Fast Facts About Potatoes

All over the world, potatoes are the most common vegetable, even being ahead of other well known
vegetables such as lettuce and onions.   Potatoes is cooked in a variety of ways, and they are
included in one out of three meals eaten by almost all everyone.  If prepared in a healthy way, a potato can be an exceptional source of energy and also pack a nutritional punch.

Comparable to oranges, potatoes are very high in vitamin C.The truth is, one medium potato contains 45% of the
vitamin C that's recommended for good health.  Potatoes are also high in fiber and carbohydrates and contain more potassium than a banana.

Potato is naturally low in calories and contains no fat, sodium, or cholesterol.  The skins of the potatoes provide a helpful dose of fiber, iron, potassium, calcium, zinc, phosphorus, and several B vitamins.

 Potatoes can be prepared by boiling them, steaming them, or even roasting them.  If it is possible, avoid
 putting potatoes in the refrigerator or freezing them, as cold will turn the potato starch to sugar and cause them to turn dark when they are cooked.

If you want to keep potatoes for future use, keep them in a cool, dark place. Excessive exposure to  light will cause them to turn green.
You can also store them in the basement if you have one, as the basement is the best place to keep potatoes.

Wether mashed or baked potatoes, a potato is something we all know and love.  They provide good  source of nutrition to our body with lots of healthful benefits.  We all eat potatoes, it also very easy to grow our own potatoes for our daily need.  Whether you grow them or buy them,  potato is the one vegetable that we should all eat to provide us good nutrition.

BRIEF IDEA ABOUT PILES (HERMORRHOIDS) AND PREVENTION

What is piles  (Hemorrhoids)?
 
Piles is Dilatation of radicles of rectal veins within the anal

canal.The medical term for piles is hemorrhoids. When  arteries veins are weak due to thin walls and hence any backpressure in the veins can make them tortuous.There are three rectal veins namely superior, middle and inferior rectal veins.Any obstructions or increase of pressure in these veins can predispose piles.Depending upon the situation there are two types of piles.

1) External piles.         2) Internal piles.

1) External piles:-

This type of piles is seen outside the anal opening and is covered by skin.It is black or brown in colour.This type of piles is very painful due to rich nerve supply in this area.

2) Internal piles:-

It is inside the anal canal and internal to the anal orifice.It is covered by mucous membrane and is red or purple in colour.These piles are painless.

Some times internal and external piles occure in same individual.

Factors responsible for piles:--

1) This is a domestic disease.

2) Piles is seen only in animals that maintain an erect posture. This

is due to congestion in the rectal veins due to the effect of gravity.

3) It is common among individuals with chronic constipation.Those who

have a habit of visiting the toilet due to frequent urge for stool may

develop piles in future.

4) Piles is common in those who take excess of chicken, prawns, spicy food ect.Those who take vegetables and fibrous food are rarely affected.

5) Some ladies get piles during pregnancy due to compression of rectal veins by the uterus.

6) Cancerous lesions in the rectum can obstruct blood flow and result in piles.

Signs and symptoms of piles:--

1) Pain:-

Pain is common in external piles which will be worse while straining at stool.

2) Bleeding:-

Bleeding comes in splashes while pressing for stool.Bleeding may be profuse in some cases.

3) Protruding mass:-

In external piles the swelling can be felt around the anal orifice.In case of internal piles initially it can not be felt.When the disease progresses the piles protrude during stool and will go inside automatically.When the condition becomes worse the protruded piles will not go back in to the anus.

4) In some cases there will be discharge of mucus with itching around the anal orifice.

Complications of piles:--

1,Infection: The infection can spread to deep veins resulting in septicaemia.
2,Fibrosis: Here the piles become fibrosed with hardening of anal orifice.
3,Thrombosis: Here the blood inside the piles will form clots and can obstruct blood flow.
4,Gangrene: Here the tissues in the piles and nearby skin die due to lack of blood supply.
5,Suppuration: When the piles suppurate it can produce abscess with discharge of pus.

Treatment of piles:--

In the early stage, it is treated on the basis of symptoms.Constipation should be treated.If there is anaemia iron should be give.Homoeopathic medicines can give good results. If medicinal treatment is not giving any result the following can be tried.

1) The thrombosed external pile is excised under local anaesthesia.

2) Sclerosant injection therapy can reduce the size of piles.

