How Organic Products Can Help Your Life?

Organic products are now a $7 billion market that has been growing at a rate of 20% a year and will continue to grow in years to come. While retailers who sell organic products are one of the few businesses exempt from following the requirement for certification of organic products, Whole Foods Market was the first to become a certified grocery store in the nation. There are several other industries that are coming out with new organic products, including clothing, and baby products that are among the top choices for consumers. Natural Organic Products both protect and help the environment, plus it is great for your overall health. Often, organic products are priced higher at health-food and department stores, but drugstores and discount retailers offer brands that are less expensive.

Organic Foods

When you go to your local grocery store be sure to check out the organic labels throughout the store because when you purchase organic products it helps support those farmers, producers, and handlers who have a strong commitment to good health, quality foods, and earth-friendly agricultural practices. About 14 percent of people indicated they bought organic items at their local Wal-Mart or Target super center, reinforcing the fact that organic foods play a role in everyday American households, and they are choosing to support their community and eat healthier for their family. Due to the limited supply of organic foods from both foreign land and domestic sources, they say that organic foods account for only about a third of the stores inventory, which shows there is room for growth in the coming years.

Health Lifestyle

Major products include tea, guavas, oranges, pineapples, rice, taro root, sweet potatoes and specialty crops like yams are believed to offer better health and more benefits to a healthy family. Consumers are increasingly choosing to purchase organic foods and products that offer alternatives to potentially harmful chemical and pesticides that genetically modify foods and may be undesirable from both a health and environmental standpoint. At one point these products were forgotten and ignored in the innermost corners of store shelves and health food stores, but now they are in the spotlight and taking center stage because of the newly found benefits of going organic and living a healthy lifestyle.

Skin Products

Organic skincare has long been established as an expensive yet healthy alternative to the ordinary and potentially dangerous skincare products that we have been exposed to. Nowadays, organic skincare products are coming out with more competitive prices and better environmental friendly ways of producing products, which makes them more affordable. If you have had any skin reactions to lotions or face creams in the past then you have to be careful, because everything you put on your skin gets absorbed into your body, which can cause an allergic reaction. When you get an allergic reaction your body is telling you that the chemicals you're putting on are harmful to you. Make sure to pay attention and try an organic product to see the difference because your body knows what's best.

With the buying power of chains like Kroger and Wal-Mart, which are increasing their organic-products selection daily, prices for organic products are likely to become more affordable. But even in many conventional supermarkets, organic products are moving out of their isolate aisles and taking their place on many shelves next to non-organics products. From my experience in the industry, it is almost always the case that the people who make organic products are those who value their work and love what they do.


About the Author: Alyssa Nair has written articles on organic products and how they can improve your lifestyle. Read the helpful tips and advice on how you can change to an organic lifestyle with little money.

Smoking Quit Tips

Deciding to quit smoking is a big decision to make, but once it is made the real challenge is going through with it. Many pick up a smoking habit due to the euphoria feeling the nicotine can give, regardless of the various health hazards that are directly linked to tobacco. Kicking a smoking habit can be hard, since the nicotine can actually cause the brain to crave it when not in use. Luckily, there are many great methods that can help one quit smoking, ranging from nicotine replacements to hotlines that make the quitting process much easier.

Nicotine replacement therapy is a method used for the cessation of smoking, due to an addiction that has formed from smoking tobacco. It is used to gradually wean a smoker off of their nicotine addiction, done by gradually decreasing the dosage of nicotine given each day. There are various methods of nicotine replacement therapy, ranging from gums, patches, pills, and even lozenges that contain small amounts of nicotine in them.

The replacement item is used in place of smoking cigarettes, and trains a smoker’s body to no longer crave nicotine. This method can be expensive and a long process, but can be very successful in helping smokers kick their habit.

