This post has been sponsored by Macmillan, but all thoughts are our own.

Ficklest of all fickle diseases, cancer has a nasty way of recurring long after you’ve believed yourself to be free of the affliction. Physical activity may just stop it in its tracks however.

Mounting evidence has found a link between physical activity – any movement using muscles that improves fitness level – and reduced risk of cancer recurrence. In consequence then, physical activity may increase your cancer survival rate. If anything, ramping up physical activeness may help you cope with adverse effects attendant on cancer treatment, e.g. depression and fatigue. It may even reduce your risk for other conditions like heart disease and diabetes.

UK-based cancer organization Macmillan has recently enlisted the support of BAFTA-winning actress and comedian Jo Brand for Move More, its campaign to get cancer patients moving.

“People will look at me and go, why’s that fat, unfit, menopausal, middle-aged woman telling us what to do? She surely never takes any exercise. Well you’re wrong there, because I do!”

Brand is joined by no less than the National Cancer Institute in America and the American College of Sports Medicine in promoting physical activeness during and after cancer treatment. Whereas in the past doctors would tell you to rest in excess following treatment, times have changed. Lately, the two organizations have advocated the resumption of daily activities as soon as possible after treatment and slowly increasing to recommended levels of physical activity.

“I’m just trying to spread the word and upturn the myth that actually you should be resting after cancer treatment. You shouldn’t, you should be getting out and doing any kind of exercise you can. You don’t have to run a marathon, but you just have to up your activity levels,” Brand said.

Some evidence suggested that taking up physical activity and retaining a leaner body may cut the risk of a cancer returning after remission. In the US, a study showed that breast cancer patients who walked for 3-5 hours on a weekly average cut their risk for recurrence. In another research, brisk walking for a minimum of three hours weekly has been shown to cut the risk of developing early-stage prostate cancer.

These researches are inconclusive and wanting of more duplicable evidence however. Even so, there are some telling indicators that physical activity has an unsubtle effect on cancer. Even the smallest raise in your physical activity can make all the difference.

Benefits of physical activity

Latching on to physical activity may compel cancer to remit and help you recover from its oft-stressful treatments. Physical activity holds significant health corollaries against cancer, many of which you may hitherto have not heard of. If you knew about these benefits, you would truly be motivated to move more like Jo Brand.

Done regularly, physical activity can help manage, if not thwart, adverse effects that may arise from cancer treatment. It is just as recommended thereafter, seeing as some side effects emerge as late as years following treatment. Some side effects are even permanent.

Cancer therapy is notorious, among others, for leaving you fatigued for months after treatment. Moderate or even just light physical activity, e.g. short walks, yoga, and tai chi, can help you pick up energy. However, start slow and slowly increase intensity, lest you end up tiring yourself even more.

Physical activity can also help control stress, anxiety, and depression: ever-present problems resulting from cancer therapy. It does so by compelling the secretion of mood-enhancing hormones, i.e. endorphins, in the body. At the same time, it helps hold back the body’s stress hormones, making for a better night’s sleep, if anything.

Endorphins also help alleviate joint pain caused by certain hormonal treatments prescribed with chemotherapy. Physical activity of itself can help relieve joint pain by strengthening your muscles and improving your range of movement, which may be limited by certain kinds of cancer surgery. The more flexible joints are, the less likely they are to be painful.

Walking, dancing, resistance training, and other weight-bearing activities can help strengthen your bones, especially when they’re at their frailest. Osteoporosis or bone thinning is known to result from hormonal treatments for prostate and breast cancer as well as chemotherapy-induced menopause.

Resistance training, on the other hand, is the solution to making your muscles stronger during and after cancer treatment. Muscle strength declines during this period because of longer hours of bed rest and steroids given with chemotherapy.

Steroids in chemotherapy can conspire with your sedentary lifestyle to make you gain weight, exacerbating the situation. Obesity and overweight heightens your risk for breast, bowel and womb cancers. In light of this, being more physically active can decrease your risk of developing a new type of cancer, while maintaining a healthy weight can slash the possibility of a cancer coming back.

Being more physically activity may help you regain your pre-treatment appetite too. Take short walks every day, and you would see for yourself. In addition, physical activity alongside a high-fiber diet helps counter constipation caused by particular chemotherapy drugs.

Regular exercise, particularly aerobic activities, may hold positive dividends for your heart. It preempts the risk of developing heart-related conditions, usually brought about by chemotherapy agents (e.g. epirubicin and doxorubicin) and radiotherapy administered too close to the heart. Furthermore, regular physical activity can decrease your susceptibility to other deadly conditions like high blood pressure, kidney disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes.

Taking up physical activity today

Should you choose to become more physically active during or after treatment, you should be the arbiter of the amount of activity you can realistically do. Talk to a cancer specialist about appropriate physical activities for you concurrent with and subsequent to treatment.

An activity may simply be a question of lessening periods of rest. You may choose from a range of activities involving anything from walking to gardening to weightlifting. It is up to you how much of these you should do. Take into account your likes, fitness level, and other circumstances.

You may consider taking up physical activity with other individuals, e.g. family members and exercise group mates.  Also consider being active outside an enclosed space, as in a park or a forest trail.

Whether you are living with or are in convalescence from cancer, physical activity is relatively safe. At first, you may feel testy about taking your physical activeness to another level, especially if you have been leading a sedentary lifestyle for a long time. You may feel overwhelmed, with not so much an idea as how to start.

Remember that any amount of physical activity is light years better than not moving at all. Physical activity offers infinite, hitherto-unknown opportunities for cancer recovery. If Jo Brand can do it, her pounds and all, so can you.

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Apple co-founder Steve Jobs just orphaned humankind yesterday, just months after undergoing chemotherapy at the Stanford Cancer Center in Palo Alto, California. In the last weeks of his life, he showed up in public as a gaunt replica of himself. Sunken cheeks, scrawny legs, and out-and-out weight loss all indicated his suffering under chemotherapy and its near-omnipresent twin, radiotherapy. Jobs unwittingly hastened his demise by way of these orthodox cancer treatments.

