The biggest difference between anorexia and bulimia is that people suffering from bulimia eat large amounts of food and then throw up. This is called binge and purge. Anorexics do not eat large amounts and throw up. Bulimics do.
source: http://www.mamashealth.com/anorexia.asp
Thursday, August 7, 2008
Monday, August 4, 2008
anorexia and pregnancy
In order to have a healthy child, the average pregnant woman should gain between 25 and 35 pounds. Telling this to a person with anorexia is like telling a normal person to gain 100 pounds. If you are anorexic, you may have trouble conceiving a baby and carrying it to term. Irregular menstrual cycles and weak bones make it more difficult to conceive. If you are underweight and do not eat the proper variety of foods, you and your baby could be in danger.
Women with eating disorders have higher rates of miscarriages and your baby might be born prematurely which puts them at risk for many medical problems.
All pregnant women should receive proper prenatal care. Those recovering from anorexia or bulimia need special care. You should always take your prenatal vitamins and have regular prenatal visits. You should not exercise unless your doctor says it is okay and it is a good idea to enroll in a prenatal exercise class to be sure you are not overexerting yourself.
source: http://www.mamashealth.com/anorexia.asp
Women with eating disorders have higher rates of miscarriages and your baby might be born prematurely which puts them at risk for many medical problems.
All pregnant women should receive proper prenatal care. Those recovering from anorexia or bulimia need special care. You should always take your prenatal vitamins and have regular prenatal visits. You should not exercise unless your doctor says it is okay and it is a good idea to enroll in a prenatal exercise class to be sure you are not overexerting yourself.
source: http://www.mamashealth.com/anorexia.asp
Thursday, July 31, 2008
family member has anorexia?
A Family Member has an Eating Disorder
If you have a family member that with an Eating Disorder, they need a lot of support. Suggest that your family member see an eating disorder expert. Be prepared for denial, resistance, and even anger. A doctor and/or a counselor can help them battle their eating disorder.
Symptoms of Anorexia?
There are many symptoms for anorexia, some individuals may not experience all of they symptoms. The symptoms include: Body weight that is inconsistent with age, build and height (usually 15% below normal weight).
Some other symptoms of anorexia are:
Loss of at least 3 consecutive menstrual periods (in women).
Not wanting or refusing to eat in public
Anxiety
Weakness
Brittle skin
Shortness of breath
Obsessiveness about calorie intake
Medical Consequences of anorexia?
There are many medical risks associated with anorexia. They include: shrunken bones, mineral loss, low body temperature, irregular heartbeat, permanent failure of normal growth, development of osteoporosis and bulimia nervosa.
Continued use of laxatives is harmful to the body. It wears out the bowel muscle and causes it to decrease in function. Some laxatives contain harsh substances that may be reabsorbed into your system.
source: http://www.mamashealth.com/anorexia.asp
If you have a family member that with an Eating Disorder, they need a lot of support. Suggest that your family member see an eating disorder expert. Be prepared for denial, resistance, and even anger. A doctor and/or a counselor can help them battle their eating disorder.
Symptoms of Anorexia?
There are many symptoms for anorexia, some individuals may not experience all of they symptoms. The symptoms include: Body weight that is inconsistent with age, build and height (usually 15% below normal weight).
Some other symptoms of anorexia are:
Loss of at least 3 consecutive menstrual periods (in women).
Not wanting or refusing to eat in public
Anxiety
Weakness
Brittle skin
Shortness of breath
Obsessiveness about calorie intake
Medical Consequences of anorexia?
There are many medical risks associated with anorexia. They include: shrunken bones, mineral loss, low body temperature, irregular heartbeat, permanent failure of normal growth, development of osteoporosis and bulimia nervosa.
Continued use of laxatives is harmful to the body. It wears out the bowel muscle and causes it to decrease in function. Some laxatives contain harsh substances that may be reabsorbed into your system.
source: http://www.mamashealth.com/anorexia.asp
Monday, July 28, 2008
what is anorexia?
Anorexia is an eating disorder where people starve themselves. Anorexia usually begins in young people around the onset of puberty. Individuals suffering from anorexia have extreme weight loss. Weight loss is usually 15% below the person's normal body weight. People suffering from anorexia are very skinny but are convinced that they are overweight. Weight loss is obtained by many ways. Some of the common techniques used are excessive exercise, intake of laxatives and not eating.
Anorexics have an intense fear of becoming fat. Their dieting habits develop from this fear. Anorexia mainly affects adolescent girls.
People with anorexia continue to think they are overweight even after they become extremely thin, are very ill or near death. Often they will develop strange eating habits such as refusing to eat in front of other people. Sometimes the individuals will prepare big meals for others while refusing to eat any of it.
The disorder is thought to be most common among people of higher socioeconomic classes and people involved in activities where thinness is especially looked upon, such as dancing, theater, and distance running
source: http://www.mamashealth.com/anorexia.asp
Anorexics have an intense fear of becoming fat. Their dieting habits develop from this fear. Anorexia mainly affects adolescent girls.
People with anorexia continue to think they are overweight even after they become extremely thin, are very ill or near death. Often they will develop strange eating habits such as refusing to eat in front of other people. Sometimes the individuals will prepare big meals for others while refusing to eat any of it.
The disorder is thought to be most common among people of higher socioeconomic classes and people involved in activities where thinness is especially looked upon, such as dancing, theater, and distance running
source: http://www.mamashealth.com/anorexia.asp
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Slimming Electric Belts and Russian Bells - Are they Fitness Rip-Offs or Fitness Bargains?
Have you ever heard of a belt that can help you get skinny? One that claims it can get you in shape? And what about the latest fitness craze - using Russian weights to get extra-fit? Possible? Here's what we found in two of our latest investigations.
Claim: "Use your Flex Abdominal Toning Belt for just 30 minutes a day, five days a week and in just weeks, your abs could be firmer, stronger and more toned. Satisfaction Guaranteed!" There are many different Web sites all with similar claims, but, in a nutshell, the claim is that the product is FDA approved, it will tone and strengthen your abs in just weeks, and it was shown effective in a clinical study by Dr. John Porcari at University of Wisconsin - La Crosse in 2004.
Facts: The Food and Drug Administration does regulate electrical muscle stimulators; however, most of the stimulators are intended for use in physical therapy and rehab. This is what the FDA Web site says about EMS products: "The FDA has cleared many electrical muscle stimulators for prescription use in treating medical conditions. Doctors may use electrical muscle stimulators for patients who require muscle re-education, relaxation of muscle spasms, increased range of motion, prevention of muscle atrophy, and for treating other medical conditions which usually result from a stroke, a serious injury, or major surgery. Again, the effect of using these devices is primarily to help a patient recover from impaired muscle function due to a medical condition, not to increase muscle size enough to affect appearance." And yes, it is true that the Slendertone Flex has met FDA's regulatory requirements and been "cleared by FDA for toning, strengthening and firming abdominal muscles."
According to Fabio Comana, M.A., M.S., an exercise physiologist for the American Council on Exercise, "The technology transmits a repeated low-grade impulse to stimulate low-grade, repeated muscle contractions. This form of technology has been used in physical therapy for decades to treat muscle trauma. Any time a group of muscles performs more work, it should offer some benefits. If this is used on very de-conditioned individuals with weak abdominals, the muscles will be stimulated to contract and will get stronger as long as overload is applied [the muscle does more work than what it is accustomed to]."
Fiction: The following is taken directly from the FDA Web site: "Using these devices alone will not give you 'six-pack' abs. Applying electrical current to muscles may cause muscles to contract. Stimulating muscles repeatedly with electricity may eventually result in muscles that are strengthened and toned to some extent but will not, based on currently available data, create a major change in your appearance without the addition of diet and regular exercise." Also, according to the FDA, which has approved this device: "While an EMS device may be able to temporarily strengthen, tone or firm a muscle, no EMS devices have been cleared at this time for weight loss, girth reduction, or for obtaining 'rock hard' abs."
"Spot reduction is a myth, and people often confuse improved abdominal endurance and strength with getting a washboard stomach. We all have a washboard, but for most, it is covered with a layer (of varying size) of fat tissue that has to be shed in order to show the six-pack," says Comana. Additionally, Comana has several issues with the design and methodology of the only study conducted on Slendertone.
The price: About $200.
Concerns: Only one researcher is cited as having done studies on Slendertone Flex. Why are there not more studies cited, or have there been no other studies done by other researchers, asks Christina "Tina" A. Geithner, Ph.D., a professor of exercise science at Gonzaga University and spokesperson for the American College of Sports Medicine. "I'd consider this device a fad and a rip-off," says Geithner.
Comana believes that just focusing on six-pack abs is a mistake. "What about the obliques and back muscles? The reason one should strengthen the abs is to protect the spine, not to gain a six-pack. The abdominal muscles need to be strengthened in balance with the obliques and the back. We should train people to move efficiently, not train muscles in isolation," he adds.
Bottom Line: If you want to develop washboard abs, this belt will not do it for you. Try ab work, cardio and a healthy, calorie-lowering diet.
