Tramadol - generic name for Ultram and ‘drug hydrochloride. Relieves pain and is’ a good alternative to drugs narcotic painkillers. Nowadays, this drug is’ one of the most ‘commonly prescribed as an alternative to more’ strong analgesic drugs.

Function

Tramadol or Ultram are painkillers very popular used to treat moderate and severe pain. Not ‘a narcotic drug, but despite this’ create addiction and dependence especially in the elderly population, to which this drug is commonly prescribed.

The last increase of dose and ‘between 50 and 100 mg every 4-6 days depending on the needs’, with a maximum daily dose of 400 mg.The manufacturer of Tramadol, recommended doses are very specific for this drug: for adults, the initial dose and ‘25 mg capsules in the morning, this dose may’ be increased by 25 mg every three days , up to a maximum dose of 100 mg per day. Upon reaching this dose, the patient may ‘receive additional requirement in which you increase the dose of 50 mg every three days, up to 200 mg of dose per day. In elderly patients, and ‘important to maintain a mix that does not exceed 300 mg per day. the limitation period should be increased in intervals of every 12 hours to a maximum of 200 mg daily. In patients with cirrhosis (liver disease), the tramadol 50mg capsules should apply every 12 hours.

Considerations

Tramadol can ‘increase levels of liver enzymes and can’ lead to decreased levels of creatinine and hemoglobin, what ‘and’ potentially toxic due to the effect that Tramadol liver. It ‘must therefore monitor these levels regularly. Use caution in patients with inhibited by serotonin (SSRIs) because Tramadol can ‘increase the risk for serotonin syndrome.

Warnings

People allergic to opioids or women pregnant or lactating women should not take this medication. Tramadol in its initial use can ‘create allergic reactions, therefore, patients should be closely followed. People who have reactions anapilattiche from codeine or other opioids are more ‘at risk of suffering an allergic reaction to Tramadol. Also there is’ risk of respiratory complications in patients who have suffered injuries to his head, or have kidney or liver problems, so these people should not use this drug.

Monitoring

The level of pain should be checked every 30 minutes after the use of Tramadol. If the degree breathing down over 12 breaths per minute, the prescription drug should be ’stopped and’ need to consult with your doctor.

In addition, there are cases of constipation due to use of Tramadol in case this situation more than three days, we must consider the use of laxatives. Patients should be followed in order to avoid dependency, but at the same time and ‘important not to stop this drug in a sudden, since you can create withdrawal symptoms in patients. The use of any medicine that does not need ‘recipe with Tramadol and’ to check with your doctor to avoid undesirable interactions.

Some online pharmacy can assist you to buy tramadol online without prescription.you can order no prescription tramadol at your leisure, whenever and wherever you wish.

 

We have never posted an article like this, however if there was ever an exception to promote spiritual and holistic wellness, this is it. 

This is a wonderful piece by Michael Gartner, editor of newspapers large and small and past president of NBC News.  In 1997, he won the Pulitzer Prize for editorial writing.  It is well worth reading, and a few good chuckles are guaranteed.  Here goes….

My father never drove a car.  Well, that’s not quite right.  I should say I never saw him drive a car.

He quit driving in 1927, when he was 25 years old, and the last car he drove was a 1926 Whippet.

“In those days,” he told me when he was in his 90s, “to drive a car you had to do things with your hands, and do things with your feet, and look every which way, and I decided you could walk through life and enjoy it or drive through life and miss it.”

At which point my mother, a sometimes salty Irishwoman, chimed in: “Oh, bull—-! she said.  ”He hit a horse.”

“Well,” my father said, “there was that, too.”

So my brother and I grew up in a household without a car.  The neighbors all had cars — the Kollingses next door had a green 1941 Dodge, the VanLaninghams across the street a gray 1936 Plymouth, the Hopsons two doors down a black 1941 Ford — but we had none.

My father, a newspaperman in Des Moines , would take the streetcar to work and, often as not, walk the 3 miles home.  If he took the streetcar home, my mother and brother and I would walk the three blocks to the streetcar stop, meet him and walk home together.

My brother, David, was born in 1935, and I was born in 1938, and sometimes, at dinner, we’d ask how come all the neighbors had cars but we had none.  ”No one in the family drives,” my mother would explain, and that was that.

But, sometimes, my father would say, “But as soon as one of you boys turns 16, we’ll get one.”  It was as if he wasn’t sure which one of us would turn 16 first.

But, sure enough, my brother turned 16 before I did, so in 1951 my parents bought a used 1950 Chevrolet from a friend who ran the parts department at a Chevy dealership downtown.

It was a four-door, white model, stick shift, fender skirts, loaded with everything, and, since my parents didn’t drive, it more or less became my brother’s car.  Having a car but not being able to drive didn’t bother my father, but it didn’t make sense to my mother.

So in 1952, when she was 43 years old, she asked a friend to teach her to drive.  She learned in a nearby cemetery, the place where I learned to drive the following year and where, a generation later, I took my two sons to practice driving.  The cemetery probably was my father’s idea.  ”Who can your mother hurt in the cemetery?” I remember him saying more than once.

For the next 45 years or so, until she was 90, my mother was the driver in the family.  Neither she nor my father had any sense of direction, but he loaded up on maps — though they seldom left the city limits — and appointed himself navigator..  It seemed to work.

Still, they both continued to walk a lot.  My mother was a devout Catholic, and my father an equally devout agnostic, an arrangement that didn’t seem to bother either of them through their 75 years of marriage.

(Yes, 75 years, and they were deeply in love the entire time.)

He retired when he was 70, and nearly every morning for the next 20 years or so, he would walk with her the mile to St. Augustin’s Church.  She would walk down and sit in the front pew, and he would wait in the back until he saw which of the parish’s two priests was on duty that morning.  If it was the pastor, my father then would go out and take a 2-mile walk, meeting my mother at the end of the service and walking her home.

If it was the assistant pastor, he’d take just a 1-mile walk and then head back to the church.  He called the priests “Father Fast” and “Father Slow.”

After he retired, my father almost always accompanied my mother whenever she drove anywhere, even if he had no reason to go along.  If she were going to the beauty parlor, he’d sit in the car and read, or go take a stroll or, if it was summer, have her keep the engine running so he could listen to the Cubs game on the radio.  In the evening, then, when I’d stop by, he’d explain: “The Cubs lost again.  The millionaire on second base made a bad throw to the millionaire on first base, so the multimillionaire on third base scored.”

If she were going to the grocery store, he would go along to carry the bags out — and to make sure she loaded up on ice cream.  As I said, he was always the navigator, and once, when he was 95 and she was 88 and still driving, he said to me, “Do you want to know the secret of a long life?”

