Air Pollution Destroying Flowers' Natural Fragrance

Air pollution destroying flowers' natural fragrance

Trying to woo a woman with a sweet-smelling bouquet of blooms flowers may not work any more, for flowers are fast losing their scent due to air pollution.

The finding is based on new research led by Jose Fuentes that appears on the natural history website loveearth.com.

And, researchers state, that the effect will be devastating, for if flowers lose their natural fragrances, they will then not be able to attract pollinating insects like bees, thus hastening the blooms' extinction.

Researchers who conducted the study warn that pollution has already taken such a toll that insect now often can't smell flowers if they are more than 200 metres away, as compared to a mile away before the industrial revolution.

Pollution is also making flowers unhealthy and their colours less vibrant, in turn making them less attractive to insects.

The study was funded by the US National Science Foundation.

Stop Cigarette Smoking Today

Have you been trying to give up smoking? Want to know how best to go about it? Now of course! Studies show that people who quit on the spot are more successful than people who plan it. Makes sense I suppose. But with more & more smoking bans happening around the world there is no better time to give it up.

So what’s the best way to go about it? There are so many methods available; it’s easy to get confused! Hypnotherapy, patches, willpower and gum are all good methods and all have worked well for people but everyone’s different. The first rule is to decide on a technique and stick to it. Willpower obviously is one of the biggest components. If you have willpower you can do anything. Apparently! Then there are books. Loads of them are being written, claiming that you read them once then never want to smoke again. Does it work though? Yes! Apparently the psychological attachments to smoking are far more powerful than the addiction. So if you remove the idea that you enjoy smoking from your brain it is far, far easier to succeed. This is the theory that books are based on. And surprisingly, in my opinion it is the best method.

In 1972 half of all adults in the UK smoked. By 1990 the amount of people had fallen to a third. At present just under a quarter of UK adults smoke. Less than half the amount as in 1972! And the number is falling now more dramatically than ever. Smokers may not know that giving up does more than lessen your chances of lung and heart disease. It has many more benefits. It can make you feel more energetic and healthier, improve your blood circulation, improve your sexual health and fertility and make you look and even feel a lot younger! Then there’s the worry of passive smoking. Did you know that 17,000 children under five years old are admitted to hospital each year, due to illness caused by there parents or people in the house smoking?
Tags: How to Quit Smoking Jacket About Smoking Pics Smoking Facts Quit Cigarettes Stop Smoking Tips Smoking Ban Stopping Smoking Cigarette Smoking Nicotine Effects Non Smoking List Smoking Dangers Smoking Meat.

Sinus Symptoms And Causes

woman suffering from sinusitis

Nurse's Easy Guide To Sinusitis, Sinus Symptoms And Causes To Help You Stop Suffering Now! Sinusitis is the inflammation of the sinuses that occurs with either a viral, bacterial, or fungal infection. The sinuses are air-filled spaces in the skull, located behind the forehead, nasal bones, cheeks, and eyes, that are lined with mucus membranes. Healthy sinuses are sterile and contain no bacteria, viruses, fungus or other organisms and are open, allowing the mucus to drain and the air to circulate in them.

When the sinuses become inflamed, the sinuses become blocked with mucus and can get infected. About a quart of fluid has to move through the sinuses every day. Every year, more than 30 million adults and children get sinusitis. Sinusitis can be either acute (lasting from 2 - 8 weeks) or become chronic, with symptoms lasting much longer. Sinusitis can occur from any one or more of these conditions: the small hairs (called cilia) in the sinuses, which help move the mucus out, are not working properly; the very small openings (called ostia) from the sinuses to the nose become blocked; or too much mucus is produced. When the sinus openings do become blocked and mucus accumulates, this becomes an excellent breeding ground for bacteria, viruses, fungus and other organisms. Sinusitis often follows respiratory infections, such as colds, or follows allergic reactions to something. Many people never get sinusitis, but many others develop sinusitis often. Of the many people who are more likely to get sinusitis are people with cystic fibrosis and people whose immune systems are weakened by HIV or chemotherapy.

