Medicine News

Researching brain cells the team from the Humboldt University in Germany and the Erasmus Medical Center in the Netherlands have made an interesting medical discovery. It appears that there could be enough computing ability in just one brain cell to allow humans and animals to feel, a study suggests. The research, conducted with rodents and published in the Dec. 20 issue of Nature, could rewrite the textbooks on just how important individual brain cells or cell clusters are to the working mind.

The Dutch and German study found that stimulating just one rat neuron could deliver the sensation of touch. Before these insights, "The thinking was that very large ensembles of neurons [brain cells] had to be activated at some point for the animal to feel or perceive" a stimulus, explained the senior researcher of two of the studies, Karel Svoboda, a group leader at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute in Ashburn, Va.

"But it turns out that a remarkably small number -- on the order of 50 or so activated neurons -- is sufficient to drive reliable behaviors," said Svoboda, who is also associated with the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, in New York.
A second research project from the US suggests the computational ability of the brain cell could be even more complex, with different synapses - the many junctions between neurons and other nerve cells - able to act independently from those found elsewhere on the same cell.
This could mean that, within a single neuron, different synapses could be storing or processing completely different bits of information. Dr Douglas Armstrong, the deputy director of the Edinburgh Centre for Bioinformatics, said the research did not mean all neurons had an individual role to play but that, in some instances, they might be capable of working alone with measurable results. "The fact that a single cell can influence behavior in the cortex is fascinating," said neuroscientist Paul Sanberg, director of the Center for Excellence for Aging and Brain Repair at the University of South Florida, Tampa. The new findings are "allowing us to answer questions about how the brain controls behavior at the cellular level," added Sanberg, who was not involved in the studies.
He said: "The generally accepted model was that networks or arrays make decisions and that the influence of a single neuron is smaller - but this work and other recent studies support a more important role for the individual neuron.
"These studies drive down the level at which relevant computation is happening in the brain."

Abnormal lipid metabolism in the context of insulin resistance results in decreased concentration of high-density lipoproteins which is responsible for the hepatic transport of cholesterol. These changes in lipoproteins balance lead directly to increased atherogenesis and progressive atherosclerosis. When you drop in at a vitamin shop you should hunt for special vitamins and supplements that will keep the level of cholesterol in your body balanced.

Low fat intake is normal for the human being. The only fats that the organism requires are essential fatty acids, i.e. linoleic and alpha-linoleic acids (vitamins F1 and F2). Being polyunsaturated fats, they have to be well-balanced in a healthy diet. If you buy vitamins and nutrition supplements you are to be very careful in order to purchase only the best quality medicines - a quality vitamin complex that is approved by the healthcare agency.

However, the following grave defects commonly distinguish Western diet:

Fats intake is excessively high;

Fats qualitative composition is unsatisfactory;

Ratio between essential acids is unbalanced.

While nowadays one is unlikely to refuse from fats completely, it is advisable to restrict fats intake at minimum and monitor their quantitative and qualitative composition.

In our age of stress situations in our day to day professional and personal livelihoods one of the best way to get relaxation is good massage of course. As you know, massage helps reduce emotional tension, induce relaxation and calm stress, besides that it is argued that professional massage has a great effect on alleviate back pain and other annoyances.

Probably massage is the oldest and simplest form of medical care. As long ago Egyptian used massage treatment in what we convince seeing on their tomb paintings showed people being massaged. In Eastern cultures, massage has been practiced continually since ancient times. A Chinese book from 2,700 B.C., The Yellow Emperor's Classic of Internal Medicine, recommends 'breathing exercises, massage of skin and flesh, and exercises of hands and feet" as the appropriate treatment for -complete paralysis, chills, and fever." It was one of the principal method of relieving pain for Greek and Roman physicians. Julius Caesar was said to have been given a daily massage to treat neuralgia. "The Physician Must Be Experienced In Many Things," wrote Hippocrates, the father of Western medicine, in the 5th century B. C., "but assuredly in rubbing.. . for rubbing can bind a joint that is too loose, and loosen a joint that is too rigid."


