Small Gray Bear

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Crohn's disease is a systemic inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) of unknown cause, that results in chronic inflammation of the intestinal tract.

It can affect the entire gastrointestinal tract from mouth to anus, and can also cause complications outside of the gastrointestinal tract.

The incidence of Crohn's disease in North America is 6:100 000, and is thought to be similar in Europe, but lower in Asia and Africa Unlike the other major inflammatory bowel disease, ulcerative colitis, there is no known medical or surgical cure for Crohn's disease.

Many medical treatments are however available for Crohn's disease with a goal of keeping the disease in remission.

Many patients with Crohn's disease have symptoms for years prior to the diagnosis. Because of the patchy nature of the gastrointestinal disease and the depth of tissue involvement, initial symptoms can be more vague than with ulcerative colitis.

Common initial symptoms of Crohn's disease include the following;
Abdominal pain, diarrhea, bloody diarrhea, and peri anal discomfort.

Typically, Crohn's disease only affects areas of the large intestine. Because Crohn's disease is most commonly associated with the large intestine, the most common symptoms are diahrea or constipation, and abdominal pain and cramping.

Like all autoimmune disorders, Crohn's disease is a pretty serious condition, and there isn't really any cure for it. There are some new treatments available, but nothing that will cure it outright.

Some people seem to get occassionaly flare ups from their Chorn's disease, but more or less live normal lives. Others suffer from chronic flare ups their entire lives, which can sometimes lead to more serious complications.

The medications you take if you are having a flare up are basically immunosuppressant sorts of drugs and of course steroids, neither of which aren't really all that pleasant to take. They both have a lot of side effects, and the immunosupressants boost your chances of getting some kind of opportunistic infection.

Dry eye syndrome, also called Keratoconjunctivitis sicca or xerophthalmia, refers to a lack of lubrication and moisture in the eye. This is mainly due to a decrease in the tear production or an increase in the tear film evaporation. The typical symptoms of dry eye syndrome are burning and a subtle but constant eye irritation. The condition may also lead to inflammation of the frontal eye tissue.

There are several factors that may bring about dry eye syndrome. The condition is more common with older age, since tear production decreases with age. Dry eye as a syndrome may occur as a side effect of many medications. Harsh environmental conditions, such as a dusty or windy climate, may worsen the condition. Even your workplace environment, comprising of air conditioning or a dry heating system, may easily dry out your eyes. Insufficient blinking, such as, when constantly staring at a monitor screen, is another significant cause of dry eye syndrome.

The basic treatment for dry eye syndrome is to replenish the moisture content of the eye surface. To accomplish this, the ophthalmologist typically prescribes artificial tears, which are lubricating eye drops that aid in alleviating the symptoms of irritation and burning sensation in the eyes. Another treatment that goes one step further involves the application of Restasis (cyclosporine) eye drops, which effectively enhance tear production. A healthy diet, comprising of a sufficient amount of omega-3 fatty acids, lowers the chances of contracting dry eye syndrome. Salmon, sardine, herring, and cod liver oils are rich sources of omega-3 fatty acids.

Patients wearing contact lenses need to take an extra precaution prior to the application of artificial tears. Specifically, it is necessary that the patient removes the contact lenses before using the eye drops. Moreover, the patient needs to wait 15 minutes or longer for the medicinal drops to take effect, and only after that can the contact lenses be worn again.

Dry eye syndrome is slightly more common in women than in men. A shocking 10-14 million people in the United States suffer from dry eye syndrome. The condition is more prevalent among those older than 40 years. An estimated 75% of the old-aged population shows signs of dry eye syndrome.

If you suffer from any of the above explained symptoms that depict the dry eye syndrome, please visit your doctor as soon as possible to avoid any complications.

Diuretics reduce the risk of death, delay heart deterioration and improve exercise capacity in patients with congestive heart failure, a new review of studies shows.

Although widely used for quick relief of CHF symptoms - cough, shortness of breath and swelling in the feet, legs and ankles - up until now it was not known whether diuretics had a more substantial effect in treating CHF.

"The available data from several small trials show that in patients with chronic heart failure, conventional diuretics appear to reduce the risk of death and worsening heart failure compared to placebo," according to the review team led by Dr. Rajaa Faris of Saudi Arabia.

Diuretics, which help the body get rid of excess fluid, should be used in conjunction with other heart medications in treating CHF, the reviewers said.

