In the early stages of people suffering from sleep disorders or insomnia, often times they resolve to trying sleeping pills or any other over-the-counter drugs that promise a quick fix. These medications may provide the necessary solution at first; however they do not necessarily cure the cause of insomnia that eventually become their crutch to lean on instead of a cure. The benefits derived from sleep medications are enough to consider only for a short period of time. Long-term solutions may involved changing lifestyle and going to the source and cause of your sleeplessness. Learning about medical treatment options will surely help you make an informed choice in your triumph over insomnia. Apart from the over-the-counter and prescription drugs, there are a handful of other options like natural sleep aids that will surely help you get that good night sleep you’ve always dreamed of.

We have already mentioned a little and some of the possible side effects and disadvantages of taking in prescribed and over-the-counter drugs to address your sleeping needs. Let us expand the list by giving more definite examples of the disadvantages of taking these drugs.

Fact is, drugs do not really cure insomnia. These drugs are for short-term use only and can often make the problem worse over longer periods of time. Taking these medicines for longer periods may develop the tendency to be drug tolerant. This means that, eventually, you may need to increase the dosage probably because your body is used to the drug itself. Sooner or later, your may find it hard to fall asleep without the drug hence you may become very dependent on the drug to put yourself to sleep.

These sleeping pills may vary in the length of action or effects to your body. Among the common complaints of people taking in these medicines include drowsiness. These pills often leave them feeling groggy and hung over the next day. This is mainly because these drugs, especially those containing benzodiazepines have longer duration of action. Apart from drowsiness, which may also affect your mental alertness during the day, some of the most common side effects of over-the-counter sleeping aids include dizziness, lack of coordination, forgetfulness, constipation, urinary retention, blurred vision, and dry mouth and throat. Withdrawal symptoms and other physical side effects may occur as well.

Another important caution that you should take note in taking any of the over-the-counter sleeping drugs is that these may cause adverse chemical reactions in your body. If you are already taking other drugs, these may also interact with those. So, it is important that you consult your physician before taking any of these sleeping drugs.

Again, medications may provide you with help in adjusting and dealing with sleeplessness. But it is important that you address the root cause of your insomnia. Lifestyle change or improvements are almost always important. As noted, sleep medications can actually reduce the quality of your sleep by reducing time you spend in deep sleep. What is important is that you commit to making your sleep habits and sleep environment more conducive to sleep. There are other options available for you like natural sleep aids (exercise, proper diet, herbal medicines, among others). With these, you can limit the effects of insomnia on your life.

No wonder that back pain is such a frequent problem, if you think how much wear and tear our backs must take on day by day. Back trouble has become one of the most frequent complaints that doctors hear, and the frequency only increase as the patient hit middle age and older. Most back problems occur when the muscles surrounding the area become strained and sore. Therefore, it has become quite necessary to explain what actually is back pain therapy. You should always tackle the initial pain with the proper treatment plan, and then move on to avoid further problem by introducing a preventative program of backache therapy that will strengthen the back and reduce the risk of injury and pain in the future.

Back Pain Therapy For Instant Relief:

If backache is severe and the patient is unable to walk because of that pain then the therapy should focus at eradicating the problem completely. There are very few things more incapacitating than severe backache, whether persistent or transitory, since it will cause great distress. Pain therapy should be given in such a way that sufferer can get instant pain relief.

Instantaneous relief can be obtained by therapy. For this hot and cold packs on the affected area one after the other. This will help to lessen the inflammation and soreness at the beginning. Bed rest is sometimes optional in back related therapies, but if prescribed then should only be used for a day or two at the most. Movements should be resumed as soon as possible otherwise bed rest can actually delay the healing process. Once you have learned how to relieve back muscle pain with these initial procedures, you can then move on to the preventative process.

Further Prospects of Back Pain Therapy:

Research have shown that people who ever had back related troubles in the past will be more likely to have recurrence in the future. That’s why it becomes significant for you to have complete sessions of backache therapy and then keeping in mind all the precautions and preventative measures. Preclusion includes an exercise program instructed by a physical therapist that includes walking with strength preparation, and will aim in relieving back pain completely. A regular exercise program will not only reinforce your back, but the rest of your body will gain from the daily activity as well.

Back pain does not have much affect in your lifestyle but just by learning and applying correct back pain therapy, you will be on the road to a more comfortable and healthier way of life.

At some point, your cat will encounter a parasite of some sort. One such parasite is the cat hookworm. Actually, there are four types of hookworm that may infect your cat.

