Some foods punch well above their weight in helping to reduce cholesterol levels, we call them'cholesterol busters. Choosing a healthy diet, low in saturated fat is important in helping to keep your cholesterol low but you can reduce your cholesterol levels further by including these super six foods in your everyday diet.

Super food 1 - soya foods
Being naturally low in saturated fat, soya foods help lower cholesterol. The special proteins in soya also appear to influence how the body regulates cholesterol too. Studies show you can lower your cholesterol by around 6% by including as little as 15g soya protein per day.

Choose from: soya alternatives to milk and yogurt, soya desserts, soya meat alternatives, soya nuts, edamame beans and tofu.

Super food 2 - nuts
All nuts are rich in vegetable protein, fibre, heart healthy unsaturated fats, vitamin e, magnesium, potassium, natural plant sterols and a host of beneficial plant nutrients. 30-35g a day of nuts (a handful) has the potential to lower cholesterol by an average of 5%.

Super food 3 - oats and barley
Both oats and barley are rich in a form of soluble fibre called beta glucan. Once eaten beta glucan forms a gel which helps bind cholesterol in the intestines and prevent it from being absorbed. It is recommended that we eat about 3g of beta glucan per day. Foods which contain 1g or more of beta glucan can carry a cholesterol lowering claim.

Super food 4 -foods fortified with plant sterols and stanols
Plant sterols are structurally similar to cholesterol and can be divided into sterols and stanols. Their cholesterol lowering effects have been known for some time.

Plant sterols/stanols are naturally found in a wide range of foods such as vegetable oils, nuts, seeds, whole grains, fruits and vegetables. However, for most people, it is not possible to achieve the optimum intake from ordinary foods.

Super food 5 - fruits and vegetables
All fruits and vegetables are low in saturated fat so eating more helps to keep saturated fat intake low. Fruit and vegetables are also a valuable source of cholesterol lowering soluble fibres. Try to include at least one pulse (beans, peas, lentils) everyday. Other rich sources of soluble fibre include sweet potato, aubergene, okra (ladies finger), broccoli, apples, strawberry and prunes.

Super food 6 - foods rich in unsaturated fats
Keeping our daily saturated fat intake below 20g (women) and 30g (men) is vital for cholesterol lowering, but it is equally important to replace this saturated fat with modest amounts of unsaturated fats such as those found in olive, sunflower, corn, rapeseed and other vegetable, nut and seed oils. Other foods rich in unsaturated fats include vegetable spreads, avocado, oily fish and nuts. Avoid coconut and palm oil as, unlike other these vegetable oils, they are rich in saturated fats.

6 Super Foods That Actively Help Lower Cholesterol

Intercourse is meant to be a pleasurable and intimate experience. But it might become an unpleasant act if you are suffering from performance anxiety. When you are mentally occupied by questions such as "Do I look too fat?" or "Did I do that right?", sex stops being a gratifying experience.

Incessant anxiety over your ability or appearance can result in sex becoming nerve-wracking and stressful for you. It might even have you avoiding sex altogether. This psychological condition is termed as sexual performance anxiety.

Sex isn't only a physical reaction, there are emotions tied to it as well. If you are too stressed out and your mind is preoccupied, your body reflects your inner turmoil and you cannot get aroused.

Causes
The causes of sexual performance anxiety include:
1. Fear that you wouldn't be able to satisfy your partner and perform well sexually
2. Body image issues (Such as stressing about your weight)
3. Problems in your relationship
4. Men worry that their penis don't 'measure' up
5. Men might be concerned about taking too much time to orgasm, or about premature ejaculation
6. Women worry about not enjoying the experience or being unable to have an orgasm

Symptoms
Your mental state has a deep impact on your physical state. The effect of stress hormones norepinephrine and epinephrine can hinder your sexual performance. Symptoms of sexual performance anxiety include:

1. In men, blood vessels constrict due to the effect of stress hormones. This leads to reduced blood flow to the penis, thus making it difficult for the man to get an erection.

2. Often though it is less diagnosed in women, sexual performance anxiety leads to trouble in lubrication during sex. Lack of lubrication dims the desire to have sex.

Sexual performance anxiety is a vicious, inescapable cycle. Increased anxiety hampers you from having sex, making you think you won't be able to perform well, which causes even more anxiety.

Treatment
Consult a doctor you will be comfortable with discussing your problems. Sexual performance can be either treated by medication (if you have an underlying medical condition such as erectile dysfunction) or through therapy.

Talking to a therapist or counsellor about your problems can help you in several ways. You can learn to become more comfortable with yourself and your body. You can also understand your problems better, which can eliminate your anxiety.

