Medical Blog

We often associate high blood pressure with stress, tension, nervousness, and inactivity, and rightfully so. It is estimated that the worst cases of hypertension are observed among people who have stressful and demanding office jobs, tense family situations, or financial difficulties. Lack of exercise and a diet high in junk, processed foods loaded with carbohydrates and rancid vegetable oils also contribute a great deal to the development of elevated blood pressure. Particularly severe and highly spread hypertension is observed in the industrialized world.

In the U.S. over 65 million people, especially Blacks and Mexicans, suffer from elevated blood pressure. Interestingly enough, the Americans whose ancestors came from Japan and China, also have high rates of the condition, while in their native land the incidence of hypertension is rather low. Older people are more susceptible, because their cardiovascular system is weaker and blood vessels are not as elastic as those of younger adults. Surprisingly, despite the prevailing opinion that high blood pressure is mainly a male disease, women suffer more often - three forth of them, compared to only two forth in men, tend to develop high blood pressure.

Unfortunately, many of us are stricken with hypertension before the age of 55, which is associated with almost a 90 percent increase in the incidence of many complications, the most severe of which are heart attacks and strokes. Obese and overweight people, as well as diabetics, are particularly susceptible to hypertension, and it is estimated that almost half of the adult U.S. population is obese!

However, people with hypertension who live in high-income countries have much better chances to be timely and properly diagnosed and receive effective treatment than patients living in the developing world. It is estimated that in the U.S. more than 70 percent of hypertension patients are diagnosed and treated, while in, say, African counties, this percentage is much lower.

With regular medication, hypertension is not as dangerous. However, it still remains a risk factor in the development of other diseases. From among all people taking pharmaceutical drugs to treat their high blood pressure, only a bit more than a half are able to adequately control their condition.

LuxPharmacy.com: High Blood Pressure, Hypertension

The condition of balding, known in medical terminology as alopecia, is defined as pathological hair loss. As hair has always been a symbol of life strength and energy, hair loss often turns into a physiologically traumatic situation for both men and women.
Women traditionally do not judge men for their looks, nor do they pay much attention to the condition of their hair. However, a fear of losing hair is much bigger in men than even a fear of losing the job! Maybe, only impotence could be more emotionally frightening for males than the fear of baldness.
Every day, we normally lose from 50 to 150 scalp hairs. However, many diseases can cause excess hair loss because they disrupt the normal life cycle of a hair follicle.
The most widely spread form of hair loss is called androgenic alopecia, which can be observed in both men and women. Around 95 percent of people suffering from hair loss are diagnosed with this form of alopecia. Alopecia areata is the second most frequent form of hair loss, with less than 4 percent of balding people being affected by it. All other types of hair loss constitute less than 1 percent of all cases.
The connection between androgenic alopecia and the level of male hormones has been noted long ago, among both serious researchers and curious housewives chatting about hypersexuality of bald men. However, the condition is caused not exactly by the level of male hormones, but by individual hypersensitivity of people to the presence of androgens (male sexual hormones) in the blood. It is interesting to note that hair follicles that are very sensitive to fluctuations of androgens are distributed evenly on the scalp of women, while in men they are located on top of the head and near the hair line borders. This difference can explain the typical shape of male bald areas and the absence of particular shape in balding women.
Alopecia areata, largely an autoimmune disease, can occur in anybody - men, women, or children. It usually starts with the appearance of several oval or round bald patches on the scalp and sometimes involves hair loss on other body areas, such as eyebrows or beard. With time, bald patches can spread onto previously unaffected areas, or otherwise disappear. Although the exact cause of alopecia areata is still a scientific mystery, its autoimmune nature is well established among researchers. It is believed that the immune system of those suffering from alopecia areata simply attacks their own hair follicles. Although not contagious, the condition can run in families and may be triggered by a whole range of factors, among which are emotional tension, anxiety, and stress. Similar symptoms sometimes can be observed in patients suffering from traction alopecia, advanced syphilis, atopic dermatitis, systemic lupus, and others.
Unexpected stress can trigger hair loss, too. Several months after the stressful event, numerous hair follicles can enter the “resting period”, which produces massive shedding of hair.
In some cases, it is easy to confuse the cause of hair loss with its consequence. For example, estrogens (female sex hormones) enlarge the life cycle of scalp hair and simultaneously prevent hairs from growing on the chin and other body areas. During pregnancy, when the woman’s body is overloaded with estrogens, the life cycle of scalp hair becomes longer, which increases the amount of hair. However, immediately after childbirth, the level of estrogens drop and hair starts shedding, too, which can naturally cause lots of distress in postpartum women.
Also, hair loss can be a side effect of chemotherapy applied to treat cancer patients.
Treatment of Alopecia
People often tend to believe in miraculous remedies, the quality that has led to the appearance of the vast array of different “hair growth products”, many of which are purely cosmetic and at least harmless. In fact, the effects of these numerous shampoos with bio-active ingredients, creams, and conditioners is to mask hair loss by, for example, visually influencing the hair volume. Well, in some cases the application of commercial hair products can help, because the health of hair, just like the entire health of the person, directly depends on his or her positive outlook and normal self-esteem. Hair cosmetics that help people mask their hair loss are undoubtedly good remedies for self-esteem, especially in women.
However, not all from among existing hair products are useless for restoring the growth of hair. In order to choose the right remedy, a consultation with cosmetologist is recommended, particularly in order to find out the real cause of alopecia.
Propecia (finasteride) is a potent remedy to treat male-pattern baldness. The effectiveness of this product has been well established by numerous clinical trials, in which men successfully used Propecia. Positive results, that are shown in improving the quality and quantity of scalp hair, in some cases are obvious already after 2-3 month of continuous use of this hair growth product.
Shampoos, conditioners, and other cosmetic products that visually increase the hair volume can be used in cases of mild alopecia to mask bald spots or areas. The technique of gluing artificial hairs directly on the scalp or on remaining hair, as well as wigs, are other good methods used to mask baldness.
Surgical ways of fighting alopecia include various forms of hair transplants. The most promising surgical method to restore hair growth is the transplantation of healthy hairs from unaffected scalp zones to bald areas.

