Officials warn of ocean bacteria

MIAMI (UPI) — Wading in the ocean to let salt water heal cuts and scrapes is not always a good idea, health experts say, as bacteria can proliferate in summer months.

A little known, deadly bacteria called Vibrio vulnificus can infect open wounds of beach goers and cause a life-threatening illness in those with weakened immune systems, The Miami Herald reported Friday.

he bacteria, which occur naturally in warm coastal waters, infected 138 people in Florida between 2005 and 2009 and 31 of them died, the Florida Department of Health said.

“The high mortality rate makes it a big deal,” Juan A. Suarez, an epidemiologist for FDH, said.

The bacteria proliferate in waters where temperature and salinity are increasing, particularly between the months of April and November, Suarez said.

“It’s a particularly difficult organism because it doesn’t affect everyone.” he said. “Most healthy people will not respond to the organism. They are probably not at risk.”

But he advised all people to heal their cuts and scrapes through other means, not ocean water.

“It’s probably not a good idea, even if you’re healthy, to go into the water with an open wound,” Suarez said.

Copyright 2010 by United Press International

Sourced & published by Henry Sapiecha

Share and Enjoy

Do Cleaning Products & Sprays

Cause Breast Cancer?

Science (July 21, 2010) — Women who report greater use of cleaning products may be at higher breast cancer risk than those who say they use them sparingly. Researchers writing in BioMed Central’s open access journal Environmental Health asked more than 1500 women about their cleaning product usage and found that women who reported using more air fresheners and products for mold and mildew control had a higher incidence of breast cancer.

Julia Brody, from the Silent Spring Institute, USA, worked with a team of researchers to carry out telephone interviews with 787 women diagnosed with breast cancer and 721 comparison women. She said, “Women who reported the highest combined cleaning product use had a doubled risk of breast cancer compared to those with the lowest reported use. Use of air fresheners and products for mold and mildew control were associated with increased risk. To our knowledge, this is the first published report on cleaning product use and risk of breast cancer.”

The researchers questioned women on product use, beliefs about breast cancer causes, and established and suspected risk factors. They found that cleaning products, air fresheners, and insect repellents were associated with breast cancer, but little association was observed with overall pesticide use. Women with breast cancer who believed that chemicals and pollutants contribute ‘a lot’ to the risk of developing the condition were more likely to report high product usage.

Speaking about this potential bias to the study, Brody said, “When women are diagnosed with breast cancer, they often think about what happened in the past that might have contributed to the disease. As a result, it may be that women with breast cancer more accurately recall their past product use or even over-estimate it. Or, it could also be that experience with breast cancer influences beliefs about its causes. For example, women diagnosed with breast cancer are less likely to believe heredity contributes ‘a lot’, because most are the first in their family to get the disease.”

In order to avoid possible recall bias, the researchers recommend further study of cleaning products and breast cancer using prospective self-reports and measurements in environmental and biological media.

Sourced & published by Henry Sapiecha

Share and Enjoy

Brushing lowers risk of heart disease

LONDON (UPI) — Brushing your teeth twice a day can lower your risk of heart disease, British researchers said.

The researchers studied the brushing habits and medical histories of more than 11,000 adults and found that people who brush less than twice a day were 70 percent more likely to develop heart disease.

Inflammation in the body, mouth and gums included, plays a key role in the buildup of clogged arteries, which can lead to heart attacks.

“If you don’t brush your teeth, your mouth can become infected with bacteria, which can cause inflammation,” Judy O’Sullivan, a cardiac nurse at the British Heart Foundation told the BBC in a story published Friday.

More studies are needed to determine the exact cause and effect between oral hygiene and heart disease, said Damien Walmsley, scientific adviser to the British Dental Association.

Received and published by Henry Sapiecha 7th June 2010

Share and Enjoy

When Drugs Do Bad Things

If your organs had a personality, your liver would be the strong, silent type. No matter how hard it works at filtering out toxins like alcohol and drugs, it doesn’t complain until it’s on the verge of collapse. And when we say drugs, we don’t mean the illegal kind. We’re talking about the dozens of meds with liver-damage potential. The weight-loss aid called orlistat — aka Xenical and Alli — is the latest med that has to include liver cautions on its label.

Luckily for us and you, the liver has a remarkable ability to give itself a makeover. So if you do have a DILI (drug-induced liver injury), stopping the med and treating your liver right — no alcohol, for starters — usually will restore it to health, as long as it was in good shape to begin with.

