Ten Killer Diseases of Women

Like men, women are also continuously exposed to threats to their health. These threats are mostly related to her diet and working environment. Many of these threats are what we call as silent killers as they attack women’s health in a very discrete and slow way. In most cases, it takes long medication to finally be free from these diseases.

So what are the most threatening diseases to women? What are the causes and ways to fight them? Here are the ten most common but dangerous diseases of women. 

Heart diseases. Contrary to common beliefs, heart disease is not only men’s thing. It kills more people around the world than other diseases. Over the years, there is increasing number of women who died of this disease. Women above 50 are the most prone to these diseases. Accordingly, 27.2% of women’s death is caused by heart diseases.

Smoking (or exposure to secondhand smoke from tobacco and nicotine-based products), too much drinking and unhealthy diet are the main causes of heart diseases. In order to prevent or fight this disease, it is advised to include vegetables, fruits, whole grains, high-fiber food and lean source of meat in the diet. Foods high in saturated fats and sodium shall also be limited, if not avoided. Women should also engage in physical activities in their daily routines, say aerobic exercises, and find ways to effectively manage everyday stress.

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Why Do We Forget Our Dreams?

In the middle of a good night’s sleep, you dream of beautiful things. But sometimes, it would be of terrible things and tragic events. And when you wake up, you find yourself remembering only glimpses of what you have dreamed of….

This scenario is common to everyone. We wake up, forgetting most of our dreams but knowing we have dreamed about this and that and more. No matter how much we push our brain cells, they can only revive small clips of those dreams. So why do we mostly forget our dreams? Is this common?




According to Scientific American (as cited by care2.com), we have five dreams each night on average, totaling 1,825 dreams per year. Of these figure, we forget most of them. For Mark Balgrove, professor of psychology at Swansea University, people differ in their ability to remember dreams. However, if we translate them from short-term to long term memory immediately upon walking, chances are we can really put these dreams to better perspective. In other words, let us try to consolidate the things we remember right after waking up, may be by writing them down, to make sense of these dreams. Accordingly, half of our dreams are forgotten within five minutes of walking, and within ten minutes, 90% is gone.

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Image courtesy of Josephine Wall.

Foods that Cause Bad Breath

Every one of us does not like having an unpleasant smell emanating in our body, particularly in our mouth. However, we fall victim to bad breath in one way or another (see Causes of Bad Breath). One of the causes of bad breath that can be easily addressed is food.

Some foods contain chemicals that get into the blood stream and consequently cause bad breath. Others have naturally an unpleasant odor when chewed and digested in the mouth. So what foods must be regulated, if not avoided, in order to have fresh breath? Here are the foods that cause bad breath:

Garlic and onions. Examples of these foods are onions and garlic. When chewed, they create a very foul odor. They also contain sulfur compounds that ferment and result in terribly bad breath. Garlic in particular has odorous compounds including diallyl disulfide, allyl methyl disulfide, allyl mercaptan and allyl methyl sulfide.




Sugary foods. Because of the small components of this food, enzymes have an easier time breaking the substances down and therefore letting the bacteria dwell and consume the remnants of the food. These bacteria will therefore cause halitosis if they stayed inside the mouth for a prolonged period. In addition, the frightening part is that other bacteria can take the sugars and produce glycan strands, which in turn end up causing thick layers of plaque on the enamel of your teeth and around your gums. This leads to tooth decay and gum disease - and you guessed it - worse breath than you started with! When eating sugary food, be sure to brush your teeth after or at least give your mouth a good rinsing. Avoid breath mints and chewing gum that contains sugar as those will do more harm than good. Also lay off of the sugary drinks such as soda pop, coffee, and others.

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Image courtesy of PLOS.org.

Stone-Forming Foods

Since time immemorial, food is man’s source of nutrition. Yet, a sad truth is that this same food can also be a cause for man’s ailments.

One of man’s organs vulnerable to diseases is the kidney which serves as his body’s filtering and cleaning mechanism. Of the number of disorders affecting the kidney, stone formation is the most common. A kidney stone, also known as a renal calculus, is a solid crystal aggregation formed in the kidneys from dietary minerals in the urine. The stone can be located in the kidney itself, ureter or bladder. Accordingly, 80% of those with kidney stones are men.

 

Dietary factors that increase the risk of stone formation include low fluid intake, and high dietary intake of animal protein, sodium, refined sugars, fructose and high fructose corn syrup, oxalate, grapefruit juice, apple juice, and cola drinks.

