How to avoid travelers diarrhea

Travelers diarrhea, is a very common illness, that affect 20-50% of international traveler, traveling in developing country like, Asia, Latin America, and Africa. It is usually cause by ingesting or drinking contaminated water or food. 80% of the infection, are cause by bacteria, and the most common one, is E.Coli

The syptoms happen suddenly, and consist of frequent watery stool. But can also be associated with, abdominal cramping, nausea, bloating, fever and malaise. The syptoms usually goes by itself in one or  two days. If it goes longer, you have to be carefull to drink enough fluid, to avoid dehydratation.

But there is some precaution you can take before and during your vacation.

• Take probiotic, one week before, and during all your vacation.
• Avoid eating food from street vendors.
• Drink water bottle.
• Wash your hand frequently.
• Avoid eating raw or undercooked meat or seafood.
• Avoid eating raw fruits and vegetables, unless you peel them.

Related article: Probiotic: How to avoid antibiotic side effect.
Related article: Advice for food safety

Probiotic: How to avoid antibiotic side effect

Sometime, you have no choice, and you have to take antibiotics for infection in your body. The antibiotic, will fight the bad bacteria, that cause the infection, but will also fight the good bacteria in the gastro-intestinal tract. This is the reason why you get diarrhea after a prescription of antibiotic. If you have a weak patient, it can also cause  problem like C.Difficile infection, wich is widespread in hospital in Canada and the US

There was a study that was held in Canada, and was published in the Journal of Gastoenterelogy, that showed a decrease of diarrhea cause by antibiotic, when given the probiotic Bio-K+CL285. This product is available in capsule, or drink. Probiotic, contain beneficial bacteria, that are, an essential part of your immune and digestive sysytem.

So when you finish, taking antibiotic, start right away with probiotic. Bio-K, is a proven effective brand, but there is also,other brand available. You could also eat yogurt, that as lactobacillus bifidus, but it is not as effective. Taking probiotic, will replenish the good bacteria in your GI tract, boost your immune and digestive system, and help avoid post-antibiotic side effect.

Ankle sprain first treatment

Ankle sprain is a common injury since the ankle is a very mobile joint. An ankle sprain is a stretching of the ankle ligament due to a sudden twisting of the ankle, and most often when the feet turn outward. The sprain often happen while playing sport, but it can also happen just walking regularly, or climbing stair. They are categorized in 3 grade, related with the damage of the ankle. Grade 1 is when the ligament is overstretched but not torn, and the ankle is stable. In grade 2, the ligament is partially torn, and in grade 3 the ligament is completely torn, and instable.

The symptoms of an ankle sprain, is swelling, bruising, stiff ankle joint, pain, unability to bear weight on the joint, and in grade 3 instable ankle. It is important to start rehabilitation of the ankle quickly since a non treated ankle is prone to re-injured, and you could have chronic ankle problem. The treatment depend on the severity of the sprain, going to just a little rest and exercise in grade 1, to wearing brace, in grade 2 and to wearing a cast or even a surgery in grade 3. In more severe sprain, it is important to consult a physician, and take an x-ray, to rule-out fracture.

For treatment, remember the word RICE

R: Rest. Avoid walking on the ankle
I: Ice. 10-15 min, every hour, placing the ice in a wet towel.
C: Compression. In an elastic bandage.
E: Elevation. Elevate the ankle above the level of your heart.

Interval training to get fit fast

Interval training can be used in any training you do to increase your level of fitness, increase your metabolism and burn more fat. Interval training is increasing the intensity of your exercise with quick burst of exercise, followed with a recovery period. Everybody can do it, and the benifit are great.

There is 4 ways to affect your interval training. In that example sprint is when you go faster and the recovery period is the less intense part.

