‘Health Tips’ Category

DIY Wart Removal

Sunday, January 27th, 2008

Warts are a very common problem. They can also be really expensive if you go to the doctor to have them removed. However, if you ignore them, they can enlarge or spread.

There are a number of over-the-counter wart removal systems and medications. The gels, patches, sticks, and liquids work, but they take forever. Who wants to fool with this every day for 2-6 weeks?

Several wart freezing systems have hit the market in the last couple years. These work, but they're very expensive ($15 to $25 for about 12 treatments). On a per-wart basis, it's still cheaper than going to the doctor, since each wart usually requires only 1-2 treatments.

What if I told you that you could slash the cost of treatment to just pennies? Would you be interested?

After doing a little research, I discovered that the freezing systems are simply aerosol propellant. That's some pretty expensive propellant!

You can get very similar results using a $3 can of compressed air, using these steps:

  1. Buy a can of compressed air from an office or computer store. This is sold for blowing dust and debris from computers and electronics.
  2. Turn the can upside down, hold a cotton swab in front of the opening, and press the trigger.
  3. Hold trigger down until the swab is soaked with propellant.
  4. Quickly touch the swab to the wart, and hold for 20-30 seconds.
  5. Wart should get smaller or disappear within about two weeks.
  6. Retreat after two weeks if necessary.

That's it, other than a few cautions and warnings:

  • NEVER spray can near a flame, lit cigarette, or your face.
  • NEVER use near eyes or on eyelids.
  • NEVER, NEVER, NEVER inhale fumes from any aerosol product, including compressed air.
  • Do not overtreat; more is NOT better. Holding swap on skin too long can cause a bad case of freezer burn and permanent scarring.
  • Read instructions and warnings on compressed air can

This procedure is not recommended for moles or keratoses, due to the fact that they can be cancerous or pre-cancerous. See your dermatologist for these.

Here's another DIY wart treatment: Duct tape. Cover the wart with duct tape for six days, then soak the foot in water and rub the wart with an emery board or pumice stone. Repeat the process for a couple of months until the wart goes away. Some believe this irritates the wart and surrounding skin, prompting the body's immune system to attack.

Dealing with Nail Fungus

Sunday, January 27th, 2008

Nail fungus is characterized by yellow, cracking, thick. brittle nails, and is most commonly found on the toes; however it can also occur on the feet.

Although there are relatively new oral medications (Lamasil and Sporonox) for this, the cure could be worse than the ailment. Both toxic to the liver, so frequent liver tests must be given. There are a laundry list of other side effects as well.

Drug stores sell about 57 varieties of OTC nail fungus remedies. But read the fine print on these packages. Without exception there is fine print which says "not effective on nail fungus". Incredible. I find it rather bizarre that the FDA allows this.

Some people get so desperate and frustrated that they actually have the offending nail removed by a podiatrist. Not only is this costly and unsightly, but OUCH!

My father told me about a home remedy and it really works, so here it is:

  1. Put some hydrogen peroxide (3 parts) and rubbing alcohol (1 part) in a small spray bottle. Mix well.
  2. After bathing, spray the affected area liberally with the solution.
  3. About twice a week, use a file or emery board on the nail to remove dead cells and increase absorption. Be careful of surrounding skin.
  4. Do this religiously and you should see improvement in a few weeks. Nails grow slowly so the whole process could take 6 months. Be patient.
  5. Change socks daily, keep feet dry, and spray shoes with an antifungal spray.

Optionally, you can alternate the peroxide treatment by swabbing the area with 100% tea tree oil, which has antifungal properties.

Be sure to consult an MD or podiatrist if condition worsens or fails to show improvement within 2 months.

Night Sweats

Sunday, January 27th, 2008

Night sweats can be caused by so many things; from a serious medical condition to something extremely trivial. Before you hit the panic button, consider checking out some of the trivial causes, and low tech solutions.

  1. Medication. Have you changed medication or dosage recently? Do you take medications that interact with each other. If so, RxList is an excellent reference site for medication issues, as well as your doctor or pharmacist. Niacin, Viagra, alcohol, and psychoactive drugs are all notorious for causing night sweats.
  2. Pillows. Do you have some kind of heat-retaining pillow, pillow protector, or pillow case? For example, some "allergy proof" pillow protectors are lined with plastic. This turned out to be my problem. Even if you are using all cotton bedding, you can now buy CoolMax pillows and accessories to prevent heat buildup.
  3. Room conditions. This almost goes without saying, but consider knocking the A/C down a degree or two at night. Does your bedroom get as much air as the rest of the house? Maybe a ceiling fan over the bed would help.
  4. Electric blanket or mattress pad. Boy there's nothing like climbing into a nice warm bed on a cold night. But perhaps being under that hot blanket all night is too much of a good thing. Consider turning the heat down on retiring, or putting the whole thing on a timer (e.g., to turn off after a couple hours).
  5. Physical issue or disease. Clearly this is something best left to your doctor. Causes can be anything from apnea to menopause to tuberculosis. Medicinenet.com has an excellent article on this topic, written in plain English.

