We  now live in an aging society. It is common to see people living well into their eighties and longer. We are seeing more Alzheimer’s disease each year and this will continue to increase and affect many more lives in the future. It is now estimated around thirty million people worldwide, will suffer from this insidious disease within twenty years.

“Alzheimer’s disease is a degenerative condition that affects the cerebral cortex of the brain and leads to the progressive death of nerve cells. This causes the sufferer to gradually lose their memory. Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia making up more than half of dementia sufferers. Around twenty percent of people aged over sixty five experience dementia which is a term that describes many different diseases where people experience serious memory loss.”

In addition to affecting primarily people over sixty, it can also affect people as young as thirty and is called early-onset Alzheimer’s disease.

The most common symptoms are;

• become lost in areas that are well known to them,
• forgetting what things are called and are actually used for and are quite likely to be items that they have used every day during their life.

Causation

“Alzheimer’s disease is caused by a shortage of neurotransmitters in the brain. These neurotransmitters are the chemical that normally transmit messages to the brain controlling memory, speech and movement.”

Progression of disease

In the early stages; short-term memory loss. The person may be unable to remember things that happened only a short time ago yet can remember things that happened many years before.

Their long-term memory remains intact for quite some time. It is vital for them to share their memories it is like exercise for the brain.

As the disease progresses, the person finds it increasingly difficult to perform day-to-day activities. Even personal care and taking care of their nutritional needs can be affected such as assistance with cooking and be reminded to eat. They may forget people’s names, including close family members which may lead to angry outbursts. They also tend to become restless and suffer from insomnia.

They can sometimes become so confused and forgetful that their resulting actions may put themselves or others at risk such as forgetting to switch off heaters, stoves or putting clothes or papers too near such appliances. They may also act inappropriately, behaving in ways that are totally out of character for them. A person who has always been very properly spoken and behaved may begin using vulgar language or stripping their clothes off in front of other people.

In the later stages; 24 hour care and supervision may be needed as they lose their memory completely. By this time, they are weak and find it hard to walk as the part of the brain that controls muscles succumbs to the disease. They may become wheelchair dependent or even bedridden. Dysphasia (difficulty in swallowing) becomes a problem and may make the person reluctant to eat, resulting in weight loss. They become incontinent and lose all control of both bladder and bowel.

In the final stages of the disease, the person may not recognize anyone but they still recognize the kindness of a soothing voice and a loving smile.

“Just the facts ma’am”

The influenza disease, or Flu, affects the upper respiratory system. Flu symptoms can vary, but are often similar to the common cold. The major exception is relatively high fevers which are almost always present in cases of the flu, but rarely in adults who have a common cold.

The Flu is caused by an infection of the body with an influenza virus. What is commonly referred to as “cold and flu season” is not actually caused by changes in the weather. It is merely that time of year when we increase indoor activities which brings close contact among large groups people, predominately, children and adults in school settings.

There are close to 200 different viruses that cause an illness. Some of the more common viruses are; the rhinovirus, corona virus or influenza virus. Stomach flu is caused by an infection with the norovirus. Although the names are similar “the flu” signs and symptoms (other than headache and fever) are quite different from those associated with the stomach flu.

The common symptoms for stomach Flu (norovirus) are; nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and abdominal pain. Stomach Flu is sometimes referred to as gastroenteritis and symptoms appear suddenly and usually last less than three days. Flu symptoms can last for as long as ten days, usually beginning with fever, body aches and chills and ending with cold-like symptoms (runny or stuffy nose, dry cough, sore throat, etc.).

Flu, stomach flu and the common cold are all contagious viral diseases that can be transmitted from person to person by close contact, touching contaminated surfaces or eating contaminated food. Avoidance is common sense, but let’s list them anyway.

• avoiding close contact with those who are obviously sick,
• washing hands after touching public surfaces
• keeping the hands away from the mouth, nose and eyes.

Antibiotics are useless because these are all viral infections. So, a visit to the doctor is usually unnecessary. The obvious exception is:

• an unusually high or prolonged fever
• symptoms of bacterial infection
• other serious complications

Bronchitis or pneumonia may be indicated by a cough that produces mucus.

Ear infection may be indicated by a pain in the ears.

Sinus infection may be indicated by severe headache, facial pain and pain in the teeth.

For people that are at high risk for developing complications from the Flu should call their doctor within 48 hours of developing symptoms. An anti-viral medication may be necessary to shorten the duration and severity of the Flu signs and symptoms.

The list of people who are at high risk is:

• people older than 50,
• nursing home and long-term care residents,
• people with heart problems, lung disease, diabetes, kidney problems, and sickle cell disease,
• children who are on an aspirin therapy regimen
• and anyone who suffers from an impaired immune system, including those who are taking immuno-suppressive drugs.

Women in their second or third trimester of pregnancy also have an increased risk of developing complications from the Flu virus.

One simple thing that you can do is to strengthen your immune system. A strong immune system will lessen your chances of contracting this flu. In addition, washing your hands frequently, eating a healthy diet and getting plenty of rest is key.

Stay calm, stress will put a lot of strain on your immune system. When your immune system is weakened you are more vulnerable to this flu. Do more of things that help you relax and get plenty of rest and sleep. Your diet can stress the immune system, eating sugars, and refined flours and foods high in calories and low in nutrition will weaken your immune system. Eat more vegetables and fruits for additional vitamin C which really helps to boost your immune system.

You can also take vitamins that you can purchase here at Quisenberry Pharmacy. Vitamin C is an antiviral and an antioxidant, it helps to protect your cells from viruses and chemical stress. Vitamin A also helps to boost immune system but is often neglected. Current research can confirm that viruses and bacteria lowers the levels of vitamin A within a human body. Be cautious, too much of vitamin A can be toxic. Let us help you pick the proper dosages for you.

The swine flu is a specific type of flu that is very common in pigs or otherwise known as “swine.” The swine flu has symptoms that are similar to the regular flu. Even though it is quite rare for a human to have swine flu, it is possible for a human to contract the swine flu when exposed to swine. The human form of this flu is called swine flu because scientists have discovered that this strain of flu is similar to the swine flu commonly found in pigs. This flu has to be mutated in such a way that it can be easily transmitted among us humans.  This has raised an alert by the World Health Organization to have a Phase 4 Pandemic Alert.

How to defend yourself from this swine flu?

The Centers for Disease Control and for Prevention have said that the drugs, Tamiflu, and Relenza, helps in the treatment and prevention of swine flu. But the most effective way of preventing the swine flu from spreading would be to wash your hands very frequently with a generous amount of soap.

Symptoms of Swine Flu

This new strain of swine flu goes by the name of H1N1, and has a mixture of viruses from pigs and humans making it very susceptible for humans. The symptoms of swine flu are a sudden fever, coughing, extreme fatigue, muscle aches, diarrhea, and vomiting.