Tag: Disease

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Ailmemts & Remedies

Alzheimer’s disease

Other Names: Alzheimer’s disease (AD), also known as Alzheimer disease, or just Alzheimer’s

Definition:
Alzheimer’s is a chronic neurodegenerative disease that usually starts slowly and gets worse over time. It destroys memory and other important mental functions.
It’s the most common cause of dementia — a group of brain disorders that results in the loss of intellectual and social skills. These changes are severe enough to interfere with day-to-day life.
In this disease, the brain cells themselves degenerate and die, causing a steady decline in memory and mental function….CLICK  & SEE

Alzheimer’s is a type of dementia that is more common with increasing age. People with a family history of the condition are also at increased risk of developing it.

At present Alzheimer’s disease medications and management strategies may temporarily improve symptoms. This can sometimes help people with Alzheimer’s disease maximize function and maintain independence.But because there’s no cure for this disease, it’s important to seek supportive services and tap into one’s support network as early as possible.

Symptoms:
At first, increasing forgetfulness or mild confusion may be the only symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease that one notices. But over time, the disease robs one of more of one’s memory, especially recent memories. The rate at which symptoms worsen varies from one person to other person.

If some one has Alzheimer’s, he or she may be the first to notice that the person are having unusual difficulty remembering things and organizing different thoughts. Or may not be recognizing that anything is wrong, even when changes are noticeable by the family members, close friends or co-workers.

Brain changes associated with Alzheimer’s disease lead to growing trouble with:
Alzimer’s is a slowly progressive chronic disease. It progresses in different stages:
Stages of Alzheimer’s disease:

*Effects of ageing on memory but not AD
*Forgetting things occasionally
*Misplacing items sometimes
*Minor short-term memory loss
*Not remembering exact details

Early stage Alzheimer’s:

*Not remembering episodes of forgetfulness
*Forgets names of family or friends
*Changes may only be noticed by close friends or relatives
*Some confusion in situations outside the familiar

Middle stage Alzheimer’s:

*Greater difficulty remembering recently learned information
*Deepening confusion in many circumstances
*Problems with sleep
*Trouble knowing where they are

Late stage Alzheimer’s:

*Poor ability to think
*Problems speaking
*Repeats same conversations
*More abusive, anxious, or paranoid

Causes:
Scientists believe that for most people, Alzheimer’s disease results from a combination of genetic, lifestyle and environmental factors that affect the brain over time.

Less than 5 percent of the time, Alzheimer’s is caused by specific genetic changes that virtually guarantee a person will develop the disease.

Although the causes of Alzheimer’s are not yet fully understood, its effect on the brain is clear. Alzheimer’s disease damages and kills brain cells. A brain affected by Alzheimer’s disease has many fewer cells and many fewer connections among surviving cells than does a healthy brain.

As more and more brain cells die, Alzheimer’s leads to significant brain shrinkage. When doctors examine Alzheimer’s brain tissue under the microscope, they see two types of abnormalities that are considered hallmarks of the disease:

*Plaques. These clumps of a protein called beta-amyloid may damage and destroy brain cells in several ways, including interfering with cell-to-cell communication. Although the ultimate cause of brain-cell death in Alzheimer’s isn’t known, the collection of beta-amyloid on the outside of brain cells is a prime suspect.

*Tangles. Brain cells depend on an internal support and transport system to carry nutrients and other essential materials throughout their long extensions. This system requires the normal structure and functioning of a protein called tau.

In Alzheimer’s, threads of tau protein twist into abnormal tangles inside brain cells, leading to failure of the transport system. This failure is also strongly implicated in the decline and death of brain cells.

Click & see: ‘Transmittable Alzheimer’s’ concept raised :

Risk Factors:
Age:
Increasing age is the greatest known risk factor for Alzheimer’s. Alzheimer’s is not a part of normal aging, but your risk increases greatly after 65 years of age. Nearly half of those older than age 85 have Alzheimer’s.

People with rare genetic changes that virtually guarantee they’ll develop Alzheimer’s begin experiencing symptoms as early as their 30s.

