Smart Decisions During Open Enrollment Can Save You Thousands
In these tough economic times, millions of Americans are seeking new ways to reduce household spending. However, many are not taking simple steps to save money during... Read more
Fractures Kill: Protect Your Bones With Quality Supplements
by John Neustadt, ND and Steve Pieczenik, MD, PhD
It is never too early to start working to prevent osteoporosis. During childhood and throughout pub... Read more
Big Breakfast Helps You Lose Weight
by Nicole Gregory
It's those cravings that do us in -- cookies, ice cream, potato chips. The answer, however, is not to banish snacks from your home or to force you... Read more
You know staying fit is important, especially if you want to manage your heartburn. But who wants to exercise indoors when it's sunny and warm outside? Fortunately, you don't have to! It's time to try nature's gym for a workout that's just as good, if not better!
1. Instead of a calf machine Hit the hills. With just a slight incline, your calves will get a workout mere calf raises can never match. There's no substitute for outdoor terrain, says Kelli Calabrese, a Texas-based trainer and co-author of Feminine, Firm & Fit (Great Atlantic Publishing Group 2004). Jump to full text of this article.
Amid parties and presents, decorating and travel, and the general holiday hubbub, finding time to exercise can be a real challenge. "Exercise requires discipline, and it can be difficult to hold strong with so many holiday celebrations and obligations," notes Jenny Breuer, director of the fitness and wellness programs at Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas. What's more, "the notion that the holidays are a time of rest, relaxation and celebration tends to give people an excuse to break from their normal routine," adds Breuer.
To make matters worse, 'tis the season when you're likely to indulge in eggnog, latkes, Christmas cookies and a dozen other high-calorie goodies that you don't usually consume during the rest of the year. Jump to complete article here
With so much media attention and information flying around, it's hard to find one coherent source for H1N1 flu information. The Children's Physician Network has put together a comprehensive guide to H1N1 influenza including information on prevention, the vaccine, symptoms and much more. You can find A Parent's Guide to H1N1 Influenza on the CPN website.
Approach Alcohol Consumption with Caution During the Holidays: Your Health
By Rallie McAllister
As the holiday season approaches, many Americans will be celebrating with a glass of good cheer. While drinking a little alcohol can help you relax and enjoy the festivities, drinking a little too much can lead to embarrassing lapses in judgment, among other undesirable consequences.
If you don't want to end up wearing a lampshade at your first party of the season, it's a good idea to consume small quantities of alcohol with big doses of caution. This is especially true for folks who don't imbibe on a regular basis, since it's easy to underestimate the intoxicating effects of even a single alcoholic beverage.
If avoiding intoxication is your goal, limiting the amount of alcohol you drink is essential. It's also helpful to be aware of other factors that can hasten the loss of sobriety, including drinking alcohol on an empty stomach.
Following the consumption of wine, beer, or spirits, approximately 20 percent of alcohol is absorbed in the stomach, while the remaining 80 percent is absorbed in the small intestine. When it is consumed with food, alcohol spends more time in the stomach, and takes longer to enter the small intestine, and ultimately, the bloodstream.
A gradual release of alcohol into the bloodstream means that its initial effects are less pronounced. If you plan to drink and be merry, it's a good idea to eat a snack or a light meal while you're at it.
If you're watching your weight, skipping the snacks and mixing alcohol with a diet drink might save a few calories, but it could cost you in other ways. Compared to those that are sweetened with sugar, artificially sweetened mixers may accelerate the delivery of alcohol to the bloodstream.
The results of a small study conducted at the Royal Adelaide Hospital in Adelaide, Australia, suggest that the artificial sweeteners in diet drinks may speed stomach emptying and lead to rapid elevations in blood alcohol levels.
In the study, researchers measured stomach-emptying times and blood alcohol levels in fasting male volunteers. The men consumed vodka mixed with orange juice on one day, and the same amount of vodka prepared mixed with a sugar-free, orange-flavored mixer on another day.
When the volunteers drank vodka mixed with orange juice, the average time required for half the stomach contents to empty was 36.3 minutes, but when they drank vodka with the sugar-free mixer, the average time was much faster, at 21.1 minutes. The volunteers' peak blood alcohol concentrations were also substantially higher following consumption of the artificially sweetened vodka beverage.
The results of this study suggest that when mixed drinks are consumed with artificially sweetened beverages instead of sugar-sweetened beverages, the intoxicating effects of alcohol are experienced more rapidly and more intensely.
