How to Recognise Ischaemic Heart Disease?

The heart muscle (myocardium) receives its blood supply with oxygen and nutrients through two main arteries (coronary arteries) and their branches. Partial or total occlusion of a main coronary artery or a branch can lead to an impaired blood supply to a part of the myocardium. An incomplete occlusion of the blood supply usually causes myocardial ischaemia. However, a total occlusion can lead to death of the particular part of the myocardium (infarction). These processes are known as ischaemic heart disease.

Ischaemic heart disease can weaken the ability of the heart to pump blood throughout your body. It mainly occurs due to narrowing of the coronary arteries by fat (cholesterol) deposits in their walls. This process is known as atherosclerosis or atheroma formation.

Osteoporosis and Young Women

Osteoporosis can be described as a disease characterised by low bone mass or density. A deterioration of the bone structure and thinning of the bones can be seen in osteoporosis. Therefore, it leads to enhanced bone fragility and a rise in the risk of fracture. Osteoporosis is most common among older women compared to men and young women. However, some young women as well as men can also get osteoporosis. Fortunately, some osteoporosis cases can be prevented.

Initially, we should know the causes and risk factors of osteoporosis in young women. If you are a young woman with a risk of developing osteoporosis, you can prevent osteoporosis by eliminating or modifying the particular risk factor.

Impetigo: A Skin Infection

Impetigo, which is a superficial skin infection, usually occurs due to  bacteria called Staphylococcus aureus. It is the most prevalent skin infection among young children. Impetigo is a highly infectious skin condition and is also more common in children compared to adults. Sometimes, it occurs due to Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus pyogens, or a mixture of the two bacteria. Impetigo is common in individuals in hot climates. It rapidly spreads from person to person by direct skin contact or less frequently, by clothing and towels or bedding. It easily passes among family members and school mates. The name ‘scrum fox’ describes the impetigo spread among rugby players. Occasionally, impetigo appears without an apparent origin.

Exercise and Your Menstrual Cycle

The nature of a menstrual cycle differs from woman to woman. Usually, the average duration of the menstruation is about three to seven days with a mean blood loss of 35 ml. Following this phase, a woman enters her follicular phase, at which the lining of the uterus (endometrium) thickens gradually and ovarian follicles ripen to release an egg again. Symptoms during the menstruation also vary from woman to woman.

Menorrhagia is described as an abnormally heavy blood loss during the menstruation. Normally, it is greater than 80 ml during a period.

Exercise can decrease the length and intensity of menstruation. However, it depends on a few factors. The type and regularity of your exercise and underlying conditions of prolonged or heavy menstruation affect the length and intensity of your periods.

Sugar and Your Child

Children usually consume a significant amount of foods containing sugars like candies, pastries, pastas, cookies, and white breads daily. If your children regularly eat sugars, they are more prone to develop certain health issues such as obesity, tooth decay, and behavioural problems. Luckily, these complications are preventable. Some dietary habits and behavioural modifications can help avoid them.

Hirsutism: An Embarrassing Condition

The extent of normal hair growth differs between people, families, and races. It is somewhat extensive in the Mediterranean and some Asian subcontinent populations. Too much facial or body hair growth in a woman is known as hirsutism. There is no absolute margin between the normal hair growth and hirsutism.

Usually, sex hormones affect the hair growth in the moustache, beard, breast, chest, armpit, the midline of the abdomen, genital area, and the thighs. A type of soft hair (vellus hair), which is normally present all over the body, is not affected by the sex hormones. If a woman has excess hair growth over the regions, which contain the sex-hormone dependent hair, it shows increased male hormone (androgen) production in the ovaries and adrenal glands. This process commonly occurs due to polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) but occasionally other rarer conditions. Other conditions include an abnormal growth of adrenal glands (congenital adrenal hyperplasia), Cushing’s syndrome, and tumours of the ovary and the adrenal gland.

4 Facts for a Long Life

Everyone needs and expects a long healthy life. However, most modern people have some kind of health-related problems, some of which may lower the life expectancy as well as the quality of life. Certain lifestyle modifications and simple measures can improve your health significantly hence the quality of life.

Physical activities

Inactivity is one of the critical problems in the modern society. Most people are unable to participate in adequate physical activities or exercise due to their busy lives. Physical inactivity can lead to various diseases and health-related problems. It reduces the muscle mass and triggers your aging process. Reduced muscle mass lowers the metabolism in your body hence increases the risk of developing diabetes mellitus, obesity, hypertension, high blood cholesterol, stroke, and heart attack. It can also reduce the efficiency of your activities.

Herpes Simplex Skin Infection

Herpes simplex is a virus, which causes a skin infection. It spreads from person to person by direct skin, sexual, or mouth contacts. There are two types of herpes simplex viruses (HSV). They are HSV type 1 and HSV type 2.

HSV type 1 is spread by direct contact and contaminated droplets. Most people achieve HSV type 1 in early childhood. However, the infection usually occurs without symptoms. Occasionally, it leads to fever with either clusters of painful blisters on the face or an inflammation and aching blisters in the mouth, including the gums (Gingivostomatitis). The fever is usually self-limiting.

HSV type 2 infections take place generally following puberty and normally affect the genital region. These infections are usually with no symptoms and transmitted sexually. However, HSV type 1 infection occurs in the genital area due to oral sex.

Exercises for a Better Pregnancy and Childbirth

Some people believe that exercises are unsuitable during pregnancy. However, physically fit women normally have shorter labours compared to others. They also experience less physical exhaustion during childbirth and tend to have fewer medical interventions as well. Regular exercises during pregnancy improve fitness and health of the organ systems. Therefore, they decrease discomfort and help have a better sleep during pregnancy. Exercises help keep up your body weight during pregnancy and go back to the normal weight following childbirth. They also improve your mood.

If you feel shortness of breath, contractions, or lightheaded during any exercise, you should stop exercising and drink enough water.