The experience of sunburn can be a very efficient (i.e. painful) reminder to heed adequate protection on future occasions. However more importantly, it should be a reminder of the long-term effects of sun exposure on our bodies and health – which can include aging of the skin and skin cancer.

In order to more fully understand these consequences, let’s take a look at exactly what sunburn is, its symptoms and its effect on the body.

Sunburn results when the amount of exposure to the sun, or other ultraviolet light source (e.g. tanning lamps and welding arcs etc.), exceeds the ability of the body’s protective pigment, melanin, to protect the skin. Melanin content varies greatly, but in general darker skinned people have more melanin than lighter skinned. (Although fairer skinned people are generally more prone to getting sunburn than darker skinned people, this certainly does not exclude the latter from risk.)

Sunburn destroys cells in the outer layer of the skin, damaging tiny blood vessels underneath. Burns deeper into the skin’s layers also damage elastic fibers in the skin, which over time and with repeated sun overexposure, can result in the appearance of yellowish, wrinkled skin.

The damage to skin cells from UV exposure (either sunlight or tanning lamps etc.) can also include damage to their DNA. It’s this repeated DNA damage, which can lead to a cell becoming cancerous. With the incidence of skin cancer rising dangerously in many parts of the world, and with its ability to develop and establish itself in the body ‘long’ before external signs are detected, — paying attention to this aspect of sun exposure and sunburn should certainly not be ignored if we are serious about preserving our health.

Now while it may be easier to ignore the effects of sunburn occurring at a cellular level, ignoring the external symptoms of sunburn in the days immediately following such exposure is entirely another matter.

While sunburn is usually not immediately obvious, skin discoloration (ranging from slightly pink to severely red or even purplish) will initially appear from 1 – 24 hours after exposure. Although pain is usually worst 6 – 48 hours afterward, the burn can continue to develop for 24 – 72 hours after the incident. Where there is skin peeling, this generally occurs 3 – 8 days after the burn occurs.

While minor sunburns typically cause nothing more than warm/hot skin, slight redness, and tenderness to the affected area, — in more serious cases, extreme redness, swelling and blistering can occur. These blisters filled with fluid may itch and eventually break. This can then cause peeling of the skin, exposing an even tenderer layer of skin underneath.

Severe sunburn can cause very red, blistered skin but can also be accompanied by fever, chills, nausea (in some cases vomiting), and dehydration. In instances of extreme sunburn where the pain is debilitating, medical treatment may be required.

While the immediate effects of sunburn can certainly be painful and cause discomfort, the real deterrent to UV overexposure should be the potential damage to your long-term health – including the risk of premature aging of the skin along with skin cancer.

Don’t let sunburn and sun overexposure kill your chances of enjoying youthful skin, and a healthy body. Remember, the easiest way to treat sunburn will always be to avoid it in the first place!

(NC)-The desire to be thinner can lead to extreme weight control behaviour in girls and young women. Girls with type I diabetes mellitus (DM) appear to be at risk for disturbed eating. Dr. Gary M. Rodin, and colleagues at the Toronto Hospital for Sick Children, will study 120 adolescent girls with DM for 3 years, to assess their eating attitudes and behaviour, family functioning, and medical status. The goal is to learn about eating disturbances in this group and identify risk factors for early warning signs in order to design an intervention to prevent the development of eating disturbances in a younger group.

Common pitfalls of plastic surgery are those involving before and after pictures with photographic tricks or attractive models instead of the surgeon’s patients, that are publicly displayed in printed ads, online advertisement or broadcasted by TV, audio-visual or specific tele-shopping and infomercials.

Before and after pictures are useful to help you make the decision to have cosmetic surgery when they are real, but not advisable as criteria to select a surgeon, since no ethical surgeon can guarantee results this way, but if so, be sure to get his promises in writing.

Fake testimonials implying that anyone can get these results of people sharing their experiences may only be a marketing plan whether viewed on TV, through the internet, heard on the radio or at the surgeon’s office; they have a powerful influence in the patient’s final decision. Pitfalls can not be easily detected due to the impossibility to verify the authenticity of any given testimonial or the identity of the “happy patients”.

Because the purpose of testimonials are considered to be a way to solicit patients, most professional societies and State medical boards prohibit the use of testimonials to advertise Plastic Surgery. The American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) considers this marketing tool a violation to the code of ethics of 97% of certified surgeons certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery, members of ASPS.

