Herbal Treatment for High Blood Cholesterol

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Article contributed by Carolus Wong
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I want to share a secret for treating high cholesterol.

Three weeks ago l went for a cholesterol check. To my surprise, it was above the normal range which should be less than 5.2 mmol/L. My reading obtained was 6.6. I had been consuming alot of red meat and lamb recently.

After consuming Mok Yee for two weeks, l had my cholesterol checked again and found that my cholesterol level fell to 4.70 mmol/ L

My pharmacist said that even cholesterol medication will need 1- 3 months to take effect. She was very surprised and said it is a miracle.

I immediately followed an advice of a friend who told me about Black fungus (Mok Yee).

He had four blocked heart arteries, over 90 percent blocked. His cardiologist advised him to go for bypass surgery, failing which he would suffer an imminent heart attack. His sinseh (chinese physician) friend advised him against surgery as the procedure would be messy,painful and expensive..

He followed the advise of his sinseh friend by consuming Mok Yee daily. After consumin g boiled Mok Yee juice for 40 days, he went for an angiogram. His heart specialist was surprised and shocked that his arteries were all cleared of any blockage and it would not be necessary to see him for another 10 years+ ACE -&! nbsp;

My observation is that Mok Yee juice is not only effective in treating high blood cholestrol but also helps to bring relief to joint paints, arthritis and poor blood circulation.

The internet info. claims : that Mok yee reduces blood clot, preventing thrombosis, atherosclerosis and coronary heart disease, and cancer. Black Fungus contains abundant proteins, ferric iron, calcium, vitamins, rough fibre, the content of protein is equal to meat.

Preparation :

1) Pick a handful of Mok Yee and soak in water for 1-2 h! ours
2) Wash Mok Yee and cut to pieces with scissors.
3) Pour five bowls of plain water into slow cooker (crock pot)
4) Put 2-3 slices of ginger, 8-10 red dates, 20 kay chee(wolf berry) into crock pot.
5) Bring to boil for 8 hours. One and a half bowls of Mok Yee juice will remain after boiling overnight.

Consumption :

You may consume for 10 to 14 days according to the severity of the problem.
For those with low blood pressure consume less or only for alternate days.

Drink Mok Yee first thing in the morning with an 'empty stomach'.
Consume at least one large bowl. Take breakfast 2 hours later.

Side effects - you may feel a little tired after 3- 4 days.
Consume multivitamins and fresh fruits and vegetables daily.
Do not eat oily or fried foods during this period.

Observation :

Dark and oily stool during the first two days.

Remarks :

Cholesterol medication is man-made and may harm the liver. Mok Yee is a plant and does not seem to contain chemicals that harm the body.

How Much Sleep Do We Need?

While there is variability between each of us in how much sleep we need, the National Sleep Foundation has noted that the need for sleep changes as we age. The National Sleep Foundation has recommended the following sleep guidelines for selected age groups (*including naps):

INFANTS
(0–2 months) 10.5–18 hours*
(2–12 months) 14–15 hours*

TODDLERS/CHILDREN
(12–18 months) 13–15 hours*
(18 months–3 years) 12–14 hours*
(3–5 years) 11–13 hours*
(5–12 years) 9–11 hours

ADOLESCENTS
8.5–9.5 hours

ADULTS
7–9 hour

(Taken from the National Sleep Foundation Web site.)

For further information—and a more comprehensive listing of recommended hours of sleep for different age groups—please see the National Sleep Foundation Web site.

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Info taken from http://cdc.org
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Insomia - When Trouble Falling or Staying Asleep is a Disorder

What is Insomnia?

Though it is one of the most common of sleep disorders, one may wonder: What is insomnia? It is important to understand what insomnia is, how often it occurs, and its classic clinical features.
Defining Insomnia

Insomnia is an inability to obtain a sufficient amount of sleep to feel rested. It can be characterized either by difficulty falling or staying asleep. In addition, the sleep itself may be chronically of poor quality. In order for insomnia to be present, the above difficulties must occur despite adequate opportunity for sleep. In addition, the impairment must lead to problems with daytime functioning.

The degree of sleep disturbance may vary, but insomnia typically involves taking 30 or more minutes to fall asleep or a total sleep time that is less than six hours, three or more nights per week.

How Common Is Insomnia?

Insomnia is perhaps the most common sleep disorder. Just how frequently it occurs depends on the study, the definition used, and whether one is assessing chronic versus intermittent or acute insomnia. In one study, 35% of adults reported insomnia of any type during the previous year. Approximately 10% of people have chronic insomnia that affects their daytime functioning, according to a review of 50 studies.