The following may increase your risk for developing sinusitis: air pollution, smoke, allergies, asthma, changes in the altitude, for example from flying or scuba diving, from dental work such as root canals or extractions, etc., a deviated nasal septum, a nasal bone spur, or nasal polyp, a foreign body in your nose, swimming or diving often, gastroesophageal reflux disease (called GERD or more commonly called acid reflux), having been hospitalized, especially if you're in the hospital because of a head injury or have had a nasogastric tube (intubation) placed into your nose (nasogastric tube), overuse of nasal decongestant sinus medicines and pregnancy. Cystic fibrosis is one of any number of diseases that will prevent the cilia from working properly. Other lesser known diseases that put you at an increased risk for sinusitis include Kartagener syndrome and immotile cilia syndrome.

The classic symptoms of acute sinusitis usually follow a cold that does not improve, or one that worsens after 5 - 7 days of symptoms or any of the causes listed above. Symptoms include: bad breath (halitosis) or loss of smell, cough - often worse at night (this can be from sinus drainage or constant irritation in the throat from the drainage), fatigue and generally not feeling well, fever (full blown sinus infections are systemic -affect your whole body accounting for the fatigue and fever)), headache -- pressure-like pain, pain behind the eyes or on the head, toothache, facial tenderness, nasal congestion and discharge, sore throat and postnasal drip. Symptoms of chronic sinusitis are the same as the symptoms of acute sinusitis, but tend to be somewhat milder but last longer than eight weeks. Today there are good natural treatments available for sinusitis and for other sinus problems, eliminating the need for antibiotics, which won't help anyway if it's a bacterial or fungal infection (most sinus infections are fungal infections). One no longer needs to suffer or take sinus drugs or sinus medications now that we have the best natural sinus treatment and preventative sinus treatment today.

How To Correct An Overbite

An overbite is present when the upper teeth significantly protrude over the lower teeth. Causes range from excessive thumb sucking as a child to having an underdeveloped lower jaw. An overbite is not aesthetically pleasing and can cause problems like periodontal disease and TMJ. Correct an overbite to change your appearance and avoid further mouth damage.

Instructions:

Step 1:
Contact your dentist and ask for a referral to an orthodontist, a dentist who specializes in fixing teeth alignment problems.

Step 2:
Make an appointment with an orthodontist. He will examine your teeth and decide what factors influence your malocclusion or "bad bite."

Step 3:
Undergo treatment based on your particular needs. Usually an overbite is caused by a lower jaw that needs to be moved forward. The correction is accomplished using a retainer, braces or jaw surgery for a drastic case of overbite.

Step 4:
Know that a retainer works by changing the width of the jaw slowly over time. Braces use a system of brackets and wires to manipulate the position of teeth. Additional appliances can be used with braces such as rubberbands and headgear to help straighten and align teeth.

Step 5:
Understand that it's easier to change the bite of a child because her jaw is growing and easier to manipulate. However, orthodontic services are available for all ages.

Tips & Warnings

* Always check your dental insurance before beginning treatment for an overbite. Use a specialist that is in your covered network of providers to ensure the fullest coverage possible.
* Uneven biting caused by an overbite can cause the lower teeth to cut into the sensitive gums behind the upper teeth, leading to gum disease

9 Cool Ways To Overcome Laziness

1. Have A Good Rest:

If we don’t get enough rest we could easily feel lazy. Don’t waste your time with those late night shows, hurry up to bed and have a good rest. During daytime you can take a nap for say half an hour or 20 minutes, enough to get back some lost energy.

2. Exercise:

Exercise is a great way to boost your energy levels and put you in a better mood. Its very easy for people to fall into the laziness trap if they feel low of energy. Make sure you have a workout in the morning every day, it will keep you fresh and active for most part of the day.

3. Motivation:

Its is very easy to forget the purpose of your work. Remind yourself why is your work so important, think for your satisfaction, family, money and so so. What if something happens to
me , family if I don’t start with my work? Think about the consequences.

4. Remove The Distractions:

Laziness attracts distractions. Kids like watching TV while talking, yep we bloggers tend to browse others blogs when we are supposed to write on our own. If you remove those distractions, for example unplugging the Internet, lockup the TV, you’ll notice in couple of days how laziness is gradually leaving your life.

