Monthly Archives: December 2014

General

5 Sure fire ways to help you stick to your new year’s resolutions!

I know, I know, you hear this every year, and you may even think you read this blog post somewhere before, but have you?

Have you done the things that make a difference to you and your success and really stick to your new year’s resolution this year?

No, of course you haven’t, or you wouldn’t be reading this, would you, eh???

Anyone who works in a management capacity will have come across the term SMART objectives. This are objectives that are:

  • Specific
  • Measurable
  • Achievable/Assignable
  • Realistic
  • Time based

So, how does this help you in loosing the spare tyre you’ve developed, or the want to quit smoking that you start with great gusto every 1st of January?

The trick is how to approach the problem, don’t just crash into a huge resolution and try and achieve it all in one go… This is almost guaranteed to fail, as the minute you have a hiccough it’s all over….. you’ve failed (in your head) and old habits return….

Think SMART!

  1. Start small
    (Read realistic here). If you want to loose 3 stone, start with a pound. If you want to run a marathon, start by putting on your trainers!
  2. Have a plan...
    By the end of March I’d like to have lost a stone, I’d like to run for 40 minutes…. Measurable – I’d like to have achieved this XX by YY (That’s measurable and time -based in two right there!) Work back from your goal, and break it into manageable chunks (there’s achievable again)!
  3. Don’t think resolution…
    Think end game results. I’d like to look good in that suit/dress that I couldn’t fit into this Christmas. I’d like to be able to dance all night at the Christmas party next year without having to sit down, I want to run a marathon, whatever the end game result is…. know it – feel it – own it. This is a specific, measurable, realistic and time-based. Make sure you have it in chunks and it is achievable
  4. Reward yourself…
    that’s with appropriate things, not chocolate if you loosing weight, but maybe a massage or a trip to the theatre, when you’ve hit one of your smaller chunks. Maybe even associate the treats at the time you make the chunks. Really have something to look forward too.
  5. Relax a little…
    If you have achievable, realistic mini-objectives, then a small deviance is not going to derail the plan. If you slip up, don’t beat yourself up….but likewise don’t reward yourself either. You’ll have to wait for the massage until you do actually lose the prescribed amount of weight. Get back on it and remember that the little successes add up to large ones

If you want to chat with other people with similar interests, why not come over to Facebook or twitter to our friendly community and have chat there or comment below.

 

Drugs

Existing indigestion drug could help to fight cancer!!

A common drug that is used everyday by millions of people to combat indigestion has now been found to possess anti-cancer properties which researchers are claiming could help in the fight against cancer.

Which one?

The drug in question is a drug called Cimetidine, and is at present used as a treatment for indigestion and other gastric related conditions such as gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and gastric ulcers.

Could it fight cancer?

In a recent study done by Dr Pan Pantziarka for the Re-purposing Drugs in Oncology (ReDO) project he found that Cimetidine may be able to block histamine receptors in any cancerous cells that may be found, and in turn would be able to assist the immune system’s fight against the cancerous cells.

Studies have shown a drastic impact for patients who had gastric cancer, melanoma and renal cell carcinoma who were given Cimetidine as a supplement to the other standard drugs that are used in the battle against cancer.

Why aren’t we already using it?

When Cimetidine was first produced and tested, it’s primary purpose was to help fight gastric conditions, but due to the long process that is required to create, test and market a new drug, the ReDO project was created to check existing drugs to see if they had properties that could be used to fight other conditions than their primary target.

Although ReDO have found that Cimetidine can help in the fight against cancer,  due to all the red tape there is in the medical world, it is not easy for them to get it back into the testing lab and get it properly tested in clinical trials

So… What do you think?

Do you think that we should be getting this drug retested to try and help in the fight against cancer?

Let us know what you think below…

 

General

New Saliva test could detect Alzheimer’s, Cancer and Baldness all for just £125!!

So… We’ve heard about a new saliva test that has been introduced here in the UK that claims to be able to genetically test your saliva for over 100 pieces of genetic information that could reveal how likely you are to develop certain medical conditions.

Who’s behind the testing?

The company that has created this test is actually a Google backed company called 23andMe, ran by Anne Wojcicki who is the wife of Google co-founder Sergey Brin.

It is believed that the test can find out if you are at risk from Alzheimer’s and Cancer, and could even shed light on the likelihood of you going bald! They also claim that the test can reveal information about your ancestry as well.

Is it a godsend?

It seems like this new test could be a godsend when it comes to trying to be proactive with your health, but as with all tests, the results received are not guaranteed to be 100% reliable.

In this tests case, although it may be able to predict (from looking at your genetic structure) the likelihood of Alzheimer’s or Cancer, because the results are not 100% accurate it has been banned in the USA due to the results being unclear and possibly misleading to patients.

Helps check for hereditary conditions

Ultimately, this new test has caused a split decision in the medical world, but if you or someone you know has, or may have had relatives that had any condition that could be hereditary, then it may be of use to see what the likelihood of getting that condition could be!

It may also be handy for prospective parents as this would indicate the likelihood of any genetic indicators that you may have being passed on to your child.

So… Will you take the test?

Do you think this new test is a good thing?

Let us know what you think below…

 

Drugs

Breaking News – Worldwide Crackdown on fake prescription drugs

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulation Agency (MHRA) says more than a million doses of fake prescription drugs worth approximately £2m have been seized from the UK’s postal service and ports during its latest crackdown.

