Thursday, November 13, 2008
Facts about Hep C
Hepatitis means inflammation of the liver. Toxins, certain drugs, some diseases, heavy alcohol use, and bacterial and viral infections can all cause hepatitis. Hepatitis is also the name of a family of viral infections that affect the liver; the most common types in the United States are hepatitis A, hepatitis B, and hepatitis C.
Hepatitis C (Hep C) is an infectious liver disease caused by the hepatitis C virus (HCV). Hepatitis makes the liver swell and stops it from working properly. We all need a healthy liver to do many things to keep us alive. The liver fights infections, stops bleeding, and removes drugs and other poisons from the blood. The liver also stores energy for when you need it. It can range in severity from a mild illness lasting a few weeks to a serious, lifelong illness.
Hepatitis C can be either “acute” or “chronic.” Acute HCV infection is a short-term illness that occurs within the first 6 months after someone is exposed to the hepatitis C virus. For most people, acute infection leads to chronic infection. Chronic hepatitis C is a serious disease than can result in long-term health problems like cirrhosis of the liver, liver failure, liver cancer or even death.
Between 15 to 40 percent of people who get hepatitis C are able to fight off the virus during the early, or acute, stage, usually within six months. Between 60 and 85 percent of patients cannot get rid of the virus and develop a long-term, or chronic, hepatitis C infection. People with chronic hepatitis C will have the disease all their lives unless they are successfully treated with antiviral medicines.
Hep C can be transmitted through contact with the blood of an infected person
sharing drug needles
getting pricked with a needle that has infected blood on it (hospital workers can get hepatitis C this way)
having sex with an infected person, especially if you or your partner has other sexually transmitted diseases
being born to a mother with hepatitis C
sharing a razor with a Hep C infected person
In rare cases, you could get Hep C by getting a tattoo or body piercing with unsterilized, dirty tools
Hep C is NOT transmitted by:
shaking hands with an infected person
hugging an infected person
kissing an infected person
sitting next to an infected person
Many people with hepatitis C don't have symptoms.
However, some people with hepatitis C feel like they have the flu.
You may:
feel tired
feel sick to your stomach
have a fever
not want to eat
have stomach pain
have diarrhea
Some people have:
dark yellow urine
light-colored stools
yellowish eyes and skin
If you have symptoms or think you might have hepatitis C, go to a doctor.
Find more information at:
www.nlm.nih.gov
www.cdc.gov/hepatitis/HepatitisC.htm
www.liverfoundation.org/education/info/hepatitisc
Hepatitis C (Hep C) is an infectious liver disease caused by the hepatitis C virus (HCV). Hepatitis makes the liver swell and stops it from working properly. We all need a healthy liver to do many things to keep us alive. The liver fights infections, stops bleeding, and removes drugs and other poisons from the blood. The liver also stores energy for when you need it. It can range in severity from a mild illness lasting a few weeks to a serious, lifelong illness.
Hepatitis C can be either “acute” or “chronic.” Acute HCV infection is a short-term illness that occurs within the first 6 months after someone is exposed to the hepatitis C virus. For most people, acute infection leads to chronic infection. Chronic hepatitis C is a serious disease than can result in long-term health problems like cirrhosis of the liver, liver failure, liver cancer or even death.
Between 15 to 40 percent of people who get hepatitis C are able to fight off the virus during the early, or acute, stage, usually within six months. Between 60 and 85 percent of patients cannot get rid of the virus and develop a long-term, or chronic, hepatitis C infection. People with chronic hepatitis C will have the disease all their lives unless they are successfully treated with antiviral medicines.
Hep C can be transmitted through contact with the blood of an infected person
sharing drug needles
getting pricked with a needle that has infected blood on it (hospital workers can get hepatitis C this way)
having sex with an infected person, especially if you or your partner has other sexually transmitted diseases
being born to a mother with hepatitis C
sharing a razor with a Hep C infected person
In rare cases, you could get Hep C by getting a tattoo or body piercing with unsterilized, dirty tools
Hep C is NOT transmitted by:
shaking hands with an infected person
hugging an infected person
kissing an infected person
sitting next to an infected person
Many people with hepatitis C don't have symptoms.
