Heaven Can Wait

If you have gout, then you know how painful an outbreak can be. While gout can strike from out of the blue, there are some surprising triggers that you may not be aware of.

Do you reach for the aspirin bottle when you get a random ache or pain? You may want to rethink that bottle in your medicine cabinet. Why? Aspirin can drive up the amount of uric acid in your blood. At high enough levels, uric acid deposits in joints (especially in the big toe and fingers) can create gout. For occasional pain, acetaminophen (Tylenol) or ibuprofen (Advil) might be better for the gout-prone.

Dehydration can also play a role in gout episodes. Aim to drink around eight cups of water a day to keep your body well-hydrated.

After menopause, women are more likely to develop gout. This may be why, in younger people, men are more prone than women to have a gout attack. This is because estrogen, a hormone that helps the kidneys excrete uric acid, dips during menopause. (Men in their mid-40s are at the highest risk of gout; post-menopausal women are at increasing risk as they age.)

Family history can make your more prone to develop gout, but you don't have to just wait for it to happen. Some studies suggest that you can help keep gout at bay by consuming coffee, cherries, and vitamin C. its. Plus, apples, grapes, and cranberries all contain malic acid, which may counter gout-promoting uric acid in your body.

According to the National Institutes of Health, more than 70 million Americans are affected by digestive disorders. Harvard gastroenterologist J. Wolf has just released her new book, A Woman's Guide to a Healthy Stomach and explains that women are particular vulnerable to digestive problems. The problem is, stomach and bowel problems are embarrassing and cause many women to ignore potentially serious problems.

As the author explains, this shame and reluctance to seek help—or the tendency to seek it too late—have real-life repercussions. According to the National Institutes of Health, more than seventy million Americans suffer from digestive diseases. In 2004 more than 236,000 Americans died from digestive ailments. Over half of the deaths were due to cancer—colorectal cancer accounting for almost 40 percent of all cancer deaths. And in many of these cases, deaths could have been prevented if routine screening had been done and treatment had been sought at the outset of symptoms. In the United States, Canada and Northern Europe, women are more than twice as likely as men to seek the advice of physicians for changes in bowel function. In my gastroenterology practice at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, 70 percent of my patients are women. And almost universally, these women feel alone and scared. There's no road map, no resource to reassure them that they're not imagining their problems or that they're going to be okay.

Instead, symptoms mean fear: Could my bloating mean cancer? Could my endometriosis mean that I can't get pregnant? I often find myself in the role of psychologist as much as gastroenterologist. And my message for the afflicted woman is this: you're not alone!

Wolf covers diet and lifestyle choices that cause or contribute to relatively minor problems; warning signs of serious conditions; the myriad available tests, treatments and medications; impact of digestive disorders on pregnant women; and links between such disorders, PMS, and endometriosis. Wolf's accessible q&a format, personal stories, easygoing humor, and practical concern for tight budgets and work schedules will relieve much of the anxiety and shame that, she says, prevent many women from seeking appropriate medical care.

Doctors have known for a long time that obesity can be linked to a number of health conditions like heart disease and diabetes. These conditions can dramatically shorten life expectancy for individuals. But did you also know that obesity may be linked to fibromyalgia?

In a recent article published in the Journal of Pain, researchers announced that they've discovered a connection between the chronic pain condition fibromyalgia and obesity. As it turns out, obesity is a common problem for patients who have been diagnosed with fibromyalgia.

The Weight-Fibromyalgia Connection

While this connection has been discussed for some time, the current research study wanted to test whether fibromyalgia—a disease affecting more women than men—would be more disabling for patients who were also obese. In all 215 patients were evaluated, testing sleep quality, vital stats, heart rates, flexibility and strength. Approximately 50 percent of the participants were characterized as ‘obese' while the remaining participants fell under the category of ‘overweight.'

The results showed that fibromyalgia sufferers who were obese suffered from the condition. In addition to showing increased sensitivity to pain (particularly in the lower body), they also experienced compromised strength and flexibility in their lower back.

The Bad News

In short, people with fibromyalgia who are also obese feel more pain and suffer from impaired sleep and other complications that ultimately lead to a reduced quality of life.

