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Beauty after Breast Cancer

April 1, 2015

You Can still Achieve Beauty after Breast Cancer

BeautyBreast cancer is one of the common forms of cancers that have made many people victims. If you are not the immediate victim then you are affected in a way. this diseases has maimed many women but its effects goes beyond the need for medical care to correct the body tissues and cells affected for the sake of restoring good health but anybody who has suffered from disease and survived or have cared for anyone suffering from this disease will tell you that after breast cancer treatment you can hardly recognize them. It interferes with the beauty of our women. Before I indulge on how breast cancer treatments can have negative effects on your beauty, I think it is prudent that we know some facts about this monster. Breast cancer is disease that is caused by malignant cells that form in the tissues of the breast. The damaged cells can invade surrounding tissue, when this happens there will be more complex treatments needed to save the situation as the when the cancer cells are far spread in the body it becomes rather hard to deal with the situation as local chemotherapy can’t work any better. When the surrounding cells are affected the treatments used will often leave the patients with lots of side effects. However when this disease is detected much earlier before the breast is adversely affected and before the malignant cells affects the surrounding cells then it can be treated after which many people will continue living their lives normally.

Today it is estimated that one in every eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime. As known to many this disease affects women more than it affects men and is the second leading cause of death in women worldwide. Each year it is estimated that over 220,000 women in the United States will be diagnosed with breast cancer and more than 40,000 will die. Although breast cancer in men is rare, an estimated 2,150 men will be diagnosed with breast cancer and approximately 410 will die each year. This makes breast cancer both a man and a woman health threat therefore it should be addressed well by availing different alternatives to treat it so that it can be fought and one. Cancer treatments are known to leave the patients with myriads of side effects. Radiation therapy and chemotherapy that are the most used orthodox treatments for breast cancer targets to treat cancer by destroying the cancer cells on the breast tissues. Unfortunately when a person is put on either radiation therapy or chemotherapy not only the cancer cells are destroyed but also the living cells. Apart from this other side effects of chemotherapy that make women lose several ounces of beauty include;

Appetite loss– when a breast cancer patient is put on chemotherapy they will lose appetite, eating less than usual and at other times they will fail to eat a lot. How does this affect their outlook? Well, when a patient is under prolonged appetite loss they will fail to eat leading to malnutrion, loss of weight, loss of muscle mass and strength which will limit the body’s ability to heal. Lack of proper nutrition also leads to skin discoloration and dryness. The skin becomes dry and dark which isn’t any aesthetic to any woman.

Dealing with Hair loss

Patients receiving chemotherapy may lose hair from all over the body, gradually or in clumps. This side effect most often starts after the first several weeks or rounds of chemotherapy and tends to increase one to two months into treatment. Every person knows how valuable a woman’s hair is to them. During breast cancer treatment they not only lose the hair on their heads but also on other parts of the body. They lose eyebrows and eyelashes too.

Beautywomen may have very many roles in this life, they take up careers and today even perform most of the duties that were initially dominated by man but these all manly jobs that they have since dominated all in a bid to be independent which is good at all angles, they are still the flowers of this planet. Life revolves around women and not on them alone but also on their beauty. every woman spend the better part of their life pursuing beauty and tis beauty should not be completely swept off because of breasts cancer and treatments that follows it. A woman can still be beautiful after breast cancer; even after losing their hair to this monster. There are several cancer treatment facilities that are now offering several ways of restoring their beauty after cancer treatments. for the problem of hair loss there are wigs and hairpieces that are sold in shops that a person who has lost her hair can buy better yet there are wigs and hairpieces in some cancer treatment facilities that are specifically designed for breast cancer patients who have lost their hair. The choice of the wig and hairpiece to use depends on the patient, if she wants wig and hairpiece that looks exactly as her hair then it is better to choose a wig or hairpiece before her hair falls out so it most closely matches the original hair color and style.

for all problems that may arise as a result of lack of appetite, having the help of a nutritionist who can avail all the information and recommend best foods to restore good health, weight gain and solve the problem of skin dryness and skin discoloration will be a better idea. Some patients have also opted to go for cosmetic surgery to conceal the scars if they ever had to go for surgery in treatment of their diseases however for surgeries it’s good to check on possible side effects first. Breast cancer is a monster that wreaks havoc in a woman’s life but you should restore your beauty after treatment. For this purpose, contact Dr. Dalal Akoury by calling her on (843) 213-1480. She will surely be able to give a helping hand.

