Heart muscle is always weakened by excessive indulgence in nicotine, the nerves of the heart is disturbed, if not actually injured.

The active principle of tobacco is nicotine, besides which it contains an aromatic camphor-like substance, cellulose, resins, sugar, etc. Other products developed during combustion are carbon monoxide gas, a minute amount of prussic acid and in some varieties a considerable amount of furfural, a poison. From any one cigar or cigarette but little nicotine is absorbed, else the user would be poisoned.

The most important action of nicotine is on the circulation. The heart is frequently made more rapid and the blood pressure is certainly raised in an ordinary smoker, while even a novice may get at first an increase, but soon he may become depressed and have a lowering of the pressure. While a moderate smoker may have an increase of 10 mm. in blood pressure, an excessive smoker may show but little change. Perhaps this is because his heart muscle has become weakened. If the person’s blood pressure is high, the heart may not increase in rapidity during smoking, and if he is nervous beforehand and is calmed by his tobacco, the pulse will be slowed. It has been shown that the blood pressure and pulse rate may be affected in persons sitting in a smoke-filled room, even though they themselves do not smoke. The length of time the increased pressure continues depends on the person, and it is this diminishing pressure that causes many to take another smoke. The heart is slowed by the action of nicotine on the vagi, as these nerves are stimulated both centrally and peripherally. An overdose of nicotine will paralyze the vagi. The heart action then becomes rapid and perhaps irregular. The heart muscle is first stimulated, and if too large a dose is taken, or too much in twenty-four hours, the muscle becomes depressed and perhaps debilitated. The consequence of such action on the heart muscle, sooner or later, is a dilation of the left ventricle if the overuse of the tobacco is continued.

In a word, the heart muscle is always weakened by excessive indulgence in nicotine, the nerves of the heart is disturbed, if not actually injured. Therefore everyone who smokes should quit it.

Tags: effect, heart, Tobacco

Filed under: Quit Smoking Date 29 August, 2008
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Since 1997, Herbert Benson, of the Harvard Medical School, has reaffirmed that “Sixty to ninety percent of [doctor-patient] visits are prompted by conditions related to stress.” Especially in today’s world, stress management is truly vital to emotional, relational, and overall physical health. As a psychologist, I understand that most tend to consider meditative exercises as too difficult to learn; and too time consuming to practice.

Although activities like watching television and listening to music can be relaxing, they do not elicit the relaxation response that is most beneficial for managing stress. In order to de-stress, people need to do something that sounds contradictory, namely engage in activity that is not passive. The Surgeon General recommends physical activity for stress management. One can also manage stress by engaging in self-meditations.

I have had much personal and professional success from my use of audio meditations, many of which can be downloaded off the Internet for free. I recommend a search for “free hypnosis downloads,” “free progressive muscle relaxation,” “mindfulness,” and “free light and sound machine.”

Most people are familar with the availability of self-hypnosis. These hypnotic programs are guided exercises in deep meditation.

Progressive muscle relaxation is a systematic method of tensing and relaxing most of the major muscles of the body. When a muscle is tensed beyond its current level of tension and released, it rebounds to a more relaxed state. This phenomenon helps to create penetrating relaxation, throughout the entire body, within 15 minutes.

A Light and Sound Machine is a relatively new technology that assists its users in achieving near effortless levels of deep meditative states. Relying upon a process known as brainwave synchronization or entrainment, a Light and Sound Machine (or Mind Machine) purportedly uses light and/or sound to alter the brainwave frequency of the user, resulting in altered states of awareness that have been compared to those obtained from transcendental meditation.

Similar to the effect of watching the flicking flame of a fireplace, but more pronounced, the specifically timed flicking pattern of a Light and Sound Machine will surprisingly help to induce its effect, within just a few minutes. Despite their beneficial use, most people also consider Light and Sound Machines to be too expensive. Nonetheless, you can sample the positive effects of these devices, by conducting the aforementioned Internet search. The available freeware actually creates a “virtual” Light and Sound Machine, via your computer monitor.

I also recommend complementing the effect of Light and Sound Machines with soft music or one of the free audio hypnotic downloads that can be found online, as previously discussed above.