“I guess so,” I said, knowing it probably would be something bizarre.

“No left turns,” he said.

“What?” I asked.

“No left turns,” he repeated.  ”Several years ago, your mother and I read an article that said most accidents that old people are in happen when they turn left in front of oncoming traffic..

As you get older, your eyesight worsens, and you can lose your depth perception, it said.  So your mother and I decided never again to make a left turn.”

“What?” I said again.

“No left turns,” he said.  ”Think about it.  Three rights are the same as a left, and that’s a lot safer  So we always make three rights.”

“You’re kidding!” I said, and I turned to my mother for support.  ”No,” she said, “your father is right.  We make three rights.  It works.”  But then she added: “Except when your father loses count.”

I was driving at the time, and I almost drove off the road as I started laughing.

“Loses count?” I asked.

“Yes,” my father admitted, “that sometimes happens.  But it’s not a problem.  You just make seven rights, and you’re okay again.”

I couldn’t resist.  ”Do you ever go for 11?” I asked.

“No,” he said ” If we miss it at seven, we just come home and call it a bad day.  Besides, nothing in life is so important it can’t be put off another day or another week.”

    My mother was never in an accident, but one evening she handed me her car keys and said she had decided to quit driving.. That was in 1999, when she was 90.

She lived four more years, until 2003.  My father died the next year, at 102.

They both died in the bungalow they had moved into in 1937 and bought a few years later for $3,000.  (Sixty years later, my brother and I paid $8,000 to have a shower put in the tiny bathroom — the house had never had one.  My father would have died then and there if he knew the shower cost nearly three times what he paid for the house.)

He continued to walk daily — he had me get him a treadmill when he was 101 because he was afraid he’d fall on the icy sidewalks but wanted to keep exercising — and he was of sound mind and sound body until the moment he died.

One September afternoon in 2004, he and my son went with me when I had to give a talk in a neighboring town, and it was clear to all three of us that he was wearing out, though we had the usual wide-ranging conversation about politics and newspapers and things in the news.

A few weeks earlier, he had told my son, “You know, Mike, the first hundred years are a lot easier than the second hundred.”  At one point in our drive that Saturday, he said, “You know, I’m probably not going to live much longer.”

“You’re probably right,” I said.

“Why would you say that?”  He countered, somewhat irritated.

“Because you’re 102 years old,” I said..

“Yes,” he said, “you’re right.”  He stayed in bed all the next day.

That night, I suggested to my son and daughter that we sit up with him through the night.

He appreciated it, he said, though at one point, apparently seeing us look gloomy, he said: “I would like to make an announcement.  No one in this room is dead yet”

An hour or so later, he spoke his last words: “I want you to know,” he said, clearly and lucidly, “that I am in no pain.  I am very comfortable.  And I have had as happy a life as anyone on this earth could ever have.”

A short time later, he died.

I miss him a lot, and I think about him a lot  I’ve wondered now and then how it was that my family and I were so lucky that he lived so long.

I can’t figure out if it was because he walked through life, or because he quit taking left turns.

Life is too short to wake up with regrets. 

So love the people who treat you right.  Forget about the one’s who don’t. Believe everything happens for a reason.  If you get a chance, take it & if it changes your life, let it. Nobody said life would be easy, they just promised it would most likely be worth it.

ENJOY LIFE NOW - IT HAS AN EXPIRATION DATE

GENEVA - Most of the 2.6 million deaths of young people each year are preventable, according to a new study supported by the World Health Organization and released in Geneva Friday.

The main causes of deaths in the 10-24 age group were road traffic accidents, complications during pregnancy and child birth, suicide, violence, HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis.

The study, to be published in the Lancet, a medical journal, found that 97 percent of these deaths were taking place in low and middle-income countries.

“Young people … often fall through the cracks,” said Daisy Mafubelu, WHO’s expert for family and community health.

She said it was important to improve their access to information and services “and help young people avoid risky behaviors that can lead to death”.

There are an estimated 1.8 billion people that fall into this age group, accounting for 30 percent of the world’s population.

Road traffic accidents could be avoided through more appropriate speed limits, strict enforcement of drunk-driving laws and by the use of helmets and safety belts, the WHO said.

Moreover, young people need sex education, condoms and other contraceptives, the ability to perform safe abortions, access to antenatal and obstetric services and testing and care for HIV/AIDS.

The study also led the researchers to conclude that suicide and other violence could be prevented through life-skills training and positive parental involvement in young people’s lives.

Furthermore, the WHO recommended that access to lethal means of all kinds, including guns and toxins, should be reduced, along with limiting the consumption of alcohol.

There also needed to be better care and support for those exposed to child abuse, youth violence, and sexual assault, to help young people deal with the immediate and long-term consequences of these traumatic events.

Exact cause of a leg cramp is extremely difficult to pinpoint

The exact cause of a leg cramp is extremely difficult to pinpoint, some of the factors leading to the same are as follows -

Muscle fatigue due to overexertion

Rigorous exercises

Dehydration

Excess weight

Electrolyte, hormonal or fluid imbalances

Side effects of certain medicines such as diuretics.

An unusual or a different exercise than what is done normally.

Diminished blood supply.

Nerve abnormalities.

Nerve and muscle diseases.

Massaging the muscle

What to do when you get a leg cramp?

Stretch the sore muscle, follow your instinct, your body will automatically guide you in the correct manner.

Massage the cramped muscle gently in the natural direction of the muscle. This helps relax the contraction and ease the pain.

A hot shower or warm bath is a good way to relax the muscle.

Use cold packs on the affected muscle. This relaxes the tensed muscles.

For a cramped calf muscle, stretch and massage the leg by straightening it and pointing the toes upward, towards the head.

Use a warm towel or heating pad to alleviate pain or tenderness following a cramp.

Diet rich in potassium and calcium

Increase water consumption to stay well hydrated throughout the day.

Potassium and calcium rich foods will keep the level of these two much required nutrients at optimum levels preventing cramping episodes.

Stay hydrated during work

Some preventive measures -

Dehydration causes leg cramps. It is especially important to stay well hydrated during workouts.

Drink plenty of fluids before, during and after exercising.

Stretching prior to starting your exercise routine is extremely important.

Stretches help relax muscles and thus prevent leg cramps.

When beginning a workout regime, it is imperative that you do so gradually. A sudden increase or changes in physical activity levels can cause leg cramps. Keep rolled up bed sheets or blankets at your feet to prevent your toes and feet from pointing downward while you are asleep. Riding a stationary bicycle for a few minutes before bedtime could prevent cramps from developing during the night.