Beauty after Breast Cancer

 

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Dopamine and Norepinephrine Contributing to Addiction?

March 20, 2015

Dopamine and Norepinephrine and Their Contribution to Addiction

Dopamine and norepinephrine are very crucial neurotransmitters whose functions can never be underestimated. These are some of the most crucial neurotransmitters in the body. In particular, dopamine has very many functions in the body but to many people it is famous for its good feeling effects that it is always identified with but this should not be the case as it has functions beyond the mesolimbic pathway. In the brain dopamine plays such roles as: It plays a big role in starting movement, and the destruction of dopamine neurons in an area of the brain called the substantia nigra is what produces the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. Dopamine is involved in the frontal cortex in executive functions like attention and feelings among others. In the rest of the body, dopamine is involved in nausea, in kidney function, and in heart function. Though only relevant to most people when it comes to such aspects as motivation, addiction, attention or lust, dopamine is a crucial neurotransmitter that also does vital functions in different pathways. Therefore dopamine should not only be limited to the mesolimbic pathway. A pathway which starts with cells in the ventral tegmental area, buried deep in the middle of the brain, which send their projections out to places like the nucleus accumbens and the cortex.  the levels of dopamine is naturally controlled by the brain, for example when a person engages  in pleasurable activities the brain will increase the level of dopamine in the nucleus accumbens, however during addiction the dopamine signaling in this area is changed. For any drug to have any pleasurable feeling to the user then the level of dopamine must be increased and this is what causes euphoric feelings that drug users will do anything to achieve.

Dopamine

Dopamine depletion and cocaine addiction

Despite one of the most dangerous drugs of pleasure, cocaine has remained to be one of the drugs that are highly abused worldwide. Cocaine works in such a way that it targets the dopamine which is a neurotransmitter related with euphoric feelings. When taken cocaine will cause a surge of dopamine extracellular in limbic areas, specifically, nucleus accumbens it is this surge that causes euphoric effects cocaine is known for. It is the euphoric properties of cocaine that lead to the development of chronic abuse, and appear to involve the acute activation of central dopamine neuronal systems. Dopamine plays a key role in reward system and stimulation behavior. However, when a person uses cocaine for a long time his neurotransmitter and neuroendocrine alterations will eventually occur. Dopamine depletion is hypothesized to result from overstimulation of these neurons and excessive synaptic metabolism of the neurotransmitter. It is this depletion of dopamine that may underlie dysphoric aspects of cocaine abstinence, and cocaine cravings.  With many research findings on cocaine relations with dopamine, it is clear that cocaine addiction stems from the depletion of synaptic dopamine in the mesolimbic dopamine reward system, leading to a dysphoric withdrawal state that drives cocaine seeking to restore dopamine to normal, drug-dependence level.

After using cocaine for a long time, your brain will be conditioned to use cocaine in order to raise cocaine to the required levels and this result in addicted brain that can’t function without taking cocaine. At this stage it will be hard for an addict to quit using this drug as every time you try to quit all the withdrawal symptoms will set in thereby causing addiction and dependence thereafter. These cravings contribute not only to addiction but to relapse after a hard-won sobriety especially when the addict encounters triggers.

Norepinephrine and Drug Addiction

Norepinephrine is a very vital neurotransmitter in the brain that is also one of the most abundant in the brain. It is important for such roles as selective attention, general arousal, and stress reactions in challenging environments. Norepinephrine has been implicated by several studies as a key mediator of drug reward for three primary reasons. First, the noradrenergic pathways support intracranial self-stimulation (ICSS) and modulate drug-induced changes in ICSS threshold. Secondly, the biochemical activity of psychostimulant drugs includes blockade of Norepinephrine reuptake and enhancement of Norepinephrine release and thirdly, compounds that interfere with Norepinephrine synthesis or signaling influence drug self-administration. The idea that drugs of abuse act via the endogenous reward systems in the brain first arose when psychostimulants such as amphetamine and cocaine have been found to alter support intracranial self-stimulation thresholds. One interpretation of these results was that Norepinephrine mediates the effect of psychostimulants on support intracranial self-stimulation, because these drugs cause Norepinephrine release, block Norepinephrine reuptake or do both.

