Archive for March, 2011

Benefits of Exercises for Pregnant Women

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Posted 30 Mar 2011 — by admin
Category Diseases and Conditions, Health Procedures

Exercises for pregnant women have been proven to be beneficial to in preparing a woman’s body for child birth and childcare. For those women who have been physically active prior to being pregnant, you might be wondering if there are still exercises that you can do even during this time that you are pregnant.

However, there might be a lot of hesitations with regards to the safety of performing exercises for pregnant women. There might be a lot of questions that will run on a pregnant woman’s mind. Is this exercise not harmful for my baby? How do I know the intensity and frequency of exercise? What would be the benefits of this exercise?

First of all, it is important to consider if your pregnancy is an uncomplicated one. Your willingness to participate in exercises for pregnant women may be consulted to your obstetrician-gynecologist during your regular prenatal check-ups. Some women, especially those who are experiencing a threatened abortion are contraindicated for exercise. Thus, a clearance from your doctor should be acquired first.

The benefits that you can obtain from exercises for pregnant women are:

1.      Increased strength of the pelvic floor muscles

- This is good for you because the pelvic floor muscles support the contents of the abdominal cavity

-When these muscles are strong, there would be better support for the growing baby on your womb.

-Studies say that when pelvic floor muscles are toned, it also increases sexual pleasure for both the woman and her partner.

2.      Awareness of contraction and relaxation of the pelvic floor muscles

-          This would be beneficial, especially for first time moms, because they might not yet be aware of the feeling of contraction and relaxation of the pelvic floor muscles.

-          Being able to control contraction and relaxation of the pelvic floor muscles can help you have ease during delivery.

3.      Increased strength of the abdominal muscles

-          Abdominal muscles are overstretched during pregnancy, and thus, they have the tendency to weaken.

-          Strengthening your abdominal muscles reduces strain on your back and helps you to avoid back pain, which is a common complaint during pregnancy.

4.      Increased strength and flexibility of upper extremity muscles

-          This is good for you because it prepares you for the increased physical demands that you have to meet during child care.

For you to determine the procedures, intensity and duration of the exercises for pregnant women, it is advised to seek for the expertise of a physical therapist. These professionals may give you advice on the right parameters of exercises for you.

As you now know that there would be a great deal of benefits that you will get by performing exercises for pregnant women, also keep in mind two things: compliance & safety. First, compliance is important for an exercise to be effective. Second, do not overdo whatever among the exercises for pregnant women that you perform, because two much stress on your body might increase uterine contractions and that might be harmful for you and your baby.

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Enhancing Brain Power by Lifestyle Modification

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Posted 27 Mar 2011 — by admin
Category Health Procedures, Home Remedies, Keeping Healthy

In today’s very competitive world wherein brain power is a major element for somebody to be on top, it is important to enhance the brain’s maximum potential. In school or even in the corporate arena, brain power is one big asset that is good to invest on. Furthermore, knowing that studies about aging say that our brain functioning slows down as we age, we must aim for keeping our brain healthy while we are still young, to diminish the rate of decline of brain power during old age.

Before learning how to enhance brain power, it is more important to know how to protect our brain from decline. As the saying goes, “first, do no harm”. The two most important measures in preventing brain power decline are avoiding frequent alcohol intake and quitting smoking. Alcohol has very harmful effects to the brain. It kills neurons, which are the cells found on the brain. These neurons are classified as permanent cells. Thus, they are types of cells that do not regenerate once they die. The more you take alcohol, the more neurons are killed and thus, the more decline in brain power can occur. On the other hand, smoking increases nicotine in the body. Nicotine causes our blood vessels to constrict, which may cause a decrease blood supply to the brain.

Enhancing our brain power is ideally a multi-factorial approach which narrows down to one idea: living a healthy lifestyle. When we say “living a healthy lifestyle”, it all includes regular exercise, balanced diet, enough sleep and having just the right amount of stress. These are all very basic, but also indeed very ideal. And we all know that in this very busy world, some cannot afford to exercise three to four times a week or even to sleep eight hours a day. But definitely, even the busiest of people love to eat. It is suggested now that we can eat different types of food that can enhance brain power.

