Dentists Urged to Seek Health Issues at Checkups

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Posted on 4th April 2012 by admin in Cash Plans |Dental Insurance |health news |healthy living

A university in Cardiff has urged for changes to the dental system and has requested that dentists stark asking about patients drinking habits.  Drinking excessive amounts can lead to mouth cancer and could also cause problems such as oesophageal and larynx cancer.

The paper which was led by Prof Jonathon Shepherd said that dental patients who go for regular check-ups provided a perfect opportunity to identify any issues like the aforementioned.  Binge drinking currently costs the UK economy around £25 billion per year and will only get worse it had been concluded.

The paper which was published in the Royal College of Surgeons’ Dental Journal reported that one in five men are binge drinkers and one in seven women are also.  The paper wanted to see more focus on general health even in such a specific environment such as dentistry.  Many professionals know that dentists can see early tell-tale signs of issues such as cancer.

A recent article release in the Daily Express revealed that AXA PPP carried out a survey with regards to people’s opinions on heart and cancer diagnosis.  This news will surely come as no surprise to AXA PPP dental insurance patients as they continue their campaign for awareness to all cancers and providing people with plentiful information on this subject.

Cancer prevention through daily aspirin consumption

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Posted on 21st March 2012 by admin in follow health news |health news |healthy living

A groundbreaking discovery has uncovered that a link exists between taking aspirin daily and preventing cancer.  The study that involved around 200,000 patients discovered that daily doses of aspirin also helped to reduce the risk of death for cancer sufferers by around 37% if taken over a five year period.

Research revealed that if taken daily for over a period of three years, aspirin can reduce the chance of developing cancer by 25% in women and 23% in men.  As well as being a preventative, the biggest discoveries are in those already being treated for cancer.  It was found that taking aspirin for over a period of 6 years helped to prevent the spread of cancer by 55% as significantly reducing the risk of death.

Previous evidence existed regarding the potential benefits of aspirin in preventing a number of types of cancer including ones that affect both the bowel and throat.  More important, is the link showing that it could also prevent a tumour from spreading to other organs, something that often causes death in cancer sufferers.

Aspirin has been known for its ability to prevent other illnesses, including strokes and heart attacks due to its ability to thin the blood preventing blood clots.  The drug has the ability to reduce the effectiveness of platelets in the blood which are a common cause of blood clots; however a potential link also exists between platelets and cancer.  By using aspirin to combat platelets, it is also helping to help prevent cancer and stop it from spreading.

Those using aspirin as a preventative measure for strokes and heart attacks should already be reaping the associated benefits for cancer.  For those considering taking aspirin, just like any medication, it is important to get advice from your doctor or healthcare specialist.

It should be noted that before people start using aspirin daily to combat cancer, more research needs to be conducted around the link.  Aspirin has a number of potential side effects that include kidney disease, internal bleeding, ulcers and tinnitus to name a few.  Natural ways of reducing the possibility of cancer include staying to a healthy body weight, not smoking and controlling the amount of alcohol you have.

Your five-a-day could be destroying your teeth

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Posted on 12th March 2012 by admin in follow health |healthy living

Drinking large amounts of fruit juice as part of your five-a-day could be doing serious damage to your teeth dentists have warned.  Concerns have been raised for those regularly drinking fruit juices and smoothies in an attempt to get their recommended number of fruit and veg portions.  It has been warned that doing so could be doing serious long-term damage to their teeth.

This is also a serious problem in cases of children being fed large amounts of fruit juice in an attempt to getting the health benefits associated with fruit.  Kathy Harley from the Royal College of Surgeons has warned that half of five year olds already had signs of wear to their tooth enamel.  She believes this is such a concern that she has been campaigning for schools to provide milk and water instead of fruit juice, which has a high acid content resulting in damage to their teeth.

Fruit juices are very acidic and are capable of causing dental erosion, whereby the acid attacks the surface of the teeth causing irreversible damage.  Fruit juice is good for your health, containing a good range of different vitamins and minerals; however they also contain high levels of natural sugars capable of causing damage to your teeth.

Although the NHS recommends up to one 150ml glass of fruit juice a day as one of your five a day, dentists don’t advise the same level of fruit juice and suggest only having about one glass per week due to the high sugar levels.  Also, drinking more than one glass of fruit juice a day does not count as more than one of your five a day because it doesn’t contain the fibre found in the whole fruit.

To reduce the damage caused it is advised that you drink fruit juice with a meal.  Fruit that has been blended or juiced to create a drink causes the sugars to be released and is actually more harmful to your teeth than normal fruit consumption.