The review appears in the most recent issue of The Cochrane Library, a publication of The Cochrane Collaboration, an international organization that evaluates medical research. Systematic reviews draw evidence-based conclusions about medical practice after considering both the content and quality of existing medical trials on a topic.

The researchers looked at data from 525 patients from 14 randomized clinical trials - seven comparing diuretics with placebo and seven comparing diuretics with other heart medications in treating CHF. The studies involved three types of diuretics: thiazide, potassium-sparing and loop diuretics, such as Lasix.

Sixty-one percent of the participants were men with an average age of 59.

The authors estimate that "80 deaths could be avoided for every 1,000 patients treated" with diuretics for CHF, but add that this evidence was based on only 15 deaths out of 221 participants from the studies that reported mortality rates.

CHF, also known as heart failure and cardiac failure, involves a decrease in the heart's ability to pump blood efficiently through the body, leading to a lower delivery of nutrients and oxygen to the cells and causing symptoms such as fatigue, shortness of breath and difficulty with even basic physical activity.

Five million Americans have CHF and 550,000 new cases are diagnosed yearly, according to the American Heart Association. There is no cure or surgical treatment for the disorder and physicians rely on a variety of medications to control symptoms and decrease damage to the heart and other organs in the body while improving patients' quality of life.

But some doctors question whether the benefits of the drugs outweigh the risks. Diuretics can have serious side effects such as depleting electrolytes (potassium and magnesium), which can contribute to irregular heartbeat and kidney disorders.

"Diuretics are effective, easy to administer and inexpensive," said Clyde W. Yancy, M.D., with the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas. "Excessive use of diuretics provokes renal [kidney] insufficiency. Importantly, changes in renal function do impart an additional risk for patients with heart failure."

Proper dosing, Yancy said, is key. "The hope is that physicians will use diuretics in a manner sufficient to relieve evidence of congestion but not to the extent that the risks of disturbance of electrolytes and renal function occur.

"Few drugs are as immediately effective for heart failure as diuretics," Yancy added. "Any patient in whom these drugs are prescribed should feel at ease with the therapy, provided they are under the care of a team of health care professionals who are actively evaluating electrolyte balance and kidney function."

The Cochrane reviewers say that many of the studies they analyzed were small, with varying types and doses of diuretics compared, and that further research is needed to understand the optimal use and benefits of diuretic treatment

A large, long-term study of diuretic treatment for older adults with high blood pressure in a recent American Journal of Cardiology found that although those on the drug had a slightly higher risk of developing diabetes, the death rate from heart attack or stroke was significantly reduced.

People with high blood cholesterol levels are very exposed to developing heart disease. High cholesterol levels are common to people with ages over 50, people with weight problems, people with gastro-intestinal disorders and people with diabetes. High blood cholesterol levels can be the result of either overproduction of the substance (due to liver dysfunctions) or the inability of the body to eliminate it. However, apart from physiological factors that enable the accumulation of cholesterol inside the organism, there are also many other external factors that contribute to cholesterol build up: inappropriate diet, sedentary lifestyle, smoking and alcohol abuse.

Although the body is able to produce the amount of cholesterol it needs for sustaining its normal activity, a high-cholesterol diet can significantly increase blood cholesterol levels. Foods of animal origin are rich in cholesterol and saturated fats that are very harmful to the organism when they are consumed in large amounts. You should replace meats and dairy products with vegetables, cereals and fruits in order to maintain normal cholesterol levels. Simple carbohydrates (sweets) also enable cholesterol to build up inside the body and therefore should be avoided.

Proper physical exercise is very important for keeping your blood cholesterol levels in check. Regular physical exercise improves blood circulation and helps in the elimination of excess cholesterol. Exercise frequently and you will be able to maintain normal cholesterol levels and lose extra weight.

Smoking is considered to be a major factor of risk in heart disease. Smoking facilitates cholesterol to deposit inside arteries, where they can cause blockage, perturbing the normal blood flow. If you have high blood cholesterol levels and you are a smoker, it is advised to stop smoking. Alcohol also contributes to the accumulation of cholesterol in the bloodstream and therefore it should be avoided.

