in your dog."
Though some people become discouraged at the prospect of training an older dog, Geller says older dogs are actually much easier to train because they're more interested in connecting with their owners.
"You don't have to get a puppy," she says. "[Older dogs] are always willing. You wouldn't give up on someone just because they're 50, would you? No! When you're training an older dog, you're finding new ways to have fun with them."
Excerpt from The Loved Dog
Tamar Geller is a trainer who emphasizes good manners in every dog she works with, treating each one as part of the family. Read a chapter from her book, 'The Loved Dog.'
The Care and Feeding of a Kinder World for Animals
Posted: 28 Sep 2010 10:35 AM PDT
This past weekend, I spoke at the second annual conference of the Texas Humane Legislation Network (THLN), and it was a great showing of advocates focused on improving animal welfare policies and practices in the state. They are determined to pass anti-cockfighting and puppy mill legislation in Austin in 2011, and we are equally determined to help them get there. They and all other puppy mill advocates in the country are anxiously watching the major battle playing out on Prop B in Missouri, and The HSUS is in the thick of the fight there.
From the conference in Austin, I drove to the International Exotic Animal Sanctuary (IEAS), outside of Dallas. It is a sanctuary for big cats and bears, and along with Big Cat Rescue in Tampa and the Shambala Preserve run by Tippi Hedren, it is one of the best known and best run big cat sanctuaries in the nation. IEAS has more than 50 big cats and about 15 bears, and most of them are castoffs from individuals who acquired the animals as pets but then got in over their heads. Groups like IEAS now spend hundreds of thousands of dollars a year cleaning up the mess of people who made the reckless decision to keep an exotic animal as a pet.
Friesian horse at Louis Dorfman's ranch.
The facility and its inhabitants are the special passion of Louis Dorfman, who is something of a carnivore whisperer. He has an incredible feel for the cats and their thoughts. The sanctuary, run on a daily basis by Richard Gilbreth, is accredited by the Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries (GFAS) and by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums and the enclosures for the animals are some of the best I’ve seen.
Louis is also a horseman, and he took The HSUS’s Chastity Rodgers and me on a tour of his horse ranch, too. There, I met one of the most remarkable looking horses—a 2,000-pound Friesian. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a more powerful or muscular-looking horse.
It was a weekend that, in its range of activity, reflects the diversity of interests of The HSUS. We work on the big-picture problems—like public policy—but also focus on the needs of individual creatures who need care and feeding. Louis’s ranch is just about two hours from our own primary animal care facility, Cleveland Amory Black Beauty Ranch. But I also had our Duchess Sanctuary, south of Eugene, Ore., on my mind. There, we have nearly 200 formerly abused, abandoned, neglected and homeless horses. Most are mares who were confined and impregnated for the pregnant mares’ urine (PMU) industry. Others were rescued from public lands or from cases of abuse. The facility, established in 2008 and owned and operated by The Fund for Animals in partnership with The HSUS, was also accredited by GFAS and recognized as an “exemplary haven.”
The HSUS and all the other groups running sanctuaries, like Louis’s, are helping so many tens of thousands of animals in need. While we must help animals in crisis, we must also keep our eyes on the bigger picture—working to prevent animals from getting into these situations in the first place. One greatest hope is to see every animal properly cared for, for life.
The images of the Duchess resident horses grazing, playing and otherwise relaxing are stunning.
This past weekend, I spoke at the second annual conference of the Texas Humane Legislation Network (THLN), and it was a great showing of advocates focused on improving animal welfare policies and practices in the state. They are determined to pass anti-cockfighting and puppy mill legislation in Austin in 2011, and we are equally determined to help them get there. They and all other puppy mill advocates in the country are anxiously watching the major battle playing out on Prop B in Missouri, and The HSUS is in the thick of the fight there.
From the conference in Austin, I drove to the International Exotic Animal Sanctuary (IEAS), outside of Dallas. It is a sanctuary for big cats and bears, and along with Big Cat Rescue in Tampa and the Shambala Preserve run by Tippi Hedren, it is one of the best known and best run big cat sanctuaries in the nation. IEAS has more than 50 big cats and about 15 bears, and most of them are castoffs from individuals who acquired the animals as pets but then got in over their heads. Groups like IEAS now spend hundreds of thousands of dollars a year cleaning up the mess of people who made the reckless decision to keep an exotic animal as a pet.
Friesian horse at Louis Dorfman's ranch.
The facility and its inhabitants are the special passion of Louis Dorfman, who is something of a carnivore whisperer. He has an incredible feel for the cats and their thoughts. The sanctuary, run on a daily basis by Richard Gilbreth, is accredited by the Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries (GFAS) and by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums and the enclosures for the animals are some of the best I’ve seen.
Louis is also a horseman, and he took The HSUS’s Chastity Rodgers and me on a tour of his horse ranch, too. There, I met one of the most remarkable looking horses—a 2,000-pound Friesian. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a more powerful or muscular-looking horse.
It was a weekend that, in its range of activity, reflects the diversity of interests of The HSUS. We work on the big-picture problems—like public policy—but also focus on the needs of individual creatures who need care and feeding. Louis’s ranch is just about two hours from our own primary animal care facility, Cleveland Amory Black Beauty Ranch. But I also had our Duchess Sanctuary, south of Eugene, Ore., on my mind. There, we have nearly 200 formerly abused, abandoned, neglected and homeless horses. Most are mares who were confined and impregnated for the pregnant mares’ urine (PMU) industry. Others were rescued from public lands or from cases of abuse. The facility, established in 2008 and owned and operated by The Fund for Animals in partnership with The HSUS, was also accredited by GFAS and recognized as an “exemplary haven.”
The HSUS and all the other groups running sanctuaries, like Louis’s, are helping so many tens of thousands of animals in need. While we must help animals in crisis, we must also keep our eyes on the bigger picture—working to prevent animals from getting into these situations in the first place. One greatest hope is to see every animal properly cared for, for life.
The images of the Duchess resident horses grazing, playing and otherwise relaxing are stunning.
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
If you make a choice that goes against what everyone else thinks, the world will not fall apart.
What’s Troubling Your Tummy?
Are indigestion and stomach troubles cramping your lifestyle? Gas, bloating and diarrhea can be embarrassing and debilitating. Find out what’s causing your gastric gremlins and how to ease the discomfort…
Gastrointestinal disorders like bloating and diarrhea are uncomfortable, upsetting – and on the rise. Hospital walk-in visits for heartburn, for example, increased 2,000% between 1975-2004, according to a 2008 government report.
What’s to blame for our rising stomach problems? Lots of things, including age, weight gain and stress. And women are at particular risk.
“The population is aging,” says David Rubin, M.D., co-director of the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Center at the University of Chicago Medical Center.
“As women age, the pelvic floor relaxes,” he says. “That changes the digestive organs’ positions, which can cause constipation, gas and bloating.”
When age and menopause relax the pelvic floor, the position of the colon shifts in relation to the rectum – and that spells tummy trouble. If osteoporosis compresses the back bones, it gets worse.
Not to mention that as you get older, the large intestine doesn’t squeeze and move things along as well as it once did.
Obesity and stress also contribute to stomach troubles, according to Rubin.
Fat, particularly if concentrated in the chest and abdomen, worsens heartburn and increases other stomach symptoms as well, although doctors don’t yet know why.
Stress also leads to poor eating habits and weight gain – and can also deprive you of sleep, which may bring on heartburn.
To tune in to your tummy, learn doctor-recommended tricks to treat the top 6 gastrointestinal complaints:
Tummy Trouble #1: Heartburn
What it is: The burning you feel in your chest after meals – especially if you lie down – is heartburn (also known as acid reflux or acid indigestion), a sign that the stomach’s contents are rising into your chest.
Why you get it: When your lower esophageal sphincter (the band of muscle around the bottom of your esophagus) relaxes, it lets stomach acid flow back into your esophagus, causing a burning that’s often mistaken for a heart problem.
“But some people have no symptoms, or atypical symptoms, like a chronic cough, jaw or ear pain, sinus problems or asthma,” Rubin says.
Age, weight, pregnancy, high blood pressure medications and lack of exercise increase your risk of heartburn.
How to fix it: Eat more slowly and consume less, avoiding heartburn triggers like tomatoes (they’re highly acidic) and peppermint and chocolate, which relax your sphincter muscle.
“If you have heartburn because you gained 10 pounds over the last year, losing even that small amount can reduce your symptoms,” Rubin says.