Although tooth decay isn’t as common as it once was because tooth care is taken more seriously in today’s age, dental erosion is a growing problem due to the consumption of highly acid drinks such as fruit juice and fizzy drinks.  If you are worried about these issues for yourself or your children, you might consider looking at dental insurance plans in the hope of being as prepared for future problems as much as possible; of course, making sure you take care of your teeth on a daily basis is the best defence to avoid problems.

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Alcohol and the UK: a healthier relationship required?

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Posted on 10th March 2012 by admin in healthy living

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This week the Office for National Statistics (ONS) released its “General Lifestyle Survey Overview” – and it’s a fascinating statistical look at the way we live today. Fairly wide in scope, the survey covers health-related topics such as smoking and drinking habits, and also takes in social themes such as marriage and cohabitation, plus social trends in pension schemes.

The ONS website highlights some of the more salient points uncovered by the survey:

  • Over half (54 per cent) of adults drank alcohol at least once a week
  • Adults aged 45 and over were three times as likely as those aged under 45 to drink almost every day
  • Average weekly alcohol consumption decreased from 14.3 units per adult in 2005 to 11.5 units per adult in 2010
  • One in six adults drank heavily on at least one day in the week before interview

The drinking pattern among the over 45s is the one that has been given the most attention in the press – and rightly so. According to the ONS:

4 per cent of the 16 to 44 age group and 13 per cent of the 45 and over age group consumed alcohol almost every day

Which means that, despite obvious concerns about cut-price city-centre binge-drinking (and its attendant footage of young people passed out on park benches or holding on to walls for balance) there are (up til now anyway) off-the-radar drinking behaviours that could be a cause for concern.

Overall, though, it very much looks as if the UK is beginning to move in the right direction in terms of alcohol consumption:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Obviously there will be certain demographic groups such as the over 45s as mentioned above whose drinking frequency is higher than the recommended – but a decrease in drinking overall has to be a good sign.

Maybe the easy access to health information across the internet from the newspapers online, plus health services providers such as the NHS and health blogs - and of course alcohol concern – means that people are more informed and able to make better choices as time goes on.

Full survey is available for download here.

Increased death risk linked to sleeping pill consumption

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Posted on 29th February 2012 by admin in follow health news |health news |healthy living

Doctors have warned that the use of sleeping pills could be linked to an increased risk of death.  This could impact thousands of people who rely on a variety of sleeping pills to help get a good night’s sleep.

The study was produced by the British Medical Journal (BMJ) in America, comparing over ten thousand users of sleeping pills against twenty three thousand non-users.  The study concluded that those using sleeping pills had a risk of death four times higher than the rest.  Researchers have stated however that it is not clear why those taking sleeping tablets may be at greater risk than non-users.

Deaths may be caused through falls and accidents due to the sedating nature of the pills as well as altering a person’s breathing pattern as they sleep – something that has been linked to increased suicide risk.  Those of the sample relying on a greater quantity of sleeping aids also appeared to have a greater risk of developing cancer.

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency says it will consider the results of this latest study and access whether it has any impact on current prescribing guidelines.

The researchers believe that the ‘meagre’ benefits of sleeping aids are far outweighed by the substantial risks identified.  It should be noted that sleeping pills should only be used for short periods of time due to developing a tolerance to the drug as well as running the risk of becoming dependent on the medication.

It has been suggested that those taking sleeping medication should not panic and stop taking their medication and if worried, should consult with their GP about any fears they may have.  It is not yet clear that the deaths were caused by the medicine and further studies need to be conducted before full conclusions can be drawn.

Government health dept targets fry ups!

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Posted on 19th September 2011 by admin in diet and fitness |health news |healthy living

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In the news today: the government’s new targets for salt levels in food will mean that many products are going to have to contain a lot less of the stuff by next year.

It’s being characterised in the press as a threat to the full English breakfast (or any other UK constituent country breakfast) but if it helps reduce hypertension (and the attendant need for medical treatment ) then it has to be a good thing, I think.

It will be interesting to see how this affects people’s perception of the cooked breakfast. My theory is that salt is really just a habit and that people will quickly get used to lower salt levels in prepared products. The other interesting outcome will be to see whether high blood pressure statistics fall along with the levels of added salt in foods.

 

Know Your Numbers – avoiding Hypertension

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Posted on 8th September 2011 by admin in diet and fitness |healthy living

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Did you know that it’s almost Know Your Numbers Week?

The idea behind know your numbers is that there are some health numbers we all know (or should know) such as our height, weight, BMI and that sort of thing.

But one of the sets of numbers many of us are missing is the set  relating to blood pressure, also known as hypertension, which can cause some pretty serious problems if it goes untreated. In fact, it’s calculated that

1 in 3 adults has high blood pressure (16 million)

And a third of these don’t even know they have it, putting them at risk of heart disease and stroke.

So – you know what to do: find out what your numbers are!