I got my flu shot last week and I know that many people are nervous about getting a flu shot, let’s face it no one wants to get a shot just because it “might” help them stay healthy, but it really is important.

Studies show that even though a lot of press is made about the flu shot occasionally not being formulated to hit the right flu virus, more often than not the researchers are right on and a lot of sickness is avoided by getting a simple flu shot.

The flu shot may not just protect against influenza. A new study suggests it may also reduce the risk of developing a blood clot by as much as 26 per cent.

Researchers from the University Paris Descartes found that the flu shot was equally effective against two types of blood clots: deep vein thrombosis, which is a blood clot in the leg, and pulmonary embolism, which is a clot in the lung.

A blood clot can be fatal if it breaks loose, travels through the bloodstream and reaches the lungs.

The research, which included more than 1,400 patients, also found that the flu shot: Read the rest of this entry »

Looking to make a change and lose some weight? I have reviewed the top diet on the internet and you can go and read over 200 comments people have made about why this diet has worked well for them, as well as some of the problems.

Tags: American Heart Association, deep vein thrombosis, embolism, inflammation, influenza, Joseph Emmerich, lead study author, Louisiana, New Orleans, Oral contraceptives, pulmonary embolism, vaccination

There are a few ways that you can get fat without realizing it. Here are a few ways that people get fat without knowing it. I got these tips from Mark Joyners newsletter.

1. Staying Up Late
The opposite would seem to make sense: If you stay up late, you burn more calories. Burn more calories, burn more fat. Right?

Unfortunately, staying up late can set off a multi-pronged attack on your body composition.

First, sleep is vital for recovery. If you don’t get enough sleep, your body won’t build as much muscle mass – no matter how much time you spend in the gym. Less muscle mass = less fat burning power.

Next, if you are sleep-deprived, you increase levels of the stress hormone “cortisol.” The connection between stress/cortisol and obesity is well established, but it gets worse. A recent study (Epel, Yale) shows that cortisol related fat storage tends to be around the vital organs – the worst possible place to store fat in your body. If that’s not enough, lack of sleep is linked with glucose intolerance (diabetes), lower Growth Hormone levels, a weakened immune system, low energy, and more … Get a full night’s sleep (7 to 9 hours), but make sure your place of rest is peaceful and pitch dark. Your natural sleep hormone, melatonin, is suppressed when there is too much light.

2. Skipping Breakfast
Many people skip breakfast thinking it will help them to lose weight. “Fewer calories in – more fat burned.” The reality is that skipping breakfast actually lowers your metabolism so that at your next meal you’ll tend to overeat. To make it worse, the food you eat on a lowered metabolism is more likely to be stored as fat.

3. Prescription Drugs
Many of the drugs you are prescribed increase appetite, cause edema, or slow our metabolism. That’s a recipe for getting, and looking, fatter. The most commonly used drugs that have these effects are oral contraceptives, many anti-depressants, and estrogen replacements. Check with your doctor to see about finding suitable alternatives that won’t make you fat.

Tags: diabetes, estrogen replacements, food, glucose intolerance, hormone melatonin, increase appetite, low energy, Mark Joyners, muscle mass, obesity, Oral contraceptives, prescription drugs, sleep deprived, Yale

Treatment of severe acne is something that some of us need to deal with at one time or another. Severe acne is when you have lumpy acne that does not go away and is very red. When I was younger I took Accutane to get rid of my severe acne as well as injections and drainage to get rid of my severe acne.

Drainage and Surgical Excision
Some large cysts do not respond to medication and may require drainage and extraction. Drainage and extraction, or acne surgery as it is also called, should not be performed by patients. Dermatologists are trained in the proper technique and perform acne surgery under sterile conditions. Patient attempts to drain and extract comedones by squeezing or picking, can lead to infection, worsening of the acne and scarring.

Severe acne requires an aggressive treatment
regimen and should be treated by a dermatologist.

Acne Injections
When an acne cyst becomes severely inflamed, there is a good chance it will rupture and scarring may result. To treat these severely inflamed cysts and prevent scarring, dermatologists may inject such cysts with a much-diluted corticosteroid. This lessens the inflammation
and promotes healing. An interlesional corticosteroid injection works by “melting” the cyst over a period of 3 to 5 days. As painful as this may sound I never found it to be bad at all, the needle is this and it is really good to get rid of the lumpy red zits.

Accutane
Accutane is a potent drug reserved for treating severe cystic acne and acne that has proven itself resistant to other medications. Accutane is a synthetic (man-made) retinoid (form of vitamin A) that comes in pill form. It is usually taken once or twice a day for 16 to 20 weeks.

Today, it is the most effective acne treatment available because it is the only acne treatment that works on all four factors that predispose a person to acne – excess oil production, clogged skin pores, P. acnes and inflammation. The remissions achieved with Accutane usually last for many months to many years. For many patients, only one course of Accutane therapy is needed.

While Accutane is the most effective acne treatment available, it cannot be prescribed to everyone due to a number of potential side effects, some serious. One of the most serious side effects is the potential to cause severe birth defects in a developing fetus. For this reason, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requires that women not be (or become) pregnant while taking Accutane. FDA regulations require women of childbearing age to take 2 pregnancy tests prior to beginning Accutane therapy and use 2 forms of birth control for 1 month before therapy begins, while taking the drug and for 1 full month after therapy. It is also important that women not breast feed during this time. Women who wish to become pregnant after taking Accutane should talk to their dermatologist and gynecologist about when it is safe to get pregnant after receiving Accutane therapy.

