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Omega 3-6-9 contains the essential fatty acids and gamma-linolenic acids (GLA) that are essential to your health. Omega 3-6-9’s essential fatty acids (EFA’s) help to transport and metabolize triglycerides and cholesterol, support your brain function and normal development, acts as an “anti-wrinkle” formula by maintaining cell membranes, increases your oxygen intake, energy production and your metabolic rate and increases your bodies production of good prostaglandins.

In turn, these good prostaglandins help to prevent strokes, trigger your immune system, promote repair and healing in your body, help control the responses of the nervous system, control your body temperature to a normal level, and helps to relieve high blood pressure as well as other internal benefits.

Omega 3 fatty acids are derivatives of Linolenic Acid, Omega 6 is derived from Linoleic Acid and Omega 9 is from Oleic Acid. These fatty acids have numerous good effects on the body, including reducing the risk of cardiovascular diseases.

Omega 3 fats are commonly found in fish, flax seed, some green vegetables such as broccoli and spinach, nuts and seeds such as walnuts, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds and brazil nuts, kidney beans, cauliflower and cantaloupe.

Omega 6 fats are commonly found in the foods you already eat—eggs, cereal, poultry, margarine, vegetable oil and baked goods, as well as nuts such as pine nuts and pistachio nuts.

Omega 9, while not an essential fatty acid, can be found in avocados, peanuts, pecans, cashews, macadamia nuts and many other nut types as well as olive oil and olives. If the body maintains an adequate amount of Omega 3 and 6, then your body can produce its own Omega 9, however, supplementing with food or vitamin complex such as Omega 3-6-9 is advisable.

Many women find that Omega 3-6-9 helps through menopause. The essential fatty acids have been found to relive hot flashes, which are a vasomotor disturbance.
The Omega 3-6-9 formula is great for women who are pre-menstrual, peri-menopausal and menopausal by helping to reduce fluid retention, depression and irritability, which are common in women who are in menopause as well as mastalgia (breast pain).

These essential fatty acids also help to maintain flexibility and movement in joints, which is a common ailment amongst the aging. Women in menopause or who are peri-menopausal will benefit from the advanced mobility which will lessen joint and arthritic pain. Aging women (and men) will also benefit from the increased brain function that Omega 3-6-9 promotes, helping to increase memory and concentration.

As we age, the circulation in our body also deteriorates. These EFA’s are essential in increasing blood flow throughout the body, helping to maintain blood vessel and artery function.

Diet has a lot to do with the EFA’s in your body and many foods can counteract the production and absorption of the EFA’s in your daily food intake. This simple reason is why it is so imperative that you make sure you are getting an adequate supply of Omega 3-6-9 in your diet through supplementation. The benefits are tremendous and long lasting. You will never have felt better in all your life. You will be boosting your immune system which will help you stay healthier and combat diseases and viruses as well as decreasing risk of serious diseases such as cancer and cardiovascular (heart) diseases. You will also lower your blood pressure and cholesterol levels naturally by in-taking enough fatty acids for your body to regulate itself.

The anti-depressive function of Omega 3-6-9 does more than just increase mood, it also helps you fall asleep at night. Depressed people have a tendency to be insomniacs—they lie awake at night thinking about everything and anything, thusly depriving them of the sleep they need to replenish their bodies. Healthy sleeping patterns lead to healthy people and Omega 3-6-9 will help you fall into a restful slumber instead of worrying while staring at the ceiling.

Marie Jimenez-Beaumont

naturesmenopauserelief.com naturesmenopauserelief.com

Isn’t it exciting when you personally decide to take the step to make a commitment?

It’s even better when you have an Action Plan and a coach to be there with you.

Quite recently I made a commitment to lose some excess weight using the Perfect Body Shape – Glycemic Awareness Action Plan. I have tried a number of diets like the Adkin’s diet, the Scarsdale diet and even the cabbage soup diet. They all worked, but only temporarily. They all seemed to be missing one or more essential traits to create a lifelong partnership between the the diet and the dieter. Eventually, and every time, I returned to the state of which I had come from, sometimes even worse.

