URINARY TRACT INFECTION (UTI)

Urinary tract infection on young woman

 

What Causes Urinary Tract Infections?

Most urinary tract infections are caused by bacteria. Any part of your urinary tract can become infected. The urinary tract includes the kidneys, ureters, bladder and urethra. Bladder and urethra infections are the most common.

How Do I Know If I Have A Urinary Tract Infection?

 

The box below lists possible signs of a urinary tract infection. Nausea, lower back pain and fever may be signs of a kidney infection. Call your doctor if you have any of these symptoms.

Possible Signs Of A Urinary Tract Infection

• A burning sensation when you urinate
• Feeling like you need to urinate more often than usual
• Feeling the urge to urinate but not being able to
• Leaking a little urine
• Cloudy, dark, smelly or bloody urine
•  

Why Do Women Get Urinary Tract Infections More Often Than Men?

Women tend to get urinary tract infections more often than men because bacteria can reach the bladder more easily in women. The urethra is shorter in women than in men, so bacteria have a shorter distance to travel.

The urethra is also located near the rectum in women. Bacteria from the rectum can easily travel up the urethra and cause infections.

Having sex may also cause urinary tract infections in women because bacteria can be pushed into the urethra. Using a diaphragm can lead to infections because diaphragms push against the urethra and make it harder to completely empty the bladder. The urine that stays in the bladder is more likely to grow bacteria and cause infections.

How Are Urinary Tract Infections Treated?

If your family doctor thinks you have a urinary tract infection, he or she will probably test a sample of your urine to find out if there are bacteria in it. Your doctor will then prescribe an antibiotic for you if you have an infection. Usually, symptoms of the infection go away 1 to 2 days after you start taking the medicine. Make sure you take all the medicine, even if you are feeling better.

Your doctor may also suggest a medicine to numb your urinary tract and make you feel better while the antibiotic starts to work. The medicine makes your urine turn bright orange, so don't be alarmed by the color when you urinate.

What Can I Do If I Have Frequent Infections?

If you have urinary tract infections often, you can try some of the suggestions in the box below. Talk with your family doctor about what changes would be helpful for you.

Your doctor also may give you a low dose of medicine for several months or longer to prevent infections from coming back.

If having sex seems to cause your infections, your doctor may suggest that you take a single low dose antibiotic pill after you have sex to prevent urinary tract infections.

Tips On Preventing Urinary Tract Infections

• Drink plenty of water to flush out bacteria. Drinking cranberry juice may also help prevent urinary tract infections. However, if you're taking warfarin (brand name: Coumadin), check with your doctor before using cranberry juice to prevent urinary tract infections. Your doctor may need to adjust your warfarin dose or you may need to have more frequent blood tests.
• Don't hold your urine. Urinate when you feel like you need to.
• Wipe from front to back after bowel movements.
• Urinate after having sex to help wash away bacteria.
• Use enough lubrication during sex. Try using a small amount of lubricant (such as K-Y Jelly) before sex if you're a little dry.
• If you get urinary tract infections often, you may want to avoid using a diaphragm as a birth control method. Ask your doctor about other birth control choices.

How Serious Are Urinary Tract Infections?

Urinary tract infections can be painful. But medicine can keep them from becoming a serious threat to your health.

The kidneys can also be infected, which can be a more serious problem. Kidney infections usually require an antibiotic for a longer period of time and are sometimes treated in the hospital.

This article is written on the request of my sweet blogger's friend called teynteyn. It was clipped from the google search. More info about the above post are at http://www.righthealth.com/topic/Urine_Infection_Symptoms/overview/FamilyDoctor20_s#ixzz1Olr8MMoJ

MACROBIOTICS

Macrobiotic Diet

Macrobiotic is a dietry discipline based on the East Asian concept that good health depends on establishing a harmonious balance of the opposing life forces (yang and yin) and that is applies to foods as well as other aspects of life.

Origins
The regimen was developed during the first half of the 20th century by George Ohsawa, a Japanese philosophy student who claimed to have cured his tuberculosis by devising a diet based on the spiritual principles and practises of Oriental medicine. He created the term macrobiotics, which in Greek means "a broad view of life" and described his regimen in a 1920 book, A new Theory of Nutrition and Its Therapeutic Effect. The book is now in its 700th edition in Japan.

Macrobiotic diet was developed by George Ohsawa

By the time of his death in 1966, Ohsawa had written over 300 books and had traveled throughout the world promoting his dietry philosophy. He found a receptive audience in the early 1960s among young Americans, who flocked to macrobiotic restaurants and health food stores.

