YOUR CHILDHOOD; YOUR MANHOOD AND YOUR PROSTATE : A MUST READ

MEN - MY CHILDHOOD; MY MANHOOD; MY PROSTATE.. MUST READ!!

Hello Ladies and Gentlemen

I am here to share with you this vital information on Prostate. This I got from a very good friend that is a Medical Doctor and I wish to share with my readers, enjoy it. The topic is misleading. Is prostate strictly for men? Yes, ONLY men have prostate and ONLY men over 40 years but the healthcare enlightenment is for everyone. There is no woman who does not know a man 40 years and above – father, uncle, brother, son, friend, neighbor, colleague …

Essentially what I will be doing today is health promotion. Responsible health promotion must provide three things:

1. Information
2. Reassurance
3. A plan of action.

Let me start with a background on prostate health.
Everyone has a pair of kidneys. The job of the kidney is to remove waste. It is the LAWMA (waste management company) of your body. Everyday your blood passes through the kidney several times to be filtered. As the blood is filtered, urine is formed and stored in a temporary storage tank called the urinary bladder.

If there were to be no urinary bladder, as a man walks on the road, urine will be dropping.
Now think of the plumbing work in your house. Think of the urinary bladder as the overhead storage tank. From the storage tank, a good plumber will run pipes to other parts of the house, including the kitchen. God in His wisdom ran pipes from our urinary bladder to the tip of the penis. The pipe is called the urethra. Just below the bladder and surrounding the urethra is a little organ called the prostate gland.

The prostate gland is the size of a walnut and weighs about 20grams. Its job is to make the seminal fluid which is stored in the seminal vesicle. During sexual intercourse, seminal fluid comes down the urethra and mixes with the sperms produced in the testicles to form the semen. So semen technically is not sperm. It is sperm + seminal fluid. The seminal fluid lubricates the sperm.

After age 40, for reasons that may be hormonal, the prostate gland begins to enlarge. From 20 grams it may grow to almost 100 grams. As it enlarges, it squeezes the urethra and the man begins to notice changes in the way he urinate.

If you have a son under 10, if he has a little mischief like we all did at that age, when he comes out to urinate, he can target the ceiling and the jet will hit target. Call his father to do same, wahala dey. His urine stream is weak, cannot travel a long distance and sometimes may come straight down on his legs. So he may need to stand in awkward position to urinate.

Not many men will be worried their urine stream cannot hit the ceiling. Toilets are on the floor and not on the ceiling. But other symptoms begin to show.

TERMINAL DRIPPLING:
The man begins to notice that after urinating and repacking, urine still drops on his pants. This is the reason why after an older man urinates, he has to ring bell. A younger man simply delivers to the last drop and walks away. Just see an older man coming from the bathroom. Sometimes he may clutch the newspaper closely to hide the urine stains, particularly on plain colored trousers.

HESITANCY
At this point you wait longer for the urine flow to start. There are 2 valves that must open for you to urinate – the internal and external sphincters. Both open but because of obstructions in the urethra, you wait long for the flow to start.

INCOMPLETE EMPTYING
You have this feeling immediately after urinating that there is still something left.

As all these things happen, the bladder begins to work harder to compensate for the obstruction in the urethra. The frequency of urination goes up. Urgency sets in. sometimes you have to practically run into the toilet. Nocturia also becomes common. You wake up more than 2 times at night to urinate. Your wife begins to complain.

Men being men may not talk to anyone even at this point. Then the more serious complications start.
Stored urine gets infected and there may be burning sensation when urinating.

Stored urine forms crystals. Crystals come together to form stone either in the bladder or in the kidney. Stones may block the urethra.
Chronic urinary retention sets in. The bladder stores more and more urine. The size of the bladder is 40 - 60 cl. A bottle of coke is 50cl. As the bladder stores more urine it can enlarge up to 300cl. An overfilled bladder may leak and this leads to wetting / urinary incontinence. Also the volume may put pressure on the kidney and may lead to kidney damage.
What may likely bring the man to hospital is acute urinary retention. He wakes up one day and he is not able to pass urine.

Everything I have described above is associated with prostate enlargement, technically called benign prostate hyperplasia.

There are other diseases of the prostate like:
1. Prostatitis – inflammation of the prostate
2. Prostate cancer – cancer of the prostate.