Russian Kettlebells
Claim: This cannonball with a suitcase-like handle is better than free weights for strength training, and kettlebells are the only workout you need.
Facts: Kettlebells can provide a challenging, effective workout for those who are bored with traditional free weights or simply looking for an alternative. The design of the kettlebell results in its center-of-mass being outside the grip because of the handle placement. This results in a far different - and greater - challenge than that experienced in most free-weight exercises and can provide a terrific challenge to the muscles of the forearm, shoulder and core, says Jonathan Ross, a spokesperson for the American Council on Exercise.
Kettlebells can help people strength train and get them prepared for more real-life situations. "Kettlebell exercises help with regular everyday functions such as lifting groceries, carrying a pile of magazines, gardening, throwing out the trash or lifting a child - moving irregular-size objects and controlling the momentum," says Tedd Keating, Ph.D., a professor of physical education and human performance at Manhattan College. "Kettlebells use a swinging, curvilinear pattern when performed, whereas free weights have a linear pattern. It's actually in the process of accelerating and decelerating the movement of the kettlebells that the strength and power gains are made," he adds.
A kettlebell is a compact and convenient piece of fitness equipment. Once you figure out the appropriate weight of kettlebell you need, all the exercises use that one kettlebell. So you don't need an entire set to do your strength-training program. As you get stronger, you simply do additional repetitions and increase movement speed, says Keating.
Fiction: Kettlebells will provide you with a better workout than free weights. Actually, kettlebells are simply different from free weights, not necessarily better. "It provides a different, unique challenge to your muscular system," says Keating. This is not the be-all and end-all when it comes to fitness - it's just another tool in your fitness toolbox. Keating does not recommend kettlebells as a stand-alone fitness program. There are many other components needed for an appropriate fitness regime (e.g., cardio, flexibility, etc.).
Price: $24.95 (10 pound) to $109.95 (100 pound)
by Charles Stuart Platkin
Concerns: Kettlebells can be unexpectedly heavy, and because the design adds an additional "unwieldy" component, that can be both helpful and dangerous. The kettlebells' greatest strengths are also their greatest weaknesses. "Many of the movements with the kettlebells are done rapidly - thus generating a significant need to control the momentum of the weight when accelerating and decelerating it," says Ross. Additionally, kettlebells can create an excessive challenge to the forearm muscles, putting the wrist at significantly greater risk of injury.
"The weight of the kettlebell is far outside the grip, thus dramatically increasing the torque on the wrist joint (imagine trying to swing a sledgehammer like a carpentry hammer). This property of the kettlebell - one of its most frequently stated attributes - needs to be respected and handled with care at the introduction of kettlebell training. A frequent mistake people make is to compare what it feels like to lift a 25-pound dumbbell overhead to lifting a 25-pound kettlebell. Given the different properties of the two, a far lighter kettlebell should be used," says Ross.
Bottom Line: Kettlebells can be very effective if used appropriately and very dangerous if not. "Their use should be undertaken by a competent professional well-versed in and espousing a respect for a variety of training methods and aware of the advantages and disadvantages of each," says Ross.
source: http://www.dietdetective.com/content/view/3401/3/
Claim: "Use your Flex Abdominal Toning Belt for just 30 minutes a day, five days a week and in just weeks, your abs could be firmer, stronger and more toned. Satisfaction Guaranteed!" There are many different Web sites all with similar claims, but, in a nutshell, the claim is that the product is FDA approved, it will tone and strengthen your abs in just weeks, and it was shown effective in a clinical study by Dr. John Porcari at University of Wisconsin - La Crosse in 2004.
Facts: The Food and Drug Administration does regulate electrical muscle stimulators; however, most of the stimulators are intended for use in physical therapy and rehab. This is what the FDA Web site says about EMS products: "The FDA has cleared many electrical muscle stimulators for prescription use in treating medical conditions. Doctors may use electrical muscle stimulators for patients who require muscle re-education, relaxation of muscle spasms, increased range of motion, prevention of muscle atrophy, and for treating other medical conditions which usually result from a stroke, a serious injury, or major surgery. Again, the effect of using these devices is primarily to help a patient recover from impaired muscle function due to a medical condition, not to increase muscle size enough to affect appearance." And yes, it is true that the Slendertone Flex has met FDA's regulatory requirements and been "cleared by FDA for toning, strengthening and firming abdominal muscles."
According to Fabio Comana, M.A., M.S., an exercise physiologist for the American Council on Exercise, "The technology transmits a repeated low-grade impulse to stimulate low-grade, repeated muscle contractions. This form of technology has been used in physical therapy for decades to treat muscle trauma. Any time a group of muscles performs more work, it should offer some benefits. If this is used on very de-conditioned individuals with weak abdominals, the muscles will be stimulated to contract and will get stronger as long as overload is applied [the muscle does more work than what it is accustomed to]."
Fiction: The following is taken directly from the FDA Web site: "Using these devices alone will not give you 'six-pack' abs. Applying electrical current to muscles may cause muscles to contract. Stimulating muscles repeatedly with electricity may eventually result in muscles that are strengthened and toned to some extent but will not, based on currently available data, create a major change in your appearance without the addition of diet and regular exercise." Also, according to the FDA, which has approved this device: "While an EMS device may be able to temporarily strengthen, tone or firm a muscle, no EMS devices have been cleared at this time for weight loss, girth reduction, or for obtaining 'rock hard' abs."
"Spot reduction is a myth, and people often confuse improved abdominal endurance and strength with getting a washboard stomach. We all have a washboard, but for most, it is covered with a layer (of varying size) of fat tissue that has to be shed in order to show the six-pack," says Comana. Additionally, Comana has several issues with the design and methodology of the only study conducted on Slendertone.
The price: About $200.
Concerns: Only one researcher is cited as having done studies on Slendertone Flex. Why are there not more studies cited, or have there been no other studies done by other researchers, asks Christina "Tina" A. Geithner, Ph.D., a professor of exercise science at Gonzaga University and spokesperson for the American College of Sports Medicine. "I'd consider this device a fad and a rip-off," says Geithner.
Comana believes that just focusing on six-pack abs is a mistake. "What about the obliques and back muscles? The reason one should strengthen the abs is to protect the spine, not to gain a six-pack. The abdominal muscles need to be strengthened in balance with the obliques and the back. We should train people to move efficiently, not train muscles in isolation," he adds.
Bottom Line: If you want to develop washboard abs, this belt will not do it for you. Try ab work, cardio and a healthy, calorie-lowering diet.
Russian Kettlebells
Claim: This cannonball with a suitcase-like handle is better than free weights for strength training, and kettlebells are the only workout you need.
Facts: Kettlebells can provide a challenging, effective workout for those who are bored with traditional free weights or simply looking for an alternative. The design of the kettlebell results in its center-of-mass being outside the grip because of the handle placement. This results in a far different - and greater - challenge than that experienced in most free-weight exercises and can provide a terrific challenge to the muscles of the forearm, shoulder and core, says Jonathan Ross, a spokesperson for the American Council on Exercise.
Kettlebells can help people strength train and get them prepared for more real-life situations. "Kettlebell exercises help with regular everyday functions such as lifting groceries, carrying a pile of magazines, gardening, throwing out the trash or lifting a child - moving irregular-size objects and controlling the momentum," says Tedd Keating, Ph.D., a professor of physical education and human performance at Manhattan College. "Kettlebells use a swinging, curvilinear pattern when performed, whereas free weights have a linear pattern. It's actually in the process of accelerating and decelerating the movement of the kettlebells that the strength and power gains are made," he adds.
A kettlebell is a compact and convenient piece of fitness equipment. Once you figure out the appropriate weight of kettlebell you need, all the exercises use that one kettlebell. So you don't need an entire set to do your strength-training program. As you get stronger, you simply do additional repetitions and increase movement speed, says Keating.
Fiction: Kettlebells will provide you with a better workout than free weights. Actually, kettlebells are simply different from free weights, not necessarily better. "It provides a different, unique challenge to your muscular system," says Keating. This is not the be-all and end-all when it comes to fitness - it's just another tool in your fitness toolbox. Keating does not recommend kettlebells as a stand-alone fitness program. There are many other components needed for an appropriate fitness regime (e.g., cardio, flexibility, etc.).
Price: $24.95 (10 pound) to $109.95 (100 pound)
by Charles Stuart Platkin
Concerns: Kettlebells can be unexpectedly heavy, and because the design adds an additional "unwieldy" component, that can be both helpful and dangerous. The kettlebells' greatest strengths are also their greatest weaknesses. "Many of the movements with the kettlebells are done rapidly - thus generating a significant need to control the momentum of the weight when accelerating and decelerating it," says Ross. Additionally, kettlebells can create an excessive challenge to the forearm muscles, putting the wrist at significantly greater risk of injury.
