rebecca c painter

Thursday, 24 May 2012

Quick tips to turn your unhealthy home into a healthy one

Your home is a place to show off your sense of style – but it can also have a profound effect on your health and happiness.
Maxwell Gillingham-Ryan, a designer and founder of ApartmentTherapy.com, shared some tips on how to rid your place of common ‘unhealthy’ elements.
“Your home is an extension of your body,” Gillingham-Ryan explained. “In fact, it’s the only space you really control because the street, your office – none of that is really your own.”
According to Gillingham-Ryan, clutter is a common problem that can stress you out and overstimulate your eyes.
“What’s going on in the room is what you take inside,” Gillingham-Ryan said. “So if it’s cluttered and disorganized in the room, you’re going to feel cluttered and inside yourself.”
If furniture is getting in your way, or impossible to clean, you may need to re-think the arrangement of the room, he said.
Lack of color can also bring down your mood. If a room is full of neutrals, Gillingham-Ryan recommended adding a pop of color. Only 20 percent more color in a room can make a huge difference.
“Some people love color and they want to put it everywhere,” Gillingham-Ryan said. “For them, I urge to pull back a little bit. A little bit goes a long way.”
Overall, it only takes a few minutes to turn an unhealthy space into a healthy space. Spend a few minutes cleaning each day, and designate areas like shelves or bins to store your belongings. As a final note, Gillingham-Ryan suggested putting an air-purifier in your bedroom to improve breathing conditions.

Tuesday, 8 May 2012

Asthma rates at highest level ever, CDC says

Asthma rates in the United States increased over the past decade to their highest level ever, according to a new government report.
The portion of people in the U.S. with asthma rose from 7.3 percent in 2001 to 8.4 percent in 2010, according to the report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
That means 25.7 million people had asthma in 2010, including 7 million who were younger than 18.
Over the same period, death rates from the condition dropped 33 percent. For every 10,000 people with asthma, there were 1.4 deaths in 2010, compared with 2.1 deaths in 2001.
The disorder has been linked with poverty, and the new findings showed that 11.2 percent of people living below the poverty level had asthma. However, asthma was also reported by 7.3 percent of those who earn at least twice the poverty level.
The findings also showed 9.2 percent of females had asthma in 2010, whereas the rate among males was 7 percent.
Asthma is a chronic airway disorder that can be triggered by exercise, infections, certain chemicals, airborne irritants such as tobacco smoke, or allergens such as pollen. During an asthma attack, the airway becomes obstructed because of inflammation and constriction of the surrounding muscles. It is not clear how to prevent asthma from developing, and there is no known cure, the CDC says.
The new findings are based on data gathered during the National Health Interview Survey, in which CDC researchers conducted household interviews with a nationally representative sample of participants.

How to breathe easier at home

Having a healthy home isn't necessarily about making every surface spotless. (Phew!) But a bit of strategic cleaning protects you from germs and toxins. In fact, concentrations of some pollutants can be two to five times greater inside our homes than they are outdoors, according to the Environmental Protection Agency—a worrisome fact considering we spend, on average, 90 percent of our time indoors.
What's more, ordinary objects like a dirty dish towel or neglected houseplant "can provide just the right environment for harmful microbes to grow," said Kelly Reynolds, PhD, associate professor of environmental sciences at the University of Arizona in Tucson. Fortunately, small changes, whether it's shaking out your welcome mat or installing a water filter, can improve the well-being of your home—and everyone in it. Here, the most important moves to make.
Step up your doormat
About 60 percent of the dust in our home comes from outside—most of it tracked in on the bottom of our shoes, research says. And those tiny particles are made up of a combination of all sorts of icky things like human skin, animal fur, food debris, lead, and even arsenic.
"Fortunately, using the right kind of doormats can help reduce dirt, pesticides, pollen, and other pollutants in your home," said Dr. Oluremi Aliyu, assistant professor of medicine at the University of Connecticut Health Center. Pick an abrasive one (it will grab more gunk) made of synthetic fibers like nylon yarn or polypropylene.
Then don't forget to clean it: "Vacuum or shake out your mat once a week," advised Linda Cobb, cleaning expert and author of Talking Dirty with the Queen of Clean. Once a month, do a deep clean: Scrub it with a scrub brush and warm, soapy water, then hose it off.

