Everyone wants to be healthy. Being healthy means more than not being sick – it means having the energy to enjoy life. It means being physically and mentally able to deal with most of the curve balls life throws. Being healthy lets us live life to the fullest. Who'd want to miss out on that?

Unfortunately, health is not guaranteed, it is something we have to work for. Even the most careful person can get sick, end up in a car accident or otherwise lose their health. Even when disaster doesn't happen, the ongoing stresses of life can wear our health down. It takes daily action to support and reinforce our health and well being.

Luckily, staying (or getting) healthy doesn't necessarily take a lot of work. For people who are not dealing with severe illness, a few simple steps can really improve day-to-day health. For those who are ill, these little things won't bring a magic cure, but they can strengthen your mind and body to better fight back against your illness. All it takes is a few minutes a day and a commitment.

This is a brief guide to being healthy. There is far more information available on health than can be fit in a single website. Use this guide as an introduction and a way to get started. If what you find here is enough to get you the level of health you want, use it and enjoy the results! If not, don't be discouraged, from this starting point you can go a lot further with time and research.

You will find three general topics in this guide – health tips, healthy eating, and diet plan. Health tips is a collection of simple things you can do every day to make a difference in your health. Healthy eating introduces the some of the basics of a healthy diet that most nutrition articles don't talk about. Diet plan offers some thoughts and ideas on designing a diet plan, if your weight is impacting your health. These three topics provide a good introduction to what you need to know to get and stay healthy.

Health Tips

Contrary to popular belief, you don't need to make major life changes to improve your health. Small things, taking just a few minutes each day, can make a big difference. In this section, you will find several suggestions for small changes you can make that have a big impact on your health.

You don't need start doing all these things at once. You want to make these small changes into habits that you don't need to think about. Start with the one that will be easiest for you to add to your day. Once that change has become a routine you don't need to think about, try adding another. This way you aren't trying to remember several new things at the same time. Remember, this is about making small changes. And even you only follow one of these health tips, you'll still be making yourself healthier.

Drink water : This surprisingly obvious health tip has popped up frequently in recent years, and for good reason. Many people in the United States are living in a state of constant dehydration. One study found over 50% of women were chronically dehydrated. Unfortunately, as often as this advice has been given, not enough people are following it.

How can you tell if you are drinking enough water? Don't waste your time counting how many cups of water you drink each day. None of the medical authorities can agree on how much water any given person needs. This is because we are all different, and are bodies all need different amounts of water. The trick to telling if you are dehydrated is to stop worrying about the numbers, and start paying attention to how you feel.

If you frequently feel like your mouth is dry, if your skin tends to be dry and itchy, and if your lips chap easily, you are probably dehydrated. Another clue is in how you drink. If you pick up a glass of water and can comfortably take a sip and put it back down, you are not dehydrated. If you need to take several large swallows before you put a glass down, you probably are.

Make sure you drink water, not sugar drinks, tea or coffee, several times a day. Many non-water beverages (like tea and alcohol) can actually make you dehydrated.

Get Some Sun: Sunlight is crucial for both our mental and physical health. Not getting enough sunlight can lead to depression. It weakens the immune system and can even increase your chances of osteoporosis. It's important to get a little bit of sun each day.

Now, a little bit of sun doesn't mean setting out a lawn chair and baking for several hours. It means sitting one your front porch while you drink a cup of coffee in the morning or sitting on a bench chatting with a friend for 10 minutes on your break. 10-15 minutes of sunlight and fresh air each day can make a huge difference in your health.

Try to get your sun in the morning or late afternoon. Remember the old saying about 'too much of a good thing' and don't put yourself at risk of skin cancer by over sunning or going out to often in the heat of the day. The gentle sunlight the hits early and late in the day will give you the health benefits you want without the risks.

Change Your Position: Most of us spend a great deal of the day doing the same thing over and over again. We sit at desks, we stand in one spot or we walk around, depending on what our job is. Whatever it is your job has you doing, take the time every hour to chance your position or your pace. Sit down, stand up, bend over, jog, run in place, reach up high, something!

Doing the same thing all the time creates stress on the body, interferes with circulation and generally just isn't good for you. Not everything is equally bad – standing all day is better than sitting, because sitting interferes with blood flow. Walking it better than standing because it keeps the muscles moving and helps blood flow. But a change is still good no matter what it is you are doing.