Impressive sounding surgeon’s credentials or a plastic surgery procedure that does not name the surgeon may be listed as pitfalls of plastic surgery. While it is obvious to expect that a surgeon has the proper training, credentials and experience to provide the plastic surgery procedure or service you are seeking, remember that many physicians may call themselves plastic surgeons or cosmetic surgeons with training. In fact, in most states any physician may perform any procedure without peer scrutiny and no training requirements.

Since there are no requirements that the physician be is a trained surgeon, anyone may claim to be a board-certified surgeon simply by joining a sound-a-like organization, but the true meaning is that The American Society of Plastic Surgeons enforces one of the most rigorous ethical codes in the medical profession, so the best way to find out a surgeon’s facts is consulting only surgeons certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery.

Other pitfalls of plastic surgery are those offering dramatic results with superficial treatments, minimal or non-invasive procedures, no risk or little risk and downtime as well as a variety of products, procedures or manipulations without mention of the doctor’s qualification, board certification or his/her specialty. These promises are designed more for marketing reasons than a real therapeutic value.

These individual procedures may be inexpensive, but offers only little or temporal improvement, so it is necessary for multiple sessions before seeing positive results, raising in the mean time the costs, often comparable to the total cost of the plastic surgery. Non surgical procedures with high tech names suggest new approaches to youthful appearance and the expectation of major effectiveness.

All these issues make it difficult for patients to separate plastic surgery hype from reality.
About the Author

Matthew Leo

Nowadays you can find a lot of places where you can have the breast augmentation. Miami is one of the biggest plastic surgery centers in the USA, so if you live there you’re in the right place. But in order to be really satisfied with the surgery’s result, you have to know a few things and answer to a few questions first.

What exactly do you need from the breast augmentation?

What do you want from the breast augmentation? Miami or not, plastic surgeons can be only as good as you let them. If you don’t know exactly what you need, they won’t be able to do that. It’s not a problem when there are obvious or medical reasons to perform the surgery, but when you just want to look better, you need to know what exactly you would like to change. Especially when you don’t live there, having breast augmentation in Miami only to find out that’s not what you really wanted is not a very bright idea.

How to find the best doctor?

There are two things that can show how good the doctor is. The first one is openness. You must be able to see almost the whole clinic to check if it looks like it should. The second one is checking the ‘before/after’ photos from surgeries that were similar to yours. Breast augmentation in Miami is so popular that there should be no problem in seeing at least dozen sets of the pictures. If they aren’t available for any reason, think twice before deciding on surgery at this clinic. It is very probable that they (a) haven’t got much experience or (b) the surgery results are not as good as they claim. Anyway, it means that you have to find another place to have your breast augmentation. Miami is a big city.

Good and bad sides of breast augmentation.

When you decide on the breast augmentation surgery, keep in mind that it is not a kind of magic, but a surgery. It means that your breasts will essentially remain the same - the only difference you may notice is that their size and shape are a little different. And even there you will not notice any drastic changes - the surgeons can do only as much as you body permits. So there is no chance to have Pamela Anderson’s breast in one go.

About The Author

Jeff Lakie is the founder of http://www.liposuction-procedure.com a website providing information on cosmetic surgery.

Common environmental toxins can cause skin damage. Everyday products found in your laundry, kitchen, bathroom and toiletry bag may contain chemical or synthetic substances that could place the health of your family at risk. One of these chemicals, Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (or Sodium Laureth Sulfate) is used in many shampoos and cleaning products to create the foaming action. But it also creates a dysfunction of the biological system of the skin, causing flaking that can result in severe skin damage and dry skin conditions. The skin is one of the organs most easily affected by environmental toxins and chemicals and can react with a type of allergic dermatitis — dry, itchy skin or when it gets severe, eczema. Allergic dermatitis (itchy rash) is the most common skin condition in children younger than 11 years of age. The percentage of American children diagnosed with it has increased from 3% in the 1960s to more than 10% today.

