Brief Reviews of Vegetarian Diets Health Effects

Many people in the world today choose to become vegetarian for several reasons. For their religious view, health concern, or sometimes their care for animals. Being Vegetarian means not eating meat, poultry or fish. other vegan diets exclude dairy products and eggs. Vegetarian and vegan diets can vary widely. These are some reviews from journals about the health effects of vegan diets.

In general, vegetarian diets provide relatively large amounts of cereals, pulses, nuts, fruits and vegetables. In terms of nutrients, vegetarian diets are usually rich in n-6 fatty acids, dietary fibre, carotenoids, carbohydrates, , folic acid, vitamin C, vitamin E and Mg, and relatively low in protein, saturated fat, long-chain n-3 fatty acids, retinol, vitamin B(12) and Zn; vegans may have particularly low intakes of vitamin B(12) and low intakes of Ca.

Cross-sectional studies have shown that on average they have a relatively low BMI and a low plasma cholesterol concentration; recent studies have also shown higher plasma homocysteine concentrations than in non-vegetarians. Very high homocysteine levels in the blood can damage the lining of the arteries. In addition, high homocysteine levels may make blood clot more easily than it should. This can increase the risk of blood vessel blockages. A clot inside your blood vessel is called a thrombus which can travel in the bloodsteam and get stuck in your lungs (called a pulmonary embolism), in your brain (which can cause a stroke) or in your heart (which can cause a heart attack.)

vegetarians have shown a moderate reduction in mortality from Ischemic Heart Disease but little difference in other major causes of death or all-cause mortality in comparison with health-conscious non-vegetarians from the same population.

vegetarian diets, particularly vegan diets, are associated with lower BMD, (bone mineral density) which is one of osteoporosis cause., but the magnitude of the association is clinically insignificant.
Studies of cancer have not shown clear differences in cancer rates between vegetarians and non-vegetarians.

There are some case reports related to vegan diets in http://lib.bioinfo.pl/meid:101681



Resources:
http://journals.cambridge.org/production/action/cjoGetFulltext?fulltextid=814552
http://lib.bioinfo.pl/meid:101681

Read More..

Brain Aneurism: the Sudden Killer

What is actually brain aneurism?
well, i want to give you an illustration first.
I've got a female, 38 years old patient who suffered from haemorrhage stroke. She had 3 days coma, and then passed away. The family told that it was the first attack for her.No hypertension, or any systemic disease ever diagnosed for her. She had good diets, low salt, low fat. why did the stroke still happen to her? I've noted many cases, in which a healthy young people died because of hemmorhage stroke. What did actually happen to them?

An aneurysm (or aneurism)is a localized, blood-filled dilation (balloon-like bulge) of a blood vessel caused by disease or weakening of the vessel wall.
Aneurysms most commonly occur in arteries at the base of the brain (the circle of Willis) and in the aorta (the main artery coming out of the heart, a so-called aortic aneurysm). As the size of an aneurysm increases, there is an increased risk of rupture, which can result in severe hemorrhage or other complications including sudden death.
Though there are a number of likely causes, the cause is not always known. However, generally speaking, a brain aneurism is often the result of damage done to an artery. This damage may result from…
1.Genetic factors
2.Disease
3.Atherosclerosis
4.Injury
5.Infections
Bad lifestyle habits (tobacco use, alcoholism,) and copper deficiency
It is also a fact that brain aneurisms develop without any recognizable symptoms.
Some of methods to prevent this disease will not fully protect us aginst this disease.
Aneurisms can develop because of certain lifestyle choices we make. there are some things we can do to lower our risk. Four of them are particularly important. These are…
1.Keep blood pressure low
2.Maintain a balanced cholesterol profile
3.Don’t smoke
4.Reduce atherosclerosis build-up
The other thing that might be useful is doing general check-up, and if necessary you can ask for a brain CT Scan or MRI to your doctor.

Read More..

Gout Arthritis- Try some new ideas.......