5. Reward Yourself!

Reward yourself! You need to reward yourself for completing each task, in order to feel good about having stressed yourself in order to get the job done. Reward yourself to eat your favorite meal or watch movie if you complete the tasks.

6. Healthy Diet:

Make sure you’re on a healthy diet ; junk or fast food doesn’t give your body the nutrients it needs to be active. You’ll only become fat and lazier if you don’t stop those chips, frys, pizzas etc. Fruit juices are great way to supplement your body with nutrients while working.

7. Divide The Task Into Smaller Chunks:

If the task at hand is big it can easily overwhelm anyone. In such cases, divide the task into smaller chunks, and go through them one by one. Remember, you can’t gobble an apple at one go, its much easier to eat if you take it bit by bit.

8. Set Goals For Yourself:

If you have goals set up for yourself, you have something to look forward to, it maybe your paycheck, a car etc. Create list of large and small things and prioritize. Its lot easier to overcome laziness if you have purpose in life.

9. Don’t Stop:

Its easy enough to get lazy after completing task. Don’ t let your brain talk you into lazying. Once you have completed a task move over to the next one but make sure you reward yourself with something for accomplishing the latter task. If you really don’t have any work, head over to the gym, start jogging, help your kids with the homework, do anything to keep your hands and feet’s moving but say no to TV, internet, etc.

Popular Target For Pain Drugs May Affect Memory

A new class of pain drugs may also interfere with important brain functions like learning and memory, U.S. researchers said on Wednesday.

The finding may have implications for drug development, and it may also help explain some of the psychiatric side effects of the Sanofi-Aventis (SASY.PA: Quote, Profile, Research) weight-loss pill rimonabant, which is sold in Europe as Acomplia, they said.

The drugs block a specific pain receptor — a molecular doorway — known as TRPV1

"We've known that TRPV1 receptors are in the brain, but this is the first evidence of what they do there," Julie Kauer of Brown University in Rhode Island said in a statement.

"And the role we uncovered is unexpected. No one has ever linked these pain receptors to a mechanism strongly associated with memory. So we may have found a whole new player in brain plasticity," said Kauer, whose study appears in the journal Neuron.

TRPV1, or transient receptor potential vanilloid 1, is linked with inflammatory pain. Naturally occurring agents like capsaicin — which gives chili peppers their kick — act on this nervous system receptor.

Eli Lilly and Co (LLY.N: Quote, Profile, Research) , Merck & Co Inc (MRK.N: Quote, Profile, Research), Pfizer Inc (PFE.N: Quote, Profile, Research), Wyeth (WYE.N: Quote, Profile, Research) and others have invested in the development of drugs that block TRPV1 in the hopes of developing a new kind of pain killers.

But research by Kauer and colleagues suggest this pain receptor may also play an important role in other key brain functions.

In experiments on rat brain tissue, they found that TRPV1 regulates a nerve function known as long-term depression, changing the strength of connections between neurons. These changes — and a related process known as long-term potentiation — are thought to be the cellular mechanics behind memory making.

Kauer's team found they could block long-term depression using TRPV1 blockers in rat brain tissue. They also could induce this memory function in TRPV1 by using capsaicin.

They also found that rimonabant blocked TRPV1.

"Our findings suggest the possibility that some of the psychiatric side effects from rimonabant could be due to the blocking of TRPV1 receptors," Kauer said.

An advisory panel to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in June recommended that rimonabant not be approved because it may increase suicidal thoughts and depression.

Kauer said the findings also suggest potential new targets for drugs to prevent memory loss or possibly treat neural disorders such as epilepsy. (Editing by Maggie Fox and Cynthia Osterman)

source

Some Home Remedies For Treating Diabetes Mellitus

uncontrolled diabetes mellitus ...

Diabetes Mellitus Home Remedy

Diabetes Mellitus is a chronic metabolic disorder that prevents the body from utilizing glucose partially or completely. Officially it is characterized by raised glucose concentration from within the blood. Let's go over some home remedies for treating Diabetes Mellitus:

Diabetes Mellitus treatment can be achieved by using Grapefruit. Grapefruit is known to be one of the best foods a diabetic patient can eat. If you have sugar, use three grapefruits, three times a day. If you do not have sugar, but you have a tendency toward it then eat three grapefruits a day. Diabetes Mellitus treatment can be achieved by using Mango Leaves. The leaves of the mango tree are considered to be very useful in treating diabetes. Take 15gm of fresh mango leaves and place it in 250ml water to sit over night. Take the filtrate every morning in order to control early diabetes.