A couple of years ago I had the opportunity to watch the movie “Super Size It!” and was totally disgusted with the fast food industry. Although I have never been a ‘fast food junkie’, I’d have to say that my biggest and most problematic phase of weight gain occurred when I was in a travelling sales job and ate at the fast food places to fill the spot. I went from 215 lbs to 260 lbs in less than 2 years and felt horrible for it. I was at risk for Type 2 diabetes, my back was sore all the time and my feet were miserable trying to carry the excess tonnage.

So, what’s the answer? Who do you believe? Is this for convenience or is there a commitment? In order to succeed there are a few parameters that I believe are the main components of any successful diet program. There may be more but these are

1) Nutrition: The diet must contain a list of foods from all of the major food groups. Our bodies need the elements that are provided by the spectrum of foods nature offers, including lots of pure water to flush our systems of the toxins that are stopping us from progress. ps… fast food is not a major food group

2) Education: There are a lot of diet books out there suggesting this and that but what we really need to understand is what has gotten us to the point at which we are at. If we are fat and sloppy now when we use to be trim and athletic, what has changed? Why are my kids fat? It’s never just one thing but rather an accumulation of poor decisions that have long term repercussions. It’s also a matter of understanding which types of foods contribute most to the ease of weight gain and finding the proper solution for your individual situation.

3) Exercise: Always a key component, exercise is the catalyst in increasing your rate of fat burning and weight loss. Exercise can be effectively incorporated into any diet program and staged to accommodate most current states of physical fitness. Walking itself can do wonders.

4) A Plan… with a Goal: Having a plan with no goal or a goal with no plan on how to achieve it makes little sense, yet we fall into this trap all the time. Perhaps, subliminally, we do this in order to avoid the commitment. Many of us just don’t get it but we all have experienced the results of such omission… little or none.

5) Commitment: A diet change can’t be “temporary”. Dieting needs to be a lifestyle adjustment with parameters to stay within. The attitude of dieting to lose the weight and then going back to the same old eating habits that got us there in the first place is absurd. But people like you and me have done it many times too often.

6) A Coach: Probably the most underrated of the 6 factors because the the coach can help you with the nutrition, education and plan plus be a reinforcement factor for your commitment.

This time around I am reinforcing my commitment and using the buddy system with recent business associate, Dr Cindy Meays. Her “Perfect Body Shape Program”, complete with food ideas, supplements, exercise and coaching seems to make a lot of sense. From what I understand, Dr Cindy’s program focus’s on Glycemic Awareness that provides the education and an Action Plan to put one on-track with coaching to reinforce my personal commitment.

So, here’s my starting point. I’m 52 years old, 240lbs at 5 feet 9 inches tall. I did a lot of body building and power lifting over the years and despite my current shape, I still carry a significant amount of muscle mass. My goal is to lose my gut and love handles, reduce to approximately 200 lbs and stay there.

Interestingly enough, this program suggests throwing away the bathroom scale and measure your progress in lost inches. The logic behind this is that in changing ones body shape in this program, you are likely to gain some muscle mass while losing the fat. Muscle is more dense than fat so even though you won’t appear to be losing a lot of weight, the fat inches will be melting off. This is not dissimilar to the regime put forward in Bill Phillips “Body for Life” where his emphasis is on both diet and rigorous exercise. “Perfect Body Shape” doesn’t appear to be as regimented as “Body for Life”. I have plenty of opportunity to walk and do other physical exercise at my day job. I may also set up the weights again although the heavy lifting will be avoided.

So, there it is. We will be starting this week and the initial program is 90 days. We will be keeping you up to date on the procedures and progresses we make each week by posting on Cindy’s blog. If you want to join me and others in this promising program, check out your Body Mass Index first at Dr. Cindy’s cindy.perfectbodyshape.com Perfect Body Shape. If you can commit to 90 days, then she will guarantee that you are successful. You can’t get better than that!

Dave O is an internet consultant and author who specializes in contract article writing and internet marketing. He has lived in British Columbia for almost 30 years and makes his home in Kamloops, BC. His interest in diet, nutrition and exercise began in the early 1990’s as he approached age 40 and became more aware of his change in weight and body shape.

Dave invites you to visit

When we begin meditation practice, no matter how many profound teachers we run across; it’s never enough, and we will find faults in them all. But after practicing for awhile, everything becomes our teacher, and we find fault in nothing. The teacher never has been the solution; the solution was only to be found within ourselves. Relying on teachers ruin the teacher as well as the student, as both become dependent. Correct meditation practice, on the other hand, relies on our own creativity, and always frees, never binds. A teacher only points the way, offering a road map, but never travels with you.

