Health Tips for a Better Life

In a recent email received in our office, our patient was concerned about having experienced some hair shedding after taking Propecia medication. He is concerned if the medication will continue causing hair shed and of the additional possible side effects associated with Propecia. In addition, he wanted to know if having been “malnutrition” at the time and a family history of hair loss may be the reason for his current situation.

Propecia is a medical treatment that has been clinically tested, proven effective and FDA approved for safe consumption. In some cases, an increase in hair shedding may be evident during the first few weeks or months. Within or after 6 months of taking Propecia, hair growth should become more evident. It’s highly suggested not to be discouraged so early in the treatment and not to expect results too early as well. As for sexual side effects associated with Propecia, they have only been recorded in 1 out of every 100 patients tested and continued use has shown that side effects become minimal or non-existent.

If they do continue, you can take a lesser amount of Propecia or discontinue its use.

Most patients with a family history of hair loss are more prone to male or female pattern baldness than others. The positive side is if caught early the effects of hair loss can be prevented, slowed or corrected. Malnutrition can cause some loss of hair but that can only be attested to severe vitamin deficiency. If your body is lacking in vitamins, vitamin supplements can help reverse that. As long as you maintain a well balanced diet, vitamin deficiency should not be an issue.

At the patient’s current state, we have recommended that he start setting up a good relationship with a hair transplant surgeon to monitor his progress and suggest ways to prevent or correct current or future hair loss. He still needs a proper diagnosis for his current situation but once that is done we can better his personal situation and give him the options he needs to prevent or correct his situation.

Copyright (c) 2010 Alison Withers

We have known for some time in the developed world that diet, particularly meat and fast food consumption, coupled with the sedentary lifestyle that goes with urban living, work patterns and less active leisure activities involving TV and video games are far from healthy.

Now diets are changing towards the so-called “western” model of eating more meat and a more sedentary lifestyle in countries where affluence is rising, like China and India.

There are already indications that the rates of diabetes, heart disease and obesity are dramatically escalating, particularly in India as a result.

The WHO (World Health Organisation) estimates that diabetes, heart disease and strokes will together fost about £333.6 billion over the next 10 years in India alone.

Recent research by Oxford University commissioned by Friend of the Earth has also found that red meat can be linked to around 45,000 premature deaths in the UK annually and that it is strongly linked to bowel cancer,while meat and dairy products high in saturated fats contribute to obesity and heart disease.

Reducing meat consumption to perhaps three meals per week and choosing a more balanced diet, it says, could contribute significantly to reducing these deaths.

Rearing cattle has long been regarded as the most energy-inefficient form of food production, not only because of the acreage of land needed for each animal.

The increased demand, particularly for red meat, is also adding to the pressure on land resources and by extension on biodiversity as more rainforests are cleared, particularly in Brazil, to grow feed and rear cattle for export.

Put all this in the context of a recent WWF (World Wildlife Fund) report that found that the planet.s resources are being used at 1.5 times the rate that nature can replace them and the countless studies from the UN showing that more than a billion people on low incomes are either starving or malnourished and one has to question human priorities.

All this gives added weight to the urgency of tackling the loss of the world’s biodiversity, currently being discussed in Japan at a two-week UN biodiversity conference in Japan (October 2010).

It has been estimated that the loss of diversity is costing the global economy several trillion dollars a year and that if targets for conserving species’ life are not agreed soon the situation could soon become irreversible.

It is not being suggested that everyone gives up meat altogether, but it is in the interests of our health to reduce red meat consumption and to have a more balanced diet.

There are already techniques acailable for nesuring enough food for all without the need for more land.

The jury may still be out regarding the advisability of genetic modification but other sustainable farming techniques already exist.

A raneg of low-chem agricultural products has been devised by biopesticides developers that are kinder to the environment. They include biopesticides and biofungicides as well as yield enhancers that allow farmers, large and small, to grow more on the same acreage without leaching all the goodness from the soil.

The problem lies with the powerful vested interests, the time it takes to get such products through the licensing procedure and their availabilty in terms of cost and training to small farmers, particularly in the developing world, who could arguably make best use of them.

The question is whether ethics and morality can outweigh the economic self interest of individual nations in grim global economic climate that is already showing signs of protectionism and arguments about currencies.

