Why Women Have Bad Sleep - Study

You finally flop into bed after an exhausting day. You desperately try to fall sleep but you can't. The more you look at the clock, the more anxious you become about not being able to sleep.

You are not alone. According to the Sleep Health Foundation, around one in three Australians suffer from mild insomnia.

What is insomnia?

There are three basic elements that can occur in any combination in insomnia. These include difficulty falling asleep (sleep-onset insomnia); difficulty staying asleep, including waking up too early (sleep-maintenance insomnia); and poor-quality, fragmented sleep.

What causes insomnia?

There are a variety of medical, psychological, neurological, environmental and behavioural conditions that can contribute to insomnia.

Not only is this debilitating epidemic on the rise across the age groups and sexes, for women there is a slightly darker reality.

There are proven links between sleep disturbances and adult women. These are associated with the menstrual cycle, pregnancy and menopause, due to the monthly variation of female reproductive hormones, particularly progesterone and oestrogen.

Women of reproductive age report more sleep disturbances during the premenstrual week and first few days of menstruation. These disorders can include both hypersomnia (excessive sleepiness during the day) and a premenstrual night or two of insomnia. You can read about suggestions specific to PMS insomnia here or consult your GP.

Debbie Martinez is a 36-year-old stay-at-home mum to three children under six in Sydney's Peakhurst. Since the birth of her second daughter three years ago, she has become unnaturally accepting of the fact that she is constantly tired.

"I honestly can't remember the last time I jumped out of bed full of energy. With a husband, three kids, a cat and a dog, I really don't have time to think about how tired I am," she says.

"I'm a shocking sleeper. By the time I clean up after dinner, organise baths and get the kids down for the night, I'll sit on the couch to watch some TV or unwind with a book and the next minute, I wake up and it's around 3am.

"I drag myself into bed and usually just lie there wide awake, cursing the clock and staring at the ceiling, then I'm up at 5.30 getting my husband ready for work and my day starts all over again.

"It's a vicious circle, it's affecting my health, my patience and my relationship with my husband. I can't go on like this," she says.

Janine Blakey, a part-time medical receptionist from Tingalpa in Brisbane, feels the same. The recently divorced 52-year-old put her insomnia down to the stress of her break-up but was shocked when a GP at her practise suggested there was more going on.

"One of the GPs explained to me that women are much more likely to experience insomnia, thanks to hormonal shifts during our menstrual cycle or during the onset of menopause [perimenopause]," she says. "Because I'm not suffering the hot flushes yet, it didn't even cross my mind.

"She explained that sleep difficulties are linked to hormonal changes - and our risk of depression is even higher during menopause, which can exacerbate the insomnia."

How to sleep better?

The experts recommend that we get between seven and eight hours of good shut-eye every night. This isn't always possible, so what can we do to improve the quality of our sleep?

There are several steps to help increase productive sleep time, according to sleep specialist, Dr Sean Tolhurst.
See your ad here

"It is important to establish and maintain a routine prior to bed - relaxing activity, brush teeth, put on pyjamas, hop into bed, turn light off, go to sleep," he says.

"Avoid caffeine, alcohol, cigarettes, vigorous exercise in the hours before sleep, and ensure medical conditions that could impact on sleep are adequately treated.

"Switch off mobile phones and avoid technology before bed - not only does this stimulate your mind, but also acts as a distraction from sleep. All clocks should be turned away from viewing - clock watching does not help you get a good night sleep!"

If you think you may be suffering from insomnia or another sleep related ailment, a visit to your GP is recommended.

Source: monashweekly.com.au

First Non-Hormonal Treatment Brisdelle For Hot Flashes Approved By FDA; Contains SSRI Paxil

Taken once daily, a medication containing a low dose of a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) was shown effective in reducing hot flashes in menopausal women.

Rising from the chest, a warmth flashes throughout the upper body reaching full intensity within a minute, fading gradually before several more set in � a metronome signalling a new beginning in a woman's life.

The age of menopause, and the onset of potentially miserable hot flashes, varies greatly from developing to developed world, with the average American woman beginning the years-long transition at age 49.

Although researchers don't fully understand the mechanisms of the heat flashes, a body of evidence implicates reduced levels of estrogen as the primary cause. This in turn gives rise to changes in the brain's hypothalamus, which functions as the body's thermostat, causing a change in body temperature. Most drug therapies on the market treat the symptoms of menopause by attempting to restore a former hormonal balance with estrogen or a combination of estrogen and progestin, the synthetic form of the hormone progesterone.

However, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Saturday announced approval for the first non-hormonal treatment for vasomotor symptoms associated with menopause, a therapy containing the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) paroxetine mesylate, marketed by the name Brisdelle.

The new medication is intended to offer a non-hormonal treatment for the 75 percent of menopausal women who experience the discomforting symptoms, which may persist for five years, or even longer for some women.

"There are a significant number of women who suffer from hot flashes associated with menopause and who cannot or do not want to use hormonal treatments," Dr. Hylton V. Joffe, director of the Division of Bone, Reproductive, and Urologic Products in the FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. "Today's approval provides women with the first FDA-approved, non-hormonal therapeutic option to help ease the hot flashes that are so common in menopause."

The medication contains 7.5 milligrams of paroxetine, less than the amount used in medications such as Paxil and Pexeva for the treatment of major depressive disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, panic disorder, and generalized anxiety disorder. Even with a lower dose of paroxetine, the menopause therapy carries a warning of increased suicidality that has been shown in children and young adults. The most common side effects associated with Brisdelle, however, are headache, fatigue, and nausea.

The therapy was tested for safety and efficacy in two randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled studies in a total of 1,175 women with moderate to severe menopausal symptoms, which varied from 7-8 instances of hot flashes per week to 50-60 in the most aggravated cases.

In the two studies, the therapy was shown effective in reducing the symptoms of hot flashes, though researchers have little idea why.

Source: medicaldaily.com

Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Eyelastin Review: Does Eyelastin Fix Dark Circles & Bags Under Eyes?

Image Credit - Zimbio.com

Many consumers, dissuaded by the vast amounts of side effects caused by prescribed eye creams that contain Retin-A - a powerful and concentrated form of vitamin A - are turning instead to nonprescription eye creams, like Eyelastin, which cause no side effects and are as equally, if not more, effective; and because they are proven to work.

Manalapan, NJ (PRWEB) September 30, 2009

Dark eye circles, bagginess and puffiness around the eyes, and wrinkles near the tear ducts (otherwise known as Crow's Feet), have forever been the primary focus of many of the eye creams which have been developed for such anti-aging purposes. However, many of the most popular brands of prescription eye creams contain an ingredient called Retin-A - a powerful and concentrated form of vitamin A - which amongst many other associated side effects that it has been documented to cause, greatly increases the skin's sensitivity to any kind of UV ray, both natural and artificial. These factors, combined with the costliness and the prescription nature of Retin-A, are why many consumers instead choose to use proven eye creams, like Eyelastin, because it is more cost effective, it doesn't cause any side effects whatsoever and it is available over-the-counter.

Much rapid advancement in cosmeceutical technology has yielded some of the most revolutionary breakthroughs in skin care ever seen. But sometimes there are downsides to lauded skin care revivers, like the popularly prescribed skin cream, Retin-A Gel; or creams that contain this concentrated ingredient complex. Namely, the many different side effects it can cause, in addition to greatly increasing the risk of UV burning in the skin.

The leading drug information website, Drugs.com, cites the known and most common side effects of using skin creams and gels that contain Retin-A as, "Redness, peeling at application site; sensitivity to sunlight; skin irritation; warmth or stinging at the application site."

Some consumers prefer to use such prescription eye creams because they are backed by clinical trials and proof. But other leading nonprescription eye creams, like Eyelastin, have also undergone intensive clinical trials on their primary ingredient complexes.