Food that are rich in omega-3 fatty acids, like fish and walnuts, are said to be brain enhancers because omega-3 fatty acids help maintain a good blood supply to the brain by keeping its blood vessels clear. Foods that are rich in antioxidants are also good for the brain because they decrease the free radicals in the brain. Examples of food rich in antioxidants are guavas, blueberries and dark chocolate. Dark chocolate also has caffeine, which is a natural brain stimulant. Caffeine is good for the brain if taken in regulated amounts. Lastly, since glucose is the major fuel that makes the brain work, foods that are rich in carbohydrates are also advised. Take note however that these are complex carbohydrates, so that a steady, not a fluctuating blood sugar supply is given to the brain. Examples of complex carbohydrates are whole grain bread, brown rice and oats.

One should invest on enhancing brain power now. It could be done by lifestyle modification.

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Coping With ADHD

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Posted 26 Mar 2011 — by admin
Category Diseases and Conditions, Health Procedures, Keeping Healthy

ADHD
Image Credit: Tiyok

It is important for parents and teachers to learn about ways in coping with ADHD. It is a fact that ADHD can hinder the maximum learning potential of a child in school. This is of great concern to those parties who are interested in the child’s education, which would be mostly the child’s parents and teachers.

It would be a great deal of waste if the child is by nature intelligent, and could have achieved much, but because of his inability to focus and impulsivity (brought about by having ADHD), he would not be able to develop his maximum potential.

Thus, these tips on coping with ADHD would be really valuable to be able to improve the ability of the child to grasp his lessons in school even amidst ADHD.

Behavior modification is one of the most effective strategies in coping with ADHD. The following techniques of coping with ADHD are all behavior modification strategies:

1.      Use of reward & consequence

-          Educators can swear for the effectiveness of the use of positive or negative consequences  either to reinforce positive behavior or to correct negative behavior.

-          For example, a child can be given verbal praises when he was able to accomplish a given task.  On the other hand, he can be given reprimands or simple punishments for not remaining on his seat during classroom discussion.

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2.      Repetition when giving instructions

-          This strategy on coping with ADHD is especially effective for children that get low scores on exams not because of not knowing the answer, but because of not following exam instructions. Even with difficulty in focusing on something, a child can find it easier to follow instructions when it is repeated by the teacher for several times.

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3.      Providing frequent verbal feedback

-          Attention span is frequently shorter on a child with ADHD, that is why when given a task, it is helpful to prompt the child with frequent verbal feedback to make sure that the child is able to follow through the instruction of the task. Verbal feedback can also be used in motivating the child to finish a task when the teacher observes that the child seems to be losing his interest or attention towards the task.

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4.      Use of routines

-          This is another strategy of coping with ADHD that addresses a child’s carelessness with regards to details of everyday activities. Forgetfulness about simple details is one common problem of children with ADHD. If a routine is practiced daily, the child has a lesser tendency to forget small details regarding everyday tasks.

5.      Teach the child to organize his things

-          Children with ADHD have the tendency to lose things such as school supplies or even toys. Organizing his things into how they are placed in his room decreases the tendency for the child to forget where his things are.

6.      Use planners, lists, written reminders or posted notes

-          Planners can help in organizing the schedule of upcoming activities like assignments or tests. This can improve the child’s anticipation and preparation for such activities. Lists, written reminders and posted notes can help the child to be always “on track” of the tasks that he has to accomplish.

7.      Breaking down long, complicated tasks into a series or short, simple tasks

-          A child with ADHD will usually get easily exhausted with longer tasks. If the task is broken down into a series of small tasks, each small task accomplished can give a sense of achievement to the child and thus, will increase the child’s eagerness to accomplish the task.

It is a rule of thumb in special education that “no two children are alike”. These strategies in coping with ADHD may be effective for one but may not work for the other. However, the above mentioned techniques in coping with ADHD may be tried by parents because these techniques has been tried and proven to increase the ability of a child to focus on school lessons and activities.

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Skin Perfection with Nature’s Best

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Posted 25 Mar 2011 — by admin
Category Health Procedures, Keeping Healthy

Naturally occurring products do not cause serious side effects as artificial products do. Natural foods are better than processed ones; natural creams are better than heavily scented ones. Natural ingredients are best because they do not produce allergies.  They also do not alter the body’s metabolism that may cause illness.

On the other hand, most artificial products contain components that can cause lots of allergies and could also be hazardous to health. Many of these artificial creams and skin make-ups sometimes cause skin allergies, and in some cases, even more serious side effects.   Caution is recommended when trying out a new product.

