Home Remedies for Obesity

home remedies for obesity

Obesity, which is excessive accumulation of fat in the body, is determined by measuring a person’s Body Mass Index (BMI). Generally, a BMI between 18.5 and 25 is considered desirable. If your BMI is 30 or more, you are considered obese.

You can calculate your BMI using the following:

BMI=(Weight in lbs / (Height in inches x Height in inches)) x 703, or if you measure with the metric system use BMI= Weight in kg / (Height in meters x Height in meters)

This problem is mostly attributed to poor lifestyle choices, such as eating processed foods high in fat, oversized food portions, overeating, excessive drinking, lack of physical activity, lack of sleep, and other similar habits. Genetic factors and hormonal problems also tend to increase the risk of developing obesity.

Obesity is a great concern not merely because of the excess weight, but also because it makes you susceptible to a number of serious health problems such as Type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, and others.

It is important to adopt healthy lifestyle changes to combat this problem. In addition, you can use some easy yet effective natural remedies to help with your weight loss efforts.

Here are the top 10 home remedies for obesity.

1. Lemon Juice
Lemon juice is one of the best home remedies for fighting obesity. It helps improve digestion and aids in detoxification. Healthy digestion is an essential pre-requisite for weight loss as it helps your body get the nutrients required to burn fat. Furthermore, it helps remove toxins from your body that slow down your metabolism.

Mix three teaspoons of lemon juice, one teaspoon of honey, and one-half teaspoon of black pepper powder in one cup of water. (If you use freshly ground black pepper, then just add one-quarter teaspoon.)
Drink it in the morning on an empty stomach.
Do this daily for at least three months.
Alternatively, you can simply have a cup of warm water mixed with a teaspoon of lemon juice.

2. Apple Cider Vinegar
Apple cider vinegar is another popular home remedy to reduce excess weight. Though the actual weight loss benefits of it are still unknown, preliminary research has shown that it can help protect against obesity. It helps breakdown fat and hence prevents the accumulation of body fat.

Mix two teaspoons of apple cider vinegar in a glass of water. Drink it daily in the morning and preferably before meals.
You can also drink a cup of water mixed with one teaspoon each of apple cider vinegar and lemon juice.

You can have up to two tablespoons of apple cider vinegar in a day. Do not exceed this amount, as it may reduce your blood potassium levels over time and lower your bone mineral density.

3. Aloe Vera
Aloe vera is useful in treating obesity because it stimulates the metabolism, increases energy consumption, and mobilizes unused fat in the body. It contains natural collagen proteins that make the body work harder in order to absorb the proteins. In addition, it helps remove toxins from the digestive system and colon.

Take two fresh aloe vera leaves, peel them, and scoop out the pulp.
Put it in a blender along with one cup of citrus juice, such as orange or grapefruit juice, or simply water. Blend it for two to three minutes. Drink this daily for at least a month.

4. Green Tea
Green tea is another popular natural remedy to promote weight loss. A study at Penn State revealed that epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG), a compound found in green tea, helps slow down weight gain by limiting fat absorption and increasing the body’s ability to use fat.

Furthermore, green tea is packed with nutrients such as vitamin C, carotenoids, zinc, selenium, chromium, and other trace minerals.

Drink about three to four cups of green tea daily to combat obesity. You can also combine it with ginger tea or cayenne pepper.

5. Cayenne Pepper
Cayenne pepper helps control obesity and aids in weight loss. It contains capsaicin that stimulates your body to burn fat and increase energy expenditure. In addition, it stimulates digestion and suppresses excess appetite caused by malabsorption of nutrients in the body.

Make cayenne pepper tea by pouring a glass of hot water over cayenne pepper (start with one-tenth of a teaspoon or just a dash of cayenne pepper and gradually increase its quantity to one teaspoon). Squeeze the juice from half a lemon in it. Drink this tea regularly at least for a month.
Mix two tablespoons each of lemon juice and maple syrup in 10 ounces of water (one glass contains 8 ounces). Stir in a dash of cayenne pepper and drink it.
Use cayenne pepper and other spices, such as ginger, black pepper, and mustard seeds, generously in your meal preparations.