You don't need to take a lot of time or make a big change. Taking 5 seconds to reach for the ceiling, than bend over and reach for your toes, can be enough. If you are sitting and can't stand up, stretch your legs out and try to touch your toes or place your hands on top of your head and twist your body from side to side. Doing something small once an hour is enough to start making a difference in your health.

Healthy Eating

Okay, before everyone's brain's shut down on an image of tasteless 'good for you' crud, let's examine some prejudices. Most people today have an idea of 'health food' as been bland an impossible to enjoy. Therefore, eating healthy becomes a chore and food stops being what it should be: one of the great pleasures of life. 

The idea that healthy food should be tasteless is thoroughly outdated. It comes from the middle of the 1800s when doctors thought that some types of illness was caused by people being 'over-stimulated'. So they made everything medical as dull as possible, and deliberately created the most tasteless possible goop to sell as 'health food.' Take a calendar check here – this idea goes back to before doctors knew that germs caused disease. Isn't it time to get rid of it? Who wants to eat food two centuries out of date?

There is another reason many people assume healthy food is tasteless or disgusting. In a word: vegetables. We all grew up with our parents telling up 'eat your vegetables, they are good for you,' while we desperately tried every trick to avoid swallowing those disgusting green things.

If you can, try and open your mind enough for a new concept: vegetables don't have to be bland or disgusting. There are two reasons why we grew up feeling like there was nothing worse than vegetables. First, most of our parents didn't know how to cook them! For many American families, cooking vegetables comes straight out of the classic English cook book – boiled tasteless. There are a lot of great ways to prepare veggies, but in a pot of water is usually not one of them (unless you are making stew!)

The other reason we hated vegetables as children has to do with our taste buds. Many vegetables are bitter, and children don't like bitter things. As people grow older, their taste buds change, and they begin to like bitter flavors more. Which is why beer and coffee were yuck worthy when you were a child, but may be really good now.

So, here's a suggestion: when you decide to start eating healthy, don't see it as forcing yourself to eat boring, icky, pointless stuff. Instead try and see is as exploring a new cuisine, the same way you would if you decide to try to learn to cook Japanese food or French cuisine. Explore recipes, learn techniques, play with spices and have fun with it.

So just what does healthy eating consist of? Mostly, a reasonable balance. That's why they call it a 'balanced diet'. Basically, healthy eating calls for a little bit of everything. You can think of it in terms of nutrition – a bit of carbs, a bit of protein, a bit of vitamins and minerals, a bit of fats, a bit of sugars. You can see it as food instead – some pasta and bread, some meat and beans, some fruit and vegetables, some oils, some sweets. In China the approach is balancing flavors – something salty, something sweet, something savory, something bitter and something sour makes for a balanced meal too.

Basically it comes down to variety, the more kinds of things you eat, the more nutrients you are getting. Plus, the greater variety of food you eat the less likely you are to get too much of anything (like sugar and fat).

There is one other side to healthy eating – it's not always what you eat, sometimes it is how you eat it. There are two things you can do that will make your eating habits a lot healthier. The first is to eat slowly. The second is to snack. Without doing anything else these two things can make a big difference in the health of your diet.

Try an experiment next time you eat. Chew eat bite 20 times before swallowing. You'll find some surprising results. Chewing longer helps you digest the food better, so you use less energy absorbing it and get more nutrition out of it. Eating more slowly gives your body time to process the food and realize how much you have eaten. It takes your body several minutes to realize it is full, so every time you eat there is some food that you don't need to eat. You don't realize this, because you don't know you are full. Eating more slowly means you eat less extra food.

Our bodies are designed to be eating constantly. They are not designed to eat a few huge meals and then go hours with out food. In fact, if you go more than four hours without eating, your body will decide there isn't enough food and you in danger of starving. Then it will start deliberately packing on pounds. A small snack every few hours will keep your body from freaking out about the coming famine. It doesn't have to be a big snack. Grab an apple, munch a few nuts, or nosh some chips (potato chips are actually very healthy if you get the low salt kind and don't eat more than a handful at a time).

That's it. Healthy eating in a nut shell. Now let's take a look at what you can do if you are coming to healthy eating a bit late, and need to get on a diet plan to get back on the road to health.