Ancylostoma tubaeforme, or the feline hookworm, Ancylostoma braziliense, or the canine and feline hookworm, Uncinaria stenocephala, known as the northern canine hookworm, and Ancylostoma caninum, or the canine hookworm (some authoritative sources state that this form of the worm only infects dogs, foxes, and possibly humans, but not cats).

Hookworm risks —

As with other parasites, environment and hygiene are critical risk factors, and indoor cats are far less likely than outdoor cats to contract the worm. Cats that are regularly allowed to hunt or roam are at higher risk for infection. Overcrowding and poor sanitation in shelters may contribute to the spread of the worm as well. Hookworms tend to thrive in warm, moist environments, so incidents may be higher in warmer climates. The exception to this might be U. stenocephala, which is more commonly seen in colder climates.

What they do to your cat —

In contrast to roundworm, which swim freely in the cat’s intestines, the hookworm will anchor itself to the cat’s intestinal wall and suck blood from the tissue. In order to ensure a constant supply of blood flow and nutrients, they inject an anti-coagulant at the feeding site to keep the blood from clotting. Clever, huh? One of the problems that can occur is that if the hookworm moves its feeding location, the old location may continue to bleed into the bowel. All this blood loss results in anemia.

Signs and symptoms of cat hookworms —

In kittens or cats in ill health, the anemia caused by the blood loss is usually more serious than in otherwise healthy adults. In rare, but severe cases, a blood transfusion may be required, and there may be a risk of death. Hookworms in your cat may cause any of the following symptoms: anemia, weakness, pale gums, poor coat, black tarry stools, bloody diarrhea, and weight loss. Infected kittens may also exhibit stunted growth.

Methods of transmission and life cycle —

An animal can become infected by ingestion of larvae. This can be through contaminated water or soil, or by eating an infected transport host (such as when a cat eats a rodent). Larvae can also infect your cat by penetrating the skin (usually the feet). In addition, infected mothers may pass the disease on in their milk.

You will note that in contrast to some parasites, hookworms have a direct life cycle. In other words, they don’t necessarily need a host in order to be transmitted.

Adult hookworms hook themselves to the intestinal wall and begin feeding. They pass microscopic eggs into the bowel of the cat, which ultimately end up in the cat’s stool. The eggs hatch and develop into larvae (immature worms). The Centers for Disease Control state that under the right conditions of moisture and temperature, eggs can develop into the infective larvae stage in as few as five days. Time varies, though, and this process may take up to three weeks or so. According to most sources, the larvae can exist in the soil and remain infective for many months.

When infection starts via skin penetration, the larvae will migrate via the circulatory system to the lungs. They will then make their way up to the throat, where they are swallowed. Once in the intestine, they may mature and begin producing eggs, and the cycle begins again.

In cats, prenatal infection (infection through transplacental blood flow prior to birth) has not been established to occur, as it does in dogs. Kittens, according to some sources, can become infected as well through ingesting the milk of an infected queen (transmammary), but others state otherwise, or that it has not been established.

Cat hookworm diagnosis and treatment —

Yearly testing for cat parasites, especially worms, is important, as it’s possible that healthy cats may show few symptoms until infection becomes severe. Hookworm eggs cannot be detected with the naked eye, but infection is fairly easy for your vet to diagnose through examination of the cat’s stool under a microscope. At least two treatments of deworming medication are needed in order to completely rid your cat of hookworm. Typically, treatments are administered at 2 – 3 week intervals. Kittens should be, and typically are, treated for hookworm during their kitten vaccination series.

My first encounter with colon cancer that spread to the liver was with Tony in 1996. His doctor had told him that chemotherapy or radiotherapy would be of no use for him. Tony had a miraculous healing after taking herbs. Unfortunately, Tony died one and half years later after reverting to his “bad diet”. A video on Tony can be viewed at cacarevideo blogspot below. Another case that came to mind is Dass. He had a recurrent colon cancer after surgery and chemotherapy. He was asked to undergo chemotherapy again after this recurrence. He refused and came to us for help in January 1998. It has been nine years now and Dass is doing very well and is leading a normal and happy life.

Herbs, change of lifestyle and diet had helped numerous patients to live a normal, happy life after their colon cancer, without the need for chemotherapy. Is the medical profession ever interested to know? To brush this off as a mere quackery or empty claim is a great mistake. The strength of our work is that we are able to predict the possible outcome of our herbal therapy and also repeat such outcome. Is this not scientific enough?