It is no secret that Jobs, a civilization-changing visionary who revolutionized personal computing around the globe, sought chemotherapy like any other mortal. But it was only an open secret that he would jet off to Switzerland from California under the cover of night to seek radiotherapy at the University of Basel. Ex-Apple executive Jerry York himself shared this story to Fortune Magazine.

In publishing this story, Fortune Magazine also highlighted speculations that Steve Jobs secretly underwent a liver transplant, basically on demand. The rumors outraged many less privileged members of society who had to queue for a liver donor.

There is no debate then to the fact that Jobs exhausted all his options in mainstream cancer treatments, like chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and surgery. Alas, even Steve Jobs could not flout the ways of biochemistry any more than stars like Farrah Fawcett, Patrick Swayze, and Peter Jennings.

Chemotherapy is tantamount to poisoning the body and eventually leads to the collapse of organ function. Yet countless patients still submit to it every year. Modern society in general still believes in mainstream cancer treatments and pays for it dearly.

For all his smarts, Steve Jobs apparently only had a modicum of understanding about this simple fact.  The cancer industry virtually spirited his life away when he could have continued changing the world – in ways only he could imagine – well into his 90s. Jobs was 56.

Then again, the medical establishment had no hand in the disease. Steve Jobs’ cells may have gone rogue because of deficiencies in nutrients, exposure to toxins from his environment, or a combination of both.

Some studies seem to point that taking vitamin D and selenium may be the best-performing preventive against cancer. But the American Cancer Society and all the cancer NGOs do not endorse them. After all, making cheap preventives widely accessible to everyone would only take away from the cancer industry’s profitability.

Rotten Apple

Apple, driven by profit more than anything, mirrors the avarice of the cancer industry. This has nothing to do with Steve Jobs but rather the people who milked his cerebral gifts for their own self-seeking gain.

For one, iPhones have been criticized as of late as devices that covertly track your location, information they can easily transmit back to the Apple base. Also, iPhones are notorious for being locked, requiring apps to be bought only through the App Store. To date, there is no iPhone sold unlocked. Consequently, owners have to resort to jail-breaking software to squeeze out of Apple’s imperious control.

Apple has become the very entity it famously resisted in a TV ad: Big Brother in the George Orwell novel 1984. It is now the despot against whom it claimed to rally, thanks to the ravenous executives that continue to proliferate in Apple.

Jobs frequently comes off as the altruistic entrepreneur but his ideas for innovation always seem to be embroiled in his company’s drive for profit. This is the same man whom Apple sacked despite him being its co-founder. Unethical corporate interests have easily sidetracked the core values that Jobs envisioned Apple should be upholding.

This serves as a cautionary tale to all bright people, famous or not, to always be on their guard around venture capitalists. Their sole onus in life is to prey on individuals who have big ideas.

In hindsight, Steve Jobs’ greatest legacy extends beyond the gizmos he invented. He passes on to an endless loop of generations the example of remaining faithful to one’s vision. With his technological innovations, Jobs illustrated how persisting with one’s vision far outweighs the ambition to become richer or more lucrative.

Rather than reflect integrity and uprightness, landing the cover of an IT or business publication only shows the person at hand’s viability to the industry. The business community tends to fawn over geniuses who help consumers spend more, not geniuses who share world-changing ideas that come for free. Conspiracy theorists would help you much on this subject; just look up the subject of free energy inventors. Many of them died in mysterious circumstances before one knew their inventions or their plans of them at least.

Not to take away from his gilt-edged intelligence, but Steve Jobs’ products dovetailed with consumerist culture and corporate greed. Investors and businessmen just wanted him to sell more iPhones, iPads, and Macbooks. Steve Jobs is being venerated by these people not for his innate compassion for humankind but for his ability to generate profits for business types.

Over 12 months or so, the world would embrace the iPhone 5. Old phones are gong to accumulate some more in toxic landfills; factory workers are going to sweat and bleed once again. Steve Jobs has passed on but the officious greed of the people who rode on his coattails has not.

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Fancy a perfectly picturesque mansion, with all the amenities in the world – except that rats and mice scurry through it every now and then. You think the rodent exterminators would solve the owner’s problem but they tell her they could not target the rodents. These critters are just too elusive. The exterminators pose only one solution: blow part of the house up. They would not do it all at once though, they comfort the owner.

Doctors who prescribe chemotherapy to treat cancer follow pretty much the same logic. In the same way the exterminators could not target the rats and resort to bombing, some doctors couldn’t target the cancer cells and destroy a part of your house, i.e. body. Consequently, chemotherapy patients find their hair falling out; their immunity compromised; and weight shed. While at it, they vomit a lot too.

Chemotherapy essentially bombs your body in a bid to wipe out the malignant cells therein. Unfortunately, oncologists are loath to publicly admit that chemotherapy is a shortsighted, if not lethal, treatment for cancer.

Chemotherapy has been hoped to kill cancer but sadly, it also renders half your body dead. It puts you through months of needless suffering and excruciating pain. The dramatic nausea and weight loss during chemotherapy indicate immense destruction taking place in your body.

In chemotherapy, you are made to take cytotoxic drugs, i.e. those that obliterate “extremely active” cells. By “extremely active,” chemotherapy means not just cancer cells but also perfectly healthy ones, such as those in the hair and the immune system.

Because chemotherapy embroils healthy cells aside from cancerous ones, its side effects are plenty: hair loss, severe weight reduction, immune deficiency, and pneumonia to name a few. Chemotherapy can push your white blood cell count to precariously low levels because it uses immunosuppressive drugs. It also sets off nausea, the kind so severe it warrants antiemetic medicines.

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Some patients turn “half-dead” after undergoing chemotherapy – to think cancer is leaving them with few years already. But the agony does not stop there. In addition to chemotherapy, cancer therapy also covers radiation and surgery, which are life-threatening by themselves.

Treating cancer usually requires lopping off the compromised organ, bombarding the body with chemotherapy and then harming it some more with radiation. Most people don’t know how fatal the latter can be. Radiation therapy aka radiotherapy may in fact be more perilous than chemotherapy in view of its capability to burn the skin and make bones brittle. Surgery or biopsy is not any better; more than hamper cancer, it may spread the disease faster. It has a high potential of spreading certain types of cancer, such as that of the prostate. Some studies show that prostatectomy undermines sexual potency and urination reflexes.