Diet Plan

For most people, 'diet plan' conjures up images of counting calories, giving up favorite foods and a general annoyance that pervades all of life. For years diets have based on denial. Stop eating so much, stop eating this or that thing that is bad for you, stop eating things cooked this or that way.

To some extant this denial approach is necessary, if what you have been eating until now has led you to the point that you need to set up a diet plan, than you need stop eating the way you have been and start eating a new way. Which means you have to deny yourself some of the things you are used to eating.

The mistake with the traditional approach is that it makes denial a lifestyle, and few people can live like that for long without giving into temptation, which leads to guilt and even more problems. Denial just doesn't work as a long term strategy.

What does work for a diet plan? Change and discipline. There is a difference between 'I can never have any cake' and 'I can have cake on special occasions, but only one slice.' The first is denial, the second is discipline. Changing your habits – having only one slice of cake at parties rather then several, having a small snack rather than a large one, munching on nuts or berries instead of hard candy, is the basis of a good diet plan. The discipline to stick to your diet plan is what will make it work.

So how do you build a diet plan?

Start by coming up with a list of small changes you want to make to the way you eat. Don't go for sweeping reforms like 'no more sugar' or 'eat a salad every day' unless you are one of the rare people who do best going cold turkey on a bad habit. Instead go for things like 'eat 2 salads a week', 'only eat desert twice a week' or 'only have 1 slice of bacon with breakfast'. These should things that you can adjust to in a few weeks, or even a few days.

Pick one change to start with. Its up to you whether you go with the one that will be easiest or hardest, you know yourself best. Start that change in your diet immediately. It may be difficult at first and will feel strange for while, but stick with it. In a short while it will be a normal part of your routine. When that happens, it's time to make the next change.

By building a diet plan around gradual changes you create a lifestyle change that can be permanent. Instead of getting the diet see-saw of losing lots of weight quickly and then gaining it all back, you will be able to lose weight gradually and keep it off.

You will get better effect if you combine this diet plan with an exercise program. This way your body will be burning more calories while you are changing your eating habits.

However you approach getting healthy and changing your life, make sure it is something you can live with. You want to work towards your health while enjoying life as much as possible. Making yourself miserable rather defeats the purpose, after all.

Diabetes type 2 previously known as Non-Insulin- Dependent Diabetes Mellitus is a chronic disorder of metabolism characterized by high blood glucose levels in the body because

1.     Your body is not making enough insulin to fulfil its need that is relative insulin deficiency in contrast to the absolute insulin deficiency in type 1 diabetes where the body cant produce any insulin.

2.     Your body resists the effects of insulin known as; insulin resistance.

3.     It could be the combination of the above factors.

Insulin is a very important hormone made by a gland situated below and behind the stomach; the pancreas. Insulin helps and regulates the movement of glucose, the main energy providing fuel of the body, into the cells where it is used to produce energy.

Symptoms

1.     Increased Thirst (Polydipsia) With Increased frequency of Micturition; Fluid is pulled out from tissues once you have high sugar levels in your bloodstream making you thirsty. Once you drink more you have to go to the toilet more often.

2.     Polyphagia (Increased hunger); As the relative insulin deficiency or the insulin resistance doesn’t allow sugars to enter the cells, the organs and muscles get energy depleted making you more hungry.

3.     Weight loss; You eat more because you are more hungry still you lose weight because the energy you are taking is not made available to the cells where it is needed.

4.     Fatigue; Energy depleted cells, muscles and organs make you feel tired at all times.

5.     Repeated Infections and Poor Healing Wounds.

6.     Acanthosis nigrans; some people develop areas of dark pigmented skin on their body especially in the folds and creases.

7.     Blurred Vision; In some people high blood sugars may cause water to come out of their lens making it difficult for them to focus.

Apart from the above symptoms many people do not have any symptoms at all and they are diagnosed in a routine clinical evaluation. So these symptoms are very slow to develop and diabetes may be present for a long time before the symptoms develop.

What Puts People At Risk of Developing Type2 Diabetes

There are many factors that collectively or individually increase the risk of a person developing type2 diabetes. Some have more influence than the others.

1)     Lifestyle; It is one of the most important risk factor for type2 diabetes. It includes:

a.          Obesity; waist line more than 80cm(31.5 inches) in women and more than 94cm(37 inches) in men increases the risk.

b.          Lack of physical activity.

c.          Poor diet; including excess  of sugar sweetened drinks, plenty of white rice, food rich in saturated fats and trans fatty acids.

d.          Stress; It may be at work or at home increases the risk.

