ARTHRITIS

Arthritis is a common disease but not well understood. It is a joint disease featuring inflammation on one or more joints, it is related to people of all ages, sexes and races but occurs more as people grow older. There are over 100 types of arthritis and the primary symptoms are pain, swelling in and around the joints, warmth, redness of the overlying skin, stiffness, deformity and diminished range of joint motion. 

Arthritis have the tendency to affect the joints, muscles, ligaments, cartilage, and tendons and also have the potential to affect some internal organs and can be life threatening, it can cause irreversible damage to the joints if left untreated, arthritis affects the body's movables such as, joints at the knees, wrist, elbows, fingers, toes, hips and shoulders.        

• When a single joint is involved it is called mono-arthritis 
• When 2 or 3 joints are involved it is called oligo-arthritis 
• When 4 or more joints are involved it is called poly-arthritis

Symptoms

1. Pain
2. Gland swelling
3. Fatigue
4. Weight loss
5. Fever
6. Limited function of joints
7. Chronic inflammation of joints
8. Feeling unwell
9. Symptoms from abnormalities of organs like; lungs, heart, eyes and kidneys

Causes

This depend on the form of arthritis 

1. Osteoarthritis - injury
2. Gout - metabolic abnormalities
3. Infection - bacteria and viral diseases
4. Misdirected immune system - autoimmunity disorder

Arthritis can lead to permanent damage and loss of joints function making movement difficult or impossible, therby result in decreased quality of life, tenderness of the inflamed joints can be with pain or without pain. Arthritis affecting hands and arms can make it difficult to perform daily tasks.

Arthritis of weight bearing joints can keep you from walking comfortably or sitting up right, in some cases joints may become twisted and deformed. 

Risk factor

1. Excess weight
2. Family history
3. Injury
4. Age

It can be prevented by staying active, maintaining a healthy weight and avoiding injury.

• When large joints such as the knee joint is affected, there can be loss of cartilage with limitation of motion from the damaged joints 
• When small joints such as the fingers are affected, there can be bone growth and loss of hand grip and strength of the hand. 

The two most common types of arthritis are osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis, they damaged joints in different ways. 

Osteoarthritis

The most common form of arthritis is osteoarthritis. It happens when the cushioning surface of the end of bones wear away causing bone to rub against bone, leading to pain swelling and stiffness. this is a common degenerative joint disease that affects the cartilage, joints lining, ligament and and underlying bone of a joint, it is caused by a reduction in the normal amount of cartilage tissues through wear and tear throughout life. The breakdown of these tissues eventually lead to pain and joint stiffness, the joints mostly affected by osteoarthritis are those that are heavily use such as hips, knees, hands, spine, thumb and big two joint. 

Rheumatoid arthritis

This occurs when the body's inner system attacks the tissues of the body, mainly connective tissues, leading to joint inflammation, pain and degeneration of the joint tissues, it affects joints systematically on both sides equally, it may initially begin in a couple of joints only and most frequently attack the wrists, hands, elbows, shoulders, knees and ankles.

Do not overlook these rheumatoid arthritis symptoms

1. Tingling and numbness
2. Breathing issues
3. Abnormal spot on finger tips
4. Infection
5. Bruising
6. Bone fracture
7. Dry eyes

Rheumatoid arthritis can go beyond swollen joints. Because many of the arthritis are rheumatic diseases, it can affect various organs of the body that do not directly involve the joints. 

Treatment

The treatment depends on which particular form of arthritis is present, its location, severity, persistence and any underlying background and medical condition of the individual, each treatment program must be customized for individual patient, some treatment programs involves weight reduction and avoiding activities that exert stress on the joints.

1. Dietary change is important
2. Water - helps lubricate the joints
3. Calcium rich food - for bone regeneration
4. Fish - rich in anti inflammatory properties
5. Garlic and Ginger - powerful antioxidant with anti inflammatory effects
6. Cayenne pepper - contains a compound called capsaicin that relieve pain
7. Turmeric - reduce pain and inflammation
8. Massage and light exercise - improve bone function
9. Acupuncture - best treatment for arthritis 

The goal of treatment is to:

1. Reduce pain and inflammation
2. Prevent further damage
3. Strengthen the bones 
4. Repair damage joint tissues
5. Eradicate the symptoms

