Health A-Z

Sugar increases hypertension

All 12 studies in a May, 2014, meta-analysis found that sugar elevates blood pressure. The study called “Impact of Sugar-Sweetened Beverages on Blood Pressure” was published in the American Journal of Cardiology.

Sugar increases hypertension

Soft drinks easily earn the name “liquid candy,” because they contain an average of 10 teaspoons of sugar per can. Soft drinks are the largest source of added sugar in our diet. These drinks are often cheaper than bottled water and become the liquid of choice for most of the population.

In the U.S., high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is the major source of added sugar in soft drinks. HFCS has only been around since 1975. It’s marketed as a safe and natural fruit sugar — fructose. However, if you watch the Sugar: The Bitter Truth video lecture by Pediatric Endocrinologist Dr. Robert Lustig, you quickly learn that fructose is even more dangerous than table sugar — sucrose.

Drinking liquid candy is associated with obesity, diabetes, heart disease and kidney stones, and now this analysis confirms that it increases the incidence of high blood pressure. I could add the follow effects of sugar: yeast overgrowth, arrhythmia, bowel disease, rashes, lowered immune system and allergies. In my Death by Modern Medicine book, I quote Nancy Appleton’s “146 Reasons Why Sugar is Ruining Your Health,” with references.

Lustig found that, in a large meta-analysis of soft drinks and obesity, 88 studies all show significant association of obesity with increased soft drink consumption. Sugar industry studies showed lesser effects, and they claim that soft drinks do not cause obesity. However, studies limiting consumption of soft drinks in kids show that obesity decreases. Weight gain is another factor associated with high blood pressure

Researchers say they don’t really know how sugar causes high blood pressure, but in the sugar impact study, the authors discuss several theories. Apparently, liquid candy can lower nitric oxide in the body, which causes blood vessels to constrict and blood pressure to rise. Since soft drinks can contain extra salt, they theorize that that may be the cause. They may not know what causes the hypertension, but they do conclude, “On the basis of these studies, there is a suggestion that intake of greater than one serving of sugar-sweetened beverage per day is associated with higher risk of hypertension.”

I have a different theory. Lustig talks about the extra energy used by the liver to metabolize fructose compared with sucrose, but he doesn’t mention magnesium. A fascinating and little-known fact about sugar metabolism is that 28 molecules of magnesium are required to break down one molecule of sucrose, and 56 molecules of magnesium are used up to metabolize one molecule of fructose.

When magnesium is diminished to that extent, the resulting magnesium deficiency can contribute to raising the blood pressure, because magnesium is required to relax the muscles of the body including the smooth muscles of the blood vessels. If there is tension in the smooth muscles of the blood vessels, then the blood pressure rises.

Nitric oxide is mentioned in the blood pressure study and also by Lustig. But nitric oxide is controlled by magnesium. This is what I write in The Magnesium Miracle: “Smooth muscle cells provide integrity and control the dilation of the arterial cavity, triggered by the calcium/magnesium ratio in the body. Calcium causes contraction and magnesium causes relaxation, which together control the blood pressure and flow in the artery. A final messenger for the dilation response is nitric oxide, which is dependent on magnesium.”

What do I recommend? Avoid high-fructose corn syrup, of course. Take supplemental magnesium and also make and take your own Liposomal Vitamin C. Magnesium and vitamin C are the antidotes to a sugar binge! You can go to my Blog to find the recipe for making your own Liposomal Vitamin C and also see my recommendation for the best form of magnesium to take.

Source: natural news

Skip the Steroids for Shoulder Pain?

For relief of shoulder pain, physical therapy and steroid shots provide similar results, a new study finds. Researchers compared the two nonsurgical approaches in a group of 100-plus adults suffering from shoulder pain caused by rotator cuff problems, tendinitis or bursitis.

“Whether you had a steroid injection or physical therapy, the improvement in each group was the same,” said lead researcher Daniel Rhon, from the Center for the Intrepid at Brooke Army Medical Center at Fort Sam Houston, Texas.

