About CO2 and Global Warming and Health

Well, now, how about CO2 and Global warming, Al Gore says it is disastrous and we need to get rid of the CO2.. But what about this research?

Seasonal Allergy Relief Coming Soon

The results of a new Creighton University study may soon spell relief for some of the estimated 40 million Americans who suffer from seasonal allergic rhinitis (SAR) caused by pollens such as grass and ragweed.

According to Creighton (Cray-ton) researchers, noninhaled, intranasal carbon dioxide (CO2) may offer a new, effective and safe treatment for many SAR sufferers. The study will be reported in an upcoming issue of the Journal of Allergy & Clinical Immunology.

“These findings indicate that noninhaled, intranasal carbon dioxide is very promising as a safe and effective treatment to provide rapid relief for seasonal allergic rhinitis. With the exception of a burning/stinging sensation when the carbon dioxide is first administered, there appears to be no significant side effects with this technique.

“It could be a good alternative for people who don’t want to take intranasal steroids,” said Thomas B. Casale, M.D., principal investigator and chief of Creighton School of Medicine’s Division of Allergy/Immunology.

Currently, there are no treatments available that provide truly rapid relief of SAR symptoms and can be used safely long-term, he added.

In the Creighton study, patients receiving CO2 reported a significant and rapid improvement in congestion, sneezing and other nasal symptoms — within 10 minutes and lasting at least 24 hours — over those taking a placebo (plain air). The CO2 group also reported some, although not statistically significant, improvement in non-nasal symptoms such as watery and itchy eyes.

Within 30 minutes of treatment, 50 percent of those taking CO2 reported more than a 50 percent improvement in nasal symptoms, compared to 27.6 percent of the placebo group.

The Creighton study involved 89 subjects, 18 to 75 years of age, who had at least a two-year history of seasonal allergies requiring pharmacotherapy. Sixty received CO2 and 29 received plain air.

The patients took the gases intranasally twice — once for each nostril — within an interval of less than five minutes for a total dose of about 1,200 milliliters. They avoided inhaling the gas by breathing through the mouth, allowing the gas to flow in one nostril, pass through the nose and sinus cavities, and pass out the other nostril.

The use of intranasal noninhaled CO2 has already proven effective in treating migraines, although it is not yet approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for that use. Allergic rhinitis is triggered by some of the same mechanisms as migraines.

Stray Rooster

My son was one of those kids that always had some critter following him home, and "can we keep him, momma?" He had kangaroo rats, guinea pigs, a small monkey, an alligator that liked the bathtub, and on and on.. He would put the rat in his shirt pocket and go to school. The rat would slip out, crawl under his collar and go to the other side, peek out and scamper back under the collar and into the pocket.

Now that he is long on his own they are still seeking him out.. He has been adopted by a couple of skunks, a road runner, a hand full of wild ducks and now this rooster... The rooster challenges anyone that comes near my son.. sits on the back of "the other" rocker on the porch when Mick is sitting out side.. sits on the dryer at night..so he can look in the bedroom window.

Wonder if grandson #3 is going to take after his daddy... the rooster has taken a shine to him too..

Crunches with ball

Starting Position
Begin by sitting on top of the Swiss ball. Roll in the direction your head is pointed until your lower back is supported by the curve of the ball. You can either cross your arms over your chest or place your hands behind your ears. Do not put them behind the head or clasp them together behind your head.

Action
EXHALE: Crunch forward, using your abdominals, until you are at approximately a 45 degree angle to the ball. Keep you neck in a neutral position.

INHALE: Lower yourself back to the starting position, where your head wraps back around the ball. Try doing 2 sets of 15 crunches.

Special Instructions
Keep space in-between your chin and chest, so your spine stays in a neutral position. Balance yourself on the ball with as much upper body weight off the ball as possible without falling over backwards.

Muscles Worked: Abs

The Miracle of "M"

By Dr. David Eifrig Jr.

I'll always remember one of my first patients, a 62-year-old man who surely earned me a great grade and whose life I may have saved…

Early in my fourth and last year of medical school, I served an acting internship, or "AI," in an intensive-care unit. AIs are particularly stressful because medical students take part in them while still in school. You do not yet have your license, and you're expected to manage patients on your own…

When this patient, a mild drinker, came to the hospital, he was suffering dietary and general health issues. Strangely, he was having kidney failure (without diabetes), muscle pains, bruising, and generally felt ornery and "on edge." It was just a matter of time before he would die, and yet it wasn't clear to anyone why.