"The weight of the kettlebell is far outside the grip, thus dramatically increasing the torque on the wrist joint (imagine trying to swing a sledgehammer like a carpentry hammer). This property of the kettlebell - one of its most frequently stated attributes - needs to be respected and handled with care at the introduction of kettlebell training. A frequent mistake people make is to compare what it feels like to lift a 25-pound dumbbell overhead to lifting a 25-pound kettlebell. Given the different properties of the two, a far lighter kettlebell should be used," says Ross.
Bottom Line: Kettlebells can be very effective if used appropriately and very dangerous if not. "Their use should be undertaken by a competent professional well-versed in and espousing a respect for a variety of training methods and aware of the advantages and disadvantages of each," says Ross.
source: http://www.dietdetective.com/content/view/3401/3/
Monday, July 21, 2008
The Facts Of Women’s Health And Fitness
Health is our number one concern and at times we tend to listen and follow any and all kinds of advice in order to improve our overall health and fitness issues. The practice of following blindly other's advice on boxing workout can at times hurt us if we don't take the time to check on the information received.
Facts about Women's Health and Fitness
* A women's metabolism is generally (not always) slower than that of a man's due to which the struggle to stay slender and fit is greater in a woman most times.
* Due to a slower metabolism rate, women tend to have a poor blood circulation, which is usually manifested through cold feet and hands in all types of seasons.
* A women's hormonal balance is very different to that of a man due to which they often have huge mood swings; this usually occurs during the time one expects her monthly period.
* Due to the above facts women deal differently with stress than men often, developing eating disorders.
Easy Steps to Improve Women's Health and Fitness
* Exercise – highly recommended women exercises are those that increase body metabolism such as jogging and power walking. Increasing body metabolism one burns calories quicker and improves blood circulation as well.
* Diet – high in fiber; this helps with digestion, a problem most women face due to slow metabolism rate. Fresh fruits and vegetables are always of great help as well.
* Water and other liquids – women's health and fitness is proportional to the amount of liquids one intakes. It is advised to drink no less than 2 liters daily. Coffee and tea do not count as they contain caffeine.
Regular Check Ups
Women's health and fitness can be kept under control when regular check ups and boxing training are conducted. Do not skip a check up only because you think you feel good and therefore nothing can be wrong. Many diseases only show signs and symptoms in the late stages at which time it is harder to deal with and cure it.
A Helpful Tip
Don't take advice or follow someone else's diet or exercise or Boxing Fitness schedule unless that advice comes from a professional – women's health and fitness is very complex and unique to each and every individual woman.
Get to know and understand your body's functions and needs. Seek and follow only professional advice to obtain best results and maintain optimum health and fitness conditions at all times.
source: http://www.nmcm.org/family-health-fitness/the-facts-of-women%e2%80%99s-health-and-fitness/1430
Facts about Women's Health and Fitness
* A women's metabolism is generally (not always) slower than that of a man's due to which the struggle to stay slender and fit is greater in a woman most times.
* Due to a slower metabolism rate, women tend to have a poor blood circulation, which is usually manifested through cold feet and hands in all types of seasons.
* A women's hormonal balance is very different to that of a man due to which they often have huge mood swings; this usually occurs during the time one expects her monthly period.
* Due to the above facts women deal differently with stress than men often, developing eating disorders.
Easy Steps to Improve Women's Health and Fitness
* Exercise – highly recommended women exercises are those that increase body metabolism such as jogging and power walking. Increasing body metabolism one burns calories quicker and improves blood circulation as well.
* Diet – high in fiber; this helps with digestion, a problem most women face due to slow metabolism rate. Fresh fruits and vegetables are always of great help as well.
* Water and other liquids – women's health and fitness is proportional to the amount of liquids one intakes. It is advised to drink no less than 2 liters daily. Coffee and tea do not count as they contain caffeine.
Regular Check Ups
Women's health and fitness can be kept under control when regular check ups and boxing training are conducted. Do not skip a check up only because you think you feel good and therefore nothing can be wrong. Many diseases only show signs and symptoms in the late stages at which time it is harder to deal with and cure it.
A Helpful Tip
Don't take advice or follow someone else's diet or exercise or Boxing Fitness schedule unless that advice comes from a professional – women's health and fitness is very complex and unique to each and every individual woman.
Get to know and understand your body's functions and needs. Seek and follow only professional advice to obtain best results and maintain optimum health and fitness conditions at all times.
source: http://www.nmcm.org/family-health-fitness/the-facts-of-women%e2%80%99s-health-and-fitness/1430
Friday, July 18, 2008
Warning bells over children's phone use
By RUTH HILL
New health warnings on the dangers of children using cellphones has reignited debate on whether the devices are safe for regular use by young people.
Toronto's public health department has recommended children under eight should use a cellphone only in emergencies, and teenagers should limit calls to less than 10 minutes so as to limit exposure to electro-magnetic radiation.
The agency says research on the effects on children is "very limited" but many scientists feel they may be more susceptible to any harmful effects from radiofrequency waves. They have a smaller head and brain, thinner skull bones, skin and ears, and their brains and nerves are still developing.
Today's children have started using cellphones at a younger age, so their lifetime exposure will be greater, it says.
Toronto Public Health supervisor Loren Vanderlinden told the Toronto Star scientists were previously "pretty dismissive" of any risk but it appeared people who had been using their cellphones over time were at greater risk of certain types of brain tumours.
Similar advisory bodies in Britain and Germany recommend discouraging non-essential use of cellphones by under-16s "as a precautionary measure".
The New Zealand Health Ministry recommends people use hands-free kits, keep calls short and use phones in areas with good signal.
Some studies have suggested a possible link between very high cellphone use and brain tumours, though others show no connection.
Public opposition this year to a controversial cellphone tower proposal for Atawhai, Nelson, contributed to Telecom putting its plans on hold. The company had proposed to erect the tower next to a playcentre, prompting fears of exposure.
National Radiation Laboratory manager Jim Turnbull, who advises the Health Ministry on the issue, said yesterday the New Zealand exposure standard limits for wireless devices were designed to provide protection for all age groups.
It was possible, however, that children were more vulnerable to "subtle effects" not yet discovered, due to their more absorbent brain tissue and longer lifetime exposure.
New Zealand Cancer Society medical director Chris Atkinson said last night research on the health effects of cellphone use was inconclusive. But it was possible a link would be found between excessive use and negative health effects in the future.
It was wise to pay attention to "a sensible public health comment" from a city "as sensible" as Toronto, he said.
It was a good idea "for many reasons" for children not to overuse their cellphones.
Newlands mother Paula Wortman, whose 11-year-old daughter, Celia, has owned a cellphone for about two years, said she had not heard about possible health effects from cellphones - but she was unconcerned.
"I feel safer knowing she can get hold of us in an emergency."
source: http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/4618342a10.html
New health warnings on the dangers of children using cellphones has reignited debate on whether the devices are safe for regular use by young people.
Toronto's public health department has recommended children under eight should use a cellphone only in emergencies, and teenagers should limit calls to less than 10 minutes so as to limit exposure to electro-magnetic radiation.
The agency says research on the effects on children is "very limited" but many scientists feel they may be more susceptible to any harmful effects from radiofrequency waves. They have a smaller head and brain, thinner skull bones, skin and ears, and their brains and nerves are still developing.
Today's children have started using cellphones at a younger age, so their lifetime exposure will be greater, it says.
Toronto Public Health supervisor Loren Vanderlinden told the Toronto Star scientists were previously "pretty dismissive" of any risk but it appeared people who had been using their cellphones over time were at greater risk of certain types of brain tumours.
Similar advisory bodies in Britain and Germany recommend discouraging non-essential use of cellphones by under-16s "as a precautionary measure".
The New Zealand Health Ministry recommends people use hands-free kits, keep calls short and use phones in areas with good signal.
Some studies have suggested a possible link between very high cellphone use and brain tumours, though others show no connection.
Public opposition this year to a controversial cellphone tower proposal for Atawhai, Nelson, contributed to Telecom putting its plans on hold. The company had proposed to erect the tower next to a playcentre, prompting fears of exposure.
National Radiation Laboratory manager Jim Turnbull, who advises the Health Ministry on the issue, said yesterday the New Zealand exposure standard limits for wireless devices were designed to provide protection for all age groups.
It was possible, however, that children were more vulnerable to "subtle effects" not yet discovered, due to their more absorbent brain tissue and longer lifetime exposure.
New Zealand Cancer Society medical director Chris Atkinson said last night research on the health effects of cellphone use was inconclusive. But it was possible a link would be found between excessive use and negative health effects in the future.
It was wise to pay attention to "a sensible public health comment" from a city "as sensible" as Toronto, he said.
It was a good idea "for many reasons" for children not to overuse their cellphones.
Newlands mother Paula Wortman, whose 11-year-old daughter, Celia, has owned a cellphone for about two years, said she had not heard about possible health effects from cellphones - but she was unconcerned.
