by Editor | Jan 21, 2011 | Featured Story, Health
The best start to the day just got better. Oats for breakfast helps prevent artery disease, scientists have reported this week. The oats combat chronic inflammation, which can lead to the artery disease known as atherosclerosis, as well as many other health problems, too. Oats contain several healthy compounds, researchers at Tufts University in Boston, Mass, have discovered, including avenanthramides, which have anti-inflammatory qualities, as well as phenolic antioxidants, which stop blood cells sticking to artery walls. Earlier studies had discovered that oats lower blood cholesterol. (Source: USDA/Agricultural Research Services, February 16, 2010).
via Oats for breakfast helps prevent coronary artery disease | What Doctors Don’t Tell You.
by Editor | Jan 21, 2011 | Health
A new study has confirmed that vigorous exercise can improve heart function in patients with atherosclerosis.
Although small, the study has gone some way towards defining just what the biological benefits of such exercise might be.
Researchers randomly assigned 19 patients, who had coronary artery disease and who displayed abnormal vasoconstriction when induced by a drug, to either an exercise training group (ten patients) or a control group (nine patients).
After four weeks of exercise training, the potential for drug induced vasoconstriction was reduced by 54 per cent compared with controls. Blood flow velocity was increased by as much as 96 per cent.
There were no significant changes seen in the control group in either blood flow or blood vessel diameter during the course of the study.
The reasons for the changes are not entirely clear. But the authors suggest that one of the reasons why exercise is so beneficial is that it sets off a series of chemical reactions which produce beneficial free radical scavengers.
The researchers conclude that, for those with stable coronary artery disease, exercise has a significant therapeutic value (N Engl J Med, 2000; 342: 454-60).
via Benefit from vigourous exercise | What Doctors Don’t Tell You.
by Editor | Jan 21, 2011 | Health
Warfarin, the blood-thinning drug, is standard treatment for people with atrial fibrillation, a condition that causes abnormal heart rhythms – but it could be doing more harm than good.
The drug is routinely prescribed to help prevent stroke, but new research suggests that many patients taking warfarin are getting no benefit from it, and could be running a risk of excessive bleeding.
Only those with atrial fibrillation who have a high risk of stroke should continue taking warfarin, say researchers from the University of Cincinnati. A safer drug should be found for the majority who are at low risk.
(Source: Circulation, 2010; doi: 10.1161/circoutcomes.110.958108).
via Most heart patients shouldn’t be taking warfarin | What Doctors Don’t Tell You.
by Editor | Jan 21, 2011 | Health
Sceptics dismiss it as a placebo, but acupuncture really can reduce pain, and scientists have used brain scanners to prove it.
Acupuncture needles affect the way the brain perceives and processes pain, say researchers from University Hospital in Essen, Germany.
They tested acupuncture’s pain-relieving capabilities on a group of 18 volunteers, who had an electrical device attached to their ankles. They had brain scans when they had acupuncture needles placed in three areas, and when the needles were removed. All the time the device was causing pain and discomfort.
Areas of the brain that process pain had changed significantly when the acupuncture needles were inserted, the scientists discovered.
(Source: Annual Meeting of the Radiological Society of North America, Chicago, November 30, 2010).
via Acupuncture really does reduce pain, say researchers | What Doctors Don’t Tell You.
by Editor | Jan 21, 2011 | Health
While everyone has been worried about the possibility that mobile (cell) phones cause cancer, few realise that the devices are a major cause of tinnitus, the distressing hearing problem. Even using a mobile phone for 10 minutes increases the risk by 71 per cent, researchers have discovered, although the risk doubles for those who have used a mobile phone for more than four years. The overall risk for any use is 37 per cent compared with someone who does not use a mobile phone. Researchers made the discovery when they compared the records of 100 tinnitus sufferers with a similar number of healthy controls. Most tinnitus sufferers said their problem was on their left side, where they held their mobile phone, and 29 per cent said they also suffered from vertigo. (Source: Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 2010; doi: 10.1136/oem.2009.048116).
via Mobile phones cause tinnitus, new research discovers | What Doctors Don’t Tell You.
by Editor | Jan 21, 2011 | Featured Story, Health
Pregnant women who use a mobile (cell) phone are more likely to have a child who has behavioural problems. The risk increases if the child starts using a phone in its early developmental years.
Children who were exposed to mobile phones while they were in the womb, and who used one themselves, are 50 per cent more likely to have behavioural problems. The greatest harm is done when the mother uses a phone before the child is born, say researchers, which accounts for a 40 per cent increased risk.