Cancer patients make do with this three-tiered approach to treating cancer, even though its disadvantages far eclipse its benefits. There are barely two kinds of cancer that respond well to mainstream methods of cancer treatment: testicular cancer and breast cancer.

Yet a paradigm shift is in the offing as medical researchers discover that breast cancer is comprised of a trio of diseases, instead of one. This means breast cancer could be the fastest-spreading cancer there is. Other types of cancer are relatively slower-growing or better yet, may not be lethal at all. In hindsight, doctors should not prescribe the three-fold cancer therapy to all kinds of cancer.

Radiation treatment can be done away a little by using hyperthermia. This procedure downsizes tumors, significantly reducing the need for radiation. As a result, patients who undergo hyperthermia report less immunity problems and better health.

Before a prostatectomy, experts recommend hormonal blockers like Fludamide and Lupron to promote cancer downsizing. Taking them may just bottle up the cancer for some years. Since prostate cancer is largely slow-spreading, patients who come down with it should do well to prioritize less unsafe kinds of cancer therapy.

Granted, mainstream cancer treatment is futile and injurious in general, but what is a better solution?

Ukrain seems to be the most promising alternative way of treating cancer. It is synthesized using compounds from the anti-cancer drug Thiotepa and the alkaloids of the greater celandine plant. In contrast to chemotherapy meds, Ukrain only goes for the malignant cells rather than embroil perfectly normal ones. This anti-cancer medicine has been groomed to attain the same outcome as chemotherapy but sans the adverse effects.

Obviously you should talk to a medical professional, especially a naturopath, before embarking on any type of cancer treatment plan. Moreover, consider all alternative cancer treatments first before surrendering all to chemotherapy.

Never forget the merits of nutritious food like fresh fruits and vegetables; vitamin and mineral supplements; and herbal medicines. You do not need to look twice into clinical studies to realize their enormous worth.

Don’t jump to concluding that a patient who leans to alternative cancer therapy instead of conventional treatments is effectively committing suicide. Over and over again, medical treatments like chemotherapy and radiotherapy have succeeded at proving nothing but their danger and ineffectiveness. Even cancer specialists would not touch their own prescriptions. Scores of people have outlived cancer without submitting to orthodox cancer therapies. Until proof once and for all vindicates surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy, you should have reason to doubt them.

If anything, be sure about your cancer diagnosis. A great number of patients undergo dangerous cancer treatments like chemotherapy and get their body parts slashed when their diagnoses are false in the first place.

Cancer specialists have a huge burden to unload today: public admission that chemotherapy’s usefulness is as low as its danger is high. Doing so would start a global people’s revolution toward alternative methods of treating cancer, nontoxic ways of preventing it, as well as adopting a healthy lifestyle.

Yet clearly this is not what is happening now. The top line of the medical hierarchy continues to advocate the prescription of chemotherapy drugs even when they themselves know these products’ threat and uselessness. Doctors and scientists see alternative cancer medicines as an affront to their all-knowingness and hard-won years of study.

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In an era when carcinogens are unwittingly sold off the supermarket shelves, and cells are more inherently restive than ever, more women need to be prudent. Fortunately, women are born natural hypochondriacs.

However, today’s generation of females would likely put a blind eye on the signs of cancer. They have learned to associate cancer with the elderly.

Or it could be plain denial on their part. People, men and women alike, have come to treat cancer as a death sentence, with no chance for pardon. It makes sense then, not to admit that you are as prone to cancer as the next person.

But then again, paranoia would not take you anywhere. Jumping at the slightest symptom of cancer would not give you a healthy lifestyle any more than denying it.

Doctors would recommend you to strike the healthy middle ground between hypochondria and complacency. Cancer is a disease best combated while in its earliest stages.

These are some symptoms you would have to watch out for:

Breast changes

Women would know well to watch out for lumps on their breasts, which often indicate breast cancer. But other breast cancer symptoms can be more elusive.

Look out for changes in the nipple. Some nipples are either outgoing in orientation or inverted; both are normal. Once they change orientation, then start worrying. In the same way, be wary of nipple discharges, especially when you are not breastfeeding.

Inflammatory breast cancer, a rare but no less fatal variation of the disease, tips itself off with other symptoms. This cancer comes with persistent rashes on the breast, plus thickening of the breast’s skin.

Have an appointment with your doctor if you detect such changes. He or she would either make you do self-exams or take mammograms, MRIs, ultrasounds and other tests.

Unexplainable weight loss

Weight loss has been elevated to a lofty pedestal unseen since Kate Moss sashayed on high catwalks. You would give anything for a svelte figure.

But don’t be too glad to suddenly shed pounds for no apparent reason. Cancer is almost synonymous with unexplained weight loss. Even if it isn’t, weight loss could point out an array of disorders, like hyperthyroidism.

Bloating

Many women are so used to bloating that they forget it could be a symptom of cancer as much as weight loss. Bloating, alongside pelvic pain, abdominal pain, reduced hunger, and urinary problems may warn you of ovarian cancer. Consult your doctor if bloating happens daily and for multiple weeks.

Blood and irregular menstruation

Blood comes out of the body for many reasons. For example, blood in your feces could reflect hemorrhoid. But for all you know, it could be a symptom of colon cancer. Don’t hesitate to consult your doctor and, if necessary, undergo colonoscopy if this happens.

Sometimes, the blood in your toilet may be menstrual. If it is not your period and blood comes from your vagina notwithstanding, seek medical attention to check for kidney or bladder cancer.

In fact, be wary of bleeding in between your periods, especially if you are regular. Also check for bleeding from your GI tract, a sign of colorectal cancer. As for menopausal women, abnormal bleeding might signal endometrial cancer, a frequent gynecologic disease.

As a rule of thumb, be on your guard for bleeding that deviates from your regular pattern. Spotting in one woman may not be normal for another. A doctor would best rule out bleeding as a symptom of cancer.

Prolonged cough

If you have coughed blood more than once, talk with your doctor now.  Other than cancer, it could be a symptom of tuberculosis, among other life-threatening diseases. Coughing blood also comes with bronchitis, pneumonia, influenza and allergies.