Skip the Steroids for Shoulder Pain

“It was also a rather large improvement, about 50 percent, and this improvement was maintained for at least one year,” he said. But the group that received injections used more health care services and had significantly more shoulder-related doctor visits during the year of the study, Rhon said.

“Additional visits to your primary care provider may indicate that you had a persistent problem and were seeking further follow-up,” he said. In addition, 20 percent of those who got injections ended up going to physical therapy anyway, and about 40 percent who got shots needed more than one injection, Rhon said.

“While we don’t know for sure, needing another injection would likely indicate that they still had persistent pain, especially because additional injections were optional,” he said. About one in five in the physical therapy group also got an injection during the year of follow-up, Rhon said.

The findings should reassure patients who prefer to avoid injections. “Some patients really do not like injections, so physical therapy may be a great and effective option,” Rhon said.

The report was published Aug. 4 in the Annals of Internal Medicine. Dr. Michael Hausman, a professor of orthopedic surgery at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York City, said the findings “seem contradictory to my experience in practice.”

Most of his patients who opt for physical therapy say their pain got worse with therapy, Hausman said.

“Probably the reason for that was that the therapy involves strengthening exercises, so patients are stressing the tendons that are damaged,” he explained. “It’s not surprising that the therapy would aggravate the symptoms.”

Hausman thinks that steroid injections work and should be part of treatment if physical therapy isn’t enough. “If the joint is stiff, you should do stretching exercises to restore full motion. You should avoid exercises that put a strain on the rotator cuff tendon,” he said. “If the symptoms persist and limit activity, then I would recommend a steroid injection with a maximum of two injections.”

Shoulder pain is a very common condition, and treatment decisions aren’t uniform, said Dr. Michael Mizhiritsky, a physiatrist at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City. “An accurate diagnosis needs to be established before initiating treatment. An experienced physician needs to evaluate a patient and consider diagnostic tests, such as X-ray and MRI,” he said. “Only then should treatment begin.”

Treatment should include physical therapy, Mizhiritsky said. “Steroid injections should be considered either before starting physical therapy or anytime there is no significant timely improvement, and a home exercise program needs to be followed,” he added.

For the study, Rhon’s team randomly assigned 104 patients with shoulder pain between the ages of 18 and 65 to receive steroid injections or six sessions of physical therapy over six weeks. Participants reported on their pain throughout the study.

During the year of the study, those receiving steroids could have as many as three injections.

Physical therapy included a combination of joint and soft-tissue manipulations, stretches, muscle contraction-relaxation techniques and exercises to promote movement in the shoulder, chest or neck. These patients also were given exercises they could do at home that reinforced the therapy.

Source: web md

Daily aspirin ‘cuts bowel and stomach cancer deaths’

Taking aspirin every day can reduce the chance of developing or dying from bowel and stomach cancers, a review of all available evidence suggests. And scientists predict if everyone aged 50 and above in the UK took the drug for 10 years, some 122,000 deaths could be prevented over two decades.

Daily aspirin 'cuts bowel and stomach cancer deaths'

But they warn aspirin can cause internal bleeding and say medical advice must be sought before using it. The Queen Mary University of London report is in the Annals of Oncology.

Weighing up benefits
Scientists examined some 200 studies investigating the benefits and harms of taking aspirin – an area of continuing medical debate. They found the drug reduced the number of cases and deaths from bowel, stomach and oesophageal cancer by some 30-40%. There was weaker and more variable evidence that the drug reduced deaths from breast, prostate and lung cancer too.

And the study found people needed to take the drug for at least five years to see any benefits. Prof Jack Cuzick, at Queen Mary University of London, who led the research, urged all healthy people aged 50 and above to consider taking a small dose (75mg) of the drug every day for a decade.