Another popular method used for those interested in quitting is the cold turkey method, which involves avoiding nicotine after a set period of time. While this is a free method since it doesn’t require any purchases, it is up to the smoker to remain smoke free until the cravings have stopped as well as after. This can be a difficult method for those who have been smoking for a long period of time, but are still effective as long as the smoker is dedicated to the quitting process. Withdrawals will usually be severe for the first couple of days, but can lessen in severity after about a week of being nicotine free.

Hot lines and help lines are available to anyone who is interested or currently trying to quit smoking, no matter which method they are using. They are staffed with individuals who can help those trying to quit, by providing advice, answering questions, and helping anyone who needs support and courage during the quitting struggle. Most help lines are free and don’t require a subscription, and can be very beneficial to those who are having a hard time getting rid of their nicotine addiction.

Hypnosis is a widely used method to help those interested in quitting smoking, but there is no scientific proof behind this method. It is believed that smokers can attend a hypnosis session as smokers, and leave feeling like they will never need to smoke another cigarette. Licensed hypnotherapists believe they can help individuals tap into their inner-self, and help them to believe that smoking no longer has to run their life. It is unknown whether or not this is a successful method, but there have been many success stories behind the idea of hypnosis.

There are various ways to quit smoking tobacco products, and it is up to the smoker to decide which method will best fit their lifestyle. The different methods work differently for each individual, yet the first step in stopping a nicotine addiction is the desire and need to quit. For more information about how to quit smoking, contact your local physician to learn about various methods and support groups.

About the Author: Are you ready to quit smoking visit Smoking Quit Tips and Effects of Smoking

How To Establish The Diagnosis Of Tuberculosis?

As already explained, there are two entities of the disease, infection and clinical manifestations, i.e., when the disease is active. Hence, it is important to establish the activity of the disease, which is important for starting the treatment of tuberculosis. The treatment is a long one and needs a combination of 3-4 drugs in all the cases. The following tests help in establishing the activity of the disease. However, as one can see, all tests have their own limitations, and therefore, one cannot rely on a single test.

1. Sputum examination for tubercle bacilli

It should be carried out at least 3-4 times. Approximately 5,000 to 10,000 tubercle bacilli are required per ml of sputum for the detection of tubercle bacilli in a smear. Hence, repeated examinations of sputum are advised.

2. Sputum culture for tubercle bacilli

Although this test is more sensitive than the direct smear examination, it is more time-consuming, and requires about 68 weeks. Again, as in a direct smear examination, 3-4 cultures of tubercle bacilli may be required to obtain positive results. A well-equipped laboratory and trained staff is required for carrying out this test.

3. Chest X-ray

It should be carried out in all the suspected cases of tuberculosis. One should not rely solely on the chest X-ray report as proof of the activity of the disease. Other tests, including symptoms and signs of the disease, must be taken into account.

4. Tuberculin / Mantoux test It has a limited value. However, a negative tuberculin test may prove to be highly valuable in some of the cases, to exclude the diagnosis of tuberculosis in a particular case.

5. ELISA (enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay) test for tuberculosis

It is one of the serological tests and detects antibodies against tubercle bacilli. It is highly useful to detect hidden cases of tuberculosis, especially extra pulmonary i.e., when the lesion of tuberculosis is outside the lungs. The accuracy of this test is 90-95 per cent, and it does not become positive with the administration of the BCG vaccination.

However, like other tests, this test too has its own limitations. It may be false-positive, if the patient has an infection, with other types of organisms related to the group of tubercle bacilli, or due to some non-specific reaction. Similarly, the test may become false-negative when there are very low levels of circulating antibodies, due to suppression of the immune system of the body.

Hence, in view of the limitations of the test, this test should be interpreted keeping the clinical profile and other investigations in view.

What is the tuberculin skin test?

This test detects the 'infected' cases of tuberculosis by eliciting a hypersensitivity reaction in patients who are already infected with tubercle bacilli. In this test, more precisely the Mantoux test, purified proteins isolated from tubercle bacilli called 'tuberculins' are injected intracutaneously on the upper surface of the forearm. Out of several tuberculin tests, the Mantoux is most commonly used, since by and large its results are highly reliable. This test will have little value in places where there is a high incidence of tuberculosis, i.e., at such places almost every person can be expected to be infected with tubercle bacilli. However, it has value otherwise. Those cases which are tuberculin negative, may not be suffering from tuberculosis, and in such cases, one should think of other pathology in a concerned patient.