"I feel safer knowing she can get hold of us in an emergency."
source: http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/4618342a10.html
Brain food
In the July, 2008 issue of the journal Nature Reviews Neuroscience, UCLA professor of neurosurgery and physiological science Fernando Gómez-Pinilla summarizes the latest findings concerning the effects of various foods on the brain, noting that some foods have a drug-like effect. "Food is like a pharmaceutical compound that affects the brain," Dr Gómez-Pinilla stated.
"Diet, exercise and sleep have the potential to alter our brain health and mental function. This raises the exciting possibility that changes in diet are a viable strategy for enhancing cognitive abilities, protecting the brain from damage and counteracting the effects of aging."
In an analysis of over 160 studies, omega-3 fatty acids (EPA, DHA, and ALA) emerged as significant dietary compounds to enhance learning and memory, and prevent mental disorders. "Omega-3 fatty acids are essential for normal brain function,” Dr Gómez-Pinilla observed. “Dietary deficiency of omega-3 fatty acids in humans has been associated with increased risk of several mental disorders, including attention-deficit disorder, dyslexia, dementia, depression, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. A deficiency of omega-3 fatty acids in rodents results in impaired learning and memory."
Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids are needed for the formation of brain cell membranes, which develop connections called synapses that are important in learning. "Omega-3 fatty acids support synaptic plasticity and seem to positively affect the expression of several molecules related to learning and memory that are found on synapses," Dr Gómez-Pinilla explained.
Dr Gómez-Pinilla noted that increasing the omega-3 fatty acid levels of children’s diets improved school performance and reduced behavioral problems. Omega-3 acids combined with iron, zinc, folic acid and other vitamins have been demonstrated to improve verbal intelligence, learning and memory test scores after six months when given to children between the ages of 6 and 12.
Other research has shown that the nutritional content of one’s diet can have effects on the health, including neurological function, of one’s descendants. "Evidence indicates that what you eat can affect your grandchildren's brain molecules and synapses,” Dr Gómez-Pinilla commented. “We are trying to find the molecular basis to explain this."
He additionally observed that reducing the amount of food we eat can be beneficial. Consuming too many calories can decrease the flexibility of the brain cells’ synapses and increase free radical damage. Although the brain is very susceptible to this damage, foods such as blueberries can help counteract it.
Another important brain nutrient is the B vitamin folic acid. Insufficient folic acid has been linked with depression and cognitive impairment, and supplementation with the vitamin has been demonstrated to be helpful in the prevention of cognitive decline and dementia. Folic acid has also been shown to enhance the effects of antidepressants.
In depressed as well as schizophrenic individuals, brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), a signaling molecule, is reduced. Omega-3 fatty acids as well as curcumin, a compound that occurs in the spice turmeric, can help elevate BDNF in a manner similar to antidepressant or antischizophrenic drugs. "BDNF is reduced in the hippocampus, in various cortical areas and in the serum of patients with schizophrenia," Dr Gómez-Pinilla stated. "BDNF levels are reduced in the plasma of patients with major depression."
“Understanding the molecular basis of the effects of food on cognition will help us to determine how best to manipulate diet in order to increase the resistance of neurons to insults and promote mental fitness,” Dr Gómez-Pinilla concluded.
Posted by Keith
source: http://keithconnectsthedots.com/2008/07/15/brain-food-by-life-extension.aspx
"Diet, exercise and sleep have the potential to alter our brain health and mental function. This raises the exciting possibility that changes in diet are a viable strategy for enhancing cognitive abilities, protecting the brain from damage and counteracting the effects of aging."
In an analysis of over 160 studies, omega-3 fatty acids (EPA, DHA, and ALA) emerged as significant dietary compounds to enhance learning and memory, and prevent mental disorders. "Omega-3 fatty acids are essential for normal brain function,” Dr Gómez-Pinilla observed. “Dietary deficiency of omega-3 fatty acids in humans has been associated with increased risk of several mental disorders, including attention-deficit disorder, dyslexia, dementia, depression, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. A deficiency of omega-3 fatty acids in rodents results in impaired learning and memory."
Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids are needed for the formation of brain cell membranes, which develop connections called synapses that are important in learning. "Omega-3 fatty acids support synaptic plasticity and seem to positively affect the expression of several molecules related to learning and memory that are found on synapses," Dr Gómez-Pinilla explained.
Dr Gómez-Pinilla noted that increasing the omega-3 fatty acid levels of children’s diets improved school performance and reduced behavioral problems. Omega-3 acids combined with iron, zinc, folic acid and other vitamins have been demonstrated to improve verbal intelligence, learning and memory test scores after six months when given to children between the ages of 6 and 12.
Other research has shown that the nutritional content of one’s diet can have effects on the health, including neurological function, of one’s descendants. "Evidence indicates that what you eat can affect your grandchildren's brain molecules and synapses,” Dr Gómez-Pinilla commented. “We are trying to find the molecular basis to explain this."
He additionally observed that reducing the amount of food we eat can be beneficial. Consuming too many calories can decrease the flexibility of the brain cells’ synapses and increase free radical damage. Although the brain is very susceptible to this damage, foods such as blueberries can help counteract it.
Another important brain nutrient is the B vitamin folic acid. Insufficient folic acid has been linked with depression and cognitive impairment, and supplementation with the vitamin has been demonstrated to be helpful in the prevention of cognitive decline and dementia. Folic acid has also been shown to enhance the effects of antidepressants.
In depressed as well as schizophrenic individuals, brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), a signaling molecule, is reduced. Omega-3 fatty acids as well as curcumin, a compound that occurs in the spice turmeric, can help elevate BDNF in a manner similar to antidepressant or antischizophrenic drugs. "BDNF is reduced in the hippocampus, in various cortical areas and in the serum of patients with schizophrenia," Dr Gómez-Pinilla stated. "BDNF levels are reduced in the plasma of patients with major depression."
“Understanding the molecular basis of the effects of food on cognition will help us to determine how best to manipulate diet in order to increase the resistance of neurons to insults and promote mental fitness,” Dr Gómez-Pinilla concluded.
Posted by Keith
source: http://keithconnectsthedots.com/2008/07/15/brain-food-by-life-extension.aspx
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
A New Approach to Eating Disorders
By Jessica Ullian
Eating disorders have long been present in the college-age population — anorexia affects an estimated .5 percent of adolescent females and bulimia between 1 and 5 percent. A 2003 American Academy of Pediatrics study found an increasingly “unhealthy emphasis on diet and weight loss among children and adolescents” in the previous decade. Students studying nutrition at BU say some of their peers seem overly concerned about eating and food, which can stem from things ranging from anxiety about leaving home for the first time to the prevalence of eating as a social activity at college.
“College can be an amazing environment, and an amazingly stressful environment,” says Melissa Stone (CAS’08), the founder of Helping Hands, an eating-disorders resource and education group for students. “Eating disorders are definitely common in high school, too, but there’s a much bigger support system there. At college, it’s really easy to lose structure.”
This year, Helping Hands collaborated with Sargent College and other organizations on campus to help make students more aware of the resources available for people affected by eating disorders and to encourage them to seek help. Helping Hands volunteers were in the George Sherman Union during the last week of February with information about anorexia and bulimia, and they sold eating-disorder-awareness bracelets to help raise funds for the National Eating Disorders Association. On February 27, at 7 p.m. students were invited to join a nutritionist, a psychologist, a bulimia specialist, and a student recovering from an eating disorder for a panel discussion in the Photonics Center. The event was cosponsored by Sargent College and BU’s Nutrition Club.
The purpose of thyese activities, Stone says, was to let students know about the resources on campus, which include evaluations at Student Health Services (SHS), nutrition counseling through Sargent College, and treatment programs through BU’s Center for Anxiety and Related Disorders. But the event’s organizers also hoped that more discussion would destigmatize eating disorders and highlight the real challenges that people suffering from anorexia and bulimia face.
“A lot of people don’t understand — you know, asking, why don’t you just eat?” Stone says. “They don’t understand that it’s a disease like any other.”
The University is taking more proactive steps to identify and treat students with eating and exercise disorders, particularly since the Fitness and Recreation Center opened in April 2005. Previously, students given to frequent or obsessive exercise often worked out off campus, says Warin Dexter, executive director of the Department of Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance. When the Commonwealth Avenue center opened, FitRec staffers suddenly became aware that there were students who spent hours every day working out on the cardio machines. “These kids come with these issues,” says Dexter. “But this has become so much more pronounced now. We’ve had some real serious cases here at the University.”
In the past three years, he estimates, four or five students have had their FitRec privileges suspended or revoked because of concerns about their health. Since then, FitRec has started collaborating with Sargent, Student Health Services, the University Service Center, and the athletics department to establish policy guidelines for identifying and treating students with eating disorders — a process involving identification by FitRec staff, evaluations from SHS, and then a range of treatment options, including nutritional counseling and monitored workouts.
