Are energy-saving bulbs safe?

Energy-saving and money-saving bulbs, the compact fluorescent bulbs are not safe to incandescent light bulbs which we used for decades. The fused incandescent bulbs can be thrown to the waste and it is not dangerous to the environment or persons dealing with these wastes. On the other hand, the energy-saving and money-saving compact fluorescent bulbs are not safe for the environment and to humans. The reason is this energy-saving bulb contains mercury, a toxic metal.

Why do the energy-saving bulbs need mercury? Compact fluorescent light bulbs are tubes containing mercury and noble gases, mostly argon. When the bulb is switched on, electrons stream from a tungsten-coated coil. They collide with mercury atoms, exciting their electrons and creating flashes of ultraviolet light. A phosphor coating, mostly composed of metal oxides or phosphates, on the inside of the tube absorbs this light and re-emits it at visible wavelengths. That is why without mercury there are no energy-saving bulbs. The new generation bulb has 5 mg mercury. The first-generation CFL bulbs had 100 mg mercury.

If an energy-saving bulb is broken in a room the whole room will be contaminated with mercury. You cannot clean this room by yourself. You need special companies who decontaminate the whole room that costs you a fortune, around $ 2000. If you cannot afford this, the contaminated room can only be sealed.

If we throw the used bulbs in the garbage the broken bulbs can release mercury. This can contaminate the environment, soil and even the ground water. Persons who collect the garbage or sort them out are also in danger with mercury.

There are already studies that prove the adverse effects of these energy-saving and money-saving bulbs. We must save energy, but not at the cost of our health. These bulbs must be treated as special wastes, collected and recycled. Unfortunately, the available recycling facilities and capacities are not worth to mention.

The industry must produce only safe products. If profit is the only aim then such things happens quickly in the name of energy-saving. The consumers must be careful and the law-makers should not forget their responsibilities.

What do you say about crash diets before Christmas and New Year to enjoy the parties?

It is a problem every year for many women. The parties are coming. The beautiful dress must sit well. Parties with alcohol, snacks and good food are in plenty to attend. Parties are good for the Christmas and New Year. During this time more alcohol is consumed even after the parties and more junk foods are also eaten. Many try with crash diets to manage this problem before Christmas.

Is it normal and healthy? No, it is not healthy. If you eat very little the body gets not enough nutrients to run the metabolism properly. The metabolism slows down very much. This means that you put on weight even with minimum intake of normal food. That means it takes long time for the metabolism to be normal once again. In this dangerous period many put on too much weight.

Eat healthy throughout the year and regular physical activities help you to keep your weight under control.

You need not sacrifice the Christmas Turkey or the New Year parties. Move enough after these and this helps you to be fit.

Crash dieting can cause many health problems. If it is practiced very often the life expectancy is also reduced.

You can plan everything in a good way. You know your body very well. Alcohol, food or whatever it may be, excess is always bad for our health. It is a process to learn how to eat well without suffering. If the will is there it is easy to lose the few kilos weight put on during Christmas and New Year very easily.

We all enjoy the Christmas and New Year Eve with wonderful food with our families and friends…

Is plastic surgery safe? What are the dangers and risks?

The desire to look beautiful made plastic surgery very common not only among the rich. Today many teenagers get plastic surgery gifts from their parents’. The single largest plastic surgery made is breast enlargement in our world. Only 4% are the essential after breast cancer. The rest is to enhance the beauty only. The average age is coming down and down for breast enlargement and it is at present just above 30 years. Even 18 years old teenagers are allowed to have saline breast enlargements.

The usual beauty corrections include:

• Breasts enlargement
• Removal of wrinkles with Botox
• Liposuction on waist, thighs and even on neck
• Mini brow lift
• Nose correction
• Ears pinned back
• Chin reduction
• Fat injection in lips and cheeks
• Buttocks augmentation

Plastic surgery for cosmetic reasons has its own advantages and disadvantages. A corrected nose or ears have made many very happy. The other extreme case is breasts enlargement. Here many women suffer a lot because of different health problems. Many must understand that the fault lies not in their breasts, but only in their brains. This can solve many problems. It is not only the large sum of the money spent but also the risks must be weighed before a plastic surgery.

It is very important to find a good plastic surgeon for your operation. There are many who are very costly, but very bad too. The common dangers and risks from the plastic surgery include:

• Pain and discomfort
• Bleeding – accumulation of clotted blood under the skin
• Seromas – accumulation of tissue fluids under the skin
• Infection
• Scarring
• Necrosis – death of tissues
• Nerve damage
• Risks due to anesthesia
• Death – excessive and repeated plastic surgery can change the structure of the body and there are death cases too

The problems associated with breast enlargement are many although the procedures have relatively improved in safety. But, the serious short- and long-term dangers and risks are always there. There are many mega studies on this subject and the problems include:

• Bleeding
• Chronic pain
• Infection
• Nipple and breast numbness
• Painfully sensitive nipples
• Scars
• Breakage of implants
• Leakage of implants
• Necrosis – the skin death
• More surgeries
• Patients dissatisfaction with her new breasts
• Physical and emotional disturbances

Studies show that women undergone breast enlargement surgery has more suicide risk than the average women. Other studies point out the increased risks for arthritis, rheumatic arthritis and joint stiffness in later life. The other health problems reported are numbness and stiffness in the hands, arms and feet, headaches and muscle pains.