Cut down on caffeinated and alcoholic drinks, which can make heartburn worse. And toss the cigarettes.
For a quicker fix, try a natural remedy, like drinking aloe vera juice, or hit the medicine cabinet. Antacids like Tums and Rolaids neutralize acidity and are fine for occasional heartburn, Rubin says.
“But if you need to take them more than twice a week, see a doctor to get something stronger.”
Avoid antacid brands with calcium; they cause constipation, which increases heartburn. If you’re taking the mineral to build bones, talk to your doctor about a substitute.
Two types of drugs reduce stomach acid, but both come with caveats: The effects of H2 blockers like Zantac and Pepsid (which cut acid by blocking histamine2) last for six hours, but with steady use over two weeks they become less effective, so you may have to take more to get the same effect, Rubin says.
Proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) – like the prescription pill Nexium or over-the-counter drugs Prilosec or Prevacid – prevent the stomach’s acid pumps from producing acid, but only work when you take them every day, according to Rubin.
But daily doses aren’t a good idea, especially for older women because it raises infection risk.
“Stomach acid protects you from infection,” Rubin says. “Although long-term use of PPIs is necessary for some chronic conditions, patients should discuss this [treatment] with their doctor since there is a small risk of infection in older people.”
Tummy Trouble #2: Gassiness
What it is: Gas that unfortunately bubbles up at inopportune moments.
Why you get it: Gas comes from two sources: Air you ingest – through smoking, snoring, chewing gum and talking while you eat – or created by bacteria feeding on undigested foods in the large intestine.
You can’t avoid it completely because it’s a normal part of the digestive process.
“It’s only a problem when you have it in a larger amount than you’re used to,” says Jonathan Schreiber, M.D., a gastroenterologist at Mercy Medical Center in Baltimore.
Constipation (more on that later) makes it worse.
“Half of your solid waste is bacteria that you excrete,” Rubin explains. “When you’re constipated, there’s an overgrowth of bacteria, which causes more gas and odor.”
Severe gas can signal something more serious, like celiac disease (an inability to digest wheat protein or gluten, including wheat, oats, barley and rye) or Crohn’s, an inflammatory bowel disease that also causes diarrhea.
A gas-diarrhea combo could also mean lactose intolerance, an inability to digest the milk sugar lactase.
How to fix it: We all know beans, legumes and high-fiber foods can cause problems. But don’t avoid them, just watch how much you eat.
“You just need to know [what affects] your body and limit carbohydrates, sugars and excess fiber because bacteria love them,” Rubin says.
Gassiness doesn’t always comes from foods, though. If you wake up gassy, you may be snoring or swallowing air while you sleep. Try sleeping on your side to take in less air.
If you’re gassy at night, the culprits may be smoking, eating too fast or talking while you chew.
Charcoal tablets can absorb gasses and decrease gas odor. Simethicone tablets (Gas-X; Maalox Anti-Gas), another remedy, are made from an anti-foaming agent that breaks up gas bubbles.
“They work best for people swallowing air, but not for gas that comes from bacteria,” Rubin says.
If gas is severe, see a gastroenterologist. You may need antibiotics if bacteria is the cause. Or your doctor may recommend an over-the-counter probiotic like Align or Florastor – live bacteria that rebalance the growth of healthy gut cultures.
“Yogurt with live cultures, like Yoplait or Culturelle, may help too,” Rubin says. Yogurt works even if you’re lactose intolerance, because lactase is already broken down.
Tummy Trouble #3: Burping
What it is: A loud explosion of gas that escapes from your stomach via your mouth. “Gas can go up or down,” Schreiber says. “When it goes up, you burp.”
Why you get it: “You may just have a nervous habit of swallowing a lot of air,” Good says.
Or you may be drinking too much soda or fizzy water. Some medical conditions affecting the esophagus – heartburn, gastritis (an inflammation of the stomach lining), ulcers – can also be the culprit.
How to fix it: If swallowing air is a problem, eat slowly and chat less while you chow down to reduce your air intake.
Soda drinker? Switch to flat water. And if you notice burping with other GI conditions, like heartburn, address that problem too.
As with all these tummy troubles, if it doesn’t go away with simple lifestyle changes, see your doctor to find out if a more serious condition is the source.
Tummy Trouble #4: Bloating
What it is: When your stomach fills with gas, it expands and causes bloating.
Why you get it: Constipation, a poor absorption of sugar (due to a shortage of enzymes that aid digestion), and/or increased bacteria can all make you swell. So can fatty foods – which makes a slow exit from your stomach – stress and smoking.
A bloated belly can also indicate celiac disease, lactose intolerance or excessive bacterial growth in the small intestine.
Bloating also is the most common symptom of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), a gastrointestinal condition characterized by diarrhea and/or constipation.
How to fix it: Go easy on foods that bring on bloat, like beans, apples and cruciferous vegetables like cabbage. And stay away from carbonated sodas, hard candy and gum, because they make you take in extra air.
Plus, “do aerobic exercise at least five days a week for 10-15 minutes,” Rubin says. It helps gas move through your system faster, preventing bloat.
But if symptoms persist, see a doctor. As with other GI disorders, bloating could be a sign of a more serious disease, like ovarian cancer.
Tummy Trouble #5: Constipation
What it is: Constipation means difficulty passing stools, says gastroenterologist Larry Good, M.D., assistant clinical professor of medicine at State University of New York at Stony Brook. It’s not related to how often you go, although it’s common to have a bowel movement once or twice a day.
“A person has to perceive a difficulty, because there’s no accepted norm,” Good says.
Why you get it: A poor diet and not drinking enough water can slow down bowel movements, he says.
“The stool becomes harder and more difficult to pass.”
Slow muscle contractions in the colon will also slow their passage.
In severe cases, the stool may be blocked by a tumor or diverticulosis, a condition in which pouches form on the colon wall. Colon cancer and diuretic medications can also stop you up.
How to fix it: Go when you feel the urge. Holding it in makes stool harder and more difficult to pass.
Eat more high-fiber foods, such as whole grains, fruits and vegetables. You need about 20-25 grams of soluble fiber (found in apples and oatmeal) a day, Good says.
And drink at least four to six 8-ounce glasses of water daily to soften your stool. Regular exercise also stimulates the intestine, which helps you go.
Over-the-counter fiber supplements or laxatives may do the trick too, Good says. Laxatives boost the secretion of fluid in the intestines or increase intestinal contractions.
“But don’t use laxatives for more than a day or two without getting a medical evaluation,” Good says. “Otherwise, you may mask a more serious situation.”
Tummy Trouble #6: Diarrhea
What it is: An intense urgency to move your bowels, accompanied by watery stool, are the most common trademarks of diarrhea. “Or it’s just abnormally frequent bowel movements,” Schreiber says.
Why you get it: Irritable bowel syndrome is the most common cause, Good says. But viruses, infections and some medications, such as antibiotics, can also start the tide.
When should you worry? If you see blood, pus or mucus when you go, it could mean intestinal inflammation, colorectal cancer or Crohn’s.
How to fix it: Keep drinking fluids to stay hydrated, Schreiber says: “If [your mouth] feels dry and you’re headachy, you’re dehydrated.”
Stay nourished: Schreiber suggests bananas, rice, applesauce and decaffeinated tea.
Also, learn its cause so you can adjust your diet: If it’s IBS, eating more fiber may help, Good says. Cut out wheat for Crohn’s disease and dairy for lactose intolerance.
If you have diarrhea for more than three days, see your doctor. Infection may be the source, which could require an antibiotic.
You might also be prescribed an over-the-counter anti-diarrheal medication, like Imodium or the prescription drugs Lomotil or Paregoric – but only after your doctor determines the cause of the condition.
When to Get Treatment
Just because we’re living with more of these symptoms doesn’t mean we have to.
If your stomach’s acting strangely – for example, you’re having shifts in bowel habits, gassiness, bloating, heartburn – see a doctor, Rubin says. Especially as you get older.
“If you’re over 35, any change in GI symptoms needs a careful workup,” Rubin says.
This could include a physical exam, blood tests, stool tests and an endoscopy (a procedure allowing the physician to look inside the body).
Why the concern?
“Sometimes a subtle change in bowel function or heartburn can [indicate] ovarian or uterine cancer,” he says.
For natural remedies and more tricks to get rid of indigestion ills, read What to Do When Your Tummy Hurts.
Health writer Dorothy Foltz-Gray is a frequent contributor to Lifescript.
