Friday, August 31, 2012

Sports Medicine Is a Field Everyone Can Benefit From

When it comes to moving around, you can never be too careful. Since the majority of injuries happen from exercise and sports related activities, it is only fitting that when you find yourself hurt you go and see someone that specializes in sports medicine. This is a field that practically anyone can benefit from. Men, women and children of any age can be seen and treated by a specialist in this field.
Many people are not aware of how much this medical field can benefit them. It is very easy to assume that the moment you break an arm, throw out your back or fracture your knee, the only place you need to go is the hospital for a cast. However, in many cases, it is necessary to see a sports medicine professional to make sure that your injury can be monitored so that it heals properly.
Sometimes no matter how well you care for your injuries, something just doesn't heal as it should. When this happens you may start to experience some trouble using the affected joints and appendages. You may also start to experience pain and other discomforts. The same goes for if you just got a certain type of injury. If it is severe enough, it will require special treatment. There are some benefits to being treated by a sports medicine specialist.
This type of professional is more knowledgeable about all of the injuries you can end up with. They are less likely to discredit your claims of discomfort or pain, if the tests don't show anything. They understand the way your limbs and joints work and where there is a problem that affects your mobility, they can prescribe the proper treatment right away. The chances of you having to have an unnecessary surgery greatly diminish, since this professional will provide you with alternative treatments first.
When it comes to caring for your body after an injury that affects your musculoskeletal system, you should listen to your body and pay close attention to how it is healing. Even if you have already sought out emergency treatment, you still need to be aware of how your body is healing. Sometimes there may be complications that develop that can compromise the integrity of your joints. Any swelling, sudden increase in pain and loss of mobility are all indicators that something serious is going on. You are going to need a sports medicine specialist to take a look at your injury and come up with a good treatment plan to help get you back on your feet and back to your usual routine in no time. Sometimes it will take a combination of several treatment methods to get your body back in good working order. It is not unusual for a sports injury patient to have a prescription for a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory pain reliever, physical therapy sessions and monitoring by their specialist over the course of a few months.

Friday, August 24, 2012

Trouble Bending and Moving Your Legs

If you have trouble with your legs and surrounding joints, it may be time for you to see a knee doctor. Walking and lifting your legs is very important and when there is an injury that interferes with your ability to use them that is a sign that something serious is going on. You can't afford to ignore your body and when you are in constant pain, it can be challenging for you to get everything you need to get done. You shouldn't have to live in such distress. Seek out medical treatment so you can regain control of your body and start to enjoy being able to move pain free.
The average person will experience some sort of knee discomfort in their life. Many times the discomfort is a result of a bump, bruise or from overuse of the joint. When your pain is caused by something more serious such as a tear, a sprain or break, you will need to see a knee doctor for an exam and treatment. If you learn to recognize when you get medical attention, you can improve the outcome of your recovery significantly.
If you are in pain for several days and it doesn't seem to getting better, it is time for you to get help. When you suffer from a severe injury, the first sign that it is not something you should not ignore is swelling.. If you notice swelling that doesn't lessen in its severity within 48 hours, you need to be seen for immediate treatment. If you ignore this sign, the swelling can lead to even greater discomfort.
Increased pain and a loss of mobility can result if the swelling becomes too much. This will make it hard or you to use your leg and get around with ease. Keep in mind that in most cases swelling is usually very noticeable right away, but in some rare cases you may feel the swelling instead of being able to clearly see it. You may notice a popping sound when you try to move the joint as well. That sound is the sound of your tendons popping over each other as they are being forced into an unusual position because of the swelling.
Sometimes even though there isn't any obvious swelling, you may still encounter a problem using and moving your leg and joint. This may be because there is some internal swelling going on. No matter what, if you can't move your leg freely or have great pain and discomfort doing so, you need to make an appointment to see a knee doctor as soon as possible.
In order to prevent your condition from becoming worse or causing some permanent loss of function, you should follow your specialist's plan of treatment. If you are in pain ad over the counter medication doesn't give you relief, let them know, they can provide you with medication that will help stop the pain.