1. Intesity of sprint
2. Duration  of sprint
3. Intensity of recovery
4. Duration of recovery

Depending on what type of exercise you practice, there is different way you will do your interval training. A sprinter will do short sprint to increase his anaerobic system. The middle distance runner and the soccer or tennis player for example will have a less intense sprint but longer than the sprinter, to develop both his aerobic and anaerobic system. The marathoner, will have the longest sprint but the less intense. And if you are really out of shape, it may mean, if you walk, just to walk faster, but it will help you produce more fat burning enzyme. The interval training should not be used more than once or twice a week, because your body will get use to it and you will not get the benefit from it, the rest of the week you train regularly.

Here is a table of the different type of interval training, from the book Smart Exercise from Covert Bailey.

Sprint training: Intensity of sprint: High 95-100% of maximum heart rate
                      Duration of sprint: 10-20 sec.
                      Intensity of recovery: Rest recovery
                      Duration of recovery: 3 time as long as sprint
                      Sets/Repetitions: 5 sets/10 reps each set

Middle distance/: Intensity of sprint: Moderately high 85-90% of maximum heart rate
Stop and go:       Duration of sprint: 1-2 min.
                          Intensity of recovery: Work recovery
                          Duration of recovery: 2 time as long as sprint
                          Sets/Repetitions: 2-4 sets/ 4 reps each set

Long distance: Intensity of sprint: Moderate 80-85% of maximum heart rate
                       Duration of sprint: 3-5 min.
                       Intensity of recovery: Rest recovery
                       Duration of recovery: 1/2 as long as sprint
                       Sets/Repetitions: 1 sets/3 reps

Strong back, and good posture with core muscle exercise

The core muscle, are the muscle that stabilize your posture. It include the abdominals muscles, the back muscle, and the pelvis muscle (butt). It is important to keep them very strong, because weak core muscle, will cause, an imbalance when you move, wich will eventually cause, low back, pelvis, knee or hip problem. We have to do specific exercise in order to reenforce them.

Walking is a good general exercise for core strenghtening. But what I usually recommend to strenghtened those muscles is the stability ball, also known as the exercise ball or the swiss ball. One easy exercise you can do, is to just sit on it, watch tv, work, while sitting on it. Start with 15-30 min. and increase your time as you feel more confortable on the ball. Just sitting on the ball require you to keep your balance, and eventough you may not feel it, your muscle are working. There is many other exercises you can do on the ball. The next 2 videos shows you more exercise. There is also many books on the subject. The 4 point exercise, is a very good exercise to perform ( the first video ). Just remember to start slowly, and to contract the transverse, which are the abdominal  muscle located at the pelvis, and don't forget to breath.

Related aticles: How to prevent low back pain

How to manage stress for student?

I remember when I was in college, my friends were reacting to stress on different ways. There was one who literally was sick before every exam, another who seem to forget everything that he learn, and other like myself who handle it pretty well.

In school, there is many stress factor that the student has to face everyday. They have to face both, the transition phase of there life and  the load work of term paper and exam. There is some habits and exercises, that student can learn and apply, to help them cope with the stressfull student life.

• Study habits and organization skills: The student need to be strctured, having an agenda, and prioritize, what is important first, learning to say no, to certain activity less important. Being well prepared for his test. Not waiting at the last minute will decrease is stress.
• Being well rested, especially before an exam. Drinking coffee all night, preparing for the morning test will not help.
• Eliminate unnecessary stress, for example bad relationship, job...
• Have a support system.
• Eat well.
• Do exercise.
• Laugh
• Listen to music that relax you.
• Take a hot bath.
• Do meditation and breathing exercise. When you start feeling the stress, be aware of how your breathing, and try to take deep breath, it should calm you. At home, meditate, either in silence or with a CD, with guided meditation.
• Hypnosis.
• Seek outside help, if you feel overwhelmed.

But most important, enjoy yourself. College year should be a great time of your life. Simple habits can help you get the most of these year, and to succed well in school.

Article related: Eat, pray, love and meditation
Article realted: Laughing to health

Skin cancer risk factor and how to avoid it

According to the National Institute of Cancer, 1 000 000 new cases will be diagnosed in 2010, and less than 1000 will die from it. There is  risk factor associated with skin cancer that you should know about it.