However, some people with hepatitis C feel like they have the flu.
You may:
feel tired
feel sick to your stomach
have a fever
not want to eat
have stomach pain
have diarrhea
Some people have:
dark yellow urine
light-colored stools
yellowish eyes and skin
If you have symptoms or think you might have hepatitis C, go to a doctor.
Find more information at:
www.nlm.nih.gov
www.cdc.gov/hepatitis/HepatitisC.htm
www.liverfoundation.org/education/info/hepatitisc
Facts about Diabetes
Diabetes is a disease in which the body does not produce or properly use insulin। Insulin, a hormone produced by the pancreas, is needed to convert sugar, starches and other food into energy needed for daily life. The cause of diabetes continues to be a mystery, although both genetics and environmental factors such as obesity and lack of exercise appear to play roles.
When you have type 2 Diabetes, high levels of sugar build up in your blood. Normally, the sugar you take in is digested and broken down to a simple sugar, known as glucose. The glucose then circulates in your blood where it waits to enter cells to be used as fuel. Insulin helps move the glucose into cells. But, if you have diabetes, this process breaks down, and blood sugar levels become too high. This can lead to serious health complications. That is why controlling your blood sugar is key to managing diabetes. Keeping your blood sugar under control lowers your risk of complications later। High blood sugar can harm your organs and raise your risk of heart disease, blindness, kidney failure, and lower-extremity amputations. Diabetes is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States.
There are 23.6 million children and adults in the United States, or 7.8% of the population, who have diabetes. While an estimated 17.9 million have been diagnosed with diabetes, unfortunately, 5.7 million people (or nearly one quarter) are unaware that they have the disease.
In order to determine whether or not a patient has pre-diabetes or diabetes, health care providers conduct a Fasting Plasma Glucose Test (FPG) or an Oral Glucose Tolerance Test (OGTT)। Either test can be used to diagnose pre-diabetes or diabetes. The American Diabetes Association recommends the FPG because it is easier, faster, and less expensive to perform.
With the FPG test, a fasting blood glucose level between 100 and 125 mg/dl signals pre-diabetes। A person with a fasting blood glucose level of 126 mg/dl or higher has diabetes.
In the OGTT test, a person's blood glucose level is measured after a fast and two hours after drinking a glucose-rich beverage. If the two-hour blood glucose level is between 140 and 199 mg/dl, the person tested has pre-diabetes. If the two-hour blood glucose level is at 200 mg/dl or higher, the person tested has diabetes.
Major Types of Diabetes
Type 1 diabetesResults from the body's failure to produce insulin, the hormone that "unlocks" the cells of the body, allowing glucose to enter and fuel them। It is estimated that 5-10% of Americans who are diagnosed with diabetes have type 1 Diabetes.
Type 2 diabetes Results from insulin resistance (a condition in which the body fails to properly use insulin), combined with relative insulin deficiency। Most Americans who are diagnosed with diabetes have type 2 Diabetes.
Gestational diabetes Immediately after pregnancy, 5% to 10% of women with gestational diabetes are found to have diabetes, usually, type 2।
Pre-diabetes Pre-diabetes is a condition that occurs when a person's blood glucose levels are higher than normal but not high enough for a diagnosis of type 2 diabetes। There are 57 million Americans who have pre-diabetes, in addition to the 23.6 million with diabetes.