What’s Your Indigestion IQ?
Far too many of us are familiar with the lingering discomforts associated with indigestion, heartburn, acid reflux, and other gastrointestinal issues. The good news is that you can take steps to prevent the unnecessary side effects brought on by certain behaviors. It's all about keeping your stomach happy.
Gastrointestinal disorders like bloating and diarrhea are uncomfortable, upsetting – and on the rise. Hospital walk-in visits for heartburn, for example, increased 2,000% between 1975-2004, according to a 2008 government report.
What’s to blame for our rising stomach problems? Lots of things, including age, weight gain and stress. And women are at particular risk.
“The population is aging,” says David Rubin, M.D., co-director of the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Center at the University of Chicago Medical Center.
“As women age, the pelvic floor relaxes,” he says. “That changes the digestive organs’ positions, which can cause constipation, gas and bloating.”
When age and menopause relax the pelvic floor, the position of the colon shifts in relation to the rectum – and that spells tummy trouble. If osteoporosis compresses the back bones, it gets worse.
Not to mention that as you get older, the large intestine doesn’t squeeze and move things along as well as it once did.
Obesity and stress also contribute to stomach troubles, according to Rubin.
Fat, particularly if concentrated in the chest and abdomen, worsens heartburn and increases other stomach symptoms as well, although doctors don’t yet know why.
Stress also leads to poor eating habits and weight gain – and can also deprive you of sleep, which may bring on heartburn.
To tune in to your tummy, learn doctor-recommended tricks to treat the top 6 gastrointestinal complaints:
Tummy Trouble #1: Heartburn
What it is: The burning you feel in your chest after meals – especially if you lie down – is heartburn (also known as acid reflux or acid indigestion), a sign that the stomach’s contents are rising into your chest.
Why you get it: When your lower esophageal sphincter (the band of muscle around the bottom of your esophagus) relaxes, it lets stomach acid flow back into your esophagus, causing a burning that’s often mistaken for a heart problem.
“But some people have no symptoms, or atypical symptoms, like a chronic cough, jaw or ear pain, sinus problems or asthma,” Rubin says.
Age, weight, pregnancy, high blood pressure medications and lack of exercise increase your risk of heartburn.
How to fix it: Eat more slowly and consume less, avoiding heartburn triggers like tomatoes (they’re highly acidic) and peppermint and chocolate, which relax your sphincter muscle.
“If you have heartburn because you gained 10 pounds over the last year, losing even that small amount can reduce your symptoms,” Rubin says.
Cut down on caffeinated and alcoholic drinks, which can make heartburn worse. And toss the cigarettes.
For a quicker fix, try a natural remedy, like drinking aloe vera juice, or hit the medicine cabinet. Antacids like Tums and Rolaids neutralize acidity and are fine for occasional heartburn, Rubin says.
“But if you need to take them more than twice a week, see a doctor to get something stronger.”
Avoid antacid brands with calcium; they cause constipation, which increases heartburn. If you’re taking the mineral to build bones, talk to your doctor about a substitute.
Two types of drugs reduce stomach acid, but both come with caveats: The effects of H2 blockers like Zantac and Pepsid (which cut acid by blocking histamine2) last for six hours, but with steady use over two weeks they become less effective, so you may have to take more to get the same effect, Rubin says.
Proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) – like the prescription pill Nexium or over-the-counter drugs Prilosec or Prevacid – prevent the stomach’s acid pumps from producing acid, but only work when you take them every day, according to Rubin.
But daily doses aren’t a good idea, especially for older women because it raises infection risk.
“Stomach acid protects you from infection,” Rubin says. “Although long-term use of PPIs is necessary for some chronic conditions, patients should discuss this [treatment] with their doctor since there is a small risk of infection in older people.”
Tummy Trouble #2: Gassiness
What it is: Gas that unfortunately bubbles up at inopportune moments.
Why you get it: Gas comes from two sources: Air you ingest – through smoking, snoring, chewing gum and talking while you eat – or created by bacteria feeding on undigested foods in the large intestine.
You can’t avoid it completely because it’s a normal part of the digestive process.
“It’s only a problem when you have it in a larger amount than you’re used to,” says Jonathan Schreiber, M.D., a gastroenterologist at Mercy Medical Center in Baltimore.
Constipation (more on that later) makes it worse.
“Half of your solid waste is bacteria that you excrete,” Rubin explains. “When you’re constipated, there’s an overgrowth of bacteria, which causes more gas and odor.”
Severe gas can signal something more serious, like celiac disease (an inability to digest wheat protein or gluten, including wheat, oats, barley and rye) or Crohn’s, an inflammatory bowel disease that also causes diarrhea.
A gas-diarrhea combo could also mean lactose intolerance, an inability to digest the milk sugar lactase.
How to fix it: We all know beans, legumes and high-fiber foods can cause problems. But don’t avoid them, just watch how much you eat.
“You just need to know [what affects] your body and limit carbohydrates, sugars and excess fiber because bacteria love them,” Rubin says.
Gassiness doesn’t always comes from foods, though. If you wake up gassy, you may be snoring or swallowing air while you sleep. Try sleeping on your side to take in less air.
If you’re gassy at night, the culprits may be smoking, eating too fast or talking while you chew.
Charcoal tablets can absorb gasses and decrease gas odor. Simethicone tablets (Gas-X; Maalox Anti-Gas), another remedy, are made from an anti-foaming agent that breaks up gas bubbles.
“They work best for people swallowing air, but not for gas that comes from bacteria,” Rubin says.
If gas is severe, see a gastroenterologist. You may need antibiotics if bacteria is the cause. Or your doctor may recommend an over-the-counter probiotic like Align or Florastor – live bacteria that rebalance the growth of healthy gut cultures.
“Yogurt with live cultures, like Yoplait or Culturelle, may help too,” Rubin says. Yogurt works even if you’re lactose intolerance, because lactase is already broken down.
Tummy Trouble #3: Burping
What it is: A loud explosion of gas that escapes from your stomach via your mouth. “Gas can go up or down,” Schreiber says. “When it goes up, you burp.”
Why you get it: “You may just have a nervous habit of swallowing a lot of air,” Good says.
Or you may be drinking too much soda or fizzy water. Some medical conditions affecting the esophagus – heartburn, gastritis (an inflammation of the stomach lining), ulcers – can also be the culprit.
How to fix it: If swallowing air is a problem, eat slowly and chat less while you chow down to reduce your air intake.
Soda drinker? Switch to flat water. And if you notice burping with other GI conditions, like heartburn, address that problem too.
As with all these tummy troubles, if it doesn’t go away with simple lifestyle changes, see your doctor to find out if a more serious condition is the source.
Tummy Trouble #4: Bloating
What it is: When your stomach fills with gas, it expands and causes bloating.
Why you get it: Constipation, a poor absorption of sugar (due to a shortage of enzymes that aid digestion), and/or increased bacteria can all make you swell. So can fatty foods – which makes a slow exit from your stomach – stress and smoking.
A bloated belly can also indicate celiac disease, lactose intolerance or excessive bacterial growth in the small intestine.
Bloating also is the most common symptom of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), a gastrointestinal condition characterized by diarrhea and/or constipation.
How to fix it: Go easy on foods that bring on bloat, like beans, apples and cruciferous vegetables like cabbage. And stay away from carbonated sodas, hard candy and gum, because they make you take in extra air.
Plus, “do aerobic exercise at least five days a week for 10-15 minutes,” Rubin says. It helps gas move through your system faster, preventing bloat.
But if symptoms persist, see a doctor. As with other GI disorders, bloating could be a sign of a more serious disease, like ovarian cancer.
Tummy Trouble #5: Constipation
What it is: Constipation means difficulty passing stools, says gastroenterologist Larry Good, M.D., assistant clinical professor of medicine at State University of New York at Stony Brook. It’s not related to how often you go, although it’s common to have a bowel movement once or twice a day.
“A person has to perceive a difficulty, because there’s no accepted norm,” Good says.
Why you get it: A poor diet and not drinking enough water can slow down bowel movements, he says.
“The stool becomes harder and more difficult to pass.”
Slow muscle contractions in the colon will also slow their passage.
In severe cases, the stool may be blocked by a tumor or diverticulosis, a condition in which pouches form on the colon wall. Colon cancer and diuretic medications can also stop you up.
How to fix it: Go when you feel the urge. Holding it in makes stool harder and more difficult to pass.