In about 48-72 hours, following the injection of the test, an allergic reaction occurs as a raised, hard red spot at the site of injection. The size of this area should be carefully measured, and an area of 10 mm, roughly about half an inch or more in diameter, indicates that the reaction is positive. Only the in duration (raised area) should be measured with regard to its width. The redness around the raised area must be avoided while taking measurements. Ideally, a trained and experienced technician, especially one who specifically deals in carrying out tuberculin tests, is required. An in duration of less than 7 mm is considered negative, while in duration between 7-10 mm, may be considered a borderline or a doubtful case of tuberculin positive, and such cases need further tests, for exclusion, or for establishing a diagnosis of tuberculosis.


About the Author: Author's Sites: Home Remedies, Home Remedies Blog and Natural Skin Care

Test For Epilepsy

It is a useful test for the diagnosis of epilepsy, where the report of an eyewitness is not either completely available, or is not available at all. But, in such cases, a word of caution. The EEG must be read very carefully, and the guidance of a specialist must be obtained, so that a non-epileptic person may not be labelled as a case of epilepsy, which will be indeed very unfortunate for the patient.

In some cases, where the EEG is negative, and the patient is still strongly suspected to be a case of epilepsy, EEG recordings are done after showing a flash to the patient (photic stimulation), and/or asking the patient to deeply breath (hyperventilation), or the EEG is recorded when the patient is instructed to be awake the whole night before the test is taken (called sleep-deprivation EEG), as under these circumstances there is a possibility of a positive graph. But again, a careful analysis of the EEG is required by an expert to exclude falsepositive results. In any case, if the EEG is grossly abnormal, risk of repeated attacks of epilepsy must be explained both to the patient and his family members, so that he remains under observation all the time till the attacks are controlled with specific treatment. An EEG is equally important for the diagnosis of childhood epilepsy.

In selected cases, a 24-hour continuous ambulatory recording of EEG may be taken on the same pattern as the Holter test, done in heart patients to see the various irregularities in the rhythm of the heart (arrhythmias). In such a continuous record of EEG, the chances of a positive graph increase, as the recording is for a considerable length of time, which increases the chances of detection of any abnormality in the graph. However, this test too has got its own limitations.

Hence, the value of clinical diagnosis and the true report of an eyewitness should be emphasized again.

Computed tomographic (CT) scanning

A computed tomographic (CT) scan is, indeed, a valuable, non-invasive test in detecting the causative lesions in cases of epilepsy, especially in cases of brain tumours. Besides tumours, the test is also useful in diagnosing other causes of epilepsy, like post-traumatic scarring/gliosis or porencephaly, i.e. cavity in the brain, tuberculoma (due to tuberculosis), cysticercosis (due to ingestion of infected pork), or cerebral infarction (due to occlusion/thrombosis of one of the vessels of the brain).

However, again a very careful interpretation is required for reading a CT scan for the diagnosis of a shadow /s, as it has been shown in various studies that following an attack of epilepsy, temporary shadows (disappearing in about 1-3 months) of varying sizes may appear in the brain. But such a diagnosis may not be free from danger, as such shadows may be pathological, more so, malignant, and therefore, a close follow-up is necessary, and repeated scans may be required to check if the lesion is lessening, persisting or increasing, so that no time is lost in carrying out life-saving treatment. At the same time, unnecessary treatment/ panic may be avoided.

Such lesions/shadows may probably be due to post-epileptic oedema/ swelling of the brain.

However, for a neurologist, such lesions create no problem for reaching a precise diagnosis, and, above all, the picture is seen as a whole, i.e., all accounts/aspects of the case are taken into consideration - the clinical manifestation of an attack of epilepsy, age of the patient, EEG report, and follow-up reports.

