If you spend August sneezing, ragweed may be your allergy enemy. If, like clockwork, you suffer in the spring, tree pollen may be to blame. And if your eyes itch and head feels stuffed up after the first frost should have killed every outdoor allergen, you may have indoor allergies.
While some allergy sufferers can pinpoint the cause of their misery, many are unaware of the trigger that sets off their symptoms. In fact, James Temprano, M.D. a SLUCare allergist, says many patients are surprised to learn the source of their allergies.
Knowing your allergy triggers gives you information that allows you to practice avoidance measures, like keeping the windows closed during the season that causes your symptoms, and also helps doctors provide treatment.
Allergists use skin tests to determine what substances are causing your symptoms. Doctors conduct skin tests by putting small amounts of various allergens on or below the skin and observing any reactions that occur, offering immediate results.
Once they've identified allergens like ragweed, pollen, and grass, doctors often can target the dates you're most likely to experience symptoms.
Late summer/Autumn: Ragweed season typically begins around mid-August and plagues sufferers until the first frost offers relief. Survival tip: Ragweed pollen counts are highest between 5 a.m. and 10 a.m. on hot, dry, and windy days, so avoid outdoor activities during that time.
Winter: Because we spend more time indoors with windows shut in the winter, indoor allergies like dust and pet allergies can be worse during winter months. Survival tip: Wash bedding weekly in hot water and dry on high heat.
Spring: If you're a spring allergy sufferer, tree pollen may be causing your symptoms. These allergies typically begin toward the end of February or early March and last through May. Survival tip: Be sure to change your clothes and wash your hair after time outdoors.
Summer: Grass allergies tend to flare up in May or June, or even earlier, and continue most of summer. Survival tip: Keep windows shut to limit your exposure.
For many people, multiple allergic triggers mean symptoms continue throughout much of the year. And, some allergies know no season, like the insidious mold that can strike after a spring rain or in your damp basement.
Treatment for allergies varies depending on the frequency and severity of symptoms. Those with intermittent, mild allergies (fewer than four days a week for fewer than four weeks a year) can start with antihistamines. Those who experience more severe allergies may consider nasal steroids or allergy shots.
Allergy shots, or immunotherapy, increase a person's tolerance to the allergens that have been causing symptoms. While they require regular shots for around five years, patients can begin to feel improvement within months, and can offer significant relief over the long term. They are also a good solution when avoidance measures aren't practical, as for a person who works or enjoys regular time outdoors.
It may be time to consider shots, Temprano, says if:
- Medications aren't working for you.
- You suffer side effects from medications.
- You also have asthma.
- Your symptoms are disturbing sleep or work.
- Allergies are affecting your quality of life.
Often patients become accustomed to their symptoms and are unaware of how many days out of the year they are affected by allergies, Temprano says. Fatigue and the inability to concentrate are less frequently recognized symptoms.
"Once they receive treatment, many of my patients say, 'I didn't realize how miserable my allergies were making me.'"
Sunday, August 22, 2010
Friday, June 11, 2010
Most people are totally obsessed with scale weigh
Why body fat testing is the best way to get feedback and measure
progress towards your fitness goals
Most people are totally obsessed with scale weight, even though the scale tells you
nothing about what your weight consists of; fat or muscle. Scale weight can also
fluctuate wildly on a daily basis based on your water levels, blurring the real
picture (and messing with your head too!)
Losing weight is very easy. Losing fat – and keeping it off without losing muscle -
is a much bigger challenge. If you simply wanted to lose weight, I could show you
how to drop 10 –15 pounds over the weekend just by dehydrating yourself and
using natural herbal diuretics. Bodybuilders and wrestlers do it all the time to
make a weight class. But what good would that do if it's almost all water and
you're just going to gain it all back within days?
If you want to achieve solid muscle gain or permanent fat loss and get off the diet
roller coaster once and for all, you must squash your preoccupation with scale
weight and instead judge your progress based on lean body weight and body fat.
Instead of looking only at body weight, a body fat test lets you focus on lean tissue
versus fat tissue so you get a clearer picture of the effects your nutrition and
training are really having your body. Body fat tests also allow you to monitor your
progress and get continual feedback so you know how to adjust your nutrition or
training on a week-to-week basis.
The scale, tape measure, mirror, and photographs are all helpful methods of
feedback you can (and should) use, but alone they're not enough. It's difficult to
notice daily and weekly changes in the mirror because they're taking place so
gradually. Watching your progress unfold slowly like the grass grows can be
frustrating and discouraging – sometimes even a de-motivator.
