Cleaning your ears

• Clean your ears with extra care. Wipe the outer ear with a washcloth or tissue. Do not put anything into your ear smaller than your elbow. Do not use Q-tips, bobby pins or sharp pointed objects to clean your ears. These objects may injure the ear canal or eardrum.
• Earwax is the ear’s mechanism for self cleaning. If you have a build-up of wax that is blocking your hearing, see your ear physician to have it removed.
• If you experience itching or pain in your ears, consult with your ear physician to determine the appropriate treatment.
• If you have pierced ears, clean your earrings and earlobes regularly with rubbing alcohol.

Illness and Medications

• Reduce the risk of ear infections by treating upper respiratory infections promptly.
• Some illnesses and medical conditions can affect your hearing. If you experience sudden hearing loss or persistent noise in your ears or head, see an ear physician immediately.
• Drainage from the ear is not normal and should be evaluated promptly.
• Some medications can affect hearing. Take medications only as directed, and consult your physician if you experience unusual hearing, balance symptoms, or ringing in the ears.

Noise

• At home or work, wear hearing protection during exposure to loud levels of noise. This includes mowing the lawn, leaf blowing or using power tools. By law, a noisy work environment will require the use of hearing protection.
• When using stereos and home theater systems, avoid excessive volume. If you think it is too loud, it probably is.
• When using personal sound systems, the volume should be comfortable. If someone else can hear what you are listening to, the volume is too high. Remove the headphones from time to time to give your ears a rest.
• Wear earplugs at rock concerts, nightclubs and motor sporting events.
• Keep automobile sound systems at sensible volumes. This can help you avoid hearing damage and allow you to hear and yield to emergency vehicles.

Safety Issues

• Always wear a helmet when you bike, ski, and roller blade or in any other activity that puts you at risk for head and ear injuries.
• If you scuba dive, learn and practice proper underwater techniques to avoid potentially damaging changes in pressure inside your ears.
• When flying in an airplane, swallow and yawn frequently when the plane is ascending and descending to equalize pressure in your ears. If you have an upper respiratory problem such as a cold or sinus infection, take a decongestant a few hours before descending, or use a decongestant spray just prior to descent and on landing.
• Earplugs with special filters can be purchased to help equalize air pressure in ears during air travel.

General Care

• Have your ears checked regularly by your primary care physician and your hearing checked regularly by an audiologist. Consult an ear physician as necessary.
• When outdoors in sunny weather, remember to use a sunscreen on your ears.
• If you notice unusual bumps or scaly areas on the exterior ear, consult your physician immediately.
• Know the warning signs of hearing loss:
  • Difficulty hearing conversations, especially in the presence of background noise
  • Frequently asking others to repeat what they have said
  • Misunderstanding what other people say and answering inappropriately
  • Difficulty hearing on the telephone
  • Requiring the television or radio volume to be louder than others in the room prefer
  • Feeling that people are mumbling or have marbles in their mouth when they talk
  • Difficulty hearing environmental sounds, such as birds chirping
  • Agreeing, nodding your head, or smiling during conversations when you are not sure what has been said
  • Withdrawing from conversations and social situations because it is too difficult to hear
  • Reading lips so you can try to follow what people are saying
  • Straining to hear or keep up with conversations
  • Noise within your ears or head called tinnitus not caused by an external sound source
• See an ear physician immediately if you injure your ears, experience ear pain, or notice changes in your ears or hearing.

1. Regular eye tests: There is some debate about what constitutes regular, but normally this should be roughly every one to two years – even if you aren’t buying new glasses. If your eyes do develop any problems, then your regular eye tests will identify these and steps can be taken to rectify any issues.

2. Wear your glasses: Ignoring medical advice regarding eyesight can exacerbate the problem. There are many reasons for not wearing glasses, varying from vanity to simply forgetting to bring them out. However, this can place your eyes under unnecessary strain and lead to damage.

3. Clean lenses regularly: It’s not the most exciting of chores but as far as jobs go, it is fairly important. The state of cleanliness in which you maintain your lenses can have a major bearing on how your eyes are performing; an unclean lens can strain your eye. This is even more important for those who wear contact lenses, which are subject to bacteria and protein build up. Eye infections are not pleasant and are massively debilitating.