Diabetes Mellitus treatment can be achieved by using Parslane. The seeds of parslane have shown to be useful in diabetes treatment. Take a teaspoon of the seeds every day with a cup of water for three to four months. This will help to increase the body's own capacity to make insulin. Diabetes Mellitus treatment can be achieved by using Bitter Gourd. This home remedy has shown to be the most important in controlling diabetes. The reason why is bitter gourd has shown to contain a hypoglycaemic or insulin-like principle, which has been found to be very beneficial in lower blood and urine sugar levels.

Filling Up Your Diet With Fiber

Fiber may not be sexy as far as nutrients go.

In fact, technically fiber isn't even considered a nutrient, since your body can't digest it -- but it's important for several reasons.

1. It slows digestion and keeps blood sugar from rising quickly after a meal. This effect is so powerful that it can lower your overall blood sugar levels. Because it slows digestion, fiber also keeps you feeling full longer.

2. It adds bulk to your food, so it makes you feel full without adding a lot of calories. One study found that over the course of 10 years, people who ate a lot of high-fiber foods weighed an average of 10 pounds less than people who ate little fiber.

3. Soluble fiber, found in foods such as beans, barley, and oatmeal, can cut your cholesterol and lower your risk of heart disease.

4. A high-fiber diet keeps you "regular," making problems such as constipation, spastic colon, and hemorrhoids less likely. It may also cut your risk of colon cancer.

Ways to Increase Your Fiber

Experts recommend that a healthy adult eat 20 to 35 grams of dietary fiber per day. You can meet this goal by eating a well-balanced diet containing a variety of foods such as two servings of fruits, three servings of vegetables, and three or more servings of whole-grain breads or cereals. Here are some ways you can work more fiber into your diet:

1. Eat fresh fruit for snacks or desserts, such as berries, oranges, prunes or apricots.

2. Eat fruits and vegetables with their peels, such as pears, apples, peaches, potatoes, and squash.

3. Add cooked or canned beans, split peas, or lentils to your favorite soup, stews, salads, meatloaf or casseroles.

4. Choose whole-grain breakfast cereal, such as oatmeal, bran flakes, raisin bran, or wheat flakes. Look for a cereal with 2 or more grams of dietary fiber per serving.

5. Choose baked goods made using whole-grains, such as whole-wheat bread, oatmeal bread or muffins, multigrain bread, graham crackers, and whole-wheat bagels. Make sure the whole-grain ingredient is the first or second on the label.

You'll find fiber amounts listed at the bottom of ChangeOne meals and recipes. If you want to look up the fiber in other foods.

Cancer Link Between Humans, Dogs

They are our best friends. But, if a study is to be believed, humans and dogs share more than just friendship and companionship — they also share the same genetic basis for certain types of cancer.

A team of researchers at the University of Minnesota and North Carolina State University has carried out the study and discovered the genetic cancer link between humans and the canines.

According to them, because of the way the genomes have evolved, getting cancer may be inevitable for some humans and dogs. Genomes are divided into chromosomes, which act as nature's biological filing cabinets with genes located in specific places.

"Many forms of human cancer are associated with specific alterations to the number or structure of chromosomes and the genes they contain.

"We've developed reagents to show the same applies to dog cancers, and that the specific genome reorganisation which occurs in comparable human and canine cancers shares a common basis," the ScienceDaily quoted lead researcher Matthew Breen as saying.

The team also found that the genetic changes which occur in dogs diagnosed with certain cancers of the blood and bone marrow are virtually identical to genetic abnormalities in humans diagnosed with the same cancers.

"We believe the implication of this finding is that cancer may be the consequence of generations of genetic evolution that has occurred similarly in dogs and humans.

"This means that to some degree, cancer may be inevitable in some humans and dogs just because of the way our genomes have developed since the separation from a common ancestor.

