Special MRI Shows Secondhand Smoke Damages Lungs

(HealthDay News) -- Using a special type of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), U.S. researchers have identified structural damage to the lungs caused by secondhand smoke.
This is the first study to produce evidence of such a link, they added.

"It's long been hypothesized that prolonged exposure to secondhand smoke may cause physical damage to the lungs, but previous methods of analyzing lung changes were not sensitive enough to detect it," Chengbo Wang, magnetic resonance physicist at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, said in a prepared statement.

Wang's team used long-time-scale, global helium-3 diffusion MRI to study the lungs of seven current and former smokers and 36 people who'd never smoked. Of those 36 people, 18 had a high level of secondhand smoke exposure.

The results showed that 57 percent of smokers and 33 percent of the nonsmokers with high exposure to secondhand smoke appeared to have early signs of lung damage. In addition, 14 percent of smokers and 67 percent of nonsmokers with high exposure to secondhand smoke showed evidence of developing respiratory problems such as asthma or chronic bronchitis.

"These findings suggest that breathing secondhand smoke can injure your lungs," Wang said.

"Since legislation to limit public exposure to secondhand smoke is still being considered in many states, we hope that our work can be used to add momentum to the drive to pass such legislation."

The study was slated to be presented Monday at the Radiological Society of North America annual meeting, in Chicago.

More information
The American Cancer Society has more about secondhand smoke.

Try a Proprietary Formula for Female Libido based on Ayurveda

Kama Rani is based on the findings of Ayurveda, the world's oldest medical system.

Herbs from throughout India are formulated into a blend that strengthens the woman's body so that it is more robust and energized, improves circulation especially around erogenous zones to intensify orgasms, elevates estrogen levels to improve libido and increase lubrication, nourishes and stimulates the nervous system to relieve effects of stress, soothes the reproductive system, stimulates the hypothalamus and pituitary glands to release growth hormone and boost clitoral sensitivity, and calms the mind to prolong clitoral sensitivity and sexual pleasure.

more information:
http://www.kamarani.com/index.htm?aff=dreddyclinic
http://dreddyclinic.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=5230

Mini Strokes: Major Health Threats

(HealthDay News) -- Doctors call them transient ischemic attacks, but they're more commonly known as "mini-strokes."

But make no mistake -- they can be deadly.

What's worse, many people who suffer such an attack rarely seek medical help. Just one in 10 people who experienced symptoms of a transient ischemic attack (TIA) sought the proper emergency care, a recent study published in the journal Stroke found.

Urgent care is critical, because some people who suffer TIAs will have a major stroke as soon as a day or two after the mini-stroke.

"People need urgent medical attention not for the symptoms that have passed but for what might be coming. Many people don't have a TIA before they have a stroke, so, in a sense, it's fortunate to have one. Now you have a chance to intervene," said Dr. Keith Siller, medical director of the Comprehensive Stroke Care Center at New York University Medical Center
.
A transient ischemic attack occurs when blood flow to a part of the brain is temporarily blocked. When this occurs, symptoms come on suddenly and last anywhere from a few minutes to many hours. Symptoms may include:

• Sudden loss of speech or the ability to understand others.
• Rapid onset of weakness or numbness of the face, arm or leg, especially if it occurs on only one side of the body.
• Sudden loss of, or change in, vision that may occur in one or both eyes.
• Sudden difficulty walking or maintaining balance.

One thing you may not feel with a stroke is pain.

"Pain is not the right thing to look for in stroke," said Dr. Christian Schumacher, a neurologist at the Stern Stroke Center at Montefiore Medical Center in New York City. "People expect that like a heart attack, which is often painful, that stroke will cause pain. But stroke symptoms are, in most cases, without pain."

One exception, Siller added, is what's known as a hemorrhagic stroke. In this instance, you would likely experience a sudden, severe, unexplained headache. If you have such a headache or any of the above symptoms, Siller said, you should get to the hospital immediately.

Unfortunately, not many people realize the need for urgent care. In the Stroke study, British researchers surveyed 241 people who had experienced a transient ischemic attack. Just 44.4 percent sought medical care within a few hours of experiencing TIA symptoms, and only 10 percent sought any emergency medical care for their symptoms.

Another 44 percent waited longer than a day after their symptoms to seek care. People who had symptoms that lasted more than one hour -- and those with motor symptoms, such as difficulty walking -- were more likely to seek care. If the TIA symptoms occurred on a weekend, people were more likely to delay seeking treatment.

