A woman’s menstrual cycle averages about 28 days long; however, some are shorter and some are longer. The reasons for a slow starting period are best understood in the context of understanding the normal menstrual cycle.

Periods begin usually when a girl is 10-14 years old.  She already has all the eggs she’s going to have and they begin to mature in response to hormonal changes in the body. The maturing follicles release estrogen, which allows the follicles to ripen over about a week.  The lining of the uterus thickens and the cervical mucus changes to allow sperm to pass.  This is known as ovulation.  The Fallopian tube comes in closer contact to the ovaries to allow the ripened egg to enter the tube more easily.  There is a surge of Luteinizing hormone that allows the egg to be released.

At the time of ovulation and in the days after, the follicle that released the egg becomes what’s called the corpus luteum.  It produced hormones, including estrogen and progesterone, necessary to maintain a pregnancy if one occurs.  If no pregnancy occurs, the follicle becomes white in color and is called the corpus albicans.  Before the period occurs, the woman may experience cramps, back pain, pain in the inner thighs, nausea, diarrhea, bloating, headache, constipation, breast tenderness, irritability and other changes in mood.

Periods are generally twenty eight days in length and depend solely on the date of the luteinizing hormone surge.  Exactly 14 days after that, the period occurs.  Women with a slow starting period, still have a luteinizing hormone surge, but the surge comes later than with normal individuals.  Causes of a delayed LH surge include heredity.  Women cluster in families who have a slow starting period. A woman who is obese will also have a delayed LH surge and will then have a slow starting period.  Any condition in which the estrogen and progesterone levels remain high in the first half of the cycle will delay the luteinizing hormone surge will likely lead to a slow starting period.

Women with a normal or slow starting period can suffer from premenstrual syndrome.  It is caused by the hormones existing before and during the menstrual period.  PMS can show itself as irritability, anxiety and mood swings.  The symptoms are relieved by the onset of bleeding.  It is felt to occur as a result of an excess of estrogen over progesterone in the premenstrual state.

Another type of PMS involves craving sugar, having fatigue and headaches.  Cravings to other foods, especially carbohydrates occur. It is due to an increase in insulin responsiveness prior to menses, which is, in turn, a result of the increased hormone levels.

It is a myth that every woman’s cycle should last 28 days long.  Many women have a slow starting period and find their menstrual cycles are up to 35 or 40 days long.  Women don’t always bleed every month either and find that they do not ovulate each and every month.  Women don’t ovulate every cycle and have what’s known as anovulatory cycles.  These cycles tend to be of a shorter duration than 28 days.  Some women have repetitive anovulatory cycles and always have short starting periods. The act of bleeding doesn’t mean a woman is not pregnant.  She can spot for a few days at the time of implantation of the egg in the uterine wall. It is also true that a woman can technically get pregnant or ovulate during the time of menstruation. This makes natural family planning difficult.

Regarding a slow starting period, some women have this condition as a result of a low thyroid condition or as a result of type II diabetes. If the slow starting period persists, a woman should be tested for both conditions and treated as necessary. If the problem is because of a thyroid condition, ThyroidAssist may be helpful. It is used to support the thyroid function.

The natural way to treat a slow starting period is to use herbs such as Dong Quai or Femalite. Both of these are well known for regulating a woman’s mentstual cycle and balancing the hormones. They should be taken consistently for at least 3 months before you may see the results you’re looking for.

A urinary tract or bladder infection is a type of infection that starts somewhere in the urinary system.  It can involve the bladder (most commonly) but can also involve the kidneys, the ureter and the urethra.  The ureters carry urine away from the kidneys and the urethra takes urine from the bladder to the outside of the body.  The urinary tract infection is believed to be the second most common infection of the body and about 8-10 million individuals in the US get some kind of urinary tract infection, most of them being women.

The symptoms of a urinary tract infection include an increased urge to urinate, the passage of small amounts of urine, burning or pain on urination and urine that looks cloudy or bloody. If the urinary tract infection has passed beyond the bladder to involve the kidneys or ureters, the individual will notice pain in the abdomen, side or back, fever, vomiting, chills or nausea.  This is a more severe infection than a bladder infection.

One natural treatment for handling a bladder infection is to make the urine more antiseptic. Certain herbs will make the bladder more antiseptic. Cranberry or blueberry juice can both prevent and treat bladder infections.  They have antibiotic properties and block the ability of bacteria to stick to the urinary track tissue.  Pick a juice that has been sweetened with grape or apple juice.

There are herbal remedies for dealing with urinary tract infections that work best if they are high quality, standardized formulas. Impure formulas can have bad side effects.  The herbal remedies that work well include goldenseal root which has long been used as an antimicrobial agent. One drinks it as a tea 3-4 times a day.  Capsule forms and tinctures also work well.  Another herb is called uva ursi that has strengthening and particularly soothing properties.  It can be drunk as a tea with two teaspoons of hot water in it to as a premade tincture.

Other herbs to use as a healthful tea for urinary tract infections include cleavers tea, which has long been used against urinary tract infections, marshmallow root tea, best used cold, buchu, which acts as a diuretic and urinary tract antiseptic, corn silk tea, which acts as a diuretic, horsetail tea, that can help heal the tissues and Usnea, a urinary tract antiseptic.

In addition, one should drink at least 2-3 liters of fresh water every day.

Homeopathic remedies have been suggested for the treatment of urinary tract infections. They are delivered as small pellets. Some herbal remedies include Cantharis, used for urinary urgency and burning, Apis mellifica, for stinging pain, Staphysagria, for UTIs caused by sexual intercourse, and Sarsasparilla, for use in urinary tract pain that burns once the urinating has stopped. My favorite source for homeopathic medicine is this one.