Nowadays, Gout arthritis become common disease. Neither it’s caused by life-style changes or many other factors, it’s interesting to know how to prevent or to perform new methods to lower the uric acid level. Among humans, serum uric acid levels vary markedly. Premenopausal women, for example, have lower serum uric acid levels than men or postmenopausal women, since estrogen stimulates urinary urate excretion. Genetic differences in the regulation of uric acid synthesis, renal uric acid excretion, or both are also likely to be important, and these factors may account for some of the racial differences in the susceptibility to gout. Chronic lead intoxication from contamination of wine and food has also been implicated in the epidemics of gout that affected both the Roman Empire and Victorian England, since lead toxicity impairs the ability of the kidney to excrete uric acid. However, it has been postulated that a major mechanism underlying the development of gout is the excess ingestion of purine-rich foods and alcoholGout is characterized by excruciating, sudden, unexpected, burning pain, as well as swelling, redness, warmth, and stiffness in the affected joint. The patient usually suffers from two sources of pain. The crystals inside the joint and the inflammation of the tissues around the joint also causes the skin to be swollen, tender and sore if it is even slightly touched.

Diet
The serum level of uric acid is the primary risk factor for gout. The serum level is the result of both intake (diet) and output (excretion). Diet should be low fat and low protein.
A 2004 study suggests as beef and seafood) greatly increase the risk of developing gout. However, high-purine vegetable sources (such as asparagus, cauliflower, spinach, and green peas) did not. Dairy products such as milk and cheese significantly reduced the chances of gout.
intake of purines
A diet low in purines reduces the serum level of uric acid, unless these levels are caused by other health conditions and not as responsive to dietary changes. For notable sources of dietary purines, see "Foods to avoid" section below.
Men who consume two or more sugary soft drinks a day have higher risk of gout compared with those who drink less than one a month. Soft drinks contain large quantities of high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS), a common sweetener in soft drinks, which results in hyperuricemia in blood. Hyperuricemia, in turn predispose the body for gout.
Other approaches
The following suggestions do not meet with universal approval among medical practitioners.
Low purine diet:
§ To lower uric acid:
§ Tart cherries were reported to reduce uric acid in a small study. Tart cherry juice or tart cherry capsules are believed to help dissolve the needle-like crystals that deposit themselves between the joints and connective tissue.
§ Celery extracts (celery or celery seed either in capsule form or as a tisane/infusion) is believed by many to reduce uric acid levels (although these are also diuretics.Celery extracts have been reported to act synergistically with anti-inflammatory drugs
§ Cheese has been recommended as a low-purine foodand dairy products have been found to reduce the risk of gout.
§ Carbonated beverages and sugar have also been recommended as a low-purine food, even though it was established that men who consume two or more sugary soft drinks a day have an 85% higher risk of gout compared with those who drink less than one a month.
§ Dietary supplements Quercetin, a flavonoid, can decrease uric acid levels. Quercetin can be taken with bromelain to improve its absorption. In addition, Pantothenic acid (vitamin B5) is said to help with the excretion process of uric acid. Vitamin C has been demonstrated to increase excretion on uric acid and in turn lower serum urate levels.
§ Food to avoid:
§ Foods high in purines
§ Limit food high in protein such as meat, fish, poultry, or tofu to 8 ounces (226 grams) a day. Avoid entirely during a flare-up. Tofu has been proposed as a safe source of protein for gout patients due to its small and transient effect on plasma urate levels.
§ Sweetbreads, kidneys, liver, brains, or other offal meats.
§ Sardines and anchovies
§ Seafood.particularly shellfish such as clam, oyster, scallop, shrimp, crab, lobster, and crayfish.
§ Asparagus. Cauliflower. Mushrooms. Spinach. (Even though above says "Consumption of the more purine-rich vegetables or a high protein diet per se had no significant correlation.")
§ Dry beans (lentils & peas).
§ Alcohol. Ironically, red wines, particularly those produced by traditional methods, contain procyanidins released from grape seeds during wine making, which have been reported to lower serum uric acid levels by an indirect mechanism However, withdrawal of urate-lowering therapy is associated with recurrence of acute gouty arthritis.
§ Meat extracts, consommés, and gravies
§ Foods high in fructose, as discussed above, especially high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) as main ingredient.
§ All soft drinks (non-diet), wherein HFCS is second ingredient next to water
§ Fruit preserves, jam, jelly
§ Syrup
§ Candy
§ To lesser extent, depending on fructose content, ice cream, cakes, and cookies
§ Foods high in sucrose, which is a double sugar consisting of glucose and fructose
Over the counter remedies
§ Sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) is a traditional remedy, thought to work by raising blood pH (lowering blood acidity). However, the added sodium may be inappropriate for some people.
§ Research from the University of British Columbia suggests long-term coffee consumption is associated with a lower risk of gout. Other studies extend this benefit to tea and other caffeinated foods and drinks.
§ Potassium supplements should be advantageous to treat gout. Gout can be triggered by the same agents that cause potassium losses such as fasting, surgery, and potassium losing diuretics. A potassium deficiency can increase urate levels in the blood.
§ Chondroitin sulfate reduces the rate of crystallization of uric acid in urine. This has been demonstrated in vitro, but has not been tested in clinical trial. One study shows an opposite effect.
§ Wu Jia Pi, the cortex of Siberian ginseng, can be used intermittently between outbreaks of gout in patients with a chronic condition to prevent future occurrences.