LuxPharmacy.com: Hair Loss

According to the World Health Organization, by the year 2020 depression will be the number two cause, second only to heart disease, of “lost years of healthy life” worldwide. It is currently believed that 340 million people suffer from depression globally, of whom more than 20 million live in the U.S. Statistics indicate that the cost of depression in the U.S. alone is about $50 billion annually…

These devastating figures indicate the fact the depression has become a true epidemic in the modern world, and especially so in the industrialized countries. Is conventional medicine armed enough to combat this epidemic? Let us have a close look at the cornstones of western medicine approach to treating depression.

Depression is considered incurable and its causes are not really understood. As in many other cases, western medicine can only offer toxic pharmaceutical therapy to “manage” depression - i.e., to temporarily combat its major symptoms. The drug therapy is usually combinational and includes several groups of medication: antidepressants (selective serotonin reuptake and monoamine oxidase inhibitors (SSRIs and MAOIs), as well as tricyclic antidepressants and lithium carbonate) and, in some cases, anti-anxiety and anti-psychotic drugs. Electroconvulsive therapy (horror of horrors) and psychotherapy are also used in conjunction with basic medication. Antidepressants are the most widely applied drugs to inhibit the manifestations of depression.

Tricyclic antidepressants include such common drugs as elavil, torfanil, and sinequan. They help the nervous system to numb its supersensitive serotonin and norepinephrine receptors, the hyperactivity of which supposedly causes depression, according to current medical beliefs.

SSRIs, such as prozac, paxil and zoloft, are relatively new drugs that work similarly to the previous group except that SSRIs selectively inhibit serotonin receptors. These drugs are credited with a safer profile than tricyclic medications.

MAOIs, such as phenelzine and tranylcypromine, quite dangerous drugs that require a strict dietary regime and numerous precautions, are used when other antidepressants have failed to help the patient.

Lithium bicarbonate, known under the names duralith or lithane, is a more specialized type of antidepressants that acts to combat bipolar depression by reducing the excitability of neurons - the key structures of the nervous system. As the result, lithium helps normalize the balance of serotonin and other neurotransmitters.

Needless to say that all types of antidepressants, and particularly lithium, are distinguished by high levels of toxicity and numerous side effects, such as drowsiness, upset stomach, muscle weakness, and even an increased desire to commit suicide. In addition, the anti-depressive effect of these drugs occurs only in about three weeks after the patient has taken her first dose.

LuxPharmacy.com: Anti Depressants

Definition of Allergy

Allergies are widely spread in the modern world. Our patients often ask questions about what causes allergies, what types of allergic reactions are known to medical specialists, and, of course, how to get rid of this unpleasant condition. By this article, we intend to address the majority of readers’ question and to cover as precisely as we can the peculiarities of different kind of allergies.

