Health Blog and Health Product Reviews

Many women are afraid of getting cellulite. However, not all of us know exactly what cellulite is, where it comes from, or what we can do about it. Don’t let cellulite be a menace that you don’t understand. Here are some basic facts about it.

Cellulite is what we call deposits of fibrous, fatty tissue. It generally looks dimpled under the skin. Women are the most prone to get this condition, generally on the hips and thighs.

It is made up of accumulated toxins and fat, and the problem may be contributed to by hormonal changes. This might also explain why this lumpy, cosmetically unattractive problems is mostly suffered by females.

Cellulite doesn’t just happen because you’re fat. Anyone, male or female, can get cellulite, at any body weight or size. As much as ninety-eight percent of women have some amount of cellulite on their bodies. This is much more prevalent in women of Caucasian descent than other groups. Asian women are particularly noted for not suffering from this problem as much.

Diet may be a factor in the accumulation of cellulite, as well as genetic background. Surprisingly, weight management isn’t a big contributor to the appearance of cellulite.

Heavier body types are susceptible to this problem. But it’s found on lighter weight women with small builds as well. Men can even get signs of cellulite.

There are several factors which can contribute to the accumulation of cellulite:

1. Genetic makeup and heredity. If your parents had cellulite, there’s a pretty good chance that you’ll develop it too, at some point in your life.

2. Inadequate hydration. Most people don’t consume enough water over the course of the day. Doctors recommend that you take in seven to eight glasses every day, to help flush out toxins and other wastes.

3. Poor diet. People who eat a lot of fatty or overly processed foods, or drink a lot of alcohol or caffeine may have more toxin accumulation than those who don’t. Although consuming caffeine can contribute to cellulite accumulation, caffeine injected directly into an affected area or topically applied has been used to treat the condition.

4. Smoking. Cigarettes can reduce the effectiveness of your blood circulation. This affects how much blood gets to your skin, and can reduce its elasticity.

5. Interference from medications. Some medications can cause problems with the body’s natural purification and waste removal systems, leading to a number of problems, including cellulite.

Visually, it is undesirable. Having it can produce other side effects too, like poor self esteems and trouble in social interaction. Because of this, many people are very frightened of getting this skin problem. Getting rid of it seems to be hopeless. However, this isn’t entirely true. It’s almost impossible to prevent cellulite from developing, but the symptoms can be reduced.

Maintaining skin elasticity helps to improve the appearance of an area with cellulite. Adequate hydration and some topical creams and lotions may help improve the elasticity of your skin.

Moisturizing daily and protecting your skin from the sun’s harmful effects can keep it firm. That means that cellulite will have less opportunity to cause dimpling.

Stay in good shape. A good muscle tone and good overall health, including a regular routine of exercise, can help to lessen the effects of cellulite. You can shape and firm problem areas. Exercise also enhances circulation, making sure that your skin has adequate blood flow to keep it healthy.

Maintain a good diet. Watching what you eat is important for all parts of your life. It can help to decrease the evidence of cellulite, as well as keeping you healthy overall. Pay good attention to fat content and ingredients, and make sure you distinguish between food that you eat as an occasional treat and food you eat all the time. Remember that Asian women don’t suffer from cellulite very often. A diet including many fresh vegetables and very little red meat could help your reduce your symptoms.

Detoxification diets can help to remove toxins from your body. They can also enhance your metabolism, speeding up your digestion. If you use one of these diets, you’ll probably have to eliminate processed and refined foods for a period of time, and concentrate on fresh, simple foods.

Try a body wrap. You can get these at many different beauty salons and day spas. A mixture of seaweed and algae, in conjunction with hydrating lotions, is used to improve your circulation and skin moisture. This is only a temporary solution, however, and should only be used in conjunction with other treatments.

Caffeine injections have been used to help reduce cellulite. These should be embarked upon with care and with the permission of your doctor. Some people even attempt to use liposuction to reduce the dilemma. However, this treatment is expensive, and not always effective. It was developed to treat deeper fat deposits, and cellulite tends to be a surface problem.

Massage therapy may be effective, particularly a technique called endermologie. In this case, a system of rollers and a vacuum device are used to manipulate the skin. This promotes circulation and smooths the skin for a time.

Creams are available to help reduce the appearance of this skin problem. They may use such ingredients as green tea extract to increase the rate at which your body breaks down fat, Retinol A to target and rejuvenate the tissues of your skin, and extract of algae, which is intended to help break down epidermal fat.

Left untreated, this tissue phenomena will not cause any health problems, but it will also not go away or get better. It tends to increase as we age. People have been looking for ways to put an end to this annoying condition for centuries.

There’s still no cure, but there are many different options available to the person interested in reducing cellulite. Which treatment will be effective for you will of course vary.

Ken Black is the owner of Skin Care Reviews, a website about skin care. Visit us to learn the latest about Cellulite Treatments.

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Tamiflu, whose common scientific name is oseltamivir, is part of a family of flu fighting medicines called neuraminidase inhibitors. Tamilflu is used in the treatment of infections caused by both the influenza A and influenza B viruses. Tamiflu, which requires a prescription, can be used both to treat the flu if taken soon after symptoms appear, or to prevent the flu.

The difference between Tamiflu and a vaccine is that Tamiflu helps your immune system be in a position to fight off the advance of the viral infection, whereas a vaccine is just a straight injection of dead influenza that causes your immune system to produce antibodies to fight off the virus itself.

Tamiflu demand has skyrocketed over the past year for several reasons. There was a shortage of available flu vaccine during flu season 2005, with in some cases only enough for senior citizens or those with more vulnerable immune conditions being able to get vaccinated.

