The Health Blog
Welcome to our look into the world health.
Archive for April, 2009
In many areas denial is quite a good way of psychologically protecting ourselves. If we are
confronted with some danger that we cannot avoid, it helps us to face the situation if we deny that it is dangerous. In order to convince ourselves we start by denying it to those about us. This makes it easier to deny it to ourselves, and we feel reassured.
Denial can be used in a similar way in an attempt to ease our pain. To the inquiry of our friends we answer, “No, it is not hurting at all.” This has two effects. In the first place it makes it easier to deny the pain to ourselves; and secondly there is a kind of primitive magic about it, the magic of saying something to make it come true. Children in their play evoke this kind of magic, and severe pain often has the effect of making us regress, so that we tend to behave in a rather childish way. Among adults we see an example of the same magic of words when someone refuses to say something bad about a friend in jest lest it come true.
Denial helps us to control our pain to some extent, but it is seldom complete. However, there is a quite important side issue. As long’ as we attempt to deny our pain, whether successfully or not, we at least hold off the destructive influences of distress, fear, and guilt.
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read comments (0)TUMMY TROUBLES: HIATUS HERNIA AND REFLUX
Author: admin
Q. This seems to be the ‘in disease’ at present.
A. True, and many people have the condition in various degrees. Fortunately it is seldom serious, never life-endangering and will not develop into cancer.
Q. What causes it?
A. Hiatus hernia, also commonly termed diaphragmatic hernia, occurs when part of the stomach has forced its way into the thoracic cavity. The diaphragm is the large muscle that separates the upper chest area (which contains the lungs and heart) from the lower abdominal cavity. The oesophagus penetrates the diaphragm muscle. It is possible for a portion of the stomach to slide upwards through this orifice. When this takes place there is usually a condition called oesophageal reflux present as well. This means that some of the acid contents of the stomach regurgitate back from the stomach into the lower part of the oesophagus. The symptoms are usually a combination of the hernia together with the presence of this acid material in the food pipe.
Hiatus hernia is an extremely popular diagnosis today. About 10 per cent of stomach x-rays indicate its presence.
Q. What symptoms does the person experience and how is it diagnosed?
A. A fairly intense burning sensation called heartburn or a tight pain in the midline just below the breast bone are common. It often radiates behind the breast bone into the throat and angles of the jaw. It has often been diagnosed as cardiac pain and at times the difference between the two is extremely hard to detect. It is possible the two conditions may co-exist. Burning acid material may run into the mouth (regurgitation). This is commoner if stooping or lying flat. It is also more common after a large meal, especially if much fluid has been taken. At night it is worse if a person sleeps on the left side. Rarely does it awaken a person from sleep.
Abdominal distention is common. A sensation of fullness, accompanied by belching, often occurs after a meal. Diagnosis is not possible apart from radiological examination. Symptoms discussed are frequent with ulcers and other gastrointestinal disorders. A visit to the doctor and maybe an x-ray investigation will clinch the diagnosis. When this has been made (and other possible causes excluded) treatment is often straightforward.
Q. What about treatment?
A. The doctor will probably set out a list of suggestions. These are quite straightforward and can be carried out simply at home. Hiatus hernia is a mechanical disorder. It is not an ulcer, it is not a cancer and it is not life-endangering. On the other hand it is seldom curative. But a sensible routine will often bring very good results and relief from the discomforting symptoms. Weight reduction. The disorder is common in older overweight women who have reproduced a family. Weight reduction is important and the general principles of a sensible reduced calorie diet should be commenced immediately. Commencing a routine of simple regular exercises will also help the latter as well as increase muscle tone and a sensation of general well being.
Q. I’ve often heard that the way you lie in bed is important. Also, that diet can play a significant part. Is this true?
A. Posture. Place bricks or wooden blocks under the head of the bed so that it is raised 6-8 in. during episodes of trouble and for one week after the symptoms subside. It is useless sleeping on pillows with the head and shoulders raised. The entire upper gastric tract must be elevated. This may be a little uncomfortable at first but one quickly adjusts and most partners do too! Avoid stooping after meals. Often pain comes on after food. Therefore, sit upright for 10-15 minutes rather than slump down in your favourite TV chair when symptoms will persist. Avoid prolonged stooping on all occasions.
