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| HEALTH & FITNESS |
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Proper foot care prevents disability
Homoeopathy can help control asthma
Hope for depression sufferers as study links illness to genes
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Proper foot care prevents disability
On an average, on a day-to-day basis, a person spends several hours on his/her feet and takes several thousand steps. Most of the problems afflicting the foot are not because of walking but due to ill-fitting shoes. Our foot is an important weight-bearing part of the body but widely neglected. Foot pain affects both men and women but women suffer more commonly due to their light bone structure and wearing narrow-toe-high-heel shoes. Feet are designed to provide balance and strength during walking/ running even over uneven surfaces. When high heels are worn there is alteration in bio-mechanics of the lower limbs obstructing normal function. Wearing high heels makes the dainty ladies look elegant and tall, but its round-the-clock use has its drawbacks. Wearing high heels in the 20’s and the 30’s is easy to carry off but in age groups 50’s and onwards various problems start due to the loss of fat in the sole of the foot, osteoporosis of bones, etc. The problems commonly confronted are the following: Pain under the heel occurring early in the morning while getting out of bed or after prolonged rest can be due to plantar fascitis. The heel is attached to the foot by a strong ligament — plantar fascia. In individuals suffering from plantar fascitis, there is inflammation of this fascia causing pain. It is caused due to obesity, lack of flexibility in calf muscles, wearing worn-out shoes, flat/high arch feet and a sudden increase in training intensity. Achilles tendonitis is also a painful and debilitating condition in which agonising pain is experienced on the back of the heel in the morning or post-exercise. Achilles tendon connects the calf muscles to the heel bone. Narrow toes/ tight shoes increase pressure especially on the ball of the foot causing pain — metatarsalgia. Using high heels causes pressure on the constricting area manifold. Bunion is a common deformity wherein the great toe tilts towards the other toes causing a lump on the inner side. Bunion can be due to hereditary, inward motion of the foot, particularly in people having a short big toe, owing to frequent use of high heels and wearing narrow-toe shoes by the fair sex and people suffering from rheumatoid osteoarthritis. The symptoms are redness, swelling or pain at the great toe. The foot becomes so broad that it is difficult to get wide enough shoes. The shape of the foot is the most important aspect which should be watched in the early stages of life. Ignorance regarding minor deformities like flat feet, knock knees/bowleg, etc, compounds the problem of early detection and treatment. These deformities can lead to diminution in optimal performance and later leading to many injuries, gait problem, etc. When one’s foot is flat, then the strip (middle part of the foot) is of the same width as the front of the foot. Flat foot causes more wearing out on the inside of the sole and the outer part of heel. Early detection and treatment of mechanical defects in one’s feet are mandatory; otherwise one can face problems while running. Wearing heels more than three inches high are likely to cause sore toes, calf pain, knee pain and even backache. To prevent foot discomfort and deformity, it is best to avoid wearing high-heeled, narrow-toed shoes. Be more comfortable than fashionable. Too tight shoes squeeze the foot while loose ones slide and rub against the foot causing friction/corns. Shoes should fit well; have a firm heel counter, with a flexible sole at the front with good shock absorption. Wide and deep toe box shoes with low heels reduce weight on the forefoot, thereby preventing foot deformity. Exercises improve flexibility and strengthen our feet: l Foot roll: Rolling a golf ball or rolling a pin back and forth under the foot while applying pressure directly with body weight brings immediate relief for people with heel pain, arch strain or foot cramps. l Towel curls: Place a wet towel on the floor and curl it towards you, using only toes. This is useful for toe cramps, hammer toes, etc. l Object pick-up: Place a handkerchief on the floor. Pick up and drop down several times. l Toe pulls: Put a rubber band around the toes and then spread them. It is useful for people with hammertoes, bunions and toe cramps. Proper foot care and footwear should be given top priority so that one does not have to live with pain and disability. The writer is a former doctor/physiotherapist, Indian cricket team.
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Homoeopathy can help control asthma
As the harvest season starts, a lot of patients who are allergic to pollens and dust start reporting with symptoms of respiratory problems. Those suffering from asthma, bronchitis and sinusitis are the worst affected, and this is one of the worst times of the year for them. Although all these diseases are of the respiratory tract, they are different in their nature and causes.