Other treatments for dealing with urinary tract infection include the application of castor oil packs that are applied to the skin to help the pain associated with cramping of the bladder or pelvis.  Sitz baths aid in soothing the pain of the urethral opening.  Adding goldenseal adds an antimicrobial and soothing effect on the urinary tract infection.

Cranberry juice serves to make the urinary tract more acidic which inhibits the growth and attachment of the bacteria due to the presence of proanthocyanins that prevent the infecting bacteria from attaching to the side of the bladder wall and when one drinks fluids, the bacteria wash away. Cranberry tablets have been found to be more effective than just juice.  The juice should be without sweetening.

The use of aromatherapy can help, particularly when one uses 20 drops each of eucalyptus and sandalwood.  Reflexology to the bladder areas of the feet can help halt urinary tract infections when done properly.

(NaturalNews) Regarding the current controversy about Rev. Wright and U.S. Presidential candidate Barack Obama, Rev. Wright is actually quite correct about the U.S. government’s exploitation of black Americans for medical experiments (and worse). What Rev. Wright is saying about the way the U.S. government has treated blacks in the last 200 years is remarkably accurate to anyone who has bothered to actually study American history. For starters, I recommend you read A People’s History of the United States by Howard Zinn, which will give you quite a horrifying account of how the FBI sought to assassinate black leaders, how law enforcement authorities looked the other way when crimes were committed against blacks, and many other difficult-to-believe (but true) facts about the history of America.

But that’s just the beginning. The real horrors become even more clear when you look at the history of blacks being used for medical experiments in the United States. The Tuskegee experiments only scratch the surface. In reality, the history of conventional medicine in the U.S. is filled with true accounts of black women, black prisoners and black babies being openly used in extreme medical experiments where they were injected with deadly substances, denied medical treatment to see what might happen as the disease progressed, and even used in government-sanctioned experiments like the EPA’s recent experiments on toxic chemicals in low-income children, which happened just a few years ago in New York.

Skeptical that any of this really happened? Maybe you just haven’t learned any of this yet. To help you out, I’ve published a list of just a few of the medical experiments conducted on blacks, minorities and prisoners in the United States. You can read the list yourself here: http://www.naturalnews.com/019189.html

Part two is here: http://www.naturalnews.com/019187.html

One account included in that list reads as follows:

1963: Chester M. Southam, who injected Ohio State Prison inmates with live cancer cells in 1952, performs the same procedure on 22 senile, African-American female patients at the Brooklyn Jewish Chronic Disease Hospital in order to watch their immunological response. Southam tells the patients that they are receiving “some cells,” but leaves out the fact that they are cancer cells. He claims he doesn’t obtain informed consent from the patients because he does not want to frighten them by telling them what he is doing, but he nevertheless temporarily loses his medical license because of it. Later, Dr. Southam becomes president of the American Cancer Society.

As you can see, not only are these human medical experimentation doctors NOT convicted of their crimes against blacks and minorities, they are promoted to top positions in the medical establishment!

It gets worse: The genocide continues even today
And yet, despite all the horrifying history of medical experimentation on blacks and minorities in the United States — much of it sponsored by the U.S. government — the situation is even worse today because conventional medicine is engaged in a deliberate effort to deny black people access to the truth about sunlight, vitamin D, cancer and skin color. As NaturalNews readers well know, the reason breast cancer and prostate cancer rates are so much higher in black women and men is because dark skin pigmentation blocks the healing UV rays that create vitamin D in the skin, thereby leaving black men and women chronically deficient in vitamin D. That deficiency, in turn, greatly boosts their rates of cancer — by nearly 500%! (The cancer industry loves this, by the way. It means lots of repeat business for cancer drugs and mammograms in the future.)

But instead of educating black men and women about this simple connection, the modern cancer industry (and medical establishment) refuses to tell black people the truth, thereby enslaving them in a system of high-profit medical treatments, all while pretending they have no idea why breast cancer is so much more aggressive in black women. Read my article, Vitamin D Recommendation Missing From Breast Cancer Task Force Report on Black Women at http://www.naturalnews.com/022151.html

Today, I’ve posted a scathing audio podcast on this topic, accusing the modern medical establishment of being engaged in crimes against blacks through its unwillingness to tell people the truth about why dark-skinned individuals need far more sunlight than white-skinned individuals. This audio podcast dares to tell the truth about the racist policies of modern medicine, and why Big Pharma wants to turn the bodies of black men and women into profit centers. You can listen to it right now at: http://www.naturalnews.com/Index-Podcasts.html

Of course, this profit exploitation motive isn’t limited to blacks. Whites, Asians and everybody else are also targeted for medical profits, but blacks are disproportionately impacted by the lack of truthful information about cancer and vitamin D due to their unique skin pigmentation. In other words, the intentional censorship of factual information about sunlight, vitamin D and cancer results in far more harm to black people than anyone else!

Obama sticks his head in the sand
Barack Obama, for his part, is now pretending the U.S. government never conducted medical experiments on blacks, or that it’s “un-American” to even talk of such things. These are the typical lies you’ll hear from any politician running for office, especially when that office is in a country where 99% of the people have been kept in the dark about these matters. In reality, I say it’s un-American to treat black people in the way they’ve been treated throughout American history. I say that all of us — white, black, Hispanic, Asian, Hispanic, etc. — have the right to be treated with dignity, with respect, and with our basic human rights intact. No person, no matter what their skin color, should be used for medical experiments, and when those experiments have taken place, it is the duty of honest citizens and the few remaining honest journalists to publicize those events in order to help ensure they never happen again.