Packages from Australia, Canada and New Zealand have been stopped and searched at several major international airports such as New York, Chicago, London, Manchester and Sydney.

viagra-thumb

Fake Drugs Seized!

Almost 20,000 packages were seized during the operation. The seized packages contained fake prescription drugs from countries such as China, India, Mexico and Singapore.

Investigations at Heathrow and Manchester found over 1000 packages containing illegal prescription medication purchased through online retailers claiming to be branded drugs.

Some of the drugs ordered were bimatroprost (Glaucoma Eye drops), Insulin, Tramadol, Tadalfil and Sildenafil Citrate (Viagra).

What happens if you take fake drugs? 

If you purchase drugs on-line, you have no guarantee that the medicines will actually be the ones that you receive, or that they will even contain the correct active ingredient. So, there seems to be a clear choice between a drug not working or even making you very ill! You also forfeit legal backup if you experience a reaction, or if they have no medical effect on you.

Internet Service Providers for nearly 2000 individual websites were also contacted to try to stop the flow of fake drugs.

Is it really  worth the risk?

Many online pharmacies offer empty promises that the drugs they sell at cheap rates are legitimate drugs at cheap prices, when in fact they are just cheap imitations that will probably have little to no effect at all.

Be safe – and only go to reputable on-line pharmacies that are easy to contact and transparent in their approach.

UKMeds4U only offer genuine UK/EU-sourced branded prescription-only medication (such as Cialis, Levitra, and Viagra), and will NOT dispense any POMs without first issuing a private prescription (where suitable) by a UK GMC-registered doctor.

HealthInfoUK News, Viagra

Did you know that Viagra could ease the pain of Cystitis in women?

No? Well doctors at the First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University in Zhejiang, China think that it could!viagra

Not the usual, albeit painful type of cystitis which is easy to clear up, but the more serious long term form (Interstitial Cystitis) that can be very difficult to treat.

Causes and Symptoms?

It is thought that Interstitial Cystitis is caused by messages from the bladder to the brain getting mixed up, so instead of only sending messages to the brain when it is almost full, the bladder sends messages to the brain a lot more frequently, which in more extreme cases can be as frequent as every 10 minutes!

Does it actually help?

The theory behind how this works for women is that Viagra increases the blood flow to the bladder area, which in turn relaxes the muscles. By reacting in this way, the pain that is felt in the bladder area is reduced and the urge to visit the toilet as frequently is severely reduced.

Results of the study showed that the women involved showed a decrease in symptoms in a number of areas. They found that around 84% of the women tested showed a significant decrease for times they had to visit the toilet, and showed a large decrease in the amount of pain that they were in.

Light at the end of the tunnel for sufferers!

Indeed, excellent news for the estimated 400,000 people that currently suffer from Interstitial Cystitis in the UK now with around 90% of them being women, as it can be a very distressing condition and can lead to many years of pain. With this study and several others taking place, it looks like there is light at the end of the tunnel for those that have been suffering with this condition.

Don’t forget that if you suffer from Interstitial Cystitis or any other condition and have questions about your condition or just want to talk, then you can visit our community who will be happy to advise you or just have a general chat with you about any of your medical related issues.

For information on Viagra, please go to: www.ukmeds4u.com

 

 

Diet

Can a Mediterranean diet really combat obesity and reduce the effects of metabolic syndrome?

There’s been a common belief for many years that if you eat a Mediterranean diet then you’re likely to live longer, but now, there’s research that claims that by eating a Mediterranean diet you may actually be able to reverse the effects of metabolic syndrome, by reducing obesity and blood glucose levels that lead to the condition.obesity

Metabolic syndrome is combination of diabetes, high blood pressure and obesity which puts people at a higher risk of things like heart disease and strokes.

So….we thought that we would take a look into the facts and see what it all means to us…and see if there’s anything we can do to help ourselves, and you, get a bit healthier.

What’s involved?

Well….Its seems that the most important part of the diet is Olive Oil or nuts.

So, along with a diet rich in fruit, vegetables, fish and whole-grains, by adding nuts or Olive Oil you can help your weight reduce and lower your blood glucose levels.

That sounds too good to be true doesn’t it?

The research..

This information has come from a Spanish study done at Universitat Rovira i Virgili and Hospital Universitari de Sant Joan de Reus on a group of nearly 5800 men and women (aged 55-80) and were all at risk of heart disease. They were split into three groups, One group ate a Mediterranean diet with extra olive oil, another had the Mediterranean diet, with added nuts and the final ate a traditional low-fat diet. (you know…they one we’re all trying to follow).

Research showed the both the ‘Mediterranean diet’ groups lost weight and reduced their blood sugar levels…Pretty significant, bearing in mind the current advice is to follow a low-fat diet to achieve these results!

The Mediterranean diet also seems to stop people from collecting fat around their middles (the classic apple shape), which is commonly identified as being a precursor to diabetes…

It is estimated that if we increased the amount of fruit and vegetables we eat by just one portion per day, and the amount of nuts eaten by two portions per week, then this could prevent up to 5.2 million deaths from cardiovascular disease in just one year!

So, will you change?

It seems like our Mediterranean cousins have been getting it right all this time….Maybe think of every meal as a mini holiday…. but we’re not sure all the wine counts!

To find out more, check out the NHS Mediterranean diet information here and make your choice.

Comment below and let us know what you think or if you will be changing your diet – We think we will!

For more information on obesity and treatments to help with weight loss, please go to: www.ukmeds4u.com