Tags: Anxiety, Hypnosis, Internet, Management, Relaxation, Sleep, Stress, Using

Filed under: Meditation Date 29 August, 2008
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Any man who is experiencing problems of sexual performance is likely to feel angry, frustrated and afraid of rejection. In other words, he feels exactly the same way that you do. This underlines the basic truth that, when there are sexual problems in a relationship, both parties are affected. If you do not deal with these problems, they fester and may ultimately destroy your relationship.

How to begin

There is no right way to begin the discussion with your partner. If you have read the rest of the information on this website, you have actually taken a vital first step because you have begun to learn about the problem and its causes. You should have a better understanding of how your partner feels. You now understand not only that impotence is physically and emotionally complicated, but also that it is usually treatable, often using a drug like Cialis.

To talk or not to talk

You now need to bring your partner “up to speed”. How you do this will depend on the nature and strength of your relationship. Whatever you do should appear non-threatening. He already has considerable worry and anxiety about his inability to perform consistently (or at all). If you come over as confrontational, he will retreat even further into his shell. So you need to think about him as a person.

• How does he react in different situations?
• Is there a “best” way to raise this issue with alarming him?
• What coping strategies can you devise?
• What can you offer to do to help him overcome the problem?

Whatever the approach you devise, should help to relieve the stress he is feeling and to build a spirit of co-operation between the two of you.

There is one further reason for opening the discussion. Impotence may be a symptom of more serious medical problems. If he only focuses on what he perceives to be his current sexual inadequacy, he may completely fail to take early steps to address the more serious underlying cause.

So many treatments for cancer and other serious conditions are effective because they are an early intervention. So many men find that more drastic measures are required because they delayed seeking diagnosis until it was almost or actually too late.

Support

Talking about the risks of not seeing a doctor may separate the emotional overtones from the physical issues. Hopefully, you still love him even though he is having sexual problems and you do not want to lose him to a disease. Even if the worst should be confirmed, the quality of your relationship during the difficult days of treatment will be far better. Ignoring the problem will only lead to you feeling guilty because you failed to take action and resentment from him that his problems were undiagnosed. Supporting each other openly and honestly is always the best foundation for a relationship.

Talking positively

That means talking positively about the different options that may have to be explored. Rather than focusing on all the things that may be wrong, concentrate on taking early action to restore good health, which if everything else is all right, may just be the simple decision to buy Cialis. By giving him encouragement, you stand a better chance of being able to work together to solve the problems as they come along. If all you do is to hold up a mirror to his negative feelings, you will both lose out.

This is an emotional minefield for both of you so approach it with care and a commitment to be patient even if his first response if very defensive and dismissive. By whatever means it takes, you need to manoeuvre him towards your family doctor and access to diagnostic services and treatment. This may be the usual case that can be treated with Cialis. You will both be reassured and can begin to restore your mutual confidence in sexual activity. If there are more serious problems of blood circulation or nerve damage, work can begin to address the problems. If the cause is more psychological than physical, counselling may be a useful first step for both of you to take.

Filed under: Uncategorized Date 29 August, 2008
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Every year, the pharmaceutical industry in the USA spends billions of dollars on direct-to-consumer advertisements for medications that are only available on prescription. In other countries, such advertising is often banned. Advertising to the medical profession is, however, universal - companies need to inform doctors of the products and their use.

It is easy to dismiss advertising as having little effect on consumer behaviour which is, of course, why companies spend so much on advertising campaigns. In the medical field, the adverts are intended to achieve specific goals:

• to increase brand name awareness;
• to accept links between everyday experiences and medical causes; and
• to believe that the branded medications will remove the causes and return you to normal (whatever that is).

The first adverts appeared in 1981 but, in 1983, the FDA imposed a moratorium to research the effect of the adverts on the public. In 1985, the moratorium was lifted because of fears that it was interfering with freedom of speech. Now adverts are permitted so long as they provide a “true” and “balanced” view of the product and its effectiveness. The FDA monitors compliance and can instruct a company to withdraw any advertisement it feels does not comply. Interestingly, some pharmaceutical companies now spend more on direct-to-consumer advertising than doctor advertising. Their view is that consumers can affect doctor behaviour.

In the area of erectile dysfunction, the advertising for cialis runs through a number of different forms. Like any prescription medication, it is aimed at relieving the symptoms of a medical condition. The wording proclaims, “It works!” as if that explains all the benefits of the medication.

