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.......

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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.

 

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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

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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

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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?

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