YOUR CHILD’S HEALTH: CYSTIC FIBROSIS
Cystic fibrosis is an inherited disorder which occurs in approximately 1 in every 2500 births. Children with the disease have excessive amounts of salt in their sweat, and produce thick mucus which blocks the pancreas and the lungs. This leads to many long-term problems, including repeated chest infections, poor growth (failure to thrive), and occasionally diabetes. A specific test called a sweat test is diagnostic of cystic fibrosis. Treatment is always in a specialist unit, and is aimed towards preventing deterioration in the child’s condition. Although many children are now surviving to adulthood, their lifespans are considerably shortened. Parents who have a child with cystic fibrosis have a one in four chance of having another affected child. Genetic counselling is advisable. Antenatal diagnosis is now available via chorionic villus biopsy.
*256\90\8*
SEXUALITY, ILLNESS, AND HEALTH: FERTILITY AND SEXUALITY- SOME OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS
Here are some of the recommendations I give to the couples after consultation with their referring doctor.
1. It is not true that “just when someone adopts, they get pregnant.” There are many such stories, but statistics do not bear them out. Nonetheless, a necessary first step in solving a fertility problem is to discuss together what options you will or will not accept. Would you adopt if necessary? What age, gender, race and health-status child would you consider? Why do we want à child anyway? Don’t fid1 for me simplistic “just adopt and you’ll get pregnant” or “just relax and take a vacation” ploys. Fertility, all of loving and life, is much more complex than that.
2. Do you want a child or a baby? Babies sound nice and have millions of effective press agents, but they bring with them bundles of problems, too. Talk over the fact that parenting is an approximately seventy-year phase of development during which you will try to help someone become more mature than you are. Do you want t° he parents together, or are there individual ambivalences that may need talking out, perhaps with a counselor or clergyperson? Learning to cooperate and share parenting and the continuing development of parenting goals and expectations is one of the most intimate parts of marriage. It is a form of sharing available only within a relationship committed to nurturing the lives of persons growing within and from that relationship.
3. Don’t panic. No matter what you hear, almost half of the couples in the United States have some trouble with fertility. Anxiety and fear won’t help, so remember the perspective of your relationship. You have somebody already. You are just trying to add to the group.
4. It’s not your fault or his fault or their fault. We just don’t know enough about fertility to blame anybody anyway, and there are women getting pregnant every day who were told they were never going to have a child. Think of this issue as a systems issue, not an individual issue.
5. Just as in parenting, you must not personalize the problem. When parents take the credit or diminish their self-worth because of their children, they experience family problems. If you are trying to have a child to prove something, such as your masculinity or femininity, you are probably getting in your own way.
*292\97\8*
YOUR MARITAL HEALTH/WHY HUSBANDS DON’T HAVE ORGASM: THE FRICTION FALLACY
Just put your first two fingers against your thumb and move your hand up and down and everyone will know what you mean. That is how men come.
TEENAGER
The early perspectives of sexuality asserted that men experience orgasm by thrusting, resulting in friction to the outer third of the penile shaft, which in turn resulted in “orgasm” and an “organ” emphasis. Men grow up believing and learning that there is one way to “come” and that is to have friction applied to the penis in a steady rhythm. This belief is one of the reasons that men learn to be the “do-it-to-ers” rather than receivers. For men, movement is sex.
A key to learning super marital sex is for men to learn to be still. While women were liberated when “even nice women moved their hips during sex,” men will be liberated when they learn that they can be still, that orgasm and psychasm can be received, not just achieved.
One of the most difficult assignments for husbands in the super marital sex program was to try to hold their pelvis still, not by effort but by surrender, while their wife stimulated their genitals. It took a while, but when the husbands learned this technique, they were amazed at the range of sensations that resulted. “I have never in my life felt anything like it. It actually happened to me without me trying to make it happen. What a trip!” This husband was like many others who reported a new freedom of choice in sexual interactions when they discovered the F and R areas and choices beyond friction and movement.
Masters and Johnson state that male sexual response is exclusively in the glans or end of the penis and the shaft of the penis. This is not the case. The Hite Report in 1980 and my own data indicate that men also masturbate by gently stroking their scrotum and that the penis is the “main place” only if that is the lesson that is repeated throughout life and the design of the love map.
*119\97\8*
THE JOY OF PERFECT HEALTH: THE PURITY OF THE PHYSICAL BODY FREES ENORMOUS RESOURCES OF THE MIND
The purity of the physical body frees enormous resources of the mind. If properly directed, such resources could be used to acquire many natural skills considered miraculous or supernatural by normal people.
