Depending on your workplace, many of the exercises to come can be done right at your desk or in an empty cubicle. Like a lot of folks, I work at a desk job that’s not particularly conducive to heavy workouts. These workouts also require very little equipment: many of the exercises can be done with just yourself or a chair.You’ll obviously need to customize these to your own fitness opportunities and goals. For example, I have problems with my right wrist ,so I have to take it easy on yoga poses that require weight on the wrists, as well as lifting weights.

There are many kindred souls out there who worry about starting an exercise program. What should you do and where do you start? How can you keep exercise safe and enjoyable all at the same time? If you’ve been afraid to exercise or just uncertain for how to begin, I have some good news for you: It doesn’t take much exercise to make a difference. Before you do anything, always see your doctor to make sure you can safely exercise without hurting yourself. If you’re taking medication, find out how to monitor yourself since some heart or blood pressure medications can affect your heart rate.

Make sure you get details from the doc about exactly what you can and can’t do. If you’ve never exercised, the last thing you want to do is hurt yourself by doing too much too soon.

Intimidation at the gym. Gyms can be scary even for the most experienced exerciser. Walking into a room full of sweaty exercisers, all of whom seem to know what they’re doing, is hard for many of us. My obese clients have mentioned how much more humiliating it is when you’re very overweight.

Confusion about cardio. Cardio exercise can be a challenge at a gym. Some of the problems these clients have faced include:

• Some machines are difficult to use or can cause knee or back problems.
• Swimming is a recommended exercise for obese people, and while this is wonderful if you have a pool in your backyard, what if you don’t? Walking around in a bathing suit causes instant panic for plenty of people, but even more so if you’re overweight or obese.
• Recumbent bikes are another good option for obese people. The problem is, many aren’t built with big enough seats, and climbing onto them can be a real challenge.
• Walking. This is a simple exercise that can be done anywhere, right? For people with joint or knee problems, walking isn’t always comfortable, and some of my clients

Every dieter has the thought that weight loss shouldn’t be so hard. Even if an overweight person knows deep down that faithful exercise and natural eating is the way to permanently lose weight, they wish that there was an easier, faster way to reach their weight loss goals A person with loose, hanging skin tends to have a poor body image, even if he or she has lost tremendous amount of weight. Read on to know how to tighten loose skin after weight loss.

Procedure to Tighten Loose Skin After Weight Loss                          
If you are still in the process of losing weight, then I would suggest do not go over board with it. Do not go on a diet or starve yourself. Instead, rely on eating in moderation, five-six times a day.
Exfoliate and Moisturize
In order to improve your skin’s elasticity, exfoliate it on a daily basis. Exfoliation will help in removing the dead skin cells from the skin’s surface and thus, aid in proper skin circulation. This in turn will help in tightening loose skin after weight loss. Applying moisturizer to the clean and exfoliated skin will help in making the skin firm. Ideally, creams and moisturizers which contain ingredients such as Vitamin E, Collagen and Shea butter, should be used for moisturizing as these ingredients are well known for their skin enhancing properties.

Stay Well Hydrated
Drinking lots of water and fluids is very essential to keep the skin healthy and also well moisturized. If there is some sort of fluid retention in your body which is making the skin loose, drinking adequate amount of water will cure you of that too. Also, hydrotherapy helps the cells and organs of the body to function properly, skin being the largest organ in the body, requires huge supplies of water to remain in good condition.

Take Healthy Diet
A healthy diet which is low fat and high protein, is a must to maintain the health of the skin. Including foods which contain vitamins A and E as well as zinc and magnesium, will help in improving the elasticity of the skin, thereby tightening loose skin after weight loss. Hyaluronic acid, which helps in promoting muscle growth, should also be taken as a supplement. Foods such as tomatoes, cucumber and coconut are especially known for their skin improving qualities.

Herbal Remedies
Soy protein and aloe vera help in accelerating the production of collagen and elastin in the body. Thus, regular intake of both these ingredients will make the skin firm and tight.

Massage Your Skin
Apply essential oils on your body such as olive oil and lavender oil, and massage all the skin areas where you see that your skin is loose and hanging. Regular massages help in improving the blood circulation of the body, and application of essential oils keeps the skin hydrated and well nourished.

Take Up Yoga
If possible, join yoga classes. An asana in yoga, known as Bhujang Asana is especially known to tighten loose skin after weight loss.

There are many products which claim to tighten skin, however their results are minimal. Surgery is an option in extreme cases, but before considering such a choice, it’s worth following these steps.

(1)Think of how long it took your body to reach your highest weight. It didn’t happen overnight, so you can’t really expect your skin to become taut in such a short space of time.

Many surgeons recommend waiting two years from the day you reach your weight loss target before even considering surgery. This allows you to exhaust all options available naturally before entering into a costly and potential dangerous operation.

(2)Nourish your skin and encourage it’s elasticity. Exfoliate your skin daily to encourage removal of dead skin cells. Doing this each day will stimulate your skin’s circulation which should help in tightening skin up.

(3)Treat yourself to a hot hour-long bath once or twice a week. While the bath is being drawn, add 1/2lb of pure sea salt to the water and allow it to dissolve. Besides relaxing your body and muscles, it will draw toxins out of your skin and will improve your overall skin tone.

(4)Determine what your body fat percentage is. It’s impossible to differentiate loose skin from body fat without this figure. Many gyms are able to assess your body for this.

(5)While you may have reached your goal weight, it’s possible that your body fat percentage is still high. In order to reduce this, you should strive to change your body’s composition by reducing fat and replacing it with muscle.       

Quick Weight Loss Leaves Loose Hanging Skin           

Abdominal Flattening Exercises & Your Body Core

Abdominal flattening exercises must be able to improve your core as well as the visual effect you want for your abdominal muscles.Unfortunately most people are so concerned about getting a smaller waist line that they neglect the better abdominal flattening exercises that also improve their body core.You need a strong body core in order to do almost every daily task.

Your core is used to help you get out of bed, lift children, to perform your job  and to take you places.Most people are confused when it comes to knowing exactly what their body core consists of. Some think it’s just their bdominal muscles, others think it’s their back.Your body core is made up of the middle section of your entire body. It starts at your shoulders and goes all the way to your groin  in both the front and the back.

Therefore your core will include your pelvis, abdominal muscles , your upper, middle and lower back and the muscles that make up your chest.

It is this core that offers stability, balance and flexibility. That’s why when you are performing abdominal flattening exercises you must make sure that they are good abdominal exercises that also develop your core.

Just because an abdominal exercise or piece of infomercial abdominal equipment is said to be good for your abs it may not be if it doesn’t help your body core become stronger.Every time you move your core comes in to play. Even when performing simple tasks, such as rolling over in bed at night, combing your hair or competing in some type of athletic event. If your body core is not properly conditioned through good abdominal flattening exercises in addition to exercises that work the rest of your core, it will limit your physical abilities.Effectively exercising your body core muscles will improve the effectiveness of movements in your limbs. When you create a secure, strong base for all of your muscles you can optimize your results for each one.