Obama was quoted in the press yesterday as saying about Dr. Wright, “But when he states and then amplifies such ridiculous propositions as the U.S. government somehow being involved in AIDS. … There are no excuses. They offended me. They rightly offend all Americans and they should be denounced.”

In other words, Obama is saying that anyone speaking out about the U.S. government’s exploitation of blacks and its involvement in the AIDS virus should be denounced. Note carefully that he did not say the U.S. government’s medical experiments on blacks should be denounced! Rather, the people warning others about such activities should be denounced!

Or, put another way, Obama wants people to just shut up and pretend the U.S. government never committed these evils against blacks. He doesn’t want the truth to come out. He’s running for President, after all, and it’s better to just whitewash important issues than to have to deal with them honestly and openly.

It is never the wrong time to tell the truth
Some say that merely bringing up these topics is divisive and destructive to the country. To that naive criticism, I say this: As a human being, it is my responsibility to do everything in my power to stand up for those less fortunate. From the black babies injected with contagious diseases who couldn’t fend for themselves, to the foster care children who were “recruited” for the EPA’s experiments on chemical toxicity, these babies and children need people like you and me to come to their defense.

They are defenseless: The poor, the young, the children without parents… these unfortunate ones are being swept up into Big Pharma’s deadly medical experiments and the U.S. government’s dangerous experiments for military and industrial purposes. Who will defend them if not us? And how will we ever make sure we don’t repeat these true horrors of American history if we’re not even willing to admit they happened in the first place?

Rev. Wright is telling people the truth about how the government has treated blacks, and it makes Obama nervous. Obama is living in a state of denial, which is actually great practice for becoming U.S. President. Those skills will come in quite handy during future press conferences. What better way to become the first black President of the United States than to deny the history of how the U.S. treated blacks in the first place?

For the record, I don’t know for sure whether the government introduced AIDS into the population, but I’ve read a lot of books on epidemics and the AIDS virus in particular (including books by Len Horowitz, who I highly recommend as an author), and I can state with certainty that I highly suspect AIDS was, in fact, engineered by the U.S. government and intentionally introduced into the population as either a weapon of genocide or a population control measure. It all sounds quite sinister, but once you learn about what the CDC, FDA, EPA and USDA have already done to harm and kill so many people in the last few decades, it’s not a stretch of any kind to consider the possibility that the government may have also been involved in the creation and release of the AIDS virus.

My main point, however, is that regardless of what you think about AIDS and the government, at the very least we should all be able to openly discuss these ideas and debate them without being instantly denounced for merely bringing up the subject.

Remember, those who are the quickest to denounce so-called “conspiracy theories” are those who are least capable of standing up to honest debate. It’s the same for many issues: Vaccinations, fluoridation, 9/11 terror attacks, the AIDS virus, the war on Iraq and many more. Candidates like Obama don’t want the American people to actually think for themselves or question the status quo, because the minute people start questioning the status quo, the whole fragile U.S. economy and Big Brother power centers would start to crumble. The continuity of the U.S. empire depends, in large part, on the continued ignorance of the American public about what’s really true.

Recommended reading: Emerging Viruses: AIDS And Ebola : Nature, Accident or Intentional? by Leonard Horowitz

By the way, if you’re a member of a black church and you’re interested in learning more on this topic, I’d be thrilled to visit your church and present some of this information about cancer, sunlight, skin pigmentation and the conspiracy to deny black men and women access to the information they need to prevent cancer and save their own lives. Just contact me through the NaturalNews offices, and if I’m in your part of the country in the future, I’d be happy to stop by and talk to your church congregation about what’s really going on with the cancer industry and its blatant exploitation of black men and women in this country. It’s not a happy topic, I realize, but it’s one that needs to be told. And I’m not afraid to tell it like it is.

Because here’s the truth in all this: I have information right now that could prevent 90% of all cancer in black men and women. And I’d be thrilled to share that information with people. I personally find the black community to be very open to this information, probably because they are rightly skeptical about the way the medical establishment has treated them for so many decades. They know they’re being lied to, used and exploited by wealthy corporations and corrupt government officials. They know it! They just don’t know where to turn for real answers to this cancer problem.

Mother Nature has the answers, folks, and it’s time we told the truth about cancer so that we can end the pain and disease in the black community that has caused so much suffering (and generated so much money for Big Pharma and the cancer industry). It’s time to stop the genocide and start the healing. If we’re going to move forward, together, as a nation of people who truly have equal rights and equal opportunities, then we’ve got to stop the cancers, stop the censorship and start the healing. It’s the only way to move forward.

Learn more and empower yourself now
Here are some resources where you can learn more:

Downloadable MP3 Audio: Health Ranger Show #30: The Racist Cancer Industry, Blacks and Chemical Enslavement

Special Report: The Healing Power of Sunlight and Vitamin D (Free download)
http://www.naturalnews.com/Index-SpecialReports.html

Timeline of Genocide: The history of medical experiments on black, minorities and others in the United States, mostly by the U.S. government:
http://www.naturalnews.com/019189.html

(NaturalNews) A comprehensive review of 7,000 studies on the risk factors for cancer has uncovered a surprising link between being tall and increased risk. The report, jointly released by the World Cancer Research Fund and the American Institute for Cancer Research, found that those who are tall have a higher risk of developing cancer than those who are short. The researchers found evidence that the hormones responsible for quick growth may be involved in causing certain kinds of cancer.