6. Curry Leaves
Eating 10 fresh curry leaves daily in the morning works as a great Ayurvedic remedy to deal with obesity and diabetes caused by obesity. Continue this treatment regularly for at least three to four months.

Research shows that curry leaves contain mahanimbine, an alkaloid that has anti-obesity and lipid-lowering effects. Thus, it helps lower body weight and reduces total cholesterol and triglyceride levels.

7. Tomatoes:

Eat a couple of tomatoes every morning on an empty stomach. Make sure you eat the peels and seeds as well because they contain dietary fiber. Tomatoes contain compounds that tend to alter the levels of hormones that affect your appetite.

Furthermore, being rich in vitamins A, C, and K, and magnesium, manganese, choline, folate, and other nutrients, they are good for your health. Also, they are packed with antioxidants that protect against cancers.

8.  Cabbage:

Make raw or boiled cabbage an integral part of your weight loss diet. It contains tartaric acid that inhibits the conversion of sugar and other carbohydrates into fat. Moreover, it is rich in vitamin C and low in calories but high in fiber and water content.

Being a cruciferous vegetable, it contains phytochemicals that help improve the imbalance of estrogen metabolism that not only causes your body to store fat but also promotes breast cancer, ovarian cancer, and others. Other cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, and Swiss chard are also beneficial in this regard.

9. Fennel seeds

Fennel seeds are believed to be useful in weight loss because of their diuretic properties. Diuretics help you lose weight quickly by reducing water retention. They do not cause long-term weight loss though.

Slightly dry roast and grind fennel seeds. Sieve the powder. Take one-half teaspoon of this powder twice daily with warm water. This remedy will also help relieve abdominal gas, indigestion, and constipation.
You can also drink fennel tea 15 minutes before meals.

10. Honey and Cinnamon

Include honey and cinnamon tea in your diet to boost your metabolism, increase your energy, and detoxify your body. All of these effects support weight loss. Honey fights obesity by promoting fat metabolism. Cinnamon helps you avoid overeating by fighting insulin resistance and also reduces oxidative stress associated with metabolic syndrome.

Pour a cup of hot water over one-half teaspoon of cinnamon powder (you can also use cinnamon sticks). Let it steep for half an hour. Mix in one teaspoon of organic honey.

Drink half of it in the morning on an empty stomach, about half an hour before breakfast. Store the rest in the refrigerator and drink it at night before going to bed.

Along with these remedies, make sure you drink eight glasses of water throughout the day to flush toxins out of your body.

Studies have found that plant-based foods can help fight obesity becausethey contain phytochemicals that prevent oxidative stress, which contributes to obesity. So, opt for more plant-based foods rather than processed, fast foods. Plus, include grapes, peaches, figs, carrots, and blueberries in your diet.

Another very important yet ignored tip to fight obesity is to have a proper breakfast. Research shows that those who have a big breakfast are more likely to lose weight and even a few inches off their waistline compared with those who eat a large dinner.

Source: top 10 home remedies

High cholesterol linked to greater breast cancer risk

High cholesterol linked to greater breast cancer risk

In a significant discovery, scientists have found a link between high blood cholesterol and breast cancer in a study of more than one million patients over a 14 year time period in Britain.

“Our preliminary study suggests that women with high cholesterol in their blood may be at a greater risk of getting breast cancer,” said Rahul Potluri, founder of the Algorithm for Comorbidities, Associations, Length of stay and Mortality (ACALM) study.

It raises the possibility of preventing breast cancer with statins, which lowers cholesterol, he added. The researchers conducted a retrospective analysis of more than one million patients across Britain between 2000 and 2013.

There were 664,159 women and of these, 22,938 had hyperlipidaemia and 9,312 had breast cancer. Some 530 women with hyperlipidaemia developed breast cancer.

The researchers found that having hyperlipidaemia increased the risk of breast cancer by 1.64 times.

