Tips

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=90 BGCOLOR="#808080" TEXT="#080000" background="044b8573.jpg"> <div> <FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#FFFFFF" FACE="Arial" ><B>MEDI-MAIL</B></FONT><B>    </B><B> |     </B><A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="MEDIMAIL"><B>home</B></A></div> <div> <A HREF="jobs26.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Medical Information">Medical Information</A>   |   <A HREF="jobs27.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Swine Flu H1N1">Swine Flu H1N1</A>   |   <A HREF="jobs28.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Childrens health">Childrens health</A>   |   <A HREF="jobs29.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Travel Health">Travel Health</A>   |   <A HREF="jobs2b.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Malaria">Malaria</A>   |   <A HREF="jobs2c.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Vitamins">Vitamins</A>   |   <A HREF="jobs3c.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="The Doctor will see you now">The Doctor will see you now</A>   |   <A HREF="jobs3d.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="How much water does our body need?">How much water does our body need?</A>   |   <B>Tips</B>   |   <A HREF="jobs49.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Telltale signs of diabetes">Tell-tale signs of diabetes</A>   |   <A HREF="jobs4a.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="NaturalMedicines">NaturalMedicines</A>   |   <A HREF="jobs4e.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Did You Know...">Did You Know...</A></div> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" width=210 BGCOLOR="#808080" TEXT="#080000" background="045d2083.jpg"> <div> <IMG SRC="0925e370.png" border=0 width="94" height="55" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </td> <td valign="top" height=390 width="100%" BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000" background="04605053.jpg"> <div> <I>Tips</I></div> <bR> <div> <B><U>Hot tips for cold days</U></B></div> <div> <I><B>Clothing </B></I></div> <div> Ditch the big woolly jumper in favour of multiple thin layers. Remember, the more skin on show, the colder you'll feel. Keep warm at night by wearing pyjamas and bed socks. </div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Food </B></I></div> <div> Eating regular meals makes a big difference if you're trying to keep warm, but be sure to include carbohydrates. Amanda Ursell, the Times nutritionist, suggests dishing up stews and casseroles with meat, vegetables and potatoes. Soup is a great winter warmer: try bean and vegetable, lentil and tomato or pea and ham. Porridge makes a cheap, warming breakfast. </div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Thermostat </B></I></div> <div> 21C-24C is the optimum setting for central heating. </div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Alcohol and caffeine </B></I></div> <div> Avoid drinking too much of either if you're trying to stay warm. Both increase blood flow to the skin, and while you will feel warmer, your body is losing heat. </div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Visualise hot places </B></I></div> <div> According to research at the University of Portsmouth, imagining a hot place can make you feel warm.</div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Move around </B></I></div> <div> Even if it's just to make a hot drink, keeping mobile is essential to maintaining body heat. A quick jig will not only warm you up but will also release endorphins, those feel-good chemicals in the brain. </div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Warm homes </B></I></div> <div> Insulation and double-glazing are key. Most over-sixties will be eligible for the winter fuel payment. For more information, visit thepensionservice.gov.uk/winterfuel or warmfront.co.uk</div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <div> <B><U>WHAT DO YOUR BRUISES MEAN...</U></B></div> <div> The body has incredible powers to heal itself. Here, in an occasional new series, we explain the fascinating ways the body responds to everyday ailments and ask what happens when ...</div> <bR> <div> YOU GET A BRUISE?</div> <div> A bruise is the result of damaged blood vessels seeping into surrounding tissue. The older you are, the more easily</div> <div> you will bruise as the collagen that normally cushions the skin breaks</div> <div> down with age, leaving the blood vessels more vulnerable.</div> <div> Initially, a bruise will be red but will then darken to purple as haemoglobin, which gives blood its colour, degenerates and eventually fades to green or yellow as the body removes waste products. Treat initially with an ice-pack to prevent further internal bleeding. The natural remedy arnica seems to speed up healing.</div> <bR> <div> YOU GET A BLISTER FOR?</div> <div> A blister is a small pocket of fluid that collects under damaged skin, cushioning the tissue underneath.</div> <div> Usually, blisters are filled with serum -the clear part of the blood that remains after red blood cells and clotting agents have been removed.</div> <div> This is secreted from a nearby blood vessel that has been damaged but has not ruptured.</div> <div> If the vessel does rupture, a blood blister is formed. Don't pop blisters as this could cause infection.</div> <bR> <div> A mosquito feeds on blood, inserting its needle-like mouthparts into the skin, at the same time injecting saliva to stop the wound healing during feeding.