“We found that tallness is also probably linked to increased risk for ovarian, pancreatic and pre-menopausal cancer as well,” said Walter Willett, a nutrition expert from the Harvard School of Public Health.

Willett emphasized that tallness does not cause cancer, but that it should be considered a risk factor. This makes it even more important, he said, that tall people have healthy lifestyle habits.

“We need to think about cancer as the product of many long-term influences, not as something that ‘just happens,’” he said.

“Americans are increasingly likely to attribute cancer to factors over which they have no control, and for which no proven links to the disease exist,” the report said. “This reflects an ‘everything causes cancer’ mindset.”

To counter this attitude, the report points out that 30 percent of cancer cases can be avoided by living a healthier lifestyle. Among the report’s recommendations are remaining thin, eating mostly plant food, and avoiding processed or red meat, alcohol, salt, and sugary beverages. The report also urges people to “be physically active as a part of everyday life.”

According to a survey by the American Institute for Cancer Research, the majority of people in the United States are not aware of many lifestyle cancer risk factors. Only 38 percent of those surveyed knew of the correlation between cancer risk and eating cured or processed meat, only 49 percent knew of the risk from diets low in fruits and vegetables, and only 46 percent knew that obesity increases the risk of cancer.

(NaturalNews) In December of 1965, while James Schlatter, a chemist for G.D. Searle and Company, was working on an anti-ulcer drug candidate he accidentally discovered aspartame. He was recrystallizing aspartame from ethanol when the mixture spilled onto the outside of the flask he was using. Some of the powder landed on his fingers. Schlatter discovered the sweet taste of aspartame when he absent-mindedly licked his finger later. He realized that the sweet taste must have been the aspartame.

The first report of the discovery of the artificial sweetener was in the Journal of the American Chemical Society. It stated:

“We wish to report another accidental discovery of an organic compound with a profound sucrose (table sugar) like taste… Preliminary tasting showed this compound to have a potency of 100-200 times sucrose depending on concentration and on what other flavors are present and to be devoid of unpleasant aftertaste.”

G.D. Searle has spent the last 40 years aggressively and recklessly promoting their accidental discovery with total disregard to the evidence they have gathered that show how dangerous and toxic this chemical is to human beings.

As early as 1984, studies were performed that clearly indicated the toxicity of Nutrasweet (aspartame) to living organisms. In 1984, the State of Arizona completed studies showing that aspartame in carbonated beverages can break down into free methanol (among other things) in 99F temperatures. Compare this to human beings’ average body temperature and we begin to see a problem.

On May 13, 1998, the University of Barcelona produced a study clearly showing that Aspartame was transformed into formaldehyde in the bodies of the living creatures, and that upon later examination the formaldehyde had spread throughout the vital organs of their bodies.

The chemical breakdown of Aspartame in the human body is as follows:

Methanol, from Aspartame, is released in the small intestine when it meets the enzyme chymotrypsin.

The methanol is then converted to formaldehyde. The formaldehyde is next converted to formic acid. Formic acid is toxic and is commonly used as an activator to strip epoxy and urethane coatings. Phenylalanine and aspartic acid (90% of Aspartame) are amino acids normally used in the synthesis of protoplasm when supplied by the foods eaten. When unaccompanied by other amino acids, they become neurotoxic.

The FDA has established at least 92 medical/health problems that have symptoms associated with Aspartame. These include abdominal pain, anxiety attacks, Arthritis, Asthma and asthmatic reactions, bloating, edema , blood sugar control problems, brain cancer, breathing difficulties, burning eyes or throat, burning urination, chest pains, chronic cough, chronic fatigue, confusion, death, depression, diarrhea, dizziness, excessive thirst or hunger, flushing of face, hair loss or thinning of hair, headaches/migraines, dizziness, hearing loss, heart palpitations, hives , hypertension, impotency and sexual problems, insomnia, irritability, joint pains, laryngitis, marked personality changes, memory loss, menstrual problems or changes, migraines and severe headaches, muscle spasms, nausea or vomiting, seizures and convulsions, slurring of speech, swallowing pain, tachycardia, tremors, tinnitus, vertigo, vision loss, and weight gain.

Aspartame disease mimics the symptoms and many times worsens the following diseases:

Fibromyalgia, Arthritis, Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson’s Disease, Lupus, Diabetes, Epilepsy, Alzheimer’s Disease, birth defects, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Lymphoma, Lyme Disease, and Attention Deficit Disorder.

In September 2004, an affidavit was signed describing the third world studies and the health hazards of aspartame. These studies were conducted in 1983 and 1984 by the G.D. Searle Company and were translated to English from Spanish in 1984. The “double blind” studies showed irrefutable evidence that aspartame caused severe health problems and even death to the study group. According to the affidavit, the doctor directing the studies has not been seen since the approval of aspartame in 1984. The affidavit also describes how the affiant was directed by G.D. Searle officials to destroy all records of the studies (including filed notes and/or translations) possessed by the affiant. The affiant also described how the translations were forwarded to the G.D. Searle corporate offices in Illinois.

These studies were destroyed and kept from the public and from health investigators.

About the author
Jo Hartley
Wife, Mother of 8, and Grandmother of 2
Jo is a 40 year old home educator who has always gravitated toward a natural approach to life. She enjoys learning as much as possible about just about anything!
http://www.loftymatters.com

Having a baby is one of the most joyous times in any couples lives. The addition of a baby brings with it great changes, but for some couples, they find that a return to pre-baby sex is also greatly affected.

