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Critics are calling it a two-tier health system — one for the politically well connected, another for the hoi polloi. As Germany launched its mass-vaccination program against the H1N1 flu virus on Monday, the government found itself fending off accusations of favoritism because it was offering one vaccine believed to have fewer side effects to civil servants, politicians and soldiers, and another, potentially riskier vaccine to everyone else. The government had hoped that Germans would rush to health clinics to receive vaccinations against the rapidly spreading disease, but now rising anger over the different drugs may cause many people to shy away.

Amid growing fears of a possible global flu pandemic, the German government prepared for its mass-vaccination campaign earlier this year by ordering 50 million doses of the Pandemrix vaccine, enough for a double dose for 25 million people, about a third of the population. The vaccine, manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline, contains an immunity-enhancing chemical compound, known as an adjuvant, whose side effects are not yet entirely known. Then, after a report was leaked to the German media last week, the Interior Ministry confirmed that it had ordered a different vaccine, Celvapan, for government officials and the military. Celvapan, which is made by U.S. pharmaceutical giant Baxter, does not contain an adjuvant and is believed to have fewer side effects than Pandemrix.

Anger at the news was widespread in Germany. “If mass vaccination is considered to be necessary, then everyone should be treated the same way,” says Birgitt Bender, health spokeswoman for the Green Party. Ulrike Mascher, head of the VdK social-welfare association, says giving government officials a vaccine that’s different from that given to the rest of the population sent the “wrong signal” and gives many people “the impression that they are second-class patients.” A story on the front page of the mass-circulation Bild newspaper accused the government of giving “second-class medicine” to regular Germans. More…

Author: Tristana Moore / Berlin
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As mothers tend to sacrifice during their lives to meet their children’s needs, a mother’s body will give up its own essential nutrients to provide health and growth for her developing baby. Unfortunately, the Standard American Diet (S.A.D.) is often so nutritionally deficient that even this sacrifice does not guarantee adequate nutrition for the unborn baby.

1. Zinc
Inadequate zinc is the most common and problematic deficiency during pregnancy. Zinc is critical for two reasons: proper growth and for developing a healthy immune system for the baby.

2. Folic Acid
Getting enough folic acid is critical both before and during pregnancy to help assure proper growth and to prevent birth defects.

3. Magnesium
Magnesium deficiency is routine in the American diet and can increase the possibility of high blood pressure and seizures during pregnancy, a condition known as eclampsia. To prevent this deficiency, take 200 milligrams of magnesium in the glycinate form daily.

4. B Vitamins
These are critical for energy, mental clarity and to prevent depression. B vitamins have also been found to improve pregnancy-related complications such as gestational diabetes. Taking 200 milligrams a day of vitamin B6 can improve the health of those women suffering from this form of diabetes.

5. Fish Oils
The human brain is made predominantly of DHA, an essential fatty acid found in fish oils. Perhaps this is why there is an old wives’ tale about fish being brain food. Regardless, DHA deficiency is very common and it is critical that pregnant women get adequate fish oils so that their baby can develop healthy and optimal brain tissue.

6. Calcium
Ideally, pregnant women should ingest 1,500 milligrams of calcium per day. It is best to take this at night (it helps with sleep) in the liquid, powdered or chewable form.

7. Iron
Approximately 18 to 36 milligrams of iron per day can be helpful. Interestingly, iron deficiency can sometimes cause infertility.

8. Water
Be sure to drink plenty of water. When pregnant, blood volume can increase about 30 percent and it is easy to become dehydrated.

9. Check Your Thyroid
Millions of women suffer from an underactive metabolism, also known as hypothyroidism, which often goes undiagnosed. This results in fatigue, weight gain and simply feeling like you’ve run out of gas. Hypothyroidism accounts for more than 6 percent of miscarriages and can be cause for learning disabilities in the child.

