Do You Have Back Pain? Here's How To Handle It

(Contributed Post)

Have you recently developed pain in your back? If that’s the case, then it’s important not to panic. But it is important to make sure that you are handling it the right way. There are a few reasons why you might have developed pain in your back. Here's are a few.

Is It Environmental?

If you are waking up each day with pain in your back, then it’s possible that the problem is related to your environment. Specifically, we’re talking about your sleep environment and even more specifically, your bed. You might want to think about getting a new bed or a new mattress. A lot of people think that a bed is a one-size-fits all approach and this isn’t quite true. Some people will benefit from a firmer mattress because it will provide more support for their back. You could also think about opting for a memory foam cover for your mattress if it is too firm. 

Long Term Injury

It’s also possible that your back pain is due to a long-term injury. Believe it or not, it can take months or even years for the true impact of a serious injury to materialize. That’s why you should make sure that you do think about getting checked out even if there is no sign of pain after an injury. Be aware that if a long-term injury does cause pain later in life it could significantly impact your wellbeing. 

One of the most common back injuries is by lifting something heavy. That’s why you should always make sure that you are adopting the right technique when you’re moving things like furniture around you. 

The Right Treatment 

There are a range of different treatment options that you can explore if you have back pain that won’t go away. You might want to consider basic forms of medication. Or, you can think about more advanced forms of treatment. Experts like Kevin Lucas have recently been promoting new forms of treatment for chronic pain such as Infiniti Cell Research. They believe that this has the power to change peoples’ lives for the better and ensure that they no longer have to worry about long-term issues with pain. 

Barks And Bites

There is one good thing about back pain. Usually, the pain is often far worse than it seems. What this means is that if you are in agony, it could just be that you have pulled a muscle. This can leave you bedridden for at least a few days before you eventually recover, even if you take the right medication. A dull recurring pain might be a little more worrying and should be checked by a doctor. 

All in all, by taking the right steps you can be assured that back pain won't become a major concern and impact your quality of life. 

Weight Loss Trends Post Coronavirus

(Contributed Post) 

Coronavirus brought many different areas of our lives to a grinding halt in 2020. Those of us who worked outside of our homes were forced indoors—and had to give up our hobbies, our favorite sports, our social lives, and even sometimes, our relationships. It has been a difficult twelve months to say the least, but luckily we seem to be emerging out of the virus and into “normality” once more.

Over the period of March 2020-April 2021, many people have reported that their weight has changed. More time spent at home and less time outside having fun, which has resulted in weight gain for millions of people around the world. Now that society is re-emerging, it could be said that our confidence as a whole is at an all-time low.

Whether or not you have had trouble with your weight or confidence, you might be feeling the pressure to succumb to the post-coronavirus weight loss trends that are circulating around social media. 

In this post we will take a look at effective weight loss strategies, how to overcome insecurities, and how to promote kindness when emerging from lockdown and back out into the world.

Why is there so much pressure for us to shed the “Quarantine 15”?

Have you heard the phrase “Quarantine 15”? It refers to the idea that the average person put on 15 pounds during the coronavirus quarantine, and now it’s time to shed those pounds. While weight gain can cause health problems over time, the amount of pressure we are under to lose weight is not proportional to the danger it poses. It seems our society is obsessed with losing weight, so why could this be?

It seems that we are placing a lot of pressure on ourselves to be the best version of ourselves post-COVID-19. It’s not easy to emerge back into society, see friends and family, after such a long time away - we assume that others will be judging our bodies, and taking notice of whether we have lost, or gained, weight during our time in quarantine.

Unfortunately, diet culture profits heavily off this insecurity. Many influencers and other irresponsible sellers will pedal quick-fixes that don’t work, simply because they know that desperate buyers will do anything to lose weight fast. 

So what’s the solution to this weight loss pressure? Let’s take a look at the two sides of this: first, how to feel more confident, and second, how to lose weight safely and effectively.

How can we all feel more body-confident in 2021?

Let’s take a look at how to look and feel more body-confident in 2021. We all have bodies of different shapes and sizes, and all of us deserve to feel proud as we go down the street, meet with friends, go to events and return to work. 

