Health Tips

The diagnosis
There are many things that can cause hair loss. The medical term for hair loss is alopecia areata (AA). This condition affects 1%-2% of humans and usually hair is lost from the scalp. We know different types of this illness. There can be diffused alopecia areata (the hair is lost diffusely over the whole scalp), alopecia areata monolocularis (baldness in one spot), alopecia areata multilocularis (baldness in more than one spot), alopecia areata barbae (bald spot on the beard), alopecia areata totalis (there is no hair on the scalp) and alopecia areata universalis (all body hair is lost).

More frequently hair loss occurs in people who have already affected family members or in people who have relatives with autoimmune diseases. In the last case hair loss is a result of autoimmune disorder in which the body attacks its own hair follicles and suppresses or stops hair growth.
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Dr. Nicholas Perricone established a solid link between diet and the quality and appearance of your skin.

Inflammation and Diet

According to Perricone wrinkles and other skin care issues are actually the result of inflammation caused by poor eating habits and irritating skin care treatments.

Through research, trial and error, Dr. Perricone has perfected a 3 day diet program which will make you a true believer. Imagine better looking facial skin in only 3 days.

The basic revelation for Dr. Perricone was that lack of high quality protein and the right fats in the average diet cause the breakdown of cells. These proteins and fats not only prevent skin damage at the cell level, but also are capable of repairing damage.
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Even as hundreds of diet plans make their way into the weight loss market, the low carb diet seems to remain one of the most popular and appreciated methods of dieting. Low carb dieting does not force the individual to give up most of the favorite foods and thus is more sustainable that the other diets that leave you craving you’re the delicious and sumptuous steak that you used to enjoy earlier.

People adopt low carb dieting of a couple of reasons. While some are motivated by the promises that low carb dieting helps in reducing weight, others get attracted to the claims that a low carb diet helps in maintaining good health also. The widespread popularity of the low carb diet also stems from the fact that it can be used by obese and the otherwise healthy people for various different objectives.

With low carb dieting you can cure the basic reasons for high cholesterol, obesity, hypoglycemia, high blood pressure and diabetes. It is extremely important for those who are overweight and those who have diabetes to understand the manner in which this diet works. This is true because these are the people that have otherwise been instructed by doctors and nutritionists to consume minimal quantities of fat.
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Many people dine out in restaurants on a regular basis. Regardless of where they choose to eat, their food costs may be too high. If you choose to eat at burger shops and drive-thru eateries, your monetary costs for the meal may be relatively low, but the costs in terms of health risks may not be worth the savings.

It is much better, both money-wise and health-wise, to eat at home. When you eat at home you can fix healthy meals for yourself and your family, and your expenses for food are much lower than those you would pay in a restaurant. If you think about how much you spend for food per week, you might be unpleasantly surprised and willing do make some serious adjustments in your eating habits.

Food costs can have a major impact on your bank account, but eating out is very attractive because it means you don’t have to do any work to prepare your food. When you go to a restaurant, someone else has fixed the meal for you, you get to choose from a wide variety of foods, and afterward, you have no dishes to wash.
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If you elect not to use Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) for treatment of your early menopause symptoms, there are natural remedies that can greatly reduce, or eliminate the most common symptoms. However, it’s important that you not mix natural herbal remedies with HRT, as this can cause serious problems by flooding your body with too much estrogen.

The most common symptoms of early menopause are: hot flashes, neat sweats, interrupted sleep patterns, mood swings, reduced sexual drive, irritability, forgetfulness, and vaginal dryness. There are specific natural remedies for all of these symptoms. However, there are many things you can do that will help alleviate all symptoms, such as drinking more water to help flush toxins out of the system.

Exercise, including Yoga, can also help alleviate most of the symptoms associated with early menopause. Try to exercise about 30 minutes each day, and you’ll notice that you have fewer hot flashes, fewer mood swings, less irritability, and you sleep better.
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In most cases, early menopause cannot be prevented. Early menopause occurs for a wide variety of reasons, including family history, viral infections, surgeries, and cancer treatments. However, some studies show that women can do various things to prevent the possibility of early menopause.

Studies have shown that women who smoke are 40% more likely to have early menopause than women who don’t smoke. Smoking lowers estrogen levels, and changes the way that our bodies use estrogen. Some researchers even believe that smoking has an influence on the menstrual cycle. Breaking the smoking habit will greatly reduce your chances of having early menopause. Other research shows smoking intensifies the symptoms associated with menopause.
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Women who experience early menopause have many health concerns that they should address with their doctors. These health concerns cover physical changes to the body, emotional changes, and the risk of greater health problems in the future.

The emotional health concerns that women face during early menopause include:

1. Emotional distress due to the fact that the childbearing years are over
2. Feelings of being an ‘incomplete’ woman
3. Fear that you can no longer keep up with other women your age who are not experiencing early menopause
4. Depression
5. Other mental and physical changes and symptoms can add additional emotional health concerns as well
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During early menopause, a woman is experiencing both physical and emotional changes. All of these changes are greatly affected by the fluctuation in hormone levels that occurs during early menopause. Women who experience early menopause have the same concerns that women who have natural menopause at average age have. However, they do have a few additional concerns that have an effect on their emotional well-being.

For many women, sleep patterns are interrupted during early menopause. This is often caused by night sweats. This interruption in sleep patterns, along with the fluctuating hormones, can make a woman quite irritable. While this irritability has an effect on the people around you, it actually has a greater impact on your emotional health. You can feel that your emotions are out of control, and that you’re possibly ‘losing your minds.’
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Women gain weight in perimenopause – especially around their waist and hips—even if they are dieting. Why does this happen? The culprit is the link between hormonal balance and body fat. One link is between insulin metabolism and body fat. Many people eat foods that are high in carbohydrates such as processed foods (pasta, breads, most snacks, beer, wine etc.) Eventually this type of diet can create a condition known as insulin resistance. When your body becomes resistant to insulin it will convert every calorie into fat – even if you’re dieting and doing what you can to keep the weight off. Insulin resistance will not allow you to burn fat when you exercise.

Another link is between stress and body fat. Stress hormones block weight loss. Even if you’re eating adequately, your body will interpret stress as a famine. Your body thinks it’s necessary to store every spare calorie as fat. Many of us combine a high carbohydrate diet with a high stress lifestyle, which doubles the chances of weight gain.
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Many women mistakenly believe that they cannot become pregnant during early menopause. However, pregnancy during early menopause is entirely possible, unless the uterus has been surgically removed by hysterectomy. You are still at risk for pregnancy until you have completely stopped ovulating.

A pregnancy that occurs during early menopause is considered a high risk pregnancy, because when a woman reaches her late thirties, or when menopause begins, the quality of the eggs is diminished and the lining of the uterus begins to thin as well. This makes the risk of miscarriage very high.

Since periods become irregular, or non-existent, knowing for sure when you are ovulating can become quite difficult. So, while the chances of becoming pregnant have diminished by about 50%, you still must continue to use contraception to avoid unwanted pregnancies.
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