I have seen numerous cases of healing after chemotherapy had led patients to nowhere. The following are two cases to substantiate my claim.

Case 1: Han (not real name), 62-year-old male, was diagnosed with colon cancer that had metastasised to his liver in October 2004. He underwent an operation to remove the diseased colon. Upon hearing this, I called him at his home and asked if I could in anyway be of help. In fact, by doing this I had violated my own code of ethics. I generally do not do such a thing, lest I be accused of trying to promote my herbs. But, Han was my classmate way back in the 1960s. I provided him with all the information he wanted to know about his disease and started him on herbs. After his surgery, his doctor recommended chemotherapy which he readily agreed. I respected his decision.

Han went through twelve cycles of chemotherapy, unlike most patients who do six cycles only. But the tumor in his liver remained unaffected. Chemotherapy was abandoned and he was asked to try RFA (radiofrequency ablation). He underwent this procedure twice and twice it failed. Then the doctor recommended surgery to remove the tumor from his liver. This time, Han declined! He had learnt his lesson. But all along Han was taking herbs for both his colon and liver cancers. As of this day, three and half years since his diagnosis, Han is still doing fine. In a recent four-hour-video interview with him, Han told us that he could play golf better than his healthy friends. He can drive, eat and sleep well. None of his friends ever suspect or believe that he has cancer! When asked what made him what he is today, he answered: your herbs, change of diet and belief in God.

Case 2: June (not real name), 57-year-old female was diagnosed with colon cancer that had metastatised to her liver in January 2005. She underwent surgical resection of her colon followed by six cycles of chemotherapy. She did not suffer any side effects because she was at the same time on our herbs. June told us that when her platelets were down she took the juice of papaya leaves after reading our newsletter (Letter 41: The lowly juices of Papaya and Pegaga leaves? Do they beat scientific medicine?) After taking it for three times, the platelet count increased.

June and her husband, Paul (not real name) flew in from Jakarta to see us on 11 May 2006. This was what June said about her experience with her oncologist.

June: My oncologist said I am a very stubborn woman because I did not want to undergo anymore chemotherapy. I also declined surgery for my liver metastasis. I also did not want to go for RFA (radiofrequency ablation). I was prescribed Xeloda, but I did not take it. Now, my oncologist wants to see me. Once in a while, I received SMS from her nurse asking me to come to Singapore for a check up.

Paul: I asked the oncologist, “By doing more chemotherapy is it going to cure my wife.” The answer is NO. The oncologist was not sure. We also consulted another doctor who saw my wife and knew that she is taking herbs. This doctor told us: “Go ahead and take your herbs for as long as it is helping you.”

Our conversation shifted to diet. I asked June if her oncologist said anything about diet. “My oncologist said I can eat anything I like. There is no need to “pantang” (prohibition) at all.”

June’s condition has not deteriorated in spite of declining further medical treatment. In fact, her blood works had improved! Her CEA which was at 47.4 in March 2005 was at 3.6 in May 2006. Her liver function values– AST, ALT and GGT were once elevated but they had since gone down and were within normal limits. As of this writing (more than two years after diagnosis) June is doing very well. She has since put on weight and leads a normal life.

Catastrophic insurance plans (also called major medical plans) do not cover any expenses related to preventative care, minor wound care, or any kind of health monitoring service. Instead, they cover some of the expenses associated with major, catastrophic illnesses and accidents. If you are sent to emergency room, it is likely that much of that expense will be covered by your catastrophic policy. Other expenses covered include hospital expenses like room, board and incidentals, surgical expenses, and physician expenses.

Like any insurance policy, catastrophic plans have limits and deductibles. You will be required to pay the deductible amount out of pocket, then the insurance company will step in and pay their portion of your expenses, up to the limit.

Because the insurable incidents covered by catastrophic plans are so limited, the premiums tend to be low and widely affordable. As with any policy, choosing a high deductible and low limit further limits the risk of expense to the insurance company and will result in even lower rates-but as with any insurance policy, consumers must make sure that they choose a deductible they can afford and a limit that is reasonable and still offers a relevant benefit.

Catastrophic policies are not for everyone. If you have a chronic illness or injury, a catastrophic policy can step in when a major medical incident occurs, but will not give you the day-to-day and preventative coverage that you may need in order to live a long and healthy life. But if you are unable to secure a regular health insurance policy and don’t yet qualify to join the high risk pool for your state, then it may be a helpful alternative.

