13 Ekim 2012 Cumartesi

Andy Irons Died Thanks to help Dengue Fever

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The excellent Hawaiian surfer Andy Irons recently passed missing subsequent falling unwell and pulling available of your level of competition in Puerto Rico. Andy Irons reportedly died of Dengue fever. Andy Irons's will probably be Fondly Remembered Surfers mourn the particular coloring of your brilliant surfer who may have obtained 19 something plus 3 entire world championships, in addition to the becoming a champion Andy Irons appeared to be ardent related to his work, simply because your dog was throughout love by using browsing. It will be unfortunate for you to realise that his / her other half is actually ready a kid quickly, along with which she'll miss Andy a lot more now. Andy Irons's spouse and children affiliates has requested solitude informing that they require more hours for getting with this specific tough time, immediately after thanking folks thus to their prayers and condolences. Dengue Fever Demise by way of some sort of sickness is normally 1 belonging to the toughest types of fatalities within the world. And dying as a result of to be able to an health issues that we shouldn't have relief from is usually just simply pure poor chance due to the fact mankind includes made thus a number of medications to struggle distinct diseases. In accordance into the WHO, dengue ends up in lots of deaths each 12 months and also the demise toll could be increasing with your long term, because this specific condition has change into endemic in order to all-around one hundred international locations inside the entire world. Dengue includes absolutely no remedy. And, it can be crystal clear of which generating countries world wide exactly where many of your human population falls below the actual poverty collection or region it has far more deaths happening as a result of for you to dengue fever. Dengue is not really this Only A single Demise as a result of mesothelioma will be an additional threat to be able to overseas areas throughout the planet. google_ad_client = "pub-2311940475806896"; /* 300x250, made 1/6/11 */ google_ad_slot = "0098904308"; google_ad_width = 300; google_ad_height = 250; Mesothelioma is often a rare form of a lot of cancers which impacts folks that work having asbestos in addition to women and men interior the reach with the particular victims who're previously impacted. Mesothelioma as well won't have got some sort of remedy.



Know About Body Heating

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INTRODUCTION TO PYREXIA Fever (also known because pyrexia, from Greek indicating fire) can be a recurrent medical sign which explains a strong enhance around inner entire body temperature in order to levels previously mentioned normal. What Is Fever? The thermostat inside body is a component of this human brain called the'' hypothalamus.'' The ''hypothalamus'' has learned what exactly temperatures your body must be (usually about 98.6 Fahrenheit, or in relation to 37 Celsius) as well as ships the body the actual message to help keep your temps constant. Most clients' body temps will change a little bit. It is normally cheaper each day but can be felt slightly larger in the evening. The heat range can range repeatedly when kids run around, engage in and also exercise. A a fever is known among the body's resistant mechanisms to aim some sort of neutralization in order to identified threat in the body. The hypothalamus resets our body to your increased heat in reply in order to a strong infection, illness, whether it is pathogen or even bacteria. TYPES AND CLASSIFICATION: As fever may be a dominant symptom of many diseases, with human beings it is going to seem inside common appellation regarding diseases: Puerperal Fever Scarlet Fever Typhoid fever Malaria Yellow fever Ebola fever Viral Hemorrhagic Fever Dengue Fever Fever Of Unknown Origin (PUO) Measuring Fever: When A affected person is suspected to become experiencing pyrexia, in which person's physique heat can be measured using a thermometer. Body temps is usually assessed in most ways through settling that thermometer within various places: Temperature in the anus (rectum / rectal) Temperature in mouth area (Oral) Temperature from the Under supply (Axillary) Temperature In your ear (otic) Causes involving FEVER: Mostly curse can be caused by numerous kinds pathogens entering our body repeatedly. google_ad_client = "pub-2311940475806896"; /* 300x250, produced 1/6/11 */ google_ad_slot = "0098904308"; google_ad_width = 300; google_ad_height = 250; The body obtains weaker through that process and benefits into fever. Fever is a widespread manifestation which in turn signifies lots of medical conditions and also diseases: Infectious diseases Skin inflammations Virus , acne bacteria Infections Metabolic disorders Adverse problem of anti-biotics SYMPTOMS: A Feverish unique includes a sensation with cold regardless of an increased entire body temperature, and improves with cardiovascular system rate, muscle mass firmness in addition to shivering that might often cause hypothermia. Fever will likely be followed by way of ailment behavior which often contains lethargy, depression, anorexia, sleepiness, hyperalgesia, along with the incapability for you to concentrate. General Treatment Of Pyrexia: Fever can't actually be treated. It can be a sign this the good news is difficulty inside the body. Even whenever treatment seriously isn't indicated, however, febrile persons are often suggested to hold yourself sufficiently hydrated (mostly recommended water) as the dehydration produced by a gentle fever may be more dangerous as compared to that a fever itself. Most men and women require medication alongside temperature for the reason that signs or symptoms induce excellent discomfort. Treatment can ordinarily end up being this anti-pyretics like paracetamol (acetaminophen). Heat loss might also possibly be completed simply by warmth conduction, convection, radiation as well as evaporation. (perspiration)



Shingles Cures Tips - Let's reduce pain and Anxiety from it

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You will have to deal with painful rashes that keep on appearing from time to time whenever you are suffer from it because of Your doctor will be unable to give you a permanent cure of them and will only be able to give you medications that treat your symptoms.

Shingles Treatments are not always the best thing for you because they consist of powerful antiviral medications as well as antihistamines and corticosteroids also might find the side effects of these drugs as hard to bear as the symptoms of them.

Skin Balm is one of the most effective remedies for it which you can easily make out of ingredients easily available at home or at health food stores.

You need good quality olive oil to start with, to which you should add drops of lavender, tea tree oil, geranium and oregano.

Peppermint oil also has excellent pain killing properties. The combination of essential oils helps to kill viruses and bacteria on the skin while the olive oil soothes the itching on the skin and helps to trap in moisture.

It will help prevent you scratching your rashes. This is one of the biggest reasons for a secondary bacterial infection taking place, leading to scarring. This mixture of oils is extremely fragrant and will also help put you in a good mood.


Another simple way of reducing your itching, and therefore your irritation and anxiety, is to apply petroleum jelly to the areas that have rashes.

This is an inexpensive solution to the problem of itching. These tips will help reduce your dependence on medication by giving you lots of comfort and peace of mind.

Pathogenesis of severe asthma: cytokines determine the phenotypes

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What is severe asthma?

Patients with severe asthma have the following characteristics:

- asthma symptoms which are difficult to control
- require high dosages of medication
- continue to experience persistent symptoms, asthma exacerbations or airflow obstruction.

Severe asthma - differential diagnosis and management (click to enlarge the image):



Severe asthma is not a single phenotype.

There are several subtypes of severe asthma based on the prediminant cytokine profile:

- IL-4/IL-13 signalling pathway accounts for allergen-associated symptoms and high serum immunoglobulin E (IgE) levels. These patients are generally responsive to anti-IgE treatment (omalizumab, Xolair).

- IL-5/IL-33 signalling pathway is likely to play a key role in patients resistant to high doses of inhaled corticosteroid but responsive to systemic corticosteroids and anti-IL5 therapy.

IL-33 is a new member of the IL-1 cytokine family that promotes Th2 inflammation. Video: Interleukin-1 binding to its receptor on a cell surface:



- IL-17 signalling pathway is thought to contribute to 'neutrophilic asthma'.

- Th1 cytokines such as IL-18 and IFN-γ may also in severe asthma pathogenesis. They are traditionally viewed as players in the defence mechanism against viral and intracellular bacterial infection.


T helper cells (click to enlarge the image).

Steroids are the most effective anti-asthma drugs available, yet severe asthma patients are typically resistant to the effects of glucocorticoids.

Glucocorticoid receptor (GR) dysfunction and histone deacetylase activity (HDAC) reduction are likely to contribute to steroid resistance in severe asthma patients.

