Thursday, December 23, 2010

Blood Donations Benefits



Blood donation, the voluntary act of allowing one's blood to be drawn out of body has many advantages besides giving that wonderful feeling of saving someone's life. Most of the time it is an act of charity, though sometimes many people donate blood for money and other incentives. The blood donated is stored in blood banks, to be subsequently used for transfusion.

Blood donation is not hazardous and it proves to be a healthy habit that helps blood renewal. The volume of blood donation is 370:400 ml, almost 7.5% of the adult blood volume. It is compensated in a short period of time.

When you donate blood, You will get a medical examination including medical history , hemoglobin estimation and blood group determination.The donated blood will be tested for hepatitis B, C, HIV viruses, syphilis microbe, together with liver function tests also HCV RNA by PCR.you will receive the results confidentially or if you want they can be mailed to you.

Blood donation benefits many people. One pint of blood benefits donors in the following ways:

* Each pint of whole blood donated by one person helps three other people.
* One pint of blood may be separate into its various components such as plasma, red blood cells and others. If one pint of blood is used as components, it can help seven people.
* Blood donation benefits surgical patients. A liver transplant patient, for example, may need up to ten pints of blood during surgery. Blood transfusions are needed during many types of surgery and for accident victims.
* People undergoing chemotherapy and radiation benefit from blood donation.
* Individuals with sickle-cell anemia need blood donations to replace their red blood cells.
* Donated blood saves the lives of premature infants and children. Many of these tiny patients require blood transfusions, and only blood from a donor can help them.

Blood donation is an excellent way to get rid of excess iron accumulated in our body due to its overconsumption. Excess iron in the body can stimulate the formation of free radicals, which are responsible for causing damage to body cells and tissues. Free radicals are also associated with many diseases like heart diseases and cancer.

Iron overloading is also thought to increase the risk of heart diseases. Besides, iron oxidizes cholesterol, which is harmful for the arteries. Hemochromatosis is a genetic disease characterized by excess accumulation of iron in the tissues due to improper metabolism. The disease can cause damage to many organs like pancreas, adrenal glands, etc.

It may also cause diabetes, liver diseases and heart diseases. So, donating blood on a regular basis would help you to regulate the level of iron in your body. Studies have shown that donating blood regularly can be beneficial for the heart and circulatory system and can reduce the risk of heart diseases, especially among young people.

Wednesday, December 22, 2010

The Correct Way to Do Inspiration and Expiration



Respiratory System:

* Primary function is to obtain oxygen for use by body's cells & eliminate carbon dioxide that cells produce
* Includes respiratory airways leading into (& out of) lungs plus the lungs themselves
* Pathway of air: nasal cavities (or oral cavity) > pharynx > trachea > primary bronchi (right & left) > secondary bronchi > tertiary bronchi > bronchioles > alveoli (site of gas exchange)

This occurs within the respiratory system. During inpiration, the intercostal muscles contract, the diaphragm descends, and the rib cage rises. The thoracic cavity volume increases, stretching the lungs, and the intrapulmonary volume increases. This causes the intrapulmonary pressure to drop. Air flows into the lungs until the intrapulmonary pressure equals the atmospheric pressure.

During expiration the intercostal muscles relax, the diaphragm rises, and the rib cage descends. The thoracic cavity volume decreases, causing the the lungs to recoil, and the intrapulmonary volume decreases. This causes the intrapulmonary pressure to rise, and the air flows out of the lungs until the intrapulmonary pressure equals the atmospheric pressure.

Your respiratory rate changes. When active, for example, your respiratory rate goes up; when less active, or sleeping, the rate goes down. Also, even though the respiratory muscles are voluntary, you can't consciously control them when you're sleeping. So, how is respiratory rate altered & how is respiration controlled when you're not consciously thinking about respiration?

Tuesday, December 21, 2010

Caffeine Effects to Your Body

Yes, coffee is delicious. I will not argue with that because I also drink coffee at least one cup per day. I make it as a habit before I will doing my work out. Nevertheless, coffee consists of caffeine which has bad effects to your body if you drink it too much. So beware! Look at the picture below to know caffeine effects to your body if you drink it too much.


Safe Sex Importance



Along with sexual activity comes huge responsibility. If you are having sex or planning to in the near future, it is imperative that you take the necessary precautions to protect yourself and stay safe and healthy. Safe sex education is a very important topic and those who have the knowledge to be safe will be much better equipped to prevent pregnancy, sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), and most importantly HIV and AIDS. While many people will argue that the best way to stay safe is to practice abstinence, not everyone believes this so if you are going to engage in an intimate relationship, it is important to know the about the various items that can be used to ensure safe sex.

If you are just getting to know someone intimately, it’s important to maintain a few precautions for greater safety while having sex. There are some factors that you must consider before having sex with the person. It’s important to know whether that person is involved with someone else. Also, ask questions regarding the number of sexual partners the person has had and whether your sexual partner has suffered from or is suffering from any sexual transmitted disease. Another aspect of precautions while having sex, deals with avoiding pregnancy. The use of condoms or other preventive pills or devices needs to be discussed with the partner before you actually have sex.

Young people can feel a lot of pressure to have sex. Friends may tell you they're all doing it (sometimes even if they're not). You see it on the TV and in the movies. You might also feel pressured by a particular person. Or you might feel that it's expected of you from a girlfriend or boyfriend.

Practising safer sex means looking after yourself emotionally. This means that you choose when to have sex and when not to, who with and how you have sex.

Monday, December 20, 2010

Keep the Fat Off with Water



Drinking water is important if you're trying to lose weight, some studies have shown that thirst and hunger sensations are triggered together. If there is a slight dehydration the thirst mechanism may be mistaken for hunger and one may eat when the body is actually craving fluid. As most food contains some water, if one doesn't drink much they may be subconsciously driven to eat more to gain the necessary water supply however, you also gain the undesired effects of increased calorie consumption. Drinking more water can help to prevent overeating and benefit weight loss.

Research does suggest that drinking plenty of water may help you lose weight. An abstract by Dr. Brenda Davy, associate professor of human nutrition, foods and exercise at Virginia Tech, presented at last year's obesity conference in Phoenix, Arizona, showed that people who drank two glasses of water 20 to 30 minutes before every meal lost weight more quickly initially and lost significantly more weight than those who didn't.

Studies have proven that a low consumption of water allows more fat to be deposited instead of being metabolized into energy.

Cholesterol forms the cell walls: the extensive manufacture and deposit in the cell membrane is a natural part of the design to protect cells against dehydration.

In another study by Davy and her group, published last year in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association, she found that people who drank water before meals ate an average of 75 fewer calories at that meal. This may not seem like much, but if you ate 75 fewer calories at lunch and dinner for the next year, you could lose about 14½ pounds! In addition, being even 1 percent dehydrated can cause a significant drop in metabolism, which can also interfere with weight loss.

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