When we ambitiously attempt to “do” something, including changing ourselves through meditation, it takes our eye off the ball. Our goal in meditation is a still mind; and a mind cannot “be” stilled. The part of you that is doing the stilling is extremely active, and this is the antitheses of stillness.

In the beginning, however, we must use that active part. After all, that’s all we have to work with, this same mechanism that has taken us far in the world with its ambition, aggressiveness, and aspirations. These attributes signal success, but what do we really gain?

Meditation, true meditation, gains nothing. That’s the beauty of it. That’s what separates it from worldly pursuits that are so agonizingly wearisome. True meditation just happens; it happens when your mind and aspirations become exhausted, when you have nowhere to turn, no more answers, no further questions, just awareness, awareness without an object and therefore without consciousness. Consciousness arises in company of an object, and when no object is present, there is only awareness, bare awareness, and that is true meditation.

Awareness of this kind is rare. It’s not “being” aware, or an awareness “of” something. It instead reveals worlds unimaginable, light years from our familiar bondage. But few understand or experience this refined awareness because we always stop short of it, grasping some kind of weak finality. Our old habits of gaining something are too ingrained, and we look upon the idea of nothingness, void, or emptiness as threatening to the illusion of ourselves traveling through time.

Our experience of life is more precious than anything, and the thought of suspending that experience is unthinkable. But pure awareness is void of thought, void of consciousness, void of experience . . . and void of an experiencer. Nothing can be said about pure awareness; nothing in the world could come close to its ecstasy, or bring about the changes that occur in people who cross its threshold.

Consciousness and awareness are not things that we can work with. Consciousness is tied to change, and without things changing, there is no consciousness. Consciousness requires an object, and is necessary to become aware of an object. Awareness itself, on the other hand, exists without subject or object. Awareness is changeless. Awareness is the key to the unformed, the undying, the eternal, that without limit. Awareness is nothing, yet awareness is everything.

To realize these things is to become totally free, free of all ignorance, and this requires deep self inquiry, a solitary endeavor. If you survive the isolation that this self-inquiry involves, then isolation becomes aloneness, but never loneliness. The one that would normally feel lonely, in fact, disappears, replaced by moment to moment awareness. The need to be surrounded by others, or teachers, then becomes only conventions within your daily activities, and never dependencies.

Now our practice is nothing more than our daily ordinary life, wherever we find ourselves – working, eating, sleeping, and with no contrived effort or feelings of accomplishment. Now we are naturally quiet, the mind stilled without effort, for the things in our past that had disturbed the mind’s natural peace have now been revealed for what they were; merely illusions. Thinking is only done when required, and life is seen for what it is, no more, no less. The infinite accompanies us constantly, and this instills tremendous confidence, but not a confidence in ourselves, it’s a confidence in the reality beyond existence of all things and our interconnectedness.

We have finally arrived at that place we had never left, and only dreamed that we had.

Copyright © E. Raymond Rock 2007. All rights reserved.

E. Raymond Rock of Fort Myers, Florida is cofounder and principal teacher at the Southwest Florida Insight Center (

Restylane is an injectable filler that is utilized to combat aging by filling in lines and wrinkles in the facial area. Restylane injections are used to improve facial contouring, lip augmentation , and wrinkles that appear on the forehead, eyebrow, and nasolabial wrinkles. (Mouth area) The chemical make up of Restylane is that of hyaluronic acid . While foreign sounding in name is chemical substance that is naturally found in the human body. The role of hyaluronic acid in the human body is to cushion by means of attracting moisture. What makes Restylane different from other products utilizing this compound are its non-animal origins, which is key to eliminating the risk of allergic reaction.

Restylane injection procedure

The length of the procedure typically runs 10 minutes to 30 minutes per session.
A topical numbing cream is applied to patients receiving lip Restylane injections beforehand to minimize the little in the way of pain during the procedure.
Most patients typically do not require a general or local anesthetic for this procedure.
Most Restylane injection procedures are typically outpatient.

What complications can occur from a Restylane injection?