 References:

Pathogenesis of severe asthma. Poon AH, Eidelman DH, Martin JG, Laprise C, Hamid Q. Clin Exp Allergy. 2012 May;42(5):625-37. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2222.2012.03983.x.

Atopic dermatitis - top articles for October 2012

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Here are my suggestions for some of the top articles about atopic dermatitis for August-October 2012:

Eczema Action Plan by Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy http://goo.gl/e79YW

Skin-derived TSLP may trigger progression from atopic dermatitis to asthma, thus explainig the infamous "atopic march" http://goo.gl/Q7oUd

Not atopic dermatitis: Nevus Sebaceous - NEJM http://goo.gl/TPZQT

The future of research in pediatric allergy: What should the focus be? (full text) http://goo.gl/9rh76

The united allergic airway: Connections between allergic rhinitis, asthma, and chronic sinusitis (free full text) http://goo.gl/m4O9b

Atopic dermatitis: a candidate for disease-modifying strategy (free full text) http://goo.gl/rWG6Y

NBUVB, mycophenolate, and methotrexate remain reasonable first-line systemic treatment options for atopic dermatitis http://goo.gl/hA08O

Management of difficult and severe eczema in childhood | BMJ 2012 review http://goo.gl/8uKS8

Stress is associated with atopic disorders in a dose-dependent manner http://buff.ly/P4ypXF

Does eczema in infancy cause hay fever, asthma, or both in childhood? Apparently, yes http://buff.ly/PVizPt

The Many Manifestations of Eczema - Medscape slideshow http://buff.ly/QjZEhD

A new cause of facial eczema: the ferret http://goo.gl/QHNLn

Allergy increases risk of ADHD, especially allergic rhinitis. Co-morbidity with AD, asthma further increases risk http://goo.gl/Hm4G1

The 79 authors of WAO WHITE BOOK ON ALLERGY cover all aspects of allergic disease. I am honored to be one of them. This comprehensive textbook is free to download here: http://goo.gl/I9KwE

The articles were selected from my Twitter stream @Allergy and Google Reader RSS subscriptions. Some of the top allergy accounts on Twitter contributed links. I appreciate the curation provided by @JuanCIvancevich @AllergyNet @IgECPD4 @DrAnneEllis @AACMaven @AllergieVoeding @allergistmommy @mrathkopf @wheezemd.

Please feel free to send suggestions for articles to allergycases@gmail.com and you will receive acknowledgement in the next edition of this publication.

12 Ekim 2012 Cuma

Peru Vacations Essentials - Vaccinations - Travel

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If that you're considering Peru vacations, people absolutely have to find advised in relation to vaccinations.

Nothing is mandatory to help us in order to key in your country, but you should acquire specific injections get rid of a person's risks. Check out the tips beneath to make sure you will be prepared.

The following suggestions is actually general. You have to check a federal government webpage for example the United States Center pertaining to Disease Control. They can give a superb introduction to local trends and requirements concerning inoculations in addition to outbreaks with disease.

Once you have got all the details anyone need, pay some sort of visit in your health care provider or maybe travel clinic to find available that vaccinations you require, or perhaps those that need updating. You will need to go to four to 6 months ahead allowing moment for virtually every recommended vaccinations and also medications taking effect.

Below is really a synopsis associated with all shots expected pertaining to Peru vacations.

-Hepatitis A: Recommended for many travelersTyphoid: Recommended for all travelers.-Hepatitis B: Recommended for many travelers.-Yellow fever: Needed to get locations distance of the Andes mountains.Note: Yellow curse is not required regarding Lima, Cuzco as well as Machu Picchu.

-Rabies: For tourist investing many occasion outdoors, involved throughout virtually any routines that might bring these individuals into one on one get in touch with by using bats or with riskly coming from animal bites.-Measles, mumps and also rubella (MMR): Two doses advised for anyone tourist given birth to once 1956, or even previously given.-Tetanus-diphtheria: Re-vaccination essential every 10 years.

Malaria Despite considerably involving medical research, there is continue to simply no vaccine alongside malaria. Whilst uncommon, should you be viewing this districts inside the actual north along with jungle instances of Peru, you'll want to take precautions: Loreto, Madre de Dios, Ucayali, San Martin, Junin, Tumbes along with Piura.

If everyone usually are going to these areas of Peru, not often obtained must receive steps against malaria: Lima and it is vicinity, the particular coastal parts southwest connected with Lima, your highland vacationer spots (Cuzco, Machu Picchu, and Lake Titicaca), plus the sections regarding Arequipa, Moquegua, Puno, and Tacna.

Dengue a fever Mosquitoes can easily additionally monitor dengue fever. As along with malaria, zero vaccine is usually available. According to health authorities, make sure you consider safeguards in the event you visit your departments connected with Loreto, Ucayali, Cajamarca, and also Piura.

What would you do concerning Malaria and Dengue Fever? The best form of treatment can be deterrence of mosquito bites. Tourists on Peru trips in influenced parts will need to wear lengthy sleeved tops and also pants. Also proposed can be an insect repellant bottle of spray that contains 30 - 50% DEET. When sleeping, mosquito nets needs to be included in the particular jungle. Nets can be found together with additional DEET treatment.

It is likewise endorsed for you to receive a program of anti-malarial medicine to minimize the consequences regarding malaria should you need to 2 year contract it. Speak in your physician within the best program of treatment, seeing that there are lots of diverse possibilities open rather than every one work using many individuals and international malaria zones.

Do you are aware of any other excellent sources intended for Peru vaccinations online? What various other measures do a person take just before Peru vacations?

Gary Sargent is the Managing Director from the Escaped To Latin America Group. Gary possesses lived with Latin America since 1998 and is particularly a specialist in every elements Latino - this is why his customers hold expressing his tailor made toursare amazing. To purchase a FREE quote on your Latino vacation, ask for a discussion (and be eligible for a some sort of 5% discount) while using the using hyperlink -> /hPiJwY





Dengue Fever: Dengue Fever Vaccine Gets Tested

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Dengue fever, a possibly significant flu-like virus to the rise, may occur to become eradicated by a vaccine that's getting subjected to testing during Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Therefore, in case effective, this type of vaccine can realize a state of the art in dengue a fever treatment. In alternative words, just about 2.5 million people today inside about one hundred nations will be about to become infected through the following epidemic with many in the United States are going to be served beyond serious has effects on a result of this fever. The vaccine may be under investigation on the National Institute involving Allergy as well as Infectious Diseases and is particularly available to possibly be analyzed to the first phase with medical study and also so-called your safety phase. Dengue fever will be kicked away from through one among four viruses and is primarily transmitted simply by Aedes mosquitoes. Some persons are contaminated by means of flu-like signs or perhaps worse while others experience a gentle a fever and also nothing. This infection critically final results inside 50-100 trillion patients annually within tropical international locations and also 25,000 deaths, specifically within children. google_ad_client = "ca-pub-2311940475806896"; /* 336x280, developed 2/10/11 */ google_ad_slot = "4523807885"; google_ad_width = 336; google_ad_height = 280; Aedes mosquitoes are usually the reason for the cause of dengue curse epidemic. The mosquito transmits the illness by simply stinging a good infected particular person and then stinging others Larva involving Aedes mosquitoes Dengue hemorrhagic curse is a severe, frequently fatal, problem of dengue fever Dengue trojan (DV) Symptoms with dengue intense is often seen as being a excessive fever, rash, serious headache, pain powering the eyes, and muscular and combined pain A patient contaminated by dengue fever by using rash generally body There are generally lots of preventions from the herpes outbreak of dengue fever like as using mosquito repellents on skin color and clothing, stay away from heavily filled housing areas, or implementing bednets whenever slumbering parts are not tested as well as air-conditioned. In addition, with the growth of science, the media related to an innovative types of vaccine would bring wish to the common outcome regarding dengue fever which usually threatens human existence for ages. According to Dr. Anna Durbin, the leader of that review with Johns Hopkins, vaccination would be a more efficient plus cost-effective, along with there would have been a second action associated with screening using more volunteers evaluate the particular results of the vaccine. He additionally added which if successful, this vaccine would consider straight into effect within four coming years. Using many sprayers can be regarding good effectiveness to stop Aedes mosquitoes Preventions against dengue a fever using some tropical zones everywhere in the world Related links: World�s Scariest Diseases Dengue Fever Vaccine Developed within Thailand



