Monthly Archives: October 2016

4 Illnesses That Are Common in the Winter

October 27 in Health by admin | Comments Off

Images is from Live and Learn

Learn about the most common winter illnesses and what you can do to fight them.

As the leaves began to fall off the trees and temperatures drop, illnesses such as the flu peak. Many viruses are more likely to spread in the winter. There are several reasons for this. Dry cold air makes it easier for viruses to get into your nasal passages and some germs, such as influenza, are more stable and stay in the air longer when the air is dry and cold. Plus, more people are indoors in the winter. Being indoors with all the doors and windows shut make it more likely that you will be exposed to germs. Here are some of the most common winter illnesses and ways that you can prevent them.

Flu

Influenza, also called the flu is a respiratory virus that is caused by influenza. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the flu virus is at its peak from November through March in the Northern Hemisphere. In the Southern Hemisphere, the flu is prevalent from May through September.

Symptoms of the flu include body aches, high fever, coughing, sore throat and runny nose. Flu is contagious and spreads from person to person by sneezing and coughing. It may also spread through infected surfaces. Populations most susceptible to serious complications from the flu include the elderly and very young as well as those with impaired immune systems.

The best way to prevent the flu is to make sure that you and everyone in your house is vaccinated against the flu. The flu can be treated with Tamiflu if it is diagnosed within 48 hours. Otherwise, the illness has to run its course.

Asthma

Cold air can trigger asthma symptoms and causes wheezing and shortness of breath. Allergens are often a major contributor to asthma. Being indoors leads to breathing in mold, dust and dander, all of which are asthma triggers. Wind and rain also stir up allergens. Working out in the cold weather can also exacerbate asthma, making it more difficult to breathe. Ways to deal with asthma in the winter include:

Understand and avoid your triggers-If you are allergic to dust mites or mold, keep your house cool and dry.
Exercise indoors
Cover your face when you go outdoors

Norovirus

Noroviruses, also known as the “winter vomiting bug” is notorious for ruining cruise passenger’s vacations and causing entire ships to turn back around for port. Noroviruses strike not only cruise passengers, but those on dry land, as well. It is common on cruise ships due to the fact that they are highly contagious. Noroviruses spread through contaminated food and surfaces. Cruise ships provide the perfect setting for noroviruses due to the large number of people confined to a relatively small area. The symptoms of norovirus include diarrhea, vomiting and stomach cramps. The best way to prevent norovirus is to wash your hands frequently.

Bronchitis

Bronchitis is the irritation and swelling of the air passages of the lungs. This illness most often occurs in winter and is often a complication of another illness, such as the flu or asthma. Frequent coughing is the most common symptom of bronchitis. Although it is usually not a serious illness in healthy individuals, it can lead to pneumonia in certain individuals. If the condition does not go away in two weeks, contact your health care physician. To reduce the risk of bronchitis, wash your hands frequently and get vaccinated for the flu.

Tagged air passages, allergens, asthma, Asthma symptoms, asthma triggers, body aches, Bronchitis, cold, Cold air, complications, Coughing, dander, diarrhea, Dry cold air, dust, exercise, fight, Flu, high fever, illnesses, immune systems, infected surfaces, influenza, irritation, lungs, mold, nasal passages, norovirus, pneumonia, premier, premier lab, premier lab services, premier medical, premier medical lab service, respiratory, respiratory systems, respiratory virus, runny nose, shortness of breath, sore throat, stomach cramps, swelling, Tamiflu, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, vaccinated, viruses, vomiting, wheezing, Winter, winter illnesses, winter vomiting bug

How to Reduce the Spread of Germs

October 26 in Health by admin | Comments Off

Image is from Healthy Tennessee

Out of Sight, Out of Mind

You need to worry about microscopic bugs, the bugs you cannot see with the human eye. These microscopic germs you cannot see are the carriers of a lot of disease and illness.

Deadly, Simple Routines

You never stop to think about how clean the person’s hands were who used your shopping cart before you.

What did that person do last before grabbing the shopping cart you are now holding in your hands?
Did that person have their hands in their mouth?
Did the person go to the restroom and not wash their hands?
Did the person sneeze or cough into their hands?

While many people wash their hands before leaving a restroom, there are still some people who do not routinely wash their hands.

As sad as this fact is, many people still visit the bathroom and do not wash their hands after they finish using the toilet. If this makes you cringe, it should, because this scenario is all too true.