Normal side effects include tingling, swelling, redness, all of which are usually temporary and may last for a few days. Most of these side effects are typical with a various cosmetic procedures, and are not considered a Restylane problem. A benefit for Restylane is the fact that it has been used world wide for over a decade. With its excellent safety record based on over a million treatments, there are few if any Restylane side effects.

Patients however, should avoid vitamin E, aspirin, and Ibuprofen-based medications before the procedure to decrease the chances of bruising or bleeding.

Patients who receive Restylane Injection treatments are immediately able to resume normal daily activities.

Long-term results of Restylane Injections

The results of a Restylane injection treatment are immediate in their visibility.
While this alone would be attractive, there are many other advantages to choosing Restylane injections.
One of the greatest advantages is Restylane’s more natural composition. Because Restylane is derived from non-animal sources, there are no requirements for allergy testing. The fact that Restylane is not an animal-based product may appeal to those who want to reduce the signs of aging while making healthy choices. (I.e. Vegetarians, eco-conscious individuals, certain more or religious beliefs).

Restylane has an added benefit of lasting over twice as long as similar products, such as collagen treatments.

The duration of a Restylane injection treatment varies between 5 months to a year.

How much does Restylane cost?

The cost of a Restylane treatment will vary depending on your personal needs. The cost of Restylane treatment typically runs between $300 and $700 per treatment.

Read more about houstonmedcenter.com/articles/Cost-of-Restylane-Injection.php Restylane. Renee Billancourt is a contributing writer at houstonmedcenter.com Houston Medical Center

Gynecomastia, otherwise known as Man Boobs, is a regular pandemic. With over 30% of the male population suffering from this condition (some place the percentage at 50%), Gynecomastia is a common and disturbing cosmetic condition.

The most common treatment for Gynecomastia is plastic surgery in which fatty tissue is removed from the patient’s chest area. Surgery is indeed a promising treatment option which many men take advantage of, but the high cost of surgery (upwards of 4,000$), the many risks involved, and the long and painful recovery period drive many sufferers of Gynecomastia to seek other, less extreme treatment options.

Even though Gynecomastia isn’t classified as a disease but merely a cosmetic condition, there are some medication options available. Gynecomastia medicine is divided into 2 main groups: prescription pills, and non-prescription natural supplements.

Prescription Gynecomastia Medicine

A substance called Tamoxifen, which is a drug for breast cancer victims, has also displayed a curious side effect: In some patients it reduces the size of their breasts. In essence, it can bring some improvement (in certain cases, an impressive improvement) to the state of Gynecomastia patients. Tamoxifen is marketed under various names, one of the most common is Nolvadex.

You should be aware of 2 things:

1. This is a prescription only drug which means that you will have to go to the doctor in order to get it.

2. Nolvadex has many possible and rather nasty side effects such as reduced sex drive and impotency.

Non-prescription Nautral Gynecomastia Medication

There are a few natural supplements on the market today which target the fatty tissue in the male chest area and reduce it by natural means. These are supplements made from 100% natural ingredients which have no reported side effects. Even though they don’t work for 100% of the patients, many men reported excellent and fast results with these supplements. Although there are a number of supplements on the market, I recommend that you stick to one which is called Gynexin. I make this recommendation not because I belive the other supplements are scams, but simply because Gynexin is the one with the longest track record, the one most documented, and so is the one I am most comfortable with.

I hope I have opened your eyes to the many options available to you. Know that Gynecomastia can be treated. It is up to you.

To read tips and ways on how to totally eliminate your Gynecomastia, click here: squidoo.com/how-to-get-rid-of-your-man-boobs How To Get Rid Of Gynecomastia.

John Davenport writes on how to cure Gynecomastia on this webpage, click here: squidoo.com/how-to-get-rid-of-your-man-boobs Gynecomastia Cures – Your Way To A Firm Chest

Though 300 amino acids occur in nature, about 20 amino acids are found in proteins. All the amino acids are required by the body but some are known as indispensable nutritionally essential amino acids, as these cannot be synthesized in the body, and their deficiency disturbs nitrogen equilibrium, growth, nutrition, maintenance, and life span. The others are termed as dispensable in the diet as there amino acids can be synthesized in the body, but they are more important to the cell than the essential ones. There are 10 essential amino acids in humans.