DETROIT - Michigan researchers have developed a powerful new GPS-like tool to identify proteins that are affected by a chemical process that is key to aging and disease development.

The probe, which works like a GPS or navigation system for finding these proteins in cells, could lead to new insights into disease processes and identify new targets for disease treatments, according to the researchers.

Kate Carroll and colleagues said that it has long been known that the excess build-up of highly reactive oxygen-containing molecules in cells can contribute to aging, and possibly to disorders like cancer and Alzheimer’s disease.

It is believed that a diet rich in antioxidants, which are abundant in fruits and vegetables, may help cease this cell-damaging process by blocking the accumulation of these molecules, also known as reactive oxygen species (ROS).

However, to date, scientists have not found any proper tools to study the effects of these molecules in detail.

Thus, the researchers developed a new molecule called DAz-2, which, according to them, functions like a tiny GPS device for quickly finding specific proteins that are affected by ROS.

The molecules do this by chemically “tagging” sulfenic acid, which is formed in cells and indicates that a protein has undergone a type of reaction - called oxidation - caused by ROS.

In lab studies using cultured cells, the scientists identified more than 190 proteins that undergo this reaction.

The researchers said that the study could lead to better strategies for fighting the wide range of diseases that involve these excessive oxidation reactions.

The study will be published in ACS Chemical Biology, a monthly journal

YAOUNDE - Gorillas carry the parasite that causes malignant malaria in humans, a finding that could help in efforts to develop a vaccine for malaria, researchers say.

Malaria is a sometimes fatal disease, usually contracted from mosquitoes, most commonly in areas such as sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. People who contract malaria typically develop flu-like symptoms with high fevers and chills, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the new study, researchers analyzed fecal samples from 84 gorillas in Cameroon and blood samples from three gorillas in Gabon and found the parasite Plasmodium falciparum, which was previously believed to only infect humans. P. falciparum causes 85 percent of malignant malaria infections in humans and nearly all deaths from malaria.

The scientists also found that the gorillas carried two closely related species of malaria parasites: Plasmodium GorA and Plasmodium GorB.

The discovery of P. falciparum in gorillas complicates efforts to eradicate malaria, according to the study published in this week’s issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

“Hundreds of billions of dollars are spent each year toward ridding humans of malignant malaria. But success may be a pyrrhic victory, because we could be re-infected by gorillas — just as we were originally infected by chimps a few thousand years ago,” study co-author Francisco Ayala, a biologist at the University of California, Irvine, said in a university news release.

Along with potentially aiding in the development of a malaria vaccine, this finding helps improve understanding of how infectious diseases such as HIV, SARS and bird and swine flu can be transmitted from animals to humans, the researchers noted.

Each year, malaria sickens about 500 million people worldwide and causes 2 million infant deaths. Four kinds of malaria parasites can infect humans: P. falciparum, P. vivax, P. ovale, P. malariae. Infection with P. falciparum, if not promptly treated, may lead to death, according to the CDC.

 

Soon, Robo-Bees that Mimic Bees Behavior

WASHINGTON - A Northeastern University neurobiologist is collaborating with Harvard University researchers to develop micro flying robots that will emulate the bees’ brain, body and collective behavior.

Biology professor Joseph Ayers would create robots, called the robobees, which would mimic the communal feeding behavior of bee colonies.

The project will draw on the knowledge of computer scientists, engineers, and biologists to construct an electronic nervous system, a supervisory architecture and a high-energy source to power the innovative robots.

“This project will integrate the efforts and expertise of a diverse team of investigators to create a system that far transcends the sum of its parts. We expect substantial advances in basic science at the intersection of these seemingly disparate disciplines to result from this effort,” said Ayers.

Inspired by the biology of the bee and the insect’s colonial behaviour, the project aims to advance miniature robotics and the design of compact high-energy power sources.

The project would also spur innovations in ultra-low-power computing and electronic “smart” sensors that mediate biomimetic control.

In addition, it would refine coordination algorithms to manage multiple, independent machines.

Ayers is widely known for his work in biomimetics- the science of adapting the control systems found in nature to inform design of engineered systems to solve real-world problems-including the development of RoboLobster and RoboLamprey.

The autonomous, biomimetic underwater robotic models emulate the operations of the animals’ nervous systems using an electronic controller based on nonlinear, moving models of neurons and synapses.

“Animals have evolved to occupy every environmental niche where we would hope to operate robots, save outer space. They provide proven solutions to problems that confound even the most sophisticated robots, and our challenge is to capture these performance advantages in engineered devices,” said Ayers.

How Infant Pain Has Repercussions in Adulthood

ATLANTA - Researchers at Georgia State University have thrown light on how pain in infancy alters the brain’s ability to process pain in adulthood.

The study has now indicated that infants who spent time in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) show altered pain sensitivity in adolescence.

The results have profound implications, and highlight the need for pre-emptive and post-operative pain medicine for newborn infants.

The study sheds light on how the mechanisms of pain are altered after infant injury in a region of the brain called the periaqueductal gray, which is involved in the perception of pain.

For the study, graduate student Jamie LaPrairie and professor Anne Murphy used Sprague-Dawley rats to examine why the brief experience of pain at the time of birth permanently decreased pain sensitivity in adulthood.

Endogenous opioid peptides, such as beta-endorphin and enkephalin, function to inhibit pain and they are also the ‘feel good’ substances that are released following high levels of exercise or love.

As these peptides are released following injury and act like morphine to dampen the experience of pain, the researchers tested to see if the rats, who were injured at birth, had unusually high levels of endogenous opioids in adulthood.

Thus, they gave adult animals that were injured at the time of birth a drug called naloxone, which blocks the actions of endogenous opioids.

The researchers observed that after animals received an injection of naloxone, they behaved just like an uninjured animal.

Using a variety of anatomical techniques, the investigators showed that animals that were injured at birth had endogenous opioid levels that were two times higher than normal.

Interestingly, while there is an increase in endorphin and enkephalin proteins in adults, there is also a big decrease in the availability of mu and delta opioid receptors, which are necessary in order for pain medications, such as morphine, to work.

This means that it takes more pain-relieving medications in order to provide relief as there are fewer available receptors in the brain. Studies in humans are reporting the same phenomenon.

The number of invasive procedures an infant experienced in the NICU is negatively correlated with how responsive the child is to morphine later in life.

Thus, the researchers concluded that the more painful procedures an infant experienced, the less effective morphine is in alleviating pain.

The study has been published online in the journal Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience.

The Pill Bottle Gets a Cell Phone, to Remind You to Take Your Medicine

CAMBRIDGE - “Hi! This is your aspirin bottle calling. I haven’t seen you in a while. Why don’t you come see me soon? I’m good for the heart, you know.”