People "want to wait until they feel better, and most TIAs get better within an hour. If it gets better, people just think, 'Oh, that was weird,' and then they may call their doctor later," Schumacher said.

Or, they may just forget the symptoms altogether, Siller said. "When symptoms are gone, and they feel better, people forget. But, it's a misconception that if it went away, it doesn't mean anything," he said.

"Although TIA is called a mini-stroke; it's like having a real stroke. It's a warning sign for a major disabling stroke," Schumacher said.

Getting to the hospital as soon as possible after TIA or stroke symptoms begin is critical. The reason: Clot-busting drugs that can spare you many of stroke's worst effects -- including paralysis -- have to be administered within several hours after the onset of symptoms to be effective, Siller explained.

"If you wait, we can't do as much to help you," he said.

Siller also recommends discussing your risk factors with your physician. The most common risk factor for stroke is a past history of a stroke or a TIA. People with high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes and those with heart disease also have an increased risk of stroke, making it even more important for them to act quickly if they have any TIA symptoms.

More information
The American Heart Association has more on transient ischemic attacks.

Kids Who Skimp on Sleep Tend to Be Fatter

(HealthDay News) -- While the connection between a child's weight and the amount of sleep that child gets may not be immediately apparent, new research has found a strong correlation between the two.

Sixth-graders who averaged less than 8.5 hours of sleep a night had a 23 percent rate of obesity, while their well-rested peers who averaged more than 9.25 hours of sleep had an obesity rate of just 12 percent, according to a new study.

"We found that children who got less sleep were more likely to be obese," said the study's lead author, Dr. Julie Lumeng, an assistant research scientist at the University of Michigan Center for Human Growth and Development.

Lumeng said that even after compensating for other factors, such as the home environment, the link between less sleep and heavier weight was still apparent.

The study results are published in the November issue of the journal Pediatrics.

Lumeng said there are three likely reasons why sleep might affect weight. First, if children don't get enough sleep at night, they'll be less likely to run around and get exercise during the day.

Second, when kids are tired, they're more irritable and may reach for junk food to help regulate their mood. And, finally, what Lumeng called a "hot area for future research" is the possible connection between sleep and fat metabolism. She said there have been studies done with adults that have shown that a lack of sleep may disrupt the secretion of hormones involved in appetite and metabolism, such as leptin and insulin.

The new study included 785 children who were in third grade at the start of the trial. Most were white -- 81 percent -- and half were female.

Parents were interviewed about their children's sleep habits when the youngsters were in third grade and then again when they were in sixth grade. The researchers also measured height and weight. Obesity was defined as having a body mass index (BMI, a ratio of weight to height) higher than the 95th percentile for age and gender, according to Lumeng. Eighteen percent of the children were obese in sixth grade.

The researchers also took into account maternal education, race, the quality of the home environment and parenting skills to see if those factors affected a child's weight.

No matter what a child weighed in third grade, too little sleep correlated with being obese in sixth grade. And, short sleep duration in sixth grade also correlated with excess weight in sixth grade, according to the study.

Third-graders who got less than nine hours and 45 minutes of sleep a night had an obesity prevalence of about 20 percent, while those who got more than nine hours and 45 minutes of sleep had obesity rates of about 12 percent, Lumeng said.

Those who were short-changing sleep in third grade had 40 percent higher odds of being obese in sixth grade, and sixth-graders who weren't getting enough sleep were 20 percent more likely to be obese, compared to their well-rested counterparts.

Lumeng said the researchers weren't able to find a statistical association between quality of sleep and obesity. But, she said that without a lab-based sleep study, it's difficult to objectively assess the quality of sleep, so there may be an association that this study wasn't able to uncover.
Dr. Stephen Sheldon, director of the Sleep Medicine Center at Children's Memorial Hospital in Chicago, said he would've liked to see sleep studies so the researchers could have known more about the quality of sleep these children were getting, such as how much REM sleep did they get and how fragmented was the sleep?

But, he said, the bottom line is that "pediatricians and parents really need to start paying closer attention to sleep-wake habits. In this society, we put a premium on being awake, and that premium may hurt us in the long run. Sleep may be as important as food to our health and well-being," said Sheldon, who's also a professor of pediatrics at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.

Both Lumeng and Sheldon recommended trying to keep a consistent sleep schedule. Bedtimes and wake times are both important -- for children and adults. Sheldon said it's usually OK to vary your sleep times a little bit on the weekend, about an hour or so, but, he cautioned, "Letting you child sleep till noon or mid-afternoon is inviting trouble."

