Signs of Kidney Disease

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Signs of Kidney Disease

Kidney disease, also known as chronic kidney disease, is a life-long condition in which the kidney gradually loses function. About 26 million American adults have chronic kidney disease, according to the National Kidney Foundation. Millions of others are at an increased risk for developing the disease and are not aware of it. With the progression of kidney disease, wastes build up in your blood. As a result, complications can occur such as high blood pressure, high potassium levels which can impair heart health, central nerve damage, anemia, poor nutritional health, weak bones, and a decreased immune response. 

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Do you have a hydrocele?

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Do you have a hydrocele?

A hydrocele is sac that is filled with fluid which forms on a testicle. It causes inflammation or swelling in the scrotum. They are most common in babies, but can affect males of any age. In adult men, it often affects those that are middle-aged or older. They are not a very serious condition as there are not any severe complications associated with the condition unless they are associated with an infection, tumor, or inguinal hernia.  They are also often painless. About 10 percent of males are born with a hydrocele.

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Signs of Autoimmune Disease

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Signs of Autoimmune Disease

An autoimmune disease is a disorder that arises from an unusual immune response of the body against healthy body tissue.  Essentially, it is the body mistakenly attacking and destroying itself.  This may be restricted to certain organs or involve a particular tissue.  Immunosuppressants, medications that decreases the immune response, are typically the treatment for the more than 80 different types of autoimmune diseases.  Some examples of autoimmune diseases that may sound familiar are Celiac disease, thyroiditis, fibromyalgia, Lupus and rheumatoid arthritis.

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How Alcoholism Develops

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How Alcoholism Develops

Many of us have a drink with dinner, or a few when going out with friends or at family gatherings.  But for some people, the occasional drink is not occasional at all, but habitual and excessive.  Alcoholism is a disease where the body becomes physically addicted or dependent on alcohol. For many alcoholics, as with other substance abuse disorders, drinking becomes a compulsion rather than a choice.  This means alcoholics continue to drink despite the deleterious effects on personal relationships, everyday life and overall health.  Many suffering from alcoholism may not even recognize that they have it, and can’t recognize the symptoms that they display.  About 8% of Americans are diagnosed as alcoholics. 

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10 Surprising Risk Factors for Kidney Stones

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10 Surprising Risk Factors for Kidney Stones

The risk of kidney stones is higher in the United States than it is in the rest of the world. Although these stones do not normally cause any permanent damage, passing them can be quite painful.  Depending on the size of the stone, surgical intervention may be necessary. Kidney stones are a relatively common occurrence, especially in the United States.  They affect approximately one in ten people throughout their lifetime, and the incidence of kidney stones has actually increased over the past few decades. 

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How We Get Shin Splints

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How We Get Shin Splints

Shin splints are also known as medial tibial stress syndrome. They are characterized by pain that occurs along or behind the shinbone. Shin splints are most often a result of overused and swollen muscles. The most common symptoms are pain or tenderness on the front of the lower legs, which is also known as the tibia. It is common for people who are involved in vigorous sports that put pressure on the shins like running, soccer, tennis, or dancing to develop shin splints. Shin splints are the cause of about 13 percent of all injuries in runners.

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What It Means To Have A Prolapsed Bladder

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What It Means To Have A Prolapsed Bladder

Under normal conditions, a woman’s bladder is held in place by a net of pelvic floor muscles and connective tissues.  When these muscles and tissues stretch and weaken, it allows the bladder to “drop” or prolapse through this net or wall.  A prolapsed bladder is one in which the bladder decends into the vagina following the deterioration of the vaginal wall. A proposed bladder is also known an as a cystocele or a fallen bladder. The bladder itself is the hollow organ in the pelvis that serves as a storage unit for our urine.  This urine is filtered from the body through the kidneys and makes its way down to the bladder. 

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Suffering From Chronic Pain in Your 20s?

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Suffering From Chronic Pain in Your 20s?

Many young people experience chronic pain even as early as their 20s. They tend to find themselves working closely with a team of medical experts trying to ease the symptoms and find a way through but obviously it can be very debilitating especially at a time in life when freedom and mobility are so critical to the lifestyle. The idea of going out and maintaining a normal 20-something social life is quite difficult with chronic pain. Many lifestyle changes young people are forced to inhibit such as medications, specific and strict diets gets in the way of social activities.

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Do you have gas pains?

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Do you have gas pains?

Gas pains, otherwise known as gas, flatulence, bloating, or intestinal gas. We all get it. While gas pains are by no means a serious condition, it can be annoying, uncomfortable, sometimes painful, and definitely embarrassing. There are a number of things that can cause gas pains, but it is most often a result of being constipated or diarrhea. When gas builds up in the intestines it can become painful if you are unable to get rid of it with ease.

