alternativemedicineresources.net

More often than not, the medicine that your doctor will prescribe you will contain a data sheet that contains a list of possible side effects that may occur if you use the product. Whilst some of these may be quite mild, others may make you not want to use the product.

You must however remember that for a drug to get its licence it need to be thoroughly tested on a number of willing patients. And it is the side effects that these patients report that may end up on the data sheet of the drug. It can sometimes be the case that a person on the trial may report heart palpitations when using the drug that have nothing to do with the drug but are perhaps related to the night out the clinical trialist had the previous evening.

If you are still unsure ask your GP.

Alternative medicine can work for a huge number of people in the UK but as in the case of standard prescription medicines you should always ask your GP before you take any medication.

Having problematic ear wax can be extremely uncomfortable, not to mention annoying for you and others. Excessive ear wax is common in younger children where the wax is often soft, and also in older people where the wax is often harder and more difficult to remove.

There are many different methods to remove ear wax but you should never try to manually remove the wax yourself. Putting items such as cotton wool buds inside the ear will impact the wax further down the ear canal and can damage the ear drum. You can buy several over the counter remedies that claim to disperse ear wax but often do little more then just soften the wax – in the same way that putting a few drops of olive oil in the ear would do.

The best way to get rid of ear wax for good is to visit your doctor who will either use ear irrigation to remove the wax or will refer you to an audiology specialist who will use an ultrasonic device to dislodge the wax and remove it from the ear. Both these methods are uncomfortable but they offer the best results.

If you are looking for an alternative treatment you could try ear candling. This method uses a hollow candle that is inserted into the ear and then lit. The negative pressure created is supposed to draw the wax out of the ear. You should always consult a trained alternative health practitioner before opting from ear candling.

If you have dry skin you will sympathise with my problem because my skin is very dry, especially at the bottom of my legs. Interestingly enough my face is quite oily so I guess the glands that moisturise my skin were all used up when my face was being created and there were not enough to go around the rest of my skin! Every day after my shower I have to moisturise my whole body. The best creams I have found are the Body Shop’s Vitamin E moisturiser or Palmers Coco Butter as they soak in nicely and don’t leave a greasy feeling. This problem gets better in the summer so I cannot wait for the warm weather to arrive. For the little dry patches that sometimes appear I use intensive vitamin E face cream a few times a day. It takes them away in a few days!

The modern workplace usually consists of rows of people sitting at desks, using a computer and talking on the phone. Unless you are really lucky and have a job that involves moving around, you will probably be sat in the same position for hours on end. This is really bad for your back and even with workplace assessments and health and safety measures being taken, it is not surprising that most people who have a desk job suffer from some sort of strain or pain. I am no exception to this but the methods I take to relieve the strain include Pilates which helps your core muscles get stronger and aids in flexibility and also massage. I aim to get a deep tissue massage once a month in order to relieve the pressure and relax me. It is very much recommended and helps my back cope with the constant slumping that a desk job promotes.

As an occasional sufferer of eczema I know how irritating it can be so here are a few alternative remedies or preventatives which can help stop a flare up. My eczema is caused mostly by my allergy to animals so try and eliminate allergens, these can also include products that touch your skin ie. your washing powder, creams or perfumes. Keep an eye on your diet – it may be that different foods trigger your eczema, these could be milk or wheat.

Another alternative medicine remedy for eczema is to avoid sunbathing as this can aggravate your skin and the heat can also cause your condition to worsen. Most importantly eczema is primarily caused by stress so avoid getting stressed out!!

There’s definitely an argument that mind over matter works. If you set your mind on getting better when you feel ill it seems remarkable that you start feeling better soon after. You may notice this more when there’s an event you really want to go to that you need to be well for! Your body is its own healer and there are a range of things you can do when you have a small headache, sore throat or a small ailment that will make it go away. The age old ‘an apple a day keeps the doctor away’ will help because you are putting vitamins into your body and providing your body with fibre. Getting an early night will also help you to feel better as your body goes into recover mode when you sleep. For a headache, get someone to give you a shoulder rub, or instead just massage your temples and around your eyes. These little things really do make a difference.

It’s January and most people have made New Year’s Resolutions to get fit and lose that extra Christmas weight. I have just asked around the office and almost 90% of my colleagues have just joined or are currently a long-standing member of a Gym. I feel put to shame. Tonight when I get home I shall dig out my Shilpa Shetty Yoga DVD (yes, I have one that was purchased from the Pound shop – poor Shilpa!) and do an hour of Yoga, followed by a hundred sit-ups. I shall also eat fish and vegetables for my tea. That definitely sounds like a plan, and I bet I don’t ache tomorrow, as much as my friend who has been complaining about his tough gym session two days ago!

Prince Charles has recently been in discussion with the UK Government’s Health Secretary, Andy Burnham, in an effort to introduce laws that will stop any unregistered health advisor from selling on alternative medicine remedies to the general public.

The Prince hopes that by April of 2011, the law will be in place, not just in the UK, but with jurisdiction within the EU as well.

It is estimated that the residents of the UK alone spend over £1.5 billion on the various alternative medicines, yet we have no registration process for sellers to provide the medicines – which basically means anyone can sell anything to everyone.

Some predict that by introducing laws which may restrict some un-registered practitioners, it will create a black market for alternative medicines. This could then also affect the price they could be bought for, and the quality of some of the herbal products.

Hopefully with the Princes backing, the law will passed and the herbal market can gain some stability and provide the patients a professional service.

It was at the University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff, that a mix up in the correct dosage of medication lead to the death of one of their patients. Mr Paul Smith, aged 46, was recuperating after going through an operation during which a stent was implanted in to an artery to ease his heart condition.

It was during this recuperating period that he was administered the incorrect dosage of Clopidogrel. This drug is prescribed to patients to help to prevent the blood from clotting.

The incorrect dose was given over a month period, after which, the hospital then discharged Mr Smith. It was several weeks later that Mr Smith started suffering as a blood clot formed in his heart. Mr Smith was admitted back to hospital for urgent treatment to relieve the pressure on his heart, that he was experiencing from the clot.
The hospital staff tried to drain the fluid build up around his heart, but Mr Smith unfortunately died when his liver was punctured in the process.

The coroner reported that the dosage of Cloidogrel that was given to Mr Smith over the month period was actually sufficient to cover one year.

This intense amount over such a short period of time left his body unprotected shortly after he had his last dose. Coroner blames miscommunication between hospital staff and a failure to spot the problem which Mr Smith was still in hospital has raised awareness for better checking procedures to be carried out.

Laser Eye Treatment is such an up and coming F A N T A S T I C treatment that my girlfriend went through. She has been wearing glasses for over 25 years and because of some strange reason the doctor has advised that her that the glasses arms are rubbing that much on the backs of her ears she is getting horrendous dry skin which in turn is turning her into a angry in pain psycho.

The first solution was to wear contact lenses but these made her get dry eyes or she would forget to take them out and wake in the morning in lots of pain. The second solution was a monocle style of glasses which made me wet myself as she looked like a modern day Sherlock Holmes or Dr Watson, either she couldn’t take the ridicule so she opted for Laser Eye Treatment which as she describes in her own words as better than anything she has ever tried when it come to a solution or pain relief.

She now can see perfectly and hopefully this will stay that way as her driving is better, her cooking taste nice so all in all a great investment.