One the main ingredients in Eyelastin eye cream, Acetyl Hexapeptide-8, during the clinical trials, "Was observed that the severity of wrinkles around the eyes decreased up to 17% after 15 days, and up to 27% after 30 days." (Eyelastin.com; 2009.)

Another active and patented ingredient complex, Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-3 & Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7 (better known as Matrixyl 3000), "Reduced the surface area occupied by deep wrinkles 44.9% on average. It encourages skin tissue to restore itself to a more youthful strength while promoting deep tissue repair. Collagen and elastin production are accelerated, skin appears softer and firmer, and elasticity is significantly improved."

Finally, another signature ingredient in Eyelastin, SYN-AKE - an anti-wrinkle active compound based on a synthetic tripeptide that mimics the effect of waglerin 1 (a peptide that is found in the venom of the Temple Viper), "Has been demonstrated in vitro by measuring the frequency of contraction of the innervated muscle cell as a function of the incubation time. The peptide reduces muscle cell contraction and its action, if reversible."

Cameron Hope, spokesperson for Eyelastin eye cream, infers that those who are looking to realizing immediate benefits from an eye cream no longer need to seek a prescribed cream, nor subject themselves to increased UV exposure dangers or other varying side effects, when eye creams like nonprescription Eyelastin are proven to be as, or more than, effective.

"Eyelastin, as you can see, clearly provides proven results in a rapid timeframe, and with no known or documented side effects," Hope explains. "This is why so many people place their trust in our effective and proven formula: because it works, and it has been proven to do so!"

Eyelastin is an all natural eye cream that has been proven to treat dark eye circles, baggy eyes, puffy eyes, crow's feet and fine lines around the eyes.

Eyelastin eye cream is easily applied in small amounts around the affected areas of skin near the eyes, one time per day. Most people will see noticeable results within 2-6 weeks of daily usage, when used as directed.

For more information visit: http://www.Eyelastin.com

About Eyelastin:

• Created by Dermagevity Skin Care--a leading cosmeceutical company
• Offers a breakthrough and patented technology consisting of a proprietary ingredient complex that brings together a powerful combination of proven anti-aging ingredients with an advanced delivery technology
• Utilizes a ground-breaking formula that combines Hyaluronic Acid--which can carry up to a thousand times its own weight in water--and Vitamin K, which has been proven to greatly reduce puffiness and wrinkles in the skin
• Uses the active ingredient, Syn-Ake, praised as 'Love at First Bite,' an anti-wrinkle active compound based on a synthetic tripeptide that mimics the effect of waglerin 1 (a peptide that is found in the venom of the Temple Viper)
• Harnesses the power of clinically-proven, age-fighting ingredients like Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7, and Palmitoyl Oligopeptide, both which have been proven to promote collagen production and increase the development and the growth of the connective tissues
• Works quickly to minimize the appearances of dark circles under eyes, puffy eyes and crow's feet, and helps to reverse the effects of aging and the appearance of wrinkles and fine lines in the skin
• 100% safe, effective and all-natural
• No known, adverse side effects
• Available online for a generous discount off retail pricing at their secured online store at: http://www.Eyelastin.com 

Source: prweb.com

Male Extra Reviews: Is Male Extra the Most Potent Male Enhancement Formula?

San Diego, CA -- (SBWIRE) -- 06/26/2013 -- MaleExtra gives many sexual benefits to you and your partner to enjoy a better and joyful sexual life:

- Get full, harder and longer lasting erection
- Increased sexual stamina, full night staying power
- Increased blood flow, increased size
- Experience bigger ejaculations
- Satisfy yourself and your partner and enjoy a better joyful sexual life

Why to use MaleExtra?

Trouble in getting fully aroused? Want to get full erection? Then MaleExtra is surely made for you to help you to enjoy a better sex life and satisfy your sexual needs. Different products are offered by marketers who claim to get better erection but these products may use some harmful artificial ingredients and chemicals that may cause some adverse side effects.

A pure blend of natural ingredients such as 70% ellagen derived from pomegranate, Zinc (as citrate), Methyl sulfonyl methane, L-Methionine, Cordyceps, Omega-3 Fatty acids the amazing formula MaleExtra is proven as highly effective for men to get full, harder and longer lasting erection. All these ingredients are clinically tested and highly effective for men to get better erection.

Safe and effective formula:

The product has gone through various clinical trials and it has been proved as very effective. The Pomegranate 70% ellagen increases the Nitric Oxide level in blood and promotes the blood flow in male organ and result a harder erectile. Also, increased blood flow causes a natural increase in male organ�s size.

Many customers are using this formula and getting best desired results. The customer reviews about the product can be found online. Customers have reported an increase in penis size with the use of 6 months by taking MaleExtra daily. This unique blend will help increase the size of penis between 0.8 - 2.6 inches within 3 - 6 months. It will increase your sexual desire, give you better control over your erections and give you more intense orgasms.

The formula is drug free, and contains all natural ingredients. It doesn�t contain any harmful artificial ingredient therefore ultimately it won�t cause any side effects. Many customers are using it and getting best results but none of them has reported any adverse side effects.

Taking 3 pills daily, this supplement will provide your body with extra nutrients essential for a healthy and joyful sexual life.

Along with supplements, doctors and therapists also recommend some penis exercises to keep it healthy.

Source: This story was originally published in SBWIRE.com

Weight loss helps erectile dysfunction, improves libido

Obesity has long been linked to erectile dysfunction � the inability to perform sexually. Now it seems that extra pounds lower sexual desire itself.

A study of 2,435 Italian males found that obesity correlated with reduced testosterone levels. The greater the obesity, the lower the testosterone levels. In general, low testosterone means a drop in libido, or sexual desire.

A recent presentation at the Heart Failure Congress in Lisbon, Portugal, linked heart failure to androgen deficiency in the aging male (ADAM), also known as late-onset hypogonadism or "male menopause." The presentation also linked heart failure to endocrine changes that contribute to a drop in libido.
Related News/Archive

To make matters worse, a drop in libido often coincides with erectile dysfunction, or ED, which is widely regarded as an indicator of "silent" heart disease.

That should add to the overweight male's sense of urgency about dropping a few pounds.

Eighty percent of men with ED are overweight or obese. This correlation could have psychological causes � depression, for example, which also correlates with obesity, or anxiety about looking sexually unattractive.

A more likely cause, however, is heart disease, which impairs the delivery of blood to every part of the body, including the penis. Heart disease also damages the endothelium � the thin lining of blood vessels � which produces the nitric oxide needed to sustain an erection. (Viagra works by inhibiting the enzyme that breaks down nitric oxide, which allows the molecule to linger in the blood stream, enabling an erection to last longer.)

Obesity, according to the Italian study, appears to lower testosterone, in part, at least, because fat cells convert testosterone into the female hormone estradiol. This loss of testosterone combined with an increase in a female hormone contributes to the loss of sexual interest. Testosterone therapy often restores erectile function, but so does weight loss. In another study, also conducted in Italy, 32 percent of obese men who lost a modest 5 percent of their body weight � usually less than 20 pounds � reported improvement in sexual function .

Also, a recent study conducted in Australia involving 31 obese men with Type 2 diabetes concluded that losing 5 to 10 percent of their body weight improved sexual desire as well as erectile function.

If a man feels a decline in sexual interest, why not just supplement his flagging testosterone levels with one of the products now available for "low T?" Many men are doing just that. A new study finds that prescriptions for the heavily advertised androgen gels and patches have more than tripled since 2001 in men over 40, and 25 percent of the men did not even bother to have a blood test to confirm low testosterone.

And when Australian physician Gary Wittert, of the University of Adelaide, lead author of the Australian study mentioned above, recently solicited males at risk of developing diabetes for a study that included free testosterone injections, he got 800 responses in one day.

But there are other ways to slow testosterone decline with age, in Wittert's opinion.

