Friday, December 31, 2010

Side Effects of Tylenol PM

Side effects of Tylenol PM
by Nicole Evans M.D.

Tylenol PM is a popular over-the-counter medication. The labeled indicated use for Tylenol PM is for the relief of insomnia that is accompanied by minor pain.

The two active ingredients in Tylenol PM are Acetaminophen (Tylenol) and Diphenhydramine (Benadryl). The acetaminophen provides pain relief while the diphenhydramine induces sleepiness. The side effects of Tylenol PM can result from either or both of these medicinally active agents.

The side effects of Tylenol PM that result from the acetaminophen component can affect the skin, liver, kidneys, blood and even the endocrine system. The frequency of these Tylenol side effects is not defined but include: rash, anemia, low neutrophil count, low leukocyte count and pancytopenia (low white blood cells, red blood cells and platelets).

Tylenol PM use can also result in increased bilirubin and/or alkaline phosphatase levels, high ammonia levels, kidney damage with chronic high doses of Tylenol and increased blood sugar levels.

Perhaps the most important potential adverse effect of Tylenol PM is liver toxicity. An acute overdose of Tylenol PM can result in liver failure and death. The dose of acetaminophen should never be more than 4 grams a day.

In addition, chronic daily dosing in adults has resulted in liver damage in some people. It is known that consuming 3 or more alcoholic drinks a day may increase the risk of liver damage from Tylenol.

Additionally, individuals with the inherited condition known as G6PD deficiency should use caution when taking medications that contain acetaminophen.

The other active ingredient in Tylenol PM, diphenhydramine, is commonly known as Benadryl. Benadryl is a first-generation antihistamine that is quite sedating, unlike the later generation antihistamines such as Zyrtec and Claritin.

Common side effects of Benadryl include sedation, sleepiness, dizziness, difficulty performing coordinated movements, epigastric distress (stomach ache), and thickening of mucus secretions from the respiratory tract.

Importantly, when giving Benadryl to children by mouth and using a concomitant topical preparation that contains Benadryl there is a risk of diphenhydramine toxicity. The symptoms of Benadryl toxicity include: dilated pupils, flushed face, hallucinations, ataxic gait, and urinary retention.

In children, there is also the risk of diminished mental alertness, as well as risk of a paradoxical reaction that may cause excitation in young pediatric patients.

There are certain medical conditions that require a patient consult their physician before self-treating with over-the-counter Benadryl preparations. These conditions include glaucoma, emphysema, chronic bronchitis, or difficulty urinating due to prostatic hypertrophy.

Tylenol PM is a commonly used over-the-counter medication that is associated with numerous side effects. For safety, individuals should always discuss the use of Tylenol PM with their healthcare provider.

Source: Lexi-Comp Online. Accessed Mar 27, 2010.

For a natural, safe and healthy lifestyle, try Chiropractic Care: www.NKYChiropractor.com

Real Housewives of Atlanta Use the Zerona!

Real Housewives of Atlanta Use Zerona Non-Surgical Fat Reduction

Get rid of belly fat with this surgery free liposuction alternative.

It's no secret that many of the Real Housewives turn to their plastic surgeon for a little work now and then, and the ladies of Atlanta are no exception. Earlier this season, Nene Leakes went under the knife for rhinoplasty, liposuction, breast reduction and a breast lift. On last night's episode, Kim Zolciak opted to avoid the operating room and went under the laser for Zerona, the popular non-surgical fat reducing treatment.

Zerona treatments are simple. Patients lie under rotating low level laser lights for 40 minutes, spending 20 minutes each on their stomach and then their back. A treatment cycle is 6 sessions spread over two weeks, and within a couple of weeks patients can expect to see around 3.5 total inches lost.

Earlier this year, the Zerona device received FDA market clearance in the U.S. for circumferential reduction of the waist, hips, and thighs. It works by opening a small pore in the fat cells causing them to empty their contents. The fat is flushed out of the body naturally, but patients are encouraged to drink the proper amount of water to help aid the process. Zerona has a systemic effect, meaning that inches are lost all over the body rather than in one specific area so it's not the precise sculpting of liposuction procedures.