In addition, insomnia more commonly occurs as we get older. Women in particular are more likely to report insomnia symptoms. Insomnia also seems to be more common among those who are unemployed, single (from any cause), or of low socioeconomic status.

Symptoms of Insomnia

Patients with insomnia may experience numerous symptoms, including:

* Fatigue or daytime sleepiness
* Poor attention or concentration
* Reduced energy or motivation
* Problems with work or social life
* Mood problems, including anxiety
* Headache

Causes of Insomnia

Factors that may potentially contribute to developing insomnia include travel, noise, family responsibilities (including caring for infants), pain, stress, or nocturia (getting up during the night to urinate).

As with any medical condition, it is important to rule out other potential causes of insomnia. In individuals with symptoms suggestive of insomnia, it is necessary to assess whether other medical or psychiatric problems, medications, or substance use may be contributing to the condition. For anyone who simply is not getting enough sleep by choice, insomnia would not be the correct diagnosis.

Insomnia is a common condition that should be properly identified so that efforts can be made to provide adequate treatment and relief from a disorder that can lead to significant impairment of one’s life.

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Sources:

“International classification of sleep disorders: Diagnostic and coding manual.” 2nd ed. American Academy of Sleep Medicine. Westchester, IL 2005.

Mellinger, GD et al. “Insomnia and its treatment: Prevalence and correlates.” Arch Gen Psychiatry 1985; 42:225.

Ohayon, MM. “Epidemiology of insomnia: what we know and what we still need to learn.” Sleep Med Rev 2002; 6:97.

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What is High Blood Pressure (Hypertension) ?

Definition

Hypertension is the term used to describe high blood pressure.

Blood pressure readings are measured in millimeters of mercury (mmHg) and usually given as two numbers. For example, 120 over 80 (written as 120/80 mmHg).

* The top number is your systolic pressure, the pressure created when your heart beats. It is considered high if it is consistently over 140.

* The bottom number is your diastolic pressure, the pressure inside blood vessels when the heart is at rest. It is considered high if it is consistently over 90.

Either or both of these numbers may be too high.

Pre-hypertension is when your systolic blood pressure is between 120 and 139 or your diastolic blood pressure is between 80 and 89 on multiple readings. If you have pre-hypertension, you are more likely to develop high blood pressure.


Symptoms

Most of the time, there are no symptoms. Symptoms that may occur include:

* Chest pain
* Confusion
* Ear noise or buzzing
* Irregular heartbeat
* Nosebleed
* Tiredness
* Vision changes

If you have a severe headache or any of the symptoms above, see your doctor right away. These may be signs of a complication or dangerously high blood pressure called malignant hypertension.

Causes & Risks

Blood pressure measurements are the result of the force of the blood produced by the heart and the size and condition of the arteries.

Many factors can affect blood pressure, including:

* How much water and salt you have in your body
* The condition of your kidneys, nervous system, or blood vessels
* The levels of different body hormones

High blood pressure can affect all types of people. You have a higher risk of high blood pressure if you have a family history of the disease. High blood pressure is more common in African Americans than Caucasians. Smoking, obesity, and diabetes are all risk factors for hypertension.

Most of the time, no cause is identified. This is called essential hypertension.

High blood pressure that results from a specific condition, habit, or medication is called secondary hypertension. Too much salt in your diet can lead to high blood pressure. Secondary hypertension may also be due to:

* Adrenal gland tumor
* Alcohol abuse
* Anxiety and stress
* Arteriosclerosis
* Birth control pills
* Coarctation of the aorta
* Cocaine use
* Cushing syndrome
* Diabetes
* Kidney disease, including:
o Glomerulonephritis (inflammation of kidneys)
o Kidney failure
o Renal artery stenosis
o Renal vascular obstruction or narrowing
* Medications
o Appetite suppressants
o Certain cold medications
o Corticosteroids
o Migraine medications
* Hemolytic-uremic syndrome
* Henoch-Schonlein purpura
* Obesity
* Pain
* Periarteritis nodosa
* Pheochromocytoma
* Pregnancy (called gestational hypertension)
* Primary hyperaldosteronism
* Renal artery stenosis
* Retroperitoneal fibrosis
* Wilms' tumor


Tests & Diagnostics

Your health care provider will perform a physical exam and check your blood pressure. If the measurement is high, your doctor may think you have high blood pressure. The measurements need to be repeated over time, so that the diagnosis can be confirmed.