As you know, you need to provide your body with proper nutrition, good clean water and exercise.Your limbs provide the ability to move, lift objects, etc. it’s your body core that provides the basis of each. If you are inactive, in addition to being in poor health, your muscles will weaken and can easily become injured.Even if you workout or participate in sports, use the best abdominal flattening exercises available, you may not be working the body core muscles you need to.

The exercises you can use to develop your body core do so by creating resistance or instability so that your core muscles respond to in such a way as to maintain proper balance.

Body core exercises, such as good abdominal flattening exercises need to be gentle on your joints but intense enough as to promote a positive change in the muscle structure.

One of the most important things to remember is that you must use proper form at all times on all exercises including abdominal flattening exercises.The 3 most popular forms of exercise that develop core body strength are Plyometrics, Pilates and the Exercise ball.Pilates involves using your own bodyweight as resistance. It also incorporates proper breathing and helps to isolate certain muscle groups.

The exercise ball can be used with most resistance type exercises and abdominal flattening exercises in order to properly develop your core and improve balance.

Plyometrics are also extremely good at working your core but this is a far too in-depth subject to include here.Make no mistake about it, improved core strength and development is important at every age and fitness level. Whatever your goals, find a way to incorporate good abdominal flattening exercises that incorporate body core conditioning.

Best Lower Ab Workout – Lower Abdominal Exercises

It is practically everybody’s dream to get that sexy, flat-as-a-plank abdomen, yet it can often seem one of the most difficult parts of the body to lose weight in. The abs are a distinctive set of muscles, comprising of the upper, lower and oblique muscles, which work in sync with each other in order to facilitate flexibility and movement between the upper part of the body and the lower part below the hips.

Amongst these abdominal muscles, the lower abs is the area that is the toughest to trim down and strengthen. This is because the ab workouts that are usually done are ineffective for targeting those hard to reach lower abs. However, with the new interest and focus on the importance of building a strong core for overall wellbeing, fitness experts have identified which the most effective lower abdominal exercises are that both strengthen the area, as well as flatten it out into the sexy abs most people hanker for.The best part about lower ab workouts is that the exercises are surprisingly simple to do. There is certainly no rocket science involved here, for sure. Plus, unlike other routines that work out the larger groups of muscles such as the legs, arms, back, or chest, lower ab exercises do not need heavy weights . In addition, the risk of getting injured is also minimal.. Given below are some of best lower abdominal exercises that you can include in your daily workout routine:

Double Leg Lifts: Lie down on your back, with your hands placed under your butt, with the palms facing the floor. Then, contracting your lower abdominal muscles, and tightening the muscles of your legs, lift them straight up vertically, and hold them there for a few seconds. Then lower them down until they are a few inches off the floor, and hold it there again for a few seconds. Repeat 5-8 times to begin with. Later, as you feel your abs getting stronger, increase the reps to 15-20 times. Then, as you get even stronger, you can lift your head and shoulders off the floor while performing the leg lifts.

Alternating Leg Walks: Begin by lying on your back, placing your hands under your butt, and take a few deep breaths. Then, contract the lower ab muscles and lift your right leg up slowly, until it is 90 degrees to your body. The, equally slowly, lower it back down, until it is a few inches off the floor, while simultaneously raising your left leg. Keep lifting your legs alternatively about 8-10 times to begin with. Later, as your abs become stronger, you can increase the count to 15-20 times. And, as in the previous one, lift your head and shoulders off the floor while performing the exercise.

Double Leg Reverse Crunches: Lie down on your back, with your hands under your butt. Lift both your legs up until they are in a vertical position. Now bend your legs at the knees, so that the lower part is parallel to the floor. Then, contracting your lower abs, and maintaining your bent knees, gradually lower your legs until the soles of your feet are just a couple of inches off the floor. Keep your abs contracted and hold this position for a few seconds. Then increasing the contraction in your abs, lift your knees up again, bringing them towards your chest. This is a somewhat challenging exercise, so begin by doing just 3-5 reps. Later, as you feel yourself getting stronger, increase the reps gradually, until you can do 15-20 reps.

Scissors: Lying on your back, with your hands under your butt, contract your lower abs and tighten your leg muscles and lift both your legs up, until they are about two feet off the floor. Now, without bending the knees, get your right leg across your left leg, so that both legs are crossed. Then open your legs out, and close them again, reversing the positions of the legs. Keep repeating this scissoring action, keeping your lower abs contracted, about 8-10 times, to start with. Then, increase that to 15-20 reps as you get stronger.

Double Leg Circles: Lie down on your back, with your hands under your butt. Then, contracting your lower abs, lift both legs a few inches off the floor. Now, rotate both legs together in circles. Make 5 circles in a clockwise direction. Then lower the legs to the floor, and relax for a few seconds. Then repeat the exercise with 5 anticlockwise circles. You can increase the number of circles to 10-15 as you get stronger.

 Tips for Performing Lower Abdominal Exercises

Lower abdominal exercises can be difficult to perform correctly because they require more concentration and muscle control than many other exercises. As a result, many people cheat by using additional muscles, such as the hip flexors and lower back muscles. In addition, people frequently attempt to perform lower abdominal exercises that are too difficult for their ability level and are not able to use the correct muscles during the exercise.

These tips will help maximize the effectiveness of all lower abdominal exercises:

1. You should feel the lower abdominals working more than any other muscles. If you do not feel your lower abdominals working or feel other muscles working more, stop the exercise. When lower abdominal muscles grow fatigued, it becomes difficult to feel them working, so this is a sign to stop and rest.
2. You should never feel pain in you lower back. If you feel pain in your lower back, it means that either your lower abdominals are not strong enough to perform the exercise or you are not doing the exercise correctly. In any case, stop immediately if you feel pain in your lower back.
3. Perform exercises in a slow and controlled manner. Performing lower abdominal exercises quickly will increase your momentum, decrease muscular control, minimize effectiveness and increase usage of muscles that should not be used. Further, performing exercises too quickly will commonly result in jerky or erratic movements.
4. Quality over quantity. These exercises are not about trying to see how many reps you can do or trying to perform the most difficult exercises. They are about getting the correct muscles to work while preventing unwanted muscles from helping you cheat to make the exercise easier. Do slower, more controlled reps to reap the most benefits from the exercise.
5. Endurance over strength. The lower abdominal muscles work mainly as postural/stabilizing muscles. They are designed to stay active at low intensities for long periods of time and they should be trained the same way. If you can only perform 5-10 quality reps of an exercise, then your focus should be on performing more reps instead of trying to perform a more difficult exercise.
6. Remember to breathe. Many of the exercises will require some of your abdominal muscles to be contracted (activated) throughout the exercise. Your initial reaction will probably be to try to hold your breath or take very shallow breaths, but over time you must work on taking deeper breaths while performing the exercises.  