The Danish National Birth Cohort study based their findings on a group of around 100,000 women who were pregnant between 1996 and 2002 and who were questioned again seven years later.
The researchers say the findings are in line with earlier research, and that they have taken into account other possible causes of behavioural problems.
(Source: Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, 2010; doi: 10.1136/jech.2010.115402).
via Children more likely to have behavioural problems if mum used a mobile phone when they were in the womb | What Doctors Don’t Tell You.
by Editor | Jan 21, 2011 | Health
Long-term use of mobile (cell) phones does cause brain tumours, major independent research has confirmed. The finding exposes the cover-up of the mobile phone industry, which had paid for a study review that demonstrated the safety of their products and networks.
But using the same data from the industry’s own study, researchers have found that people who frequently use a mobile (cell) phone or cordless phone for more than 10 years run a high risk of developing a brain tumour.
Lead researcher R B Dubey of Apeejay College of Engineering in Sohna, India says that long-term mobile phone use is not safe, and that current safety guidelines need to be revised.
Long-term phone users have malignant gliomas and benign acoustic neuromas on the same side of the head where they hold the device, the researchers found.
They used the data collated by the Interphone study, paid for by the mobile phone industry.
Swedish cancer specialist Dr Lennart Hardell came to a similar conclusion reached by Dubey’s team when he carried out his own research into mobile phone use. He estimates that the phones can double the risk of a brain tumour.
To reduce the cancer risk, Dubey recommends that people use their phones less often, text rather than phone, and use an ‘air tube’ headset rather than a wired one.
(Source: Journal of Computer Assisted Tomography, 2010; 34: 799).
via Mobile phones cause brain tumours, independent researchers confirm | What Doctors Don’t Tell You.
by Editor | Jan 21, 2011 | Featured Story, Health
Starting the day with a big breakfast won’t necessarily help you lose weight. The theory has it that eating a large breakfast means you eat less during the day, thus reducing your calorie intake.
Researchers who examined the eating habits of around 300 people discovered that they also had a big lunch and a big dinner, too.
If you want to lose weight, say the researchers from the Else-Kroner-Fresenius Centre of Nutritional Medicine, you have to eat a small lunch and dinner.
That assumes a direct correlation between weight gain and calorie intake – and we know that’s only part of the story, anyway.
(Source: Nutrition Journal, 2011; 10: 5).
via You won’t lose weight by eating a big breakfast | What Doctors Don’t Tell You.
by Editor | Jan 20, 2011 | Health
Hypnosis is a relaxation method that allows YOU to access your amazing
subconscious mind where you can more effectively achieve goals. You create the
outcome you intend by changing your mind set and bypassing or eliminating
blocks. The following is your recipe for successful weight loss.
1 Part – Fed Up With Diets
1 Part – Intent
1 Part – Desire
1 Part – Motivation
1 Part – Imagination
A dash of self discipline
A great hypnotist!
Mix these ingredients together and POW! SUCCESS! The weight slips off your body,
you feel GREAT! If you get off track, simply mix another batch and WOW! It’s
easy to get back on track!
This recipe eliminates feeling deprived, eliminates the need for will power as
your main source of motivation and eliminates excuses.
Here’s how it works:
1 Part – Fed Up With Diets: Diets DON’T work. A diet starts, and as we all
know, diets ends. You may lose the weight and then you put it back on. That yoyo
dieting is terrible for your body and confuses your metabolism. That Monday
morning resolve, “I’m going to be good today”, only makes you feel bad about
yourself when it inevitably fails.
1 Part – Intent: A new year’s resolution is a good thing in that it creates
intent. No whining, complaining, or poor me stuff that you did all last year. A
strong intent is motivated by a desire to take care of your body because when
your body feels good, everything is better!
1 Part – Desire: If you care about yourself, you can dredge up some desire to
make changes to your body. Hmm, that new outfit would look great! Maybe you’ll
even be happy with your body. And if you think you’ll never be happy with your
body, then desire to be satisfied, content or accepting of your self.
1 Part – Motivation: OK, it’s true, there has to be some motivation to take off
weight. Motivation is the desire to let go of what you have been doing that
doesn’t work, to do something different. It’s best to be motivated for yourself,
but ft motivation happens because you are going on vacation or to a wedding, it
still works.
1 Part – Imagination: When you can “see” it in your mind, you can make it happen
in your life. A simple premise and a powerful one. Tapping into your imagination
makes weight loss easier, if not fun and effortless.
A Dash Of Self Discipline: When you were a child you were disciplined by your
parents. Follow the rules, do things a certain way, meet expectations, put off
gratification for a better goal. So tap into that training, or muster up the
self discipline that you have used tons of times when you created successes in
your life.