Coughing that persists for more than three weeks should take you to the doctor already, who would at most order a lung X-ray.

Swollen lymph nodes

Look for a doctor too if your lymph nodes, located in the neck or under your armpit, swell. A lymph node that gets bigger and stays that way for more than 30 days is a danger sign. While an enlarged lymph node is not always cancer, it pays to be vigilant.

Skin changes

Watch out for changes in skin pigmentation, especially moles. Changes in the size of a mole may be skin cancer symptoms. Furthermore, go to a doctor if you detect excessive scaling and bleeding on your skin.

Mouth changes

Have a dental checkup. White spots on the tongue and white patches within the mouth may be symptoms of leukoplakia, a condition that can worsen to oral cancer. Smokers, beware.

Difficulty Swallowing and Indigestion

Trouble in swallowing food may indicate GI cancer in the esophagus. Otherwise, it may be because you cannot chew solid food. Switch to a liquid diet, including protein shakes, oatmeals and soups if this is the case. If not, then seek a doctor.

If your problem isn’t swallowing food but digesting it, have yourself checked by the doctor too. Indigestion could be a symptom of stomach, throat or esophagus cancer. However, it is normal for some expectant mothers to experience indigestion while gaining weight.

Fever

Cancer contrives to exhaust your body, so fever – and fatigue – should unsurprisingly be among its many telltale symptoms. You may have learned to reckon fever as coming down with flu and other common infections. But fever also warns you of a cancer at its advanced stages.

If you have not detected cancer in its earlier stages, fever would serve as the body’s ultimate giveaway. You become feverish as cancer cells move on to further organs, depleting their nourishment. However, some cancers, such as lymphoma or leukemia, make you feverish early on.

When fever comes with jaundice and changes in the stool’s color, you will have not only consulted a doctor already. You have also subjected yourself to several tests. It may just save your life.

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Almost every other health article nowadays is raving about the wonders of omega 3 fatty acids. You may not know exactly what DHA or EPA stands for but you know the numerous health benefits they provide. It is widely known that you can get your omega 3 fatty acids from a wide variety of food sources, but fish are still the best sources of DHA and EPA. Here are the facts you need to know about fish and omega 3s.

Getting to know Omega 3 Fatty Acids

Omega 3 fatty acids are essential fatty acids that are important to our body’s many functions. They are present in the fatty layers of cold-water fish and shellfish, krills, oils of plants and nuts, flaxseed, walnuts, algae oil, fortified foods, and supplements.

Omega 3 fatty acids are divided into two main types, the long-chain omega 3 fatty acids and the short-chain. DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) and EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) are the long-chain omega 3 fatty acids and are found in fish and shellfish. DHA can also be found algae oil. ALA (alpa-linolenic acid) is the short-chain omega 3 fatty acid and is mainly found in plants. ALA is converted in the body into DHA and EPA, but inefficiently, so the health benefits from ALA are not as potent.

Fishing for Omega 3 Facts

Fish are still the best sources of omega 3 fatty acids. In addition, they are low in saturated fat and are high in protein, vitamins, and minerals. The recommended amount of fish to consume weekly is two 8-ounce servings. It has been found that DHA and EPA are better absorbed by the body when they are derived from fish and fortified foods instead of fish oil.

The excitement about the benefits of omega 3 fatty acids to our health is due to the fact that omega 3s provide protection against a wide range of diseases. These include cancer, asthma, depression, cardiovascular disease, ADHD, and autoimmune diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis.

Experts have explained that the broad spectrum of conditions that omega 3s provide benefit to is related to the anti-inflammatory feature of omega 3 fatty acids. Inflammation often leads to a wide variety of chronic conditions and omega 3 fatty acids, when taken in sufficient amounts, directly impacts the likelihood of inflammatory-related diseases.

The Omega-6 Factor

Omega 6, on the other hand, is present in the foods that most of us consume in large amounts, namely crackers, cookies, and corn-fed beef. Most of our diets too, unfortunately, do not contain enough fish and fresh vegetables, which are the primary sources of omega 3s. This results in an imbalance of omega 6 and omega 3 in our bodies. While omega 3 fatty acids reduces inflammation, omega 6 promotes it.

Fishing for Health Benefits

Although most studies about the benefits of omega 3 fatty acids were done using supplements in doses higher than what you can get from eating 2 servings of fish every week, getting your omega 3 fatty acids from fish will provide you with the same health benefits.

Food for the brain

The fatty acid DHA is one of the most prevalent in our brains and helps the brain to function properly. A greater supply of DHA has been shown to improve brain function and to reduce the risk of brain-related conditions, such as Alzheimer’s. For people older than 65 years, fish consumption also lowers the risk brain damage, which in turn is linked to higher rates of stroke and cognitive decline.

A study of fish-eaters compared cognitive test scores depending on the number of variety of fish they eat. Those who ate more varieties of fish scored higher than those who consumed fewer types of fish. In addition, compared to people who rarely consume fish, fish-eaters are healthier. Their likelihood of having epilepsy, asthma, chronic bronchitis, and osteoporosis are decreased.

Cancer Prevention

Another study was conducted which showed that men who ate salmon, herring, mackerel, and similar fish had a reduced likelihood of developing prostate cancer. The risk is reduced further when the number of servings of fish consumed per week is increased.

Healthy Arteries

Post-menopausal women who eat two or more servings of fish per week have healthier arteries compared to women who consumed less. Eating tuna or other types of dark fish at least once a week increases the health benefits.

Benefits versus Risks

The health benefits we can get from eating fish are indeed numerous. However, we should also be aware of the contaminants that may be present in certain seafood. The most common toxins in seafood are mercury and PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls). The use of PCBs and also DDTs has been banned but these chemicals and many others are still being used in many parts of the world. They contaminate the air, soil, and water, resulting in contaminated fish.

To avoid consuming seafood contaminated with toxins, it is always better to choose smaller fish or fish that are lower in the food chain. These fish may have less contaminants because their main food are plants compared to the bigger fish and fish that are higher in the food chain which eat other smaller animals.