Family history and genetics:

The risk of developing Alzheimer’s appears to be somewhat higher if a first-degree relative — parent or sibling — has the disease. Scientists have identified rare changes (mutations) in three genes that virtually guarantee a person who inherits them will develop Alzheimer’s. But these mutations account for less than 5 percent of Alzheimer’s disease.

Most genetic mechanisms of Alzheimer’s among families remain largely unexplained. The strongest risk gene researchers have found so far is apolipoprotein e4 (APOE e4). Other risk genes have been identified but not conclusively confirmed.

Sex: Women may be more likely than are men to develop Alzheimer’s disease, in part because they live longer.

Mild cognitive impairment:

People with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) have memory problems or other symptoms of cognitive decline that are worse than might be expected for their age, but not severe enough to be diagnosed as dementia.

Those with MCI have an increased risk — but not a certainty — of later developing dementia. Taking action to develop a healthy lifestyle and strategies to compensate for memory loss at this stage may help delay or prevent the progression to dementia.

Past head trauma: People who’ve had a severe head trauma or repeated head trauma appear to have a greater risk of Alzheimer’s disease.

Lifestyle and heart health:

There’s no lifestyle factor that’s been conclusively shown to reduce your risk of Alzheimer’s disease.

However, some evidence suggests that the same factors that put you at risk of heart disease also may increase the chance that you’ll develop Alzheimer’s. Examples include:

*Lack of exercise (a sedentry life style)
*Smoking
*High blood pressure
*High blood cholesterol
*Elevated homocysteine levels
*Poorly controlled diabetes
*A diet lacking in fruits and vegetables

These risk factors are also linked to vascular dementia, a type of dementia caused by damaged blood vessels in the brain. Working with your health care team on a plan to control these factors will help protect your heart — and may also help reduce your risk of Alzheimer’s disease and vascular dementia

Diagnosis:
There is no specific test today that can confirms the Alzheimer’s disease. The doctor will make a judgment about whether Alzheimer’s is the most likely cause of the symptoms based on the information that the patient provides and results of various tests that can help clarify the diagnosis.

The doctor will Physical and neurological exam:

The doctor will perform a physical exam, and is likely to check the overall neurological health by testing the patient following:

*Reflexes
*Muscle tone and strength
*Ability to get up from a chair and walk across the room
*Sense of sight and hearing
*Coordination
*Balance

The doctor may ask the patient to under take the following tests:

1. Blood test: The tests may help the doctor to rule out other potential causes of memory loss and confusion, such as thyroid disorders or vitamin deficiencies

2. Mental status testing: The doctor may conduct a brief mental status test to assess the patient’s memory and other thinking skills. Short forms of mental status testing can be done in about 10 minutes.

3. Neuropsychological testing : The doctor may recommend a more extensive assessment of the patient’s thinking and memory. Longer forms of neuropsychological testing, which can take several hours to complete, may provide additional details about the mental function compared with others’ of a similar age and education level.

4. Brain imaging: Images of the brain are now used chiefly to pinpoint visible abnormalities related to conditions other than Alzheimer’s disease — such as strokes, trauma or tumors — that may cause cognitive change. New imaging applications — currently used primarily in major medical centers or in clinical trials — may enable doctors to detect specific brain changes caused by Alzheimer’s.

Brain-imaging technologies include:

i) Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). An MRI uses radio waves and a strong magnetic field to produce detailed images of your brain. You lie on a narrow table that slides into a tube-shaped MRI machine, which makes loud banging noises while it produces images. MRIs are painless, but some people feel claustrophobic inside the machine and are disturbed by the noise.

MRIs are used to rule out other conditions that may account for or be adding to cognitive symptoms. In addition, they may be used to assess whether shrinkage in brain regions implicated in Alzheimer’s disease has occurred.

ii) Computerized tomography (CT). For a CT scan, you’ll lie on a narrow table that slides into a small chamber. X-rays pass through your body from various angles, and a computer uses this information to create cross-sectional images (slices) of your brain. It’s currently used chiefly to rule out tumors, strokes and head injuries.

