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| HEALTH & FITNESS |
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Osteoporosis vs spondylitis Correcting curved upper back Diabetes claims a leg every 30 seconds Noisy workplaces can send your BP soaring! Cancer may be ‘under control’ by 2025
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Osteoporosis vs spondylitis THE two-some are the most common diseases bothering almost all human beings mainly because they are based on diet patterns. They oppose each other in character and present symptoms in relation to the intake of proteins and calcium. One is atrophic in nature and other is hypertrophic. If proteins and calcium are taken in large quantities it leads to spondylitis and the deficiency of these two substances leads to osteoporosis. They can co-exist later due to senile osteoporosis. “Osteo” is a reference to the bone and “porosis” means when it becomes porous and weak. It means osteoporosis is a condition where calcium loss from the bone mass leaves the bones porous, weak and prone to injury or fracture. One feels tired and exhausted after some work. It is a metabolic bone disease. It affects the spine and hip more than the other bones of the body. Spondylitis points to the spinal joints, and arthritis is for the joints of upper and lower limbs. In these conditions the joint cartilage shows degeneration due to any other disease, injury, overweight or bad posture and also there is extra bone deposition around the joints and along the ligaments due to protein and calcium-rich diet. The bony projections are known as osteophytes. It has been reported in medical journals that osteoporosis is noticed after 35 years of age and commonly seen in women after menopause. The urinary loss of calcium is more marked. Disturbance in the hormonal pattern is one of the reasons given, but bad digestion and diet remains the possible cause to produce this silent debilitating disease. Calcium absorption from the intestines is affected due to bad digestion or by the effect of steroids and other hormones on intestinal function. On the other hand, parathyroid glands, which are lying along with the thyroid gland, are the regulators of calcium metabolism in our body and deficiency of this hormone can cause severe drop in the calcium level to produce “tetany” which is a manifestation of neuro-muscular excitability. Aging also contributes to the loss of calcium in the bones called senile osteoporosis. Whenever the body circulation needs calcium the bones are the resource and if this process of bone resorption continues the bones become osteoporotic. A high calorific diet rich in proteins and calcium without regular exercise can lead to the arthritis of joints and spondylitis of the spine. It starts with pain and stiffness in the body and swelling around the affected joints. The manifestations begin after 35 years of age while overweight remains a contributory factor. So, osteoporosis is the result of a low calcium and low protein diet while spondylitis of the spine or osteoarthritis of the knees and other joints happens due to a diet high on calories and rich in calcium and proteins. The people who like to take a lot of meat and milk products every day and live a lavish style of eating do suffer from arthritis or spondylitis after 40 years of age. On the other hand, people with poor digestion and low intake of milk products who live mostly on vegetarian proteins can suffer from osteoporosis. Men equally suffer from osteoporosis. At a recent osteoporosis detection camp males showed an equal number of osteoporosis as compared to females. Osteoporosis was detected among people between 32 and 68 years of age. The possible reason can be irregular eating habits, bad digestion and poor intake of calcium and protein products. Healthy-looking overweight persons, fond of eating junk foods with no liking for nutritional food, are also found to suffer from osteoporosis. A bad digestive system has also been observed in patients suffering from Rheumatoid arthritis (atrophic) in which osteoporosis co-exist. The treatment for osteoporosis consists of improving the digestive system along with food rich in calcium and proteins. Some patients also require anabolic steroids like “nandrolone decanoate” to counter the catabolic effects of gluco-corticoids or cortico-steroids. The anabolic steroids stimulate the digestive process, facilitate the absorption of calcium and proteins from the intestines and help in building the bone mass. Allendronates (osteophos) are found to be useful in giving quick relief to symptoms of osteoporosis and help in restoring the bone mass. To make up for the calcium loss, select calcium containing natural foods and vegetables. Milk and dairy products, fish and eggs, green leafy vegetables like spinach and cabbage, beans, peas, all types of nuts, dates and figs are suitable. Half ripe papaya, chikoo and mango containing phosphorous can help retain calcium in the body. Steps to remember
The writer, a Chandigarh-based senior orthopaedic surgeon, is the author of “Bedroom Exercises for Busy People”.
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Correcting curved upper back UPPER back hump is a common affliction, which could be primarily due to a structural or postural defect. The thoracic spine anatomically is the most neglected part of the body and, therefore, most prone to stiffness as compared to other sections of the spine. Structured in this manner, it is extremely difficult to stretch this part of the body. The thoracic spine starts just below the neck to midway down the back. This comprises 12 thoracic vertebrae that are separated by discs and attached to each other by ligaments. The normal curvature of the thoracic spine is between 20-50 degrees. A curvature more than 50 degrees leads to a deformity called KYPHOSIS. The postural round back is very common in adolescents due to wrong posture, sitting for a long period in front of the computer. If the computer screen is 15 to 20 degrees below the level of the eyes, then there is excessive stress on the upper back leading to pain and stiffness. People who spend long hours either in the car or in the office are particularly prone to upper back stiffness. A constantly stiffened thoracic spine leads to DOWAGER’S/BUFFALO’S HUMP, a condition in which there is the thickening of the soft tissue in the back of the neck. In children suffering from disc disorder the endplates of the disc spaces are not strong enough to withstand the pressure generated within. This leads to disc herniation causing back pain at an early stage, which worsens on bending forward and other physical activity but improves with rest. Older age groups suffer from degenerative disc disease, which involves most of the discs in the spine. Upper back hump also develops when the bones of the upper spine become thin and collapse on each other due to osteoporosis. This also results in the loss of height. Initially, in all cases of hump back there may be no symptom of pain but with age, discomfort and pain increases. There is fatigue and stiffness of the back after prolonged sitting, following exercise or lifting weights. Old practice of advising restriction of activities to adolescents experiencing pain as TREATMENT is still there. This is a rather incorrect advice. Only the restriction in movements that aggravate pain or discomfort should be adhered to. Rather physical activity is advisable or should be encouraged to keep the back strong and healthy. Upper back pain patients should not lift heavy weights or undertake manual jobs. Wearing braces in the initial stages can help reverse the hump partially. They also help reduce pain/ discomfort if present. Braces have to be prescribed for a period of two years. An exercise programme of specific stretching and strengthening exercises is recommended.