What if someone had the flu symptoms and was coughing and sneezing into their hands and then placed their hands on your shopping cart where your hands now rest?

Oops, you have an itchy nose and reach a hand up to scratch your face with a hand that was holding someone’s sneeze or a cough.

We cannot see these microscopic germs, but these bacteria are present in and on everything we touch. You can feel pretty comfortable in your home; however, when you are out in the public domain with strangers all around, you must be cautious and think the very worst you can to stay relatively healthy.

Be Aware of Your Environment

While you cannot eliminate these nasty germs from your surroundings, you can take some steps significantly decreasing unknown microscopic bacteria in your environment by using some plain and simple common sense.

Carry a small bottle of hand sanitizer in a pocket or purse and use it before and after using a shopping cart, before eating, after leaving a public restroom and just because it is time to disinfect your hands.
If a store supplies bacterial wipes at cart corrals, grab some wipes and cleanse the cart handles before using. You can carry wipes wherever you go.
When a store display a bottle of hand sanitizer, use some.
When you have to sneeze or cough, do so into a tissue. If no tissue is available, cough or sneeze into your upper arm or crook of your elbow, and use sanitizer afterward.
A sneeze is believed to travel, at least, 400 miles per hour. sanitizer afterward.
If you have the flu symptoms or a severe cold, never go out into the public, stay home.
If you must go out and you are ill, wear a mask.
Be sure to get your pneumonia and flu shot when due.
Never share eating or drinking utensils.
See your doctor if you are ill and not getting better.
Never use anything that you think could be contaminated by germs like towels, washcloths, and makeup.

How to Wash Your Hands in a Public Restroom.

Turn on the faucet with a piece of dry paper towel.
Wash hands well with warm soapy water.
Rinse hands.
Do not turn faucets off until you dry your hands well.
Grab a piece of dry paper towel to turn the faucet handles off.

People leave germs on the faucet handles after using the toilet. These bacteria can penetrate wet paper towels and go back onto your hands.

Using common sense is the best way to help eliminate the spread of germs.

Tagged bacteria, bacterial wipes, body, cough, Coughing, disease, disinfect, disinfect your hands, environment, Flu, flu shot, flu symptoms, Germs, hand sanitizer, hands, health, healthy, illness, itchy nose, microscopic bacteria, microscopic germs, mouth, pneumonia, premier, premier lab, premier lab services, premier medical, premier medical lab service, respiratory, severe cold, sneeze, Sneezing, Spread of Germs, vaccinations

Symptoms of Whooping Cough

October 25 in Health by admin | Comments Off

Due to the years of medical research, many of the ‘old time’ illness, such as the following showed rarity. Medical communities all agreed that there was no longer any need to vaccine children and adults due no incidents of these diseases reported for many years.

Now in recent years these ‘old time’ illnesses are starting to rear their ugly head because vaccinations stopped. Now the CDC is starting to urge you and your children to be vaccinated once again. A DPT vaccination is a combination of Diphtheria, Pertussis, and Tetanus.

Those vaccinated need a revaccination against this with a TDap booster. Whooping Cough is a serious disease and can cause death. Every age group should get a vaccination to protect them against this illness. It is hard to diagnose Whooping Cough because the symptoms are that of a common cold.

Whooping Cough
Chicken Pox
Scarlet Fever
Polio

Whooping Cough, Pertussis, or the 100-Day Cough

Whooping Cough is a difficult and challenging illness for any child or adult. This disease takes on a more difficult elimination, and the signs and symptoms become worse in seniors and infants.

If you, as an adult, or a baby is exposed to Pertussis it takes from five to ten days and sometimes up to three weeks to develop symptoms.

If you received a vaccination and then exposed to Whooping Cough, your cough would not last as long. If a baby contracts Pertussis and they are less than one year of age, hospitalization is usually required. Symptoms of this illness include,

A whooping type cough
Constant coughing fits
Instances of vomiting after coughing fits
Symptoms mimicking a cold such as, mild cough and low-grade fever
Periods of apnea in babies

Early on in the process of this illness symptoms can last for one to a few weeks and may include,

A mild and occasional cough
Low-grade fever
Episodes of apnea in a baby
Runny nose
Sneezing
Common cold or bronchitis

If you have a baby with Whooping Cough, the chances of them coughing may not be apparent. Instead, a child displays apnea and cyanosis (bluish tinge to the skin) from lack of oxygen.