A Great Hypnotist: Everyone needs support and that is just what a hypnotist is.
Gently guiding you to create your positive body image, inspiring you to move
forward towards your goal and guiding you through the blocks that have been
holding you back. What a relief not to have to do it all on your own.
Two things are important for successful and long lasting weight loss. What you
put into your body and how much fat you burn. Hypnosis helps you gain control by
helping you to desire the foods that are fresh, clean and nutritionally
valuable. You change your eating habits easily and comfortably so you don’t
“feel” like eating the sugary, fatty foods that contributed to your weight gain.
You shift the fatty, sugary foods to the category of occasional foods but never
deprive yourself. You learn how to pay attention to your “I’m satisfied” body
signals. Once activated, you stop eating much earlier with less food. You
support your weight loss by burning off those layers of fat with exercise that
makes you feel good inside and out.
You also address emotional eating and begin to separate emotional hunger from
physical hunger. If you get off track for a day or so, you can easily get back
on track so that you do not put the weight back on.
Hypnosis supports general weight loss as well as helping those with obesity,
which is a common problem in our society and stems from old family programming
around food, years and years of food commercials and low self esteem. Gastro
bypass or lap band surgery is the current rage and it works! However the
struggle can still be there because the emotional issues remain when the
willpower and newness of the procedures wear off. Even after surgery, there is
still hard work to do. Old habits to change, and emotions to deal with.
Hypnosis makes this life changing event easier and more tolerable and allows you
to become comfortable with your “new image”.
© 2011, Hypnosis Concepts. Publication rights granted so long as article and
byline are reprinted intact, with all links made live.
Laurie Miller is a Certified Clinical Hypnotherapist with more than twenty-eight
years of experience helping people overcome issues with their weight. Laurie
can help you with losing weight at her office in Orange County, California.
Make an appointment by calling 949-250-7355. If you live anywhere else you can
purchase her prerecorded hypnosis session “Release Weight” or a customized
hypnosis session on CD at http://hypnosisconcepts.com
via article_announce : Message: A Recipe for Success – Use Hypnosis To Gain Control Over Your Weight.
by Editor | Jan 20, 2011 | Health
Can You Still Cure Saggy Skin?
As you get older, your skin loses its ability to retain its
natural structure. It loses its resilient nature because of
the decline of collagen and elastin. This is actually a
natural process our integumentary system has to go through.
But don’t say goodbye to your elastic skin yet. Although you
cannot full put an end to the aging process of your skin, you
can still do something to bring back a semblance of its past
resilient structure. Let me tell you a few “cures” to saggy
skin condition:
1. Encourage the healthy regeneration of collagen and
elastin in the body.
One of the mistakes people make when improving collagen and
elastin production is that they go for synthetic
alternatives. Using synthetic collagen-based products will
not really produce the results you have been looking for.
Collagen and elastin have a complex structure. They cannot
be duplicated easily.
You should look for treatments that can internally produce
collagen and elastin. Look for a product that contains
CynergyTK and Phytessence Wakame. CynergyTK is an ingredient
that has been extracted from the wool of sheep. This is a
great source of protein called Keratin. Keratin is actually
the key to internal collagen production. It is responsible
for boosting the amount of complex proteins in the
integumentary system.
Phytessence Wakame, on the other hand, makes sure that your
skin retains healthy levels of complex proteins. This sea
kelp can get rid of the harmful enzymes that attack
hyaluronic acid. This acid is responsible for the
lubrication of collagen and elastin.
2. Increase your intake of fresh water fishes, roasted nuts
and green leafy vegetables.
Fresh water fishes are ideal sources of proteins and amino
acids. You need to augment missing nutrients in your system
in order for the skin to regenerate more complex proteins.
Fresh water fishes also contain omega-3 fatty acids. These
fatty acids can help prevent cellular inflammation. Cells in
your skin can perform better in normalizing dermis functions.
Roasted nuts and green leafy vegetables contain a hefty
amount of copper. This trace mineral is also found in our
system. It is needed to produce copper peptides. Peptides
help improve the regeneration of elastin and collagen
proteins.
3. Drink Vitamin C supplements daily
You can still cure saggy skin if you include this vitamin in
your daily regimen. This vitamin encourages the production of
collagen and elastin. Moreover, it minimizes the effects of
ultraviolet rays in your dermis so you are not vulnerable to
the damaging effects of the sun.
Why don’t you try these tips and find out if they will work
in bringing back your elastic skin structure? There is no
harm in trying natural remedies.