That’s the spirit, if not the wording, of the calls that will come from new pill bottle caps that connect to AT&T Inc.’s wireless network.

A Cambridge, Mass.-based startup called Vitality Inc. was set to announce the pill-bottle system Thursday, saying it helps solve one of the biggest problems in medicine: that people don’t consistently take the drugs they’re prescribed.

That costs the U.S. $290 billion in added medical spending each year, according to a study published in August by the New England Healthcare Institute. Mortality rates are twice as high among diabetes and heart disease patients who don’t take their pills properly, it said.

With Vitality’s system, when a pill-bottle cap is opened, it uses a close-range wireless signal to tell a base station in the home. That station, which looks like a night light, essentially has a cell phone inside that can send messages through AT&T’s network.

If the bottle isn’t opened at the appointed time, the cap and night light start blinking to remind the owner to take the medication. If that doesn’t serve as enough of a hint, they start playing jingles as well. If the bottle stays unopened, the night light will send a message to Vitality’s system, which can then place an automated phone call or send a text message with a reminder.

That points to another possibility opened by the wireless bottle cap: making the pill-taking routine more than just a matter between the patient and the bottle. Vitality’s system can be set to alert a relative if someone isn’t taking medicine.

“The social aspect of this is important,” Vitality CEO David Rose said. “Almost every successful behavior change program, the academics will tell you, involves social dynamics, whether it’s smoking cessation or Weight Watchers.”

A price for the new system hasn’t been disclosed. Vitality hopes insurance and drug companies will get on board with the system and cover the cost.

Vitality has been selling an earlier version of the product in small numbers from its Web site for $99. In that version, the night light doesn’t contain a cell phone. Instead it connects to a third piece of hardware, a “gateway” plugged into a home’s Internet router. But not all homes have routers, and configuring them can be tricky. The AT&T-powered night light simplifies the installation.

BEVERLY HILLS – US Tele-Medicine, the operators of this blog, rarely recommends any product because there are always opposing viewpoints with respect to ingredients, integrity or manufacture.  There are no perfect products manufactured by man.  There are close exception to that understanding.  This is one of them.

Wheat is a mainstay of many peoples and national diets around the world.  Wheat itself is quite healthy and beneficial source of carbs and fibers.  Wheat becomes less healthy  when we add yeasts, preservatives, enhancers and flavors, in any baked goods.   This is not to mention the sugars, syrups, fruits, emulsifiers and binders, added to the wheat by most mass- market commercial bakeries.  This is when wheat becomes toxic.

All commercial brands of breads have some other “natural” product added to the wheat, which always disturbs the structure of the beneficial fibers and confuses the body looking for clean carbs.  Except one.

In our opinion, the BEST commercial bread is found at Trader Joe’s Markets and branded as “Pain Pascal Organic Demi Miche.”  The ingredients: Organic Whole Wheat Flour, Filtered Water, and Sea Salt.   

The texture is incredibly soft, dense like a European country bread and very moist.  The taste is superb and especially aromatic lathered with some good Irish or Danish butter.  It toasts very heartily and the full crispy-on-the-outside, moist- on- the- inside effect is always there.

It is delicious, hearty, attractive, and very healthy for you to eat.  Bon appetite.   

Index of Posts through December 31, 2009

 

TO FIND ANY POST, SIMPLY ENTER SOME KEY WORDS IN THE SEARCH BOX

 

1 in 5 U.S. kids found deficient in vitamin D

3-D Structure of Human Genome Deciphered

8 Million Americans Seriously Consider Suicide Annually

A Mind That Touches the Past

Active Elders Live Longer: Study

Acupuncture, herbal medicine become more popular in U.S.

Adding Flaxseed to Juices, Salads, Jellies Fight Prostate Cancer

Alcoholism Affects Sleep During Sober Periods

Aligning Your Chakras

Alternative Supplements Can Now Be Claimed on Your Insurance and Get a Cash Refund

Alzheimers Risk Linked to Level of Appetite Hormone

Ancient Surgeries – Trepanation and Nose Jobs

Animals Using One Side of their Brains are More Successful

Anti-Ageing Creams Could Cause Cancer

Antifungal Effects of Pumpkin Protein

Antioxidant in Melon Relieves Stress          

Ants Can Count

Anxiety, Depression Much More Common Than Thought

Appealing Health Insurance Denials

Are There Toxins in Your Herbs?

Are You Unwittingly Practicing Alternative Medicine?

Artificial Sweeteners Linked to Kidney Decline

Aspirin Is Only for Heart Patients

Aura’ Migraines a Stroke Risk

Aussie Scientists Find HIV Reservoir in Brain

Autopsy Reveals Ancient Egyptian Mummy Died of TB

Bacteria Can Transform Minerals Electrically

Bad Drug Reactions, Side Effects - 500,000 US Kids to Doctor Each Year

Basic Hygiene More Effective Against Swine Flu than Drugs

Being Too Optimistic could Harm Weight Loss Efforts

Best Vitamins for Women

Better Ventilation May Ease some Asthma

Bike Rides for Women Over 50 Can Cut 16 Years off Age

Binge Drinking Weakens Body’s Ability to Fight Infections

Biodynamic the New Organic?

Bionic Eye May Help Blind See: Retinal Prosthesis Shown To Restore Partial Vision

Blueberries Keep Brain Active In the Afternoon

Brain Function of Earthquake Survivors Acutely Affected

Brain Prods You Into Gorging on Good Food

Brain’s Face Processing Ability does Reduce with Age

Brains Can be Trained

Breakdown of Who Lacks Health Insurance by State

Breast Milk Best if Consumed as Soon as it is Expressed

 Breathalyzer Screening may Help Spot Lung Cancer Early

Breathing Technique can Reduce Asthma Severity

Brit Men Having Boob Jobs on the Rise

Broken Heart ‘Ups Heart Attack Risk’

Brown University Study Of Marijuana Use In Head And Neck Cancer

California’s Real Death Panels: Insurers Deny 21% of Claims

Calorie Restriction Reduces Disease and Extends Life

Cancer patients and their experiences of using the Internet  

Cannabis Helps Sleep Apnea

Cannabis in The Old Testament

Celiac Disease and Osteoporosis Link Brings Possible Treatment

Cherry Juice May Help Ease the Pain of Sore Muscles

Childhood Physical Abuse Linked To Arthritis, Study Finds

Chilling Brains Aids in Cardiac Care

Chinese Herbal Medicines For Preventing Diabetes In High Risk People

Chinese herbs may hold back diabetes

Chlorophyll Compounds may Help Treat Cancer

Cholesterol Crucial to Brain Development

Chronic Rhinosinusitis Patients Going for Alternative Medicine

Chyawanprash: Ancient Indian Elixir

Cities, Human Brains Evolved in Similar Ways

Cocktail with real snake venom has bite

Coffee Can Give Kids Sleepless Nights, Breathing Problems

Coffee May Stop Liver Disease

Cola Drinking Linked to Diabetes in Pregnancy

Color Therapy

Combination Heart Device Cut Chances of Heart Failure by 41 Percent

Common Abbreviations Used in Nutrition

Common Attitudes About Personal Pain

Complementary Therapies for Eczema

Comprehensive Eating Disorders Dictionary for Parents

Consciousness is Brains Wi-Fi Network

Controlling Your Breathing Helps Sea Sickness

Could Chinese Herb Be a Natural Viagra?