“We found that women with high cholesterol had a significantly greater chance of developing breast cancer. This was an observational study so we can’t conclude that high cholesterol causes breast cancer but the strength of this association warrants further investigation,” Potluri said.

The research was presented on Friday at “Frontiers in CardioVascular Biology (FCVB) 2014” seminar in Barcelona, Spain.

Source: khaleej times

Cheap Portable Device to Diagnose TB Faster

Cheap Portable Device to Diagnose TB Faster

Researchers have developed a cheap enzyme-based method that can diagnose tuberculosis (TB) more accurately and faster than available devices.

This inexpensive portable diagnosis system can cut the time it takes to spot TB bacteria from weeks or months to less than half an hour.

Chemist Jianghong Rao of Stanford University and microbiologist Jeffrey Cirillo of Texas A&M University developed a chemical called CDG-3 that glows when it is broken down by an mycobacterium tuberculosis (TB bacteria) enzyme called BlaC.

The researchers found they could detect as few as 10 TB bacteria in a millilitre sample.

They then tested the method on 50 sputum samples from people in Texas.
It correctly identified all the samples that contained M tuberculosis visible under a microscope, and 80 per cent of those in which infections were not visible.

When tested in people without TB, the CDG-3 probe diagnosed them correctly 73 per cent of the time.

Rao and Cirillo are now working to develop a portable, battery-powered device that measures the fluorescence coming from CDG-3 as it is broken down.
The device is expected to hit the market in 2015.

A single test will cost about $5 (Rs 295) and will take less than 30 minutes to deliver a diagnosis, said the paper published in the journal Angewandte Chemie.

A device to cultivate single bacteria species: Millions of microbial species populate the world, but so far only a few have been identified due to the inability of most microbes to grow in the laboratory.

Edgar Goluch, an engineer, and Slava Epstein, a biologist, both from Northeastern University in the US have now developed a device that allows scientists to cultivate a single species of bacteria that can then be studied and identified.

This new device permits just a single bacterial cell to enter an inner chamber containing a food source, to which the only access is a microscopic passageway just slightly narrower than a single cell.

The passageway is so small that the first cell to enter it gets stuck, blocking entry by any other cell or species.

Once inside, this cell proliferate as in previous devices, and when it does it fills up the inner chamber with a pure, single-species sample, since it is isolated from competition from other species.
The researchers demonstrated the device’s ability to separate mixtures of cell types in a laboratory setting.

In one experiment, the researchers separated two different bacterial species whose cells are slightly different sizes — E coli and P aueruginosa.
In a second experiment, they isolated a combination of similarly sized but differently shaped species that commonly show up together in the marine environment — Roseobacter sp and Pscyhoserpens sp.

Finally, they used the device to separate cells of the same species that had been differentially tagged to glow either red or green.
The findings appeared in the journal PLOS ONE.

Source: Oman Observer

 

10 Amazing Health Benefits of Lettuce

10 Amazing Health Benefits of Lettuce

10 Health Benefits:

1. Low Calorie Content and Almost Zero Fat.
Lettuce has only 12 calories for one shredded cup.
This is why it is so good for weight loss.

2. Helps Weight Loss
Lettuce contains fiber and cellulose. Besides filling you up, fiber improves your digestion. Improving your digestion may not sound like a good thing for losing weight, but it is actually essential for long term weight control.
Fiber also helps remove bile salts from the body. When the body replaces these salts it breaks down cholesterol to do so. This is why lettuce is also good for your heart!

3. Heart Healthy
Lettuce’s vitamin C and beta-carotene work together to prevent the oxidation of cholesterol. This prevents the build up of plaque.

4. Omega-3 Fatty acids.

Romaine lettuce has a two to one ratio of omega-3 to omega-6. That’s a great ratio.
The fat content in lettuce is not significant UNLESS you eat a lot–but we actually suggest you do!

5. Complete Protein
Romaine lettuce’s calories are 20 percent protein. Like all whole foods, much of this protein is complete, but the amount can be increased by combining with balancing proteins.