Practitioners

A number of alternative therapists, including acupuncturists, naturopaths, practitioners of Oriental medicine and holistic healers, have incorporated macrobiotics into their practices.

When it is used

As a therapy, macrobiotics is used to treat various ailments through a limited diet. It may, for example, be recommended as a treatment for eating disorders or for coping with stress. Many of its proponents also believe that is provides a spiritual or mystical foundation for the way life should be lived.

How it works

Macrobiotics classifies all foods as yang or yin instead of by nutritional content and the designations of carbohydrate, protein and fat (see box below).

MACROBIOTIC FOOD CLASSIFICATION

Food Group	More Yin	More Yang
Grains	Corn, long-grain rice, summer wheat	Millet, buckwheat, short-grain rice, winter wheat
Beans	Soybeans and other oily beans	Chickpeas, lentils and other non-oily beans
Vegetables	All those grown above ground	Carrots and other root vegetables
Seaweed	Harvested in warm water close to shore	Harvested in deeper, cold water
Nuts	Peanuts, cashews and other oily nuts	Almonds, chestnuts and other less oily nuts
Fruits	Citrus, mango and other tropical fruits	Apple, cherries and other temperate fruits
Sweeteners	Sugar, honey and maple syrup	Barley malt and rice honey

In general, a macrobiotic diet calls for 50 to 60 percent of calories to come from whole cereal grains, the foods that are most balanced in yin and yang; 25 to 30 percent from vegetables; 10 to 15 percent from beans and sea vegetables; 5 to 10 percent from fish, shellfish, seasonal fruits and nuts; and 5 percent from soups made with vegetables, grains or miso (fermented soy).

The extreme macrobiotic diets of the early 1960s were sometimes limited to brown rice only (Noodle, Organic, Brown Rice, 8.15 oz (pack of 10 ), which is balanced in its yin and yang qualities but is not complete nutritionally. Those were soon abandoned when faithful followers developed severe malnutrition. Today's macrobiotic diet is similar to many vegetarian regimens, especially those that eschew milk and eggs but allow inclusion of seafood.

IS IT YIN OR YANG?

The macrobiotic classification of foods as yin or yang  weights at least 15 factors. Plant foods are generally yin, representing the earth's upward force. Thus, they are thought to slow metabolism, have a calming effect and produce other yin effects, such as reducing body temperature. Animal foods represent the heaven's downward, or yang, force and have the opposite effect of speeding up metabolism.

Within each classification, however , there are many gradations, ranging from most yin to most yang. Geography and the season are also taken into consideration. As much as possible, foods should be locally grown. Persons who live in cold, northern (yin) climates should lean toward yang foods and means of preparation, while the opposite applies to those living in warmer (yang) climates. Similarly, yin foods and cooking methods are to be followed during the warm summer months and yang foods and preparation should dominate in the colder winter months.

What to expect

Following a diagnosis based on the individual's appearance, symptoms and current diet, the macrobiotic therapist recommends changes aimed at correcting the imbalance of yang and yin foods. Modifications depend on the availability of local grains, vegetables and fruit. Brown rice and herbal tea are considered basic. Bananas, mangoes and other tropical fruits are avoided in temperate climates. Even though fish and some meat may be acceptable, all dairy products are excluded. Processed foods, whether frozen or canned are also prohibited at all times.

A person may be taught new ways in which  to prepare foods. Copper and aluminium pans for example are not used because traces of their metals can leach into foods. Instead, stainless steel, enamel, glass and ceramic cookware, as well as wooden or bamboo spoons are recommended.

Precautions >A rigorous macrobiotic diet can have dangerous consequences if imposed on children and adolescents, because it is low in calories and certain nutrients. It can also further jeopardize the health of people with AIDS, cancer and malabsorption diseases. >If you devise your own macrobiotic diet as a way of losing weight, ask your doctor or a qualified nutrionist about supplements, especially of vitamin B12

BALDNESS

Alopecia Areate

(Alopecia)

Baldness involves the complete or partial loss of hair, usually on the scalp, but sometimes other places as well. Normally, we shed 50 to 100 hairs every day as part of a natural growth, resting and renewal process. When a hair is in the resting stage, it loosens gradually from its root and is shed. A few months later, a new hair begins to grow in its place.