Now research has produced a new kind of lotion that can protect the skin and help keep these toxins out. “The skin is the largest organ of the human body and it’s responsible for protecting the internal organs from the toxic world we live in,” says Enrique (Ike) Alabata, director of research and development for 21st Century Formulations, a company that specializes in the development of natural skin care products. “A d ecline in either the natural oils or moisture directly correlates to a higher skin pH, and that in turn reduces the skin’s defenses against these chemicals and environmental toxins.” When it’s intact, the skin provides a nearly germ proof barrier to protect us against microorganisms, toxins and moisture loss. Skin also contains millions of sweat and oil glands, which eliminate toxins while helping to keep the body cool and the skin moist. But if the skin is stripped of this protective layer and poisoned by toxic exposure, it undergoes more skin cell damage than it can repair. When this happens, the outward appearance is that of “aging.”

Years of intensive research led the team at 21st Century Formulations to the development of Skin MD Natural, a shielding lotion that uses the very latest skin care technology to bond with the outer layer of the skin, protecting it from chemicals, environmental toxins and irritants and holding in your natural moisture, preventing the aging of the skin. Randy Schwanke suffered with eczema, psoriasis and allergic skin reactions on both his hands and feet for many years. “Despite trying many types of lotion my hands looked like something out of a Hollywood horror movie and due to the skin problems on my feet I had difficulty walking,” says Schwanke. “My dermatologist gave me your shielding lotion and within few days my skin started to heal.” “The artificial moisturizers in conventional creams and lotions can send a signal to the moisture producing parts of your skin that enough moisture is present,” says Dr. Brian Zogg, a board-certified dermatologist in Southern Minnesota. “Your skin then makes less of the natural moisture needed for an effective dry skin treatment. A shielding lotion protects your skin against chemicals and uses your natural oils and moisture to heal the damage.” Even though we are exposed to chemical and toxins every day, with this new skin care technology it is possible to protect the skin on your face, hands and body, keeping it youthful, supple and healthy.

The gradual development of facial wrinkles, whether fine surface
lines or deeper creases and folds, is the classic early sign of
accumulated skin damage and inevitable aging. We are not able to
stop the clock that tells us our age through the look of our
skin.

Premature aging and wrinkling of the skin may be accelerated by
excessive exposure to the sun and by other elements like
overactive facial expression muscles, the frequent use of
tobacco products, poor nutrition, or skin disorders.

Today, psychical appearance is very important to have in mind,
and many people would rather look young than wise. That’s why in
these last years scientist have been developing many different
ways and techniques for getting rid of wrinkles. Now we can
choose from artificial to natural treatments for improving our
skin. Here’s a list of some of the wrinkle removal processes
available in the market.

1. Injections

In this process certain solutions or products are injected or
implanted underneath the skin’s surface. These substances weaken
the muscles or act as skin volume fillers and serve to soften or
eliminate the appearance of wrinkles.

A filler pushes depressed wrinkles outward and makes them less
visible. This procedure involves temporary discomfort,
associated with the penetration of the needle used in the
process.

Some of these procedures include using the person’s own fat
deposits to fill the sagging parts of the skin, which are the
main cause of the development of wrinkles. The skin’s creases
and wrinkles are then filled up with fats making the skin look
good for a short period of time.

Botox includes a sterile, purified protein produced from
bacteria Clostridium Botulinum. It is injected in small amounts
into facial muscles where it binds to the nerve endings
preventing the nerve impulses from traveling to the muscle. When
injected, it weakens or paralyzes the muscle around the area
injected for a typical period of several months.

You have to know that there are not everlasting results, and the
maintenance of temporary results requires periodic repeated
treatments.

For those who have low tolerance to pain and think that these
solutions are still invasive, it would be better to opt for more
natural ways of removing wrinkles.

2. Surgeries

This kind of artificial treatment may include facelifts and
dermabrasion;

Dermabrasion or surgical planning of the skin: This procedure
involves the dermatologic surgeon utilizing a high speed
rotating brush to remove the top layer of skin. The doctor
mechanically removes the skin to improve the contour and achieve
a rejuvenated appearance as a new layer of remodeled skin
replaces the damaged skin. The new skin generally has a smoother
and refreshed appearance.

It is usually done in patients with facial disfigurements from
scars resulting from acne, trauma, tattoo, freckles, chickenpox
or smallpox, and wrinkles. Although these procedures don’t have
mayor complications, improving scars may depend on how fast you
heal. Other possible complications associated with dermabrasion
are fever blisters, pigmentation changes and thickened skin

3. Minimal-invasive procedures

If you think that surgery methods are a very invasive solution,
there are other effective alternatives for wrinkle removing.
These procedures don’t require anesthesia but still involves
external agents that causes a strong reaction in our delicate
skin.

