Monday, July 14, 2008

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Lets Talk Asthma

By: iman ashour

Of 10 to 12 million Americans with asthma, 5,000 die each year.

If you dont know this by know you will probably learn it here; Environmental interventions are mandatory for all patients with asthma and may result in dramatic reductions in symptoms and medication use. The first step in achieving long-term control of asthma is avoiding triggers.

I would like to stress on the fact that More than two thousand irritants are indoors, where we spend as much as 900 % of our time. To optimally protect yourself from getting exposed to indoor and outdoor irritants, you should keep your home clean, reduce pet dander, decontaminate decor, attach a filter to vacuums, use air conditioners, maintain optimum humidity, ensure clean air and do not wear contacts during pollen season.

Another fact is that most cases of asthma are the result of a combination of allergic and/or nonallergic mechanisms. Known triggers include allergens-house dust mites, pollen, molds and dander from animals, especially cats.

Air pollutants and irritants like burning coal, gasoline and wood release nitrogen and sulfur dioxide into the air and directly result in airway hypersensitivity. Even strong odors, such as household cleaners and cleansers, personal care products, perfumes, varnishes, fabric softeners, laundry detergents and cooking fumes can trigger attacks in sensitive people.

Off course we all know that smoking irritates and inflames the airways. Children whose parents smoke also have increased risk and asthmatics can have attacks by breathing second-hand tobacco smoke.

People may be unaware of this but, respiratory infections in asthmatics, where the airways are overly sensitive to viral infections such as a cold and especially if it progresses to infected airways or sinuses, will more than likely result in an asthma attack.

Also, exertion and cold weather, coughing, wheezing, shortness of breath, chest discomfort and endurance problems may develop during and after exercise and these symptoms can occur even if the asthmatic is receiving proper medication.

Lets shift gears and discuss some medications such as aspirin and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. These and medications for high blood pressure, glaucoma, migraine or heart, thyroid or liver conditions have been known to aggravate mild asthma symptoms. So, you may want to double check your medications if you find your symptoms out of control.

People with sensitivities to aspirin tend to have chronic sinusitis and polyps inside their noses, a little tip that I found helpful.

Beta-blockers used for cardiovascular diseases and high blood pressure cause airway constriction and are generally contra-indicated for asthmatics. Also, sulfites which are preservatives added to some perishable foods can cause hives, allergies and shortness of breath in people with asthma.

On an emotional level, stress like anxiety may aggravate asthma symptoms and allthough psychological factors alone do not seem to provoke attacks, therapy may be needed to adequately control the symptoms.

In the end I would like to stress on the fact that we seek medications to control everything and more than likely we do not pay enough attention to what is the trigger of the problems we are experiencing.

Ref:(ASTHMA AND ITS PHARMACOLOGIC DRUGS IN TREATMENT)

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Dr.Iman Ashour. She is a member of the Fourpoint Group and helps people set up a healthy and successful home based business that result in a stable extra source of income. dr_halifaxhealth@yahoo.com Learn to live well

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Learn How To Stop Snoring

Learn How To Stop Snoring -- You Owe It To Your Family
By: Christopher Buckley

You could be one of the many million of people looking out for how to stop snoring. It is not something which is uncommon and the majority of households will have at least one member who snores. This often disturbs other members of the family and causes a need to learn how to stop the snoring before it gets out of hand.

Snoring Assisted Pillows Can Help

Generally, your problem of snoring originates owing to the fact that you can sleep on your back which makes relaxes the throat muscles, which causes a person to snore. You will find many various solutions on the way to stopping snoring and among them are the use of special pillows which are formed to some extent in order to support relaxed and quiet sleep.

Exercises For The Throat Muscles

Another possible alternative that you may want to consider with your research in knowing how to stop snoring is to include/understand the reasons behind the snoring and then to act to some extent to eliminate these causes. For example, you could also test and increase the strength of the throat and tongue muscles by carrying out certain exercises which will prevent the tongue from falling behind towards the throat.

If you are at a loss about how to stop snoring, the repercussions in your life could be huge, and you could also be affected in terms of the quality of your health. Often, a problem of snoring that is left untreated can become something much worse as a sleep apnea condition that develops can be a threat to anyone's life. Other negative consequences include even the end of a marriage, or otherwise other relationship breakdowns or struggles due to as simple an evil as snoring.