Arginine, Histidine, Isoleucine, Leucine, Lysine, Methionine, Phenylalanine, Threonine, Tryptophan, and Valine. Arginine and Histidine are considered nutritionally semiessential, since they can be synthesized but not in quantities sufficient to permit normal growth. Two other amino acids, Cysteine and Tyrosine may be formed form the essential amino acids Methionine and Phenylalanine, respectively.

The others are Alanine, Asparagine, Aspartate, Glutamate, Glutamine, Glycine, Proline, and Serine. These are formed from amphibolic intermediates by short anabolic pathways, or from other dietary amino acids.

Proteins form different sources vary considerably in the quality and quantity of their amino acid contents, and thus their food values differ. The building blocks of proteins are amino acids. While proteins contain substances in addition to amino acids, their biologic properties are determined largely by the kinds of amino acids, present, the order in which they are linked together, and thereby the spatial relationship of one amino acid to another.

First class proteins of high biological value contain all essential amino acids and are capable of providing growth and maintenance. Almost all animal proteins, glutein of wheat, and glutelin of maize belong to this class. Second class proteins of low biological value are different in some of the essential amino acids and unsuitable for growth and maintenance. Generally most of the vegetable origin proteins, and gelatin of animal origin fall in this category. A diet supplying 12% energy from protein in adequate.

Certain amino acids, like Glycine and Glutamic acid, appear to be involved in the transmission of impulses in the nervous system.

The metabolism of amino acids rise to many compounds of biomedical importance: as decarboxylation of certain amino acids produces the corresponding amines like Histamine and Gama-aminobutyric acid (GABA) having biologic functions.

The protein values in food items are calculated from the functions, content, and the factor used is 6.25 for all foodstuffs. The amount of nitrogen in gm per 100 gm of edible portion of a foodstuff is given in col. 2 of table below. The col. 3 to 14 of the table further indicate content of 12 amino acids in mg per gm of nitrogen. So to calculate:

Protein =N (col.2) x6.25 in gm per 100 gm of edible portion of foodstuff. Amino acid= N x 6.25xAmino Acid (any of col. 3-14) in mg in 100 gm of food. Know more about healthvitaminsguide.com/aminoacids/glutamine-and-glutamic-acid.htm 20 amino acids.

Dr John Anne
Read more on healthvitaminsguide.com/aminoacids/alanine.htm Amino acid- Benefits and its types

Find complete and updated information on amino acid, essential amino acid, amino acid supplement, 20 amino acid, amino acid structure, amino acid chain, amino acid protein, and amino acid food. Read healthvitaminsguide.com healthvitaminsguide.com – Information on Vitamins, Minerals, Amino Acids

It is said that articles should not be written in the first person. Tosh! I have read so much on MMR and measles during the past year that I have to say something before I scream! I think there is an awful lot of uninformed comment being given air time and newspaper space these days, and there is a danger of ‘untruths’ being believed as fact due to most people seeming to believe anything they see or read in the media.

Here is a brief rundown on three specific items I read during the week in which I am writing this; one was on the subject of measles parties. I shudder at people’s ignorance on this matter.

I have two comments to make on what could be construed as attempted manslaughter:

If deliberately infecting someone with AIDS or HIV is illegal, what is so different about deliberately infecting a child with measles, which is also a killer disease.
If measles parties are becoming more popular then measles must be becoming more common. If not, there would not be so many infected children for the uninfected ones to visit!

Q.E.D.! (stands for ‘quod erat demonstrandum’, understood these days to mean that the point in question has been proven). Measles breeds measles.

The sad thing about this is that the parents genuinely feel that they are doing the best for their children. So please do not let me hear anyone say that the MMR debate is trivial or that parents are silly. They are confused and a lot has to do with the amount of misinformation, badly presented facts and misinformed opinion being disguised as fact. The fact that I disagree with the views of many parents does not mean that I do not understand them and feel deeply sad that they feel reduced to deliberately infecting their child with a disease in order to prevent them getting that same disease. The illogicality of it indicates just how confused they are. To compound this, it is well known that measles is more dangerous to young children that to adults. In 2004, 410,000 children under 5 died from the disease.

According to the UK Sutton Guardian on July 6th, the Sutton and Merton Primary Care Trust gives a MMR vaccination to children at age 12 months and another at age 15 months. My son was still recovering from meningitis 3 months after his measles vaccination (I still support the MMR since measles is worse!).