As this illness progresses, symptoms become more intense after one to two weeks. These symptoms can include,

You have frequent, rapid coughing. Coughing fits come so frequently and violently it takes all the air from your lungs. To breathe you must try to take in a deep breath causing a whooping sound.
Vomiting, sometimes
Extreme fatigue

There is no quick recovery from Pertussis. Coughing fits last for weeks, usually up to and exceeding 10-weeks.

Vaccinations for Whooping Cough lessen the duration and intensity of a cough and time ill.

Recovery

Recovery is slow and agonizing. A cough starts to decrease and is milder. Symptoms can return over the course of many months, whenever you develop another respiratory infection.

Vaccination against Diphtheria,Tetanus, and Pertussis is essential to good health and lessens the symptoms should you get any of these illnesses.

This vaccination is essential to good health and lessens the symptoms should you get any of these illnesses.Vaccinations are highly safe, but you may experience some mild reactions such as in the following.

Mild pain and redness at injection site
Mild fever
Slight headache
Mild fatigue

When you consider full-blown Pertussis and the weeks and months of difficult recovery, these few possible reactions are minimal and you will be glad you protected yourself and children from Whooping Cough.

Pertussis is on the rise and proves a very contagious respiratory infection. Vaccination of adults and children every ten years is essential for a healthy life.

Tagged 100-Day Cough, a runny nose, adults, airborne respiratory droplets, antibiotics, apnea, bacterial infection, bluish tinge, booster shot, breathe, breathes, CDC, children, contagious, cough, Coughing, coughing spells, coughs, cyanosis, Diphtheria, disease, DPT, DPT vaccination, DtaP, DtaP shots, fatigue, fever, headache, health, illness, immune systems, infection, kids, laughs, low-grade fever, lungs, mild cough, nasal congestion, nose, oxygen, pertussis, premier lab, premier lab services, premier medical, premier medical lab service, respiratory, respiratory tract infection, revaccination, runny nose, sneezes, Sneezing, symptoms, Tdap, TDap booster, Tetanus, throat, trouble breathing, upper-respiratory, vaccinations, vaccines, vomiting, Whooping Cough

Different types of Hepatitis

October 20 in Health, MD GeneticPro by admin | Comments Off

Image is from naturalsociety.com

The definition of hepatitis is injury to the liver with inflammation of liver cells. There are six kinds of this disease, types A, B, C, D, E, and G, and which one you have is determined by a blood test. All six types are caused by a virus, but each is contracted differently.

Some fast facts on hepatitis include:

Hepatitis A (HAV) is caused by ingesting contaminated water or food.
Hepatitis B (HBV) is an STD (sexually transmitted disease)
Approximately 300 million people worldwide have hepatitis B.
Hepatitis C (HCV) is spread by direct contact with the blood of an infected person.
Approximately 250 million people in the world have hepatitis C.
A person must already be infected with hepatitis B in order to contract hepatitis D (HDV).
Hepatitis E (HEV) is caused by drinking contaminated water.
Hepatitis G (HGV) is also caused by a specific virus.
There is also a hepatitis X, which is diagnosed when a case of hepatitis is contracted by a virus other than those that cause the others.
The initial symptoms of all of the forms of hepatitis can be confused with flu symptoms.

HAV

According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), approximately 1,781 new cases are diagnosed each year. It is caused by an acute viral illness; it never becomes chronic. Like other viruses, it is easily spread, especially when there are unsanitary conditions. It is spread by oral secretions (kissing) and fecal (poor or no hand washing). If proper hand washing does not occur, customers in restaurants and children in daycares are particularly susceptible.

HBV

The CDC reports that more than 1,800 people die from chronic HBV each year. It is contracted in many ways:

The transfer of blood or serum via shared needles
Transfer of contaminated blood via an accidental needle stick
Blood transfusions
Hemodialysis
To newborns by infected mothers
Sharing toothbrushes or razors
Body piercing or tattooing with an infected needle

About 6% to 10% of patients develop chronic HBV. It can last anywhere from six months to decades, and an infected person is contagious as long as they have the disease. Chronic sufferers are also more susceptible to liver cirrhosis, cancer, or failure. It is estimated that there are about two billion people in the world who have this form of hepatitis.

HCV

According to the CDC, there are 16,500 new cases of HCV reported each year. It is caused by shared needles, accidental needle sticks, blood transfusions, or hemodialysis. It is also contracted by sexual contact, but those incidents are rare. Over half of patients diagnosed with acute HCV develop chronic infections from which they continue to be contagious. In the United States, alone, 3.2 million people are infected with this common form of hepatitis.