2)     Genetics; It is believed that more than 36 genes have been involved in the development of type 2 diabetes.

3)     Family History; Risk is increased if a parent or sibling has type 2 diabetes.

4)     Age; It develops mainly in people aged 40 or above but can develop earlier as well but increasing age increases the risk.

5)     Race; more common in south Asian and African Caribbean people, develops even earlier than 40 years sometimes.

6)     Gestational Diabetes; It adds to the risk of developing full type 2 diabetes.

7)     Pre diabetes; when your blood sugar levels are higher than the normal values but not high enough to label type 2 diabetes adds on to the risk.

8 )     Medical conditions and Medicines: for example

a.          Acromegaly

b.          Cushing syndrome

c.           Pheochromocytoma

d.          Hyperthyroidism

e.          Drugs containing steroids

f.            Beta blockers

g.           Thiazides

Screening
 

Universal screening for diabetes is usually not recommended as it has been found not to improve the outcomes. WHO recommends screening for those who are from the high risk group, they include people over 45 years of age, those with a first degree relative having diabetes, some ethnic groups for example south Asians, African Caribbean, a history of gestational diabetes, polycystic ovarian disease, those who are overweight or those having pre-diabetes.

Tests and Diagnoses

Glycated Haemoglobin (A1C); It shows the average blood sugar level of a person over the past 2 to 3 months. It measures the percentage of blood sugar attached to haemoglobin in the red blood cells.

Normal level is below 5.7%

Diabetes is diagnosed if the level of haemoglobin A1C is 6.5% or higher on two 2 separate tests.

Level between 5.7% and 6.4% are taken as Pre-diabetes which is a risk factor for diabetes.

Random Blood Glucose Test; A blood sample is taken at a random time that is regardless when you last ate,

Normal value is less than 140mg/dl (7.8mmmol/l)

Diabetes is diagnosed if the level is 200mg/dl (11.1mmmol/l)

Level between these two that is 140-199mg/dl (7.8-11.0mmmol/l) is pre-diabetes.

Fasting Blood Glucose Test; A blood sample is taken after an overnight fast. Values are interpreted as,

Normal level is less than 100mg/dl (5.6mmmol/l)

Diabetes is diagnosed at levels of 126mg/dl (7.0mmol/l)

100-125mg/dl (5.6-6.9mmol/l) is pre-diabetes

Oral Glucose Tolerance Test; After an overnight fast a fasting blood sample is taken, after which you are given a sugary drink and levels are monitored at intervals for some hours .Results are interpreted as follows,

Normal level is less than 140mg/dl (7.8mmol/l) after 2 hours

Level above 200mg/dl (11.1mmol/l) after 2 hours is diabetes.

A level between 140-199mg/dl (7.8-11.0) is considered as pre-diabetes.

Treatment

The treatment of type 2 diabetes involves a multidisciplinary team approach. Although diabetes can’t be cured but can be treated and managed very well. This multidisciplinary team includes a doctor, a nurse, a dietician, a chiropodist, an optometrist and some other healthcare workers. The treatment can be made simpler if it is divided into smaller steps as follows;

STEP 1: Aiming For Normal Blood Glucose Levels

Monitoring Blood Glucose

Your doctor recommends HbA1C test every 2 to 6 months to find out about your average blood glucose levels over the period of time. A target of the levels is also set by your doctor which is usually somewhere between 6.5% to7.5 %. Treatment modifications can be made according to the levels. You can also monitor your levels regularly with the help of a blood glucose monitor at home and keep a record.

You must be aware that certain conditions alter the blood glucose levels such as Food, Physical activity, Medication, Illness, Stress, Alcohol and Hormones.