Could This Forbidden Medicine Eliminate the Need for Drugs?

Cup of Aloe Nutritious Shake, Herbal Tea make for a Healthy Breakfast

Cup of Mint Tea is an Effective Painkiller

Curry Compound Kills Cancer

Curry Spice ‘Kills Cancer Cells’

Depressed Teens Higher Risk of Mental Health Problems in Later Life

Depression Leads to Protein Linked to Heart Disease

Determining the Quality of your Supplements.

Dietary Fiber Can Keep Diseases at Bay

Different Anxiety Disorders

Dimensions of the Most Attractive Face

Dioxin In Your Daily Life Causes Cancer

Disease-Detecting Device Vibrates with Potential

Do Multivitamins Curb Kids Allergy Risk?

Doctors Unable to Restrain Mentally Ill From Smoking

Does Acupuncture Help Your Back?

Don’t Spank Your Kids if You Want Them to be Intelligent

Don’t Watch Your Wife Give Birth or You May Get Divorced

Drinking Coffee During Midlife May Reduce the Risk of Dementia in Later Life

Dung of the Devil Plant Roots may Offer Swine Flu Cure

Eat the Butter: Study Finds Fatty Foods Help Pilots on Mental, Flying Tests

Eating Walnuts Cuts Cholesterol

Efforts to Promote Breast Feeding Urged

Egyptian Mummies Had Clogged Arteries

Elderly Women Sleep Better Than They Think, Men Nap Worse

EU Grants Nearly $2.25M For Complementary Medicine Research

Exercise can Cut Heart Disease Deaths by 60 per cent

Exercising in the Heat may Help You Eat Less

Experts Map the Body’s Bacteria

External therapy Cannabinoids Effective in Reducing Pain Patients with Herpes Zoster

Extra-Virgin Olive Oil may Help Prevent, Treat Alzheimer’s

Facebook May Boost your Brain’s Working Memory

Face-to-Face Medical Care over the Internet?

Fake Blood-Clotting Products to Heal Wounded Soldiers

Fashion and Beauty Trends in Fall Takes Toll on Health

Fibromyalgia: Treatable With Chiropractic Care and Reimbursable Through GE

Fighting Infection With Manuka Honey

FIRST-OF-ITS KIND HEALTH CARE PLAN REIMBURSES USERS OF MEDICAL MARIJUANA

Flaxseed May Lower Cholesterol

Flickering Bright Colors Likely To Trigger Epileptic Fits

Flower Essence Therapy

For Patients Suffering With Chronic Rhinosinusitis

Forgotten Memories Still Exist in the Brain

Four Major Food Groups for a Healthy Life

Four Things You Didn’t Know About Natural Medicine

Frequent Nasal Irrigation May Increase Infections

Gene Mutation May Cause Pupils’ Low Grades

Gene Therapy May Soon Help Dieters Keep Off Weight Gain

Genetic Link Between Psychosis and Creativity Revealed

Gingko Biloba May Protect From Radiation

Glucosamine Effectiveness

Glucose Could Potentially Power Our Gadgets, Cars

Green Spaces ‘Improve Health’

Green Tea may Help Improve Bone Health

Hand Size–Not Sex–Determines Sense of Touch

Having a Pet Can Help You Stay Healthy

Health Canada Warns of Health Risks Posed by Rating Raw Bean Sprouts

Health insurance Premiums Rose Modestly in 2009

Healthy Foods that Contain Vitamin A

Heartburn Drugs Safe for Fetuses, says Israeli Study

HERBAL MEDICINES IN YOUR BACKYARD

Herbal Supplements: What to Know Before You Buy

Here is Why Evolution is Irreversible

Here’s How Exposure to Diesel Fumes Causes Cancer

Here’s What Causes Arteries To Clog Up

Here’s Why Sugar in Green Tea is a Healthy Idea

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High Dose Folate And B Vitamin Supplements Increase Uterine Cancer Risk

High-Fat Diet Harms Muscle Health in Pre-Diabetic Teens

High-Fructose Diet Increases Blood Pressure Risk

High-Protein Diets Shrink the Brain

Hippocampus Governs How We Devise Concepts in the Brain

History of Homeopathy

HIV Outwits Yet Another Microbicide

Home Remedies Series – Allergies

Home Remedies Series - Amnesia

Home Remedies Series - Anorexia

 Home Remedies Series – Anxiety

Home Remedies Series - Arthritis

Home Remedies Series - Athletes foot

Home Remedies Series - Belching

Home Remedies Series – Burns

Home Remedies Series - Colitis

Home Remedies Series – Conjunctivitis

Home Remedies Series - Cracked Heels

Home Remedies Series - Dandruff

Home Remedies Series – Dark Circles

Home Remedies Series - Depression

Home Remedies Series - Diarrhea

Home Remedies Series - Dizziness

Home Remedies Series - Edema

Home Remedies Series – Hair

Home Remedies Series - Insomnia

Home Remedies Series - Intestinal Worms

Home Remedies Series – Kidney Stones

Home Remedies Series - Obesity

Home Remedies Series - Razor Burns

Home Remedies Series - Varicose Veins

Home Remedies Series - Vertigo

Honey Sends Virility-Seeking Men to the ER

How Addictive Drugs Influence Learning and Memory

How Color Plays Musical Chairs in the Brain

How Proximity to Convenience Stores Promotes Child Obesity

How Silver is Used in Wellness

How Some People Maintain Weight Loss, Others Don’t

How the Brain Encodes Memories at a Cellular Level

How to Eliminate and Prevent Cancer

How to Get Your Medical Insurer to Cover Alternative Medicine Treatments, If you are Not USTM Patient