Researchers predicted if 1,000 individuals aged 60 took the drug for 10 years, a further decade later there would be:

16 fewer deaths from cancer
One fewer death from heart attack
Two extra deaths from bleeding
Prof Cuzick, who has been taking aspirin for four years, said: “Whilst there are some serious side-effects that can’t be ignored, taking aspirin daily looks to be the most important thing we can do to reduce cancer after stopping smoking and reducing obesity, and will probably be much easier to implement.”

Individual risks
They found benefits continued even when people stopped taking the drug, but say it is unclear exactly how long people should use it for. As the risk of internal bleeding rises as an individual gets older, they suggest a cut-off point of 10 years. There is still uncertainty whether other doses of the drug could offer more protection.

Aspirin’s well known possible side-effects include bleeding in the stomach and the brain. And while the study suggests 122,000 lives could be saved if everyone in the UK aged 50-64 took the drug, this is balanced against the estimated 18,000 deaths from side-effects.

Experts warn anyone at high risk of bleeding, including people with blood disorders who take blood thinning medication, or are frequent smokers or drinkers, are more likely to suffer these side-effects. They recommend anyone considering daily medication should speak to their doctors to discuss individual risks.

Dr Julie Sharp, at Cancer Research UK, said: “Aspirin is showing promise in preventing certain types of cancer, but it’s vital that we balance this with the complications it can cause. “Before aspirin can be recommended for cancer prevention, some important questions need to be answered and tests need to be developed to predict who is likely to have side-effects.”

Exactly how aspirin protects against cancer is unknown. Scientists suggest it may reduce inflammation or act on blood cells that would otherwise encourage the spread of the disease.

Source: bbc news

Childhood UTI May Bring Lasting Harm to Kidneys

Childhood UTI May Bring Lasting Harm to Kidneys

Urinary tract infections are the most common serious bacterial infections in young children, and almost one of every eight kids who gets one will end up with scarring on the kidneys and an increased risk of kidney failure later in life.

Identifying those kids early is critical, and researchers now report that a combination of three factors — high fever, detection of kidney abnormalities via ultrasound and identification of the type of bacteria involved — spots such patients as accurately as a very unpleasant catheter-based test does.

“We found that you more or less can predict the children who are at higher risk by looking at three different things when they come in,” said study author Dr. Nader Shaikh, an assistant professor at the University of Pittsburgh and a pediatrician at the Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh.

In the past, doctors used a combination catheter/X-ray to detect children at greater risk for kidney scarring.

The test required using a catheter to fill a child’s bladder with a special dye. Doctors then asked the child to urinate while being X-rayed, so they could see whether urine flow indicated a kidney problem.

Doctors used the X-ray test often in the 1960s and 1970s, but in recent years they have been moving away from it, said Dr. Kenneth Roberts, a pediatrician in Greensboro, N.C., who wrote an editorial accompanying the new study.

“It’s very uncomfortable, very distressing and entails a good amount of radiation,” Roberts said. “It is not only not worth putting all children through that procedure, but with this study we now have information that shows it’s simply not justified.”

To see whether there is a better option for finding kids at greater risk of kidney scarring, Shaikh and his colleagues reviewed existing data from previous studies involving 1,280 children aged 18 and younger.

About 15 percent of these children suffered kidney scarring from a urinary tract infection. The researchers found that three factors were strongly associated with scarring:

  • Fever of at least 102 degrees.
  • Infection with a bacteria other than E. coli.
  • Ultrasound readings that detected an abnormality in the kidney.
  • A model based on these factors predicted nearly 45 percent of children who ended up developing kidney scars, a rate only 3 percent to 5 percent less effective than models involving blood tests or the catheter/X-ray examination, the researchers reported.

The findings were published online Aug. 4 in the journal JAMA Pediatrics.

The test’s real power comes in its ability to rule out children at risk, Shaikh noted.

“The prediction is not perfect,” he said. “For more or less, we can say these 80 percent of kids aren’t going to scar, we don’t have to worry about them.”