HDV, HEV, and HGV

HDV is the most important one of the three, because patients can contract this virus concurrently with HBV. It requires a protein from HBV in order to survive. It is contracted by some of the same ways HBV is spread, by sexual contact, shared needles, and contaminated blood. The combination of these two viruses are very difficult to treat, and severe cirrhosis (liver scarring) occurs rapidly.

While HDV is similar to HBV, HEV is similar to HAV in terms of disease. It occurs most often in Asia and is contracted by drinking contaminated water.

HGV is a recent discovery. While it resembles HCV, there is still much to be learned about it. Caused by the flavivirus, it is currently under investigation.

Reduce Your Risk

Follow the these guidelines to protect yourself from contracting the disease:

Wash your hands frequently, especially after using the bathroom.
Only eat food that has just been cooked.
Only drink bottled or boiled water.
Do not eat fruits or vegetables until they have been disinfected.
Get a HAV vaccine if traveling to countries where the disease is prevalent.
Practice safe sex.
Do not share needles, toothbrushes, razors, or manicure tools.
Get the HBV vaccine series if you are at risk.
Make sure piercing/tattoo equipment is sterilized.
Drink alcohol in moderation.

Not all forms of hepatitis are viral, however. You can contract the disease from ingesting alcohol, medicines, or other chemicals. You can also develop hepatitis from certain medical conditions, such as a metabolic disorder, an immune-related injury, or a genetic problem

Tagged accidental needle sticks, acute, Acute HCV, acute viral illness, blood, blood test, Blood transfusions, Cancer, CDC, Center for Disease Control, cirrhosis, contagious, contaminated, contracted, easily spread, flavivirus, HAV, HAV vaccine, HBV, HBV vaccine, HCV, HDV, Hemodialysis, hepatitis, Hepatitis A, Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, hepatitis D, Hepatitis E, Hepatitis G, hepatitis X, HEV, HGV, infected, inflammation, liver cells, liver cirrhosis, liver scarring, premier, premier lab, premier lab services, premier medical, premier medical lab service, protein, sexual contact, sexually transmitted disease, shared needles, STD, unsanitary conditions, virus

Tips to help control stress

October 19 in Health by admin | Comments Off

Image is from www.helpguide.org

Leading a stress-free life can be elusive in this day and age. Many factors exist that tend to cause different levels of stress. Such factors range from personal decisions to the surrounding environment. Regardless of your stage of life, it is handy to know how to go about the process of handling life’s stresses. Follow and implement the following tips.

Avoid Substance Abuse

Although this tip does not across all people, it would be handy to many others. Provided you are already using some kind of drugs or alcohol; it is necessary to cut that off your lifestyle. Continued use of drugs poses high chances of addiction. If you let that happen, you will end spending a big portion of your income buying drugs.

As a result, the whole process will become a vicious cycle. Instead of relieving, continued drug use will ultimately alleviate your stress levels as you lose your financial footing. To start with, one of the effective ways that would lead you to avoiding substance abuse is reducing the intake. In doing so, you would also want to receive professional assistance.

Get Enough Sleep

Ensuring that you get enough sleep is one of the ways you can use to manage and control life’s stresses. Fully relaxing during your sleep for the appropriate number of hours without any disruption will allow your body to relax and rejuvenate itself. Enjoying great sleeping hours requires you to ensure your bedroom is quiet and comfortable.

Preparing before sleeping is something you would also want to consider. Start by avoiding energy drinks or caffeine few hours before going to bed. At the same time, a shower or bath, or reading a book would relax and enhance your sleep. The other important aspect of having a meaningful sleep is maintaining a schedule.

Time Management

When you have a problem, the best way to deal with it is identifying and sorting out its root cause. From an analytical point of view, it is clear that poor time management usually leads to a lot of the life’s stresses. That idea points towards a clear solution. You need to plan out your days and tasks properly.

While coming up with a schedule, prioritize important tasks. If possible, you can go further by breaking down such tasks into blocks of manageable units. The approach will enable you to complete assigned tasks and avoid situations where tasks pile up and end overwhelming you.

Do Physical Exercises

A great deal of the life stresses that affect most people currently originate from their lifestyles regarding their daily physical activities. The number of individuals spend most of their working days seated all day with minimal physical activities. Such inactive bodies tend to produce stress-dealing hormones that are not good for the body.