Lifestyle Changes

a.     Eat Healthy

A healthy diet is a diet low in sugar, salt, fats, high in fibre and has plenty of fruits and vegetables. You and your dietician can work out a plan that you can easily follow which is according to your food preferences and suits your lifestyle. Once you have your plan you need to be consistent with it.

b.   Physical Activity

Physical activity is really important to keep you fit. It helps to lower blood glucose levels. Make sure you know about your blood sugar level before starting an exercise, you may have to take a snack before you start exercising if blood sugar levels are already low. Choose some aerobic exercises first but don’t forget to ask your doctor first before starting any exercise programme especially if you have been inactive for some time. You can choose   brisk walking, cycling, swimming, dancing whichever suits your lifestyle. You can gradually build up your routine including stretching and strengthening exercises as well of course after your doctor’s advice .If you can walk briskly for 30minutes continuously or 2 sessions 15 minutes each at least 5 times a week it is good.

       c.   Lose weight

If you are overweight it is advisable to lose some weight. It helps to lower blood glucose levels.

These are the simple measures you can take to control your blood glucose levels and for many people they are quite effective. However if the blood glucose levels are still are not under normal range then medicines are used to control the

Medications

1.     Metformin: Usually this is the first drug given to newly diagnosed diabetics especially who are overweight. It works by lowering the amount of glucose released by the liver in the blood stream plus it makes the cells more responsive to the same level of insulin .Metformin has fewer side effects especially it does not cause hypoglycaemia generally, you may feel sick with mild tummy upset. Side effects can be reduced if the medicine is started from a low dose and gradually build up to the required dose.

2.     Sulfonylureas: Your doctor may add one of these drugs if Metformin alone is not sufficient or you can’t tolerate Metformin due to side effects or you may start off with a Sulfonylurea if you are not overweight. They include: Gliclazide, Glimepiride and Glipizide. These drugs act by enhancing the insulin release from the pancreas and thus can cause hypoglycaemia as a possible complication.

3.     Other Drugs: Thiazolidindiones, Acarbose are some other drugs which your doctor can prescribe if indicated. Every drug has its advantages and side effects, make sure to discuss them with your doctor before you start a therapy.

4.     Insulin: If the blood glucose levels are not controlled by the medications explained above you may have to take insulin injections to control them. There are different types   and routes of injecting insulin. Your doctor will recommend the type and the route of injecting insulin that suits you the best. One serious potential complication of insulin is hypoglycaemia.

5.     Pregnancy:  Type 2 diabetic women need to alter their treatment regime if they are on oral medicines to control their blood glucose and they will be shifted to insulin throughout their pregnancy.

STEP 2: Reduce Modifiable Risk Factors

You certainly have to cut out or at least reduce the risk factors which you can. They include

1.     Stop smoking

2.     Lose excess weight if overweight

3.     Keep a check on your cholesterol levels; your doctor may prescribe you with a cholesterol lowering medicine known as Statin.

4.     Keep your blood pressure under control; you may have to take a medicine to control blood pressure if indicated.

STEP 3: Early Detection and Management of Any Complications

It can be achieved only if you keep a regular follow up at a diabetes clinic. A follow up visit will usually include

1.     Your blood pressure, blood glucose, HbA1C and serum cholesterol levels check.

2.     Healthy lifestyle checks.

3.     Advice on foot care.

4.     Eye examination to detect any early signs of a developing complication and if so its treatment.

5.     Kidney function tests both urine and blood tests to make sure the kidneys are doing fine.

Complications

Short Term Complications

1.     Hyperglycaemia (High blood glucose levels)

       It can be caused by overeating, non- compliance with your medicine or illness. Symptoms are fatigue, intense thirst, nausea, frequent urination, dry mouth and blurred vision. If you have some of these symptoms please see your doctor, your diet plan or the medication may have to be adjusted.

       2.     Hyperosmolar hyperglycaemic  Non ketotic syndrome

A condition characterised by extremely high blood glucose levels may be as high as 600mg/dl (33.3mmol/l) or even more with all the symptoms of hyperglycaemia plus symptoms such as confusion, drowsiness and hallucinations. Seek medical advice promptly.

3.     Diabetic Ketoacidosis

This is a condition more commonly seen in untreated type 1 diabetics not common in type 2 diabetics. It is characterised by appetite loss, tummy pain, fatigue, vomiting, weakness and a sweet fruity smell in breath, this is a medical emergency so immediate hospital care is required.

4.     Hypoglycaemia

This is often a complication of treatment diagnosed when the blood glucose gets quite low usually under 4mmol/l. Symptoms are trembling, sweating, anxiety, mood changes, blurred vision, pale appearance, tingling lips and confusion. You can have an attack of hypo if you miss a meal or do some unusual physical activity or you have taken excess of your medication. You should take a sugary drink immediately followed by a sandwich if you think you are having a hypoglycaemic episode and check your blood sugar levels after 15 min if still low u can have some more sugary things and recheck after 15 min. Seek medical care if u are becoming drowsy or at least tell someone nearby.

