Dr. Philip Thomas

MRI or Magnetic Resonance Imaging is a process of reproducing images from the structures & organs of the insides of the body on the computer screen with the help of energy pulses generated from the radio waves using a magnetic field placed inside a special machine.

MRI is used to diagnose various medical conditions like internal injuries or bleeding, rupture of blood vessels & other internal infections. However, an MRI scan is also useful for diagnosis of brain tumors, brain strokes, spinal tumors, bone tumors, ruptured ligaments, breast cancers, aneurysm etc. MRI scan is also used to detect problems in liver, gallbladder, kidneys, eyes and ears that are otherwise unrecognisable.

On comparing it with other similar imaging processes like ultrasound imaging, CT scans & X-rays, you will come across the following facts:

1. MRI can effortlessly produce images from different directions & orientations of one particular structure.
2. MRI is also helpful for getting detailed & precise images of soft tissues in comparison to similar imaging processes.
3. MRI provides a macroscopic overview of the body in contrast to other imaging processes like ultrasound which concentrates on a minute examination of your body parts.
4. MRI is also useful to determine the limit to which cancer has spread in the body.
5. MRI can be useful to detect health issues when other imaging processes fail, because of its multi-faceted image recording technique.

Vitamin E is a fat-soluble vitamin which in total has 8 compounds, of which only one compound is useful to humans. This is also known as alpha-tocopherol and plays a vital role in antioxidation process and is believed to improve the overall ageing process.

Read on to know more about its benefits, functions, and sources.

1. Vitamin E that is absorbed by the intestine is transferred to the liver, from where only alpha-tocopherol gets re-released into the system in small amounts. So, if your diet contains the other 7 variants, they are excreted by the liver (not required in humans).
2. This active vitamin E controls the oxidation process in cells and prevents the release of free radicals, which is the culprit in all inflammatory processes. These can cause heart disease, diabetes, cancer, and stroke. This process is also accelerated by the environmental factors like pollution, UV rays, smoking, etc.
3. Vitamin E is also shown to dilate blood vessels and prevent platelet clogging.
4. Vitamin E is useful in preventing and treating diabetes and its related complications. Of note, diabetes is also considered as a chronic inflammatory process.
5. The nervous system diseases including Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and epilepsy can benefit from Vitamin E. It reduces overall cognitive declines and helps in these disease conditions
6. Women are particularly benefitted from vitamin E, including premenstrual cramps, painful periods, hot flashes with breast cancer, eclampsia during pregnancy, and pregnancy complications
7. Given their role in energy formation, they help improve endurance, energy levels, and improv muscle strength and reduce muscle damage.
8. The antioxidant effect is useful in reversing ageing skin changes including wrinkles and fine lines. Vitamin E is used widely in skin care products including creams and lotions and helps in regeneration of skin and tissue.
9. It is useful to control hair loss, which could be due to multiple reasons, including chemotherapy or side effect of drugs.
10. It is useful in treating allergies, asthma, respiratory infections, and skin allergies.
11. Eye diseases like cataracts and macular degeneration which are generally age-related can be controlled with adequate intake of vitamin E.
12. Taken with other antioxidants like niacin, it is helpful in controlling the buildup of cholesterol.

Sources:
Natural food sources contain enough amounts of this vitamin to meet normal daily requirements, and so consume the following.

1. Green leafy vegetables, legumes, and vegetable oils
2. Whole grains and fortified cereals
3. Fruits and nuts and seeds
4. Seafood, poultry, and meat
5. Eggs
6. Dairy products including fat-free or low-fat milk
7. Seafood

Given its wide availability, deficiency is rare, but supplements may be required for premature babies with low-weight and in people with some genetic disorders. If you wish to discuss about any specific problem, you can consult a dietitian-nutritionist.

The most commonly encountered two facts about the drug or alcohol use by our addicted kids are drugs/ alcohol are something which they really like those are something which they find really hard to give up. They know that the drug can kill them in a long run, but still they go with the immediate rewards by consuming the drug. The whole addiction thing is about being in the moment and choosing what your brain craves for right now at the expense of other rewards and possibilities. So what we observe is that drug hijacks a person's rational thinking for the long term consequences.

Addiction has to do with changes in the brain that come about gradually, become more and more central, more and more powerful as the time passes by. The drug use becomes the axis of the person, around which the other activities in life takes turn. It takes on the central meaning and role in the person's life in such a way that the most irrational idea about taking the drug or alcohol may seem to the person the most rational in that particular situation, as the drug compromises the person's clear thinking. So yes an addict can make choices for his drug cravings but the way they make choices is the thing we must think about. In an addict the brain does what it needs to do, but in a very non-adaptive way. In simple words addiction hijacks the very parts of the brain that are supposed to fix it.