For children and pregnant and breastfeeding women, however, it is best to completely avoid fish that contain high levels of toxins. Shark, swordfish, king mackerel, and tilefish are known to contain high levels of mercury.

The safer choices of fish include canned light tuna, salmon (especially the wild variety), catfish, Pollock, and krills.

Conflict in Wisdom

There are other studies which contradict the claim that people should be careful about their fish consumption, especially because of the toxins that may be present in fish.

Some studies showed that women who ate more than 12 ounces of fish a week when they were pregnant had children who scored better on tests of verbal IQ, social behavior, and development and communication than children whose mothers avoided fish consumption. Some studies have also suggested that limiting a child’s fish consumption could do more harm than good to his developing neurological system and the benefits of eating more outweighs the risks of mercury poisoning.

The warnings about the toxins in seafood have resulted in people consuming less fish than is healthy. A poll that was conducted showed that some parents are feeding their children less fish that what is required for healthy growth and development.

Fishing for Rewards

• You get more omega 6 in your diet from eating more foods that are rich in polyunsaturated fats, like soybean, corn, and sunflower oil, among many others. Omega 6 reduces your body’s ability to absorb and metabolize the more beneficial omega 3 fatty acids.
• Wild fish are better choices than farmed fish. Wild fish feed on smaller fish whose main source of food is algae. Since algae is a good source of DHA, wild fish are great sources of omega 3 fatty acids. On the other hand, farmed fish are fed corn and grain, which are high in omega 6. Also most farmed fish have higher levels of toxins in their system.
• You should also be careful when choosing canned tuna. Canned light tuna tends to have less mercury than tuna steaks and albacore tuna. Try to check fish guides for more information about toxins in fish.
• As much as possible, buy the freshest fish you can find. Longer exposure of fish to the oxygen in the air makes it more rancid and makes it lose some of its omega 3 benefits. You can always smell the fish to test if it’s rancid.
• Toxins are not removed when you cook your fish. However, removing the fish skin and surface fat before eating your fish minimizes your exposure.

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Cervical cancer has been one of womankind’s most lethal banes, and fortunately for decades now, the Pap test has stepped in its way. Now here comes the latest in cervical cancer screens: the HPV test. With results far more reliable than the average Pap, the HPV test has elicited not a few second looks from doctors. A look at the new kid in oncology town.

HPV test vs. the Pap

HPV or the human papillomavirus is the main culprit of cervical cancer. Women can get any of 100 HPV strains, 40 of which are contracted through sexual intercourse. The worst of these strains trigger malignant tumors in the cervix.

Since the 1940s, gynecologists and obstetricians have been identifying HPV viruses through the Pap. This practice certainly had a long foresight, for it hacked US cervical cancer cases to just 11,270 in 2009.

However, the Pap is not without lapses. One Pap test may not detect all malignant cervical growths in a patient; on occasion, it takes two tests to know for sure. Likewise, the Pap can mistake otherwise normal cervical tissue changes for cancerous growths.

It is markedly different with the HPV test. Once you test positive in the HPV test, you most certainly have an active HPV somewhere. Better yet, the HPV tests zero in on two strains largely responsible for triggering cervical cancer.

In a study of Indian women aged 30 to 59, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, the National Cancer Institute found that an HPV test done 15 – 20 years after the first sexual intercourse could accurately detect cervical cancer.

Even so, there is no such thing as an error-free cervical cancer test. Yet the HPV test, when used in combination with the Pap, can produce 99.84 percent accurate results, according to several studies from the US and Europe.

This combo has been endorsed by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the American Cancer Society and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists for 30-year old women and above. The FDA specifically recommends this to women who went through Pap tests, only to be told that their results are vague. Known in oncology parlance as ASCUS, such test results are given to three million American women every year.

Frequency

Much as you want a healthy lifestyle, you need not subject yourself to a yearly Pap test. Medical organizations encourage women to get a Pap test only every three years, more frequently for high-risk people. During this interval, the body can clear an abnormal growth even when left untreated. If you are not at high risk for cervical cancer, better wait up. You would not want the doctor to subject you to unnecessary, expensive procedures.

Pap test = negative, HPV test = positive

Notwithstanding its perceived reliability, a positive HPV test does not always mean you have cervical cancer. To be sure, you need to take the more implacable HPV 16/18 test, which can rule out HPV’s cancer-causing strains. If you still test positive, then you would have to undergo colposcopy, wherein the doctor inserts a tubular microscope in you to get a view of the cervix and get tissue samples.

If it’s the other way around – you checked negative in the HPV test, positive in the Pap – then this is the time you should get multiple Pap tests in one year.

One-two punch

If you checked negative from both HPV and Pap tests, then you are clear for the next three years at least. Even if you catch the HPV virus the day after the tests, chances are you would not raise your risk of getting cervical cancer until your late 50s. Therefore, a one-two punch of the HPV/Pap test may just be what you need to put your worries to rest.

In spite of it all, the resistance to change is great among doctors. Only an estimated 15 percent of them are warming to the new HPV test. It appears that they need more proof about the test’s effectiveness in detecting cervical cancer.

Some doctors find it difficult to conduct the HPV test because they still use old Pap smear technology, which is still effective. The HPV test is almost always paired with the newer liquid Pap technology. As it goes, an HPV test only needs the fluid remaining from a liquid Pap test. With older Pap tests, the doctor would need another smear to conduct an HPV test.

Consumers may not be prepared to shoulder the cost of an HPV test. At $100, the HPV test would seem like an unnecessary luxury. To date, only seven states (West Virginia, Texas, Oregon, North Carolina, New Mexico, Maryland and California) cover HPV tests.

Some doctors are just downright unaware. If you find your doctor still in the dark about HPV testing, speak up. Sometimes it takes a patient to enlighten a doctor about new technologies. Probe him if he or she is oblivious to HPV testing or just plain indifferent. The fight against cervical cancer is on a roll, and you cannot afford to lose out on the benefits of HPV tests.

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A woman engaging in a freewheeling conversation with her doctor is something that was quite unheard of even a few decades ago, with the husband usually pitching in to do the talking on behalf of his wife. However, things are no longer the same now, or is it?