Caution

1. Check for possible food allergies, it triggers inflammation
2. Do not use iron supplement in your cause of treatment, it is suspected to be involved in pain and swelling
3. Reduce fat and oil intake and avoid fries
4. Avoid caffeine, alcohol, citrus fruits, meat, salt, monosodium glutamate and all sugary products.
5. Avoid cold food and water

Healthy joints! Healthy body
Keep your joints healthy and enjoy pain free life

TOOTHACHE AND DECAY

Toothache is a pain that occurs in and around a tooth because of irritation or inflammation of the central portion of the tooth called pulp which contains nerve endings that are sensitive to pain. If you have suffered toothache before you will understand the intensity of the pain involved, it can range from mild to very severe pain, it can appear suddenly or slowly developed overtime. Toothache can affect both children and adults and can range from mild to unbearable pain

Some reasons for toothache includes:

1. Dental infection
2. Injury
3. Cracked teeth
4. Loss of tooth
5. Jaw joints problem
6. Tooth extraction
7. A damaged filling
8. Tooth decay etc. 

Symptoms of toothache
Pain in the tooth and mouth is the primary symptom of a toothache, but this pain can present itself in diverse ways:

1. Sharp sudden pain
2. Deep throbbing pain
3. Pain that is localized around a particular tooth
4. Toothache that occurred when pressure is applied
5. Pain that radiate to the jaw or ears
6. Pain that radiate to shoulder, head or neck
7. Swelling, painful gum
8. Fever
9. Increased sensitivity to heat or cold
10. Pain that worsen when chewing
11. Pain that interferes with your sleep
12. Bleeding gums and redness around the gums

Tooth decay is the damage that occurs to the teeth when the bacteria in the mouth turns the sugar and carbohydrate food in the mouth into acids which in turn form a plaque on the surface of the teeth and gum, as the bacteria feeds they make acids, the acid attack the teeth making layers of a sticky substance called plaque, the more layers the more the damage, and as this happens over time the acid destroy tooth enamel causing tooth decay, this may lead to a hole in the tooth if not treated. Tooth decay can cause pain, infection and tooth loss. Tooth decay is the most common cause of toothache, children whose teeth are still growing can have tooth decay, this is because the minerals in the teeth are not very strong and are easier for acids to eat away, even babaies can be at risk for tooth decay they are not born with decay causing bacteria in their mouth, but they can get the bacteria from adults who share spoons with them.

Possible causes of tooth decay

1. Poor dental hygiene
2. Improperly nutrition
3. Sugary foods and drinks
4. carbohydrate foods
5. Acidic foods and drinks
6. Tooth grinding
7. Dry mouth
8. Diabetes
9. Smoking

A tooth has 3 layers

1. The hard outer layer called enamel
2. The middle layer called dentrin
3. The center of the tooth called pulp

You have a responsibility to keep your teeth and gum healthy and strong. 

Your mouth is the mirror of your body and the health of your teeth and mouth are linked to your overall health and wellbeing; a healthy mouth indicates a healthy lifestyle. 

Poor dental health will adversely affect speech and self esteem but a sparkling white teeth will give a confident smile. 

Take a good step now to prevent cavity, avoid toothache and gum disease. 

Your teeth is not a tool
Don't treat your teeth like tools, using it as tools can lead to premature wear and tear, causing permanent damage. The teeth is designed for biting an chewing foods, using them otherwise can cause them to chip, sometimes causing toothache.

Treatment
Treatment for toothache depends on the cause possible, neglecting or delaying appropriate treatment with effective remedies can exacerbate the condition and make treatment lots more expensive.
1. An excellent way to reduce swelling and pain caused by toothache is to rinse your mouth with a mixture of warm salt water, this help decrease any inflammation of the gum.
2. Clove: rich in eugenol, and used in dental products, thanks to it's antimicrobial properties, and potency as a natural pain killer, soak cotton ball in a few drops of clove oil and place on the affected teeth.
3. Garlic: one of the most popular and widely used of all remedies in the treatment of dental disease and oral care. Peel a clove of garlic make into a smooth paste and use the cotton ball to pack and put on affected teeth, leave it there overnight.
4. Hydrogen peroxide: the rinse with hydrogen peroxide help to relief pain, inflammation and heal bleeding gum, dilute before use

Acupuncture points
You can massage these points 30 minutes daily for effective relief and wellbeing, if you do this well enough you may not need other treatments