Positron emission tomography (PET). During a PET scan, you’ll be injected in a vein with a low-level radioactive tracer. You’ll lie on a table while an overhead scanner tracks the tracer’s flow through your brain.

The tracer may be a special form of glucose (sugar) that shows overall activity in various brain regions. This can show which parts of your brain aren’t functioning well. New PET techniques may be able to detect your brain level of plaques and tangles, the two hallmark abnormalities linked to Alzheimer’s.

Future diagnostic tests:

Researchers are working with doctors to develop new diagnostic tools to help definitively diagnose Alzheimer’s. Another important goal is to detect the disease before it causes the symptoms targeted by current diagnostic techniques — at the stage when Alzheimer’s may be most treatable as new drugs are discovered. This stage is called preclinical Alzheimer’s disease.

New tools under investigation include:

* Additional approaches to brain imaging
* More-sensitive tests of mental abilities
* Measurement of key proteins or protein patterns in blood or spinal fluid (biomarkers)

Treatment:
Current Alzheimer’s medications can help for a time with memory symptoms and other cognitive changes. Two types of drugs are currently used to treat cognitive symptoms:

Cholinesterase inhibitors. These drugs work by boosting levels of a cell-to-cell communication chemical depleted in the brain by Alzheimer’s disease. Most people can expect to keep their current symptoms at bay for a time.

Less than half of those taking these drugs can expect to have any improvement. Commonly prescribed cholinesterase inhibitors include donepezil (Aricept), galantamine (Razadyne) and rivastigmine (Exelon). The main side effects of these drugs include diarrhea, nausea and sleep disturbances.

Memantine (Namenda). This drug works in another brain cell communication network and slows the progression of symptoms with moderate to severe Alzheimer’s disease. It’s sometimes used in combination with a cholinesterase inhibitor.

Creating a safe and supportive environment:

Adapting the living situation to the needs of a person with Alzheimer’s is an important part of any treatment plan. For someone with Alzheimer’s, establishing and strengthening routine habits and minimizing memory-demanding tasks can make life much easier.

One can take these steps to support a person’s sense of well-being and continued ability to function:

*Always keep keys, wallets, mobile phones and other valuables in the same place at home, so they don’t become lost.
*See if the doctor can simplify the medication regimen to once-daily dosing, and arrange for the finances to be on automatic payment and automatic deposit.
*Develop the habit of carrying a mobile phone with location capability so that one can call in case the person is lost or confused and people can track the location via the phone. Also, program important phone numbers into the person’s phone, so that he or she does not have to try to recall them.
*Make sure regular appointments are on the same day at the same time as much as possible.
*Use a calendar or white board in the home to track daily schedules. Build the habit of checking off completed items so that you can be sure they were completed.
*Remove excess furniture, clutter and throw rugs.
*Install sturdy handrails on stairways and in bathrooms.
*Ensure that shoes and slippers are comfortable and provide good traction.
*Reduce the number of mirrors. People with Alzheimer’s may find images in mirrors confusing or frightening.

Exercise:

Regular exercise is an important part of everybody’s wellness plan — and those with Alzheimer’s are no exception. Activities such as a daily 30-minute walk can help improve mood and maintain the health of your joints, muscles and heart.

Exercise can also promote restful sleep and prevent constipation. Make sure that the person with Alzheimer’s carries identification if she or he walks unaccompanied.

People with Alzheimer’s who develop trouble walking may still be able to use a stationary bike or participate in chair exercises. You may be able to find exercise programs geared to older adults on TV or on DVDs.

Yoga & Meditation : It is proved that even an acute Alzheimer’s patient can improve a lot if he or she does Yoga & meditation regularly under the guidance of an expart teacher.

Alzheimer’s patients should be careful of taking daily nutritional food in time.