Eat more high-fiber foods, such as whole grains, fruits and vegetables. You need about 20-25 grams of soluble fiber (found in apples and oatmeal) a day, Good says.
And drink at least four to six 8-ounce glasses of water daily to soften your stool. Regular exercise also stimulates the intestine, which helps you go.
Over-the-counter fiber supplements or laxatives may do the trick too, Good says. Laxatives boost the secretion of fluid in the intestines or increase intestinal contractions.
“But don’t use laxatives for more than a day or two without getting a medical evaluation,” Good says. “Otherwise, you may mask a more serious situation.”
Tummy Trouble #6: Diarrhea
What it is: An intense urgency to move your bowels, accompanied by watery stool, are the most common trademarks of diarrhea. “Or it’s just abnormally frequent bowel movements,” Schreiber says.
Why you get it: Irritable bowel syndrome is the most common cause, Good says. But viruses, infections and some medications, such as antibiotics, can also start the tide.
When should you worry? If you see blood, pus or mucus when you go, it could mean intestinal inflammation, colorectal cancer or Crohn’s.
How to fix it: Keep drinking fluids to stay hydrated, Schreiber says: “If [your mouth] feels dry and you’re headachy, you’re dehydrated.”
Stay nourished: Schreiber suggests bananas, rice, applesauce and decaffeinated tea.
Also, learn its cause so you can adjust your diet: If it’s IBS, eating more fiber may help, Good says. Cut out wheat for Crohn’s disease and dairy for lactose intolerance.
If you have diarrhea for more than three days, see your doctor. Infection may be the source, which could require an antibiotic.
You might also be prescribed an over-the-counter anti-diarrheal medication, like Imodium or the prescription drugs Lomotil or Paregoric – but only after your doctor determines the cause of the condition.
When to Get Treatment
Just because we’re living with more of these symptoms doesn’t mean we have to.
If your stomach’s acting strangely – for example, you’re having shifts in bowel habits, gassiness, bloating, heartburn – see a doctor, Rubin says. Especially as you get older.
“If you’re over 35, any change in GI symptoms needs a careful workup,” Rubin says.
This could include a physical exam, blood tests, stool tests and an endoscopy (a procedure allowing the physician to look inside the body).
Why the concern?
“Sometimes a subtle change in bowel function or heartburn can [indicate] ovarian or uterine cancer,” he says.
For natural remedies and more tricks to get rid of indigestion ills, read What to Do When Your Tummy Hurts.
Health writer Dorothy Foltz-Gray is a frequent contributor to Lifescript.
What’s Your Indigestion IQ?
Far too many of us are familiar with the lingering discomforts associated with indigestion, heartburn, acid reflux, and other gastrointestinal issues. The good news is that you can take steps to prevent the unnecessary side effects brought on by certain behaviors. It's all about keeping your stomach happy.
Staying active on workdays good for the heart
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Commuting to work on your own two feet, or while spinning two wheels, could help stave off heart failure, suggests a new Finnish study.
And if your job keeps you active during the day too, even better.
Not only is leisure-time physical activity an important component of a healthy lifestyle, but so is occupational activity and daily walking or cycling to and from work, senior researcher Dr. Gang Hu of Pennington Biomedical Research Center in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, told Reuters Health in an e-mail.
Previous studies had found protective effects of regular physical activity on both coronary heart disease and stroke. However, researchers had not yet explored the impact of exercise on the risk of heart failure, or the unique roles of leisure and non-leisure activities on the condition.
Heart failure is characterized by a heart unable to pump sufficient blood to meet the body's needs, and currently affects more than 5 million Americans.
In an effort to tease apart the effects of occupational, commuting and leisure-time physical activity on the risk of heart failure, Hu and his colleagues studied nearly 60,000 Finnish men and women who participated in a series of surveys conducted between 1972 and 2002.
During an average follow-up of 18 years, about 3,500 (6 percent) of the men and women developed heart failure.
Not surprisingly, leisure-time physical activity significantly lowered the risk among both men and women, with men who vigorously exercised at least three times a week enjoying the most benefit: a 47 percent lower risk of heart failure than inactive men.
After accounting for age and the year in which each participant started the study, the team found that men who participated in moderate or high occupational activity -- from a fair amount of standing and walking to heavy manual labor -- had about a quarter lower risk of heart failure, compared to those who sat around an office all day. For women, drops in risk were 33 and 13 percent for moderate and high activity, respectively.
Women who commuted to work by walking or cycling also had a reduced risk of heart failure compared to those who did not, even after adjusting for leisure-time and occupational physical activity.
The more types of physical activities someone participated in, the greater the risk reduction, report the researchers in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.
Dr. Luc Djousse of Brigham and Women's Hospital, in Boston, noted that the findings are consistent with those from the Physician's Health Study, in which he and his colleagues also showed that leisure-time physical activity was associated with a lower risk of heart failure in men.
The new study goes further by identifying the benefits of exercise beyond just our few hours of leisure, he noted in an e-mail to Reuters Health.
"Increases in computerization and mechanization that have resulted in ever-increasing numbers of people being sedentary for most of their time," said Hu, advising that people try to incorporate short spurts of exercise during work breaks, active commuting, and physical activity during leisure time.
"At the community level, effort should be devoted to infrastructure that favors commuting as well as leisure-time physical activity," added Djousse, highlighting the benefits of pedestrian and cycling paths, as well as parks.
He further suggested that employers focus on workplace design and policies that encourage various types of exercise, including the use of stairs instead of elevators or escalators, and adequate space for bicycle parking.
Besides physical activity, said Djousse, other lifestyle factors that can lower the risk of heart failure include not smoking and eating a diet high in fruits and vegetables, legumes, and whole grains, while also low in salt and red meat.
Treatment for heart failure can include drugs or implanted devices that stimulate the heart to beat properly, or surgery to correct mechanical defects.
SOURCE: http://link.reuters.com/tus35p Journal of the American College of Cardiology, September 28, 2010.
And if your job keeps you active during the day too, even better.
Not only is leisure-time physical activity an important component of a healthy lifestyle, but so is occupational activity and daily walking or cycling to and from work, senior researcher Dr. Gang Hu of Pennington Biomedical Research Center in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, told Reuters Health in an e-mail.
Previous studies had found protective effects of regular physical activity on both coronary heart disease and stroke. However, researchers had not yet explored the impact of exercise on the risk of heart failure, or the unique roles of leisure and non-leisure activities on the condition.
Heart failure is characterized by a heart unable to pump sufficient blood to meet the body's needs, and currently affects more than 5 million Americans.
In an effort to tease apart the effects of occupational, commuting and leisure-time physical activity on the risk of heart failure, Hu and his colleagues studied nearly 60,000 Finnish men and women who participated in a series of surveys conducted between 1972 and 2002.
During an average follow-up of 18 years, about 3,500 (6 percent) of the men and women developed heart failure.
Not surprisingly, leisure-time physical activity significantly lowered the risk among both men and women, with men who vigorously exercised at least three times a week enjoying the most benefit: a 47 percent lower risk of heart failure than inactive men.
After accounting for age and the year in which each participant started the study, the team found that men who participated in moderate or high occupational activity -- from a fair amount of standing and walking to heavy manual labor -- had about a quarter lower risk of heart failure, compared to those who sat around an office all day. For women, drops in risk were 33 and 13 percent for moderate and high activity, respectively.
Women who commuted to work by walking or cycling also had a reduced risk of heart failure compared to those who did not, even after adjusting for leisure-time and occupational physical activity.
The more types of physical activities someone participated in, the greater the risk reduction, report the researchers in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.
Dr. Luc Djousse of Brigham and Women's Hospital, in Boston, noted that the findings are consistent with those from the Physician's Health Study, in which he and his colleagues also showed that leisure-time physical activity was associated with a lower risk of heart failure in men.
The new study goes further by identifying the benefits of exercise beyond just our few hours of leisure, he noted in an e-mail to Reuters Health.
"Increases in computerization and mechanization that have resulted in ever-increasing numbers of people being sedentary for most of their time," said Hu, advising that people try to incorporate short spurts of exercise during work breaks, active commuting, and physical activity during leisure time.
"At the community level, effort should be devoted to infrastructure that favors commuting as well as leisure-time physical activity," added Djousse, highlighting the benefits of pedestrian and cycling paths, as well as parks.
He further suggested that employers focus on workplace design and policies that encourage various types of exercise, including the use of stairs instead of elevators or escalators, and adequate space for bicycle parking.