Diet. Avoid large meals and avoid fluids with meals as this encourages ‘reflux’. Soups, jellies and semi-solids, if desired, should be taken independently of the main meal. It is best to avoid gaseous fluids. Avoid foods which you know will produce discomfort. This will vary with the individual but spicy, highly seasoned, condiment-type ones may aggravate. Of course, it should go without saying, that cigarette smoking and the use of alcohol can only aggravate it. These are well known and potent acid stimulants and irritants and are best drastically reduced or preferably stopped.
Q. What about medication?
A. Probably the best are the alginic acid compounds (commercially known as Gaviscon). This reacts with the acid contents of the stomach forming a frothy gel which floats on top of the stomach contents, preventing it from refluxing or regurgitating into the oesophagus. It also neutralises out acids. If the material does flow into the oesophagus, it soothes and helps heal the inflamed lining. It comes as a liquid, granules or tablet. However, antacids in general are often useful as well and many different brands are readily available.
In severe cases, the histamine Preceptor antagonists, such as cimetidine, by cutting back acid production, will also bring a good deal of relief. Pain is caused by inflammation of the lining of the oesophagus so anything reducing this must help.
Q. Don’t some cases finally require an operation?
A. About 10 per cent of patients may come to final surgery for a sliding hiatus hernia. If medical management has completely failed and if there are sinister complications, then surgery may be the final answer. However, it is a procedure of magnitude and not to be undertaken lightly. Young people often have a hasty desire to get rid of their symptoms and are often desirous of a surgical approach.
Long standing, severe cases may produce burning of the lower oesophagus, later on constriction and swallowing difficulties which may be a hazard. For this reason persisting symptoms should be actively treated.
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SCIATICA: ELECTROMAGNETIC THERAPY
Author: admin
Using magnetic sources to influence the body’s state of health is, of course, not a new idea, but what is new is that today’s ever more sensitive electronic instruments can now track down and confirm the various effects. From this modern research into an ages-old therapy has emerged confirmation that some types of pain can be reduced by the application of magnets.
Just how magnetic therapy works is still a matter of some controversy and needs much further study. The most likely explanation is the one put forward by physicist and psychologist Dr Buryl Payne, a scientist who is the inventor of the first biofeedback instruments and former professor at Boston University and Goddard College, and who has made a lifelong study of magnetic therapy. He says that two specific factors now known to be involved in magnetic therapy are:
The promotion of increased blood flow with resultant increased oxygen-carrying capacity, both of which can help combat pain by assisting the body’s natural ability to heal itself.
The use of magnetic therapy to control pain is usually applied through placing simple magnets directly upon the area of pain. They can either be used for brief periods or else taped into place for ongoing treatment. Information about self-therapy can be obtained from manuals or from a qualified practitioner. Alternatively, devices that emit much stronger magnetic fields, usually in a ‘pulsed’ form, are used by qualified therapists.
Apart from aiding in pain reduction, magnetic therapy has also been used to good effect to reinforce and improve spinal alignment, assisting the vertebrae of the spine to align properly, both vertically and laterally. Major successes have been obtained in patients suffering from sciatica.
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WELLNESS AND RUNNING
Author: admin
Runners’ Iron Needs
Rather than improving their health by regular long-distance running, teenagers may eventually make themselves unwell, feeling constantly weak and tired and less able to do well in competitive sports, the American Journal of Diseases of Children (139:1115) reports.
These are the effects of iron deficiency. Iron is needed in our tissues (particularly by the muscles) and not merely in our red blood cells. However, when there is an iron shortage in the body, its level in the tissues falls first and before the blood is affected by anemia. Thus, despite feeling weak as the result of iron deficiency, a teen-age runner may not yet have become pale and anemic.
Special tests can demonstrate this shortage of iron in the tissues. Iron is lost from the body during long-distance running because a certain amount of blood (which contains a lot of iron) always leaks into the intestines while they are being repeatedly jarred by the excessive movement. Some iron also leaves the body through the skin during heavy sweating. Often, improper food that contains too much sugar and starch but not enough iron makes matters worse.