Study results have been mixed about whether diet, exercise or other healthy lifestyle choices can prevent or reverse cognitive decline. But these healthy choices promote good overall health and may play a role in maintaining cognitive health, so there’s no harm in including the above good and healthy lifestyle.
Disclaimer: This information is not meant to be a substitute for professional medical advise or help. It is always best to consult with a Physician about serious health concerns. This information is in no way intended to diagnose or prescribe remedies.This is purely for educational purpose.
Resources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alzheimer%27s_disease
http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/alzheimers-disease/basics/definition/con-20023871

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Herbs & Plants

Rosa rugosa

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Botanical Name : Rosa rugosa
Family: Rosaceae
Genus: Rosa
Species: R. rugosa
Kingdom: Plantae
Order: Rosales

Synonyms : R. ferox.

Common Names: Rugosa rose, Wrinkled Rose, Japanese rose, or Ramanas rose

Habitat: Rosa rugosa is native to E. Asia – N. China, Japan, Korea. Naturalized in several places in Britain. It grows in sandy sea shores.
It has naturalized itself in the sand dunes of the New England seacoast.

Description:
Rosa rugosa is a suckering shrub which develops new plants from the roots and forms dense thickets 1–1.50 m tall with stems densely covered in numerous short, straight prickles 3–10 mm long. The leaves are 8–15 cm long, pinnate with 5–9 leaflets, most often 7, each leaflet 3–4 cm long, with a distinctly corrugated (rugose, hence the species’ name) surface. The flowers are pleasantly scented, dark pink to white (on R. rugosa f. alba (Ware) Rehder), 6–9 cm across, with somewhat wrinkled petals; flowering occurs in spring

CLICK  &  SEE  THE  PICTURES

The hips are large, 2–3 cm diameter, and often shorter than their diameter, not elongated; in late summer and early autumn the plants often bear fruit and flowers at the same time. The leaves typically turn bright yellow before falling in autumn.The plant is not frost tender.

Cultivation:
Prefers a light well-drained soil but succeeds in most soils including dry ones. Grows well in heavy clay soils. Prefers a circumneutral soil and a sunny position. Dislikes water-logged soils. Tolerates maritime exposure. Plants are said to withstand temperatures down to -50°c without damage. The foliage is said to resist disease. A very ornamental plant, it suckers freely but these are fairly easily controlled. There are a number of named varieties. ‘Scabrosa’ is said to be larger in all its parts, including the fruit, though it has not proved to be much larger with us. The flowers have a clove-like perfume. Grows well with alliums, parsley, mignonette and lupins. Dislikes boxwood. Garlic planted nearby can help protect the plant from disease and insect predation. Hybridizes freely with other members of this genus. Plants in this genus are notably susceptible to honey fungus.

Propagation :
Seed. Rose seed often takes two years to germinate. This is because it may need a warm spell of weather after a cold spell in order to mature the embryo and reduce the seedcoat[80]. One possible way to reduce this time is to scarify the seed and then place it for 2 – 3 weeks in damp peat at a temperature of 27 – 32°c (by which time the seed should have imbibed). It is then kept at 3°c for the next 4 months by which time it should be starting to germinate[80]. Alternatively, it is possible that seed harvested ‘green’ (when it is fully developed but before it has dried on the plant) and sown immediately will germinate in the late winter. This method has not as yet(1988) been fully tested[80]. Seed sown as soon as it is ripe in a cold frame sometimes germinates in spring though it may take 18 months. Stored seed can be sown as early in the year as possible and stratified for 6 weeks at 5°c. It may take 2 years to germinate. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle. Plant out in the summer if the plants are more than 25cm tall, otherwise grow on in a cold frame for the winter and plant out in late spring. Cuttings of half-ripe wood with a heel, July in a shaded frame. Overwinter the plants in the frame and plant out in late spring. High percentage. Cuttings of mature wood of the current seasons growth. Select pencil thick shoots in early autumn that are about 20 – 25cm long and plant them in a sheltered position outdoors or in a cold frame. The cuttings can take 12 months to establish but a high percentage of them normally succeed. Division of suckers in the dormant season. Plant them out direct into their permanent positions. Layering. Takes 12 months

Edible Uses:
Edible Parts: Flowers; Fruit; Seed; Stem.
Edible Uses: Tea.

