The risk of serious blood clotting problems depends on the dose of oestrogens. For men, less than the equivalent of three milligrams a day of stilboestrol is probably safe. The safe dose for women is not definitely known but is probably quite a bit higher. Oestrogens also weaken small blood vessels. You are likely to [...]
Regular aerobic exercise often has the benefit (partly by promoting weight reduction) of reducing blood triglyceride levels and increasing the proportion of your total cholesterol that is made up of HDL cholesterol. Total and LDL choleste usually stay the same with exercise, but the ratio of LDL to HDL cholesterol is improved. The appeal of [...]
If periodic rechecks of lipid levels show little response to changes in diet and exercise, your doctor may recommend lipid-lowering medications. Some medications have their biggest effect on LDL cholesterol, others on triglycerides, and others on HDL cholesterol. Despite their potential for being beneficial, medications are reserved for people in whom diet [...]
What I wasn’t prepared for was the amount of pain that was involved in getting back flexibility in terms of bending and straightening my knee. It’s not easy—you have to make a commitment to therapy. I look at this as a down payment on being able to do things that I want to do for [...]
“What are the complications of the ketogenic diet?” During the starvation phase of the diet, the child’s blood sugar may drop, with symptoms like weakness, dizziness, paleness, sweating, and sleepiness. If these occur, it is imperative to measure the blood sugar and to give a small amount of glucose before continuing starvation. We have mentioned [...]
Autoimmune destruction of the pancreatic beta cells is the major cause of type 1 diabetes. Type 1 diabetes is a genetically determined disorder; the genes responsible are within the major histocompatibility complex locate on chromosome 6. Evidence of residual insulin secretion is present in 45% of adult (ages 18-39 years) within 5 years after the [...]
There is some controversy on the subject of self-examination. Advocates say that it encourages early diagnosis and therefore an increased chance of early treatment. Those against it say that self-examination does nothing to prevent the disease in the first place and also leads to a lot of unnecessary worry for the great majority who find [...]
A common mistake when working with an alcoholic family is to assume that once the drinking stops things will get better. Yet when the alcoholic stops drinking the family again faces a crisis and time of transition. Such crises can lead to growth and positive changes, but not automatically or inevitably. In the alcoholic family [...]
Sunscreens With the increased use of sunscreens and their incorporation into many cosmetics, allergic reactions to their various ingredients are on the rise. Although many people are aware that PABA can produce allergic reactions, other sunscreen components, especially benzophenones, may also cause the same reactions. If an allergic reaction to a particular sunscreen occurs, patch [...]
Arthroscopic Surgery By inserting a pencil-sized telescope called an arthroscope through a small incision in the skin, a surgeon or rheumatologist is able to look inside the joint without putting the patient through major surgery. Being able to see the inside joint structures helps the surgeon determine what conditions are creating problems. And, at the [...]