Causes and Incidence of Heart attack

Definition

A heart attack is when blood vessels that supply blood to the heart are blocked, preventing enough oxygen from getting to the heart. The heart muscle dies or becomes permanently damaged. Your doctor calls this a myocardial infarction.

Alternative Names

Myocardial infarction; MI; Acute MI; ST-elevation myocardial infarction; non-ST-elevation myocardial infarction

Causes, incidence, and risk factors

Most heart attacks are caused by a blood clot that blocks one of the coronary arteries. The coronary arteries bring blood and oxygen to the heart. If the blood flow is blocked, the heart starves for oxygen and heart cells die.
In atherosclerosis, plaque builds up in the walls of your coronary arteries. This plaque is made up of cholesterol and other cells. A heart attack can occur as a result of the following:

• The slow buildup of plaque may almost block one of your coronary arteries. A heart attack may occur if not enough oxygen-containing blood can flow through this blockage. This is more likely to happen when you are exercising.
• The plaque itself develops cracks (fissures) or tears. Blood platelets stick to these tears and form a blood clot (thrombus). A heart attack can occur if this blood clot completely blocks the passage of oxygen-rich blood to the heart.

Occasionally, sudden overwhelming stress can trigger a heart attack.
Risk factors for heart attack and coronary artery disease include:

• Increasing age (over age 65)
• Male gender
• Diabetes
• Family history of coronary artery disease (genetic or hereditary factors)
• High blood pressure
• Smoking
• Too much fat in your diet
• Unhealthy cholesterol levels, especially high LDL ("bad") cholesterol and low HDL ("good") cholesterol
• Chronic kidney disease

Heart palpitations Overview

Definition

Palpitations are heartbeat sensations that feel like your heart is pounding or racing. You may simply have an unpleasant awareness of your own heartbeat, or may feel skipped or stopped beats. The heart's rhythm may be normal or abnormal. Palpitations can be felt in your chest, throat, or neck.

Alternative Names

Heartbeat sensations; Irregular heartbeat; Palpitations; Heart pounding or racing

Considerations

Normally the heart beats 60 - 100 times per minute. In people who exercise routinely or take medications that slow the heart, the rate may drop below 55 beats per minute.
If your heart rate is very fast (over 100 beats per minute), this is called tachycardia. An unusually slow heart rate is called bradycardia. An occasional extra heartbeat is known as extrasystole.
Palpitations are usually not serious. However, it depends on whether or not the sensations represent an abnormal heart rhythm ( arrhythmia). The following conditions make you more likely to have an abnormal heart rhythm:

• Known heart disease at the time the palpitations begin
• Significant risk factors for heart disease
• An abnormal heart valve
• An electrolyte abnormality in your blood -- for example, a low potassium level

Common Causes

Heart palpitations can be caused by:

• Exercise
• Anxiety, stress, fear
• Fever
• Caffeine, nicotine, cocaine, diet pills
• Overactive thyroid
• Anemia
• Hyperventilation
• Low levels of oxygen in your blood
• Medications such as thyroid pills, asthma drugs, beta blockers, or anti-arrhythmics. (Medications to treat an irregular heart rhythm will sometimes cause a different irregular rhythm).
• Mitral valve prolapse, a condition in which the valve that separates the left upper chamber (atrium) from the left lower chamber (ventricle) of the heart does not close properly
• Heart disease

Home Care

Reducing your caffeine intake will often significantly reduce your heart palpitations. Reducing stress and anxiety can help lessen the frequency or intensity of your heart palpitations. Try breathing exercises or deep relaxation (a step-by-step process of tensing and then relaxing every muscle group in your body) when palpitations occur. Practicing yoga or tai chi on a regular basis can reduce the frequency of your palpitations.
Keep a record of how often you have palpitations, when they happen, how long they last, your heart rate at the time of the palpitations, and what you are feeling at the time. This information may help your doctor figure out both their seriousness and their underlying cause.
Once a serious cause has been ruled out by your doctor, try NOT to pay attention to heart palpitations, unless you notice a sudden increase or a change in them.
If you have never had heart palpitations before, bring them to the attention of your health care provider.

Heart MRI Definition

Definition

Heart magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a imaging method that uses powerful magnets and radio waves to create pictures of the heart. It does not use radiation (x-rays).
The test may be done as part of a chest MRI.
Unlike x-rays and computed tomographic (CT) scans, which use radiation, MRI uses powerful magnets and radio waves. The MRI scanner contains the magnet. The magnetic field produced by an MRI is about 10 thousand times greater than the earth's.
The magnetic field forces hydrogen atoms in the body to line up in a certain way (similar to how the needle on a compass moves when you hold it near a magnet). When radio waves are sent toward the lined-up hydrogen atoms, they bounce back, and a computer records the signal. Different types of tissues send back different signals.

Alternative Names

Magnetic resonance imaging - cardiac; Magnetic resonance imaging - heart; Nuclear magnetic resonance - cardiac; NMR - cardiac; MRI of the heart

How the test is performed

You may be asked to wear a hospital gown or clothing without metal fasteners (such as sweatpants and a t-shirt). Certain types of metal can cause inaccurate images.
You will lie on a narrow table, which slides into into a large tunnel-like tube.
Some exams require a special dye (contrast). The dye is usually given before the test through a vein (IV) in your hand or forearm. The dye helps the radiologist see certain areas more clearly.
During the MRI, the person who operates the machine will watch you from another room.
Several sets of images are usually needed. Single MRI images are called slices. The images can be stored on a computer or printed on film. One exam produces dozens or sometimes hundreds of images. Each image takes about 2-15 minutes. A complete scan may take up to 1 hour. Newer scanners may complete the process in less time.

Heart pacemaker Overview

Definition

A pacemaker is a small, battery-operated device that senses when your heart is beating irregularly or too slowly. It sends a signal to your heart that makes your heart beat at the correct pace.

Alternative Names

Cardiac pacemaker implantation; Artificial pacemaker; Permanent pacemaker; Internal pacemaker; Cardiac resynchronization therapy; CRT; Biventricular pacemaker

Description

Newer pacemakers weigh as little as 1 ounce. A pacemaker usually has 2 parts:

• The generator contains the battery and the information to control the heartbeat.
• The leads are wires that connect the heart to the generator and carry the electrical messages to the heart.

A pacemaker must be implanted under the skin. This procedure usually takes about 1 hour. You will be given a sedative to help you relax. You will be awake during the procedure.
A small incision (cut) is made, usually on the left side of the chest below your collarbone. The pacemaker generator is then placed under the skin at this location.
Using live x-rays to see the area, the doctor puts the leads through the incision, into a vein, and then into the heart. The leads are connected to the generator. The skin is closed with stitches. Most patients go home within 1 day of the procedure.
Two kinds of pacemakers -- transcutaneous and transvenous pacemakers -- are used only in medical emergencies. They are not permanent pacemakers.

Heart transplant Definition and Indications

Definition

Heart transplantation is surgery to remove a damaged or diseased heart and replace it with a healthy donor heart.

Alternative Names

Cardiac transplant; Transplant - heart

Description

Finding a donor heart can be difficult. The heart is donated by someone who has been declared brain-dead but remains on life support. The donor heart must be matched as closely as possible to your tissue type to reduce the chance that your body will reject the new heart.
The patient is put into a deep sleep with general anesthesia, and a cut is made through the breast bone.

• The patient's blood is circulated through a heart-lung bypass machine to keep the blood oxygen-rich during the surgery.
• The patient's diseased heart is removed and the donor heart is stitched in place. The heart-lung machine is disconnected. Blood flows through the transplanted heart.
• Tubes may be inserted to drain air, fluid, and blood out of the chest for several days, to allow the lungs to fully re-expand.

Indications

A heart transplant may be recommended for:

• Severe angina that can no longer be treated with medications or surgeries to repair the coronary arteries
• Severe heart failure, when medicines, other treatments, and surgery no longer help. Possible causes of severe heart failure are:
  • Coronary artery disease
  • Cardiomyopathy (disease of the heart muscle)
  • Heart valve disease with congestive heart failure
• Severe heart defects that were present at birth and cannot be fixed with surgery
• Life-threatening abnormal heart beats or rhythms that do not respond to other therapy

Heart transplant surgery may NOT be recommended for patients who have:

• Had cancer
• Infections such as hepatitis, that are considered to be active
• Insulin-dependent diabetes with poor function of other organs
• Kidney, lung, nerve, or liver disease
• Malnutrition
• Other diseases that affect the blood vessels of the neck and leg
• Smoking, alcohol or drug abuse, or other lifestyle habits that may damage the new heart

The doctor may also recommend against a heart transplant if there is concern that the patient will not be able to comply with the many hospital and doctor's office visits, tests, and medications needed to keep the new heart healthy.

PMS for Men: Manopause

What is Manopause you ask?

Manopause:
"A mental condition typically found in men in their mid to late 50's brought on by the realization that old age is just around the corner. Symptoms include: frequent reminiscing about the “good ol’ days”, cranky judgmental attitude and a closed minded approach to anything new. Usually punctuated by the chronic need to play a lot golf and vote republican. The condition is difficult to cure and almost always progresses into oldtimers disease."
The term man-opause is often applied when a middle-aged man behaves in ways contrary to their typical natures. Some people erroneously use this and similar terms to explain mid-life crisis', divorce, and adultery to name a few, assuming that the male version is similar to the female version. In actuality, the two could not be more different.