Doctors can step up observation of kids at greater risk for kidney scarring. “The main focus should be to prevent subsequent infections for those children,” Shaikh said. “Every time you get a [urinary tract infection], you get a chance of scarring again.”

Source: web md

Oatmeal Recipes for Every Day of the Week

steel-cut-oatmeal-caramel-topping-400x400Brighten up your breakfast
If you think oatmeal makes for a boring breakfast, it’s time to think again. This morning staple gets a major upgrade when you mix in fruit, spices, and other flavor-boosting ingredients. This healthy whole grain lowers cholesterol, burns fat, and fills you up with fiber, folate, and potassium. Added bonus? It’s gluten free. (However, check the label. It can be contaminated with gluten-containing wheat or rye during processing.)

Dress up your dish with one of these seven fresh takes on oatmeal.

Banana-Nut Oatmeal
Unlike sugary oatmeal packets, this homemade version uses a hearty dose of cinnamon for robust flavor without added calories. The banana adds natural sweetness and fiber, while the omega-3s from the walnuts help your body burn more fat.

Ingredients: Rolled oats, water, banana, chopped walnuts, cinnamon

Oatmeal with Prune and Banana Compote
Fuel up with this fruit-topped oatmeal recipe. It packs a whopping 15 grams of protein and 8 grams of fiber per serving, and it can be made in the microwave for quick convenience.

Ingredients: Milk, old-fashioned rolled oats, prunes, banana, crystallized ginger

Chai Oatmeal
For an extra thick and creamy bowl, add oat bran. It’ll make for a hearty helping and also add more fiber to your meal. If you love the taste of chai, you’ll enjoy this spiced version with coriander, cinnamon, and turmeric.

Ingredients: Milk, salt, coriander, cardamom, cinnamon, turmeric, honey, vanilla extract, regular oats, oat bran

5

Maple Date-Nut Oatmeal Breakfast Squares

For oatmeal on the go, try making breakfast bars ahead of time. You can even make them in big batches and freeze a portion for future use.

Ingredients: Maple syrup, chopped walnuts, dates, brown sugar, sugar, egg, butter, applesauce, vanilla yogurt, vanilla extract, all-purpose flour, quick-cooking oats, baking soda, salt, cinnamon

Calories: 152

De-lish Oatmeal

De-lish Oatmeal
This recipe is made with pears, dried cranberries, and apple cider for a touch of natural fruit sweetness.

Ingredients: Water, apple cider, organic rolled oats, salt, pear, sweetened dried cranberries, cinnamon, vanilla extract, chopped pecans, milk

Calories: 256

Baked Oatmeal
If you’re not a fan of oatmeal because of its texture, try baking it instead! It’ll taste like a mix between a chewy snack bar and a creamy bowl of oats.

Ingredients: Uncooked quick-cooking oats, brown sugar, raisins, chopped walnuts, baking powder, milk, applesauce, butter, egg, cooking spray

Calories: 281

baked-oatmeal

Steel-Cut Oatmeal with Salted Caramel Topping

If you’re craving a sweet treat without the guilt, a salted caramel coating does the trick. This recipe calls for steel-cut oats, which sit slightly lower on the glycemic index than rolled oats, which means they’re less prone to make your blood sugar spike.

Ingredients: Uncooked instant steel-cut oats, milk, light brown sugar, salt, whipped cream, fresh berries

Calories: 242

Source: health

6 Ways To Raise Kids With Healthy Habits

As much as we might like to, we can’t protect our kids from every bump or scrape or bruised ego. Boo-boos happen. Feelings get hurt. We can’t avoid the crumpled face of a toddler about to cry, or the slammed door of a frustrated teenager. Our kids have to learn some things on their own.

But if we want our kids to have the best chance of living a healthy life, we’ve got to equip them now with the right mindset and habits to take with them into adulthood.

