How To Handle Your Headache

Approximately 1 in every 6 individuals or 45 million people in the United States suffer from chronic headaches. Also known as "cephalgia," headaches cost billions of dollars in treatment expense and lost worker productivity every year. Headache symptoms which persist and worsen call for a visit to your primary care physician to begin the process of diagnosis and treatment.

There are a number of different ways to classify headaches. They can be referred to as either secondary or primary. Secondary headaches occur as a result of some other condition such as a stroke, infection, brain tumor or head injury. Primary headaches, on the other hand, occur when the headache problem is the disorder. These can be further categorized as one of three main types: vascular, muscle tension and cervicogenic.

The most common type of vascular headache is migraine. Migraine headaches are usually characterized by throbbing pain on one or both sides of the head with a combination of nausea, vomiting and sensitivity to light and/or noise. About 15% of migraine sufferers experience an aura such as vision changes or disruption in taste, smell or touch as a precursor to an attack. While circulatory changes occur during a migraine, the cause is actually thought to be chemically mediated and neurologic in nature. According to nurse practitioner Penny Bernards, a headache specialist at the Neuroscience Group of Northeast Wisconsin, about 40% of migraines affect both sides of the head. Almost three times as many women as men are afflicted by migraines and 60% of the time there is also complaints of neck pain. Being alert to physical or environmental triggers such as certain foods, hormonal patterns and stress will help develop individualized treatment strategies and assist in determining if and what type of medication should be prescribed in your case.

Medication for SLE Lupus Symptoms

Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) symptoms are common in almost all lupus patients. Lupus is an autoimmune disease and because of that, also a chronic inflammatory disease that can affect many different areas of the body. The overactivity of the immune system by the lupus disease can cause unwanted responses by the body, one of which is massive inflammation. Common areas that lupus patients experience SLE lupus symptoms include:

Skin

Joints

Blood

Kidneys

Anti-Inflammatory Medication - Anti-inflammatrory medication can help ease the discomfort of SLE lupus symptoms by reducing inflammation and pain. Anti-inflammatory drugs are commonly used for lupus symptoms because they quickly treat symptoms such as fever, arthritis or pleurisy. Once medication begins, these symptoms may subside within several days of beginning treatment. For some lupus patients, anti-inflammatory drugs may be the only medication they need to control their symptoms. Common anti-inflammatory drugs used for lupus symptoms are:

Aspirin - Aspirin is an inexpensive, over-the-counter drug that has pain-reducing, anti-inflammatory and anticoagulant (blood thinner) properties. Aspirin can help relieve pain from symptoms, but may cause stomach irritation with some people and there are cases of aspirin allergies.

Acetaminophen (Tylenol®) - Despite what many people think, acetaminophen may not help with pain due to inflammation. Tylenol does not reduce swelling, but is a pain killer and can help with residual pain.

Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs (NSAIDs) - NSAIDs are a good anti-inflammatory medication and will help reduce pain from lupus symptoms. They are also useful for joint pain and stiffness. Some examples of NSAIDs are ibuprofen (Motrin®), naproxen (Naprosyn®), indomethacin (Indocin®), nabumetone (Relafen®), and celecoxib (Celebrex®). Many lupus patients have a preferred NSAID for their symptoms. Find which NSAID responds best for your particular symptoms. Be sure to always take NSAIDs with food to avoid serious gastrointestinal problems, such as stomach ulcers.

Corticosteroids for Lupus Symptoms - Corticosteroids are pharmaceutical drugs that try and replicate the body's natural production of the hormone cortisol. Cortisol helps regulate blood pressure and immune system activity. It is the body's most potent anti-inflammatory hormone. These steroids are different from the steroids that weight lifters or baseball players (like Barry Bonds...sigh) take to improve performance.

Corticosteroids work quickly to reduce the swelling, sensation of heat, pain and tenderness from symptoms. Essentially, the steroids limit the response of the immune system to the lupus symptoms, which typically is inflammation. Inflammation is your body's natural response to remove or repair an injury, in this case a skin irritation or joint problem cause by the symptoms. The corticosteroids pretty much say, "Whoa there immune system, hold back and let Cortisol handle this one."

Corticosteroid medications can be delivered in four main ways:

taken orally in a pill

delivered topically in a cream or gel

injected directly into muscle tissue or joint

given intravenously (IV) into the vein

Doctors will usually keep corticosteroid use for lupus symptoms at a minimum to reduce any side effects. Corticosteroid medication can cause a higher risk of infection, necrosis (premature death of the cells) of bone, osteoporosis, muscle weakness and fatigue, cataracts and even suppression of growth in children.

Lupus Antimalarial Drugs - Antimalarial medication is usually used in conjunction with other medications to treat SLE lupus symptoms. Antimalarial drugs are most often used for skin rashes, joint pain and mouth ulcers but can sometimes be prescribed for inflammation and blood clots. The two most common antimalarial medications prescribed for symptoms are hydroxychloroquine (Plaquenil®) and chloroquine (Aralen®). Antimalarial drugs do not respond as quickly as corticosteroids and may take months before results are seen.

Other Medications for SLE Lupus Symptoms - The three main types of medications used to treat lupus symptoms have been discussed, but there may be other medications prescribed by a physician for specific lupus treatments. Some of the other types of medications include:

Immunosuppressives (Immune Modulators)

Anticoagulants

Monoclonal antibodies (mAbs)

Each lupus medication comes with its own risks. Starting a new medication or stopping a drug you were previously taken has been known to cause symptoms. Talk to your physician about which medication is right for your specific SLE lupus symptoms.

Exercise Tips for Breast Firming

The bust also goes by the names "breasts" and "chest." Regardless of what you choose to call them, they are an area on the body that a majority of women would like to firm up. The way to do this is through some exercises that involve the body and some additional exercise equipment.

Misconceptions
The breasts themselves cannot be made larger through exercise, because they consist of glands and fatty tissue. But there are muscles underneath and above them that can be targeted. Working these muscles might not increase the size of your bust, but they can make it firmer.

Read more on Breast Firming and Increase Breast Size and also visit on Natural Breast Enhancement

How to Control Gestational Diabetes?

The diagnosis of gestational diabetes is done mainly during pregnancy. Usually, it lasts up to 24 to 28 weeks. According to various doctors, there are very few obvious symptoms of diagnosing gestational diabetes. These risk factors include family history, overweight or obese prior to pregnancy, race and age. Having gestational diabetes will put the baby and the mother at a risk for various complications. Thus, it is very important for understanding the various ways for controlling gestational diabetes.

Step one
One must speak to a health care provider as well as a dietician. This will give all the necessary information regarding the gestational diabetes. When a person is having all the basic information, it will become very easier to understand why there is an importance for following a careful diet.

Step two
Carbohydrate counting should be learnt. This is a method for that is used for helping in planning the meals as well as for controlling the blood glucose levels for helping a person feel better. The carbohydrate service is equal to 15g carbohydrate. For being accurate as possible, the serving should be checked for measuring the spoons and cups or a food scale. The nutrition facts label should be read.. while the label for nutrition facts should be read, the serving size has to be studied. Grams of sugar must be ignored even if it is included in the total gms of carbohydrates.