How to Make Antibiotics More Effective at Lower Doses

How To Relieve Pain Without Medicine

India Suggests Therapeutic Cloning

India, Nigeria, Congo Account for 40 percent Child Deaths

Individual Reactions to Traumatic Stress

Indoor Plants Can Reduce Toxic Ozone Levels

Innovative, Low-Cost Medical and Diagnostic Tests

Introducing - Aloe Vera

Introducing - Bee Propolis

Introducing - Bilberry

Introducing - CoQ10

Introducing - Devil’s claw

Introducing - DHEA

Introducing - Ephedra

Introducing - Feverfew

Introducing - Ginger

Introducing - Guarana

Introducing - Licorice Root

Introducing - Melatonin

Introducing - Milk Thistle

Introducing - Milk Thistle

Introducing - Multivitamins

Introducing - Omega-6 Fatty Acids

Introducing – Policosanol – The Natural Statin

Introducing – Saw Palmetto

Introducing - St. John’s Wort

Introducing - Tribulus

Introducing – Valerian

Introducing - Vitamin B3 (Niacin)

Introducing - Vitamin C

Introducing - Vitamin E

Introducing - Vitamin K

Introducing - White Willow Bark

Introducing - Zinc

Iodine Must for Developing Kids’ Intellect

It’s Not a Tumor, It’s a Brain Worm

Keep the Body Alkaline for Optimum Health

Key Mechanism in Development of Nerve Cells Found

Know the Difference between Cold and Swine Flu Symptoms

Lack of Sunshine Vitamin Linked to High BP in Women

Laptop Save Student From Dropping Dead

Large Thighs May Protect Heart

L-Arginine is wonderful for Blood Pressure, Erectile Dysfunction, Wound Healing

Lesser Known Chinese Herbal Remedies

Light, Photosynthesis Harmful to Fresh Produce

Living Proof - A Man’s Unusual Prescription for Bone Cancer

Long Lasting Weight Loss

Loss of Loved One make Grievers Vulnerable to Heart Attacks

LSD and Cannabis Less Harmful than Alcohol, says UK Drug Expert

Lupus News

Lychee Fruit for Metabolic Syndrome

Male and Female Chromosomes do Communicate with Each Other

Males Experience Loss of Libido During Hepatitis-C Therapy

Man ‘Allergic’ to His Wife

MDs Could Learn From African Healers

Measles Vaccine Inhaler Shows Promise    

Meat Linked to Prostate Cancer

Mechanism Related to Onset of Genetic Diseases Identified

Meddling in Mosquitoes Sex Life Could Cut Malaria

Medical error is a lot more dangerous than homeopathy

Melatonin Improves Mood In Winter Depression

Memory Test Spots Pre-Dementia

Men More Vulnerable to Mental Illness, Say Experts

Mid-Life Obesity Cuts Women Chances of Healthy Survival

Mobile Microscopes Illuminate the Brain

More good news about bad times: the Great Depression increased US life expectancy

More On Life Saving L-Arginine - Heart Health

More On the Great L-Arginine - Improves Blood Flow and Exercise Capacity

More People Rely On Alternative Medicine

More Women Opting to Remove Healthy Breast After Cancer Diagnosis

Most Babies Born This Century Will Live to 100

Nanotechnology and Resveratrol

Native American Herbal Remedies No. 1

Native American Herbal Remedies No. 2

Natural Compounds in Vegetables Make Chemotherapy More Effective

Natural Hormone Replacement Therapy

Natural Hydrogel May Boost Spinal Cord

New Aircraft Air Filter System Destroy 99.9% of Bugs

New Approach to Wrinkles Could Replace Botox

New Biomarker Can Bring Rapid Relief from Major Depression

New Chip Can Detect Cancer Early  

New Drug Kills Cancer Like a Stealth Slayer

New Evidence That Marijuana is Safe, Effective

New iPhone Apps to Study Human Body in 3-D

New Microchip-Based Device Can Put an End to Painful Biopsies

New Patsari Stove Smproves Women’s Lung Health

New Weight-Loss Fad Uses Tongue Patches Make Eating Painful

No Pain, No Gain Applies to Happiness too

Noisy Roads Ups High Blood Pressure Risk

Non-Invasive Way of Diagnosing Sleep Apnea

Normal Ranges for the Two Types of Cholesterol

Not All Expert Advice is the Right Advice – Medical Myths

Novel Cancer Therapy Found by TA Researchers

Novel Minimally Invasive Technique to Treat Snoring

Novel Treatment Helps Paralyzed Rats Walk Again After Spinal-Cord Injury

Obese Kids Aged 12 Early Signs of Heart Disease

Obese Women have Less Chances of Enjoying Old Age

Obesity Spurs a Tide of Cancer in Europe

On-Off Fasting Helps Obese Adults Shed Pounds

ORPHCAM Project first to look at GP-CAM interface in rural areas

Oxidized Form of Vitamin A May Treat Bowel Diseases

Oxygen Therapy Can Help Cluster Headaches

Parkinson’s – A Novel Therapeutic Target

Patients in Vegetative State Can Learn, say Researchers   

Peculiar Pageant Focuses on Surgically Enhanced Beauties

People Having Social Groups Stay Healthy

People Susceptible to Colon Cancer Cut their Risk in Half with Aspirin

Pervasive E-health services using communication technology

Phobias - 540 Common Phobias

Physically Active Boys Are Smarter

Pig bristles latest cure for eye problems

Pituitary Tumor Caused World’s Tallest Man’s Gigantism

Port Wine Birthmarks Now Easy to Remove with Laser Therapy

Preservation of Antibiotics

Preventing Hepatitis

Prevention In Getting H1N1 Flu

Prospects for Brain Regenerative Medicine

PROTECT YOURSELF TOXIC CHEMICALS IN PERSONAL CARE AND SKIN CARE PRODUCTS

Protecting Your Virtual Privacy – Health Information

Qwest’s Connections Power Colorado Telehealth

Radon Gas the Second Leading Cause of Lung Cancer

Reduce the Side Effects of Antibiotics

Regular Exercise Cuts Prostate Cancer Risk

Remains of World’s Oldest Human Brain Found in Armenia

Researchers Find a Way to Block Fat Consumption

Researchers Test Smart Bandage for Wireless Vitals Monitoring

Researchers tout cheap eHealth alternative

Resynchronization Cuts Down Risk of Heart Failures

Retinal Implant Could Help Restore Part of Vision

Right Dose of Omega-3 Fatty Acid May Be Identified

Santa Should Get Off His Sleigh, Give Up Brandy and Walk

Scientists Create World’s Tiniest Laser Squeezing Light

Scientists Develop Tiny Sensor to Sniff Toxins

Scientists Identify Another Step in Memory Formation

Scientists Identify Bacterium That Helps in Formation of Gold

Scientists Map How White Blood Cells Repair Wounds

Scientists Show Blue Light Can Help Reset Sleep Cycle

Scientists Trying to Identify Sanjivani Herb

Secrets of Anti-Aging Adaptogenic Herbs

Sexually Satisfied Women Experience Greater Vitality

Sexually Satisfied Women Experience Greater Vitality

Shame Is Essential, But You Can Get Out Of It

Shockwave Therapy Shows Promise for Erectile Dysfunction

Short-Term Stress Boosts Anti-Tumor Activity

Skinny Friends with Big Appetites Bad for Weight Watching

Sleep Loss may Lead to Alzheimer’s

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Social Isolation Speeds Up Breast Cancer Growth