Dopamine

In a 1970s research done by Davis WM and Smith SG in a study titled: Catecholaminergic mechanisms of reinforcement: direct assessment by drug-self-administration, it was found that catecholamines were important in the mediation of opiate self-administration. in this research, a series of experiments showed that depletion of Norepinephrine and dopamine with amphetamine , a drug which is known to inhibit tyrosine hydroxylase prevents or attenuates the self-administration of morphine in rodents and in nonhuman primates as was shown earlier by Pozuelo and Kerr in 1972.

Finally, Drug addiction is a vice that should be fought by all means that is why we at AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center are committed to availing help to addicts and offering them a place to call home. We offer NER Treatment and Amino acid therapy that are the most effective approaches to addiction treatment and recovery. You call on Dr. Dalal Akoury (MD) today and begin your journey to victory against addiction.

Dopamine and Norepinephrine and Their Roles in Causing Addiction

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Foods That Help Boost Serotonin Level

March 17, 2015

Foods That Raise Serotonin Level

Serotonin is one of the most important neurotransmitters in the brain. Serotonin helps in regulation of mood and sleep. According to recent research findings, when the level of serotonin is below optimum it can cause increased incidences  of aggressive behavior. Low serotonin levels have also been linked to anxiety and depression. If the recent research findings have to be believed which of course they are, then low serotonin levels are dangerous as it may lead to suicidal acts. In terms of dieting, making sure you’re not serotonin deficient is vital because serotonin triggers satiety after eating. Depressed serotonin levels is the likely reason why the vast majority of people cannot stay on a very low carbohydrate diet for the long term without feeling an unavoidable need to binge which may lead to more complex disorders. In the brain the production of neurotransmitter happens naturally without intervention of any other drug, however when you have used the drugs of abuse for some time they will lead to depletion in the levels of the brain chemicals such as serotonin and dopamine. This therefore means that for healthy levels of serotonin to be achieved after use of drugs, there is need for replenishing and supplementing serotonin through diet. There are foods that are very helpful in raising the levels of serotonin . Here are some of them.

Serotonin

Fresh Vegetables

Fresh vegetables work in myriad ways to ensure good health. the greens are rich in various minerals and vitamins that go along way in boosting the levels of serotonin. some of the fresh vegetables that are actually beneficial in increasing the level of serotonin include Spinach which contains a substantial dose of folic acid. it  is also a wonderful source of the mineral magnesium, a natural anxiety combatant. Without enough magnesium in your diet, you may find it hard to concentrate in addition to being fatigued and irritable. other foods that are rich in magnesium and hence helpful in boosting levels of serotonin include; cacao, seaweed, bananas, orange, tree nuts, peanuts, whole grains, corn, cheese, eggs, milk, and white fish.

Fresh Fruit

Fresh fruits are rich in nutritional content. The fresh fruits are rich in vitamins that serve the purpose of rejuvenating the body and giving it a healing approach as well as protecting the body and restoring crucial neurotransmitters like the serotonin which therefore helps in ensuring good moods. fruits are rich in B3 vitamins. these fruits may include watermelon, peaches, bananas, cantaloupe, and avocado. Generally, the B vitamins are very essential in restoration of neurotransmitters especially after a period of long term use of drugs of pleasure that are known to disrupt the functions of the neurotransmitters.

 Apples

An apple a day keeps the devil away is a common adage. The health benefits of apples are many and this explains why it is always recommended for patients. A compound found in apples called “quercetin’ is an antioxidant that studies have shown may not only help in the prevention of cancer but may also play an important role in the prevention of neurodegenerative disorders. the medicinal abilities of this compound is confounding. It also helps in boosting serotonin as well as dopamine levels.