This is where Nature’s Best comes in.  It offers skin perfection, natural products that are free from major artificial components. These products are hypoallergenic, effective and reliable. The day cream is a good method to remove black heads and white heads, and to make the skin cleaner and creamier. It contains natural substances that eliminate destructive toxins. This day cream are also affordable.

The night cream has the same natural action as the day cream. You do not have to worry about destructive substances touching your skin.

You may also want to eliminate those eye bags and laugh lines around your eyes with the eye serum. Pamper yourself by ensuring that you get the most out of the natural skin products provided by Nature’s Best.

A healthy, glowing skin reflects a healthy lifestyle and a healthy body.

Aside from the skin products, there are countless of safe products you can use. Be smart and picky about what product to promote and purchase. Always read the labels and ascertain that you do not have allergies to the components.

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What is Polycystic Ovary Syndrome?

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Posted 24 Mar 2011 — by admin
Category Diseases and Conditions

What is Polycystic Ovary Syndrome?

Many women are now familiar with polycystic ovary syndrome because it is a common diagnosis in women, especially for those who are already in the reproductive age. The diagnosis of polycystic ovary syndrome is of great concern to females who are married and planning to have a child. This is because the condition is almost always connected to infertility. What is polycystic ovary syndrome? How do you know that you have it?

Polycystic ovary syndrome, more commonly known by its acronym PCOS, is a condition wherein there is a development of multiple ovarian cysts in females. These ovarian cysts are connected to the hormonal changes that occur to a woman’s reproductive system on the different phases of the menstrual cycle. Normally, the ovarian cysts may resolve by themselves and go away. But for the case of PCOS, the ovarian cysts remain.

This condition is very much about the hormonal system of the body. When we talk about polycystic ovary syndrome, the most commonly mentioned hormones are: insulin and male hormones such as testosterone. It is said that the cause of PCOS is the body’s resistance to insulin, which is a hormone that controls blood sugar levels. Because of insulin resistance, the body secretes comparably high amounts of insulin, and when the body secretes high amounts of insulin, the ovaries also secrete high amounts of testosterone. Normally, the male hormone testosterone is also present in the female’s body but only in small amounts. In polycystic ovary syndrome, testosterone is present in higher amounts.

The manifestations of polycystic ovary syndrome are very much explained by the presence of higher amounts of male hormones:

1.      Irregularities in menstruation

-may be in the form of amenorrhea (absence of menstruation), oligomenorrhea (fewer menstrual flow) or very irregular menstrual cycles

- This poses the greatest threat to a woman’s fertility, because women with PCOS have irregular menstruation owing to the fact that they do not ovulate every month

2.    Acne

3.    Excessive hair growth

4.    Obesity

Polycystic ovary syndrome can be treated by addressing the problem of insulin resistance. Pharmacological management includes prescribing medicines such as metformin, which can address the body’s problem with insulin. In addition to this,  anti-androgen medications are also prescribed to address the irregularities in menstruation. These anti-androgen medications also can decrease skin problems caused by PCOs such as acne. However, non-pharmacological intervention can also help such as regular exercise and diet modification.

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The Secrets of a Youthful Skin

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Posted 23 Mar 2011 — by admin
Category Health Procedures, Home Remedies, Keeping Healthy

Youthful skin is the dream of majority of people, especially women. Even when aging cannot be prevented, a person can still do some magic to hide his actual age. With the advancement of technology and the full-blast research on anti-aging regimens, there are no more reasons for you to look ugly when you reach old age. Here are the things you can do.

Vitamin-Enriched Products

The skin, like the rest of the body, lives well with sufficient vitamins and minerals. When you buy your regular skin products, go for the vitamin-enriched. This is now the trend in skin care. Manufacturers incorporate vitamins in almost all beauty products. If you still live with your old makeup and night creams, it is time to switch and adapt the youthful changes.

Go for Organics

Unlike chemicals, organic products come from all natural ingredients that do not harm the skin. If you want to maintain the youthfulness of your skin, organically manufactured products are highly recommended.

Maintain a Happy Disposition in Life

The last key in maintaining a great looking skin that is not available anywhere is your happy disposition in life. Since you cannot remove all the stress, just learn to live with it. Keep smiling and you will feel happier and more beautiful.