</div> <div> The body releases histamine to fight the poison, but this in turn causes itching and inflammation. A normal bite should disappear in 48 hours.</div> <div> Treat with a mild steroid cream,</div> <div> ibuprofen gel or calamine lotion.</div> <bR> <div> <B><U>DO THIS...</U></B></div> <bR> <div> DRINK tea without milk. Researchers have found that adding milk reduces the beneficial effect</div> <div> it has on the arteries.</div> <bR> <bR> <div> <B><U>IPOD & HEARING</U></B></div> <div> <B><U><IMG SRC="0ac962d0.jpg" border=0 width="406" height="301" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></U></B></div> <div> LIKE many of his generation, Tom Wilkinson spent much of his teens and early 20s immersed in the 100-plus decibel surroundings of nightclubs and gigs. When he wasn't listening to live music, Tom was constantly plugged into his MP3 player with the volume turned up. Often the music in the venues was so loud it left his ears ringing. But as Tom explains: `I just got used to it. They'd still be ringing when I went to bed although the noise had always gone by the time I woke up. Then one day, I realised that the ringing from the night before hadn't gone away and it's not stopped since.'</div> <div> Tom was referred to the audiology unit at Exeter where he was told he had permanent damage to his ear cells.</div> <div> Continual exposure to high levels of noise had harmed his hearing. `They said the ringing in my ears was a form of damage called tinnitus which wasn't curable but they told me how to train my brain to try not to register the sound. I can live with it, but if I'm stressed or ill it's much worse.'</div> <div> To compound his misery, the 29-year-old IT developer from Topsham, Devon, is facing the prospect of premature deafness. The tinnitus is the first sign that the deafness which eventually affects everyone with advancing age will probably come to Tom sooner rather than later. `Deafness is perceived as something only old people get. But if I'd known that you can suffer it even at my relatively young age, I would have done more to protect myself.'</div> <div> Everyone eventually goes deaf in old age — nine out of ten 80-year-olds are restricted by hearing loss — but worringly, rising numbers of young music fans are facing inevitable deafness much earlier in life.</div> <div> At a time when such sound levels have long been banned from factories and workplaces, increasing numbers of people are willingly putting themselves in situations which will lead to almost certain hearing loss.</div> <div> In addition to nightclubs and loud concerts, many also spend long hours daily channelling high volume music directly into their ear canals from MP3 players.</div> <div> But there is limited evidence that young people are getting the message. The charity Deafness Research UK has just launched a roadshow to warn youngsters of the risks of loud music after a survey showed more than half did not realise loud concerts, clubs and MP3 players damaged hearing. The survey also found that one in seven 16-34-year-olds listens to MP3 players for more than 28 hours a week. Vivienne Michael, chief executive of Deafness Research UK, said: 'The MP3 revolution has been fantastic</div> <div> in making music more accessible on the move. The worrying effect is that people may suffer permanent deafness and tinnitus far earlier than would be expected simply as the result of old age.'</div> <div> Millions of people now own MP3 players, which can reach volumes of 105 decibels. Permanent damage to hearing can occur from continuous exposure to noise louder than</div> <div> 85 decibels.</div> <div> <IMG SRC="0ae26500.jpg" border=0 width="550" height="336" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> When sound enters the ear it makes the eardrum vibrate. This passes the vibrations through three tiny bones and on into the fluid-filled chamber of the cochlea</div> <div> or inner ear. The cochlea is lined with thousands of tiny `hair' cells designed to respond to different frequencies, and pass them through the auditory nerve for the brain to decode. gone set of these sensitive hair cells is regularly assaulted by excruciating volume, they become fatally overworked and simply break off permanently. The hair cells do not regenerate and cannot be repaired.</div> <div> It means that the ability to hear certain frequencies of sound is lost forever. The first evidence of this is the difficulty in separating voices from background noise. David McAlpine, director of the Ear Institute at University College London, believes new super-loud sound systems are placing young people at serious risk.</div> <div> `There is no question that this is a ticking time bomb,' he says`We all go deaf in the end, but these people are at risk of going deaf at a much younger age.'</div> <bR> <bR> <div> <IMG SRC="0b0bc500.png" border=0 width="444" height="80" ALT="Microsoft Office Word Document" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> <IMG SRC="0b47c5c0.jpg" border=0 width="380" height="348" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> EXERCISE is the best way to ensure your back is strong, thereby avoiding the misery of pain and injury. But which strengthening moves are best? The answer lies with how fit you already are, according to sports physiologist Dr Michael Bracko, speaking recently at the American College of Sports Medicine conference in the U.S.</div> <div> 'You can help prevent back problems through strengthening the back muscles themselves, but also by working the muscles that surround the spine, such as the abdominals.'