Source: http://wikipedia.com

Read More..

Boost Your Immune System!! Go Fasting!!!

Fasting has various effects on the immune system. It is good way to improve our health and our immune system. Fasting may lower plasma viscosity due to less traffic in the bloodstream (less fat, sugar, and protein). It can decrease your blood pressure, lower your heart beat, and control your cardiovascular system. The result of fasting on the immune system is amazing, you can detoxify years of toxic built up, in the immune system due to alcohol, drug and tobacco addiction in weeks.

Fasting may Increase Immune System Processes by several ways:
1.Elevate Macrophage Activity
2.Increase Cell-Mediated Immunity by the form of Lymphocytes
3.Increase Immunoglobulin Levels
4..Increase Neutrophil Bactericidal Activity
5.Heighten Monocyte Killing and Bacterial Function
6.Enhance Natural Killer Cell Activity:
For people that perform fasting by religious reason, they may reduce the stress or depression level ;thus may increase the immune system too., it can be explained by the psycho-humoral-neuro-immunology paradigm. So, let's start to do fasting. Even for diabetic patients, you can consult your doctor first, for changing the diabetic treatment schedule.

Read More..

Diabetes prevention: recent method

Diabetes is divided into two main group, type 1 and 2, if you have genetic predisposition for developing this disease, you can take some prevention about this disease.
Type 1 Diabetes prevention.
Observational studies have shown that breastfeeding is associated with a lower incidence of type 1 diabetes.Other dietary factors being investigated include the active form of vitamin D, which is thought to help prevent the development of autoimmune diabetes and gluten since studies have shown that islet cell antibodies may disappear after a gluten-free diet in celiac patients
Type 2 Diabetes prevention
There are various risk factors for developing type 2 diabetes. One of the primary ones being obesity as defined by a body mass index of over 30 Other risk factors include increased age, a family history of diabetes, prior history of gestational diabetes, impaired glucose tolerance, physical inactivity and race/ethnicity
In recent years there has been an increase in type 2 diabetes related to changes in life style such as inactivity and diets rich in saturated fats. Approximately 80 per cent of people with type 2 diabetes are obese. Recently, a large clinical trial, the `Diabetes Prevention Program' (DPP),11 investigated whether diet and physical activity were more effective than metformin in preventing or delaying the onset of type 2 diabetes in subjects with impaired glucose tolerance and a family history of type 2 diabetes.
Moreover, reduction in fatty foods helps to lower the incidence of cardiovascular risk factors independent of weight reduction. People should be taught to select low- fat foods and their substitutes. They also have to reduce their portion sizes as it has been shown that overweight subjects tend to choose larger portions of high- fat foods and to underestimate their size. A higher intake of dietary fibre has also been related to a decrease in the risk for type 2 diabetes.
Risk factors for developing Type 2 diabetes
• Increased age
• BMI 25 or higher (overweight)
• Hypertension
• Very low HDL (high-density lipoprotein)-cholesterol levels (<40>
• Elevated triglyceride levels (>250 mg/dL or higher)
• Family history of diabetes
• Ethnicity
• Gestational diabetes or giving birth to a baby weighing > 9 pounds (4.1 kg)
• Inactive lifestyle
(Y.M Khazrai, S Manfrini, P.Pozzilli)

Read More..