Best Lower Abdominal Exercises

1. Activating the Transverse Abdominus. This is a basic exercise that involves pulling your belly button towards the spine. This can be more difficult than it sounds, because many people are not used to using this muscle and try to use other muscles during the exercise. Activating the transverse abdominus will help spinal stability, both during daily living and during exercises that stress the muscles around the spine. Still, you aren’t looking for easy ab exercises, you’re looking for effective ab exercises. Here are the key points: 
   • Perform the exercise lying face down on the floor or on your hands and knees. The kneeling version makes it easier to feel your belly button being pulled in. Lying flat on the ground makes it easier to feel if you are using other muscles.
   • Pull your belly button in as much as you can just using the lower abdominal muscles. Try to relax throughout the rest of your body.
   • Hold the contraction until you cannot feel it anymore or you start feeling other muscles contracting more.
   • If this is difficult, just start with holding the contraction for 10 seconds. This can be repeated up to 10 times. When this becomes easier, increase the time of the contraction. The combined time of the contractions does not need to exceed 2 minutes. When you can hold a single contraction for 1.5 to 2 minutes, you have enough strength and endurance to move on to more difficult exercises.
2. Flattening the lower back against the floor. This is another basic exercise that is necessary to learn before performing more advanced exercises. This exercise helps to strengthen and build endurance in muscles that support and protect the low back from injury. These exercises count as lower back pain exercises. Here is what to do:
   • Start lying on your back with your knees bent and your feet flat on the ground. Try to relax as much as possible. There should be a small space under your lower back from the natural curve in the spine.
   • Activate your lower abdominals to flatten your lower back until the space decreases and you feel pressure against the floor.
   • Some pelvic rotation will occur for the back to flatten completely, but make sure to use the abdominal muscles to create this motion. The legs should stay as relaxed as possible and not be used to create the pelvic rotation
3. Abdominal Leg Lowering. This exercise uses controlled movement of the leg(s) to increase the demand on the lower abdominal muscles.It’s one of the best exercises for abs.
   • Begin in the same position as in Exercise 2.
   • Keep your lower abdominals tight and your back flat throughout the exercise. There are 4 variations (see below), all of which involve moving one or both legs while keeping your abdominals tight. If you stop feeling tightness in your abdominal muscles or feel any pain in your lower back, stop the exercise.
   • If your lower back starts to arch while you lower your leg, stop lowering your leg and raise it back up. Arching in the lower back is a sign that the lower abdominal muscles are not strong enough to perform the exercise at that position. The lower your leg gets to the ground, the higher the demand becomes on the abdominal muscles.
   • There are four basic difficulty levels of this exercise:
     1. Single-leg lowering with a bent leg: During this exercise, one leg is kept on the ground and the other leg is kept in a bent position throughout the exercise. The leg that moves should start with the thigh perpendicular to the ground. Lower the leg until the foot almost touches the floor. Raise the leg back to the starting position and repeat. Perform this exercise with both legs.
     2. Single-leg lowering with a straight leg: The same exercise as above, except the leg that is moving will be kept straight instead of being bent. This creates an increased demand on the lower abdominals.
     3. Double-leg lowering with bent legs: This is a more difficult variation where both legs will move at the same time and follow the same technique as the first variation of this exercise. When one leg is on the ground, the lower back is more stabilized. With both legs off the ground, the lower abdominals must do the work that the leg on the ground was previously doing. This further increases the demand on the abdominal muscles.
4. The Plank. This exercise is good for developing overall core stability, working the lower and upper abdominals and lower back muscles all at the same time.
   • If you feel pain or excessive tightness in the lower back, stop the exercise. This means some of your muscles are not strong enough or too tired to perform the exercise correctly. In this case, build up your strength and endurance on the previous exercises until your muscles can perform this exercise correctly. Improving your back flexibility may also be beneficial.
   • Hold this position as long as you can while maintaining good form and the contraction in your abdominals.
   • Perform 1-3 sets and focus on increasing your endurance over time.
   • When you can perform this exercise for more than 1.5-2 minutes at a time, you can increase the difficulty by lifting one foot slightly off the ground. This will also increase the demand of the leg that is still on the ground. Alternate legs between sets.
5. Hanging Leg Raise. This is an advanced lower abdominal exercise that is frequently performed incorrectly. This exercise also requires additional equipment, such as a sturdy bar that you can hang from. If you want to maximize lower abdominal activation, follow these tips:
   • This exercise requires a significant amount of upper-body strength, because the hands and arms must support your bodyweight.
   • Grab onto a bar above your head and hang as still as possible. Then bring your legs up until your thighs are about parallel with the ground and your knees are bent about 90 degrees. This is the starting position for the exercise.
   • Contract your lower abdominals and pull your legs closer to your chest, without excessive rounding of the lower back. This exercise has a small range of motion, but if done correctly, is very challenging for the lower abdominals.
   • Return your legs to the starting position. You may let your legs go somewhat lower than the starting position if you are able to maintain the contraction in your abdominals and prevent your lower back from arching. The lower back should stay flat just as in the floor exercises.

Ab Exercises

The Bicycle exercise is the best move to target the rectus abdominis (i.e., the ‘six pack’) and the obliques (the waist), according to a study done by the American Council on Exercise. To do this exercise correctly:

1. Lie face up on the floor and lace your fingers behind your head.
2. Bring the knees in towards the chest and lift the shoulder blades off the ground without pulling on the neck.
3. Straighten the left leg out while simultaneously turning the upper body to the right, bringing the left elbow towards the right knee.
4. Switch sides, bringing the right elbow towards the left knee.
5. Continue alternating sides in a ‘pedaling’ motion for 12-16 reps.

Tips to Slim Down

Despite what one may think, losing weight is not a mysterious process. In fact,weight loss does not even have to involve strange diets, special exercises or even the ‘magic’ of pills or fitness gadgets.

The secret to weight loss is to make small changes each and every day and you will slowly lose those kilograms.