In several hospitals, special epilepsy clinics are being run where a large number of cases are seen/followed up weekly / fortnightly and, therefore, with experience, such problems are tackled in a routine manner, but may create a genuine difficulty, at times, for a general practitioner who may need the urgent opinion of a specialist.

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)

This test is more sensitive than a CT scan, and, therefore, in doubtful cases, it must be carried out, especially when a CT scan is not contributory, and there is no satisfactory improvement in the condition of the patient, in spite of a potent drug therapy for epilepsy.

Other tests may also be required, such as the examination of stools for worms, especially for pork tapeworm (Taenia solium), X-ray of both the calf muscles, below the knee, for the presence of calcified cysts of cysticerci, especially in places where the incidence of epilepsy is common as a result of taking infected pork. Worms in the gut, in general, irrespective of the type, may precipitate an attack of epilepsy, especially among children.

Needless to say that investigations have a definite role in suspected epilepsy, more so for the detection of possible lesions and their cure. Many of the cases of epilepsy are idiopathic, i.e., where no cause is available, requiring a long course of drugs, and in a very few, even a lifelong maintenance dose may be required.


About the Author: Author's Sites: Home Remedies , Home Remedies Blog and Natural Skin Care

Drug Abuse And Addiction Facts

Drug abuse is a very serious problem in many places in the world, particularly the United States. What starts out as a simple curiosity or use that is considered social may result in a serious addiction. Many individuals start using a particular drug and find that they have total control over their habit. However, after a certain period of time, these people may start to lose the control that they once had. Eventually, it will take more and more of the same type of drug for the individual to achieve the same state of euphoria as they experienced previously.

An individual who abuses drugs can develop an addiction that is psychological, physical, or emotional. By the time that the drug abuse reaches its peak, or an individual seeks assistance for their drug addiction, the addiction can be a combination of physical, emotional, and psychological conditions. This is due to the fact that the more that an individual is subjected to the drug that they are abusing, the chemistry of the body starts to change. These changes often result in the negative consequences of being unable to control the urges and impulses that are commonly associated with drug abuse.

It is common for a drug addiction to result in many biological changes to occur within the body of an abuser. This is why many people who abuse drugs seem to change so drastically. Many individuals experience weight loss or weight gain, a change in personality, changes in moods, memory impairment, loss in general gross motor skills, and many may even develop various types of chronic medical conditions. Whereas the normal person is often motivated by many factors in their life, those that engage in drug abuse have one motivating factor. That is, ultimately, to abuse the drug that they have been experimenting with.

Many people who abuse drugs seek treatment for their disease. However, not every person comes out of treatment successfully. Many people must receive treatment more than once to prove effective. It has been discovered that there are very few individuals that seek treatment for their condition based on self-motivation alone. Many individuals who enroll for therapy to alleviate the compulsive drug addiction that they have are forced to do so. The State may order the therapy, or a family member may prompt one to seek help. However, most of the time, many of these individuals successfully complete the treatment.

There are many drug abuse treatment programs available. Seeing that every person is different than another person, and some may be more receptive than others, not all treatment methods will prove to be effective for every single person with an addiction to drugs. It is important to not relinquish hope. If one form of treatment does not work for you, there is another form of treatment available that will work for you.

If you are looking into drug abuse treatment for yourself, or someone that you care about, you will discover that there are many different types of programs to select from. Many of these are short term, but there are quite a few that are for periods of time that are equal to three months or more. The reason that there are such a large number of long term programs is because these have proven to release the most successful recoveries of drug abuse.

It is vital that you understand that a treatment program sets the recovery in motion. There are many other factors that can have a great impact on the individual who is attempting to beat an addiction to drugs. This includes emotional support from friends and members of the family, supervision, the implementation of an accountability partner that they can contact any time day or night, and continued therapy.

