Eyestrain is defined as an eye discomfort that can occur when the eyes tire after a prolonged visual task. Eyestrain can be manifested by headache or discomfort around the eyes.

Read the simple ways to minimize eyestrain

A new iPod. A new cellular phone. A new Playstation. How about a brand new Nintendo Wii? Are any of these in your Christmas wish list?

Beware.

These can all become painful Christmas gifts.

Did you know that in the Philippine Constitution, there’s actually a law that compels all the people to an immunization procedure?

Any violation or refusal to submit to vaccination is punishable by law through imprisonment or by means of a fine.

Apparently, only few people knows the existence of this law or if they know tends to disregard it because of its weak implementation.

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Did you know that the squatting position is more ideal when we are getting rid of our “excess luggage”?

Read “Squat, Don’t Sit” to find out more.

Personalized DNA? You can bet a monkey’s butt on it. Which is not really surprising when one would consider that we humans are among the most dispersed organisms in the planet. We inhabit almost every terrain on Earth and continue to expand our territories, often with harmful effects to other species.

This also justifies the difference between ethnic groups and help us understand how they adapted to their specific environments; e.g. Why Asians have a smaller body build compared to their European cousins and why our African brothers are more resistant to HIV infections compared to our South American cousins and so forth.

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You may have received an e-mail about an unusual way of delaying symptoms of a stroke patient by merely pricking his fingers. According to NY Times, e-mails containing this claim have been circulating recently, which might mislead people and result to delay of the treatment. The e-mail says:

“Help the victim sit up to prevent him from falling over,” the message states. “Then sterilize a needle and use it to prick the tip of the person’s finger. After a few minutes, the victim should regain consciousness.”

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Factors Affecting Body Fluid, Electrolytes, and Acid-Base Balance

The ability of the body to adjust fluids, electrolytes, and acid-balance is influenced by:

AGE
Infants and growing children have much greater fluid turnover than adults because their higher metabolic rate increases fluid loss. Infants lose more fluid through the kidneys because immature kidneys are less able to conserve water than adult kidneys. Read More…

At some point in our lives, we may experience unbearable pain, so unbearable that we’d welcome death to end it all. Many had succumbed, and many more will give in, to this temptation.  Read article here.

Salary of Nurses in United States, United Kingdom, and other Foreign Countries

Higher income and a residency in a foreign country are the most common reasons that entice Filipinos to take up BS Nursing. In the Philippines, government nurses earn about P13,300 a month which is mandated by the Philippine Nursing Act of 2002. Read More…

We cannot prevent death, that’s a fact, but at least we can try. There are ways we can increase our lifespan.

What can you do?

1. Stop smoking. It has been pointed out in many health articles and in government campaigns that “Smoking is dangerous to one’s health.” In a study conducted by the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), smoking is the major factor that could contribute to reduced lifespan. In my previous health article, I emphasized the hazardous effects of smoking on one’s health which can lead to reduced lifespan.

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These are not yams or sweet potatoes (kamote). These are yacon. I first found out about this rootcrop from Watson. Neither did he know anything about it until he received an SMS from a friend asking him to get some for him while he was in Baguio. Yacon is claimed to contain medicinal attributes. I was intrigued and asked my sister to bring back some from Baguio. I finally got a taste of it the other day. Watson was right; it does taste good.

It can be eaten raw. Its crunchiness resembles that of sinkamas; however, Yacon is sweet with a slight tinge of a gingerly taste to it. And although sweet, it doesn’t affect one’s sugar level. No wonder it is popular among those with diabetes and those on a diet. The reason for this is that supposedly, yacon store carbohydrates in the form of insulin and not starch. Its high fiber content is also effective against constipation. There are those who claim that yacon also purifies the blood.

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In the U.K., believe it or not, they have an association called the National Phobics Society. It is a 30-year old registered charity association which believes that only a fellow phobic sufferer can truly care for another phobic patient. It has thousands of members in the U.K. and all over the world. I said “believe-it-or-not,” in my opening statement not to offend or sound derogatory, but in utter amazement. Though I’m certain that there are many phobic sufferers here in the Philippines, I do not think an organization devoted to the mitigation of fear symptoms exists here.