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How Cold Sores are Treated

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How Cold Sores are Treated

Also called, fever blisters or oral herpes, cold sores are quite common, affecting 600,000 new people  each year in the U.S. Cold sores cause red, painful blisters on the mouth, lips and each sore is filled with fluid. They also are known to cause fever and swollen glands with the first outbreak, especially. 

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Understanding Chronic Kidney Disease

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Understanding Chronic Kidney Disease

Kidney disease, also known as chronic kidney disease, is a life-long condition in which the kidney gradually loses function. About 26 million American adults have chronic kidney disease, according to the National Kidney Foundation. Millions of others are at an increased risk for developing the disease and are not aware of it.

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Alopecia: A Balding Disorder

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Alopecia: A Balding Disorder

One of the harder moments in adulthood comes at the realization that you’re getting older.  It doesn’t fully sink in, however, until that exact moment when you look in the bathroom mirror and start to see your hair thinning.  You are losing a little bit of yourself with every strand. Every memory of combing your hair before picture day in school, shaving your head for summer swim meets, growing it long in winter to keep your head warm, are all fading.  One truth is all that matters now, and that is that you will never have what you once did.  You will forever be looking in the mirror to see how much is gone.

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What You Need to Know About Atrial Fibrillation

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What You Need to Know About Atrial Fibrillation

Almost a half-million new cases of atrial fibrillation or heart palpitations are diagnosed each year in the U.S. Also known as arrhythmia, or auricular fibrillation, this causes heart palpitations ,shortness of breath, fatigue, weakness, dizziness, confusion, fainting, foot and ankle swelling and coughs with foamy mucus. It's currently the most common problem regarding the heart's rhythm. The main cause of heart failure and a major risk factor for stroke is atrial fibrillation. The heart contains four chambers, where the two upper chambers are called atria which is where the blood enters. 

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What is Bladder Outlet Obstruction?

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What is Bladder Outlet Obstruction?

The bladder is a hallow organ that hold urine from the kidneys. Often it's one of the parts of the body not often thought about until it stops working properly. Problems affecting the bladder can cause painful urination and leakage at unwanted times. Sometimes simple lifestyle changes can improve these conditions however there are certain conditions that occur which need treatment immediately. One of them is entitled Bladder Outlet Obstruction which is also referred to as lower urinary tract obstruction or prostatism. Symptoms include abdominal pain, pain while urinating, inability to urinate, straining to urinate, dribbling after urination, waking up throughout the night to urinate. 

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Appendicitis: What You Need to Know

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Appendicitis: What You Need to Know

Appendicitis is also known as a perforated or ruptured appendix. It is a serious infection of the appendix which is a small finger-like tube located where small and large intestine join. Symptoms often start with abdominal pain that occurs near the belly button or lower right. Patients also experience nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite, low-grade fever, constipation and abdominal swelling. Almost half of patients with appendicitis feel abdominal pain that moves rapidly to the lower right. If appendicitis is now treated right away, the appendix will likely burst, which then spreads infection throughout the abdomen, which is a dangerous condition called peritonitis. 

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Bone Spurs and Bone Health

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Bone Spurs and Bone Health

As we age, bone health becomes increasingly important, especially for women, who are most at risk for bone density issues. Bone spurs or osteophytes are extra growths of the bone that can happen on the edge of any bone. Symptoms can include joint pain, tenderness, swelling and loss of motion in that affected joint. Bone spurs occur most commonly around the joints and can occur in the spine as well. They are not painful but can cause pain when they rub against other bones and nerves. Tendonitis or osteoarthritis are often one of the main causes of bone spurs. In some cases, they are a natural part of aging. Some even cause no symptoms and not even need any treatment. Others require pain medications and surgery. 

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Signs of an Eating Disorder

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Signs of an Eating Disorder

Eating disorders can affect men and women from any background.  They are defined as any abnormal eating habits that have a negative or detrimental effect on the body and our health.  The two best known eating disorders are anorexia, and bulimia. For many sufferers, symptoms don’t look like symptoms at first, they may just feel like normal dieting patterns or setbacks. 

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What is bipolar disorder?

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What is bipolar disorder?

Bipolar disorder is also known as manic depression. It causes drastic behavioral changes such as in mood, thoughts, and energy. Changes are usually extreme, from experiencing highs in a manic state, to lows in a depressed state. 

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Can Alzheimer's be prevented?

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Can Alzheimer's be prevented?

More and more evidence shows that what we eat strongly effects our brain health, and even may prevent neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's for which there is no cure. We have some ideas to get you started. 

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HIV / AIDS: Fact v. Myth

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HIV / AIDS: Fact v. Myth

A lot of so-called "facts" are thrown around about HIV and Aids, but how much of it is true? Here we debunk myths on these two diseases and give you the facts.  

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