6. Helps with Insomnia
The white fluid that you see when you break or cut lettuce leaves is called lactucarium.
This has relaxing and sleep inducing properties similar to opium but without the strong side effects. Simply eat a few leaves or drink some lettuce juice.

7. Lettuce is Alkaline Forming
The minerals in lettuce help remove toxins and keep your acid/alkaline balance in order. Once you are balanced on this level there are a host of benefits including greater energy, clearer thinking, deep restful sleep, and youthful skin. To browse more benefits check out Benefits of An Alkaline Body.

8. Low Glycemic Index
Lettuce has an average glycemic index of 15, but because it has so few calories, its glycemic load is considered zero. Foods with low glycemic indexes are great for anyone watching their blood sugars for medical reasons, or for weight management.
Of course, lettuce has no refined or white sugars and the host of problems that come with them.

9. Whole Life Food
Lettuce is almost always eaten raw, providing us with many micronutrients not found in cooked or processed food. Eating raw food also adds vital energies not recognized by nutritional science.

Large food corporations have not found a way to package lettuce long term or stick it in cans or boxes. Let’s hope they never do!
In fact, lettuce is one of the few foods which can be found organic and prewashed already in bins for you to eat immediately.

10. Lettuce Tastes Great.
Even though lettuce is very low in calories, many varieties still have a sweet taste. To maximize benefits from your food you should really WANT to eat it with your whole body–not just your mind saying it is good for you. If you like the bitter taste you can find more bitter lettuce options, too!

Source: health digezt

5 Things you should know before getting a facial

5 THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW BEFORE GETTING A FACIAL

1- Determine what your there for before you go: relaxation or treatment
Just like a massage, there are varying types of facials- some that are geared towards pampering and relaxation, and some that are geared towards treatment of specific skin issues. Knowing ahead of time what your goals are for the experience will ensure that you get the best results, and that your skin therapist heads sown the right path. Relaxation treatments typically consist of a thorough cleansing, minor exfoliation, steamy hot towels, and luxurious masques. While treatment facials are comprised of stronger exfoliators that may sting or tingle, extractions of pimples and blackheads, and the use of agents that may cause peeling (the good kind of peeling that means new shiny skin is on the way!)

2- Don’t book your facial on the eve of a big event

Facials often leave your skin a little red, especially if pimple extractions took place. [they are my favorite part… weird right?] Give yourself plenty of time to recover from any redness or peeling that may occur in the couple of days following your treatment. It’s always better to be safe than sorry, so I recommend about 3-4 days after your facial for anything major such as a wedding or event. Your skin will still be glowy!

3- Speaking of GLOWY- shiny has a whole new meaning!
Post facial, you’ll be squeaky clean like you’ve never been before! After several cleansings, hot towels, steam, and luxurious products- your skin will be completely free of any dirt, buildup or makeup. This means that when you walk out of the spa and back into the dressing room, you may not recognize yourself when you pass by a mirror. It’s ok- many of the other spa patrons will be in your same boat. And while it is tempting to quickly apply your makeup to feel human again- I suggest you refrain as long as possible to give your skin a chance to really breathe, free from all that gunk. This means yes, you’ll have to walk to your car with a bare face, and yes, your husband may look at you a little sideways- but if you can handle it… 12 hours sans makeup will do your skin some serious good!

4- A facial isn’t just for the face
While the vast majority of the treatment concentrates on the face, the rest of your body gets some good vibes too! The facial includes work on the neck and upper chest area, called the decollate. It’s all part of the body that needs to be cared for to help prevent aging, and to protect against the suns UV rays. So your therapist will continue the use of the steamy towels, masques, and lotions down on to your chest as part of the whole regimen. Beyond that your therapist will also offer a nice massage to the hands, head, shoulders or feet- usually while the treatment masques are working their magic on your face. It’s incredibly relaxing and all around good for the body and soul.