3) Rubber band ligation around the neck of piles is useful in some cases.

4) Cryosurgery is very effective.

5) Anal dilatation can reduce constipation and pain.

6) Haemorrhoidectomy is the surgical removal of piles.


How to prevent piles?

1) Eat plenty of fruits and vegetables.

2) Take fibrous food.

3) Avoid excess intake of meat,prawns,crabs ect.

4) Keep a regular timing for food.

6) Drink sufficient quantity of water.

7) Keep a regularity in bowel habits.

8) Take treatment for constipation.

CAUSES OF LOW BACK PAIN AND THE TREATMENT.

Low back pain is commonly found amoung the modern civilised people.It affects mainly the middle aged and young adults of both sexes.People who work on the chair with out exercise and those who carry heavy loads regularly are prone to get this Low back pain.We can hardly find a person who has not suffered from back pain atleast once in  life time. low backpain is caused by factors ranges from simple reasons like muscular strain to cancer of spine and hence backache should not be ignored.The pain is felt in lumbar and sacral region and may spread to nearby areas.

The following are some causes of low backache.

1) Diseases in the back.

2) Gynaecological problems.

3) Problems in other parts of the body.


1) Backache due to diseases in the back:--
                            
a) Injuries :-

     1) Compression fracture of the vertebral column.
     2) Rupture of intervertebral discs.
     3) Injuries to ligaments and muscles of back.
     4) Lumbosacral strain.
     5) Intervertebral joint injuries. 
     6) Fracture of processes of vertebra.

b) Functional backache due to imbalance:-

     1) During pregnancy.
     2) Pot belly.
     3) Diseases of the hip joint.
     4) Curvature in the spine due to congenital defect.
     5) Short leg in one side.
 
c) Backache due to inflammatory conditions:-

     1) Infection of the bone due to bacteria.
     2) Tuberculosis of the spine.
     3) Arthritis.
     4) Brucellosis.
     5) Lumbago or fibrositis.
     6) Inflamation of the muscles.
     7) Anchylosing spondylitis.

d) Backache due to degenerative diseases in the back.

     1) Osteoarthritis.
     2) Osteoporosis in old people.
     3) Degenaration of the intervertebral disc.

e) Tumour in the spine:--

     1) Primory tumour of the bones in the spine.
     2) Metastatic tumours from other sites like prostate,lungs,kidneys,intestine etc.

2) Backache due to gynaecological problems:-

     a) After childbirth.
     b) After gynaecological operations.
     c) Prolapse of the uterus.
     d) Pelvic inflammatory diseases.
     e) Cancerous lesions of the pelvic organs.
     f) Endometriosis.

3) Backache due to problems in other parts of the body.

     a) Renal stones.
     b) Ureteric stone.
     c) Cancer of prostate.
     d) Pancreatitis.
     e) Biliary stones.
     f) Peptic ulcer.
     g) Inflammations of pelvic organs.
     h) Occlusion of aorta and illiac arteries.

Examination of a case of backache:-

1) Complete blood count.

2) Routine urine examination.

3) Ultrasonography of the abdomen and pelvis.

4) X-ray of the lumbar and sacral region.

5) MRI of the spine.

5) CT scan of abdomen and pelvic region.

6) Examination of rectum,prostate,genito urinary organs.


Treatment of back ache:-

1) Removing the cause for backache.

2) Symptomatic treatement.

2) Back exercises.

3) Traction.

3) Yoga.

5) Surgery.

7) Homoeopathy.

HEALTH MISTAKES WE MAKE (Part 1)