Treating plague

1. Brush with bicarbonate of soda with a mixture of apple cider vinegar once a week
2. Gargle with coconut oil before brushing
3. Use fluoride, it is nature cavity fighter
4. Eat food that protect your teeth e.g salmon

Teeth friendly food

1. Onion
2. Citrus fruits
3. Nuts and seeds
4. Green tea
5. Fatty fish e.g salmon
6. Chesse

Healthy tips

1. Brush your teeth twice daily
2. Avoid over brushing
3. Floss your teeth always
4. Snacks regularly on onion
5. Avoid tobacco 
6. Avoid high sugar and starchy foods

Show your teeth some love
Healthy teeth! Healthy you
Sparkling teeth! Confident you

MEMORY PROBLEM

Memory problem is a frequent occurrence that can sometimes lead to severe memory loss if not treated, it is a normal part of ageing but it is also a known truth that young and healthy people also experience memory problems. Sometimes it takes us more longer to learn new things, misplace things that we could not remember where it is kept, or we forget valuable informations, the most annoying is while you were still talking you lost track of your next sentence. These may be symptoms of Alzheimer's or another dementia, but it may not be an issue to worry about if it's occurrence is not too frequent.

There are many causes of memory problem and each should be treated according to it's cause

Types of memory problem

1. Dementia - slow decline in memory, problem solving ability and learning ability which can occur several times in a week
2. Alzheimer disease - a brain disease that causes slow decline in memory, thinking and reasoning skills
3. Delirium - this is a sudden change in how well a person's brain is working, it can cause confusion, change in the sleep-wake circle and cause unusual behavior
4. Amnesia - this is memory loss that may be caused by head injury, substance abuse, stroke or a severe emotional event such as motor accident.

Some reasons for memory problem

1. Alzheimer disease
2. Insomnia
3. Ageing
4. Emotional problems
5. Stress
6. Technology overload
7. Alcohol abuse
8. Drug abuse
9. Blood vessel disease
10. Damage to the brain
11. Hormonal changes as in pregnancy and menopausal problems
12. Medical conditions e g mental health, thyroid problem, diabetes etc

The most common of brain problem is alzheimer disease it is a brain disease that causes a slow decline in memory thinking and reasoning skills, simply means progressive loss of brain cells and other irregularities of the brain. It can be bad because it can lead to making mistakes at work, school and home

Some warning signs and symptoms 

1. Memory problem that disrupt daily life
2. Confusion with time or place
3. Confusion with colours and patterns
4. Trouble understanding visuals 
5. Difficulty completing simple task at home or workplace
6. Misplacing things and loosing the ability to remember
7. Challenges in solving problems

Ageing gracefully

Alzheimer disease is the most common cause of dementia in people older than age 65. They have trouble understanding somethings, sometimes they may forget where they are, or how they got there, get confused about the day of the week but figure it out later, most times they have trouble following a conversation, also make bad decisions once a while.

All of these can be prevented if one start early enough to take care of the brain by boosting it with the right foods and supplements.

Tips to improve memory

1. Read, read and read
2. Keep a notebook to write things down
3. Listen to audio repeatedly
4. Hold on to important visuals to remember
5. Say it loud
6. Do regular selftest by reciting sentences
7. Eat healthy

Some brain boosting nutrients and herbs

1. Ginkgo biloba -  it is a potent brain antioxidant it also improves circulation to the brain
2. Zinc - promotes intelligence development, improve memory and absent minded
3. Omega 3 fatty acids - this is a major components of neuron membranes and can help protect memory
4. Flower essence - it's a mild sedative herb, helps you sleep better, making brain to function better 

Treating memory problems

Treatment for memory loss depends on the cause. In many cases, it may be reversible with treatment, in others memory may improve over time.
For example, memory loss from medications may resolve with a change in medication. 
Nutritional supplements can be useful against memory loss caused by a nutritional deficiency. 
Treating depression may be helpful for memory when depression is a factor. 
In some cases such as following a stroke therapy may help people remember how to do certain tasks such as walking or tying shoes. 
Treatments may also be specific to conditions related to memory loss. For example treating high blood pressure can help reduce risk of more brain damage from memory problem related to high blood pressure

The best way to fight memory problem is to eat right, and exercise the body and brain regularly

ASTHMA

Asthma is a condition in which a person's airways become inflamed, narrow, swell and produce extra mucus, which makes it difficult to breath, when the symptom is triggered it becomes more swollen and the muscles around the airways tightens. It is a long term inflammatory disease of the airways of the lungs, if asthma is left unmanaged it can be deadly, but a person can always live a productive life with asthma. Asthma is caused by two factors these are: genetic and environmental factors and the risk factors are air pollution and allergens. It is always advisable to identify and avoid allergens that may trigger the cause of attack on individual.

