Feet
in laterlife
Heard about the latest in plastic surgery? Footsore nightclubbers
are getting collagen implants to pad out the ball of the foot, following punishing
sessions on the dance floor wearing stiletto heels. You don’t have to be young or to
wear uncomfortable shoes to experience painful feet - corns, callouses, warts and all.
Some people are born with sensitive feet, others feel the effect of age.
Feet, to some extent, wear out. For
instance, the ball of the foot gets thinner with age, causing extra pressure which can be
very painful.
Collagen implants are
not the only answer. A simpler solution is to buy a pair of Plantar Cushions. Slip them on
as you would a pair of flip-flops, and wear them with or without socks or stockings. They provide protection against pressure and are
good for corns, warts, arthritis and sensitive feet.
Fishy
verdict
The virtues of
eating oily fish three times a week - good for the heart -
have been reported for many years. Now
doubts are rising about the frequency. Pesticides,
chemicals, toxic metals have all been found in oily fish, and too many helpings a week
could exceed safety guidelines, especially where dioxins are concerned.
Current
recommendations suggest one to two helpings weekly of oily fish are safest - sardines,
salmon, tuna, herring, mackerel, trout. Grilling
or baking, and removing skin and any fat will reduce exposure to dioxins. Farmed organic fish are least likely to be
contaminated.
If you take fish oil supplements, you are just as
likely to get too much dioxin, so the advice is to stop taking them until levels are
reduced, and stick to fresh fish. Talk to
your doctor if you have been recommended fish oils to reduce lipid (fat) levels.
Incontinence offer - the
PelvicToner
Three million women
in the UK experience incontinence on a daily basis according to the Continence Foundation. Always seeking new ways to deal with the problem, they
are backing research into the PelvicToner, an exercise gadget that aims to do just what
its name says. Used along with classic pelvic floor
exercises, it is designed to provide real resistance for the muscles to contract against,
and is safe and easy to use.
Now comes the
really good bit. The distributors of
the PelvicToner, working with the Continence Foundation, are offering the gadget at a much
reduced price to the first 10,000 women who agree to take part in a trial by completing a
questionnaire. The price will be just £9.99 to
cover international post and packing, whereas the normal price would be £69.95.
Exercises take about 10 minutes a day and
product-makers say by 12 weeks the muscles should be noticeably firmer.
Natural Woman Ltd, PO Box 205, Westbury on Trym,
Bristol, BS9 2WA.
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Managing migraine
A rapid-dissolve tablet that doesn’t need water
has just been introduced to help sufferers of migraine.
It’s not a new drug, but a new way of taking zolmitriptan, one of a class of
drugs available on prescription. The
advantage with Zomig Rapimelt is that it’s fast-acting and can be taken any time
anywhere to deal quickly with an attack.
If you suffer from migraine and haven’t checked
with your GP for some time, it might be worth making an appointment to discuss this new
tablet. Migraine management today often includes keeping a ‘headache’ diary to
see what kind of pattern emerges, so you might find different ways to keep the problem
under control.
Gelatin-free capsules
Most capsules containing nutritional supplements are
made from animal-derived gelatin. This does
not go down well with vegetarians and, increasingly, others wishing to control their
source of meat products.
Producers of supplements are well aware of this and
are working towards providing a range of capsule products derived from vegetable
cellulose. Already, powder-filled capsules
are on the market - look out for garlic, for instance, in Vcaps, a vegetable cellulose.
Liquid-filled
gelatin-free capsules are more challenging to produce.
They tend to lose their shape and leak their contents. But a new range of vegetarian capsules called
Liquid Essentials from Health Plus have been launched, and they include evening primrose
oil, starflower oil, beta carotene, lecithin. The
range is gradually being extended as the technology improves.
Health Plus products are available by mail order: tel 01323 737374, or online at
www.healthplus.co.uk.
If in any doubt
about any of the information covered in healthwise articles and it's relevance for you,
consult your GP.
In edition
18:-
Can`t eat Wheat
So many people
nowadays claim that eating wheat doesn`t agree with them
Food or mood: causes of IBS
For up to 70%
of sufferers the problem may stem from food intolerance, according to some experts.
News for knees
A new
study confirms the effectiveness of Glucosamine sulphate for sufferers with osteoarthritis
of the knee.
What older people want
A survey of 140
householders aged 65-plus came up with some important answers
HRT for men
Declining
hormone levels in men after the age of 60 can lead to a male menopause , some doctors
claim
Index to all previous
Healthwise editions
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