August 30th, 2010
Recently one of my readers recently wrote in and was very concerned about her mother’s recent diagnosis of dementia, and especially how this condition made her remembering to deal with her diabetes even more difficult.
Recent studies have shown that about one third of patients that have developed dementia also have suffered from damage to the small blood vessels. Damage to blood vessels is one of the key concerns with patients that have uncontrolled diabetes. Blood vessel damage can occur in the brain which could be a contributing factor for a stroke, which also is a contributing factor to dementia.
The reader expressed concern that her mother would now be even more forgetful about what types of food to eat (and not to eat!). Also the forgetfulness was affecting her remembering to get up and walk daily which is very important in regards to reducing blood sugar levels. Daily walking also assists in maintaining muscle tone and helps to insure that legs and joints remain as strong as possible.
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Posted in Alzheimer's, Genera Natural Health | No Comments »
August 27th, 2010
What is Alzheimer’s disease? It is a late onset progressive condition that is characterized by nerve cells dying in the brain which affects the persons reasoning, judgment and memory, additionally; certain chemicals that work to aid the flow of information from one part of the brain to another part are lessened. This chemical reduction also causes loss of brain functions over time.
How many of our readers have seen their parents or grandparents develop Alzheimer’s disease? Research has shown that over 5 million people in the US suffer from this disease….ages 65 to 74 have about 3% of the population, but ages 75 to 84 could be as high as 19%, while ages 85 and up is estimated to affect 47% of the population. Do you have a loved one that has developed this mentally crippling disease? Are you concerned about developed this condition as you become older? If you’re in the 40 to 60 age group you should be especially aware of the consequences of contracting this disease, not only for yourself, but also for the effect to your family and friends.
Here are some ideas for mental exercise to potentially lessen the chances of being in the higher risk factor group for contracting Alzheimer’s disease.
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August 23rd, 2010
I noticed as I was surfing the internet the other day while I was waiting for a flight some ads for a product to keep a person on his or her back while sleeping. I looked at the funny contraptions and thought to myself about all the different sleeping positions and which ones cause which problems.
Studies vary, but most that I have seen say that sleeping on your back is the best position. Of course, this assumes the sleeper doesn’t snore. Other studies show that sleeping on your side is best. They are in dispute with each other as to whether left-sleeping or right-sleeping is best.
One thing I saw that all studies had in common is that despite differences, every one said sleeping on your stomach is the absolute worst. Each had their own reasoning, based upon the focus and sponsor of the study, but there were no sleep scientists that recommended it.
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Posted in Acid Reflux, Sleep Disorders | No Comments »
August 20th, 2010
When I released my Natural Insomnia program back in June, I received a lot of emails from people asking about the various conditions that caused their sleep problems to begin with. While I had studied sleep issues quite a lot during the development of the program, I had not focused on Lyme disease until a reader asked.
He explained that his insomnia was a result of a bad Lyme disease infection that had occurred many years before but he was still suffering the effects.
As I considered this, I immediately thought of summer fun and the number of outdoor activities people engage in this time of year- camping, hiking, fishing, playing football or soccer, and many more.
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Posted in Fibromyalgia, Sleep Disorders | No Comments »
August 16th, 2010
A reader wrote in a few days ago asking about the Stop Snoring program because she was tired from not sleeping well. Her husband had been snoring a lot lately and she wanted to do something about it.
As I read her email, it became clear that he was not a chronic snorer. Instead, they had been away on vacation and every night he had been hitting the Tiki Bar and sharing some cocktails while watching the sun go down.
Usually, romantic beach vacations are viewed to be restorative and peaceful respites to a person’s everyday life, but she wasn’t getting any rest or peace.
When they got home, the snoring improved. No more “pre-bedtime” mai-tai’s or margaritas…just the normal routine. But, anytime he had a couple of beers before bed, the night’s sleep was interrupted for her and not optimal for him because of the alcohol-related snoring.
