ODD CON

Archive for the ‘Diseases’ Category

Often people wonder, do they really need car insurance? General perception is like this – I have never been involved in an accident, I never drink and drive, I follow all the traffic regulations and most importantly, I drive safely. True. But what people fail to take into consideration is a driver can get involved in an accident no matter how careful they are at the wheel. While driving along a road, a random vehicle swerves out of control and rams into your car. The driver of the other vehicle may be at fault, nevertheless, your car is damaged and you may be injured. If you have good coverage, your insurance will cover injuries, car repairs, and a rental car–in no time you’re back to normal within few days.

Now, apply the same logic to swine flu vaccinations that were purchased in huge quantities by the most affected countries (including the U.S). The media reported that the decision to raise the swine flu threat to a pandemic alert was largely influenced by pharmaceutical companies who were engaged in production of swine flu medications. This line of thinking would be like reporting that the government is working with insurance companies to make car insurance compulsory. This isn’t happening.

The H1N1 virus which causes swine flu mutated and infected people rapidly became ill or succumbed to the virus. The world barely had time to react to the situation, because countries were unprepared. Countries moved quickly to buy medications and vaccines from the only pharmaceutical companies that were producing them. No one wishes to contract a possibly fatal disease, just as no one wants to feel helpless when they have an accident in their car. Being prepared is the key, spend time considering all your option then act to protect you and your family.

People implicitly trust their doctors partly because they often feel a sense of inferiority when communicating with them. Many feel that since they don’t have the same training, they aren’t qualified to challenge the findings of their physician. Many physicians encourage this dynamic for egotistical reasons and those are probably not the type of doctors your want to be working with. You are responsible for your treatment and what road you choose and it is easier than ever to educate yourself with the easy access to the Internet. Since you are going to live with the outcome, you need to be in the driver’s seat when it comes to your medical care.

Do you wonder about the latest prescription and whether your doctor recommended it because they had thought it fit you and your current condition best? Did you ever wonder that they may have prescribed it because the pharmaceutical companies sent them paper pads with the name of the drug on it and it came first to mind? These are questions to ask yourself when considering who you are going to employ as your doctor. Studies have shown that when presented with a difficult diagnosis, an optimistic and seemingly knowledgeable physician gives much more reassurance to the patient and their loved ones which translates to higher positive results. Those who are pessimistic and prescribe drastic treatments while scoffing at other possible methods have much more depressed patients who don’t fare as well. When presented with a trying situation, do not be afraid to get two, three, or even twenty opinions. Many doctors will have very different interpretations of situations and recommend very different treatment options. You want the one that is best for you.

When it comes to medical care, trust your instincts and don’t be intimidated. If you have a good feeling about a doctor, that should be strongly considered when determining who you decide to trust. You are in the driver’s seat of your own life so take the reigns and take control of what is happening. It will, at the very least, help calm your fear.

Listening to modern trends is natural, but what about considering the different thoughts of the past? Is there any credence to combining what different forms of “common sense” were and are? Being a larger woman was considered beautiful by many cultures but as Europe evolved, possessing an hour glass figure was considered more and more attractive and desirable. From China to the Pacific Islands to Europe, “Rubenesque” (or full figured women) represented fertility and an abundance of resources. Women who were fuller figured were most often the wives or consorts of the most powerful and wealthy men, which meant that they were representations of never having to go without.

Today, being slender represents abundance and beauty throughout most of the modern world. In some parts of the world like Africa and with many different tribes of native islanders, being fuller figured is still what is considered physically desirable in a woman. As most health professionals prescribe, gaining a bit of weight is healthy for a woman who is pregnant or who is nursing.

Today’s standards and the extreme route that are taken to be or appear slim despite natural circumstances have a debilitating mental and emotional effect on women who are doing what is naturally healthy. With modern fads are aligning with being of a lesser weight, there have been many other methods that have sprung up in the last century and particularly the last few years in the quest of thinness. From no fat (totally lean proteins and free reign on carbs) to low carbs (fats being fine, just no sugars or starches no matter how natural), what’s a person to do with today’s advice? Common sense dictates that one should eat a diet with a good balance of healthy fats, proteins, and carbohydrates and include vegetables as a major dietary contributor. Having a plate full of food that is as unprocessed as possible is a good indicator of its health. Many colors in the contents (unprocessed of course) is also a good meter. Fads come and go but being balanced will keep you running happily for years.