Dengue: Causes And Treatment

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Dengue is often a viral illness that's caused by this bite of the Aedes aegypti mosquito that has bitten a strong infected themselves human being previously. Usually Dengue brings about throughout subtropical and also exotic locations along with boosting lots of instances in nations such as Singapore, India, the particular South Pacific,Southeast Asia, the actual West Indies, along with the Middle East such as Puerto Rico, Caribbean, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Cuba, along with Central America. Causes associated with Dengue Dengue causes with the transmission with Dengue Virus in the catch connected with Aedes mosquito which usually in general bites in the daytime time. DEN-1, DEN-2, DEN-3 plus DEN-4 will vary forms connected with Dengue creating viruses. A man or women contaminated by one virus could be attacked simply by other computer virus also. A mosquito uses blood coming from an infected themselves person using dengue then becomes themselves contaminated having the herpes virus thereby spreads alcoholism by injecting the attacked blood for the human body. Dengue is definitely more prevalent throughout infants in addition to young kids along with unlike different transmissions nicely nourished young children become more prone on the infection. Females become more almost certainly going to catch the actual infection as compared to males. Dengue brings about sudden-onset connected with fever, chills, head ache along with bulging along with important joints pain. The temperature may possibly increase about 104 F with diminished coronary heart price in addition to body pressure. Dengue Treatment There is usually no these kinds of cure chosen regarding Dengue. Dengue treatment entirely depends on it's symptoms. It can be recommended to look at lots of fluids for example Oral Rehydration Solution for clients along with average dehydration a result of vomiting and higher temperature in addition to total bed sleep for getting alleviation out of pain. google_ad_client = "pub-2311940475806896"; /* 300x250, designed 1/6/11 */ google_ad_slot = "0098904308"; google_ad_width = 300; google_ad_height = 250; The platelets be counted must be checked out on regular groundwork in order to avoid leucopenia. The Dengue Treatment is usually in essence symptomatic i.e. to cure the symptoms. Hospital admission becomes necessary only to provide Intravenous fluids for starterst and also a pair of days. To alleviate intense annoyance plus joints discomfort Paracetamol can be granted while pills including Aspirin and Bruphen need to be prevented as they might improve the probability associated with bleeding. If every on the clues for instance intense abdominal pain, passing of dark stools, bleeding in to the dermis or on the nose or even gums, sweating, and frigid body is discovered and then the sufferer must be hurried immediately towards hospital. Typically Dengue is not a critical disease. The serious cycle from the disease by using a fever and also muscular pains is maintained for about just one to be able to a pair of weeks. The period connected with restoration is usually alongside weak point plus finished recovery requires numerous weeks.



Dengue Fever and also Perfect Home Remedies pertaining to Dengue

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Dengue (pronounced den' gee) is often a disease due to every among three intimately related worms (DEN-1, DEN-2, DEN-3, as well as DEN-4). The trojans tend to be transmitting to humankind by the chew of your impure mosquito. In the particular Western Hemisphere, that Aedes aegypti mosquito is a primary transmitter or vector connected with dengue viruses. Also often known as breakbone fever, dengue fever is usually a new mosquito-borne illness that originates out of this Flavivirus virus. It is comparable to malaria, along with signs comprise lean muscle in addition to mutual pain, rashes, abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting and also diarrhea. Because there's no vaccine, dengue a fever great danger to humans. /home-remedies-for-swine-flu.htm Dengue fever, also referred to as breakbone fever, is a mosquito-borne virus which brings about some sort of serious flu-like illness. There are generally some different viruses that may trigger dengue fever, all of which multiply by way of particular kind of mosquito. Dengue Fever plus Dengue Haemorrhagic Fever (a a lot more acute form) is the a lot of prevalent mosquito-borne viral health conditions while in the world. Dengue Fever is definitely an condition the result of disorder which includes a computer virus transfers through the Aedes mosquito. There are some sorts of the following trojan (serotypes just one to 4) which could infect you. Symptoms connected with Dengue Fever After a small number of circumstances were long-established with Key West, South Florida health and fitness company are now being informed to always be within the safeguard those of you that could be transport dengue fever. According to the Health officials, very last august they will launch that review associated with antibodies once three dengue cases surface inside Key West. 1. Abrupt oncoming of huge curse which might depend on 105F 2. Nausea along with sickness 3. Severe headache 4. Severe joint as well as muscle tissue pain 5. Pain lurking behind the particular perspective (Retro-orbital pain). The pain may worsen using attention travels 6. Rash ---measles-like rash may get started over body in addition to prolong to upper and cheaper limbs Treatment of Dengue Fever Although no precise anti-viral pills or shot which could eliminate the actual dengue pathogen are generally presently available, good supportive caution in addition to therapy could possibly control its morbidity. There tend to be zero specific anti-viral pills and also injection that could kill your virus. However lots of loyal care plus activity might proceed a considerable ways saving a patient ache from dengue fever. Home Remedies intended for Dengue Fever If you do have a light sort of the actual disease, your doctor will advocate creating guaranteed to take adequate fluids in order to avoid dehydration from vomiting along with excessive fever. You can easily also consider acetaminophen (Tylenol, others) for soreness and fever. Avoid aspirin and also alternative very little steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, just like ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin, others) plus naproxen sodium (Aleve). These can improve the possibility connected with internal bleeding complication. If there is a far more severe model of the actual ailment, healing contains sympathetic caution inside a hospital. Such cares about you includes intravenous essential liquids and also electrolyte stand-in, preserving satisfactory blood difficulty in addition to swap bloodstream loss. If you've every kind of dengue fever, make sure you often be placed apart from mosquitoes, avoiding sending this disease that will others. Prevention No dengue a fever vaccine exists. If you might be livelihood as well as visiting in a region wherever dengue intense is known to be, an effective way and keep away from dengue a fever is to prevent getting bitten by simply mosquitoes this transport the actual disease. Read more on Baba Ramdev Herbal Products and Home Remedies for Swine Flu as well as Herbal Remedies