The real thing

Real menopause is characterized by a sudden onset and rapid decrease in hormones due to a complete shutdown of the female reproductive system. The chemical reaction within the body is extreme and oftentimes responsible for erratic behavior and mood swings. While the physical side effects are numerous and well-documented, the emotional aspect can be more disruptive.
During menopause a woman has so many physiological changes taking place, added to those is the underlying point of losing the reproductive ability. Many women see menopause as the hour in which the biological clock strikes it's last, and they make it a deadline in their lives. In the same way that pregnancy illustrates the supreme essence of womanhood to mothers, the loss of this gift is like the stripping of a woman's purpose and can be extremely difficult to come to terms with. The silver lining comes in the form of the cessation of the menstrual cycle and a knowledge that the transition is temporary.

Hormonal Changes in a Man

Men do not have the luxury, if you will, to blame their behavior on a sudden drop in testosterone. It is a fact that male hormones are lost gradually beginning around age 30 and continuing a downward rate of 1% per year for the rest of their lives.² The androgen, or testosterone-like hormones, of men in their 70s was shown to have decreased by as much as 50%.
Physical Effects
The changing chemistry within the body is a physical process that has a profound influence over the individual. A woman may experience any or all of these side effects within a relatively short period of time, but for men it is important to remember that these manifest themselves over time, from as early as a man's 40s and onward. The most common physical side effects to manopause are-

• Loss of appetite
• Impotency
• Loss of libido
• Insomnia
• Fatigue
• Hot flashes and sweating

These side effects may ebb and flow, or they may stay. It is not uncommon to experience more than one of these symptoms, and many others that are reported in lesser numbers, at the same time. Each side effect will typically call for its own treatment. A rule of thumb in the medical field is to treat the sickness and not the symptoms, but in the case of the laws of aging it is a fight that cannot be won.

Emotional & Mental Effects
This loss of testosterone can have life-changing mental and emotional effects on a man that may be considered more severe than the physical ones. For example, along with erectile dysfunction will come the embarrassing frustrations and feelings of inadequacy that are commonly associated with sexual performance issues. For a man, being unable to satisfy their spouse can be one of the most psychologically-tormenting and unpreventable side effects of the aging process. Several of the most significant and influential of these non-physical side effects of manopause include:

• Mood swings
• Memory impairment
• Depression
• Lack of focus
• Feelings of Inadequacy
• Insecurities
• Irritability

How men may raise their testosterone levels

Testosterone, the horny hormone, is one of the most important hormones for men. It determines whether a foetus becomes a boy or a girl, makes risk taking more likely (one of the possible causes of the recession was the finance industry hiring young men with high testosterone and not controlling them adequately) and is needed for general health and well being. Testosterone levels rise with exercise and decline with fatherhood, which many men are embracing, possibly partly as a result of a dramatic long term fall in male testosterone levels in the West, leading to talk of the feminization of the Western Male, a potentially sensitive topic given that Caucasians have long been antagonistic to darker skinned peoples, in part because of the perceived superior sexual performance of those with darker skins.
In short all men should know a lot about testosterone, and women need a more high level view with special knowledge of the adverse affects it has on them. Fortunately the biochemical details can largely be left to the experts. The rest should not.

What does Testosterone do?

Testosterone is what makes men male. The process starts in pregnancy and continues, as testosterone levels rise to a peak then start declining after a period associated with the andropause. It also leads to increased bone mass and muscle and is essential for health and well being and is needed to prevent osteoporosis (given the fall in testosterone levels in recent generations the incidence of osteoporosis in men should be increasing but there does not seem to have been any public panic about this.
Testosterone is needed for normal sperm development and mental and physical energy. Increasing the level of testosterone in elderly males has been shown to improve many factors believed to reduce risk of heart problems, such as increased lean body mass, decreased visceral fat mass, decreased total cholesterol, and glycemic control. High levels of testosterone make men more selfish and more likely to punish others who are selfish towards them.
Research, cited in Wikipedia [1], suggests that Testosterone levels play a role in risk taking during financial decisions. This is not unexpected since I recall reading that high testosterone is associated with risk taking in general. However since psychopaths are likely to be over represented in the financial field [7] and are fearless, employing poorly supervised young men in financial trading is a recipe for disaster as the world found out in 2008.
Testosterone seems to affect human attention, memory, and spatial ability. Low testosterone levels may be a risk factor for cognitive decline and possibly for Alzheimer’s like syndromes. Outside a certain range low testosterone may result in mood disorders and aggressive behaviour.

Testosterone Killers

Cell phones
Electromagnetic radiation in the range in which cell phones broadcast (900 MHZ) reduced testosterone in rats exposed to it 5 days a week for four weeks. Tim Ferris, author of The 4-Hour Body noted that most studies done in Europe concluded that cell phone radiation impairs sperm function and noted that he tripled his sperm count when he stopped carrying his phone in his trouser pockets.
It seems highly plausible that keeping a source of concentrated electromagnetic radiation near your body constitutes A Bad Idea and studies have shown that people who chatted on a mobile phone for 30 minutes a day for ten years saw their risk of a brain tumour rise by 40%.
So keep the phone away from the body as much as possible. Once you start you will forget it occasionally but with practice your memory will improve.
Stress
Stress is a root cause of many diseases: heart disease, high blood pressure, strokes, and it negatively impacts digestive function, immune system and lowers your testosterone levels. When you are stressed you focus on survival, and sex takes a back seat, next to the cell phone in your back pocket. In fact almost everything else takes a back seat too. That back seat gets very full.
Stress lowers you testosterone and increases your level of cortisol, the death hormone. Small amounts of stress MAY be good for you, but large amounts, especially chronic stress, is not.
Quick self help here is to get enough sleep, since Testosterone rises as you sleep, especially as you dream. Also five to ten minutes of quiet contemplation will help. I would have said Meditation, but Contemplation but that might have turned off some Christians, and Contemplation is the Christian term for spiritually directed meditative practices.

Diet and Nutrition
Ancient diet: meat, green shoots and leaves, roots and maybe some fruit
Modern diet: Cereals, Sugar, Low quality Bread, Chips (fries) fried in the wrong sort of fat.....
People eating more fats have higher testosterone levels than those eating more carbohydrates. Fats, especially healthy fats like avocados, nuts or saturated animal fats are filled with nutrients and metabolised well by our bodies. At least 60% of our brain is fat and all of our hormones are synthesized from fats. At one time meat with too little fat was regarded as poor quality. Maybe the Atkins diet is going too far though

Testosterone Boosters

Lose weight:
By eating healthy fats and less sugar you will start to lose weight and gain more testosterone. The increased testosterone will help you burn fat faster. Consider making nuts your midnight snack and avocados your mid-day snack. Apparently 10cm (four inch) increase in waist size can mean a 75% decrease in Testosterone levels.
Exercise:
Train hard and fast in a sport you like. If you insist on going to a gym stick to compound exercises like squats, bench presses, dead lifts, chin-ups, etc.. Stick to 5 sets of 5 repetitions for maximum boost. Stop groaning and start exercising.
Rest
Get 8 hours of sleep and allow recovery time between workouts or training sessions. The exercise will make you smarter and increase bone mass thus reducing risk of Osteoporosis.
If you over do it you will actually reduce your testosterone levels.
Drink sensibly: Alcohol eats into your testosterone levels. Getting into a fight while drunk and being kicked in the groin does not help either. I was sitting in a bar once when a voice at the back of my brain said “You have a choice, Alcohol or sex”. So I ordered an orange juice and started reducing my alcohol intake dramatically. Nowadays, after long negotiations with the voice I drink far less and actually savour the experience more. Since wine is being sold in plastic bottles and beer cans may be lined with Testosterone killers more care in sourcing alcohol is needed

Active, outdoor teens are happier teens: study

Teens who engaged in more moderate-to-vigorous outdoor activity reported better health and social functioning than their peers who spent hours in front of television and computer screens, a new study in Australia has found.

The teens who had the highest perceived health in the study spent an average of 2.5 hours more per day playing sports or doing other high-intensity activity than their least-active counterparts, according to the researchers.
The research, done at the University of Sydney, found that youths in the study overall spent an average of 3.3 hours a day playing video games, watching television or doing other sedentary activities, compared with only 2.1 hours in physical activity.
The findings suggest that parents need to limit how much time their children spend using electronic media, the lead author said.
"Parents should be conscious of the fact that outdoor physical activity is beneficial to their child's overall health and well-being, and should try to limit the time their child spends in front of the screen," said Bamini Gopinath, a senior research fellow at the university's Westmead Millennium Institute for Medical Research.
Although no causal link was established, the study provides "another piece of evidence" that increasing physical activity and decreasing screen time "would be beneficial" to teens, said Gopinath, adding that "the impact of activity behaviors persists over the long term."
The study, published in the July issue of Pediatrics, was conducted from 2004 to 2009.
Study questionnaires asked how much time 1,216 teens spent on outdoor exercise compared to indoor activities including computer use for recreation and homework. Other sedentary activities such as reading were included. The data were collected at age 12, and again five years later. At that time, another group of 475 teenagers was recruited from the same schools in the Sydney area. Both groups responded to items about their health and general well-being.