Some tips for losing weight are:

1. Pay attentionwhile you eat. Many times, we snack while doing other things such aswatching TV. Without even knowing it, we have consumed a few hundredextra calories.That may not seem like much, but it adds up.
2. Regulateyour meal times. Pick times throughout the day when you can sit downand actually enjoy your breakfast, lunch and dinner. Stick to thesethis to allow your body to pick up on the times and allow it to getused to processing food at these times.
3. Get in the habit of eating healthily on a daily basis. Eat loads offresh fruit and vegetables throughout the day. This is certainly goingto help with your cravings for junk food and just after a few days youwill be feeling much healthier and fitter.
4. Start and finishyour eating for the day early. Eat breakfast as early as possible,andfinish your day off with an early dinner and a no-eat-after-8pm (forexample)policy. Your body is most active during the daytime, whichmeans that it will burn more calories then than at night.
5. Avoidlate night snacks as they can prevent you from losing weight. As saidearlier,your body is less active at night, meaning that you have agreater chance of turning that slice of pizza into pure fat thanburning it as a source of energy.
6. Eat your vegetables.Vegetables, especially raw ones, burn more calories than those packedin the vegetables themselves. Also, the fiber in vegetables gives asense of fullness.
7. Be honest with yourself. If you know you have a weakness for chocolatechip cookies,buying a two-pound bag to keep in the house may give youmore temptation than you can handle; if you know you do not have a lotof energy in the morning, it can be self-defeating to plan on joggingevery morning before work.
8. Take a walk each and every day! You can start with 15 min and then building to 45min and then an hour an a half! You will be amazed just how quickly you will see results—not just in your weight loss, but your overall sense of well-being. Regular exercise limits stress and anxiety and there is also the bonus that you could walk in some really beautiful places.
9. Watch no more than 2 h of TV a day. Studies have shown that adults who watch more than 2 h of TV per day take in 7% more calories and consume more sugary snacks than those who watch less than an hour a day.
10. Take five (thousand) extra steps a day. A typical person takes about 5000 steps per day between going to work, running errands and doing chores around the house.Doubling that number can have significant health benefits: higher ‘good’ HDL cholesterol levels, lower blood pressure, improved glucose control, of course, a lower number on the weighing scale. Walking more steps per day also leads to a lower percentage of body fat and slimmer waists and hips.
11. Drink at least eight glasses of water per day. Water is not just a thirst quencher―it actually speeds the body’s metabolism. No calories are ingested when drinking water,instead calories are used. Try drinking a glass before meals and snacks and before consuming sweetened drinks or juices.
12. And finally, stand up for your goals.

Make these weight-loss tips a part of your daily routine

This is not a diet — or a rigorous exercise program. (Nobody can stick to those for long.) Instead, it’s a simple way to make weight loss a natural part of the life you already live. And guess what? It’s fun! You don’t have to give up the foods you love or join a gym. It’s about balancing calories in tiny ways that add up to big benefits. You just adopt some tricks naturally lean people do. Pick the ones you like, stick with them, and you’ll slim down and tone up — for good! Morning Makeover
1. Wake-up workout When your eyes open, sit up slowly without using your hands. With legs straight out, lean forward until you feel a gentle stretch in your back and hamstrings. Hold; then, using your abs, lower yourself flat. Rest and repeat two more times. Strengthens core. Burns 10 calories

2. Go for the grains Not ready for Twigs & Rocks cereal? Sprinkle on a few tablespoons of wheat germ or oat bran. Work up to 3/4 cup of low-sugar whole-grain cereal with at least three grams of fiber per serving, and you’ll pass on that Danish. Saves 100

3. Add some protein The more you eat earlier on, the less you eat as the day wears on, research has shown. So after your cereal, add a hard-boiled egg or a part-skim mozzarella cheese stick to keep you feeling full — and away from that pre-lunch brownie. Saves 200 (or more)

4. Balance booster While you brush your teeth, alternate standing on one leg as you switch mouth quadrants (every 30 seconds). Balancing develops your core muscles and may even be good for your brain. Burns 10

5. Be a ballerina As your coffee drips, stand sideways, put one hand on the counter, and lift the outside leg straight out in front of you, keeping it extended. With upper body straight, hold for a few seconds and move it to the side; hold and extend it behind you. Do five to ten times on each leg. Tones outer thighs, hip flexors and quadriceps. Burns 10

6. Coffee saver Instead of pouring that 1/3 cup of half-and-half (a whopping 105 calories!) into your mug, replace it with the same amount of 2% milk. Saves 60

7. Better your bagel You can walk 10,000 steps to justify your 500-calorie bagel with cream cheese, or try this: low-fat spreadable cheese like Laughing Cow Light on an English muffin. Saves 300

Nine-to-Five Fixes

8. Tone in traffic Use the time spent bumper-to-bumper to develop your buns of steel: Squeeze your derrière each time you tap the brake, holding for 10 seconds. Shoot for 10 to 15 squeezes a trip. Burns 10

9. Snack smarter Portion out the day’s snacks into pint-size zip bags, or buy single-serving portions. For example, four regular Oreos have 200 calories versus the 100-calorie snack bag version. Go for the lower fat chips: a Lay’s Light bag has only 75 calories, while the regular has 150. Saves 175 (over two snacks)

10. Casual day payoff You will blast more calories during the day wearing comfy clothes like jeans or khakis, sport shirts and soft-soled shoes than donning constricting suits, skirts and heels. Why? Because you walk more, a study found. Now you just have to convince the boss. Burns 25

11. You know squat! At your desk chair, pretend you’re going to sit but don’t — stop and come back up without using your arms. Always start squats by lowering your hips, not bending knees forward, and keeping your weight on your heels. Repeat the motion throughout the day (even at the potty!) for 15 to 20 total. Strengthens quadriceps. Burns 15

12. Switch your soda Your body doesn’t register calories from liquids the same way it does those from foods, so you won’t get those “stop eating” signals to help you compensate for the overload later on. Change from two glasses of regular soda or fruit juice to diet soda or a flavored seltzer. Saves 300

13. Talk it up Every time you grab the phone, stand up and pace around. Heavy people sit on average two and a half hours more per day than thin people, according to the Mayo Clinic. Burns 50 or more

Around Town

1. At lunch, pick a pita Use one mini whole-wheat pita instead of the usual two slices of white or refined wheat bread for your sandwich. Saves 7015. Get face time We use e-mail so much we’ve forgotten what our co-workers look like. Pick a colleague or two who sits farthest from you and deliver 10 of those daily messages in person. And go out of your way: Hit a bathroom or a copier on another floor — and take the stairs, of course. Burns 10016. Firm as you file Pause from your papers with a few wall push-ups. Place hands wide at shoulder height against the wall. Take a couple of steps back so your body is at a slight angle and your weight is on your toes, and do three sets of 10 push-ups. Strengthens chest and triceps. Burns 1017. An apple (or more) a day They’re packed with fiber and water, so your stomach will want less. Plus, studies out of Washington State and Brazil have shown that people who eat at least three apples or pears a day lose weight. Try two small apples and two fewer large cookies. Saves 10018. Try a simple chair workout
   Dips: If your chair has wheels, brace it against something. Facing forward, place palms on the front edge of the seat with knees bent at a right angle. Lower butt toward the floor; raise and repeat for two sets of 10. Tones triceps. Burns 10
   Lifts: Seated in a chair with your back straight and your feet on the floor, squeeze knees together and gently bring them toward your chest. Do two sets of ten. Strengthens abdominals. Burns 1019. Carry some weight When you’re grocery shopping or running errands, wear a backpack with a 5-or 10-pound bag of sugar inside to increase resistance and burn more calories. Add purchases to your load as it becomes easier. Burns 20 (for an hour of errands)20. Tweak your treat Instead of a large caffè latte and a chocolate cream-cheese muffin, get a small nonfat latte and a small low-fat raisin or carrot muffin. Saves 340