Friday, August 17, 2012

Preparing For Your Fitness

The most difficult part of working out is the beginning. This is especially so if you do not buy the proper gear and make other preparations. You don't even need expensive workout stuff, even quality discount running shoes will do. Find out the right preparation tips before jumping into your workout.
Many workout regimens fail because people forget health and fitness is a lifestyle. Healthy diet and exercise is not something you do to achieve a weight goal and then forget about them afterwards. The road to a healthier body includes the food you eat and your regular workout. You do not even need to buy expensive gear so you can exercise properly. You can look for discount running shoes and apparel if you have a limited budget.
What kind of preparations should you undertake to ensure a successful change to a healthier lifestyle?
Visit a Professional
Every human body is different. This is why personalized diets and workouts work better than following the latest fad. You do not need a professional trainer to create a regimen; you simply need to know your own body by visiting a general practitioner. This could be a dietician or your family doctor.
Your doctor can give you the proper weight goal you should be aiming for based on your body mass index. A check-up can reveal any indication of hormone problems stopping you from losing weight or any food allergies and the like. Some doctors also prescribe specific exercises for maximum weight loss.
What You Eat
Your weight loss has a lot to do with what you eat. It is not so much about eating less but eating right. Many diets fail because people deprive themselves, eventually causing binge eating. Training yourself to cut down on junk food, fast food, and sweet snacks take away empty calories intake and give you more energy.
Do not suddenly force yourself into a narrow diet without easing into it. Your body will feel the change and the hunger, triggering cravings causing you to go overboard and forget your diet altogether. You can plot the change by taking away one unhealthy food item at a time.
You can follow one of many diets available, but the most effective type is still eating a balanced meal three times a day. Proper food intake is a key factor in getting the energy for your workout. Most diets remove a key nutrient, making people feel sluggish and too tired for any activity.
Planning Your Workout
Choose an activity you will enjoy. Going to the gym is not for everybody. Most people get bored with simply running on a treadmill or lifting weights inside a hot room. If you want to run, run through a park. If you like a sport, try to do it more often. Take dance and movement lessons so your workout will not feel like time wasted through stationary movements.
Part of the workout is your wardrobe. Proper workout attire is comfortable to move in and can motivate you to exercise. The right fabric will help you move well and keep the sweat off instead of reabsorbing into your body. Invest in comfortable sports shoes as the first signs of pain and discomfort can deter you from completing the day's exercise.

Friday, August 10, 2012

Your Embryonic Stem Cells

Why are human embryonic stem cells so special?
Human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) offer a unique opportunity to potentially treat many currently incurable diseases such as Alzheimer's, spinal cord injury, diabetes or heart insufficiency. This is thought to be possible because these cells have the ability to grow into virtually any cell type of the human body. In some cases, scientists are already able to grow replacement cells in the laboratory to substitute for the cells which are destroyed during a disease process, such as heart cells or neurons. In the next step, scientists are hard at work to find out if and how those cells can be used to cure diseases. For this purpose, the first clinical trials are under way in the U.S. and abroad. It is not just severe diseases where hESCs could be extremely helpful, but also other applications such as growing your own red blood cells for potential transfusion for surgery, growing pigment cells of the skin for extra protection if you suffer from burns, or replacing aging skin cells.
Create & bank your own embryonic stem cells from your discard frozen IVF embryos
As an in vitro fertilization (IVF) patient, you may have one or more discard frozen embryos which you do not plan to use for pregnancy attempts because they are e.g. of inferior quality or your family planning is complete. Furthermore, you may not be interested in keeping these embryos in storage any longer. In this case, there is now the possibility of growing your discard frozen embryos into human embryonic stem cells. Similar to banking umbilical cord blood samples, those hESCs are then stored exclusively for your future use. As far as science presently knows, your hESCs will last forever when stored in liquid nitrogen at -320 degrees Fahrenheit.
How can my embryonic stem cells be of use to me and my family in the future?
The hESCs created for you would be approximately 50% genetically identical to you, your partner or your child and, to a lesser extent, to other blood relatives. Furthermore, because hESCs are created from your embryos at such an early point of development, their immune identity is thought to be not fully established. This immunological immaturity may be retained to some extent even when the hESCs are grown into certain specialized organ cells. This may enable your or your family member's body to accept cells grown from your hESCs with little or no immunosuppressive medication which is needed for virtually all conventional organ transplantation, such as liver transplants. This is particularly true when the cells are transplanted to a part of the body which has naturally little exposure to the immune system, such as the eye for retina repair. Other individuals unrelated to you may also be able to accept cells grown from your hESCs, especially if the hESCs have some genetic match with them.
Conclusion
Creating and banking your own embryonic stem cells from your discard frozen IVF embryos may allow you to address your future health needs and your family's. It has the potential to treat Alzheimer's, diabetes, spinal cord injury, heart insufficiency and more. And it is a good alternative if you don't want to keep the embryos in storage any longer.