This discussion is on prostate enlargement.

I have bad news and good news.

The bad news is that everyman will have prostate enlargement if he lives long enough.
The good news is that there are life style changes that can help the man after 40 to maintain optimum prostate health.

Nutrition
Look at what you eat. 33% of all cancers, according to the US National Cancer Institute is related to what we eat.
Red meat everyday triples your chances of prostate disease. Milk everyday doubles your risk. Not taking fruits / vegetables daily quadruples your risk.

Tomatoes are very good for men. If that is the only thing your wife can present in the evening, eat it with joy. It has loads of lycopene. Lycopene is the most potent natural antioxidant.
Foods that are rich in zinc are also good for men. We recommend pumpkin seeds (ugbogulu).
Zinc is about the most essential element for male sexuality and fertility.

Men need more zinc than women. Every time a man ejaculates he loses 15mg of zinc. Zinc is also important for alcohol metabolism. Your liver needs zinc to metabolize alcohol.

ALCOHOL CONSUMPTION
As men begin to have urinary symptoms associated with prostate enlargement, it is important they look at alcohol consumption. More fluid in means more fluid out.

Drink less. Drink slowly.

EXERCISE
Exercise helps build the muscle tone. Every man should exercise. Men over 40 should avoid high impact exercise like jogging. It puts pressure on the knees. Cycling is bad news for the prostate. We recommend brisk walking.

SITTING
When we sit, two-third of our weight rests on the pelvic bones. Men who sit longer are more prone to prostate symptoms. Do not sit for long hours. Walk around as often as you can. Sit on comfortable chairs. We recommend a divided saddle chair if you must sit long hours.

DRESSING
Men should avoid tight underwear. It impacts circulation around the groin and heats it up a bit. While the physiological temperature is 37 degrees, the groin has an optimal temperature of about 33 degrees. Pant is a no - no for men. Wear boxers. Wear breathable clothing.

SMOKING
Avoid smoking. It affects blood vessels and impact circulation around the groin.

SEX
Regular sex is good for the prostate.

Celibates are more prone to prostate illness. While celibacy is a moral decision, it is not a biological adaptation. Your prostate gland is designed to empty its contents regularly.

Thought: You have a moral obligation to share it with others because someone in your friends list might be saved.

THE POWER OF WATER: WATER THERAPY

WATER THERAPY

Have it ever come to your mind that drinking water in the early hour of the day or morning immediately upon waking up from the bed can have a wonderful therapeutic effect for a multitude of health conditions—wavering from pain to asthma to cancer?

Water therapy coins from ancient Ayurvedic treatment. In Sanskrit, the name for the practice is Usha Paana Chikitsa, which roughly translates to “early morning water treatment.”

Can Water Cure Diseases?

Studies have shown that drinking water first thing in the morning on an empty stomach cleanses the body’s internal system. An especially important result of this treatment is that it cleanses the colon, which makes the body much more able to absorb nutrients from food.

This is achieved through the production of new blood or haematopoiesis. This fresh blood has an immense restorative effect in the body and can even cure existing ailments.

An Unlikely Prison Discovery—Water as Potent Medicine

Dr Fereydoon Batmanghelidj discovered the healing powers of water and the link between dehydration and chronic illness 17 years ago. He was then serving a jail sentence as a political prisoner in Iran.

During his imprisonment, Dr Batmanghelidj used the only medicine available to him—which was water—to successfully treat 3,000 fellow prisoners who were suffering from stress-induced peptic ulcers.

After his release from prison, Dr Batmanghelidj—who trained in medicine at St. Mary’s Hospital Medical School of London—turned his full-time attention to the study of dehydration and its negative health effects. His subsequent discoveries have restored health for hundreds of thousands of individuals who were suffering from unidentified dehydration-related diseases.

In addition to presenting at international and world conferences, Dr Batmanghelidj has published his findings in a number of scientific journals. He has compiled his research for the general public in two books, Your Body’s Many Cries for Water, and How to Deal with Back Pain and Rheumatoid Joint Pain.

He has even produced a video on back pain and audiotapes of his lectures—all of which have been peer and media reviewed and acclaimed both nationally and internationally.

Dehydration’s Many Disguises

According to Batmanghelidj, the body’s biological thirst signals can be mistaken for signs and symptoms of other illnesses. If we treat the root cause of these—dehydration—we can avoid costly and unnecessary medical interventions and enjoy long-term wellbeing.