The main procedures of this type are microdermabrasion and
chemical peels.

In chemical peels, a type of “chemical agent” is applied for the
purpose of exfoliating the skin. So, it works “stripping away”
the damaged skin while that also stimulates the growth of
healthier layers.

Microdermabrasion includes a hand piece that emits crystals into
the surface of the skin resulting in a gentle abrasion or
“polishing” process. The number of treatments recommended for
maximal results can range between five and twelve, spaced from
two to three weeks apart. Maintenance of results requires
periodic repeated treatments after the initial regimen is
completed.

Always prefer nature

There’s no need to go to your dermatologists just to undergo one
of those painful and artificial treatments. There are many skin
care products available in the market today like creams and
lotions that contain only natural ingredients and have an
effective healing effect.

We all need some combination of antioxidants and moisturizer. In
fact, one main cause of wrinkles is the fact that the skin has
already lost its fat deposit and moisture. So, the best way to
remove wrinkles is to put back its elasticity, suppleness, and
moisture. There’s now a product made with natural ingredients
that yields all the effects that the techniques described above
could have on wrinkles: Bio Skin Care Cream is a gentler, yet
most effective solution. It actually utilizes biological
activators of skin growth factors, the same molecules that are
found in human skin when it is wounded. These molecules have the
function of regulating and coordinating cell proliferation and
migration and tissue remodeling. Bio Skin Care contains enzymes
and glycoproteins that both trigger the renewal of skin cells
from within the deep layers of the skin and get rid of damaged
skin cells at a quick pace. The product is used directly on
clean dry skin, it is absolutely non irritating and can be used
as an activator of skin renewal on freshly resurfaced skin after
dermabrasion, microdermabrasion or peels. BIO SKIN CARE is a
product that has been widely tested on other skin problems. It
has been used on age lines, age spots, abrasions, acne,
athlete’s foot, boils, chilblains, diabetic sores, diaper rash,
infected nails, insect bites/stings, skin allergies, skin ulcers
and stretch marks with magnificent results. This product with
only natural ingredients helps with many types of skin problems,
including wounds for they heal with minimal scarring. BIO SKIN
CARE cream helps your skin rejuvenate quickly giving your skin
the youthful glow you had some day! With this natural product,
getting a beautiful and healthy looking skin does not have to be
achieved by going through a painful procedure. So, there’s no
truth in this case for the old adage, “No pain, no gain.”

One of the great benefits of sauna and steam baths are the toning effects on the skin. They leave the skin soft, supple and glowing – in short, beautiful. Regular users of sauna and steam baths have an appealing healthy glow about them that adds to their attractiveness.

The reason that sauna and steam are so good for the skin is the deep cleaning action caused by heavy perspiration. The pores open wide and all the accumulated dirt can be easily washed out.

The best benefits for skin toning come from full body sauna, but for those looking for a quick fix-up to their complexion can get similar results from facial sauna systems. These ‘mini-saunas’ are designed to apply steam to the face for the same deep cleaning action as a full sauna or steam bath.

How They Work

A facial sauna has an electric heating element on the bottom of the unit. It heats the water (which is held in a small reservoir) to the boiling point, causing the steam to rise. The small size of the reservoir ensures that steam is quickly produced.

An ergonomically designed mask is placed over the reservoir to capture and funnel the steam to your face. You can control the amount of steam that your face is exposed to by the distance of the mask to your face.

Bringing your face into direct contact with the mask gives the maximum deep cleaning action, but this position should only be used for a few moments at a time. After about 10 seconds, raise your head to allow cooler air to be mixed with steam. Repeat this cycle as many times as needed.

Facial saunas are not only for deep cleansing the skin; they are also useful for unclogging stuffed sinuses. Anyone with a simple cold or a more serious condition like bronchitis, sinusitis, asthma and hay fever can use the facial sauna as an inhaler or vaporizer.

Some facial saunas have a separate inhaler attachment. Instead of fitting over the entire face, the inhaler attachment fits over the nose and mouth. Simply breathe in the steam to provide almost instant relief from sinus pain.

