Tag Archives: health

Episode of House MD comes to life

If you’ve ever seen Fox’s hit medical drama “House MD”:http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0412142/, you know that every installment is just an exercise in further improbability than the previous episode (a patient’s skull explodes in the most recent episode). But occasionally reality is just as strange. Near the end of the first season, House treats a malnourished baby whose vegan parents are unwittingly starving it by keeping the infant on the same strict diet as they are. I thought the whole thing was a bit contrived, but apparently not. Yesterday, Lamont Thomas and Jade Sanders, vegan parents, were convicted of gross neglect and sentenced to life terms in prison. As always, there’s more at “the BBC”:http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/6642543.stm. Also if you’re interested, the episode in question was “season 1, episode 18”:http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0606013/

The Infamous Hangover

When you’ve had too much fun (or just enough), the consequences can be painful. Never fear the “hangover”:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hangover is here to teach you a lesson you won’t forget, until next Friday night. This well researched “pdf”:http://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/arh22-1/54-60.pdf details the causes, mechanisms, symptoms, and prevention techniques for the big H. Sorry to say, moderation and abstinence are ubiquitously documented to be the most effective. However, your night out isn’t shot yet, “hangoverreview.com”:http://www.hangoverreview.com has put together this “extensive list”:http://www.hangoverreview.com/hangover_products/ of 52 treatment products. Unfortunately these guys aren’t hiring. If you want a quick go-to guide for hangovers without too much medical jargon, this “howstuffworks.com article”:http://health.howstuffworks.com/hangover.htm is complete and professional, but still best read _before_ the booze begins. Another good prevention technique is to check out “gettingsmashed.com”:http://www.gettingsmashed.com/index.php for pictures, videos, and other forms of black mail these regretful souls wished never existed.
If you have a drinking problem, please visit “AA’s website”:http://www.alcoholics-anonymous.org/ for help.

Are You Ready to Neti?


After my curiosity in the “(Jala) Neti Pot”:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neti_pot was re-piqued from the “_Dr. Oz II_ episode”:http://images.oprah.com/tows/pastshows/200704/tows_past_20070426.jhtml on the “Oprah Show”:http://www2.oprah.com/index.jhtml, I decided to go “duenos”:www.duenos.net on it. A neti pot is a tool for “nasal irrigation”:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nasal_irrigation that can provide many benefits like better breathing, cleaner boogers, and possible elimination of snoring by simply splashing salty water up there. “Mayo Clinic”:http://www.mayoclinic.com/ has “this video”:http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/nasal-lavage/MM00552 that details some benefits of nasal irrigation and an alternative (athough similar) method to “the Neti.” “This fan site”:http://www.yoga-age.com/asanas/neti.html has a myriad of (some hard to believe and unresearched) benefits of the Neti, but towards the bottom of the page has a well-written how-to guide complete with photos of an unnecessarily shirtless guy (see picture above). For more, check out this “pdf”:http://www.jalanetipot.com/research.html that provides excessive neti info and you can purchase inexpensive basics “at this link”:http://www.neilmed.com/ when you’re ready to neti.

Synæsthesia: How to Taste Thoughts Without LSD

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Synesthesia the other day and couldn’t believe my nostrils. Synæsthesia is the non-debilatating condition where your senses are switched, i.e. you can hear colors, smell sounds, and even sense emotions in numbers. As weird as it tastes, it is thought to be fairly common. It goes underdiagnosed because synæsthetes are able function normally while seeing music and feeling colors and are typcially surprised to find out that this is unique to them. "Preview this free test":http://synesthete.org/demo.php to take after "registering":http://synesthete.org/login.php?action=register&remail=&semail=&ch to see if you’re one. Also, check out "this excerpt":http://www.bluecatsandchartreusekittens.com/Blue_Cats_and_Chartreuse_Kittens_Ex.html from and "the site":http://www.bluecatsandchartreusekittens.com/index.html for a "book":http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0716740885/qid=1003606833/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_15_1/002-2610210-3787248 written from a synæsthetes’ sensorial perception of the world.