   21. Pump at the pump Instead of fuming over gas prices, think about firming your calves: With one hand on your car, stand on the balls of your feet and slowly rise up and down for as long as it takes your tank to fill — for an SUV that might be 50 raises! Burns 10

   22. Do the pizza pat Blot your slice with a napkin to cut anywhere from a teaspoon to a tablespoon of grease — and calories. Saves 50-100

   23. Shop till the pounds drop At the mall, try on at least ten outfits, both pants and shirts. No need to buy! Burns 60

24. Eat like a kid You don’t have to give up that quick lunch if you order smaller portions: Instead of a Quarter Pounder with Cheese and large fries, opt for the cheeseburger Happy Meal. You can even play with the toy. Saves 390

25. Recharge yourself Anytime you’re waiting in line, stand evenly on both feet, clasp hands behind your back and squeeze shoulder blades together to open your chest, an energizing yoga-based move that stimulates the nervous system. Hold for 10 to 20 seconds while slowly breathing in and out, taking longer on the inhale. Burns 5

On the Home Front

26. Jog for junk mail Turn clutter into a challenge: For every piece of junk mail you pull from the mailbox each day, do one lap around your house or building, or up and down a flight of stairs. Burns 35-140

27. Use better butter No, you don’t have to give up the real deal — instead of a tablespoon of stick butter, use a tablespoon of whipped and cut half the calories. Saves 30

28. Step on it Before you lug those backpacks upstairs, stop and stand on the bottom step for these calf toners. Hold the banister with one hand. Bend your right leg and place the toes of your left foot on the edge of the step. Let your heel drop down, press into the ball of your left foot and rise to your toes. Pause; repeat with each foot for 8 to 12 reps. Burns 10

29. Start with soup Order a clear soup instead of a salad soaked with two tablespoons full-fat ranch and you can save twice the calories. Plus you’ll feel fuller, so you’ll eat less when the entrée comes. Saves 100

30. Play footsie After dinner, while you’re still sitting at the table, extend your right leg out and slowly bend it up and down, squeezing and holding in the up position for at least five seconds. Repeat on each leg five times. Sculpts quadriceps. Burns 10 

Family Fitness

Fit families are healthy families who have an active lifestyle.  Frequently, they enjoy the things they do together, and the things they do together foster better communication and closer relationships than watching TV does.

Family fitness takes some parental commitment, leadership, and imagination, and you may have to listen to a lot of grousing and whining to start with, but the entire family will benefit as a result.  Five factors that affect your family fitness plan are cost, convenience, family-friendly environment, fun, and success.

Cost

Family fitness doesn’t have to be expensive.  Sure, you can drop a couple of hundred dollars or more taking the family skiing. But you can find a slope and sled down it on plastic trash bags for free.  Most communities have free or low-cost family activities at community centers or parks.  Check your local newspaper or parks and recreation department, and use your imagination to come up with activities your family can do together that don’t break the bank.

Convenience

Families are busy, and convenience is essential to a family fitness plan.  If you have to go through a lot of hassle or travel a long way on a regular basis, you won’t follow through.  Plan activities that you can do in your own backyard or neighborhood, like play Frisbee. You can also stay home to rake up leaves and jump in them, or make snow angels in the winter months.  If you join a club or team, make it one that’s convenient to get to, and one the entire family can be a part of. Joining a bowling league is a great way to keep the family involved.

Family-Friendly Environment

When you join a club or plan an activity, make sure your whole family is welcome.  It’s not much fun to look forward to an outing, and then discover that your kids are the only ones there.  You want an appropriate environment for young children, too, where they will be safe and not exposed to “adult” language or behavior.

Fun

Fun is the key to successful family fitness.  If everybody has fun, you’ll all want to do it again.  Ask the kids what kind of activities they enjoy.  You could even let them choose some family activities and help with the planning.  Have a family meeting, and come up with a list of activities your family wants to try. 

In addition to making sure your family fitness activities are fun, you can make sure your family fun activities center around fitness.  Take everybody miniature golfing for a birthday instead of having a cake-and-ice-cream party.  Celebrate Independence Day by going on a 10K walk together (which you’ll have to train for together).  Walk around your neighborhood at Christmas and enjoy the lights, or sing carols.  Bring fun and activity together as often as you can, and you and your kids will begin to associate an active lifestyle with having fun.

Success

Every member of your family needs to feel successful at whatever activities your family chooses.  They don’t all have to be good at the activity as long as they enjoy it and feel good about themselves doing it.  Family fitness can become an unhealthy competition that leaves less athletic family members feeling like failures, and that can defeat the purpose.  Choose activities that everybody can participate in and enjoy at least moderate success at.

When our families pursue fitness together, we benefit in other ways, too. Your kids will remember and treasure family camping trips, going swimming together, and having family snowball fights.  You’re building good health habits and good childhood memories at the same time, and the whole family is having fun doing it.

10 Family Exercise Tips

It’s 6:30 on a Friday night. You and your family just polished off a large pepperoni pizza and box of breadsticks. You’re ready to relax – watch a movie, take a bath or anything to celebrate the end of another week. As your family begins to scatter in all different directions, you glance outside and realize the day is far from over. Amongst groans, you persuade everyone to go outside for a walk.

Family Walks

This is the scenario Barbara J. Moore would like to see more of. She is the president of Shape Up America!, a national initiative designed to promote healthy weight and physical activity in America. The organization publishes a booklet called 99 Tips for Family Fitness Fun. In it, Moore says exercising as a family is a central focus. “Walking is a perfectly acceptable physical activity,” she says. “Strategies should be developed so that parents plan to go walking with their kids.”

Moore says family walks are traditional across Europe, but it’s not emphasized in the United States. “It’s something we need to think about more because of the problem with obesity in children and certainly in adults as well,” she says. Moore agrees families are often busier in today’s society, but she says it shouldn’t be used as an excuse not to exercise.

Two Problems, One Solution

Barry Kipnes was a physical education teacher and basketball coach in Massachusetts for more than 30 years before he retired a few years ago. Over the years, Kipnes noticed a decline in the amount of time families spend together. He knew about the obesity epidemic in America among adults and children and thought there had to be away to address the two problems together. “I thought we could choose fitness and activity as a vehicle to bring families together,” he says

He wrote a 31-page pamphlet entitled, Family Workout Booklet to show families how to adapt a family fitness program. Most of the booklet is devoted to show families how to set up a fitness program of their own. “It’s not just to say the words,” he says. “I want the family to find a common bond to exercise together.”