"Men who had declines in testosterone were more likely to be those who became obese, had stopped smoking or were depressed at either clinic visit," Wittert said in a statement announcing his study's results. "It is critical that doctors understand that declining testosterone levels are not a natural part of aging and that they are most likely due to health-related behaviors or health status itself."

One bright spot he observed in his data: "Regular sexual activity tends to increase testosterone."

Tom Valeo writes about health matters. He can be reached at tom.valeo@gmail.com.

Source: tampabay.com

Eyelastin Reviews - Explore Ingredients and Find Solution For Your Eyes!

The Solution for Signs of Aging around the Eyes!

 

The area around the eyes is one of the first places where signs of aging start to emerge. The reason for this is because this area is very delicate since the skin on this part of the face is very thin. In fact, it even becomes thinner as a person ages. This is why signs of skin aging around the eyes like crow's feet, fine lines, dark circles, swelling around the eyes and eye bags appear as a person gets older. Although these are not really an indication of poor health or serious illness, these signs of aging around the eyes are unsightly and make you look a lot older. The good news is that there is a solution for signs of aging around the eyes. 

The Solution

 

The solution is a quality eye cream like Eyelastin which is especially designed to target dark circles, crow's feet, fine lines, eye bags and swelling around the eyes. Eyelastin is not just a powerful moisturizer for hydrating damaged tissue but it is also contains other active ingredients that reduces swelling, lightens dark areas and helps in improving skin tone and elasticity. Clinical studies and scientific studies have proven that the patented anti-aging compounds in Eyelastin are really effective.

Eyelastin Features:

• Improves the appearance and texture of the skin by making it smoother.
• Reduces the depth of wrinkles and crow's feet by repairing damaged tissue and hydrating the area.
• Minimizes and eventually removes fluid accumulation which causes puffiness around the eyes.
• Lightens dark areas that cause dark circles and age spots around the eyes.
• Helps improve skin tone.
• Helps skin become softer through hydration.
• Helps make the skin firmer and at the same time improve skin tone.

Eyelastin Advantages:

 

Eyelastin is the revolutionary skin care product that has changed the anti-aging world forever. It is the total solution for signs of aging around the eyes. It doesn't just target one or two but all the signs of aging around the eyes. There is no longer need to buy two, three or even four facial creams just to keep signs of skin aging on your face at bay.

Eyelastin is a breakthrough that can reverse the most common signs of skin aging like wrinkles, eye puffiness, dark circles, crow's feet and fine lines. This is the product for you if you want to appear younger quickly.  

Ingredients Contained In The Product:

Eyelastin's formula includes:

Purified Water
Jojoba Oil
Apricot Kernel Oil
Squalane
Hyaluronic Acid
Arnica Montana
Vitamin K1
Oxido Reductases
Soy Peptide
Palmitoyl Oligopeptide
Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7
Acetyl Hexapeptide-8
Laureth-7
C13-14 Isoparaffin
Polyacrylate-13
Phenoxyethanol
Ethylhexylglycerin
Oil of Kumquat

The complete list of ingredients for Eyelastin can be viewed on the official Eyelastin website.

Summertime Motivates Weight Loss For Many

BODYKEY by NUTRILITE Brand Ambassador Jason Roberts Shares his Personal Weight Loss Journey

ADA, Mich., June 17, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Summer is a time when fad diets become the rage, with thousands of people trying to reclaim their summer bodies. Some try with small portion, frozen meals that are laden with preservatives and packed in foil. Others buy the latest, craziest fitness contraptions on the market. Celebrity chef and BODYKEY by NUTRILITE(TM) ambassador Jason Roberts shares in his own words his perspective on weight loss and what motivated him to shed the pounds.

To view the journey, please click: http://www.multivu.com/players/English/60257-amway-bodykey/

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120723/DE43862LOGO)

JASON ROBERTS WEIGHT LOSS JOURNEY

Here's the thing, I'm not a fan of the word diet. I prefer the term lifestyle change, especially since weight loss, permanent weight loss, is not about a diet; it's about a mindset, behavior and lifestyle change. Good nutrition, exercise and a positive attitude will ultimately lead to a healthy mind and body. I'm sharing my own weight loss story in hopes that it will serve as motivation.

My personal weight loss journey started with the devastation of Hurricane Sandy in 2012. I live in New Jersey and we got hit pretty hard. Many people lost homes and loved ones. Fortunately, most of us were only without the modern conveniences of lights, water, power or a way to get around. Even though many stocked up on food, there was no power to cook.

For a few weeks, I was in survival mode. Not being able to cook at home, I sought out food that was readily available and convenient - pasta, pizza and sweets. Unfortunately, at the same time, I got the winter blues. I was stuck in the New Jersey winter, while friends and family at home in Sydney were in the midst of an Aussie summer...swimming, surfing and having a great time. So, I turned to food for comfort, but not the right kind of food. I made poor choices, especially since I have an allergy to gluten. I opted for food full of starch and empty calories. It tasted good, but actually made me feel worse.

As a chef, I know better than most what happens to your body when you put over processed white flour, white sugar, white rice and any other white foods into your system. I was tired and unfocused. I gained weight and my skin turned blotchy. (I later realized how gluten intolerant I really was.) It made me self-conscious and unhappy. The last straw occurred while doing a live show in the Midwest. The big screen captured some heavy looking shots of me, and I lacked the energy that I normally exuded onstage. It was at that point I decided I needed to make a change; a serious change!

Weight loss is a personal journey, which is one of the reasons it's imperative to realize as individuals we all have different needs. When you commit to losing weight or changing your body's composition, the rest will come more easily. It's this initial attitude change that is important.

Some, like me, can be self-motivated. Others need training partners, personal trainers, or the support of family and friends. The key to success begins with the decision to make a lifestyle change.

My decision to get healthy has led to significant changes in my life. With the help of BODYKEY by NUTRILITE, I've been able to make healthy choices, lose weight and get fit by using a system that fits into my lifestyle. It offers me meal replacement shakes, appetite control chews for when I have the urge to indulge, aloe shots for digestive health and a great community website that helps monitor my success. It holds me accountable.

But in telling you this, it's important to note there is no quick, easy way to weight loss. It has to be done gradually and sensibly; starving yourself is not the way to go. Rather, try eating more frequently throughout the day, learning portion control and choosing colorful healthy snacks that aren't loaded with preservatives and additives. Once you start this journey, you'll begin to notice changes to your physique and attitude. These victories will leave you wanting more.

To learn more about BODYKEY by NUTRILITE, visit amway.com/bodykey. Together, we can achieve weight loss for life.

About Jason Roberts

BODYKEY by NUTRILITE brand ambassador Jason Roberts is a celebrity chef, who currently serves as a correspondent for ABC's "The Chew." He is a regular on various talk shows and makes appearances for events, such as The Fabulous Food Show.

The New Zealand native has published two cookbooks, "Elements" and "Graze: Lots of Little Meals Fast," and filmed an award-winning cooking show, "Jason Roberts Taste," in the U.S.

About Nutrilite

NUTRILITE(R), exclusively from Amway, is the world's No. 1 selling vitamins and dietary supplements brand.* With more than 75 years of history, science and innovation, it's the only global vitamin and mineral brand to grow, harvest, and process plants on its own certified organic farms* in Washington, Mexico, and Brazil.

SOURCE Amway

/CONTACT: Kate Washburn, Amway Public Relations, kate.washburn@amway.com, 616-787-7100

/Web site: http://www.amway.com

How Men's Choice Of Mates May Have Led To Menopause?

A dapper older gentleman spurns his mate of a certain age to take a fresh-faced young lover. You've seen that movie before, right?

Well, this choice of youth may turn out to be more than a Hollywood trope. Researchers say decisions like that one may have been the evolutionary source of menopause.

While conventional wisdom says that men prefer younger women because they're fertile, a recent report in PLOS Computational Biology suggests that it's precisely this preference for younger mates that caused older women to become infertile in the first place.

