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Regular Use of Indoor Swimming Pools May Cause Asthma to Children

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Children who regularly use indoor swimming pools may be more likely to develop asthma, scientists have warned.

They say the chlorine used in the pools can increase a youngster’s risk of asthma up to six-fold, while rates of hay fever and other types of allergic sniffles are also higher.

This is because the by-products of chlorination contaminate the air of indoor pools, irritating the airways and lungs and making them more vulnerable to allergens.

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Researchers from the Catholic University of Louvain in Belgium say the effect of chlorine on the respiratory systems of young people was up to five times more than the effect of secondhand smoke.

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Wheezy: More than 5million people are thought to be suffering from asthma in the UK.

But  asthma charities said the research was not conclusive enough to make them advise parents against indoor pools.

They said chlorine, added to kill germs, has saved hundreds of lives.

More than five million people are estimated to suffer from asthma in the UK.

The Belgian study, reported in the journal Pediatrics, compared the health of 733 teenagers between 13 and 18 who swam regularly in chlorinated pools with that of 114 who swam mostly in pools sanitised with a mix of copper and silver.
They found the highest proportion of asthma among the children who used the pools the most.

Toxicology professor Alfred Bernard, who led the research, said: ‘There is little doubt that pool chlorine is an important factor implicated in the epidemic of allergic diseases affecting the westernised world.

‘It is probably not by chance that countries with the highest prevalence of asthma and respiratory allergies are also those where swimming pools are the most popular.’

But Dr Elaine Vickers, of Asthma UK, said: ‘Asthma develops as a result of a complex mix of genetic and environmental factors, so more research is needed before we can make a conclusive link with the use of chemicals in swimming pools.

‘Swimming is an excellent form of exercise for children with asthma as it can help improve lung capacity and the warm, humid air of indoor pools is less likely to trigger asthma symptoms.

‘We would advise parents of children with asthma not to worry about letting their child go swimming, unless they develop asthma symptoms in the pool environment.’

Source: mail Online ; 16 Sept.’09

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News on Health & Science

Throw Away Your Shoes

Wearing shoes alters the shape and normal functioning of the feet, researchers have found.
…………………..BARE FOOT WALKING
Barefoot walkers in south India, who have never worn a pair of shoes or sandals in their entire lives, are teaching a lesson or two about footwear — that constantly using shoes alters the normal form and function of the foot, and that this may even lead to the development of an undesirable peak pressure under the sole, which in some cases could become life threatening.

Nearly 100 barefoot walkers from the interiors of Mandya, Kolar and Bangalore districts in Karnataka, India, left a footprint in the world of academics when a multinational team of researchers from Belgium, India and the UK descended on them to record their footfall.

Team leader Kristiaan D’Aout, a biologist at the University of Antwerp in Belgium, had always wanted to study the changes that footwear brings to the human feet. The idea was to gain an insight into normal foot functioning, which has evolved over millions of years.

However, with no barefoot walkers in Europe, D’Aout was forced to keep the idea in cold storage until he met Vinaya Anand Suratkal, a doctor from the Bangalore-based Jain Institute of Vascular Sciences (JIVAS), at a conference in Vienna about two years ago. JIVAS, which is part of the Bhagawan Mahaveer Jain Hospital in Bangalore, runs a mobile clinic that travels to rural areas in and around Bangalore to screen and treat those suffering from foot ulcers associated with diabetes.

The study, which won this year’s Nike Research Award — instituted by the sports goods giant Nike — studied the morphology and biomechanical functions of the feet in three distinct healthy populations: barefoot walkers, habitually shod Indians, and Europeans who have always worn footwear. It found that barefoot walkers have a relatively wider forefoot and the pressure is distributed more evenly over the entire surface of the sole than in the other two groups.

Habitually shod Indians wear shoes less often than Westerners do. Also, their shoes are less constraining. Yet, the scientists found significant differences when compared to their habitually barefoot peers, both in the foot shape and pressure distribution.

“The evolutionary history of humans shows that barefoot walking is the natural situation,” D’Aout told KnowHow. While the use of shoes remains a necessity when one walks on unsafe surfaces and in athletics, footwear fails to respect the natural shape and function of the feet.

The researchers hope that the findings will not only help clinicians who treat foot ulcers, but will also lead to the designing of better footwear that will not hamper the feet’s biologically normal functions.

D’Aout’s chance meeting with Vinaya, who was in Vienna to present a paper on the work being done at JIVAS, seemed like a golden opportunity to the Belgium biologist. Realising that many in India still do not wear shoes for religious or financial reasons, he decided to collaborate with the researchers at JIVAS. “Kristiaan approached us with his idea and we thought it was fascinating,” says Kalkunte R. Suresh, director of JIVAS. “When our mobile van goes into the villages, the patients generally do not come alone; they are accompanied by a few other healthy relatives. We requested these healthy individuals, who have never worn shoes or sandals in their life, to participate in the study and walk on a foot scanner,” says Suresh.

D’Aout is not saying that people shouldn’t wear footwear. “Footwear is a wonderful invention. But the human foot is adapted to barefoot walking,” he says.

The study has shown that wearing shoes lifelong leads to an increase in peak pressure under the sole. “This is certainly bad in some people (it causes ulceration in diabetes patients), and it remains to be seen whether it is a real problem in healthy people. It does make sense to have low pressures though, but nobody knows exactly if there is, for example, a threshold value of pressure that should not be exceeded,” he explains.