Revamp your wardrobe to suit your shape

If you have gained some weight over lockdown, it might be time to revamp your wardrobe. Wearing clothes that flatter your shape and suit your style is a great way to feel and look more confident in your own skin. 

You could contact a stylist to make sure you have the right idea, or simply take a friend with you for a second opinion. Having some fabulous new threads on your back that fit you properly can be game-changing for your confidence.

Follow body-positive people on social media

Social media is well known for making us feel insecure about our bodies. Celebrities and influencers can portray an image of perfection that most of us just can’t live up to, making it very difficult to have confidence in your own appearance.

One way to combat these feelings is to follow body-positive people on social media. Following plus-size models such as Ashley Graham can make you feel fly in your curvy body, rather than feeling less-than while comparing yourself to someone slimmer.

Talk to yourself like a friend

One trick that many psychotherapists use to help their clients boost their self esteem is: talk to yourself like a friend. If your best friend came to you crying about their weight, what would you tell them? You’d probably tell them that they are beautiful no matter their size, and that they’re worth more than their appearance. You’d probably tell them you love them for them, not because of their jeans size...

… So, try telling yourself that! It’s easy to be your own worst critic when it comes to your body, but if you look at yourself like someone else you love very much, you’re bound to be kinder to yourself than you have been in the past.

Are there safe, effective ways to lose weight for summer?

If you do want to lose weight this summer after gaining some pounds during quarantine, we’ve got your back. Here are three safe, effective ways to lose weight this summertime.

Reduce your calories by just a few hundred per week

Many people, when they begin their weight loss journey, do too much too fast. By shocking their bodies into a new regime or diet, they make themselves feel exhausted, and when they don’t see results, it is easy to give up and go back to old habits.

While reducing your calories slowly won’t yield immediate results, it will help with long-term, sustainable weight loss. By cutting just 100 calories per day, or up to 1000 calories per week, you will barely notice the difference in your daily routine, but your body will. You’ll start seeing results within 6-8 weeks, and this change will actually be achievable and sustainable!

Do gentle daily exercise that you can maintain

Consistency is key when it comes to losing weight, and just like with food, too much exercise too soon will only exhaust your body. Especially if you are combining your exercise with cutting out some calories, you don’t want to burn out your body, or you’ll return to your old ways.

Instead, do gentle exercise every day that serves as part of your routine. You’ll stop dreading exercise, and start treating it like something you enjoy doing daily, like making your morning coffee or taking a shower.

This exercise could be jogging, walking, pilates, dancing, conditioning exercises such as squats, or playing a sport such as football or tennis. You should try to find an exercise that you genuinely enjoy, as this will make it easier to stay consistent even on days when you’re tired!

It is also important to give your body rest when it needs it. Make sure you aren’t pushing your body beyond its limits, as this increases the likelihood of becoming injured.

Speak to your doctor about medications

If you struggle to lose weight due to a condition or hormone issue, you should speak to your doctor about medications that can safely help you lose weight, such as Saxenda. 

Certain medications that are prescribed by professionals can aid weight loss without subjecting your  body to chemicals or hormones that will damage it long term. Beware of “quick-fix” diet products - these won’t be recommended by doctors, and therefore shouldn’t be used. You should only take weight loss medications that are recommended by a medical professional.

Final Thoughts

It can be easy to succumb to pressure when everyone’s talking about weight loss. Whether or not you want to lose weight after quarantine, this blog will help you become more body confident, while giving you top tips on how to safely lose weight over time. Be proud of being you, no matter your body size!

Is Too Much Fluoride Dangerous For You?

(Contributed Post)

Beyond heavy metals, there are quite a few minerals that are currently drawing attention from wellness experts. Fluoride is one that you might have seen pop up lately. It’s important to ask: is it all a fad or are there real risks to our health? Let’s take a look at how too much fluoride can impact your body and what you can do to prevent it.

The impact of too much fluoride

Fluoride can be useful, in small amounts, in preventing tooth decay amongst all else. However, too much fluoride can lead to conditions known as dental and skeletal fluorosis. This can lead to damage, pain, and increased elasticity in bones and teeth, making them more likely to experience fractures, as well as a decrease in general mobility. High fluoride levels have also been linked to thyroid problems, as well as depleting calcium in bone structures. But where does this exceed fluoride come from?