Irrespective of who we are, where we from, we are all prone to making this mistakes knowingly or not.
Skipping breakfast
Skipping your breakfast and then continuing with your day is like trying to drive your car with a very low tank of fuel — it will feel fine to start with, but eventually slow down and cut out. Not only will you feel less active and sluggish, skipping breakfast — whether it is due to lack of time or fear of putting on weight — is linked with a higher risk of diabetes and can lead to obesity as your body stores up more fat to use as fuel throughout the rest of the day. Eat breakfast to feel happier, more functional and, most of all, healthy.
Avoiding the scales
In many households across the world, the scales are the one piece of equipment gathering more dust than the treadmill. A common way to gloss over our weight problems is to avoid going on the scales altogether. If you feel like you’ve gained weight, it’s best to face the facts to see how much you’ve gained so you can do something about it before it gets out of hand.
Everyone’s weight naturally fluctuates, so don’t panic if you’ve gained a couple of pounds here and there. But if you gain more than five pounds, you should probably rein in your eating habits. Checking your weight on a regular basis allows you to nip it in the bud if you discover a weight problem — losing the odd few pounds is much easier than trying to shed a stone.
Silent worrying
You worry about the meeting at work, you worry about putting the bins out … and it’s really getting you down. While stress can be positive in helping to keep you alert and avoid danger, too much of it can be detrimental to your health. Endless worrying eventually leads to distress, which causes headaches, high blood pressure, an upset stomach, chest pain, and sleep deprivation.
While it’s natural to worry when you have a deadline looming, panicking too much about petty things needs to be sorted. When you’re worrying, ask yourself a few simple questions and answer them as honestly as you can. Will you still be worrying about this in a couple of weeks’ time? Can this problem be easily resolved? If you can’t let it go, tackle the problem head on until it is resolved. If you can learn how to control your worrying, you’re well on your way to a happier, healthier lifestyle.
Stopping medicines suddenly
Most of us are guilty of this one; we’re feeling much better and stop taking our medication, but suddenly end up feeling a whole lot worse. How often do you consider the health risks of this?
Depending on the medicine you are taking, going ‘cold turkey’ can cause all sorts of health risks, which range from mild, to moderate, or serious.
Discontinuing your medicine suddenly can cause mild headaches, rapid return of the illness that you were treating, and seizures, to name only a few. Abruptly stopping certain medications can be life-threatening, so keep taking it until your doctor tells you to stop. And when you do get the ‘all clear,’ take medical advice when you’re discontinuing them.

Source

"How To Get Fit And Slash Your Health Insurance Costs" by: Neil Stelling

Okay, before we start, let me explain the purpose of this article. I want you to get so healthy, you'll never need to make a health insurance claim. You'll save money by increased fitness. You'll save money with a long no-claims insurance history. And you'll look and feel much better.

There's three sides to your maximum health and fitness. Diet, and Exercise. But that's only two ! Let me split
Exercise into Aerobic exercise and Aneorobic exercise.

Get all three right. Get the right balance. And you'll get as fit and healthy as your body and genetics will
allow. Whole forests of paper have been filled with advice on each of these fitness factors. Just go into your local bookstore, and see shelves of diet advice. Shelves of exercise advice.

Funny how so much contradicts itself, especially for diet e.g right next to each other on the shelf, you'll find a
book advocating low carbs & low fat; another saying high fat is okay if you keep the carbs low. Yet another focuses on high protein, and says carbs don't matter...

* Diet

Let me give you this simple diet advice. Stick to low fat, low carbs and high protein. Many medical and weight loss studies over the last 10-20 years prove this approach. Many other diet myths come from way back in time, and look just plain wrong when analyzed with modern methods.

* Aerobic Exercise

Couch potatoes don't realize how easily they can start feeling fit and healthy. Just walk somewhere 3-4 times per week, for around 20 minutes each time.

Ideally, do some more demanding aerobic exercise. I do a lot of cycling, because it's great low-impact exercise. And I get to see beautiful scenery while I ride.

Running provides even more intensive aerobic exercise, but careful of your joints. Maybe you prefer hiking, to see the local countryside ? Or take up a sport like rowing or tennis. You also get to meet new friends by taking up exercise as a sport.

* Anaerobic Exercise

Many people work on their diet. Many people take aerobic exercise. But many people ignore anaerobic exercise, or weight training.

What makes weight training so important ?
As you get older, muscle mass decreases. Muscle burns fat. So as you lose muscle, it gets harder to keep the fat off. Equally important, weight training can reshape your body.

No matter how much aerobic exercise you do, you'll still be a pear shape (a smaller pear shape) if you started out a pear shape.

Using weights you can flatten your stomach, tone your thighs, bulk up your chest and shoulders, and reshape your body any way you want.

Weight training is incredibly beneficial to your general skeleton strength and conditioning. Older women can reduce the effects of osteoporosis, and older men can maintain their strength and agility.

This short article can do nothing more than provide an introduction to the three keys to your health. Follow
these and you shouldn't need to make a health insurance claim.

Slash your health insurance costs with a long no-claims bonus. Slash your health insurance costs with any insurer who rates your fitness.