Besides physical activity, said Djousse, other lifestyle factors that can lower the risk of heart failure include not smoking and eating a diet high in fruits and vegetables, legumes, and whole grains, while also low in salt and red meat.
Treatment for heart failure can include drugs or implanted devices that stimulate the heart to beat properly, or surgery to correct mechanical defects.
SOURCE: http://link.reuters.com/tus35p Journal of the American College of Cardiology, September 28, 2010.
EU agency reviews Roche's Avastin in breast cancer
ZURICH (Reuters) - European healthcare regulators are reviewing the benefits of Roche's top-selling Avastin drug in breast cancer in the light of fresh clinical data, casting more uncertainty over its prospects.
The news comes as investors await a decision from U.S. authorities on whether to revoke Avastin's label in advanced breast cancer and follows a series of setbacks for the treatment so far this year.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is also considering whether to expand Avastin's label in the United States to allow the drug to be used with other chemotherapies.
The European Medicines Agency said on Friday it had started a review of the benefits and risks of Avastin after Roche submitted a study to support its application of Avastin to treat breast cancer with anthracycline-based or capecitabine cytotoxic chemotherapy.
In comparison with results of previous studies, the agency said the latest study pointed to inconsistencies between different trials, particularly in terms of efficacy.
Roche said it was committed to working closely with EMA's Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) to make sure it had all the information it required for the review of Avastin in the first-line treatment of metastatic breast cancer.
The CHMP opinion on this label expansion is expected later this year, Roche said, adding the current use of Avastin in its licensed indications, including for the treatment of patients with metastatic breast cancer, was not affected by the review.
SETBACKS
Avastin, which brought in sales of over $6 billion for Roche last year, was once tipped to become the world's biggest selling drug by 2014, but its prospects have faded after doubts over its benefits in breast cancer and after it failed in clinical trials for prostate and stomach cancer.
Roche, the world's largest maker of cancer drugs, may have to grapple with a hefty dent to sales in the United States if the FDA decides to follow the advice of an advisory panel to remove the drug's current approval for breast cancer.
About $1 billion of Avastin's sales come from breast cancer uses, analysts estimate. The product is Roche's top-selling drug, accounting for 13 percent of 2009 sales.
There is no set timeline for an FDA ruling on whether to revoke the breast cancer approval. If the FDA pulls it, the drug would remain on the market with clearance for colon, lung, brain and kidney cancers.
The news comes as investors await a decision from U.S. authorities on whether to revoke Avastin's label in advanced breast cancer and follows a series of setbacks for the treatment so far this year.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is also considering whether to expand Avastin's label in the United States to allow the drug to be used with other chemotherapies.
The European Medicines Agency said on Friday it had started a review of the benefits and risks of Avastin after Roche submitted a study to support its application of Avastin to treat breast cancer with anthracycline-based or capecitabine cytotoxic chemotherapy.
In comparison with results of previous studies, the agency said the latest study pointed to inconsistencies between different trials, particularly in terms of efficacy.
Roche said it was committed to working closely with EMA's Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) to make sure it had all the information it required for the review of Avastin in the first-line treatment of metastatic breast cancer.
The CHMP opinion on this label expansion is expected later this year, Roche said, adding the current use of Avastin in its licensed indications, including for the treatment of patients with metastatic breast cancer, was not affected by the review.
SETBACKS
Avastin, which brought in sales of over $6 billion for Roche last year, was once tipped to become the world's biggest selling drug by 2014, but its prospects have faded after doubts over its benefits in breast cancer and after it failed in clinical trials for prostate and stomach cancer.
Roche, the world's largest maker of cancer drugs, may have to grapple with a hefty dent to sales in the United States if the FDA decides to follow the advice of an advisory panel to remove the drug's current approval for breast cancer.
About $1 billion of Avastin's sales come from breast cancer uses, analysts estimate. The product is Roche's top-selling drug, accounting for 13 percent of 2009 sales.
There is no set timeline for an FDA ruling on whether to revoke the breast cancer approval. If the FDA pulls it, the drug would remain on the market with clearance for colon, lung, brain and kidney cancers.
5 Steps to Real Improved Listening (or Why You Were Tricked Out By Your Last Listening Course)
- By Lea Dev ***
-The three things that prevent us from being superior listeners -- leadership-quality listening wonders, mavens of listening excellence -- are our deference to our emotional triggers and filtering, our attitude about listening in general, and our facility at remaining tied to both.
Chief among these is our deference to our emotional triggers and filtering. In many listening articles and courses, we are urged to "be open", "not to interrupt", "encourage others to speak", "don't judge".
The fact is we are not being told or shown how to effectively do the things that are supposed to transform us into an individual of quality listening ability. We are simply being told to do them.
Understanding and managing our emotional triggers and filtering will provide us with the foundation for becoming superior listeners. Why? Because with this knowledge we can give ourselves the opportunity stop compromising our listening ability by judging at the wrong time. In our case, the wrong time is when we should be attending.
The Solution:
Emotional triggers and filtering, and our almost automaton devotion to them, are single-handedly the key reasons why we tend to be listening-depraved.
Emotional filtering is the change in our willingness to pay attention to the speaker as a result of our affective interpretation of the speaker's words, phrasing, or non-verbal expression.
Emotional triggers are the attitudes, beliefs, and psychological associations and interpretations that we, individually, have acquired and kept since childhood right through to this very minute. (They are our effective interpretation of the speaker's words, phrasing, or nonverbal expression.)
We judge the speaker's expression, and sometimes, even the speaker, based on how we manage our emotional filtering process, which is directly proportional to how we manage our emotional triggers.
Once we wade, knowingly or not, into the judgment pool in a conversation, we have effectively shunted our ability to sincerely "be open", "question", "maintain eye contact", "encourage others to speak", "don't interrupt", etc., and, of course, "don't judge". In other words, we have shut down our ability to implement the tenets of superior listening because we have violated the "don't judge" rule, which directly influences how well we implement the other tenets.
We tend to judge. It's a shortcoming of the human condition. Live with it. Understand it. Embrace it. Shake it loose. Let it fall.
The best way to shake it loose and let it fall during conversations occurs in two steps: 1). identify our emotional triggers and understand our emotional filtering process; 2). manage them both so they stop making listening Neanderthals of us.
To identify our emotional triggers, we first ask ourselves what words, expressions, and acts cause us to become excited. Secondly, we explain to ourselves why the word, expression, or act causes us to become excited.
To understand our emotional filtering process, we simply replay a few of our last conversations and figure out the words, expression, and acts that made us stop listening to the speaker.
Does this sound like you, too? My emotional triggers are the words, "everybody" and "nobody". Why? Because my view of the world is that "everybody" and "nobody" ever did a damned thing, and anybody who thinks they did is not telling me the truth.
Let's take this further into how this impacted my emotional filtering process.
An example of a phrase that could place a Vulcan death-grip on my ability to pay attention was if the speaker said something like, "I'm honest with everybody." Why? Because as soon as I heard it as I was listening, my emotional trigger would kick in, directing my emotional filtering process. In rapid succession these things would occur: 1) my association with the word gained focus; 2) my attention shifted from the conversation to the speaker who was now trying to make me believe something that simply could not be true; 3) my effort to defend myself against the speaker's arrant and aggressive attempt to control my very mind became my number one purpose for existing at the moment!
The issue is not our emotional filtering process; it is how well we manage that process during conversations. Why? So that we can "listen without judgment", "be open", "encourage others to speak", "not interrupt", and so on and so on.
As long as we are reacting to our emotional filtering process, we are not directing it. We are overriding our success at listening and probably a lot of other opportunities that we can't possibly see because we're reacting like a worker-bee, instead of directing like a leader.
How do we stop being kidnapped by our emotional filtering? How do we start to enact the sage instruction for significantly improved listening ability?
STEP #1: Acknowledge that we have emotional triggers.
We all have something. It isn't new or unique.
STEP #2: Identify our emotional triggers.
The easiest way to identify our emotional triggers is to observe ourselves while we're listening to somebody else. As soon as we change our willingness to pay attention to the speaker, we have just elevated our emotional trigger ahead of our emotional filtering management.
Find a comfortable spot to reflect on the conversations of the day. Make a list, mentally or physically, of what you reacted to and why.
We can't manage our emotional filtering unless we know what our emotional triggers are.
STEP #3: Manage our emotional triggers out of our emotional filtering process during conversations.