The questionnaire included 23 items about the teens' health and physical functioning, as well as self-esteem, peer relationships and school.
Not surprisingly, more time spent reading and doing homework was associated with better school performance.
The more-active teens had significantly better scores relating to social functioning, or getting along with peers. Teens "who rarely exercised" were more likely to report "feelings of loneliness and shyness."
"Improved understanding of these relationships could help in developing interventions to promote general well-being among adolescents," the study authors concluded.
Another expert said he wasn't surprised by the findings.
"It makes sense that these kids who are getting outside, playing sports and running around are going to feel better than those kids who are sitting alone with a screen," said Dr. Michael Rich, director of the Center on Media and Child Health at Boston Children's Hospital.
He cautioned against "over-interpreting" the results because other factors not looked at in the study "may have more influence." For example, he noted that the study did not show whether some teens avoided outdoor sports because they were less healthy to begin with.
But the findings are "worth paying attention to," Rich said.
It also makes sense that kids who spend their time "running around in the fresh air" and playing sports are going to be "not only physically healthier, but socially healthier because they're learning to work things through with other teens," he said.
The study gave "more objective data that supports what your mom always said, which is 'go outside and play,' proving mom was right," Rich added.

Study shows no evidence medical marijuana increases teen drug use

While marijuana use by teens has been increasing since 2005, an analysis of data from 1993 through 2009 by economists at three universities has found no evidence to link the legalization of medical marijuana to increased use of the drug among high school students.

"There is anecdotal evidence that medical marijuana is finding its way into the hands of teenagers, but there's no statistical evidence that legalization increases the probability of use," said Daniel I. Rees, a professor of economics at the University of Colorado Denver.
Rees co-authored the study with Benjamin Hansen, assistant professor of economics at the University of Oregon and D. Mark Anderson, assistant professor of economics at Montana State University.
They examined the relationship between the legalization of medical marijuana and marijuana consumption using nationally representative data on high school students from the Youth Risky Behavior Survey (YRBS) for the years 1993 through 2009, a period when 13 states, including Alaska, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Nevada, Oregon and Washington, legalized medical marijuana. Seventeen states and the District of Columbia now have such laws with legislation pending in seven others.
"This result is important given that the federal government has recently intensified its efforts to close medical marijuana dispensaries," said Hansen, who studies risky behaviors of adolescents and adults. "In fact, the data often showed a negative relationship between legalization and marijuana use."
Federal officials, including the Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, argue that the legalization of medical marijuana has contributed to the recent increase in marijuana use among teens in the United States and have targeted dispensaries operating within 1,000 feet of schools, parks and playgrounds.
According to the 2011 report "Monitoring the Future National Results on Adolescent Drug Use," prepared annually by the University of Michigan Institute for Social Research, marijuana use by 10th and 12th graders has risen in the last three years, with roughly one in 15 high school seniors smoking marijuana daily or near-daily. The report, cited in the economists' study, surveyed 46,700 students in the eighth, 10th and 12th grades, in 400 secondary schools.

The new study "Medical Marijuana Laws and Teen Marijuana Use" currently is a non-peer-reviewed working paper made available by the Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA), a private, non-profit independent research institute based in Bonn, Germany, that conducts internationally oriented labor market research.
Researchers examined the relationship between legalization and a variety of outcomes including: marijuana use at school, whether the respondent was offered drugs on school property, alcohol use, and cocaine use. Their results provided no evidence that legalization led to increases in the use of marijuana at school, the likelihood of being offered drugs on school property, or the use of other substances.
In addition to using the national YRBS, the researchers drew on state YRBS data for the period 1993 through 2009 and data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 (NLSY97). None of these sources provided evidence that teenage marijuana use increases with the legalization of medical marijuana.
The YRBS and NLSY97 contain information on self-reported marijuana use. The researchers also analyzed the Treatment Episode Data Set (TEDS), which contains information on whether patients at federally funded drug treatment facilities tested positive for marijuana upon admission. The results suggested that legalization of medical marijuana was unrelated to the likelihood that patients ages 15-20 tested positive for marijuana.
"We are confident that marijuana use by teenagers does not increase when a state legalizes medical marijuana," said Montana State's Anderson, who studies health economics, risky behavior and crime.

Child's scoliosis stresses patients, parents: study

Having to wear a body brace for the treatment of scoliosis (curved spine) causes stress for teen patients and their parents, a new study finds.

But parents worry most of all. While teen dislike wearing a hard plastic brace around their torso, parents are more worried than their children about scoliosis itself, said the researchers at Poznan University of Medical Sciences in Poland.
The study, published June 15 in the journal Spine, included 63 teens with scoliosis who wore a brace to prevent the spinal curve from worsening. Their average age was 14. In such cases, patients generally must wear the brace at least 12 hours a day until they finish growing.
The teens in this study wore their braces an average of nearly 16 hours a day. After about 14 months of brace treatment, the patients and their parents were asked to rate their levels of emotional stress associated with the brace treatment and with scoliosis itself.
Both the patients and their parents found the brace treatment moderately stressful. But while the teens reported low levels of stress related to the scoliosis itself, their parents rated this form of stress as moderate.
Stress levels in both patients and parents were unrelated to the severity of the spinal curve or how long the patient had worn her body brace, according to a journal news release.
The findings suggest that both patients and parents should be evaluated for emotional stress related to scoliosis and treatment with a body brace, the researchers said in the news release.

New tool identifies teens with impaired fasting glucose

More effective than body mass index alone, the Tool for Assessing Glucose Impairment for adolescents is a simple screening tool that identifies adolescents who may have impaired fasting glucose, according to a study published in the June issue of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Preventing Chronic Disease.

(HealthDay) -- More effective than body mass index (BMI) alone, the Tool for Assessing Glucose Impairment (TAG-IT) for adolescents (TAG-IT-A) is a simple screening tool that identifies adolescents who may have impaired fasting glucose, according to a study published in the June issue of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Preventing Chronic Disease.

In an effort to validate the TAG-IT-A, Katrina D. DuBose, Ph.D., of East Carolina University in Greenville, N.C., and colleagues utilized data from 3,050 adolescents, aged 12 to 18 years, who had previously participated in the 1999 to 2008 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). The model was applied to NHANES 1988 to 1994 data to determine how well the score predicted fasting glucose at or above 100 mg/dL.
The researchers found that age, gender, BMI, and resting heart rate were all important predictors of impaired fasting glucose in this population of adolescents. Compared with BMI alone, the TAG-IT-A screening tool was statistically significantly better as a predictor of impaired fasting glucose (area under the curve, 0.61 versus 0.55). In this sample, a TAG-IT-A score of 3 or higher correctly identified 50 percent and a score of 5 or higher corrected identified 76 percent of adolescents with impaired fasting glucose.
"The TAG-IT-A tool is a simple measure that uses variables that can be obtained in community settings, and it is modestly better than BMI alone in predicting risk for impaired fasting glucose," the authors write.

For Teen Boys: Are Your Friends An Influence On Your Weight? Probably

How much your friends weigh could influence your own weight, according to a new study published in the journal PLoS ONE.

Researchers from Loyola University found that students were likely to gain weight if their friends were heavier than they were. However, if their friends were leaner, they were more likely to slim down, or gain weight at a slower pace.

In addition, David Shoham, Ph.D., an assistant professor in the Department of Preventive Medicine & Epidemiology of Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine, and colleagues also found that a student's social network (face-to-face friends, not Facebook friends) influences how much they participate in sports.

Shoham explained: "These results can help us develop better interventions to prevent obesity. We should not be treating adolescents in isolation."

The researchers set out to determine why obesity and related behaviors appear to cluster in social networks. Is it because teenagers make friends with people who look similar to themselves or is it because friends influence one another's behavior?

The team analyzed data from two high schools:

• Jefferson High - located in a rural area and has primarily white students
• Sunshine High - located in an urban area with a substantial racial and ethnic diversity

Both schools participated in the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health. Students filled out questionnaires regarding their weight, friendships, sports activities and screen time during the 1994-1995 school year and then again during the 1996-1997 school year. In addition, students body mass index (BMI) was also measured. A BMI of 25+ is considered overweight and a BMI of 30+ is considered obese.

The team analyzed data from 624 students at Jefferson High and 1,151 students at Sunshine Hight.

The researchers found a strong association between obesity and a student's circle of friends. For instance, if a borderline overweight student at Jefferson High had lean friends there was a 40% chance the student's BMI would decrease in the future. However, if they had obese friends their was only a 15% chance the would lose weight.

According to the researchers, their study shows that social influence "tends to operate more in detrimental directions, especially for BMI; a focus on weight loss is therefore less likely to be effective than a primary prevention strategy against weight gain. Effective interventions will be necessary to overcome these barriers, requiring that social networks be considered rather than ignored."

Limitations of the study included:

• The data was collected over 10 years ago - prior to Facebook and when childhood obesity rates were significantly lower
• The model makes assumptions about how friendships form, are maintained, and dissolve, which the researchers where not able to test directly
• Social network studies are observational rather than experimental, which limits researchers' ability to call the associations causal

Shoham concluded: "Our results support the operation of both homophily and influence. Of course, no one study should ever be taken as conclusive and our future work will attempt to address many of these limitations."