Creating matter by a pure thought, flying around the galaxy and the Universe in your various astral bodies, being consciously present at several locations at any one time, learning anything at all instantly in complete silence, understanding all languages by direct telepathy, are just a few primitive examples of what is possible. There are no limits to our spiritual development. It is only a question of time and our own free will.
However, when our physical bodies are poisoned, your “house” is on fire. Most of the resources of the mind are simply not available. We are forced to crawl spiritually.
Fortunately, from time to time, our higher mind gives us a chance or a hint, on how to improve your situation. Just in case we are ready to learn. The fact that you are reading this book is just one example. (It is a sad fact, that most people just do not listen and do not want to learn. They criticise and doubt everything and everyone, except their own ignorance. They do not see, that they have a lot to learn).
Note, that it is actually your mind, which makes a decision to initiate purification of your body as well as itself. It does it actually for itself. You make it for yourself. During the process of purification of the body, you will feel great. You will find, that your mind is sharp and your intelligence increased. Any creative work or study will be much easier. By maintaining the purity of the body, you will be able to attain new levels of understanding, gain new skills and knowledge with very little effort. You will see your life and its purpose in a wonderful new perspective.
You can greatly assist the purification of the body, by trying to encourage certain states of the mind and avoid others. Purification of your mind (thoughts) can be as important as physical detoxification, since it is your mind at all levels which ultimately controls every function of your body. Again, the subject is quite extensive, so I will give you only the basic information and advice here.
*18\96\8*
LEPROSY – INTRODUCTION
Leprosy has been known since Biblical times, and is still a scourge throughout the world.
It still occurs in parts of the Middle East, Asia, the Pacific, Africa, Central and South America, Southern Europe around the Mediterranean and in Northern Australia
There are about 10 to 15 million sufferers throughout the world.
But, contrary to popular opinion, it is not highly infectious.
The germ is similar to the one which causes ÒÂ.
Most infections are contracted in childhood but it may take up to 10 years for the disease to declare itself.
The germs are usually spread from the upper respiratory tract, mainly the nose and throat, and enter the body, usually via a skin abrasion.
Because it doesn’t affect vital organs it rarely causes death, and often the patient doesn’t feel ill for most of the course of the disease.
*486/71/1*
BORNHOLM DISEASE
The Coxackie viruses belong to a group which cause a number of seemingly unrelated diseases.
They were named after the U.S. town where the two patients from whom the virus was first isolated lived.
Different varieties of the virus can cause meningitis or inflammation of the coverings of the brain and spinal cord.
Other illnesses are pericarditis, where the covering over the heart is involved, and an inflammation of the chest muscles and the pleura or lung covering.
This condition is called epidemic pleurodynia or Bornholm disease from the Danish island where an outbreak led to the first description of this disorder in 1934. The symptoms are those of muscle pain and tenderness of the chest wall and pain made worse by breathing.
There may be a slight fever, headache and muscular pain elsewhere as well as the chest.
The pleuritic chest pain may lead to a suspicion of other forms of pleurisy or, in the absence of fever, the chest pains may be thought to be due to strain.
Fortunately, the disease is shortlived and rarely lasts beyond two to three days. There is no specific treatment beyond aspirin to lower the temperature and reduce the pain.
*230/71/1*
ENDOMETRIOSIS: STRESS-REDUCTION TIPS
Tryptophan is found naturally in cow’s milk, turkey, tuna and some carbohydrate-high foods like apples. Breast milk, too, is especially high in this amino acid—one reason why Infants fall asleep after feeding. Supplying tryptophan to the adult body, though, is more than a matter of ingesting any of these foods before bedtime or taking it in concentrated form in capsules.
Does tryptophan realty work as a natural mood regulator? In his book The Brain, Richard Result, M.D., describes a number of experiments with volunteers, some of whom took serotonin and some of whom took placebos. Tests were inconclusive. Yes, serotonin improved signs of depression in one test, but no, there was no overall difference in mood alteration in another, “Relating a subtle disorder of the emotions to disruptions in certain key brain neurotransmitters” Is helpful. Dr. Restak reported, but, he added, a decrease of serotonin, for example, can be the result of several causes. “Perhaps,” he says, “not enough of the substance is being synthesized, or too much is being broken down. Or perhaps, it isn’t being released from its storage vesicles. Or the Uptake mechanisms may be overworking.” Each of these ideas opens a host of possible explanations as to why all volunteers did not uniformly feel better, and why some felt no change whatsoever.