Drug abuse is a common problem, but it is not a problem that cannot be solved. There are many ways that an individual who suffers from this devastating can get the assistance that they require in order to successfully resolve their problem. It is important for these individuals to understand that the loss of control that they have experienced as a result of the addiction is not a weakness, but a result of the biological changes that occur within the body. Providing resources for assistance and support for the drug abuser is the best contribution that can be given in order to achieve a successful recovery.

Start your life over with and start drug and alcohol addiction recovery.The author, Bill Urell MA.CAAP-II, is an addictions therapist at a leading drug addiction treatment center. He teaches healthy life styles and life skills. Tell your story! Visit: http://www.AddictionTreatmentResources.com

Smart Lipo - Smarter for Stubborn Fatty Areas Than Liposuction

Fat. It 's part of the human condition. It accumulates under our skin, especially as we get older, right where we don't want it. Diet and exercise can really help, and they're good for our general health, too, so they're the first line of attack against overweight. But sometimes even the high-power gym types, the folks who work out all the time, simply can't get rid of those lumpy, fatty areas. Many of my patients are asking me about a new treatment they're hearing about, called "Smart Lipo."

What is Smart Lipo? It 's laser liposuction, and it 's a new method of "body sculpting" for fatty areas. It 's not a solution for overweight or a replacement for other treatments addressing larger areas that need reduction. What it does is target limited areas and remove the fat, with certain advantages over previous options for this kind of treatment.

Here 's an example. I had a client call me the other day about this new treatment - "Is it right for me?" she asked. She is a very fit, active middle-aged mother of three children in college and beyond. "It 's driving me crazy," she said - "my weenie roll." What? Saddlebags, love handles, OK, but - what was this?

Turns out that 's what she calls a roll of fat across her lower abdomen, about the size and shape of a ballpark frankfurter. Although that part of her is in very good tone, she has a C-section scar there, and her pregnancies have loosened her skin just enough that fat accumulates above the scar. She hates the way it makes the front of her pants, not to mention her swimsuit, bulge out.

Alternatives for a patient like this, in the past, have included surgery - for instance, the procedure called the tummy tuck. Or a cosmetic dermatologist might have recommended traditional liposuction. The advantages of laser liposuction over both of these procedures include avoiding general anesthesia and the recovery process associated with that. Tummy tuck surgery generally involves loosening and redraping the skin. Both procedures are considered invasive, and they are more than a patient like this one needs for a localized fat problem. Standard liposuction can also leave grooves and ripples on the surface of the loosened skin, giving patients less improvement in appearance than they hoped for.

Laser liposuction is a minimally invasive procedure, done in the office under local anesthesia. Here 's how it works: laser energy targets the fat cells and liquefies them. They are then withdrawn with super-fine tubes. The laser energy also seals off fine blood vessels, reducing blood leakage and bruising in the tissues. No stitches are necessary, and there 's minimal scarring. This procedure also stimulates collagen production and causes a tightening of the skin over the area, another benefit over regular liposuction. After the procedure, the patient wears a compression garment for a week or two.

Smart Lipo is a low-pain procedure, accomplished in a relatively short amount of time. Recovery time is less than with standard liposuction, usually a day or two as opposed to a week. Many patients see the results they want after a single treatment.

"Is it safe?" my client wanted to know. The record is very good; Smart Lipo has been in widespread use for several years in Europe and South America, and the FDA approved it here in the US over a year ago.

That 's what I told this client about Smart Lipo, and it 's what I'm telling others who ask. Smart Lipo can be the answer for many of the fat problems that drive us crazy: besides love handles and saddlebags, the tummy fat, arms and thigh fat, jowls and neck and under the chin fat, back fat, and male chest fat (yes, I am talking about man boobs). So this did turn out to be a perfect treatment for my client and her abdominal fat, and for anyone looking to remove limited amounts of fat in targeted areas, up to about eight pounds. Anyone desiring to remove more fat than this will want to discuss one of the other procedures with a cosmetic dermatologist or other professional specialist.

But aren't we lucky to live at a time when technology is giving us such great, individualized, smart alternatives for getting rid of pesky fat?