Also, the U.S. government was concerned that an outbreak of bird flu in the United States could leave the U.S. short on flu vaccines, causing them to hold back supplies just in case of an outbreak. However, the bird flu is different form human influenza.

Bird Flu is much harder to transmit than human influenza, requiring very close physical contact to spread the disease. Bird flu has been observed in countries where humans and animals are in close contact. There have been roughly 70 deaths worldwide and approximately 130 infections since 2005.

It is possible that bird flu will infect someone who is already carrying the human influenza strain, and that the two viruses will swap genetic material, causing the bird flu to spread like a deadlier version of human influenza. A highly virulent straight of bird flu could create a pandemic for the world, as did the Spanish Flu virus of the early 1900’s that killed 20 to 50 million people worldwide.

The bird flu is associated with the influenza A strain H5N1 flu virus. Although not the same as the Spanish flu virus, the current avian flu strain does share many similarities with the Spanish flu strain. Initial studies have shown that Tamiflu may be effective in helping to fight the effects of this flu virus if the medication is taken very early after flu symptoms appear. As a result, the demand for Tamiflu has skyrocketed.

A Swiss drug maker, F. Hoffman La-Roche Ltd., currently has a tight hold on the manufacturing of Tamiflu. Biolyse Pharma Corp., when turned down in its bid to try to enter the Tamiflu marketplace, had decided as of December of 2005 to attempt to mass produce several tons of shikimic acid, which is the main ingredient in Tamiflu, from the needles of discarded Christmas trees, as well as other pine, fir, and spruce trees. Such trees are the main source of shikimic acid.

Oseltamivir, sold under the brand name Tamiflu, is one of several medications approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the treatment and prevention of influenza. Flu shots are still the best way to prevent someone from developing the flu, but as of right now there is no known vaccine for the bird flu. The CDC has announced that development of a vaccine has begun.

Jim Pretin is the owner of http://www.forms4free.com, a service that helps programmers make an HTML form

Your doctor may soon be a robot, or so the whispers warn. Sound like something out of a bad science-fiction movie? Well, maybe you should ask whichever physician shows up on-screen of the RP-7 Remote Presence Robotic System by InTouch Technologies, a maneuverable robotic system designed to allow physicians to videoconference with their patients from remote locations.

Dr. Alex Gandsas, of Baltimore’s Sinai Hospital and holder of stock options with InTouch Technologies, introduced the machine to hospital administrators as a way to closely monitor patients after the weight loss surgeries in which he specializes. Since its introduction, the length of his patients’ stays has been shorter. In Gandsas’ study published earlier this month in the Journal of the American College of Surgeons, 92 of 376 patients had additional robotic visits, and all 92 of them were medically cleared to return home faster than those who did not receive check-ins with the teleconferencing system. Shorter patient stays would be a welcome change for hospitals, health insurance companies, and patients alike — all of which have a vested interested in sending patients home faster.

While further studies should, without a doubt, be performed by physicians who do not hold a financial interest in the technology, these preliminary results do show promise. The robotic visits were not used by Gandsas to replace his personal check-ins with patients — only to add to them. Neither InTouch Technologies, nor Dr. Gandsas envisions the “Bari” or so it’s nicknamed, as completely replacing personal visits with healthcare professionals. Instead, the joystick-controlled system, which employs cameras, a video screen, and microphone, is intended to supplement physicians’ traditional visits, and to allow patients and healthcare workers to receive advice from qualified physicians and specialists when it may otherwise be impossible. Doctors may soon be able to provide their patients with additional daily check-ins and answer questions much faster, all while sitting in their own homes or while away from the area.

Sinai Hospital isn’t the only one with this technology, however. In fact, robots have been in use for some time to assist with patient care, including guiding stroke patients through therapy, and helping them play video games. Many prosthetic devices are now at least partially robotic, and if it weren’t for a certain amount of robotic technology, the public would not be able to communicate with such great minds as Steven Hawkins.

Johns Hopkins also has a robotic teleconferencing system to help communicate with patients who need a translator when one is not available at the hospital itself. Use of such technology could have tremendously positive effects on Texas’ healthcare system — particularly in Dallas, Houston, and Austin — which handles a high volume of patients who do not speak English. Lack of adequate communication is a major obstacle to receiving quality healthcare for many immigrants in Texas. Lack of quality healthcare, in turn, can lead to serious public health issues, including the transmission of communicable diseases.

Approximately 120 RP-7 Remote Presence Robotic Systems are currently in use around the world, with plans to implement many more in the coming years. China is already using similar systems to help deal with the lack of medical care in rural, inaccessible areas.

Dr. Louis Kavoussi, chairman of the urology department at North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System, took a special interest in this new trend and conducted a study monitoring the effect of the technology on patient care. The study showed no decrease in patient satisfaction, and no increase in complications due to teleconferencing visits. The technology, Kavoussi said, is rudimentary, really, in comparison to other developing systems. The need for fear is minimal.

There are relatively few of InTouch Technologies systems available, and further studies have yet to be conducted. If robotic teleconferencing is used as a supplement to personal physicians’ visits, however, it has the potential of dramatically improving many aspects of healthcare — from how quickly patients’ questions are answered, to how many visits, in total, they receive, to whether or not rural residents receive proper care, to how well (or even if) they are provided with a translator to explain their symptoms. States like Texas, in particular, with shortages of doctors and high volumes of patients who do not speak English, stand to benefit. So maybe robots in hospitals aren’t something one needs to fear. In fact, they may even get your unpleasant stay over with a few days faster.

Being aware of medical technology is an important part of taking care of your health. How you take care of yourself will certainly affect you as you age, and eventually your wallet, as well.

Pat Carpenter writes for Precedent Insurance Company. Precedent puts a new spin on health insurance. Learn more at Precedent.com