Sodium bicarbonate helps to save countless lives every day

Some Colors Offer Better Sun Protection

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Soon, Chip on the Shoulder to Remind Patients to Take Pills

Soybean Compounds Could Prevent Heart Disease, Cancer

Soybeans May Sub for Fish Omega-3

Statin Use Reduces Heart Attacks, Deaths After Surgery on Blood Vessels

Still Alive and Well - Confirmed Bicarbonate Cancer Cure

Stressed? Dark Chocolate Might Help, Scientists say

Student Study Shows Energy Drinks Don’t Boost Performance

Study Finds Women Happier than Men, While Youth Most Distressed

Study: Alternative medicine use on the rise in U.S.

Sudoku Can Make You Fat

Sunlight May Help Cancer Patients Survive

Sunshine States Really are Happiest

Superhero Comics to Help Kids Understand Diseases, Treatments

Supplement May Offer a Statin Alternative For Some

Surgical Masks Offer No Protection Against a Pandemic

Sweeteners Make Sweet Life But Promise Cancer Instead

Swine Flu Prompts Calls for Kissing Strike in Spain

Tai Chi Relieves Osteoarthritis Knee Pain: Study

Tanning Linked to Moles in very Light-Skinned Children

Teddy Bear-Shaped Nurse Robot Developed

Teen Internet Addicts More Apt to Self Harm

Teen-Age Good at Reasoning but Lack Emotional Maturity

Teenage Hormones – Watch Out

Teens Who Smoke Marijuana But Not Tobacco Are Different From Other Teen Groups

TELE-MEDICINE SERVICE OVER SATELLITE NETWORK.

Testimonies document the medicinal properties of cannabis and its derivatives

Testosterone Spray May Help Post-Menopausal Women Fight Dementia

The Cause and Treatment of Heart Disease

The Connection Between Acne and Gluten

The Dietary Supplements Labels Database

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The Immunity Herb - Echinacea Purpurea

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The Purpose of Sneezing

The Truth About the Composition of Different Fats – Oils We Eat

The Wireless Revolution in Medical Devices

Thinking of Cryogenics? Here Are Some Sources

Too Many Chocolates- Mental Problems Linked to Acne in Teens

Too Much Liquorice During Pregnancy may Affect Child’s IQ and Behavior

Topical Cream for Erectile Dysfunction could Prove Safer

Touching Toes May Indicate Heart Risk

Traumatic Childhood Might Take Years Off Adult Life

Treating Multiple Sclerosis with Diet

Trouble Thinking? Better See the Dentist

Truth About RGBH Milk Hormone - Again

Two-Thirds of World’s Blind are Women: Study

Types of Holistic Healing Therapies and Treatments

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Understanding Amino Acids and Proteins

US Tele-Medicine – Our Philosophy

Vitamin B6 Tied to Better Prostate Cancer Survival

Vitamin C can Help Protect DNA Damage of Skin Cells

Vitamin D Helps Improve Survival From Bowel And Skin Cancer

Vitamin D may save your life from swine flu

Vitamin Supplements Lowers Risk of Heart Disease

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Vitamins and Minerals for Healthy Blemish-Free Skin

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What You Need to Know to Save on Out-of-Pocket Health Care Costs

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SYDNEY - A new online survey has found that women are happier than men, and that young people are more likely to be distressed.

The survey of 309 people, conducted by the Mental Health Association NSW (MHA), also found that spending time with friends or being a member of a club contributed much to an individual’s happiness.

It also showed that those unsure whether they would like socialising, “fence sitters”, were more prone to mental ill-health.

A majority of women reported feeling happier than men, and they also had more active social lives.

“The report reveals that there is a strong link between participating and feeling happy when socialising with friends or being a member of a club,” the Sydney Morning Herald quoted MHA spokeswoman Nataly Bovopoulos as saying in a statement.

“It was also interesting to note that the majority (72 per cent) of the respondents were female, which indicates immediately that women are more likely to get involved than men,” she added.

Those who were experiencing a disadvantage from factors such as a financial crisis reported being distressed, as did 18 to 25-year-olds, who were unhappier than older age groups.

The survey, which asks people if they attend religious services or use social networking sites such as Facebook, is part of research into community participation, psychological distress, and mental well-being trends in NSW.

Bovopoulos also said it was possible for people to feel unhappy without being depressed or anxious, however, most people who were distressed reported feeling unhappy.

NEW YORK - Researchers at the NYU School of Medicine say that they have gained significant insights into a mechanism that plays an important role in making human pathogens like Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus anthracis resistant to numerous antibiotics.

Writing about their work in the journal Science, they have said that their study provides evidence that Nitric Oxide (NO) is able to alleviate the oxidative stress in bacteria caused by many antibiotics, and that it also helps to neutralize many antibacterial compounds.

Lead researcher Evgeny A. Nudler, The Julie Wilson Anderson Professor of Biochemistry at NYU Langone Medical Center, says in the report that eliminating this NO-mediated bacterial defence renders existing antibiotics more potent at lower, less toxic, doses. he researcher further says that the study’s findings pave the way for new ways of combating bacteria that have become antibiotic resistant.

A study Nudler led a few years ago had shown that bacteria mobilize NO to defend against the oxidative stress.

The new study supports the radical idea that many antibiotics cause the oxidative stress in bacteria, often resulting in their death, whereas NO counters this effect.

Based on this work, the researchers have come to the conclusion that scientists may use commercially available inhibitors of NO-synthase, an enzyme producing NO in bacteria and humans, to make antibiotic resistant bacteria like MRSA and ANTHRAX more sensitive to available drugs during acute infection.

“Developing new medications to fight antibiotic resistant bacteria like MRSA is a huge hurdle, associated with great cost and countless safety issues. Here, we have a short cut, where we don’t have to invent new antibiotics. Instead, we can enhance the activity of well established ones, making them more effective at lower doses,” says Nudler.