Other possible severe side effects that may occur while taking Accutane include:

* Severe pain in the chest or abdomen
* Trouble swallowing or painful swallowing
* Severe headache, blurred vision or dizziness
* Bone and joint pain
* Nausea or vomiting
* Diarrhea or rectal bleeding
* Depresion
* Dryness of the skin, eyes and nose
* Thinning hair

If any side effect occurs, the patient’s dermatologist or other healthcare practitioner should be contacted immediately because some of these side effects can lead to serious health problems.

While taking Accutane, patients are regularly monitored for side effects through follow-up visits. For most people, these side effects are tolerable and not a reason to discontinue therapy before remission is achieved. However, it is important to keep appointments for follow-up visits because monitoring can reveal conditions that a patient might not notice. For example, a patient may not realize a rapid increase in bad cholesterol that is detected through a blood test.

The decision to use Accutane should be made jointly by patient and dermatologist. When used with all due caution under close medical supervision, Accutane can resolve severe acne that has not responded to other therapy. It has proven especially effective in resolving cystic acne, a severe form of acne that usually does not respond to other therapies.

For a substantial number of patients, one course of Accutane therapy is all they will ever need. A small number of patients require more than one course of Accutane therapy to control severe acne.

It is important to take Accutane as prescribed even if the skin clears before all of the pills have been taken to prevent relapse. At the end of an effective course of Accutane therapy, all or most of the acne lesion will have cleared. Patients may notice residual erythematous (reddish) macules (flat spots) where acne lesions were present. These macules are not scars, and they will fade in 6 to 8 weeks.

After therapy, patients should continue to follow the Skin Care Guidelines for People with Acne.

Antibiotic pills
Oral antibiotics have been a mainstay of therapy for severe acne for many years. Like topical antibiotics, oral antibiotics work to reduce the P. acnes population (a contributing factor in acne), which, in turn, decreases inflammation. Treatment with oral antibiotics usually begins with a high dosage, which is reduced as the acne resolves. Over time, the P. acnes bacteria can become resistant to the antibiotic being used to treat it. When this happens, another antibiotic can be prescribed. Numerous studies support the effectiveness of the following broad-spectrum oral antibiotics that are used to treat acne in the United States: doxycline, erythromycin, minocycline and tetracycline. For information about each of these oral antibiotics, see Prescription Acne Medications.

Birth Control pills
Birth Control pills have been shown to effectively clear acne in women by suppressing the overactive sebaceous glands. Oral contraceptives can be used as long-term acne therapy; however, this medication should not be prescribed to women who smoke, have a blood-clotting disorder, are older than 35 or have a history of migraine headaches without the advice of a gynecologist.

Spironolactone, a synthetic steroid, may be used in combination with birth control pills to treat acne in adult females. Spironolactone inhibits androgen production. Side effects include irregular menstruation, breast tenderness, headache and fatigue

Are these tips all you need to prevent acne? If not you should be interested in a proven method to rid you of your acne. Then read my review of a best acne cure. Another great product I have reviewed is Acnezine.

Tags: accutane, acne, Acne Treatment, acne_cures, antibiotics, birth control, birth defects, blood-clotting disorder, cyst, cysts, diarrhea, dizziness, drainage, excess oil production, gynecologist, headache, healthcare practitioner, inflammation, joint pain, migraine headaches, nausea, Oral, Oral contraceptives, pain, scars, surgery, U.S. Food and Drug Administration, United States, vitamin a, vomiting

Acne is a disorder that causes outbreaks of skin lesions commonly called pimples. It is caused by the skins oil glands making too much sebum, an oily substance, which leads to plugged pores. It also can be caused by the rapid production of a bacteria P. acnes.

Acne lesions occur mostly on the face, neck, back, chest, and shoulders. It is the most common skin disease. Although acne is not a serious health threat, severe acne can lead to disfiguring and permanent scarring.

How does acne affect women?
Most young women and men will have at least a few pimples over the course of their lives. But acne seems to affect men and women in different ways. Young men are more likely to have a more serious form of acne. Acne in young women tends to be more random and linked to hormone changes, such as the menstrual cycle.

As women get older, acne often gets better. But some women have acne for many years. Some women even get acne for the first time at age 30 or 40.

For many women, acne can be an upsetting illness. Women may have feelings of depression, poor body image, or low self-esteem. But you don’t have to wait to outgrow acne or to let it run its course. Today, almost every case of acne can be resolved. Acne also can, sometimes, be prevented. Talk with your doctor or dermatologist (a doctor who specializes in treating skin problems) about how you can help prevent acne and if treatment would help you.

To find out about the the best acne treatment read my review.
Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: accutane, acne, Acne Treatment, acne_cures, acne_no_more, acne_treatments, active disease, antibiotics, best_acne_treatment, birth control, birth defects, cysts, depression, Dermabrasion, email marketing software, epilepsy, excess oil, fatigue, hair care products, headache, irritation, itching, laser, laser surgery, oil, Oral contraceptives, overactive oil glands, Photodynamic therapy, pus, rosacea, scars, skin cancer, skin disease, skins oil glands, spironolactone, sports equipment, sunburn, surgery, upsetting illness, vitamin a