As such, you can easily deal with that problem by engaging in regular physical activities or exercises for your body to metabolize the unnecessary stress hormones. In turn, you would end up refreshing your body, which leads to a relaxed and calm state of mind.

Healthy Eating

Always avoid taking solace in food whenever you are stressed. Instead, incorporate a healthy eating style at all times. Eating the wrong food or in excess amounts will still lead to other health complications that would only add up to your stress. Grains, vegetables, fruits, and lean protein should be constant portions in your food.

It is clear that you can handle life’s stresses. Having some sort of control over your life and keeping a positive attitude primarily summarize what you need. Ultimately, you will lead a happy and less stressful life.

Tagged adrenaline, Avoid Substance Abuse, blood pressure rises, breath quickens, control, cortisol, emergency action, emotional, emotional stress, Exercises, health complications, Healthy Eating, hormones, life’s stresses, manage, manageable, Management, muscles tighten, nervous system, physical activities, Physical Exercises, physical reaction, Physical stress, poor time management, positive attitude, premier, premier lab, premier lab services, premier medical, premier medical lab service, prioritize, prioritize important tasks, psychological, refreshing, rejuvenate, relax, schedule, sleep, stress, stress hormones, stress levels, stress-dealing hormones, stress-free, stress-free life, Substance Abuse, Time Management

Difference Between Antiviral Drugs and Antibiotics

October 18 in Health, MD DrugPro by admin | Comments Off

Image is from Discover Magazine

There is a wide difference between antiviral drugs and antibiotics, and you should know the difference and the effects of these two drug classifications on your body. The range of antiviral medications is narrow while the range of antibiotics is quite full.

Antiviral Drugs

The doctor may prescribe an antiviral medication for you if you suspect you recently were around someone displaying a viral illness such as flu symptoms. If you have good reason to believe you contacted a viral disease, but you are not yet showing signs and symptoms an antiviral medication may prevent you from coming down with that illness, or at least minimize the effect of that disease before it occurs.

An antiviral drug is effective, but only when administered at the first signs of contact or symptoms. An antiviral diminishes the development of the illness.

A few virus includes,

Standard coughs
Sore throats except for strep throat
HIV
Hepatitis B and C
Flu

There are a few drugs in the antiviral category. These drugs used short-term, are not profitable for pharmaceutical companies to research or keep to a high supply.

The antiviral drugs used in the treatment of HIV are in high supply and demand, because of the many people using them and the fact that this particular antiviral drug takes the HIV infection and turns it into a chronic, not terminal condition you can manage.

HIV is not necessarily a life sentence since these antivirals came onto the drug market. Pharmaceutical companies need to put more research into a larger variety of medications to fight other viruses.

If you develop a secondary infection from a virus such as you have the flu, now you develop pneumonia is the flu many times does, you need an antibiotic to fight pneumonia.

Powerful Antibiotics

If you contact a bacterial infection on the outside or inside of the body, the doctor may prescribe for you an antibiotic. There is a broad range of antibiotics on the marketplace today, each offering different targets of healing. Antibiotics kill the bacteria in your body that is making you ill. Antibiotics also stop these bacteria from multiplying and growing.

Doctors today are taught to use extreme caution in ordering patients antibiotics because research is finding more and more people becoming resistive to the usefulness of appropriate antibiotics because people are taking too much of a particular antibiotic and building up a resistance, thus, the antibiotic becomes useless in fighting off bacterial infections for you.

You may go to the doctors when you have a bad case of the flu, and you feel you need an antibiotic. However, the doctor will not prescribe an antibiotic for you because it will not help you get over the flu and in the end, the antibiotic makes your body more harm.

There is an extensive list of reasons why your doctor may prescribe an antibiotic such as but not limited to,

Ear infections
Strep throat
Sinus infections
Urinary tract infections
Wound infections
Diverticulitis
Colitis
Bronchitis
Pneumonia

Antibiotics also put up an invisible protective barrier between you and others around you once you have taken the antibiotic 24-48 hours.

Resistance to Antibiotics

Do not demand any antibiotics from your doctor if he or she feels you do not need them.
Never take antibiotics for viral infections.
Never demand an antibiotic every time you get the sniffles or a cough.

Antibiotics are powerful drugs and when used for the right reasons save lives. Take your antibiotic, according to your doctor’s orders. Never skip doses or incomplete an antibiotic because you feel better and think you are over the infection.