Alternative lacing tactics

http://www.dickssportinggoods.com/info/index.jsp?categoryId=690482 from Dick's Sporting Goods. Here are their general lacing tips for any layout: * Make sure your laces are loose before you slip into the shoes. Doing this maintains the integrity of the eyelets and heel. * Tighten your laces from the bottom (toe end) to top (ankle end), tightening gradually at each set of eyelets. * Remember that a shoe with more eyelets allows you to create a more custom fit with lacing.

Birth control for men


Here’s the reality, we need a better approach to contraception than the above comic. Seriously. A lot of guys have their own theories about how to avoid unwanted pregnancies, but ultimately it comes down to trust. Trust in partners on hormonal pills/rings, or trust on condoms. There are people out there researching ways for men to get a handle on the situation and “this article”:http://www.malecontraceptives.org/articles/gifford_article.php from Men’s Health magazine sums up the two best ideas so far.
# A Swiss physician working in India before independence developed and tested a regimen of routine VERY HOT 45-minute baths (116 degrees F) over 3 weeks that confuse sperm into immobility. Apparently this condition of temporary infertility can last for 6 months, but obviously it’s a bit more of an art than a science.
# Another trial going on in over-populated India is for a system called RISUG (reversible inhibition of sperm under guidance) which consists of injecting a polystyrene-based polymer into the vas deferens that chemically kills the sperm. The procedure can then be reversed by injecting harmless sodium bicarbonate, leaving the man completely fertile again.
The problem with both of the above simple solutions is that they are, well, simple. No pharmaceutical company will invest in something that is so cheap and effective. Where’s the profit potential. “MaleContraceptives.org”:http://www.malecontraceptives.org/ is a great resource for all sorts of information in the extremely slow-moving field of male birth control. If you know of any other good sites, please comment here and I’ll post them.
I don’t know where the hilarious comic above came from. If it’s your work or someone you know, tell me and I’ll properly cite it.

The obsolescence of men


It’s almost here ladies, the ability to reproduce entirely without men. According to Dr. Karim Nayernia from the Northeast England Stem Cell Institute, his team have been able to grow early stage sperm cells from female bone marrow. Of course, they’ve only been able to pull it off in mice, but this could be the beginning of the end for all of us cursed with a Y-chromosome. To read more about it, check out “this article”:http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=VPBSMUNYG3EAFQFIQMGSFFOAVCBQWIV0?xml=/news/2007/04/13/nsperm13.xml in the “Telegraph”:http://www.telegraph.co.uk, to read the report itself, check your mailbox for the latest issue of medical journal _Reproduction: Gamete Biology_.

How long are you going to live?

http://www.livingto100.com/ is a free tool you can use to generate a personalized health profile that tells you the do’s and don’ts for living longer. After a quick 10 minutes of answering ~60 questions about your lifestyle, ranging from dietary habits to drug use to flossing your teeth, Dr. Perls generates an estimated life expectancy, as well as ways to increase it. Although you have to suffer through a few poorly written “always-sometimes-never” questions and several limited response options, it is a quick and easy way to find out how long you have to find the perfect gravestone. Thanks so much to Brian for the tip, the link, and the beginning of this article.

Dirt could help fight depression

Adding to the theme that doing kid stuff is just plain good for you, “the Scotsman”:http://news.scotsman.com/scitech.cfm?id=506592007 reported a study released yesterday that suggests that a common soil bacteria plays a role in fighting depression. Apparently the bacteria, Mycobacterium vaccae, has been shown to release seratonin in mice, a chemical linked to lower incidence of depression. Just like sleeping in and taking naps, science is suggesting that another of life’s pleasures commonly rejected by Purell-pumping soccer moms (getting dirty) is not only okay, but downright good for you. I love science.

Links to the “Scotsman article”:http://news.scotsman.com/scitech.cfm?id=506592007 and two past Duenos posts about the positive benefit of “sleeping in”:http://duenos.net/article/30/sleeping-in-is-good-for-you and “taking naps”:http://duenos.net/article/36