Asthma is characterised by the presence of three symptoms known as the triad of asthma — breathlessness, cough and wheezing. Wheezing is the most essential component for the diagnosis of asthma. A sense of tightness is felt in the chest. Though no age group is exempt from its constricting touch, children are more likely to fall prey to this disease. In children, twice as many boys as girls are affected. There are some patients who have a personal or family history of allergy. They respond adversely to various allergens like pollens, dust or smoke and when they come in contact with pets. The second type of patients do not have a personal or family history of allergy and are known as suffering from idiosyncratic asthma. It is pertinent to note that the role of cigarette smoke is often overlooked in causing the attacks of asthma. Even non-smokers are at a very high risk of getting an attack from a passive exposure to cigarette smoke. The effects of a cigarette can linger on in a house for as long as up to a week. This is particularly dangerous for children who are sensitive to smoke. Also, research has found that the first three years of the life a child define its response to the various allergens and this stretches backwards to include the months of pregnancy. So, pregnant women should also be careful to avoid exposure to these allergens in general and cigarette smoke in particular. Another important aspect that is often overlooked is the role of stress in causing an asthmatic attack. The stress may be due to one’s personal life or from business or office situations. It has been routinely observed that whenever a patient goes through a stressful period, the attacks increase in frequency as well as severity. If there is one disease that has won homoeopathy the maximum laurels for treating chronic diseases, it has to be asthma. The gentle manner in which homoeopathy completely eliminates this dreaded gasping and panting malady is an example to study in the art of medicine. No strong medicines are used. No harsh measures are resorted to. No adverse reactions are ever reported. Only the internal healing powers of the body are harnessed and guided towards the right course and that too in the mildest of manners. Only the minutest of medicinal doses are used, and nature takes care of itself. In a significant and well-documented study at the University of Glasgow, Dr David Reilly achieved a success rate of 82 per cent in asthmatic cases with the help of homoeopathic medicines. Homoeopathic medicines like Arsenic, Sambucus, Carbo Veg and Phosphorus are very commonly used to treat asthma. All these medicines have their own individual indications and cannot be substituted for one another. These medicines are just a few of the many medicines used. Constitutional treatment is required to completely cure asthma so that there is no recurrence of these episodes. The writer is a Mohali-based practising homoeopath. |
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Hope for depression sufferers as study links illness to genes
Scientists have for the first time established a genetic cause for depression narrowing it down to a specific
chromosone.The discovery was made by an international team of researchers led by King’s College, London, who studied 800 families where two or more members had severe depression. They found clear evidence that chromosome 3p25-26 was strongly linked to the disorder. The paper is published in The American Journal of Psychiatry.
“This is a first step but it’s a big step,” said Professor Lefkos Middleton, one of the researchers. The next step will be to find the gene or genes responsible, understand their role and function and whether drugs can be used to correct it, he said. Gerome Breen, lead author of the study and lecturer at King’s College, London, the Institute of Psychiatry, said: “These findings are truly exciting as for the first time we have found a genetic locus for depression.” It was likely that the chromosomal region identified contributed only “a couple of per cent” to the risk of developing depression. But the discovery was significant because it was likely to lead to further genetic regions which could unlock the secrets of depression, which is forecast to become the disorder with the highest disease burden in the world by 2020. —
The Independent |
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Health Notes
London: Soon, it will cost just 435 pounds to keep tab on your ageing process. Scientists have developed a blood test which can show the speed of ageing and give an estimate of how long a person is going to live. The test results may be vital to life-insurance companies offering medical cover that depends on a person’s lifetime risk of falling seriously ill or dying prematurely. The controversial blood test is to go on sale to the general public in Britain later this year. The test has been designed to measure vital structures on the tips of a person’s chromosomes called telomeres, which scientists believe are one of the most important and accurate indicators of the speed at which a person is ageing. —
ANI Playing computer games may help recover from paralysis Washington: A recent study has revealed that computer games can speed up a patient’s recovery from paralysis after a stroke. American scientists have found that computer simulations and cutting edge techniques to produce computer-generated action could restore the lost function of an impaired arm. The volunteers who used these computer games and robotic training aids showed signs of regaining hand and arm movement together, unlike training sessions which concentrate on the two separately. The games, Plasma Pong and Hammer Task, were used to improve hand/arm coordination, accuracy and speed, while the Virtual Piano and Hummingbird Hunt simulations helped to restore precision of grip and individual finger motion. It was noticed that after training for two-three hours a day for eight days, all of the patients showed increased control of hand and arm during reaching. —
ANI Trainers ‘cause more injuries
than killer high heels’
London: So far, it was the heels that were a worry for you. Now it has been confirmed that even trainers that you wear to mimic celebrities are no less harmful - they cause far more injuries than killer high heels. And wearing the same trainers for leisure, the gym and other sporting activities also leads to problems. Many people wear trainers known as the ‘Lily Allen effect’ after the pop star, who promotes them. Chiropodists say one in 10 patients wears the wrong type of trainer. Four in 10 wear trainers every day, with more than half buying a new pair only every two years, reports the Daily Express. According to research from JJB Sports, the trainer is the perfect shoe, when worn correctly. But misuse and overuse causes 60 per cent more injuries than killer heels. —
ANI Obese men more likely to
have prostate cancer
Washington: Researchers at Duke University Medical Centre have found that obese men are exposed to an elevated risk of their prostate cancer worsening than slim men. This is even after they were treated with hormone therapy to suppress tumour growth. Researchers, led by Christopher J. Keto, urologic fellow at Duke University Medical Center, made their conclusions after looking 287 men whose diseased prostates had been removed during the period between 1988 and 2009. Since their cancers had reappeared, the men had also been given androgen deprivation therapy (ADT). The chemical inhibits production of the male hormone testosterone, which fuels prostate tumours. —
ANI |
Foot pain is an extremely common symptom experienced by most individuals at some stage in one’s life. The main function of the foot is to absorb the shock of the body’s weight