There are two types is asthma

1. Allergic: caused by exposure to an allergen
2. Non allergic: caused by stress, exercise, illnesses like cold and flu, exposure to extreme weather, irritants in the air, some medications and over eating.

Symptoms

1.  Wheezing
2. Chest tightness
3. Shortness of breathe
4. Difficulty breathing
5. Coughing: especially at night, when crying, during exercise and when laughing

Causes

1. Allergens
2. Smoke and tobacco
3. Stress 
4. Tension
5. Depression
6. Lung infection
7. Certain foods
8. Heartburn
9. Exercise
10. Genetic factor

Triggers

1. Pollen from grass, trees and weeds
2. Dust, pets, mold and mites
3. Certain drugs and food addictives
4. Irritants such as smoke, perfumes, strong odour, chemical fumes
5. Exercise
6. Stress
7. Weather conditions: cold, extreme dry, wet or windy weather

Asthma attack can be mild (acute), these may last for few minutes and be resolved spontaneously. It may also be severe (chronic), these may last from hours to days

Pediatric asthma

This is the most common serious chronic disease in infants and children, it may appear as wheezing when breathing in some children. Unmanaged asthma can cause dangerous asthma attack interfering with the child's play, school, sport and sleep.

Common children asthma symptoms

1. Frequent coughing
2. Wheezing sound
3. Shortness of breath
4. Chest congestion or tightness
5. Chest pain
6. Trouble sleeping
7. Trouble breathing

Causes

1. Increased immune system sensitivity
2. Viral infections e.g cough and flu
3. Exposure to air pollutants
4. Allergic to dust and pets fur and molds
5. Weather changes

Occupational asthma
People with this condition usually work around chemical fumes, dust or other irritants in the air and if already diagnosed with asthma from another cause it can be worsened by chemical fumes and other irritants at work.
Note: If chemicals and other irritants at your workplace makes it difficult for you to breath, it is possible you are asthmatic.

Workers at risk

1. Detergent users and manufacturer
2. Painters and Paints manufacturer
3. Drugs manufacturer
4. Famers
5. Plastic workers
6. Metal workers
7. Wood workers 
8. Millers etc.

Exercise induced asthma

Symptoms developed when airways narrow as a result of physical exertion, it is as a result of loss of heat, water or both from the lungs during exercise because of quickly breathing in air that is drier than what is already in the body

Symptoms

1. Tightness in the chest
2. Decreased endurance
3. Shortness of breath
4. Cough
5. Stomach upset
6. Sore throat

If by any chance you start wheezing or coughing during exercise or if physical exertion makes it difficult to breath, it is likely you are asthmatic.

Asthma friendly foods

Healthy diet gives asthma patient antioxidants and nutrients to fight environmental toxins, control inflammation and reduce dietary triggers. Foods rich in Magnesium, Vitamins E, C, and B5, Folate, red-carotenoids and omega 3 (fish) are good for asthmatic patients.

1. Avocado
2. Broccoli
3. Spinach
4. Sunflower seed
5. Ginger
6. Turmeric 
7. Garlic
8. Chia seed
9. Flax seed
10. Tomatoes

Foods bad for asthma

In other to avoid attacks, asthma patients should stay away from foods and other things that is known to/may trigger the attack:

1. All fries
2. White bread
3. Cookies 
4. Chips
5. Burger
6. Spicy foods
7. Milk
8. Pizza

Treatment
Most asthmatics rely on medication and inhalers to manage the symptoms, but turning to conventional medicine alone for cure may not give desired result, in that the cause of the problem still remains while symptoms may have dissapeared. At this junction I will introduce some acupuncture points and herbs to stop inflammation, regulates breathing and possibly prevent further occurrence

Acupuncture points

Applying pressure to this points regularly brings healing and clear up blockages on the channels to enhance overall wellbeing

Herbs for asthma
Turmeric: Fights inflammation
Garlic: An antioxidants, cleanses the chest also serves as antibiotics, antispasmodic, antifungal etc.
Ginger: Also an antioxidant, help fight free radicals

Deep breathing
Take deep breath to control your heart rate and lossen up tension in the chest, inhale with the nose and exhale with the mouth

Coffee
A cup of coffee will improve the airways function, just one cup to avoid hyperventilation

Get away from triggers
Try to get away as soon as possible from what triggers you, and ask for help if need be

Caution

1. Avoid secondhand smoke e.g wood burning, kerosine stove, cigarettes and others
2. Stay away from detergents that may trigger the attack
3. Avoid insecticides, disinfectants, perfumes and other strong odours
4. Make sure to reduce dust mites at home etc. 