According to the NHS, the national schedule is one jab at 13 months and another at 3 years 4 months. Some difference! Sutton Guardian readers will now believe that their child will get 2 MMR jabs in the space of 3 months! No wonder parents are nervous. I think what the spokesperson meant to say was that the vaccination is given between 12 and 15 months, and that this was a genuine error, but needs to be rectified.

It could be argued that this should have been checked before going to press, but newspaper editors are busy people and must expect Health Trusts to know what they are talking about. If the Trust concerned gives an explanation of the policy, or admits that their information is incorrect, I will add it to my blog. I have had a good response from Nina Jacobs, the Assistant Editor of the Sutton Guardian, and I will no doubt have something shortly. There has been too much misinformation on this important subject for me to ignore it when I see it. My apologies to the Guardian for my fervour on this very serious and important topic.

Another comment I spotted was in an article by journalist Victoria Lambert. I quote:

Some mothers flatly condemned the injection, believing that the risk of contracting measles was an acceptable one. The disease had been around in our youth and we were all fine.

The thing is we were not ‘all fine’. Those of us who survived without dying or without the permanent side-effects of deafness, blindness, brain damage or learning difficulties were ‘all fine’. Those who did not contract meningitis or encephalitis were ‘all fine’. The rest were not! Then again, it is natural to close our eyes and believe that our own experience is the norm. Those who believe we were ‘all fine’ did not live through the dark days prior to vaccination when measles killed children every year: it still does, but vaccination has reduced it to only 410,000 annually. Only 410,000?

In fact, the single measles vaccination has been available since 1963 and it is probable that today’s mothers, who are making these comments, have been vaccinated against the disease. The single vaccination was generally given around 18 months in these days, for current parents to have missed it, they would have to be aged around 44.

I do not understand how people can refuse the MMR for their children, but be prepared to allow them the individual measles vaccine, citing autism as the reason. This is another example of ignorance of the facts.

The facts are that Dr. Andrew Wakefield came to his conclusion, he claims, because he found that the form of measles virus, as found in vaccinations, causes problems in the gut which releases toxins into the brain and so causes autism. The form of virus, as found in vaccinations, is different to the wild type of measles virus. Therefore, why should the single vaccination be any safer than getting it as part of the triple vaccination? It is the measles part of the MMR which is claimed to cause the problem!

In Japan, where the MMR was stopped for other reasons, it was found that the rate of autism continued to increase at the same rate after the ban as before it.

That apart, however, Wakefield’s evidence has been shown to be faulty and the GMC recently announced that it is to carry out an investigation into his professional conduct. Perhaps this is partially due to him having an interest in the form of patents for individual treatments which would have required the MMR to have been discredited.

I firmly believe that many parents are genuinely frightened to death of the MMR vaccine, and scared to take the chance of allowing their children to have it. I also believe that the vaccination is hugely safer than allowing children to take their chances of catching the wild virus naturally.

However, in saying that, I also firmly believe that there are too many vested interests by individuals, corporations and governments for us to be able to believe anything they say conclusively. Andrew Wakefield had his personal reasons for wanting the MMR vaccine discredited, just as the large drug consortiums have theirs for proving it safe. Governments and health bodies also have their own agendas. What chance, therefore, does the public have of ever finding the truth. We can only go by evidence and statistics, which themselves are open to opinion and manipulation.

I read the Red Flags webpage occasionally and feel that it has something to offer so long as it does not allow itself to be taken over by the lunatic fringe. It is a group with good intentions, but these are too often used as a platform for vituperation against the establishment. However, if you want as close to a balanced opinion as you are likely to get, give it a visit. Just do a search on red flags (NOT Red Flag). Make sure you include the ‘s’, and I think you will be pleasantly surprised by what you find.

I was.

Peter has had an interest in children’s health since his son contaracted meningitis and encaphalitis shortly after being given a measles vaccination. It was misdiagnosed as tonsilitis and after being informed his son would likely die, he decided to learn all he could about childhood diseases so that he would be of more use in the future.