Dengue Fever Symptoms and Home Remedies regarding Dengue Fever

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The typical dengue rash is usually a capturing maculopapular rash with countries with sparing. A hemorrhagic rash associated with characteristically shiny purple pinpoint spots, often known as petechiae can certainly take place soon after throughout the sickness and is particularly regarding thrombocytopenia. It normally appears first to the lower limbs as well as the chest; in some patients, the idea develops to cover the majority of the body. Dengue intense is definitely a illness due to a family connected with germs that happen to be transmit by means of mosquitoes. It can be an acute illness of immediate onset that typically follows some sort of civilized training course with indications for example headache, fever, exhaustion, severe muscle plus joint pain, enlarged glands (lymphadenopathy), along with rash. Read much more about Swami Ramdev Medicines as well as Divya Giloy Sat along with Natural Supplements The profile (the "dengue triad") regarding fever, rash, as well as headache (and some other pains) is actually particularly feature with dengue. Dengue can be a high fever sleek by using a bite from a great infected themselves mosquito. In this high opinion it is comparable to malaria as well as a lots of this symptoms, cures in addition to treatments are either a similar or perhaps similar. Dengue will be transmitting by way of the actual bite of an Aedes mosquito dirty with any on the list of four dengue viruses. It happens around tropical plus sub-tropical instances of your world. Symptoms show up 3�14 a short time following the infective bite. Dengue temperature is really a feverish health problems that will has effects on infants, child plus adults. Dengue (pronounced den' gee) is often a ailment the result of any considered one of a number of closely associated germs (DEN-1, DEN-2, DEN-3, or maybe DEN-4). The germs are transmitting to mankind because of the catch of an afflicted mosquito. In the actual Western Hemisphere, this Aedes aegypti mosquito is the total transmitter as well as vector involving dengue viruses. Causes regarding Dengue Dengue intense will be caused by just about any one among four dengue infections multiply from the Aedes aegypti mosquito. These mosquitoes blossom inside and also in close proximity to people habitations where some people reproduce around even the actual cleanest water. Mosquitoes transfer the particular malware between the two between humans. When your mosquito attacks anyone infected which includes a dengue virus, genital herpes gets into your mosquito's bloodstream. Symptoms regarding Dengue Fever 1. High fever, up to 105 F (40.6 C) 2. A rash above the majority of your body, which may cave in after some nights after which reappear 3. Severe headache, backache or both 4. Pain behind your eyes 5. Severe joint as well as muscle tissue pain 6. Nausea as well as vomiting Treatment connected with Dengue Fever Some audience have expected the reason why we've got created so numerous websites concerning herbal dengue remedy when it does not are most often a big problems in numerous places, for example the actual USA. Keep reading to identify the issues when you be informed on dengue if you already live in one place that doesn't generally possess dengue fever. Home Remedies with regard to Dengue Fever If there are a mild form belonging to the disease, a family doctor will advocate formation certain to take plenty of fluids in order to avoid dehydration from vomiting and excessive fever. You could also have acetaminophen (Tylenol, others) with regard to pain and fever. Avoid aspirin or maybe various other absolutely no steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, including ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin, others) and naproxen sodium (Aleve). These can enhance this danger associated with internal bleeding complication. If there is a additional intense type of your ailment, remedy contains sympathetic attention in a very hospital. Such cares about you includes intravenous bodily fluids and electrolyte stand-in, retaining adequate blood difficulty and change blood vessels loss. If you possess almost any model of dengue fever, you may even often be kept away from mosquitoes, avoiding transfer the disease in order to others.



11 Ekim 2012 Perşembe

Day 299 - Zinc

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“Along with calcium and iron, zinc is probably the most important mineral to the human body. Zinc plays a crucial role in growth and cell division where it is required for protein and DNA synthesis, in insulin activity, in the metabolism of the ovaries and testes, and in liver function. It is particularly important for healthy skin and is essential for a healthy immune system and resistance to infection, as it helps with the healing of wounds. As a component of many enzymes, zinc is involved in the metabolism of proteins, carbohydrates, lipids and energy.

Our body contains about 2-3g of zinc. There are no specific storage sites known for zinc and so a regular supply in the diet is required. Zinc is found in all parts of our body, 60% is found in muscle, 30% in bone and about 5% in our skin. Particularly high concentrations are in the prostate gland and semen. Men need more zinc than women because male semen contains 100 times more zinc than is found in the blood. The more sexually active a man the more zinc he will require.

The first signs of zinc deficiency are impairment of taste, a poor immune response and skin problems. Other symptoms of zinc deficiency can include hair loss, diarrhoea, fatigue, delayed wound healing, and decreased growth rate and mental development in infants. It is thought that zinc supplementation can help skin conditions such as acne and eczema, prostate problems, anorexia nervosa, alcoholics and those suffering from trauma or post-surgery.

Zinc is contained in a wide range of foods but the richest sources are meat (lamb in particular), oats, eggs, nuts and oysters. Only 20% of the zinc present in the diet is actually absorbed by the body. Dietary fibre and phytic acid, found in bran, wholegrain cereals, pulses and nuts, inhibit zinc absorption. Phytic acid forms a highly insoluble complex with zinc which the body cannot absorb. Cooking processes can reduce the adverse effects of both phytic acid and dietary fibre on zinc absorption. Baking can destroy over half the phytic acid in wholemeal bread.

Zinc deficiency occurs where a large part of the diet consists of unleavened bread, such as Iran and other Middle East countries. High levels of the toxic mineral cadmium can also prevent zinc absorption because these two minerals compete for absorption. Conversely high levels of zinc in the diet can prevent the absorption of cadmium. Various chemicals added to many processed foods can also reduce zinc absorption eg phosphates, EDTA. Zinc is lost via the faeces, urine, hair, skin, sweat, semen and also menstruation.”*
*http://www.womenrepublic.co.uk/diet_fitness/zinc/
http://www.vegsoc.org/info/zinc.html

I have been off the blogging radar for a few weeks - I have managed to start working again! What excitement at the age of 25. The headache seems to have stabilized itself to about 3 to 4/10 (when standing) which is great. When lying down it continues to be worse, about 6/10.

I have been seeing the kinesiologist on a regular basis, who has been looking at a number of headache causes from cranial faults to vitamin deficiencies. I am now taking zinc supplements. I recently learned that a zinc deficiency can cause, or certainly exacerbate, everything from acne to diabetes. This is because zinc is needed by the body to make insulin (the hormone that regulates glucose levels in the blood), eliminate harmful toxins, and to maintain a healthy immune system.

Yesterday I also went to see one of the top neurologists at Queen’s Square in London, reputedly the place to go when you’ve given up with everyone else. I was surprised the doctor was glad to hear I was not taking any medication; he encouraged me to continue without, given my progress in the past few months.

“There are a number of patients in the ward upstairs who have had a headache for twenty years” he told me. “They have all been on heavy medication for all that time, and you have no idea how much worse their headache is now as a result of that”. He did, however, give me some suggestions as to what to take should the headache get worse again and should I decide to start taking some medicines. It was certainly refreshing to hear a doctor of western medicine encourage me to “see where your natural path takes you”.

He also explained that given my family’s history of migraines, he believes it is perfectly normal to have started suffering from a headache/migraine at my age, in particular given that I am female. He explained that sometimes these bizarre constant headaches go away by themselves, while other times they stay... for a long, long time.

Day 310 - Probiotics

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“Probiotics are bacteria that help maintain the natural balance of organisms (microflora) in the intestines. The normal human digestive tract contains about 400 types of probiotic bacteria that reduce the growth of harmful bacteria and promote a healthy digestive system. The largest group of probiotic bacteria in the intestine is lactic acid bacteria, of which Lactobacillus acidophilus, is the best known.

It has been suggested that probiotics be used to treat problems in the stomach and intestines. But only certain types of bacteria or yeast (called strains) have been shown to work in the digestive tract.

In most circumstances, people use probiotics to prevent diarrhea caused by antibiotics. Antibiotics kill "good" (beneficial) bacteria along with the bacteria that cause illness. A decrease in beneficial bacteria may lead to diarrhea. Taking probiotic supplements (as capsules, powder, or liquid extract) may help replace the lost beneficial bacteria and thus help prevent diarrhea.

A decrease in beneficial bacteria may also lead to development of other infections, such as vaginal yeast and urinary tract infections, and symptoms such as diarrhea from intestinal illnesses.”

*
http://www.webmd.com/digestive-disorders/tc/probiotics-topic-overview

Those of you who regularly read my blog will know that I write a new post either when I have explored a new avenue as a possible cause for my headache, or when someone has suggested looking at a specific factor that may be contributing to the pain.

I have now run out of avenues to explore. I have not come across anything else, whether this be through research or by talking to others, that I have not looked at.

I am still clueless.

But I am still taking my supplements, and feel that the probiotics the kinesiologist suggested taking are somewhat alleviating my pain. Having said that, I do not know if it happens to be a coincidence that my headache seems to have been alright for the past couple of weeks or if it is actually better because of the probiotics themselves. I did take them a few months ago and, if I am not mistaken, I did feel better during that time.

My zinc drops that I ordered over three weeks ago have, nonetheless, not arrived thanks to the postal strike. Thank you Royal Mail.

On the low pain days I feel full of life and energy, ready to live the day ahead to the max. One temporarily forgets about the severe pain, and it’s not until it returns that you realize just how bad it is.

The other day somebody told me that - strange as it may sound and difficult as it may be - I have to start to befriend my pain, as this will help me come to terms with it. It may also help me get less worked up about it as the pain itself causes stress. Given that I have no answer and am not able to justify what I am living through, it angers me, thereby making me stressed.