If you monitor your blood pressure at home, you may be asked the following questions:

* What was your most recent blood pressure reading?
* What was the previous blood pressure reading?
* What is the average systolic (top number) and diastolic (bottom number) reading?
* Has your blood pressure increased recently?

Other tests may be done to look for blood in the urine or heart failure. Your doctor will look for signs of complications to your heart, kidneys, eyes, and other organs in your body.


Tests & Diagnostics

Your health care provider will perform a physical exam and check your blood pressure. If the measurement is high, your doctor may think you have high blood pressure. The measurements need to be repeated over time, so that the diagnosis can be confirmed.

If you monitor your blood pressure at home, you may be asked the following questions:

* What was your most recent blood pressure reading?
* What was the previous blood pressure reading?
* What is the average systolic (top number) and diastolic (bottom number) reading?
* Has your blood pressure increased recently?

Other tests may be done to look for blood in the urine or heart failure. Your doctor will look for signs of complications to your heart, kidneys, eyes, and other organs in your body.

These tests may include:

* Chem-20
* Echocardiogram
* Urinalysis
* Ultrasound of the kidneys


Treatments

The goal of treatment is to reduce blood pressure so that you have a lower risk of complications.

There are many different medicines that can be used to treat high blood pressure, including:

* Alpha blockers
* Angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors
* Angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs)
* Beta-blockers
* Calcium channel blockers
* Central alpha agonists
* Diuretics
* Renin inhibitors, including aliskiren (Tekturna)
* Vasodilators

Your doctor may also tell you to exercise, lose weight, and follow a healthier diet. If you have pre-hypertension, your doctor will recommend the same lifestyle changes to bring your blood pressure down to a normal range.

Often, a single blood pressure drug may not be enough to control your blood pressure, and you may need to take two or more drugs. It is very important that you take the medications prescribed to you. If you have side effects, your health care provider can substitute a different medication.


Complications

* Aortic dissection
* Blood vessel damage (arteriosclerosis)
* Brain damage
* Congestive heart failure
* Kidney damage
* Kidney failure
* Heart attack
* Hypertensive heart disease
* Stroke
* Vision loss


Prevention

Adults over 18 should have their blood pressure checked routinely.

Lifestyle changes may help control your blood pressure:

* Lose weight if you are overweight. Excess weight adds to strain on the heart. In some cases, weight loss may be the only treatment needed.

* Exercise regularly. If possible, exercise for 30 minutes on most days.

* Eat a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, and low-fat dairy products while reducing total and saturated fat intake (the DASH diet is one way of achieving this kind of dietary plan). (See: Heart disease and diet)

* Avoid smoking. (See: Nicotine withdrawal)

* If you have diabetes, keep your blood sugar under control.

* Do not consume more than 1 or 2 alcoholic drinks per day.

* Try to manage your stress.

Follow your health care provider's recommendations to modify, treat, or control possible causes of secondary hypertension.

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Article info taken from http://health.yahoo.net
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The Five Best Gifts to Give Your Family

Written By:
Margaret Paul, Ph.D.

When we think of giving gifts, we usually think of things to buy for people. Yet if you think back on gifts you’ve been given, it might not be the material gifts you received that are foremost in your mind – it might be the kind of gifts that deeply touched your heart and soul. It might be various ways, other than material things, that people expressed their love to you.

There are five gifts of love that we can give to our families that can make a huge difference in their lives.

THE GIFT OF CARING AND COMPASSION

We all yearn to feel cared for, yet many of us withhold caring and compassion for others. A profound gift we can give to our loved ones is to listen with our heart, to understand and accept rather than to judge, and to stay open to learning rather than to protect against being hurt.

Think about the last time someone actually listened to you and gave you understanding and acceptance. The feeling of being understood and accepted with caring and compassion is one of the best feelings in the world. Instead of focusing on getting this from others, why not focus on giving it to others? You might be surprised at how wonderful you feel in giving this gift to your family.

THE GIFT OF COURAGE

One of the best gifts we can give our loved ones is our own courage. This means being having the courage to stand in our truth, to be honest about what we want and don’t want, what we will do and won’t do, what is and what is not acceptable to us. It means having the courage to take good care of ourselves, even if others don’t like it. It means not succumbing to our controlling behaviors that come from fear: anger, withdrawal, compliance, resistance, but instead being honest and above-board about ourselves. It means being willing to face conflict rather than give ourselves up to avoid it.