It's also difficult for most people to judge their own progress objectively. The best-
known example of distorted self-image is anorexia, but it works both ways: Many
bodybuilders suffer from "muscle dysmorphia," a term coined by psychologists that
could best be described as "reverse anorexia." These are people who can never
seem to get big or muscular enough.
Almost everyone has some small degree of distorted body image and you're always
your own harshest critic. You seldom see changes in your own physique as readily
as others do. That's why you need an objective, accurate, measurable and
scientific method of measuring your results and recording your progress. Body fat
testing is the answer.
progress towards your fitness goals
Most people are totally obsessed with scale weight, even though the scale tells you
nothing about what your weight consists of; fat or muscle. Scale weight can also
fluctuate wildly on a daily basis based on your water levels, blurring the real
picture (and messing with your head too!)
Losing weight is very easy. Losing fat – and keeping it off without losing muscle -
is a much bigger challenge. If you simply wanted to lose weight, I could show you
how to drop 10 –15 pounds over the weekend just by dehydrating yourself and
using natural herbal diuretics. Bodybuilders and wrestlers do it all the time to
make a weight class. But what good would that do if it's almost all water and
you're just going to gain it all back within days?
If you want to achieve solid muscle gain or permanent fat loss and get off the diet
roller coaster once and for all, you must squash your preoccupation with scale
weight and instead judge your progress based on lean body weight and body fat.
Instead of looking only at body weight, a body fat test lets you focus on lean tissue
versus fat tissue so you get a clearer picture of the effects your nutrition and
training are really having your body. Body fat tests also allow you to monitor your
progress and get continual feedback so you know how to adjust your nutrition or
training on a week-to-week basis.
The scale, tape measure, mirror, and photographs are all helpful methods of
feedback you can (and should) use, but alone they're not enough. It's difficult to
notice daily and weekly changes in the mirror because they're taking place so
gradually. Watching your progress unfold slowly like the grass grows can be
frustrating and discouraging – sometimes even a de-motivator.
It's also difficult for most people to judge their own progress objectively. The best-
known example of distorted self-image is anorexia, but it works both ways: Many
bodybuilders suffer from "muscle dysmorphia," a term coined by psychologists that
could best be described as "reverse anorexia." These are people who can never
seem to get big or muscular enough.
Almost everyone has some small degree of distorted body image and you're always
your own harshest critic. You seldom see changes in your own physique as readily
as others do. That's why you need an objective, accurate, measurable and
scientific method of measuring your results and recording your progress. Body fat
testing is the answer.
VitoSlim™ Best Herbal pill to increase metabolism
Friday, March 26, 2010
Mulberry.
MULBERRY
Color Photo - Link to 692x914 size image
Morus spp.
Moraceae
Common Names: Mulberry.
Species: White Mulberry (Morus alba L.), Black Mulberry (M. nigra L.), American Mulberry, Red Mulberry (M. rubra L.). Hybrid forms exist between Morus alba and M. rubra.
Related Species: Korean Mulberry (Morus australis), Himalayan Mulberry (M. laevigata).
Distant Affinity: Breadfruit (Artocarpus altilis), Jackfruit (A. heterophyllus), Fig (Ficus spp.), Che (Cudrania tricuspidata), African Breadfruit (Treculia african).
Origin: The white mulberry is native to eastern and central China. It became naturalized in Europe centuries ago. The tree was introduced into America for silkworm culture in early colonial times and naturalized and hybridized with the native red mulberry. The red or American mulberry is native to eastern United States from Massachusetts to Kansas and down to the Gulf coast. The black mulberry is native to western Asia and has been grown for its fruits in Europe since before Roman times.
Adaptation: The white mulberry, and to a lesser extent the red mulberry, are quite tolerant of drought, pollution and poor soil. The white mulberry is considered a weed tree in many parts of the country including urban areas. The black mulberry is more fastidious, faring less well in cold climates or areas with humid summers. The white mulberry is the most cold-hardy of the three species, although this varies from one clone to another. Some are damaged at 25° F, while others are unfazed at -25° F. Red mulberries are hardy to sub-zero temperatures. The black mulberry is the least cold-hardy of the three, although again cold tolerance seems to depend on the clone. In general it is limited to USDA Hardiness Zone 7 (0° to 10° F average minimum) or warmer. They have been planted only to a limited extent in America, mostly on the Pacific Coast. The mulberry makes a good town tree which will grow well in a tub.
DESCRIPTION
Growth Habit: All three mulberry species are deciduous trees of varying sizes. White mulberries can grow to 80 ft. and are the most variable in form, including drooping and pyramidal shapes. In the South on rich soils the red mulberry can reach 70 ft. in height. The black mulberry is the smallest of the three, sometimes growing to 30 ft. in height, but it tends to be a bush if not trained when it is young. The species vary greatly in longevity. Red mulberry trees rarely live more than 75 years, while black mulberries have been known to bear fruit for hundreds of years. The mulberry makes an attractive tree which will bear fruit while still small and young.