Computational biologist Jonathon Stone of McMaster University in Ontario, Canada, spoke with Shots about the mathematical model he and some colleagues used to come up with that hypothesis.

First, for the sake of computation, they assumed that women have infinite capacity for both fertility and survival. Then, they slowly introduced common genetic mutations into the math mix and observed how those changes led women to become infertile and eventually die.

They were able to tweak the model to account for age preferences between mates. When they changed the program to allow men and women of all ages to mate, the data consistently showed that women's survival and fertility plummeted simultaneously.

It was only after they used mathematical trickery to adjust their program to skew toward a preference of men for younger women that the data showed a 20-year loss of fertility before death in older women.

The phenomenon of having several decades without fertility at the end of a woman's life is unique to humans. This period of life begins at menopause, and its origins have been confusing to researchers for years.

Until recently, evolutionary biologists had widely accepted the grandmother hypothesis, the idea that menopause evolved as a way for women to focus their energies on the youngest in the clan. "This idea," Stone says, "frees up daughters to have more offspring, an evolutionary advantage, since this increases the number of offspring twofold."

University of Utah anthropologist Kristen Hawkes, who wasn't involved in the mathematical research, says she has her money on the grandmother hypothesis. Hawkes, whose work deals with the evolutionary origins of menopause, points out that great apes, with whom we share a great deal of evolutionary history, exhibit a similar pattern of losing fertility in their mid-40s.

The difference is that while the apes' fertility rates seem to be in sync with those of humans, their longevity rates aren't. "They usually die before they get to those post-fertile years," she says. "They get to be old ladies, gray and frail, while they're still cycling."

But Hawkes acknowledges the human male's apparent difference in taste. "I agree the preference men have for young partners is a striking contrast with other primates especially since it is well-documented that chimpanzee males prefer older females," she says.

Stone says that the model also shows that the outcome could be reversed. "If we begin by assuming that all women are choosing to mate with younger men, male menopause will be the eventual evolutionary outcome." In fact, members of his team are currently testing this prediction in fruit flies, which reproduce rapidly enough to track evolutionary changes in next to no time.

What does this mean for us? Assuming this model is correct, if older women begin to eschew paunchy, balding partners in favor of younger mates, male menopause could become a reality in a few thousand years.

Copyright 2013 NPR. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.

Weight loss improves memory and alters brain activity in overweight women

SAN FRANCISCO-- Memory improves in older, overweight women after they lose weight by dieting, and their brain activity actually changes in the regions of the brain that are important for memory tasks, a new study finds. The results were presented today at The Endocrine Society's 95th Annual Meeting in San Francisco.

"Our findings suggest that obesity-associated impairments in memory function are reversible, adding incentive for weight loss," said lead author Andreas Pettersson, MD, a PhD student at Umea University, Umea, Sweden.

Previous research has shown that obese people have impaired episodic memory, the memory of events that happen throughout one's life.

Pettersson and co-workers performed their study to determine whether weight loss would improve memory and whether improved memory correlated with changes in relevant brain activity. A special type of brain imaging called functional magnetic resonance imaging (functional MRI) allowed them to see brain activity while the subjects performed a memory test.

The researchers randomly assigned 20 overweight, postmenopausal women (average age, 61) to one of two healthy weight loss diets for six months. Nine women used the Paleolithic diet, also called the Caveman diet, which was composed of 30 percent protein; 30 percent carbohydrates, or "carbs"; and 40 percent unsaturated fats. The other 11 women followed the Nordic Nutrition Recommendations of a diet containing 15 percent protein, 55 percent carbs and 30 percent fats.

Before and after the diet, the investigators measured the women's body mass index (BMI, a measure of weight and height) and body fat composition. They also tested the subjects' episodic memory by instructing them to memorize unknown pairs of faces and names presented on a screen during functional MRI. The name for this process of creating new memory is "encoding." Later, the women again saw the facial images along with three letters. Their memory retrieval task, during functional MRI, was to indicate the correct letter that corresponded to the first letter of the name linked to the face.

Because the two dietary groups did not differ in body measurements and functional MRI data, their data were combined and analyzed as one group. The group's average BMI decreased from 32.1 before the diet to 29.2 (below the cutoff for obesity) after six months of dieting, and their average weight dropped from 188.9 pounds (85 kilograms) to 171.3 pounds (77.1 kilograms), the authors reported. This study was part of a larger, diet-focused study funded by the Swedish Research Council and the Swedish Heart-Lung Foundation.

Memory performance improved after weight loss, and Pettersson said the brain-activity pattern during memory testing reflected this improvement. After weight loss, brain activity reportedly increased during memory encoding in the brain regions that are important for identification and matching of faces. In addition, brain activity decreased after weight loss in the regions that are associated with retrieval of episodic memories, which Pettersson said indicates more efficient retrieval.

"The altered brain activity after weight loss suggests that the brain becomes more active while storing new memories and therefore needs fewer brain resources to recollect stored information," he said.

Source: The Endocrine Society

Men Are To Blame For Menopause

A team of evolutionary geneticists have determined what really caused menopause in women: men. It was previously thought that women evolved to become infertile after a certain age so that they could care for their grandchildren and coddle the next of kin. But evolutionarily speaking, that turned out to be a load of crap because, according to the laws of natural selection, our fertility should continue for as long as possible to keep the species going.

The new working theory is that men and their preference for young mates is what caused us to evolve to become infertile after a certain age. Researchers think that over time, men�s competition for young women made older women�s reproductive organs feel unappreciated therefore causing them to crawl under the bed and die, so to speak.

�If women were reproducing all along, and there were no preference against older women, women would be reproducing like men are for their whole lives,� said Rama Singh, the biologist leading the study.

Singh also points out that if women had been the ones to historically chase after younger dudes, the whole phenomenon would have been reversed and it would be the men going through menopause, or spermopause or whatever. The upside of these findings is that we can take our fertility back over time, end those hot flashes and mood swings and general insanity by regularly competing for younger men. Cougardom finally makes so much sense. [Phys.org]

55% women have hot flashes or night sweats before menopause

Washington: A new study has revealed that more than half of middle-aged women who still have regular cycles have hot flashes.

According to a survey of some 1,500 women, Asian and Hispanic women are less likely to have them than white women, but compared with previous studies, the figures are surprisingly high.

The survey, conducted by researchers at Group Health (a large healthcare system in the Pacific Northwest) and Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, Washington, consisted of a diverse group of women, including whites, blacks, Hawaiian/Pacific Islanders, women of mixed ethnicity, Vietnamese, Filipinos, Japanese, East Indians, Chinese, and other Asians.

The women were 45 to 56 years old, had regular cycles, had not skipped periods, and were not taking hormones.

A surprising 55 percent of them reported having hot flashes or night sweats. (Previous studies pegged the highest rates at below 50 percent.)

The groups with the highest proportions reporting hot flashes or night sweats were Native Americans (67 percent) and black (61 percent) women, but the differences between these groups and white women weren`t statistically significant.

58 percent of white women, the largest ethnic group, reported having hot flashes or night sweats.

Compared with them, Asian and Hispanic women were significantly less likely to have these symptoms. Among Asian women, 31 percent of Filipino, 26 percent of Japanese, 25 percent of East Indian, 23 percent of "other Asian," and 18 percent of Chinese women reported having hot flashes or night sweats. 26 percent of Hispanic women reported these symptoms.

Interestingly, white women who had symptoms were more likely to include soy in their diet, and white women who never had symptoms were more likely to have no soy in their diet.

The research is published online in Menopause, the journal of The North American Menopause Society (NAMS).

Discover Male Enhancement Through 4 Natural Libido Boosters

Many men prefer a natural libido booster to prescription medications such as Viagra, which is increasingly abused as a recreational drug.