Zinc may shorten common cold but side effects common

A new review of past studies suggests that taking zinc may cut the time adults have to suffer with a common cold, but the alternative treatment will likely come with unpleasant side effects.
The benefits of zinc also appear to be modest, and don't extend to children. But they could add up considering there are about 62 million cases of the common cold in the United States every year that result in 22 million missed days of work, according to the U.S. National Institutes of Health.
For their review, published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal, Dr. Michelle Science from the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto and her colleagues compiled data from clinical trials comparing people who took zinc orally to another group that either took a placebo or received no treatment.
The researchers included only randomized controlled trials -- considered the "gold standard" of medical research -- but cautioned that the quality of the results of those previous trials varied widely.
RELATED: What Is the Common Cold?
Overall, the researchers looked at 17 trials that included 2,121 people from one to 65 years old. In those taking zinc, colds were shortened by a little more than one and a half days, on average, compared to participants in the placebo group.
That changed when the researchers analyzed zinc-takers by age. In adults, zinc shortened the common cold by a little more than two and a half days compared to the placebo. In children, zinc didn't seem to make much of a difference in cold duration.
One possible reason for the difference between adults and kids, according to the authors, is that the adults tended to use a different form of zinc than the children.
Peoples' cold symptoms also seemed to clear up faster if they took a higher dosage of zinc compared to those who took the least. The various studies used different dosages, said Science.
The authors cannot say why zinc stops the rhinovirus, a frequent cause of the common cold, from reproducing. But some believe it acts as an astringent on important facial nerves where viruses tend to congregate.
Although adults who didn't take zinc tended to have colds lasting a week or more, there was no difference in the severity of cold symptoms on day three in any of the groups.
Side effects were more common in the people taking zinc, however. They were 64 percent more likely to experience nausea and 65 percent more likely to detect an unpleasant taste.
Zinc can lead to a person having a metal taste in their mouth, said Dr. Meenu Singh, a pediatrician at the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research in Chandigarh, India, who was not involved in the new analysis.
Singh led another review published last year by the Cochrane Collaboration -- an international organization that evaluates medical research -- which came to similar conclusions, though (see Reuters Health story of 02/16/2011).
"The findings are more or less the same. The side effects are the same," said Singh, who added that the new review included other studies that were excluded from hers because they did not meet Cochrane standards.
Singh told Reuters Health that people shouldn't be afraid to take zinc, but should always consult their doctor first.
Science and her colleagues also warn that their results are based on studies that varied from one another in their methods and quality. Also, they did not look at zinc nasal sprays that have been linked to the loss of smell or zinc in combination with other vitamins.
"Until further evidence becomes available," they conclude, "there is only a weak rationale for physicians to recommend zinc for the treatment of the common cold."
"Otherwise, for healthy adults… it's probably an individual decision and it's something they can talk to their physician about," Science told Reuters Health.

Herbal supplement may prevent dangerous blood clots

An apple a day may actually keep the doctor away – or even better, keep you from getting a life-threatening blood clot. So might an orange or onion, it turns out. All of these fruits and veggies are high in a flavanoid known as rutin, a natural anti-clotting agent, according to a study published Tuesday.
Each year, approximately one third of all deaths in the United States are caused by a heart attack or stroke.
“It’s not always fully appreciated that the majority of Americans will die as the result of a blood clot in either their heart or their brain,” said the study’s senior author Dr. Robert Flaumenhaft, associate professor at Harvard Medical School and a researcher at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston.
Even with the use of existing anti-clotting therapies, such as aspirin, Plavix and warfarin (Coumadin), an estimated 1,255,000 heart attacks and 795,000 strokes occur each year.
Flaumenhaft and his research team at Beth Israel were looking for a compound that could block the action of a clotting agent, a protein called disulfide isomerase (PDI), which they found is rapidly secreted during thrombosis—when a clot forms in a blood vessel.
But because PDI is necessary for the production of certain proteins, they had to hunt for a compound that could block only certain PDI proteins. When the researchers tested more than 5,000 compounds, rutin emerged as the most potent.
Rutin is found in many fruits and vegetables, including apples (especially the peels), berries, citrus fruits and onions, as well as teas and buckwheat. It is also sold as an herbal supplement. Fortunately, studies have shown that flavanoids are well tolerated and safe.
The researchers then tested rutin to see if it would prevent blood clots in a mouse model.
“Rutin proved to be the most potently anti-thrombotic compound that we ever tested in this model,” said Flaumenhaft. In addition, epidemiologic studies have found that a diet high in flavonoids is associated with a lower risk of heart attack and stroke.
Though clinical trials in people still need to be done, the research is promising and clearly demonstrated that targeting PDI is an effective anti-clotting therapy. Because the Food and Drug Administration has already established that rutin is safe, the flavanoid can be tested in a clinical trial relatively quickly.