</div> <div> Start with the following exercises, performing one set of repetitions three times a week for three weeks before eventually building up to 15-20 repetitions every day:</div> <bR> <div> DESK-BOUND:</div> <div> STAND with your feet shoulder-width apart and about two feet away from a wall. Lean on the wall,</div> <div> keeping your back straight. Extend your right arm up from the wall and lift your left leg up as high as possible. Repeat on the opposite side. Do this ten times each side.</div> <div> <IMG SRC="0b5900b0.gif" border=0 width="400" height="267" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> IF YOU'RE REGULARLY ACTIVE: BEGIN by lying on your stomach. Bend your arms at the elbows to support your upper body. Lift your body off the ground using your abdominal strength and toes to hold a bridge position, keeping your back straight. Hold for ten counts.</div> <div> <IMG SRC="0b290900.jpg" border=0 width="400" height="400" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> IF YOU'RE SUPER-FIT:</div> <div> FOLLOW the instructions above, but move your elbows as far forward as possible to work your back muscles</div> <div> more.</div> <div> <IMG SRC="0b3900a0.jpg" border=0 width="400" height="266" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <bR> <bR> <div> THE PILL THAT STOPS YOU BING DRINKING...</div> <div> <IMG SRC="0b9cc200.jpg" border=0 width="460" height="288" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> A new pill could stop binge-drinking habits in just days. The drug, called nal¬trexone, has been shown to halve the amount people drink and cut the number of heavy drink¬ing sessions by 70 per cent after 12 weeks.</div> <div> It is thought to work on brthe chemicals, reducing the craving for alcohol and making users feel they have drunk enough.</div> <div> Binge-drinking, most com-mon among younger people, is defined as eight or more units of alcohol in one session for a man, and more than six units for a woman.</div> <div> Studies have shown that a large amount of alcohol over a short period is worse for your health than drinking little and often because it places a big-ger strain on the liver. It's esti¬mated that 23 per cent of men and 9 per cent of women —around six million people in Britain — binge-drink.</div> <div> <IMG SRC="0bac2910.jpg" border=0 width="450" height="401" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> Among those aged 16 to 24, up to 36 per cent of men and 27 of women binge at least once a week. Over the last decade, binge drinking among young British women has increased more than in any other EU country.</div> <div> Long-term risks include can- cer, heart disease and stroke, as well as cirrhosis of the liver. The death rate due to acute intoxication in the UK has doubled in the past 20 years for both sexes.</div> <div> Researchers at Yale Univer-sity have been testing naltrex-one as a solution to the binge-drinking problem.</div> <div> It is already used in the reha¬bilitation of people who have an addiction, including drugs and alcoholism, and is designed to help them stay drug free by blocking the effects of any drugs they take. In order to work, addictive drugs stimulate brain recep¬tors and produce a euphoric feeling. Naltrexone is attracted to the same receptors. Once it has latched on to them, the drugs have no effect. The pilot study involved people aged 18 to 25 — tne participants were not alcoholics as the aim was to reduce alcohol consump¬tion rather than stop it alto¬gether.</div> <div> During the eight-week study, the 14 men and women had 25mg of naltrexone daily and took a further 25mg — a so called booster dose — when necessary. They were also given brief counselling on the dangers of alcohol and how to combat them.</div> <div> <IMG SRC="0bbfe1e0.jpg" border=0 width="510" height="286" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> Before the trial, the partici-pants were consuming an aver¬age 7.69 drinks a day. After four weeks, intake had dropped to 5.42 a day. Some months later, it had dropped to 3.98.</div> <div> `Naltrexone appears to be effective by making people less likely to consume a second or third beverage, rather than preventing them from having the first,' says Dr Robert Leeman, who co-ordinated the research. A larger trial is under way giving participants naltrexone or a placebo.</div> <div> `While naltrexone blocks the effects of alcohol and heroin, it doesn't seem to treat the two addictions in the same way. For alcohol, it seems to reduce the urge to drink, while for drug addicts, the urge isn't reduced but continued use results in a reduction in the euphoric effect of the drug.'</div> <div> HOWEVER,some experts are not convinced by the research. 'This is a heavy-handed approach to binge-drinking in young peo-ple and we should be aware of the dangers of medicalising this problem,' says Nick Heather, professor of alcohol and other drug studies at Northumbria University.</div> <bR> <div> <IMG SRC="0bd2c2c0.jpg" border=0 width="300" height="300" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <bR> <div> `A better approach is to change behaviour by making alcohol less accessible, more expensive and less glamorous.' Although binge drinking is a health problem at any age, among teenagers it raises par¬ticular concerns, with recent research suggesting it could damage memory for years. It's thought that excessive alcohol interferes with a critical stage in brain development. Earlier this year, a Northum¬bria University study found that among those aged 16 to 19, binge drinkers did much worse in memory tests, completing up </div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>