Written by Grace Rattue
Copyright: Medical News Today

Adolescent teen Portion Distortion

Portion Distortion

Cookies as big as frisbees. Muffins the size of flower pots. Bowls of pasta so deep, your fork can barely find the bottom. One reason people's waistlines have expanded over the past few decades is because food portions have too.
People today eat way more than they used to — and way more than they need to. This means that they're constantly taking in more calories than their bodies can burn. Unfortunately, lots of us don't realize that we're eating too much because we've become so used to seeing (and eating!) large portions.
Portion sizes began to increase in the 1980s and have been ballooning ever since. Take bagels, for example: 20 years ago, the average bagel had a 3-inch diameter and 140 calories. Today, bagels often have a 6-inch diameter and 350 calories. One bagel that size actually contains half a person's recommended number of grain servings for an entire day!
The price of such overabundance is high. It's common knowledge that people who consistently overeat are likely to become overweight. But they also risk getting a number of medical problems, including high blood pressure, high cholesterol, type 2 diabetes, bone and joint problems, breathing and sleeping problems, and even depression. Later in life, people who overeat are at greater risk for heart disease, heart failure, and stroke.
It's easy to understand why the food industry tends to serve way more food than is necessary: Customers love to feel like they're getting the best value for their money! But the value meal is no deal when it triples our calories and sets the stage for health problems.
So what can you do to take back control? A good place to start is knowing about two things that can help you eat smart: serving sizes and recommended amounts of different foods.

PSA Laboratory Test -- Prostate Health

Since a lot of hospitals and medical facilities are giving patients access to their medical records, including results of laboratory testing, online I thought that creating some informational hubs on some commonly ordered laboratory tests might be helpful to a few.....if even 1 person then the time to write this hub was worth it. Since access to your medical records and results of laboratory tests online is a great idea, the problem, however, is the results of the laboratory tests do not come with an explanation about the tests and how to interpret the results. I will keep the descriptions and information about the tests simple and not use a lot of "medical jargon".
This will be a brief look at the laboratory PSA test performed on serum (blood).
What is a PSA Test? PSA stands for "Prostate Specific Antigen" and it is, in my opinion, the best and most accurate test or "marker" for prostate cancer. PSA levels are known to increase in men with clinically significant prostate cancer. But this is not the only reason for an increased level of circulating PSA.....we will get to that in a moment.
Where and what is the prostate? The prostate gland is located at the base of the bladder surrounding the urethra and is part of the male reproductive system. Its main function is to produce fluid (prostatic fluid) which helps protects and enrich sperm as well as plays a vital role in the transportation of sperm during ejaculation. A healthy prostate in an adult male is about the size of a walnut and weighs approximately 8 to 15 grams (average 11-12 grams).
The PSA test is commonly performed on serum. Serum is the liquid portion of the blood after the blood has gone through the process of centrifugation. Basically the tube of blood is put into a centrifuge which spins the blood at a high rate of speed pulling the red and white blood cells to the bottom of the blood tube, leaving the liquid portion on top. The liquid portion is what is used for testing. A patient simply has their blood drawn by a phlebotomist and the blood is sent to the laboratory for testing.
Some special preparations for the test:

• A patient should abstain from intercourse for 48-72 hours prior to having their blood drawn. Ejaculation can falsely elevate a patient's PSA levels.
• Digital (finger) examination of the prostate through the rectum should not be done before the blood specimen is drawn. Digital exmaination/manipulation through the rectum can falsely elevate a patient's PSA level.
• Some physicians will require patients to fast prior to the blood specimen collection. Fasting should take place over a period of 8 to 12 hours, never longer than 12 hours. Drink plenty of water during the fast to keep optimum hydration. (Water is the only substance allowed during any type of fast).

Some other things that can interfer with PSA testing:

• Like stated above, ejaculation within 48 hours prior to the test.
• Digital manipulation of the prostate prior to the test.
• Some sexually transmitted diseases will falsely elevate PSA levels.
• Some viral infections can falsely elevate PSA levels. (Flu)
• Some bacterial infections can falsely elevate PSA levels. (Flu)
• Some medications can falsely elevate PSA levels.
• Biopsy of the prostate.

Reference ranges for PSA levels. (Age based)

• <50 years old: <2.6 ng/mL
• 50-59 years old: <3.6 ng/mL
• 60-69 years old: <4.6 ng/mL
• >70 years old: <6.6 ng/mL

Always consult with your physician if your levels are elevated. Take note of the things that can interfer with PSA levels and ALWAYS ask for a second opinion.

Overlooked Prostate Care: Importance Of Diet & Exercise

In this article I want to chat about what I think may be the most important aspects of prostate health & health in general. I will be providing information about this part of my program that has gotten me back to better health.

I want to you to ask yourself two questions before I start this article. Do you eat a "proper diet"? Do you exercise regularly? Well, I can tell you that I answered "No" to both of these back before I started having prostate problems.

I would assume most of you viewing today would also answer "No" these questions as well. You probably wouldn't be here viewing & looking for helpful information if the answer was "Yes".

I have always been an active person all my life. I grew up playing various sports & was active all the time. I played some type of sport almost every day. If I wasn't playing one of the major sports I was either hunting or fishing.

However, after our son was born in 2001 those things changed. I basically quit playing sports & all other activities. My life had changed & it seemed like I didn't have time for any sports or regular exercise. I found out that was a big mistake in my life. You can make time for things that make you more healthy.

I also was the type that didn't seem to watch what I ate. If I was at home I'd eat too much junk food. If I was out on the road I'd eat too much fast food. I really wasn't eating healthy at all but didn't realize it because I didn't have any health problems.

I never have been a soda person but did drink Sprite at times. I only drank one cup of coffee in the mornings. I was the type that always thought I needed a meat with every meal. I ate meat with breakfast,lunch,& supper. If I didn't get meat then I wouldn't get full, right? Well, that's not the case & this is far from the truth about eating healthy.

You don't need to eat meats with every meal. As a matter of fact, meat isn't even needed to live. You know about the "vegetarians" out there in the world , right? I'm not saying you need to be a vegetarian but certain meats need to be cut down or out of your diet. I will explain further later in this article.

Now, I want to chat about the importance of "water". When I say water, I mean bottled or purified water. Regular tap water isn't good enough here because know matter the source it's got some added chemicals & substances we don't need in our bodies. There is now a lot of scrutiny about the bottled water industry. I can say right now that to make sure you get bottled water that says "reverse osmosis & ozonated" on the label. You should be fine with buying this type water.

I was not drinking water before I started having problems. The only time I'd drink water was when I'd be really thirsty. That was rarely because I had quite playing sports & other activities that involved exercise. Water is a major player in prostate health & health in general terms. Did you know that water is the most natural cleanser for the body?

You should drink 8-10 glasses a day of water. If you're not getting water or enough water then this should be a change you need to make immediately. I now drink over 10 glasses of purified/bottled water daily. A lot of prostate sufferers are scared to drink more because they're afraid it will make them go to the bathroom too much. I was there & didn't want to make things worse.

I was wrong in my thinking because drinking more water actually made things much better after a while. At first upon water increase I did see a spike in symptoms but that was part of the cleansing process for a few weeks.

The only other thing I was drinking in the first 6 months after my diagnosis was "green tea". I would drink about 4 glasses of green tea daily to go along with the increased water intake. I wasn't putting any other liquid into my body for the first 6 months. This was a big help in starting my road to recovery.

Once I started feeling better then I added "organic soy milk" to my diet as well. Soy milk isn't much like regular milk but once you get used to it then it's not bad at all. To this day these are the only 3 liquids I have in my diet. To recap the 3 liquids I drink today are purified water,green tea,& organic soy milk. I put no other liquids into my body period.

Now, I want to chat a little more about meat & other aspects of a proper diet. As I said we don't need meat to live. I thought cutting or limiting meat in my diet would be to hard to accomplish. Well again my thinking was wrong. Was it easy? No! However, after a couple weeks then things were starting to get easier. I didn't cut all meats out of my diet but I did cut certain meats & eat moderate amounts of all others.

One meat that needs to be completely cut or at least very minimized is "red meat". Too much Red meat consumption is not good for prostate health. I was eating a lot of fast food burgers & also red meat at home. I will say to at least cut red meat completely out of your diet until you get your prostate health back.
You can add red meat back to your diet in "minimal" amounts in the future.

Let's just say that "red meat" needs to be a small part of your diet in the future. I cut red meat completely out of my diet for 6 months. I love red meat but don't love it enough to allow it to cause me added prostate problems.

I now eat red meat but it's in limited amounts. I always buy "sirloin" in the choices of meat category. I eat no regular hamburger meat at all. I eat "sirloin" steaks when I do make the red meat choice for a meal. I'd say I average a red meat meal once a month now. For more information about the types of red meat then please "Google" the term. There are quite few in a lists of red meats to eat. Red meat isn't bad for you but when you have prostate problems then too much just makes things worse.

You can eat various types of other meats. I suggest to eat chicken,turkey,& lots of fish. I buy all natural(antibiotic & hormone free) chicken, all natural(minimally processed) turkey(ground),& wild caught & fresh fish.

I eat as much as I want of these type meats. I never thought I'd like grounded turkey. I can honestly say that a turkey burger is much better than any hamburger I ever ate. I wouldn't have thought so but it honestly is a better taste & health option.