Operating Tips

Most facial saunas have a very small reservoir so that the water can heat up fast. The downside of this is that the water evaporates quickly, so if you wish to use the sauna for an extended session, you should keep a tall glass of water by your side. This way, you can quickly refill the reservoir when it goes dry.

The small reservoir, unfortunately, also means that the facial sauna cannot be used as an overnight vaporizer. If your sinuses are keeping you awake at night, you would be better off with a traditional vaporizer that provides steam for several hours.

Steam is great for deep cleaning the skin, but for an additional beauty treatment you can add special cleaners such as tea tree oil to the water. Just a few drops of this oil will give your skin an even brighter glow and leave it feeling fresh and supple.

Facial saunas are relatively inexpensive — usually less than $60. For this price, almost everybody can enjoy the deep cleaning action and the special ‘glowing’ skin that marks regular sauna users apart from the crowd.

We begin our spiritual development by taking ourselves apart and putting ourselves back together again the right way. We review many observations and conclusions made in childhood and revise our conclusions based on new evidence.

In a small town in the Midwest, near the turn of the century, a boy named Robert grew up on the wrong side of the tracks. He wore hand-me-down. His parents couldn’t afford to get him a haircut. The other kids teased him. People whispered that his father was irresponsible and had too many kids.

Robert wore the shame of his father’s poverty and yet he was very spiritual. One day a revival came to town. His grandparents took him to the revival tent where many people heard Jesus call them personally for. The energy at a revival is ‘contagious’. After a few people get the ball rolling, the rest will join in. Sometimes it’s a genuine calling but sometimes it’s just so as not to be left out.

Back at the revival, people were getting the call, but that night nothing happened to the Robert. Rather than going along with the crowd, Robert did not join the throng of people who came forward for baptism because he did not feel Jesus call him inside.

This would be a matter-of-fact story except for one thing. On the way home, Robert, who genuinely believed that something authentic had happened to all others in the revival tent, came to the conclusion that Jesus had not called him because he was not worthy.

Robert didn’t check out his ‘thesis’ with anyone any more than most children do and for the rest of his life, he felt rejected and shamed. Even Jesus did not want a poor boy.

There is a happy ending to this story. Robert grew up to be a well known and successful psychologist in La Mesa, California. He had a great professional and personal life, a very long and happy marriage. Robert was well to do and was respected in the community. He often spoke at the big Unity (metaphysical) Church in San Diego. I am not telling you a story he has not told publicly many times. Robert went through a healing process to understand that as a boy he had added 2 + 2 and gotten nonsense.

As children, we put the world together as best we can. As adults, it is our gift to ourself to return as an adult to some of our bigger decisions and connect the dots again properly if necessary.

I would like to give you another example that is a little more sophisticated. It has to do with the way being unconscious can keep us from seeing things plainly before our eyes.

In the 40s and 50s, it was considered glamorous or manly, to smoke. I know I could hardly wait! Louis Armstrong, King George VI of England, Betty Davis, Clark Gable, Babe Ruth and Humphrey Bogart all smoked heavily in public and in their films. They died in their mid-fifties of smoke related diseases such as lung cancer and emphysema. In a horrifying and ironic twist of fate, even Wayne McLaren, the celebrated ‘Marlborough Man’, died of lung cancer at the very early age of 51. Smoking was considered glamorous and I planned to start as soon as I could.

Like the boy Robert, I did not have eyes to see. I looked at Humphrey Bogart and was told how sophisticated he was rather than noticing what was plainly before my eyes. ‘This man is a walking cadaver.’

A new trend in consciousness raising about smoking began in 1968 when William Talman made a shocking public service announcement for the American Cancer Society. Talman had played Hamilton Burger on the tv series, Perry Mason. He was dying of lung cancer at 53, leaving behind a wife and 6 young children. According to Barron H. Lerner, a Columbia University professor [Globe Newspaper Company], Talman’s message won praise among viewers, many of whom vividly remembered it for decades and credited it for getting them to quite smoking.

Yul Brynner, who died of lung cancer in 1985, helped reverse the glamour image in the late 80s with a chilling PSA which began, ‘Now that I’m dead  please dont smoke.

If you’re wondering what this has to do with spiritual development and seeing things clearly, let me continue.

If you didn’t go through the process of consciousness raising with cigarette smoking, here’s an example from the 21st Century. The same thing is occurring with obesity. The same long, time consuming process has begun. This time you can be a part of it, waking up slowly to what is before your very eyes.

