Health Care

Muscles must contract for movement to occur. The contracting muscles are called agonists and are the prime movers. For an agonist to contract, shorten, and produce movement, a reciprocal lengthening of its antagonists must occur. For example, when the biceps muscle of the upper arm contracts, its opposite, the triceps muscle, must relax and lengthen. In this case the biceps is the agonist and the triceps is the antagonist. The triceps becomes the agonist for movements that require it to contract, in which case the biceps becomes the antagonist. Understanding these concepts is necessary to understand stretching techniques.Ballistic stretching uses dynamic movements to stretch muscles. Each time a muscle is stretched in this manner, the myotatic reflex (stretch reflex) located in that muscle is also stretched. It responds by sending a volley of signals to the central nervous system that order the muscle to contract, thus resisting the stretch. This is not only counterproductive-the mus

In February 1995, the center for disease control and prevention together with the American college of sports medicine (ACSM) jointly released a new recommendation for physical activity. The new guideline stated that “every American adult should get 30 minutes or more of moderate intensity physical activity on most, and preferably all days of the week. ” This recommendation is aimed at the 78% of our population who are sedentary or marginally active. Only 22% of the population is currently exceeding the new recommendation. The essence of the new recommendation, which was written by a panel of experts, can be summarized by the following - We believe that the most reasonable interpretation of the currently available data is that Calorie expenditure and total time of physical activity are associated with reduced cardiovascular disease incidence and mortality There is a dose response relationship for this association Regular moderate physical activity provides substantial health be

The term weight loss is too generic and implies that indiscriminate weight loss of body fluids, protein, and fat is desirable. A more appropriate goal is to measure success by the amount of fat lost rather than by weight loss. The term weight loss should be replaced by the more specific term fat weight loss. Until recently, advice to over fat persons was imprecise. For example, the suggestion simply to “cut back on calories” is an oversimplification of the truth and reinforces the misconception that diet alone is the problem. Successful weight management is rarely the result of following a diet or counting calories for a specific time period. Rather there must be a life long lifestyle change because the loss or gain of body weight, the development of fat cells, and the causes of obesity are complex issues related to the interaction of three factors-heredity, diet, and exercise.

Americans’ obsession with their body weight is evidenced by the 50% of women and 25% of men who are trying to lose weight at any given time One third of US adults and one fourth of US children are obese. Almost three fourths of all Americans are overweight. Americans are more sedentary and at the same time consume more calories than their peers of 10 years ago. Obesity is defined as being 20% over the recommended weight in height/weight tables. Better methods of determining obesity are those that involve actual fat measurements. With these methods, body fat percentages of 25% and 32% for men and women respectively are classified as moderately obese. Obesity is a risk factor for coronary heart disease, stroke, hypertension, some forms of cancer, some types of diabetes mellitus, respiratory disorders, and orthopedic problems. Obesity has been declared a disease by the National Institutes of Health. Dietary intake of too much fat and too many calories is the major cause of obesity

Mental Health problem is difficult to classify into clearly defined diseases. It is the symptoms of mental illness that distinguish one type of disorder from another, but those symptoms often vary much more widely in both kind and degree than the symptoms of physical illness. Because of this it is sometimes difficult to tell whether or not a person is actually mentally ill or, if illness is obvious, to determine the probable cause and work out a possible cure. In general, if you are able to keep your mental balance during periods of emotional stress, you can call yourself mentally healthy. If you lose that balance you are ill, at least to some extent. The articles in this section are designed to help you recognize some of the warning signs of common forms of mental illness, not only in yourself but also in others. The arrangement of articles is based on two groupings. First, there are illnesses that arise primari1y from internal influences, such as schizophrenia, depression and comp

There are a few simple truths about getting fit and healthy: To get fit, you have to work out regularly. To work out regularly, you have to be disciplined and stay consistent. This means you can’t postpone that morning jog just because it is raining. Now, if you’re wearing glasses, this might pose a problem. Glasses get wet and impair your vision, glasses may fog, and you might drop them if you trip over something while running. And refraining from using them while you exercise might get you run over by a truck. Thus: you need to buy contacts. Using contact lenses is the ultimate solution for every sportsman or sportswoman; lenses don’t disturb you when you exercise, lenses are easy to put in before exercising, and lenses give you perfect vision. Frankly, you will be surprised by the high quality of modern lenses; they are extremely comfortable, very effortless to use and need very little care.Contact lenses used to be the expensive alternative but today, there are many kinds of cheap

Uncomfortable pressure, fullness, a squeezing sensation as if a band were being tightened around the chest, pain in the center of the chest lasting longer than 2 minutes Pain that spreads to the shoulders, arms, or neck The above warning signs as well as dizziness, fainting, sweating, nausea, and shortness of breath What You Should Do If These Signs Appear If you have chest discomfort lasting more than 2 minutes: Do not deny what may be occurring. Call the emergency service or have a friend or family member drive you to the nearest hospital that has 24 hour emergency cardiac care. Know in advance which hospitals have such a service. Prominently display the telephone number of the emergency rescue service and also carry a copy with you. Stroke: The Warning Signs The American Heart Association suggests that people be familiar with the following warning signs: Temporary loss of speech or difficulty in speaking or understanding speech Unexplained dizziness, unsteadi