5- The benefits of a facial go well beyond a clean face
Not only does your facial treat the skin, it also treats the systems in the body that provide nourishment to the skin and its cells. While I was earning my esthetics license, I became interested in the lymphatic system and its role in the bodies health. The lymph system resides just under the surface of the skin and can be triggered to carry toxins out of the body with touch. Facial, neck and chest massage trigger movement in the lymph system that in turn, increases blood flow, circulation, and healthy cell turn over. All of which have huge benefits for your over all health and appearance. Pretty amazing, right!?!

So, if your lacking some luster in your skin, struggling with fine lines or acne, or just need an hour away for some ‘me-time’- I highly recommend you book yourself a facial. You won’t regret it! Be sure you come back next week to learn about my at-home facial routine too.

Source: Beauty snoop

Master of Medical Science(MMSc) at Texila American University

Master of Medical Science(MMSc)

Texila American University has developed knowledge; competency and research based customized Master of Medical Science programs in various medical specialties to augment the dearth of specialty doctors in various medical fields. Similar programs are very much in vogue in countries like United Kingdom, Australia and Malaysia. Dual degree will be offered , by TAU & UCN.

A unique program which helps to attain the Masters in a span of ONE year. Students with basic Medical Education is inducted into this program.

For more details register here: http://www.tauedu.org/texila-connect/signup.html

Watch our MMSc Program Video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ly5pQPLTnO8

India introduces four new vaccines in immunisation programme

India introduces four new vaccines in immunisation programme

India introduced 4 new vaccines as part of the Universal Immunization Programme on Thursday. Three new vaccines were introduced for children to fight the menace of rotavirus and rubella.

For adults, a vaccine to combat Japanese Encephalitis was introduced, especially in high-priority districts.

Speaking on the new development, Prime Minister Narendra Modi assured that the government will ensure that the benefit of vaccination reach all sections of the society. The PM also said that the vaccines have been introduced with the purpose of reducing child mortality by two-thirds.

The move was welcomed by health authorities across the country. Vice-president of the Public Health Foundation of India, Ramanan Laxminarayan said that the new vaccines will enable the government to save the lives of thousands of children. Laxminarayan also said that significant efforts are also being made on the part of the government to increase maximum vaccination coverage. Laxminarayan also termed the development as a huge success in child health.

Convener of the encephalitis eradication movement, Dr RN Singh has also expressed gratitude to the government for taking his appeal into account. Singh, a private practitioner based in Gorakhpur had written a blood-letter to the Centre on July 25 last year informing the Centre about the three major steps that the Centre must take to prevent and control the disease which claimed hundreds of lives in eastern UP, and to ensure rehabilitation of the already affected children

Source: IBN

99.6 percent of Alzheimer’s disease drug trials fail, experts find

99.6 percent of Alzheimer’s disease drug trials fail, experts find

Approximately 99.6 percent of Alzheimer’s disease drug trials are unsuccessful, according to new research from the Cleveland Clinic.

Using data from ClinicalTrials.gov – a government website that tracks ongoing clinical trials – researchers discovered that from 2002-2012, 244 drugs had been tested— and only one drug was a success.

With 10,000 baby boomers reaching the Alzheimer’s risk period, the need for drug treatment is immediate, the researchers said.

“We’re looking forward from 5.5 million victims [now] to around 14 million by 2050 if we don’t develop something. Yet we’re meeting this with a trickle of success in terms of drug development,” lead author Dr. Jeffrey L. Cummings, director of the Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health, told FoxNews.com. “The dramatic message is that Alzheimer’s disease drug development is in a disastrous state and we have to change this.”

Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia and causes memory, thinking and behavior problems. According to the Alzheimer’s Association, there is no current cure, though some symptoms are treatable.

Alzheimer’s memory problems appear to be caused by the formation of two major tissues in the brain – plaques and tangles. Plaques form when beta-amyloid proteins clump together, blocking cell-to-cell signaling. According to Cummings, plaque appears to come first in the degeneration process, but these clusters do not seem to damage the brain’s cells. Tangles are twisted strands of the protein tau. When they begin to form, nerve cells begin to die, causing memory failure, personality changes and other symptoms of the disease.