About the Author:
I am sure there are a lot more anti aging tips you would like
to learn. I am inviting you to check out
http://www.goodhealthyskin.com to find out more about common
tips and techniques in making skin firmer and more resilient.
via article_announce : Message: Can You Still Cure Saggy Skin?.
by Editor | Dec 22, 2010 | Health
If you run out of puff, try drinking some beetroot juice. It can help you enjoy a more active life, especially if you are suffering from a heart or lung problem.
Research earlier this year showed that the juice extended exercise time among athletes by 16 per cent – but the same researchers have discovered that the elderly or those with a health problem can enjoy similar benefits.
In a new study, researchers at the University of Exeter discovered that the juice helped people use less oxygen when walking, reducing the effort by 12 per cent.
The juice widens the blood vessels, which lowers blood pressure and allows more blood to flow, and also reduces the amount of oxygen needed by muscles.
(Source: Journal of Applied Physiology, 2010; doi: 10.1152/japplphysiol.01070.2010).
via Beetroot juice helps ill and elderly enjoy a more active life | What Doctors Don’t Tell You.
by Editor | Dec 22, 2010 | Health
The over-the-counter herbal treatment, Echinacea, can reduce the duration of the common cold – but only by half a day.
It’s the average benefit among people who have the early stages of a cold – so, for some, it could have a stronger effect.
It’s been tested on a group of 700 people aged from 12 to 80 years, all of whom had early symptoms of a cold. They were split into three groups: no treatment, Echinacea, or Echinacea or placebo. The latter group was not told which they had been given.
Overall, say researchers from the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Medicine and Public Health, the supplement had a 10 per cent positive impact on the duration of a cold, which usually lasts around five days.
There were no side effects, and so Echinacea is doing more good than harm, they say.
(Source: Annals of Internal Medicine, 2010; 153: 769-777).
via Echinacea beats the common cold – but only by half a day | What Doctors Don’t Tell You.
by Editor | Dec 22, 2010 | Health
Sceptics dismiss it as a placebo, but acupuncture really can reduce pain, and scientists have used brain scanners to prove it.
Acupuncture needles affect the way the brain perceives and processes pain, say researchers from University Hospital in Essen, Germany.
They tested acupuncture’s pain-relieving capabilities on a group of 18 volunteers, who had an electrical device attached to their ankles. They had brain scans when they had acupuncture needles placed in three areas, and when the needles were removed. All the time the device was causing pain and discomfort.
Areas of the brain that process pain had changed significantly when the acupuncture needles were inserted, the scientists discovered.
(Source: Annual Meeting of the Radiological Society of North America, Chicago, November 30, 2010).
via Acupuncture really does reduce pain, say researchers | What Doctors Don’t Tell You.
by Editor | Dec 22, 2010 | Health
Popular indigestion pills such as Zantac and Losec have this week been pinpointed as a major cause of pneumonia, a disease that can be a killer in the elderly.
Acid suppressive drugs, as they’re known, are given to up to 70 per cent of elderly patients in hospital, and they are likely to be a major cause of pneumonia-related deaths, say researchers from Seoul National University Hospital in Korea.
The drugs increase the risk of respiratory tract infections and pneumonia, especially in close communities such as care homes and hospitals. The researchers reckon the drugs are responsible for one out of every 200 cases of pneumonia acquired in hospital.
However, young and old are equally susceptible, and everyone who takes the drugs increases their chances of developing pneumonia.
The drugs include proton pump inhibitors – such as Losec, Prilosec and Prevacid – and histamine2 receptor antagonists, including Zantac and Cimetidine. Indigestion drugs are the second leading medication in the world, with sales of around $26bn every year.
(Canadian Medical Association Journal, 2010; December 20; doi: 10.1053/cmaj.092129).
via Indigestion pills are a major cause of ‘killer’ pneumonia | What Doctors Don’t Tell You.
by Editor | Dec 22, 2010 | Health
The radiation from CT scans is so great that children who have them run a far higher risk of developing cancer for the remainder of their life.Researchers reckon the risk remains high for 58 years after having the scan, but they admit it could be for longer.Around 1 million CT scans are performed on children aged five years or younger every year in the US, often for diagnosing cancer.But the scans emit ionizing radiation, a known carcinogen. To see if the scans did cause cancer, researchers from the University of Rochester Medical Centre tracked 1,303 people who, as small children, had CT scans between 1953 and 1987. None of the children had cancer, but had the scan to check for an enlarged thymus that, at the time, was believed to be a health problem.Over the years, and up to 2008, 50 of the group developed thyroid cancer compared with just 13 of their siblings who had not been scanned.Source: Radiation Research, 2010; 174: 753-62.
via CT scans increase cancer risk for the rest of your life | What Doctors Don’t Tell You.
by Editor | Dec 18, 2010 | Health
It’s enough that we have to worry about the chemicals they put into our food – but the wrappers could be every bit as deadly. Food wrappers are coated with non-stick and greaseproof agents – and now researchers have discovered they also contain dangerously high levels of fire retardant, which gets into the food.