Can tryptophan work for you? Body chemistry is unique and tryptophan is not an absolute mood elevator for everyone. If a low serotonin level signals the onset of depression, then it may be worth your while to increase your intake of tryptophan and see if you are improving on it. The results of Dr. Restak’s experiment, in effect, mirror my own observations of tryptophan’s effectiveness. Some of my patients respond to tryptophan supplements and others report that they red no better for having taken them. It is then a matter of experimentation for you, depending on the severity of your menstrual cramps, the degree of sleeplessness, and the extent of mood change.
For the most effective results, take tryptophan forty-five minutes or so before bedtime. Though the tryptophan in milk can help you relax, you’d actually require about six or seven glasses of milk to get the same effect as from a standard dosage in supplement tablets. Keep the dosage within reasonable limits. You can safely rake two 500-mg capsules of tryptophan midcycle if you suffer from mittelschmerz pain; with the familiar stirrings of PMS symptoms or depression that is harder to cope with, increase the dosage up to twice that, or tour capsules a day. Take the first two capsules with a balanced B complex formula pill, whether in tablet or dissolvable brewer’s yeast powder, lake the second two with a warm caffeine-free drink like Pero or Postutn (which are grain-based beverages).
Linking depression or mood swings to a brain chemical as specific as serotonin has not been proved true in all cases in the way that insulin, for example, is irrevocably connected to blood sugar levels. Brain chemistry is still arcane territory, and experiments continue. Meanwhile, many sufferers of endometriosis, unaware of the natural approach, turn to drags.
Many sleep disturbances have led women to rely on chemical palliatives, like sleeping pills, tranquilizers, and antidepressants. For a while Valium was the catch-all pill for PMS and for women who were diagnosed (or undiagnosed) as having endometriosis. Although low-dose tranquilizers may be helpful for chronic sleep disturbances related to pain, I would not recommend them for dairy use. Tranquilizers may become addictive for some women and in others may induce the very symptoms they are meant to relieve. Antidepressants—used for treatment of deeper psychological problems—need not be a consideration at all when women follow the vitamin and mineral guidelines and dietary changes.
If you try the natural approach and you reel yon still need medical assistance in falling asleep, your doctor may prescribe Halcion, a mild insomnia tablet; dosage should be one .25-mg or .5-mg tablet. A mild tranquilizer with the palindromic name of Xanax (alprazolam) can be prescribed in .25-mg and .5-mg tablets.
*56\43\4*
SKIN CARE: HAIR AND NAIL DISORDERS
Both hair and nails are derived from the epidermis, and both consist of the same dead tissue—the protein, keratin. Because of their derivation from the epidermis it is not surprising that diseases affecting the skin may affect the hair and nails as well. In addition, there are a number of disorders which are peculiar to the hair (including the scalp) and nails.
Baldness in males is not a disease but an inherited predisposition. It is not confined to humans but also occurs in such other primates as chimpanzees and orangoutangs. After puberty all males undergo some change in the hair line and suffer some hair loss. The straight hair line on the forehead is replaced, after puberty, by a degree of recession on either side of the brow. Whether this will continue to extend, and will later be accompanied by thinning on the crown, depends on three factors. The two most important are whether or not there is a genetic background of baldness in the family, and whether normal male hormones are present. If, for example, a predisposed individual is castrated before puberty, he will not become bald. Should male hormones be later administered, he will become bald. Finally, there is the factor of age. By the age of 50, about 50 per cent of men have some degree of baldness. Women are usually protected from baldness of this kind by their female hormones. After menopause, however, their hormone levels drop off and gradually baldness may develop. Occasionally hormone disorders may occur, causing both baldness of the scalp and excessive hair growth in other areas.
The onset of baldness in males is accompanied by shrinkage in the size of hair follicles; this results in the loosening of terminal hairs, which then gradually fall out and are replaced
by immature vellus hairs. Ultimately these may also disappear, leaving scar tissue to replace the follicles. The rate of hair loss is vary variable. Progression may be rapid or slow. Frequently there is a rapid onset which then stabilizes, with no further
extension occurring for many years. Thinning and recession usually occurs in waves, interspersed with periods where there is no progression. If the individual is obtaining treatment during this stable period, he will ascribe the arrest of the hair loss to it: whereas actually the arrest is the normal pattern for that individual, a pattern which cannot be influenced.
There is no known treatment to either arrest the balding process or cause hair to regrow. Those cases where hair has been shown to appear on a previously bald scalp are cases of alopecia areata, where hair frequently returns anyhow. Philosophic acceptance is the best advice that can be offered. If however active treatment is sought, then either a well-made wig or a hair transplant is available. The latter consists of taking small five-millimetre cylindrical plugs of hair-bearing skin from the back and sides of the scalp, under local anaesthesia. Using the same instrument, holes are punched in the frontal area to receive the hair-bearing skin plugs. The technique is very similar to replanting seedlings; the art of the operator lies in knowing how and where to place the skin plugs. Some specialists can transplant 100 or more tufts in a single session, and within a few sessions achieve a reasonably satisfactory result.
