Kids Having a Healthier Lifestyle

June 5, 2011 Leave a Comment
Children in Jerusalem. 

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One of the biggest challenges parents face is making sure their kids have a healthier lifestyle. Parents want nothing but the best for their children and this means living a long, healthy life.

By making sure your kids are living a healthier lifestyle will help with prevention of heart disease, type 2 diabetes and other problems that could ultimately lead to obesity.

The first step would be to cut back on the amount of time that’s spent playing video games and watching television. It’s always better to encourage exercise and more physical activities such as going to the park, taking swimming lessons or playing their favorite sport.

The biggest part of making sure your kids are living a healthier lifestyle is by making sure they’re eating healthy. Create a meal plan and try to stick with it, no matter how much your child fusses. Stick with fruits and vegetables as side dishes and include meals with whole grain and lean meat. Don’t eat, or cut back on, processed food.

Exercise is an important part in staying healthy. Think of exercises that will be fun to your kids. If the exercises are fun than they’re going to keep doing them. An example would be to take swimming lessons. Your family can enjoy a nice day at the pool while getting some exercise.

It’s OK to reward your children a little bit for eating right and getting exercise. As adults we all do that while on a diet. It’s OK to allow your kids to have a little bit of ice cream or chips. Just make sure they’re not eating too much of it or too often.

Filed Under: Health Care, Health Tips Tagged With: , ,

Understanding Health Informatics for Patients

May 6, 2011 Leave a Comment
Conversation between doctor and patient/consumer.

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Have you ever wanted to know what was going on with your own medical well being? After a doctor’s appointment, many people are curios about their lab results and their health in general. There are many ways that you can find out. You could go the old fashioned way, and call the doctor’s office, or you could, in many cases, use the Internet. Many offices today are offering options to keep their patients informed.

Heath informatics can help you know exactly what is going on. With the study of patients and information processing, more and more people are able to get the information that they want about their own health care. In fact, there has been a push recently for clinics and hospitals to get their records and other patient information online, so that patients can have a better view of their health.

Many health care professionals believe that the more people who have access to their health records, the more control they will take over their health. This is seen as a very positive thing. There is a push in the United States to be healthier, and understand what is going on in your health care, and due to better health informatics, there is more and more information available every day. One great thing about being able to access your test records, for example, is that you are able to come prepared with questions to your next doctor’s appointment. This allows the appointment to become more streamlined. Knowing what is happening with your health is a great way to feel empowered.

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Probiotics and Improved Health

March 16, 2011 Leave a Comment

Probiotics are foods or supplements that have been enhanced with or contain living microbes. An example is yogurt supplemented with the lactic acid bacterium Lactobacillus. These kinds of bacteria flourish in the human gut. They are hypothesized to out-compete disease-causing organisms, thus improving the digestion of food.

As food is better digested, there are fewer side effects from eating. The amount of gas and flatulence can be greatly reduced. It is also healthier to consume probiotics. As the food is better digested, the health of the individual improves. Such bacteria are also thought to affect the immune system.

The bacteria introduced in probiotics are similar to the ones found naturally inside humans. Each person has their own individual mixture of bacteria, however. It is impossible to exactly replicate this mixture.

The use of probiotic bacteria and other microorganisms is extremely complex. Effects seen with one strain may not be seen with other closely related strains. This makes the study of the effects of these organisms difficult.

One food that is commonly sold as a probiotic is enhanced yogurt, which is being heavily promoted at the moment. A common use for these supplemental bacteria is when antibiotics are being taken. Taking these drugs can kill of the friendly bacteria in the gut. Eating probioticly enhanced food can replace these bacteria, so the balance of the body’s internal ecosystem is not displaced too badly.

There is also research into whether or not introducing probiotic organisms into the body can stop the growth of pathogen bacteria. Pathogens inhabit many areas of the body, ranging from the gut to the stomach, the teeth and gums, the skin, and the lungs. There is a flourishing microbial ecosystem in each of these areas. If it is possible to alter the growth of microorganisms in favor of those beneficial to humans, that could greatly increase human health.

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Circadian Rhythm Disorders

February 10, 2011 Leave a Comment

The business world is ruled by morning people. Many successful people are highly energetic and creative at night, however. The body has a natural circadian rhythm, in which a number of biological clocks respond to light. For most people, their main clock dictates that they arise in the morning and get sleepy at night. This is primarily due to the production of the hormone melatonin at night.

In other people, melatonin production peaks at a later time. If a job allows it, these people sleep later and are active into the late night hours. Commonly known as “night owls,” such people suffer from a circadian rhythm disorder.

A subset of night owls is totally nocturnal, rising late in the afternoon and working all night. Some people are forced to do this by shift work and suffer terribly, if they are morning people. Other people are naturally nocturnal.

People who are not severely affected treat themselves by taking melatonin, the hormone that affects the sleep cycle. There is debate scientifically about the effectiveness of the synthetic compound. One way to avoid sleep disorders includes avoiding bright light late at night. Drinking warm milk is a common folk remedy. It can help make casual insomniacs sleepy, but will not affect people with severe circadian rhythm disorders.

Some people with chronic, severe circadian rhythm disorders suffer from bipolar disorder. When managed properly, such patients can be highly productive. Many creative individuals such as writers do have the leeway to do their work in the middle of the night. It should be noted that creative writers are 10-20 times more likely to be bipolar.

Other night owls with nocturnal tendencies have jobs that require work within the typical 8-5 time frame. If bipolar, treatment with benzodiazepines or anti-psychotics to sleep at night will frequently enable the patient to sleep at a normal time and help them to keep normal hours. This can be a lifesaver for people used to lying awake at night for hours and being asked by well-meaning people:  “Why don’t you just go to sleep early?”

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