Healthcare, Health Insurance, Vitamins, Nutrition

As nuclear families are becoming the order of the day, greater life expectancy of elderly people, the geographical dispersion of families and the tendency for women to be educated and work outside the home has resulted in “Care homes for the elderly”. Traditionally elder care has been the responsibility of family members and was provided within the extended family home. However, in modern societies, elder care is now being provided by state or charitable institutions.

In the United States, most of the large multi-facility providers are publicly owned and managed as for-profit businesses. There are exceptions; the largest operator in the US is the Evangelical Lutheran Good Samaritan Society, a not-for-profit organization that manages 6,531 beds in 22 states, according to a 1995 study by the American Health Care Association. Some United States companies like Senior Helpers, Home Instead Senior Care, Visiting Angels, All Valley Home Care, and Comfort Keepers, offer long-term, in-home care for seniors.

A distinction is generally made between medical and non-medical care, and the latter is much less likely to be covered by insurance or public funds. In the US, 86% of the one million or so residents in assisted living facilities pay for care out of their own funds. The rest get help from family and friends and from state agencies.

Elder abuse is also a major concern in this age group. There are several types of abuse of older people that are universally recognized as being elder abuse, including: physical, psychological, financial, sexual or neglect. An abuser can be a spouse, partner, a relative, a friend or neighbor, a volunteer worker, a paid worker or a practitioner (e.g. a social worker, bank worker or solicitor).

Medical scams range from people posing as doctors and practicing without a license, to useless supplements, worthless or dangerous diet aides, fake medicines, unnecessary surgeries and cures for cancer. Here are a few from across the world:

Insurance scam: A news snippet:” The police have arrested a doctor at a major Ho Chi Minh City hospital, Vietnam and a pharmaceutical company representative for allegedly using health insurance documents to issue fake prescriptions and cash in on the drugs.”

Kidney scam: There are more than 100,000 domestic buyers thronging to the kidney market of India. Also vying with them are thousands of foreign nationals. For many of them, obtaining a matching kidney has become a matter of life and death. According to the police, Amit Kumar was operating a well-knit network consisting of several ‘clinics’ spread over seven states. While the main accused, with some 600 kidney transplants to his credit, is said to have fled to Canada, about a dozen people have been arrested.

Hair transplant scam: Young men are receiving hair transplants when they are not indicated and not showing any signs of balding. It is unfortunate that many people are preyed upon by surgeons looking to pad their wallets, but you need to be smart about what you’re getting yourself into. Educate yourself and use the tools available online to be able to better understand things. Unnecessary hair grafts worsen the condition. So map out your own hair for miniaturization before taking any step towards surgery.

These are but a small sample of the kind of medical scams that are happening. If you try a phoney medicine or treatment, use a dangerous weight loss technique or take medicine that you buy from an unqualified internet scammer, you could be putting your health at great risk. So BEWARE!

Everyone experiences occasional sleep problems, but getting a good night’s sleep is essential for feeling refreshed and alert during the day. Lack of sleep might make you feel foggy and unable to concentrate, or just a lesser version of your normal self. Sleep problems will eventually disrupt your work, family and personal relationships. There are more than 70 different sleep disorders, which are generally classified into one of three categories: lack of sleep; disturbed sleep; excessive sleep. Insomnia and snoring are by far the most common sleep related problems.

Almost everyone will be affected by insomnia at some point during life. Insomnia – a short term or chronic inability to get high quality sleep – is a common sleep problem and can be caused by a variety of things including stress, a change in time zones, an altered sleep schedule or poor bedtime habits. In many cases, self help techniques, including improved sleep hygiene, relaxation and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), can alleviate insomnia and promote better health as well as better sleep. There are several herbal remedies thought to help sleep. Examples include chamomile, valerian root, kava kava, chamomile, lemon balm, passionflower, lavender, and St. John’s Wort. These remedies have not yet been scientifically proven to work, although many do try them.

Snoring, which is sometimes confused with sleep apnea, can be a significant obstacle to quality sleep both for yourself and your partner. Snoring is caused by a narrowing of your airway, either from poor sleep posture, excess weight or physical abnormalities of your throat. A narrow airway gets in the way of smooth breathing and creates the sound of snoring. Some self help tips to stop snoring would be to sleep on your sides, elevate your head, clear nasal passages, loose weight or avoid certain types of food and alcohol before bed time.

In 1929, the first modern group health insurance plan was formed.   A group of teachers in Dallas, Texas, contracted with Baylor Hospital for room, board, and medical services in exchange for a monthly fee.  Several large life insurance companies entered the health insurance field in the 1930’s and 1940’s as the popularity of health insurance increased. In 1932 nonprofit organizations called Blue Cross or Blue Shield first offered group health plans and they involved discounted contracts negotiated with doctors and hospitals.  In return for promises of increased volume and prompt payment, providers gave discounts to the Blue Cross and Shield plans.

Government programs to cover health care costs began to expand during the 1950s and 1960s. Disability benefits were included in social security coverage for the first time in 1954. When the government created Medicare and Medicaid programs in 1965, private sources still paid 75 percent of all of the health care costs. By 1995, individuals and companies only paid for about half of the health care with the government responsible for the other half. During the 1980’s and 1990’s, the cost of health care rose rapidly and the majority of employer-sponsored group insurance plans switched from “fee-for-service” plans to the cheaper “managed care plans.”

It would be wise for all people to check their insurance benefits, make sure that their policies serve their needs, and simultaneously shop for the best plans as they also try to select the best doctors.