Doctors making house calls is becoming rare, though a meaningful dialogue between them and female patients is yet to become a common feature. We have the following to suggest; to compile a list of questions that the female patients can bring along on the day of her appointment. And at the top of the questionnaire, the following five questions should find a place.

1. Is there any chances of herbal remedies or supplements to interfere with the regular prescription medicines?

This is what most women patients are reluctant to discuss about, like they may be taking Glucosamine to keep a cap on that nagging knee pain, or increasing the amount of Vitamin C intake to keep the common cold at bay, despite the fact that supplements can and do have an impact on the effectiveness of prescription medicines. Calcium pills have been known to interfere with medicines used to treat thyroid while general supplements can null the effectiveness of birth control pills. And the doctor won’t be in a position to discuss the many possible interactions if you don’t speak up about the supplements that you are ingesting on a regular basis.

2. Is this mole normal?

Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer to be detected in the US. However, things can be a lot simple and safe if any suspicious looking spot on the skin is treated early on. And all of this can happen if such spots are brought to the notice of the doctor in time. It takes just a few minutes for your doctor to carry on a preliminary examination of your skin from head-to-toe. But since most doctors exclude this as part of their routine examination, this can happen only if you specifically ask for it.

3. What is the level of my cholesterol?

Heart disease has been found to be the single largest factor to cause death among women. In fact, according to the American Heart Association, more women fall prey to heart disease than men each year and has been found to be more fatal than the next five diseases put together, though only about 20% of the doctors may be aware of this fact. However, the good news is that coronary disease can be prevented with medications and enough lifestyle modifications. And a blood test to reveal your cholesterol levels is the best thing to start off with, which should include the HDL or good cholesterol level as well as the LDL or bad cholesterol levels. This should give you a good idea of where you stand as far as cholesterol levels are concerned.

4. When is the best time to undergo colonoscopy?

According to estimates put forward by the American Cancer Society, colon cancer has come to effect more women than ever before, which negates the belief that it’s a men’s disease. Fortunately, the disease is fully curable and is safe if detected early enough. And the best way to detect cancer of the colon is through colonoscopy. For this allows the doctor to have the best possible view of the inside of your colon to detect any growth that may turn out to be cancerous. This procedure is all the more vital for women above 50 who are particularly prone to colon or rectal cancer.

5. Is it necessary to have the HPV vaccine?

The Human Papilloma Virus or HPV is the root cause of almost all cases of cervical cancer. To counter this, the HPV vaccine, which is a recent development, has been found to be specifically suitable for girls of the age group of 9 to 26 years. The vaccine has proved effective if administered before being exposed to HPV types 6, 11, 16, and 18. However, the vaccine may still be effective even if the patient has already been infected with HPV since it will at least prevent being infected from the four types of virus that the vaccine covers.

The next time you are visiting your doctor for your annual check up, do keep in mind that it’s after all your health, and who better to take care of it than yourself. And it would be utter foolishness if you do not open up or speak out your mind in front of the doctor. For it may well turn out to be a matter of your life and death.

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The Estée Lauder Companies’ Breast Cancer Awareness Campaign’s is launching an unprecedented “World Pink Mosaic” on October 1, 2009 – the centerpiece of its 2009 global online effort — to kick off Breast Cancer Awareness Month.  In keeping with the theme of the Company’s Breast Cancer Awareness Campaign: “World Pink. World Without Breast Cancer.™” the Company is planning to create the world’s largest online photo mosaic in the shape of a Pink Ribbon, with participants from around the world sharing their support for breast health and the desire for a world without breast cancer.  The online campaign will reach an estimated 200 million people worldwide.

Mrs. Evelyn H. Lauder, Senior Corporate Vice President of The Estée Lauder Companies and Founder and Chairman of The Breast Cancer Research Foundation stated, “I’m thrilled that we will be extending The Estée Lauder Companies’ Breast Cancer Awareness Campaign to new lengths this October by reaching millions of women and men worldwide with the lifesaving message of the importance of breast health and early detection through the World Pink Mosaic in the shape of the ubiquitous Pink Ribbon.  The Estée Lauder Companies’ Breast Cancer Awareness Campaign has now distributed more than 100 million Pink Ribbons — and this online initiative allows us to reach people on every corner of the earth. Join Us!  Knowledge is power and early detection saves lives.”

Building on the success of its first comprehensive digital marketing effort in 2008, people from around the world can submit their photo into this virtual mosaic as a simple means of donning a virtual pink ribbon and lending their participation and support to this global cause.  Participants can distinguish themselves within the mosaic as either “supporter,” “survivor” or one “touched” by this disease, through photo frames in different shades of pink or white. As submissions are uploaded, they become part of a virtual tapestry that will take the shape of a giant Pink Ribbon.  Individuals can, in turn, share their participation with friends and family by posting it to their social networking profiles, sending a link to Twitter or emailing it.

The World Pink Mosaic will be accessible through multiple locations on the web, including The Breast Cancer Research Foundation’s official website (www.bcrfcure.org), Brickfish.com, the social media platform provider of the campaign, and 15 Estée Lauder Companies brands’ websites (a complete list is below).

To drive awareness and excitement around the World Pink Mosaic, the Company plans a comprehensive Twitter effort for the month (Twitter.com/WorldPink2009) beginning on October 1, along with social media outreach extending to Facebook and the blogging community.  In addition, participating Estée Lauder Companies brands will be supporting the program via email, search engine marketing and website promotion. Banner ads calling attention to the World Pink Mosaic are expected to deliver upwards of 200 million impressions, running across a range of publisher sites, ad networks, mobile networks and social networking sites.

The Estée Lauder Companies’ 2009 Online Breast Cancer Awareness Campaign is being made possible through the generous support of several key online media and agency partners: Brickfish, Tender Creative, phd Media, Attention! Social Media Marketing and Range Online Media.  In addition, numerous online media sites, and networks donated advertising inventory to help support the cause and drive World Pink Mosaic participation.