Within normal limits, cholesterol is very important to the organism. The liver produces cholesterol (a waxy, viscous substance) in small amounts, as it is required in certain physiological processes. Without cholesterol, the body is unable to produce hormones (testosterone and estrogen), vitamin D (fortifies bone tissues) and bile (a very important substance used in digesting fat). While in small quantities cholesterol is benefic for the organism, in excess it can cause a lot of harm. Cholesterol is not soluble in blood and therefore it accumulates and deposits inside arteries, slowing down the normal blood circulation. High cholesterol levels considerably increase the risk of cardio-vascular diseases and even heart failure.

It is very important to know that there are several types of cholesterol. When you have your cholesterol levels checked, you are usually told the total cholesterol level. Total cholesterol level consists of high-density lipoprotein (HDL), low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and very low-density lipoprotein (VLDL). Low-density lipoprotein is also known as "bad cholesterol" and this substance can be harmful to the human body when it accumulates in excess. Bad cholesterol (LDL) accumulates inside arteries and perturbs normal blood circulation. Good cholesterol (HDL) is benign to the organism, as it collects low-density lipoprotein from the bloodstream and brings it back to the liver.

By keeping a healthy diet and by exercising regularly, you will be able to raise your good cholesterol levels, while reducing bad cholesterol levels. By making improvements in your lifestyle, you will be able to maintain your total cholesterol levels in check.

(AXcess News) Framingham, MA - According to researcherswith the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute's Framingham Heart Study, the risk of heart disease is 45% higher for brothers and sisters whose siblings have heart disease, which should be a wake-up call for middle aged people.

The Framingham Heart Study was reported in the Dec. 28 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Joanne Murabito, M.D., Sc.M., of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute's Framingham Heart Study and her colleagues analyzed 2,475 participants in the Offspring Study, a spin-off involving children of the original participants. For this analysis, Dr. Murabito and colleagues studied participants who were 30 or older, free of cardiovascular disease at baseline, and had at least one sibling in the study.

Participants were followed for eight years, with regular physical examinations. All cardiovascular disease events were validated by cardiologists or neurologists.

Compared with those whose siblings did not have cardiovascular disease, participants in the sibling cardiovascular disease group were older at baseline and had a higher prevalence of all the traditional cardiovascular disease risk factors, except current smoking, found Dr. Murabito and colleagues.

During follow-up, there were 329 incident cardiovascular disease events, including 11 coronary deaths, eight other cardiovascular disease deaths, 99 nonfatal cases of myocardial infarction or coronary insufficiency, 106 cases of angina pectoris, 59 strokes or transient ischemic attacks, and 46 cases of intermittent claudication, the study found.

After adjusting for age, sex, and cardiovascular disease risk factors, the researchers found that the sibling cardiovascular disease group had a significantly increased risk for cardiac events: The odds ratio was 1.45, with a 95% confidence interval ranging from 1.10 to 1.91.

Just the mention of cancer sends a chill down your spine. And when it comes to talking about cancer treatment (complete cure), one is just left looking around for answers. Yes, it's a well known fact that there is no fail-proof or definitive cancer treatment for most types of cancer. Unavailability of cancer treatment is what makes cancer so dreaded. Well, it's not just the unavailability of cancer treatment that makes the things so grim but also the difficulty in detection of cancer.

Cancer treatment and research

Though a lot of research has been going on in the field of cancer treatment, the solution (i.e. fail-proof cancer treatment) has been evading the researchers till now. It's not that all the research has been unsuccessful. There have been improvements in cancer treatment techniques that are being used and some new cancer treatment techniques have yielded good results; however, there is nothing like a complete cure for most types of cancer. A lot of effort is also being put into developing cancer diagnosis procedures in order to ensure correct and timely diagnosis of various types of cancer. After all, successful diagnosis is the first step towards cancer treatment.

Cancer treatment - old and new methods

The old methods of cancer treatment include things like surgical procedures for removal of malignant tissue and use of radiation and chemotherapy to get rid of the malignant cells and prevent their growth. Apart from these cancer treatment methods, there are other cancer treatment procedures that are being put to use quite effectively - one such cancer treatment is the use of Tamoxifen in hormone based cancer treatment. A number of other new cancer treatment procedures are being developed and tested all the time in an effort to find a cancer treatment that is fully curative and fail-proof.

Cancer treatment, prevention and detection

Since there is no definitive cancer treatment available, the best way to tackle this monster is to take measures for protection against cancer and to device ways of early detection of cancer. The main recommendations for cancer prevention include things like refraining from tobacco, reducing intake of alcoholic drinks, engaging in physical activity / exercise and avoiding exposure to direct sunlight (i.e. UV rays). With regards to cancer detection, the most important thing is to increase your knowledge about cancer, cancer symptoms, cancer treatment etc. It's important to know that there are many cancer screening tests that you can undergo to help detect cancer in early stages and hence get cancer treatment whilst the things are still controllable.

There is little doubt that there are probably thousands of people walking the streets today who have a dangerously high blood pressure, yet they are completely unaware of it.

Uncontrolled high blood pressure leads to many different medical problems such as

. Stroke . Coronary Disease . Kidney disease

Different factors for causing high blood pressure include

. Excess alcohol . Excess salt . Excess sodium . Stress (Up to a point)

The problem with high blood pressure or hypertension to give it it's proper name is that very often people are unaware they are suffering from it until they start suffering the side effects. This is one of the reasons why it is called the "silent killer"

There is little doubt that salt intake has a direct effect on blood pressure. Both this and the ingestion of dietary potassium have been found to have adverse effects on a person's health.

Obesity is another major problem. Overweight people are more liable to have a higher blood pressure than their slim counterpart. The heart and other vital organs have to work harder which leads to added strain.

Alcohol also plays a direct part in hypertension. It has been found in several studies, that the higher the alcohol consumption, the higher the blood pressure. However similar studies have also shown that moderate drinkers appear to have a lower blood pressure than non drinkers. This probably bears out the old assumption a little of what you fancy does you good!

The only true way of ascertaining whether you have high blood pressure or not is by having it checked by a competent person. This is a painless procedure, and every adult should have their blood pressure taken at least on an annual basis if not more often.

Though symptoms of hypertension or high blood pressure are not common, some people can complain of headaches, blurred vision light headedness and dizziness.

At one time the treatment of high blood pressure (Hypertension), followed a very rigid approach. Nowadays doctors are much more relaxed about the way they approach the treatment of hypertension or high blood pressure in their patients, preferring a much more patient centred approach.

It is recognised that those people who have pre-existing conditions such as cardiovascular damage, kidney disease or stroke present with their own set of individual problems which all need treating on an individual basis; therefore it's important that any medical or drug treatment is carefully tailored around them.

The first treatment of choice for those suffering with high blood pressure is usually a lifestyle change. For those who are overweight, smoke, lead very stressful lives or don't exercise, sometimes this is the only wake up call they need. Once they make the lifestyle modifications required, they will often find their blood pressure will lower itself too a more normal limit.

As long as they keep these lifestyle changes, there shouldn't really be any reason why they need to worry about their blood pressure later though of course it should be carefully monitored on a regular basis.

The use of birth control pills to control acne flare ups may or may not be an effective.

Usually, the first signs of acne develop during adolescence, when hormone levels begin to rise. When hormone levels surge, the sebaceous glands located at the base of each hair follicle, produce excess oil. This oil combined with dead skin cells and dirt becomes trapped within the skin's pores and acne develops.

Since acne can be triggered by fluctuating hormone levels within the body, it stands to reason that acne can appear at the various 'stages' in life when hormone levels are changing such as puberty, pregnancy and menopause. It also makes sense that controlling hormone levels may help to reduce acne outbreaks.

The use of birth control pills for the treatment of acne is an attempt to regulate hormones. It is important to understand that every human body contains both male and female hormones. Overactive sebaceous glands are the result of rising levels of the male hormones - testosterone and androgens. Birth control pills contain artificial female hormones - estrogen and/or progestin. The theory is that birth control pills shut down the ovaries which are producing inappropriate male hormones allowing a more balanced male/female hormone mixture.

There are problems with using birth control pills to control acne. Some women may actually notice their acne worsen with the use of birth control pills until the estrogen levels become dominant.

Women who do take the birth control pill and who notice that their acne is getting worse should discuss the situation with their doctor. Different brands of oral contraception have different levels of hormones. Switching to another brand may bring acne back under control. There are several brands that may help clear up acne but only Ortho Tri-cyclen has been approved by the FDA for treating acne.

Keep in mind that using birth control pills for acne control is only a temporary solution. Many women find that once they stop using birth control pills, their acne returns - often worse than before.

Birth control pills can have undesirable side effects including nausea, weight gain, water retention and mood swings. There are also other more serious health risks than acne to consider. Prolonged use may increase your chances of heart attack or stroke.

It is for these reasons that using birth control pills for acne control should be considered only after all other treatment options have failed and always with the guidance of your physician.

I suffered with asthma and severe allergies for more than 40 years and like you, and many others, grew to hate the side effects and resulting damage to my body from using expensive antihistamines and asthma drugs that never really worked. My main asthma trigger has always been cat dander, and exposure to it resulted in a life-threatening asthma attack with a visit to the emergency. Fortunately for me, I usually could take measures to avoid my main asthma trigger, but other asthma sufferers with multi-environmental triggers are not so lucky. My summer allergies were always a problem because pollen is everywhere and unavoidable. Allergy drugs made me drowsy, dehydrated, and constipated, plus really didn't help much to relieve my allergy symptoms. As a result, I was continually searching for a safe, effective alternative, but I had little success in finding anything that genuinely eliminated asthma and allergy symptoms safely without side effects- that is until my friend was faced with severe life-threatening asthma.

More than six years ago I was in South America researching and documenting several projects with Stan Grist, an explorer and prospector. He suddenly developed severe life-threatening bronchial asthma while we were in a small, remote village in the Amazon jungle in Ecuador.

He was so ill, he could barely walk and was mostly bedridden. We went to a local doctor who told us that it was asthma and advised us to return to a major city for treatment. In Quito, we were able to find a respected lung specialist trained in the U.S. He confirmed the diagnosis. He prescribed several expensive drugs: Prednisone, antibiotics, along with two different inhalers. The drugs only slightly improved his condition, but also proved to have undesirable side effects. Stan was experiencing a rapid heart rate, headache, sore throat and stomach upset. He was feeling irritable and tense. Even though he was exhausted, he could not sleep because of the effect of the prescription drugs. He was also still bedridden and unable to work or enjoy any activities. This same man, several months earlier, had climbed to the top of a 14,000 foot mountain, could now barely walk or breathe.

His asthma symptoms started to get much worse, so he went back to the doctor for different asthma medication, which eventually proved to be equally ineffective. This suffering continued for several more months. Stan was becoming depressed and very worried. He began to believe the active life he had once enjoyed was now over. Since he is an explorer and prospector, this also meant the end of his livelihood. It was a desperate situation and he decided to leave Ecuador to get treatment in Miami.

When he arrived in Miami and went directly to an emergency room. They confirmed that the medication that Stan was presently taking were those commonly prescribed for asthma. They said they could prescribe others with similar ingredients, but the effects and results would ultimately be the same. There was really nothing new that they could do to help him.

At this point, Stan seemed to have run out of answers, but believing there must be something that could help him, I started to research the latest medical information and clinical studies on alternative medicine, nutrition, vitamins, and supplements. As the result of my research of natural supplements known to be effective in treating asthma and allergy symptoms, there was one bioflavinoid supplement that I came across that I had never heard of or tried before. This supplement turned out to be the single, most important one. With further research, I learned very specific information as to strength, dosage and what it must be combined with for maximum benefit or absorption. When taken alone, or in the wrong combination & strength, it is simply doesn't work.

The research indicated that when taken in a particular strength and combination, it would clear asthma sufferers' lungs within a few hours. I was hopeful, but not really expecting to see such dramatic relief. I had used various supplements for my asthma and allergies for many years and knew that they often worked slowly, if at all, so I was pretty skeptical about it working as quickly as the study indicated. Within a few hours it cleared his lungs and Stan was breathing easily for the first time in months. He was able to stop taking all asthma drug medication within two weeks.

Since our discovery of this asthma treatment, Stan has been completely free from asthma for over 6 years. He is able to forget that he ever suffered from it. Better still, he is finally free from dangerous prescription drug side effects. Now he rarely has any asthma symptoms at all. This is because the asthma treatment supplements have healing properties that non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and antihistamines lack by repairing tissues, fibers, and membranes, they strengthen the entire respiratory system by regenerating tissues.

As I mentioned earlier, my main asthma trigger has always been cat dander, and exposure to it resulted in a life-threatening asthma attack with a visit to the emergency, now if I am exposed to cat dander, I simply take the supplements and Im absolutely fine. It works great for my allergies too.

Stan was able to resume his active life and continue to explore remote jungle regions In Ecuador. Thanks to this research, we are both able to forget that we ever suffered from asthma or allergies. Better still, we are finally free from dangerous prescription drug side effects.