Categories
Positive thinking

Like A Small Town

In A Hurry
Our lives have become increasingly fast-paced, and the effort to keep up often occupies all our time and attention. We are so busy rushing from point A to point B that we forget to enjoy the ride. We race to the store without noticing the leaves on the trees or the clouds in the sky. We go through the checkout line feeling too pressed to converse with the cashier or the other people in line. At the end of a day filled with this kind of frantic pace, we may begin to wonder what it is we do all these things for, if we don’t even have the time to occasionally stop and just take it all in.

Always being rushed and in a hurry doesn’t allow time for the soul to enjoy life, which is composed of small, ordinary moments, like watching snow fall from the sky, having a spontaneous conversation with a stranger, or lingering over a meal for several hours. Small towns and the people who live in them can teach us all a thing or two about living life to the fullest as a daily matter. City people have a tendency to think that their lives are full because they are doing so many different things, but in a small town, there tends to be more time left open to be spontaneous or take an extended moment of rest. This certainly doesn’t mean that we can’t live in a city and enjoy life fully—we can and do; it just takes a little more awareness.

One thing we can do, wherever we live, is bring awareness breaks into our day and take 10 minutes to simply look out the window and observe what’s happening outside. We might also choose to cultivate a relationship with someone we see regularly, such as a clerk at the convenience mart, a neighbor, or someone we see in the elevator at work. Taking time to have a conversation that is not necessary is a true luxury in this day and age, as is staring out the window. Participating in these acts of timelessness makes the biggest city in the world start to feel a little bit more like a small town.

Sources: Daily Om

Categories
Ailmemts & Remedies

Warts and All

Witches, warlocks, sorcerers and practitioners of black magic traditionally (in literature) are covered with warts. This makes normal people upset if they suddenly develop warts for no discernible reason. There are several unscientific explanations for their sudden appearance, like handling frogs, playing in mud or actually eating it, the “evil eye”, curses or jealously.

CLICK & SEE
For many, warts are an undesirable feature: black magic practitioners have traditionally been depicted to be sporting them

Common warts are small, smooth, flattened and flesh coloured. They can occur in large numbers on the neck, hands, wrists and knees. Delicate sea anemone-like warts are common on the face, especially near the eyelids and lips. The palms and soles develop hard, painful warts, often with multiple black specks in the centre. They are common over pressure points, but unlike corns are not due to unsuitable footwear. Venereal warts occur in the ano-genital area and can grow to the size of a small cauliflower.

Warts are the result of an infection by the human papillovirus (HPV). There are over a hundred types of HPV, explaining the variation in the size, shape and colour of the different types of warts.

All types of warts are spread by contact. Touching a wart may cause the development of a similar lesion on the hands. It can spread in a linear fashion along scratch lines. It can also be spread by using the same towels or clothing. Wet bathroom floors contaminated with the virus can cause the development of warts on the soles of the feet.

Venereal warts are spread by unprotected sexual contact. They are dangerous as they indicate infection with the cancer-causing types (16, 18) of HPV; 95 per cent of the cervical cancers in women are associated with HPV infection. Children born vaginally to women with genital warts are also likely to develop recurring growths on their vocal chords (these are called laryngeal papillomas). These require surgical removal.

Warts are cosmetically disfiguring and may be painful, but (with the exception of venereal warts) are harmless. Warts tend to increase in number and spread all over the body for a limited time. Then suddenly, for no discernable reason, they mysteriously disappear within a few months or sometimes years. This makes almost any treatment, however bizarre, appear effective and successful.

Cures for warts are seeped in folklore.
“Wise elders” advocate the application of household items like garlic, banana skin, potatoes, tomato juice, vinegar or salt. Sometimes, “treatment” includes attempts to cut or burn the wart. These methods can be dangerous and painful. They can cause infection and permanent scarring.

The only household remedy to have been effectively studied is “duct tape occlusion therapy”. This involves the application of duct tape on the skin lesions for a week at a time. The method has a 85 per cent success rate. Medical treatment for warts (except venereal warts) can often be done at home. It involves repeated application of a paste of salicylic acid, catharidin or podophylline. The instructions have to be followed strictly. Treatment may take weeks.