The origin of "aphrodisiac" derives from Greek mythology and references Aphrodite, the goddess of love. Since the beginning of time, men have searched for aphrodisiacs in order to stimulate their failing passions. Overtime, longevity has increased and so has the pursuit for enhanced experience. Although Viagra (sildenafil citrate) has proven itself an extremely effective aphrodisiac, it is also a prescription medication that is not appropriate for use by all men and is in fact considered "inadvisable" for those men with underlying cardiovascular risk.

In the case of many men, a more natural remedy with accompanying connotations of mellowness and tradition is preferred. The following supplements, none of which require a prescription, are commonly used as male enhancement products. Please note there is a lack of clinical evidence to support claims of not only aphrodisiac ability but also safety. It is recommended you talk to a doctor before taking any of the following supplements.

DHEA (dehydroepiandrosterone)

 

Currently, DHEA, a synthetic hormone supplement, ranks among the most popular of over-the-counter aphrodisiacs. The natural form of DHEA is considered an endogenous hormone, made in the human body and secreted by the adrenal gland; DHEA supplements are produced in laboratories from diosgenin, a plant sterol extracted from Mexican wild yams (Dioscorea villosa). DHEA is available in capsules, tablets, chewing gum, sublingual (under the tongue) drops, and topical creams, and is purchased by those who hope to improve their sex drive and performance. Different sources recommend different doses for use as an aphrodisiac.

DHEA serves as precursor to male and female sex hormones. It is converted by the body to a hormone called androstenedione, which is then changed into the major male and female hormones. DHEA levels seem to go down as people get older. After the age of 30, DHEA levels in the body begin to decrease. Taking synthetic DHEA as a supplement can cause higher than normal levels of androgens and estrogens in the body, and theoretically may increase the risk of prostate, breast, ovarian, and other hormone-sensitive cancers. No studies on the long-term effects of DHEA have been conducted; it is not recommended for use without supervision by a licensed health professional.

Yohimbine

 

The yohimbe tree is a tall evergreen native to western Africa and its bark contains a chemical called yohimbine. Yohimbe bark has traditionally been used in Africa as an aphrodisiac and is currently used as a remedy for sexual dysfunction, including erectile dysfunction. As a dietary supplement, the dried bark is made into tea and taken by mouth; an extract of the bark is also put into capsules and tablets. The amount of yohimbine in dietary supplements may vary with some products containing very little yohimbine. Renewed interest in yohimbine for erectile dysfunction has prompted several investigative trials, and with these studies have come indications of side effects, such as hypertension, anxiety, manic symptoms, and interactions with used medications. Consult with a doctor before using this supplement.

 

Epimedium

 
Traditional Chinese medicine brings us epimedium, also known as horny goat weed, which is considered to be the most powerful of vegetarian sexual tonics. Although surprisingly little is known of it in the West, this herb may possess male hormone-like actions and is believed to work by stimulating the nervous system, especially the nerves in your genitalia. It is mainly used to arouse sexual desire, but some men take epimedium for sexual performance problems, including involuntary ejaculation and erectile dysfunction. According to the Chinese, this herb has strong kidney yang-building effects and has been found to decrease high blood pressure. Epimedium is reported to possess powerful immunity-boosting and immunity-regulating effects and is often used for promoting heath and longevity. Epimedium is most efficacious when delivered in herbal formulas; that said, please consult with a health professional for dosage recommendations.

 

Catuaba and Muirapuama

Growing widely from Peru to Brazil, catuaba and muirapuama are two trees known for the medicinal properities of their bark. Widely consumed by natives of the northern Amazon river basin, the bark, generally presented in tonic form, has been used for centuries both to increase libido and to improve sexual potency. In fact, their harvesting and sale have become big business throughout Brazil.

Although scientific investigation of these plants is slender, reports have supported their use for sexual enhancement. In catuaba, a group of three alkaloids dubbed catuabine A, B and C are believed to enhance sexual function by stimulating the nervous system. In muirapuama, chemists have identified a group of sterols including beta-sitosterol, thought to be responsible for the herb's aphrodisiac effects. In one study using muirapuama, 51 percent of men with erectile problems reported improvement, and 62 percent experienced an increase in libido.

A number of supplement companies produce finished products containing these herbs in powdered or liquid form, and offer dosage guidelines. In a study published in 2005, chronic administration of 25 mL Catuama twice a day during 28 days did not produce any toxic effect or severe adverse reactions or haematological and biochemical changes in healthy human volunteers of both sexes. That said, please consult with your physician before using this herb.

Although these four herbs are popular among older users, it is uncertain whether they are abused by young healthy men as is the case with Viagra and other oral medications for erectile dysfunction.

 

Caution

A recent study examined recreational erectile dysfunction medication use among young men. Since its introduction to the consumer market in 1998, Viagra and other oral erectile dysfunction medications (EDMs), with their promise of four-hour long erections, have become an increasingly popular drug of abuse. Viagra and other oral EDMs are unfortunately associated with increased sexual risk behaviors in young men, yet they may also negatively impact sexual function. By affecting confidence, a healthy young man may lose belief in his ability to attain an erection without pharmacological aid.

The researchers worked with a sample population comprised of 1,207 sexually active men recruited from undergraduate institutions within the U.S. Participants completed an online survey assessing frequency of EDM use, as well as levels of sexual function and levels of confidence in ability to gain and maintain erection. Recreational users reported lower erectile confidence and lower overall satisfaction compared with nonusers. Researchers believe their results underscore the possibility that recreational use of EDMs among healthy young men may lead to dysfunction.

Sources: Oliveira CH, Moraes ME, Moraes MO, Bezerra FA, Abib E, De Nucci G. Clinical toxicology study of an herbal medicinal extract of Paullinia cupana, Trichilia catigua, Ptychopetalum olacoides and Zingiber officinale (Catuama) in healthy volunteers. Phytotherapy Research. 2005.

Harte CB, Meston CM. Recreational use of erectile dysfunction medications and its adverse effects on erectile function in young healthy men: The mediating role of confidence in erectile ability. Journal of Sexual Medicine. 2012.

Skinception Reviews - Is Skinception the Best Solution for All Stretch Mark Problem?

If you are confuse selecting which stretch mark cream you can use than this Skinception reviews should be beneficial. After comparing more than 7 widely used stretch mark cream we should insist that skinception stretch mark cream is the one that meet the expected requirements to become top rated working stretch mark cream. What are those unique factors which makes Skinception even suggested by a healthcare commentator featured on CNN? Continue reading. This is not such hype or a scam. It is a clear statement of Skinception intensive stretch mark treatment cream we have designed through an intense study.

Skinception Remove the "cause" of Stretch Marks

The very first thing we would like you to give attention on this Skinception testimonials is the capability of this stretch mark cream to treat or even attack not only the stretch-marks but the "cause" of it. Most of other stretch mark creams were merely focusing on the look of external part of skin. It means those other cream only want to reduce the appearance of the stretch-marks. But those creams might work to heal your stretch-marks for certain stage but the cause remains there.

Stretch marks VS Skinception cream

Skinception manufacturer have created an useful study to notice the primary reason for stretch-marks in our skin. It really has been discovered that many of our stretch-marks is due to a hormone known as "glucocorticoids". This hormone is normally created by the entire body while being pregnant, adolescence, or even some weigh changes.

What is so poor with this hormone known as "glucocorticoids"? A healthy and also taut skin is extremely supported by collagen as well as elastin that are created by the entire body naturally. This hormone reduces our body and skin to generate elastin as well as collage. Guest what happen when your skin cannot really generate those 2 crucial factors? Stretch-marks.

Skinception stretch mark cream is created in purpose to not just minimize the presence of your stretch mark from outside your skin but it is able to boos and encourage your skin to generate again of collagen and also elastin. The components and the formulation of Skinception is the one that made this possible.

Why Should I Use Skinception?