Fruit – raw or cooked. They are very sweet and pleasant to eat, though it takes quite a bit of patience to eat any quantity. The fruit is a fairly large size for a rose with a relatively thick layer of flesh. The fruit is about 25mm in diameter. Rich in vitamin C, containing up to 2.75% dry weight. Some care has to be taken when eating this fruit, see the notes above on known hazards. Flowers – raw or cooked. An aromatic flavour, they are also used in jellies and preserves. Remove the bitter white base of the petals before using them. Young shoots – cooked and used as a potherb. Harvested as they come through the ground in spring and are still tender. The seed is a good source of vitamin E, it can be ground into a powder and mixed with flour or added to other foods as a supplement. Be sure to remove the seed hairs. A pleasant tasting fruity-flavoured tea is made from the fruit, it is rich in vitamin C. A tea is also made from the leaves.

Medicinal Uses:

The leaves are used in the treatment of fevers. The flowers act on the spleen and liver, promoting blood circulation. They are used internally in the treatment of poor appetite and digestion, and menstrual complaints arising from constrained liver energy. The root is used in the treatment of coughs. The fruit of many members of this genus is a very rich source of vitamins and minerals, especially in vitamins A, C and E, flavanoids and other bio-active compounds. It is also a fairly good source of essential fatty acids, which is fairly unusual for a fruit. It is being investigated as a food that is capable of reducing the incidence of cancer and also as a means of halting or reversing the growth of cancers.

In China, the flowers are used to make tea to improve the circulation and to “soothe a restless fetus”. Tea and Jelly made from the rose hips are a very rich source of Vitamin C. The rose hips of this plant have the highest natural concentration of Vitamin C of any other natural source of Vitamin C, including all of the citrus fruits. For the sufferer of scurvy, the Rosa rugosa is a medicinal plant; for the rest of us, it is a nutritional plant.
Other Uses: The plant makes a good low hedge. It is very tolerant of maritime exposure, but is very bare in winter

Known Hazards : There is a layer of hairs around the seeds just beneath the flesh of the fruit. These hairs can cause irritation to the mouth and digestive tract if ingested

Disclaimer : The information presented herein is intended for educational purposes only. Individual results may vary, and before using any supplement, it is always advisable to consult with your own health care provider.

Resours:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosa_rugosa
http://www.pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Rosa+rugosa
http://www.piam.com/mms_garden/plants.html
.

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immunisation

Immunisation

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Definition:
Immunization, or immunisation, is the process by which an individual’s immune system becomes fortified against an agent (known as the immunogen).It  is the process whereby a person is made immune or resistant to an infectious disease.

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Immunization is done through various techniques, most commonly vaccination. Vaccines against microorganisms that cause diseases can prepare the body’s immune system, thus helping to fight or prevent an infection. The fact that mutations can cause cancer cells to produce proteins or other molecules that are known to the body forms the theoretical basis for therapeutic cancer vaccines. Other molecules can be used for immunization as well, for example in experimental vaccines against nicotine (NicVAX) or the hormone ghrelin in experiments to create an obesity vaccine.

Before the introduction of vaccines, the only way people became immune to an infectious disease was by actually getting the disease and surviving it. Smallpox (variola) was prevented in this way by inoculation, which produced a milder effect than the natural disease. It was introduced into England from Turkey by Lady Mary Wortley Montagu in 1721 and used by Zabdiel Boylston in Boston the same year. In 1798 Edward Jenner introduced inoculation with cowpox (smallpox vaccine), a much safer procedure. This procedure, referred to as vaccination, gradually replaced smallpox inoculation, now called variolation to distinguish it from vaccination. Until the 1880s vaccine/vaccination referred only to smallpox, but Louis Pasteur developed immunisation methods for chicken cholera and anthrax in animals and for human rabies, and suggested that the terms vaccine/vaccination should be extended to cover the new procedures. This can cause confusion if care is not taken to specify which vaccine is used e.g. measles vaccine or influenza vaccine.