Discover the cause of your attack

Get away from triggers
Live healthy, stay healthy

HOW WELL DO YOU KNOW SUGAR?

Sugar is a carbohydrate that is naturally in food though we may not realize it. The most common carbohydrates are sugar and starch and these are essential and key component in foods, Sugar is healthy part of our diet, the body converts it to fuel for brain power and energy. High sugar consumption is a problem that contribute to nutrient deficiency, before sugar enters the bloodstream from the digestive tract, it is broken down into two simple sugars; glucose and fructose. Glucose is found in every living cell while fructose is a simple sugar, when combined with glucose it forms sucrose, it is stored in the liver to be metabolized and use when the body has need of it; when in large quantity it can overload the liver forcing it to turn fructose to fat, and when this is done repeatedly it will eventually turn to fatty liver which is associated with metabolic diseases and all sort of problems like:

• Cancer
• Obesity
• Diabetes
• Hypoglycemia
• Cardiovascular disease
• Tooth decay 
• Hyperactivity 

There has been a guideline caution on consuming sugar for health purpose; in snacks, drinks and foods containing sugar and starch. When you make sugary food large portion of your daily consumption, they may replace other foods which offer necessary nutrients thereby causing health problems.
There is no nutritional benefit in eating added sugar, so it is advisable to avoid foods that have a lots of added sugar, carbonated drinks are high in sugar and contribute to weight gain and development of type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and other chronic conditions.

Effects of high sugar diet
1. Diabetes
Too much sugar increases blood glucose level , makes the pancreases produce lots of insulin for long period of time thereby, causing insulin resistance and making it hard for thevbody to reduce high blood sugar levels which can increase the risk of developing type 2 diabetes which if left unmanaged can turn into type 1 diabetes where the pancreases stop producing enough insulin.

2. Fatty liver
Sugar is converted and stored in the liver as fat, it is the number 1 reason for obesity, untreated liver fat can cause serious health issue.

3. High cholesterol
The liver converts excess sugar to fat which raises the cholesterol level in the blood and this is a major risk for heart disease.

4. Tooth decay
Sugary food and drinks are one of the main causes of tooth decay, acid is produced when the bacteria in the mouth breaks down the sugar dissolving the tooth surface causing first stage of tooth decay

5. Inflammation
Risk for inflammatory digestive conditions such as irritable bowel disease (IBD) candida, hemorrhoids, kidney stone and intolerance to wheat and gluten

6. Addiction
Sugar causes large release of dopamine in the brain which causes lots of addiction in people

7. Cancer
There is considerable evidence that sugar, due to its harmful effects on metabolism can contribute to cancer

Doing a sugar free diet
This is a diet that typically limits all sources of added sugar and hidden sugar foods and sometimes also a reduction in high carbohydrates and processed foods.
Discipline is the key, avoid added sugar in all forms; deal with your cravings for sugary foods, snacks, drinks, beverages, cookies and candies

Benefits of reducing sugar intake

• Reduce fat
• Flattens your belly
• Lose weight
• More energy and focus
• Reduce calorie intake
• Enjoy the real taste of food
• Breaking sugar addiction
• Low risk of diabetes
• Reduce risk of cancer
• Decreases heart attack risk
• Lower blood pressure
• Lower bad cholesterol

Nutritional labels

Many of us are victims of high sugar intake because we do not take time to go through the labels to know what we are ingesting into our system, most times we allow our eyes, taste bud, psychological believe, peoples testimony and advertisements to do the judgement.

The following are the ways added sugar can be listed on ingredients levels:

• Sucrose
• Fructose
• Glucose
• Maltose
• Molasses
• Fruit juice
• Hydrolyzed starch
• Invert sugar
• Corn syrup
• Honey

Food that contain 22.5g or more are high in sugar while foods that contain 5g or less are low in sugar

Be wise, live sugar free, live healthy