Like we stated before Skinception intensive stretch mark treatment cream were able to boost the natural generation of collagen as well as elastin. This method will bring some multiple advantages for example:

1. Restore the epidermis flexibility
2. It will help reduce the presence of red and purple staining

3. Events your epidermis tone and soothes your furrows

4. Finally of course clear out and also get rid of your stretch-marks.

Yes, Skinception can cure stretch-marks in any part of your body. Skinception is not all in one skin-care cream. It is definitely specialized and concentrated merely in "stretch marks". That's why it does bring the result.

How Does Skinception Work?

From several proof we found we will have to state this stretch mark cream does work. There are some really good reasons to believe Skinception performs to minimize and get rid of stretch-marks. At least we can easily inform you 2 major reasons. The first one is the Skinception components and the second reason is that this cream is suggested by Dr. Dave David, M .D. and skincare surgeon. Let's check out the first reason.

What Makes Skinception Ingredients Highly Effective?

Study discovered there are four primary and also strong components utilized by Skinception. Every one of the components is clinically proven to operate on "killing" stretch-marks. Here are quick highlights of the four primary components.

1. REGESTRIL - After doing a clinical research on 13 women with post pregnancy stretch mark cream this component were able to minimize the stretch mark presence until 72.5 % after using in the impacted area for 2 months.

2. DARUTOSIDE - This active component has known to minimize the length of stretch mark up to 52% only in 4 weeks.

3. PRO-SVELTYL - This component will promote the collagen and also minimize the presence of the stretch-marks. It has type of protein heal enzyme which makes your skin layer tighter.

4. PRO-COLL-ONE+ - This is another collagen enhancer. 78% of individuals have observed a growing in their skin smoothness.

Where Should I Buy Skinception?

It can be purchase from its official website. They provide a unique cost for buying more than one bottle. It is strongly recommended to apply it at least for 3 months to get the best outcome. Have a look over Skinception review twice than select your deal.

America's Perspective on Aging in a Youth-Obsessed Culture

A recent infographic produced by CouponCabin puts America's perception of aging and corrective procedures into the spotlight. It conveys how women are more youth-obsessed than men and also shows the most popular and least expensive plastic surgery procedures.

Fifty-six percent of women and 34 percent of men who responded to a recent survey said they were worried about the physical effects of aging. Forty-two percent of women admitted they'd undergo plastic surgery or resort to anti-aging injections to keep signs of aging at bay, while only 18 percent of men considered it an option.

Image Credit: huffingtonpost.com

Explainer: why do women go through menopause?

Menstruation is a reproductive quirk that humans share with only a few other mammals. But even stranger is the fact that women stop menstruating when they have a whole third of their lives left to live.

All animals have a finite reproductive life. But more often than not, their reproductive system winds down at roughly the same time as every other system in the body � the menopausal killer whale is a notable exception.


The ability to bear children gradually declines throughout a woman's reproductive life. The average age at which a woman's ability to natural conceive ceases is 38.

But when the fertility free-fall of menopause kicks in between the ages of 45 and 55, complete sterility is the inevitable result. No more ovulation, no more menstruation, and no more opportunities to procreate.

In contrast, males experience only a slight decrease in fertility in their senior years.

Giving kids a head start

Evolutionary theory predicts that life span and reproductive span should synchronise � why go on living if you are unable to go on breeding, bolstering the contribution of your genes to the next generation?

One reason for dialling back reproduction could be to maximise the level of nurturing available for children that already exist. Human infancy is marked for its length and also for the degree of dependence that infants have on their parents. Perhaps menopause is a reproductive compromise to ensure that a woman's last born makes it out of the nest safely.

But this would only account for a ten or 15 year difference between menopause and death � much less than usually occurs.

Grandmothers and daughters-in-law

Another suggestion � dubbed the grandmother hypothesis � is that menopause enables women to provide for their grandchildren.

In evolutionary terms, a person is said to be �fit� if they are able to pass on their genes to future generations by reproducing. Given that our children bare 50% of our genes � the other 50% from our partner � and our grandchildren share 25% of our genes, a grandmother providing for her grandchildren still results in evolutionary fitness.

The numbers don't add up, though. The fitness benefit of caring for grandchildren is less direct and, in the end, less potent than if the grandmother were simply able to have more children of her own.

A more recent hypothesis centres on the age-old conflict between women and their mothers-in-law. This intergenerational reproductive argy-bargy is apparently the result of ancestral daughters-in-law joining a partner's family. The daughter-in-law gains nothing by helping her partner's mother to reproduce, but the mother-in-law does benefit in an evolutionary sense by helping her own grandchildren to be raised.

Instead of having two competing females in the one clan reproducing, the older female relinquishes her own reproduction in favour of helping her daughter-in-law raise her grandkids.

Similarly to the grandmother hypothesis, the reproductive conflict hypothesis could explain why reproduction ceases at around the same time as a woman reaches the age at which she is likely to become a grandmother.

But a recent study of pre-industrial Norwegian women casts doubt on this reckoning of evolutionary events. The study found that grandmothers who had a reproductive overlap with their daughters-in-law had more grandchildren, not less.

A fluke of nature

So, perhaps it is to happenstance that we must turn for an explanation for menopause. Could it be that menopause is simply an evolutionary hitchhiker; a trait that has come along for the ride without providing any adaptive benefit?

It's possible, for example, that menopause could be the result of a physiological trade-off that favours efficient reproduction early on.

In searching for an answer to why women live for so long post-fertility, palaeontology has reminded us of a very important fact: old age is actually relatively new age. Early human fossils are invariably young, and it wasn't until a few thousand years ago that anyone lived into the senior years we have now grown to expect.

It is highly likely, therefore, that our long-lost great-great grannies didn't live long enough to experience the hot flushes, night swears and yo-yo-ing hormones of the modern-day menopause. They never lived long enough to be denied the children that menopause robbed them of, because they may not have reached menopausal age at all.

We can be thankful for our longer lives, but menopause may be the cost women endure for it.

Reference Source:

Image from shutterstock.com

http://theconversation.com/explainer-why-do-women-go-through-menopause-14820

Understanding Menopause (Menopause #1)

Improved Sex for Couples after Menopause: Here's the Secret

According to a recent study published in the journal Menopause, many women and their sex partners suffer needlessly from a lack of sex following menopause. The chief reason behind this lack of sex is due to a condition called �vulvovaginal atrophy� (VVA)--the drying and thinning of vaginal tissue resulting from hormonal changes initiated by menopause. However, before menopause, hormonal changes do just the opposite and make women more sexually receptive.

Vulvovaginal atrophy is a well-studied medical condition that is typically remedied in some cases with hormone replacement therapy (HRT), but more often with vaginal lubricants and moisturizers. In some cases women also use a female Viagra pill to increase blood flow to their vaginal tissue. Loss of feelings of intimacy and loss of libido are typically associated with discomfort or pain during sex due to the vulvovaginal atrophy.

However, what is less studied is the emotional and physical impact of vaginal atrophy on postmenopausal women and their male sex partners�a quality of life issue that may adversely affect many marriages as well as feelings of esteem and self-worth.

In the study, researchers commissioned by Novo Nordisk--the maker of a vaginal estrogen products--created a survey titled �Clarifying Vaginal Atrophy's Impact on Sex and Relationships� (CLOSER). The goal of the survey was to gather information from both postmenopausal women and their sex partners about how they personally felt vaginal atrophy affected their sex lives and whether or not they found improvement following the use of a vaginal estrogen treatment.

The study participants consisted of 1,000 married or cohabiting North American postmenopausal women aged 55 to 65 years and 1,000 male partners of postmenopausal women aged 55 to 65 years. The participants completed questionnaires about their sex lives both before and after the female participants underwent vaginal estrogen treatment.

Before Vaginal Estrogen Treatment

For the women what the study showed was that:
� 58% of the women attributed vaginal discomfort to their avoidance of intimacy with their partners.
� 64% reported experiencing a loss of libido.
� 64% reported experiencing pain associated with sex.