Tagged antibiotics, antiviral drugs, antiviral medications, bacteria, bacterial infection, Bronchitis, chronic, Colitis, cough, Diverticulitis, Ear infections, Flu, flu symptoms, Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, high supply and demand, HIV, ill, illness, infection, pharmaceutical companies, pneumonia, premier, premier lab, premier lab services, premier medical, premier medical lab service, protective barrier, resistance, resistive, secondary infection, short-term, Sinus infections, sniffles, Sore throats, Standard coughs, Strep Throat, terminal condition, Urinary tract infections, viral disease, viral illness, virus, Wound infections

Understanding Whooping Cough

October 13 in Health by admin | Comments Off

Image is from Live Science

Whooping cough is a bacterial infection also known as pertussis. The infection gets into your nose and throat, and it is very contagious. When a person with whooping cough sneezes, coughs, or laughs, small drops of the bacteria can fly into the air. When a person walks by and breathes in the air, they can develop the disease if they haven’t completed their series of vaccines or if they have not had a booster shot. Fortunately, there are vaccines such as Tdap and DtaP that can prevent both adults and children from contracting the disease.

Symptoms of Whooping Cough

The early symptoms of whooping cough start out like a cold. You can have a mild cough, sneezing, a runny nose, and a low-grade fever below 102. After about 7 to 10 days, the cough will start getting worse. A mild cough can turn into coughing fits. By the time the disease is full blown, you will create a whooping sound when you cough as you try to fill your lungs with oxygen. Since the cough is dry and not productive, you can have a coughing spell that can last for up to a minute. During this time, you face can turn red or purple. There are, however, some people who don’t have coughing spells .When an infant has whooping cough, they won’t have the whooping sound or the cough. They will just gasp, trying to catch their breath. Also, some babies will vomit.

Whooping Cough is Extremely Dangerous in Babies

If a child under 6 months old and they develop whooping, cough, they would need to be hospitalized. Even if you think that your child could have this disease, you should take them to a doctor immediately. When a child under 18 months old has whooping cough, they would need to be watched at all times. This is because the disease can cause the baby to stop breathing, and they would need help to get their breathing started again.

Preventing Whooping Cough

Babies get a series of DtaP shots when they are 2 months old, 4 months old, 6 months old, a 15 to 18 months old. They are then given a booster shot between 4 and 6 years old. Because a baby won’t be fully protected against the disease until they are 18 months old, the best way to prevent them from developing whooping cough is to make sure that any adult who will be around the child has been vaccinated. This includes parents, grandparents, siblings, and other family members. If you baby is in a licensed daycare, the people who work in these facilities will have been vaccinated. It is the law.

Treating Whooping Cough

If you have whooping cough and it is diagnosed early, the doctor can put you on antibiotics to help stop the coughing and the other symptoms. The antibiotics can also stop the disease from spreading. Unfortunately, whooping cough is often diagnosed too late for antibiotics to work well. You should avoid using over the counter medications to treat the cough as they won’t work. Finally, if the coughing is so bad that you are unable to drink, you should contact our doctor. If you are unable to drink fluids, you could become dehydrated.

Whooping cough can make the life of an adult miserable. The constant coughing can make it difficult to sleep at night and even to hold a conversation. When a baby has whooping cough, it can be much more dangerous. Prevention, early diagnosis, are treatment are very important if you get whooping cough, no matter how old you are.

Tagged a runny nose, adults, antibiotics, bacterial infection, booster shot, breathes, children, contagious, cough, coughing spells, coughs, DtaP, DtaP shots, health, immune systems, infection, kids, laughs, low-grade fever, lungs, mild cough, nose, oxygen, pertussis, premier lab, premier lab services, premier medical, premier medical lab service, respiratory, sneezes, Sneezing, symptoms, Tdap, throat, trouble breathing, vaccines, Whooping Cough

5 Top Most Common Indoor Air Pollutants

October 12 in Allergy, Health by admin | Comments Off

Image is from whole Health Insider

The quality of indoor air, whether it be at home or at the office, is very important to one’s health. We spend our entire lives breathing and when we are inside, it is important that the quality of the air we are breathing is just as fresh as the outdoors. There are some very common indoor air pollutants that can harm the integrity of indoor air. Luckily, these pollutants can be avoided.

