iNFORMATION SHARING CENTER
For The Body Soul And Mind
Weight Loss - Myths and Worthless Gadgets
Cellulite and Spot Reduction
Cellulite and Spot Reduction are mythical concepts. Cellulite is nothing but enlarged fat cells that bulge out from accumulated body fat. The widely held myth that exercises that target a particular body part will cause that area to lose fat quicker than the rest of the body is one that should have been long dispelled from our mind. This rather misleading theory is called spot reduction.
Sit-ups are commonly used exercises that people perform in an attempt to get rid of fat in the midsection of the body. Sit-ups can be great exercises for increasing the strength and endurance of the abdominal muscles; however, they are not very effective for burning fat. Several sets of daily sit-ups will not allow individuals to decrease their waistline.
When fat comes off, it does so all over the entire body, not just the exercised area, but you will experience greater fat loss in areas of the body where you have larger deposits of fat. However, a few sets of sit-ups will not allow you to burn any significant amount of calories and therefore, will have practically no effect on total body fat. It will take much longer and regular sessions of aerobic exercises for one to really experience any significant amount of weight loss.
Rubberized Suits and Saunas
You cannot lose body fat simply by wearing a Rubberized sweat suit or from just spending a ½ hr or so in a sauna. If you were to try these two weight loss methods, no doubt, you will notice a reduction in your weight initially when you get out of your suit, or step out of a sauna unto a scale. However, the weight loss you will experience will be the direct result of the significant amount of water lost in sweat, and will have nothing to do with the burning of fat in muscle. This is really an example of a temporary or false loss of weight, achieved primarily through the loss of body fluid. All that weight you thought you have lost will be quickly regained as soon as you replace body fluids.
Using a rubberized sweat suit to lose weight not only speeds up the rate of body fluid loss or vital electrolytes, such as magnesium, potassium, sodium, calcium and others during prolonged exercise, but it also raises core temperature at the same time. This combination puts a person in danger of dehydration, which can impair cellular function and in extreme cases can even cause death. The increase in core temperature that is caused by Sweat Suits and Saunas could also be potentially harmful to fetuses during the first trimester of pregnancy.
Myths and Realities of Herbs
Myth
- Herbs are natural, so they are good for humans and animals and they are safe
Realities
- There are several plants that will make an animal or human very ill, others will even cause death!
- If you own a horse, you should know about the dangers of Privet, Ragwort, Foxglove, Acorn, Hemlock etc.
- There are other natural plants such as Marijuana, Poppy, Tobacco or even, to a lesser extent, Coffee that could hardly be classified as harmless.
- One part of a plant can be poisonous while another part isn’t.
- Sometimes a particular plant may be poisonous to one species of animal yet safe to another.
- The effects of "herbs" should never be underestimated!
Stats Source: Growing presence of complementary and alternative medicine, JAAPA 2000;5:89
Herbs and Alternative Treatments - The Pros/Cons and Myths
Prior to God creating all living creatures, animals, humans etc, he had provided everything in abundance for them, so that they could live comfortable. In other words, they were all provided with everything that was necessary for their survival.
As far as medicinal plants and herbs are concerned,God knew beforehand that animals and humans were likely to get ill at some point in time, so he went ahead during creation and provided all the herbs that were vital for all possible illnesses. The earliest men had to take care of their illnesses with herbs, and so did the animals of the Jungle, from the time of creation up until today.
However,the fact that herbs are natural and curative, that doesn't mean they are all safe for animals and humans. Some medicinal herbs are very harmful under certain conditions. There are several plants that can make an animal or human very ill; others will even cause death! For example, Acorn, Hemlock, Ragwort and a few other are known to be dangerous to horse. Likewise, Poppy, tobacco and so on, are harmful to human. The long-term use of chaparral and comfrey is also known to be associated with hepatoxicity.
Despite the known harm that some herbs can cause,no doubts herbs have been used for medicinal purposes with effective results since the early days of human existence. In fact, many modern drugs, including digitalis, atropine, and narcotic derivatives, were developed from plants. For many decades asthma and bronchitis were treated with the medicinal herbs - Chinese Fir.