All About Sexual Performance Anxiety

Ulcerative Colitis is one of the severe and chronic forms of Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) that can throw life in a jeopardy. The condition that mainly affects the rectum and the large intestine can cause severe inflammation, ulceration, and abscess formation. The ulceration or the inflammation of the colon and the rectum left unattended for too long can give rise to deleterious consequences including damage and perforation of the colon, osteoporosis. Various studies also suggest that ulcerative colitis can increase the risk of a person suffering colon cancer.

Like most of the IBD, there is no definite cure for ulcerative colitis. The illness is a chronic condition and can flare up or recur at any point in time. Though medications may help to control the damage and the complications triggered by ulcerative colitis, a surgery may be essential in case of

Severe damage to the colon.
The nonsurgical treatments could do little to improve the conditions.
There is an increased risk of colon cancer.
Ulcerative colitis has resulted in Toxic megacolon (a life-threatening condition where the large intestinal muscles have dilated with some swelling).
There are extreme discomfort and bleeding.
Surgeries to deal with Ulcerative Colitis

In the case of Ulcerative Colitis, the nature of the surgery depends on the extent to which the colon or the rectum or both have been affected and damaged.
In the case of extensive damage with a high risk of colon cancer, the surgeon may perform Proctocolectomy or colectomy
Colectomy may involve
Removal of all of the colon- Total Colectomy
Removal of the diseased part of the colon- Partial Colectomy.
Following the excision, the surgeon may carry out necessary rearrangements to reconnect the remaining portion of the colon to the abdomen through an opening known as stroma (the procedure is known as colostomy).
In case of Total Colectomy, the small intestine will be connected to the abdomen by a process known as Ileostomy.
Proctocolectomy involves the removal of both the rectum and colon to avoid further aggravation.
Following the proctocolectomy, the surgeon may carry out Ileoanal Anastomosis (Ileal Pouch-Anal Anastomosis). In this procedure, a pouch is created using a small part of the small intestine. This pouch is then connected to the anus to help in the elimination of the wastes.
General precautionary measures to control Ulcerative Colitis
Making healthy lifestyle and dietary modifications can go a long way to control ulcerative colitis and the associated symptoms.

Spicy foods can worsen the incidence of ulcerative colitis. Enrich your diet with lots of fruits, vegetables (squash, avocados, fish (especially salmon and tuna), meat, dairy products, olive oil, walnuts, flaxseed oil, almonds.
Make sure the diet is a low-fiber diet.
Avoid alcoholic and caffeinated drinks and beverages, foods high in sulfur content, refined sugar.
Research suggests stress and lack of physical activities can aggravate the ulcerative colitis. Mediation and daily exercise can produce fruitful results.
Make sure your sleep is not compromised (6-8 hours daily).

Ulcerative Colitis - How Surgery Can Help Manage It?

Are you looking for effective and natural ways to prevent heart blockage and blood pressure management? You should consider taking Ayurvedic measures, which have been proven to be quite effective in dealing with various issues of the heart. Usually, heart blockages are difficult to deal with and a surgery has to be carried out for recovery. With Ayurvedic remedies, you can solve such issues without the concern of harmful side effects on your body.

Ayurvedic management of heart blockage
For effective prevention and management of heart blockages, you need to create a certain Ayurvedic medicine using basic ingredients.

Mix lemon, ginger, apple vinegar and garlic together and boil on a light flame.
After the quantity gets reduced, leave the mixture to cool.
After this, add some honey in the solution, and store it in a bottle for use. You have to take this medicine every morning after waking up.
Note all the ingredients are chosen for their unique and beneficial features.
Lemon contains more than 19 qualities, and garlic and ginger are good for dealing with gastric issues. Apple cider vinegar is given great importance in Ayurveda, and honey is good for your blood. Hence, this medicine is ideal for treating heart blockages effectively.
Ayurvedic management of blood pressure
High blood pressure or Rakta Gata Vata refers to an elevation in the pressure of blood in your arteries. The increase in pressure is based upon your age, activities, diet, and medical history.

The Ayurvedic remedies for the prevention and control of blood pressure include the following:

Avoid consuming eggs, meat, tea, coffee, pickles and table salt.
Abstain from smoking.
Increase your intake of food items such as lemon, garlic, parsley, grapefruit, cottage cheese, Indian gooseberry, and watermelon.
Engage in regular exercise as it is important for lowering and preventing your chances of high blood pressure.
Laugh a lot and keep away from anxiety and stress factors.
Make a juice of garlic cloves, wheat grass and basil leaves. Have this regularly for reduced chances of high blood pressure.
Mix onion juice with honey and have the mixture every day.
Make a paste using garlic and buttermilk, and drink it regularly.
Grind roasted watermelon seeds, add water to the powder, strain the liquid, and have it twice every day.
It is important for you to visit an Ayurvedic practitioner before starting to take Ayurvedic measures for heart blockage or high blood pressure on your own. This will ensure that you are prescribed the best measures by a qualified and experienced doctor.