There a great number of different types of massage. The most popular of them is:
Swedish massage or simply massage therapy
Asian Massage Therapy
Aromatherapy Massage
Hot Stone Massage
Deep Tissue Massage
Shiatsu
Thai Massage
Reflexology
Back Massage
Face and Head Massage
Foot Massage
Neuromuscular Therapy massage
Massage with using oils such as Apricot Kernel Oil
Natural Massage Melts
and more.

If you need some instruction to prepare common Massage Oil here it is:
• 6-8 teaspoons grape seed oil
• 6 drops of lavender essential/fragrance oil
• 2 drops rose essential/fragrance oil
• 2 drops jasmine essential/fragrance oil
Just blend ingredients well and to warm up oil before doing any massage including your fingertips.
Massage Therapy is relaxing, gentle and effective treatment for anyone.

Among the alternative weight loss methods guided imagery is one of the most delcate yet very effective ways. The Weight Loss imagery helps reduce the impulse to eat compulsively, in the state of anxiety or depression, because it's a consoling, refreshing and inspiring experience for most people. Though it doesn't work from the very first time of listening and you won't become a calm, easy person after you've listened through the audio piece once or twice - this is a sort of "therapeutic hypnosis" ot guided meditation that steadily alters your thinking and attitudes with repeated use. With each session you get the ability to "self-regulate" or calm yourself when you feel anxious or depressed. The program is not geared towards relieving stress, removing anxiety or depression, it just provides the tools to manage it when it comes. And you come to use those tools automatically over time.It works differently for different people: some get rolling right away while others spend days and weeks listening to the imagery audio before they really feel ready to start losing weight. Once they are ready the proceed with the a matching behavioral program, and the imagery intensifies the willingness to stay with it. This weight loss program imagery helps improve self esteem and reduce the feeling of depression. Even severely obese people who are still fighting to lose weight find themselves more confident, energized and loving toward themselves after listening to this weight loss program.

What is it sleep deprivation? It’s good if you don’t know what it is yet, you know whay I mean. But actually sleep deprivation is a very widespread disease with definite symptoms. Sleep deprivation is a serious condition that can negatively impact your life. In short, you do not get the sleep you need and this is caused by not having enough time to get the sleep you need. How much sleep do we need? We need enough good quality sleep to feel alert during the day, especially during the afternoon. If you have a sleep debt you will very sleepy in the afternoon and it may cost in lost production, accidents, nervousness and conflicts. Besides that there are some medical conditions interfere with sleep. Many different conditions can have a negative impact on sleep, such as ADHD, anxiety, asthma, bipolar disorder, depression, post-traumatic and stress of course. Stress has emerged as a chronic condition in our fast-paced society. Rest and relaxation are the best cures for stress and stress-related problems, but unfortunately those problems can actually inhibit restorative sleep.

The body and mind need time to decompress from each day's activities. When people work overtime, work from home, run around to kids' extracurricular activities, sit in traffic for hours, etc., it cuts down on the physical and mental downtime our bodies need.

Stress can short-circuit your body and make it more or less forget how to relax and rest. It is also a bit much to ask our bodies to cram in all of its decompression time into sleep hours only. The world turns at a much faster pace than it ever did before; though we may not want to slow down, we must be respectful of our own mental and physical health.
Anxiety, Depression and Sleep
Anxiety and depression can both alter a person's ability to fall asleep and sleep soundly. This can manifest in different ways, from feeling panicked or having a racing mind when you are trying to fall asleep, to having exaggerated, irrational feelings of fear or someone in your house, to waking in the middle of the night and feeling listless as you try to get back to sleep. Not only can the actual medical problem affect sleep - so can the medicine used to cure the problem. Whether it is an antidepressant, theophylline for asthma or even, surprisingly, sleeping pills, medicines can have unsettling side effects. Be sure to thoroughly discuss your medication, and its side effects, with your physician.
What to do? First try to avoid too much stress.
Eat a balanced diet.
Avoid too much caffeine and nicotine, especially in the evening hours.
Don't overdo alcohol. Also sport, outdoor activities and high spirits will help you on this way. Additional way is to try melatonin sleep aid.