The Estée Lauder Companies’ 2009 Breast Cancer Awareness Campaign, “World Pink. World Without Breast Cancer.™ Wear a Pink Ribbon. Make a Difference.” encapsulates the spirit of bringing people together from all walks of life to find a cure for breast cancer. Breast cancer knows no barriers and does not discriminate. It does not care about the color of your skin, the country you live in or whether you are young or old.  This October, the BCA Campaign will be present in over 70 countries and will unite around one common goal: to reach every corner of the world with the message about the importance of early detection and to raise significant funds for research in order to attain a world without breast cancer.  Fifteen of The Estée Lauder Companies’ highly sought-after brands will sell Pink Ribbon Products to raise money for The Breast Cancer Research Foundation.  October 2009 also marks the 10 Year Anniversary of The Estée Lauder Companies’ Global Landmark Illumination Initiative whereby more than 200 landmarks worldwide will be illuminated in pinks lights to spread the message that early detection saves lives.  Knowledge is Power.

The following Estée Lauder Companies Inc. brand websites will be hosting the 2009 World Pink Mosaic:

• www.aveda.com
• www.bobbibrowncosmetics.com
• www.bumbleandbumble.com
• www.clinique.com
• www.darphin.com
• www.dknyfragrances.com
• www.donnakaranbeauty.com
• www.esteelauder.com
• www.jomalone.com
• www.labseries.com
• www.lamer.com
• www.ojon.com
• www.prescriptives.com
• www.seanjohnfragrances.com

The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. is one of the world’s leading manufacturers and marketers of quality skin care, makeup, fragrance and hair care products. The Company’s products are sold in over 140 countries and territories under the following brand names: Estée Lauder, Aramis, Clinique, Prescriptives, Lab Series, Origins, M•A•C, Bobbi Brown, Tommy Hilfiger, Kiton, La Mer, Donna Karan, Aveda, Jo Malone, Bumble and bumble, Darphin, Michael Kors, American Beauty, Flirt!, Good Skin™, Grassroots Research Labs, Sean John, Missoni, Daisy Fuentes, Tom Ford, Coach and Ojon.

The Breast Cancer Research Foundation® was founded in 1993 by Evelyn H. Lauder as an independent, not-for-profit organization dedicated to funding innovative clinical and translational research.  In October 2009, nearly $29 million will be awarded to more than 170 scientists across the United States and Europe and in Australia, Canada, Latin America and the Middle East.  BCRF perseveres in directing at least 85 cents of every dollar raised directly to research.  And for the eighth consecutive year, BCRF received Charity Navigator’s highest rating, four stars, thus outperforming over 99.8% of the 5,400 evaluated charities, while the American Institute of Philanthropy has awarded BCRF its highest possible rating of A+.  BCRF is the only breast cancer organization in the U.S. to receive these accolades.  For more information about BCRF, visit www.bcrfcure.org.

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Until the early part of 2000, Hormone Replacement Therapy or HRT used to be the routine post surgery treatment recommended by doctors for women who have also had their ovaries removed together with a hysterectomy procedure.

Things changed drastically in recent years after the risks of estrogen therapy were exposed and the supposed benefits seemed to have disappeared when further studies were conducted.

Although for most women experiencing “surgical” menopause, doctors still recommend hormone therapy, the public’s acceptance of the treatment has declined.

If you are faced with a tough decision on whether to get HRT or not, this list of pros and cons would be helpful to you.

HRT and Surgical Menopause

Surgical menopause is a condition wherein a patient who has undergone a hysterectomy which included the removal of the ovaries, experiences menopausal symptoms soon after. This is caused by a sudden drop in estrogen levels that results after the ovaries, the main producers of the hormone estrogen, are removed.

This removal of the ovaries is called an oophorectomy, a procedure often combined with a hysterectomy, though not all the time. In fact, women who only get a hysterectomy will not go into surgical menopause as their ovaries are still making estrogen. These women are expected to go into menopause naturally when they get older, although sometimes a bit earlier than usual.

Hormone replacement therapy, whether with estrogen and progestin or with estrogen alone, is a way to counteract the loss of estrogen after oophorectomy that results in surgical menopause.

HRT after Surgical Menopause: Pros and Cons

The Pros in Getting HRT

• Women who go into surgical menopause are not that old — The risks of getting hormone therapy that grabbed the headlines are those found in older menopausal women, there may be minimal risks or none at all for younger women who get HRT. Experts believe that estrogen plays a vital role in allowing younger women to live their lives normally even after surgery. There is also a growing body of evidence that hormone therapy helps prevent the occurrence of heart disease and Parkinson’s disease in young women.
• Other treatment for menopausal symptoms did not work – Some women find that their hot flashes, vaginal dryness, sleep problems are excruciating and nothing seems to work. HRT can be quite effective in reversing many symptoms, even preventing them in the first place. Some studies show that HRT can cut the number of hot flashes by up to 75%.
• HRT provides other health benefits – HRT has been identified as a contributing factor in slowing down osteoporosis and increasing bone density. It seems treatment with both estrogen and progestin also reduces the risk of developing colorectal cancer even slightly.

The Cons to not get HRT:

• Your menopausal symptoms are not that unbearable – The pain threshold of individuals vary, the same goes for women who have had surgery. Some patients do not have severely uncomfortable symptoms after surgical menopause and do not need HRT while others just don’t want to take HRT. Besides even if you do have acute symptoms, HRT is not the only way to control them. Other forms of medication or perhaps a lifestyle changes can help.
• You got the surgery at 50 or older – Women who go into surgical menopause at 50 or older when it is approximately the natural time of menopause often decide not to get HRT. Their reasoning is that their supply of estrogen would naturally drop during menopause anyway.
• You suffer from liver disease – taking estrogen pills orally can put more stress on the liver. There are other ways of getting estrogen that bypass the liver, like by using estrogen patches.
• You are worried of the side effects -  HRT can actually cause symptoms that it is meant to prevent. Some women on HRT experienced symptoms that resemble those of premenstrual syndrome like headaches, swollen and painful breasts and nausea.
• HRT increases the likelihood of health problems like strokes, blood clots, heart attacks, breast and ovarian cancer. – although there is still no conclusive evidence to identify HRT as the cause of these diseases, it has been found out that the risks of getting these diseases were higher in patients taking HRT.