Foliage: The white mulberry is so-named for the color of its buds, rather than the color of its fruit. The thin, glossy, light green leaves are variously lobed even on the same plant. Some are unlobed while others are glove-shaped. Leaves of the red mulberry are larger and thicker, blunt toothed and often lobed. They are rough on their upper surfaces and pubescent underneath. The smaller black mulberry leaves are similar to those of the red mulberry, but with sturdier twigs and fatter buds. The species vary in the time of year they begin to leaf-out. White mulberries generally come out in early spring, almost two months before black mulberries.
Flowers: Mulberry trees are either dioecious or monoecious, and sometimes will change from one sex to another. The flowers are held on short, green, pendulous, nondescript catkins that appear in the axils of the current season's growth and on spurs on older wood. They are wind pollinated and some cultivars will set fruit without any pollination. Cross-pollination is not necessary. In California mulberries set fruit without pollination.
Fruit: Botanically the fruit is not a berry but a collective fruit, in appearance like a swollen loganberry. When the flowers are pollinated, they and their fleshy bases begin to swell. Ultimately they become completely altered in texture and color, becoming succulent, fat and full of juice. In appearance, each tiny swollen flower roughly resembles the individual drupe of a blackberry. The color of the fruit does not identify the mulberry species. White mulberries, for example, can produce white, lavender or black fruit. White mulberry fruits are generally very sweet but often lacking in needed tartness. Red mulberry fruits are usually deep red, almost black, and in the best clones have a flavor that almost equals that of the black mulberry. Black mulberry fruits are large and juicy, with a good balance of sweetness and tartness that makes them the best flavored species of mulberry. The refreshing tart taste is in some ways reminiscent of grapefruit. Mulberries ripen over an extended period of time unlike many other fruits which seem to come all at once.
Color Photo - Link to 692x914 size image
Morus spp.
Moraceae
Common Names: Mulberry.
Species: White Mulberry (Morus alba L.), Black Mulberry (M. nigra L.), American Mulberry, Red Mulberry (M. rubra L.). Hybrid forms exist between Morus alba and M. rubra.
Related Species: Korean Mulberry (Morus australis), Himalayan Mulberry (M. laevigata).
Distant Affinity: Breadfruit (Artocarpus altilis), Jackfruit (A. heterophyllus), Fig (Ficus spp.), Che (Cudrania tricuspidata), African Breadfruit (Treculia african).
Origin: The white mulberry is native to eastern and central China. It became naturalized in Europe centuries ago. The tree was introduced into America for silkworm culture in early colonial times and naturalized and hybridized with the native red mulberry. The red or American mulberry is native to eastern United States from Massachusetts to Kansas and down to the Gulf coast. The black mulberry is native to western Asia and has been grown for its fruits in Europe since before Roman times.
Adaptation: The white mulberry, and to a lesser extent the red mulberry, are quite tolerant of drought, pollution and poor soil. The white mulberry is considered a weed tree in many parts of the country including urban areas. The black mulberry is more fastidious, faring less well in cold climates or areas with humid summers. The white mulberry is the most cold-hardy of the three species, although this varies from one clone to another. Some are damaged at 25° F, while others are unfazed at -25° F. Red mulberries are hardy to sub-zero temperatures. The black mulberry is the least cold-hardy of the three, although again cold tolerance seems to depend on the clone. In general it is limited to USDA Hardiness Zone 7 (0° to 10° F average minimum) or warmer. They have been planted only to a limited extent in America, mostly on the Pacific Coast. The mulberry makes a good town tree which will grow well in a tub.
DESCRIPTION
Growth Habit: All three mulberry species are deciduous trees of varying sizes. White mulberries can grow to 80 ft. and are the most variable in form, including drooping and pyramidal shapes. In the South on rich soils the red mulberry can reach 70 ft. in height. The black mulberry is the smallest of the three, sometimes growing to 30 ft. in height, but it tends to be a bush if not trained when it is young. The species vary greatly in longevity. Red mulberry trees rarely live more than 75 years, while black mulberries have been known to bear fruit for hundreds of years. The mulberry makes an attractive tree which will bear fruit while still small and young.
Foliage: The white mulberry is so-named for the color of its buds, rather than the color of its fruit. The thin, glossy, light green leaves are variously lobed even on the same plant. Some are unlobed while others are glove-shaped. Leaves of the red mulberry are larger and thicker, blunt toothed and often lobed. They are rough on their upper surfaces and pubescent underneath. The smaller black mulberry leaves are similar to those of the red mulberry, but with sturdier twigs and fatter buds. The species vary in the time of year they begin to leaf-out. White mulberries generally come out in early spring, almost two months before black mulberries.
