All posts in Medicine

Why Titanium Is Used In Medicine

By blogger on

Titanium, nicknamed the “space age metal,” has many sought-after properties that make it extremely useful to a variety of industries. It can be combined with other metals, like iron, aluminum, vanadium or molybdenum, to create tough lightweight alloys or it may be used by itself. The medical industry depends on titanium for many purposes, from surgical instruments and orthopedic implants to wheelchairs.

The three most useful properties of titanium in medicine are corrosion resistance, low density and strength. Some of the most corrosive agents known, like seawater and chlorine, have no caustic effect on titanium. The ability to withstand such extremely corrosive agents makes titanium useful for surgical applications since body fluids will not corrode it. Titanium is great for orthopedic uses in or outside the body because it is lightweight and strong. Titanium has the highest strength to weight ratio of any metal. Even in its unalloyed form, titanium is comparable in strength to certain steels, but about 45% of their weight.

Titanium’s more unique properties make it useful for orthopedic applications. Titanium is quite ductile, which allows it to be shaped without fracturing. Combined with its lightweight and high strength, the ability to deform titanium like plastic provides amazing applications for orthopedic devices. These devices are often intricately shaped with extreme shock and weight-resistant requirements. In addition, titanium is paramagnetic and does not interfere with medical diagnostic procedures, such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). It has low electrical and thermal conductivity too, which otherwise may interfere with certain medical procedures.

The human body reacts inertly to titanium, which makes it ideal for surgical use. The body does not reject or become intoxicated when titanium is surgically implanted. It also does not form any intervening connective tissue when titanium is implanted, even if used in bone tissue. Materials, like titanium, that are capable of connecting to bone cells without intervening connective tissue formation are called osseointegrates. This feature of connecting directly to bone tissue allows titanium to be used in many different types of implants, like hip sockets and dental implants.

Medicine uses titanium in an array of applications because it is strong, lightweight, corrosion resistant and paramagnetic and favorably unites with the human body. With the ability to be used from crutches to hip sockets, titanium truly does seem like a “space age metal.

Resveratrol The Best (Easy) Medicine For Anti-Aging

By blogger on

You’ve Heard Red Wine’s Good For You? Here’s Why

by Michael D. Hume, M.S.

Years ago, researchers from Harvard Medical School (and others) found an impressive nutrient with the power to fight aging, improve cardio-vascular and neurologic health, and help the human body battle everything from fatigue to disease. It’s called “resveratrol,” and it’s the ingredient in red wine that you’ve heard so much talk about lately.

How does it work?

Well, Father Time is wreaking havoc on your body, all the time. As you grow older (especially if you can manage to do it in our modern fast-food-and-TV societies), your body is bombarded by toxins of all sorts, from airborne and food-borne toxins to the stuff your flourescent lights are putting out that’s slowly killing your brain. The bad stuff attacks your cells, and literally starts tearing them apart. You’ve heard the term “free radical,” right? Those are particles torn from your cells that are floating around inside you, looking to attach themselves to healthy cells (and thereby making those cells UN-healthy in short order). Even if you lived a brilliantly clean life (and you don’t), this would happen anyway… your cells just break down over time. The technical term for this is “oxidation,” and you know it as “gettin’ old.”

To fight the oxidation of their cells – from both natural aging and the more unnatural aspects of life in 2011 – people buy and consume mass quantities of “anti-oxidants.” Not enough people do this, of course, and you can almost see it in the color of their hair and the wrinkles in their skin. Anti-oxidants are VERY important, and should be one of the centerpieces of your daily supplement regimen. They work to help your body repair those damaged cells, safely eliminate those free radicals, and resist further damage. Think of anti-oxidants as the Health Patrol in your body, running around fixing and protecting you at the cellular level… and foiling the attacks of Father Time.

And one of the best anti-oxidants (if not THE best) is resveratrol.

That’s why many researchers are saying that, not only will a glass or two of red wine every day not kill you, it would be good for you. You actually get a tiny benefit from the alcohol (as long as you don’t overdo it), because it helps clean your blood and reduce your bad cholesterol. But the big bennies come from the resveratrol, the commanding general of that Health Patrol we talked about. Resveratrol, in the right concentration, literally turns on human genes that order your cells to fix themselves.

The trouble is, you’d have to drink hundreds of glasses of wine every day to get resveratrol in the “right concentration” to activate those genes. Here’s a hint: don’t do that. One day like that, and you’re off the planet… not to mention that, while drunkenness of any kind is horrible for you, red wine produces a particularly mean and unpleasant kind of hangover that you just don’t want. Or so somebody told me. Even slightly over-doing it, over time, can make you fat and lazy. Wine does contain sugar, after all, and sugar’s just not all that great for your body.