There are no studies available on the negative effects on breastfeeding. Therefore, young women who want to have babies later must be very careful in their decisions to have a breast enlargement surgery.

Plastic surgery is also a surgery and so the necessary blood and physical tests must be done by your doctor to confirm whether you are fit for an operation or not. Have at least two opinions before you decide for a plastic surgery.

Can I drink alcohol when taking common painkillers?

Before I answer this question I would like to say that the pharmaceutical industry and alcohol industry have highly influential lobbies. This can be seen if you go through the literature and even many medical scientists say that a particular amount of alcohol is not a problem. But, we should not forget alcohol is always a problem and excess intake of painkillers is also a big problem. You can give many reasons to say it is harmless; but, it is a bad combination is the truth. Alcohol can increase the side effects of the painkillers or it can increase the drowsiness which can lead to accidents on the road or in the factory.

Overdose of painkillers are possible if you drink alcohol. With the negative influence of the alcohol many tend to take overdose and this can be fatal.

There are two different groups of painkillers; the over the counter painkillers from the pharmacies and the prescription painkillers. Prescription painkillers are very strong painkillers. We can see here the effect of alcohol on some of the mostly used painkillers in our world. These include:

• Aspirin and ibuprofen – these are over the counter painkillers. The common side effects of aspirin include heartburn, nausea, upset stomach, bloody stools, confusion, dizziness, drowsiness, severe or persistent stomach pain and vomiting. In the case of ibuprofen the side effects include dizziness, headache, nausea, gas, stomach pain or upset, bloody stools, chest pain, confusion, depression, fainting, fast or irregular heartbeat, seizures, shortness of breath, yellowing of the skin or eyes and vomiting. With these side effects alcohol has no place with aspirin and ibuprofen. The recommendation of 3 to 4 drinks for men and 2 to 3 drinks for women is only industry friendly and can do much harm to the patient who really needs a painkiller. Alcohol may increase the side effects, such as bleeding in the stomach or intestine by irritating the stomach. Stomach inflammation or ulceration can be made worse with alcohol.
• Paracetamol or Acetaminophen – this is also an over the counter painkiller. It is relatively safe in therapeutic doses. The overdose can cause side effects and these include nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite, sweating, extreme tiredness, unusual bleeding or bruising, pain in the upper right part of the stomach, yellowing of the skin or eyes and flu-like symptoms. Excess paracetamol can damage liver and here also the alcohol can only increase the side effects. Therefore, painkillers and alcohol cannot go together.

The side effects can be experienced only up to 10% of the persons taking the painkillers are not an argument to drink alcohol. If you take over the counter or prescription drugs you must avoid alcohol completely.

Strong pain killers like codeine, dihydrocodeine, tramadol, morphine, meperidine or others need prescription from the doctors. Considering the side effects of the above strong painkillers, particularly drowsiness, your doctor advises you normally not to take alcohol.

Can you explain me infant jaundice?

Infant jaundice is a yellow discoloration in a newborn baby’s eyes and skin. It occurs because the baby’s blood contains excess bilirubin, a yellow-colored pigment that is released when the red blood cells dies. It is a common condition in babies born before 36 weeks of gestation. The baby’s liver is not mature enough to remove the excess bilirubin from the blood. In few cases an underlying disease may cause jaundice.

Signs of infant jaundice normally appear between the second to fourth days of life. They include:

• Yellowing of the skin
• Yellowing of the eyes

The yellow coloration starts first in the baby’s face and later it can be seen in the eyes, chest, abdomen, arms and legs. The easy check is to find whether the infant has jaundice or not is to press the baby’s forehead or tip of the nose. If the baby has jaundice the pressed areas become yellow. This should be done in day light only.

Bilirubin is a waste when aged red blood cells are broken down. Mother’s liver filters the bilirubin before birth. The newborn infant has high amount of red blood cells and mostly the liver is not mature enough to remove all the bilirubin formed quickly to the intestinal tract. It is normal in infants and that is why it is called physiologic jaundice. Bilirubin is removed mostly in the stool.

There may be other causes for the infant jaundice. In this case it will be much earlier or much later than the physiologic jaundice. Infection of the blood or bacterial, viral infections, liver malfunction, abnormal red blood cells, internal bleeding or enzyme deficiency can be other causes. Sometimes, the incompatibility of baby’s and mother’s blood can cause jaundice.

The risk factors for infant jaundice include premature birth, bruising during birth and different blood group of the mother and baby. Poor breastfeeding is also an important risk factor for infantile jaundice. It is because of low calories received and dehydration.

The symptoms of excess bilirubin in the blood include fever, high-pitched crying, difficult to wake, poor sucking or feeding and backward arching of the neck and body. Bilirubin is toxic to brain cells. If not treated quickly they can cause permanent brain damages.

The peak level of bilirubin is normally when the baby is three to five days old. In the hospital during these days bilirubin are often monitored in the blood. If you delivery your baby in the home then the attending nurse or doctor must take care of this. Mild infant jaundice mostly disappears without any treatment in two to three weeks. If it is moderate or severe the baby must be treated immediately in the home or must be admitted in a hospital. Necessary treatments as well as the right feeding are necessary to bring down the bilirubin level.