Painful sex after pregnancy is not only a surprise for most women, but also an embarrassing topic. Many are not aware that this is a common issue that many women experience after childbirth. There can be several causes for this condition, and there are ways to help eliminate the pain. The good news is that most women report that by their baby’s first birthday, things are back to normal!

Birth-Heal - $ 26.95 Birth-Heal tablets are specially formulated to relieve the pain and discomfort experienced after labor, childbirth or a Caesarean section, increase the rate of healing, ease digestive problems and calm frazzled nerves.

One cause of painful sex after pregnancy can be directly related to hormones. After pregnancy a woman’s hormones are changing and many are breastfeeding which also has an affect on hormones. This can result in insufficient lubrication during intercourse. This is not a reflection on the new mom’s desire for intimacy, but rather a byproduct of childbirth. A water based lubricant, which can be found at area drugstores, is one way to ease the discomfort brought on by hormone changes.

Another issue for many women after childbirth is scar tissue from an episiotomy or tearing. This area can be very tender for weeks after childbirth, and it is not uncommon for women who have had an episiotomy to have painful sex after pregnancy. If the condition persists, it is important to talk with you health provider to make sure there is not infection present in the area. Also, this may be a good time to try different positions during lovemaking which may alleviate the pain. Again, the good news is that this kind of painful sex after pregnancy doesn’t appear to be a chronic problem for most women.

Kegal exercises may also help women who are experiencing painful sex after pregnancy. These exercises strengthen the pelvic floor muscles getting the pelvic region back in shape after giving birth. They also help with incontinence, a problem that is experienced by many women. Kegal exercises are done by lying on the floor with the legs bent. Pull up the muscles within the pelvic region, this should feel like the rectum and the vagina is being closed off. Kegal exercises can also be done while sitting or standing, but it is good to initially start by lying on the floor.

Vaginismus is another condition that can occur for some women. This happens when the muscles in the opening of the vagina spasm as a reflex to expected pain. Since childbirth is painful, women can experience this condition when they first resume intercourse. It is very important to discuss with your partner if you are experiencing anxiety about painful sex after pregnancy. Talking with your partner is truly one of the best remedies to painful sex after pregnancy.

It is important to keep in mind that painful sex after pregnancy is common; most women experience it to some degree. Not only are there hormonal and physical reasons for painful sex after pregnancy, but many women are just plain tired! Having a baby and caring for them can be exhausting; so make sure to take care of yourself too. Take the time to rest when your baby does, eat right and remember to drink plenty of water. Making time for you is another key in returning to sexual intimacy, so don’t neglect yourself!

Lastly, there may be natural products that you can take to speed up the healing process after childbirth. One such product is Birth-Heal.
Use Birth-Heal to:

* Speed up recovery from labor and childbirth
* Promote healing of perineal damage from the inside out
* Relieve the aches and pains experienced after labor
* Assist with healing after a Caesarean birth
* Relieve digestive discomfort and prevent constipation
* Impart a sense of calm and relaxation

Birth-Heal

The prospect of developing mesothelioma can be one of the farthest things from a woman’s mind. Women today are busier than ever and are now more than ever challenging traditional gender lines both professionally and domestically. However, with these changes in our society over the past century, women must now be aware of certain dangers that they may now be potentially exposed to.

Among the myths that people seem to assume about mesothelioma, is that it is a disease that only affects men. While the overwhelming majority of mesothelioma instances arise in males, women are neither immune nor unsusceptible to this rare form of cancer. The foundations of these myths are typically within the nature of the causal relationship between asbestos exposure and the development of the disease in those exposed.

Because most asbestos exposures are industrial in nature, instances of occupational exposure among women had been largely unknown because of the female gender’s absence from this type of occupational environment. However, as women slowly entered these environments, their risk of developing diseases traditionally restricted to males become a real danger.

There are essentially two ways in which women are exposed to the asbestos fibers that precede the development of mesothelioma. The first way in which women may be exposed is through direct workplace exposures, which is also how the majority of men are exposed. When women stepped into the industrial world at the onset of WWII, they were embarking into a largely unfamiliar sector for the female gender. Unfortunately, women became exposed to the same dangers that men faced in these settings prior to the war, including exposure to industrial toxins. Among the more common carcinogens found industry at this time was asbestos. Before the dangers of asbestos became clear in the latter half of the twentieth century, it was commonly used in an insulation capacity on ships, railroads, and aircraft. Because these industries were so crucial to the war effort, exposures during this time were common and included women. While industrial exposures during this time were the most common, they are not limited to war boom construction. In fact, occupational exposures occurred up until asbestos was banned in the late seventies.

The other way in which women have been exposed is through a secondary encounter with the asbestos fibers. Often, men returning from factories had their work clothing washed by their wives or children. Sustained encounters with clothing covered in asbestos dust have led to the development of mesothelioma, particularly among women and children who handled the clothing. Exposures were not limited to just laundering however, and any way in which the asbestos was brought into the home by the laborer, left women and children at risk.

Luckily however, we know a great deal more about the disease then we did when cases were first diagnosed. Today there are preventative measures that can be taken by women and men to curb the likelihood of asbestos exposures. Mesothelioma treatment and financial assistance are now available to those who may have been affected, thus making a difficult battle with cancer a little easier for the patient and family. While there is no cure for mesothelioma, physicians and cancer specialists are working tirelessly for reach the point where we can finally eliminate this unfortunate disease.