However, it wasn't until the late 1800's when scientist discovered it contained Ephedrine, a substance used in modern medicine, in the treatment of pulmonary disorders and allergies. Also, the bark of White Willow tree had long been used to relieve pain, even before scientist discovered this. Scientist were able to isolate the active ingredient from the bark of the White Willow and did a few lab work with it to produce acetylsalicylic acid. Today,acetylsalicylic acid is the main ingredient of Aspirin.
The formulation of drugs today, is simply due to the advancement in science and technology. Modern medicine today, is either prepared by the development of a synthetic chemical ingredient, or by identifying and removing a specific active compound from a plant and then preparing it artificially to obtain a true version of the real compound which has the desired pharmacological effect.
Alternative Practice
Although most medicine practiced in United States is allopathic or osteopathic, worldwide approximately 70% to 90% of health care is delivered by what would be considered alternative tradition or practice. Findings from research revealed that 94% of HMO professionals believed that meditation, personal prayer, and other spiritual practices can speed up medical recovery of ill patients. As far as medical cost cutting is concerned 74% of them believed these practices may have an impact on containing the cost of care. In addition, 83% believed that some practices, such as relaxation and meditation, should also be a standard part of formal medical training.
Migraine - Two Critical Factors That Prevent Individuals from Getting The Best Relief From Severe Migraine Headaches.
In the U.S, a large percentage of people suffers from migraine headaches. For some individuals, it seems as if there is no medication that works to alleviate some of these severe headaches that they often experience.
Migraine pain may be due to extracranial and intracranial arterial dilation leading to release of interactive molecules such as substance P (A neurotransmitter that is thought to be related to the sensation of pain).
Based on research, there are two types of migraine headaches.
1.The one that occurs without the Aura (previously called common migraine) is a severe unilateral, pulsating headache that typically lasts from 2 to 72 hrs. These headaches are often aggravated by physical activity and are accompanied by nausea, vomiting, photophobia(hypersensitivity to light) and phonophobia(hypersensitivity to sound). It is believed that approximately 85% of patients with migraine do not have aura -- neurological symptoms which can be visual, sensory, and/or cause speech or motor disturbances.
2.The second type of migraine which occurs with a aura ( previously called classic migraine). This headache is preceded by aura. Most commonly, these prodromal symptoms are visual, occurring 20 to 40 minutes before the headache pain begins. It is believed that 15% of migraine patients headache is preceded by aura.
For both types of migraines, women are said to be 3 times more likely to experience either type than men.
Many migraine suffers kept changing medications with the hope of finding one that may offer the best relief for their headaches. However, not before long, they have come to realize that each new medication tried have only provided little or no relief for their migraine headache.
Effectively Treating Migraine
There are two factors that have been preventing many people from effectively treating or preventing migraine headaches. The first, is not knowing exactly when to take the medication, and the second is the affordability of some of the most effective migraine drugs.
In order to achieve the best relief for either of the two migraine headaches mentioned above. You must first take your medication at the onset of the symptoms, i.e. either during the aura or at the first hint of migraine pain without aura. Secondly, you have to make sure your health care provider has prescribed the most effective migraine` drug for you.
Based on findings, the most useful drugs for averting an acute migraine attack are Sumatriptan (Imitrex), ergotamine and non steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. In the case of Sumatriptan, it rapidly and effectively gets rid of, or remarkably reduces the severity of migraine headaches in about 80% of patients.
Sumatriptan act on drug receptors found on small peripheral nerves that innervate the intracranial vasculature. When these receptors are activated they are believed to block the release of substance P, thus preventing the sensation of pain.
Sumatriptan is given subcutaneously(SC/under the skin injections) or orally(By Mouth). The onset of the parenteral drug(ex. When given by SC injections or IV injections etc) is about 20mins compared to 1 to 2hrs for drug administered orally(by mouth). This drug has a short duration of action. Headache commonly returns within 24-48 hrs. after a single dose. In most patients, a second dose is effective in getting rid of the headache. However, this drug is very expensive, and cannot be afforded by everyone, so for those who have found other cheaper drugs that work or if for some reasons unable to tolerate Sumatriptan, it is advised that you stick to those cheaper and well-tolerated drugs.
Note: For informtion on ergotamine and steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or for further investigation on Sumatripton(Imitrex) you can do your own research or read Pharmacology Text such as Basic Concepts in Pharmacology, Lippincott's illustrated Reviews and others. You can also speak to your Pharmacist.