Morning Stretches

Stretch-1: 5-10 times

• Lie on your back with your knees bent so that your feet can rest flat on the floor.
• Grip the underside of your thighs with your hands.
• Pull your legs to your chest, or as close as you comfortably can.
• Hold this stretch for 15 seconds before returning to a resting position.

Stretch-2: 10 times

• Lie on your stomach, supporting your upper body with your elbows and forearms.
• Stretch your elbows and arms so that your back is extended and stretching.
• Hold at a gentle stretch for 15-20 seconds before returning to a rest.

Stretch-3: Once

• Start the same as Stretch-1: flat on your back, legs bent with feet flat against the ground.
• Lift your upper back off the ground using your abdominal muscles.
• Hold for a long 10 seconds if you can, then gently lower yourself back down.

Stretch-4: Until tired

• Sit in a chair, feet resting flat on the floor.
• Bend the back and neck until your chest rests again your thighs.
• Hold for 10 seconds before returning to the initial position. You should feel the stretch.

Good Posture

Posture might be the most important thing for backs. Short of walking around with a yard-stick in the back of your trousers, here is what you can do to fix your back.

When standing, hold your chest high, shoulders back (not tense), abs and butt tight, with your feet an even distance apart and sharing the weight. Your head should be looked straight ahead and your knees should never lock.

When sitting, rest your feet flat on the floor, back flat against the chair, chin tucked in a bit, shoulders relaxed, and back straight. Try to imagine a line shooting from your neck and head directly to the ceiling. It might help to cushion your lower back also.

What to Eat and Drink

There are some basic principles when deciding what to eat. High protein, high fiber, and high in minerals like magnesium, iron, and copper. With that in mind, here are some perfect foods for sufferers of back pain:

• Avocados
• Nuts, specifically Almonds and Pecans
• Soy Beans and Tofu
• Spinach, which is better for you cooked

You should also take a multivitamin.

Doing these stretches and taking good care of your back is really hard to do when your have near crippling pain preventing you from even thinking straight, never mind standing or sitting straight. That’s why so many people turn to Carisoprodol to ease their pain. It’s important to remember that you have to keep working at it once you’re on Carisoprodol in order to keep back pain at bay. And take it easy. You can’t be on Carisoprodol forever, but you can make your back feel at peace.

So can hair loss drugs beat heredity? As always, the answer needs a little explanation. It starts easily enough. No drug on the market can prevent you from losing hair. Your body is designed to shed hairs everyday. Under normal circumstances, they grow back. Worse, as we age, more hair will drop out. That’s also unstoppable. So it does not look good for the drugs. Unlike heart disease where there are drugs to prevent the first symptoms from developing into the disease, nothing beats your body clock’s determination to shed hairs every day as you age.

What’s the genetic reality? As you probably know, men are XY and women are XX. When babies are made, each parent contributes half the genetic make-up of the child. Mothers can only give one of their X chromosomes so it’s the man who decides on the sex of the baby by either contributing an X or Y chromosome. Because of the work to analyze genes, we now know the genes controlling hair loss come in the X chromosome. That means whether you get to lose your hair early is decided by your mother’s family line. If there’s a bald maternal grandfather hiding just out of focus in old photographs, that’s probably going to be you.

How is this helping? Well, if you have the wrong genes, your hair follicles are going to react to the arrival of dihydrotestosterone (DHT) by slowing down the growth of hair. What does grow will emerge thinner and more likely to fall out of the roots. That’s why you start going bald. Hair that drops early tends not to regrow. DHT is produced in the adrenal gland and this is what keeps men male, i.e. it reinforces the usual male “characteristics”. With the wrong genes, this triggers hair loss on the scalp – not the rest of the body. This is where Propecia comes in. It prevents your adrenal gland from manufacturing DHT out of “ordinary” testosterone. Without there being the same level of DHT in your bloodstream, your hair keeps on growing. So Propecia does not beat heredity. Rather it carefully gets round it and lets you keep your hair. This makes the advertising so clever. It’s not unfair to claim a drug like Propecia can beat heredity. You beat someone or something by going around it. Winning is not always a battle to the death where one side batters the other into submission. Winning can be sneaky. That does not make the ads deceptive either. They are just elegantly playing with words to make you want to buy. Better still, the drug works so, if you buy, you are a winner!