4. The Sun is potentially harmful: The sun’s ultra-violet rays can be harmful and very damaging if your eyes are over-exposed. If you are planning on spending a lot of time out of the shade, then make sure your eyes are protected with some decent sunglasses. Cheap sunglasses can be even more damaging than wearing no sunglasses at all, as they dilate the pupil (rendering it vulnerable to the sun’s rays), while offering insufficient protection.

5. Change lens cases: The cases in which contact lenses are kept need to be changed regularly (around every three months), in order to prevent dirt from building up and spreading infections to your lenses.

6. Eat a varied and healthy diet: Your diet is one of the most important factors in your overall health, and that includes the health of your eyes. Food that typically has nutritional benefits for your eyesight contains zinc, vitamins E, C and A, and folic acid.

7. Make sure your eyes can breathe: This is for those who like to wear contact lenses. It is important to sometimes wear glasses, if only to give your eyes a chance to move freely.

8. Let your eyes rest: If your work requires you to spend large amounts of time staring at a computer screen, it is advisable to take periodic breaks in order to relieve your eyes of strain. There is no point damaging your eyesight unnecessarily.

9. Ensure adequate lighting: The environment in which you use your eyes has a huge influence on their long-term health. It is important to ensure adequate lighting when reading – not too dark and not too light. Don’t lean too close to a book or a monitor.

10. Coloured Contacts: If you like to wear contact lenses with a dash of colour, make sure they are providing proper protection from sunlight.

Company Profile:

LensWay.co.uk is your complete optical store. We design, produce and distribute a wide selection of eyeglasses, contact lenses, sunglasses and accessories for you and your entire family. With our online model we are proud to offer consumers an affordable, convenient, friendly option for high quality brand name and private label vision care products.

This and more can be found at: http://www.lensway.co.uk/aboutus

This is why it is so important to detox your body. A good detox can make you feel like an entirely new person. It doesn’t have to mean eating prunes all day or trying something dangerous like laxatives, in fact this is not recommended. However, it does mean allowing the body to flush out many of the built up toxins that make you feel awful and often heavy and lethargic.

By undergoing a healthy detox program, you can stimulate the good things in your body like the fauna in the digestive system and start to clean out the waste that we have built up through our modern lifestyles. This will mean better health (particularly in your digestive system and bowels) as well as potential weight-loss without compromising on your wellbeing. However, some of the most astounding effects can be found in the performance of your mind and your emotions. A healthy detox is one of the best ways to improve concentration and focus, as well lighten a heavy mood.

Sharp Pain and Ruptured Ear Drums

“How to eliminate earwax”

The ear is composed of 3 areas:

The outer ear, which is the visible part of the ear plus the auditory duct that ends at the tympanic membrane.

The middle ear, which is formed by 3 small bones that transmit the sound from the tympanum.

The inner ear, which changes the sound waves to nerve impulses that goes to the brain. The labyrinth, which is responsible for the body’s equilibrium, is found there.

Symptoms: The main symptoms are: an earache is caused by inflammation. Noises may be heard and the ability to hear diminished.

Causes: The most frequent causes for infections are:

• In the cuter ear, dirty water that enters the ear while swimming/bathing.
• In the middle ear, bacteria that enters through the nose and throat.
• In the inner ear, infections in the middle ear that are transferred into this part of the ear.

Infections in the middle ear and inner ear are the most dangerous because hearing may be lost if they become chronic.

Suggestion: Includes the intake of a natural antibiotic Garlic, Echinacea and Vitamin A, C, E and the application of 2 drops of antibacterial/antifungal ear drop every 4 hours on the area. This will reduce the inflammation, relieve discomfort and help to fight the infection. In some cases a doctor may need to make a small incision in order to drain the pus from the infection.

How to eliminate earwax:

Do not put objects on your ears, it may be dangerous. The specialists recommend the following: lay you head on one side and place two drops of any of the following oils inside the ear:, mustard oil, liquid glycerin, mineral oil, or almond oil. Allow the oil to penetrate into the ear. Do the same with the other ear, when you stand up the oil will come out, leaving only enough oil to soften the wax.

