HealthPub- Health, Beauty and Fitness

In defining what is meningitis, it is a disease of the brain and the spinal cord. It is thus a cerebral-nervous condition. It involves swelling of the meninges. Meninges are membranes surrounding the brain and the spinal cord. When these membranes become inflamed, they interfere with the smooth floor of blood to the brain tissues and the spinal cord.  The disease is caused by viral and bacterial infections that cause the inflammation to occur. Typically the swelling occurs as the body immune system releases chemicals to fight the perceived virus and bacteria. Meningitis is also caused by conditions that induce soreness of tissues of the body without infections. The swelling of the meninges membranes result to weakened function of the brain and the spinal cord. Swelling of the membranes presses the blood vessels supplying and drawing blood to and from the brain respectively. A person suffering from meningitis experiences severe headache due to constriction of the blood vessels wher...

In definition, depression is an emotional, physical, and cognitive state, which affects ones feelings, actions and thinking. Often people experiencing depression have a feeling of blue and downheartedness. This condition is regarded as the largest non-fatal burden of diseases. The symptoms of depression are expressed by body feelings, behavioral characteristics and thinking. Loss of interest in pleasurable activities and routine tasks is a common feature on people suffering from this condition. For instance, a person exhibiting depression losses interest in work and leisure activities, which are regarded as important in personal development. In the workplace, there is lack of morale and a social isolation is witnessed when the person tends to detach from the company of the other employees. Another depression symptom is a state of negative thinking and worrying. There is presumably a feeling of negativity and subjective emotions. The worrying is brought about by fear of failure or los...

What is fainting? It is a state of loss of consciousness for a short period. The patient losses mental consciousness and regains it back after a short while. This condition involves lack of firmness of body muscles and this leads to fall of the patient. This is why the condition is sometimes referred to as falling out. Usually persons experiencing fainting attain their normal mental status immediately after awakening characterized by confusion and unable to say what has happened. Fainting can occur in persons of all age. However, the lifestyles people indulge in contribute to the susceptibility to be struck by the condition. Fainting, unless subsequently recurring, should not be viewed as a life threatening condition. Nevertheless, every cautionary measure should be taken especially by the medical personnel to try to establish the main cause of the problem. Where the cause is as a result of abnormal functioning of the heart, then this may be regarded as a serious condition. Nonethele...

What are kidney stones? These are lumps of minerals and other materials that accumulate and form within the kidney or the urinary track. The kidney stones in extreme cases may make the kidney organ to malfunction leading to a condition known as kidney failure. Kidneys can be described as body’s cleansing and purification organs. Through the kidneys, the body toxic waste is excreted. This function of the kidney ensures that body wastes substances do not remain in the body circulation system.  When wastes are retained in the body, they poison the healthy cells, tissues, organs and this advance to affect the entire body system. The result is a weakened function of the body organs due to death of body cells and tissues from toxins. To understand what are kidney stones, it is important to mention that when there is a reduced urine formation and increased minerals and crystalline substances in the urine, this leads to kidney stones. The substances accumulate around the kidney or the ur...

Triggers of depression are many and they range from biochemical effects, family relations, personality, to life stressors. What is depression? Depression is an emotional, physical, and mental state, which affects the feelings, perceptions and thinking of the patient. People experiencing depression usually lack mental concentration. They show disturbances in key behavioral functions such as relating with other people (irritation). There is also lack of confidence and a feeling of being detached and downhearted (social isolation). A number of inter-related factors cause depression and include family relations (people of blood relation) through internal body functions (biochemical effects) to external factors such as stressful life and personality. Hereditary causes are those genetic predispositions, which lead to development of depression. People of the same blood may show certain tendencies of being affected by biochemical (body changes) or external factors such as stress to an extend...

In defining what is toenails fungus, it is an infection, which is caused by dermatophyte fungus that feed on the keratin protein in the skin and the nails. It is also referred to as Onychomycosis. There are estimated 35million people in the US who are infested with the toenail fungus and this is according to the US Department of Health and Human Services. Statistics also show that about 6-8% of the adults have toenails fungus infections and this makes it the most common type of nail abnormalities. Nail fungus signs manifest as; •    Yellow, or yellow-green to dark brown discolorations on the nail surface •    Brittle and flaky nail on the free edges •    Some itches and discomfort •    Grooves and ribbed lines and distortions on the surface of the nail •    Thickened nails with loss of luster •    Changes in the texture of the nail surface with cloudy appearance •    Overgrowt...