LONG TERM COMPLICATIONS

 When blood glucose levels remain high over a long period of time it affects many organs and systems resulting in more chronic difficult to deal with complications. These are

1.     Heart and Blood Vessels: can cause heart attacks, angina and stroke.

2.     Kidneys: can lead to kidney failure.

3.     Eyes: can lead to conditions such as glaucoma, cataracts and even blindness.

4.     Nerves: Neuropathies are very common.

5.     Combined nerve and vessel problems: Foot problems, ImpoteThe better you manage your diabetes the longer you can delay these long term complications and can achieve better quality of life.

Prevention

It is always wise to adapt a healthy lifestyle even if you are not a high risk person to develop type 2 diabetes. A healthy lifestyle includes healthy diet, being physically active and maintaining a normal weight. These measures definitely work in keeping you healthy.

Immunisations

Always have your immunisations done against Flu (autumn each year) and against pneumococcal bacteria (once).They help to prevent against the opportunistic infections you may get easily because of your low immunity.

An overwhelming and unreasonable fear to receive dental care is known as “Dental Phobia”. 25% of British population suffer from fear and anxiety before they see a dentist according to one survey by the British Dental Association. Different people experience varying degrees of dental fear from mild to severe. As a result these people try to avoid to receive dental care and often risk their oral health badly.

      CAUSES

1. Previous Bad Personal Experiences; This is the most common cause why people develop dental phobias. A previous traumatic and /or painful dental experience leads to the development of such phobias. In addition uncaring, unkind attitude of the dentist lacking sympathy can add on to the development of a dental phobia.

       2. Some people develop it after hearing stories from other individuals who have gone through a traumatic dental experience.

       3. Perception of lack of control during the procedure leads to development of helplessness and eventually fear.

       4. Sometimes previous bad experiences with doctors other than dentists may enhance the fear when people come under hospital environment for a dental procedure.

SIMPLE WAYS TO OVERCOME DENTAL PHOBIA

You can try some very simple ways to overcome your phobia, but the first step in doing this is to find out what exactly is bothering you. Just relax and think what is it making you anxious. Is it the fear of the diagnosis you  will get, fear of pain, needles, drills or is it the feeling of being powerless during a procedure unable to help yourself and stop the procedure if it becomes painful. You should also bear in mind that dentists are specialized doctors specifically trained to deal with nervous patients and that you may not be one of the most nervous patients that they have dealt with, they may have been through countless more complicated scenarios than yours.

       1. Know Your Dentist Better: Try to make few visits before the actual surgery. This builds up your confidence in your dentist. Feel free to discuss your fears and your concerns with your dentist beforehand and try to build a healthy and trusting relationship. Ask him/her to explain to you the whole procedure in a stepwise manner so your mind knows what is coming up next and hence stays relaxed.

2. Set A Stop Signal: The most fearful thing is that you don’t know if you will be able to stop the procedure if it becomes too painful. Talk about it beforehand and make sure that your dentist completely understands how you feel and will go slow at a pace you can tolerate.

       3. Distraction: Find some ways to distract yourself on the day of surgery. A soft , soothing music may help a lot to keep you calm.

       4. Counseling: Perhaps the most effective way of overcoming a phobia. It involves sitting down with a therapist and talk and while talking you view and learn to co-op with your feared object or situation differently. You may try Desensitization, in which repeated gradual  exposure to the situation you fear helps to conquer your anxiety for example you may try and sit in a dental chair a couple of times before your actual surgery day to find out how it feels. This may help a lot when you actually sit in the chair for surgery and find yourself relaxed.

So it is not too difficult to overcome your dental phobia and obviously if these simple measures don’t work there are some pharmacological therapies to overcome the fear and anxiety which can be recommended if needed but please bear in mind whatever you do please do not neglect your dental health just because of your fears, after all your smile matters!

Ear infections are among the most common illnesses for infants and young children. On average, 50% of infants will have at least one ear infection before their fist birthday. Luckily, ear infections are rarely dangerous. In most cases they will clear up on their own within a week.