Written by John Blume of the Mesothelioma and Asbestos Awareness Center. Read more about women and mesothelioma.

You May Also Be Interested In:

Diagnosing Mesothelioma

Mesothelioma Treatment

Libby, Montana: A Good Place To Die

Other Asbestos-Related Cancers

Working With Your Asbestos Attorney

Attorney? I Don’t Know Anything About Hiring A Mesothelioma Attorney!

Though bad circulation can spell disaster in the long run if not checked at the right time, there are people who are born with some anomalies of the circulatory system. These are known as congenital problems. Majority of the people though ‘acquire’ circulatory problems. These problems can be acquired during infancy, childhood, adolescence or as an adult.

It is indeed more common to see adults suffering from poor circulation, but children and young adults these days also have a growing tendency to develop circulatory problems. The reasons for developing circulatory problems for every one are same. If I could use two words to describe the causes – they would be over-indulgence and a sedentary lifestyle.

By over-indulgence I would refer to our tendencies to continue having fat-rich and fiber-less diets, excessive consumption of tobacco and alcohol (all in the name of relaxing the frayed nerves), and continued consumption of aerated or caffeinated beverages.

According to oriental philosophy, life in moderation is the best choice one can have. Poor circulation obviously has no connection with living in moderation.

Sedentary lifestyle is another important contributing factor to bad circulation problems. Especially those of us who have a desk-job, blame it on anything from bad roads to inclement weather to lack of time – but come to think of it, one could organize alternatives to squeeze out time from our days to indulge in some work out. Sedentary lifestyle also affects our brains, limbs and heart. When the heart does get adequate oxygen, supplied by the lungs, how can it spread it across the body along with other nutrients?

Poor circulation can also be caused by other factors like when we continue to be in one particular posture or position for a long period of time. Imagine taking a flight from Sydney to New York. Also known as the economy class syndrome, these long haul flights can result in the formation of blood clots in your legs. If left untreated, these clots can dislodge and travel way up to the heart and cause heart attacks or strokes.

Why do poor diet and sloth-like lifestyle cause poor circulation? The fats that we consume would gradually heighten the cholesterol levels in our blood, if we do not burn up the calories by way of physical exercise. This will result in the formation of hardened plaques on the inner lining of arterial walls – which are the main passage way of blood to flow.

Since the blood needs a hurdle-free route to flow continuously, the hardened plaques choke the arteries or the ‘carriers’, causing severe problems for the blood to flow. Ultimately, the heart is unable to pump further blood and do its normal function. For instance nicotine in tobacco is known to reduce the blood flow and cause constrictions in the passage way.

Smokers suffer from a common syndrome called Buergers disease, which results in inflammation of the veins and arteries in the lower section of the body.

Raynauds disease is another circulatory disorder which results in constriction of the blood vessels in the fingers and toes. If this disease is not treated in time, it could end up in gangrene.

So, if you ask, are there any factors which can cause poor circulation? Surely, there are!

Circulation problems can be dangerous to your health! Learn what you can do to eliminate circulation problems before irreparable harm is done. Click Here>>> The Self Care Guide To Circulation Problems

In one country in the world, a woman dies every seven minutes doing something very natural. Can you guess what it is? Read the article below to find out.

For more information on women’s health, please visit Women’s Health Magazine.

Many people believe that their memory gets worse as they get older. This is true only for those who do not use their memory properly. Memory is like a muscle - the more it is used, the better it gets. The more it is neglected, the worse it gets. This is the reason why older people have more trouble remembering than younger ones. However, people increasing in age can overcome this dilemma and can even further improve their memory by continuing their education, by refining their minds, by keeping themselves open to new experiences, and by keeping their imagination working. An important thing to realize is that different people have various ways of improving their memory. Watch the video above to learn what one well-known psychologist has to say about how you can manage a bad memory so it doesn’t ruin your life.

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Powerful Ways To Sharpen Your Memory.

The Woman’s Self Help Blog

Help Self Woman

Europe and all our neighbors on the other side of the pond have been well aware for decades, perhaps centuries, making fish an every day staple was keeping them a lot healthier. As American researchers began to catch up about five years ago, and doctors began telling their patients to take Omega 3, fish oil supplements sprang up on shelves from Walgreens to Costco. As we perused the shelves, often grabbing the first one thinking they were all equal, for the best price of course (I love those good deals, too), took them home feeling proud we took an active role in our health.

I tried so many knowing it would help with painful inflammation, bring blood pressure down, lower cholesterol, recommended by the American Heart Association for a healthier heart, the list of why we ought to take fish oil is endless. But the indigestion from every one was more than I could bear and benefits not coming through. I would ask my doctor which one, what brand and he said he didn’t know, just take one daily.

I tried all priced fish oil, from inexpensive to most expensive, until one day a capsule got squashed on my kitchen counter and the odor had me fleeing the kitchen. The smell was so overpowering, determined to get to the truth and my search began in earnest.

I looked at labels on the bottles in my cabinet. I had blended fish oil, cod liver oil, EFA blend capsules, balanced essential fatty acids, and as I began to research, soon realized the source of fish was the most important. It had to be a fatty fish and if it wasn’t fatty, specifically, salmon, sardines, tuna or mackerel, it wasn’t going to help. Neither blended, cod nor white fish fit the bill. Cod is a lean fish, blended is just that, a mixture. While all those fish are good for us, it is the EPA and DHA from fatty fish that hold healing properties we are looking for. And that is today’s textbook science.