Many societies believed that simply eating less would make the difference when trying to lose a few pounds. In other cultures, women were fed large amounts of specific foods like fruits and meats for the specific purpose of gaining weight. Methods like drinking nothing but milk before marriage in order to gain weight for fertility (like tribes in Uganda practice) help women to gain weight, but in the United States, famously slender women pose for milk ads proclaiming that the mostly protein content of the drink helps to keep body weight low.

So when different societies do the same thing with opposing intentions and both see evidence to support their beliefs, who is right? Some places eat nothing but fish and rice while others eat fatty pork, oils, and starches like corn. Some societies eat avocados and other fruits with abandon and appear thin and agile, while their societies hold records for high levels of longevity. Others, like France, smoke, eat fatty cheeses, and drink several times per day while achieving the same or very close levels of very low mortality rates. So when many different people make completely contradictory choices while receiving the same benefits, who is right? And is there a “right choice”?

With many different diet fads throughout the centuries but particularly in the last century, picking them apart for commonalities will make one crazy. They are completely contradictory and yet there are many people for each method who will attest to their efficacy and many (often many more) who will attest to the fact that they are flukes.

The ancient and yet newly discovered thought (brought to the forefront of female thinking by such books as “Women, Food and God” by Geneen Roth and predicated by Deepak Chopra’s “Perfect Weight” indicate that our bodies know what’s best and imbibing (or over-imbibing) in substances is a result of emotion and not physical hunger. The argument is made that when listening to one’s instincts, perfect nutrition is achieved and when ignored, eating is one of many routes to drowning out our perfect, human instincts. It is food for thought.

It is extremely unwise to procrastinate emergency or otherwise urgent medical treatment. When faced with a serious injury or disease, the emergency room at your nearest, local hospital is the first place you should head. When dealing with a chronic condition that verges on serious (or even if it is a newer situation too), visiting a doctor quickly should be a top priority. However, many people employ those services very frequently when it is obviously not necessary to do so, at least until some simpler, more accessible, and more economical treatments have been tried. Again, if there is a serious, or persistent situation present, medical care should be sought as quickly as possible.

For very minor burns, there is a treatment recommended by many cooks and restaurant staff that may help you get back on your feet quickly. Applying some salt (and perhaps a tiny amount of water first so the salt will stick) to the burn and then tightly winding it with a band aid has been reported to heal burns quickly without a blister rising. It is best to run the burn under cool water for several minutes first. Salt can also work on itchy ant bites. When the wound is open, use very clean hands to apply salt to it and then wrap it up. The theory is that the salt disinfects the affected area while drawing out the irritating substances.

Pastes made from sugar or honey are great on cuts, particularly ones that are in danger of becoming infected. Sugars and honey have been used world wide as traditional medicines in many different cultures. They also help prevent scarring.

Apple cider vinegar is great when you have been having issues with heartburn. If you have been dealing with a toothache or gum irritation but can’t get into the dentist for a few days, swish 3% hydrogen peroxide. It will help oxygenate the areas that are irritated. Some specialists say to dilute it in half with water while others say undiluted 3% strength is fine. Be sure to check the label as anything stronger could be very dangerous.

In millennia past, there have been all kinds of plagues and pestilence. Mortality rates for human beings were shockingly high by today’s standards. Life expectancy throughout most of history was half of what it is in the modern world within the first world nations. There obviously were many factors in play but what were the most common denominators across the board? Sanitation and the cleanliness of available water were big influences in determining how disease flourished or dwindled throughout a society.

Methods like fermentation were groundbreaking in making hydration available. Particularly in lands that were not always privy to consistent moisture, storing water was essential for survival. But water can easily become dangerously contaminated when not stored properly and in ancient times, knowing how to store it properly was not information that was available. Beer, mead, wine, and other types of alcoholic beverages were made by fermenting sugars derived from grains or fruits and were essential to the survival of some societies, as they had a much longer shelf life than improperly stored water.

Waste management was a major issue as well. During the Industrial Revolution in America, there was much wealth and commerce in the epicenter of American culture at the time, New York City. Because of the massive population growth at the time from immigration, many shoddy tenements popped up with people crammed in from wall to wall. Without any proper system for waste disposal, disease rates skyrocketed and mortality rates went through the barely constructed roofs. When a proper sanitation system was instilled, the disease rates drastically dropped. Obviously, cleanliness was a major issue in preventing illness.

Many people, however, are arguing that we have taken it to an extreme today. Most people know that washing hands after using restroom facilities, before eating and preparing food, and whenever contact with an ill person has taken place increases one’s chances of remaining healthy. But with the rampant use of hand sanitizers by some, the argument is that our immune systems are not getting enough exposure to bacteria to fight infection. Slightly relaxing their standards may sustain optimum health.