Is it in your water?

Most tap water has fluoride added to it in an effort to prevent tooth decay in every household. However, natural fluoride levels can fluctuate, rising especially in warmer areas where water consumption is greater. Water filters are a popular means of cleaning drinking water at home but does reverse osmosis remove fluoride? The answer is that not all reverse osmosis filters can remove this mineral from your water, meaning that you need to see which ones have been tested for this mineral in particular, rather than just purchasing any that you see.

Be mindful of dental treatments

Fluoride in toothpaste is all well and good. However, you should make sure that you don’t use more than a pea-size amount for children, and don’t use too much yourself. However, while fluoride can be safe for cleaning your teeth directly, swallowing fluoride from this toothpaste, even a little bit, results in getting more than your daily recommended amount. You should also be mindful of fluoride gel treatments that dentists tend to offer to prevent the risk of cavities. While they do indeed help decrease cavities, they also result in absorbing much more fluoride than you should get in a single day.

Watch out for pesticide use

A lot of farms and vineyards use pesticides that contain fluoride, with cryolite being the most popular amongst them. As a result, products from these places, especially a lot of US wines, tend to have a much higher level of fluoride than others. For that reason, you should make sure that you choose wines that outright state they do not use any pesticides in their production. Choosing organic wines tend to be the easiest way to avoid choosing any that have any pesticides at all in them.

The concerns around fluoride are not easy to dismiss. While there is real concern about this mineral, you can be proactive and take the steps mentioned above to minimize exposure and reduce its health effects.

Seeking an Effective Way to Lose Weight? CBD Oil Can Help

(Contributed Post)

If you have been trying to lose weight for some time now, but you have been struggling, there are many different ways that you can give yourself that boost that is required to start seeing the results you hope for. In this post, we will look at one method that has become very popular in recent years.

Cannabidiol, better known by its acronym CBD, is an entirely natural compound that is becoming increasingly popular worldwide for the treatment of many medical conditions from acne to anxiety, and also as a substance that can promote better health and wellbeing in general. One important use for CBD that is gaining traction in the natural health world is to assist in weight loss.

Why Weight Loss Is Important

It’s a widely publicized fact that many of us are carrying far too much weight for our own good. In fact, recent figures from a Health Study for England suggest that around 36% of people in the country are overweight and 29% are obese – in other words, have a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 30 or over. Being overweight is not good for our health. Poor health outcomes such as diabetes, cancer, and cardiovascular disease have all been proven to have a strong link to being overweight. So it’s not just a matter of looking good on the beach – losing weight can also save your life. But we all know that dieting and exercising can be hard. It’s no surprise, therefore, that people are always looking for anything that can help with weight loss.

What Is CBD?

You will no doubt have heard the term CBD used extensively over the media and even in health shops, but you may be unsure as to what the product is and how it can be used. In brief. CBD is short for cannabidiol and it is an ingredient in many products that is entirely natural. Sourced from hemp plants that are specially bred for human consumption, CBD is mainly extracted from the flowers and leaves of the plant which have been made into a paste. Hemp seeds are also crushed to form a paste and CBD is also extracted from this.

Can CBD Help You To Lose Weight?

There is a growing body of anecdotal evidence to suggest that CBD can assist with weight loss, and while there hasn’t yet been a great deal of research in this area, the theory behind how it works is backed up by science. There are other alternative products that you may want to consider, like CBG, and you can read about CBG benefits and the benefits of other cannabinoids online. 

It was only relatively recently, in the 1990s, that scientists discovered the existence of the endocannabinoid system in the human body. The main purpose behind the endocannabinoid system is to help the body adjust to changes in its environment. The body has two forms of cannabinoid receptors, labeled as CB1 (those generally present in the brain and central nervous system) and CB2, which are present throughout the body. 

It’s been discovered that in people with obesity or those who are severely overweight, the CB1 receptors are found to be spread more widely than they should throughout the body. Early research suggests that there’s a link between obesity and the activation of these CB1 receptors.