A Word About Cost

Michael Spezzano is a national health and fitness consultant with the YMCA. He says places like the YMCA cater to the family, but family fitness doesn’t necessarily have to involve a health club membership. “It doesn’t have to cost anything,” he says. “It could be going to a local park or playing a sport together. It could be going on hikes or biking. It’s just spending time together.”

Family fitness classes can work, but the class needs to be designed with the family in mind, Spezzano says. For example, he doesn’t suggest families take children into an adult-oriented exercise class. Instead, families should look for parent-child classes that have incorporated the family fitness element.

More says many families face the dilemma of being too busy to be active with kids, but the issue is too important to be ignored. She says children learn from example and parents need to take the initiative to make exercise a habit for the entire family. “This is a critical issue,” she says. “This is a health issue for kids and it’s a health issue for adults. Strategies need to be developed.”

Best Tips to a Healthier Family

1. Parent-child classes: Check out your local park and recreation department or fitness facility for family-fitness classes. Parent and child fitness classes like yoga and kickboxing are popping across the country. If you can’t find one, talk to someone at these facilities and let them know you’re interested. It could lead to one being created.

2. Swimming: Find out when open swim time is at an area pool. University, high school and community swimming pools usually have open swim times for the public. The price is usually minimal and swimming is a good exercise for the entire family.

3. Join a gym: Many fitness facilities will allow older children in the weight room or on the exercise equipment with parent supervision. Make sure to join a family-friendly facility, which usually has parent and child activities.

4. Martial arts: Check out the area martial art facilities and sign up to learn karate, judo, etc. as a family.

5. Let your kids help make the decision. Children are more likely to participate in something if they are involved in helping pick it out. Instead of telling them what you’re going to do as a family, let them help make the decision.

6. Cycling: It’s time to dust off your bicycles and find an area riding trail. It’s inexpensive and provides great exercise.

7. Walk: It sounds simple, but walking is really an easy activity families can do together. Walk around the neighborhood or go to an area park. If you get ambitious, try hiking.

8. Television: Use the television to your advantage by buying a fitness DVD. There’s plenty on the market to choose from and you can do it as a family.

9. Hold one another accountable. Create a chart to track your family’s progress. If it’s out in the open where everyone can see it, you are more likely to encourage one another to succeed.

10. Reward yourself. Set a goal and once you achieve it, do something to celebrate. For example, if your family makes a pledge to exercise five out of seven days for the next 12 weeks, reward yourself once you reach the end. But remember to reward your family in healthy ways. Spend the night at a hotel with a pool. Plan a special hiking trip. Go to a hands-on museum.

Water – Is it in You? seven Reasons Why it Should Be

 Okay, we all agree. We need to stay hydrated! But for some reason, 70% of Americans still don’t drink their 2-3 liters of water each day. Why is that? The most common reasons I hear from patients are that “water doesn’t taste good”, “I’m just not that thirsty”, or “I forget to drink water.” Sound familiar?

Let’s start off with an analogy that might interest you. You’ve had beef jerky before, right? Jerky is dehydrated beef (the water has been removed). It’s hard, it’s wrinkly and it’s shriveled. If you fail to drink enough water each day, you start turning YOURSELF into jerky. Wrinkly skin and all. Not a pleasant image. And that’s not all. Here are the top 7 reasons you should be “topping off your tank” regularly:

1. Boost your performance. In one hour of exercise (like tennis), you can lose 1 – 2.5 liters of water through sweat. That’s a half gallon! If you weigh 150 lbs, that works out to be 4.5 lbs of fluid loss, which is 3% of your body weight! A 3% loss of body weight increases the risk of heat cramps, heat exhaustion & heat stroke, as well as drastically reducing performance.

2. Give yourself a face-lift! Drinking water replenishes sagging skin cells, which firms & hydrates the skin, smoothes wrinkles and keeps pores clear.

3. Lubricate your joints. Cartilage is the “teflon” coating in joints that prevents wear & tear. Both articular cartilage (knees, shoulders, fingers…) and fibrocartilage (meniscus, spinal discs…) are mostly water. Synovial fluid is the liquid lubricant in your joints, and is almost completely water. Skipping a couple glasses a day can cause your joints to wear out early.

4. Allergies? Just add water. Nasal & sinus congestion happens when mucus becomes too thick to drain properly. It clogs the airways, makes breathing difficult & provides an ideal breeding ground for bacteria. Drinking plenty of water during allergy season helps thin out the mucus & allows it to drain normally.

5. Make your heart happy. Dehydration reduces blood volume, creating thicker, more concentrated blood, which stresses the heart. This also decreases the blood’s ability to carry oxygen & nutrients to your cells. Staying hydrated helps keep your heart from overworking, and can reduce blood pressure.

6. Overweight? Hydrate! This one is good for several reasons. First of all, if your body doesn’t get enough water, its reaction is to store the water it does have. Drinking more water stops this cycle of water retention. Also, thirst is often mistaken for hunger. Next time you have a snack attack, try drinking 8 oz of water instead. And finally, fat cells are harder to burn off when you’re dehydrated.

7. Avoid brain drain. Your brain is 75% water, and even a slight dehydration can impair coordination, concentration & thinking. Missing out on water is actually draining your brain.

This list goes on and on, but the point is, getting plenty of the wet stuff each day is a ridiculously easy way to help yourself look, feel & move better. And if you’re having trouble increasing your fluid intake, here are some tips that may help.

• Keeping track. Keep a 1-liter bottle with you at home & work. If you’re female, drain it twice a day. Males, three times.

• Test your hydration. Your urine should be straw-colored to clear. If it’s a dark yellow, you’re dehydrated. NOTE: pigments in certain B vitamins can cause your urine to turn a neon yellow color. This does not necessarily mean you’re dehydrated.

• Don’t like the taste of water? Try juice, milk, sugar-free Kool Aid or sparkling water throughout the day. NOTE: caffeine and alcohol are both diuretics (they cause you to excrete water). If you consume either of these, make sure to drink at least twice as much water as coffee/alcohol.

Now that you know some of the wonderful benefits of Hydrogen Hydroxide (H2O), it’s time to start taking advantage of them. Try drinking a little extra water, several times a day to start. It’ll be easier, and you won’t feel like you’re forcing yourself to drink. After just one week, you’ll probably see a difference!

 Water, The Elixir For Belly-Less Life

You will be soon in a serious condition, if your answers to my question about the number of glasses you drink daily are none, one or two. Without wasting your days begin drinking water.