One benefit of the treatment that patients love is there is zero downtime. Patients can go back to their normal activities immediately and it's pain free. In the clinical investigation, those treated lost an average of 3.65 inches total across their waist, hips, and thighs in as little as two weeks.

Many doctors offer lymphatic massage along with Zerona to aid in flushing out the fat and patients are encouraged to exercise and eat a healthy diet to help improve their results. It's important to remember that Zerona is best used with patients who are generally healthy and only have a little bit of fat to lose. Zerona is not considered a weight loss program. Those looking for more dramatic results may be better served by laser lipo with a device like SmartLipo or ultrasound assisted lipo with Vaser. Talk with your doctor about what results you can expect from Zerona and what the best course of treatment is for your desired outcome.

How much does Zerona cost? The price varies by region, but you can typically expect to pay between $1800 and $3000 for a 2 week session. Some patients find an additional benefit from a second round and often physicians offer a price break for the next treatment course. Many offices are offering holiday specials this time of year so it could be a great time to find a deal.

The Zerona LipoLaser is available at the Advanced Wellness Studio located on Buttermilk Pike in Northern Kentucky (a suburb of Cincinnati).

The Advanced Wellness Studio is offering a Free Zerona Program Contest (valued at over $1500)! Visit www.AdvancedWellnessStudio.com to enter!

Article from American Health and Beauty

Friday, October 29, 2010

Practical Nutrition: Don't Get Bitten by Halloween Candy

On October 31, do your kids trick or treat, or attend alternative candy-filled activities? Do you greet superheroes, princesses and ghouls with treats, or do you cut out your lights and hide?

Whether or not you celebrate Halloween, you can't escape the extra candy around now. It's everywhere and conveniently packaged in fun-size portions.

Don't be fooled by those little sizes either. They still have calories, which add up quickly if you eat more than one. Find your favorite candy on the chart and see how it stacks up.

Many labels suggest two or three fun-size bars as one serving. One fun-size Snickers bar has 80 calories, 4 fat grams and 10.5 grams of carbohydrate. A regular-size Snickers (2 ounces) has 271 calories, 13.6 grams of fat, 34.5 grams of carbohydrate. Eating three small bars is almost the same as eating one full-size bar.

I took a casual poll among friends to determine the favorite Halloween candy. It turns out there are as many favorites as there are varieties. Many adults prefer some form of chocolate, with peanut-butter cups being popular. Kids like chocolate too, but prefer sugary Skittles, Gummy Worms, SweeTarts and Smarties. All ages like candy corn.

Enjoy your candy this Halloween, but try some of these strategies to help keep it under control. Remember, everything in moderation.

• Buy candy at the last minute, so you won't eat it all before the trick-or-treaters come. Buy candy you don't like, so you won't be tempted in the first place.

• Set a limit of what candy you and your family eat each day. Don't throw away the wrappers so you can keep track of what's eaten.

• Don't buy candy on sale the day after Halloween unless it has a specific purpose. It makes great stocking stuffers, but hide it with the presents so you won't be tempted.

• Donate leftovers to a worthy cause. Know anyone collecting candy for the troops? But don't take it to work. Those who have successfully removed temptation at home may not appreciate the renewed challenge.

• Some people opt to give out healthful treats instead of candy. Consider individual packs of pretzels, raisins, cheese and crackers, sugar-free gum, or healthful granola bars.

• Nonfood items are also gaining popularity. Some treats you may see are temporary tattoos, stickers, pencils, holiday erasers, small plastic toys, plastic jewelry, bubbles or glowsticks. You can even wrap up small amounts of loose change.

I have one friend who gives out full-size candy bars, and has yet to have his house toilet-papered or egged. Double-check your treat choices with a pint-sized expert so you won't get tricked.
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The Chiropractic Rehab Center of Northern Kentucky provides nutrition counseling and offers a Computerized Nutritional Health Scan for only $25!

www.NKYChiropractor.com

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Don't Base Your Diet on Nutritional Myths


We’ve all heard certain “facts” about nutrition so many times that we take them at face value, no longer questioning their validity. I’m going to knock a hole in a few of the things we “know” to be true about food.