I visited Russia this summer and people in Russia are not overweight. I really noticed it when I got back home. I have a friend from India who moved here because he wanted to be in a country where ‘even the poor people are fat.

Obesity has reached epidemic proportions in the United States. Fast food chains are being sued to hold them accountable for selling food high in fat, salt, sugar, and cholesterol content, ‘despite studies showing a link between consuming such foods and obesity, diabetes, coronary heart disease, high blood pressure, strokes, elevated cholesterol intake, related cancers, and other health problems and despite a recent published finding by the Surgeon General that obesity costs Americans almost as much money per year as cigarette related illnesses. John F. Banzhaf III (http://banzhaf.net) is the nationally-known professor and practitioner of public interest law who is bringing these legal actions to the public forum.

The Chicago Tribune reports that suits initiated by Banzhof’s students have already forced McDonald’s to apologize for “duping” people, and pay out over $12 million in damages. McDonald’s claimed their French fries were ‘vegetarian’. [They are fried in animal fat.]

According to ABCNEWS Internet Ventures, a second law suit filed by a disgruntled customer in Florida, outraged when she learned that a so-called low-calorie and low-fat ice cream had at least three times the calories and fat she was led to believe, has likewise been granted class action status by a judge, and could involve one million customers.

Banzhof comments, ‘We know from tobacco litigation that initial suits have real difficulties because the public has real problems accepting new ideas and new concepts. It took us many years to get us to the point of educating juries about tobacco, so now they are [learning about the fast food industry].

In one of the finer uses of the evolutionary nature of law, Americans are being shown — until they can see for themselves — the connection between junk food and poor health. We are also being shown the correlation between weight gain and disastrous health consequences which we know intuitively. Obesity, watching television and eating junk food and go together like Whoppers and SuperSizeItPlease.

Connecting the dots can help us to correct misapprehensions from childhood and see the world around us with new eyes. It is these new eyes of seeing that are both the goal and the process of enlightenment.

Most of us are “regular” people. We don’t eat the perfect diet
all the time and have our struggles with food, same as everyone
else. But having an awareness of this fact and knowing a little
bit about our health and food nutrition can help when it comes to
making wise decisions.

Many people struggle with food “cravings.” Studies tell us that
it’s fairly common for food cravings to happen at certain times,
quite often at around bedtime. Your guard may be down, you may
have had an unusually hard day, and off you go on your
not-so-merry way to find that tasty treat. Fatigue and stress
often combine to take their toll on the best of intentions.

When food cravings are unconstrained, what starts out as a
bedtime snack quickly turns into a full blown feeding
frenzy…not something most of us fully understand or appreciate.
We head to kitchen and every other place where food can hide,
clearing a path as we go.

Most food cravings are not about satisfying a nutritional need or
imbalance. They seem to be more emotionally related, or God
forbid, are caused by plain old gluttony. Exactly why we
over-indulge is not completely understood, however our knowledge
about this subject continues to grow.

Listed below are some thoughts and ideas about food cravings:

- If the food isn’t available, you can’t eat it! Empty the cookie
jar and keep it that way! Keep healthy food choices on-hand.

- Recognize the feelings and emotions that lead-up to a food
craving. Do you have food cravings when you’re bored, lonely, or
stressed? If you can identify a trigger, you can deal with the
emotion that’s making you desire a certain food. Try to deal with
the triggers in the best way you can.

- Sometimes, even recognizing that a craving is about to happen
doesn’t seem to help. Don’t beat yourself-up. There is always
tomorrow. Call a friend, make good use of your support network
and share your feelings with someone.

- Get enough sleep. When you’re tired, you’re more likely to
crave things.

- Never give-up. When you “slip”, press-in, bear-down, get a
grip, do whatever is necessary to re-gain control. Try to
practice restraint most of the time, but don’t get legalistic and
un-balanced in your weight loss approach. Think moderation and
not abstinence at all times!

- Understand that self-control and discipline by themselves,
won’t cut it! If you depend totally on yourself for control, you
will fail. Forming caring and supportive relationships is
required. If you do not currently have a support network, start
building one TODAY.

- Exercise. It increases feel-good endorphins that cut down on
your cravings. Try to get at least 30 minutes of physical
activity every day.