The primary difficulty lies in the nature of disordered eating, according to Rosemary Pomponio, an SHS staff physician. “It is considered to be a major psychological disorder,” says Pomponio, who sees approximately 10 students in the clinic each year and is certain that there are many more undiagnosed cases on campus. “Often, students don’t respond to our concerns about their health,” she says, “because they don’t think they have a health problem. They’re unaware of how they look and what they’re doing to their own bodies. It’s very frustrating for a medical professional.” Universities also have a special set of obstacles, since most students are adults by law and are not obligated to obtain their medical care through Student Health Services. “You can’t force somebody to come in for treatment unless they are so obviously ill that the dean’s office will step in and exert academic pressure,” Pomponio notes.
The collaboration among subsets of BU’s student affairs divisions is intended to offset these obstacles. By keeping open lines of communication with staffers who work with students in all facets of their lives — in the classroom, in the gym, in the dorms, and in the dining halls — they’re able to better assess how severe a student’s health needs are and to figure out the best course of action when outside help becomes critical. “We don’t want anybody to fall through the cracks because everybody wasn’t as aware as they could be,” says Denise Mooney, the director of the University Service Center.
In addition, new efforts are under way to help students educate themselves about eating right — and to steer them away from fad diets and unhealthy habits. Sargent College’s nutrition classes, offered at FitRec since 2005, expanded last fall to include free nutritional assessment services to any interested student, with an additional series of free strategy sessions for those judged to be in the initial stages of risky behavior. “Sometimes if a student has progressed too far, you can’t reach them,” says Stacey Zawacki, the director of Sargent’s Nutrition and Fitness Center. “We have been able to work with students before they get to that point.”
source: http://www.bu.edu/today/2008/07/10/be-well-bu-new-approach-eating-disorders
Eating disorders have long been present in the college-age population — anorexia affects an estimated .5 percent of adolescent females and bulimia between 1 and 5 percent. A 2003 American Academy of Pediatrics study found an increasingly “unhealthy emphasis on diet and weight loss among children and adolescents” in the previous decade. Students studying nutrition at BU say some of their peers seem overly concerned about eating and food, which can stem from things ranging from anxiety about leaving home for the first time to the prevalence of eating as a social activity at college.
“College can be an amazing environment, and an amazingly stressful environment,” says Melissa Stone (CAS’08), the founder of Helping Hands, an eating-disorders resource and education group for students. “Eating disorders are definitely common in high school, too, but there’s a much bigger support system there. At college, it’s really easy to lose structure.”
This year, Helping Hands collaborated with Sargent College and other organizations on campus to help make students more aware of the resources available for people affected by eating disorders and to encourage them to seek help. Helping Hands volunteers were in the George Sherman Union during the last week of February with information about anorexia and bulimia, and they sold eating-disorder-awareness bracelets to help raise funds for the National Eating Disorders Association. On February 27, at 7 p.m. students were invited to join a nutritionist, a psychologist, a bulimia specialist, and a student recovering from an eating disorder for a panel discussion in the Photonics Center. The event was cosponsored by Sargent College and BU’s Nutrition Club.
The purpose of thyese activities, Stone says, was to let students know about the resources on campus, which include evaluations at Student Health Services (SHS), nutrition counseling through Sargent College, and treatment programs through BU’s Center for Anxiety and Related Disorders. But the event’s organizers also hoped that more discussion would destigmatize eating disorders and highlight the real challenges that people suffering from anorexia and bulimia face.
“A lot of people don’t understand — you know, asking, why don’t you just eat?” Stone says. “They don’t understand that it’s a disease like any other.”
The University is taking more proactive steps to identify and treat students with eating and exercise disorders, particularly since the Fitness and Recreation Center opened in April 2005. Previously, students given to frequent or obsessive exercise often worked out off campus, says Warin Dexter, executive director of the Department of Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance. When the Commonwealth Avenue center opened, FitRec staffers suddenly became aware that there were students who spent hours every day working out on the cardio machines. “These kids come with these issues,” says Dexter. “But this has become so much more pronounced now. We’ve had some real serious cases here at the University.”
In the past three years, he estimates, four or five students have had their FitRec privileges suspended or revoked because of concerns about their health. Since then, FitRec has started collaborating with Sargent, Student Health Services, the University Service Center, and the athletics department to establish policy guidelines for identifying and treating students with eating disorders — a process involving identification by FitRec staff, evaluations from SHS, and then a range of treatment options, including nutritional counseling and monitored workouts.
The primary difficulty lies in the nature of disordered eating, according to Rosemary Pomponio, an SHS staff physician. “It is considered to be a major psychological disorder,” says Pomponio, who sees approximately 10 students in the clinic each year and is certain that there are many more undiagnosed cases on campus. “Often, students don’t respond to our concerns about their health,” she says, “because they don’t think they have a health problem. They’re unaware of how they look and what they’re doing to their own bodies. It’s very frustrating for a medical professional.” Universities also have a special set of obstacles, since most students are adults by law and are not obligated to obtain their medical care through Student Health Services. “You can’t force somebody to come in for treatment unless they are so obviously ill that the dean’s office will step in and exert academic pressure,” Pomponio notes.
The collaboration among subsets of BU’s student affairs divisions is intended to offset these obstacles. By keeping open lines of communication with staffers who work with students in all facets of their lives — in the classroom, in the gym, in the dorms, and in the dining halls — they’re able to better assess how severe a student’s health needs are and to figure out the best course of action when outside help becomes critical. “We don’t want anybody to fall through the cracks because everybody wasn’t as aware as they could be,” says Denise Mooney, the director of the University Service Center.
In addition, new efforts are under way to help students educate themselves about eating right — and to steer them away from fad diets and unhealthy habits. Sargent College’s nutrition classes, offered at FitRec since 2005, expanded last fall to include free nutritional assessment services to any interested student, with an additional series of free strategy sessions for those judged to be in the initial stages of risky behavior. “Sometimes if a student has progressed too far, you can’t reach them,” says Stacey Zawacki, the director of Sargent’s Nutrition and Fitness Center. “We have been able to work with students before they get to that point.”
source: http://www.bu.edu/today/2008/07/10/be-well-bu-new-approach-eating-disorders
Friday, April 4, 2008
Pain in the neck -- and back
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- For all the advances medicine has made in combating the sources of pain, the human spine remains one of the most recalcitrant.
Spending for back and neck problems grew 65% over eight years to almost $86 billion nationally, with prescription drugs the fastest-growing component, according to a new study in the Feb. 13 edition of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
But it doesn't appear to be helping people much. The portion of people with back or neck problems who said they had physical functioning limitations rose to 25% in 2005 from 21% in 1997, the study found.
"We're spending more on back pain than people thought, and at the same time we're not seeing commensurate improvements in health status that we should expect to see from investments in health care over time," said Brook Martin, the lead author and a research scientist at the University of Washington's Department of Orthopedics and Sports Medicine in Seattle.
The study examined annual federal survey data of 23,000 people, more than 3,100 of whom reported spine problems.
Back pain can come from a variety of sources, including natural aging processes, injury, excessive or not enough physical activity and carrying too much body weight. It affects most people at some point in their lives. Nearly 53% of patients surveyed in 2005 had nonspecific back disorders, a category that included spinal stenosis, back ache and sciatica. The second largest category was disk disorders with 16%.
source: Kristen Gerencher, MarketWatch
Spending for back and neck problems grew 65% over eight years to almost $86 billion nationally, with prescription drugs the fastest-growing component, according to a new study in the Feb. 13 edition of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
But it doesn't appear to be helping people much. The portion of people with back or neck problems who said they had physical functioning limitations rose to 25% in 2005 from 21% in 1997, the study found.
"We're spending more on back pain than people thought, and at the same time we're not seeing commensurate improvements in health status that we should expect to see from investments in health care over time," said Brook Martin, the lead author and a research scientist at the University of Washington's Department of Orthopedics and Sports Medicine in Seattle.
The study examined annual federal survey data of 23,000 people, more than 3,100 of whom reported spine problems.
Back pain can come from a variety of sources, including natural aging processes, injury, excessive or not enough physical activity and carrying too much body weight. It affects most people at some point in their lives. Nearly 53% of patients surveyed in 2005 had nonspecific back disorders, a category that included spinal stenosis, back ache and sciatica. The second largest category was disk disorders with 16%.
source: Kristen Gerencher, MarketWatch
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
When health coverage gets taken away
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- A series of troubling developments in California's individual health insurance market is bringing national attention to the problem of patients having their coverage taken away when they need it most.
Last month, an arbitration judge ordered California-based health insurer Health Net Inc. to pay $9 million to a cancer patient whose individual coverage was canceled during her chemotherapy treatments in 2004. The judge ordered Health Net to repay $129,000 worth of Patsy Bates' unpaid medical bills and awarded the 52-year-old hairdresser $8.4 million in punitive damages and $750,000 for emotional distress.
It's not just Health Net that's attracting scrutiny. Blue Cross of California, a unit of WellPoint, the nation's largest private health insurer, drew fire recently for sending letters to doctors asking them to verify patients' accounts of their health histories in their applications after the company already had approved their policies. Blue Cross has since stopped the letter campaign.