Then I began to ask those manufacturers about their fish source, lab and purification process. A few I reached by phone, and in some cases, no one replied. Of those who did respond, much to my chagrin, replies were a bit nebulous. Most contracted out to fish oil suppliers from a number of different sources. Yet their labels said, “pharmaceutically licensed laboratory.” Licensed where? Somewhere in Europe was the most often heard reply.

Well here’s what I learned. If that fish oil was truly distilled in a pharmaceutical grade lab, using a molecular distillation process there wouldn’t be an odor causing you to run from the kitchen or suffer indigestion. Remember the capsule that squashed on my kitchen counter? It specifically said “distilled in a pharmaceutical grade laboratory.”

I was on an airplane the other day and of all things, sat down next to a fellow I graduated high school with 38 years ago and hadn’t seen since. With a long ride to Dallas, we talked about our lives, health, and learned he just had a quadruple bypass. As our conversation turned to fish oil, he said his wife was a trauma room physician and he was presently taking the new prescription fish oil, OMACOR®, prescribed by his cardiologist. He took out a capsule; we pricked it, and had to flush it down the plane lavatory. He had been complaining of indigestion every time he swallowed one and was told in a few weeks he’d get used to it.

Check, check and re-check the source of your fish oil. Prick it! If it has any odor whatsoever, throw it out for it has not been properly purified. There are miraculous healing benefits to be had but remember, all fish are not created equal nor are all purification processes what they say they are. Seems everyone has rushed in jumping on this band wagon creating fish oil supplements with few passing the prick test. But rest assured, there are some great ones out there.

Lois Smithers has spent years researching Omega 3’s and other sea-based health solutions. A former avid equestrian who suffered competition injuries, she credits Omega 3 with ending painful chronic inflammation from two fractured vertebra. Together with Debra Morgan, they own Sea-Based Health, LLC, whose main focus is the latest Omega 3 research and sea-based solutions for today’s challenging health problems. To sign up for their Omega 3 Health Tips Newsletter, best Omega 3 sources, and latest medical research, visit, http://seabasedhealth.com

Memory is something that seems to get rusty for many of us as we age. The synapses that are responsible for transmitting information from the brain to the rest of the body just don’t seem to fire as effectively as they did in our younger years. This makes it more challenging to remember simple things like where you left your keys or the name of a person that you met recently. While this type of memory loss is perfectly normal as you get older, there are some techniques for memory improvement that you can use to enhance your retention. The good news is that these memory improvement activities tend to be healthy for the rest of your body as well. Are you ready for memory improvement to begin?

Exercise your Body and Improve your Brain Function

It’s true that keeping your body fit will keep your brain in shape as well. One of the first steps in memory improvement is to begin a regular exercise program that will benefit your entire body as well as your mind. Why does exercise contribute to memory improvement? As you exercise, your circulation increases, including the blood flow to the brain. More blood means more oxygen, and more oxygen means that your brain can function at its peak capacity. Studies have shown that as little as three months on a regular exercise program enhanced brain function to the point where participants were able to improve their scores on memory tests. All this on top of the improved physical fitness that these test subjects enjoyed. Memory improvement - just one more reason to get moving and get healthy!

Say No to Stress and Yes to Sleep

When your body is under stress, it releases a hormone called cortisol. This hormone can actually damage your hippocampus – the part of the brain that plays a role in memory function. When you are feeling stressed, it is also much more difficult to focus on information that is coming into your mind, and to process that information properly. This can make you feel like you are forgetting things, even though you probably didn’t get the facts into your head in the first place. Besides the mental effects of stress, your body doesn’t function too well under tension either. You will give your entire being a much needed break by finding stress busters that will help you to rest and relax sufficiently. This can include regular physical exercise (you just can’t get away from it!), time for yourself to relax and rejuvenate, and perhaps a fun hobby that you can enjoy. Memory improvement is only one night of self pampering away.

On the other hand, sleep has many positive benefits for your mind and body, and is unfortunately one of the most underrated methods to healthier living. A lack of sleep can make it difficult to concentrate on tasks and information just like stress can. It can also compromise your immune system, leaving your body feeling tired and run down. All of these symptoms can greatly affect memory in negative ways. If you are hoping for memory improvement, getting sufficient sleep should be high on your to-do list.

You Eat, Therefore you Think

A healthy diet has so many advantages for you, and one of the biggest pluses to a nutritious menu is the memory improvement that you will enjoy. In order to make your diet work for you in this area, fill your plate with foods that are rich in the B vitamins, like spinach, broccoli and juicy melon. Antioxidants that are found in berries, tomatoes and green tea will improve the flow of oxygen to the brain, helping those synapses fire most efficiently. Finally, the Omega-3 fatty acids that are found in fish like salmon and tuna are known to improve cognitive function. While supplements of these nutrients can be good for your brain as well, getting these substances from food is by far the preferable approach.

Memory improvement is not only a possibility; it can be a very achievable goal if you put your mind to it – so to speak. By putting some of these healthy habits into motion, you will be offering big benefits to your body as well as your brain. Think better – think happy.

For more tips and advice about how to improve your memory, please visit: Powerful Ways To Sharpen Your Memory.

Article by Wendy Travis

The key in understanding how to reverse and prevent heart disease will also unlock the healthy lifestyle that you have always desired but never been completely sure of how to achieve. The decisions that you must make and the habits that you need to form to live a healthier life for your heart are easier than you might think, and the rewards will last you a lifetime. Are you ready to begin living healthy? With the following steps in place, you will be on your way to a healthier, happier you!