I eat all the chicken I want. I suggest you to bake it & not fry it in oils. If you do fry then please use "Extra Virgin Olive Oil". I add "Mrs. Dash" seasonings to all my meats. This is an all natural source for seasonings. There are many different flavors by Mrs Dash.

I also eat all the fish I want. I suggest eating salmon,flounder,tilapia,pollack,catfish,trout,& many other fish. Try to eat the "oily" type fish. Salmon & trout are two of the top oily fish on the market. Here too I suggest baking instead of frying.

Now, I want to move onto another area of the diet. I will be discussing the importance 0f "fruits & vegetables". Fruits was definitely a foreign word to me before prostate problems. I did eat limited amounts of veggies but not enough. I made that change as well in my life. It's very important to eat fruits & veggies to have a healthy diet.

I started out eating fruits & veggies in low amounts until I got used to it. I wasn't used to eating these type products & I didn't want to overdo things. I was eating various types of fruits & veggies. I made sure to eat apples with every fruit setting. What I actually did & still do today is make a bowl of mixed fruits. I eat this 3-4 times daily.

I make sure to eat at least 2 different fresh veggies servings with every meal as well. Of course, this wouldn't be for breakfast for most people but veggie & fruits can be added to all meals. However, I'd suggest eating your fruit servings as a separate part of your regular meal. The reason being is that you don't get the "full" benefits of fruits by eating them with your meals. Wait at least 30 minutes after or before meals to eat your fruit servings.

You can also eat fruits of all types. I regularly consume apples,grapes,bananas,watermelon,pears,peaches,& strawberries. Citrus fruits can be eaten as well but in limited quantities. Citrus fruits can irritate the prostate if eaten too much. Red fruits like apples,strawberries,& watermelon have lycopene which is an important nutrient for prostate health.

You can also eat veggies of various types. One that I'd suggest to eat "daily" is "broccoli". I eat broccoli every single day. I now eat both the frozen & fresh variety but I'd stick with the fresh for initial benefits. Broccoli falls into a class of vegetables called "cruciferous" vegetables. Link here:

Broccoli has antioxidants & other compounds to aid in better health. More information here:

You need to cut caffeine completely out of your diet for a good while. You may even need to keep it out of your diet in the future as well. I have very little caffeine today. Caffeine is bad for prostate problems. Spicy foods will also need to be cut out for a while. You can add some of these things in the future but you need to get that health back first.

I didn't realize how important a proper diet was in your health. We read about it & see it talked about but we never realize it until we suffer health problems. I know how important a healthy diet is now & I stick with a healthy diet today. It's probably one of the most important if not the most important aspects of gaining & keeping your health.

I now exercise daily via alternating with a physical workout one day for about 30 minutes & then do long distance running the other. This program along with proper diet is a major reason for my success in getting & maintaining my health.

You add the alternative treatments I have used/use then I feel these are the things needed in order to manage prostate problems. This total program may not help all men but I feel it will help most men. It takes determination,dedication,& discipline to follow this program. I'm not making any shortcuts or trying butter things here either.

If you want your health back & keep that health then you'd better get ready for that drive. It takes years for our prostate to get in bad health & sometimes it takes a long time to get it back. If you make that determination & drive yourself to get better then it can happen. It's not going to happen overnight for sure. I suffered off & on for 18 months but now for the past 6 months or so I can honestly say I have no symptoms for prostate problems.

I want to end this article by asking yourself a few questions. Do you want your life back? Do you want to have a symptom-free prostate? Do you have the determination to better health? Do you have the drive to a life-style change? Do you want to wake up & not worry about prostate problems? Well, if you can say "yes" to all of these questions then follow my program thus far & you can have that life you've wanted back. Thanks for viewing & if you have any questions or comments then please feel free to make a post.

Undergoing a Prostate Biopsy Procedure

You may be reading this because you are about to undergo a prostate biopsy procedure, if so you are probably feeling anxious and maybe more than a little scared. I can write this article with some authority because I have been there myself. I won't forget in a hurry how my mouth went dry and stomach turned to water when a phone call from my doctor said they wanted to see me urgently about my prostate PSA levels results.
If you aren't already aware, the prostate is the walnut sized gland located above the rectum and just below the bladder in men. For most of our lives it serves a useful purpose alongside other sex organs producing semen. One of the drawbacks to this fellow is the way it wraps doughnut like around the urethra, the tube which allows the passage out of both semen and urine. The reason it can cause problems is because from middle-age onwards the prostate of most men naturally begins to enlarge. As it enlarges it constricts the urethra narrowing the opening and making it more difficult to pass water. If you are a fifty plus man who has to stand for five minutes in front of the toilet making faces out of the patterns on the wallpaper while trying to urinate, now you know why.
I had recently mentioned in passing a slight difficulty when urinating to my doctor who suggested a prostate PSA test. Prostate Specific Antigen is a hormone and while it's normal to have low levels of it in your blood, when the level rises it red flags something could be amiss including cancer. Because my results were much higher than normal I visited a male doctor who conducted a digital rectal examination. In direct speak he dons a rubber glove and probes your rectum with his index finger to feel the size and shape of your prostate. For all you guys wincing now, if the doctor discovers something suspicious, gets you treated and on the road to recovery I think that's worth a couple of minutes of embarrassment.
While the enlargement is a nuisance, it can be treated with drugs or a minor operation to ease the constriction. Of course there's the other main cause of prostate problems, cancer. Sadly it kills a lot of guys every year.
My doctor next referred me to a Urology consultant who again did the rectal examination but concluded the prostate neither appeared to be enlarged nor firmer and lumpy, all tell-tale signs of possible cancerous tumours. However due to the high reading of my PSA level, triple the expected for my age range, I was scheduled for a prostate biopsy. That statement came as a shock and was very scary because I was now staring at the real possibility that maybe I had cancer.
For any men who are about to undergo a biopsy of the prostate this is how mine went. Perhaps the procedure may vary a bit but I imagine they are all pretty much follow a similar routine. When I attended my appointment and the nurse checked my personal details, blood pressure etc I was instructed to change into a hospital gown. At the appointed time another nurse came to collect me and lead me to theatre. There followed more checks to establish I was the right person and questions about my health, then we were good to go.
The consultant injected a large dose on antibiotics into the vein on my hand. This is one leg of the precautionary procedure to combat infection, more about that later. I was given a brief run-down of what to expect and what the consultant would be doing to me. You will be asked to lay on your side with your knees drawn up to your chest. It might not be standard but I had a lovely friendly nurse sitting before me who chatted about anything and everything to distract me. In a quick run-down this is how the biopsy unfolded.
Yet another digital rectal examination as the doctor checked physically the size and shape of my prostate. Next came the part I was probably dreading most, insertion of the probe that would take the biopsy sample. I understand that some consultants administer a shot of anaesthetic to your prostate to numb it. I honestly don't recall getting this but maybe the nurse distracted me. The probe wasn't painful just uncomfortable and alien. The actual probe itself not only fires a needle into the gland to take samples but also relays ultrasound pictures. This allows your specialist to guide the probe, examine things and take ultrasound pictures in the same way pregnant women get snaps of their baby in the womb.
Though I had been forewarned you can't help jumping in surprise when the samples are taken. It's usual for twelve samples, six from each side of the gland to be taken. The way this is done is a thin needle in the probe is fired deep into the prostate and a core of tissue extracted. If you've ever had one of those spring-loaded finger prickers diabetics use snap your finger for a blood sample you'll know how it feels. It's a sudden sting for a couple of seconds each time and that's all.
Once all the samples required have been taken you will likely get an antibiotic suppository pushed deep into your rectum. A further course of antibiotic tablets will have to be taken orally for about five days too. Now this seem like an awful lot of antibiotics but here's why. When the doctor fires the probe needle it has to puncture the wall of the rectum to penetrate your prostate. This action inevitably carries the likely risk of transferring bacteria from what is obviously a very dirty and germ loaded area to inside of your body. A few people will suffer infection but the risk level is small.
After a short recovery period of maybe an hour the nurse may require you to urinate to check your bladder function and rate the blood loss. It should be explained to you to expect blood in your urine for a couple of days and more particularly blood in the semen for up to six weeks. If you are at all squeamish there will seem to be a lot of blood in your first few ejaculations. The blood loss should diminish over days and weeks.
For a few days after your prostate biopsy procedure you will be sore and you may experience a dull ache down below but within three or four days it should have worn off. The only thing to concern you next is the test results themselves. In my case I got the all clear, great news! Kind of, no cancer detected. Note the statement was, no cancer detected, that's not quite the same as no cancer exists.
Although my PSA reading have dropped in subsequent tests it remains double what it should be. The prostate PSA test is notoriously inaccurate and many men are undergoing the prostate biopsy procedure needlessly. Bizarrely all kinds of things can skew the test results. Men who cycle a lot can register high reading of PSA and should you have sex and ejaculate within 24 hours of a test, the Prostate Specific Antigen levels will be abnormally high. There are no easy answers, men with high readings might not have cancer but at the same time cancer might be growing but the test results can be well within accepted ranges. There are many concerns that having PSA tests done causes unnecessary anxiety because they are so unreliable but until a better test comes along, it's the best we have.
Do I regret having the biopsy done? Not for a second. Even though the results so far are inconclusive, if anything sinister was present there's a good chance it would have been found and the earlier the treatment the better. Any procedure, even having a tooth extracted carries risk, it's a balance you have to weigh up yourself. I wanted to write this article to inform and educate other men who will find themselves in the same position as me. If you have to face this thing like I did, don't ignore it hoping it will go away, it won't. If you are having prostate problems, bite the bullet and see your doctor because it might be potentially life threatening.
For the forseeable future I am on 'watchful waiting'. So we watch and wait.