"Since we know now that dogs and humans seem to share a common pathogenetic basis for some cancers, we believe that studying dog cancers may allow us to identify cancer associated genes more easily in dog populations than in human populations.

"Once identified, we may be able to translate these findings to human cancers as we seek to provide a greater level of insight into cancer risk, diagnosis, and prognosis," co-researcher Jaime Modiano said.

The human genome has 46 chromosomes and the dog genome contains 78 chromosomes. Sometimes, in the normal duplication process of cells, chromosomes can be rearranged or relocated.

This rearrangement or relocation is translocation which can lead to a cell losing its function developing into cancer.

"Interestingly, we found that the same translocation of chromosomes happens in dogs as in humans for the three blood and bone marrow cancers we studied," Modiano said.

Breast Milk Compound Could Fight Cancer

George Joseph in New York

Children are born with underdeveloped immune systems; lactoferrin, a compound found in mother's milk, helps them develop it.

A slight variation of lactoferrin, known as talactoferrin alfa, helps fight lung cancer, according to research by Dr Atul Varadhachary, president and chief operating officer of the Houston-based Agennix.

The researcher is now in the final stages of fashioning a drug based on his discovery.

The Food and Drug Administration has approved the design of a single, pivotal, Phase 3 trial to see if talactoferrin alfa can indeed fight the most common form of lung cancer in combination with chemotherapy, as a first line of treatment.

The European Medicines Agency also said that this single trial would support a marketing authorisation application in the European Union for the drug.

The new drug could be in the market by 2010, said Varadhachary, a physician who went on to become a businessman and social activist.

Agennix has already spent $101million to develop the drug, and Varadhachary expects to spend another $100 million before it reaches the market.

The treatment of this form of lung cancer (called nonsmall cell lung cancer) is a $4 billion-a-year industry in the US alone, making the prospects bright for the company.

After breast cancer in women and prostate cancer in men, lung cancer is the most common type of cancer.

But it is more damaging than other forms of cancer because it kills more Americans than breast, prostate and colorectal cancers combined -- more than 160,000 people last year.

Another 300,000 are diagnosed as having the cancer annually in Europe, and 520,000 are diagnosed annually in the rest of the world.

For patients diagnosed with advanced NSCLC, the expected survival is only about 8.5 months, even after multiple doses of toxic chemotherapy.

Varadhachary says he is hopeful that talactoferrin will prove to be an important tool in the treatment of this cancer, pointing out that lung cancer is usually detected only when it is in very advanced stage.

Talactoferrin alfa comes in liquid form, and is to be taken in two 15-milliliter doses a day.

It can be used by any patient as it has almost no toxicity, he claimed.

"Half the patient population can't take some of the recently approved drugs because of their toxicity. Ours would apply to the entire population," he said.

The Phase 3 trial will be conducted at more than 200 sites around the world and will involve several thousand patients, Dr Varadhachary said.

If no new public health concerns surface in relation to the drug, then the FDA could grant marketing approval.

The discovery of talactoferrin occurred in 1988 when Baylor College of Medicine scientist Dr Bert O'Malley produced the protein in his laboratory from a fungus called Aspergillus niger.

Structurally, it is almost identical to human lactoferrin, which is found in mother's milk.

Breast-fed babies fight infections better, in part, because of lactoferrin, Dr Varadhachary said.

"It helps in our gut. We started looking at it and wondered if it would be helpful to stimulate the immune system... and thus fight cancer," he said.

Lactoferrin, the most abundant non-whey protein in milk, is an important part of breast milk's magic.

Babies are born with an underdeveloped immune system, and lactoferrin found in milk helps strengthen their immunity.

But strengthening the immune system can be important in cancer patients as well.

Talactoferrin has been tested in several cancer trials, with promising results.

Two of the larger trials -- placebo controlled trials in patients with lung cancer -- were conducted at 11 major cancer centers in India, including sites in Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Mumbai, and Pune.

These trials suggested that talactoferrin could fight cancer.

In fact, in both trials, the patients receiving talactoferrin had fewer severe adverse events than those receiving the placebo, Dr Varadhachary said.

Agennix has a contract with Capua, Italy [Images], to produce Talactoferrin on a commercial scale.