For melting off your tummy fat, you need to drink a lot of water. This can be the soundest thing to do. This might be useful for your overall well being. It won’t offer you any calories. Furthermore, the intake of water results in letting out the toxins, balance body fluids and so the body is cleaned and your body shines. Fat loss is the first result when it comes to water ingestion. For the most part we mistake thirst for hunger and start consuming just for being thirsty.

Making sure that you intake enough water can be challenging especially, if you are working out hard and are requiring 12 + glasses a day. I will admit water does not always sound the most appealing. Remember though, you can count caffeine free teas, coffees and diet sodas with your water count, along with fruits and vegetables as these often comprise of water for the most part anyway.

Yet, you can’t have those substitutes all the time and you must have atleast 5 – 6 glasses of direct water per day. You can also have water in a more drinkable way by putting a slice of lemon in it or by adding sugar free drink mixes. When you undergo a non water beverage, you must concentrate on the following. Without acting as a fuel, these beverages like fruit juices, habitual soda, flavored coffee, alcohol and smoothies add up the measure of calories to your body.

In other words, the compensation for these extra calories can’t be the solution even if we consume fewer calories at the meals. As a result, the calories are stored up as fats and end up in stomach fat gain. Some particular beverages you have to take care are those flavored coffees that come complete with whipped cream and chocolate sprinkles. Not only are they often made with whole milk or cream, they also come in astronomical size.

Then as for the replacements, the healthy fruit smoothies may also play the important part in imparting the extra calories. We may have the feel that these smoothies are just made up of real fruits and low fat yoghurts. However, we forget that they are fused drinks and rich in calories.

The juices can also be blamed under this reason, since they have greater calorie content. They can’t be viewed as the first reason for the increase in calorie content. Nevertheless, the real fruits have fewer calories and more fiber content than the juices…

Mix Your Creatine With Tea – Creatine, no matter the brand and no matter what it says on the pot, just will not mix with the liquid it’s meant to. My Prolab creatine said on the front ‘easy to mix and tasteless’. That’s just not true – it tastes horribly bitter and collects in a little pile at the bottom of the glass. Maximuscle even admit this, advising you to mix it with your protein shake which is actually a really good idea and works great for mixing. Problem is apparently your body can’t utilise it as well if it’s taken with protein. The other problem is that Maximuscle also recommend bodybuilders take it five times a day when loading – far more than most people would use a protein shake. The solution? Mix it with tea – if you have sugar too it’ll counter the bad taste and the hot water will make it more soluble.

Have Pepper With Your Raw Eggs – Eating raw eggs is a quick way to get your body all the amino acids. If you’re like a lot of people though you might well find this… well… completely disgusting. A simple solution to improve the taste is to add pepper with makes it more savoury and a slightly nicer consistency.

Mix Tomato With Tuna – Again, plain tuna, as many bodybuilders eat it, is just unpleasant and bland. Mayonnaise is far more delicious (in fact it’s ultimate), but sadly it’s also very calorific. However, what’s actually good for you (high in antioxidants) and also mixes very well with tuna is a good old fashioned tin of chopped tomatoes.

Train Outside Sometimes – Training outside will let you work on your tan at the same time as improving your muscles. At the same time it’s a change of scene which kick drives the body into action, and supplies you with energy and vitamin D in the form of the sun.

Wash You Face After Working Out – It counteracts the contribution of a sweaty face to spots.

Do ‘Express’ Sessions When You’re Tired – If you’re really tired and don’t think you can manage a workout, then you should try and squeeze out just a couple of exercises. Maybe press ups with dips, and then leave it at that (make sure both target the same muscle group). This way you will still get a workout, but more to the point you will probably find yourself getting energised enough that you end up doing a full work out anyway.

Exercise in the Morning – It will wake you up and mean you don’t end up putting it off later.

But Wait Ten Minutes – In the first ten minutes of waking up your spine is more susceptible to damage.

Read Ingredients on Supplements – That way you can research yourself whether or not they work, and can avoid overdosing on regularly used additives. For example, vitamin B6 is in everything, but overdosing can lead to nerve damage.

Take Hot Showers – They improve your body’s production of growth hormone. As does sprinting. So there you go.

Take Supplements at Night – Other than immediately following a workout, the night is the time when your body is at its most anabolic.

Keep a Note of Your Progress and Routine – Keeping a training diary is good for many reasons. It gives you motivation to workout by showing you that you’re constantly improving, and by making you have to face writing down your failures if you take yet another day off. But it also allows you to tweak your routine and then see exactly how that’s affecting your success. For example by adding an extra day and seeing how much size you lose or gain as a result, or by adding or taking away individual supplements and testing just how well they’re really working.

Make Sure You Measure Bodyfat Percentage as Well as Inches – Because you probably aren’t just training for size and it may look as though you’re getting worse when in fact you’re getting more ripped.

Always Eat More Than One Piece of Protein – Other than raw eggs, no single source of protein contains all the amino acids (and eggs only do if you eat both the yolk and the white). For that reason you shouldn’t rely on just one protein source.

Get Lots of Rest – When you workout you cause tiny microtears in the muscle fibres, it isn’t this process in itself that causes hypertrophy (muscle growth), but rather the fact that when they are repaired the body builds them back thicker to protect against future damage. That means you need to rest in order for it to grow.

Use Nitric Oxide – Nitric Oxide is one of the few bodybuilding supplements that genuinely can improve your workouts and gains to no end. If you train with nitric oxide, it increases the size of your veins to allow more blood flow to the muscles, resulting in turn in a greater sensation of being ‘pumped’ as well as greater vascularity and more energy in the gym. It also means that if you take it before you go to the beach you’ll look twice as good…

Do CV – Neglecting CV is a mistake that many bodybuilders make because they fear it will lead to the body’s cannibalism of their muscles. This is actually only true if you’re making another mistake – not eating enough carbs. In fact, CV will not only strip your body of fat improving definition, but will also strengthen your heart stopping you from having a heart attack…

Human Intestinal Worms – Symptoms, Pictures, Treatment

What Are Intestinal Worms (Helminths)?

Human intestinal worms are parasites that live in the human intestine, eat bowel content or suck blood from the intestinal wall.

Intestinal worms may cause severe, life threatening infection, predominantly in children in tropical and subtropical areas where people often defecate on the ground: in rural parts of Africa, Middle East, South Asia, Indonesia and Central and South America. In people from Mediterranean parts of Europe or south parts of North America, they usually cause a relatively mild disease.

Presence of parasites of any kind (including intestinal worms) in or on the body is called infestation.

Helminth is a medical term for intestinal worm.