When this system is exposed to molecules that are foreign to the body, called non-self, it will orchestrate an immune response, and it will also develop the ability to quickly respond to a subsequent encounter because of immunological memory. This is a function of the adaptive immune system. Therefore, by exposing an animal to an immunogen in a controlled way, its body can learn to protect itself: this is called active immunization.

The most important elements of the immune system that are improved by immunization are the T cells, B cells, and the antibodies B cells produce. Memory B cells and memory T cells are responsible for a swift response to a second encounter with a foreign molecule. Passive immunization is direct introduction of these elements into the body, instead of production of these elements by the body itself.

The most important elements of the immune system that are improved by immunization are the T cells, B cells, and the antibodies B cells produce. Memory B cells and memory T cells are responsible for a swift response to a second encounter with a foreign molecule. Passive immunization is direct introduction of these elements into the body, instead of production of these elements by the body itself.

Immunization is a proven tool for controlling and eliminating life-threatening infectious diseases and is estimated to avert between 2 and 3 million deaths each year. It is one of the most cost-effective health investments, with proven strategies that make it accessible to even the most hard-to-reach and vulnerable populations. It has clearly defined target groups; it can be delivered effectively through outreach activities; and vaccination does not require any major lifestyle change.

Immunizations are definitely less risky and an easier way to become immune to a particular disease than risking a milder form of the disease itself. They are important for both adults and children in that they can protect us from the many diseases out there. Through the use of immunizations, some infections and diseases have almost completely been eradicated throughout the United States and the World. One example is polio. Thanks to dedicated health care professionals and the parents of children who vaccinated on schedule, polio has been eliminated in the U.S. since 1979. Polio is still found in other parts of the world so certain people could still be at risk of getting it. This includes those people who have never had the vaccine, those who didn’t receive all doses of the vaccine, or those traveling to areas of the world where polio is still prevalent.

The Immunization can be achieved in an active or passive manner:
Vaccination is an active form of immunization.

Active immunization/vaccination has been named one of the “Ten Great Public Health Achievements in the 20th Century”.

Active immunization:….click & see
Active immunization can occur naturally when a person comes in contact with, for example, a microbe. The immune system will eventually create antibodies and other defenses against the microbe. The next time, the immune response against this microbe can be very efficient; this is the case in many of the childhood infections that a person only contracts once, but then is immune.

Artificial active immunization is where the microbe, or parts of it, are injected into the person before they are able to take it in naturally. If whole microbes are used, they are pre-treated.

The importance of immunization is so great that the American Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has named it one of the “Ten Great Public Health Achievements in the 20th Century”.  Live attenuated vaccines have decreased pathogenicity. Their effectiveness depends on the immune systems ability to replicate and elicits a response similar to natural infection. It is usually effective with a single dose. Examples of live, attenuated vaccines include measles, mumps, rubella, MMR, yellow fever, varicella, rotavirus, and influenza (LAIV).

Passive immunization:……...click & see
Passive immunization is where pre-synthesized elements of the immune system are transferred to a person so that the body does not need to produce these elements itself. Currently, antibodies can be used for passive immunization. This method of immunization begins to work very quickly, but it is short lasting, because the antibodies are naturally broken down, and if there are no B cells to produce more antibodies, they will disappear.

Passive immunization occurs physiologically, when antibodies are transferred from mother to fetus during pregnancy, to protect the fetus before and shortly after birth.

Artificial passive immunization is normally administered by injection and is used if there has been a recent outbreak of a particular disease or as an emergency treatment for toxicity, as in for tetanus. The antibodies can be produced in animals, called “serum therapy,” although there is a high chance of anaphylactic shock because of immunity against animal serum itself. Thus, humanized antibodies produced in vitro by cell culture are used instead if available.