Ear infections occur when a blockage develops in the Eustachian tube of the ear. In the picture on the left, the Eustachian tube is on the left, running down and away from the ear.  This tube drains fluid from the ear. If it gets blocked, the fluid can't drain, and instead builds up, creating pressure inside the idea. This pressure causes the pain that is the major symptom of ear infections.

Unfortunately, infants can't tell anyone when they are in pain. Other, more subtle symptoms, will tell you if you need to have an infant checked for an ear infection. Watch for ears that are red, especially the inside of the ear. An infant with an ear infection will often pull on their ear frequently or rub their ear and the side of their head. Finally, an infant who suddenly become inexplicably fussy, won't sleep and needs constant comfort and attention may be reacting to the pain of an ear infection.

Infants are not in any danger from most ear infections. The typical ear infection will make a baby fussy and irritable for a week, and then they will gradually start to feel better. Children's Tylenol or other pain reliever can help with the pain, and over the counter ear drops will often make the fluid in the ear dry out faster. All it takes to get through the average ear infection is time and patience.

When an ear infection is caused by a bacteria or virus, your baby may run a fever. While an ear infection, in and of itself, is not dangerous, a fever can be. If an infant develops a fever of over 100, you should call a pediatrician immediately. If an infant's fever spikes over 102, they need to go into the emergency room as quickly as possible. He or she will be treated to bring the fever down, and probably given a prescription for antibiotics.

The other risk of an ear infection comes when the body can't clear up the ear infection quickly. Sometimes a lasting ear infection can cause damage to the ear, or spread to other parts of the body. Any ear infection that lasts for over a week should be seen by a doctor. The doctor may prescribe antibiotics or stronger ear drops than are available over the counter.

Ear infections are a very normal thing for infants. Infants have very small Eustachian tubes, so blockages can develop easily. While they can be frustrating for parents and painful for infants, most infections are not a cause for concern. Just check with your doctor and be alert for any signs of fever. If you are worried about an ear infection developing in the future, you can keep some ear drops and infant pain reliever on hand. Just in case.

Belly fat is actually an excess of visceral fat or abdominal fat. This visceral fat is located inside the abdominal cavity found in between the different organs present in it like liver, spleen, intestines, kidneys, etc .It is different from the fat present elsewhere in the body for example in thighs and buttocks where it is mainly present under the skin and is known as subcutaneous fat. This type of fat usually raises cosmetic concerns whereas belly fat is far too more dangerous for the health of an individual.

RISKS ASSOCIATED WITH BELLY FAT

Before jumping over to the ways and methods of losing belly fat it is important to know about the potential harms that this excess fat predisposes your health to. Belly fat has a strong co relation with cardiovascular disease. In addition diabetes mellitus type2, insulin resistance, hypertension and certain types of cancers are also linked to it .One of the possible explanation is the hormonal imbalance caused by this excess fat leading eventually to these health hazards.

HOW TO KNOW YOU HAVE EXCESS BELLY FAT

With the help of a measuring tape u can easily find out about your belly fat. Simply measure your waistline that is put the measuring tape just above your hip bones, about the level of your navel on your bare stomach. Relax and exhale while you take the measurement.  Do not pull the tape measure too tight around your waist.

For women a measurement of 35 inches (89cm) or more indicates belly fat.

For men 40 inches (102cm) or more should be dealt seriously.

BELLY FAT IN POST-MENOPAUSAL WOMEN

After menopause a woman’ s body undergo many hormonal changes and one of these is the accumulation of more and more belly fat and hence weight gain. Some genetic factors also play role in this increase in belly fat and no doubt lifestyle effects as well. But it is not something you can not control. You can still stay healthy by sticking to your basic balanced plan discussed below.

THINGS TO REMEMBER

Spot reduction of belly fat is difficult but the good news is that the belly fat is the first to respond when you are trying to lower your total body fat. As a matter of fact targeted abdominal exercises help to tones these muscles and they don’t help to reduce the belly fat. Rather it is the effort to reduce the total fat that actually helps. So basically sticking to the basics of losing weight is the key to get rid of belly fat.

BEFORE YOU START

1. MOTIVATION: This is one of the most important thing you should have before you start as you can never do it if you don’t want to.