This is the heart of a how we actually implement the tenets of superior listening. We have acknowledged and identified our emotional triggers in the first two steps. Now, we want to nip them the bud and tuck them out of sight during conversations with others.
The nip. During conversations, when we feel ourselves becoming agitated, do a quick examination of what's going on with us. Our goal is to pinpoint the word, phrase, or expression that now has our attending wandering away from the speaker.
The tuck. Since we really are the masters of our emotional triggers and the architects of our emotion filtering, we have dominion over both at all times. Take control of this thing that bothers us by directing it away from the conversation and our focus. In this way, we manage this word or phrase out of our emotional filtering process. We effectively ignore it.
STEP #4: Accept and embrace the fact that listening is much more important than speaking.
Do you know that we spend 80% of our day in situations in which we are required to listen in order to:
• Make decisions
• Take instruction
• Provide input or feedback
That makes listening our most daily used communication skill.
Therefore, it is more important to listen than to speak.
STEP #5: Make managing our emotion filtering process a habit, not a novelty.
Implement these five steps all day, every day. In the beginning you may slip more times than you're comfortable with, but keep at it.
If you don't do this, then your poor listening skills will be your fault!
-The three things that prevent us from being superior listeners -- leadership-quality listening wonders, mavens of listening excellence -- are our deference to our emotional triggers and filtering, our attitude about listening in general, and our facility at remaining tied to both.
Chief among these is our deference to our emotional triggers and filtering. In many listening articles and courses, we are urged to "be open", "not to interrupt", "encourage others to speak", "don't judge".
The fact is we are not being told or shown how to effectively do the things that are supposed to transform us into an individual of quality listening ability. We are simply being told to do them.
Understanding and managing our emotional triggers and filtering will provide us with the foundation for becoming superior listeners. Why? Because with this knowledge we can give ourselves the opportunity stop compromising our listening ability by judging at the wrong time. In our case, the wrong time is when we should be attending.
The Solution:
Emotional triggers and filtering, and our almost automaton devotion to them, are single-handedly the key reasons why we tend to be listening-depraved.
Emotional filtering is the change in our willingness to pay attention to the speaker as a result of our affective interpretation of the speaker's words, phrasing, or non-verbal expression.
Emotional triggers are the attitudes, beliefs, and psychological associations and interpretations that we, individually, have acquired and kept since childhood right through to this very minute. (They are our effective interpretation of the speaker's words, phrasing, or nonverbal expression.)
We judge the speaker's expression, and sometimes, even the speaker, based on how we manage our emotional filtering process, which is directly proportional to how we manage our emotional triggers.
Once we wade, knowingly or not, into the judgment pool in a conversation, we have effectively shunted our ability to sincerely "be open", "question", "maintain eye contact", "encourage others to speak", "don't interrupt", etc., and, of course, "don't judge". In other words, we have shut down our ability to implement the tenets of superior listening because we have violated the "don't judge" rule, which directly influences how well we implement the other tenets.
We tend to judge. It's a shortcoming of the human condition. Live with it. Understand it. Embrace it. Shake it loose. Let it fall.
The best way to shake it loose and let it fall during conversations occurs in two steps: 1). identify our emotional triggers and understand our emotional filtering process; 2). manage them both so they stop making listening Neanderthals of us.
To identify our emotional triggers, we first ask ourselves what words, expressions, and acts cause us to become excited. Secondly, we explain to ourselves why the word, expression, or act causes us to become excited.
To understand our emotional filtering process, we simply replay a few of our last conversations and figure out the words, expression, and acts that made us stop listening to the speaker.
Does this sound like you, too? My emotional triggers are the words, "everybody" and "nobody". Why? Because my view of the world is that "everybody" and "nobody" ever did a damned thing, and anybody who thinks they did is not telling me the truth.
Let's take this further into how this impacted my emotional filtering process.
An example of a phrase that could place a Vulcan death-grip on my ability to pay attention was if the speaker said something like, "I'm honest with everybody." Why? Because as soon as I heard it as I was listening, my emotional trigger would kick in, directing my emotional filtering process. In rapid succession these things would occur: 1) my association with the word gained focus; 2) my attention shifted from the conversation to the speaker who was now trying to make me believe something that simply could not be true; 3) my effort to defend myself against the speaker's arrant and aggressive attempt to control my very mind became my number one purpose for existing at the moment!
The issue is not our emotional filtering process; it is how well we manage that process during conversations. Why? So that we can "listen without judgment", "be open", "encourage others to speak", "not interrupt", and so on and so on.
As long as we are reacting to our emotional filtering process, we are not directing it. We are overriding our success at listening and probably a lot of other opportunities that we can't possibly see because we're reacting like a worker-bee, instead of directing like a leader.
How do we stop being kidnapped by our emotional filtering? How do we start to enact the sage instruction for significantly improved listening ability?
STEP #1: Acknowledge that we have emotional triggers.
We all have something. It isn't new or unique.
STEP #2: Identify our emotional triggers.
The easiest way to identify our emotional triggers is to observe ourselves while we're listening to somebody else. As soon as we change our willingness to pay attention to the speaker, we have just elevated our emotional trigger ahead of our emotional filtering management.
Find a comfortable spot to reflect on the conversations of the day. Make a list, mentally or physically, of what you reacted to and why.
We can't manage our emotional filtering unless we know what our emotional triggers are.
STEP #3: Manage our emotional triggers out of our emotional filtering process during conversations.
This is the heart of a how we actually implement the tenets of superior listening. We have acknowledged and identified our emotional triggers in the first two steps. Now, we want to nip them the bud and tuck them out of sight during conversations with others.
The nip. During conversations, when we feel ourselves becoming agitated, do a quick examination of what's going on with us. Our goal is to pinpoint the word, phrase, or expression that now has our attending wandering away from the speaker.
The tuck. Since we really are the masters of our emotional triggers and the architects of our emotion filtering, we have dominion over both at all times. Take control of this thing that bothers us by directing it away from the conversation and our focus. In this way, we manage this word or phrase out of our emotional filtering process. We effectively ignore it.
STEP #4: Accept and embrace the fact that listening is much more important than speaking.
Do you know that we spend 80% of our day in situations in which we are required to listen in order to:
• Make decisions
• Take instruction
• Provide input or feedback
That makes listening our most daily used communication skill.
Therefore, it is more important to listen than to speak.
STEP #5: Make managing our emotion filtering process a habit, not a novelty.
Implement these five steps all day, every day. In the beginning you may slip more times than you're comfortable with, but keep at it.
If you don't do this, then your poor listening skills will be your fault!
What's Your Brick Wall?
This is a piece from my archives. But it's a good reminder of my brick walls today.
"Brick walls are there for a reason," said Randy Pausch, the Carnegie Mellon University computer-science professor who so poignantly taught us how to die in the years after he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. "They let us prove how badly we want things."
I know what my brick wall is because I snuggle up to it every evening, mistaking it for a pillow: perfectionism.
The demon that has earned the blue ribbon for powers of debilitation in my world is the annoying, high-pitched, squeal of the perfectionist chick who thinks that when a college classmate calls recruiting for help organizing the reunion, the right thing is to say yes. In fact, "yes" is the only word in the irritating broad's vocabulary.
"Can you help out with the Halloween party?" "Nnn........ okay."
"Will you chaperone the field trip to the pumpkin patch?" "I caaa.......sure."
"Could you organize the 'Santa's Run' fire-department gig for the needy kids? "Nnnnnnn......maybe."
I want to be the devoted mom at all the class parties. I want to be the noble citizen who contributes her time to community service. I want to say thank you to my alma mater for the four exceptional years of nurturing and education I received. And I want my traffic numbers for Beyond Blue to win me a seat next on Oprah's set.
"No really, Oprah, the pleasure is mine."
But this equation--best mom, wife, citizen, graduate, blogger--is bad math. Really bad math, comprised of one unrealistic expectation after another.
I know this now. There's my progress! But I still have to do something about it.
My memory of slamming into that brick wall two years ago is still so fresh that an alarm sounds in my mind everytime I get too close to the perfectionism prison, and I automatically recall the day I snuck out of Johns Hopkins psych unit to walk around the inner harbor with Eric.
We sipped Starbucks cappuccinos inside the tall warehouse renovated into a three-story Barnes and Noble. I picked up Elizabeth Gilbert's book, "Eat, Pray, Love," read her bio on the back cover, and got queasy. Not because I hated her book, but because it triggered the Energizer Bunny dance, the self-destructive jig that the overachieving inner child in me does to win love and acceptance because she believes she has to earn them with impressive accolades.