But since the liver isn’t a whiner, the trick is to spot the damage before it makes your skin itch and turns your eyeballs yellow, your pee dark and your poop pale. Some DILI-defending tips:

Read the fine print. You know those package inserts with the tiny type. Get out your magnifier and read it. Cautions about liver damage will make you more alert to warning signs (below).

Don’t ignore vague symptoms. Nausea, poor appetite, malaise and just not feeling great — especially shortly after starting a medication — can precede the obvious symptoms.

Get the tests. Liver-function tests are advised even before treatment begins with some meds, such as terbinafine (e.g., Lamisil), the nail fungus drug. Don’t blow them off.

Sourced & published by Henry Sapiecha 7th June 2010

Share and Enjoy

If You Don’t Lower Cholesterol Through Diet Now,

You’ll Hate Yourself Later

a. The Myth of Good and Bad Cholesterol

For some people, cholesterol is bad because they do not know there are two types of it. These two types are LDL and HDL – the bad cholesterol is called LDL, while the good one is called HDL. Plaques can form on one’s arteries if you have a lot of LDL in the bloodstream. Eventually, your arteries will get narrow as a result of being clogged up and it will block off blood flow. The truth is, your high cholesterol is not caused by dietary cholesterol but by other things. This is caused by excessive amounts of Tran’s fat and saturated fat. Exercise and eating a lot of fiber and unsaturated fats will do a lot to keep cholesterol down.

b. What Numbers Mean in Cholesterol

Every adult should have their cholesterol checked at least every 5 years. When you get a cholesterol test, you’ll usually get back four different results. Here are the 4 categories and the healthy range you want to be in.

Total Cholesterol – less than 200 mg/dL (5.2 mmol/L)

LDL Cholesterol – less than 100 mg/dL (2.6 mmol/L)

HDL Cholesterol – greater than 40 mg/dL (1.0 mmol/L)

Triglycerides – less than 150 mg/dL (1.7 mmol/L)

If you are over or under the desired level on any category, it is usually indicative that a diet or exercise change is needed.

c. Vitamin E and How it Can Protect the Heart

Vitamin E is an important vitamin found in leafy vegetables, nuts, and vegetable oils. It was previously believed that a Vitamin E supplement could reduce the risk of heart disease, but several studies in the last few years have shown that this supplement does little to prevent heart attacks or strokes.

d. Five Fabulous Foods to Decrease Cholesterol Levels

1. Oatmeal and Oat Bran: These contain a high amount of soluble fiber, which can lower LDL.

2. Fish: Fish is a great source of omega 3 fatty acids, which lowers LDL and raises HDL.

3. Nuts: Not only are nuts high in fiber, but they contain the healthy fats you need to keep LDL in check.

4. Plant Sterols: This is found in foods like margarine, salad dressing, orange juice, and functional cookies. 2 grams per day will lower your LDL by 10-15%.

5. Soy: This popular meat replacement can lower LDL by up to 3%.

e. Health Benefits of Plant Sterols

Plant sterols can be found in foods such as Benecol Spread, granola bars, VitaTops Muffin Tops and fat free milk. To help your heart, you should eat a lot of plant sterols-packed food and stop eating foods with saturated fat. You should know that this does not balance out a diet rich in saturated fats. To be in control of your cholesterol, you should still eat healthy and exercise often.

About the Author – Deborah H. Land writes for the   http://www.cholesterolloweringdiets.net blog,

her personal hobby website she uses to help people eat healthy to lower bad cholesterol levels.

Received and published by Henry Sapiecha 6th May 2010

Share and Enjoy

Today there has been a great deal of concern placed on global warming, ozone layer depletion and the overuse of chemicals and pesticides in our world. Each of these environmental issues plays a large role in our health and many times our body’s immune system is the last line of defense. Our immune system is a complex unit that protects our bodies from many different harmful and toxic conditions. Without maintaining and promoting the health of our immune system it can be impossible to fight the different environmental issues that we are currently being faced with.

What many people do not realize is that global warming and the chemicals we use today so freely are greatly affecting the food we eat and our quality of water. Proper nutrition is vital to maintaining your immune system and today many people are missing out on the nutrients they need by eating fast foods too regularly and not understanding the importance of proper nutrition. There are many toxic minerals in our environment today and some are necessary for our health and others can harm us. It is important to understand the difference.