Allergy is defined as a hypersensitive reaction to a normally harmless antigens, most of which are environmental. The statistical analysis shows that more than one third of the world population, especially those resigning in urbanized or otherwise industrially polluted areas, suffer from different allergies and hypersensitivities, with the incidence of the condition gradually increasing worldwide.
In a healthy individual, the immune system creates a protective barrier against numerous foreign substances, also known as antigens. In people prone to allergies, the immune system treats benign substances as foreign invaders, which results in a allergic reaction. While most of allergy suffers are allergic to only one type of allergens, others are hypersensitive to many.

Allergens can penetrate the body in different ways: through the skin or the surface of mucous membranes, with the inhaled air, or they can be injected. Ragweed and grass pollens, animal dander, dust, secretion of cockroaches, industrial and household chemicals, certain foods, and especially laboratory-produced medications are frequent triggers of allergy. The symptoms and severity of different forms of allergies are numerous and depend on many factors. In some cases, the symptoms may involve virtually all bodily systems.

Types of Allergy

Seasonal allergies are usually triggered by pollens coming from trees and grasses during certain periods of the spring, summer, or autumn. Seasonal allergies are pretty common and are often known under the umbrella term “hey fever”. The symptoms include runny nose, itchy and teary eyes, and sneezing. Sometimes patients can complain of wheezing, coughing, and headaches, as well as depression and insomnia. Severe cases of hey fever can lead to the development of asthma - a chronic respiratory disease that is characterized by periodic attacks of shortness of breath, wheezing, and coughing.
Perennial, or year-round allergies, are caused by non-seasonal airborne substances, often by house dust containing fungal spores, mold, dust mites, or tiny parts of insects. The symptoms usually include rhinitis, conjunctivitis, and sometimes chronic sinusitis and the growth of nasal polyps.

Allergic reactions can also affect the skin, producing hives (itchy swelling areas surrounded by redness) and angioedema (swelling of tissues located underneath the skin). Allergens that produce dermatological reactions are insect stings, medications, and foods, particularly peanuts and fish.
Anaphylaxis is the most severe, yet rare allergic reaction that potentially can be fatal. Anaphylactic reactions are often caused by allergy injections, insect bites, certain foods, and pharmaceutical drugs, such as aspirin or penicillin. The reaction occurs immediately after the exposure to the allergen and is characterized by rapid heartbeat, coughing, itchy skin with subsequent swelling of tissues and constriction of the airways. Anaphylaxis requires immediate medical attention to prevent life-threatening complications.

How Modern Medicine “Treats” Allergies

In treatment of common allergies, the following medications are usually used: antihistamines, such as clemastine or azatadine, corticosteroids, such as prednisone, and cromolyn. In case of emergency or anaphylaxis, adrenaline and epinephrine injections can be helpful. Asthma attacks are treated with anti-inflammatory bronchodilators, corticosteroids leukotriene modifiers, and cromolyn.

Antihistamines, the most popular allergy drugs, block the effects of inflammatory histamines and relieve such symptoms as itching and swelling. Cromolyn and its analogs are very effective in controlling many symptoms of allergy, since they work by inhibiting mast cells from secreting inflammatory substances. Corticosteroids, especially those used in creams and ointments, can combat skin allergies. Asthma medication eliminates the constriction of airways and therefore helps cope with shortness of breath and other symptoms of asthma attack. Systemic steroids in the form of pills or injections are usually prescribed in cases of severe allergy. Usually, combination therapy is applied in order to combat various symptoms of allergies.

The Main Weakness of Conventional Pharmaceutical Treatment of Allergies and Asthma
Although the use of symptomatic medication, such as antihistamine drugs and steroids, can diminish the symptoms of allergies, it does not cure the condition. Furthermore, the word ’steroids’ make many patients anxious, and rightfully so. The fear of taking hormonal medication is explained by a wide spectrum of their side effects that, unfortunately, are typical for all pharmaceutical drugs used to treat allergies!

When you medicate your allergy or asthma, you have to use drugs over and over again, because your symptoms diminish only when you take the prescribed pills. Once you stop taking them, the disease returns in its full swing!
In order to treat allergy successfully, you have to reveal its cause. Numerous causes can be responsible for the onset of allergies. Among them are liver disease, metabolic imbalances, immune deficiencies, hypothyroidism, and many other chronic conditions, including gallstones and banal intestinal disbacteriosis!

Only when the initial cause of allergy is cured the condition will be able to disappear forever!!!
Let us remember the ancient Chinese medical philosophy of self-restoration, which states that the right nutrition, when we give every cell exactly what it needs, combined with cleansing from inflectional agents, allergens, and artificial chemicals, when we rightfully influence damaged organs and systems, are the most important factors in restoration of our health!

LuxPharmacy.com: Allergy Treatments