Craving is the fundamental psychological experience of an addict because of which addiction occurs. Dopamine serves as the fuel for craving and is the common pathway for all kinds of addictions. Natural goodies like the food and sex certainly release dopamine in brain and follow the progression from liking to wanting i. E. Wanting more of those. As per studies, among the natural rewards sex can provide a person with the maximum natural high of upto 200% dopamine levels in brain. But the drugs cause a higher than 200% dopamine levels, which thus is the magic mark for addictive processes to occur. Also with repeated drug use there are changes in the arrangement of the inner landscape of synaptic architecture in brain, such that the thoughts, the images, the memories about the drug use behavior takes over many parts of the cortex of brain and thus the person see the drug cues wherever he gets a dopamine rush, be it with sex or food or social gatherings. Thus dopamine drives the person with a feeling of craving for the drug. Also with repeated dopamine increments of higher than natural amounts, there is maladaptive learning in brain in form of the shrinkage of dopamine cells, decrease in dopamine receptors and depletion of the dopamine stores. Thus the real natural goodies like sex or food are than not able to give a dopamine high and the only way left is to have more drugs. The person becomes impulsive and compulsive in his drug taking behavior. Repetition compulsion feedback loop keeps the person going after the drug use, narrowing the sense of meaningful world for the person. This causes a vicious cycle of incremental drug intake and thus addiction. Dopamine pathways are subdued by chronic drug use and thus the drug addicts are never able to keep up with their promises of staying away from the drug.

But then our brains have enormous reparative capacity and so a lot of the things that drugs do to damage the brain are probably reversible. One of the things that last the longest are the memories associated with drug use and the learning/ operant conditioning that occurs with it. The acute memory of brain over stimulation with drug is captured in amygdale which designates an important part of the instinctual brain i. E. The brain part which can't be controlled. So if a drug related cue is presented to a recovering addict, all that they can remember is the greatest high which they ever had with the drug. Thus the person remains preoccupied and thinks about the drug even when not using it. When this occurs, it is for the lifetime and we can't undo it. Their amygdale are going to light up seeing the drug cues for rest of their lives. This is why we say recovery from drug is a lifelong experience. Studies show a much faster depletion of our brain neurotransmitters by drug use (less than 12 months), than their replenishment in recovery from addiction (5 to 7 years). Thus during recovery an ongoing treatment for the imbalanced brain neurotransmitters and the visible symptoms due to the same is always essential.

The human body, like all living forms, goes through a lifecycle. Just as you see a plant from a small tender sapling to a tender tree to an old firm tree to a withering age, where the branches grow weak and gradually break off.  The tree finally grows weak, becomes susceptible to attacks by worms and insects, and finally breaks down. The same is true for the human body too. While we always go through the acute diseases due to infections, allergies and accidents, there is a bunch of diseases which affect us for longer durations. 

These chronic diseases can be due to various reasons, such as allergic, infective, autoimmune, structural, psychological, physiological, malignant, functional, psychosomatic, iatrogenic and many others. 
Homeopathy believes that each chronic disease has its own set of symptoms, many of which are not obvious. It is the entire set of symptoms, which need to be unraveled and treated. Homeopathy believes in providing a holistic cure for the patient, not just the disease that is manifested.

With homeopathy, be ready to look at yourself slightly differently and holistically. Not many would believe that a problem in the lungs or the brain could be linked to watery eyes or skin eruptions.  The first discussion with a homeopath could run into a couple of hours covering a wide range of topics including personality type, fears, griefs, weather reactions, food desires, sleep and dream patterns, genetic factors, past sexual life and a lot of physical and emotional parameters. 

For someone who is looking for a quick 'medicine' to heal the current problem, this may sound absurd and even irritating. For homeopathy to work, it is important for the patient to understand how it aims to work. It takes a lot of patience and duration for the holistic treatment to take effect. The homeopath needs to identify the 'direction of cure' based on these and monitor it over a period of time. In the initial phase, there could be an aggravation of symptoms, but that will soon subside. 

Homeopathy believes in 'like treats like', so soon after the treatment begins, there could be increased symptoms in other, perceived non-related parts. The doctor would usually explain what to expect, so watch out for other erupting symptoms and keep your doctor informed.

One thing homeopathy patients vouch for is the payoff on this patience.  Not many would have relapse of the symptoms as they are cured, not just given palliative care. Homeopathy does cure a lot of diseases, in the true sense of the word.

Health Benefits of Walnuts