“Humans seem to lose their thirst sensation and the critical perception of needing water,” wrote Batmanghelidj in one of his two books on chronic dehydration and water therapy. “Not recognising their need for water,” he continued, “they gradually become increasingly and chronically dehydrated with the progress of the age.”

Further confusion results when the body produces complicated secondary symptoms of dehydration. Many doctors misinterpret those secondary symptoms as unrelated diseases.

These conditions include, but are not limited to:

o Dyspepsia
o Rheumatoid arthritis
o Angina
o A migraine and headaches
o Colitis
o Constipation
o Hypertension
o Anemia
o Obesity
o Sinusitis
o Pulmonary tuberculosis
o Asthma
o Kidney stones
o Diabetes
o Irregular menstruation
o Leukemia
o Uterine cancer
o Breast cancer

A Japanese medical society has also found water therapy to be a 100% cure for arthritis…epilepsy…bronchitis…uberculosis…meningitis…diarrhea…throat diseases…and many other ailments.

Research proves that water therapy can cure these conditions very rapidly on its own—with no other medical treatments! According to the research, water therapy alleviates constipation within a single day, diabetes within one week, and hypertension and even cancer within a month.

How to Maximise the Benefits of Water Therapy

Drinking water in the morning is simple to put into practice, and virtually free! However, there are some important rules to remember. The basic protocol recommend by experts is as follows:

1. Immediately upon waking in the morning, drink 1.50 litres of water, which is equivalent to 5-6 glasses of water.
2. Do not eat or drink anything else for 1 hour prior to and after drinking the water.
3. Do not consume any alcoholic beverages the night before.

At first, it may be difficult to drink 1.50 litres of water at one time; however, your body will gradually get accustomed to the protocol.

When starting out, you may want to make it easier by modifying the protocol slightly, as follows: Drink 4 glasses, then pause for 2 minutes, then drink the last 2 glasses.

It goes without saying that the better the quality of water you consume, the better the results you’ll experience from water therapy.

Africans Can Now Perform Malaria Test At Home Using Urine

Africans Can Now Perform Malaria Test At Home Using Urine

A new single step method for carrying out malaria test has been developed by a team of Nigerian scientists.

Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease of humans and other animals caused by parasitic protozoans (a group of single-celled microorganisms) belonging to the Plasmodium type. Malaria causes symptoms that typically include fever, fatigue, vomiting, and headaches. In severe cases, it can cause yellow skin, seizures, coma, or death. (Caraballo, 2014). Symptoms usually begin ten to fifteen days after being bitten. If not properly treated, people may have recurrences of the disease months later. (Malaria fact sheet, 2014) 

The disease is most commonly transmitted by an infected female Anopheles mosquito. The mosquito bite introduces the parasites from the mosquito's saliva into a person's blood. (Malaria fact sheet, 2014)  The parasites travel to the liver where they mature and reproduce. Five species of Plasmodium can infect and be spread by humans. (Caraballo, 2014).  Most deaths are caused by P. falciparum because P. vivax, P. ovale, and P. malaria generally cause a milder form of malaria (Malaria fact sheet, 2014; Caraballo, 2014). 

The species P. Knowles rarely causes disease in humans (Malaria fact sheet, 2014). Malaria is typically diagnosed by the microscopic examination of blood using blood films, or with antigen-based rapid diagnostic tests (Caraballo, 2014). Methods that use the polymerase chain reaction to detect the parasite's DNA have been developed but are not widely used in areas where malaria is common due to their cost and complexity.

The risk of disease can be reduced by preventing mosquito bites by using mosquito nets and insect repellents, or with mosquito-control measures such as spraying insecticides and draining standing water. (Caraballo, 2014) Several medications are available to prevent malaria in travellers to areas where the disease is common. Occasional doses of the medication sulfadoxine/pyrimethamine are recommended in infants and after the first trimester of pregnancy in areas with high rates of malaria. Despite a need, no effective vaccine exists, although efforts to develop one are ongoing (Malaria fact sheet, 2014). The recommended treatment for malaria is a combination of antimalarial medications that includes an artemisinin  (Malaria fact sheet, Caraballo 2014). The second medication may be either mefloquine, lumefantrine, or sulfadoxine/pyrimethamine.  Quinine along with  doxycycline may be used if an artemisinin is not available. It is recommended that in areas where the disease is common, malaria is confirmed if possible before treatment is started due to concerns of increasing drug resistance. Resistance among the parasites has developed to several antimalarial medications; for example, chloroquine-resistant P. falciparum has spread to most malarial areas, and resistance to artemisinin has become a problem in some parts of Southeast Asia (Malaria fact sheet, 2014).