"Do you mind if we get out of here?" I asked Eric. For the first time in my life, books made me nauseous. I wanted them out of sight along with anything and everything that belonged to the publishing world--until I had some core of self to go with my bio, until I felt a real connection to God and to the important people in my life, the kind of stuff that doesn't evaporate with bad royalty figures.
I boycotted all bookstores for four months, threw out my issues of "Publishers Weekly," skipped all conferences or workshops--until I could look into the mirror without scowling, until I came up with ten positive qualities about myself that had nothing to do with writing.
I've been hearing the alarm lately--the drumming of the moronic pink bunny--because I'm getting obsessed with the numbers again. If they go up, I make my way to Ben and Jerry's with a wide smile. If they go down, I make my way to Ben and Jerry's without a smile. (Either way I still get the chocolate sprinkles.) Which is the major reason I have begun getting up at 5:30 in the morning to begin my day in prayer. Because if I go to God first thing each AM I'm less likely to hit that wall so hard.
"Brick walls are there for a reason," said Randy Pausch, the Carnegie Mellon University computer-science professor who so poignantly taught us how to die in the years after he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. "They let us prove how badly we want things."
I know what my brick wall is because I snuggle up to it every evening, mistaking it for a pillow: perfectionism.
The demon that has earned the blue ribbon for powers of debilitation in my world is the annoying, high-pitched, squeal of the perfectionist chick who thinks that when a college classmate calls recruiting for help organizing the reunion, the right thing is to say yes. In fact, "yes" is the only word in the irritating broad's vocabulary.
"Can you help out with the Halloween party?" "Nnn........ okay."
"Will you chaperone the field trip to the pumpkin patch?" "I caaa.......sure."
"Could you organize the 'Santa's Run' fire-department gig for the needy kids? "Nnnnnnn......maybe."
I want to be the devoted mom at all the class parties. I want to be the noble citizen who contributes her time to community service. I want to say thank you to my alma mater for the four exceptional years of nurturing and education I received. And I want my traffic numbers for Beyond Blue to win me a seat next on Oprah's set.
"No really, Oprah, the pleasure is mine."
But this equation--best mom, wife, citizen, graduate, blogger--is bad math. Really bad math, comprised of one unrealistic expectation after another.
I know this now. There's my progress! But I still have to do something about it.
My memory of slamming into that brick wall two years ago is still so fresh that an alarm sounds in my mind everytime I get too close to the perfectionism prison, and I automatically recall the day I snuck out of Johns Hopkins psych unit to walk around the inner harbor with Eric.
We sipped Starbucks cappuccinos inside the tall warehouse renovated into a three-story Barnes and Noble. I picked up Elizabeth Gilbert's book, "Eat, Pray, Love," read her bio on the back cover, and got queasy. Not because I hated her book, but because it triggered the Energizer Bunny dance, the self-destructive jig that the overachieving inner child in me does to win love and acceptance because she believes she has to earn them with impressive accolades.
"Do you mind if we get out of here?" I asked Eric. For the first time in my life, books made me nauseous. I wanted them out of sight along with anything and everything that belonged to the publishing world--until I had some core of self to go with my bio, until I felt a real connection to God and to the important people in my life, the kind of stuff that doesn't evaporate with bad royalty figures.
I boycotted all bookstores for four months, threw out my issues of "Publishers Weekly," skipped all conferences or workshops--until I could look into the mirror without scowling, until I came up with ten positive qualities about myself that had nothing to do with writing.
I've been hearing the alarm lately--the drumming of the moronic pink bunny--because I'm getting obsessed with the numbers again. If they go up, I make my way to Ben and Jerry's with a wide smile. If they go down, I make my way to Ben and Jerry's without a smile. (Either way I still get the chocolate sprinkles.) Which is the major reason I have begun getting up at 5:30 in the morning to begin my day in prayer. Because if I go to God first thing each AM I'm less likely to hit that wall so hard.
Cruelties Destined for Condemnation
Posted: 27 Sep 2010 02:48 PM PDT
It is indeed remarkable to look back in time and see how abusive, inhumane and morally reprehensible practices not only persisted for decades or even centuries, but flourished and commanded the support of so many people in their day. Why did it take so long to halt practices, such as chattel slavery, that should have been viewed as unacceptable even by the less developed moral standards of the time?
USDA
It is a question that has special relevance for the animal protection movement because so many of us believe that we are now part of the process of making history—challenging the systemic abuses of animals that have themselves persisted for so long and calling for a new and better relationship with other creatures, enforced by the standards of the law.
Princeton philosopher Kwame Anthony Appiah examines the broader question of social change in his fast-moving and succinct new book, “The Honor Code: How Moral Revolutions Happen.” Appiah looks at four subjects: dueling, foot-binding, Atlantic slavery and honor killing, which is the only one he examines in depth that persists today.
Appiah argues that there was a psychology to the continued conduct of these activities, and in many cases, it had to do with a certain code of honor. When it became dishonorable to engage in these practices, often with the broader society or even the world looking askance at the activities and the people participating in them, that inversion in the honor code led to their demise. Appiah sees a turn-around occurring with honor killing, which is an extraordinary and horrific abuse of women in some parts of the Islamic world.
I think our children and future generations will look back on our modern-day abuses of animals and wonder how they persisted so long. Appiah himself, in a piece in Sunday’s Washington Post, identified the cruelty of factory farming as one of those issues that future generations will condemn us for. I’d guess that it’s just one of the animal-related items on the list, which also will include seal killing, animal fighting, canned hunts, and other horrific practices.
In Appiah’s account, we see that history did not unfold in some sort of self-executing or passive way. All social change has always required that good people emerge and call cruel things as they are, insisting upon a fair and consistent application of already-established standards in society. That’s still our duty today. None of us should be bystanders as animal cruelty persists. By joining in the fight, we can hasten its demise.
It is indeed remarkable to look back in time and see how abusive, inhumane and morally reprehensible practices not only persisted for decades or even centuries, but flourished and commanded the support of so many people in their day. Why did it take so long to halt practices, such as chattel slavery, that should have been viewed as unacceptable even by the less developed moral standards of the time?
USDA
It is a question that has special relevance for the animal protection movement because so many of us believe that we are now part of the process of making history—challenging the systemic abuses of animals that have themselves persisted for so long and calling for a new and better relationship with other creatures, enforced by the standards of the law.
Princeton philosopher Kwame Anthony Appiah examines the broader question of social change in his fast-moving and succinct new book, “The Honor Code: How Moral Revolutions Happen.” Appiah looks at four subjects: dueling, foot-binding, Atlantic slavery and honor killing, which is the only one he examines in depth that persists today.
Appiah argues that there was a psychology to the continued conduct of these activities, and in many cases, it had to do with a certain code of honor. When it became dishonorable to engage in these practices, often with the broader society or even the world looking askance at the activities and the people participating in them, that inversion in the honor code led to their demise. Appiah sees a turn-around occurring with honor killing, which is an extraordinary and horrific abuse of women in some parts of the Islamic world.
I think our children and future generations will look back on our modern-day abuses of animals and wonder how they persisted so long. Appiah himself, in a piece in Sunday’s Washington Post, identified the cruelty of factory farming as one of those issues that future generations will condemn us for. I’d guess that it’s just one of the animal-related items on the list, which also will include seal killing, animal fighting, canned hunts, and other horrific practices.
In Appiah’s account, we see that history did not unfold in some sort of self-executing or passive way. All social change has always required that good people emerge and call cruel things as they are, insisting upon a fair and consistent application of already-established standards in society. That’s still our duty today. None of us should be bystanders as animal cruelty persists. By joining in the fight, we can hasten its demise.
Monday, September 27, 2010
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
With regard to excellence, it is not enough to know, but we must try to have and use it.
Psychedelic drug for bipolar depression
Timothy Leary's dead... but if he was still alive, he'd be proud of the latest medical "advance."
Researchers say they believe a psychedelic party drug once favored by Leary himself could actually help beat severe bipolar depression.
Of course, that's only if it doesn't drive you to the edge of sanity first.
In a small, odd study, researchers assigned 18 patients to either a placebo or an IV dose of ketamine, a horse tranquilizer known for inducing hallucinations and altered states of reality. Then, a week later, the researchers flipped the study--giving the placebo to those who previously had been given ketamine, and vice versa.
