health tips

What are the Common causes of Hypokalemia? By: Arlene Gentallan What are the Common causes of Hypokalemia? What is hypokalemia?         Hypokalemia refers to lower than normal levels of potassium in the body. Potassium is an important electrolyte needed to transmit electrical signal need for muscle contraction.         Normal potassium level is between 3.5 to 5.0 meq/L. When potassium level drops below normal, it is called hypokalemia. Hypokalemia is not a disease, rather, it is a sign of an underlying disease. Hypokalemia (low potassium level) can result to symptoms such as: Muscle cramps Muscle twitching Muscle tingling Muscle weakness Abdominal cramps Constipation Confusion Irregular heart beat          If potassium level drops to a critical level, it can cause abnormal heart rhythm and compromise the pumping of the heart leading to heart cardiac arrest. What are the causes of hypokalemia?         The most commons cause of potassium deficiency is excessive potassium loss in the urin

Aspirin Cuts risk of Cancer Death By: Arlene Gentallan Aspirin Cuts risk of Cancer Death         Cancer is a dreadful diagnosis which commonly struck it's sufferer with fear. There is a growing population of cancer victims.         Research is continuously seeking new grounds for the fight against cancer.         Aspirin, an over the counter pain medication and anticoagulant has a surprising health benefit. Regular use of aspirin lowers risk of dying from cancer according to a study led by Yin Cao (an instructor in the Medicine, Clinical and Translation Epidemiology Unit at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School) which was presented at the annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research held in Washington.        Here are the benefits of long term regular intake of aspirin: Cuts overall risk of dying from cancer by 7% in women and 11% in men. Cuts risk of dying from colorectal cancer by 31% in women and 3o% in men. Cuts risk of dying from breast ca

10 Facts about Zika Virus By: Arlene Gentallan 10 Facts about Zika Virus         Zika virus is causing an outrage because of serious effect it inflicts to unborn children. Here are the facts you should know about this tropical disease: 1. Did you know that zika virus was first seen in monkeys in Zika Forest in Uganda way back 1947. 2. Zika virus is a flaviviruses transmitted by bite of Aedes mosquito. These mosquitoes are most active during the day. 3. If a pregnant woman gets infected with zika virus, it can lead to devastating outcome to the unborn child. Zika virus shrinks the brain and head of an unborn child (microcephaly) resulting to lifelong mental deficiency. 4. Zika produces mild flu like symptoms like fever, headache body pain, joint pain, rashes, and conjunctivitis which typically last for about a week. 5. Most people who are infected with zika virus do not have symptom of the disease. If symptoms does appear, it is usually mild and can be mistaken for flu or den

14 Facts about Rabies You should Know By: Arlene Gentallan 14 Facts about Rabies You should Know Rabies is a disease caused by rabies virus which affects the central nervous sytem. Here are the facts you should know: 1. Rabies is fatal. Once symptoms of rabies appears, it's usually too late to treat it. The victim usually dies. 2. The nearer the bite site to the brain, the earlier the symptoms of rabies appears. 3. Early symptoms of rabies includes a tingling sensation at the area of the animal bite, fever, headache, bodyache, malaise, nausea, loss of appetite. As the disease progress, symptoms worsens: muscle spasm, difficulty speaking, irritability, confusion, hallucination, aggressiveness, double vision, difficulty breathing, hydrophobia (fear of water), hypersalivation, paralysis, coma. 4. Humans are infected with rabies through saliva of an infected animal transmitted through bite, scratch or lick to an open wound or mucous membrane. 5. Worldwide, the most common animal that i

Grab this Superior Rehydration Drink By: Arlene Gentallan Grab this Superior Rehydration Drink         Sports drink comes handy during a sweaty exercise. But did you know that skim milk is better in rehydrating?         It's important to keep yourself well hydrated during an exercise. Did you know that even a 1% dehydration is enough to cause a 15% decrease in physical performance? If you're competing, that's a major drawback.         Researcher Brian Timmons et al. looked at how efficient milk rehydrates kids compared to sports drink and water after an exercise in a climate chamber at the Children's Exercise and Nutrition centre of McMaster University and McMaster Children's Hospital.         Study participants involved 14 kids who were to be hydrated with skim milk, sports drink, or water after a 40 minute exercise via a stationary bike. Those who drink skim milk retained about 75% fluids compared to the 60% retained with sports drink, and 5o% retained with water.

How long is tetanus toxoid vaccine effective? By: Arlene Gentallan How long is tetanus toxoid vaccine effective?         Tetanus toxoid contains inactivated tetanus toxin. It is administered to an individual to trigger the production of antibody against tetanus.         Tetanus toxoid vaccine is a booster given every 10 years for individuals ages 7 years old and up.         However, if 5 years has passed since you've received your last tetanus toxoid vaccine and you sustained a physical injury (like a deep cut) which puts you at risk of tetanus, it is recommended that you get both tetanux toxoid vaccine and tetanus toxoid immune globulin shot.         As opposed to tetanus toxoid which triggers your body to produce antibody, tetanus immune globulin already contains antibodies which provides you with short-term but immediate protection against the disease. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Vaccines for Tetanus For children less th

How to make swish and swallow solution How to make swish and swallow solution To make swish and swallow solution, prepare the following medicine: 12ml of hydrocortisone 100mg/2ml 7.5ml of nystatin suspension 12ml of tetracycline 125mg/5ml 150ml diphenhydramine 12.5/5ml Note: If tetracycline is not available, you can substitute it with doxycycline 100mg capsule. Instruction to make swish and swallow solution: Mix all the above mentioned medicine. Dosage and Frequency: Use 10ml of swish and swallow solution four times a day.