Meifaba

Archive for October, 2010

People who own pets are happier and healthier than people who do not have pets. It does not matter how young or old you are, the benefits of pet ownership have been proven in scientific studies.

Studies done on infants found that of children brought up in households with pets 19% had allergies, compared to households with no pets where 33% of children had allergies. There were less cases of eczema in households with pets, as well. It is believed that the exposure to dirt and germs, in small doses, helps to strengthen the child’s immune system.

Owning a pet has also been found to be beneficial to the elderly. Sufferers of Alzheimer’s are found to have fewer anxious outbursts when a pet is in the household or home.

Pet ownership aids in the prevention of depression. The time spent with pets increases the quality of life for sufferers and decreases the time and seriousness of attacks. Spending time with a pet outdoors, watching them play is relaxing and helps releases good hormones to combat the imbalance of bad hormones.

Heart attack victims have a shorter recovery period and are less likely to suffer another heart attack when they have a pet. Pet ownership has been proven to lower blood pressure, lower cholesterol and lower triglyceride levels. This helps prevent heart disease, stroke, diabetes and similar illnesses.

Owning a pet boosts your immunity so you are less likely to become ill. The exposure to the small amount of dirt from the pet helps your body to fight back and increases your body’s ability to resist more dirt and germs. The good feeling you get from quality time spent with your pet boosts your mood, increasing the good hormones, which make you feel happy and make your body stronger against illness and disease.

If you have a dog, the exercise you get from walking him helps your health as well. Everyone can benefit from more exercise, not just the elderly. A brisk walk clears the cobwebs in your head, increases circulation, increases respiration and exercises your muscles.

One benefit of having a pet, especially a dog, is the social benefit. When you take your dog for a walk, you may notice people are more willing to begin a conversion with you. They will comment on your dog first. A dog is a great icebreaker. Most people either like or dislike dogs. You will find the ones who begin a conversation with you are dog lovers. This makes it easy to begin a conversation as you already have something in common, that is, you love of dogs.

Older people who are isolated may find walking their dog is a good way of meeting others and striking up friendships. Shy people can also benefit from this because the conversation will be about their pet and not them. Give it a try.

If you have been considering getting a pet the health benefits should be enough to get you motivated. When you care for a pet, the pet will care for you, in more ways than you know.

What you should know about Aciphex? Important information on the medication’s side effects.

People who are using prescription drugs for Zollinger-Ellison syndrome, acid-reflux or ulcers or any other condition resulting in excess stomach acid also might experience any of a long list of side effects. These include:

• Headaches
• Stomach aches
• Indigestion
• Nausea
• Constipation
• Dry mouth
• Changes in appetite
• Muscle pain
• Bone pain
• Vertigo
• Sleepiness
• Sleep trouble including insomnia

If any of these side effects have extreme forms or they do not go away, you should contact your doctor. However, if it is a side effect that you and your physician have agreed you can deal with, below are various ways of handling the complication. The recommended remedies are food, drink, and herbal. You’ll know when to turn to ibuprofen and Pepto-Bismol.

Headaches

How can you cure a headache? Drink lots of water, make sure you’ve got your vitamins, and add some caffeine to the mix. A big batch of green tea and fruit is great for this. Also important are dietary fiber and manganese. Avocado is probably the best natural remedy for headache because of this.

Stomach Aches and Indigestion

Home remedies that work:

• Stretching (Sit on the floor, bringing your knees to your chest. Maintain an upright position.)
• Ginger Ale
• Aloe Vera juice
• Saltine Crackers
• Toast
• Warming your stomach
• The BRAT diet (Bananas, Rice, Applesauce, Toast)

Make sure to avoid:

• Meat
• Dairy
• Acidic food and drink (e.g. coffee)
• Sugary and Spicy Foods

Nausea

You should hydrate when you’re nauseous or vomiting. Drinking water will help ease the nausea, ensure your stomach is ache-free, and make sure you don’t suffer dehydration. Foods and drinks to try include:

• Ginger
• Mint
• Peppermint tea
• Chocolate
• Rice
• Oatmeal
• Fresh fruits and veggies

Constipation

Definitely try coffee, bananas, leafy greens, beans, and prunes. Then drink a ton of water. Aloe and dandelion root are also extremely effective waves of helping to move your bowels. Beware of coffee if you have a sensitive stomach.

Changes in Appetite

Almonds and Papaya are extraordinary foods. They help control appetite. Not only will you have a more stable appetite if you are consuming either food daily, but you will only tend to eat more smartly according to research.

Sleepiness

Say no to caffeine and energy drinks. If you have acid reflux, they are counter-productive. Instead, load up on vitamins and antioxidants. Multivitamins are good, but try putting some fruit in your diet. Better yet, try drinking wheatgrass everyday.