The next day, get a dropper and fill it with lukewarm water. Put two drops of water slowly into the ear.

Allow it to flow in and carry away the softened wax. Do this for two days. Dry your ears with a hair dryer or put in a drop of alcohol in order to get the rest of the water out.

If your ears are stopped up and you cannot hear well, the following is recommended. Mix one tablespoon of glycerin and one tablespoon of salt in ½ a glass of boiled water. With a dropper put 10 drops in each nostril as many times as it is necessary to open the ducts that go from the nostrils to the middle ear. The liquid will drain through the throat.

Warning! In some cases it is necessary to operate in order to drain the ear. If the infection persists, consult your physician.

Suggested food supplements:

Suggested vitamins and minerals :

Some scientists believe that all people possess a natural weight that
is determined biologically, and the body makes every effort to
maintain that weight, no matter if it is thick or thin. However,
experts agree that this is not all there is to it. They believe that a
number of other issues may also affect a person’s weight. Experts
claim that half the reason for each individuals weight comes from
genetics, the other half comes from environment. Although, with some
conditions and diseases you have a 100% chance of becoming susceptible
if you have the gene, it is not the same case for obesity.

Here is more insight into why some people can think about a doughnut
and gain five pounds, while others can eat all day long and experience
little or no weight gain at all:

Metabolism. DNA may have a lot to do with why some people tend
to stay slimmer than others do. Some people may see no fluctuations in
appetite, while others can eat and eat without getting full. In
addition, some people put on muscle, which weighs more than fat.
Researchers are working on experiments on the human growth hormone and
the role it plays in weight gain, or the lack there of. The theory is
based on the idea that with a higher level of growth hormone, an
individual burns more energy, preventing excessive weight gain.

Medical History. A number of different nutrient and vitamin
deficiencies may contribute to a person not gaining weight. The
nutrients in food make a major difference, as does the energy that you
use. Some medical conditions such as hyperthyroidism and Graves’
disease tend to prevent people from packing on the pounds in spite of
their increased appetite. Chronic lung disease can also keep a person
thin.

Hunger. Thinner people eat when they are hungry. People who
never seem to get fat do not associate food with comfort from sadness
or stress. Their worlds do not revolve around the food that they eat.
Thinner people do not think about food and may even “forget” to eat.

Meal Planning. People who seem to stay thin take the time to
think about what they are going to eat, rather than just go in the
kitchen and catch whatever falls out of the cabinet. These people eat
what they want to eat. For example, if they are craving salty French
fries, a bowl of lettuce will not suffice.

Consciousness. People who never seem to get fat are conscious of
the food that they put in their mouth. They pay attention as they eat
and seldom find themselves scraping the bottom of the bag.

Discipline. People who never get fat stop eating when they are
no longer hungry. It does not matter if they are in an expensive
restaurant and only eat half an entrée; when they are full, they quit
eating.

Activity. One of the biggest differences between people who stay
thin and others who gain weight uncontrollably is the amount of
activity that fills each day. A person who has a job that requires
physical labor or a lot of walking and running will effectively burn
off more calories while they work. If that same person stops by the
gym on the way home, more calories burned. When that person comes home
and plays with his or her children, they burn even more calories. On
the other hand, someone who sits at a desk all day does not exercise
regular and eats dinner in front of the television will unsurprisingly
gain weight more easily.

Dena White is a freelance blogger and covers topics such as how to
choose among online degrees in nursing
and how to apply for college grants at an online school.

Eating Out? Go for the healthy option…

Just because you’re going out to eat doesn’t mean that you have to have three stodgy courses topped off with a bottle of wine and a cappuccino.  Every course means that the calories are mounting up, and it doesn’t do much good to your bank balance either!  When eating out, always be aware of the little touches that the restaurant will make to what seem like healthy dishes, like salad dressing, grated cheese or the addition of bread.  This is what makes the meal more calorific.  If this restaurant is good enough it will cater to your needs, so just ask them to make things plain, or go for the healthier option, for example, jacket potato instead of fries.  To eat out for less, always do a search online for any restaurant vouchers that may be available- you could bag yourself a massive discount.