So many companies are putting out resveratrol supplements, and if you haven’t added such a supplement to your daily health regimen, you should. Is it the very best medicine for anti-aging? No, highly-expensive clinical gene therapy is probably better. But for the average person, resveratrol is the best “available” medicine to help your body fight the clock.

When choosing a resveratrol supplement, there are a few things you need to look for. First, don’t just cheap out. The quality, potency, and safety of resveratrol supplements varies greatly, and you don’t want to get what’s cheap if it isn’t good. You want to make sure the product you buy is safe: the nutrient should be high-quality, harvested from a location where they care about things like purity and human rights, tested to be free of agricultural chemicals, and manufactured in a safe (inspected) facility. And if you can, get an activated liquid product for optimal delivery of the nutrient to your cells (resveratrol is only moderately absorbed from the human gut).

I use just such a resveratrol supplement that mimics the wine I love to drink (but shouldn’t drink as much of as I sometimes have!). It even comes in a wine bottle, and I can mix just a little bit of it with water to make a glass of “fake wine” that’s REALLY good for me. I’ve been focusing on using it daily for a few days now, and I can really feel the difference in my energy level. And Friend Wife even told me this weekend that my face looks… younger!

I recommend resveratrol, taken in the right concentration with a healthy dose of the other thing that fights aging: optimism. Sure, the world is trying to make you old quickly these days, and you have to contend with everything from taking care of your business in your day job to dealing with the effects of a crumbling global economy. And do you really want to rely on government health care? But things will get better. For one thing, after a regimen of anti-oxidants such as resveratrol, you’ll be “younger” next month! You’ll have more energy to do battle with the challenges in your life. In short, your life improves as YOU take personal responsibility to improve yourself. And a strong commitment to daily health habits, such as consistent use of the miracle of resveratrol, will literally make you better every day.

-30-

Michael Hume is a speaker, writer, and consultant specializing in helping people maximize their potential and enjoy inspiring lives. As part of his inspirational leadership mission, he coaches executives and leaders in growing their personal sense of well-being through wealth creation and management, along with personal vitality.

Those with an entrepreneurial spirit who want to make money “one less thing to worry about” can learn more about working with Michael at http://oneyearplan.net/michaeldhume

Anyone wanting to jump-start their vitality can browse through the best (and most convenient) nutraceuticals on the market at http://shop.enivausa.com/239824

Michael and his wife, Kathryn, divide their time between homes in California and Colorado. They are very proud of their offspring, who grew up to include a homemaker, a rock star, a service talent, and a television expert. Two grandchildren also warm their hearts! Visit Michael’s web site at http://michaelhume.net

How To Fight Asthma Without Medicine

By blogger on

Asthma is a physical condition that affects the air passage of the lungs. When you have asthma, the tubes that carry air down to your lungs get hyper-reactive and they become easily swollen and inflamed. Excessive mucus is secreted into the breathing tubes and the breathing tubes restrict the airflow and the asthma condition sets in. When this happens, the entire process of breathing inhaling and exhaling – becomes a struggle.

If you are diagnosed with asthma, the chances are that you may suffer from it for life. A recent study has revealed that 85% of females and 78% of males diagnosed with asthma between the ages of 8 and 12, continued to have medical symptoms for a long, long time. Asthma experts claim that asthma is a growing worldwide problem and are not able to explain why it has grown to epidemic proportions over the last thirty years. This increasing incidence could be due to several factors – stress, diet, dust mites, better living standards, increased pollution, better diagnosis etc. One of the most disturbing findings is that over consumption of some asthma drugs like bronchodilators may also be a factor.
The fact remains that many people are suffering from asthma without even knowing about it. Some of the common medical symptoms of asthma are wheezing, breathlessness, chest tightness and persistent coughing. Asthma usually occurs due to dust and dust particles, fumes/cigarette smoke, any pungent smell, some allergic foods, sudden changes in air temperature, obnoxious chemicals, common cold etc. When your asthma is well controlled, then you will not use a reliever drug more than three times a week, will not suffer from nocturnal coughs and wheezing, will not experience discomfort when performing normal daily activities, will be able to do physical without asthma symptoms.

First ascertain what allergies the person suffering from asthma has and then avoid these allergens to prevent asthma attacks. Eat foods that relieve asthma symptoms such as salmon, tuna and mackerel that are rich in Omega 3 fatty acids which help reduce the production of inflammatory compounds, improve pulmonary function, and prevent breathing constriction. Eat plentifully fruits and vegetables rich in vitamin C and B that are known to reduce stress and inflammation. Prostaglandins found in onions relax bronchial muscles and open lung airways. Chick peas are also a source of vitamin B6 which reduces wheezing. Drink only chlorine-free distilled or ionized water as chlorine irritates receptors in the throat and lungs. Perform breathing exercises daily – breathe in through the nose and exhale through the mouth to strengthen the respiratory muscles. Lavender and eucalyptus are best used during an asthma attack because they relax and open ling airways.