2. AVOID SHORTCUTS: According to latest recommendations an average rate of 0.5-1.0kg/wk or 1-2lb/wk is considered to fine.

3 .SETTING GOALS: Be careful to set realistic goals as health benefits come early in most cases.

4. FOOD DIARY: You should exactly know what are you eating and in what amounts so a food diary recording  your eating habits will be helpful.

EAT LESS AND HEALTHY

1. Include plenty of fibre (whole grain bread, brown rice and pasta, lentils , oats, fruits, vegetables)

2. Include plenty of fruits and vegetables, ideally 5 portions of different fruits and vegetables daily.

3. Limit fatty food (fatty meats, fried foods, full cream milk and dairy products)

4. Keep your portion sizes small. Share your food with a friend if you happen to eat out.

DRINK HEALTHY

Keep a check on what you drink. Excessive use of sugary drinks, tea and coffee with added sugar and milk and alcohol all add to your daily caloric intake .Use of plain water instead is very healthy.

BOOST UP PHYSICAL ACTIVITY

According to recommendations all adults should have at least 30minutes of moderate intensity physical activity on at least 5 days a week.  The activity can be all in a single go or you can split it according to your stamina and ease. Of course if you are aiming for a goal or are overweight you will have to increase your physical activity than the average to get the desired results. These moderate intensity activities include jogging , dancing, swimming, brisk walking. Get help and advice from your doctor before you start any kind of aerobic activities.

GET SUPPORT

Get support from friends and family and stay motivated and stay healthy. To lose excess fat and to keep it off it is necessary to be slow and steady.

Alprazolam is used to treat anxiety and panic disorders. Most people have heard of it as ‘Xanax’, it’s most common brand name. It is also known as Niravam.  Like all medications, alprazolam has a number of possible side effects, and it’s a good idea to know what those side effects may be, before starting to take it.

It’s nice that the FDA makes sure that information on possible side effects is included in all medications. It would be nicer if the information was in a slightly more understandable form. Plus, side effects are often different depending on what the medication is being used to treat. To help sort out the medical jargon, here is a quick look at the 10 most common side effects of  alprazolam for anxiety disorder.

Oh – and an important thing to know: Most of these side effects are temporary and will go away within a month of starting alprazolam. If they don’t go away, it’s a good idea to talk with your doctor about them, if you haven’t already.

 1. Drowsiness – the number alprazolam side effect is definitely drowsiness. In one study it effected over 40% of people who took alprazolam for anxiety. Be careful driving and stay away from heavy machinery when first taking alprazolam. Changes in diet or sleep may help, but if drowsiness is extreme talk with your doctor.

2. Light-headedness – this one comes in second to drowsiness, but it affects less than 30% of people taking alprazolam, so it is far less common than drowsiness. It can definitely be annoying, but isn’t dangerous.

3. Dry mouth – drinking more water can help reduce the effect of this annoying side effect, as can use humidifiers to keep the air moist,

 4. Depression – less than 15% of people taking alprazolam will develop depression. There is in indication of how mild or severe the depression might be. Getting extra sunlight and exercise can help fight depression, but if it continues longer than a month it may be best to look into other treatments.

5. Headache – at this point in the list ‘common’ is a relative term, but a bit over 1 in 10 people taking alprazolam will start having headaches.

 6. & 7. Constipation and Diarrhea  - these two practically tied for next-most common alprazalom side effect, right at 10%. If it’s mild, upping the fiber in your diet may help. For severe problems, especially severe diarrhea, talk with a doctor.

8. Confusion – Unfortunately there isn’t much that can be done about this alprazolam side effect. When it is bad enough to interfere with life, it’s time to look for a new treatment.

9. Nausea/Vomiting – This is one of the odd-ball side effects for alprazolam. In studies, more people got nauseous or threw up from taking the placebo than taking alprazolam. Still, this can be dangerous if you aren’t able to eat enough, so be careful and don’t be afraid to talk with a doctor.

10. Insomnia – similar to #9, more than twice as many people taking the placebo has insomnia, but it still makes the list (barely) as one of the most common side effects of alprazolam.

The rest of the huge list of possible side effects that come with the medication effect less then 8% (that’s less than 8 people out of 100 will have those problems).  So don’t worry about memorizing that whole huge list. Let your doctor know of any major changes in your health or emotions after starting alprazolam. Otherwise, it’s not worth worrying about.