Doctors can freeze and remove the warts with liquid nitrogen, carbon dioxide ice, cryosurgery, loop electrosurgical excision or by using lasers. Warts on the feet require surgical removal. Interferron injections can be used for persistent genital warts. Removal of the warts does not eradicate the virus causing the infection. It persists and warts can reappear in the same place or elsewhere. Immunity eventually develops against the HPV infection, aiding recovery. This fact was used to develop a vaccine against the types of HPV responsible for cervical cancer. The manufacturers advocate three doses, the second one after two months and the third after four months. It is particularly recommended for girls between the ages of 9 and 11 years, before they become sexually exposed to cancer-causing strains of the virus. Trials are now over and the vaccine has been released for use in some countries. It will probably be available in India in 2008.

Sources: The Telegraph (Kolkata, India)

Categories
News on Health & Science

Is Your Toothpaste Really Natural?

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As a natural lifestyle continues to appeal to greater numbers of people, many are extending their desire for natural products to toothpaste. There are now a wide variety available, with or without fluoride, and in many flavors and forms.

However the definition of naturalis not regulated, particularly if the toothpaste is non-fluoride. Fluoride toothpastes are considered a drug by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and are therefore regulated. Non-fluoride toothpastes, however, are considered cosmetics and it’s up to the manufacturers to be careful with their labeling, according to the FDA.

Meanwhile, natural means that a product is free from artificial colors, flavors and preservatives. It may still contain highly processed ingredients, such as fluorides, abrasives and humectants.

One brand of natural toothpaste, Tom’s of Maine, was purchased by Colgate-Palmolive last year and became the first natural toothpaste to receive the Seal of Acceptance from the American Dental Association (ADA).

The seal does not necessarily mean that the ADA endorses a product, only that it is effective and does what it says it will do, the ADA pointed out.

In short, it remains a buyer bewares environment for natural products, including toothpastes. But there are now more toothpaste options available than ever, which allows
each person to make their own choice.

Sources: The Colorado Springs Gazette November 24, 2007

Categories
News on Health & Science

Elderly Should Eat Healthy, Exercise

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Age isn’t a factor when it comes to improving your health and leading a healthier lifestyle, say researchers in the US who suggest that a better diet and exercise is all that’s needed to live better, even if you’ve had an unhealthy lifestyle in the past.

The study, led by Dr Richard S Rivlin, professor of medicine at Weill Cornell Medical College and attending physician at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell, stated that many elderly people feel that it is too late for them to improve their health, but that is simply not true.

“I think this is an extremely important and positive message. Many elderly people feel that it is too late for them to improve their health, but that is simply not true,” Rivlin said.

In the study, the researchers analysed that how the elderly could ward off risks to their health late in life by improving body composition, i.e. by lowering fat and boosting muscle mass, adhering to a low-calorie and low-fat diet, high in vegetables and fruits, with a regular exercise plan, could help the elderly stave off the diseases of aging.

“When measures to combat chronic disease are started in one’s 60s and 70s, there are still definite benefits. But older adults must realize that there is no quick fix. They must change their lifestyles,” Rivlin said.

The specific findings were – lowering high blood pressure or hypertension, major risk for cardiovascular disease, through improved diet and exercise had more dramatic health benefits for the elderly than for any other age group.

Older adults who adhered to a low-calorie diet with regular exercise had lower rates of cancer also benefits of weight training include increased ability to burn calories and prevention of osteoporosis.

As for the calcium and vitamin D supplements, it helped the seniors slow rates of bone loss and reduce the number of bone fractures.

“Our study reviews and presents the most up-to-date information showing the influence a healthy lifestyle may have on cardiovascular disease, cancer and osteoporosis,” Rivlin said.

“I also believe that the risk for other diseases, like diabetes and pulmonary disease, can also be avoided through later intervention. But, the earlier, the better,” Rivlin added.