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Posted in Sleep Disorders, Snoring / Sleep Apnea | No Comments »
August 13th, 2010
Back in June I published an article that talked about my staff member whose daughter dissolved some baby teeth in sugared soda drinks. The response was interesting because I got a few emails in which people agreed with the point that sugar rots teeth, and so it’s best to avoid sugared sodas. So instead of drinking the full-calorie sodas, they drink diet ones.
The actual point was to drink more water and try to abandon soda altogether. While there is a point that most things are okay in moderation, such as sugared drinks, some items are best left out of consideration. Diet drinks fall into this category for the most part, but specifically the ones artificially sweetened with aspartame.
A simple internet search of aspartame yielded 3 trends that I noticed. The first trend was the number of competitor products that talked about how horrible it is and all the research that has been conducted to back up the claims.
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Posted in Alzheimer's, Genera Natural Health, Weight Loss | No Comments »
August 9th, 2010
No, I really don’t intend on eating or offering anything called Foot Soup. But this was an easy way to remember at test time in anatomy classes the difference between supine and prone.
If you hold your hands out in front of you and turn them palms-up, as if you were carrying bowls of soup, this is supinating. If you roll your thumbs down and the back of your hands are up, as if pouring out the soup, you are pronating.
Now that we have the anatomy refresher out of the way, let’s talk about ankle pain and arthritis.
I was in a shoe store the other day and they had some very impressive gadgets to help runners and walkers determine what type of shoe would be best for their feet.
First, you stand on this machine that shows in all its color-coded glory where your feet are experiencing the most force while standing. This, I am told, is a great way to determine if your arches are too high or if you are flat-footed.
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Posted in Arthritis, Genera Natural Health | No Comments »
August 6th, 2010
I heard a saying the other day that went something like this: The only man you can change is the one wearing a diaper.
It’s not uncommon at all to look at the object of your love, whether it’s parental, spousal, or other kinds of love, and see unreached potential in that person.
It is easy for us to find the faults with our loved ones because we are around them all the time. Advice columns are full of letters where a desperate wife is seeking advice on how to “change” her husband so he will eat all his vegetables, exercise more, smoke less, drink more water and less soda…whatever the case may be.
Just the other day I got an email from a woman who wrote in asking if a man who is overweight, drinks too much alcohol, isn’t physically active, has a heart condition and is in general poor health can be helped by natural remedies. The short answer is yes. There is a rather large “however” attached, though.
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Posted in Alzheimer's, Fibromyalgia, High Blood Pressure, Premature Ejaculation, Vertigo / Dizziness, Weight Loss | No Comments »
August 2nd, 2010
I know what you are thinking…how can a natural health researcher and expert in relaxation start an article that way?
The truth of it is that the person about whom I am speaking doesn’t really kick people. But if she had to, she could. What I mean by that is she has been learning Taekwondo for the past three years. She loved the kicking and punching, blocking and yelling. She said even though she wasn’t actually kicking people it was a great stress-reducer.
This budding martial-artist has been a reader of mine who had been taking classes at her local community center for a few years, even attaining the rank of First Degree Black Belt during this time. Since 2007, she had been regularly attending classes and taking her kids along as well. They progressed through the ranks together, getting stronger, more flexible, and more balanced.
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Posted in Arthritis, Fibromyalgia | No Comments »
July 30th, 2010
Erectile dysfunction is a condition that most men do not feel comfortable addressing. That is not surprising considering how it makes them feel.
It is sad to me to think that there are men living with the condition and its detrimental effect on their self worth, relations with their partners, and just plain embarrassment. A man could be successful in other areas of his life, but if he is suffering from E.D., those successes don’t make him feel like a man.
Erectile dysfunction or male impotency is simply that there is not enough blood pumping to the penis to make it erect and maintain that erection. So, if it’s that simple, why do men rush to the pharmacy for a prescription? Simple: their doctors tell them they have the instant remedy for them.
What causes E.D. can be a combination of things. One way to improve erectile dysfunction is to make some simple lifestyle changes. For some men, adopting a healthier lifestyle, such as quitting smoking, exercising regularly, and reducing stress, may be all that is needed to find relief.
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