A man is so imperfect, he needs to eat, to sleep, he grieves over a mere nothing, he has a pain and finally man is mortal. This is very sad but the fact. Actually a man is defenseless and open to injury like a child and needs to be cared for with someone else. The ancients had been looking for the defense in God but we rely on scientific and technical progress only. And this is really not bad. This thought occurred to me every time I read about regular achievements of science and engineering. AFP reports today that Japan's future dentists may soon be able to better appreciate patients' pain by training on a humanoid robot that can mumble "ouch" when the drill hits a nerve.

The robot, resembling an attractive young woman with long black hair and a pink sweater, also can listen to instructions and react to pain by moving her eyes or hands.A group of robot and computer makers presented the high-tech dental patient in Tokyo at the 2007 International Robot Exhibition, a four-day technology showcase that opened Wednesday.
The medical simulation robot, named "Simroid," is designed to be used for clinical training at dental schools, said Tatsuo Matsuzaki, an official at robot maker Kokoro Company Ltd., which developed the body and control system.
The 160-centimeter (five-foot-three) robot can say "it hurts" and frown when it feels uncomfortable from the dental drill.
"Because it's so real, dental trainees can see patients' feelings and will be able to develop good skills as they treat it, not as an object, but as a human being," Matsuzaki said.

It seems that the Medical Calendar is great deal! It is an easy-to-use scheduler for doctors that'll free you from a writing routine. The handy scheduling software will suit perfectly for a single physician as well as for a whole health center. It will help you to quickly create a competently organized schedule for the whole staff and if you want to have your reception hours at hand and don't want to miss any important job-related events, then Medical Calendar is just what the doctor ordered!

The creators of Medical Calendar have done a good job in crafting the Date Navigator that makes the scheduler extremely easy-to-use. At any time you can jump to the required date, edit reception hours, patient data, etc. You can change time intervals from a detailed day schedule to a brief quarter overview in order to provide yourself with the most fitting schedule. What's more, you can choose vertical or horizontal timelines and 12 or 24 hours format.

All information stored in Medical Calendar can be secured with a password preventing from unauthorized access. To safeguard your data, you can also take advantage of the adjustable Auto Backup feature and save the data to the secured archive. Additionally, the schedule can be exported to a variety of formats, including MS Outlook, XML, HTML, XLS, TXT. Thus you can use your schedule in different applications. When you need a printout of your schedule, you'll certainly appreciate the powerful Print Designer. It'll help you to print your schedule in the most convenient form, choosing from a number of templates.

It is said that when Johann Wolfgang Goethe was asked, which three things he would take to an island. He stated: "Poetry, a beautiful woman and enough bottles of the world's finest wines to survive this dry period!" Then he was asked what he would leave back first, if it was allowed to take only two things to the island. And he briefly replied: "The poetry!" Slightly surprised, the man asked the next question: "And Sir, what would you leave back if only one was allowed?" And Goethe thought for a couple of minutes and answered: "It depends on the vintage!"


Indeed if our hearts are warm with happiness or if sorrow chills our hearts we need to take a glass of good wine. We have heard a lot about favorable influence of wine upon man’s organism and from time to time we get new and new arguments in favor of it. “The healthiest people do include moderate drinking in their lifestyle,” says Eric Rimm, Sc.D., associate professor of epidemiology and nutrition at the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston. You can reap alcohol’s health benefits within weeks, and the gains accumulate over time.” You are watching your calories and wondering what your best bet is: beer, liquor or wine? You must know that ounce for ounce, beer turns out to have the fewest calories (13 for regular, 9 for light), followed by wine (25) and liquor (64 to 82). But when you consider how much you're typically served of each, you may be better off ordering a cocktail. That's because a drink containing a jigger of alcohol, mixed with water, seltzer or diet soda, will have no more than 124 calories—roughly 25 calories less than a 6-ounce glass of wine or a 12-ounce bottle of beer. (Light beer, with only 103 calories per bottle, is also a good choice.) If you like your drinks mixed with regular soda or juice, however, beware: You could slurp down 300 or more calories. Generally experts recommend either12 ounces of beer, 5 ounces of wine or 1½ ounces of 80-proof liquor. And it does not matter which sort of alcohol you prefer - all forms of alcohol have ethanol, the ingredient that adds a health benefit. But women who have a high risk for breast cancer should have less than one drink a day; there’s evidence that alcohol can raise the odds for some forms of the disease and those with a family history of alcoholism should avoid alcohol altogether.
Moderate drinking raises HDL (“good”) cholesterol, helping reduce the risk for heart disease and possibly stroke, a study from Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston indicates. Alcohol also makes blood platelets less sticky, so they’re less likely to form into potential heart-attack-inducing clots. It may insulin levels, lowering your risk for type 2 diabetes, according to a study in the journal Obesity. It appears that alcohol can increase cells’ sensitivity to insulin, which in turn allows cells to burn glucose faster and reduce blood sugar levels also that alcohol can increase cells’ sensitivity to insulin, which in turn allows cells to burn glucose faster and reduce blood sugar levels.
A glass of good wine can make our daily living easier, less hurried, with fewer tensions and more tolerance as Benjamin Franklin said.

