alternativemedicineresources.net

The Ukraine has recently been hit by an outbreak of a flu virus, which has affected over 1 million people to date. Travellers to the country have been alerted to take protective measures if they still wish to travel there, as the wide spread illness looks to be to unfolding to become a pandemic.

What started in the summer of this year ion isolated areas is now nationwide and thought to be a virus related to that of the human swine flu sickness.

The World Health Organisation have been making studies across the Ukraine region in an effort to pin point the epicentre of the virus outbreak and are looking at ways of stemming its movement by introducing vaccinations to the population.

Check Ukraine tourist information prior to departure for updates on affected areas if you are planning to journey to the country.

Fears that the levels of clinically obese people in Northern Ireland could rise so high that in 40 years time the health service won’t be able to cope under the sheer volume of obese patients requiring treatment.

The forecast predicts that 50% of women and at least two thirds of men will fall into this category by 2050 and require medical help. At present within Northern Ireland around 450 deaths per year have stemmed from obesity related problems, and its estimated that the average life expectancy has been reduced by nine years because if it.

To combat the problem, the Northern Irish health council are recommending compulsory classes for school children on food education and are looking at implementing advertising bans on unhealthy foods, plus there is the consideration to introduce a traffic light system on food packaging highlighting any products with high sugars, salts and fats.

There has been £800,000 GBP set aside to assist with the programme in Northern Ireland, but this seems low when compared to Scotland’s annual allocation several million pounds to tackle their obesity problems.

We’ve all seen Derren Brown on the television using powers of hypnosis on random people as way to manipulate their senses to get them to do or think something which is not actually true or real.

The mind is a powerful tool that works constantly for us, taking in sounds, smells, differing tastes and touches that are all interpreted by the brain and then tells us what is it and what to do.

Hypnosis is the modification of patients thought patterns which then lead to behavioural changes. By inducing a trace state on a subject, the hypnotist can alter the perceptions of the patient whilst in this state to address stress related issues, certain pains a patient may be suffering or to stop ongoing bad habits like smoking or excessive drinking.

Not everyone is susceptible to hypnosis, and not all of those that undergo the process benefit from being hypnotised. Do some research first and find a professional to see how you could benefit from this type of treatment.

Massages have always been used as a relaxant, to de-stress the body and relieve tight muscles from aches and pains. A relatively new method of massage that is becoming popular as an alternative to prescription medicines is deep tissue massage.

Deep tissue massage provides relief from chronic muscle issues and problems relating to connective tissue. As these massages are penetrating deeper to the core of muscles, the movements associated with a deep massage are usually slower and more pressured than an ordinary massage. This is to re-align the deep muscles which are causing the problem.

The patient can experience some pain while undergoing a deep tissue massage, as not only are the fingers used, but the masseuse will use their elbows, palms and knuckles to manipulate pressure on the muscle, hard enough to have an effect.

It’s not suitable for pregnant women or those recovering from surgery. Nor should it be done if the patient has any bruising or unhealed wounds close to the area that requires treatment. Prior to booking your deep tissue massage, always seek professional medical advice from either a doctor qualified masseuse.

Green tea has been considered very beneficial to a person’s health for some time now. The primary bonus is that green tea is high in antioxidants which can help as a preventive measure to illness leading to cancer and heart disease. Because of its natural ingredients, and the fact its leaves are not fermented prior to brewing, the tea is also low in caffeine.

Recent research has found that there are further health benefits from drinking green tea on a regular basis, such as:

Prevention of strokes occurring. Up to three cups a day could reduce your risk by 21%.

Improved health of gums and teeth. By sipping a green tea drink per day research showed reductions in patients of periodontal disease, or as it is more commonly known – gum disease.

Reduction of stress. The presence of amino acid L-theanine within green tea lends itself to bring on relaxation and relieve stress.

The eastern religions have long supported and promoted the use of alternative medicines. One method as used by the Indian Hindu school of thought is healing stones on your body’s chakras points. This has only become apparent to the western civilisation in recent years, but is being introduced in the UK as the country expands its cultural awareness and diversity.

Chakras are points along the body, with the main seven chakras positioned along nerve points up and down the spinal column. There are smaller chains of chakras along the arms and legs, but it is thought that those along the length of the spine are the most affected by the placement of healing stones.

The recommended healing stones are specific to certain chakras points and to specific ailments. The colour of the stones is also linked the differing limbs with chakras points. The size also affects the strength of the stone.

There are qualified practitioners who will diagnose what is the best fit remedy using healing stones, or alternatively, you can become self taught in this area and purchase stones of varying qualities via the web.

A popular alternative that more and more people are choosing is acupuncture. This process involves the patient lying down and having very thin needles inserted in to specific areas of the body, that are left in for around 30 minutes.

The instruments used are called filiform needles, which penetrate the skin along the bodies meridians for pain relieve and improve, well being and Qi (pronounced ch’i).

Originating from China, acupuncture has been used for centuries as a remedy for a variety of illnesses and complaints. It first came under scrutiny from western civilisation scientific research in the 20th century, and to this day, there are still sceptics in the medical field who doubt the healing benefits of acupuncture.

Should you wish to try acupuncture for any aliment you have, first research within your local area any qualified alternative health centres where acupuncture is undertaken. As well as addressing health problems, acupuncture has been used for addressing addictions like smoking. They will ensure that all needles are sterilised, and discuss with you first the health problems you have, to make sure they pin point (no pun intended) the correct meridian zones, relevant to the health issue.

It has been discovered that more than one in four adult smokers now use pouch tobacco and roll-up cigarettes, with a considerably increase in the amount of female users.

An analyst approach of smoking habits in England suggests a cultural shift in the use of tobacco, now more favoured than conventional cigarettes. In 1990, just one in fifty female smokers used hand-rolled tobacco, compared with the one in five in 2007. The apparent increase is due to users believing the roll-up trend to be more fashionable than the conventional cigarette. Smoking related diseases have risen by 1.2mn to 1.4mn since 1997.

The new 12.7bn project to upgrade the NHS computers has believed to have had an effect on the computers and caused glitches on the system. This has resulted in a six-month wait for patients. The Department of Health has said that patients shouldn’t wait more than eighteen-weeks, unless they choose to.

The group which brought about this new technology, Barts and the London NHS Trust have a backlog of twenty-thousand patient records on its 18-week waiting list. Many of the twenty-thousand are suspected to be duplicates, but a good fourteen-thousand are believed to be genuine patient records.

Current charges for NHS patients and their visitors are to be axed, the government has announced. The NHS in England earns nearly 112 million from the car parking fees every year, which ministers have claimed helps pay for running costs  and the use of public transport.

Andy Burnham, the health secretary has claimed that if his party win the election, these charges will be cancelled for three years; however, he also claimed: “When people are coming in to hospital, the last thing they want to worry about is keeping the car parking ticket up-to-date,” Mr Burnham told the Labour Party Conference in Brighton today. “But, for families of the sickest patients, the costs can really rack up”.