Guest Post: The Negative Effects of Stress on the Body

We all experience stress. Stress is the body’s reaction to any threat, challenge or demand. While excessive stress can be harmful to our bodies, some stress is healthy. For example, it is stress that helps us move quickly in a dangerous situation. However, too much stress can really wear on our mind, body and spirit.   

Effects of Stress

The side effects of unmanaged stress are often debilitating. Chronic Pain can result from constantly putting stress on your body.  Stressed out individuals can also develop other issues, including:

 

·          Insomnia

·          Anxiety

·          Depression

·          Substance abuse

·          Digestion woes

·          Headaches

·          Over- or under-eating

·          Decreased immune function

·          Heart disease

Unfortunately, stress manifests itself in health conditions that can impair our everyday lives, making our routine tasks seem insurmountable.

What causes stress in our lives?

Stress can be a result of many factors such as not exercising enough, taking too heavy a course load in law school, or being faced with serious financial woes. Relationship problems such as a failing marriage, the loss of a close friendship, or other relational breaks can also provide a great deal of stress. The demands of an overwhelming job or intense work environment are other common stressors. But stress affects people differently, with the events, situations and circumstances causing a different stressful reaction in different people. While some amount of stress is unavoidable, it is possible to effectively manage your stress by following some simple guidelines.

What can we do to overcome stress and its nasty side effects?

While there is no universally applicable solution, there are some practical techniques that can bring relief. The best thing to do is maintain a consistent exercise and nutrition program. Eating healthy, whole foods will help your body perform at its optimal level and avoid disease and illness. Regular exercise is possibly the most effective stress management technique as it produces “feel good” endorphins and is a wonderful release of tension.   Consulting a health fitness specialist is good way to learn more about reducing stress through exercise.

Another great way to help reduce and manage your stress is to change your thoughts by focusing on the positive and on the present moment. Be sure to schedule time for yourself to do what you enjoy as a way to unwind and rejuvenate. In this process, you must learn to say “no” to the demands on your life that you simply don’t have time for or do not want to do.

Learning to free up your schedule will leave you feeling less stressed and more fulfilled. Managing stress may be difficult and it may take time to master, but you owe it to your health and your happiness to eliminate the unnecessary stress from your life.

Guest Post: What Prenatal Vitamins are so Important During Pregnancy

This is a guest post written by Lauren Dzuris. Lauren runs FindMyCarSeat, an Infant Car Seat website that helps soon to be parents find the right car seat for their child, while giving them tips and advice on everything from pregnancy to caring for your baby.

Once we find out we're pregnant, it is important to start taking the best care of ourself possible. Between getting enough rest, not smoking or drinking, eating a well balanced diet, and getting exercise in daily, we can increase our chances of a healthy pregnancy.

Although those are all important factors of having a healthy pregnancy, so is taking a prenatal vitamin daily. This is an absolute must! Why is it such an important part of pregnancy? Continue reading below!

Certain nutrients:

If you take a prenatal vitamin, you will get additional amounts of certain nutrients like folic acid, iron, and more B vitamins. These play an important role in your body's healthy by allowing it to function better, all while giving your baby certain nutrients to increase their chances of a healthy pregnancy.

Improve your diet:

It is very hard to get all the nutrients you need, let alone your baby. By taking a prenatal vitamin you're helping yourself fill in for the vitamins you're missing out on. Just remember, a prenatal vitamin or any other vitamin is no substitute for a healthy diet.

Lower risk:

If you take a prenatal vitamin daily, you're lowing your risk of having a complicated pregnancy. Although there are more healthy pregnancies than bad, there are some high risk pregnancies due to bad habits from the mother.

Clincally proven:

It is proven that if you take prenatal vitamins everyday from day one you increase your chances of a healthy pregnancy. A mother often worries about their baby's health, and hope everything will be fine once they deliver. If you take a prenatal vitamin, you can improve your chances of a healthy baby now!