When I presented my patient formally at rounds the next morning, all the lab results had edged up toward normal and nothing jumped out to anyone. Later that night, I was in the call room, lying down but wide awake. I was reading a book called ICU and just happened to read about how critical magnesium was to life...

Either I had not paid attention in classes (entirely possible) or my intuition was kicking in. This guy needed magnesium, and he needed it fast. I ordered some magnesium, calcium, and potassium and continued with the slow infusion in his IV bag.

The next morning on rounds, unsure if I would be laughed at, I just said that I had "added some lytes (short for electrolytes) to his bag." This was easily glossed over by the team in our hurry to finish morning rounds. I should add that there was nothing dangerous per se about what I did. I just didn't want the usual hassle and comments in the vein of "How stupid to add magnesium, clearly the lab results are normal."

You can probably guess by now the end of the story... This guy's health turned around in hours not days. By that night, he was ready to get up and walk, which meant he was soon to be transferred off our ICU service. The next morning, I boldly told what I thought had happened only to hear that I needed to present the patient at grand rounds and do a lecture on magnesium... I did and nobody was as impressed as I was.

A second case a few months later clinched it for me. The patient was on full maximum hypertension meds and still had elevated blood pressure... By then, I was a well-read believer in the "miracle power of magnesium." So I suggested the patient purchase some over-the-counter magnesium/calcium pills, continue walking (which he rarely did), and "eat right" – the usual line that a doctor gives. He came back three weeks later elated and claimed that I had almost cured him. In fact, he was able to get off a couple meds as his blood pressure was much lower on subsequent visits. Was it the magnesium? We'll never know for sure, but my money is on yes.

The list below shows symptoms associated with a low magnesium level:

•	High blood pressure	•	Loss of appetite
•	Kidney stones	•	Confusion
•	Nausea	•	Personality changes
•	Irregular heart beats	•	Poor nerve conduction
•	Diabetes	•	Cancer
•	Immune system dysfunction	•	Coronary spasms
•	Osteoporosis	•	Poor muscle energy
•	Lethargy	•	Poor protein metabolism
•	Premature labor	•	Mental retardation in children
•	Low potassium	•	Low calcium

Amazingly this list goes on and on...

Some facts about magnesium:

•	It's the fourth-most common mineral in the human body.
•	Most of it rests within the bone and inside cells.
•	Very little of the body's total magnesium rests in the blood.
•	The recommended daily allowance (RDA) is 420 mg for men and 320 mg for women.
•	Most of us do not get even the RDA (remember that the RDA is simply the minimum to prevent deficiency signs).
•	Foods high in magnesium include: -Cooked spinach (a cup has about 150 mg). -Roasted pumpkin seeds (a quarter-cup has about the same amount). -Apples, grapes, and citrus fruits.

When it comes to magnesium... what do I do?

•	Whenever I feel like my blood pressure may be "reactive," I'll take a couple of antacids that have magnesium and calcium combined.
•	Years ago, when I regularly ran long distances – including the New York City marathon – I would occasionally get cramps at night or while swimming... I found that a little calcium/magnesium/potassium helped immediately and immensely.
•	So if I feel crampy in my legs after exercising or even during exercise, I'll take an antacid (see No. 1) and a potassium pill (99 mg of potassium chloride).
•	If I am sore and ornery from exercising hard and if I am under too much stress, then I will fill the tub with hot water and add a cup of Epsom salt... This is simply a salt of magnesium (aka magnesium sulfate)... Wow, talk about a relaxing and calming effect.
•	I eat my spinach... My guess is that Popeye probably felt so good not because of the iron but the magnesium!

Here's to our health,

David Eifrig Jr., M.D., M.B.A.

Vicks Vaporub

When we had a lecture on Essential Oils, they told us how the foot soles can absorb oils. Their example: Put garlic on your feet and within 20 minutes you can 'taste' it.

The scientists at the Canada Research council aren't sure why Vicks Vapor Rub works like it does, only that it does.

To stop night time coughing in a child or adult put Vicks Vaporub generously on the bottom of the feet at bedtime, then cover with socks. Even persistent, heavy, deep coughing will stop in about 5 minutes and stay stopped for many, many hours of relief. Works 100% of the time and is more effective in children than even very strong prescription cough medicines. In addition it is extremely soothing and comforting and they will sleep soundly. I heard the head of the Canada Research Council describe these findings on the part of their scientists when they were investigating the effectiveness and usage of prescription cough medicines in children as compared to alternative therapies like acupressure.