Currently, most drugs have been aimed at preventing plaque buildup, but the high failure rate of these drugs suggests the need for a better understanding of the disease itself, as well as a broader focus on other drug targets, such as the cell-killing tangles.

“I would argue that just as you would diversify an investment portfolio, you need to diversify [the drug development] portfolio to ensure there’s a chance for success,” Cummings said.

Another consideration is the economic impact of Alzheimer’s disease. According to the Alzheimer’s Association, in 2014, the estimated cost to Americans for the care of those of Alzheimer’s will be $214 billion— and an estimated $1.2 trillion in 2050.

“We are investing about $600 million per year in Alzheimer’s research and about $6 billion per year in cancer research… at the same time that Alzheimer’s is having a larger impact on the U.S. economy,” Cummings said. “That doesn’t mean we should be doing less cancer research; we should be doing more Alzheimer’s research.”

Lack of standardization among clinical trials is another roadblock to drug testing success, as inconsistent procedures can make data appear to be more or less successful, Cummings noted.

So far, five drugs have been approved for the treatment of Alzheimer’s, yet they only treat symptoms of the disease, not the underlying plaque and tangle process. One explanation for this is that scientists better understand the mechanics of Alzheimer’s symptoms, making it technically more difficult to develop drugs that modify the disease.

“Our new science is pointing us toward the plaque and tangle process; if we could arrest that process particularly early, we could keep people at a very high functional level,” Cummings said.

Additionally, Cummings pointed out that it takes 10 years for a drug to make it through the pipeline— meaning the science of drugs being tested now is already a decade behind. However, the protocol for testing procedures is unchangeable, meaning this delay is an inherent part of the drug development problem.

Developing drugs to combat Alzheimer’s disease is a multi-faceted and complex process, and these researchers hope their findings will highlight the importance of increased efforts.

“Overall, my message is we’re doing too little, investing too little; we need the help of the government, philanthropists, advocacy groups, venture capital,” Cummings said. “We need a very comprehensive approach to developing new treatments for Alzheimer’s disease, because it’s truly in a disastrous state.”

Source: fox news

Cancer-Fighting Diet: 6 Tips to Reduce Your Risk

Cancer-Fighting Diet

Following six diet guidelines can reduce your cancer risk, researchers say. The advice is a combination of what foods to limit or avoid, and which ones to eat.

The recommendations, which appear in the June 30 issue of the Journal of the American College of Nutrition, were spearheaded by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM), a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit group known for its advocacy of plant-based diets and alternatives to research on animals.

Perhaps not surprising for an organization that encourages plant-based diets, the advice highlighted the benefits of fruits and vegetables, and recommended limited consumption of meat. But dieticians and doctors not involved with the report say the guidelines are reasonable.

The guidelines are based on a review of published studies, albeit cherry-picked to highlight the advantages of a plant-based diet. The recommendations are to eat more fresh vegetables and fruits; eat more soy products; limit dairy; limit or avoid alcohol; avoid red meats and processed meats; and avoid grilled, broiled or fried meats. [10 New Ways to Eat Well]

“The overall recommendation is to favor plant-based foods,” said lead author Joseph Gonzales, a registered dietician with the PCRM. “Plants are rich in protective compounds, and help consumers avoid the cancer-causing substances found in animal products.”

PCRM’s recommendations are similar to those offered by cancer research organizations such as the American Cancer Society, although arguably more extreme in terms of what they say to avoid.

“It’s never a bad idea to cut back” on red meat or alcohol, as the PCRM recommends, said Colleen Doyle, a registered dietician and director for nutrition and physical activity for the American Cancer Society. But you don’t need to be a teetotaler or vegetarian to significantly reduce your cancer risk, she added.