When we have the courage to face conflict and tell the truth, we not only provide our family with a role model for courage, but we provide opportunities for our loved ones to step up to the plate in the face of our truth and learn to be courageous too.

THE GIFT OF SERVICE

We are on this planet to learn to love ourselves and each other, and to help each other. One of the best gifts we can give our family is to role model this by doing service. Helping others fills the heart and soul in ways that nothing else can. If children do not see their parents doing service and helping others, they may never learn the great joy and fulfillment that comes from giving. One of the best gifts we can give to our family is to provide ways of doing service.

THE GIFT OF CREATIVITY

All of us are born with various ways of expressing our creativity. Expressing creativity is a profound way of connecting with Spirit, since expressed creativity is a direct expression of Spirit. Providing your family with many ways of expressing their creativity is a great gift. Creativity can be expressed in so many ways – cooking, crafts, building things, music, art, movement, telling stories, writing, humor, photography and video – the possibilities are endless! Creative family projects are especially wonderful in creating family closeness.

THE GIFT OF LIGHTNESS OF BEING

Lightness of being – fun, joy, laughter, playfulness – is a great gift to give to others. Lightness of being is infectious – our laughter and playfulness can help others take life less seriously and “lighten up.”

Lightness of being is one the results of all the other gifts – of caring, courage, service and creativity. When we give these gifts, we feel a wonderful lightness within, the lightness that is the result of fully giving from the heart. Our own lightness of being can bring lightness into our whole family. Children love it when their parents are playful, funloving and joyful. Laughing together as a family is one of the most precious experiences in life.

We need to focus of giving these gifts each day, not just during a holiday season or special occasions. These gifts are far more important than any material thing we can buy for someone. In fact, we might not be so focused on material gifts if we frequently give the gift of love – of caring, compassion, courage, service, creativity, and lightness of being.

Margaret Paul, Ph.D. is the best-selling author and co-author of eight books, including "Do I Have To Give Up Me To Be Loved By You?" She is the co-creator of a powerful healing process called Inner Bonding. Learn Inner Bonding now! Visit her web site for a FREE Inner Bonding course: http://www.innerbonding.com or mailto:margaret@innerbonding.com.
Phone sessions available.


Article from http://FamilyArticles.net


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What are the Characteristics of Good Parenting?

One of the hardest things for any parent (adult) to understand is that the way a child thinks is often not the way they think. A child is not an adult. So when putting your parenting technique into practice, remember that a child's mind is not functioning like yours.

For instance if you make a rule and your child breaks that rule, that for you may be the end of the matter. But how does the child see their behavior? It's possible they may believe their failure to obey is a weakness of their character. In short the child may think that they are bad.

It's vital that your child sees breaking the rule as part of their behavior. What it doesn't mean is that your child is intrinsically bad. High self-esteem is important for all ages and particularly so for young people.

Being aware of your child's thinking is an excellent characteristic. Twelve is probably a good age for children to begin to understand that life has many shades of grey and is not always a black and white situation. Know this fact. Know that children do see things as right or wrong in their developing years and variations of good and evil are not something they consider until almost their teenage years.

Know too that time has a different meaning for a child. A short time to you can seem like an eternity to a child. Be aware of how they think and thus this will make you a better parent.

Teamwork is a no-brainer with parents being effective in raising their children. Having one parent operating one technique and another parent something else is likely to result in all sorts of problems not the least of which is a totally confused child.

Being practical is an excellent characteristic. Let's say you announce a rule, your child disobeys and should therefore be punished. What do you do? Some suggest isolation. The child goes to a quiet room where they sit and contemplate their deed. But do you have such a place? Be practical.

Kindness can be weakness with some parents. Your skills will not allow this failing. Giving a warning to a child may seem fair and reasonable. But giving warning after warning is not good parenting and the rule itself is of little or no consequence if it is broken and the child suffers no punishment.

A good parent is a good listener. Nothing excites a child more than their parent taking a deep and genuine interest in the life of the child. It might be their schoolwork, their hobby, their friend or even their football team. Be seriously interested and by giving unconditional love to your child, you are using the best foundation for parenting which is available.

It's a good idea to go with the flow. If your child is interested in something in particular, by showing an interest in that subject and your child, you are developing a seriously strong relationship. The strength of that relationship will make your parenting technique a joint effort with your child. Good parenting means listening and sharing.


Article from http://parenting411.com


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