"I just happened to tune in A.M.Radio and picked up this guy talking about why cough medicines in kids often do more harm than good due to the chemical makeup of these strong drugs so, I listened.
It was a surprise finding and found to be more effective than prescribed medicines for children at bedtime, in addition to have a soothing and calming effect on sick children who then went on to sleep soundly.
Lolly tried it on herself when she had a very deep constant and persistent cough a few weeks ago and it worked 100%! She said that it felt like a warm blanket had enveloped her, coughing stopped in a few minutes and believe me, this was a deep, (incredibly annoying!) every few seconds uncontrollable cough, and she slept cough-free for hours every night that she used it.
If you have grandchildren, pass it on. If you end up sick, try it yourself and you will be absolutely amazed by the effect."

It also works wonders on nail fungus.

Comment on this morning's thoughts

What I wanted to get into this morning, before I went off on a tangent, was about the recall of politicians.
I think that is an outstanding idea.
I wonder if we can recall judges too, and appeal judges that have life time jobs. Maybe someone will take the time to find that out and let me know. Or, one day I will get around to researching it myself. Maybe no, on the appeal judges, because then that would leave the Supreme Court wide open and we know they would be hit everyday with recalls.. so, that doesn't make sense. But the elected judges... look OUT!

We would need a bunch of Leon Drolets to handle all the recalls. Then again, the American people would quickly lose interest in the recalls and not even know what or why they were recalling someone, nor would they care. We go back to stimulating interest.

We had out of town company for a couple of days.. Rod and Ruth Ann are out touring the west. They are from Michigan, so they stopped by to visit hubby for a couple of days. Really nice people. Wish they could have stayed another day or two.

I was meandering around the web this morning and came across Sam Adams Blog.. interesting

"Michiganders lose...for now [Sam Adam Alliance and Foundation Blog]

The status quo won in Lansing, MI the other day as politicians raised the income tax in an already over-taxed state. Leon Drolet worked hard to avoid this outcome, and now, he's running an aggressive Plan B to show that it's the people--not the politicians--who are in charge of the government."

http://www.samadamsalliance.org/blog/id.2876/blog_detail.asp

My comment is that it should read, It's the people that SHOULD be in charge, not the Unions. I understand the Unions can get pretty nasty up there.

But until the people take an interest in what is going on around them and to them the unions and special interest groups will be controlling the politicians. And how are you going to stimulate an interest? They are too busy worrying about what the kids are doing or not doing, or how they are going to make ends meet this month, and worry about next month when it gets here. Then there is the group that just sort of stands around with their hands out, saying here I am, take care of me. It seems that we are not raising independent children any more. It is hard to raise independent children or children to be independent. It takes a lot of tough love on the part of the parents. Maybe it is because when there were 10 or 12 kids in the family it was hard not to raise them to be independent. When you just have one or two or three, it is easier to give into their demands than to say NO.. But there are a lot of GOOD kids out there.. if there weren't we wouldn't have an all volunteer military. I think we should find their parents and study them and how they raised their children.

Then there is the education system. Back in the 60's I was shocked when I really found out the changes there... My son got into a fight on the school grounds and was suspended for 3 days. That happened on a Monday.. and wouldn't you know it was Easter weekend. There was no school on Friday or Monday.. I went to the principal and complained bitterly. He asked me what I would suggest he do.. I said keep him in every afternoon for 5 days and make him do his homework, fore go recess, spend so much time in the library. Now that would punish my son. That is what they did to us when I went to school. He said they couldn't do that because it would require a teacher be with him and the teachers union wouldn't allow it. That was the first I knew there was a teachers union. I was furious... I told him that I wished they had of had that policy when I was going to school, a blanket 3 day suspension, I would have been in a fight EVERY Tuesday afternoon.. and stomped out. Here I thought that teachers were dedicated, come to find out it was just a job. That was a rude awakening too. No wonder students don't respect their teachers. The teachers are not there for them, they are just there to collect a paycheck.. and it shows. Maybe not all of them. I am forever optimistic.

Well, this morning I was reading some comments about Chris Matthews from Hardball and his conduct with a really nice looking young woman. I would have loved to make a comment to the comments, but you had to be a "professional" blogger, and that I am not. In fact this is my first time at blogging.

My comment would have been, all of them were correct, but not quite. I believe his attitude towards the young good looking women is not necessarily because he is chauvinistic , that too, but he is actually degrading them..

When I was growing up a beautiful woman was considered brainless. Much like the Blondie jokes of today. And I believe that is what he is trying to convey.. "okay guys, this gal, thinks she is smart, but look how good looking she is, no brains".. In fact I remember hearing/reading that when the author/philosopher, Rousseau ,was approached by some ding bat blond and she told him that they should get married, "imagine the children with your brains and my looks." His reply was, "I am afraid they might have my looks and your brains."