Hypertension is a blood disorder whereby the patient has an impaired blood circulation due to a constriction, hardening or narrowing of blood vessels (arteries and arterioles). The narrowing is as a result of cholesterol and other plaques such as calcium deposits that attach themselves on the walls of the blood vessels and block the flow of blood.  Low Density Lipoprotein (LDL) is the cholesterol that are scattered and attach themselves to the walls of the vessels. LDL does not hold their cholesterol to transport them efficiently for reprocessing. It's noteworthy that cholesterol is manufactured by the gall bladder and the body does not need more. High blood pressure occurs as a result of the hardening of the blood vessels and this may be caused by factors such as smoking. This condition is referred to as atherosclerosis. The blood vessels become inelastic and hardened and as a result, they cannot constrict or dilate rhythmically to the blood flow.  When the arteries and ar...

Migraine headache is a vascular-nervous condition in which a person experiences headaches on one side or both sides of the head. This is caused by temporary enlargement of a blood vessel or an artery that supplies blood to the head, for instance, the temporal artery. The blood vessels are usually coiled with nerve endings. When the enlargement occurs, this usually stretches the nerve endings. When the nerve fibers are stretched, the body immune system reacts by sending chemicals of inflammation. The chemicals cause swelling, pain and a further enlargement of the blood vessel. The enlargement occurs when the blood vessel is hardened at some point and when blood reaches the hardened part, it begins to accumulate and the elastic part of the vessel just before the hardened area balloons with blood.  The hardening of the vessel may be due to effects of smoking or high salt intakes among others. The hardening of the blood vessels is referred to as atheroma or atherosclerosis. The migra...

Stroke is a metabolism syndrome whereby there is sudden death of the brain cells. It's commonly referred to as brain attack. The collapse of the brain cells is due to being deprived of nutrients and oxygen. Cells are units of life and must be feed. It's in the cells where metabolic activities take place. Food substances in form of nutrients are absorbed and wastes or toxins are released from the cells through the semi-permeable layer. Stroke is caused by a blockage of an artery feeding the brain with blood. The blockage may be caused by a blood clot (thrombosis). It may also be caused by a blood clot occurring in other parts of the body and especially the heart chambers and it is transported by the blood to block an artery supplying blood to the brain. This is called embolism. There may be cholesterol and calcium plaques that may break off from the walls of the blood vessels and are dislodged to block an artery, capillary, micro-capillary that feed the brain with blood. This w...

Gout is a condition whereby there is deposit of uric acids in the body as a result of the inability of the kidney to excrete these toxins. It is a hereditary condition in which the kidney manifests an inability to process and excrete wastes from the body such as the uric acids. How do you get gout? When the uric substances are deposited on the joints, the body immune system responds by sending chemicals to fight the perceived foreign substances. White blood cells and other pathogen-fighting chemicals engulf the area where the uric acids are deposited. This causes inflammation on the joints. The joints become swollen, painful, and sensitive and appear reddish. A burning sensation accompanies the pain. This is what is referred to as gouty arthritis. Therefore, gouty arthritis manifests on the joints such as the elbow, knees, wrists, fingers, and toes. When uric acids concentrate in the body fluids, this is referred to as hyperuricemia. It is worthy while noting that there is no direct ...

Fainting occurs due to a sudden reduced blood circulation in brain, which causes a short episode of loss of consciousness. Fainting may have no serious medical implication but at the same time, it could also occur as precedence to a serious medical disorder like stroke. Therefore, fainting should be treated as a medical emergency when it occurs. Learning first aid to fainting can help you when you feel faint thus being able to avert serious injuries when you go unconscious. At other times, you may prevent the actual fainting from occurring. These first aid measures can help you or someone who is about to be attacked by faint. What do you do when you feel like fainting? When you feel faint, you should lie down or just sit down. This act reduces the chances of fainting again. You should not try to get up too quickly. If you decide to sit as it may happen without your conscience, just try to put your head between your knees. What to do if someone else faints In case another person fa...