1. Fair skin
2. A history of sunburn
3. Too much sun exposure
4. People who have many moles
5. Sunny or high altitude climate
6. Personal history of skin cancer
7. Family history of skin cancer
8. Weakened immune system
9. Exposition to certain substances
10. Increasing age

There is simple ways to decrease the risk of developing skin cancer

1. Wear sunscreen year long
2. Avoid getting sunburn
3. Avoid the sun in the middle of the day
4. Wear protective clothing
5. Avoid tanning bed
6. Check you skin regularly
7. Eat food that contain anti-oxidant

Article related with this post: Good food for good skin

Cow's-milk free diet for treatment of childhood constipation

According to a study,  that was publish in the Journal of Pediatric Gastroenterology Nutrition, in august 2010, cow's-milk free diet could be an option treatment in childhood chronic constipation.

In that study, they found out that cow's-milk consumption was associated with constipation for more than 1/3 of the pediatric patients, and that elimating cow's-milk from the diet reduced the incidence of constipation by 39%.

So cutting, cow's-milk from the child diet, and replacing it with rice milk for example, could be a natural and easy treatment, for chronic constipation in children.

How to prevent low back pain

Low back pain is a common complaint, and a very painfull condition. Most of the low back injury occurs with faulty movements and bad habits. It is important to learn, how to use your low back properly, and to learn proper posture, when sitting, bending, lifting, pulling, etc. I will give you, a few example advice, but once you understand how the low back work, you will know what to avoid.

• When lifting, keep the weight close to your body
• When lifting, bend your knee, don't keep your leg straight
• When lifting, don't rotate and overextend
• Avoid straining
• If you sneeze, bend your back slightly
• Don't miscalculate the weight your lifting
• Avoid leaning forward for a prolonged period
• Avoid standing still or sitting for long period of time
• Don't sleep on your belly
• When standing still, place one of your foot on a small stool
• When sitting, your feet should be firmly on the ground
• When sittng, your knee should be slightly higher than your hip

Measuring the weight load on the disk, is a good way to know, if a movment is dangerous for your low back . Once you understand how the weight is put on the low back, it is easy to apply it to every movement, in your everyday life.

Load measurements in the L3 disk of a 70 kg man:

Lying on your back: 30 kg
Standing on your feet: 70 kg
Walking: 85 kg
Twisting: 90 kg
Bending sideways: 95 kg
Sitting without support: 100 kg
Coughing: 110 kg
Jumping: 110 kg
Straining: 120 kg
Laughing: 120 kg
Bending forward 20 degrees: 120 kg
Lying on your belly and hyperextended: 150 kg
Sit-up exercise with knee extended: 175 kg
Bending forward at 20 degrees with a 10 kg weight: 185 kg
Lifting 20 kg with back straight and knees bent: 210 kg
Lifting 20 kg with back bent but knees staight: 340 kg

Good food for good skin

If you want a beautiful, and healthy skin, there is certain food that are better for you, that will clear your skin and, slow the aging process of the skin.

• Tomatoes: The red colours of the tomato, is produce , by a phytochemical called lycopene. Lycopene  is known to reduce the hormone that caused acne and it also defend the skin against de UV rays.
• Green tea: Green tea has a substance called catechin, that is anti-inflammatory, and anti-oxidant. Studies showed, that drinking green tea, decrease the aging process of the skin, and help avoid skin cancer.
• Berries: Especially the darker one like cherry and blueberry. Those fruits are full of anti-oxidant that, remove free radical produce by the exposure to the sun.
• Fish/seafood: The omega-3 fatty acid found in the fish, but also in walnut and flax seed, help moisturize the skin, and decrease the wrinkling process.
• Brown rice:  This rice has a lipid molecule called ceramid. Ceramid is important to hold hydratation of the skin.
• Water: A well hydrated decrease the aging process.
• Dark leafy green: Like kale and spinach, has vitamin A that help clear acne and help in skin repair.