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How to Conceive a Baby Boy

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Posted 21 Mar 2011 — by admin
Category Home Remedies, Keeping Healthy, Physiology

Baby Boy
Image Credit: mommylife.net

It is every man’s dream to have a baby boy. If you and your partner are aiming to make your dream come true, there are scientifically proven ways to assist you in achieving your goal. Although there is no hundred percent certainty that these methods can succeed with you because of the factor of individual response, you may want to try these methods on how to conceive a baby boy.

The Concept

The gender of the child depends on the chromosome present in the sperm cell. If it is the Y sperm cell that fertilizes the egg, you have a baby boy and if it is the X, it is a girl.

Time the Ovulation

Y sperms are fast and very energetic but easily die. If you have the intercourse during the ovulation of the woman, the Y sperm reaches the egg first and fertilize it. But if the contact is before ovulation, most of the Y sperm are dead by the time the egg cell comes.

Depth of Penetration

The Y sperms are more fragile than the X sperms. If you want to reduce the damage in the male sperm and place it closer to the egg, deep penetration is recommended.

Female Orgasm

Female orgasm creates a more alkaline environment which is supportive of the Y sperm. If the orgasm of the female happens before that of the man, you can keep more Y sperm alive.

Combining these three tips can increase your chance of having a baby boy.

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Explaining Children With Autism: What Are The Reasons Underlying Their Actions?

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Posted 20 Mar 2011 — by admin
Category Diseases and Conditions, Keeping Healthy, Psychiatry

Parents of children with autism might be wondering what the experts say regarding the reasons why their children act in a particular, exceptional way. What is behind the typical head banging or the hand flapping? Why do they appear to be socially withdrawn? What are the explanations behind their other manifestations?

It was found through research that the brains of children with autism are not “wired” the same way as those with the regular kids’ brain. The world is perceived by an individual based on the way his brain interprets the different sensory stimuli. Everything that a person sees, hears, smells, tastes or feels are recognized and interpreted by the brain. However, for children with autism, the brain interprets the world in a different way. For example, sounds that are not too loud for the regular person may be perceived as irritatingly loud for someone with autism. This phenomenon is known as sensory integration disorder.

Sensory integration disorder may explain a lot why children with autism act in very unusual ways. These are some of the most common stereotypical behavior observed in children with autism:

1.      Children with autism have routine preferences. They might have a preference for a specific type of food or clothing.  This is because only this particular type is acceptable by  their sensation. Children with autism may be very particular with textures of food and clothing that is introduced to them. They can easily detect even the slightest difference to their preferred texture.

2.      Children with autism usually manifests hand flapping, head banging or the need to jump in place. It is explained that the child does this because he is “wanting to feel the sensation of movement and position”.

3.      Children with autism often throws tantrums. It may be because what is moderate or modulated by a regular person may be very irritating to these children. There can be a lot of ordinary visual or auditory stimulations in the environment that can already be very annoying to children with autism.

Aside from sensory integration disorder, autism is also characterized by impairments in speech, which can be an additional frustration to the child. The child may have difficulty in expressing what he wants to other people. Some children with autism may have delayed speech development or worse, others may even remain non-verbal. Another thing, these children also have impairments in social skills. Thus, they can also be very socially withdrawn.

Children with autism can actually act in very unusual ways. But knowing that there are reasons behind their atypical behavior, makes a parent or teacher more understanding and patient, even when already frustrated.

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How Would You Know If Your Child Has ADHD?

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Posted 17 Mar 2011 — by admin
Category Diseases and Conditions, Health Procedures, Psychiatry

Signs to help you draw the line between having a child that is naturally active and having a child who has ADHD. ADHD, also known as attention – deficit hyperactivity disorder, is a disorder that is common in school-aged children, and characterized by the triad of inattention, hyperactivity or impulsivity. A child who has ADHD need not manifest all three symptoms. In fact, ADHD is divided into three subtypes depending on which of the triad predominantly manifests in the child.

The subtypes of ADHD are the following:

  1. ADHD Predominantly Inattentive
  2. ADHD Predominantly Hyperactive Impulsive
  3. ADHD Predominantly Combined

One thing that may be of great concern to a parent is that manifestations of ADHD can affect a child’s social functioning and academic performance. Often, it is the school teacher who first suspects that a child has ADHD.

The school teacher will most likely inform the parent with regards to the observed signs of ADHD. However, a lot of children who has ADHD are within a regular classroom setting, and most teachers in the regular classroom setting do not have special training with regards to detecting signs of children with special needs, in particular, children with ADHD. Thus, it will also be helpful to a parent to know such signs and symptoms to be able to have an idea if the child has ADHD.