Cigarette Smoke

While many counties and states have banned indoor smoking at restaurants and other public buildings, people still smoke in their homes. The carcinogens in the cigarette smoke is not only inhaled by the person who is smoking but also everyone who lives there. This smell and toxicity can linger in the air and be absorbed into furniture, clothing, etc.

Mold

More common than people think, mold can lurk in both small quantities and large quantities inside of a building. Common in high moisture areas like bathrooms and showers can harbor mold, but there can also be mold lurking inside of walls and such if there is a plumbing concern or structural concern with the building itself. Mold can be extremely hazardous to your health and even more so if you suffer from allergies or asthma. Keep humidity at normal levels in your home or office by using a dehumidifier if need be.

Chemicals

This is one of the most prevalent indoor pollutants around. Harmful chemicals can off gas from so many different sources. Paint, cabinets, flooring, carpets and cleaning products are all sources of chemicals. You can even introduce chemicals into your indoor air from scented candles, air freshener and perfume. Breathing in these chemicals can cause allergies, asthma, an increase in illnesses and even cancer.

Pesticides

Nobody wants rodents or bugs in their home or office so in these cases exterminators are called. What people don’t often realize is that the pesticides that are used to rid locations from these pests are very harmful and toxic. Usually the application process is done when people are not around but the products still off gas for many days or even weeks afterwards; often with no real smell to alert you there is something in the air.

Asbestos

While asbestos is no longer used in the construction of new buildings, there are plenty of older builds that still have asbestos present. There are specially trained companies that can detect asbestos in a building or in the air. They can then properly remove the product without putting people at risk.

Proper ventilation is key when trying to maintain a healthy indoor air quality. Opening windows each day, running vent fans and reducing chemical exposure are all ways you can protect your health and the health of those around you. Whether you take a good look at the cleaning products you are using in your home or the structural integrity of the building, maintaining a healthier indoor air is ideal.

Tagged air, Air Pollutants, allergic asthma, allergies, allergy, asthma, Asthma symptoms, breathing, breathing problems, Cancer, carcinogens, chemical exposure, chemicals, cigarette, Cigarette Smoke, dehumidifier, exterminators, harbor mold, hazardous, health, high moisture, high moisture areas, humidity, illnesses, indoor air, Indoor Air Pollutants, indoor air quality, indoor pollutants, inhaled, mold, Pesticides, premier lab, premier lab services, premier medical, premier medical lab service, Proper ventilation, respiratory, respiratory allergies, Smoking, toxic, toxicity, vent fans, ventilation

What Attracts Mosquitoes to Humans?

October 11 in Health by admin | Comments Off

Image is from www.bbc.com

Blood Connoisseurs

Some people just have all the charisma with vampire bugs. Mosquitoes prefer certain bloods. Approximately 10% of people are highly attractive to them. Is it how they wear their hair? Are mosquitoes like frat guys who have a particular “type”?

Well, the frat thing probably isn’t the case; the mosquitoes that bite you are female. This is because laying eggs requires blood–but not just your blood; she’ll settle for animals, too. It’s just, if she could have steak or a Slim Jim, she’s going with the steak every time. Wouldn’t you?

Unfortunately, if you’re attractive to mosquitoes, you can’t just “hide” from them. It’s in your genes, at some level. According to WebMD, only 15% of factors influencing mosquito susceptibility are in our control.

The 15% You Can Control

You can do a few things to ensure that only one out of the ten in your group bears the brunt of the mosquito assault. Things which attract mosquitoes and are controllable include:

High levels of cholesterol remaining on the skin’s surface after it’s been processed
Steroids
Excess amounts of uric acid
Large emissions of carbon dioxide

Mosquitoes can “smell” you from up to fifty meters. If you’re sweating profusely and exhaling profusely, you’re easier to smell. You’ll be putting off more carbon dioxide. The larger you are, the easier you are to smell, because you are putting off more carbon dioxide. When moving, your body may also begin to heat up. This likely also will produce higher quantities of uric acid through your sweat. And if you’ve used steroids to help you work out, it doesn’t matter how low your cholesterol is; the bugs will be after you. Additionally, the thing about cholesterol which attracts mosquitoes isn’t the aspect which may clog arteries in the wrong quantities. It’s rather how cholesterol is processed by your body, and the residue left on your skin after the fact. Since pregnant women are liable to produce more carbon dioxide than normal, mosquitoes love them, and will come in for a bite extremely often. This doesn’t bode well in areas where the Zika virus has been detected.