“We have shown that footwear does change the foot, and so it makes sense to walk barefoot every now and then (at least for healthy people and, of course, ensuring that the walking surface is safe),” adds D’Aout. This, he says, will keep the feet in shape and the muscles trained.

According to D’Aout, people in India have better footwear habits than those in the West. They often wear open shoes and wear them less often (for example, many prefer to walk barefoot in the house). Besides, children too mostly walk barefoot.

The study also found that wearing shoes throughout makes one’s feet narrower and leads to poor load distribution. Besides, it is better not to wear shoes that constrain the toes (like do some fashionable women’s footwear) or are overly protective (like mountaineering boots) for everyday use.

So be careful about what footwear you use, and when to fling them off. Go ahead, just do it.

Source: The Telkegraph (Kolkata, India)

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Therapetic treatment

Magnetic Therapy

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Magnetic therapy is a safe, non-invasive method of applying magnetic fields to the body for therapeutic purposes. It helps to speed the healing process and improve quality of sleep without any adverse side effects. Whether used independently or as an adjunct to your current treatment, magnetic therapy is very effective for the relief of discomfort due to joint and muscle pain, inflammation, and stiffness, making it an excellent choice for everyone……..CLICK & SEE

Over the centuries, it has been well documented that many cultures, including the ancient Chinese, Greeks and Egyptians, have applied magnets to relieve pain and other symptoms. However, the size and weight of the magnets existing during that time, made them difficult to use. Today, smaller and stronger magnetic materials have led to the application of modern day magnetic therapy products used by over 120 million people worldwide.

Clinical studies in the United States have shown magnetic therapy to be an effective method for relieving pain and discomfort. Japan and many eastern European countries have conducted studies for over 30 years, and researchers continue to find that it provides tremendous benefits for a wide range of conditions. Physicians in the United States using magnetic therapy in their practices have reported many case histories showing positive benefits for their patients as well.

All physical and mental functions are controlled by electromagnetic fields produced by the movement of electro-chemicals (ions) within the body. When an injury occurs and tissue is damaged, positively charged ions move to the affected area, causing pain and swelling. In order for healing to take place, the injured site must be restored to its natural negative electromagnetic charge. Pain and inflammatory-related electro-chemicals must be removed and oxygen and nutrients transferred to the area.

The application of a magnetic field to an injured area helps restore the normal electromagnetic balance. The magnetic field relaxes capillary walls, as well as surrounding muscle and connective tissues, allowing for increased blood flow. More oxygen and nutrients are transferred to the injury site, while pain and inflammatory-related electro-chemicals are more efficiently removed. The overall process restores the normal electromagnetic balance of the area, relieving pain and inflammation, and promoting accelerated healing.

Individual response time will vary, and can range from a few minutes, to a few weeks. The effectiveness of magnetic therapy is dependent upon using the correct magnetic products, the length of time they are applied, and the type and severity of the problem.

Yes, magnetic therapy is safe. No complications have ever been reported with its proper use. Magnetic therapy products use magnets that when applied to the body, have positive therapeutic benefits.

There are certain conditions where magnet therapy should not be used. Magnetic therapy should not be used if you are wearing a pacemaker, defibrillator, insulin pump or any other implanted electro-medical device, and should not be used if you are pregnant.

The electromagnetic fields surrounding power lines and electrical appliances are a very different type of magnetic field, and have no relation to the natural, healing fields produced by Healing Magnetic Products.

According to most experts in the field, if magnetic therapy products are designed and used properly they can be 80%-90% effective. The problem is that Biomagnetics is a far more complex science than most people realize, so knowing how to accomplish this is no easy task and requires highly specialized engineering and manufacturing capabilities.

To be effective, a magnetic therapy product must produce a magnetic field of sufficient strength and size at the site of the injury or affected area. The problem is that the strength of a magnetic field drops off rapidly as the distance from the magnet increases, and an injured area can be several inches below the surface of the skin. If the product is not properly designed, the field could easily drop below therapeutic levels before it even reaches the injury site, and the product would then be ineffective.

Companies that provide insufficient product information, and incorrectly use the gauss rating of magnets to indicate the strength of their products compound the problem. The manufacturer’s gauss rating of a magnet indicates the amount of magnetic energy (residual induction) that the magnetic material can hold, but alone is not an indication of the strength of the magnet.

Since the gauss rating is identical for all magnets made of the same material, regardless of the size or number of magnets, products using smaller and fewer numbers of magnets are made to appear more effective than they really are.

To be therapeutically effective, a magnetic field must penetrate the injured area at a high enough gauss strength. There is no way to tell if the magnetic field is strong enough just by knowing the gauss rating of the magnets.

The mass (surface area and thickness) of the magnets, the number of magnets, the polarity facing the body and the gauss rating of the magnets used, all determine the strength and penetration depth of the magnetic field produced by a magnetic therapy product.

No they are not. Most products on the market use magnets that are either too small, or insufficient in number and strength to provide any real benefit. The polarity of the magnets is also a very important issue. Many products contain magnets that are facing the wrong way (the south or positive polarity is facing the body), which can increase, rather than ease discomfort. There are also products that are improperly using bipolar (both poles on the same surface) magnets in products such as mattress pads, which is completely against recommended protocols and can cause increased discomfort.

So,It is always wise to buy the products from a renowned manufacturers who maintains highest quality standards. Designed by experts in the field of biomagnetics and complementary medicine.The products should have new engineering methods developed by the company to provide maximum effectiveness and eliminate the problems existing with other magnetic therapy products.

Help taken from:HEALIOHEALTH.COM

We can learn little more about this subject from this site.

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