I now have to try and befriend the pain and almost treat it as if it were one of my peers - given that I need to spend all day and all night with it, it’s best if I consider it a friend as opposed to an enemy. I have tried, and it’s not as easy as it sounds, especially when the pain intensifies and all I want to do is bang my head against the wall and tell the headache to stop tormenting me...

Day 326 - A little bit of Hope ... for the best or for the worst?

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“Hope is a belief in a positive outcome related to events and circumstances in one's life. Hope is the feeling that what is wanted can be had or that events will turn out for the best.

Hope was personified in Greek mythology as Elpis. When Pandora opened Pandora’s Box, she let out all the evils except one: hope. Apparently, the Greeks considered hope to be as dangerous as all the world's evils. But without hope to accompany all their troubles, humanity was filled with despair. It was a great relief when Pandora revisited her box and let out hope as well. It may be worthy to note that in the story, hope is represented as weakly leaving the box but is in effect far more potent than any of the major evils.

In 'Human, All Too Human', philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche argued that "Zeus did not want man to throw his life away, no matter how much the other evils might torment him, but rather to go on letting himself be tormented anew. To that end, he gives man hope. In truth, it is the most evil of evils because it prolongs man's torment.”*

*http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hope

Once again, I have been relatively silent for a couple of weeks. I don’t have anything to report. Or should I say I do? I still have a headache. It has oscillated between 3 and 4 so I can’t really complain. I have been keeping myself busy as I have now managed to start working again - it feels great to finally do something I enjoy (with a constant headache nonetheless).

I keep on wondering, though, who I should ‘warn’ about my headache. It’s a hard decision to make especially in a work environment - what if once you tell those you work with they don’t see you in the same light anymore? What if they worry you’ll call off sick the whole time if the strong attacks return? Is it wise to tell your colleagues about it? Probably not?

Who would you tell if you had a constant headache? Would you tell everyone about it so that they could try and understand (although as far as I am concerned no one ever will) what it is like?

I am torn between telling people and keeping it as a secret. It has got to a point where when I earn some money I am happy that I finally have some cash ‘for me and the headache’. The headache has virtually become my child. I need to earn money to keep the headache at bay, as if it were a little person living with me, someone else I need to look after. Acupuncture, supplements, kinesiologist... / Nappies, baby food, clothes... We’re not too far off when it comes to comparing the two.

On the one hand, I feel I want people to know about my headache for a number of reasons; first of all, maybe they know someone who is living or has lived through a similar thing - perhaps they could put me in touch with them and they will give me the ‘solution’? This is where I always feel there’s a bit of hope. A feeling that I have harboured for 11 months. For the best or for the worst? The feeling is always there but it's constantly being poked at with disappointment.

Secondly, I feel that I should tell people so that if at times I am in an irascible mood then they will know why. I always try my best not to let the headache affect my relationship with others but sometimes it is hard. When you think your head is going to explode and someone is talking to you about something you perhaps don’t even want to listen to because they are so boring and you wish nothing else but for them to disappear and for you to slowly sink into the ground, then it’s hard not to be querulous and lose your patience with them (yes, it has happened to me on a number of occasions).

Having said that, other times I would rather people not know about my headache. I don’t want anyone to feel sorry for me and to treat me differently. Why should they?

Since the headache started 11 months ago, when meeting someone new, I have always told myself that they will never know what I am really like as the headache sometimes affects my behaviour; at times it transforms me into someone I am not and I hate it for that. Nonetheless, deep down I know that who I am is really still me and that they should like me whether I have a headache or not. But I can’t avoid thinking about whether I would act differently around them were I not to have a headache.

Day 365 - The Weather

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“The weather has long been suspected of affecting people's health. Cold damp days can mean aching bones and joints for arthritis sufferers and a long hot spell can result in lost workdays for migraine sufferers. There is mounting evidence that certain health problems are aggravated or even brought on by the weather.

Some studies have suggested that migraine sufferers seem to be more susceptible to changes in the weather. Anything from temperature to humidity to barometric pressure can impact migraines. One of the theories suggested as to why weather impacts migraines is related to oxygen levels. Any changes in pressure affect oxygen levels and it is thought that this may be the mechanism by which headaches occur following certain weather patterns. Blood vessels in the head constrict and expand, leading to the throbbing head pain that is characteristic of a migraine.


The specific weather patterns that trigger migraines seem to yield mixed results. Some migraine sufferers find they react to changes in temperature while others find air pressure to strongly impact migraine frequency and severity. Many migraine sufferers also find humidity to be the deciding factor and still others experience headaches prompted by a combination of weather factors.


One study found that high heat and humidity combined with low pressure led to headaches. Intense cold is also a trigger for some migraine sufferers. There is also the suggestion that it is not so much the weather type itself but the change that accounts for headaches. This means that an abrupt change will trigger a migraine rather than a gradual seasonal change. A bright sunny day followed by a cold rainy one could thus prompt a migraine for some people. This is possibly due to an increased sensitivity in the brains of those who suffer from migraines.


The studies show that migraines are more prevalent in locations where warmer air is moving in. Chronic pain sufferers are most affected by changes in temperature, humidity, precipitation and sudden changes in the weather.”


Fast Facts


- Migraines tend to be more prevalent under two types of weather conditions: when the weather becomes more humid and cooler; and during long hot spells.


- Chronic pain sufferers are most affected by changes in temperature, humidity, precipitation and sudden changes in the weather.


- Arthritis acts up with strong atmospheric cooling and is influenced by dampness.
Depression is more prevalent in the warm sector of a weather system.

*http://www.ec.gc.ca/EnviroZine/english/issues/15/feature2_e.cfm
http://www.headacheexpert.co.uk/CanTheWeatherCauseHeadaches.html

It is the headache’s first year anniversary today. What can I say? Who would have thought I would still have a headache a year later? Who would even think it possible? I dread to think how long it will go on for. Maybe it will never leave me. I guess the positive thing (if we can call it positive) is that I have learned to live with it - I am really trying not to make it affect my every day life, whether this be in terms of where I work or how long I go out for in the evenings with my friends. After all I am still very young and have a life to live.

I have been based in Russia for work for the past few weeks and the headache has certainly improved. The cold dry climate has helped - I haven’t had any severe attacks, and the headache has been stable at about 2/10 to 3/10 which is perfectly bearable. Obviously not normal but I can put up with it.

When walking around in extreme temperatures (-25C), the cold appears to block the headache, nearly freeze it, shall we say, rendering it numb. The cold air gives the impression it’s cleansing your lungs and even helping the blood circulate in your head. It’s so cold that you can’t feel the pain, until you walk into a building again and you realize the headache never really left you. The possibility of being able to temporarily numb the pain - albeit in extreme temperatures - has made me start to love the cold.

I certainly think the weather has played a part in my well being, although I also believe it’s thanks to the supplements the kinesiologist gave me and that I have now been taking for the past few months.

I returned to London a few days ago and the headache seems to have dropped down to a 4/10-5/10 which leads me to think that the weather has influenced the severity of my headache. Whether this is due to the difference in temperature itself or simply because of the dry air - or a combination of both -, I do not know. On the other hand, it may just be a pure coincidence as the headache has been at its best for the past couple of months, and I may just be having a little bit of a relapse...

Day 1285 - It's All In Your Head

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"Many people know about other contributing factors such as heredity, food triggers, lack of sleep, poor posture, etc., but are not aware of any psychological connection.
Headache specialists report that many of their patients resist any discussion of emotional or psychological contributors to their recurrent headaches. Some people fear that pursuing this avenue could uncover evidence of "mental illness." Others feel that the existence of these factors would make their pain less real because it would then be "all in their heads". In just about all cases, neither of these 2 things is true!