His son survived, but with some permanent side effects, and his story, plus lots of information on children’s health conditions, can be found on his website at:
childhood-diseases-online.com childhood-diseases-online.com

Depending on the diagnosis and the severity of the symptoms of depression, there are several types of treatments that might be recommended by your health care professional. The most common include various types of psychotherapy and anti-depressant medications, or perhaps a combination of these two approaches. For very severe cases of depression, more drastic measures can be employed.

The following is a brief description and explanation of the main options recognised as being effective in the treatment of depression and depressive disorders.

Psychotherapy

This approach is based on developing a trusting, safe and understanding environment for you to talk through your thoughts and feelings with the help of a trained counsellor. By sharing your experiences either on a one to one basis or perhaps in a group therapy session with people in a similar situation or with similar feelings, can allow you the necessary emotional support you need to enable you to cope. This type of treatment lends itself well to mild and moderate types of depression sometimes alongside medication.

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy

Sometimes negative thoughts and ideas or the way you think about things can contribute to feelings of depression. This type of therapy helps you to look at these in detail in order to change the way you think about them, so that you change your behaviour accordingly. By focussing on specific difficulties that are happening in your life now, new ways of coping and dealing with situations can be identified. It is particularly helpful for anxiety related and panic disorders and disorders affecting behaviour, for example, obsessive compulsive disorder and eating disorders, amongst others.

Anti-depressant medication

Persistent depression may require the use of anti-depressants for a period of time. Just like all treatments, they are not an overnight fix and can take anything up to several weeks for the effect of the medication to be felt, and just like all medications they can carry side effects.

There are many kinds of anti-depressants available but the four main types fall into the categories of:

• Tricyclics – including Anafranil

• Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors – SSRIs like Prozac

• Serotonin and Noradrenaline Reuptake Inhibitors – SNRIs such as Endronax

• Monoamine Oxidase Inhibitors – for example, Manerix and Nardil

Basically, they are all believed to work by impacting on the activity of the chemicals in the brain responsible for making us “feel good” such as Serotonin and Noradrenaline. The most commonly prescribed anti-depressant drugs today fall into the SSRI category as they appear to have fewer side effects and are considered less dangerous than the others.

Lithium Carbonate has a mood stabilising effect and is sometimes prescribed to people with severe depression; however, it is dangerous if the levels in the blood become too high so constant medical checks and blood tests are a necessity.

St John’s Wort is a herbal remedy that has gained a lot of recognition in recent years for being effective in cases of mild to moderate depression and anxiety and is already widely used in Germany. It appears to work in much the same way as Prozac by inhibiting the reuptake of Serotonin in the brain.

Electro Convulsive Therapy

The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE), recommend that ECT is only used “for the treatment of severe depressive illness, a prolonged or severe episode of mania, or catatonia” but certain conditions apply including one that other forms of treatment have proved ineffective. It is a controversial procedure that involves placing electrodes on the head and administering a short electrical shock to the brain. The person receiving ECT is given an anaesthetic and muscle relaxants beforehand. It is usually given in twice weekly sessions over a period of several weeks and possibly monthly after that to prevent a relapse. The most common and distressing side effect reported is long term and/or short term memory loss.

Experimental Treatments

Vagal Nerve Stimulation is a treatment that is used in cases of Epilepsy but has also been found to be effective in the treatment of severe depression. Although still classed as experimental, in 2005 it was approved by the FDA in the USA for severe treatment-resistant depression. One of the main differences with this type of treatment and others is that it takes quite some time for the effect to be noticed, up to a year or even two years in some cases, however, the indications are that those receiving the treatment appear to stay better for longer. A nerve stimulator similar to a heart pace maker, is placed in the chest where it delivers regular electrical impulses to the Vagal nerve in the neck, which in turns stimulates the brain. No one really understands why it appears to be effective or exactly how it works but research by Dr.Charles Conway, assistant professor of psychiatry at Saint Louis University School of Medicine, who led a four year research project into Vagal Nerve Stimulation from 2000 to 2004, found that it appears to produce the same type of effect in the brain as ECT, but that the effect doesn’t seem to wear off as it does with ECT. More research is required.

fightingdepression.co.uk Depression is a serious condition that can strike anyone at anytime. For more information about depression and selp help come and visit fightingdepression.co.uk fightingdepression.co.uk

There’s a lot of buzz today about “cleansing” the body. Exactly what does this mean? Ultimately, cleansing means reducing the stress load on the body’s major filters; the liver, kidneys, lymph, colon and blood, and allowing it to rid itself of accumulated wastes and garbage.