Correction of this type of deficiency is easily accomplished with iron tablets (525 mg of ferrous sulfate daily), taken with vitamin C to enhance its absorption. First, however, the runner should see a physician to rule out more serious causes of weakness. If iron deficiency is the cause, its correction quickly restores a runner’ s ability to compete. Otherwise, do not take any extra iron.
Should Children Run with Their Parents?
The answer, according to Journal of the American Medical Association (255:850), is definitely no. Preadolescents are less able than adults to lose excess heat from the body when they become overheated and, accordingly, can harm themselves in trying to keep up with their parents on long distance runs.
Heat stroke and heart damage, consequently, are more likely to occur. Also, there are “growth plates” at the end of children’s bones that can be injured by the repetitive jarring that occurs during long runs, producing stress fractures that can be permanently disabling.
Do not invite your child to join you in long distance running, therefore, until he or she is past puberty.
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Home care
Prevention is the key to home care. Have your child immunized against tetanus in infancy and make sure he or she receives the booster shots necessary to guarantee immunity for life. Be sure to take proper care of wounds, even trivial ones, until they heal.
Precautions
• If a mother has not been immunized against tetanus, her newborn baby is susceptible. If a mother is immune, her baby may be temporarily immune.
• In newborns, the tetanus germ can enter the body through the stump of the umbilical cord. If a baby is delivered at home, be certain that strict antiseptic techniques are employed during and immediately after the birth.
• Be certain that all members of the family have received the initial series of tetanus immunizations and the necessary boosters. In general, clean wounds, such as those from kitchen utensils, require boosters every ten years; dirty wounds, such as those from rusty nails, barbed wire, and others that happen outdoors, require boosters every five years. For example, if your child has a wound from a rusty nail, check to see if he or she has received a booster within the last five years.
Medical treatment
Your doctor will take prompt care of wounds and administer a tetanus booster to a child who has been immunized, or human tetanus anti-serum (a substance containing antibodies to fight tetanus) to one who has not. If tetanus has developed, your doctor will hospitalize your child and order intensive treatment involving anti-serum, antibiotics, sedation, and intravenous fluids. When recovered, your child should be immune to subsequent attack.
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Diaphragmatic hernia
“They say I have a diaphragmatic hernia. The specialist said I should have an operation to repair it. To prove his point he showed me some X-rays which, of course, was a complete mystery to me. What’s the use of showing someone X-rays when you know quite well they can’t understand them? The other specialist gave me some pills. Tranquillizers. Said, ‘Take these, and I don’t think you will have too much trouble from the hernia.’”
It seems that routine Z-rays show that many people have a diaphragmatic hernia, but have no trouble from it. The hernia is simply a slight protrusion through the muscle of the diaphragm.
Whether the individual gets trouble from it or not depends not only on the size of the hernia, but also on the individual’s nervous condition. That is, the sensitivity of his nerves to this particular disorder. In fact, it is not uncommon for people to say that the trouble comes and goes. In these cases it is unlikely that the hernia varies in severity. Much more likely, it is a matter of the patient’s perception of discomfort changing with his stress situation.
Premenstrual tension
“It’s really hell. It’s before my periods. Tense in myself. Irritable with others. Everything goes wrong. We don’t often quarrel. But if we do, that is the time for it. My fault, of course it’s my fault. Can see that, but can’t help it.
‘Have been on tranquillizers. Have taken hormone pills, not much help. Went to a psychologist. A clever young man. Just too clever. Told me I was frightened of getting pregnant. That’s why I was tense when my period was approaching. Explained I wanted another baby. ‘Ah,’ says he, ‘you are tense because you are not pregnant!’ I didn’t go back to him.”
As with so many disorders, a number of factors contribute to premenstrual tension. We all have our genetic inheritance. Some women have large breasts, some small. Some men a large penis, some small. The womb of some women is better developed than that of others. A poorly developed womb may be a cause of premenstrual tension because of difficulty in expelling the menstrual flow. The activity of the ovarian hormones, of course, is an important factor. With some women, psychological hopes and fears are important. So also is the matter of early conditioning. If the mother suffered from premenstrual tension, it is quite likely that she unconsciously conditioned her daughter by warning her to expect premenstrual discomfort and pain.