Let’s start with the food that’s hardest to avoid: sugar. Those who’ve ever attempted the Atkins Diet or simply tried to avoid sugar probably got a rude awakening when they started reading labels. Sugar is hiding everywhere: lunch meat, ketchup, salad dressings. The average person in the U.S. consumes about “128 pounds” a year, or 34 teaspoons a day. Super-size fountain drink, anyone?

But what about sugar causing hyperactivity in kids? Controlled studies prove that’s false. And doesn’t eating sugar put a person at risk for diabetes? No. What causes diabetes is lack of activity, being overweight and a high-calorie diet. Diabetes patients have to cut way down on sugar, but just don’t go there.

Perhaps you’ve heard that brown sugar is healthier than white sugar. Sorry to disappoint, but brown sugar is white granulated sugar with molasses added. The mineral content between the two is insignificant at the end of the day.

Sugar is a refined food that’s been stripped of fiber, water, vitamins and minerals. Avoid foods that list a variant of it as its first three ingredients. This includes dextrose, lactose, sucrose and maltose. Sugar is calories without nutrients, so picture that 128-pound pile and try to make a dent in it.

The “brown vs. white” myth has carried over into the egg department as well. While they may look more natural, brown eggs have no additional nutritional benefits over white. Nor are they higher quality or more flavorful. Hen color determines the eggshell color. White feather hens lay white eggs; red feather hens lay brown eggs.

While we’re on the subject of protein, I’ll dispel a few other myths.

Low-carb diets will cause temporary weight loss but are not a good long-term idea. You may end up ingesting too much cholesterol, which ups the risk of heart disease. Too few fruits and whole grains can lead to a lack of fiber and constipation. Too few carbs can also make a person feel tired, weak or nauseous. Being wobbly at a party can really detract from a girl’s beautiful size 6 cocktail dress.

Another risk of too few carbs is the buildup of ketones in your blood. The kickoff of the Atkins diet is designed to put your body “in ketosis” … but over time, these ketones cause the body to produce a lot of uric acid, a risk factor for joint swelling (gout) and kidney stones. You’ll also notice your new bad breath, and your friends may too.

Ketosis makes the body use fat instead of carbs as an energy source. The weight you lose may well be lean muscle and water. So much better to reduce calories, fat and exercise.

Final myth: cabbage soup and grapefruit burn fat. Nope, sorry, reread the last few paragraphs. You’ll just lose water weight, lean muscle and feel tired and queasy. And that’s the truth!

www.NKYChiropractor.com



Elaine Hastings

Saturday, October 23, 2010

10 Tips For Your Fitness During the Fall

I love the Fall weather, I think that it is the best weather from the Four Seasons. Here are some nice tips to take advantage of Fall to improve your health.

1. Take advantage of the weather. Fall can be a treat for the senses: the crisp air, apple picking, pumpkin carving, a gorgeous canopy of fall foliage, and the crunch of leaves underfoot. These months are a great time to exercise outdoors and enjoy cooler temperatures. Walking, hiking and cycling are all awesome in the fall.

2. Think outside the box. Always wanted to learn to tap dance? Attempt to box? Master the jump rope? Ask any schoolchild: Fall is a great time to learn something new.

Many classes at gyms and elsewhere get started in the fall, so look around and see if something intrigues you.

3. Be an active TV watcher. Many people get geared up for fall premieres of their favorite television shows. If you’re going to sit down and watch hours of TV, get moving. Make a date with exercise and TV.

While you watch, you can walk or run in place, do standing lunges, do tricep dips off the couch, or lift weights. During commercials, do push-ups or sit-ups. In a one-hour show, you probably have close to 20 minutes worth of commercial interruption.

4. Integrate exercise into your life. You already know the obvious suggestions: park farther away from your destination; take stairs instead of elevators; take a walk during your lunch break.

5. Rejuvenate yourself. Fall is the time to rejuvenate body, mind and spirit.

6. Remember the 30-day rule. It takes about four weeks for the body to adapt to lifestyle changes. That’s why people who give up on their fitness programs tend to do so within the first 30 days.