Cholesterol Reduction-With Red Yeast Rice

One of the simple way to reduce our LDL cholesterol serum level is by consuming red Yeast Rice (Angkak Beras Merah in Indonesia). Red yeast rice is produced by solid-state fermentation of washed and cooked rice using Monascus purpureus. It has been used as a food preservative and colorant properties. In some journal, it is written that red yeast rice contains lovastatin, statin- type cholesterol lowering substance. Even in US, there's still a debate about the use of this red yeast rice by FDA, since lovastatin can only be bought by doctor's prescription. Usually doctor will advise you to change your lifestyle and food diets first before they prescribe a cholesterol lowering drugs. So consuming this kind of food will be good in our health, since it is natural food, and it contains the same cholesterol lowering substances.

Some studies showed, statistically significant reductions (16% to 31%) in total serum cholesterol compared with placebo or control or baseline. Adverse events experienced in clinical trials included stomachache, dizziness, heartburn and flatulence. No changes in laboratory tests were demonstrated. There was a case report of young man who developed anaphylaxis due to immediate sensitivity to M purpureus. Whether this is relevant to the oral administration of red yeast rice capsules is not clear.

Recommended way to cook this kind of red yeast rice, is by putting the rice into warm water for about 24 hours before you cook it, it makes several fungus grow, and fermentation process work well. And for other tips, is to consume all the cooked red yeast rice for one time. If it's consumed in other time, the effect will be different. Check your serum lipid level... try your red yeast rice for 2 weeks.....check it again.....is it true?

 RED RICE.......

Read More..

Medical Malpractice Prevention, Tips For Patients

When I browse the internet about the medical malpractice prevention, I just found things about  suing the doctors, or choosing the medical malpractice lawyers. I haven’t found the tips for the patients  to prevent them from medical malpractice, before it’s happened. These are little tips from me to prevent you from medical malpractice.

1. Ask any kind of information about any medical intervention, any side effects and any risk about them. You have the right to ask it to your doctor, before you sign the informed consent letter or use the prescribed drugs from doctor.
2. You have the option to use second opinion before you choose any kind of therapy. You can ask the doctor about the best way to treat your disease, and any other methods to cure your disease. You can even ask to transfer to other better facility hospital, but some conditions need stabilization first, before doctors permit you to be transferred to other hospital, because the first hospital is still responsible for patient’s safety before and during the transfer process. So, some medical malpractice cases that told us, the patients weren’t permitted to leave the hospital are actually not true. It’s all about  the patient’s condition. If patient insist to be transferred to other hospital, they can sign letter, but hospital isn’t responsible for the patient no more.
3. Tell about your whole medical history to your doctor. If you have any allergy, or gastritis, you can tell the doctor about it. It’s good way to prevent you from any drug’s adverse reaction to your special condition that the doctor might not know. Tell your previous doctor or quickly go to hospital when you see some signs and symptoms of drug allergy, such as urticaria, redness in skin, stomachache, nausea, vomitus, or any abnormal changes to your body that you haven’t experienced before you use the drugs.
4. Medical malpractice is not only doctor’s fault. Many factors can lead to medical malpractice. One of them is about the drugs. Make sure that when you buy the drugs in the drug store, you buy the correct drugs, ask the pharmacist about the expiration date, ask them any side effects  if they change the drugs, because drug store sells generic and branded drugs.

 

Read More..

Medical Malpractice, tips for doctors

Nowadays, Medical malpractice is one common issue in medical world. Many reasons become the cause of this issue. These are several tips from me, to prevent us from medical malpractice, one thing that every doctors, and patients in the world doesn't want to experience.Me too... always pray to God,never deal with this kind of situation.

Tips for health workers:
1. Communication,have a good interaction with every patient, explain everything that they need to know. One most important aspect that lots of doctors forget is "EACH AND EVERY DOCTOR'S WORDS ARE THERAPY FOR THEIR PATIENTS". In my opinion, it's no use for doctors to tell how many years left for patient's life, or every word that can make patient feel more depressed. Feel free to offer the patient to have 'second opinion' to other doctor, if the patient wasn't sure about our decision. Lots of medical malpractice cases are caused mainly by lack of communication.

2. Always ask the 'informed consent' for every medical intervention. Except the life-threatening cases that don't need informed consent if there isn't any family or relatives of the patient.

3. Learn more. Medical literature is the base for our job. If our procedure is based on the medical literature, it lower the risk for medical malpractice.