Is cracking your knuckle bad for you?

You may be cracking your knuckle or heard somebody doing it, and wonder if it is good or bad for you. First of all, contrary to the belief, cracking your knuckle will not cause arthitis. No study found any link between cracking the knuckle and athritis. There is some study  however, that showed in the long term, swelling of the joint and decrese strenght of the hand.

The popping noise you hear when you crack your knuckle, is from a negative pressure, within the joint. It is a process called, cavitation. The noise is created, when there is a bursting of bubble of gas, from the separation of the synovial fluid that coat the joint. It take approximately 20 min. for the gas to regenerate in the joint. That is why, if you try to recrack you knuckle right away, you will not hear any sound.

So, basically, cracking your knuckle, will not cause arthritis or any major damage to the joint, with the exception of, minor ligament damage and loosening, swelling of the joint, and possible decrease strenght of the hand in the long run.

When should I put ice or heat?

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That is a question that I am often ask. Should I put ice or heat, and it seems that everybody has is own theory on the subject.

Let's start with ice. Ice is used to decrease swelling and pain after an injury. It is one of the easiest and cheapest way for pain relief. Ice is used for acute injury(sudden onset of symptom) for the first 48-72 hours after the onset of pain. You could apply it even longer than that if there is still swelling on the site of the injury. Ice is also used after the activity, for chronic recurrent overuse injury. Never put ice before doing an activity. For ice bag, you can use crushed ice in a ziploc bag, or the gel ice pack, or even a bag of frozen peas. Always wrap the ice bag with a wet towel, and apply it to the injured body part, for 10-15min., no more than that. Wait at least an hour and you can put ice again. You should put it, at least 4 time a day, to be effective.

Heat is applied for chronic injury that has no inflammation. We usually put heat on sore, stiff muscle pain, to relax the tight muscle. You can use a heating pad, or the gel pack that goes in the micro-wave, for 15 min, again wrapping the heat source with a damp towel. Never use heat when there is inflammation. In doubt, put ice, since you will never worsened your condition with it. But if you put heat on an inflame joint, even if it feels good will doing it, in an hour or so, you will be worse. So here is a quick recap:     

Ice:  Acute
        Recurrent chronic overuse injury
        Decrease swelling and pain
        10-15min.
        At least 4 time a day
        After the activity,  never before
        Never directly on the skin

Heat: Chronic injury with no inflammation
         Sore, stiff muscle pain
         To relax tight muscle
         15 min.
         Never put heat after an exercise
         Never directly on the skin

Advice for food safety

Food intoxication is caused by, micro-organism in the food that we eat. The CDC estimate that in the US, there is 76 millions cases annually, and of those cases, 325000 were hospitalized and  5200 death occured. There is easy way to avoid contamination from the food, and here is some tip on how to handle the food.

• Never eat a can that is swollen, have a funny smell, is moldy or have an off color look.
• Refrigerate food as fast as possible, since bacteria, grows very quickly. Leave a small opening for the steam to escape. When it is cold, you can close the lid.
• Don't place cooked food, on the surface where there is fresh food.
• Wash your can opener after each us.
• Throw away, nuts, seeds or grain that have mold on it. They may contain a carcinogen called aflatoxin
• When making poultry salad, wait until the meat is fully cooled, before adding the mayonnaise or salad dressing.
• Wash your hand after handling raw meat, especially chicken.
• Cook ground beef well done and ask for a well done hamburger in a restaurant.
• Storing peanut butter in the fridge, will keep the fat from becoming rancid.
• Leftovers that have remained in the fridge more than 36 hours should be recooked.
• If you  have any doubt, don't eat it.

Cross-reaction allergy

Cross-reaction allergy is define as, the same antibody, reacting to a non-identical antigen, but of close appearances.