Resources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immunization
http://www.who.int/topics/immunization/en/

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Therapetic treatment Therapies

Hope Therapy

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Hope is an emotion characterized by positive feelings about the immediate or long-term future and often coupled with high motivation, optimism, and a generally elevated mood.Hope is a partially subjective term, and both psychologists and philosophers have struggled to define it. Some argue that hopefulness is a relatively stable personality trait, others believe that hope depends on external circumstances and previous experience, and some people view hope as a choice. Hope is commonly associated with warm feelings about the future, an increased willingness to work toward a goal, and an upbeat mood.

Hope therapy is a fairly recent idea with a fairly basic point. The main way this therapy is practiced is by teaching people in a group class setting to become more oriented toward positive thinking . Positive thinking with positive goals and behavior will help people toachieve their goals. It is separate from the idea of optimism, which is generally having a pervasive belief that good things are likely to happen. Instead, researchers believe that people can be taught to improve their outlook and minor depression in class settings, instead of through traditional talk therapy, which may tend to focus on negative experiences.

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It is observed that Hope therapy helps a lot to the people with severe macular degeneration, and people with mild depression, who were not classed as having a mental illness. Most people learn how to create goals, how to determine ways to reach goals and also how to use positive self-talk. Instead of focusing on negative incidents. Hope therapy relied on positive goal-based training. Many people in the groups noted significant elevation of mood, were able to absorb the training and became more goal oriented and were successfully able to use positive self-talk to diminish negative thinking patterns.

Hope therapy is  not just about the “power of positive thinking.” Instead it is based somewhat on the cognitive behavioral model of therapy which works to replace old or negative “hot thoughts” or core beliefs with new ones that are more truthful and positive. However, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) does spend at least some time analyzing how negative thoughts or experiences have influenced thoughts and behavior patterns in the here and now. Hope therapy appears to differ from this by focusing more on simply learning to change mindset, without much examination of what caused negative mindset in the past.

People who are facing personal and emotional conflicts, it is not that everything is lost for them. There is HOPE for them, they can also leave beautiful and happy life if some goal is set for them and with proper mental training they start exerting to reach the goal. The Hope Therapy Center (HTC) is a place where disheartened people may find healing and an opportunity to talk with a trained pastoral psychotherapist.

Hopelessness can also affect physical health. People who are not optimistic about their health or about their medical treatment are more likely to remain sick, more likely to report high levels of pain, and less likely to see an improvement in their overall health. Some mental health practitioners, aware of the role hope plays, encourage clients to work on thinking positively about life developments and finding things to be hopeful about. Many mental health professionals believe that hope is an indispensable key to happiness and that people cannot be happy without hope.

Hope therapy will be very much active and successful if this therapy is done along with Yoga exercise with Pranayama & Meditation under the guide line of some expert.

Help taken from:
http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-hope-therapy.htm
http://www.hopetherapycenter.com/index.html
http://www.goodtherapy.org/blog/psychpedia/what-is-hope

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Ailmemts & Remedies

Gastroparesis

Definition:
Gastroparesis (gastro-, “stomach” + -paresis, “partial paralysis”), also called delayed gastric emptying, is a medical condition consisting of a paresis (partial paralysis) of the stomach, resulting in food remaining in the stomach for an abnormally long time. Normally, the stomach contracts to move food down into the small intestine for additional digestion. The vagus nerve controls these contractions. Gastroparesis may occur when the vagus nerve is damaged and the muscles of the stomach and intestines do not properly function. Food then moves slowly or stops moving through the digestive tract….CLICK & SEE

YOU MAY CLICK & SEE : Our Digestive System and How It Works 
Symptoms:
The most common symptoms of gastroparesis are the following:
*Chronic nausea (93%)
*Vomiting (especially of undigested food) (68-84%)
*Abdominal pain (46-90%)
*A feeling of fullness after eating just a few bites (60-86%)

Other symptoms include the following:
*Palpitations
*Heartburn
*Abdominal bloating
*Erratic blood glucose levels
*Lack of appetite
*Gastroesophageal reflux
*Spasms of the stomach wall
*Weight loss and malnutrition

Morning nausea may also indicate gastroparesis. Vomiting may not occur in all cases, as sufferers may adjust their diets to include only small amounts of food.