Headache is definitely a biological disorder. However, since the body and the mind are interconnected, your emotional and psychological states can have an effect on your overall health, including your headaches. Here's why:

- When your emotional and psychological systems are in good working order, they help to create a positive environment that contributes to the health of your body.
- When these systems aren't working so well...for example, if you feel anxious, depressed or angry on a frequent basis — and especially if you find it difficult to shake these feelings — a negative environment can be created in your body that may contribute to a specific headache episode or create a fertile breeding ground for headaches to occur.

The relationship between anxiety, depression and headache is not fully understood. However, it is known that the brain chemical serotonin plays a role in all of them. Some headache specialists have theorized that these disorders may share a common mechanism in the brain.

Research has shown that some chronic headache sufferers also suffer from depression and/or anxiety. It is important to note that these sufferers' psychological conditions may not be caused by their headaches. Rather, tendencies towards depression or anxiety may be inherent in their personalities or ways of thinking. Or, they may be the result of an intense and prolonged level of stress which may lead to psychological conditions such as anxiety or depression. Regardless of the cause, having frequent headaches and feeling a lack of control over them may cause an existing condition of depression or anxiety to worsen. This situation can easily snowball, creating a vicious cycle of headache and emotional distress.

Unfortunately, emotional and psychological factors are often not considered in the treatment of headache. Doctors (especially those who are not headache specialists) tend to emphasize medical treatment — and rightly so. This is the traditional "first line of defense" and is effective for most headache patients. So is appropriate to start — and, for most, to stop — there. Also, some doctors today are cautious not to focus on psychological factors during the earlier stages of headache treatment — possibly overcompensating for the days when many doctors treated patients as if the pain was "all in their heads."
Doctors who do bring up psychological contributors as a possibility often find that their patients want to avoid psychological treatment, fearing a "mentally ill" diagnosis or having a concern that the presence of these factors would mean that their headaches are not a serious medical problem. This is very unfortunate because nothing could be farther from the truth!"*
*http://www.excedrin.com/psychological-contributors-to-headaches.shtml


It has taken me over three years to write this post.

When the headache started - which now seems all those years ago - I went to see a psychologist about it. The headache had exacerbated to such a degree that I was unable to work and felt completely depressed about my situation. After telling her about the distress that the headache had caused, she looked at me, arms gently folded over her lap, and stated “It must be such a headache having this pain!” and gave a little chuckle. I brushed aside this silly joke, ignoring it and thinking that maybe she had unintentionally let it out. However, when the very same joke repeated itself over the course of the next sessions, I felt hurt, frustrated and angry that a person contending to be there to help could actually end up aggravating a situation. I could bear it no longer and after a few sessions I left. That was the last of any psychological treatment I have undergone.

The possibility of the headache being related to a close friend’s death which took place a few months before the onset of my headache, has crossed my mind more than once. But nearly four years down the line I do not think the headache is related to this, or at least entirely to this. It is possible that I have not yet recovered from the shock of losing such a close friend. I truly believe there is a strong link between body and mind and that a traumatic event can undoubtedly have consequences on one’s body. The passage above taken from a Headache Centre webpage discusses this in further detail. Just today I also came across an article on the BBC website on a similar topic.

The reason it has taken me so long to write anything on this is that I am unable to draw the line between the “it could be a psychologically caused headache ” to a “it’s all in your head” (i.e. fictional). I am certain, from the manner in which this question is usually addressed to me, that by ‘psychological’ the word ‘fictional’ is intended. Does anyone feel the same?

10 Ekim 2012 Çarşamba

Day 386 - Heavy Metal Toxicity

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"Heavy metal toxicity is an excessive build-up of metals in the body. Oftentimes, the vague symptoms produced by heavy metal toxicity are mistakenly misdiagnosed as incurable chronic conditions. The most common heavy metals that humans are exposed to are aluminum, arsenic, cadmium, lead, and mercury.

Heavy metals are found in everyday existence and are frequently hard to avoid entirely. Most people can excrete toxic heavy metals from the body successfully. However, some people—especially those who suffer from chronic conditions—cannot excrete them efficiently enough and a build-up occurs. Recent research also reveals that those who cannot excrete heavy metals efficiently appear to be genetically predisposed to this condition.

When numerous metals are present in the body, they have a “synergistic toxicity.” Dr. Boyd Haley, professor and chair of the chemistry department at the University of Kentucky, performed a study on rats and found that the mortality rate of rats exposed to a small dose of mercury or aluminum killed only 1 rat in 100. However, when the rats were exposed to both mercury and aluminum at the same time, all 100 rats died—a 100% mortality rate.

Heavy metal toxicity can result from either acute or chronic exposure to heavy metals.

Acute exposure can occur as a result of:

- Receiving vaccinations that contain thimerosal (mercury preservative)
- Mishandled metals at a job site
- Chemical and heavy metal spills–even from a broken mercury thermometer

Chronic exposure happens over a period of time, and includes:

- Having mercury amalgams (“silver fillings”) in teeth
- Living in a home built prior to 1978 that has lead-based paint
- Smoking and/or inhaling second-hand smoke
- Eating foods (such as contaminated fish) that contain high levels of heavy metals
- Living near a landfill
- Working in an environment where exposure is prevalent, such as at a dentist’s office where amalgam is used to fill cavities"*

*http://www.jigsawhealth.com/resources/heavy-metal-toxicity

I had a bit of a flare up last week but nothing major (probably about 6/10) but other than that I have been doing well at about 2/10. No complaints. I am also back in the cold dry Russian weather which so far has kept the headache down to a 2/10.

When I returned to Europe in December for a few weeks the headache seemed to fluctuate a bit more and oscillate (randomly, of course) between 2/10 and 5/10 but after a few days it seemed to stabilize at about 2/10.

I went to see the kinesiologist again a few days ago. I appeared to ‘weaken’ to a homeopathic remedy of metals which implies a possible metal toxicity. Incidentally, the nutritionist I saw a few months ago had mentioned the possibility of taking a herbal remedy for metal toxicity as she had told me this could be the cause of my headache.

I ‘tested’ well for Cilantro (Coriandrum Sativum), a plant used in cases of metal toxicity, and I am now taking 20 drops of it three times a day.

The most common form of metal toxicity is via tooth fillings, of which I have none (luckily). But there are, of course, many other causes of metal toxicity such as those mentioned above, the most common of which is by far receiving vaccinations that contain thimerosal, a mercury preservative.

Given that we have all received vaccinations, it is not surprising that there are so many undetected illnesses out there that could originate precisely from injections that most people deem beneficial to their long term health.

Day 400 - Vaccines & Thimerosal

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“Vaccines are medications that are designed to stimulate the body's immune system to generate a response that will protect the individual from disease by the pathogen in question. The first vaccination was performed in 1796 by the British physician Edward Jenner who had noticed that dairy maids who had had cowpox infection (Vacca = cow in Latin) did not succumb to the deadly smallpox infection that was claiming many lives at the time. To test his theory, Jenner infected his gardener's son, James Phipps, with cowpox and then weeks later attempted to infect him with the deadly smallpox. Happily, James survived the experience and was protected from infection and thus the practice of vaccination was born.

The body's immune system is comprised of two arms - antibody-mediated immunity and cell-mediated immunity. All vaccines developed in the last 50 years probably protect by stimulating a potent antibody response. However, for pathogens that live within cells of the body, where antibodies can't reach, it is likely that cell-mediated immunity is required for protection. Examples of such pathogens include malaria, TB and HIV. Each of these is a huge global health problem claiming millions of lives each year for which there is no effective vaccine.

Thimerosal, a preservative used in vaccines, contains 49.6 percent mercury by weight and is metabolized or degraded into ethylmercury and thiosalicylate. Mercury, or more precisely, ethylmercury, is the principle agent that kills contaminants. Studies indicate that mercury tends to accumulate in the brains of primates and other animals after they are injected with vaccines.