CBD products act indirectly as triggers to switch those receptors either on or off. And this has three overall effects in simple terms:

• CBD can reduce appetite, which can assist with weight loss.

• CBD can help stabilize or lower insulin levels, which in turn encourages the body to burn fat rather than store it.

• CBD can promote better metabolic health, which helps burn fat faster. 

Does CBD Give You A High And Is It Addictive?

When thinking of CBD (cannabidiol) products, many assume that they are the same as cannabis, particularly marijuana, which is a regulated substance that it is illegal to sell openly on the market. This is not the case. While both CBD and THC (or Tetrahydrocannabinol) are related, and both substances interact in a similar way with the endocannabinoid receptors in the user’s body, each creates very different effects.

 

Cannabis and related substances are derived from marijuana plants that contain high levels of THC. This is a psychoactive compound that gives the user a ‘high’ sensation. Cannabidiol, on the other hand, where it’s used to promote health and wellbeing, is derived from hemp plants. These are a type of cannabis plant, but concentrations of THC in them are less than 0.3%. CBD products, therefore, do not give the user the same kind of high, and because of this, they are preferred by many people who want the benefits cannabidiol can provide without the side effects. 

 

CBD is not addictive, and in some forms, has been judged efficacious and safe enough to be prescribed by medical professionals.

What Should You Look For In CBD For Weight Loss?

It’s important to note that CBD is not a miracle drug that will make the pounds drop off by itself – it should also be combined with an appropriate change of diet and exercise regime. However, buying a high-quality, broad-spectrum CBD oil and using it in the recommended fashion, along with improving your overall lifestyle, can help with weight loss.

Other Benefits

The full range of benefits offered by CBD has not yet been fully explored and evaluated. Nonetheless, there are already a host of conditions for which there is strong evidence to suggest that CBD can help. These include:

• Anxiety and depression;

• Nausea;

• Pain relief;

• Inflammation;

• Epilepsy and other forms of seizures;

• Migraines; and

• Inflammatory bowel disease.

To conclude, losing weight can be incredibly difficult for a lot of people. If you have been following a healthy diet and exercise regime, but you need that extra push, CBD could be the thing for you. Of course, you need to continue eating healthy and exercising regularly to see results. 

Health Issues That Aren't Just For The Elderly

(Contributed Post) 

We are often prone to thinking that it is only the elderly who have to be concerned about certain health conditions. While it's true that many health issues develop as we grow older, it is a mistake to think that just because we are young, we are invincible. In fact, making better health decisions in our youth will help to preserve good health into old age. Let’s have a look at a few of the health issues that we all need to be aware of at any age.

Hearing Loss

Although you are more likely to experience hearing loss if you are elderly, it is nonetheless something that can happen to anyone at any age. If you are not careful with your hearing, you might find yourself needing to wear a hearing aid prematurely at a young age. Take care and limit exposure to loud noise and make it a priority to be aware of the many signs of hearing loss.

Poor Eyesight

We all need to take care of our eyesight, no matter what age you might be. If you don't, you may reach your later years and have poor eyesight. It's important to pay attention to any changes that you notice and visit an optometrist consistently every two years at the very least. If you do so, you are more likely to maintain good eyesight for the future.

Heart Health

Your heart is important at every stage in your life. While you are more likely to have cardiac events in your older years, if you don’t take heart health seriously, cardiovascular disease can strike at a young age. Make sure to watch your cholesterol, get plenty of cardiovascular exercise, and quality sleep. If you take these steps early, it will help to lay a healthy foundation for your heart now and in the future.

Mental Health

Poor mental health is more common than most people think. A large swathe of the population will experience some sort of mental health issue at some point in their lives—whether it is depression, anxiety or something else entirely. You are never too young or old to start protecting your mental health. Focus on the positive and maintain your overall health. Try to reduce stress as much as possible too. Exercise is an excellent habit to adopt as it increases endorphins that help to keep your mood bright. Moreover, keeping the body healthy will help to keep the mind healthy and vice versa.

As you can see, there are several health concerns that you need to be aware of at any age, so it's important to make sure that you are aware of each area.