Enough of the history of Malaria and what havoc it causes in the life of people. There is a new method of detecting whether one is affected by Malaria or not. Most Africans tend to believe that once they are sick, the next thing is malaria. Now there is a new method that makes use of urine and not blood to determine if an individual is infected with malaria.

This method shows how it is the first time urine will be used for carrying out malaria parasite test.

Eddy Agbo, the founder of Fyodor, the biotechnology firm that developed the urine test kit, described as a major milestone, the fact that people can now test themselves for the disease without involving a health personnel.

Agbo described the process as one step similar to carrying out a pregnancy test. He said, “You just dip [a thread] in the sample, leave it there for 25 minutes and read the result.”

A line shows on the strip if one is infected with the parasite.

Experts expressed optimism that with the advent of the new testing method, the populace will desist from taking antimalarial drugs when they are not infected with the parasite.

An estimated 400,000 people die from the scourge of malaria every year.

Sources

1.    Nadjm B, Behrens RH (2012). "Malaria: An update for physicians".Infectious Disease Clinics of North America 26 (2): 243-59.

      DOI:10.1016/j.idc.2012.03.010. PMID 22632637.

2.  Organization, World Health (2010). Guidelines for the treatment of malaria (2nd ed.). Geneva: World Health Organization. p. ix. ISBN 9789241547925.

3. http://healthmagng.com/nigerians-can-now-perform-malaria-test-home-using-urine/

YOUR HEALTH IS YOUR WEALTH

You are Welcome to my blog on health issues. As we all know health is wealth. If you don't have good health, you cannot create a wealth, therefore, take wrath attention to your health.

In this issues, we will be discussion different ways by which our health needs to be taken care of on this platform.

First, what is health?

Health is the level of functional or metabolic efficiency of a living organism. In humans, it is the ability of individuals or communities to adapt and self-manage when facing physical, mental or social challenges. (Huber et al; 2011) The World Health Organization (WHO, 2006) defined health in its broader sense in its 1948 constitution as "a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.

As  WHO defines it, if you don't have a good sense of yourself, i.e. you are not in good frame of mind, it would be hard for you to move forward in anything be it, academically, financially, business-wise, career wise, maritally, religiously just to name but a few.

Our health is very paramount to our day to day living.

Determinant of Health

The following are the determinants adapted from (WHO, 2011). Generally speaking, the context in which an individual lives is of great importance for both his health status and quality of their life. It is increasingly recognized that health is maintained and improved not only through the advancement and application of health science, but also through the efforts and intelligent lifestyle choices of the individual and society. According to the World Health Organization, the main determinants of health include the social and economic environment, the physical environment, and the person's individual characteristics and behaviors.

More specifically, key factors that have been found to influence whether people are healthy or unhealthy include the following:

·        Income and social status

·        Social support networks

·        Education and literacy

·        Employment/working conditions

·        Social environments

·        Physical environments

·        Personal health practices and coping skills

·        Healthy child development

·        Biology and genetics

·        Health care services

·        Gender

·        Culture

All the above factors directly or indirectly impact or influence ones health in the society.  If you are poor, it is likely that you will lack basic health amenities and this will affect the way you think and reason, vice versa.

Let's look at potentials issues in health.

There are different types of health problems common with many people across the world. Disease is one of the most common. According to GlobalIssues.org, approximately 36 million people die each year from non-communicable (not contagious) disease including cardiovascular disease cancer, diabetes, and chronic lung disease (Shah, 2014, Moffett 2014). As for communicable diseases, both viral and bacterial, AIDS/HIV, tuberculosis, and malaria are the most common also causing millions of deaths every year (Shah, 2014).

Another health issue that causes death or contributes to other health problems is malnutrition majorly among children. One of the groups malnutrition affects most is young children. Approximately 7.5 million children under the age of 5 die from malnutrition, and it is usually brought on by not having the money to find or make food (Shah, 2014).