Flowers: Mulberry trees are either dioecious or monoecious, and sometimes will change from one sex to another. The flowers are held on short, green, pendulous, nondescript catkins that appear in the axils of the current season's growth and on spurs on older wood. They are wind pollinated and some cultivars will set fruit without any pollination. Cross-pollination is not necessary. In California mulberries set fruit without pollination.
Fruit: Botanically the fruit is not a berry but a collective fruit, in appearance like a swollen loganberry. When the flowers are pollinated, they and their fleshy bases begin to swell. Ultimately they become completely altered in texture and color, becoming succulent, fat and full of juice. In appearance, each tiny swollen flower roughly resembles the individual drupe of a blackberry. The color of the fruit does not identify the mulberry species. White mulberries, for example, can produce white, lavender or black fruit. White mulberry fruits are generally very sweet but often lacking in needed tartness. Red mulberry fruits are usually deep red, almost black, and in the best clones have a flavor that almost equals that of the black mulberry. Black mulberry fruits are large and juicy, with a good balance of sweetness and tartness that makes them the best flavored species of mulberry. The refreshing tart taste is in some ways reminiscent of grapefruit. Mulberries ripen over an extended period of time unlike many other fruits which seem to come all at once.
Friday, March 19, 2010
Siena college basketball ranking
The best class in Siena basketball history saw their careers come to an end today as #4 Purdue defeated the 13th seeded Saints 72-64 in a South Region First Round matchup here at Spokane Arena before a crowd of 10,895. Siena, which matched a program record for wins, finishes an outstanding 2009-10 season at 27-7.
After a slow start by both teams, Purdue (28-5) opened a modest five point lead at 15-10 following a Chris Kramer layup at the 11:32 mark. But the Saints finally caught fire, scoring the game's next eight points and following a Kyle Downey three took a 32-29 lead into intermission. Downey, who replaced the injured Clarence Jackson in the starting lineup, finished with six points.
Siena's lead would be short-lived as the Boilermakers took control right away to start the second half. Purdue scored the first 13 points of the stanza and ran its decisive run to 20-3 over the first six plus minutes to build an insurmountable 49-35 lead at the 13:55 mark.
But the resilient Saints battled back throughout the closing minutes and nearly pulled off an unthinkable comeback. Down 15 (66-51) with 5:47 remaining, Siena responded with a 12-0 run over the next 4:42 capped by a Ryan Rossiter driving lay-in to make it a one possession game at 66-63 with 1:05 left. Senior Edwin Ubiles was crucial during the run, scoring eight of the Saints' 12 points.
But Siena's offense ran out of gas in the final minute as the Saints missed their final five shots. Purdue shot 53.6% in the decisive second half, while the Saints were limited to just 27.8% for the stanza.
Ubiles led four Saints in double figures with 18 points and finishes his brilliant career with 1,939 career points - good for third best in program history. Classmate Ronald Moore added 14 points and dished out five assists, completing his career with 823 career helpers, good for 23rd best in Division I history.
After a slow start by both teams, Purdue (28-5) opened a modest five point lead at 15-10 following a Chris Kramer layup at the 11:32 mark. But the Saints finally caught fire, scoring the game's next eight points and following a Kyle Downey three took a 32-29 lead into intermission. Downey, who replaced the injured Clarence Jackson in the starting lineup, finished with six points.
Siena's lead would be short-lived as the Boilermakers took control right away to start the second half. Purdue scored the first 13 points of the stanza and ran its decisive run to 20-3 over the first six plus minutes to build an insurmountable 49-35 lead at the 13:55 mark.
But the resilient Saints battled back throughout the closing minutes and nearly pulled off an unthinkable comeback. Down 15 (66-51) with 5:47 remaining, Siena responded with a 12-0 run over the next 4:42 capped by a Ryan Rossiter driving lay-in to make it a one possession game at 66-63 with 1:05 left. Senior Edwin Ubiles was crucial during the run, scoring eight of the Saints' 12 points.
But Siena's offense ran out of gas in the final minute as the Saints missed their final five shots. Purdue shot 53.6% in the decisive second half, while the Saints were limited to just 27.8% for the stanza.
Ubiles led four Saints in double figures with 18 points and finishes his brilliant career with 1,939 career points - good for third best in program history. Classmate Ronald Moore added 14 points and dished out five assists, completing his career with 823 career helpers, good for 23rd best in Division I history.
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