 Herbs that Boost Serotonin Levels:

SerotoninSt. John’s wort -St. John’s wort is effective against mild to moderate depression, alleviates anxiety, insomnia, and irritability and eases pain. It increases the level of serotonin in the brain as well.

Dandelion– This herb is widely used in Europe as an excellent liver detoxifier and mild diuretic. It increases the flow of bile and encourages both the transformation and transportation of nutrients. It has been used historically to treat liver disorders, arthritis and gout. In the addict it will ease the transportation of nutrients in the body and restore energy in the cells as well as boost the level of serotonin.

Cannabis- though known for all the wrong reasons, cannabis has very high medicinal content, however it is highly addictive and that dictates that it be used in moderation as unregulated use can cause addiction. It works in a way that it increases the levels of excitatory neurotransmitters like dopamine and serotonin.

Burdock– burdock has been used to treat other conditions ranging from arthritis to diabetes to hair loss, and it’s an active ingredient in some cancer treatments this herb is also good in resoring the levels of serotonin.

Ginseng–  contrary to what many people believe , ginseng does not only increase the level of serotonin in the body but also works in rejuvenating, restorative, boosts energy and vitality and is tonic to the brain. Ginseng is often prescribed for patients fighting depression which is a common symptom of withdrawal from drug use. This herb is a better therapy for those who are under physical, emotional, mental or spiritual stress as it is a very strong antidepressant and adaptogenic. Ginseng promotes strong nerves, sound sleep, improves memory, clear thinking and enhances concentration.

Use of drugs for along time causes damage to the neurotransmitters. apart from the foods and the herbs, you can also increase the level of serotonin by sunlight. Bright light increases the production of Serotonin in the body.  Basking in the sunlight can absolutely improve your mood and also soothe muscle aches. It is good to note that by increasing the level of serotonin in your body, you are setting good grounds for addiction treatment and recovery. However, these problems need to be treated effectively through integrative medicine. Dr. Dalal Akoury (MD) is an expert at this.  Call her on (843) 213-1480 for help.

Foods That Raise Serotonin Level

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Effects of Cannabis Deregulation on College Students

March 16, 2015

Effects of Cannabis Deregulation on College Students

Scientifically Cannabis sativa popularly known by many titles such as weed, marijuana among others, has always been a drug that is accessible to many youths in spite of harsh laws that regulate its use in given countries. In most countries the use of this drug is prohibited and if you are unlucky to be caught you will serve a jail term longer enough to make you regret knowing it in the first place. Despite the stringent rules that have outlawed the use of this drug in many countries it has remained one of the highly abused drugs especially by college students and teens who are out of school.

Marijuana is currently an outlawed drug in most countries but it does not defy the saying that every dark cloud has a silver lining, it also has good effects that were once valued- this drug being rich in THC (delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol). THC is one of the most active ingredient in cannabis that has medicinal qualities, due to its high content in this medicinal content, many researchers have opined that marijuana can be used in treatment of many diseases including cancer. However owing to the fact that it is a highly addictive drug that is prone to be abused it has attracted the attentions for all the wrong reasons making it outlawed in many parts of the world.

The use of cannabis is common despite the strict laws in fact it is on the rise among college students, thanks to its hallucinatory effects that has made it a darling to many students.  Most college students begin using this drug without even knowing all the side effects that it is always associated with. Due to peer pressure and a need to belong some students also begin using this drug since some of their friends are using it. in the long run the number of college students affected grows and by the time they become aware of the dangerous effects of using cannabis they are have already become addicted to the drug so much that it can’t be easily stopped. This leads to a situation where college students become adversely affected with the drug so much that they cannot effectively study.

Cannabis and students

The use of cocaine on the rise among students

According to an article published on Michigan University News on Sept/8/2014; the use of illicit drugs has been rising at an alarming rate among American college students since 2006 when only 34 per cent indicated that they had used some illicit drugs in years prior to 2006. By 2013 the rate of those who indicated to have used illicit drugs had heightened by 39 per cent. The report also stated that marijuana is one of the drugs that are highly abused by college students. This study was done by University of Michigan scientists who conduct the nationwide Monitoring the Future study.