How to Prevent Prostate Enlargement: Foods That Prevent Growth

The increasing consumption of processed and fast foods containing hydrogenated, chemically altered fats in the last one hundred years has significantly contributed to the growing number of men with prostate enlargement. Enlarged prostate symptoms usually begin to develop past the age of fifty, but they are now becoming more common in younger men.
Benign enlargement is so common that it effects ten percent of men under the age of forty. Most men know so little about the prostate gland that they never consider what must be done to keep it healthy. Having an understanding that a healthy diet and proper nutrition are essential to preventing incontinence due to prostate enlargement should be a strong enough motivator to make the necessary changes.
The prostate is small gland around the urethra, located between the rectum and the bladder. Enlargement occurs when abnormal levels of testosterone concentrate in prostate cells. The onset of symptoms are gradual and become apparent when prostate size begins to interfere with normal bladder function.
Here are the 5 most effective treatments for prostate enlargement:

Prostate Superfoods

1) Avoid foods that lead to prostate enlargement - Commercially produced fast foods, processed food and refined foods today contain hydrogenated fats. The process of hydrogenation turns liquid fat to solids at room temperature and produces trans-fatty acids. These altered fats are plastic like in nature and cannot be metabolized by the body. They are large contributors to many serious health conditions today besides an enlarged prostate including the number one and number to killers in North America, heart disease and cancer.

Trans-fats inhibit proper hormone balance. Essential fatty acids needed for many hormone functions, particularly the prostate, are blocked by these altered fats. B6 and zinc, low or absent in the white flour, simple sugar North American diet, are essential for fatty acid transformation required to be effective in hormone development.

Avoiding these toxic fats doesn’t mean total abstinence from your favorite meals, snacks or desserts. For example, trans-fats found in commercial baked products and processed foods can be eliminated by cooking and baking at home because home made foods do not produce these toxins. However, it’s always a good idea to consume them in moderation because they are high in saturated fats.
It is advisable to eliminate red meat from the diet while experiencing prostate enlargement because saturated fats in the meat have been found to make prostate enlargement more severe. Refined sugar sweeteners and sugary drinks such as soda pop should be avoided because they over-stress the hormonal system. Consume foods high in vitamin A, C, E and B6 to prevent cancer causing oxidation in the body due to free radical damage.

2) Eat foods that promote prostate health - Healthy buttery spreads, oils and salad dressings are available at natural grocery and health stores that use cold pressed processing and avoid hydrogenation. These spreads are good for your health and taste great. Replacing unhealthy oils with essential fatty acid rich, unrefined, cold pressed oils from flax, walnuts, pumpkin, hemp, salmon and cod will help stop inflammation and further prostate enlargement.
Pumpkin seeds and unrefined, cold pressed pumpkin seed oil have been found effective at preventing prostate enlargement because of their ability to prevent high concentrations of testosterone in the prostate. They are also rich in zinc and B6. Other foods rich in these nutrients are eggs and sardines.
Other foods that will prevent prostate enlargement are fresh fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts and seeds. Drink plenty of fresh juices, particularly pomegranate juice, which has been found effective in promoting prostate health. New research shows that avocados contain active compounds effective at inhibiting the growth of prostate cancer cells.

3) Take Prostate Supplements - There are several supplements that have been found effective in the treatment of benign prostate enlargement: Saw palmetto berries have the ability to affect hormones in reducing enlargement, increasing urine flow and preventing frequent urination during the night. Others include white dead-nettle tea, pygeum and stinging nettle root.

10 Amazing Functions of the Prostate Gland?

The Prostate's Purpose:
1. Gland: The primary job of the prostate is to produce and secrete some of the alkaline seminal fluids during ejaculation (about 30-35% of the semen ejaculate). Being alkaline, the prostate fluid, which is milky whitish in color, helps the sperm survive in the acidic vaginal environment. The prostate is considered to be a gland since glands secrete something.
2. Mix Master: The prostate mixes its fluids with those from the seminal vesicles to transport the sperm made in the testicles. Together these fluids surge through the prostate into the urethra during ejaculation. The urethra doubles as the semen tube during ejaculation and as the urine tube from the bladder, both fluids exiting the tip of the penis. The section of the urethra that runs through the prostate gland is called the prostatic urethra and is about 3cm (1½") long.
Prostate-specific antigen (PSA) is a fluid produced in the prostate, playing a key role in enabling the sperm to swim into the uterus by keeping the semen in liquid form. It counteracts the clotting enzyme in the seminal vesicle fluid, which essentially glues the semen to the woman's cervix, next to the uterus entrance inside the vagina. PSA dissolves this glue with its own enzyme so that the sperm can dash into the uterus and impregnate an egg if it is there.
It is this same PSA that is tested during the PSA blood test, a very controversial test because of the many factors that can cause the results to vary widely.
3. Muscle: The prostate is also a muscle that pumps the semen out through the penis with enough force to enter into the vagina to help the sperm succeed in reaching the cervix and ensuring procreation of the species.
4. AH!: An added bonus for males, the pumping action of the prostate sure feels good, making sex desirable and thus helping procreation.
5. G: The prostate is the male G-spot. Prostate stimulation can produce an exceptionally strong sexual response and intense orgasm in men that are receptive to this sexual technique. The ability to control ejaculation at the prostate can also lead to prolonged orgasms and "injaculations" where no semen is expelled. This is done in advanced Taoist and Tantric sexual practices to contain the sexual energy internally.
6. Filter: The prostate also filters and removes toxins for protection of the sperm, which enhances the chance of impregnation and ensures that men seed with the optimum quality of sperm. This is perhaps the prostate's most important function and, at the same time, can be one of the main reasons there is a growing epidemic of prostate disease and cancer as men deal with more and more toxins in food and the environment.
7. Erections: The prostate erection nerves are responsible for erections. These nerves trigger the penis to swell and harden with extra blood flow into it, producing an erection.
If these nerves, which attach to the sides of the prostate, get damaged then erectile difficulties are guaranteed. That is why many medical prostate procedures (surgery or radiation) have an unwanted side effect of erectile difficulties or impotence.
8. Secretions: Prostatic secretions also play a valuable role by protecting the urethra from urinary tract infections, which seem to be much more rare in men than women.
9. Valves: The prostate, which surrounds the upper part of the urethra tube just below the bladder (the prostatic urethra), controls the flow of urine. It prevents urine from leaving the bladder, except when released by urination. It also prevents urine from damaging ejaculate during orgasm.
It does this with two small prostatic muscles called sphincters. They act as gatekeepers with shut-off valves to control and regulate the dual-purpose urethra tube. These gatekeepers ensure the right fluids flow at the right time - urination or ejaculation. Not a bad design!
One sphincter is located where the bladder and the upper part of the prostate meet (the internal upper sphincter). When functioning properly, it prevents urination until it's time to go and stops seminal fluid from shooting backwards into the bladder during ejaculation. When damaged, semen is forced back into the bladder and eventually exits with normal urination. This is known as retrograde ejaculation and is another possible side effect of prostate surgery - no chance of seeding a woman then!
The second, external lower sphincter is at the base of the prostate and is subject to our control. It prevents dribbling after peeing and is how we voluntarily can delay urination when inconvenient to go. Incontinence occurs when control of either sphincter is damaged and urine leaks or flows uncontrollably, thus forcing many men with prostate problems to wear adult diapers.
It's easy enough to voluntarily control the lower sphincter and to stop urine or semen from exiting if you have enough Kegel muscle control, the ability to squeeze the flow shut. Either one of these sphincter muscles will block the urine until the urge to pee happens and the timing is right to release and let the urine flow.
An enlarged prostate or BPH can squeeze the prostatic urethra tube and the upper or lower sphincter, making urination difficult with a host of unpleasant, uncontrollable symptoms. BPH surgeries that remove part of the prostate can easily have side effects of incontinence or retrograde ejaculation.
10. Hormones: The prostate gland contains a crucial enzyme, 5-alpha-reductase. This enzyme converts the hormone testosterone in the body to DHT (dihydrotestosterone), which is at least ten times more powerful than simple testosterone. This potent hormone DHT has several purposes including male sexual drive and function. Over time, a build-up of toxins in the prostate may affect the production of this enzyme, which is then responsible for the declining sex drive in men as they age.
DHT and testosterone have mistakenly been targeted as guilty hormones in prostate problems rather than the excessive rise in modern male estrogen levels, leading often to medical interventions with serious side effects including lack of libido. Estrogen levels rise because of the prevalence of estrogens in factory foods, commercial meats and dairy, and estrogen-mimicking chemicals present in body-care and household products. It's even found in municipal water and some plastic food packaging.
Conclusion:
With such a complex gland having so many functions, prostate disease can wreak havoc on a man's health. Men would be wise to do all they can to enhance the health of their prostate - an unhealthy prostate can have an enormous impact on sexual function and simple daily urination.
The prostate is a powerhouse: a remarkable gland with huge repercussions on a man's quality of life!

