Health Care Guide

A diabetes drug given to girls at age eight might prevent future infertility

A new study concludes that girls who are at risk for developing infertility caused by PCOS can be helped by taking the drug metformin, used to control type 2 diabetes. If the girls take metformin at age 8, their odds of preventing future infertility are remarkably increased.

PCOS, or polycystic ovary syndrome, is one of the most common conditions responsible for female infertility, accounting for 5% to 10% of the cases in women of reproductive age. The main features of the syndrome are a tendency to become overweight, excessive hair growth (particularly in areas of the body more typical of male hair growth), insulin resistance (which may result in diabetes or pre-diabetes), acne and irregular periods – periods which may be absent, irregular and/or very light.

Even though the tender age of eight might seem like an awfully early time to diagnose a potential condition, it turns out that PCOS is often heralded during a girl’s prepubescent years. Gir

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Tags: Girls, Girls Age

Friday, February 3rd, 2012 Health Care Guide No Comments

Aromatherapy and Your Morning Sickness

Morning sickness is just one of those things. Like so many other things in life, a blessing like expectant motherhood is tempered by a little bit of trial and tribulation, like morning sickness. The frustrating thing about morning sickness is that it can be difficult trying to figure out the best way to treat morning sickness. The fact of the matter is that many of the medications that are available to reduce nausea just arent safe to use during pregnancy. For this reason, many women have turned to alternative remedies, such as aromatherapy, to treat morning sickness.

In general, aromatherapy uses essential oils to help treat a variety of ailments. In terms of morning sickness during pregnancy, there are several essential oils you can use via aromatherapy. The most effective and most commonly used essential oil used in aromatherapy to treat morning sickness is ginger. Ginger has been used for centuries to alleviate nausea and vomiting.

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Tags: Morning Sickness, Sickness

Wednesday, January 25th, 2012 Health Care Guide No Comments

How to Keep Your Cool During a Hot Emotional Time

I’ve always been wary of confrontations, shunning them at times I like to blame it on my astrological sign, Libra Ruled by Venus, the goddess of love, Libras search for peace and harmony, working hard to balance any oppositional forces

But in truth, I think it’s more than that Whenever I have to face a difficult situation with another person, there’s a part of me that fears getting tongue-tied or of things escalating so out of control that in the end there’s a bigger problem than I started with, rather than a resolution or any valuable forward motion

Yet, the reality is that you can’t always run from conflict In my own tireless quest for peace, there’s also that nagging need to have an oft-times spontaneous conversation to “make things right” or to “have a talk,” “straighten things out,” “get something off my chest” or “clear the air”

There’s a “right” way and a “wrong” way to handle a confrontation, I’ve learned by reading , the book I mentioned in my last post To start with, rather than call it a “confrontation,” the authors refer to talking to coworkers, friends, neighbors or family members as an “interview” And, just as you’d prepare for a job interview you would, wouldn’t you?, you can prepare—in fact, you must prepare—for this type of interview There goes spontaneity But there is a time and place for it, and this is it

So let’s throw out the word confrontation for now: it’s just too emotionally laden and filled with finger-pointing and bad endings

Preparation involves doing some homework According to the books’ authors, Mary Ellen O’Toole, PhD, and Alisa Bowman, here are some things you need to do before you ever ask a question:

  • Set some goals Think about what you want to accomplish during the interview What do you want to find out? Kee

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Tags: Time

Thursday, January 12th, 2012 Health Care Guide No Comments

Sexual violence against women leads to lifetime harm

A new study shows that women who suffer intimate partner violence have an increased lifetime risk of mental health disorders. The study, which covered more than 4,400 women and was reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association, found that 27 percent of the women said they had suffered from sexual or physical violence, or been stalked.

The women were 3 to 11 times more likely to have ever had a mental health condition such as depression or anxiety, and the risk increased dramatically with a greater proportion of the trauma suffered. For women who had suffered at least three of four types of violence, such as rape, other types of sexual assault, physical abuse by a partner or stalking, a full 89 percent had a mental health condition at some point in their lives.

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Tags: Lifetime, Lifetime Harm

Wednesday, January 11th, 2012 Health Care Guide No Comments

Dealing with Pregnacy Heartburn

Heartburn is extremely common during pregnancy. Because of the changes that take place in the body in hormone levels, as well as the crowding of the pregnant womans internal organs that naturally occurs as her baby grows, heartburn is just something that most pregnant women have to deal with. While some women may experience more heartburn during pregnancy than others, most will agree that its an inconvenience, at best. In some cases, severe heartburn can be extremely frustrating.

Compounding the problem is the fact that many heartburn medications that are available on the market today havent really been tested that much for use by a woman when shes pregnant. Other heartburn medications are known to have a detrimental affect on your baby. The good news is, however, that there a number of different ways that you can deal with heartburn during pregnancy without having to turn to medication.

The old saying goes that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, and this is as true with heartburn during pregnancy as it is for anything else.

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Tags: Heartburn

Saturday, December 31st, 2011 Health Care Guide No Comments

Learn More About Treating Premenopausal Symptoms

Most of us know what menopause is, but some women aren’t aware that symptoms related to our changing hormones can start in our mid-30s This time of life is sometimes referred to as premenopause, and the time closer to the end of our menstrual cycles is referred to as perimenopause But more important than what we call it is what we do about it Dr Whitney Pollock, an OB/GYN with the Gynecology Center in Pottsville, Pennsylvania, believes we women do not need to suffer silently with symptoms that too often disrupt our lives In this videotaped interview with Dr Pollock, she urges women to educate themselves about their symptoms and to talk to their health care providers Dr Pollock says that heavy menstrual bleeding is the No 1 reason that women visit their gynecologists Heavy bleeding can cause anemia and affects quality of life, causing women to miss out on activities This is not necessary or acceptable, she says, because there are many treatment options available Hysterectomy is not the only or best solution for most women For those of us who are through having children, a new minimally invasive procedure that takes five minutes and has no recovery time may put an end to heavy bleedingClick on this video to find out more about heavy menstrual bleeding and other premenopausal symptoms You’re not alone, and you may not need to suffer with premenopausal symptoms any longer

Tags: Premenopausal Symptoms, Symptoms

Thursday, December 15th, 2011 Health Care Guide No Comments