There is no massage, cream, lotion or other concoction, either with or without vitamins and hormones, which has the slightest effect On either male or female baldness.
*83\44\4*
SOME WELL KNOWN DIET PLANS
Diets in most books and magazines advocate energy restriction. Some, such as ‘The Complete F-Plan Diet’ and The Pritikin Program’, are based on credible information, incorporating a high-carbohydrate/fibre, low-fat eating plan, although they tend to be extreme and may be difficult to sustain for a lifetime. Less reasonable but readily available diets that either exclude foods or are based on unsupported claims include:
‘Rotation Diet’. This diet varies energy intake from 600 to 1500kcal/day over a period of 4 weeks. It then provides for a maintenance dietary intake of 1800kcal/day, which increases the likelihood of micro-nutrient inadequacy. The basic premise of this diet is that by rotating energy intakes for weight loss, a rise in resting metabolic rate is achieved. This is NOT supported by research.
‘Fit for life’. Probably one of the most widely talked about diets available, this diet is low in milk, meat, breads and cereals, and very high in fruit and vegetables. Encouraging people to eat more fruit and vegetables is desirable, however the diet is based on unsupported claims that rat is accumulated by improper food combinations. It also misinterprets digestive physiology, particularly gastric emptying, and claims that certain macronutrient combinations ‘rot’ in the stomach and release ‘toxins’. These claims are NOT supported by research. Refer to Rosemary Stanton’s The Diet Dilemma for a more extensive review of this diet.
The Dr Atkins Diet’ and The Drinking Man’s Diet’. These diets are based on carbohydrate restriction. Adequate carbohydrate is required to maintain blood glucose levels, fluid balance and to spare amino acids from being used as a fuel source. Approximately 100 grams of carbohydrate per day is required to achieve the above and to avoid ketosis. Many examples of low-carbohydrate diets have existed over the years and these diets cause diuresis and loss of fluid weight in the first few days due to glycogen and fluid loss. Protein is catabolised contributing to a further fluid and weight loss. Other side effects apart from dehydration include fatigue, postural hypotension, taste changes, halitosis and altered biochemical parameters. Adequate fluid and carbohydrate intake are two nutritional recommendations that are NOT met by this form of diet.
*135\186\4*
UTERINE FIBROIDS (MYOMAS)
These knobs of muscle tissue grow from the lining of the uterus into its interior, from the outer surface of the uterus, or they may be buried in the myometrium, the muscular wall of the uterus. They vary from the size of pumpkin seeds to oranges, although they can become even bigger, and usually grow slowly. They can cause excessive bleeding, pelvic pain, back pain and symptoms related to the pressure they exert on nearby organs, such as the bladder, bowel or rectum. Fibroid complications include urinary frequency (if fibroids are exerting significant pressure on the bladder), haemorrhoids or varicose veins in the legs (when the rectal or pelvic veins are squashed), and constipation (when the pressure is to the bowel).
Fibroids do not spread outside the uterus and are not a form of cancer. On very rare occasions a fibroid develops into a sarcoma, which is a cancer capable of spreading into various parts of the body. If fibroid growth is exceptionally rapid, a sarcoma may be suspected. Fibroids normally shrink after menopause. This post-menopausal decline in size is an important phenomenon because it means that ‘toughing out’ fibroid problems until menopause provides a solution for some women.
Although widely referred to as fibroids, doctors may also describe these growths as uterine fibroid tumours, uterine leiomyomas, fibroid polyps, fibromas, myomas, fibroleiomyomas or fibromyomas. It has been estimated that around 20% of women over the age of thirty have one or more fibroids in their uterus; but in many cases these do not cause problems and are never discovered. Suspicion about the presence of a fibroid or fibroids in other women may, however, arise if the uterus is inexplicably enlarged or if menstrual periods become consistently heavier than in earlier years.
For about a third of women with fibroids the amount of blood lost during menstruation is a problem that may be accompanied by anaemia. This means there are fewer than normal red blood cells in the bloodstream, leading to a low haemoglobin level and associated fatigue, weakness and, in very severe cases, heart palpitations or heart pain (angina). Even when fibroids are small they can lead to problems of heavy bleeding, pelvic pain, back pain and urinary frequency. The reasons why fibroids sometimes cause pelvic pain are uncertain but may include the twisting of the fibroid back on itself, degenerative changes to or infection of the fibroid, or the growth of a large fibroid which the uterus tries to push out, especially during menstruation.
*9\198\4*