The recommendations

1. Eat more fruits and vegetables, especially leafy greens, to help reduce overall cancer risk. Most doctors agree. “It is an incontrovertible fact” that a plant-based diet lowers your risk of cancer and heart disease, said Dr. Paul Talalay, a distinguished service professor at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, who was not involved in this study. The reason fruits and vegetables help lower cancer risk is that they contain protective compounds, such as the phytochemicals that Talalay discovered in broccoli in the 1990s, that reduce the risk of several cancers and, as reported this June, the toxic effects of the pollutant benzene.

2. Eat soy products to reduce both the risk and recurrence of breast cancer. Soy products — such as edamame, tempeh and tofu — also have protective properties and, if substituted for red meat, can help reduce exposure to fats and other chemicals that promote cancer and heart disease.

3. Limit or avoid dairy products to reduce the risk of prostate cancer.Studies have linked dairy to prostate cancer, but the culprit might be calcium. Yet other studies suggest that consuming dairy products might prevent colorectal cancer. Dolye said men should consider limiting dairy if they have a family history of prostate cancer.

4. Limit or avoid alcohol to reduce the risk of cancers of the mouth, pharynx, larynx, esophagus, colon, rectum and breast. The PCRM reports that one drink per week increases the risk of mouth, pharynx and larynx cancers by 24 percent; two to three drinks per day increase the risk of colorectal cancer by 21 percent.

As with the dairy recommendation, the dangers depend on which studies you read. Mouth, pharynx and larynx cancers are rare in nonsmokers, so a 24-percent risk increase isn’t something to fret over. Also, a drink a day seems to promote heart health. The American Cancer Society recommends that people limit their alcohol intake to no more than two drinks per day for men, and one per day for women (in part because of women’s smaller average body size).

5. Avoid red and processed meats to reduce the risk of cancers of the colon and rectum. Following this advice may help prevent heart disease, stroke and diabetes. Large studies from the Harvard School of Public Health revealed that regular consumption of red meat — particularly processed meats such as sausages and cold cuts — will shorten your life.

This news doesn’t need to ruin your summer cookout plans. Doyle said to “exercise common sense” and that the occasional hamburger or hotdog, even grilled (uh-oh, see the next recommendation), is fine. The broader issue, she said, is reducing consumption to reduce risk, given your risk profile and family history.

6. Avoid grilled, fried and broiled meats to reduce the risk of cancers of the colon, rectum, breast, prostate, kidney and pancreas. The reason is that cancer-causing chemicals called heterocyclic amines (HCAs) are created when creatine and amino acids in skeletal muscle, aka meat, are cooked at high temperatures. Even the smoke from grilled meat can contaminate grilled vegetables, which otherwise don’t have HCAs.

Cancer risk reduction doesn’t guarantee cancer avoidance. According to the World Health Organization, up to 30 percent of all cancers might be caused by a poor diet. The rest are attributed to smoking, pollution and genetics, which may affect you no matter what you eat.

Source: yahoo news

Guyana to improve water, sanitation services

Guyana to improve water, sanitation services

Guyana will strengthen and improve access to drinking water and sanitation services with a US$16,838,250 loan approved by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB).

The initiative is known as the program to improve water and sanitation infrastructure and supply. It calls for infrastructure projects to build, upgrade and expand water treatment plants and enhance access to adequate sanitation through measures to strengthen the supplier Guyana Water Incorporated (GWI), the design and implementation of a program to monitor non-registered water and a public awareness campaign on the use of water and proper hygiene practices.

Despite progress over the past decade in access to safe sources of water and sanitation, water and sewage services in Georgetown and other coastal areas still face constant institutional, financial and operational challenges.

For instance, the quality of water supply services is hindered by a deterioration in water distribution networks, with 50 percent to 70 percent of water used going unaccounted for at the national level (and more than 70 percent in Georgetown). Furthermore, the current sewage system covers just 48,000 people living in Georgetown — about 6.5% of the national population. The rest of the population seeks individual solutions, but in some cases these arrangements are not adequate.

The program is expected to increase the percentage of households with 24-hour access to water and water pressure that is in line with national standards, reduce the percentage of water that goes unaccounted for and raise the number of homes with improved access to drinking water and proper sanitation arrangements.

Source: caribbean news now