Heart Blockage & Blood Pressure - How Ayurveda Can Help You Prevent It?

Throat cancer is a broad term used to cover cancer across a number of organs in the oronasal passage   right from the nasopharynx, oropharynx, glottis, epiglottis to supraglottis. Minus the medical terms, it means anywhere from the back of the nose and throat to the where the neck ends. The mucous cells along this path can undergo changes and begin multiplying rapidly, leading to cancer. The following are some additional risk factors:

Cigarette smoking
Tobacco abuse
History of human papilloma virus (HPV)
Alcohol abuse
Poor dental hygiene
Family history
Cigarette smoking is the most important of all, and a person can significantly reduce the risk by cutting down smoking. The throat has different types of linings and gland tissue, and depending on the cell type affected, the type of cancer could vary.

Symptoms: Throat cancer diagnosis can get delayed as the symptoms are very similar to a throat infection.

Sore throat: A sore throat that lasts for weeks together is often a cause for concern and requires ruling out underlying serious problem. Having associated risk factors is a good way to see if ruling out cancer is needed.
Cough: A cough that does not go away is a cause for concern. This is often associated with other symptoms mentioned here.
Voice change: Usually hoarseness of the voice, which is painless and not accompanied by a throat infection, is an indication of throat cancer.
Difficulty swallowing or breathing: Depending on where the cancer is located, there could be problems in either free breathing or swallowing. The developing mass gets in the way of free air and/or food movement.
Lumpy feeling in the throat: If the developing mass is along the length of the throat, then there could be a lumpy feeling, as if something is caught in the throat and not going down.
Bleeding: There could be bleeding either through the nose or the mouth, depending on the place of the cancer. Again, this is one of the late symptoms and not seen in the beginning.
Unexplained weight loss: As with any cancer, throat cancer also leads to unexplained weight loss.
Depending on the area affected, the symptoms can point to the location. For instance, voice changes are often associated with laryngeal cancer. A combination of risk factor assessment and symptoms will help in pinning down the diagnosis. Reach out to the doctor as soon as you notice something is wrong, as early diagnosis is very good for timely intervention and improving prognosis.

Throat cancer - Symptoms to watch for!

Pneumonia is an infection of the lungs. It leads to inflammation of the lungs which is filled with fluid or pus. It can range from being mild to severe depending on a person s health and age. Pneumonia can be caused by a variety of germs including bacteria, virus, and fungi. It can become life-threatening and dangerous for people:

Infants and children aged between 2 to 5 years
Older people aged above 65 years
Those who have a weak immune system or have other forms of respiratory problems
Pneumonia can be contracted from different places and can become risky when:

Bacterial pneumonia can easily be contracted from hospital and healthcare which is termed as community-acquired pneumonia. The chances of acquiring pneumonia can increase if are on the ventilator.
Alcohol- Having excessive or regular alcohol can lead to worsening of your pneumonia
If you are exposed to animals like birds, rabbits and rats, then the chances of you contracting pneumonia might be greater.
If you have some medical problems like heart or kidney disease, then your pneumonia can get worse. The situation may be particularly precarious for asthma patients.
Smoking also makes you more susceptible to pneumonia.
Having a weak immunity due to HIV, asplena, poor nutrition and also chemotherapy can lead to worsening of bacterial pneumonia.
Some symptoms of bacterial pneumonia may include:

Coughing that may produce mucus
Fever with shaking and sweating
Chest pain
Nausea and Vomiting
Low body temperature
Shortness of breath
Newborns and infants having pneumonia may not show any symptoms that make it difficult to detect the disease. Also when you have mild symptoms, it is termed as walking pneumonia.

Diagnosis:
If you have pneumonia, then you should consult a doctor who will prescribe a few tests:

Blood test-It is mainly done to identify the germ causing the disease
Chest X-Ray- It helps the doctor locate the exact position of pneumonia.
Pulse Oximetry- It measures the oxygen level in a person s body.
Sputum Test- Fluid from your lungs is taken and tested to know the cause of infection.
Additional tests may be advised by your doctor that includes CT scan and Pleural fluid culture.
Treatments:
For mild or walking pneumonia, doctors may prescribe certain antibiotics and cough medicines to treat pneumonia. Within a week or two, your lung will start to clear up and you will feel better. Moreover, have enough fluid and sleep and do not smoke.

However, if you fall in the risky category and are experiencing pneumonia symptoms even after having medicines, you should get yourself or your child hospitalized. But there are ways to prevent pneumonia like giving vaccinations to your children and washing your hands. Also, lessen your smoking or stop altogether. So don t let pneumonia turn into a life-threatening disease by following these simple measures. Consult your doctor immediately if have any of the pneumonia symptoms and fall in the category of   infants and children, people above 65 years of age and people with low immunity.

What Is Pneumonia And Why Can It Be So Deadly?

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