Champagne is another alcoholic beverage that should be consumed with caution. While carbon dioxide gas creates the characteristic bubbles in champagne, it also appears to accelerate the body's absorption of alcohol, leading to more rapid and pronounced intoxication.
In a study conducted at the University of Epsom in the United Kingdom, researchers compared the effects of drinking fizzy champagne to those produced by drinking the same quantity of flat champagne in a small group of subjects. They found that within 20 minutes of consuming the beverages, the blood alcohol levels produced by the bubbly champagne were significantly higher than those produced by the flat champagne.
Certain medications can increase your sensitivity to alcohol, including over-the-counter antihistamines and prescription drugs used to treat anxiety, depression, and insomnia. Before you take a drink, be sure to read the labels to make sure it's safe.
Your gender, size, and body composition also influence your reaction to alcohol. In general, the smaller you are, and the more body fat you have, the more quickly you'll respond to the intoxicating effects of alcohol.
In most cases, women are more sensitive to alcohol than men, since they tend to weigh less and have a higher proportion of fat to lean muscle. Hormonal fluctuations can increase a woman's sensitivity at various stages of her menstrual cycle. Compared to men, women also have lower levels of alcohol dehydrogenase, the enzyme responsible for the breakdown of alcohol in the body.
Regardless of your size or gender, drinking too much of any type of alcoholic beverage can significantly impair your judgment, as well as your ability to drive. Before you toss back a drink to celebrate the holiday season, make sure you toss your car keys to a designated driver.
Rallie McAllister, M.D., M.P.H., is a family physician in Kingsport, Tenn., and author of "Healthy Lunchbox: The Working Mom's Guide to Keeping You and Your Kids Trim." Her Web site is http://www.rallieonhealth.com.
COPYRIGHT 2006 CREATORS SYNDICATE, INC.
Red-hot stabbing pains...like being jabbed with an ice pick...these are just some of the ways people describe the pain of migraines.
Nearly 30 million Americans suffer from migraines, with women being afflicted three times more than men.
Migraines are a recurrent headache lasting four to 72 hours. In addition to debilitating pain, migraines can bring a host of other symptoms. A survey by the National Headache Foundation (NHF) revealed that more than 50 percent of respondents said they frequently or always experience symptoms such as nausea, neck pain, or sensitivity to lights, sounds or smells when suffering from a migraine.
Migraine characteristics can include:
* Pain typically on one side of the head
* Pain with a pulsating or throbbing quality
* Moderate to intense pain that affects daily activities
* Nausea or vomiting
* Sensitivity to light or sound
* Visual disturbances or aura
About 20 percent of migraine sufferers experience aura, the warning associated with migraine, from twenty minutes to one hour before the actual onset of migraine.
Diagnosing migraines can be tricky. The Migraine Research Foundation says that since symptoms vary widely, migraine is often misdiagnosed - and is never diagnosed in about half of all sufferers. Your doctor needs to analyze your symptoms, conduct medical tests, and eliminate other possible causes of the headache.
Treatments
There are three approaches to treating migraines, all of which should be administered by a qualified physician: acute, preventive, and complementary.
* Acute treatment uses drugs to relieve symptoms when attacks happen. The Food and Drug Administration has approved a small number of over-the-counter products to treat migraine. Prescription anti-inflammatory agents may be effective for some migraines. There are over 100 drugs used in migraine treatment, however, so know that it will take some time to find the right medicine or combination of medicines.
* Preventive treatment involves daily medication to reduce the number of attacks and to lessen the pain. With some patients, life-style changes can help reduce migraine frequency.
* Complementary treatment does not use medication. It involves biofeedback, exercise, relaxation techniques and proper rest and nutrition.
The NHF offers these tips for dealing with migraine pain and associated symptoms:
* Get help. Discuss the symptoms of your migraine with your healthcare provider.
* If you experience nausea or vomiting as associated symptoms of your migraine, talk with your healthcare provider about other forms of your medication such as injections, nasal sprays or tablets that do not require drinking water to take them.
* Avoid identifiable migraine triggers and practice a healthy lifestyle.
* Track your migraines. Write down when your migraines occur. Bring your results to your healthcare professional to review.
The American Headache Society also recommends that you restrict use of acute migraine treatment to no more than nine days per month. If you find that you need more acute medication than that, then migraine prevention therapy is likely needed.
Talk to your doctor. There is help available that can help you manage migraines and not let them take over your life.
The grill is, perhaps, the main reason why many people gain weight during the summer.
