Wednesday 31 December 2014

Defining Alternative Medicine

Alternative medicine is quickly gaining ground as an alternative to the conventional medicine that is prescribed in the doctor’s office and many reasons can be attributed to this among them the need to remain chemical –free. In theory, alternative medicine can be said to be any medicine that is not within western medicine’s scientific framework. Medicines that have been proven to be scientifically effective and that have theories that explain their effectiveness they are no longer seen as alternative medicine. Some countries on the other hand have medical associations that are tasked with dealing with every aspect of medicine and in this countries, traditional medicine is any medicine that these bodies have not accepted as being scientifically valid. In some of these countries massage is classified as alternative medicine as well. 

To some people, alternative medicine is just herbs. Well herbs are indeed traditional medicine but they are not the only ones available today. Herbal medicines have been with us for a long time and presently take different forms such as supplements, liquids among others. Herbal medicines treat most diseases that are treatable by conventional medicines and treat more that conventional medicine cannot treat as well. While herbal medicine has been proven to work in many instances, quite a number of people have been affected by them as their herbalists never gave them the correct dosage or never warned them of fillers or side effects. These three areas should be looked into by a trained herbalist before one decides to take on herbal medicines. 

Oriental medicine is another kind of alternative medicine and also presents the only one of its kind that can truly be compared to western medication as a good and complete medicine system. This kind of medicine includes herbal therapy, massage, qi gong and acupuncture among others. Traditional medicine from China is a form of oriental medicine and it is the only of its kind that be found in countries such as the USA. In most Asian countries oriental medicine is seen as conventional while the western kind is seen as alternative. Massage presents another way through which the body can be healed without the use of conventional medicines. It involves the use of tools or hands to manipulate the tendons and muscles and is mainly used to ease pains and aches as well as to relieve stress. Massage is effective when it comes to conditions such as fibromyalgia, carpal tunnel syndrome and eating disorders. Moreover, it can treat most muscular injuries to avoid the building up of scars as well as restrict motion range. There are different types of massage treatments and they include Deep Tissue, Shiatsu, Swedish Massage, Thai Massage, Chair Massage, Medical Massage, Lomi Lomi, Hot stone among others. It is advisable that one goes to a specialist despite the form of alternative medicine they choose. 



Monday 15 December 2014

Men Pay Attention to this Health Advice

Women in loving relationships have a hard time knowing what to do about keeping the man they love healthy and living as long as them. The statistics are clear – not only do men in general lived seven fewer years than women, they don't even stay healthy the whole time they stay alive. What does one do when the man in one's life just hates to exercise or live healthy? To most women (and men who happen to be in this position too), the answer to that question happens to be pretty easy – you nag them into adopting healthy lifestyles. Truth be told though, nagging or fighting or patronizing, while they may work some of the time, really take something out of the relationship. This is what you need to do to influence the man with love to get results.

Women tend to think of how good healthy lifestyles can be, and they wonder about how the men in their lives can just ignore something so obviously true and desirable. When someone ignores something that one considers obvious, it can be quite hard to bring the thing up for discussion in a really sincere way. One is just so annoyed at how one has to force someone to do something that obvious. Heartfelt sincerity though is considerably underrated. If you could set all the annoyance and anger aside and approach the problem with heartfelt concern, it can often make a huge difference.

Showing your concern, you can start with talking about what you know of the family history of the man in your life. If you could bring up specific instances of heart disease or anything else on his mother's side or that of his father's, that could really build your argument up. Healthy lifestyles can be a lot of work. Nothing says that you really care about a person the way helping with all that work can. Planning heart healthy meals that appeal to the man in your life could be a great start. Men love to grill. It makes them feel like they're doing something hard that should deserve appreciation. The good thing in this is that grilled food can be very healthy. The heat of the grill tends to melt all the fatty parts away. 

Planning exercise together (no one says you can't make it a bit racy) can put out a particularly positive message. In fact, research finds that couples that exercise together stick to their schedules for far longer. Group bike rides out together, group dance lessons, walks together and gym time together can all really set things up the way you hope.

There are all kinds of little changes that can really add up. Changing the brand of juice you buy so that you go sugar and additive-free, parking the car farther away than usual when you go anywhere, choosing whole-wheat over refined – can all make a difference.
And finally, almost nothing works when you reason with a man about being sensible like appealing to his provider instincts does. Men want to know that they will forever be looked to as the family’s provider. Taking out life insurance should be a real reminder that nothing in life is to be taken for granted. Not even one's status as provider.