You may, however not experience any side effects with Aciphex for Acid Reflux, Ulcers, and other stomach problems. However, in the event that you do experience one or more side effects, you shouldn’t immediately give up. For one thing, the side effects of Aciphex tend to go away quickly; your body needs time to adjust. Still, it is important to make sure your doctor knows how you are reacting to Aciphex. Only licensed medical professionals can tell if you need to make a change in your medication.

At the dawn of time, we all had more hair and lacked the means to cut it. The only way the mass of hair reduced was through aging. Sadly, hair loss has always been the first sign of growing old. And in this simple truth, we probably have the reason for our modern preoccupation with maintaining a full mane. It needed young men to go out into the world of dangerous predators and forage for food or hunt. The tribe depended on their skills and strength. Once someone grew too old to provide food or defend against wild animals, they had to hide in the caves with the women. This was a significant reversal in status. One minute, you’re the leader of the gang. The next, you’re a worthless dependent. You can imagine how these early go-getters felt when they were no better than women.

Looking at this first paragraph, little has changed except we now have scissors, razors and other effective ways of taming the hair, and keeping it neat and tidy. For those first signs of snow on the mountain, dyes are available in almost every shade you care to think of. No one need ever see that first whitening. But hair loss is more difficult to hide. Although the technology for wigs and toupees has improved significantly, they remain something of a joke. Culture can create conditions making life difficult for those who fail to live up to expectations. If “young” men start losing their hair, they are still considered little better than women. Wearing anything to cover it up does nothing except draw attention to the “problem”.

It would be better if we had advanced as a species. Yet, for all our civilization, we still refuse to accept people for who or what they are. We must always find ways in which to judge each other. What should be insignificant differences become major social problems. The result is a mass market for products supposed to inspire our heads to keep on growing hair. There were people selling magic remedies back in Ancient Rome two thousand years ago. Fear still drives the sales of the modern equivalents. We have learned nothing about being kind to each other. Except in one small way. One manufacturer has developed a product that really works (although, truth be told, it was an accidental discovery). Propecia has been through all the clinical trials and now carries the full approval of the Food & Drug Administration.

In every post-marketing survey carried out, men confirm the initial tests. It really does work. So, despite all the claims and promises made by the “rest” of the products, none of which have ever been through full clinical trials – one other drug with FDA approval lists hair growth as an undesirable side effect and its use to stop hair loss does not have FDA approval (it can also be fatal to your pets). So Propecia is the best (and kind to your pets). Ignore all the marketing slogans for the magic products. They did not work in Ancient Rome. They do not work now.

You have to admire the marketers. Sometimes, they succeed beyond their wildest expectations. Who would have thought the market for sleeping pills could become so vast. The reason is slightly hard to understand. First, there seems to be an epidemic of insomnia. Millions of people are either pacing from room to room at night in frustration or lying in a bed completely unable to make the counting of sheep pay off. Even allowing for the supposed growth of stress levels in our modern lives, why are so many people having this problem. Sure, over the last two years, the effects of a recession have been sweeping across the land, unemployment is high and credit is tough. But it should not stress out quite so many people and, anyway, this epidemic was at a similar level when the economy was booming. Second, even if we have all these millions of sleepless people, why have they all apparently become dependent on sleeping pills? There are more pills prescribed than there are adults in the US. And that’s before we get to all those people who, like yourselves, buy online without a prescription. In reality, there are more than enough pills to knock everyone out every night for weeks.

So what’s happening here? It’s probably two slightly different trends. People have been convinced they have a problem. Just because they are sleeping less and wake feeling more tired than they expect, they believe this is a problem justifying major medication. So, when the marketers come along with a magic solution to this medical problem, it’s just so easy to take a pill and drop into unconsciousness. Once you accept the problem, the solution is a pill.

Let’s put the myths up there in lights. “You need eight hours sleep a night.” or “You shouldn’t wake during the night.” Well, who says? Everyone is different when it comes to sleep and how long we sleep is set by circumstances. Many people are happy on six hours a night. Others zone out for ten hours. How often have you gone without sleep before a test or exam, burning the midnight oil in a last effort to cram facts into your head. You did OK the next day without sleep. People can and do cope on less sleep. It’s only if you convince yourself you making yourself ill that you become ill. When you were younger and were looking forward to something special, did you never wake early, jump out of bed and think everything was good about the world. How come you got so old all of a sudden?

Really, people should just accept what their body wants as normal. Just be happy with who or what you are. But, if you decide to make a federal case out of it, there’s always Ambien, the all-powerful sleeping pill guaranteed to have you out for the count within 15 minutes. Keeping this real, Ambien really does work. In fact, it’s so effective, you should swallow it and lie down immediately. But ask yourself why you were so unhappy with life you had to take the pill. And are you so much happier the next day? Yes, Ambien is effective, but do you really want to become dependent on it?