Symptoms may be aggravated by eating greasy or rich foods, large quantities of foods with fiber—such as raw fruits and vegetables—or drinking beverages high in fat or carbonation. Symptoms may be mild or severe, and they can occur frequently in some people and less often in others. The symptoms of gastroparesis may also vary in intensity over time in the same individual. Sometimes gastroparesis is difficult to diagnose because people experience a range of symptoms similar to those of other diseases.

Causes:
Transient gastroparesis may arise in acute illness of any kind, as a consequence of certain cancer treatments or other drugs which affect digestive action, or due to abnormal eating patterns.

It is frequently caused by autonomic neuropathy. This may occur in people with type 1 or type 2 diabetes. In fact, diabetes mellitus has been named as the most common cause of gastroparesis, as high levels of blood glucose may affect chemical changes in the nerves.The vagus nerve becomes damaged by years of high blood glucose or insufficient transport of glucose into cells resulting in gastroparesis. Other possible causes include anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa, which may also damage the vagus nerve. Gastroparesis has also been associated with connective tissue diseases such as scleroderma and Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, and neurological conditions such as Parkinson’s disease. It may also occur as part of a mitochondrial disease.

Chronic gastroparesis can be caused by other types of damage to the vagus nerve, such as abdominal surgery.  Heavy cigarette smoking is also a plausible cause since smoking causes damage to the stomach lining.

Idiopathic gastroparesis (gastroparesis with no known cause) accounts for a third of all chronic cases; it is thought that many of these cases are due to an autoimmune response triggered by an acute viral infection. “Stomach flu”, mononucleosis, and other ailments have been anecdotally linked to the onset of the condition, but no systematic study has proven a link.

Gastroparesis sufferers are disproportionately female. One possible explanation for this finding is that women have an inherently slower stomach emptying time than men.A hormonal link has been suggested, as gastroparesis symptoms tend to worsen the week before menstruation when progesterone levels are highest. Neither theory has been proven definitively.

Gastroparesis can also be connected to hypochlorhydria and be caused by chloride, sodium and/or zinc deficiency, as these minerals are needed for the stomach to produce adequate levels of gastric acid (HCL) in order to properly empty itself of a meal.

Other identifiable causes of gastroparesis include intestinal surgery and nervous system diseases such as Parkinson’s disease or multiple sclerosis. For reasons that are not very clear, gastroparesis is more commonly found in women than in men.

Complications:
The complications of gastroparesis can include

*severe dehydration due to persistent vomiting

*gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), which is GER that occurs more than twice a week for a few weeks; GERD can lead to esophagitis— irritation of the esophagus

*bezoars, which can cause nausea, vomiting, obstruction, or interfere with absorption of some medications in pill form

*difficulty managing blood glucose levels in people with diabetes

*malnutrition due to poor absorption of nutrients or a low calorie intake

*decreased quality of life, including work absences due to severe symptoms

Diagnosis:
Gastroparesis is diagnosed through a physical exam, medical history, blood tests, tests to rule out blockage or structural problems in the GI tract, and gastric emptying tests. Tests may also identify a nutritional disorder or underlying disease. To rule out any blockage or other structural problems, the doctor may perform one or more of the following tests:

*Upper gastrointestinal (GI) endoscopy. This procedure involves using an endoscope—a small, flexible tube with a light—to see the upper GI tract, which includes the esophagus, stomach, and duodenum—the first part of the small intestine. The test is performed at a hospital or outpatient center by a gastroenterologist—a doctor who specializes in digestive diseases. The endoscope is carefully fed down the esophagus and into the stomach and duodenum. A small camera mounted on the endoscope transmits a video image to a monitor, allowing close examination of the intestinal lining. A person may receive a liquid anesthetic that is gargled or sprayed on the back of the throat. An intravenous (IV) needle is placed in a vein in the arm if general anesthesia is given. The test may show blockage or large bezoars—solid collections of food, mucus, vegetable fiber, hair, or other material that cannot be digested in the stomach—that are sometimes softened, dissolved, or broken up during an upper GI endoscopy.

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