For the men what the study showed was that:

� 78% believed that vaginal discomfort caused their partners to avoid intimacy.
� 52% believed that vaginal discomfort accounted for loss of libido
� 59% believed that their partner found sex painful

After Vaginal Estrogen Treatment

� 56% of the female participants who used local estrogen therapy to treat their vaginal discomfort reported less pain, more satisfying sex (41%), and an improved sex life (29%).

� 57% of the male participants reported looking forward to having sex because of their partner's use of local estrogen therapy.

The authors of the study concluded that the use of vaginal estrogen therapy improves the sex lives of postmenopausal women and their male sex partners, and that education and awareness efforts about the symptoms of and available treatments for vaginal atrophy will benefit many couples seeking an improved sex life.

Image Source: Courtesy of PhotoBucket

Reference: �Clarifying Vaginal Atrophy's Impact on Sex and Relationships (CLOSER) survey: emotional and physical impact of vaginal discomfort on North American postmenopausal women and their partners� Menopause Published Ahead-of-Print 3 June, 2013; Simon, James A. MD, CCD, NCMP, FACOG; Nappi, Rossella E. MD, PhD; Kingsberg, Sheryl A. PhD; Maamari, Ricardo MD, NCMP; Brown, Vivien MD, CM, CCFP, FCFP, NCMP.

Is Depression a Disease or an Opportunity?

A depression diagnosis does not have to be a life sentence. Often, it is a sign that our lives are out of balance and that we�re stuck. It is a wake-up call and, potentially, the start of a journey that can help us become whole and happy, a journey that can change and transform our lives.

When a physician observes the signs and symptoms of �major depressive disorder� in someone�the difficulty sleeping and eating, the weight loss, the absence of interest in a world which once pleased her, the feelings of helplessness and hopelessness�he is likely to prescribe anti-depressant drugs. When a patient asks questions about the need for drugs, she (I use the feminine to remind us that more than twice as many women as men are diagnosed with depression) is often told, �Depression is a biochemical disorder like insulin-dependent diabetes. Diabetics need insulin because their pancreas doesn�t work properly. And you need the drugs, the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), like Paxil and Prozac, to raise your levels of serotonin.�


It sounds authoritative, appropriate, and effective. Unfortunately it�s inaccurate.

First of all, the biochemical disorder has never been demonstrated. Some people with depression may have lower levels of serotonin, a neurotransmitter which helps to calm the brain and balance many body functions. But it seems that they are a minority. Doctors often don�t even measure the level of serotonin before prescribing drugs to affect it.

Second, the SSRIs are not, in fact, selective. Serotonin producing cells are distributed widely through the brain and body�the small intestine has the largest number�and altering serotonin inevitably alters the level and action and many functions of other neurotransmitters, including dopamine, which mediates pleasure. A cascade of uncomfortable and sometimes dangerous side effects result, including gastro-intestinal upset, neurological problems like headaches, muscle stiffness and tremors, weight gain, and sexual dysfunction�in up to 70 percent of all those who take the SSRIs. Indeed, in the early weeks of taking the drugs, a number of people, mostly young adults and adolescents, become more depressed and more suicidal.

In fact, neither the SSRIs, nor the serotonin�norepinephrine (norepinephrine is a neurotransmitter that may affect mood and activity level) reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs), which are increasingly prescribed, do a very good job. Doctors have prescribed these and other anti-depressants with great enthusiasm for more than twenty years�some thirty million Americans are currently using them for premenstrual syndrome, chronic pain, and anxiety, as well depression�because they believed the published studies which showed that the drugs were 60 to 70 percent more effective for depression than the placebos, the sugar pills, to which they were compared. These numbers were seriously misleading.

The drug companies, which profit hugely from SSRIs and other antidepressants, had, for the most part, only published the positive studies. When researchers went to the United States Food and Drug Administration and recovered the unpublished negative studies, the results were quite different. Reviews of the literature, which were published in our most prestigious medical journals�including The New England Journal of Medicine and The Journal of the American Medical Association�revealed that antidepressants were little, if any, better than placebos�except for a small minority of the most seriously depressed people.

All this doesn�t mean that antidepressants aren�t sometimes helpful. They can be, even with their limitations and side effects. What it does mean is that they should not be regarded as the �treatment of choice� as most physicians believe them to be, but instead as a last resort.

My treatment of choice is what many call �integrative.� I think of it as a way to get Unstuck, to help us move through and beyond the depression and the other difficulties that our lives may bring us. I describe this integrative, comprehensive approach in some detail in my book, Unstuck: Your Guide to the Seven Stage Journey out of Depression. It combines the best of conventional treatments, including various forms of psychotherapy, with a variety of other techniques that enhance each person�s emotional life and cognitive abilities as well as her physical health. Medication should be used only when this approach doesn�t work. �In extreme situations� Hippocrates said 2500 years ago �extreme remedies.�

The foundation for this Unstuck approach is a meditative or mindful one�which simply means that it is designed to help people to be relaxed, aware and self-aware, and firmly grounded in the present moment. The Unstuck approach includes specific meditation techniques like slow, deep �soft belly� breathing and mindful walking and eating, which have been shown to decrease levels of anxiety and stress, enhance mood and optimism, and promote greater emotional stability and more reliable judgment. Both focused and mindful meditation raise the levels of the same neurotransmitters at which SSRIs and SNRIs are aimed.

Movement and exercise, which have been repeatedly shown to at least equal anti-depressants in relieving symptoms of depression, and also to raise neurotransmitter levels, are central. It looks like about 30 minutes of daily exercise is optimal, but all of us should start with what we can do�walking a couple of blocks is a great beginning�and be sure to do something we hope to enjoy.

Nutrition may also be crucial in preventing, as well as treating, depression. People who are depressed may be deficient in B vitamins, Vitamin D3, Selenium, Magnesium, and the Omega 3 fatty acids that are present in fish oil. Others are sensitive to gluten and other food substances which may cause inflammation, which has been implicated in depression.

It is important to stimulate imagination and intuition as well as nourish the body. I teach techniques like guided imagery, drawings, and written dialogues to help depressed and anxious people to access more easily their imagination and to use their intuition and creativity to find answers to previously insoluble problems.

Work with a skilled therapist can be important, even crucial, but it is exponentially enhanced by what we can do for ourselves. Because they are grounded in self-awareness and self-care, each and every one of these techniques carries with it a general as well as a specific benefit. In acting to understand and help ourselves, we overcome the feelings of helplessness and hopelessness that are the hallmarks of depression.

Many people find they can multiply the effectiveness of self-care by being part of a group in which they learn together and share their experiences and themselves with one another. In the Mind-Body Skills Groups which The Center for Mind-Body Medicine has developed, participants feel less like damaged or ill patients, more like pilgrims together on a journey toward greater understanding, health, and wholeness.

Finally, symptom relief, the treatment of depression, and spiritual practice can be intimately connected. Using self-care techniques and living more meditatively often paves the way for us to connect with something�god, nature, a higher power�great than ourselves and to find meaning and purpose in our lives. And spiritual connection, meaning, and purpose are among the most powerful proven antidotes to depression.

James S. Gordon, M.D., a psychiatrist, is the author of Unstuck: Your Guide to the Seven-Stage Journey Out of Depression, from which part of this article was excerpted. He is the Founder and Director of The Center for Mind-Body Medicine, a Clinical Professor at Georgetown Medical School, and former Chair of the White House Commission on Complementary and Alternative Medicine Policy.

Read more: http://www.care2.com/greenliving/depression-is-an-opportunity-not-a-disease.html#ixzz2VQkRrBz1

Treatment helps sex stage a comeback after menopause

A satisfying sex life is an important contributor to older adults' quality of life, but the sexual pain that can come after menopause can rob women and their partners of that satisfaction. Treatment can help restore it, shows a global survey including some 1,000 middle-aged North American men and women, published online today in Menopause, the journal of The North American Menopause Society (NAMS).