The patients--nearly all of whom were unemployed--had tried and failed on an average of seven meds, and two- thirds of them were on psychiatric disability.
The researchers say 71 percent of those given ketamine showed improvement almost immediately--within 40 minutes-- and that 29 percent of these patients were nearly symptom- free within a day.
For some patients, the improvements lasted for up to three days, and 35 percent showed some benefits up to a week later.
Just six percent responded to the placebo.
But when you consider the side effects of ketamine, this isn't a treatment to be toyed with. It can cause paralysis, paranoia, psychosis and hallucinations, and long-term use has been linked to kidney, liver and bladder damage.
Ketamine can also create a disassociation so severe that users even have a name for it: "The K Hole."
Shortly before his death in 1996, Leary told the New York Times that a journey into the "K Hole" was as close as someone could come to the near-death experience without actually having to almost die.
He said this after almost dying, so he was speaking from experience.
But you don't need to go on a long, strange trip into the "K Hole" to beat your depression, even severe bipolar depression--because most "hard to beat" cases aren't as hard to beat as the mainstream would have you to believe.
The fact is, antidepressant drugs as a class are incredibly ineffective. Switching from one ineffective med to another and then declaring the case to be "hard to beat" is like trying to hammer nails with marshmallow after marshmallow... then giving up and declaring that nails can't be hammered.
In many cases, these drugs will even make depression and other problems worse in the long-term, especially for bipolar patients.
And for the record, one of the long-term side effects of ketamine also just so happens to be depression.
In many cases, severe bipolar depression is caused by nutritional and hormonal deficiencies (especially the thyroid hormone). In some cases, bipolar depression may be caused by food allergies. For others, it can be triggered or worsened by the years of drug and alcohol abuse that often run hand-in-hand with this condition.
While many patients may benefit from fundamental lifestyle changes along with a simple regimen of supplements such as vitamin B12 and fish oil, diagnosing and treating others can be a challenge.
But the answer isn't in more powerful drugs, or choosing the right Moody Blues tune for your psychedelic trip into the "K Hole."
It's in working with a good naturopathic doctor who can help find out what's missing--and then finding a safe, natural way to correct it.
On a mission for your health,
Ed Martin
Editor, House Calls
Researchers say they believe a psychedelic party drug once favored by Leary himself could actually help beat severe bipolar depression.
Of course, that's only if it doesn't drive you to the edge of sanity first.
In a small, odd study, researchers assigned 18 patients to either a placebo or an IV dose of ketamine, a horse tranquilizer known for inducing hallucinations and altered states of reality. Then, a week later, the researchers flipped the study--giving the placebo to those who previously had been given ketamine, and vice versa.
The patients--nearly all of whom were unemployed--had tried and failed on an average of seven meds, and two- thirds of them were on psychiatric disability.
The researchers say 71 percent of those given ketamine showed improvement almost immediately--within 40 minutes-- and that 29 percent of these patients were nearly symptom- free within a day.
For some patients, the improvements lasted for up to three days, and 35 percent showed some benefits up to a week later.
Just six percent responded to the placebo.
But when you consider the side effects of ketamine, this isn't a treatment to be toyed with. It can cause paralysis, paranoia, psychosis and hallucinations, and long-term use has been linked to kidney, liver and bladder damage.
Ketamine can also create a disassociation so severe that users even have a name for it: "The K Hole."
Shortly before his death in 1996, Leary told the New York Times that a journey into the "K Hole" was as close as someone could come to the near-death experience without actually having to almost die.
He said this after almost dying, so he was speaking from experience.
But you don't need to go on a long, strange trip into the "K Hole" to beat your depression, even severe bipolar depression--because most "hard to beat" cases aren't as hard to beat as the mainstream would have you to believe.
The fact is, antidepressant drugs as a class are incredibly ineffective. Switching from one ineffective med to another and then declaring the case to be "hard to beat" is like trying to hammer nails with marshmallow after marshmallow... then giving up and declaring that nails can't be hammered.
In many cases, these drugs will even make depression and other problems worse in the long-term, especially for bipolar patients.
And for the record, one of the long-term side effects of ketamine also just so happens to be depression.
In many cases, severe bipolar depression is caused by nutritional and hormonal deficiencies (especially the thyroid hormone). In some cases, bipolar depression may be caused by food allergies. For others, it can be triggered or worsened by the years of drug and alcohol abuse that often run hand-in-hand with this condition.
While many patients may benefit from fundamental lifestyle changes along with a simple regimen of supplements such as vitamin B12 and fish oil, diagnosing and treating others can be a challenge.
But the answer isn't in more powerful drugs, or choosing the right Moody Blues tune for your psychedelic trip into the "K Hole."
It's in working with a good naturopathic doctor who can help find out what's missing--and then finding a safe, natural way to correct it.
On a mission for your health,
Ed Martin
Editor, House Calls
Is Your Doctor Up-to-Date?
Many doctors are unaware of the massive amount of recent research that is far beyond anything taught in medical training. The care you receive from your doctor is at least 40 years behind what is being learned in thousands of scientific laboratories around the world.
When you come face to face with your doctor in the examining room, you should keep in mind that he or she may be behind the times. Here are three important facts based on up-to-date information you should consider:
1. Vaccinations First Is Not the Answer.
Some patients appear to have great difficulty getting over common viral infections, or they have repeated viral infections. The common explanation is that their immunity is low, and if a vaccine is available, they should have regular vaccinations.
While it is true that many people, especially the elderly and those with chronic diseases, have poor immune function, one of the hidden causes is an undiagnosed, underlying bacterial, parasitic, or fungal infection. (To learn more, read my newsletter newsletter "Mystery Diseases That Baffle Your Doctor.")
2. Calcium Is a Double-Edged Sword.
Too little or too much calcium in the body is bad. As we begin to age, our cells begin to lose some of their ability to control the amount of calcium in our cells and this can disrupt a number of important cell processes. Excess cellular calcium has been associated with many diseases including cancer, strokes, heart disease, and diabetes.
Osteoporosis is not caused by calcium deficiency. Instead, it is caused by a vitamin D-3 deficiency in developed countries. To learn more about vitamin D-3, read my special report "Vitamin D's Hidden Role in Your Health."
3. Atherosclerosis Is Not a Cholesterol Disorder.
Most experts now admit that atherosclerosis is not a cholesterol disorder; it is a chronic inflammation disorder. When the large studies of cardiovascular patients were compared side by side, it was discovered that the patients with the highest cholesterol levels — both total and LDL — had the lowest incidence of heart attacks.
When the arteries of people who had died of a heart attack were examined, the most inflamed area of the artery was usually found to have caused the heart attack and not the segment with the greatest amount of crud. That is, the inflammation caused a blood clot inside the vessel and triggered the fatal blockage.
When you come face to face with your doctor in the examining room, you should keep in mind that he or she may be behind the times. Here are three important facts based on up-to-date information you should consider:
1. Vaccinations First Is Not the Answer.
Some patients appear to have great difficulty getting over common viral infections, or they have repeated viral infections. The common explanation is that their immunity is low, and if a vaccine is available, they should have regular vaccinations.
While it is true that many people, especially the elderly and those with chronic diseases, have poor immune function, one of the hidden causes is an undiagnosed, underlying bacterial, parasitic, or fungal infection. (To learn more, read my newsletter newsletter "Mystery Diseases That Baffle Your Doctor.")
2. Calcium Is a Double-Edged Sword.
Too little or too much calcium in the body is bad. As we begin to age, our cells begin to lose some of their ability to control the amount of calcium in our cells and this can disrupt a number of important cell processes. Excess cellular calcium has been associated with many diseases including cancer, strokes, heart disease, and diabetes.
Osteoporosis is not caused by calcium deficiency. Instead, it is caused by a vitamin D-3 deficiency in developed countries. To learn more about vitamin D-3, read my special report "Vitamin D's Hidden Role in Your Health."
3. Atherosclerosis Is Not a Cholesterol Disorder.
Most experts now admit that atherosclerosis is not a cholesterol disorder; it is a chronic inflammation disorder. When the large studies of cardiovascular patients were compared side by side, it was discovered that the patients with the highest cholesterol levels — both total and LDL — had the lowest incidence of heart attacks.
When the arteries of people who had died of a heart attack were examined, the most inflamed area of the artery was usually found to have caused the heart attack and not the segment with the greatest amount of crud. That is, the inflammation caused a blood clot inside the vessel and triggered the fatal blockage.
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