Why Is Prostatitis So Hard To Cure?

Why is prostatitis so difficult to cure? It is mainly because blockages form that are difficult to break with tradition methods. Breaking the blockages that cause this problem will heal the prostate. This can be done safely and effectively with assistance from herbal medicine!
Prostatitis treatment is difficult for western doctors because antibiotics do not work on the prostate. The reason antibiotics do not work on this organ is because it is such a small gland and very difficult to get to with antibiotics.
The Prostate is a special organ for men. There are 32 gland tubes to make up this small walnut shaped organ. And there are thick envelope peplos outside of this gland. Once the prostate is infected by bacteria, wrong health styles, habits or diet then the prostate gland tubes become congested. The toxins cause blockages inside the prostate causing prostate inflammation. This inflammation causes severe pain, swelling and urination problems.
Unfortunately, Western medicines, antibiotics and physical treatment never clear away these blocking toxins from the prostate without damage to prostate.
The real reasons for prostatitis are dampness, heat, stagnation and nutritional deficiency. The key reason for pain in the prostate is blockage, stagnant blood, and damp-heat, according to Ayurveda, which is the ancient herbal medicine of India.
Western medicine mainly professes that prostatitis comes from a simple immuno-reaction, pelvis muscle reactions to sitting for a long time calling it a "tense perineum", or the urine return flow causing prostate engorgement and causing congestion. Infection, urinary pain and problems all form prostate calcifications and prostate stones.
India's Ayurvedic medicine does agree that congestion causes prostate tube blockages and stasis, which cause prostatitis. But prostatitis is not caused by bacterial infection. Based on clinical cases many prostatitis patients still have symptoms even if the prostate liquid culture is negative and western doctors can't explain it! And if this is true, it is no wonder antibiotics can not cure it!
If prostatitis treatments never remove the congestion inside of the prostate, then the symptoms of prostatitis never disappear!. And antibiotics cannot enter the prostate because there is a thick mucous envelope outside the prostate. Because of this fact, western medicines don't work to heal the prostate.
The key to healing and curing prostatitis is clearing away the damp-heat, removing the blockage and stasis to get rid of congestion. The prostate is housed in a part of the lower part of body called the lower burner. The kidney and bladder are center.
The lower burner diseases are normally caused by lower heat including cold wetness, damp heat, damp fire, damp toxin, turbid damp. This dampness occupies the prostate, where the tubes twist and turn and turbid retention can easily form in glands, which can be difficult to clear.
The urethra is the accessing external orifice that discharges seminal fluid. The stagnation causes the urethra to become unobstructed. The stagnation also causes pain. The obstruction causes pain. There is an immediate and pressing need to discharge the obstruction to relieve prostate pain.
The chronic prostatitis treatment has been to use oral medicines to clear away the toxin and remove the obstructions. Indian and Chinese medicine both say that, "With smooth circulation there is no pain, pain comes with blockage".
Based on the ayurvedic treatment theory, treatments have to get rid of pain, soreness, prostate swelling and stimulate circulation to achieve the goal of healing the prostate..
Circulating blood and dissolving stasis is the main solution in healing the prostate. An effective treatment will not only cure prostate, but it will also cure kidney infection, bladder infection, urinary infection, and even colonitis. And this treatment is the only way to cure non bacterial prostatitis.
Herbal medicine treatment is based on treatment of the whole body, so while taking the medicines, sufferers will feel that the whole body is relaxed and more powerful. High blood pressure will also go down. When the blood circulation in the lower part of the body is smooth, sexual function also miraculously recovers as well!

Prostate Cancer Prevention and Awareness

Prostate cancer is a form of cancer which is only diagnosed in men. This disease shows in the form of a tumor on the prostate gland, a small walnut shaped organ which is responsible for the secretion of Seminole fluid to the testes. With a little knowledge and simple lifestyle modification, the average man can almost completely eliminate the risk of getting prostate cancer. The best prevention starts early, however, and deliberate lifestyle changes are needed to ensure a lifetime of prostate health.
There are a number of risk factors that if attended to, can significantly reduce a man's chances of ever getting prostate cancer. These factors include regular cardiovascular exercise, limiting consumption of red meat, eating tomatoes or tomato based food each week, keeping a healthy body weight, and not getting a vasectomy. Although the reasons are unknown at this time, getting a vasectomy has shown an elevated risk for getting prostate cancer. A few of these factors are simple practices which will greatly reduce the risk of prostate cancer, but require a little dedication. Things like eating tomatoes and getting regular cardiovascular exercise may be slightly difficult for some to incorporate into their lives, but these are two things which help to contribute to overall health as well. The same as with limiting consumption of red meat, and staying at a healthy weight, these may be difficult at first for some but will also contribute to overall health.
The previous factors when incorporated into a weekly routine for a healthy prostate will also have a lasting beneficial impact, so they seem to be an obvious choice. The key is to start with one or two simple steps which are easy to do. The easiest would be eating tomatoes, and if this is a matter of taste then simply putting them in a salad would be a simple solution. The next best risk factor to move on to would be cardiovascular exercise. The practitioner should always consult their doctor before beginning an exercise routine, but this could be easier than most people think. This could be accomplished simply by taking a brisk walk for 20 to 30 minutes, three to four times a week. This would serve a dual purpose in the fight against prostate cancer, as this will certainly help in reaching or maintaining a healthy body weight, which is another factor to keep in mind.

Prostate Cancer - Asian Mushroom Boon to Prostate Health

The incidence of prostate cancer in the United States is rising at an alarming rate; an estimated 241,000 men will develop the disease in 2012 alone, and over 28,000 will die. Overall, in the Western world, 1 man in 6 will be affected by prostate cancer in his lifetime. On the other hand, for men living in Asian countries such as China, Japan and South Korea, the risk of developing a prostate tumor is less than 1 in 100. These noteworthy statistics have led medical researchers to look at various elements of Asian dietary and medicinal practices for answers.
Among the various botanicals that have proven anti-cancer and other disease-fighting properties, the Sang-Huang mushroom stands out for its efficacy in alleviating prostate issues, having been used in Asian countries for over a century in maintaining prostate health. In many Asian countries, dried and powdered Sang Huang mushrooms are frequently used in teas and other medicinal preparations formulated to promote men's health and prevent the occurrence of common prostate problems, including prostate cancer. Formulas containing Sang Huang mushroom extract or powder are highly recommended by Asian health proponents for supporting immune function and are widely touted in Japan, in particular, for their cancer-fighting ability.
Anti-Cancer Properties of Sang Huang Mushroom Extract
With evidence that the Sang Huang mushroom may be used effectively in treating prostate issues such as benign prostatic hyperplasia (or enlarged prostate), a group of researchers from the Harvard Medical School recently conduced a study on prostate tumors in experimental mice in order to determine whether an extract of the Sang Huang mushroom, or phellinus linteus, as it is known scientifically, also had an effect on prostate cancer cells. Their findings indicate that an injection of phellinus linteus, which has known anti-oxidant properties, was able to successfully reduce prostate tumor growth rates and led to an overall reduction in tumor size. Their research supports the belief that the phytochemicals contained in extracts of the Sang Huang mushroom may be beneficial in promoting men's prostate health.
Preventing prostate problems and other men's health issues depends on many factors, including making healthy lifestyle choices such as eating a diet low in saturated fats and cholesterol, engaging in physical activity, and maintaining a healthy body weight. Avoiding the use of tobacco products and keeping the consumption of alcohol to moderate levels can also help to keep the body's defenses working appropriately and minimize the risk of developing a life-threatening illness. In addition, the daily use of a dietary supplement containing phellinus linteus extract (health professionals recommend Prostate-pH), may provide additional prostate support. Men who are at risk for prostate issues due to family history or who are experiencing prostate problems should seek advice from a health care professional.