The Bright Side

With all of this seemingly bad news, it's important to remember there is a bright side. Patients may find that even moderate weight loss can have a dramatic impact on fibromyalgia symptoms. The American Pain Society is encourage people with chronic pain conditions to adopt a healthier lifestyle in order to combat the cycle of pain, fatigue and obesity that leaves so many unable to perform even simple tasks.

For many patients with fibromyalgia, shortness of breath can be a way of life. However, according to a new study, there may be help for patients. New non-drug therapy might help relieve chest strain in people with fibromyalgia. Two kinds of water therapy treatments also helped relieve the pain commonly associated with the chronic condition.

During the study, Turkish researchers evaluated more than 50 fibromyalgia patients. All participants were divided up into one of three different groups. All of the teams received traditional physical therapy, and two of the groups also received an additional session of water therapy including hydrotherapy and warm water therapy.

Each study participant was treated daily over a period of three weeks, with the exception of Sundays. Following treatment, lung function tests and pains scores were taken and compared to scores collected prior to the beginning of treatment.

The tests showed that patients perceived their breathing to be easier after completing in both forms of water treatment.

Who is affected by fibromyalgia?

Fibromyalgia mostly affects females. In fact, more than 80% of people with fibromyalgia are women between 35 and 55 years old. However, the condition still does affect men, children, and seniors. It can occur on its own or be connected with another disease like rheumatoid arthritis or lupus.

What are the common symptoms?

• Widespread pain or sensitivity to stimulus
• Fatigue
• Trouble sleeping
• Headaches
• Jaw pain
• Irritable  bowel

Fibromyalgia can be made worse by a number of different factors including acid reflux, dizziness, muscle weakness, nasal congestion, sweating and more. So the news that non-invasive therapy can improve quality of life for sufferers is welcome to those with the condition.

Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) has long been known to cause several disabling symptoms including exhaustion and disturbed sleep. It is even a cause of routine muscle and joint pain. For some patients, CFS also causes cognitive impairments. Doctors and scientists are still unclear as to what actually causes the condition.

The first few cases of CFS weren't diagnosed in the United States until sometime during the 1980s. Since that time, experts have remained divided about the cause of the condition. Some have suspected that a viral infection may contribute to the onset of the syndrome.

Despite the diagnoses, other researchers--and even patients themselves--have long dismissed the condition. They believe it to be stress related or even a psychosomatic illness. To further complicate matters, recent developments in the field have proven to be both heartening and saddening for CFS patients.

Confliction Information

In one instance the FDA was urged by a panel not to accept blood donations from patients with a diagnosis of chronic fatigue syndrome. The reason experts made this recommendation was to help prevent the potential for the transmission of viruses that had earlier been linked to chronic fatigue syndrome.

Less than one week later, four more research papers were released that suggested those earlier studies and the panel's nomination were based on faulty results and that the findings were merely the result of contamination in the laboratory. This was upsetting to some patients. Although the FDA was not bound to follow the panel's recommendation, it showed that CFS was finally being taken seriously by medical professionals.

In the end, there are still differing opinions, leaving patients and their doctors in a conundrum over the best treatment options for CFS.

If you're looking for a drug-free alternative to pain treatment, reflexology massage may be of interest to you. This form of therapy focuses on the reflex points in the body to stimulate energy pathways and promote your overall health. These reflex points are located in your hands, feet, and head and are associated with other body systems including your glands and organs. Reflexology charts show you which parts are associated with each other. For instance, the tips of your toes can be stimulated to promote health in the sinuses.

How reflexology works is a matter of some debate, but most practitioners believe that the pressure applied during a treatment sends the body signals by way of the central nervous system, helping to ease stress and pain.

There are four types of reflexology:

1. Zone Therapy: This is the simplest form of reflexology. It calls for on and off pressure to be applied to the hands or feet in one of five different zones. Each zone corresponds to a different area on the rest of the body and the goal of treatment is to bring balance back to each zone.
2. Meridian Therapy: This reflexology therapy is thought to work by helping to regulate energy balance and flow within the body. This is accomplished by stimulating a number of different acupuncture points. Meridian therapy is also thought to help restore balance in all aspects, including body, mind, and spirit.
3. Universal Method: The Universal takes traditional reflexology a step further by positing that mind and body must all be balanced in order for restoration to be achieved. Practitioners of the universal method believe that traumatic experiences and negative emotions are the root cause of many ailments, and they must be addressed as a part of the therapy.
4. Vacuflex: This variation on reflexology was made popular by a Danish reflexologist named Inge Dougans in the 1970s. It also known by the acronym VRS, and the overall goal of vacuflex therapy is to restore balance to the energy meridians in the body.