Buy Locally

In the age of convenience, it’s so easy to simply go to the one store and do your complete weekly shop there.  Supermarkets stock such a big variety of stock under one roof, even clothing, so it’s possible to only use the one shop for a variety of purchases.  Unfortunately, supermarkets are nor the cheapest option, or the greenest option.  Your home town is likely to have a butchers and an independent fruit and veg shop.  These outlets are cheaper to buy from for a number of reasons.  The main reason is that their produce is likely to be local, meaning that it has cost less money to hit the shelves.  Also, these shops do not waste materials and cut right back on packaging, meaning that your food can be bought for less.  This means that you can buy healthy fruit and veg as well as lean meat for a considerable amount less than in the supermarkets.  But simply changing where you shop you can become healthier and richer all at once.

Cut Back on Meat

Meat is probably the most expensive item on anyone’s shopping list. Also, you can have too much red meat which can give you a higher chance of developing heart problems.  So make your body and wallet happier by opting for dishes that don’t contain meat.  Dishes like pasta, soup and stir fry’s don’t need meat to be tasty- just add a load of veggies and their flavour will shine through.

Don’t Waste Food

UK households waste an average (but growing) £10.2 billion per year by throwing away perfectly edible food. This is a shocking figure, especially seeing as we’ve seen the price of food grow steadily over the course of the recession.  Create a food plan before you go shopping and stick to the list.  Only buy things that can be used in a number of different dishes, and make sure your timetable will ensure that you use all of the food you buy.

Drink Tap Water

Many families and couples spend a small fortune on fizzy drinks, squash and alcoholic drinks each week, when there is a cheaper and healthier option at home in your kitchen.  Government guidelines say that we should be drinking up to 8 glasses of water per day, and the pros of being hydrated shouldn’t be compromised- look forward to higher concentration levels, clearer skin and more energy.  Put those bottles of sugar laden soft drinks and reach for the tap, and save yourself some money.

A restaurants vouchers article, written by Rachael Miller at moneysupermarket.com

If you want to lose weight, it may seem like a good idea to trade candy bars for granola bars or to swap bacon and eggs at breakfast for the classic bagel (it’s shaped like a zero; how bad could it be?).

Sadly, it’s just not that simple. Customers’ nutrition knowledge is rising, so food marketers are desperate to attract the right kind of attention from the eating public. So they’re twisting nutritional buzzwords to trick us into eating the kinds of foods that can actually help make us fat. We need to be more careful than ever to make sure we’re feeding ourselves and our families the very best real health foods — not sugar-infused calorie bombs disguised as weight-loss foods.

Read up for our latest batch of dietary phonies. They may look good on the front label, but they’ll get you in the end if you’re not careful.

Granola Bar
200 calories
15 g sugars

Eat this instead!
1 oz cheddar cheese with Triscuits
150 calories
5 g sugars

Ever wonder what keeps a granola bar together? The answer: high-fructose corn syrup, which quickly raises blood sugar and cancels out most of the potential benefits the granola almonds and oats might give you. Switch over to good old-fashioned cheese and crackers, and you trade sugar and calories for protein and fiber. It’s a big deal that will make you smaller, as will steering clear of the sugar bombs. By the way, these are the most sugar-packed foods in America.

Yogurt with Fruit on the Bottom
190 calories
30 g sugars

Eat this instead!
Plain yogurt with fresh fruit mixed in
110 calories
15 g sugars

Pass on these over-sweetened yogurt cups; they contain as much sugar as a soft drink. Almost all of that comes directly from the “fruit,” which is swimming in high-fructose corn syrup. Yogurt and fruit can be a great way to start your day, but do it yourself by mixing a cup of nonfat plain yogurt with a half cup of mixed berries.

Bagel with Cream Cheese
700 calories
40 g fat
13 g saturated

Eat this instead!
Cheese omelet
425 calories
18 g
6 g saturated

Bagels are bogus. The bread is bad enough, containing 300 calories and 60 grams of carbohydrates, but tack on the liberal cream cheese schmear (by our survey of popular breakfast chains, up to 4 ounces for a single bagel!) and your “harmless” breakfast sandwich weighs in as worse than a Whopper. The omelet swap will save you nearly 300 calories, plus provide a surge of metabolism-boosting protein. And a recent study from the University of Connecticut found that eating eggs can help raise HDL (good) cholesterol. And while you’re being vigilant.