The report states that the use of marijuana is on the rise while that of other drugs of leisure is declining and this can be attributed to availability of this drug and affordability in comparison to such drugs as cocaine and heroin.  According to this study, Daily marijuana use is now at the highest rate among college students in more than three decades. 51 percent of all full-time college students currently have used an illicit drug at some time in their lives; roughly four in 10 have used one or more such drugs in just the 12 months preceding the survey.

The results are based on a nationally representative sample of some 1,100 students enrolled full time in a 2- or 4-year college in spring 2013. The survey is part of the long-term MTF study, which also tracks substance use among the nation’s secondary students and older adults under research grants from the National Institute on Drug Abuse.

The study showed that marijuana has remained the most widely used illicit drug over the 34 years that MTF has tracked substance use by college students, but the level of use has varied considerably over time. In 2006, 30 percent of the nation’s college students said they used marijuana in the prior 12 months, whereas in 2013 nearly 36 percent indicated doing so. This shows how marijuana use in colleges is rising despite the fact that it is still regulated. The question is what will happen if it is deregulated.

If marijuana would be deregulated today, the students will begin using it like some sort of over the counter drugs, without fear of authorities and deregulation in itself may sound as an approval by the state on the positive effects of the drug hence many students will use it.

Cannabis

These are some of the problems that the students will face

Inconsistence in performance- consuming alcohol doesn’t end with blowing the smoke in the air; its effects are far more than the euphoric effects that an individual may get from using the drug. When used for a long time it will result in anxiety which will not enable the student to study and perform well in exams and being that it will be unregulated the dosage may hike to a dangerous limit that over a time may cause cognitive malfunctions.

Depression- this is a threat that most people using cannabis have to face. Depression is not good for a student as it alienates him from his studies and even lecturers it may graduate to other serious problems.

Addiction to marijuana is a serious concern that needs to be duly addressed. Here at AWAREmed we are dedicated to offer the best treatment available to addicts. Contact Dr. Dalal Akoury (MD) for more help in any kind of addiction you may be wrestling with.

Effects of Cannabis Deregulation on College Students

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Correcting Neurotransmitter Imbalances with IV Amino Acids

March 14, 2015

Correcting Neurotransmitter Imbalances with IV Amino Acids

When taken, drugs will alter the normal the bodily functions. That is no news to even those who use drugs of abuse, in fact the basic definition of a drug is; any substance that when taken will interfere with the normal functions of the body. However some drugs do not only alter minor body functions but go a step further in inhibiting the functions of neurotransmitters to a greater extent.  Most of the drugs that can mimic or interfere with the functions of the neurotransmitters in any way are mostly drugs of pleasure that are prone to abuse and are hence illegal in many parts of the world. The brain and the entire nervous system functions in a way that the entire body needs them to work properly, you can’t imagine how fast the coordination between the central nervous system and the peripheral nervous system is but most important fact to note is that any interference within the nervous system even only to a neurotransmitter goes a long way in affecting the entire body. The brain has various mechanisms through which it accomplishes all the functions of the body. The effect of drugs on the neurotransmitters can be underestimated by those who haven’t known how the neurotransmitters work, here is how the neurotransmitters work.

Neurotransmitters

How Neurotransmitters Work

Neurotransmitters are very crucial in the nervous system. They are the chemicals that transmit messages from one nerve cell to another. Nerve cells are known as neurons. The nerve impulse travels from the first nerve cell through the axon, a single smooth body arising from the nerve cell to the axon terminal and the synaptic knobs. Each synaptic knob communicates with a dendrite or cell body of another neuron, and the synaptic knobs contain neurovesicles that store and release neurotransmitters. The synapse lies between the synaptic knob and the next cell. For the impulse to continue traveling across the synapse to reach the next cell, the synaptic knobs release the neurotransmitter into that space, and the next nerve cell is stimulated to pick up the impulse and continue it. An interference with the neurotransmitters can adversely affect the flow of message within the nervous system. This is what most drugs of abuse do. They affect the harmonious flow of information from the brain to the rest of the body maiming its normal functions. Let’s look at how drugs affect specific neurotransmitters in the nervous system.