6 Ways To Raise Kids With Healthy Habits

As a health coach and fitness trainer, I’m often asked how I got my three kids (all young adults now) on board with healthy lifestyles. (Believe me, they aren’t perfect … but they make healthy choices most of the time.) My daughter is a vegan, ballerina and into yoga. My two sons love playing hockey and water sports, and sometimes I even catch them looking their food up on Fooducate to see if it’s healthy. That makes me one proud mama.

So I gave it some thought and here are six things you can do to influence your kids to choose a healthy lifestyle.

1. Practice what you preach.

You can’t ask your kids to do things you don’t do. You can’t ask them to eat their veggies if you never do, nor can you preach the health benefits of exercise if you never get out there and sweat. Your kids are watching you. Your actions speak volumes. My kids watched me work out regularly, make healthier desserts, find delicious ways to prepare veggies, make smoothies or healthy snacks and drink lots of water. Our kids pick up our habits.

Pay attention to what you say about yourself, too. Focus on positive self-talk and favorable statements about your body. If you’re obsessed with the scale, you are teaching your kids to be obsessed with the scale. Show them a healthy relationship to your body and to food. Focus on the positive. When my kids got on the school bus I’d always say, “The glass is half empty or half full today; it’s up to you.”

2. Make dinnertime a learning time.

At the dinner table, when my kids were little, I’d ask them: What on your plate is a protein? What’s a carb? We’d talk about how you need carbs for energy and how proteins help your muscles work. We’d chat about some of the health benefits found in veggies, or how fruit is nature’s dessert. They learned that food is fuel for the body.

I’d play a game with my kids called plant, animal or tree that spurred lots of conversation. I’d have them name where their food came from and we’d talk about how things grow. If your food is processed and comes from a box, it makes it a tough game to play.

3. Put yourself first.

For as long as I can remember, I’ve had a family whiteboard in our mudroom and every Sunday night I write everyone’s schedule on it for the entire week. If my kids see: “Mom is working out from 9am to 10am” they know that’s not a good time to ask me anything. They learned to respect my time. When my kids saw me prioritizing my health, they learned to do the same. Sacrificing ourselves and our needs for the sake of our kids (the whole martyr thing) only teaches our kids that we don’t value ourselves. And don’t forget that when you take care of yourself, you’re better equipped to take care of your kids — mentally and physically.

4. Pick your battles.

I battled with my kids about why we don’t eat white bread and why I wouldn’t buy it. They’d see it at school and want to have it at home for sandwiches. I explained why it isn’t healthy and why I wouldn’t budge. You can’t control what your kids are exposed to at school, but you can control meal options at home. I’d always acknowledge how my kids felt and validate their emotions, but I stayed consistent.

I don’t eat fast food, so we didn’t make regular weekly trips to the golden arches. Sometimes we all opt for what’s easy, especially when a day goes haywire, but as long as your choices are healthy most of the time, your kids get the message. If we were on a road trip, we might pick a quick restaurant that doesn’t have a drive-through (think Chipotle or Subway) as those tend to be a little bit healthier than the fast food options.

5. Be active together as a family and make it fun.

I always say: The most important workout is the one you do. If you despise something, you probably won’t do it, and you definitely won’t stick with it. Find a type of exercise you love to do and encourage your kids to do the same. Get active as a whole family. You don’t have to sign up for a triathlon, just get off the couch. Go to a park. Visit some museums. Go to a fair. Simply have a goal to move more and get every day activity. Go for a hike, swim or bike, or try something new like paddle boarding. If your kids learn that exercise time can be fun time — solo or as a family — what more could you ask for?

6. Get your kids involved in sports.

Give your kids a chance to try a sport. Let your kids decide a sport to try and experiment to find the one they like. If team sports aren’t for them, how about individual sports like swimming, golf, tennis, sailing, karate, wrestling, or dance?

Team sports build camaraderie, teach teamwork, and encourage friendships. Sports show kids to believe in their bodies and what their bodies can do, take care of their health, learn leadership skills and work as a team. Kids learn about winning and losing. Many adults recall a favorite coach who became a mentor and was a positive influence. Sports teach skills that can last a lifetime.