California's Department of Managed Health Care, which regulates the state's HMO plans, has been investigating consumer complaints about unfair rescissions since 2006. The agency has fined both Blue Cross and Health Net and is in the process of reviewing the practices of other companies that sell individual policies in the state, spokeswoman Lynne Randolph said.
"We don't think it is only happening in California...but California's farther ahead in terms of enforcement," she said. "We had a statute in place that companies must do underwriting up front and a consumer must willfully misrepresent their health condition on an application in order for a company to rescind. We feel that means it can't just be an inadvertent omission."
Insurers say they have a responsibility to ensure applicants are truthful about any preexisting conditions they may have so companies can accurately price policies and hold down costs for all their members. But consumer groups warn that tactics such as tying financial incentives to the number of rescissions an employee makes or involving doctors in investigations after policies have been issued aren't working and may be illegal in some states.
There's growing consensus among consumer and industry groups that insurers need to set up independent third-party review boards to vet policyholders at risk of having their coverage rescinded and issue uniform, standardized application forms that make the process more transparent and fair for consumers.
Sandy Praeger, president of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners in Topeka, Kansas, said California's arbitration outcome and regulatory actions send a strong message to insurers trying to save money by digging up reasons to cancel policies retroactively.
"It's very good news for consumers," Praeger said. She condemned the practice of some insurers' offering bonuses to brokers who rescind policies. "They're making a lot of money collecting premiums. They need to honor those contracts."
Of course, businesses have to take reasonable measures to prevent fraud, which drives up the cost for all policyholders, she said. But the application forms can be ambiguous and loaded with medical jargon.
"I don't dispute [their] ability to drop someone who's intentionally lied," she said. "But to have policy language and application forms that are hard to understand and rely on a third party to explain them to you, it opens the door to people making unintentional mistakes. They shouldn't be held accountable for those."
The NAIC is devising a standard insurance application that could help reduce potential conflicts. Another idea states are examining is instituting external review processes like the one Kansas has for determining medical necessity for treatments that health plans deny, she said, noting that insurers' decisions get overturned in about half the cases.
Praeger praised the arbitration ruling as a "wake-up call" to insurers. "They could end up with more draconian rules and regulations and laws if these patterns don't reverse themselves," she said.
Aiming for solutions
Rescissions are rare, accounting for just 0.15% of individual policyholders' experiences in 2006, according to a survey from America's Health Insurance Plans (AHIP), a trade group of companies that cover 200 million Americans. About 18 million people have private, individual health insurance, the only kind subject to potential rescissions.
AHIP President Karen Ignagni said the group called for more-stringent rescission criteria and independent review panels in a December report. "We recognize the process needs to be very transparent and people need to have peace of mind that they will have an independent review.
"As states adopt this proposal, they'll have a place where they can have these cases vetted external to the health plan," she said.
Because of recent events, some lawmakers in Sacramento are considering greater consumer protections for people in the individual insurance market. Los Angeles City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo recently filed a lawsuit against Health Net alleging that it engaged in unlawful or deceptive business practices related to improperly canceling customers' policies.
Health Net is making changes and organizing an independent third-party process to review possible rescissions, spokesman David Olson said. "We're not going to rescind any policy until that process is in place."
Still, he disputes the characterization of the company's former incentive-pay program and says its business practices are sound.
source: article by Kristen Gerencher, MarketWatch
Last month, an arbitration judge ordered California-based health insurer Health Net Inc. to pay $9 million to a cancer patient whose individual coverage was canceled during her chemotherapy treatments in 2004. The judge ordered Health Net to repay $129,000 worth of Patsy Bates' unpaid medical bills and awarded the 52-year-old hairdresser $8.4 million in punitive damages and $750,000 for emotional distress.
It's not just Health Net that's attracting scrutiny. Blue Cross of California, a unit of WellPoint, the nation's largest private health insurer, drew fire recently for sending letters to doctors asking them to verify patients' accounts of their health histories in their applications after the company already had approved their policies. Blue Cross has since stopped the letter campaign.
California's Department of Managed Health Care, which regulates the state's HMO plans, has been investigating consumer complaints about unfair rescissions since 2006. The agency has fined both Blue Cross and Health Net and is in the process of reviewing the practices of other companies that sell individual policies in the state, spokeswoman Lynne Randolph said.
"We don't think it is only happening in California...but California's farther ahead in terms of enforcement," she said. "We had a statute in place that companies must do underwriting up front and a consumer must willfully misrepresent their health condition on an application in order for a company to rescind. We feel that means it can't just be an inadvertent omission."
Insurers say they have a responsibility to ensure applicants are truthful about any preexisting conditions they may have so companies can accurately price policies and hold down costs for all their members. But consumer groups warn that tactics such as tying financial incentives to the number of rescissions an employee makes or involving doctors in investigations after policies have been issued aren't working and may be illegal in some states.
There's growing consensus among consumer and industry groups that insurers need to set up independent third-party review boards to vet policyholders at risk of having their coverage rescinded and issue uniform, standardized application forms that make the process more transparent and fair for consumers.
Sandy Praeger, president of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners in Topeka, Kansas, said California's arbitration outcome and regulatory actions send a strong message to insurers trying to save money by digging up reasons to cancel policies retroactively.
"It's very good news for consumers," Praeger said. She condemned the practice of some insurers' offering bonuses to brokers who rescind policies. "They're making a lot of money collecting premiums. They need to honor those contracts."
Of course, businesses have to take reasonable measures to prevent fraud, which drives up the cost for all policyholders, she said. But the application forms can be ambiguous and loaded with medical jargon.
"I don't dispute [their] ability to drop someone who's intentionally lied," she said. "But to have policy language and application forms that are hard to understand and rely on a third party to explain them to you, it opens the door to people making unintentional mistakes. They shouldn't be held accountable for those."
The NAIC is devising a standard insurance application that could help reduce potential conflicts. Another idea states are examining is instituting external review processes like the one Kansas has for determining medical necessity for treatments that health plans deny, she said, noting that insurers' decisions get overturned in about half the cases.
Praeger praised the arbitration ruling as a "wake-up call" to insurers. "They could end up with more draconian rules and regulations and laws if these patterns don't reverse themselves," she said.
Aiming for solutions
Rescissions are rare, accounting for just 0.15% of individual policyholders' experiences in 2006, according to a survey from America's Health Insurance Plans (AHIP), a trade group of companies that cover 200 million Americans. About 18 million people have private, individual health insurance, the only kind subject to potential rescissions.
AHIP President Karen Ignagni said the group called for more-stringent rescission criteria and independent review panels in a December report. "We recognize the process needs to be very transparent and people need to have peace of mind that they will have an independent review.
"As states adopt this proposal, they'll have a place where they can have these cases vetted external to the health plan," she said.
Because of recent events, some lawmakers in Sacramento are considering greater consumer protections for people in the individual insurance market. Los Angeles City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo recently filed a lawsuit against Health Net alleging that it engaged in unlawful or deceptive business practices related to improperly canceling customers' policies.
Health Net is making changes and organizing an independent third-party process to review possible rescissions, spokesman David Olson said. "We're not going to rescind any policy until that process is in place."
Still, he disputes the characterization of the company's former incentive-pay program and says its business practices are sound.
source: article by Kristen Gerencher, MarketWatch
Friday, March 28, 2008
radiation therapy for prostate cancer
There are 2 types of radiation therapy. In one type, called external beam radiation therapy, radiation is given from a machine like an x-ray machine. In another type, radioactive pellets (called "seeds") are injected into the prostate gland. This is sometimes called seed therapy or brachytherapy (say: "break-ee-ther-uh-pee"). Both types work about the same in curing prostate cancer.
The machine therapy is usually given 5 days a week over 7 weeks, which you might find time-consuming. However, you don't need any anesthesia. The side effects are milder than the side effects that can come with seed therapy. However, seed therapy can be done with just one hospital visit. For seed therapy, you have to have anesthesia for a few minutes, but you should be able to go home right after the treatment. In seed therapy, higher doses of radiation can be put right on the cancer. You may feel more discomfort after this treatment.
About one half of patients become impotent within 2 years of having radiation therapy. Many men feel very tired at the end of the treatment period. About 15% to 30% of men who have radiation therapy have urinary burning, urinary bleeding, frequent urination, rectal bleeding, rectal discomfort or diarrhea during or shortly after the treatment. Serious complications are rare. However, a degree of uncertainty goes along with radiation treatment. Since the prostate gland and the lymph nodes are not taken out, your doctor can't tell the exact size of the tumor. The cancer could come back many years after radiation treatment.
At 10 years after treatment, cure rates are about the same for radiation therapy and radical prostatectomy. There are no surgical risks for men who have radiation therapy. There's no risk of bleeding. You don't have to stay in the hospital. You'll recover faster. Daily activities can usually go on during the treatment. Incontinence is extremely rare afterward. However, surgery may give you a better chance of cure over the long term.
source: http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/common/cancer/treatment/264.html
The machine therapy is usually given 5 days a week over 7 weeks, which you might find time-consuming. However, you don't need any anesthesia. The side effects are milder than the side effects that can come with seed therapy. However, seed therapy can be done with just one hospital visit. For seed therapy, you have to have anesthesia for a few minutes, but you should be able to go home right after the treatment. In seed therapy, higher doses of radiation can be put right on the cancer. You may feel more discomfort after this treatment.