Dried Fruit
175 calories
45 g sugars

Eat this instead!
Fresh fruit, like an apple or a peach
70 calories
15 g sugars

OK, so dried fruit won’t totally derail a day of good eating (unless you down the whole bag of banana chips), but it’s far from being a harmless snack. First, because the dehydrating process sucks most of the volume from the fruit, you can eat cups of the stuff, and 600 calories later, still not feel any fuller. More troubling, though, is the fact that Sun-Maid and Ocean Spray add sugar to the fruit, making Craisins closer to candy than Mother Nature’s original intention. The choice is clear: Stick to the original, straight from the tree.

Fish Sandwich
600 calories
30 g fat
11 g saturated

Eat this instead!
Grilled chicken sandwich
300 calories
13 g fat
4 g saturated

Fish is good for you, except when it’s battered, fried, robed in cheese, and bathed in tartar sauce. The lesson? Even the biggest star can be sabotaged by the supporting cast. To this end, avoid any menu item with the word “crispy,” the restaurant industry’s favorite euphemism for “fried.” Make sure your next fish or chicken sandwich is grilled, dressed with fresh produce, and topped with a low-cal barbecue sauce, or even ketchup and mustard. And watch the salt; these 20 foods are the saltiest in America!

Stick margarine (1 Tbsp)
100 calories
11 g fat
2.5 g saturated
2.5 g trans fat

Eat this instead!
Whipped butter (1 Tbsp)
50 calories
6 g fat
1.5 g saturated

In their haste to remove saturated fat from butter, margarine makers created the margarine monster — a dangerous lipid called trans fat, with more dangerous links to heart disease than saturated fat. Pick up whipped butter instead; by whipping air into the spread, manufacturers decrease the caloric density of a tablespoon of butter, and they make it easier to top your toast. If you buy margarine, make sure it’s the type found in the tub, hopefully with an added bonus like omega-3s folded into the mix

It it not yet 100 percent certain as to what causes hemorrhoids however, it has been suggested that straining too much during bowel movement may be one of the factors. Diet may also play a factor in getting hemorrhoids. People who eat more fiber in there diet are much less likely to get hemorrhoids then those who don’t.

Usually anything that helps soften your stool is good for hemorrhoids prevention or outbreaks. That can include food, exercising, ect. It is also believed that women can get hemorrhoids during pregnancy due to the strain it puts on the anal area.

Prevention is usually the best hemorrhoid treatment. While prevention is the best treatment, nothing can prevent hemorrhoids 100 percent. Even if you follow all the tips you read online and from books you can still get hemorrhoids.

However you still should add more fiber to your diet because it really does help either way. You should avoid doing any heavy weight lifting again it will add more pressure on your anal veins thus causing hemorrhoids.

Diabetes in various forms affects up to 5 percent of the world population with 12 million diabetics in Western Europe alone. Of the different ways in which diabetes presents, noninsulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) is probably the most commonly encountered genetic disease. NIDDM or Type II diabetes is multifactorial, depending also on environmental factors including obesity, sedentary lifestyles and nutritional imbalances.

Yoga has shown some beneficial results in curing diabetes. The yoga exercises that are prescribed for curing diabetes is different from hatha yoga exercise because it involves positions tailored to treat certain conditions, as well as meditation, relaxation and stretching exercises.

One of the studies conducted to cure diabetes was the one set up by the Yoga Biomedical Trust, founded in 1982 by biochemist Dr Robin Monro, and an Indian yoga research foundation which discovered that practicing yoga for 30 minutes a day for one month helped reduce blood glucose levels in some diabetics.

The yoga patients took part in one or two 90-minute sessions a week and were asked to practice at home. The classes included the specific yoga exercises of the spinal twist, the bow and abdominal breathing.

At the end of the 12 weeks blood sugar levels fell significantly in all patients in the group and were slightly raised in a control group which had not joined in the yoga sessions. Three yoga students managed to reduce their medication, including one man who had not changed his drug regime for 20 years.