When our kids see us blazing a healthy path, they just might follow in our footsteps.

Source; mind body green

Many Doctors Recommend E-Cigs as Anti-Smoking Aid

E-cigarettes seem to be everywhere these days, and a new study finds many U.S. doctors recommending them to smokers as a way to kick the tobacco habit.

“Even in the absence of evidence regarding the health impact of e-cigarettes and other vaping devices, a third of physicians we surveyed are recommending e-cigarettes to their patients to help quit smoking,” study co-author Leah Ranney, associate director of the Tobacco Prevention and Evaluation Program at the University of North Carolina, said in a university news release.

Many Doctors Recommend E-Cigs as Anti-Smoking Aid

The researchers cautioned, however, that more research is needed to determine if e-cigarettes are safe and if they actually help people to stop smoking.

E-cigarettes work by turning various concentrations of nicotine, flavorings and other chemicals into a vapor that can be inhaled — a process also known as “vaping.” Most of the nicotine in e-cigarettes enters the bloodstream through the soft tissue in users’ cheeks, not their lungs. The safety and effectiveness of e-cigarettes, however, remains unclear.

In conducting the study, published online July 29 in the journal PLOS ONE, Ranney and her colleagues randomly selected 128 doctors in North Carolina and asked them about their attitudes towards e-cigarettes.

The researchers found that two-thirds of the doctors believed the devices could be a useful tool to help people quit smoking. In fact, 35 percent said they had recommended e-cigarettes to their patients.

However, “e-cigarettes are not approved by the [U.S. Food and Drug Administration] for smoking cessation,” Ranney said. She suggested that “physicians should refrain from recommending e-cigarettes until more is known about their safety.”

Doctors were more likely to recommend e-cigarettes if their patients asked about them or if they believed these products were safer than smoking regular cigarettes.

The study authors cautioned that some doctors may have conflicting information about the safety of e-cigarettes. Among those polled, 13 percent were unaware that e-cigarettes are not FDA-approved.

Study co-author Dr. Adam Goldstein, a University of North Carolina family medicine physician, noted in the news release that “physicians may choose to use FDA-approved medications rather than devices and products not approved by FDA.”

The study was funded by the U.S. National Cancer Institute and the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services.

Source: webmd

Is It Safe To Eat Papaya During Pregnancy?

Is papaya your favorite fruit? If yes, then you should know that it is a very healthy breakfast option. Papaya is good for your digestive system, hair and skin. However, if you happen to be pregnant, you might have to stay away from your favorite fruit for nine months. However, you can always apply ripe papaya on your face and hair, for glowing skin and smooth tresses. The beneficial properties of papaya might not work when you are pregnant. It is important to know why.

Papaya is a tropical fruit which tastes delicious and is healthy as well. This fruit is packed with minerals, calcium, potassium, fiber, flavonoids and carotenoids. Papaya is considered as a fruit supplement to improve cardiovascular health and provide protection from colon cancer.

Is papaya good during pregnancy? Even though the fruit is healthy, women during their pregnancy are often advised by doctors to avoid eating papaya. In the countries such as Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka, it is believed that papaya can cause miscarriage or even natural abortion.

Is it really true? Let’s check out some facts and get to the conclusion whether papaya is safe to consume during pregnancy.

Is It Safe To Eat Papaya During Pregnancy

Benefits of Eating Papaya in Pregnancy:

In some cases, consumption of papaya during pregnancy is thought to be absolutely safe. Here are they:

Fully’ ripe papaya has reduced latex concentration that doesn’t cause harm in pregnancy.Generally, the latex present in green papaya cause allergies in many people. It causes redness, itching, inflammation, dizziness, abdominal pain and difficulty in swallowing. Those who are allergic to papaya also react to kiwi fruit, pineapples, melons, figs, bananas and avocadoes. So stay away from these foods if you are allergic. Consult your doctor before you include any new food in your diet during pregnancy.