There is really no excuse not to know how to stop snoring because there is abundance of information available. It could be as simple as leaving out the glass of milk that you have before bed or to test various positions of sleep.

Getting The Doctor Involved

It is essential that you comprehend how to stop snoring while testing the simple solutions, initially. If they fail, you should consult a doctor because there could be a latent medical state that you are ignorant of. While being proative and by discovering just what it takes to stop snoring, you can nip this ailment in the bud and it will make you a happier and healthier person.

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Is your snoring louder than your car? Discover the best cures for snoring and more at my website, SnoreCure.info.

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Relieving And Stopping Headaches The Natural Way

By: Low Jeremy

Migraine headaches affect about 15 percent of the population. Although men can actually suffer from migraines, it is the women that are more affected. Experts believe that migraine is hereditary as researches have revealed more than 80 percent of people suffering from it have a family history of the problem.

Migraine headaches may not seem so serious but without proper care and proper diagnosis, those headaches may develop into something more. It is recurrent and may be a manifestation of an underlying problem in the brain that can be really dangerous.

Causes of migraine

Migraines are actually caused by the changes in the size of the blood vessels that are found in the brain and in the head area. These changes may be due to some inflammation or constriction that prevents the blood from flowing properly.

Unlike the common type of headache, which only lasts for about a few hours, migraine headaches can last from four hours to as much as three days. It is more severe and more frequent than your ordinary type of headache. Migraine headache however only affect a certain area on the head, often the side area or the temples unlike the common type that encompasses the whole head including the neck.

People suffering from migraine headaches may also experience a hallucination called aura. Auras are visual perceptions that are presented as a zigzagging light or a bight spot. People often see these visual disturbances immediately before their migraine attack.

Tension headaches, as they are more commonly known in medical circles, can begin slowly and may usually occur in the middle of the day. Such headaches can occur either on a regular or occasional basis, depending on the level of stress an individual faces each day.

The tightening of the muscles in the back of the neck and scalp causes the pain that tension headaches bring. This creates a feeling of constant band-like pain that can last for 30 minutes to as long as the whole duration of the day. They can cause other problems such as disturbed concentration, irritability, difficulty in sleeping and fatigue.

Tension headaches are more of the environmental type rather than being an inherited trait. Such headaches may come and go with the amount of stress that one can handle normally.

Treatment for tension headaches can include taking non-prescription pain relievers such as aspirin and ibuprofen although some more serious cases may require the use of prescription medication. Different therapies such as biofeedback and stress management can also help in minimizing tension headaches.

Migraines can also cause an individual to feel constant and painful headaches. Migraines are usually characterized by a dull ache that further develops into a constant and throbbing pain felt mostly at the temples as well as the front and back head areas.

The pain that a migraine headache can bring is also accompanied by a feeling of nausea and vomiting as well as sensitivity to light and sound. Most migraines are brought about by several triggers such as stress, fatigue and insomnia. Several foods such as chocolate, alcohol and caffeine can also be migraine triggers.

Treating migraine can be done in two ways- medication and non-medication therapy. Medications used to treat migraines include analgesics that can help relieve the constant pain brought about by a migraine attack. Migraine therapies that do not make use of any medication for treatment are usually employed to take care of the symptoms as well as prevent or reduce the occurrence of attacks. The use of biofeedback and relaxation techniques has been proven to alleviate and even stopping migraine attacks from occurring.

Treating migraine

Prevention is still the number one treatment for migraine. The best way is to make sure that one avoids the factors that may trigger the attack.

One of those factors is stress. By learning to relax a bit and do some stress management, one can prevent migraine headaches from recurring. Try to spread your workload to a degree, which you can manage. Rest for a while when you feel that you are getting tired.
Another great way is to deal with the attack head on.

Relieve the pain in the head by keeping warm and avoiding extreme temperatures. If the problem is the position of the head when you are sleeping, buy a different pillow. Choose a fluffier one that will cushion your head better. You can also experiment with a different sleeping position.

You can also rub your temples and massage the area that is painful. Try to close your eyes for a while and let it rest especially when you have been staring at the computer screen for a long time.

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Low Jeremy maintains Headache.ArticlesForReprint.com. This content is provided by Low Jeremy. It may be used only in its entirety with all links included.