How can you know that you or another person is likely to get an episode of fainting? This is a question that many would like to get an answer because when you understand the signs, you are likely to put in preventive measures to avoid fainting and possible injuries. When you are attacked by an episode of fainting, you feel weak and quite unsteady before you pass out or become unconscious for a short period. A fainting incident will only last for a few seconds. Fainting may happen anywhere anytime whether you are sitting, driving, standing, working or resting in your bed. The most threatening aspect is that it occurs just too fast and could cause trouble if a person was operating a machine, driving or cooking because it can make a person fall on a machine, cause an accident when driving or even get burned by burning stove. So what are the warning symptoms? Before a person loses consciousness in a fainting attack, these are the signs and symptoms he or she would show; •  ...

What is fainting? It is an abrupt and short loss of consciousness as a result of reduced flow of blood to the brain leading to brain inactivity and loss of posture. This condition occurs when there is impaired blood circulation to the brain tissue prompting a temporary loss of activity by the brain. The patient looses consciousness for a short time and regains it again. Fainting is accompanied by a lack of firmness of muscles and this leads to falling of the patient. Fainting is also termed as syncope or passing out. When the brain fails to coordinate its activity during the reflex actions, this leads to lack of firmness of the muscle. Causes of fainting The most common type of fainting is called vasovagal attack. It can occur in children as well as adults. Vasovagal attack is caused by drop in blood pressure, which reduces the amount of blood being delivered to the brain. This causes a state of loss of consciousness. Syncope or a fainted situation also occurs when the heart fails to...

In an effort to understand what is diabetes, it is a condition whereby there is an increase in sugar (glucose) level in the blood.  The level of blood sugar is controlled by insulin, a substance which is synthesized and released by the pancreas. Glucose is used as food by the cells to sustain their life. Cells are the smallest unit of life in the body and must be fed to keep them alive and healthy to perform their function. The blood glucose is measured by HbA1c test. This is a measure of the percentage of hemoglobin in the red blood cells that has glucose in it. An ideal HbA1c level for well controlled diabetes is 7.0% Diabetes is grouped into; type i diabetes often referred to as diabetes inspidus. Type i diabetes occurs when the pancreas fails to synthesize insulin and the patients have to inject themselves of insulin. It's mainly found in persons less than 40 years including children and adults. Type 2 diabetes common referred to as diabetes mellitus occurs when the pancreas p...

To define what is asthma, it is a respiratory condition whereby a patient experiences difficulties in breathing. It manifests as a swelling and narrowing of the bronchi or bronchial tubes making the passing of air to and fro the nasal cavity and the lungs difficult. It's this interference in air passage that leads to a wheezing sound. Bronchi are the air passages through which oxygen into the lungs and carbon dioxide out of the lungs passes through. The swelling of the air passages is referred to as inflammation. To further understand what is asthma, it is an immune disorder whereby the immunity system reacts abnormally to substances that are otherwise regarded to be harmless to other people. It is often referred to as a misguided reaction. The body's defense system perceives the foreign substances as harmful and this triggers a reaction which causes asthma symptoms such as the swelling of the bronchial tubes. The reaction is called an allergy. The swollen air passages are sen...

Yes! The fight against HIV and Aids needs a proactive approach. This scourge must be tackled through a forefront manipulation of the understanding and protecting the society from the disease. The school pupils are like the charcoal by the fireplace. They are the next group of persons to be infected. Sound outreach programs in schools helps in creating an in-depth insight on how to live without getting in to the traps of being infected with the disease.  Beginning the war against HIV in the young people’s dimension is like uprooting a weed with its roots. Young people in schools need to be informed of the disease. The causes, symptoms, and prevention measures must exhaustively be taught in schools. Sometime, the society argues that introducing the young to topics related with sexual behaviors instills an immature indulgence in sex matters. However, it should be noted that young pupil in primary schools begin their puberty stage and it is in this part that they begin discovering ...