Ripe papaya is packed with nutrients, but should be consumed in small amounts. It is said that unripe papaya is not safe for pregnancy, but a fully ripe papaya does no harm. However, it is better to be careful while consuming papaya during pregnancy.

Ripe papayas also contain beta-carotene, vitamins A, vitamin B, vitamin C and potassium which are needed by the body.Vitamin A and C is needed to boost the body’s immunity, while vitamin B is essential for development of foetus.

Papaya is helpful in controlling and preventing constipation and even heartburn. Papaya helps to curb morning sickness and stomach cramps that are common during pregnancy. It also relieves bloating and gastric disorders common during pregnancy. Papain content in ripen yellow papayas are also thought to aid digestion.

Ripe papaya is helps in increasing hemoglobin levels. The rise in hemoglobin levels aids in more oxygen absorption. This helps to keep anemia and respiratory problems at bay.

Papaya can be effective in dealing with inflammatory bowel syndrome during pregnancy. A medium papaya has 119 of calories, 29.8 g total carbs and 5.5 g dietary fiber.

Papaya is rich in sugar content. One medium papaya contains approx. 17.9 g sugar. The sugar content helps to provide energy and provides relief from fatigue, which is common during pregnancy.
You can also consume ripe papaya during your pregnancy to ease pre and post-partum symptoms.

You can mix ripe papaya with some milk and honey. This acts as a tonic and is very good source of many nutrients that is best for pregnant women and lactating mums. Papaya has galactagogue properties that help in increased milk production.

Papaya has a wide range of medicinal properties like it is a natural antiseptic. Papaya also have anti-microbial, anti-parasitic, anti-inflammatory, diuretic, anti-diabetic, anti-hypertensive and anti-hyperlipidemic. The wide range of medicinal properties makes papaya a healthy option. However, it is advisable to check with your doctor the effect of these medicinal properties on your pregnancy.

The Risks of Eating Papaya in Pregnancy:

There is no doubt that papaya is good for health. Well that is applicable for normal conditions, while you are pregnant, papaya might not be a good option since it can cause abortion or miscarriage. Let us know whyunripe papaya isn’t safe at all during pregnancy. Here are few reasons why it should be avoided.

Unripe or even semi-ripen papaya includes latex that can activate uterine contractions. Papaya is generally used to treat irregular menstrual cycle and it is a potent emmengogue. Papaya can lead to uterine contractions and induce synthetic labour, this leads to miscarriage.The papaya latex has an enzyme called papain which activates prostaglandin and oxytocin hormones that strengthens and starts labour contractions.

The latex content in the unripe papaya also leads to pre-mature induction of the labour. This may also cause abortion and abnormalities in your baby. Generally papain extracts or papaya is given to those whose labour pains have not started at expected time of delivery. Papain is given by doctor in this case to start the labour pain.

Unripe papayas are considered unsafe during the pregnancy due to its pepsin and papain content that can slow down the growth and development of your foetus. In few cases, papain can ruin the chance of the foetus’s survival. Laboratory research reveals that consuming papaya or parts of the papaya plant during pregnancy can cause anti-implantation, increased chances of post-implantation loss and embryo toxicity.

Papain content in unripe papaya can weaken the vital membranes, which affects the survival of your foetus.Papain being a proteolytic enzyme is popularly used for cell dissociation. Cell dissociation is nothing but divison of cells into smaller parts. This slows down cell growth and tissue development in the foetus. Thus the chances of foetus’ survival become nil.

Unripe papaya also contains oedema, which is a latex-like substance and is considered bad for pregnant women. This can cause haemorrhage and even bleeding in the placenta.Generally oedema is common during pregnancy, it is caused by fluid retention in the body. It causes swelling and puffiness. The latex in the papaya aggravates oedema.The inflammation exerts pressure on the blood vessels and cause blood to pool. It also slows down blood circulation. Excess pressure on the blood vessels can cause internal haemorrhage and it can affect the growing embryo in the womb.