- Use moderation. Instead of stuffing yourself with every kind of
food hoping that your craving will go away, eat 100 to 200
calories of your “craved” food.

- Substitute with low-fat foods and complex carbs. If you’re
hungry for chocolate, eat non-fat chocolate yogurt. Try fig bars
or raisins for a sweet craving.

- Never skip a meal. Eat every three to five hours. Try six
smaller meals or regular meals with nutritious snacks.

- Understand that hunger craving are oftentimes stress related.
Practice other ways to treat chronic stress a walk in the park,
spiritual connections, a cozy fireplace, baths…all these
stimulate neurochemicals that activate regions of the brain that
stimulate pleasure. Relaxation techniques may work by reducing
the psychological drives on stress output, which can be the root
causes of stress. Bottom line, substitute pleasurable experiences
for comfort foods.

- Beware of certain medications. They can stimulate appetite.
Drugs used for the treatment of depression and bipolar disorder
can be appetite stimulants. Other drugs, both prescription and
over the counter, may influence appetite as well. If you are on a
medication, and troubled by food cravings, discuss this with your
doctor or pharmacist. You may be able to find an alternative that
doesn’t send your cravings out of control.

- Distract Yourself. What’s that old expression…idle hands are
the devils workshop? Get busy. Do anything other than cave-in to
your desire for food, and keep doing it until the cravings
subside.

- One final thought, take a look inside your refrigerator and
kitchen cabinets and do some general “house cleaning.” Throw-out
all that unhealthy stuff that is waiting to sabotage your diet,
and start shopping more wisely. A little forethought and careful
planning will go a long way for improving your chances of
success.

Eat wisely, be happy, and live long!

The information contained in this article is for educational purposes
only and is not intended to medically diagnose, treat or cure any
disease. Consult a health care practitioner before beginning any
health care program.

About the Author

Emily Clark is editor at Lifestyle Health News and Medical Health News
where you can find the most up-to-date advice and information on
many medical, health and lifestyle topics.

Not many people are comfortable in knowing the difference between creatine serum and creatine powder. In fact, ever since creatine serum was introduced, there’s been a raging debate over which should be used and which gets the best results. At the present time, there is no cut and clear answer as to which works best, or in fact, if either gets better results than the other. It’s really up to the individual to decide which is best for them. In this article, you will find information to help you make the choice that is best for you, or whether you should be taking creatine at all. Creatine Serum Also known as Liquid Creatine, creatine serum is the liquid form of creatine monohydrate. The only difference is that instead of ingesting powder, you’re ingesting a liquid source. Creatine serum works as follows:

• Boosts energy through ATP regeneration.
• Provides muscles with extra energy while working out.
• Helps the creatine user to gain strength and weight.

Important Facts The body’s muscles do not absorb creatine serum instantly even though it’s a liquid. It’s claimed that creatine serum is easier to take than creatine powder. There is no clear evidence that this is true. Again, it depends on which type an individual prefers.

• Ignore claims of instant absorption. Both the powder and the liquid take time to be absorbed.
• Claims of not having to load with liquid creatine are false. The only benefit of creatine serum is that it’s liquid.
• Creatine serum can degrade to creatinine, which is useless to muscles.
• Both creatine serum and powder are equal; neither has special capabilities.
• Studies have concluded that creatine serum has higher levels of creatinine than creatine. The labels of creatine serum have been found to state creatine content much higher than what is actually in the product.

Creatine Powder Creatine powder is, simply put, white powder. You can purchase a wide variety of types and brands. In recent years, creatine powder has become much more affordable. You can buy plain creatine powder or creatine powder that has been mixed with other supplements. Side Effects Side effects have been documented that range from cramps to kidney disease. The cases of kidney dysfunction all occurred in users who had a pre-existing kidney condition or a family history of kidney disease. However, use caution. You may not have access to all family history. Creatine aggravates pre-existing kidney problems because of its high protein content. No cases of vomiting or diarrhea have been recorded. Documented side effects largely state rapid weight gain. However, use extreme caution when taking creatine and report any changes in health to a physician. Always take small doses of creatine in the off-season or on off-days to begin. Again, consult your doctor if you suffer any adverse effects. Caution Creatine has been proven to be beneficial in some people. However, it should be administered with extreme caution. Sports supplements are not properly regulated. Research should be done by each individual before starting this powerful supplement.