Mercury poisoning has been linked to cardiovascular disease, autism, seizures, mental retardation, hyperactivity, dyslexia and many other nervous system conditions. That's why the FDA rigorously limits exposure to mercury in foods and drugs. Some common sources of mercury include dental amalgam fillings, various vaccines and certain fish contaminated by polluted ocean waters.”*

*http://www.malaria-vaccines.org.uk/2.shtml
http://www.naturalnews.com/011764_mercury_thimerosal_vaccines.html
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4472485.stm

Having written a post about heavy metal toxicity and having read more about the relation between mercury and vaccines, I thought I’d share some thoughts with you.

I remember talking to some friends a few months ago when swine flu seemed to be the next epidemic that would wipe out half the world’s population (ah, the media!). I remember saying that I would never dream of taking a swine flu vaccine not only because of the amount of poisonous metals (namely thimerosal) contained in the vaccine itself, but also because the vaccine had never been tested before, and thus the long term effects are unknown.

A few weeks before having that conversation, I had watched a video (you can click on it above) on the 1976 swine flu propaganda. The outbreak was a strain of H1N1 influenza virus and prompted vast mass immunization in the United States, mainly due to the advertising campaigns broadcast on television which propelled most Americans to immediately get a vaccine. As you will be able to see in the video above, the consequences were disastrous.

I find this whole topic fascinating, in particular as no one is ever warned of the possible side effects of having a vaccine. How many of you are ever warned of any possible dangers following your vaccinations? The only thing I have ever been in told is that I may feel a bit dizzy and weak afterwards, but that’s about it. We’re not warned of the possible long term effects these injections may have on us.

As I was doing some research online, I came across a site which explained that a study conducted in 1999 revealed that some infants, due to a genetic or developmental factor, lack the ability to eliminate mercury. Trace amounts of mercury in these infants, when accumulated over several vaccines, could pose a severe health risk.

Because of this some countries (including the UK) have banned the use of thimerosal in some - but not all - vaccines. According to an article I stumbled across on the BBC webpage, only hepatitis B and influenza in the UK programme now contain thimerosal.*

More and more scientists have found links between thimerosal and neurological damage, including higher incidence of measles, mumps and rubella vaccine (MMR) antibodies in autistic children. Surely the link between those developing autism post vaccines is no coincidence? Needless to say, there are plenty of doctors, including the spokeswoman for the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, who believe that “There is strong evidence to show that thimerosal in vaccines does not cause neurodevelopmental problems." There seems to be plenty of evidence that points to the contrary...

Could my headache be linked to metals that my body is finding hard to eliminate? Possibly.

Day 428 - Pain

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'We forget very easily what gives us pain.' - Graham Greene

"Pain is a simple enough concept to grasp. You stub your toe, shout, perhaps utter a few expletives, rub it better and it eventually fades. But neuroscientists are realising that pain is much more complex than anyone thought possible, comprising not just physical sensations, but emotional ones too. Pioneering studies are providing insights into why some people experience debilitating chronic pain long after an injury has healed, as well as why some are more prone to pain than others, and why certain people never recover from bereavement.


While most pain goes away as an injury gets better, sometimes it remains for months or even years, long outlasting its original purpose. Chronic physical pain is debilitating and can cause disability, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. It is also very common.

No one really knows why some people experience chronic pain and others do not, but imaging studies at Northwestern University, Chicago, have found a series of abnormalities in the brains of chronic pain sufferers in which the part linked to decision-making (the prefrontal cortex) is reduced, while an area of the prefrontal cortex linked to emotion is hyperactive. What is known for certain is that the brain changes in those with chronic pain so that they experience pain differently from the way they did before.

We all have a system for suppressing pain when necessary so that we can flee attackers even when injured. Those who suffer from chronic pain appear unable to access this and cannot use distraction as a means of suppressing pain; their brains seem to amplify pain signals rather than inhibit them.

Neuroscience is also revealing a host of similarities between emotional and physical pain. Professor David Alexander, the director of the Aberdeen Centre for Trauma Research, is not surprised about the link between physical and emotional pain. “If you listen to people who are damaged emotionally, they will often translate their pain into physical similes: ‘my head is bursting, my guts are aching', and so on. The parallel is very strong.”*

*http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/health/article4397377.ece
As I have mentioned on a number of occasions, the headache has created paradoxical feelings in me - on the one hand, I feel I want people to know about it as it could justify any incongruous behaviour, such as feeling dejected, short tempered or angry at inappropriate times; on the other hand, I don’t want people to know about it as I don’t want them to see me any differently than they would someone else.

But even those who know, after a while, stop asking you how you are, they stop asking about your headache, because they forget. But the awful thing is that I can never forget because the headache is always with me.

It’s odd, though, how easily one forgets about pain - when the headache is at its strongest you are taken aback by the amount of pain it causes because in that intermittent period of time in which the pain was bearable, you forgot how bad it really was.

And in a similar way, people forget, because most of us who have these inexplicable headaches don’t tend to have any other visible symptoms, which naturally leads people to forget about the fact that you’re in constant pain. But we ourselves are incapable of forgetting about our headache, because it never leaves us.

Many people have asked me if I can forget about the pain, but how can you? Sometimes you get distracted for a few minutes and of course you focus on something else, but the pain is always there, always reminding you of its presence. It makes you wonder if another person would be able to cope any better. Would they be able to put up with the pain too? How used to the pain have I got? According to a study mentioned above, the brain changes in those with chronic pain so that they experience pain differently from the way they did before. This makes me question how much (or how little) I feel pain in comparison to others. I sometimes wonder what would happen if someone else lived in my body - how long would they be able to put up with the pain for before handing it back to me and imploring me to take it?

I just cannot imagine what it would be like not to have a headache. I can picture an immediate feeling of lightness. Just imagine! My head always feels so heavy, so burdensome.

Day 449 - Swearing

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"That muttered curse word that reflexively comes out when you stub your toe could actually make it easier to bear the throbbing pain, a new study suggests. Swearing is a common response to pain, but no previous research has connected the uttering of an expletive to the actual physical experience of pain.

"Swearing has been around for centuries and is an almost universal human linguistic phenomenon," said Richard Stephens of Keele University in England and one of the authors of the new study. "It taps into emotional brain centers and appears to arise in the right brain, whereas most language production occurs in the left cerebral hemisphere of the brain."

Stephens and his fellow Keele researchers John Atkins and Andrew Kingston sought to test how swearing would affect an individual's tolerance to pain. Because swearing often has an exaggerating effect that can overstate the severity of pain, the team thought that swearing would lessen a person's tolerance. As it turned out, the opposite seems to be true.

The researchers enlisted 64 undergraduate volunteers and had them submerge their hand in a tub of ice water for as long as possible while repeating a swear word of their choice. The experiment was then repeated with the volunteer repeating a more common word that they would use to describe a table.

Contrary to what the researcher expected, the volunteers kept their hands submerged longer while repeating the swear word. The researchers think that the increase in pain tolerance occurs because swearing triggers the body's natural “fight-or flight” response. Stephens and his colleagues suggest that swearing may increase aggression (seen in accelerated heart rates), which downplays weakness to appear stronger or more macho. "Our research shows one potential reason why swearing developed and why it persists," Stephens said."*

*http://www.livescience.com/health/090712-swearing-pain.html
I have not posted for a while as the headache has been at its best for the past few weeks - up until a few days ago. I got a bit of a cold and since then the headache seems to have partly shifted to the left hand side which is proving to be a complete and utter nightmare as I am not used to the pain being there. I can’t even seem to be able to figure out what level out of 10 it is as the pain has never been on the left hand side for so long.

The other day, when it first moved about, I had a headache on top of the headache. That was a bit of a nightmare - it’s incredible what the body can get used to, and how one can feel two headaches simultaneously. It’s hard to explain unless you have experienced it first hand. I am sure that before the headache started I would not have been able to imagine experiencing two headaches concurrently.

And, once again, I forgot how bad the headache was - when it subsides you can never really picture how forceful the pain had previously been.