Step One: You are what You Eat

Diet is such a key component in understanding how to reverse and prevent heart disease; it is hard to believe that so many folk are still wallowing in the depths of fast food “nutrition” and obesity. A heart-healthy diet will not only make you healthy on the inside; you will look and feel great on the outside as well – from your glowing skin, to your lean limbs! Eating right is easier than you might think. Stocking up on a good supply of fruits and vegetables is the first step, and reaching for your carrot sticks and apple instead of that donut when the afternoon munchies creep in is the second.

Next, make sure that you are getting plenty of whole grains, lean meats and low fat dairy. Omege-3 fatty acids have been shown to be effective in lowering blood pressure and reducing your heart attack risk. You can find this substance in foods like salmon, sardines and some cooking oils. At least to servings of this important substance each week will give you a lean, mean cardiac machine. On the flip side, avoid fats, sugar and refined or processed foods as much as possible, and only drink in moderation. For men, that means two drinks a day, and for women, the limit is one. With some good, nutritious choices under your belt (so to speak), you are learning how to reverse and prevent heart disease.

Additionally, there are a number of herbs and nutritional supplements that are excellent for the prevention of heart disease. They include:

Salmon Oil - Consumption of Omega-3 fatty acids may reduce the risk of coronary heart disease.

Ginko Biloba - Has been shown to prevent free radicals in the cardio-system

Black Seed with Garlic - Has been proven to lower cholesterol, improve circulation and lower high blood pressure

Hawthorne - Very effective in increasing blood flow to the heart and lowering blood pressure.

In fact, if you’re interested, there are a number of other herbal formulas and nutritional supplements that are excellent to reverse and prevent heart disease discussed here.

I Like to Move It, Move It!

Exercise is one of the best methods in knowing how to reverse and prevent heart disease. Any type of aerobic activity will do, whether it is walking around the block, biking through the neighborhood, or hitting the cardio machines at the local fitness center a few times each week. The federal guidelines for physical exercise recommend a workout lasting 30 to 60 minutes a number of times each week. If your schedule gets too tight on some days for you to fit the longer interval in, a few short spurts can get you on the right track as well. For optimum fitness, it is best to combine an aerobic workout with strength and flexibility training three times a week as well. This will get your body into its best physical condition, and help you to age with style and good health intact.

Exercise and a healthy diet will help you to achieve the next component in how to reverse and prevent heart disease, which is maintaining a healthy weight. The statistics on obesity in the United States are not optimistic in predicting a healthy culture today. Between the prevalence of fast food restaurants and the increased amount of time we sit in front of screens, it appears that our waistlines are begging for mercy. To get the extra pounds off, diet and exercise should be combined for maximum effectiveness. Once you see how much better you will feel by eating a healthy fare and getting physically active, you will see why these practices are so important in keeping your heart pumping at its best.

Other articles you may be interested in, Signs You Should Not Ignore: Signs Of Women’s Heart Disease

If you have ever suffered from the signs of a yeast infection, you know how uncomfortable and even painful the symptoms can be. It’s enough to make you run to your doctor and beg for antibiotics, right? Wrong, most of the time, especially when home cures for yeast infections are so easy to find. The problem with taking antibiotics for this type of problem is that it is often unnecessary, and even damaging to your body’s bacterial balance. Did you know that while antibiotics are fighting off the “bad” bacteria in your body, they are also killing off the “good” bacteria as well? By wreaking havoc on this delicate bacterial balance, we are seeing strains of bacteria that are stronger and more resistant to any type of medication than ever before. Your body can also get “used” to antibiotics when they are overused, rendering them ineffective and creating a need for stronger and more potent medications.

The good news is that because there are so many effective home cures for yeast infections, antibiotics are unnecessary in many cases of this problem. You can treat your symptoms and infection with a home cure for a yeast infection that includes diet, hygiene and herbal remedies. The key is in understanding why a yeast infection occurs (an imbalance of bacteria within the body), and how to treat it (by regaining the proper bacterial balance). In addition to a home cure for a yeast infection, there are a number of natural remedies that can be used to treat the uncomfortable symptoms like itching and burning that can occur. Are you ready to treat your yeast infection naturally? Your body will most definitely thank you!
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Read more about a home cure for the signs of a yeast infection.

Everyone wants to be healthy. That is why diet books and fitness equipment are such hot sellers, particularly at the beginning of the year when resolutions run rampant. You know that good health includes regular workouts, nutritious eating and a healthy weight. This is good for your heart and your lungs. But what about your female organs? While this is not one of the areas that you might think of first when you consider a healthy lifestyle, keep in mind that a healthy vagina can help to keep the rest of your reproductive tract in good condition and can help ward of bacteria and infection from invading the body. A healthy vagina diet should be one of the factors that you weigh when you consider a fit lifestyle.

A healthy vagina diet is not hard to achieve, and many of your menu choices will greatly benefit the rest of your body as well. You will spend plenty of time in the produce section of your grocery store shopping for your healthy vagina diet, as well as hunting through the meat and dairy section for the lean and low-fat selections. Yogurt is a particularly important ingredient in the healthy vagina diet, so take your time selecting the flavors that you like best. You will want to avoid many of the “no-no’s” that are recommended as part of other nutritious diet plans, since many of these less healthy choices can create a breeding ground for bacteria and infection in your vaginal area. Keeping your reproductive system in shape is an important part of healthy living, and a healthy vagina diet can be an essential part of your program.

To learn what a healthy vagina diet consists of, check out the healthy vagina diet, article. For more articles on this topic, check out our articles on Women’s Reproductive Health.

Article by Wendy Travis | Write for us|