A Netherlands company is already producing it in a large quantity for the trial. The company is also trying to see if the drug can fight diabetes and other forms of cancer, too.

Dr Varadhachary, who studied medicine in Mumbai, joined Agennix in 2001, and helped refocus the company, among other things pushing it into the fight against cancer.

Excitement at Agennix has increased steadily over the last six years after they saw encouraging anti-cancer results, first in animal experiments, then in early patient trials and finally in larger Phase II trials, Dr Varadhachary said.

"Talactoferrin has the potential to be an important advance in the treatment of NSCLC," said Dr Waun Ki Hong, head of the Division of Cancer Medicine at M D Anderson Cancer Center and a member of Agennix's Scientific Advisory Board.

Dr Varadhachary who came to the US in 1987, earned a PhD in physiology and did a postdoctoral fellowship in biochemistry at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore.

While at Hopkins, he was also the founding president of the Johns Hopkins Postdoctoral Association. Soon he joined the global management consulting firm, McKinsey & Co.

His wife Gauri is an associate professor at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston.

In 1998-99, while on leave from McKinsey, he worked for a year with Pratham, in Mumbai.

Atul and Gauri started Pratham Health, a preventive health and micronutrient program that reaches over 50,000 pre-school children each year.

Their work was honoured by Children's Hope India, which presented them with a 'Making a Difference' award in 2001.

Pratham Health was later spun out as a separate organisation -- the Niramaya Health Foundation.

Dr Varadachary serves as the president of the Indo-American Chamber of Commerce of Greater Houston.

His academic affiliations include adjunct professorships at the Baylor College of Medicine and at the Jesse Jones School of Management at Rice University, where he teaches a course on entrepreneurship in biotechnology.

Agennix, a privately held company, was founded in 1993 based on technology from the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston.

Starting in 2001, the company changed its focus to its current lead indications, including the treatment of cancer.

source:rediff.com

CANCER Is A Disease In Which Certain Body Cells

Cancer Awareness !!!

CANCER is a disease in which certain body cells go out of control and start multiplying rapidly of their own accord. This uncontrolled growth becomes a tumor and eventually, if unchecked, will interfere with the working of a vital organ or organs and cause death.

It is not an infection (although in a few cases it can be caused by a viral infection) but the result, in all probability, inherited weakness in the genetic makeup, with poor living habits and surroundings. Unhealthy diet, smoking, prolonged stress, and industrial pollution, for example, are either known to be, or are strongly suspected of being, main contributory or risk factors in CANCER.

The human body contains more than of some coupled 200 different types of cell, which means there are more than 200 different types of CANCER. An abnormal growth may be called a tumor or a neoplasm (neo simply means "new" and plasm means "form"). A resulting illness is known as a neoplastic disorder.

If the tumor or growth is purely local and not invasive it will be described as benign. A benign growth does not spread, so is less damaging. Examples are warts, cysts, and polyps. A growth that cannot be contained and continues to spread unchecked is known as a malignant growth. This is CANCER.

Medical terms given to the different sorts of cali relate to where they are growing in the body:

Carcinoma is CANCER of the skin covering the outside of the body and the mucous membrane lining the cavities within (epithelial tissue). This is by far them common type of CANCER and includes CANCERs of the, breast, lung, colon, prostate, and skin. The most serious form of skin CANCER is melanoma.

Sarcoma is CANCER of the bones, tendons, muscles.

Lymphoma is CANCER of the glands (or nodes) or other parts of the lymphatic system

Leukemia is CANCER of the blood.

CANCER differs from country to country and from region to region. Some types of CANCER are more communi Western countries, such as North America and Europe, than in Eastern countries, such as Japan, or so-called developing countries such as Africa. In Japan, for example, there are many more cases of stomach CANCER than there are in the West, and in Africa liver CANCER is much more widespread than elsewhere. Overall, the ten most common CANCERs found worldwide are of the lung, stomach, breast, lower bowel, cervix, mouth, lymphatic system, liver, throat, and prostate gland. None of the therapies described offers a cure for CANCER but they can alleviate symptoms and support the immune system.

source:moviemast.blogspot.com