Look For These Signs and Symptoms of Diabetes:
Frequent trips to the bathroom: Urination becomes more frequent when there is too much glucose in the blood।
Unquenchable Thirst: If your body is pulling extra water out of your blood and you're running to the bathroom more, you will become dehydrated and feel the need to drink more to replace the water that you are losing
Losing Weight Without Trying: This symptom is more noticeable with Type 1 Diabetes। In Type 1, the pancreas stops making insulin, possibly due to a viral attack on pancreas cells or because an autoimmune response makes the body attack the insulin producing cells. The body desperately looks for an energy source because the cells aren't getting glucose. It starts to break down muscle tissue and fat for energy.
Weakness and Fatigue: When the insulin isn't there or if the cells don't react to it anymore, then the glucose stays outside the cells in the bloodstream। The cells become energy starved and you feel tired and run down.
Tingling or Numbness in Your Hands, Legs or Feet: This symptom is called neuropathy। It occurs gradually over time as consistently high glucose in the blood damages the nervous system, particularly in the extremities.
Other Signs and Symptoms That Can Occur: Blurred vision, excessive hunger, skin that is dry or itchy, frequent infections or cuts and bruises that take a long time to heal are also signs that something is amiss. Again, when these signs are associated with diabetes, they are the result of high glucose levels in the body. If you notice any of the above signs, schedule an appointment with your doctor.
Find more information at:
www.nlm.nih.gov
http://www.diabetes.org/about-diabetes.jsp
http://www.diabetes.com
When you have type 2 Diabetes, high levels of sugar build up in your blood. Normally, the sugar you take in is digested and broken down to a simple sugar, known as glucose. The glucose then circulates in your blood where it waits to enter cells to be used as fuel. Insulin helps move the glucose into cells. But, if you have diabetes, this process breaks down, and blood sugar levels become too high. This can lead to serious health complications. That is why controlling your blood sugar is key to managing diabetes. Keeping your blood sugar under control lowers your risk of complications later। High blood sugar can harm your organs and raise your risk of heart disease, blindness, kidney failure, and lower-extremity amputations. Diabetes is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States.
There are 23.6 million children and adults in the United States, or 7.8% of the population, who have diabetes. While an estimated 17.9 million have been diagnosed with diabetes, unfortunately, 5.7 million people (or nearly one quarter) are unaware that they have the disease.
In order to determine whether or not a patient has pre-diabetes or diabetes, health care providers conduct a Fasting Plasma Glucose Test (FPG) or an Oral Glucose Tolerance Test (OGTT)। Either test can be used to diagnose pre-diabetes or diabetes. The American Diabetes Association recommends the FPG because it is easier, faster, and less expensive to perform.
With the FPG test, a fasting blood glucose level between 100 and 125 mg/dl signals pre-diabetes। A person with a fasting blood glucose level of 126 mg/dl or higher has diabetes.
In the OGTT test, a person's blood glucose level is measured after a fast and two hours after drinking a glucose-rich beverage. If the two-hour blood glucose level is between 140 and 199 mg/dl, the person tested has pre-diabetes. If the two-hour blood glucose level is at 200 mg/dl or higher, the person tested has diabetes.
Major Types of Diabetes
Type 1 diabetesResults from the body's failure to produce insulin, the hormone that "unlocks" the cells of the body, allowing glucose to enter and fuel them। It is estimated that 5-10% of Americans who are diagnosed with diabetes have type 1 Diabetes.
Type 2 diabetes Results from insulin resistance (a condition in which the body fails to properly use insulin), combined with relative insulin deficiency। Most Americans who are diagnosed with diabetes have type 2 Diabetes.
Gestational diabetes Immediately after pregnancy, 5% to 10% of women with gestational diabetes are found to have diabetes, usually, type 2।
Pre-diabetes Pre-diabetes is a condition that occurs when a person's blood glucose levels are higher than normal but not high enough for a diagnosis of type 2 diabetes। There are 57 million Americans who have pre-diabetes, in addition to the 23.6 million with diabetes.