Surgery is rarely indicated. The only condition where surgery is advocated is severe deformity, i.e. more than 70 degrees of curvature. In order to prevent suffering from such affliction one should regularly perform stretching and strengthening exercises of upper back and always maintain correct posture. The writer is a former doctor/physiotherapist, Indian Cricket Team.
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Diabetes claims a leg every 30 seconds
Chennai: About 40,000 legs are amputated every year in India, most of them due to foot infections in diabetic patients, according to a study by the International Diabetes Federation (IDF). Every 30 seconds, a leg is lost to diabetes somewhere in the world. And upto 70 per cent of all leg amputations happen to diabetic patients. However, as about 85 per cent of the amputations are avoidable, the IDF, jointly with the World Health Organisation (WHO), made “put feet first prevent amputations” as the slogan of this year’s World Diabetes Day campaign. Dr A Ramachandran, Director of M V Hospital for Diabetes and Diabetes Research Centre here, said a recent study puts the high-risk threshold for amputation at 50 years for Indians. He said 65 per cent of the diabetic population in the country did not follow any foot care procedure, and among the 35 per cent, who followed some foot care procedure, only 2 per cent received family members’ help. As treating a “diabetic foot” might account for 40 per cent of health resources in poor countries like India, the Research Centre launched the diabetes amputation prevention initiative in the community (DAPIC) to coincide with the World Diabetes Day.
— UNI
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Noisy workplaces can send your BP soaring!
WASHINGTON: A new study by researchers at the University of Michigan has revealed that working in an atmosphere which has high decibels of sound can raise blood pressure levels. Sally Lusk, professor at the University of Michigan School of Nursing, who has studied noise’s effects on hearing loss for years, said her latest project gives one more reason for concern. “The literature suggests bringing down your blood pressure will help prevent heart disease and stroke, so understanding the relationship between noise and blood pressure is important,” Professor Lusk said. The findings, which are published in the latest issue of Archives of Environmental Health, were based on a study in a Midwest auto assembly plant that connects noise exposure with elevated levels of systolic and diastolic blood pressure and heart rate. Professor Lusk and her collaborators studied different types of noise in the factory setting: continuous “usual” noise (recorded between 41-103 decibels), elevated continuous noise (found to be between 46-124 decibels), and spikes in instantaneous loud noises (113- 145 decibels). While others have looked at blood pressure in factory settings before, the team took a new approach — outfitting participants with mobile monitors to take blood pressure readings and record noise levels throughout the day. Noise readings were taken every minute, while heart rate and blood pressure were taken every 10 minutes. The researchers conclude that blood pressure is more affected by overall noise exposure while the instantaneous peak noises affect heart rate. Noise exposure is both acute and chronic, as it seems to play out physiologically in multiple ways. Using hearing protection to reduce noise levels entering the eardrum was significantly associated with keeping systolic blood pressure lower, and while the effect on diastolic pressure was statistically significant, the effect was in the same direction, Professor Lusk said.
— ANI
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Cancer may be ‘under control’ by 2025 LONDON: Cancer, which is responsible for numerous deaths around the world, could become a “controllable” disease rather than a killer one within 20 years, according to a leading cancer expert. Patients will be treated as if they have a long-term illness such as diabetes, said Karol Sikora, professor of cancer medicine at Imperial College, London, and Hammersmith Hospital. He said it may soon be possible to identify those at risk of developing cancer, pick up the very early stages of the disease and control it in long term. He added that the treatment of the illness is changing so rapidly that by 2015 everyone will be able to have a blood test to establish their risk of developing it. It would reveal a person’s genetic background and calculations could be carried out to determine the likelihood of having cancer within their lifetime. But he warned that the cost to health services around the world would be huge. “The prediction is that by 2025 we will be talking about controlling cancer in the long term, not eradicating it but making cancer like diabetes. But the cost will be high,” Professor Sikora was quoted by Daily Mail, as saying. Scientists today have to concentrate on diagnosing cancer and treatments to save lives, which will probably be delivered in the near future by large global organisations running “cancer hotels,” he added. But the ultimate goal was to prevent the disease, largely by encouraging healthier lifestyles based on an individuals ‘personalised’ risk and better screening. — ANI |