It has been known for a long time that exercise is helpful for diabetics. Yoga therapy may help reduce stress levels which could play a part in maturity onset diabetes. But one drawback is that some patients would find it hard to keep up the regular sessions needed to sustain the benefit. All the patients said they would like to see these classes set up on a permanent basis but we don’t have the money.

It is not necessarily the exercise component of the yoga therapy package which is most important, because there is not enough physical exercise to account for the changes, but stress reduction has a lot to do with it. Stress hormones increase sugar levels in the blood. People also benefit from the stabilization of their moods which yoga brings, an increased feeling of well-being and a feeling of being more in control, which may help with their diet control.

Source: acedia

If you have always heard that cheese is “bad” for you, this information may make you smile. Cheese can be a healthy addition to your diet when you follow a few simple guidelines.

But, what if you are trying to watch your sodium or cholesterol intake? What if you are pregnant? What if you are lactose intolerant? Be informed about cheese and happy cheese hunting!

Eating cheese benefits you
An ounce of cheese (equal to four dice) is considered one serving and provides 200 – 300 mg of calcium. Most adults, ages 19 to 50, need 1,000 mg of calcium per day and adults ages 50 and older need 1,200 mg of calcium per day. Since milk is one of the main ingredients, cheese also provides a good source of protein and vitamin B₂, riboflavin. (Information from American Dietetic Association)

Watching your sodium or cholesterol?
Even though cheese can be high in cholesterol, sodium and saturated fat, that doesn’t mean you need to avoid cheese altogether. However, it is important to pay attention to the type and amount of cheese you eat.

• If you like to eat hard cheeses like cheddar, look for “fat free,” “reduced fat” or “low fat” on the label.
• When looking for soft cheeses, low fat (1%), part-skim or light products are available.
• You will even find low fat, low cholesterol cheese selections in your grocery store. They generally have 50 – 75 percent of the fat in whole milk cheeses. Experiment with some of these to find a brand you like.

One warning, when a recipe calls for melted cheese, avoid using fat-free cheeses; they don’t melt consistently. Instead use a low-fat brand or reduce the amount you add to the recipe by half.

The sodium content of cheese tends to be high. Make sure to read the labels of cheese packages to determine if you are eating more than 2,400 mg of sodium a day. Foods considered high in sodium have 400 mg or more of sodium per serving.

Moderation is the key, but that means different things to different people. One good way to watch your diet is to limit the amount of whole milk cheese you consume for special occasions and regularly eat reduced fat or fat-free cheeses.

Cautions for pregnant women
Certain soft cheeses can become contaminated with a bacterium called Listeria. If you become sick from this particular bacterium, your baby could become sick too. To ensure your baby’s safety, eat hard cheeses instead of soft, or cook soft cheeses until they are boiling (bubbling).

A brief list of soft cheeses:

• feta
• goat cheese
• brie
• camembert
• blue-veined cheeses such as roquefort
• Mexican style soft cheeses such as queso blanco, queso fresco, queso de hoja, queso de crema asadero.

Lactose intolerance
There are different degrees of lactose intolerance and it varies from person to person. Some people with lactose intolerance can consume lots of dairy products before experiencing any discomfort. Others with more severe lactose intolerance experience distress after eating one bite of a product containing dairy. You should experiment with foods if you suspect you are lactose intolerant and determine your own intolerance.

So how does cheese fit into a diet of a person who is lactose intolerant? Interestingly, as cheese ages, the lactose contained in the cheese is gradually transformed into lactic acid, and lactic acid causes no distress in people who suffer from lactose intolerance. The longer a cheese is aged, the less lactose it contains. Therefore some lactose intolerant people will have no trouble (and some will have less trouble) eating aged cheeses.

Commonly aged cheeses:

• asiago
• cheddar
• gruyere
• parmesan
• reggiano
• romano

Soy cheese
Some new cheese alternatives are made primarily from soy milk and come in a variety of flavors. They can be found in the produce department of some supermarkets. One warning, do not assume these products are 100 percent milk free. If you suffer from a milk allergy, you should know that the
milk protein is sometimes used to make these soy-cheese products.