More here…

Still, that word rings in my mind: organize.

For this I was contemplating on getting my own organizer, not a PDA which would cost me a semester’s tuition, but rather a simple good ‘ol fashion paper notebook. Speaking of which, I can’t wait for the moleskine notebooks I’ve ordered to arrive. And that’s what keeping me from rushing out to get a personal organizer.

What a joy it would be to organize my current life with a moleskine notebook? Wee! I’m just so excited. However, have you ever wondered how life itself is organized? “Not exactly a soup question is it?” As Sean Connery once said in the great film, “Finding Forrester.”

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I heard the good secretary of health this morning in a morning show saying “the baby is already in a severe condition, with sepsis…” What??? Wow, I just can’t believe he said that kind of excuse! The fact of the matter is, the hospital staff used the wrong injection to the poor girl at hindi pinag-uusapan dito kung gaano kalala ang kondisyon ng pasyente.

See what’s going on here…

Aside from my new academic load, I have bought a new book. “Doctor on the Boil” by Richard Gordon is hilarious story about a hospital, old men who refuse to give way to the future, and nurse’s skirts getting shorter and shorter. I’ve only started reading the first 4 pages and I’m already close to laughing my head off. Another good excuse to stay off line and not update this blog of mine and enjoy the rest of the semestral break. (Yeah right! Right?…again?)

Speaking of enjoyment, I’m savoring the latest news that the Supreme Court has ‘killed’ the already dead “Malacañang-backed People’s Initiative” spearheaded by the Singaw….Sigaw ng Bayan. At least SC Chief Justice Artemio Panganiban will retire with something to be proud of this coming December.

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As I scratch my nose in between the keystrokes of writing this piece, memories and thoughts about noses run through my mind. (Qui-Gon Jinn was right, “your focus determines your reality”.) I remember a classmate of mine back in my freshman highschool days who was brave (foolish really) enough to stand up and get himself into a brawl with a senior. Things got ugly, his face, rather his nose got really ugly. It recieved a kick from the senior he picked a tussle with and the result was a broken, nearly deformed nasal bridge, preceeded by massive bleeding of course. He was rushed to the hospital and was discharged after a few stiches. He fully recovered but not the shape of his nose. It stands out and simply attracts quite an attention from anyone who happens to sees it.

To illustrate what I am driving at, one must simply look at Owen Wilson’s nose and I’m sure you’ll get the picture.

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I could now lift heavier things all by my self like those wooden and heavy couches, my fellow stage actors and actresses whenever the director wants me to, push huge and heavy cabinets around the house and save myself from being the target of thin jokes. I’d have no trouble getting qualified to donate blood to the needy because I’d be never dismissed as being underweight.

My mom would no longer pester me to take those vitamin pills and to stop staying up late at night. Friends and strangers would no longer assume that I’m frail and sickly. There are more possibilities, some are good and some are not good.

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If only algebra were this easy and fun I said to myself back then. Then again at least I can possibly master algebra as I was told and soon realised that no man – or woman – has ever beaten San Miguel (the popular beer and gin brand in the Philippines) and mean no one. I’ve seen the toughest of men, fell down on their knees, break down in tears or swear they had the power to fly after a bottle or two. But what the heck right? As long as you’re sharing a case or a few cans with your closest friends, it doesn’t matter if one may loose his car keys or reveal his deepest secrets, it may knock everyone out, what’s important is that the beer was plentiful and stories colorful.

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Should doctors always tell the truth? Do they?

These were the questions posed to a group of doctors and other members of the caring profession who listened to a talk by esteemed pathologist and Deputy Director of the National Kidney and Transplant Institute, Dr. Aileen Riego Javier on “Truth Telling In Medicine”. Dr. Javier currently heads the fact-finding team that is investigating the seven neo-natal deaths that took place at the Rizal Medical Center earlier this month. The results of that investigation are due by tomorrow, October 20. more here…

To eat fish, or not to eat fish: that is the question:
Whether ’tis healthier for the body to consume
The salmons and the tunas of the mighty oceans,
Or to take arms against conflicting reports,
And by opposing, end them?

To know more, click on the sardines below: