Dealing with Urinary Incontinence

Written by Charlie on January 28, 2008
urinary incontinence I dread going on long trips and having to use public transportation. I am one of those people who have to go to the washroom every hour or so to relieve my bladder. I don’t think I have an extreme case of urinary incontinence but there are a lot of women, especially those who have just given birth, who suffer from this condition. Is there a cure for this? Yahoo Health presents some suggestions – aside from surgery – that can help with urinary incontinence. Perform Kegel exercises designed ...
Categories: Women's Health

Yoghurt Anyone?

Written by Charlie on January 26, 2008
DanActive Have you been watching TV lately? Or maybe reading magazines and the proliferation of print ads? If you have been paying any attention, you probably would have noticed the prevalence of ads relating to yoghurt and its health benefits. Yet is yoghurt all that they claim it to be? Perhaps the most popular brand that sells yoghurt these days is Dannon. Their main product is Activia, which is part of the DanActive line of yoghurt products. The selling point is the fact that these products contain probiotics. ...
Categories: Diets, Nutrition, Products

Religious Activity and Mental Health

Written by Charlie on January 23, 2008
women in church While we’re on the subject of mental health, I ran across a blog post detailing the results of a study on the correlation between religious activity and mental health. The study was conducted by Joanna Maselko, Sc.D of Temple University. She says that “One’s lifetime pattern of religious service attendance can be related to psychiatric illness.” Interesting, isn’t it? The results of the study indicate that women who stop their religious activity are three times more likely to suffer from mental problems such as general anxiety and ...

Lithium for Manic-Depression

Written by Charlie on January 17, 2008
lithium I was on the phone with a close friend the other day when she told me that the doctors put her sister on lithium. Needless to say, I was a bit shocked. I have heard of lithium and its use for mental problems, of course, but I didn’t really know much about it. This sister has bipolar disorder and when I met her, she was on a manic episode. I know how uncontrolled she could be, yet I was thinking whether lithium is indeed the solution. So I looked ...
Categories: Depression, Treatments

Solariums = Skin Cancer

Written by Charlie on January 15, 2008
solarium Is being perpetually tan high up in your agenda when it comes to looking good? If you live in a country with a temperate climate, do you frequent solariums or artificial tanning centers? If so, you might want to think twice - even thrice - about doing that. According to a team of researchers from Australia, visits to a solarium can cause skin cancer. Reuters reports specific figures: Using a solarium to gain a suntan increases the risk of developing skin cancer by 98 percent if you are under the ...
Categories: Cancer

Exercise and Booze – the Keys to Long Life

Written by Charlie on January 13, 2008
red wine Doesn’t that just sound perfect? Booze can actually help lengthen your life? Of course, you cannot take out the other part of the equation – exercise. According to a recent study done by Danish researchers., people who exercise regularly and drink moderately have significantly lower risks of getting heart disease. The researchers say: Physical activity and a moderate alcohol intake can lower the risk of fatal heart disease and all-cause mortality. But neither physical activity alone nor alcohol intake can completely reverse the increased risk associated with physical inactivity and alcohol ...

Start the Year Right with a Vacation

Written by Charlie on January 11, 2008
island Yes, you read that correctly. I am advocating taking a break at the start of the year. Why am I saying this? Think about it, you want to start your year fresh and renewed, don’t you? One of the best ways to do this would be to take some time away from your routine life. This year, I tried to test this theory by going on a week long vacation at the end of December and extended it to the first week of the New Year. Boy, did it feel ...

Wash Those Germs Away!

Written by Charlie on January 10, 2008
wash hands Have you seen the movie “As Good As It Gets?” Remember Jack Nicholson’s character? He was obsessive compulsive and he had a cabinet full of bars of soap, which he used to wash his hands all the time. I have a similar thing – I can’t wash my hands enough, but not to that extent. How much importance do you place in washing your hands? According to studies, the regular washing of hands can actually help stop the spread of common illnesses such as colds. Just imagine what ...
Categories: Lifestyle

Hyperacidity and Stress

Written by Charlie on January 9, 2008
hyperacidity Recently we had an addition to our small team at work. This colleague has long been with the company, but in a different department. Prior to his joining our team, we had been asking our boss to add some sort of health benefit for the people in our team, for the simple reason that our job is easily one of the most stressful in the company. For quite some time, I had been saying, jokingly, that because of the stress, I have had all sorts of symptoms – cluster headaches, inability to sleep, ...
Categories: Diseases, Stress

Do You Understand SAD?

Written by Charlie on January 5, 2008
SAD Roundabouts a year ago, I wrote a post on seasonal affective disorder (SAD). As we are right smack in the middle of winter again, I thought it would be good to take a deeper look into what SAD is all about. After all, not understanding something may very well be akin to digging your own hole. Knowing what SAD is all about can help you deal with it in a more effective manner. Here are some facts about SAD: -Symptoms become apparent when the days get shorter and the nights longer. -Melatonin and serotonin ...
Categories: Depression