Everyone with asthma should always carry a reliever inhaler. When you get asthma symptoms a reliever inhaler will help you to relax the muscles around your airways, making breathing easier. There are preventer inhalers that help to soothe and calm the inflammation in your airways. Although the preventer will make you feel better, it does not make your asthma vanish altogether. So you will need to take your preventer regularly to keep your lungs healthy and strong. A spacer is a plastic container with a mouthpiece at one end and a hole for the aerosol inhaler at the other. When you press your inhaler the fine spray of medicine is trapped inside the spacer ready for you to breathe it in.

Alternative Medicine Is A Thing That More Men And Women Want To Know About

By blogger on

Alternative medicine is a thing that more and more folks are beginning to look into, but you will find loads of information on the topic and it can be rather puzzling. Another thing you will find that even though more folks are looking into alternative medicine there are other individuals who have not ever worried about just what they put in their bodies. Over the last few years I have been studying alternative medicines and the positive results that they can have your all around health, and this is something that I believed that more people should know about.

Just so you know, alternative medicines are one thing that can help you deal with different health conditions that you may suffer from with out having to take drugs. Individuals have begun to be more worried lately with the things that they are placing into their bodies, and so alternative medicine has become considerably popular among health-conscious individuals these days.

Recently I have been carrying out a lot of research for articles that deal with alternative medicine and I considered that more people should be mindful of what this is. It is also something that I have been personally interested in, as I never liked taking any types of drugs. A primary reason for this is simply because of all of the negative side effects you find out about with all sorts of prescription drugs. This is also something that more men and women should be aware of as I am confident you have seen drug commercials on TV and all the side effects at the end of the particular commercials. What you need to ask yourself is why would you take a drug which is going to result in additional problems and wind up causing you to take more drugs? And this simply will go on and on.

This of course, is one of the principal reasons that more and more folks are looking into alternative medicine as an option. They are people who are in search of new and healthier ways to treat their symptoms and who are convinced that the more natural something is, the better it is for their body and their over all health. So let me ask you a question, just what makes more sense, taking harmful chemical substances such as prescription drugs or using all natural remedies that have no negative side effects.

There is much too much to say about alternative medicine here, but I merely wanted to point out that there are alternatives to taking all those prescription drugs that cause all sorts of side effects. As with other things in your life you will notice that you get to make the choice on how best you feel you can take care of your body. After you look at the benefits of alternative medicine to prescription drugs, you just have to assess if it is a good choice for you. The information that we supplied here may not be enough for you to select alternative medicine, but you can get loads more information online if you are interested.

Stress And Emergency Medicine Job

By blogger on

You have to do everything that you can to save them. Patients that come into the emergency room are not smiling and waiting for you in the office. They could be having a heart attack or a drug overdose. They might have been in a car accident and they could be unconscious. They might have been in a fire and they’re severely burned. Patients that come into the emergency room are not telling you their problems. They could be unconscious and you would need to ask yourself about their problems. You have to make assessments and treat them according to your assessment. You have to be quick and on your feet in order to think about their problems and treat them. They could live or die and all is up to you. This is what you have to put up with as an emergency doctor. Its high stress but its rewarding because you can save peoples lives with your skills and treatments. It feels good to save a life. There are many talented doctors out there who know exactly what to do. They have many years of experience and they can get in there and rescue the patients. If youre talented and you know how to save lives then you should try emergency medicine. Emergency medicine is stressful. Its not a slow pace type of job. Its a fast pace and stressful type of job. If you like to sit back and talk to the patients then this is not the right field for you. When a patient is admitted to the emergency room, you will have to rescue them within minutes and you dont have two hours to rescue them. Therere patients that can die within thirty minutes if you dont rescue them right away. You have to handle stress like theres no stress at all. This is the environment that youll be working in for a long time so you have to ask yourself if youll be happy with it. Its best that you spend a lot of time in the emergency room to see if you will be happy with that type of work and pressure. Pressure and stress are the words to describe the emergency room environment. If you enjoy action and saving peoples lives then you might actually do well in the emergency room. It can be intense and you dont want to go into a field that youll want to change later on. There’re many jobs out there for emergency doctors. You won’t have a problem finding work but it’s just a matter of having enough experience so you can work in the emergency room. There’re also emergency jobs oversea. You can travel with this position too. You might not be able to open a business since it’s emergency medicine. You have to work in the hospital floor most of the time. Youll need to do your research to see if this is the area for you.