About one half of patients become impotent within 2 years of having radiation therapy. Many men feel very tired at the end of the treatment period. About 15% to 30% of men who have radiation therapy have urinary burning, urinary bleeding, frequent urination, rectal bleeding, rectal discomfort or diarrhea during or shortly after the treatment. Serious complications are rare. However, a degree of uncertainty goes along with radiation treatment. Since the prostate gland and the lymph nodes are not taken out, your doctor can't tell the exact size of the tumor. The cancer could come back many years after radiation treatment.
At 10 years after treatment, cure rates are about the same for radiation therapy and radical prostatectomy. There are no surgical risks for men who have radiation therapy. There's no risk of bleeding. You don't have to stay in the hospital. You'll recover faster. Daily activities can usually go on during the treatment. Incontinence is extremely rare afterward. However, surgery may give you a better chance of cure over the long term.
source: http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/common/cancer/treatment/264.html
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
radical prostatectomy and its pros and cons
What is radical prostatectomy?
Radical prostatectomy is a surgery to remove the whole prostate gland and the nearby lymph nodes. Most men who have this surgery are under general anesthesia (puts you into a sleep-like state). After the prostate gland is taken out, a catheter (a narrow rubber tube) is put through the penis into the bladder to carry urine out of the body until the area heals.
Return to top
What are the risks and benefits of radical prostatectomy?
If you're in good health, the short-term risks of this surgery are low. The hospital stay is usually 2 to 3 days, with the catheter left in place for 2 to 3 weeks. You're usually able to go back to work in about 1 month. You shouldn't have severe pain with this surgery. Most men regain bladder control a few weeks to several months after the surgery.
The main advantage of surgery is that it offers the most certain treatment. That is, if all of the cancer is removed during surgery, you are probably cured. Also, the surgery provides your doctor with accurate information about how advanced your cancer is, since the nearby lymph nodes are taken out along with the tumor.
Surgery does have risks and complications. You could lose a lot of blood during this surgery. Before the surgery, you might want to save about 2 units of your own blood in case you need a transfusion. The main risks of this surgery are incontinence (lack of bladder control) and impotence (loss of the ability to get or keep an erection long enough to have sex). Fortunately, only a very low percentage of men have severe incontinence after radical prostatectomy. Up to 35% of men have a little accidental leakage of urine during heavy lifting, coughing or laughing.
The chance of impotence decreases if the surgeon is able to avoid cutting the nerves. This may not be possible if the tumor is large. Your age and degree of sexual function before the surgery are also important factors. If you're under 50 years old when you have this surgery, you're likely to regain sexual function. If you're older than 70, you're more likely to lose sexual function. Remember, even if the nerves are cut, feeling in your penis and orgasm remain normal. Only the ability to get a rigid penis for sexual intercourse is lost. However, there are medicines and devices that can help make the penis rigid.
source: http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/common/cancer/treatment/264.html
Radical prostatectomy is a surgery to remove the whole prostate gland and the nearby lymph nodes. Most men who have this surgery are under general anesthesia (puts you into a sleep-like state). After the prostate gland is taken out, a catheter (a narrow rubber tube) is put through the penis into the bladder to carry urine out of the body until the area heals.
Return to top
What are the risks and benefits of radical prostatectomy?
If you're in good health, the short-term risks of this surgery are low. The hospital stay is usually 2 to 3 days, with the catheter left in place for 2 to 3 weeks. You're usually able to go back to work in about 1 month. You shouldn't have severe pain with this surgery. Most men regain bladder control a few weeks to several months after the surgery.
The main advantage of surgery is that it offers the most certain treatment. That is, if all of the cancer is removed during surgery, you are probably cured. Also, the surgery provides your doctor with accurate information about how advanced your cancer is, since the nearby lymph nodes are taken out along with the tumor.
Surgery does have risks and complications. You could lose a lot of blood during this surgery. Before the surgery, you might want to save about 2 units of your own blood in case you need a transfusion. The main risks of this surgery are incontinence (lack of bladder control) and impotence (loss of the ability to get or keep an erection long enough to have sex). Fortunately, only a very low percentage of men have severe incontinence after radical prostatectomy. Up to 35% of men have a little accidental leakage of urine during heavy lifting, coughing or laughing.
The chance of impotence decreases if the surgeon is able to avoid cutting the nerves. This may not be possible if the tumor is large. Your age and degree of sexual function before the surgery are also important factors. If you're under 50 years old when you have this surgery, you're likely to regain sexual function. If you're older than 70, you're more likely to lose sexual function. Remember, even if the nerves are cut, feeling in your penis and orgasm remain normal. Only the ability to get a rigid penis for sexual intercourse is lost. However, there are medicines and devices that can help make the penis rigid.
source: http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/common/cancer/treatment/264.html
Saturday, March 22, 2008
prostate cancer treatment options
The treatment options for prostate cancer depend in part on whether the tumor has spread. For tumors that are still inside the prostate, radiation therapy (using x-rays that kill the cancer cells) and a surgery called radical prostatectomy are common treatment options. "Watchful waiting" is also a treatment option. In this approach, no treatment is given until the tumor gets bigger. Watchful waiting may be the best choice for an older man who has a higher risk of dying from something other than his prostate cancer.
Generally, tumors that have grown beyond the edge of the prostate can't be cured with either radiation or surgery. They can be treated with hormones that slow the cancer's growth.
source: http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/common/cancer/treatment/264.html
Generally, tumors that have grown beyond the edge of the prostate can't be cured with either radiation or surgery. They can be treated with hormones that slow the cancer's growth.
source: http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/common/cancer/treatment/264.html
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
calmning night time acid reflux
Tips for Calming Nighttime Acid Reflux
Heartburn and other gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) symptoms experienced during the night commonly cause sleep disturbances, including arousal from sleep, increased wakefulness and overall poor sleep quality.
Heartburn and other gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) symptoms experienced during the night commonly cause sleep disturbances, including arousal from sleep, increased wakefulness and overall poor sleep quality.
Here are several tips to help reduce nighttime acid reflux so you can sleep better:
1. Sleep with your head and shoulders elevated
2. Wear loose-fitting clothes
3. Wait 2 to 3 hours after eating to go to sleep
4. Avoid foods that trigger heartburn
source: http://www.acg.gi.org/
Saturday, March 15, 2008
incisionless operations for acid reflux
Surgeons at the Ohio State University Medical Center have performed the first incisionless operations in the United States using a device recently approved by the Food and Drug Administration to stop gastroesophageal reflux disease.
Ohio State's Medical Center is one of the nation's leaders in incisionless surgery, a new procedure that leaves no outside scarring; results in minimal, if any, post-operative pain; reduces patients' recovery time significantly; and is expected to be one of the next major medical advancements.
Ohio State's Medical Center is one of the nation's leaders in incisionless surgery, a new procedure that leaves no outside scarring; results in minimal, if any, post-operative pain; reduces patients' recovery time significantly; and is expected to be one of the next major medical advancements.
Surgeons at Ohio State have treated the first two patients, using the device known as EsophyX. The mechanism, new in the United States, has been proven safe and effective in patients treated throughout Europe for gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), also known as heartburn.
"The medical device offers a treatment for patients who suffer from an advanced degree of GERD and, until now, would have been candidates for surgery," said Dr. Scott Melvin, division director, general and gastrointestinal surgery, and director, Center for Minimally Invasive Surgery at the OSU Medical Center.
Heartburn is a condition in which acid refluxes from the stomach into the esophagus. The burning sensation felt in the chest can last for countless hours, resulting from inflammation, bleeding or ulcers in the esophagus. GERD is known to be associated with an increased risk of cancer of the esophagus.
Almost 30 million Americans are diagnosed with chronic reflux disease that requires medication for relief of symptoms. It is estimated that millions of dollars are spent on over-the-counter and prescription medications for treatment of the condition.
The incisionless surgery allows reconstruction of the one-way valve at the top of the stomach, when the valve is defective. The new tubular device is introduced to the body totally through the mouth, and is then advanced down the esophagus into the stomach. During the procedure, the operation is viewed through a small fiberoptic camera located within the tubular surgical tools. Patients are normally in the hospital overnight and, after the procedure, are symptom free.
"Throughout medical history, we have gone from a very painful surgery, to a better tolerated surgery and, now, to a potentially pain-free incisionless procedure. In addition, the new procedure allows a treatment option for many patients when reflux is not severe enough to require surgery," noted Melvin.