“We are very excited about the potential impact of this research in terms of continuing to push the boundaries of research in the area of infectious diseases,” said Dr. Vivian S. Lee, vice dean for science, senior vice president and chief scientific officer of NYU Langone Medical Center.

“With the emergence of drug resistant bacteria, it’s imperative that researchers strive to find conceptually new approaches to fight these pathogens,” Lee added.

PLEASE READ OUR POST ON L-ARGININE - 

GENEVA - India, Nigeria and Congo account for 40 percent of the 8.8 million deaths of children under the age of five years, a new Unicef study released Friday says.

Though a little satisfied over a drop in child mortality, the UN agency said these three countries were a key to the world achieving the millennium development goals by 2015. The goals have been set up by United Nations.

“A handful of countries with large populations bear a disproportionate burden of under-five deaths, with forty per cent of the worlds under-five deaths occurring in just three countries: India, Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of Congo, the global report said.

Unless mortality in these countries is significantly reduced, the MDG (millennium development goals) targets will not be met, said Unicef Executive Director Ann M. Veneman.

The study said achieving the goal of a two-thirds reduction in the under-five mortality rate by 2015 would require a strong sense of urgency with targeted resources for greater progress.

While praising some countries for making efforts in reducing the mortality, Unicef expressed dissatisfaction that South Africa was not doing enough in this regard.

In some countries, the progress is slow or non-existent. In South Africa, the under-five mortality rate has actually gone up since 1990. The health of the child is inextricably linked to the health of the mother and South Africa has the highest number of women living with HIV in the world, the report said.

Recent commitments by the government to scale up interventions to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV/AIDS should help improve the situation, the UN agency hoped.

Unicef said the progress could be accelerated even in the poorest environments, through integrated, evidence-driven, community-based health programmes that focus on addressing the major causes of death — pneumonia, diarrhoea, newborn disorders, malaria, HIV and under-nutrition.

The two leading causes of under-five mortality are pneumonia and diarrhoea. New tools, such as vaccines against pneumococcal pneumonia and rotaviral diarrhoea, could provide (the) additional momentum, the report said.

The data, however, shows a 28 per cent decline in the under-five mortality rate, from 90 deaths per 1000 live births in 1990, to 65 deaths per 1000 live births in 2008 in the world.

According to these estimates, the absolute number of child deaths in 2008 declined to an estimated 8.8 million from 12.5 million in 1990, the base line year for the millennium development goals.

Compared to 1990, 10,000 fewer children are dying every day. While progress is being made, it is unacceptable that each year 8.8 million children die before their fifth birthday, added Veneman.

White willow bark is a tree native to Europe and Asia. The name “white willow” comes from the color of the leaves, which are covered with fine white hairs.

The use of white willow bark medicinally goes far back. Ancient Egyptians used white willow for inflammation. The Greek physician Hippocrates wrote about white willow’s medicinal uses in 5th century B.C.

In 1829, scientists in Europe identified what was believed to be the active ingredient in white willow bark—a compound called salicin. Public demand grew rapidly.

Extracting salicin from herbs was considered to be expensive and time-consuming, so a synthetic salicylic acid version was developed in Germany in 1852 and quickly became the treatment of choice (salicin is converted in the body to salicylic acid).

The problem was that it was harder on the stomach. At therapeutic doses, people using the synthetic salicyclic acid developed stomach ulcers and bleeding.

The German company Bayer eventually created a synthetic, less harsh derivative of salicylic acid, called acetylsalicylic acid (ASA), and mass-produced it under the name aspirin. Despite this, aspirin is still known for irritating the stomach lining.

Why do people use white willow bark?

White willow bark is used for conditions that cause pain, inflammation, or fever, such as:

    * Acute back pain

    * Fever

    * Flu

    * Joint pain

    * Osteoarthritis

    * Pain

People take white willow bark instead of aspirin because it does not appear to be as irritating to the stomach lining. It may be because the salicin found naturally in white willow bark is only converted to the acid form after it is absorbed by the stomach.

Researchers have also suggested that white willow bark is more effective than aspirin because of other active compounds that are found in the bark but not the drug. Animal research at Cairo University compared a willow bark extract to ASA and found that a willow bark extract was as effective as aspirin in reducing inflammation, even though the salicin content was lower than an equivalent dose of ASA.

What research has been done on white willow bark?

    * In a German study, the effectiveness of a willow bark extract providing 240 mg of salicin a day was compared to placebo in a 2-week randomized controlled trial in 78 people with osteoarthritis. After two weeks, the willow bark patients’ pain scores were reduced by 14% compared to the placebo group, which had a 2% increase in pain scores.

    * A randomized controlled trial published in the American Journal of Medicine examined the use of 120 mg or 240 mg salicin or placebo in 210 patients with an low back pain. In the fourth and final week of the study, 39% of the group taking 240 mg salicin were pain-free for at least 5 days, compared to 21% in the 120 mg group and only 6% in the placebo group.

    * Two randomized controlled 6-week trials investigated the effectiveness and safety of willow bark in 127 patients with hip and/or knee osteoarthritis and 26 patients with rheumatoid arthritis. In the osteoarthritis trial, patients received either willow bark providing 240 mg of salicin a day, 100 mg a day of the drug diclofenac, or a placebo. Patients in the rheumatoid arthritis trial received either willow bark or a placebo. The results found that the drug diclofenac was more effective than placebo in osteoarthritis patients but white willow bark was not. In rheumatoid arthritis patients, willow bark wasn’t found to be more effective than placebo.

Common Doses

Studies have used white willow bark extracts that provide 120 mg to 240 mg of salicin per day.

Safety

Because white willow bark contains salicylates, the same precautions as aspirin should be taken until research has shown otherwise. The following people should not take white willow bark:

    * People with an aspirin allergy or sensitivity. There has been a published report of a 25 year old woman who was admitted to emergency with anaphylaxis after taking 2 capsules of a weight loss supplement that contained willow bark. The patient had a history of allergy to acetylsalicylic acid. No other possible causes for anaphylaxis were identified in that patient.

    * People with peptic ulcer disease or kidney disease.

    * The herbs ginkgo, vitamin E, and garlic may increase the risk of bleeding if combined with white willow.

    * People with hyperuricemia, gout, and asthma.

    * Children and teenagers, especially with flu-like symptoms, chicken pox, or Reye’s syndrome.

    * Pregnant or nursing women.

White willow bark should be avoided two weeks before or after surgery.

Side effects

There have been few reported side effects. However, the same side effects as aspirin may theoretically occur, especially at higher doses: ringing in the ears, ulcers, stomach burning, pain, cramping, nausea, gastrointestinal bleeding and liver toxicity, rash, dizziness, and kidney impairment.