Many men and woman work hard to achieve and maintain strong, healthy nails. Unfortunately, sometimes this is difficult due to a number of reasons. Nails can become brittle, cracked, soft, stained, etc. The truth is that the color of a person’s nails has to do directly with that individual’s overall health. If the nails are transparent with a rose color, it indicates good health. However, if the nails are brittle and pale, the person’s health is not where it should be. The most important thing a person can do is to eat a well-balanced diet, drink lots of water, exercise, and get adequate sleep. Simple lifestyle changes such as these are the beginning to healthy nails but it goes beyond that.

The key is to always use high quality and natural products if possible and start a good nail are regimen. For instance, the individual should remove all nail polish.

Next, warm castor or coconut oil should be applied to the nail area, being massaged in for several minutes to help soften the cuticles and sooth dry areas around the nail bed. Then, the individual should dip the nails into a mixture of one tablespoon lemon juice and one cup of warm water.

After soaking for about ten minutes, the nails would be manicured. When finished, a clear base coat of polish should be applied. Once dried, quality nail polish would be applied, allowed to dry, and then a second coat applied. After both coats of colored polish are dry, another coat of clear polish should be applied to seal and protect the color. A few other tips that people can use for maintaining healthy, strong nails include:

• Only acetone-free polish remover should be used in that remover with acetone strips the nails of essential oils that are needed to maintain strength and health.

• To keep cuticles soft and the area around the nail bed smooth, a type of rich, natural cream should be massaged in two times a week.

If the cuticles are badly damaged, alpha hydroxyl cream is a great healer and moisturizer.

• To treat unsightly nail fungus or some other type of nail infection, a mixture of tea tree and lavender oil is one of the best solutions

• To keep nails shiny and healthy looking, rub them with a small piece of lemon

• Breakage can be avoided not only by eating a healthy diet but also by filing in the same direction and never filing while the nails are wet

Juicing is an act of mixing fruits and vegetables in a juicing machine to extract the juice necessary give more benefits and nutrition to the body. A simple example would be to buy an apple and a cucumber and juicing them together to produce a refreshing drink. Juicing can make one lose weight in a very effective manner. Juicing to lose weight not only sheds the extra pounds but it also helps the body release toxins. Juicing to lose weight needs to be maximized to its fullest potential by taking note of the following:

First in order to juice, one needs a juicer. A juicer is not a blender – it is simply called a juicer. Period.

Before each meal, one must drink a vegetable juice. This habit will curb one’s appetite thus making a person not eat so much than the usual.

To increase one’s vitamin intake, he must include spinach, cabbage, carrots, broccoli, celery, cucumber and asparagus to his juicing recipes.

The above-mentioned vegetables are good for detoxification and weight loss. They can cleanse the body and the intestines and the colons too.

One may add ground hot spices to help boost the metabolism. Cayenne, allspice, cinnamon and pepper are among the few who can drive the metabolism of one’s body wild and fast in a good way.

Juicing to lose weight gives people the chance again to feel good about themselves.  Sometimes, some people finds it so hard to lose weight no matter how hard he tries; while some can lose weight without having to lift a finger. But juicing makes it easier for anyone.

This weight loss program does not even compromise nutrition but all the more gives dieting and balanced diet a good name.

Vegetables are so low in calorie and even lower in fats. By replacing one calorie foods with juicing, one can lose so much weight so easily. Juicing for weight loss can even give one the concentrated nutrition and help him also curb his appetite while giving him good skin at the same time.

To curb one’s appetite, avoid adding herbs like basil or coriander, because these two herbs stimulate it instead of curbing it. Dark greens are the best way to go and dark greens simply mean broccoli, cabbage, etc.

Carrot and parsley, when mixed as a juice help maintain bloodsugar levels. If one wants to lose weight then cumin, chilli powder, onion and garlic powder are the best spices to go with and their are many juicing recipes you can find that will offer great flavors.

Juicing for weight loss also works for people with hypothyroidism. Because hypothyroidism is parallel to people who are overweight, some do not know that they have low thyroid function. When one drinks veggie juice to lose weight, he also cures his problem as far as thyroid is concerned.

You would know if you have a thyroid problem because of the following telltale signs: you always feel tired, you feel constipated, or when one hair and skin feels dry. The person with a thyroid problem is also easily irritated.

So combat weight problems and hypothyroidism in one with juicing, the juicing benefits to your body are unending.