As you can see, prenatal vitamins are very important to both the mother and the baby. Do what's best and take care of the two of you in every way possible!

Guest Post: What are the different types of laser eye surgery?

Laser eye surgery has grown in popularity over the past ten years, as the technology has continually improved. Now-a-day Laser eye surgery is the most effective common elective surgery. These days most of the people look to free themselves from their glasses or contact lenses. There is a lot of terminology that you may encounter if you are researching laser eye surgery and this blog post will try and explain things in an easy to understand manner:

Image Courtesy: buzzle.com

Types of Laser eye surgery: There are two main types of laser eye surgery, one is Lasik another is Lasek which is similar to PRK as know as Photorefractive keratectomy, PRK is the forerunner of LASIK. Lasik accounts for about 80% of all procedures as it has a much quicker and more comfortable recovery period. Most people experience little or no pain following Lasik and most of them can return to their work within 24-48 hours of having the surgery. Lasek however has a more prolonged recovery period with most people requiring about one week off work. Furthermore, people often experience considerable discomfort for at least 48 hours and it is after having Lasek.

Intralase: Intralase is basically a type of Lasik and relates to the way in which the flap is created during the procedure. The flap is the thin layer of cornea that has to be separated from the surface of the eye so the laser can be applied to the inner part of the cornea. During standard Lasik, this flap is created using a microkeratome (surgical blade), whereas with Intralase, the flap is created using a laser. Intralase is therefore said to be a blade free procedure and this appeals to people who are squeamish about having the treatment. Intralase is said to be slightly safer and has slightly better visual results.

Wavefront: Wavefront (also called custom) describes the way in which the laser is applied to the surface of the eye. Wavefront can be used as an additional treatment to both Lasik and Lasek. During Wavefront, a more accurate scan is taken of the prescription of the surface of the eye, meaning all the tiny imperfections are taken into consideration. Wavefront therefore results in a more accurate laser vision correction than standard laser eye surgery. You have a higher chance of achieving 20:20 vision following wavefront and you are also likely to have better night vision.

I hope this has helped explain laser eye surgery and all the terminology that goes with it. Remember, just like cosmetic surgery, laser eye surgery is something that should not be taken lightly and you should make sure you are fully informed before deciding to go ahead and have the procedure.

Tips to help you Choose the Right Cosmetics

No matter, even if you refrain from applying make-up, there is a whole range of cosmetics that are used on a regular basis. These include talcum powders, soap, deodorants, perfumes, tanning solutions, nail-polish removers and moisturizers. However, there might be certain adverse effects of these cosmetics on your health. If you have an extremely sensitive skin, you can reduce the chances of a possible allergy by exercising caution prior to the use of face care products and other items.

• If you have an eye-infection, refrain from using eye make-up. If you get an infection after using a product, refrain from using the same in the future.
• Do not use cosmetics on an area of the skin that has cuts, rashes or is burnt.
• Store the cosmetics in a place that is not exposed to the direct rays of the sun
• It is necessary that you clean the cosmetic applicators at regular intervals with a mixture of warm water and liquid soap solution
• Do not use cosmetics if you find that their odour or colour has changed after a period of time. This might indicate the fact that the preservatives do not work any more.
• It is advisable that you do not share your cosmetics with others.
• Refrain from adding water, any solution or saliva to improve the consistency of the cosmetic product.
• If you are allergic to fragrances then you can apply them on to your clothes rather than on your skin.
• There are some cosmetic products that should not be used on people who have exceptionally sensitive skin, children and pregnant women.
• You should follow the instruction on cosmetic packs carefully before use.
• It is necessary to maintain the skin in a good condition.
• Clean up your face and hands before you apply make up

Choose the cosmetics wisely and you can minimise the chances of a skin reaction. It is necessary to determine your skin type before you buy cosmetics. Use skin care products from reputed brands instead of opting for products that are relatively cheap.