The wrappers on one out of 10 samples of butter contained very high levels of the flame retardant compound, PBDE, which had made its way into the product. One sample had 135 times higher levels of PBDE, and 900 times the level of PBDE’s main component, deca-BDE, than the others.
PBDEs have also been detected in other high-fat foods, including fish, meat, poultry, eggs and dairy products.
The fire retardant is commonly found in electronics, textiles, wire and cable insulation, and automobile and airplane components.
Although the EU banned all uses of deca-BDE in 2008, and US authorities plan to follow suit by 2014, researchers from the University of Texas School of Public Health say chemicals are in the environment, and can continue to be in components and stock for years after a ban has been imposed.
(Source: Environmental Health Perspectives, 2010; doi: 10.1289/ehp.1002604).
via Food wrappers contain high levels of fire retardant chemical | What Doctors Don’t Tell You.
by Editor | Dec 18, 2010 | Health
Pregnant women who use a mobile (cell) phone are more likely to have a child who has behavioural problems. The risk increases if the child starts using a phone in its early developmental years.
Children who were exposed to mobile phones while they were in the womb, and who used one themselves, are 50 per cent more likely to have behavioural problems. The greatest harm is done when the mother uses a phone before the child is born, say researchers, which accounts for a 40 per cent increased risk.
The Danish National Birth Cohort study based their findings on a group of around 100,000 women who were pregnant between 1996 and 2002 and who were questioned again seven years later.
The researchers say the findings are in line with earlier research, and that they have taken into account other possible causes of behavioural problems.
(Source: Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, 2010; doi: 10.1136/jech.2010.115402).
via Children more likely to have behavioural problems if mum used a mobile phone when they were in the womb | What Doctors Don’t Tell You.
by Editor | Dec 18, 2010 | Health
Thalidomide is back, and this time it’s going to help you live longer. From being the world’s most feared drug – and which launched an industry of tighter regulation and safety controls – it is this week being heralded as a ‘fountain of youth’.
Revlimia (lenalidomide), a cancer drug that is a derivative of thalidomide, could restore key elements of the immune system that are associated with ill health as we age, say researchers from the University of California at San Francisco, led by allergist Edward Goetzl. “If you could take a low-dosage pill with no side effects, wouldn’t you do it?” Goetzl asks.
Possibly so, but Revlimia doesn’t fit the description. Designed to treat multiple myeloma, its availability is restricted in the UK, while the US’s Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has included it in its list of 20 drugs under investigation for potential safety problems. As a derivative of thalidomide, pregnant women must never take it as it interferes with the growth of the fetus. Other side effects include thrombosis and pulmonary embolism, both fatal conditions, hepatotoxicity – liver damage – and bone marrow toxicity.
Aside from those, it has no side effects.
(Source: Clinical Immunology, 2010; doi: 10.1016/j.clim.2010.11.002).
via Thalidomide is back – as a fountain of youth | What Doctors Don’t Tell You.
by Editor | Dec 18, 2010 | Health
Your diet could be one of the most important factors in determining whether you suffer from anxiety, autism and nervous and behavioural problems. The food you eat reverses some of the worst symptoms, and researchers have discovered this week that it can also be a key trigger.A diet that is high in sugar can cause abnormal behaviour such as hair-pulling, say researchers. The condition – trichotillomania – affects up to 4 per cent of the population, and happens more in women than men. The researchers, from Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana, think the diet could also cause other behavioural problems, such as autism, Tourette’s and skin picking.Source: Nutritional Neuroscience, 2010; 13: 256.
via Diet is a trigger for autism and nervous problems | What Doctors Don’t Tell You.
by Editor | Dec 18, 2010 | Health
Aspartame – the artificial sweetener found in more than 6,000 foods and dietary drinks – causes cancer.
The sweetener causes liver and lung cancers, and, not surprisingly, the risk increases with the amount of aspartame you consume, say researchers from the Cesare Maltoni Cancer Research Centre, in Bologna, Italy.
They made the discovery when they fed laboratory mice and rats with aspartame from pre-birth and until their death.
(Source: American Journal of Industrial Medicine, 2010; 53: 1197-1206).
via Aspartame sweetener causes cancer, researchers confirm | What Doctors Don’t Tell You.