4. In modern countries, doctors have fully malpractice-insured. In Indonesia, i think, only few doctors that have medical malpractice insurance. But, if doctors work in certain hospital, usually the hospital has kind of 'law'team to support the doctors, so maintain good relationship with our colleagues and other health workers in hospital where we work. Nobody likes 'cocky doctors'. Be an everybody beloved doctor.:)

to be continued.... (tips for the patients...)

good movie about good doctor

Read More..

Stem Cell, in Indonesia

Stem Cell technology become one promising chance to cure many human diseases. Stem Cell technology belongs to not only doctors or medical researchers, but many people from many different fields. From zoologists to politicians, they all talk about this recent discovery that might change the face of medical world.

What does actually stem cell mean?

Stem cells are cells that found in most, multi cellular organisms, and they have ability to regenerate themselves through cell division, and differentiate into other cell types. The two main types of stem cells are embryonic and adult stem cells. The differences between them are in a developing embryo, stem cells can differentiate into all of the specialized embryonic tissues, in adult stem cells, they act as a repair system for the body, but can't differentiate into all kinds of human's cells.

One great debate about stem cell technology is about the embryonic stem cell. It's because starting a stem cell line, requires human embryo destruction or furthermore, human cloning just to make the embryo. Many countries are against this issue. In 2004, Indonesia has come to a uniform decision that they are against the human cloning, and stem cell technology that uses living creatures, such as an embryo. And recently, Indonesia has implemented this technology for curing patients with coronary heart disease.

Nowadays many researchers has developed the use of adult stem cell technology, and implemented it to many medical therapy, such as congenital heart diseases, alzheimer, parkinson, and many others.In recent studies, scientists have observed stem cells acting as anti-inflammatory agents, reducing swelling and even scarring when administered to injured tissue. That's why stem cell technology can be used to treat people with stroke, or diabetes, and many more diseases. And they all sound very promising, though the journey of the stem cell technology still needs many years to be proved.

Dolly-clone..how are you today

Read More..

Acne Prevention-recent methods

There are many ways  to prevent acne, This section will give you some of recent methods to prevent this disease.

1. Understanding the disease (first thing to do to prevent any disease)

Acne vulgaris or common acne (also known as pimple and zits) is a disease of the hair follicle and its associated oil producing sebaceous gland. Teeenagers have overactive hormones, known as androgens. The hormones increase sebum production from the sebaceous glands. This condition makes P.Acnes, (the bacteria) which is a normal resident of the hair follicle increases in number due to the increased sebum.The main cause of acne is the effect caused by increased sebum secretion and the P.Acnes.

2.Preventive diets

Some of people believe that acne is caused mostly from the food. They said that eating chocolates, Nuts, drinking lots of soda cause acne. Back to number 1. The main cause is not the foods. Today, there are lots of acne prevention diets. Although only little credible research providing links between certain food groups and acne, they are still usefull. I don't give kinds of foods to be avoided, but i suggest some foods that might be usefull for acne prevention. Vitamin A and Zinc have helped with acne. Green Tea is believed to lower the androgens level. Fruits rich in antioxidant are very good to prevent acne (colorful fruits and vegetables). I suggest that if you have problems about foods causing acne breakout, you should try to write down the list of the foods, try to reduce the use of the foods, because there are some foods-induced acne type, such as wheat-induced acne, or milk-induced acne.

3. Skin cleansing

Skin cleansing is the effective way to prevent the P.Acnes activity. Cleanse your skin regularly, but don't do it so often. The skin produces its greatest volume of sebum and oil at approximately 1 to 2 o'clock in the afternoon and its least volume in the middle of the night. You can cleanse your skin with face-soap, neutral Ph. Don't scrub your skin if it has active acne. Change your face towel regularly, since it colects bacteria. Don't forget about your helmet, bandana,pillowcases, and hats.

4. Hormone regulation

the simplest thing about hormone regulation is 'avoid stress'. When under stress the body produces hormonal steroids, such as cortisol, that has same activities with other hormonal steroids (testosterone, dihydrotestosterone, etc.) these chemicals target the skin in a disruptive manner.

There are many different methods to prevent acne, i suggest to do the 4 things above, first. Then about acne treatment, if acne does occur, better to see your doctor. The use of anti acne-agents, such as Benzoyl peroxide, antibiotics, have serious side effects for your skin. In summary, Acne is preventable disease. There are many acne prevention methods available today. You can do things which suit you best. But remember, the good preventive method is the one that needs no drug or chemical use.

sponge bob-got acne?

Read More..