Copper, calcium and zinc are all minerals that are required for our body to function properly. Minerals such as aluminum, lead and mercury can be absorbed throughout the environment and can be very dangerous for your health. Pesticides and herbicides many times contain these types of dangerous minerals and can be found in traces on your fruit and vegetables and of course in the air you breathe. Indoor pollution should not be ignored either as it can cause just as many serious conditions as the environment can. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has stated that the pollution levels within homes, schools and workplaces are often 2-5 times higher than outdoors. When most people spend up to 90% of their time indoors, this can be extreme exposure.

Types of indoor pollutants include dust, disinfectants, household cleaning products, carbon monoxide and electromagnetic fields. These are items that are used in absolutely every household today. Ionizers can be effective in clearing the air of bacteria, pollen and smoke. To help build up your immune system you should also consider the natural side of treatment.

• Supplements such as Coenzyme 10 are used regularly to help build and promote a strong immune system. This particular supplement can also help detoxify the body and eliminate pollutants.
• Vitamin C is another option, this supplement can be taken daily in dosages of 3,000-10,000 mg and it aids in removing toxins from the body such as heavy metals.
• Herbs such as burdock root and red clover help cleanse the body as well through the blood stream and lymphatic systems.
• Garlic is a powerful immunostimulant and should be consumed daily. I recommend the brand Kyolic from Wakunaga of America, which is an odorless organic garlic supplement.
• Turmeric’s main constituent is curcumin, which enhances the liver’s ability to remove toxins from the body and stops tumor growth.

Naturapaths are great professional people in assisting you to cleanse your system

Sourced and published by Henry Sapiecha 3rd April 2010

Share and Enjoy

WILL PAW PAW [PAPAYA] CURE YOUR CONDITION?

A long time favourite for dry skin in Australia is the use of paw paw. Products made using the fermented paw paw have been demonstrated to possess’ high levels of vitamins  A and C, and to have exceptional healing properties for a number of skin conditions such as warts, burns, corns, eczema, chaffing, nappy rash, bites, blemishes, dry skin and psoriasis. If you suffer from problems such as mild eczema or psoriasis, the use of paw paw can be an effective remedy for these problems. Paw paw is rich in a natural enzyme called papain, which helps soothe irritated or dry skin. This was a popular remedy long before science was in a position to explain why fermented paw paw treatments work so effectively. After a burn, you may find you suffer from dry skin, or sensitive skin because of the injury. Using paw paw has been demonstrated to soothe burns. The high concentration of vitamins A and C mean that the paw paw ingredient actively helps to rejuvenate skin  that has been damaged by a burn. In this way, the paw paw is an effective option for preventing further scarring. Another useful quality of paw paw is that it makes an effective barrier cream for dry skin and other problematic skin conditions. Paw paw not only helps to protect skin that has been exposed to burns, but is great for those who suffer from conditions like eczema and psoriasis. As well as this, paw paw is a great treatment for both nappy rash and heat  rash. If your baby is suffering from nappy rash, then paw paw ointment is the ideal natural and gentle treatment to help soothe this skin condition. For the treatment of skin conditions such as warts, corns or flaky, dry skin, the enzyme papain in paw paw is a very effective balm. The papain enzyme has disintegrating and skin smoothing qualities, which are ideal for these problems. Using paw paw aids in reducing the seriousness of this condition and helps to stop it from worsening. Another popular use for paw paw is for dry skin on the lips and hands. Paw paw in lip balms and ointments is one of the richest treatments for dry skin on the lips and on the  cuticles. The skin on your hands often gets the most exposure to pollutants and chemicals. Whether it is something that we come into contact with during the course of   the day or simply doing the dishes, our hands tend to be exposed to the worst of it. Using paw paw is a great way to restore moisture to dry cuticles as well as to help restore condition to the skin in the hands in general. A final use for paw paw, aside from restoring dry skin or healing sensitive skin, is as a soothing balm on insect bites and other stings. The papain enzyme that is found in the paw paw is also extremely useful as a  home remedy to aid in the case of bee stings, wasp stings and jellyfish stings. The papain enzyme works by breaking down the toxins released in the sting, not just soothing but actually helping to eliminate the cause of the stinging discomfort. Paw paw is truly an exceptional ingredient, providing a diverse range of treatments for dry skin, problem skin, stings and burns among other things. With such a diversity of uses, it is no wonder that the rest of the world is fast catching on to the usefulness of this exceptional natural skin treatment. Sourced and published by Henry Sapiecha 20th Feb 2010

Share and Enjoy