Haemorrhage placentas can trigger bleeding in placentas and again put the foetus’s life at risk. Haemorrhage in placenta causes complications during pregnancy and delivery. Papaya can cause disruption in placental formation as well, so it is not a good idea to have papaya during the early stages of pregnancy.It is very difficult to discern the ripeness of papaya, you never know the amount of latex present in it so it is better to avoid papaya entirely.

Papaya relieves constipation; sometimes excess bowel movement can also create pressure in the uterus and cause miscarriage.Though papaya is a great tonic for the digestive system, this beneficial property can cause harm to pregnant women. Papaya is rich in fiber, it exerts a little pressure on the stomach and intestines. This pressure might cause miscarriages. So avoid papaya even though it helps to relieve constipation and other gastric disorders during pregnancy.

Papaya seeds and leaves, which are often consumed, have a toxic substance called carpine that damages the central nervous system.

Papaya has two enzymes papain and chymopapain. Both these enzymes are teratogenic and abortifacient. Well abortifacient means papain will cause abortions. While teratogenic implies that the enzymes will affect the physiological growth of the foetus.

Woman with abortion and premature labour history due to the uterus contraction can experience bad effects from papain. Thus, it is advised to avoid the consumption of papayas especially in pregnant women who may have faced such problems before.

Women who don’t want to get pregnant can consume unripe papayas. This acts as a natural contraceptive to keep pregnancy at bay. Papain present in papayas suppresses progesterone, the female reproduction hormone which is responsible for preparing the uterus for pregnancy. Papaya is widely used Asian cuisine and many women have papayas for its natural contraceptive property. So that they can reduce the chances of side effects from birth control pills.

Source: mom junction

How pepper is good for your gut revealed

A new study has revealed that pepper reduces the risk of colorectal tumors.

According to the study by researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, the active ingredient in chili peppers – produces chronic activation of a receptor on cells lining the intestines of mice, triggering a reaction that ultimately reduces the risk of colorectal tumors.

The receptor or ion channel, called TRPV1, was originally discovered in sensory neurons, where it acts as a sentinel for heat, acidity and spicy chemicals in the environment.

black-pepper

Eyal Raz said that these are all potentially harmful stimuli to cells, thus TRPV1 was quickly described as a molecular ‘pain receptor.’ This can be considered to be its conventional function, which all takes place in the nervous system.

The scientists discovered that TRPV1, once activated by the EGFR, initiates a direct negative feedback on the EGFR, dampening the latter to reduce the risk of unwanted growth and intestinal tumor development. They found that mice genetically modified to be TRPV1-deficient suffered higher-than-normal rates of intestinal tumor growths.

The study was published in The Journal of Clinical Investigation.

Source: Zee news

Four myths about corn you should stop believing

Four myths about corn you should stop believing

There is nothing like sinking your teeth in a crisp cob of sweet corn. But few myths keep people away from the vegetable and it is time to know the truth.

Here are some of the biggest misconceptions surrounding sweet corn (only in the form of a vegetable):

  •  Corn is unhealthy – No! Corn is a vegetable that contains a lot of nutrients. The idea that corn is unhealthy likely came about because corn is high in starch.
  •  Your body cannot digest corn – While it’s true that corn has high amounts of insoluble fiber but this is not at all a bad thing. Insoluble fiber has been shown in research to help feed the “good” bacteria in our gut.
  • Corn isn’t a good source of nutrients – Corn contains a certain amount of vitamin B and C, as well as magnesium and potassium. Yellow corn is also a good source of antioxidants, which are good for eyes.
  •  You shouldn’t eat corn because it’s really high in sugar – You don’t stop having bananas just because you think they’re high in sugar. Then why should you do the same for corn? A cob of corn has around 6 to 8 grams of sugar, while a banana has about 15.

Source: Hidustan times