10. Things for Pregnant Women to Avoid
A few cautions for pregnant women: avoid taking more than 8,000 units of vitamin A per day. And don’t partake in anything that can raise your body temperature too high (hot tubs, saunas or steam rooms).

More…

Author: Dr. Jacob Teitelbaum
Photo Credit: Nnegrilli

More forum discussion HERE.

For as long as humans have pounded drums and plucked strings, listening to music has affected people’s sense of well-being, lifting their spirits and — as new research shows — calming their nerves. Literally. According to a study at Cleveland Clinic, music can slow the neuronal firings deep within the brain during surgery designed to treat Parkinson’s patients.

The seeds of this study were planted about two years ago, when a patient named Damir Janigro was being prepped for spinal surgery. Janigro, who is also a neuroscientist at the clinic, lay captive to the nerve-racking din of the operating room and in his frazzled state thought about how dentists often give their patients earphones to help ease anxiety. (See the top 10 medical breakthroughs of 2008.)

If people getting root canals merited a musical intervention, he thought, why not people undergoing brain surgery? Patients with conditions such as epilepsy, brain tumors, severe depression, and obsessive-compulsive and motor disorders like Parkinson’s have to be awake for surgical procedures that often take several hours. Janigro and his team decided to use that wakeful period to determine whether music made the subjects’ experience in the operating room less stressful. More…

Author: Coeli Carr
Photo Credit: wastefulspace

Alcohol has a peculiar relationship to happiness. We drink to celebrate, but because alcohol works as a depressant, it ends up deadening feelings. Not surprisingly, there’s an observable correlation between alcoholism and depression, and even though it’s not always clear which leads to which, everyone knows you can’t drink like a Sterling Cooper employee for too long before becoming a perpetual sad sack.

But if alcohol can lead to depression, does that mean abstaining from alcohol will make you happier?

A new study suggests that the opposite actually tends to be true. In fact, those who never drink are at significantly higher risk for not only depression but also anxiety disorders, compared with those who consume alcohol regularly.

The study, which was published recently in the journal Addiction, looked at more than 38,000 people in Norway. Researchers, led by Jens Christoffer Skogen of the University of Bergen in Norway, asked the participants how much they had drunk in the previous two weeks; the research team also asked them various questions to measure their levels of anxiety and depression.

People in the top fifth percentile of drinkers had the highest odds for anxiety. But it was abstainers who were at the highest risk for depression — higher even than the heaviest of drinkers. Why? More…

Author: John Cloud
Photo Credit: Cayusa

Hundreds of horizontally-challenged men and women lined up for The Biggest Loser Asia live auditions held recently at the Fitness First branch in SM Megamall. The Biggest Loser franchise came to Asia in search for the biggest weight loser in the region. In cooperation with Fitness First, The Biggest Loser Asia toured Fitness First clubs in countries such as the Philippines, Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia to conduct live screen test auditions for participants who would want to be part of the show.

“Fitness First is honored to have been part of this Asia-wide rollout of The Biggest Loser as our company has always emphasized the importance of being fit and healthy,” says Fitness First Philippines’ country manager Mark Ellis.

Since its debut in 2004 in the US by NBC reality television, The Biggest Loser has become a worldwide hit viewed by millions, airing in over 90 countries and produced in 25 countries. This is the first reality show where obese contestants are challenged and encouraged under guided expert supervision to undergo strenuous physical and mental training in order to shed kilos. The one who loses the most weight not only wins a grand cash prize of US$100, 000 but also gains a healthier and better quality of life.

Produced by Imagine Omnimedia, producers of Contender Asia, for the Hallmark Channel in Asia, Biggest Loser Asia will help change the lives of obese Filipinos who want to take up the challenge of shedding bad lifestyle habits and embracing healthier ones. The Biggest Loser Asia does not only look into the physical challenges of the contestants’ personal journeys but also their emotional and psychological trials and tribulations as they lose the kilos, inspiring and empowering others to do the same. More…

Source: PhilStar
Photo Credit: anaimphotography.com