James C. Fairfield, MD has established the oldest and most respected dermatology practice in the Delaware Valley. For more free cosmetic dermatology information and resources and to sign up for his free report, Erase the Years, visit his web site at http://www.cmderm.com

Homeopathy is Safe and Effective Medicine

You may have heard of "homeopathy" but you are not sure what it is. Simply put, it is a system of medicine that treats a condition with highly diluted natural substances that mimic the symptoms of the condition being treated. This concept seems paradoxical to most.

Homeopathy is a difficult concept to grasp. How do you cure someone of an illness by giving them a tiny concentration of something that can actually cause the disease? One would think that this would simply make the person even more sick.

But, according to proponents of the science, homeopathy not only works, but is much more effective than conventional medicine. They claim that conventional medicine only suppresses the immune system and prolongs the illness.

There are actually quite a few homeopathic products in your local pharmacy. The FDA requires that homeopathic products indicate what kind of product it is somewhere on the packaging. The easiest way to tell what kind of product you are buying is by examining the list of ingredients on the back or the on the side of the packaging.

With homeopathy, all of the ingredients are diluted, so each ingredient in such a product has the letter "X" after it. So, if one of the ingredients is "Zinc 20X", that means the product contains Zinc that has been diluted 20 times. One of the most popular cold medicines on the market, "Zicam," is actually a homeopathic remedy that consists of diluted zinc in the form of a nasal gel.

There are homeopathic remedies available for almost every condition. Cold, flu, allergy, even bedwetting; there is a homeopathic remedy available for almost every condition.

Homeopathy is universally recognized as being safe, as the ingredients used are natural substances diluted many times over. Because there is such a small concentration of the ingredients, many opponents of the science, including the drug companies that make conventional medicines and are afraid of the growing popularity of natural medicine, claim that any relief an ill person receives after using a natural product is the result of the placebo effect.

Since the FDA does not require most natural products to undergo clinical testing before being sold to the public, the detractors feel that it does not actually work. So, who is telling the truth? Does homeopathy really work or is it a bunch of nonsense?

In my opinion, it works. There have been several clinical trials done over the years to test the efficacy of homeopathic products. Liddell Laboratories makes a product called Vital HGH. Vital HGH is designed to treat the symptoms of aging and/or a rundown condition.

In a small clinical trial performed years ago, a group of test subjects who were deficient in human growth hormone, ranging in age from 45 years and up, were given the Vital HGH formulation. The results speak for themselves. During the five month clinical trial, the levels of HGH in the blood increased in every test subject, and more than doubled the average level of HGH.

Homeopathy does work. I speak from personal experience. I used such a remedy to deal with the allergy attacks I was having, and the medicine not only stopped the attacks faster than the Claritin I had been taking previously, but it also prevented subsequent allergy attacks.

So, why is there a controversy? Well, there is a public perception that homeopathy is the same thing as holistic healing or faith-based medicine. This is simply not accurate.

Homepathy and natural medicine in general make big drug manufacturers worry that such products might be more effective for treating common illnesses as opposed to the more expensive prescription versions that make the pharmaceutical companies rich. Most natural products are incredibly cheap. A prescribed conventional medicine costs a lot more.

If the public began demanding natural remedies to treat their ailments, drug companies would have to make these kinds of products to stay in business, and then their profits would shrink. Imagine if Pfizer had to stop manufacturing Viagra, which they sell at $20-$30 per pill, and instead make a homeopathic product that would retail for only $20 for a one month supply.

This is why drug companies often spend significant amounts of money to debunk claims that homeopathy works, using a wide variety of misinformation tactics to instill a belief in the public that natural medicine is is not effective for treating common ailments.

I am not saying that you should discontinue the use of conventional medicines. But, next time you go to the pharmacy, take a look at some of the natural brands on the shelf and give them a try. For common ailments that are not life threatening, a homeopathic product is probably a cheaper and more effective alternative.

Jim Pretin is the owner of http://www.forms4free.com, a service that helps programmers make an HTML form