Writer:John Dugan

Men Who Are Fifty Years Old And Prostate Cancer

Prostate cancer has raised very serious concern amongst men approximately fifty years of age or more, in most countries the world over. The simple reason is that research shows there has been increased disclosure of the disease amongst men of all races due mainly to composition of diet and lack or absence of very important foods.
The prostate gland in men encompasses the part of the urethra located underneath the urinary bladder. When sperm is produced in the testicles it travels through two tubes to the Prostate Gland. From there the tubes connect to the urethra, which is the organ through which urine flows from the bladder and out of the body. This fluid secreted by the Prostate Gland mixes with the spermatozoa, nourishes and facilitate its ejection from the body through the urethra.
This secretion increases the mortality and fertility of spermatozoa. Research shows that the Prostate Gland often enlarges in old age and obstructs the urethra and often makes surgical removal a procedure called Prostatectomy an option for life. Cancer of the Prostate Gland has been found amongst a significant percentage of adult males autopsied worldwide.
Cancer of the prostate is stimulated by the male hormone testosterone, which is produced by the testicles. It is believed that when and if the cancer spreads doctors can treat it with female hormones or by removal of the testicles surgically. If the cancer has not spread beyond the prostate the diseased tissue can be removed.
It is estimated that 241,740 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2012 (850 more than in 2011) An estimated 1 in 6 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during their lifetime, but only 1 in 36 men will die from the disease. In addition it is believed that there are more than 2.5 million American men for example who have been diagnosed with prostate cancer and are continue to live. Further it is said that about 2 out of 3 prostate cancers are found in men older than fifty years of age. Health Experts believe that Prostate Cancer is the second leading cause of death due to cancer in men. It has been forecasted that an estimate twenty eight thousand, one hundred and seventy men (28,170) will die from Prostate Cancer in 2012.Source: American Cancer Society.
Nutritional and Medical Research have discovered that a change in diet and availability of nutritional supplements can assist in the prevention and cure of Prostate Cancer. If men are aware of what is required in caring for their health then there is hope. The first major step is education and dissemination of information on the disease. It is believed that if some basic information on the cause and prevention of Prostate Cancer is made available to men especially those approaching fifty years of age the first step to reducing the number of cases would have been achieved.
It is very important to consult a Doctor on any issue relating to Prostate Cancer. However the matter of personal diet is very vital. Whilst it is true that most prostate problems are benign and readily treatable the importance of proper diet must be taken into consideration. Vitamin supplements are vital to prevention and treatment. The following are recommended: vitamin A which has antioxidant qualities; Vitamin B6 helps to regulate the level of sex hormones; Vitamins C is a powerful antioxidant; Vitamin E boost the immune system to fight infection.
Minerals too are also very important in the diet. Manganese is needed to produce sex hormones. Selenium is a key antioxidant. Zinc controls the prostate's sensitivity to hormones. Other very important nutrients includes:Omega-3 oils needed to make Prostaglandin, which is important for prostate health. Omega 6 oils; Evening Primrose Oil which regulates hormone levels and reduce swellings and Bioflavonoid which increases the potency of vitamin C.
In addition to these minerals and vitamins that can be taken as supplements the experts in the field have discovered that foods such as tomatoes and soy are very important. It is generally accepted that Soy consumption also reduces the risk of various types of cancer particularly prostate cancer. Eating a daily serving of soy for a few months is enough to produce beneficial effects. Green Soy or Mung Bean is originally from India and is gaining in popularity because of its pleasant taste and its digestability. It is eaten boiled after being soaked. Soy is very rich in phosphorus, magnesium and potassium. One hundred grams provide for most of the daily requirements of these minerals. It is also very rich in calcium. In addition soy has the advantage of containing virtually no sodium a mineral that causes fluid retention in the tissues. Isoflavones constitutes Soy's most important non-nutretitive component, which is responsible for most of its therapeutic properties. They are a type of Phytoestrogen/vegetable based female hormone with a similar effect as estrogen but without its undesirable side effects.
Nutritional experts have also discovered that the tomato is very important in the diet in treating and preventing Prostate Cancer. The healing power that the tomato exercises on a variety of disorders as well as its preventative effects on certain types of cancer particularly that of the Prostate makes the vegetable a universally recognized medicinal food. Fresh tomatoes contain a great deal of water 4% of their weight. They contain small amounts of carbohydrates 3.54% proteins 0.85% and fats 0.33%. Its carbohydrates are formed primarily from glucose and fructose. Together these two nutrients provide 21Kilo Calories/100g one of the lowest amount of any plant based food lower than asparagus 23 K cal/100g.However the tomato's nutritional and therapeutic values is in its rich vitamin and mineral content as well as its non-nutritive substances. In terms of vitamins the most abundant is vitamins C 19.1mg/100g an amount that is less than the orange 53.2mg/100g but enough to make the tomato effective against scurvy. It is estimated that a 100g tomato supplies a third of adult daily need for their vitamin.
The non-nutritive components found in tomatoes are substances present in the food, which although not considered in the traditional sense play an important role within the body. The most note worthy in the tomatoes are as follows: vegetable fiber contain a small amount 1.1% of soluble fiber in their pulp particularly in the mucilage surrounding the seeds. This fiber contributes to the tomatoes cholesterol reducing and laxative effect. Organic acid: particularly malic and oxalic which contributes to the tomatoes unique flavour. As the tomato ripens the concentration of these acids diminishes and the sugar content increases. In spite of the acidic taste, which results from the presence of these acid substances, the tomato has the same effect as the lemon. It has an alkalizing effect on the blood organic tissue and urine. This is because it contains many more alkalizing substances [mineral salts] than acids. Lycopene: this vegetable pigment belongs to the group of carotenoids that gives tomato their typical red coloring contrast to beta-carotene. Lycopene was thought to be of no physiological importance.
New evidence however, is coming to light that emphasizes Lycopene's importance within the body. At the Heinrich-Heine University in Dusseidorf/Germany a center of tomato Lycopene research the following conclusions have been reached: it is present in human blood. Together with beta-carotene it is the most abundant carotenoid in the human body. Lycopene is also found in the testicles, the prostate and suprarenal glands. It is an extremely potent antioxidant preventing the deterioration that free radicals produce in the DNA of the cells. Lycopene intervenes in the mechanisms the controls cellular growth. Without its presence cells reproduce in a more disorderly manner. Because of its composition tomatoes are important to prevention and treatment of the following prostate conditions.
It must be mentioned also that numerous studies conducted at Harvard University/USA shows that men who regularly eat fresh tomatoes as well as tomato sauce or juice are at a much lower risk of Prostate Cancer than others. This fact is easily explained bearing in mind that the tomato is the richest food source of lycopene the carotenoid that protects the cells of the prostate from oxidation and abnormal growth. Regular tomato consumption in any form has been shown to be an important factor in the prevention of prostate cancer one of the most prevalent cancers amongst men.
Men fifty years and over need to consider the following foods in their daily diet and these foods include: tomatoes, oysters, fresh fruits, green or yellow vegetables/broccoli and Chinese leaves, whole grains, pumpkin seeds, nuts, pulses and garlic. Vitamin B1, B2, B6 Niacin and Foliates are all present in significant amounts. Pro Vitamin A is present 62 mg/100g including 0.45 mg/100g magnesium and phosphorus.
They are also many foods, which have to be avoided to ensure great health. These are listed as follows: milk and meat because of their hormone content.
Written By Peter Fevrier

Repeat AAA Screens Found Cost-Effective

Repeat screening for men at high risk of an abdominal aortic aneurysm appears to be cost-effective, Danish researchers reported.
A mathematical modeling study confirmed that one-time screening of men 65 and older was cost-effective – a finding that has already led to screening programs in England and Scotland, according to Rikke Søgaard, PhD, of the University of Southern Denmark in Odense, Denmark, and colleagues.
But the study also suggested that rescreening high-risk men at least once would also save money, Søgaard and colleagues reported online in BMJ.
The findings apply directly only to countries with a national health service and details of the costs – and therefore cost-effectiveness -- may vary from place to place, the authors cautioned.
And the study, based on a hypothetical cohort of 100,000 men, leaves some other questions open: "The optimal choice of rescreening strategy appears to be uncertain, and further research is needed to establish the long-term costs and benefits of rescreening," Søgaard and colleagues concluded.
Follow-up of randomized trials has shown that screening in men older than 65 cuts the risk of death from abdominal aortic aneurysm by about half, the researchers noted.
But it has not been clear if there is additional benefit in continuing to screen men, especially given advances in primary and secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease and increasing use of such techniques as ultrasound, which can increase incidental detection of aneurysms.
To investigate the issue, Søgaard and colleagues constructed a mathematical prediction model to test four approaches: no screening, a single screening at age 65, two lifetime screenings 5 years apart with the first at 65, and screening every five years starting at 65.
The model required data on such things as prevalence, rupture rates, and mortality rates after rupture and surgical treatment, which the researchers obtained by analyzing research registries from two Danish screening trials, the Danish vascular registry, and national registries for causes of death.
In the model, high rupture risk was defined as an aortic diameter of 25 through 29 millimeters, and aneurysm was defined as a diameter of 30 millimeters or more.
The model suggested:

• There is a 92% probability that some form of screening would be cost-effective at a threshold of about $31,460.
• Assuming incidental detection was zero in small aneurysms and 12% annually in aneurysms of at least 55 millimeters, 2,469 men per 100,000 given an initial screen at age 65 would be found to have a clinically relevant aneurysm.
• If men with a high rupture risk were rescreened once after 5 years, 452 additional men per 100,000 initially screened would benefit from early detection at a cost of about $15,537 per quality-adjusted life year.
• Lifetime rescreening every 5 years would detect 794 additional men per 100,000 of those initially screened, at a cost of about $46,046 per quality-adjusted life year.

Regarding the two rescreening strategies, the number of elective operations to repair an aneurysm was estimated to increase from 861 per 100,000 with no screening, to 1,390 if screening were done once, and then to 1,496 if screening was repeated after 5 years, and 1,530 per 100,000 if screening occurred at 5-year intervals.
On the other hand, the researchers estimated the number of emergency operations would fall from 610 per 100,000 with no screening to 382 for screening once, and then to 363 and 360 per 100,000 for one-time repeat screening and 5-year screening, respectively.
At the same time, the aneurysm-related death rate would fall from 788 to 520 and 511 per 100,000 for one-time repeat screening and 5-year screening, respectively.
One major limitation of the study is its possible lack of generalizability to less homogeneous populations and to countries without national health insurance, since costs -- especially of surgery -- may differ. The investigators did note, however, that emergency surgery is usually more expensive than elective surgery so that cost savings could result from fewer emergency repairs, regardless of overall surgical costs.