Lumeng also recommended that children not have a TV in their bedroom, because it can make it more difficult to fall asleep.

More information
To read more about the connection between overweight and sleep, visit the National Sleep Foundation.

Arthritis Takes Major Toll on Workplace

(HealthDay News) -- Arthritis-related disability can have a major impact on a person's employment, forcing them to change work hours, the type and nature of their work, or even lose their job, a Canadian study reports.

The study tracked 490 people with osteoarthritis (OA) and inflammatory arthritis (IA) for more than four years. During that time, 63 percent of the participants remained employed, but work changes were common: 45 percent reduced their work hours due to arthritis; 52 percent switched their type of work; 18 percent weren't able to seek and accept promotions and job transfers; and 41 percent weren't able to take on additional responsibilities.

In addition, many of the participants used vacation time and missed work to deal with their arthritis.

"We know that arthritis can result in people having to leave their jobs. This research focuses our attention on the workplace itself and highlights how common a wide range of work transitions are in the lives of people with arthritis," Monique A.M. Gignac, senior scientist at the Toronto Western Research Institute and associate professor in the department of health sciences at the University of Toronto, said in a prepared statement.

"By studying these changes, we hope to identify those that allow people to remain employed longer, as well as types of transitions that signal problems that need to be addressed with early intervention and treatment," she said.

The study was expected to be presented Nov. 10 at an American College of Rheumatology meeting in Boston.

Arthritis affects about 46 million Americans.

More information
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has more about arthritis.

Kama Yogi

YOUR BODY IS YOUR TEMPLE! Maintain It Through Proven Ancient Practices for Sexual Enhancement! CHARAKA, THE AUTHOR OF ANCIENT AYURVEDIC TEXTS, WROTE . . .

"The healthy life has three main pillars - a balanced diet, mental hygiene, and a healthy not allowed life. " Kama Yogi's Powerful Techniques Give Significant, Invigorating, and Enduring Results! If you want to enjoy extraordinary not allowed and reduced chance of low not allowed drive and lack of vigor, vitality, and raw sexual energy, there is proven help available. India's men and women have been reaping the powerful benefits of YOGA for the past 5,000 years!

The 63-page Kama Yogi eBook with 165 color photographs offers a set of ancient spiritual practices geared towards the attainment of sexual vigor, improved vitality, and increased libido.

It will help you: Intensify Your Orgasms. Elevate Your not allowed Drive. Enhance Your Sexual Pleasure. Harden & Prolong Your Erections. Acquire Flexibility for Lovemaking. Satisfy Desires & Be Fulfilled. Kama Yogi is a product of: 5000 years of Yogic wisdom. Tantra and Kundalini principles. Proven Yoga postures. Time-tested Meditation techniques. Focus on physical & spiritual sexuality.

http://www.kamayogi.com/index.htm?aff=dreddyclinic


more discussion: Forum
· Addiction Forum · Ask the Doctors Forum · Ayurveda Forum · Ayurvedic & Thai Herbs Forum · Colon Cleansing Forum · Dental Forum · Diabetes Forum · Diet Forum · General Cleansing Forum · Hepatitis A, B. C Forum · Integrated Medicine Forum · Live Blood Analysis Forum · Ozone-Oxygen-Forum · pH - Alkaline - Acidity Forum · Weight Loss Forum

Urinary Tract Infection May Raise Birth Defect Risk

(HealthDay News) -- Pregnant women who had a urinary tract infection (UTI) from one month before conception through the first trimester of pregnancy were 70 percent more likely than women without UTI to have a baby with a defect called hypoplastic left heart syndrome (underdeveloped left side of the heart), a U.S. study finds.

This association was independent of other factors, such as vitamin use, folic acid intake, alcohol consumption, race, ethnicity, mother's age, or exposure to sulfonamide ("sulfa") drugs, said the researchers.

The National Birth Defects Prevention Study included 3,690 women who had infants with "nonsyndromic" congenital birth defects and 4,760 mothers of babies without birth defects.

Detecting and treating asymptomatic bacteriuria and UTI in women at time of conception "may decrease the risk of having an infant with a left-sided obstructive cardiac defect," study author Sadia Malik, of the University of Arkansas Medical School in Little Rock, said in a prepared statement.

The study was expected to be presented Sunday at the American Heart Association annual meeting in Orlando, Fla.

More information
The American Heart Association has more about hypoplastic left heart syndrome.