To treat or not to treat: Antibiotics not always best for sinus infection

Every year, more than 37 million Americans suffer from at least one episode of sinusitis. Typically, the symptoms include nasal congestion, runny nose and pressure or pain felt behind the eyes or teeth. These symptoms are caused by inflammation and infection of the sinuses.
The sinuses are air-filled spaces located behind the forehead, nose, cheeks and eyes. Normally, mucus drains from the sinus, while air is able to circulate within them. When the sinus opening becomes blocked, bacteria and germs can easily become overgrown, resulting in infection and discomfort.
Conditions that can put you at risk for developing a sinus infection include diseases which increase mucus production or a physical block of the sinus, such as a polyp. Allergies, which affect more than 67 million Americans each year, can also increase your risk. While we are no longer experiencing unseasonably warm weather, March’s early heat wave resulted in higher than normal pollen counts and is having lingering effects for those who suffer from seasonal allergies.
While one’s initial instinct might be to request antibiotics, growing research is showing that this is rarely the best course of action. A recent study in the Journal of the American Medical Association evaluated the efficacy of antibiotic treatment for sinus infection and found no difference in symptoms in those treated with antibiotics as compared to those who were given a placebo. This is because the vast majority of sinus infections are caused by viruses. In fact, only 2 percent of episodes are due to bacteria, which are the target of antibiotic medications. Antibiotics, unfortunately, are useless against viral sinus infections.
Viral infections are typically self-limited and the mainstay of therapy is symptom relief. Staying hydrated is key, because it helps thin the mucus and promotes drainage. Drinking warm non-caffeinated beverages helps keep you hydrated and can soothe a sore throat, while the steam helps loosen mucus. Over-the-counter medications, like ibuprofen or naproxen will help reduce pain and inflammation, while decongestants can help ease congestion.
The presence of green mucus is only a sign of infection -- not the cause. The white blood cells of your immune system contain greenish-colored components, which in a large number, can color the mucus with a greenish hue. These cells are present regardless of whether your infection is bacterial or viral.
Taking antibiotics “just in case” is not harmless and can result in an upset stomach, rash, or even a life-threatening allergic reactions. On a population level, the volume of antibiotics prescribed is a major factor in the increasing rates of bacterial resistance. In the U.S., over 70 percent of hospital-acquired infections involve bacteria resistant to at least one antibiotic. This trend is making it more difficult to treat infections that were once simple to cure.
When you suspect a sinus infection, the best course of action is to consult your doctor, so that he or she can determine whether or not antibiotics are appropriate. If your symptoms persist for longer than 10 days or get worse, you may require antibiotics. If you experience a change in vision, a sustained fever higher than 101°F, or confusion, it is important to seek medical care immediately, as these could be signs of a more concerning condition.

New device makes needles painless

For most people, dealing with needles isn't easy – especially when it comes to facial injections. It is estimated that more than 10 percent of Americans suffer from trypanophobia, the extreme fear of needles.
Dr. Jon Turk, a facial plastic surgeon in New York City, said for his patients, the answer is a new technology called the ‘Ouchless Needle.’
"This is an instant type of anesthetic that allows you to have no preparation time for the patient,” Turk said, “and yet still get rid of that pain associated with the needle itself."
The device attaches onto a syringe and numbs the skin just long enough to eliminate the discomfort of that initial ‘prick.’
"So to be able to dull that association of the needle going in and have the patient not worry so much about that pain – it has actually reduced the anxiety level a lot in patients," Turk said.
In the past, the only way to help with needle pain was with topical cream that would have to be applied about 30 minutes before the procedure.
"Patients would often forget to put it on, and the staff sometimes wouldn't get to put it on in time,” Turk said. “It really wasn't a practical way of numbing the face."
The Ouchless Needle is most often used with facial fillers like Botox and Juvaderm, but it is also effective for mole removal or for children's shots.
Turk said it helps decrease redness and bruising immediately in the days following the procedure.
Lisa Levine, a regular patient at Turk’s office, said she has had procedures with the use of the new device and really notices a difference.
"This was definitely much easier. It was more comfortable, you don't feel the prick as much of the needle when it goes into your face,” Levine said. “It’s sensitive skin, so this was very helpful."
For more information, visit www.OuchlessNeedle.com.