These simple statements are often combined with personal testimonials and confirmation that use of the medication avoids the feared outcome, in this case, a failure to penetrate or maintain the erection after penetration. This tends to be the core appeal. If erectile dysfunction is the problem, cialis helps you to function normally again. The medication is packaged as a means of emotional security. Trust the pills to get you back to normal. People are praised because they cared about themselves and the effect their condition was having on their partners. By introducing others as victims, guilt at not getting the “cure” is increased - cialis is life-enhancement for both partners. To support this, people are encouraged to begin the art of self-diagnosis and health management. The adverts give a few symptoms and suggest that those symptoms represent a disorder that can then be “cured”. It is uncommon to find the price of the medication mentioned, or any information about whether it is available on health insurance plans.

There is no doubt that this advertising educates the public about their options when faced by health problems and teaches them to believe that taking a pill is the best solution. When that medication is only available on prescription, it promotes business to the doctors. In the case of cialis, it is interesting to note that the FDA has never queried any of the adverts whereas there has been litigation alleging misleading advertising for competing medications. Add to this the fact that the word-of-mouth advertising for cialis has been and remains very strong, and it is easy to understand why this medication has taken so big a slice of the market so quickly.

Filed under: Uncategorized Date 29 August, 2008
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Modern medical textbooks have all become so much more informative. A simple statement reflecting the vast amount of knowledge that has been accumulated through research over the last one hundred years. Yet, when you look at these books, you are confronted by mountains of facts about increasingly minute processes within the body. Students are expected to be impressed by the depth of knowledge because instead of one sentence approximating how a muscle works, there are now whole chapters devoted to the thin muscle filaments containing multiple proteins. Instead of simple engineering analogies of muscles and cables, human knowledge has become obsessed by the identification of ever more complex chemical and molecular processes. This is my wood-for-the-trees moment.

Erectile dysfunction can now be described in terms of complex chemical interactions and illustrated with wonderful diagrams. There are still all kinds of analogies with hydraulic engineering, but the sophistication of the functional analysis is breathtaking. However, it is not a part of the medical books to observe and describe the entirely human context in which the erection is supposed to operate. A single male may masturbate. A heterosexual couple may engage in sexual intercourse. A homosexual couple may offer mutual manual satisfaction, oral or anal intercourse. Multiple partners may engage in group sex. Many different social taboos would potentially be breached in any more detailed explanation. The common denominators are that the party or parties are expressing their sexuality in the ways that give them the most pleasure. The greater the pleasure, the greater the incentive to engage in the activity and the greater the disappointment if success is not achieved.

Will medical treatment be asked for and a success? In part, this will be determined by the nature of the relationship. Where the relationship is socially disapproved, the man may well not seek treatment at all because of fear. A physical examination might reveal different types of sexual activity, or a chance remark in the consultation might expose the forbidden practices. This is ironic. If the parties to the relationship have a strong mutual commitment and lovingly support each other, the likelihood is that the co-operation between all involved would produce excellent medical outcomes. Well-established sexual intimacy and commitment preserve the right level of desire and motivate everyone to getting a solution that works well. Were it not for online pharmacies and their willingness to supply medications like cialis without prescription, many partnerships might never be able to get appropriate treatment of any kind.

Unfortunately, many partnerships do not get treatment for the underlying causes of the dysfunction. Although most will know that the dysfunction can be a symptom of diabetes and cardiovascular diseases, fear of exposure may force the couples or groups to ignore or deny the problem until it is too late for the easy treatment represented by cialis to continue on its own. By then, the chances of an effective treatment for the underlying cause may be remote.

This is two completely different cultural imperatives in conflict. Men are socially conditioned to believe that they will always be able to have an erection. Any publicly acknowledged failure means shame. Yet they are only allowed to have erections in certain very carefully defined social situations. Step outside those situations and you are into potentially disapproved or even criminal territory. In theory, doctors are bound by duties of confidentiality, but the fear of exposure means that many men and their partners do not get treatment when the research shows that couples who are in love and share a strong commitment to their relationship are the ones who would most benefit from that treatment.

Filed under: Uncategorized Date 29 August, 2008
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