Sources:The study is published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

Categories
Anti Drug Movement

Inhalants

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Inhalants are common products found right in the home and are among the most popular and deadly substances kids abuse. Inhalant abuse can result in death from the very first use. About one in five kids report having used inhalants by the eighth grade. Teens use inhalants by sniffing or snorting fumes from containers; spraying aerosols directly into the mouth or nose; bagging, by inhaling a substance inside a paper or plastic bag; huffing from an inhalant-soaked rag; or inhaling from balloons filled with nitrous oxide.

Inhalants are breathable chemical vapors that produce psychoactive (mind-altering) effects. Although people are exposed to volatile solvents and other inhalants in the home and in the workplace, many do not think of “inhalable” substances as drugs because most of them were never meant to be used in that way.

Young people are likely to abuse inhalants, in part, because inhalants are readily available and inexpensive. Parents should see that these substances are monitored closely so that children do not abuse them.

Inhalants fall into the following categories:

Solvents

*industrial or household solvents or solvent-containing products, including paint thinners or solvents, degreasers (dry-cleaning fluids), gasoline, and glues
*art or office supply solvents, including correction fluids, felt-tip-marker fluid, and electronic contact cleaners

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Gases

*gases used in household or commercial products, including butane lighters and propane tanks, whipping cream aerosols or dispensers (whippets), and refrigerant gases
*household aerosol propellants and associated solvents in items such as spray paints, hair or deodorant sprays, and fabric protector sprays

*medical anesthetic gases, such as ether, chloroform, halothane, and nitrous oxide (laughing gas)

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Nitrites

*aliphatic nitrites, including cyclohexyl nitrite, which is available to the general public; amyl nitrite, which is available only by prescription; and butyl nitrite, which is now an illegal substance
Health Hazards :

Short Term Effects. Nearly all abused inhalants produce effects similar to anesthetics, which act to slow down the body’s functions. When inhaled in sufficient concentrations, inhalants can cause intoxicating effects that can last only a few minutes or several hours if inhalants are taken repeatedly. Initially, users may feel slightly stimulated; with successive inhalations, they may feel less inhibited and less in control; finally, a user can lose consciousness.

Irreversible hazards. Inhalants are toxic. Chronic exposure can lead to brain damage or nerve damage similar to multiple sclerosis; damage to the heart, lungs, liver and kidneys; and prolonged abuse can affect thinking, movement, vision and hearing.

Sniffing highly concentrated amounts of the chemicals in solvents or aerosol sprays can directly induce heart failure and death. Heart failure results from the chemicals interfering with the heart’s rhythm regulating system, causing the heart to stop beating. This is especially common from the abuse of fluorocarbons and butane-type gases. High concentrations of inhalants also cause death from asphyxiation, suffocation, convulsions or seizures, coma, choking or fatal injury from accidents while intoxicated. Other irreversible effects caused by inhaling specific solvents are:

*Hearing loss – toluene (paint sprays, glues, dewaxers) and trichloroethylene (cleaning fluids, correction fluids)
*Peripheral neuropathies or limb spasms – hexane (glues, gasoline) and nitrous oxide (whipping cream, gas cylinders)
*Central nervous system or brain damage – toluene (paint sprays, glues, dewaxers)
*Bone marrow damage – benzene (gasoline)

*Liver and kidney damage – toluene- containing substances and chlorinated hydrocarbons (correction fluids, dry- cleaning fluids)

*Blood oxygen depletion organic nitrites (“poppers,” “bold,” and “rush”) and methylene chloride (varnish removers, paint thinners)

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Prevention. Parents can keep their teens away from inhalants by talking to them and letting them know the dangers of inhalants. Most young users don’t realize how dangerous inhalants can be. Inhalants are widely available and inexpensive, and parents should be mindful about how and where they store common household products.

More Information:

Learn about the signs of inhalants abuse here>>.
Read more general facts about inhalants here >>.

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Information provided by the National Institute on Drug Abuse.

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