MaoBah

MaoBah is a collection of interesting health issues, celebrity news and bizarre news updates.

July 22, 2008

Brococoli Can Fight Cancer

 

Eating a few portions of  broccoli every week can actually protect men from having prostate cancer later in their life. Researchers believe that a substance called isothiocyanate in the broccoli sparks hundreds of genetic changes, activating some genes that fight cancer and switching off others that fuel tumors.

Prostate cancer kills more men than any other kind except for lung cancer. Each year, 680,000 men worldwide are diagnosed with the disease and about 220,000 will die from it.

The benefit derived from broccoli would likely also be available from other cruciferous vegetables that contain isothiocyanate, including Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, cabbage, arugula, watercress and horseradish. So stop setting those green vegetables aside, because they can do wonders for your health more than you think.

March 10, 2008

17 Ways to Create the Perfect Workday

1. Do Less. Learn to reduce the amount you do — perhaps you could choose three important things to achieve each day, the ones that will have the most impact on your life.

2. Start the day with a relaxing shower or bath. This will get you in a relaxed mood, which is much better than starting the day stressed out.

3. Get in some morning exercise. It will relax you, and gives you a sense of well-being and accomplishment.

4. Create a clutter-free environment. Clutter-free surroundings create a peaceful working environment.

5. Turn off the distractions. This includes phones, email notification, instant messaging, anything that will break into your focus.

6. Take breaks and stretch. Get up, stretch, massage your shoulders, neck and head; it will keep you relaxed throughout the day.

7. Roll with the punches. There will always be things that go wrong. When things get overwhelming, take a step back to get some perspective.

8. Work when it’s quiet. This may be early in the morning, during your office lunch hour, or late at night — choose whatever works for you so that you can get some solid work in without distractions.

9. Cut back on your commitments. Choose four to five things that are absolutely essential, and then eliminate the rest over time.

10. Focus on the present. Rather than worrying about what you have to do in the future, or reliving things that happened in the past, focus on what you’re doing right now.

Sources:

 

February 8, 2008

Acupuncture may boost pregnancy

Here’s an article that is specifically for those women trying or eager to get pregnant. Hope this helps. I was too tired to talk about the whole thing, so I decided to get the article. I was never a big fan of acupuncture, but something tells me I should go and try it. Not to get pregnant of course! No way! Still not ready for that. But I heard it could do wonders for your health and body, so why not give it a try. It is said to be cheaper than IVF.

Acupuncture

It sounds far-fetched — sticking needles in women to help them become pregnant — but a scientific review suggests that acupuncture might improve the odds of conceiving if done right before or after embryos are placed in the womb.

The surprising finding is far from proven, and there are only theories for how and why acupuncture might work. However, some fertility specialists say they are hopeful that this relatively inexpensive and simple treatment might ultimately prove to be a useful add-on to traditional methods.

Acupuncture involves placing very thin needles at specific points on the body to try to control pain and reduce stress. In fertility treatment, it is thought to increase blood flow to the uterus, relax the cervix and inhibit "fight or flight" stress hormones that can make it tougher for an embryo to implant, Manheimer said.

The analysis pools results from seven studies on 1,366 women in the United States, Germany, Australia and Denmark who are having in vitro fertilization, or IVF. It involves mixing sperm and eggs in a lab dish to create embryos that are placed in the womb.

Women were randomly assigned to receive IVF alone, IVF with acupuncture within a day of embryo transfer, or IVF plus sham acupuncture, in which needles were placed too shallowly or in spots not thought to matter.

Individually, only three of the studies found acupuncture beneficial, three found a trend toward benefit and one found no benefit. When results of these smaller studies were pooled, researchers found that the odds of conceiving went up about 65 percent for women given acupuncture.

Experts warn against focusing on that number, because this type of analysis with pooled results is not proof that acupuncture helps at all, let alone by how much. IVF results in pregnancy about 35 percent of the time. Adding acupuncture might boost that to around 45 percent, the researchers said.

Dr. Ann Trevino, a 37-year-old family physician who recently moved to Houston, is pregnant, and a believer. She had three unsuccessful pregnancy attempts with intrauterine insemination before trying acupuncture with IVF at a fertility clinic in San Antonio where she used to live.

Acupuncturist Kirsten Karchmer said she places about a dozen needles in the ears, hands, feet, lower legs, abdomen and sometimes the lower back. It costs $500 a month for treatments twice a week, and patients typically go for three months, she said.

IVF costs around $12,000 per attempt, so a treatment that improves its effectiveness might save money in the long run, Manheimer said.

November 27, 2007

How drinking too little milk affects children

Drinking too little milk and having few exposure to sunlight and exercise can affect children. In fact, it can lead to anti-bone trifecta, which eventually results in rickets.

Bone specialists say that millions of healthy children are vulnerable to bone-cracking osteoporosis when they grow older, much more than their grandparents are.

This can be prevented, thanks to research that shows the normal bone density for children of various ages.

Also, data shows that even a ten percent deficit in bone mass after adolescent years can increase risks of having osteoporosis and fractures as high as 50 percent, and this is according to the president of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.

October 10, 2007

Lack of Sunshine Causes One Million Deaths a Year

Did you know that if vitamin D3 levels among populations worldwide were increased, there would be 600,000 cases of breast and colorectal cancers prevented every single year, and this includes nearly 150,000 cases of cancer that could be prevented in the United States alone?

Researchers estimate that 250,000 cases of colorectal cancer and 350,000 cases of breast cancer could be prevented worldwide by increasing intake of vitamin D3, particularly in countries north of the equator.

To increase your vitamin D3 levels, the researchers recommended a combination of dietary methods, supplements and sunlight exposure of about 10 to 15 minutes a day, with at least 40 percent of your skin exposed.

This is just one of the endless benefits you can get from what is known as the Sunshine Vitamin. To those who are under pressure to stay away from sun due to the cautiousness of their complexion, 10 to 15 minutes a day can do nothing but wonders for your health, not to mention it makes your skin healthier. Just make sure you stay under the sun in the right time of the day, specifically early morning.emoticon






















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