It's not just the grilled ribs, steaks, hot dogs and burgers, either. It's the potato and macaroni salads that we pile on the side, and the much-loved ambrosia recipes that wrap normally healthy fruits into a mountain of whipped cream. And it's all those sugary drinks we find refreshing.
But take heart. Your next barbecue doesn't have to pack a punch with extra pounds. Registered nurse Carla Cocco, practical nursing clinical coordinator at Brown Mackie College -- Cincinnati, offers some sensible advice on how to avoid extra calories. "Instead of grilling ribs and sausages, substitute these high-fat meats with chicken, fish or pork. Pork tenderloin is virtually as lean as chicken breast," she says. "It is important, though, to use a meat thermometer to ensure the meat is cooked thoroughly."
In a U.S. government partnership program called the National Food Safety Program, the Food and Drug Administration collaborated with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other agencies to promote safe internal cooking temperatures. They recommend minimum internal temperatures of 165 F for poultry, 145 F for salmon, and 160 F for pork.
"You can pull a pork roast from the grill when the temperature is a few degrees lower," says Cocco, "because it needs to sit for 10 minutes before serving. During that time, the internal temperature will rise."
While summer weight gain can be minimized by grilling leaner meats and fish, you can also ward off extra pounds by considering portion size. Chances are, when grazing the food table, you will see plenty of dishes you want to taste.
"We often want to sample everything," says Cocco. "The key here is 'sample.' Take smaller portions of each item. Instead of a half cup of potato salad, take just a quarter cup." Spoon a portion size on to your plate that would fit in the palm of your hand. Then move on. "Portion sizes for meats are even smaller," Cocco adds. "Just 3 to 4 ounces is the recommended serving size."
Substitution is a big summer rule of thumb. "Instead of nibbling on cheese and crackers, try fruit chunks dipped in yogurt," recommends Cocco. "Instead of ice cream treats, give the kids sugar-free popsicles. They're still cool and sweet and contain only about 15 calories."
Substitutions can go a long way toward maintaining a healthy diet. For instance, you can enjoy potato salad with fewer calories by using a vinegar-and-oil-based dressing, like German potato salad. "Adding nuts to the dish provides huge benefits in terms of vitamins and protein," Cocco says. She also suggests drinking water after your first glass of soda, lemonade or wine. "Don't drink your calories, especially when there is so much else to taste," she advises.
Other healthy summer tips focus on activity levels. When attending a barbecue hosted by another, offer to help serve or clean up. When you're busy, you are less likely to eat as much. "After all, you're there to visit with people, not gorge," says Cocco. "You can also park down the street, and walk to the home. Every step counts."
Above all, whether you're the host or a guest, join in on the outdoor fun. Pick up a badminton racket, or get in on a game of horseshoes or volleyball. Even toss a few water balloons. That's what summer is all about.
The rate of cavities in baby teeth is on the rise, according to the most recent report on the topic from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In fact, a whopping 28 percent of children 2 to 5 years old have cavities.
Dentists point to several factors contributing to the rise, including increased consumption of juices and soda.
And while baby teeth will eventually wind up with the Tooth Fairy, it's still important to care for them as though they are permanent teeth, with one major difference.
"Parents of young children should steer clear of fluoride toothpastes for their kids until their child has the ability to spit out the toothpaste," said Dr. Theodorou of Glen Ridge Family Dental.
Fluoride is an effective tool in the prevention of cavities, but in young children who do not have the ability to spit out the toothpaste, the consumption of too much fluoride can have a negative side effect known as fluorosis. This can result in unsightly spotting of the permanent teeth.
"It is estimated that kids under 4 swallow between one-third and two-thirds of the toothpaste they use when brushing their teeth," said Dr. Theodorou.
It is therefore recommended that youngsters brush their teeth using a non-fluoride toothpaste. Fluoride-free products such as Baby Orajel Tooth & Gum Cleanser (recommended for babies 4 months and older) and Orajel Toddler Training Toothpaste (recommended for toddlers and children up to age 4) are safe if swallowed when used as directed.
"Using a non-fluoride toothpaste still allows a caregiver to remove the plaque that builds up on teeth, as well as helping to establish a pattern for life of good oral care habits," said Dr. Theodorou.
Other tips for encouraging good oral care health at a young age:
* Select a toothbrush with soft bristles
* Encourage your toddler to engage in brushing his teeth twice a day
* Bring along a "friend" to the bathroom sink - such as a favorite stuffed animal or doll - so the "friend" can also have her teeth brushed
* Encourage toddlers to drink plenty of water after meals. This is especially important with toddlers who won't allow parents to brush their teeth as often as recommended.