"We are far from incisionless technology's adoption for widespread use with other diseases, but there is a lot of discussion among surgeons about these new techniques," said Melvin. "Our use of this type of technology will continue to allow us to treat many diseases with minimal pain from surgery."
source: http://medicalcenter.osu.edu/
http://www.news-medical.net/?id=31636
Friday, March 14, 2008
night time acid reflux
According to results of a survey presented at the 72nd Annual Scientific Meeting of the American College of Gastroenterology, nighttime acid reflux, along with some of the less typical manifestations or symptoms of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), is associated with significant sleep impairment.
In a recent national survey, researchers assessed the prevalence of sleep impairment among people with GERD and people without GERD based on response to an Internet survey of a general population of U.S. adults. Using a validated GERD screening tool, 701 respondents were identified with GERD and the remaining were controls. Bonnie Dean, MPH, PhD, of Cerner LifeSciences, Ronnie Fass, MD of the University of Arizona and their research team found that sleep impairment was more common among people with GERD (41.9 percent) than those without GERD (19.4 percent). Researchers found that 49.5 percent of respondents with nighttime GERD reported sleeping poorly often or most of the time, compared to 36.7 percent of people with daytime GERD.
In a recent national survey, researchers assessed the prevalence of sleep impairment among people with GERD and people without GERD based on response to an Internet survey of a general population of U.S. adults. Using a validated GERD screening tool, 701 respondents were identified with GERD and the remaining were controls. Bonnie Dean, MPH, PhD, of Cerner LifeSciences, Ronnie Fass, MD of the University of Arizona and their research team found that sleep impairment was more common among people with GERD (41.9 percent) than those without GERD (19.4 percent). Researchers found that 49.5 percent of respondents with nighttime GERD reported sleeping poorly often or most of the time, compared to 36.7 percent of people with daytime GERD.
Using the survey, researchers also assessed sleep impairment among patients experiencing frequent nighttime atypical manifestations of GERD. In this case, Dr. Dean and her colleagues evaluated the subgroup of respondents with GERD, as identified using the validated GERD screener. They found that atypical manifestations or symptoms of GERD (i.e. coughing, sore throat, snoring, wheezing, choking, and chest pain) were common among those with acid reflux. Of GERD patients, 74 percent had at least one nighttime atypical manifestation. For almost every daytime and nighttime atypical manifestation assessed, more than 20 percent of GERD patients reported their occurrence as frequent (more than 2 days or nights per week). Researchers also found that sleep impairment was more common among GERD patients with atypical manifestations compared to GERD patients with only typical or classic symptoms such as heartburn and acid regurgitation. For eight of the nine nighttime atypical manifestations
assessed, the proportion of GERD cases reporting sleep impairment was significantly higher for GERD cases with the atypical manifestation compared with GERD cases without the atypical manifestation.
"Awareness of nighttime reflux, atypical manifestations, and associated sleep complaints should allow more complete evaluation and treatment of GERD patients," said Dr. Dean about this project.
source: http://www.acg.gi.org/
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
heartburn drugs and pregnancy
The Do's and Don'ts of Using Heartburn Drugs during Pregnancy
Pregnant women with mild reflux usually do well with simple lifestyle changes. If lifestyle and dietary changes are not enough, you should consult your doctor before taking any medication to relieve heartburn symptoms.
Pregnant women with mild reflux usually do well with simple lifestyle changes. If lifestyle and dietary changes are not enough, you should consult your doctor before taking any medication to relieve heartburn symptoms.
According to ACG President Amy E. Foxx-Orenstein, DO, FACG, "Heartburn medications to treat acid reflux during pregnancy should be balanced to alleviate the mother's symptoms of heartburn, while protecting the developing fetus."
Based on a review of published scientific clinical studies (in animals and humans) on the safety of heartburn medications during pregnancy, researchers conclude there are certain drugs that are considered safe for use in pregnancy and those which should be avoided.
Antacids are one of the most common over-the-counter medications to treat heartburn. As with any drug, antacids should be used cautiously during pregnancy.
Antacids
Antacids containing aluminum, calcium, or magnesium are considered safe and effective in treating the heartburn of pregnancy.
Magnesium-containing antacids should be avoided during the last trimester of pregnancy because it could interfere with uterine contractions during labor.
Avoid antacids containing sodium bicarbonate. Sodium bicarbonate could cause metabolic alkalosis and increase the potential of fluid overload in both the fetus and mother.
Histamine-type II (H-2) Receptor Antagonists
While limited data exists in humans on the safety of histamine-type II (H-2) receptor antagonists, ranitidine (Zantac?) is the only H-2 antagonist, which has been studied specifically during pregnancy.
In a double-blind, placebo controlled, triple crossover study, ranitidine (Zantac?) taken once or twice daily in pregnant heartburn patients not responding to antacids and lifestyle modification, was found to be more effective than placebo in reducing the symptoms of heartburn and acid regurgitation. No adverse effects on the fetus were reported. (Larson JD, et al., "Double-blind placebo-controlled study of ranitidine for gastroesophageal reflux symptoms during pregnancy." Obstet Gynecol 1997; 90:83-7.)
A study on the safety of cimetidine (Tagamet?) and ranitidine (Zantac?) suggests that pregnant women taking these drugs from the first trimester through their entire pregnancy have delivered normal babies. (Richter JE., "Gastroesophageal reflux disease during pregnancy. Gastroenterol Clin N Am 2003; 32:235-61.)
Proton Pump Inhibitors
Proton pump inhibitors should be reserved for pregnant patients with more severe heartburn symptoms and those not responding to antacids and lifestyle and dietary changes. Lansoprazole (Prevacid?) is the preferred PPI because of case reports of safety in pregnant women. Limited data exists about human safety during pregnancy with the newer PPIs.
Saturday, March 8, 2008
heartburn and pregnancy
Heartburn symptoms are one of the most commonly reported complaints among pregnant women.Heartburn usually starts during the first trimester and tends to worsen during the second and third trimesters.
Studies have shown elevated levels of the hormone progesterone accompanied by increased intra-abdominal pressures from the enlarging uterus, may lower esophageal sphincter (LES) pressure in pregnant women contributing to heartburn symptoms, according to research highlighted in the newly updated "Pregnancy in Gastrointestinal Disorders" monograph by the American College of Gastroenterology (ACG).
From the monograph, physician experts from ACG have compiled important health tips on managing heartburn symptoms, and importantly, identifying which heartburn medications are safe for use in pregnant women and those, which should be avoided.
Strategies to Ease Heartburn Symptoms during Pregnancy According to the ACG, pregnant women can treat and relieve their heartburn symptoms through lifestyle and dietary changes. The following tips can help reduce heartburn discomfort:
Avoid eating late at night or before retiring to bed. Common heartburn triggers include greasy or spicy food, chocolate, peppermint, tomato sauces, caffeine, carbonated drinks, and citrus fruits. Wear loose-fitting clothes. Clothes that fit tightly around your waist put pressure on your abdomen and the lower esophageal sphincter. Eat smaller meals. Overfilling the stomach can result in acid reflux and heartburn. Don't lie down after eating. Wait at least 3 hours after eating before going to bed. When you lie down, it's easier for stomach contents (including acid) to back up into the esophagus, particularly when you go to bed with a full stomach. Raise the head of the bed 4 to 6 inches. This can help reduce acid reflux by decreasing the amount of gastric contents that reach the lower esophagus. Avoid tobacco and alcohol. Abstinence from alcohol and smoking can help reduce reflux symptoms and avoid fetal exposure to potentially harmful substances.
source: http://www.news-medical.net/?id=33331
Studies have shown elevated levels of the hormone progesterone accompanied by increased intra-abdominal pressures from the enlarging uterus, may lower esophageal sphincter (LES) pressure in pregnant women contributing to heartburn symptoms, according to research highlighted in the newly updated "Pregnancy in Gastrointestinal Disorders" monograph by the American College of Gastroenterology (ACG).
From the monograph, physician experts from ACG have compiled important health tips on managing heartburn symptoms, and importantly, identifying which heartburn medications are safe for use in pregnant women and those, which should be avoided.
Strategies to Ease Heartburn Symptoms during Pregnancy According to the ACG, pregnant women can treat and relieve their heartburn symptoms through lifestyle and dietary changes. The following tips can help reduce heartburn discomfort:
Avoid eating late at night or before retiring to bed. Common heartburn triggers include greasy or spicy food, chocolate, peppermint, tomato sauces, caffeine, carbonated drinks, and citrus fruits. Wear loose-fitting clothes. Clothes that fit tightly around your waist put pressure on your abdomen and the lower esophageal sphincter. Eat smaller meals. Overfilling the stomach can result in acid reflux and heartburn. Don't lie down after eating. Wait at least 3 hours after eating before going to bed. When you lie down, it's easier for stomach contents (including acid) to back up into the esophagus, particularly when you go to bed with a full stomach. Raise the head of the bed 4 to 6 inches. This can help reduce acid reflux by decreasing the amount of gastric contents that reach the lower esophagus. Avoid tobacco and alcohol. Abstinence from alcohol and smoking can help reduce reflux symptoms and avoid fetal exposure to potentially harmful substances.
source: http://www.news-medical.net/?id=33331
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