Based on the DSM-IV Diagnostic Criteria for ADHD established by psychiatry experts, the following are “red flags” that can make a parent suspect that his or her child has ADHD:

  • For the predominantly inattentive type:

1.      Child has poor attention span

(a child with less than 10 minutes focus to a particular task is said to have poor attention span)

2.      Child is very forgetful with details

3.      Child often complains of losing his things (like school supplies, toys, etc.)

4.      Child has problems with following instructions, as observed when answering exams or when child is instructed a particular chore (take note that inability to follow instructions is not because of inability to understand the instructions)

5.      Child often commits mistakes on school exams because of carelessness

6.      Child has difficulty in organizing things

7.      Child is unwilling to participate on tasks that require prolonged mental effort

  • For the predominantly hyperactive – impulsive type:

1.      Child is excessively talkative

2.      Child seems never to run out of energy

3.      Child seems to always move about

4.      Child has difficulty to comply when asked to behave

5.      Child has cannot remain on his seat for long periods of time

6.      Child loves to butt into other people’s conversations

7.      Child butts into someone who is talking (answers questions before someone has finished asking)

8.      Child has trouble with taking turns

  • A combination of the above signs and symptoms characterizes that a child who has ADHD is categorized in the predominantly combined subtype.

Parents, in collaboration with school teachers, must be watchful of these enumerated “red flags” in identifying if a child has ADHD. Although issues have been raised with regards to the effect of labeling a child with “having ADHD”, special educational needs might be met if we can identify that a child has ADHD. If a parent or concerned school teacher has suspicions that a child has ADHD, the professional that can best help with making a specific diagnosis is a developmental pediatrician.

(For more detailed readings on the DSM-IV criteria for ADHD, the complete criteria may be read on any psychology or psychiatry book)

This video was uploaded by Johnson and Johnson, which is about child ADHD.

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The Four Levels of Stress: Which level are you in?

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Posted 16 Mar 2011 — by admin
Category Diseases and Conditions, Keeping Healthy, Physiology
  • The four levels of stress differentiate the extent at which stressors cause an impact to an individual’s daily life. These levels present the extremes of a spectrum wherein stress is healthy to an individual at one end, and very harmful to an individual on the other end.

These are the four levels of stress:

Level 1 :

The first level is characterized by mild anxiety. Among the four levels of stress, it is the first level that is considered as “healthy stress”. On this level, a person is highly motivated and his energy

levels are sufficient to cope up with the stressor. It is also in this level that a person feels very productive. Examples of situations of the first level are times when manageable life changing events occur, like a job promotion or getting married.

Level 2 :

The second  level of stress is experienced by an individual when a stressor continues to make a considerable effect on an individual’s daily life. At this stage, the individual may already have some complaints of overloading and a feeling of overwhelm and distress.

Level 3 :

The third level is already characterized as chronic stress. If the stressor is still not addressed

during this level of stress, there would already be explicit negative manifestations of stress such

as feelings of irritability and even somatic manifestations such as tension-related headaches.

Level 4 :

At this stage, the individual chronically feels exhausted, both physically & emotionally. The individual may even feel a reduced sense of self-fulfillment. Some serious somatic manifestations without supporting medical diagnosis may also be experienced. This final level among the four levels of stress requires consideration of anti-stress remediations.

  • There are factors that can determine which among the four levels of stress a person might go through.
  • First, the characteristics of the stressor may contribute to the level of stress an individual might be experiencing. Some stressors are acute stressors which can place an individual on the lower levels. Examples of acute stressors are daily life hassles like traffic jam, arguing with an officemate or preparing for an important exam. However, some stressors are chronic, and can bring the individual on the higher levels of the four levels of stress. Among the major chronic stressors are: unsatisfactory marriage, very demanding job or financial difficulties.
  • The controllability of an event also influences our levels of stress. A stressor that is more controllable like dealing with a stubborn colleague brings a person to lower levels of stress. However, major uncontrollable events like having cancer or death of a loved one can really cause the individual to experience the higher levels of stress.
  • These four levels of stress are identified to help one determine if stress has already reached a level dangerous to one’s physical and mental health. It is advised that a person should watch out for signs that one is already on the higher levels of stress. It may be a loved one or it may be you. Once determined, one must seek help regarding coping mechanisms to avoid self-injurious behavior like suicide or major psychosomatic illnesses.
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