Your BMI is 30+. This is what it means when doctors say you are obese. Your goal? Break into the 18.5 to 24.9 range. That’s the “normal weight range”. But those are just numbers. How can you make those numbers real to you, quantify them, let them hit home?

Those 6 and some points are the difference between a healthy heart and a heart disease. They are 30 to 40 years of life. They are running in the yard with your kids, enjoying a sunset walk on the beach with your spouse, and that moment when you step out of the house on a brisk morning, gulp in cool fresh air, and feel thoroughly healthy. They can mean happiness and confidence.

For the average woman, going from obese to normal is a difference of at least 32 pounds (14.5 kilograms). For the average man, it is a minimum of 36 pounds (16.3 kilograms) from obese to normal. That means that if you had a dollar for every lb you lost, you could buy a Whopper for every resident of not just Lowry, South Dakota, but Wetonka too! A grande cafe latte for every citizen in Butler!

That’s a good deal of weight, but you can do it. With some prescription assistance, all it takes is some diet and exercise to be on your way to a normal weight, good health, and a better standard of living.

To shake obesity, you technically have to drop your BMI, not pounds, so it will be helpful to look more closely at what BMI is.

What is BMI?

BMI, also called the Quetelet index, stands for Body Mass Index. It is a statistic based on a person’s weight and height used to determine risk factors for any number of health problems. It is also used by health insurance companies to determine how much to charge you, so saving your life can also save you money. However, it is important to understand that BMI is not an accurate estimation of body fat in many cases. It is so widespread because it is easy to calculate and work with. Most inaccurate numbers are in cases in which the individual in question has a large amount of muscle mass. If you suspect this is not you, BMI is most likely a useful tool of analysis.

The calculation is: BMI equals mass divided by height squared. This is represented mathematically as BMI= mass/height2. You can calculate this at home by plugging in values for this formula: BMI= your mass in lbs times 703 divided by your height in inches squared. BMI= lbs*703/in2. There are plenty of good calculators on the internet.

If you are taking Meridia to lose weight, work with a doctor, dietician, and/or physical trainer to set targets and milestones at which you can adjust your diet and exercise regimen. Once your BMI reaches 29.9, your doctor may choose to take you off of Meridia because you are no longer technically obese, but overweight. Keep in mind, overweight is not your goal. Normal is your goal, and you need more than just Meridia to get there, though it is a great help.

It’s always best to start off with the truth even though it never makes you feel any better. Why you? Well, there’s nothing special about you. Everyone loses their hair as they age. That’s right. Men and women are the same. The hairs physically thin every time they fall and regrow. What starts off a fine mane of thick hair slowly loses its bounce and becomes this flat stuff lying like a dead thing on top of your head. No matter what you do, nothing will stop this biological process. You can use special shampoos, rub the most expensive lotions and potions into your scalp. It’s all a waste of money. Except. . . except this all happens to the others. For you, the loss comes far earlier. Some even start as teens. That’s why you ask, Why me? That’s why life is not always fair.

The odds are, if you start losing your hair anytime between 20 and 45 years, this is male pattern baldness. What causes it? Well the biological reason seems to be the way the roots of your hair, the follicles, react to dihydrotestosterone (DHT). All men have this hormone system based on testosterone and, for different reasons, the ordinary stuff gets turned in DHT. Most of the time, this is a good thing. Except in some men, the DHT changes the way your follicles work, slowing them down and changing the quality of the hair that grows. You usually shed about 100 hairs a day. With DHT around, there’s only shorter, thinner hair to replace it. This also falls out more quickly and produces a net hair loss, i.e. you slowly go bald.

So how come you are one of the lucky ones whose follicles react to DHT? Well, most research suggests this is genetic. For the majority, the DHT floats around the body in the bloodstream and all hair growth continues uninterrupted. In a few who have baldness in their family, the result is clear to see. What are the other possible causes for hair loss? The most common are serious illnesses where you run a fever, thyroid disease, fungal infections and high levels of stress. Hair loss can also be the side effect of drugs you are taking. So, if you are fit and healthy and have no mold growing on your head, this is probably male pattern baldness. This confirms the use of Propecia which prevents your body from producing too much DHT. With more testosterone floating around your bloodstream, this is how it was when you were just coming into puberty and your hair was really looking great. One word of warning. It takes about six months before you can see sign of improvement. Propecia is a real slow-moving drug. Sometimes, it can take as long as a year before you know for sure whether you have the cure or not. So, before you start taking Propecia, get a doctor to confirm the diagnosis. Otherwise, you could spend a year taking a drug that’s not going to help. That would just be one more unfairness in your life. Fortunately, it’s a quick and easy consult to get the nod to use the drug. Sure it costs a few dollars but it’s money well spent if it saves you paying for 12 months of a drug having no effect.