Bodily injuries are also a common health issue worldwide. These injuries, including broken bones, fractures, and burns can reduce a person’s quality of life or can cause fatalities including infections that resulted from the injury or the severity injury in general (Moffett, 2013).

Some contributing factors to poor health are lifestyle choices. These include smoking cigarettes, which according to LIVESTRONG.com kills 443,000 people each year (Moffett, 2013). It also can include a poor diet, whether it is overeating or an overly constrictive diet. Inactivity can also contribute to health issues and also a lack of sleep, excessive alcohol consumption, and neglect of oral hygiene (Moffett, 2013).

There are also genetic disorders that are inherited by the person and can vary in how much they affect the person and when they surface.

The one health issue that is the most unfortunate because the majority of these health issues are preventable is that approximately 1 billion people lack access to health care systems (Shah, 2014).

It is easy to say that the most common and harmful health issue is that a lot of people do not have access to quality remedies.(UNO, 2014)

Maintaining Your Health

Maintaining ones health is very paramount to the success of anything an individual wants to embark upon. To achieve this, the following measures need to be met.

1. Diet: You need to take good diet and maintaining good health dietary. By taking good variety of animal based and plant based food for improvement in your health. Such nutrients give you energy and keep your body running. Nutrients help build and strengthen bones, muscles, and tendons and also regulate body processes (i.e. blood pressure). The food guide pyramid is a pyramid-shaped guide of healthy foods divided into sections. Each section shows the recommended intake for each food group (i.e. Protein, Fat, Carbohydrates, and Sugars). Making healthy food choices is important because it can lower your risk of heart disease, developing some types of cancer, and it will contribute to maintaining a healthy weight (Healthy Living, 2014).

2. Exercise: Physical exercise enhances or maintains physical fitness and overall health and wellness. It strengthens muscles and improves the cardiovascular system.

3. Good Sleep: You need to rest your brain after a day job. Many people don't sleep and this affect their health. So cultivate the habit of taking your nap after a day job and don't over stress yourself. Sleep helps in the formation of growth and development in young ones.

Children between 0-3 months need at least 14-17 hours of sleep;  4- 11 months need at least 12-15 hours of sleep, Toddlers (1-2years) need 11-14 hours, pre-school kids (3-5years) need at least 10-13 hours of sleep, school age kids (6-13 years) need 9-11 hours of sleep, Teenagers (14-17 years) need 8-10 hours of sleep, Adults (18-64 years) need at least 7-9hours of sleep, while the older people (65+) need 7-8 hours of sleep. With the aforementioned put in place daily, your health is very sure and you will be in good health.

From the above, we will noticed that ones’ health is very paramount for his sustainability in life. Once your health has been tampered with, it will be difficult to live a fruitful life. I pray our health will not be tamper with. So, make sure you walk in the direction of the above guide to maintain health’s life style and good living.

References

1.     Huber M, Knottnerus JA, Green, L., van der Horst H, Jadad AR, Kromhout D, Smid H. BMJ 2011; 343 (d4163) http://savenhshomeopathy.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/Huber-Definition-Health-BMJ-21.pdf.

2.     Moffett, Tamara. “Top Ten Reasons for Poor Health.” Livestrong. 16 Aug. 2014. Web. 26 Feb. 2014. <http://www.livestrong.com/article/456668-top-ten-reasons-for-poor-health/>.

3.     Shah, Anup. “Health Issues.” Global Issues. 05 Jan. 2014. Web. 26 Feb. 2014. <http://www.globalissues.org/issue/587/health-issues>.

4.     United Nations Global Issues". Un.org. Retrieved 2014-03-01.

5.     World Health Organization. WHO definition of Health, Preamble to the Constitution of the World Health Organization as adopted by the International Health Conference, New York, 19–22 June 1946; signed on 22 July 1946 by the representatives of 61 States (Official Records of the World Health Organization, no. 2, p. 100) and entered into force on 7 April 1948. In Grad, Frank P. (2002). "The Preamble of the Constitution of the World Health Organization". Bulletin of the World Health Organization 80 (12): 982.

6.     World Health Organization. 2006. Constitution of the World Health Organization –Basic Documents, Forty-fifth edition, Supplement, October 2006