Health Topics Web

Acid reflux is a condition that affects millions of people around the world.

Also known as GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease), it occurs when the acid in the stomach escapes and reaches the pipe containing food (esophagus) or further into the mouth.

It is characterised by a burning sensation in the chest, hence the sensation is frequently called “heartburn”, even though it has nothing to do with the heart.

Although acid reflux is often referred to as heartburn, the term is also used to describe frequent heartburn or GERD.

How Does The Acid Escape The Stomach?

In some cases, there is something called a hiatal hernia which is when a part of the stomach is actually pushed through the diaphragm.

However, in other cases, there is no root cause. All that is known is that the lower esophageal sphincter (which keeps the acid in the stomach and stops it leaving) can malfunction and this is what causes the acid to escape.

What Are The Effects Of Acid Reflux?

Aside from temporary discomfort, prolonged acid reflux or GERD can also lead to damage of the esophagus. If left untreated, a condition called “Barrett’s Esophagus” can result which is a form of irreversible damage.

Barrett’s itself is not harmful but approximately 2% of its sufferers will go on to develop esophageal cancer. Unfortunately, the survival rate for esophageal cancer is extremely low.

What Treatments Are Available For Acid Reflux?

Fortunately, there are many treatments available for acid reflux. The most popular are a family of drugs known as PPIs or proton pump inhibitors.

These are intelligent drugs that apply a “switch” to acid production in the stomach and turn it off. Surprisingly, the human body can cope very well without any stomach acid.

However, there are some side effects with PPIs although very limited, such as some loss of bone density. Compared to the risk of complications from untreated GERD, the risk to reward ratio is considered favourable, nonetheless.

Building large muscles quickly means that you have to obey a few simple rules.

Diet

You must ensure that you are eating the right foods for maximum muscle gain. You can’t just eat trash and hope to become like Arnie.

Obviously this means that you must get enough protein into your diet. The best way to get the maximum protein into your diet is to use protein shakes. Even if you don’t agree with the concept of a protein shake as a sustainable human food, just remember that you only need them for this bulking phase. Plus you can even get protein shakes that are made from rice as opposed to whey which is more common.

Of course you need some carbs and fats too but they matter less compared to the protein. My personal advice is to minimise your fats unless they are derived from seafood. The carbs you will burn up anyway.

Workout Strategy

The fastest way to build muscle requires that you work effectively and to your maximum.

First, you should work on half your body on alternate days. This gives each muscle one rest day between workouts. And believe me, you are going to get a good workout on each muscle.

Each set that you do is going to be composed of between 8 and 12 reps. And that last rep must mean failure. If you can pump out another rep without a rest then you are not using enough weight. Conversely, if you can barely pump out 5 reps then you are using too much weight. Work to failure, it’s an absolute must if you want to gain muscle quickly.

2 or 3 sets per muscle should be sufficient.

And after your workout, you should feel sore until you are rested. If you feel sore then it means that your body has something to repair and it’s this repair function that builds the huge muscles quickly.

Paxil is one of many brand names for Paroxetine and also commonly known as Seroxat. It is used widely throughout the world since its release in 1992.

It is one member of the huge family of SSRIs or selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors. These were a new class of antidepressants that were found to be mostly better prescribed compared to their ancestors, the tricyclic antidepressants.

Paxil in particular was so popular that in 2006, it was the fifth most prescribed medication in the US with nearly 20 million prescriptions.

This is because Paxil does a very good job in general and has benefitted a great number of people with mental illness.

Unfortunately, it also has a number of side effects that have been reported widely amongst those who are trying to come off their medications. Compared to all other SSRIs, Paxil has the most reports, so much so that the term “Paxil Withdrawal Symptom” has been used to describe it.

Sufferers have said that when they wean themselves off the drug, they experience what are described as “electric shock” sensations in the head. Also reported are cases of suicidal thinking in children and adolescents.

A whole raft of legal cases against the manufacturers, GSK, have taken place since the first reports of Paxil withdrawal symptoms.

The best advice for someone on Paxil who wants to come off it is to consult their doctor who may prescribe a secondary SSRI to assist in coming off Paxil.

You’ve probably heard many people say “I’m depressed”. Well, these types of people are normally not depressed at all but simply unhappy. This is due to overuse and exaggeration of the word “depressed”.

In terms of a medical condition then “clinical depression” is a different kettle of fish altogether.

It can take many forms but the underlying theme to all of them is the severity and the need to act quickly to control it.

For instance, I have a friend who had a nervous breakdown. Until you see this for yourself then you cannot understand just how devastating it can be. My friend looked like a zombie and probably felt like one too. With true depression like this, the brain chemistry plays a huge part.

A course of drugs is definitely recommended in these cases. Usually these days, a drug such as an SSRI is commonly prescribed. There are many different types of SSRIs available such as Seroxat, Paxil and others and they all have slightly different indications and effects.

People can become depressed in other ways too but, as I mentioned earlier, the common theme between them all is just how severe the effect on a person is.

In these cases, drugs are recommended but, in general, drugs are prescribed far too often by doctors. People have spoken of a “Prozac generation” in the past. Prozac just happens to be one of the most commonly prescribed drugs by doctors and, whilst it is effective, one has to question just why the doctors are so quick to prescribe it - are there really that many truly depressed people in America?

As new wisdom teeth emerge they can often get infected. This is caused when the tooth erupts at the surface of the gum and whilst partly emerged it is susceptible to storing food particles.

Because most people do not brush right at the back of the mouth (in fact we often get a “gag reflex” and don’t wish to do so) then this food rots over the course of several days.

Eventually, this will cause what is normally a small infection. The surrounding gum around the wisdom tooth will become painful to the touch and on impact as the teeth are clenched in this area.

It basically feels the same as a very light toothache and is often mistaken for having a toothache in the neighboring adjacent molar.

The best treatment is to have your dentist clean and scale the area thoroughly and from then on to brush that area thoroughly, at least until the wisdom tooth has fully emerged. Salt water mouthwashes are also a good idea top help the gum heal.

In very rare cases, an infection might be so bad that it could lead to or actually cause an abscess. Sometimes, antibiotics are prescribed in such cases although, as throughout the entire medical profession, antibiotic drugs are over prescribed which means that their potency is diminishing as years go by.

An overweight calculator is basically also know as a BMI indicator. BMI is also know as body mass index.

It’s just a simple way of comparing your weight to your height. Some people like bodybuilders complain that it’s inaccurate. These guys weight a lot because they have huge amounts of muscle and the calculator incorrectly reports them as overweight.

For the rest of us though, these overweight calculators are a fair guide to whether we are overweight or not.

But in my opinion, they are really of limited use. Think about it, do you need a calculator or a computer to tell you that you are overweight? Of course not!

You know instinctively whether you are overweight or not. What’s more, you also know instinctively what your correct weight is too. If you’re not sure about that statement then take a moment or two to think again.

So, my advice to you is to forget about these tools to confirm if you are overweight. You already know if you are or are not, and if you are then don’t delay - make a plan today on how you are going to lose that weight.