Reflexology is a type of massage or bodywork treatment that uses the body's different reflex points to promote health. By applying pressure to the reflex points in the feet, hands and head, energy pathways are stimulated and can aid in the healing of the body's glands and organs.

Practitioners of reflexology massage believe that its benefits are a result of the massage-like pressure applied during each treatment. They also assert that treatments send signals or emit chemicals much like endorphins to the body's central nervous system, conveying healing properties that can reduce pain and stress. It is commonly used to treat chronic pain and injuries.

Reflexology charts show users which reflex points are connect to the health of other parts of the body. For instance, in foot reflexology, the lower back and intestines can be stimulated through massage of the heel. The arch of the foot is thought to promote health in the kidneys, liver and pancreas. From your thyroid to your sinuses, virtual every part of the body is connected to a reflexology point in the foot (or hands in hand reflexology).

Potential Benefits of Reflexology

• Reduced stress and tensions
• Fewer headaches
• Relief from digestive disorders
• Restoration of hormonal and energy balances in the body
• Alleviation of pain caused by conditions like arthritis

If you plan to go in for reflexology treatment, plan on a session that lasts anywhere from forty-five minutes to one hour. Before you begin, the reflexologist will offer you a consultation to collect information about your lifestyle and overall health. If you get foot reflexology treatment, you'll need to remove your shoes and socks so that the therapist can evaluate your feet and begin therapeutic stimulation in areas that are tight or sensitive. Using very quicky movement, your feet will be warmed while pressure is

Most reflexology treatments last from 45 minutes to one hour. Before getting started a foot reflexologist will provide a consultation to gather information about your current lifestyle and overall health. After removing shoes and socks, the reflexologist will evaluate the feet and begin stimulating areas of the foot to locate any areas that are tight or tender. Warming the feet with quick movements, pressure is applied from your toe to your heel.

Most people find reflexology to be a very relaxing treatment. It should not be painful; however, you may experience some soreness or tenderness, especially early on. Slight discomfort lessens with the routine application of pressure.

Researchers are constantly publishing studies suggesting the best ways to prevent breast cancer for women that have reached their fifties. However, it is still recommended by the American Cancer Society that women should get a mammography regularly. Your doctor or OBGYN can recommend how often you should be screened.

X-rays are used in mammographies to examine the various breast tissues. Fibrous, fatty or glandular breast tissues, are typically examined by doctors in order to determine your risk of cancer.

Mammograms are divided into two categories: screening and diagnostic. Women who have reported no previous breast irregularities are typically given screening mammograms. These women usually are screened because of age or other elements that could contribute to breast cancer. In contrast, diagnostic mammography is used to investigate irregularities.

Screening Mammography

Early detection of breast cancer is very important because malignancies can be addressed before it can penetrate other areas of the body. Timely screenings are commonly accepted as a reliable method of detecting cancer very early in the process. As a matter of fact, mammograms can reveal cancer years before it can be detected by feeling it. This is why women are urged by the American Cancer Society to start annual mammograms at 40 years of age.

Mammograms can reveal spots or tiny calcium deposits in the soft tissue of the breast. These irregularities in tissue could point to cancer. Advancements in mammography include digital imaging that can enlarge and sharpen the smallest of specks on the film.

Diagnostic Mammography

Diagnostic mammography has the goal of investigating abnormalities after they have been originally detected. Lumps, discharges, or unexplained soreness of the breasts are reasons physicians may order this type of mammogram.

In addition, doctors sometimes use other methods to examine breast irregularities. Magnetic Resonance Imaging has the advantage of showing detail often missed by mammography. Ultrasounds help determine the density of lesions. And PET scans are sometimes used to examine cell activity. All of these can be used to evaluate the degree of spreading of malignant breast tumors. While these tools assist in the examination of breast irregularities and tumors, mammograms are still essential in detecting problems early, before they turn into something more serious.

There are many factors that put women at risk for breast cancer. Genetic factors and age draw the most attention when determining a woman's risk for malignancy. While it has already been stated that women should start getting mammograms at 40, a history of breast cancer in the family indicates an even earlier need to start screening.