Putting the Pros and Cons in Perspective

Simply by just going through the list of pros and cons presented above, one might immediately come to the conclusion that the risks far outweigh the benefits of going on hormone replacement therapy. After all who would want a reduction in vaginal dryness at the risk of developing cancer? Surely not a lot of women would be willing to take that chance.

The thing is, after surgical menopause deciding on what post-surgery treatment to take is not easy. All the more with issues surrounding HRT. The attention-grabbing headlines in the media in recent years brandishing the supposed ill-effects of taking HRT only added to women’s confusion about this supposed miracle cure.

To help you make that all important decision, the most vital thing to do is to consult your doctor. Better yet, consult several doctors. Also, when you are on the process of deciding, you should take into consideration different factors like your age, your family’s medical history, and your lifestyle. Don’t rush yourself into a decision nor should you allow yourself to be rushed when you are not ready yet to commit to the treatment.

Bear in mind that you are making a decision that could potentially have an effect for the rest of your life. If you need to, do your own research into Hormone Replacement Therapy. Expert’s opinions have been known to constantly change over time. Who knows there might be another miracle cure to surgical menopause in a year’s time.

Lastly, go with your feelings and listen to your body. Getting hormone replacement therapy is a personal choice. What worked for other women, even those you personally know, might not work for you. It might be best to live a healthy lifestyle in the meantime.

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We have been exposed to too many vampire films that we’ve somehow managed to adapt avoiding sun exposure and shutting ourselves inside and instead engage in an indoor lifestyle which includes online games, online social networking and Teevo. Who needs to go out anyway?

Majority of the population rarely gets the chance to bask under the sun but on the occasional exposure, some would immediately slather up with sun block, cover up with wide-brim hats and long-sleeved tops, dab the lips with an SPF Lip Balm, protect the eyes from UV rays with aviator shades and top it off with a stylish bohemian scarf around your hair or even cover an exposed neck – these are just a few of the allegedly, “Everyday Sun Protection Essentials” and in effect, we now face serious Vitamin D deficiency.

Diagnosing our vitamin D level is crucial especially when it is below acceptable range, increasing the chances for harmful diseases like cancer of the colon, prostate, breast, lung and surprisingly, skin. On top of that, vitamin D deficiency may also trigger muscle weakness, chronic low back pain and osteoporosis.

One Hot Vitamin

Vitamin D is considerably one of the easily recognized vitamin among others. Through the sun’s ultraviolet rays absorbed by the skin, a biochemical process begins to take place creating vitamin D which then enters the blood stream and through the cells. That’s why it is labeled as sunshine vitamin.

But haven’t we been warned away from sun exposure?

Do not recoil in terror for the sensationalized accusations over the effects of UV rays from the sun. At some point, no matter how shallow and purely exaggerated, these claims could sound so convincing you start to actually believe them.

Dancing in sunshine does not cause cancer and wrinkles – repetitive sunburn increases the risk of possible damage. The fairer the skin, the more easily it is sunburned and damaged. Mind you, using sunscreen to protect the skin against skin cancer and melanoma has no substantial evidence to justify the advertising claims of those big names in the sunscreen industry. So let lose of your kids in the morning and allow them to enjoy the warmth of the sun.

Sunshine-meter

During the summer, time between 11:00AM and 2:00PM is when the sun is most intense, so a medium-fair skin Caucasian could safely expose themselves for about five to eight minutes of daily sunshine without sunblock creams. Winter season requires people to get more sun exposure trips. Location is an added factor as well whereas people who live further north where the climate is colder or cloudier and/or have darker skin needs more time; it would also be wise to take a vitamin D supplement. Recommended daily allowance of 2000 IU daily in the D3 cholecalciferol form will safely maintain your vitamin D levels. But before you start shooting yourself up with high doses supplement, its important to test your current vitamin D level – anything greater than 150ng/ML of vitamin D becomes toxic already. For those having fairer skin living close to the equator, a lesser sun time is suggested.

People who are brown from spending their lives working outside in the sun have lower rates of skin cancer. But those with light skin, freckles, numerous moles, has been exposed to radiation and arsenic or had a history for skin disease should be out of the sun long before your skin starts turning red. Moderation by starting with a few minutes a day then gradually work up.

The process of skin tanning had a significant controversy whether it is beneficially protective against the sun’s harmful rays or is actually a symptom of skin damage. The key to a healthy sunning is by avoiding sunburns.

Hot List: “D” Candidates

• The Elderly: As we age we absorb less vitamin D from the sun’s UV rays. Muscle weakness and osteoporosis which is part of aging is associated with vitamin D deficiency making the elderly more susceptible to fracture risks and losing balance.
• People with Dark Skin: have high melanin levels which blocks the action of sunlight on vitamin D precursors in the skin, requiring much longer sunlight exposure.
• Pseudo Vampires: People with limited sunlight exposure because of their working environment or cultural dress code may have low vitamin D levels.
• People with Muscoloskeletal Pain: are frequently found to have low vitamin D levels.
• Overweight / Obese: Obesity is associated with lower levels of Vitamin D, which can be locked up in fat stores in people who are overweight.

Do It Yourself Vitamin D Test

Testing vitamin D levels used to involve a laborious process from scheduling the doctor’s appointment and trying to fit in your daily itinerary, followed by the scary syringe blood-drawing episode in the lab. Sadly you’ll need to prepare a thicker wallet for this procedure because normally health insurance doesn’t cover all the cost. Thanks to the do-it-yourself Blood Spot Test available to consumers at a reasonable price, you can now do the test by yourself at the comfort of your own home.

Home Health Testing® – FDA approved home medical tests

Accuracy of the Blood Spot Test

A blood spot test involves a nearly painless finger stick and shedding a few drops of your blood on the small piece of a ‘magical’ blotting paper. Unlike others, the blood spot test guarantees high percentage of accuracy which measures both vitamin D2 and D3. Plus the results are very easy to interpret.

Now that we’ve bridged the gap to sun avoidance myths, drop those cover-ups and go outside and have a sun-tastic time. Hopefully, Edward Cullen’s new revelation on the effects of sunlight towards the skin would rekindle a warm assurance that a healthy lifestyle includes sun exposure trips.

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