I also woke up a few days ago with an unbelievable pain in my teeth and jaw. I felt as if I had spent the night furiously grinding my teeth (I still regularly wear the mouth guard I was given by the dentist one year ago) - not sure if it was due to the headache pain, or possibly just a bad nightmare. Rather odd though as I woke up with my teeth and gums in complete agony. This makes me think the headache could be related to the jaw, but I have had that tested on various occasions and it doesn’t seem to be that..

Let’s just hope all the pain moves back to the right as I feel I am able to cope with it much better when it’s on that side - I guess, once again, it just goes to show how used to pain we become. Maybe I should just swear more to make the pain more tolerable, as the study above seems to suggest.

Day 1285 - It's All In Your Head

To contact us Click HERE

"Many people know about other contributing factors such as heredity, food triggers, lack of sleep, poor posture, etc., but are not aware of any psychological connection.
Headache specialists report that many of their patients resist any discussion of emotional or psychological contributors to their recurrent headaches. Some people fear that pursuing this avenue could uncover evidence of "mental illness." Others feel that the existence of these factors would make their pain less real because it would then be "all in their heads". In just about all cases, neither of these 2 things is true!

Headache is definitely a biological disorder. However, since the body and the mind are interconnected, your emotional and psychological states can have an effect on your overall health, including your headaches. Here's why:

- When your emotional and psychological systems are in good working order, they help to create a positive environment that contributes to the health of your body.
- When these systems aren't working so well...for example, if you feel anxious, depressed or angry on a frequent basis — and especially if you find it difficult to shake these feelings — a negative environment can be created in your body that may contribute to a specific headache episode or create a fertile breeding ground for headaches to occur.

The relationship between anxiety, depression and headache is not fully understood. However, it is known that the brain chemical serotonin plays a role in all of them. Some headache specialists have theorized that these disorders may share a common mechanism in the brain.

Research has shown that some chronic headache sufferers also suffer from depression and/or anxiety. It is important to note that these sufferers' psychological conditions may not be caused by their headaches. Rather, tendencies towards depression or anxiety may be inherent in their personalities or ways of thinking. Or, they may be the result of an intense and prolonged level of stress which may lead to psychological conditions such as anxiety or depression. Regardless of the cause, having frequent headaches and feeling a lack of control over them may cause an existing condition of depression or anxiety to worsen. This situation can easily snowball, creating a vicious cycle of headache and emotional distress.

Unfortunately, emotional and psychological factors are often not considered in the treatment of headache. Doctors (especially those who are not headache specialists) tend to emphasize medical treatment — and rightly so. This is the traditional "first line of defense" and is effective for most headache patients. So is appropriate to start — and, for most, to stop — there. Also, some doctors today are cautious not to focus on psychological factors during the earlier stages of headache treatment — possibly overcompensating for the days when many doctors treated patients as if the pain was "all in their heads."
Doctors who do bring up psychological contributors as a possibility often find that their patients want to avoid psychological treatment, fearing a "mentally ill" diagnosis or having a concern that the presence of these factors would mean that their headaches are not a serious medical problem. This is very unfortunate because nothing could be farther from the truth!"*
*http://www.excedrin.com/psychological-contributors-to-headaches.shtml


It has taken me over three years to write this post.

When the headache started - which now seems all those years ago - I went to see a psychologist about it. The headache had exacerbated to such a degree that I was unable to work and felt completely depressed about my situation. After telling her about the distress that the headache had caused, she looked at me, arms gently folded over her lap, and stated “It must be such a headache having this pain!” and gave a little chuckle. I brushed aside this silly joke, ignoring it and thinking that maybe she had unintentionally let it out. However, when the very same joke repeated itself over the course of the next sessions, I felt hurt, frustrated and angry that a person contending to be there to help could actually end up aggravating a situation. I could bear it no longer and after a few sessions I left. That was the last of any psychological treatment I have undergone.

The possibility of the headache being related to a close friend’s death which took place a few months before the onset of my headache, has crossed my mind more than once. But nearly four years down the line I do not think the headache is related to this, or at least entirely to this. It is possible that I have not yet recovered from the shock of losing such a close friend. I truly believe there is a strong link between body and mind and that a traumatic event can undoubtedly have consequences on one’s body. The passage above taken from a Headache Centre webpage discusses this in further detail. Just today I also came across an article on the BBC website on a similar topic.

The reason it has taken me so long to write anything on this is that I am unable to draw the line between the “it could be a psychologically caused headache ” to a “it’s all in your head” (i.e. fictional). I am certain, from the manner in which this question is usually addressed to me, that by ‘psychological’ the word ‘fictional’ is intended. Does anyone feel the same?

9 Ekim 2012 Salı

Day 500 - Occipital Neuralgia

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“Occipital neuralgia is a term used to describe a cycle of pain-spasm-pain originating from the suboccipital area (base) of the skull that often radiates to the back, front, and side of the head, as well as behind the eyes.

The occipital nerves are two pairs of nerves that originate in the area of the second and third vertebrae of the neck. While most people's nerve roots originate in similar places on the spine, cadaver studies show a wide variety of differences between individuals as to the course of the nerves once they leave the spinal column. Often the nerves follow a curving course that passes through various muscles in the upper back, neck and head.

These nerves supply areas of the skin along the base of the skull and partially behind the ear. While the occipital nerves do not directly connect with structures within the skull itself, they do interconnect with other nerves outside of the skull and form a continuous neural network that can affect any given area through which any of the main nerves or their branch fibers pass.

Occipital neuralgia occurs more often in women than men. It can have many causes such as trauma (a direct blow or "whiplash"); spinal column compression; nerve lesions; localized infections or inflammation; gout; diabetes; blood vessel inflammation; and local tumors.

Commonly, the nerves are inflamed and sensitive because they are trapped within the muscles through which they pass. Muscle spasm and pain are often associated with nerve entrapment, which causes localized pain, spasm and muscle cramping.

Symptoms include the following:

- Headaches that are localized or following a "ram's horn" pattern on the side of the head, often starting in the upper neck or base of the skull. It can be one-sided or on both sides.
- Scalp that is tender to the touch, often hypersensitive. Even brushing your hair can be a painful experience.
- Pain or pressure behind the eyes. Eyes are very sensitive to light especially when the headache is present.

Many conditions can show symptoms similar to those found with occipital neuralgia. Treatment of occipital neuralgia may involve oral medications that are designed to reduce inflammation and spasms, localized therapeutic injections, physical therapy, massage, and heat.”*
*http://www.healthscout.com/ency/68/536/main.html
I thought I would post something on occipital neuralgia as someone recently mentioned looking into this condition. My type of headache doesn’t seem to correspond to that described above, in particular as I do not suffer from muscle spasms. One reader of this blog recently commented on the hemicrania continua post about having an indescribably severe headache which manifests itself with severe muscle spasms. Occipital neuralgia could be something he could look into if he hasn’t yet. His story nearly brought me to tears.

The number of comments recently posted on my blog under the hemicrania continua post go to show how many people seem to suffer from this condition. Sadly most of the people who I have been in touch with have not as yet had much relief from the medicines they were prescribed. I still remain convinced (and I am sure many of you do) that there must be an intricate reason for the onset and continuation of our headaches. What this is, in my case, as no doubt in many others, still remains a mystery.

There have been a few days in which the headache has flared up, and every time I manage to forget how bad it can get. Being tired doesn’t help. Sleeping too much doesn’t seem to help either. Finding a constant balance is what I need to do. I also got a bit of a cold the other day which revived the headache, making it thump away - although that was a ‘cold headache’ on top of the ‘normal’ headache.

It has now been nearly a year and a half.

Compared to others who have commented on my blog, it’s no time at all. What is my body trying to tell me? What is going on in there? Sometimes I wish I could just crack my head open and see what’s going on.

The kinesiologist was not around when I was back in the UK so I did not manage to see him this time round. I went for some acupuncture - the acupuncturist always manages to pinpoint the pain and stick a needle right in it; as the needle enters that part of my head, my head feels like a balloon deflating. The pain remains but in some ways I feel like I have caught it, pinpointed it, willing to stab it and kill it once and for all. But, alas, it perseveres.