Sexual pain at this stage in a woman's life is usually the result of the typical drying and thinning of tissues in and around the vagina after menopause, called vulvovaginal atrophy (VVA), coupled with a decrease in sexual activity. Vaginal lubricants and moisturizers, vaginal estrogen, and ospemifene, a recently approved oral drug that is a selective estrogen receptor modulator (SERM), can all be used to treat it.

Known as Clarifying Vaginal Atrophy's Impact on Sex and Relationships (CLOSER), the survey was commissioned by Novo Nordisk, the maker of a vaginal estrogen treatment. It included postmenopausal women volunteers age 55 to 65 who had VVA and their male partners. This part of CLOSER looked at how treatment with vaginal estrogen affected their sex lives.

Before treatment, a majority of these women (58%) said they had been avoiding intimacy because of the pain, and 68% said they had lost their desire because of it. An even higher percentage of the men (78%) thought their partner's vaginal discomfort caused them to avoid intimacy. About a third of the men and women had stopped having sex altogether.

After treatment, a majority of women and men reported sex was less painful for them and their partner, and more than 40% of the women and men said sex was more satisfying. Twenty-nine percent of the women and 34% of the men said their sex life had improved. Treatment also had a positive impact on the women's self esteem. About a third felt more optimistic about the future of their sex life, and a similar number felt more connected to their partners.

"There is no need for a woman's quality of life to decline because of VVA," said NAMS Executive Director Margery L.S. Gass, MD.

Many women get relief with vaginal lubricants and moisturizers and regular sexual activity or the use of vaginal dilators. Vaginal estrogen, in the form of creams, tablets, or rings, is a common therapy and is appealing for women who cannot or choose not to take oral hormones, since absorption into the bloodstream is minimal. Women who have had breast or uterine cancer are encouraged to discuss the pros and cons of different treatments with their oncologist. The SERM offers an alternative for women who choose not to use any oral or vaginal hormone therapy.

More information: The article, "Clarifying Vaginal Atrophy's Impact on Sex and Relationships (CLOSER) survey: emotional and physical impact of vaginal discomfort on North American postmenopausal women and their partners," will be published in the February 2014 print edition of Menopause.

Journal reference: Menopause 

Provided by The North American Menopause Society

Digest It Colon Cleanse Reviews: What Makes Digest It Highly Effective To Improve Colon Health?

Special trainers anywhere also recommend the advantages of colon cleansing to their customers. Not just it is begin to weight loss program, but the extra advantages it gives are detoxifying your entire body and also boosting your energy level to assist you much better perform your program routines as well as get in the perfect shape of your life.

As stated by official website "A 2009 Double Blind research by Global Clinical mentioned that Digest It Colon Cleanse alleviated constipation without any problems. Data shows that Digest it was well-tolerated and not harmful, proven by regular ranging physiological and clinical chemistry guidelines across both age groups at 14 days."

Sometimes due to poor diet, stress, insufficient exercise, consumption of drugs and some type of medications can easily lead you to a problem in your digestive system. When this issue happens to you, Digest it is 100% all-natural miracle which helps to keep your colon safe and ready to assist in eliminating these kinds of health issues with your colon. It removes out all of the harmful particles from your colon; assist you to live a healthy life. Media has also featured this supplement.

"Colon Cleansing helps to detoxify the bowel to help produce a better elimination practice for the body. It's great as a part of an overall wellness program." ~ CNN.com

"Colon Cleanse can "detoxify" the body from the effects of red meat, sugar, fried foods or alcohol and can be used in weight loss" ~ USAToday.com

Tested in laboratories, this supplement is tested as highly effective to improve colon health. Digest it is the powerful and effective combination of natural herbs and has the properties of Cascara Sagrada, Black seeds, Turkey Rhubarb, Peppermint, Aloe Vera and Senna plants with the properties of worm seed and clove extract that have anti-parasitic effects.

This powerful and effective combination of natural herbs consists of a powerful laxative component anthraquinone which works on the nerves of the colon and stimulates the contraction of colonic muscles move the waste materials away and hence gives you a clean and healthy colon.

Many consumers are using Digest it supplement and also obtaining best desired outcomes. Available to buy, this supplement offers some special bonus deals and free container on choose packages for their buyers to get more and more advantage of this supplement.

Watch This Video - Does a colon cleanse help with losing weight? - Dr Jorge's Advice on The Doctors!

10 strange ways to stay healthy

10 Strang Ways To Stay Healthy - Via: Everest Medical Assistant Program

Xenadrine XT Reviews: All You Need To Know About Xenadrine XT!

Xenadrine is one of the latest body fat burners in the market, so called giving fantastic outcomes with the most effective, powerful components in the industry. Manufacturers promote that Xenadrine will assist you to "take your game to the next level with a serious surge of" strength, triggering hyper thermogenesis which will supposedly very last for hours.

But before we begin praising Xenadrine XT for its over-the-top claims to fame, let's have a closer look into its supplement to evaluate if it's well worth the cost.

What are the Ingredients in Xenadrine XT?

Xenadrine XT Ingredients and the quantities are:

• 50mg - Rhodiola Root Extract 
• 100mg - L-Theanine
• 150mg - Sage Leaf
• 270mg - Caffeine Anhydrous
• 56.3mg - Yohimbe Bark Extract 
• 200mg - Green Coffee Bean Extract

1. All together L-Theanine, Rhodiola Root Extract, Sage Leaf, and will intensify and Yohimbe Bark Extract activate your feels to a different level.
2. Green Coffee Bean Extract will quick start your weight loss because it have been clinically studied and even was shown to assist the normal dieter reduce 10.95 pounds.
3. For the significant energy it promotes, Xenadrine XT gives you the all natural Caffeine Anhydrous that's been clinically shown to give enhanced strength.

What I Like?

Unlike some other supplements which contain proprietary mixtures of components, Xenadrine XT will give you the exact quantities of every component to guarantee you you're getting a safe, yet affective amount in every component.

The official website provides lots of more detailed information regarding the supplement, its uses, and components to assist you to collect the relevant info to assist determine whether it's the correct supplement for your requirements.

What I don't like?

Although the components are all natural as well as clinically studied, the ingredients of the product is powerful along with the manufacturer suggests that you permit your body to develop persistence to Xenadrine XT by starting with a lower dosage and slowly improving it with time.

Since, it is really a powerful supplement it's good to 1st consult with your healthcare physician regarding use of Xenadrine XT to determine whether it's the best choice for your particular requirements.

How much I have to pay to buy Xenadrine XT?

Xenadrine XT promotes that it can be bought from various online merchants, but we were not able to find it obtainable on any one of the merchants listed on its official website. 

However, right now manufacturer has to offer free samples through its new review based customer sampling program.

Is there any Xenadrine XT side effects?

It consists of a huge dose of caffeine, approximately 270 mg per serving. While the recommended dose of caffeine is 350 mg for a 70 kg athlete, Xenadrine XT's high concentration is definitely sufficient to boost caloric expenditure and cause negative side-effects like headaches, nausea, jitters, and sleeplessness.

Luckily, Xenadrine XT counteracts most of these effects with a 100 mg dose of L-Theanine. This excellent amino acid can be generally green tea extract, and when used accurately, it can make a sense of rest in your body, stimulating the generation of alpha brain waves.

If you are very sensitive to caffeine, then please make sure to consult with your family doctor before supplementing with Xenadrine XT.

Overall Value - Is Xenadrine XT Worth it?

While Xenadrine XT might not be as different or completely new as it would seem, this supplement surely follows honestly standard method to weight loss, utilizing the industry's best thermogenics to boost caloric expenditure and making it very simpler to burn off more calories than you consume.

Over all, with a powerful supplement that doesn't have much customer reviews to back it we're not assured Xenadrine XT would be the best choice for you.

However, it does contain successful ingredients which have been clinically shown to perform what they state they will perform and could be a dietary supplement which will be exactly right for your requirements.