So here is a list of the most common, cross-allergy reported:

• Peanuts: soy bean, green bean, peas
• Pollen: hazelnut, green apple, peach, almonds
• Cow's milk: Goat milk
• Wheat: Rye
• Birch: Apple , carrot, cherries, pear, peach , plum, fennel, walnut, potato wheat
• Grass: Melon, tomato,watermelon, orange, wheat
• Pine: Pine nut
• Latex: Banana, avocado, kiwis, plums, peach, cherries, apricot, nectarine, figs, papaya
• Shrimp allergy: Lobster, crab
• Cantaloupe: Watermelon, guava, avocado, pumpkin, cucumber, squash
• Salmon: Swordfish, sole
• Peach : Apple, plums, cherries, pear
• Ragweed: Banana, melons, zucchini, cucumber, chamomile, honey, ecchinacea
• Gluten: Dairy, nightshade, peanuts, soy

For pollen allergy, you will get oral allergy symptom, when you eat the food. Cooking the fruit or vegetable, will usually, breakdown the allergic protein, and you will not get any reaction from that food.

Golf most common injury and how to prevent it

Golf is a very popular sport around the world, and people from any ages can play this sport. But like any other sport, there is certain type of injury related to practising golf. So, here is a short summary of the most common injury that occur in golf.

BACK : Low back pain is a common complaint from golfer. There is an increase  weight load on the lombo-sacral area during the swing. The torque in the swing put a lot of pressure on the disc, the vertebra and the muscle of the area. To avoid getting low back pain, it is important to learn a good swing technique. Certain study shows that the amateur put more weight on his low back when he swing compare to the pro.

HAND : The tendon of the hands, can get inflamed from a to tight grip and cause tenosynovitis, or DeQuervain's disease. You can also get inflammation of the deep muscle of the forearm. Very rarely, we see fracture of the hamate, a bone at the base of the pinky finger.

ELBOW : Golfer  elbow also known as medial epicondylits, and Tennis elbow, lateral epicondylitis, are also two condition encounter frequently in golf. Decrease grip strenght, and more flexible club shaft will prevent those injuries.

SHOULDER : The shoulder is not injured as much as the other part, but we still encounter injuries involving the acromio-clavicular joint of the shoulder. We also find rotators cuff tear especially on older people due to the wear and tear of the tendon.

Here is a list of easy advice to avoid those condition:

1. Arrive early, before your tee time
2. Warm up, and than stretch, Swinging first at low speed and with short iron.
3. Stretch after the game also.
4. Make sure your club and grip are well adjusted to your shape.
5. Take golf lesson and learn the good technique.
6. Get in shape.

I recommend the book  Stretching, by Bob Anderson. In that book, there is a stretching illustrated routine for every sport, golf included.¸

If you encounter tennis or golf elbow, here is the link, to an article I wrote about easy exercise to treat tennis elbow.
Tennis elbow new treatment

10 Worst US town to live for fall allergy

If you suffer from fall allergy (ragweed and mold allergy), you may think twice before moving to one of this city. Ragweed allergy run, usually from late summer to the first frost. The symptom include runny nose, itchy eyes, and rhinitis.

The 2009 list, is presented by The Asthma and Allergy Fondation of America (AAFA), and is base on pollen count, the use of allergy medecine in the area, and the number of board certified allergist per patient.

1. McAllen, Texas
2. Wichita, Kansas
3. Louiseville, Ky.
4. Oklahoma city, Ok.
5. Jackson, Miss.
6. Dayton, Ohio
7. Augusta, Ga
8. Tulsa, Ok.
9. Knoxville, Tenn.
10. Little Rock, Ark.

50 million Americans suffer from all type of allergy, wich is 1out of 5 American. The cost of allergy in the USA, is estimated to $7 billion.

Tennis elbow new treatment

If you suffer from tennis elbow, there  may be hope for you. Tennis elbow, also known as, lateral epicondylitis, is an inflammation of the tendon of the elbow (epicondyle), due to an overuse injury.

According to a study that was held at the Lennox Hill hospital in New York and presented at the American orthopedic sport medicine meeting in Colorado, patient who use a rubber bar to do simple exercise, had a significantly improvement of there symptom, as well as there strenght.