In order to get a proper treatment, you should first be diagnosed with a particular sleep disorder affecting the quality of your sleep. The most common symptoms of sleep disorders are daytime drowsiness, concentration issues, irritability, mood swings, trouble staying awake while performing monotonous tasks, and eye discomfort among many others.

Some symptoms of sleep disorders can be really dangerous, such as drowsiness or falling asleep while performing hazardous activities, such as driving or operating machinery. Heavy consumption of caffeine throughout the day in order to stay awake can also be a sign of sleep problems.

People who suffer from sleep disorders usually have problems with getting asleep or staying asleep during the night, as well as a hard time staying awake in the daytime. Some of the commonly prescribed forms of treatment are addressing insomnia, sleep apnea, narcolepsy and restless leg syndrome.

Insomnia is virtually the most common type of sleep disorders, which can be both occasional and chronic. There is a wide range of causes for insomnia starting with stress and irregular sleep schedule to serious health conditions and medication side effects. There are some measures you can take to address insomnia without medications:

• Employ relaxation and special breathing techniques
• Practice yoga
• Be more physically active throughout the day

By avoiding certain food substance you can also improve the quality of your sleep:

• caffeine
• alcohol
• sugar

These measures can help if you experience occasional sleep disturbance. However, if the problem persists you may require serious medication treatment and prescription for drugs such as Ambien. Consult with your doctor concerning your insomnia problems and ask about forms of treatment you can benefit from.

Other types of sleep disorders usually require medication treatment form the start. Sleep apnea, another common sleep disorder is characterized by heavy snoring that causes sleep fragmentation and decrease in the quality of sleep. This is a serious condition that may lead to heart disease or stroke. Sleep apnea is often caused by blocking of the air passage, which makes the person choke literally during sleep.

Narcolepsy (excessive sleep) can also significantly reduce the quality of life of the person. Being an opposite of insomnia, this sleep disorder is characterized by occasional sleep attacks during the daytime. Imagine that happening while you’re driving a car – it’s a very serious health concern that should be addressed as soon as you experience the first symptoms.

Remember that any sleep disorder requires adequate diagnosis and treatment. It’s not bright to buy Ambien and use it just because you suspect having insomnia. Only a doctor can assess the problem and prescribe you with an adequate treatment. So as soon as you observe any signs of sleep disorders, go to your physician and discuss the problem with a professional.

Acne is not purely a skin issue

Dermatologists characterize acne breakouts as an inflammatory skin condition. External factors such as skin rich with oil (which is produced by the oil glands within the skin) are only contributing to the inflammation processes in the lower levels of the skin.

The most common consequence of increased oil production is the blockage of pores, which is the primary factor for acne formation. When the pore gets blocked with oil, the oil accumulated inside provides favorable conditions for bacterial activity and inflammation, which leads directly to the appearance of pimples on the skin.

So as you may see, acne is caused not only by bacterial activity, but has a combination of factors in its roots: activity of oil glands, skin type, pores, and certain internal processes that make the skin more prone to inflammation. That’s why it is hard to say that acne is only an external problem.

Why acne bacteria are important?

You are not mistaken, acne bacteria are important, just like any other kinds of bacteria you will find within your body. In fact typical acne bacteria can be found in just anyone’s skin, and not having them at all is more serious than having to deal with acne. The main purpose of these organisms is to protect the skin cells from other more aggressive types of bacteria that may cause harm to the body, and maintain the right chemical balance on the surface and within the skin.

Even if you don’t have acne breakouts, you still have plenty of acne bacteria on your skin, which feeds with the oil produced by the oil glands. This type of bacteria doesn’t spread on its own and cause inflammation when everything is OK. However, when numerous factors such as increased oil production and decrease immune levels combine, this harmless type of bacteria starts playing an important role in the formation of acne.

So, as you may guess, fighting acne by eliminating bacteria with antibiotics can be not only ineffective but also harmful, since you’re killing the useful bacteria and leave your skin unprotected from more virulent types of microorganisms.

What should be done?

The most obvious solution would be regulating the production of oil in the skin and improving the immune system. The firs goal can be achieved by using drugs like Accutane. Accutane is believed to be one of the most effective medications for treating even the most severe forms of acne. It works by regulating the activity of oil glands and decreasing the production of oil in the skin. The immune system can be strengthened by eating more fruits and vegetables, consuming dietary supplements containing vitamins and minerals. However, pay attention when using Accutane with vitamins (especially Vitamin A). Since this drug is a synthetic form of Vitamin A, combining it with additional supplements may result in Vitamin A overdose, which may cause serious side effects.