Repelling The Blighters If You Are In The 10%

Mosquito repellent with DEET will keep the bugs off you about five hours, but DEET is a chemical repellent which, though statistically minimally, has been known to cause medical issues in some. What’s becoming en vogue today are mosquito traps, which can knock mosquito populations down and help everybody; not just the guy with the tasty blood. There’s also permethrin-laced clothing, which puts the repellent chemicals on the garments rather than the body. Another means of cutting down on mosquito populations includes reducing areas of standing water. Water is where they breed–you’ve seen the little larvae jerking spasmodically around in puddles before. It does not take them long, either; and they’ll keep breeding where the water is. If they find water that isn’t in a pond, it’s to their benefit–there’s a decreased likelihood frogs will eat them.

It’s Not Just Zika

West Nile Virus, Malaria, Dengue Fever, and Zika are all diseases that result from mosquito bites. While most of those have only been seen in America among statistically minimal segments of the population, why put yourself at risk? It doesn’t matter whether or not you’re in the 10% of people more attractive to mosquitoes. The listed diseases affect all 100% of the humans who have been bitten. Granted, some will be affected worse than others, but prevention is still the best option. Eliminate standing water, dress accordingly, and use repellent. (There are organic repellent options.)

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Understanding Strep Throat

October 6 in Health by admin | Comments Off

Image is from betterdailyhabits.com

Streptococcus Pyogenes

Streptococcus pyrogenes is the microorganism responsible for what’s called Strep Throat. It’s not the only bacteria that can cause the same symptoms, though. Neisseria is also a prime culprit. It’s common that people misdiagnose Strep, and that’s one of the reasons a medical examiner has to swab the throat when symptoms are noticed. Neisseria isn’t contagious, but Strep is; and very easily. Transmission methods include:

Coughing
Sneezing
Touching

If you or your child has come down with Strep, the right thing to do is get checked out, and recover. Though symptoms may not be severe, their spread can become a scourge to the local community.

Symptoms

Symptoms can be similar to influenza or the common cold, but have a few key differences. In aggregate, primary symptoms of Strep infection include:

A sore throat that comes so quick, it may seem to hit from nowhere
Swallowing is more difficult
A headache
Fevers that can get past 102 degrees on the Fahrenheit scale
The raw, red look at the back of the throat may be the most notable symptom
Tonsils can have a white pus on them (but not everyone has tonsils these days)
Lymph nodes high and tender on the neck
Strep can also include a rash
No cough, no stuffy nose, no upper-respiratory difficulties
Abdominal pain (but not usually nausea)

With the cold or flu, you may have a sore throat sweep in out of nowhere. You may get headaches from mucous backing up in your sinuses, and mucous drainage could make swallowing become difficult. Fevers will likely develop, you might get tenderized lymph nodes, and you might have abdominal pain that forces evacuation of the stomach or bowels via nausea. But if you’ve got a cough, stuffy nose, or it’s hard to breathe, then it’s not Strep. Contrariwise, if your throat is red or there’s white puss all over your tonsils, you can be sure you’re probably not besieged with the cold or flu.

Causes

Certainly the bacteria is the primary cause, but tertiary causes which lead to that infection usually cumulate in a weakened immune system. Any given day, your body is assailed by an unknown–but doubtless high–number of microorganisms which don’t cause infection. You only get sick when your immune system drops the ball. That’s going to happen if you’re undernourished, overworked, or emotionally compromised. The extremely old and extremely young are at the highest risk for any kind of cold, because their immune systems aren’t functioning at full strength. Basically, stress of any kind can weaken the immune system. When this is coupled with poor diet and exercise, a difficult living arrangement, and the natural exigencies of life which come at even the best players in this game of existence, you’re at an increased likelihood of contracting an illness. There may be no way around contracting such sicknesses, except to maintain your health at its highest possible levels at all times so that when inevitable illness comes, it lasts for a shortened period of time, and its consequences are less dire. So yes, Streptococcus Pyogenes does cause the immune system response characterized by the symptoms of the sickness. But it isn’t the sole cause. Taking care of yourself and those around you in a sustainably healthy way may be the best method you can adopt against Strep. Fortunately, in most cases you’ll be through the sickness within 24 to 36 hours. Unfortunately, free clinics may take up to a week to give you results! If you suspect you have strep, drink lots of fluids, get the right vitamins, and rest for a few days.

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