7. Strive for the 3 Cs. "Commitment, Convenience, and Consistency “the three Cs”, having all three will lead to a successful fitness program.

8. Deal with darkness. The best way to enjoy fall is to exercise outdoors. But it is getting darker earlier, and staying dark later in the morning, so be smart and safe.

9. Dress in layers. When exercising outside, layer your clothing. Before your body warms up, you may feel chilled, but once the blood gets pumping, you’ll feel overdressed.

These days, there’s no lack of great weather gear. I recommend clothing with wicking, often called “DriFit". This fabric wicks moisture away from your skin so you’re not exercising with wet fabric hanging on you.

10. Find your motivation. People are motivated by different things. It’s important to first discover what your individual goals are, whether it’s losing weight, strengthening and toning, or preparing for a race or event.

www.NKYChiropractor.com
(859) 331-9566

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

10 Tips For Your Fall Fitness

Here are some nice tips to take advantage of Fall to improve your health.

1. Take advantage of the weather. Fall can be a treat for the senses: the crisp air, apple picking, pumpkin carving, a gorgeous canopy of fall foliage, and the crunch of leaves underfoot. These months are a great time to exercise outdoors and enjoy cooler temperatures.
Walking, hiking and cycling are all awesome in the fall.

2. Think outside the box. Always wanted to learn to tap dance? Attempt to box? Master the jump rope? Ask any schoolchild: Fall is a great time to learn something new.

Many classes at gyms and elsewhere get started in the fall, so look around and see if something intrigues you.

3. Be an active TV watcher. Many people get geared up for fall premieres of their favorite television shows. If you’re going to sit down and watch hours of TV, get moving, make a date with exercise and TV.

While you watch, you can walk or run in place, do standing lunges, do tricep dips off the couch, or lift weights. During commercials, do push-ups or sit-ups. In a one-hour show, you probably have close to 20 minutes worth of commercial interruption.

4. Integrate exercise into your life. You already know the obvious suggestions: park farther away from your destination; take stairs instead of elevators; take a walk during your lunch break.

5. Rejuvenate yourself. Fall is the time to rejuvenate body, mind and spirit.

6. Remember the 30-day rule. “‘It takes about four weeks for the body to adapt to lifestyle changes. That’s why people who give up on their fitness programs tend to do so within the first 30 days.

7. Strive for the 3 C's: commitment, convenience, and consistency “the three Cs”. Having all three will lead to a successful fitness program.

8. Deal with darkness. The best way to enjoy fall is to exercise outdoors. But it is getting darker earlier, and staying dark later in the morning, so be smart and safe.

9. Dress in layers. When exercising outside, layer your clothing. Before your body warms up, you may feel chilled, but once the blood gets pumping, you’ll feel overdressed.

These days, there’s no lack of great weather gear. Freytag and Price recommend clothing with wicking, often called “DriFit.”‘ This fabric wicks moisture away from your skin so you’re not exercising with wet fabric hanging on you.

10. Find your motivation. “People are motivated by different things. It’s important to first discover what your individual goals are, whether it’s losing weight, strengthening and toning, or preparing for a race or event.

www.NKYChiropractor.com
www.CrescentSpringsChiropractic.com

Tuesday, October 5, 2010

The Last Straw!

The problem with lifestyle-caused diseases is that the damage happens slowly, often without even a hint of a symptom. Instead, like money in a savings account, it grows with compound interest.

We see this all the time. When the symptoms finally show up and we get the call, the most common refrain is, 'But I didn't do anything.' Sure, bending down to pick up the newspaper shouldn't reduce a grown man to tears. But it was the countless years of ignoring the nagging aches and pains that did the damage. Bending over was merely the last straw.

Ironically, the same people who subscribe to the "don't-fix-it-if-it's-not-broken" philosophy will fuss over their lawns, baby their car with fresh oil and filter and religiously replace their smoke detector batteries. So, why is a simple, "Honey, I think you should go in for a checkup" met with a determined and unexplainable resistance?!

www.NKYChiropractor.com