There is another point. Quite independent of our stress situation, some of us have more sensitive nervous systems than others. Those people have a lower threshold of pain, and consequently experience a stimulus as severe pain, which to others would be experienced simply as mild discomfort. Stress increases our sensitivity to pain, so it is important that such women should not further increase the sensitivity of their already unstable nervous system by stress.
There is often a tendency among doctors in talking to their patients with premenstrual tension to speak of the genetic factors as if they were a matter of doom. Something we are born with, and cannot be avoided. Our genetic inheritance predisposes certain women to premenstrual tension, but does not determine it in any absolute sense. For instance, our perception of pain can be effectively modified by the practice of meditation. Our level of stress can be reduced by the same means, and with it the over-alertness of our nerve cells with consequent reduction of their irritability.
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Prostate
“What can I do to cope with it? The boss is driving me mad. As soon as I get there in the morning. On my back. The whole time. “Do this, do that.” What’s wrong here? Things that are not my fault. He can’t see it. If I were to argue with him, I would be out. He sacked the last two in my job. I don’t want that.
‘I’m not as young as I was. Have to get up at night. Sometimes three or four times. Then can’t get to sleep again. What can I do?”
The problem of his physical health compounds the problem at work. If his prostate troubles were relieved, he would be able to cope better with the rush of disturbing impulses from his work.
‘Flu
“Things have never been all that good between us. Worse the last two months. I remember this because that’s the time I got the ‘flu. Was pretty sick with it for a few days. Now things go wrong more easily. As he comes in I can tell if he has had a bad day. Used to be able to coast things along. But now I don’t seem to have the patience. It is as if I don’t care, but I do. It all goes wrong so quickly. I put my foot in it, and soon we are bickering.”
An attack of ‘flu, or, for that matter, any virus infection, often leaves us predisposed to stress. There are two factors, either of which may make things difficult for us. There is the general debilitating effect of the infection, which results in messages being sent to our brain that things are not quite right. And in some cases there is the direct effect of the virus on the nerve cells of our brain. This impairs their function, so that messages arriving at our brain are not as well integrated as they could be.
It is important for us to remember that the after-effects of a virus infection, not always, but sometimes, may linger on for some time afterwards.
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Emotions influence bodily health because mind and body work together as one unit and not as two separate entities. Emphasis on the physical aspects in the diagnosis and treatment of asthma has come about because the emotional factors are difficult to define and are often misleading.
Asthma comes about through a predisposition caused by constitution, heredity, frequent respiratory infections, and exposure to allergens; once this predisposition has been established, an asthma attack may be caused by allergic factors, by emotional factors, or by a combination of both. If the emotions are strong, they may blur the allergic picture and become the main cause of asthma. As a consequence, asthma caused by allergy and complicated by emotions needs two approaches in its treatment: a physical one for the changes brought about by allergy and a psychiatric one to soothe the emotions (the purpose is to “cure” the whole child and not just his asthma).
Psychiatry uses a wide range of procedures from guidance to reassurance, to analysis, to group therapy. Regardless of the method used, an effort would have to be made to understand the personality structure of the child in order to discover the relationship between his thoughts and acts and how they are influenced by his illness. The purpose of psychiatry would then be to establish maturity, insight, a strengthened ego, and an increase in personal security.
Parentectomy is a long separation of an asthmatic child from his parents. Children who need parentectomy usually come from broken homes in which love and attention to the needs of a sick child are missing; they bring on illness in an unconscious attempt to soothe their emotional needs, while their parents compensate for their guilty feelings by overmedication.
In parentectomy, children are made to live outside their homes for two years with a normal family who will provide them with the love and support they are lacking. During these two years, the parents must obtain family counseling in order to have a more relaxed atmosphere in the house when the child returns.
Hypnosis was a useful tool in the treatment of chronic asthma before the discovery of corticosteroids and tranquilizers because it eased the anxieties that usually accompanied it. Today, it has lost its importance because it is a lengthy and costly procedure that cannot alter an immunological state.
