Category: Weight Loss Exercise

I have just run across a study released today that seems to show that there is an elevated risk of Kidney damage by taking certain stomach drugs, called PPIs (proton-pump inhibitors), like Nexium or Prilosec.

In the very large study by John Hopkins involved looking at two studies which followed over 250,000 people over 10 years and found that people taking a drug like Prilosec or Nexium had just over a 12% higher risk of chronic kidney disease.

 

An estimated 15 million Americans use these PPI drugs,

“They’re very, very common medications,” says Morgan Grams, an epidemiologist at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Health who led the research, being published in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine.

The History of PPI Drugs

When PPIs were first approved in the 1980s, the drugs appeared to be very safe. Since then, concerns have been rising about their safety. Evidence has emerged that the drugs may increase the risk for a variety of problems, including bone fractures,infections and possibly even heart problems.

Morgan Grams and her colleagues decided to examine whether PPIs might increase the risk for chronic kidney disease.

They examined the medical records of two groups of people: 10,482 participants in the Artherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) study and 248,751 patients in the Geisinger Health System in Pennsylvania.

Among the 322 people using PPIs in the ARIC study, the 10-year estimated absolute risk for chronic kidney disease was 11.8 percent, the researchers reported.

The expected risk would have been 8.5 percent. The 10-year absolute risk among the 16,900 patients using PPIs in the Geisinger Health System was 15.6 percent, whereas 13.9 percent would have been expected to develop chronic kidney disease.

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A Natural Cough Remedy is important to all of us. At different times of the year we will all get a cough and the cough may be caused by many things but it seems like overkill to take medication. So what are some natural cough remedy?

There are two types of cough and you will need a different cough remedy for each.

Natural Cough Remedies

Dry Cough Remedy

A dry cough is when you have a tickle in the back of your throat. When you cough, the throat becomes irritated, making you cough more. In this case you need to stop coughing. Remedies that soothe the throat are required.

Natural Cough Remedy

Honey can be very soothing to an irritated throat. The traditional honey and lemon drink is great for a dry cough. You can also add ginger to warm the body, turmeric to treat the inflamed throat and – strange as it may seem – pepper, which can be a great cough remedy.

You can also gargle with raw spinach juice to relieve the throat. You will need a juicer that can handle leaves, or use a blender and then strain the resulting liquid. You can add turmeric and/or garlic for added effectiveness if you wish.

Warm the juice to body temperature before you use it. Gargle a few times and then swallow some of the juice. If you hate the taste, try mixing equal parts spinach and carrot juice.

Almonds can be a good remedy too. Soak whole raw almonds overnight or for at least 6 hours. Peel off the brown skin. Crush, grind or blend them and mix with a little honey. This will form a paste which can be eaten alone or on bread.

Marjoram tea can be good for a dry cough. Marjoram is a relaxing herb that eases tension and stress. It can also ease the irritation in your throat.

Wet Cough Remedy

A wet cough is when you are coughing up mucus from the chest. In this case you should not suppress the cough. You need remedies that loosen the mucus so it will come up more easily.

A wet cough is often associated with a chest infection, cold or flu. Garlic can help to treat the infection. Use raw garlic if you can take it, or add it at the last minute to soups and other hot dishes.

Onion also has anti bacterial properties. Juice or blend one medium size onion, add the juice of one lemon and a couple of tablespoons of hot (not boiling) water. Sip this warm liquid slowly.

Grapes can be very good for a wet cough. If you have a cold or flu, you might try eating only grapes for a couple of days. This mono diet will be very easy for the body to digest, leaving it free to focus all of its resources on fighting the virus.

Staying warm is important for all types of cough. Being in a warm, moist environment is ideal. You can inhale steam with some essential oils – eucalyptus for loosening mucus or juniper for a dry cough. Some people like to take a sauna.

It is possible to find a natural cough remedy that works but if your cough persists you should see your doctor in case it is a sign of a more serious problem.

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Have you tried visualization for weight loss? If you are not familiar with visualization, it may sound like a strange or mysterious technique, but it isn’t really.

Visualizing is something that has been proven effective for any goal or desire, including loss.

Visualization takes advantage of how our brains operate. The fact is, your brain does not know the difference between what is really happening and what you are imagining. This may be hard to believe, but it’s been proven.

Athletes and Visualization

One way this has been shown is by experiments with athletes. Athletes such as basketball players were found to gain just as much advantage from visualizing success in performing a certain task as by physically practicing it.

You can use the same principle in your loss goals. It’s a little different from playing basketball, but your mind is still going to do the same basic thing -imagine what it is you want to create.

In this case, you want to have a picture in your mind of how you want to look and feel. Practice this for short periods, between five and ten minutes, at least twice per day. Early in the morning and before bed are the best times, but it’s beneficial to practice visualizing anytime you can.

Don’t be concerned about having photograph-like pictures in your mind. If you have a visual mind and this comes naturally, great.

But What If You Are Not Visual?

However, if you are less visual, you can focus more on how you feel. Imagine how great it feels to look in the mirror and look the way you want; how others look at you with admiration; how you feel walking down the street, etc.

The key to success with visualization is practice and consistency. Anyone can spare a few minutes every day to visualize, but it’s easy to forget. So set aside time every day and really do it! The only preparation is to relax. Sit or lie down and take a few slow, deep breaths. Then close your eyes and visualize. That’s all there is to it!

Some people, when they learn about visualization, ask, “Does this mean I don’t have to exercise or watch what I eat anymore?” Unfortunately, it doesn’t work that way.

Visualization is something that is meant to help you in changing your overall lifestyle and habits. When you make it a daily practice, you will find yourself naturally drawn to actions that will help you lose weight.

You will, conversely, find yourself less drawn to unhealthy and fattening foods. So don’t think of visualization as something you do in place of other sensible and helpful practices. Think of it as a way to make your overall loss plan easier and less stressful.

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