How Drugs affect Dopamine and GABA

One of the neurotransmitters that are highly targeted by drugs of pleasure is Dopamine. To some people it is known as the ‘bliss neurotransmitter’. It is responsible for good feeling, the euphoric feelings that drug addicts seek from various drugs of abuse. Dopamine has great influence on well-being, alertness, learning, creativity, attention and concentration. Levels of dopamine should be optimal in the brain since when the level of dopamine is low it can leave us craving food, sex or stimulation. When the dopamine level is too high it can cause addictive behaviors. It has been observed that patients who are put on medications to boost dopamine level especially the Parkinson’s patient, they will form an addictive behavior like gambling when the levels of dopamine shoots beyond the optimal level. Dopamine boosts the feelings of pleasure but when the levels are too high it may result in Paranoia or a suspicious personality. Dopamine is also released when there is high stress. Therefore the level of dopamine should be regulated to ensure sound health. This is where the functions of inhibitory neurotransmitters set in, however with influence of drugs this coordination between excitatory neurotransmitters and inhibitory neurotransmitters is maimed.

Nicotine influences mood, cognition, and body function by binding to and activating nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) located on neurons in the brain. When activated by either nicotine or the endogenous neurotransmitter acetylcholine, the nAChR opens a channel that allows ions to pass through the neuron’s membrane from the exterior to the interior of the cell and trigger changes that activate the cell. When you take tobacco or other drug with nicotine the nicotine will have interactions with nAChRs and therefore any nicotine dependence treatment should focus on altering these interactions.

Nicotine produces rewarding effects by interacting with nAChRs on neurons in the brain’s mesolimbic reward system. This system comprises dopaminergic neurons that originate in the ventral tegmental area often shortened as VTA and release the neurotransmitter dopamine in regions involved in information processing, memory, and emotions, such as the nucleus accumbens (NAc), hippocampus, amygdala, and prefrontal cortex (PFC). Increases in dopamine levels within the mesolimbic system give rise to rewarding effects. Nicotine directly enhances dopamine levels in the mesolimbic system by interacting with nAChRs on the dopaminergic neurons and causing them to release more of the neurotransmitter. Nicotine also modulates dopamine release indirectly by binding to nAChRs located on excitatory glutamatergic and inhibitory gamma aminobutyric acid (GABAergic) neurons in the ventral tegmental area. These glutamatergic and GABAergic neurons originate from a number of brain areas, such as the NAc, hippocampus, PFC, amygdala, ventral pallidum, and pedunculopontine tegmental nucleus, and regulate the activity of dopaminergic neurons.

Neurotransmitters

Restoring nicotine addiction can’t be done with IV amino acid to restore NER balance

Nicotine is one of the most available addictive substances. You can find it in tea but it can be found in greater proportions. Unfortunately, Nicotine addiction is never easy to fight. And the bitter truth is that nicotine addiction can’t be fought successfully without IV amino acid to restore NER balance. IV amino acids are the best in restoring the balances in the neuroendocrine system. The IV amino acids are the best in detoxification and getting rid of the effects of nicotine and curbing nicotine addiction by ensuring the balance of neuroendocrine chemicals.  With IV amino acid, dopamine has been noted to be the major cause of addiction can be regulated. IV amino acids is used as an  outpatient program which focuses on biochemical detoxification of the body and brain hence perfect treatment for nicotine addiction.

Any addiction treatment must focus on restoring the general well-being of the patient that can only be achieved by restoring the neurotransmitters affected. This is why we at AWAREmed are dedicated to ensuring that we offer the best neuroendocrine restoration. Dr. Dalal Akoury (MD) is one of the few doctors that have embraced the benefits of NER in fighting addiction. Call on her and be helped in finding the best solution for nicotine and other substances addiction.

Neurochemical and Imbalances Involved In With Nicotine & Smoking

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