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TRAVEL DISEASES: WHAT ARE THEY?
Author: admin
A mixed collection of ailments, most of which are not serious, that afflict travellers, usually to exotic places. Most people are on holiday abroad when they experience these illnesses, but the business traveller (though usually more cautious) is subject to them too, of course. Obviously people are at very different degrees of risk of suffering from sickness whilst abroad. At one end of the scale is the business traveller who stays only in first-class hotels. Such a person is hardly at greater risk than he would be staying at home. At the other extreme is the high-risk traveller who, for example, goes off to live in the bush for long periods.
Most of us go on holiday to do something different from our daily routine, and this is part of the problem-we are well aware of the hazards around us at home, and have learned to live with them, but holidays can present entirely new problems.
The most important preparation from the illness point of view is to be well covered by insurance. Illness and accident can strike abroad just as easily as at home, but outside the umbrella of the National Health Service the British traveller can find him- or herself in expensive trouble very easily. The countries of the European Economic Community provide reciprocal medical cover for each other’s citizens, but outside it bills can mount up very quickly. In order to avail yourself of the reciprocal arrangements you will need to have obtained an E111 form from your local DHSS office because without it you may have difficulty claiming back the money you have paid out for treatment in the foreign country.
Holiday companies can often arrange insurance, but most tour operators offer cover for a sum which is much too small, so it is wise to take out extra cover-multiply your tour operator’s figure by three to be on the safe side.
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What causes it?
• Rejection of the parents by an apparently unloving baby who screams and screams in spite of all its parents do for it.
• A parent who is at the end of his or her tether emotionally and physically.
• Social disadvantage, often a combination of poor housing, poverty, ‘feeling trapped’ and feeling hard done by oneself. Single-parent mothers are more likely to be stressed and feel unable to cope and so lash out at their babies or young children. The very young mother and the unmarried mother are particularly vulnerable too, partly because they are often lonely.
• Stress in the parent caused by physical or psychological illness.
• The parents’ bad relationship reflecting on the child.
Prevention
• Perhaps the greatest single preventive action one can take as a parent is to breastfeed a baby on demand and to be very close to it, keeping it near you all the time and showing it that it is loved and wanted. Such babies don’t cry as much and are less likely to frustrate their parents. Of course, any baby, however well handled or loved, can still drive its parents to distraction but a baby who is comforted as soon as it needs to be, and feels secure, will give much less trouble.
• Get treatment for any medical, emotional or psychological problem you have yourself, especially depression, so that you never get to a state in which you are unable to cope with the strains of a baby because of ill health. Don’t let depression creep up on you-get help as soon as you feel low.
• Talk to the social services, your health visitor or your general practitioner about your bad housing or lack of money. There are many sources of help available -you should not have to fight these problems alone.
• If you feel that being alone with your baby or young child is too stressful, get out and about. Go to a mother-and-toddler group and when your child is old enough, let him or her go a morning or two a week to a group of some kind î that you can have a few hours to yourself, if only to allow you to go shopping alone from time to time. Share child care with other parents by looking after their children sometimes and having them look after yours at others.
• If your relationship with your partner is bad and you are taking it out on the children, get professional help quickly and sort it out.
• If things are getting on top of you and you feel that in spite of all of these preventive measures you will hit your baby if it screams a moment more, just stop what you are doing; have a cigarette; have something to eat; have a bath. In short, do something that is pleasant for you and leave the baby to cry.
If you are really desperate you can phone Parents Anonymous (their telephone number is in the directory). This organization is run by ex-battering parents. They understand the problems, will not report you to the authorities, will give you useful advice there and then, and will help you for the future too.
• Mothers of premature or low-birth-weight children could be assessed to find out what their attitudes to their babies are. Research has found that such mothers have more negative attitudes towards pregnancy, more hostility towards their babies, and less emotional maturity than mothers of full-term babies. Unmarried mothers and those with multiple births (twins etc.) are also more overwhelmed by the whole business of having and caring for a baby. Many of these factors could be assessed professionally and ‘at risk’ mothers given special help.
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