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Causes of Bad Breath

Having bad breath is a big turn off. Conversing with a person with such condition is excruciating, and inhaling his or her expulsion of unpleasant air is torture beyond belief. And if we are the bearer of bad breath, it is demeaning for us, bringing down our self-esteem and social confidence. There are several means to address the problem of bad breath, but before we can get to this step, we must first identify the conditions that lead to it. So what are the causes of bad breath? Could there be more severe reasons underlying behind it?

Also called as halitosis, bad breath can be caused by the following:

Poor dental habits. Food particles can stay in our mouth and promote bacterial growth between teeth, around the gums, and on the tongue. The process causes bad breath. According to experts, the bad is caused by "volatile sulfur compounds" in our mouth which are produced by bacteria. The odor causing compounds are found among our teeth, under the top layer of your tongue and in your throat and tonsils. Hence, irregularly brushing and flossing of our teeth can lead to accumulation of these bacteria. Overtime, the bacteria can lead to tooth decay and gum disease which worsens bad breath.

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Ten Foods for Better Memory

In this modern world, we are faced with tasks and activities that require our brains to function efficiently, especially in the aspect of memorizing countless things like contact numbers, addresses, faces, schedules and more. The tendency is that we suffer absent-minded, and though there are several means to deal with it (How to Overcome Forgetfulness), it is much better to develop a healthy lifestyle to counter it. Hence, it is wise to incorporate memory-boosting foods in our diet.

Many of these foods help improve brain activity, develop a healthy nervous system, and regulate food flow. These foods contain either of the following essential components:

• Omega-3 fatty acids that help keep the blood vessels and nerve wrappings healthy.
• Antioxidants which are good for better blood circulation and brain function.

• Helpful vitamins like C, E, and especially B vitamins which facilitate the nervous system in the body’s communication system.
• Microelements like zinc and manganese.
• Others like choline, lecithin, serine, and carnitine.

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Ten Foods for a Healthier Kidney

The kidney is one of the vital organs in the body. It serves many essential regulatory roles such as control of electrolyte levels, maintenance of acid-base balance, and even regulation of blood pressure. The kidney is also the body’s natural filter, removing wastes such as urea and uranium.

With the critical functions that kidney plays, it is imperative to keep this organ in a good health. Many parts of the human’s diet pose threats to the kidney. Yet, certain parts may also aid in protecting the kidney from ailments and from malfunctioning. Read the rest of the article >>>

Ten Foods for a Healthier Prostate

Men over forty-five are very much prone to prostate cancer and other prostate disorders. The prostate is the gland below the bladder and above the rectum. Its function is to secrete an alkaline, milky fluid that makes up 20-30% of the semen volume. It also contains some smooth muscles that assist in the expulsion of semen during ejaculation. If left uncared, the prostate can become enlarged or damaged resulting to severe health problems.

Prostate cancer is one of the many prostate disorders that threaten men. Though its incidence is very common to men aged 50 and above, there are cases of younger men diagnosed with the cancer. Genetics, diet, and medication and viral exposure are some of the identified causes of prostate cancer. Of these, diet is the one that can be manipulated and regulated to reduce the risk of prostate cancer. If there are foods that can potentially increase the danger of this disease, there are also foods that can help prevent men from contacting prostate cancer, as well as alleviating its effects. Here are ten foods recommended for a healthier prostate:

Ten Anti-cancer Superfruits

In these days when cancer seems so common, it is hard to trust the food we take. The most delicious is not necessarily the most nutritious, and the sweetest could be the deadliest. Hence, it is necessary to understand these foods, especially their immediate and long-term on our bodies.

Many types of cancer are induced by the food we eat. On the other hand, the incidence and worsening of cancer can also be prevented and alleviated by some other kinds of food. An excellent example is the superfruits. The term superfruits refer to fruits “which combines exceptional nutrient richness and antioxidant quality with appealing taste that can stimulate and retain loyalty for consumer products”. There are many fruits classified as superfruits. Some are very commonly served on our tables, while others are region-specific. Regardless of their origins, these fruits have one common denominator – their unquestionable health benefits.

Ten Benefits of Basketball

Basketball is one of the most popular sports in the world. Men and women play them.  Wherever there are hoops or baskets, we can expect at least one person shooting balls. Whether the court is inside a huge gymnasium or out on the open field, many are fanatic about it. So what benefits do we derive from playing basketball? What good does this sport do to our body and personality? What are it advantages?

Burns calories. Basketball is a fast sport involving shooting, running, dribbling, passing, rebounding, defense, jumping, and much more. With this continuous series of movements, you burn calories and fats. Accordingly, an hour of basketball can burn 630-750 calories.