 

With aging, it is normal for hair to thin in woman and men. But many men experience more extensive hair loss due to a hereditary condition called male pattern baldness, or androgenic alopecia, which can occur any time after the teen years. Typically, it begins with a slow thinning of all scalp hair; then the hair gradually recedes from the forehead and thins at the crown, eventually leaving just a fringe around the back of the head and over the ears.

Androgenetic Alopecia

Hair follicles in balding areas metabolize androgens, male sex hormones, in a different way than those on other parts of the scalp and body, causing some hair follicles to shrink. Hair growth slows and eventually the hair dies, resulting in permanent baldness.

Development of hair follicle

Woman may experience temporary hair loss from hormonal changes during pregnancy, menopause or post-menopausel hormone therapy. When a woman has female pattern baldness at about the time of menopause, this is due to major shifts in androgen levels and like male pattern baldness, it tends to be hereditary. Excessive perming, straightening or hair coloring can also cause excessive hair loss in women, as can wearing a tight pony tail.

A temporary type of hair loss called alopecia areata produces patchy baldness in both men and women. Some researchers believe that this is an autoimmune reaction in which the body’s immune system attacks healthy hair follicles. In many cases, the hair grows back within 6 to 24 months.

Fungal infections of the scalp, such as ringworm, also cause hair loss that is generally reversible with treatment.

Diagnostic Studies and Procedures

The cause of most baldness is easily diagnosed on the basis of appearance and medical history, such as recent illness or drug use. A fungal infection can be detected by examining the skin with a special light.

Medical Treatments

Drug Therapy. Hair loss due to male pattern baldness may be treated with minoxidil (Rogaine) (Men's Premium Minoxidil 15% & Azelaic Acid 5% DHT Inhibitor. Retinol Enhanced Thinning Hair Loss / Hair Regrowth Treatment. (Professionally Formulated), a reformulation of a blood pressure medication that causes excessive growth of scalp and body hair as a side effect. It is now prescribed as a topical lotion that is applied daily to the scalp. It takes several months to show results and only about one-third of men experience significant hair regrowth. The new hair is finer and thinner than normal and the drug must be used continuously to maintain the new hair growth.

Alopecia areata can sometimes be halted by applying a topical steroid or injecting it into the scalp to lower the immune system’s attack on the hair follicles.

Plastic Surgery. Two procedures are now available. The oldest is hair transplantation, in which small circles or plugs of skin containing healthy hair follicles are transplanted from the back and sides of the head to the balding site. If the plugs take, they continue to grow hair. Surgery is usually done in stages but sometimes entire strips of skin with hair can be moved. Transplantation is expensive; each plug costs $30 to $35 and an average procedure requires from 50 to 200 plugs.

The second surgical approach is scalp reduction, in which a surgeon removes an oval-shaped piece of scalp from the top of the head, then pulls the part of the scalp that still contains hair upward to fill in the missing piece.

Experimental Treatments. Some physicians have successfully stimulated hair growth by rubbing a chemical irritant onto the scalp. The resulting inflammation sometimes produces hair growth. In another experimental approach, allergen sensitizers are applied to the scalp. These procedures must be done by a professional and they work for only a few people.

Alternative Therapies

There are numerous claims of alternative cures for baldness, but there’s no proof that any really help.

Herbal Medicine. An ancient remedy calls for rubbing onion juice on the scalp and then exposing it to the sun. Some herbalists today recommend a rosemary hair tonic. There is no evidence that either works.

Self-Treatment

Although self-care cannot halt male pattern baldness, gentle treatment may slow its progression. Never brush wet hair, as this action can weaken and break it. Instead, comb gently with a large-tooth comb. Use mild shampoo and warm, not hot water, rinse with cool water and gently towel dry. Both men and women concerned with hair loss should avoid perming and the use of hot hair dryers and hair colouring.

Another option is a hair piece. Some new types are quite natural looking and can be attached with glue or by anchoring the piece to other hair with fine wires. These hair pieces do not shift or fall off even while the wearer is swimming and showering. They are made with either human or artificial hair and range in price from a few hundred to a few thousand dollars.

Other Causes of Hair Loss

Diseases that often produce hair loss include lupus, thyroid insufficiency and scleroderma, a hardening of the skin. A high fever, radiation exposure and certain drugs, especially cancer chemotherapy, also produce hair loss.

QUESTIONS TO ASK YOUR DOCTOR 

1. Am I a candidate for minoxidil?

2. Is hair transplantation a permanent solution or will the plugs eventually lose their hair too?