The weekend that passed saw the end of Michael Jackson, the King of Pop. For someone who had the world at his feet, to die so early with serious medical problems, seems like a tragedy. “It is believed he suffered cardiac arrest in his home. However, the cause of his death is unknown until results of the autopsy are known,” his brother Jermaine said.

Cardiac arrest is an abnormal heart rhythm that stops the heart from pumping blood to the body. It can occur after a heart attack or be caused by other heart problems. Michael Jackson also suffered from a skin disorder called VITILIGO. This disease explained his rather unusually changing looks. Medically, Vitiligo is a relatively common disorder that causes depigmentation in patches of skin. It occurs when the melanocytes, the cells responsible for skin pigmentation which are derived from the neural crest, die or are unable to function.

People who develop vitiligo usually first notice white patches (depigmentation) on their skin. These patches are more commonly found on sun-exposed areas of the body, including the hands, feet, arms, face, and lips. Other common areas for white patches to appear are the armpits and groin, and around the mouth, eyes, nostrils, navel, genitals, and rectal areas. In addition to white patches on the skin, people with vitiligo may have premature graying of the scalp hair, eyelashes, eyebrows, and beard. People with dark skin may notice a loss of color inside their mouths.

While vitiligo is usually not harmful medically, its emotional and psychological effects can be devastating. Some people who have vitiligo feel embarrassed, ashamed, depressed, or worried about how others will react. Fortunately, there are several strategies to help people cope with vitiligo. Also, various treatments can minimize, camouflage, or, in some cases, even eliminate the white patches.

Naturopathy deals with the healing power of nature since it believes that all healing powers are within your body. This means that within every human organism there is a healing energy, which includes our immune system in the fuller sense of both the physical and the psyche, which is responsible for our wellness and our ability to heal and maintain health. Since we fall ill only when we go against Nature, the cause of diseases (toxins) is expelled from the body to cure it. Fasting has been described as Nature’s way to recover. A thorough rest, which includes fasting, is the most favorable condition in which an ailing body can purify and recoup itself.

Naturopathy has its origins in the Nature Cure movement of Europe. The term was coined in 1895 by John Scheel and popularized by Benedict Lust, the “father of U.S. naturopathy”. Naturopathy is practiced in many countries, especially the United States and Canada, and is subject to different standards of regulation and levels of acceptance. In the United States and Canada, the designation of Naturopathic Doctor (ND) may be awarded after completion of a four year program of study at an accredited Naturopathic medical school that includes the study of basic medical sciences as well as natural remedies and medical care.

A treatment in Naturopathy for cold, cough and fever might sound like this. Squeeze a lemon in a glass full of water and drink repeatedly. This will cure all of the three ailments. But if the fever is high and makes one thirsty, boil the water. This will bring down the fever and reduce the thirst. If the cold is severe, it can be added to the required amount of honey in the above mixture. Acupuncture, reflexology, ozone therapy, applied kinesiology, psychological counseling are some of the techniques used by a naturopathy practitioner.

Exposure to air pollution contributes to the development of cardiovascular diseases (heart disease and stroke). A person’s relative risk due to air pollution is small compared with the impact of established cardiovascular risk factors such as smoking, obesity, or high blood pressure.  However, this is a serious public health problem because an enormous number of people are exposed over an entire lifetime.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) introduced its 1997 National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) to educate the public about daily air quality levels, including information about ozone and particulate matter levels. The American Heart Association supports these EPA guidelines for activity restriction for people with heart disease or those who have certain cardiovascular risk factors and for people with pulmonary disease and diabetes and the elderly.

Air pollution is composed of carbon monoxide, nitrates, sulfur dioxide, ozone, lead, secondhand tobacco smoke and particulate matter.  Particulate matter, also known as particle pollution, is composed of solid and liquid particles within the air. It can be generated from vehicle emissions, tire fragmentation and road dust, power generation and industrial combustion, smelting and other metal processing, construction and demolition activities, residential wood burning, windblown soil, pollens, molds, forest fires, volcanic emissions and sea spray.

Nineteen percent of all U.S. counties with air-quality monitoring systems are presently not meeting these standards.  This inadequacy soars to much higher estimates in regions such as the industrial Midwest (41 percent) and California (60 percent).

Some research has estimated that people living in the most polluted U.S. cities could lose between 1.8 and 3.1 years because of exposure to chronic air pollution. This has led some scientists to conclude that short-term exposure to elevated levels of particle pollution is associated with a higher risk of death due to a cardiovascular event. And prolonged exposure to elevated levels of particle pollution is a factor in reducing overall life expectancy by a few years.

- Water: One-fourth of the weight, of a strand of hair, is made up of water. Water makes your hair supple and soft therefore you should have enough water. Water keeps your hair silky and shiny as well.

- Protein: A diet for healthy hair should be rich in protein as hair consists of primarily protein. Proteins will give your hair more strength and will prevent it from breaking and splitting. Eat protein rich foods like fish, meat, milk, cheese and cereals.

- Minerals: A variety of minerals are important for healthy hair. Iron carries oxygen to the hair. Insufficient iron will starve the hair follicles of oxygen. Include red meat and dark green vegetable in your diet. Zinc prevents hair loss

- Vitamins: You must ensure that you diet has all the necessary vitamins that help in the growth of healthy hair. Vitamin A makes your scalp healthy and is good for your skin as well. It is found in vegetables especially carrots. Vitamin B and C for hair growth and hair color.

Your hair ultimately reflects the overall condition of your body. If your body is healthy and well-nourished, your hair will be your shining glory. If you are having any health problems or suffering from any nutritional deficiencies, your hair may stop growing or show damage or become brittle.