Look For These Signs and Symptoms of Diabetes:
Frequent trips to the bathroom: Urination becomes more frequent when there is too much glucose in the blood।
Unquenchable Thirst: If your body is pulling extra water out of your blood and you're running to the bathroom more, you will become dehydrated and feel the need to drink more to replace the water that you are losing
Losing Weight Without Trying: This symptom is more noticeable with Type 1 Diabetes। In Type 1, the pancreas stops making insulin, possibly due to a viral attack on pancreas cells or because an autoimmune response makes the body attack the insulin producing cells. The body desperately looks for an energy source because the cells aren't getting glucose. It starts to break down muscle tissue and fat for energy.
Weakness and Fatigue: When the insulin isn't there or if the cells don't react to it anymore, then the glucose stays outside the cells in the bloodstream। The cells become energy starved and you feel tired and run down.
Tingling or Numbness in Your Hands, Legs or Feet: This symptom is called neuropathy। It occurs gradually over time as consistently high glucose in the blood damages the nervous system, particularly in the extremities.
Other Signs and Symptoms That Can Occur: Blurred vision, excessive hunger, skin that is dry or itchy, frequent infections or cuts and bruises that take a long time to heal are also signs that something is amiss. Again, when these signs are associated with diabetes, they are the result of high glucose levels in the body. If you notice any of the above signs, schedule an appointment with your doctor.
Find more information at:
www.nlm.nih.gov
http://www.diabetes.org/about-diabetes.jsp
http://www.diabetes.com
Facts about Obesity
The prevalence of obesity (BMI≥30) continues to be a health concern for adults, children and adolescents in the United States. Data from the most recent NHANES survey shows that among adult men the prevalence of obesity was 31.1% in 2003—2004, and 33.3% in 2005—2006, a small but not statistically significant change. Among adult women, the prevalence of obesity in 2003—2004 was 33.2%, and in 2005—2006 was 35.3%, again a small but not significant change. Another recent NHANES survey2 found that obesity prevalence among children and adolescents showed no significant changes between 2003—2004 and 2005—2006. Based on the study, in the combined years of 2003—2006, 16.3% of children and adolescents aged 2–19 years were obese, at or above the 95th percentile of the 2000 BMI-for-age growth charts. This rate of obesity raises concern because of its implications for the health of Americans. Obesity increases the risk of many diseases and health conditions. These include–
· Coronary heart disease
· Type 2 diabetes
· Cancers (endometrial, breast, and colon)
· Hypertension (high blood pressure)
· Dyslipidemia (for example, high total cholesterol or high levels of triglycerides)
· Stroke
· Liver and Gallbladder disease
· Sleep apnea and respiratory problems
· Osteoarthritis (a degeneration of cartilage and its underlying bone within a joint)
· Gynecological problems (abnormal menses, infertility)
Two of the Healthy People 2010 national health objectives3 are (1) to reduce the prevalence of overweight and obesity among adults to less than 15% and (2) to reduce the prevalence of obesity among children and adolescents to less than 5%. This site provides a variety of information designed to help people understand the severity of obesity, the efforts being made to address it, and how to maintain a healthy weight.
Find more information at:
http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/obesity
www.nlm.nih.gov
http://www.obesity.org
· Coronary heart disease
· Type 2 diabetes
· Cancers (endometrial, breast, and colon)
· Hypertension (high blood pressure)
· Dyslipidemia (for example, high total cholesterol or high levels of triglycerides)
· Stroke
· Liver and Gallbladder disease
· Sleep apnea and respiratory problems
· Osteoarthritis (a degeneration of cartilage and its underlying bone within a joint)
· Gynecological problems (abnormal menses, infertility)
Two of the Healthy People 2010 national health objectives3 are (1) to reduce the prevalence of overweight and obesity among adults to less than 15% and (2) to reduce the prevalence of obesity among children and adolescents to less than 5%. This site provides a variety of information designed to help people understand the severity of obesity, the efforts being made to address it, and how to maintain a healthy weight.
Find more information at:
http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/obesity
www.nlm.nih.gov
http://www.obesity.org
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