Everybody knows that every year, millions of people get sick with the flu (influenza) and cold. And if someone has symptoms of colds, flu, cold respiratory tract infections somebody else is always quick to say: “There are a lot of ways to say good-bye to medicines.” And sometimes he is right, because we have got a great store of natural healing therapies called alternative medicine which includes such well known home health care treatments as natural herbal medicine, homeopathy, diet, shiatsu, yoga, spiritual healing, meditation and more. Herbal therapy has especial wide popularity among them as the most effective and without side effects as a rule. For instance eucalyptus has pronounced antiseptic characteristics and can be used in remedies to treat coughs and the common cold. Experts recommend the use of fresh leaves in teas, gargles and inhalations to soothe sore throats and treat bronchitis and sinusitis. And the perfect solution on this way is using Herbal Vaporizers which will help you not only to treat respiratory disease more effectively but to take drastic measures for prophylaxis of the influenza. This is full featured, compacted, functional and easy to use. It’s indispensable and useful thing in every family.

Vaporizer Features:
Glass on Glass interface
Hands free glass whip
Handcrafted wood case
Ceramic heating element
Lights up (Multi-color LED)
Adjustable temperature up 238 degrees Celsius

Carbohydrates, protein, fats, and alcohol—the dietary macrocomponents—are the sources of energy in the diet. Under normal circumstances, more than 95% of this food energy is digested and absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract to provide the body's energy needs. Studies of normal and overweight subjects have not shown any significant differences in the proportion of food energy absorbed. In some underweight subjects, however, malabsorption of nutrients is an important factor. Food energy is used to meet the body's needs, including protein synthesis; maintenance of body temperature, cardiac output, respiration, and muscle function; and storage and metabolism of food sources of energy. When more energy is consumed than is needed for metabolism and physical activity, the excess is stored, primarily as adipose tissue.

Energy is the capacity to do work. In biologic systems it is usually measured in kilocalories (kcal) or kilojoules (kJ). One kilocalorie (equivalent to 4.184 kJ) is the amount of heat required to raise the temperature of 1 kg of water 1°C (e.g., from 15 to 16°C) at standard atmospheric pressure (760 mm Hg).

Energy balance refers to the relationship of energy intake to energy expenditure and energy storage. Less energy expenditure than energy intake results in a positive energy balance and storage of energy primarily as body fat. Increased fat storage is appropriate during pregnancy and lactation, during some periods of growth and development, and during recovery from trauma or malnutrition, but it may not be desirable under other conditions. When energy expenditure exceeds energy intake, energy balance is negative and leads to weight loss. When intake equals expenditure, equilibrium results and body fat is maintained, regardless of whether the body weight is at, above, or below normal. Even at stable body weight, however, the percentage of body fat frequently increases with age unless regular physical activity is maintained. At the same body weight, some sedentary people have relatively more body fat than those who exercise. Thus even at normal weights, these individuals may have more adiposity than desirable.

Prolonged insufficient energy intake results in malnutrition, which is observed in many developing countries and is also a public health concern for a minority of the U.S. population. In most cases, insufficient food intake results from a lack of economic ability to obtain food, from an illness, or from physical or mental disorders that prevent sufficient ingestion or utilization of food to meet energy expenditure, or in some cases from voluntary restriction of food intake and dieting.
(Diet and Health: Implications for Reducing Chronic Disease Risk (1989)
Commission on Life Sciences)