Men’s Vitamins: Not the Fountain of Youth, But They Help

Sunday, January 27th, 2008

Author: Dr. Robert BuckleyCan "Mens Vitamins" help a man regain his youthful vim and vigor, this is a question that doctors are being asked thousands of times each day. The simple answer is yes. Understand that there are many reasons men are feeling run down. Thus there are many different mens vitamins to choose from. The mens vitamins product you use should be specific for your symptom. If you research mens vitamins you should be able to match how you are feeling with a product with a product to make you feel better.

Mens Vitamins And Hypogonadism.

First off, what is hypogonadism? Well some call it male menopause, the most accepted medical name seems to be Androgen Deficiency in Aging Males ( ADAM ). The array of symptoms include loss of muscle mass, fatigue, depression, erectile dysfunction, decrease in libido, an overall decrease in energy levels and even hot flashes and or night sweats. There is ample documentation available to support mens vitamins as a viable option in the treatment of ADAM. But taking a mens vitamin is not a panacea, it is just one option in what should be a multi pronged approach which should include

• exercise

• mens vitamins

• stress reduction

• nutrition/diet

• herbs and supplements

Mens Vitamins And feeling Yourself Again.

There are many products available that can help you feel yourself again. Most of these mens vitamins should include several of the following ingredients as these are the accepted supplements to quell ADAM. Think of this as a Top Ten list if you will.

1. DHEA

2. Maca

3. Horny Goat Weed

4. Yohimbe

5. Ginseng

6. Ashwagandha

7. Damiana

8. Chaste tree

9. L-arginine

10. Fish oil or Omega-3 supplements

This should only be used as a guide when choosing a mens vitamin product, talking with your doctor is always the best way to go. There is a whole specialty field developing in Medicine called anti-aging that specifically addresses these issues. If you feel you are suffering from any of these symptoms seek advice from a qualified medical professional, start exercising, and don’t forget to take a quality mens vitamin.

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About the Author:
Dr Robert Buckley shares his knowledge men's vitamins, with all the latest vitamin info

Recover Twice As Fast From Common Colds With Herbal Health Supplements

Sunday, January 27th, 2008

Author: Evelyn Lim

You are more likely to get a common cold when you are dehydrated, do not have sufficient sleep or have inadvertently caught a chill. Your immune system gets down and you experience symptoms that will keep you in bed. These include body aches, fevers, headaches coughing, a runny nose, and a general feeling of not well. To fight the common cold virus, you can pop some over the counter cold medications and wait for your system to recover. However, if you want to be out of bed twice as fast, then you may wish to consider consuming herbal health supplements.

Herbalists say that there are many herbal health remedies that can help increase your immune system; thereby speeding up your recovery. They can be taken in the form of supplements in the required dosages to help you fight your cold. Here are some examples:

1. Echinacea Herbal Health Supplements. Echinacea have been used over the centuries. They are used to cure the common cold and also other upper respiratory problems. Echinacea works by boosting the production of immune cells that help fight disease. For common colds, it is recommended that echinacea be taken in the form of a tincture or as a capsule or tablet. This is not an herb that you should take constantly though. Instead, take it at the first signs of illness. Continue this for 1 or 2 weeks afterwards before you stop taking it for a while. Not following this set of guidelines can be counteractive as this may cause your immune system to become depressed instead. When you do take this you should take approximately 175 to 225 milligrams of Echinacea 2 or 3 times a day.

2. Goldenseal Herbal Health Supplements. Goldenseal is believed to strengthen the immune system, and can be used together with Echinacea whenever you first suspect that you may be coming down with a cold. Herbalists recommend taking 175 to 350 milligrams of goldenseal 3 or 4 times a day for 10 days after the first sign of a cold. Besides boosting the immune system, this is one of the herbal remedies that can also help to combat localized viruses.

3. Garlic Herbal Health Supplements. Traditional herbalists believe that garlic is one of the most potent cold-fighters. They recommend that you eat a clove of fresh garlic at the first indications of a cold and to boost up your garlic intake when a cold is already underway. If you cannot stand the pungent smell from garlic, then there are garlic capsules that are easily available in your local health store. These should contain between 300 to 500 milligrams of garlic and be taken daily for the first week of your cold. Consuming garlic can help keep the worst symptoms of the common cold at bay.

While the above are recommended dosages in general, you would need to check with your own herbalist or your doctor before you consume the said supplements. This is because you need to know if the herbs in these supplements will interact negatively with whatever medications that you are currently on. If they do, there are always other safe herbal health supplements to turn to with which can help you recover twice as fast!

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About the Author:
Evelyn Lim is the writer and publisher of a free newsletter on herbal home remedies . In her newsletter, she shares amazing tips on using non-drug remedies to cure and treat common health ailments. For more information, please visit http://www.herbalremedytips.com .