Symptoms of Infestation With Intestinal Worms

Intestinal worms may live in someone’s intestine for years without causing any symptoms. General symptoms may appear few weeks or several months after infestation and include paleness, weakness, tiredness (from anemia due to lost blood sucked by worms), restlessness, disturbed sleep and weight loss (due to loss of nutrients used by worms). Abdominal symptoms can last from weeks to months and include:

• Distended belly
• Foul smelling breath or gas
• Loss of appetite
• Vomiting
• Itchy anus
• Mucus in the stool
• Blood in the stool
• Loose bowel movements or diarrhea 
• Worms, their parts or eggs can be sometimes found in the stool 
• Itchy skin rash
• Swelling around the eyes
• During sleep, some worms may leave the body through the mouth, nose or anus
• Swollen itchy bump on the site of the parasite entry (usually on the foot)

Sources of Worm Infection

Worm eggs, shed in the stool of humans or animals infected with adult worms, can contaminate soil or water. Once outside the body, eggs need several days or weeks to develop into the infective stage (cysts) or immature worms (larvae) that may be ingested when you eat with soil-contaminated hands or when you eat raw unwashed vegetables. Another source of intestinal worms is undercooked infected meat of domestic pig, freshwater fish or wild animals (bear, walrus, etc.). One can also be infected by ingesting dog’s fleas that have ingested parasitic eggs. Children may contract infection from sandboxes contaminated with pets’ stool. Certain types of immature worms may penetrate through your skin during swimming or walking barefoot; when they reach the small or large intestine they grow into adult worms.

Common garden worms usually do not cause illness in human. 

How Intestinal Worms Cause Disease?

Adult worms, which may be from 1 millimeter to several meters long, invade the bowel wall and suck the blood from it, or live freely in the intestine and utilize nutrients from the bowel content. The result are small intestinal or colonic inflammation and ulcers, anemia, and protein, iron and vitamin (mainly A, C, B12) deficiency. Intestinal obstruction may occur in severe cases. Larvae may migrate to other organs (liver, spleen, bladder, muscles, lungs, brain), where they form cysts and trigger allergic inflammation.

Common Human Intestinal Worms

A. Roundworms (Nematode) (1)

• The large roundworms (Ascaris lumbricoides) are found worldwide. They are several inches long and thick as a pencil (Picture 1).
• Hookworms (Necator americanus, Ancylostoma duodenale) are mostly found in tropical areas; they are about a half of inch long; they may be contracted by walking barefoot – they penetrate through the skin. Once in the intestine, they suck blood from the intestinal wall.
• Whipworm (Trichuris trichiura), causing trichuriasis
• Threadworms
  • Strongyloides stercoralis
  • Pinworm or seatworm (Enterobius vermicularis) is half an inch long, white  worm; its egs cause anal itch.
• Trichinella spiralis, causing trichinosis, may be acquired by eating undercooked contaminated pork meet. Parasites move from the intestine into muscles and other organs where they form cysts – encapsulated forms, which are hard to eradicate. Main symptoms are abdominal pain, muscular and joint pain, swelling of the eyes and skin rash

. Flukes (Trematoda)

• Schistosoma mansoni causes intestinal schistosomiasis (bilharziasis), mainly in Africa, Middle East, Caribbean and South America. It is about half an inch long and 1 millimeter thick. Adult parasites live in intestinal veins and release eggs into the intestinal hollow. Diagnosis is by finding eggs in the stool and urine

Tapeworms (Cestoda)

• Fish (broad) tapeworm (Diphyllobothrium latum) is contracted by infected freshwater fish; it may exceed 10 m; it appears in Europe, Russia and US.
• Beef tapeworm (Taenia saginata) (Picture 3) and pork tapeworm (Taenia solium) may be contracted by undercooked beef or pork – mainly in rural areas, worldwide. Adult worms may be over 20 m long.
• Dog tapeworm (Dipyllidium canium) is common in dogs and cats. Humans are (rarely) infected by ingesting dog fleas, infected with tapeworm larvae. Rice sized particles can be found in the stool

Trichicara cati or Trichicara canis can be attracted by ingesting eggs in cat’s or dog’s stool. After ingesting they develop into larvae that migrate through the body organs, like lungs. Common symptoms are fever and cough.

How Are Intestinal Worms Diagnosed?

If you suffer from unexplained abdominal bloating, diarrhea, weakness or weight loss, your doctor should suspect intestinal worms  as a possible cause. Diagnosis is confirmed by stool test for ova and parasites (O&P test). Hemoccult can reveal blood in the stool. Blood tests can reveal anemia (low ferritinand low red cells), low levels of vitamins A, C or B12, antobodies against certain worms, or elevated levels of eosinophils and IgEantibodies. Pinworm eggs from anal region can be collected by adhesive tape test.

Treatment of Intestinal Worms

A single dose of anti-worm drug, like mebendazole (safe for pregnant women), albendazole, diethylcarbamazine, ivermectin or praziquantel kills parasites in most cases. For some days after the healing, a stool-to-mouth auto-infection with eggs is still possible. Untreated infestations may last for years.

Prevention of Intestinal Worms

The following should prevent you from attracting intestinal parasites:

• Wash the hands after visiting toilet, touching soil or pets, and before meal
• Tell kids to avoid touching mouth and nose with their hands
• Do not walk barefoot and swim in lakes in tropical areas
• Avoid suspicious restaurants with poor hygiene
• Cook meat and fish well

Parasomnia is a category of sleep related / sleep behavior disorders characterized by disturbance of sleep. Parasomnias usually involve sleep experiences that affect physical or verbal behavior. Parasomnia sleep behavior disorders may involve any abnormal movement, behavior, emotion, perception and dream (nightmares) during sleep.Parasomnia can occur in any stage of sleep or the transition between sleep-wake stage.

NREM & REM Sleep Stages

The experience of sleep can be divided into two phases – NREM (Non Rapid Eye Movement) or REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep. Parasomnia disorders can occur in either of these two phases.NREM sleep is the transition phase, from wakefulness to ‘deep sleep’ and then into the dream stages of sleep (REM sleep). NREM sleep and has 4 distinct stages known as stage 1 to stage 4. and is then followed REM sleep which is the period during which dreams and nightmares may occur. A  natural sleep cycle consists of many episodes of NREM sleep followed my REM sleep in a single night’s sleep.

Types of Sleep Behavior Disorders – NREM & REM Parasomnias

Parasomnias include a wide range of sleep related behavior occurring at different stages of NREM and REM sleep.

• Night terror disorder (sleep terrors or pavor nocturnus)
• Sleepwalking (somnambulism)
• Sleep talking  (somniloquy)
• Nightmares
• Confusion arousals
• Rhythmic movement disorder (jactatio capitis nocturna)
• Sleep bruxism (jaw clenching that may cause clicking jaw or TMJ dysfunction)
• Sleep paralysis
• Restless legs syndrome (RLS)
• Periodic Limb Movement Disorder
• Nocturnal Leg Cramps
• Sleep enuresis (bedwetting)
• Sleep related painful or impaired penile erections