Just like any machine, the body needs maintenance. Cleansing is one type of maintenance that can have long-term benefits. Two important benefits are weight loss and relieving the load on your immune system.

There are two basic styles of cleansing. One style focuses on one organ of the body. The other focuses on the body as a whole. Let’s discuss both types so you can decide which type suits your cleansing style.

There are two types of colon cleanses. One often uses fiber or clay along with lots of water to create bulk. That gives the muscles of the colon more to push and thus more wastes are moved out of the body.

the other type of colon cleanse is called therapeutic hydrotherapy. This includes enemas, colonics, colon therapy and colon irrigation. A soothing flow of filtered, temperature-controlled water gently circulates through the colon, coaxing your body to eliminate stored toxins from different areas.

Skin brushing is another type of cleanse on the largest organ of the body. It’s also the largest organ of elimination. Brushing the skin facilitates cleansing by stimulating the lymphatic system to get rid of toxins through the skin. It also improves circulation and removes dead skin cells and debris that clog pores.

The liver is easily the most overworked organ of the body. Because it has to filter wastes as well as produce many chemicals for the body, cleansing can reduce some of its burden. There are various recipes on the internet for a do it yourself flush The lymphatic system is supposed to be the mover so cellular wastes to the blood and then to the colon and kidneys for removal, but it needs exercise to do its job because it has no pump, like our cardio-vascular system.

One way to stimulate the lymph and help it do its job is to jump on a rebounder or mini trampoline. Jumping rope or simply rocking back and forth in a rocker will also give some of that muscle movement necessary for the lymph to pumped throughout the body.

There is also a massage just for the lymph. I recommend that you seek a trained professional if you want a lymphatic massage.

The macrobiotic diet popularized by Michio Kushi uses food as a way to cleanse and balance the whole body over time. This is a very old type of diet and I mention it here because I’ve been on this diet and have seen some remarkable results from it. It needs to be supervised and followed very strictly to achieve the best results. It is a wonderful way to uplift the whole body.

There are various products on the market that focus on cleansing right down to the cellular level. It’s worth taking your time to find the right product that supports the organs of detoxification and the body a whole as it goes through the process of releasing wastes held within the cells. Depending on the product this type of cleanse can go from days to months and can involve fasting and purges.

Some products wills deplete the body as you cleanse with the hope of replenishing it after the cleanse is completed, but that’s very harsh on the body. It’s far better to do a cleanse that both cleanses and supports at the same time and is gentle on the system. I’ve done that and seen amazing results from a full body cleanse.

Fortunately, the human body is a self-healing machine! That’s right, if you care for it, it will give you a quality life. I can’t think of a better way to help your organs of elimination than to cleanse.

Carolyn McClendon is an avid health enthusiast. She writes for

Only a real health professional can interpret an electrocardiogram or ECG result. However, enough knowledge on ECG can help you make basic interpretations. Below is how health professionals interpret electrocardiography waves:

The first small spike you will see is called the P wave. It represents the contraction of the atria or the upper chambers of the heart.

The space between the P wave and another wave called the R wave is known as the PR interval. This represents the time between the electrical signal of atria contraction and the signal of ventricle contraction.

The R wave (represented by tall spikes) is in between a small dip called the Q wave and another small dip called the S wave. Together, the QRS complex (Q, R, and S waves) demonstrates the activation of the left and right ventricles of the heart.

On the other hand, the T wave represents the resetting (or repolarization) of electrically charged cells in the ventricles. This resetting occurs during the contraction of the ventricles, masking the signals so they will not appear on the waveform. When resetting finishes, the entire cycle repeats.

Similar to that of the PR interval, the waveform from the end of the QRS complex to the starting point of the T wave is called the ST segment. The waveform from the starting point of the QRS complex to the end of the T wave is called the QT interval.

When reading the ECG, the height of the waves denotes electrical signal strength and the overlap of the opposing signals. The space between the waves represents the time it takes for the signal to pass through your heart.

By comparing your heart’s electrical signal pattern to that of the normal signal pattern through the use of the ECG, health professionals can easily identify heart problems.

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