Timothy Talyer and his team, discover that  76% compare to 12 % of the patient , doing eccentric exercise of the wrist extensors (exercise that lengthened the muscle), showed  improvement. The result for the strenght are one the same range.

The patient did there exercise using, a simple rubber bar called, Flex Bar, from Thera-band.

The usual treatment, for tennis elbow, is exercise, chiropractic, physiotherapy, and cortisone. The treatment is usually long, and costly.

The Flex bar, offer a good alternative treatment  at very low cost.

http://info.thera-bandacademy.com/flexbarelbow

Eat, pray, love and meditation

Today, is the theater release of the movie, Eat, pray and love. This movie is base on the bestseller hit book of the same name, written by Elizabeth Gilbert.  She write her own memoir, about  a woman  journey, of search and self-discovery. It's the story of a woman who decide to leave everything and go travel for a year,  to take care of her own happiness. She went to Italy to find her sense of taste, in India, to learn meditation and to find the sacred in herself, and she went to Bali to find beauty and love. Through her path, you will find yourself thinking about your own life.

This bring me to today topic, meditation. You may wonder why I talk about meditation in a health blog? Well, meditation, has remarkable effect on the body and mind and it  is a great technique to decrease stress, and to improve your health. The medical profession are starting to do research on the subject. In one study, they find out that student that meditate had better grade, than the control group. The also study Buddhist monk, and find out that during meditation they could increase the activity of certain brain wave. In an another study by the Emerit university, they discover that, people who practice the compassion meditation, react better to stress link depression. So, what is meditation?

Meditation is putting our attention on the present moment. Being still and in silence inside, but in full conciousness and full awarness. Not being in the past or worrying about the futur. Meditation,  increse your health, your joy, your peace and your creativity. The question I am often ask is: How do you meditate?
First of all, you can meditate everywhere, just find a quiet space, sitting or lying down, and close your eye. Start breathing and put your attention on your breathing, and just be. If tought comme, just let it go. This will need practice. Start by 10-15 min. You may get bored, emotion may arise, that is ok, just notice it and let it go. Everything that happen during meditation is ok. I read a study lately, that showed effect on the concentration, after just 5-10 min of meditation. So time is no excuse, better litlle than nothing. You can put light music , focus your attention on a candle or any other object. You can also buy cd of guided meditation, or find some on You tube. You could join meditation group in your area. You can also meditate will walking by yourself, just contemplating the nature around you and being fully aware. Internet  have many article on the subject. But it is simple just be, and you will see, it does feel good being in the present moment.

One book that I usually recommend, when somebody start meditating is Wherever you go, there you are, from Jon Kabat-Zinn. This is a small book, easy to understand and full of exercise.

Just try meditation and like any sport you will get better with practice, and will gain many benefit in your life, on the long term.

Laughing to health

First of all, I would like to welcome everyone to this new blog. My blog will cover fun medical fact, as well as trick, and exercise that you can use in your everyday life. I want this blog to be educational, and practical . But I also want you to share your health concern, and be able to answer it. I will cover topic as broad as nutrition, medecine, chiropractic, accupunture, natural remedy, diet, exercise, massotherapy, stress, meditation...

Since it's my first post,  I will start on the light side of thing. Let's talk about laughing. There as been many study over the year, talking about the benefit of laughter. Among the benefit that was noted, we have, prevention of heart disease, decrease stress, and the hormons related with stress, boost immunity, relax muscle, decrease pain, and even weight loss . According to a study, presented by American scientific at the 14th European congress on obesity, laughing  15 minutes a day, increase the heart rate by 15-20%, that translate to an average of, 10-40 calorie loss a day, and 4 pounds after a year!!! Let's not forget also all the effect on the mood, for ourself, but also on our relationship, with our family, friend and co-worker.

So the exercice for today is: LAUGH, LAUGH, LAUGH,  at least 15 minutes, and this should make you feel better, and if not, well keep laughing, and at least, you will be 4 pound thinner in 365 days!!