iReview

I was browsing through a local women magazine when there is one story about an obese woman who managed to lose weight after going through lap band surgery. And after checking more about it on the Internet, I found about Woodland lapband seminar.

For those who are not familiar with this kind of surgery, the LAP-BAND® System procedure is the newest and only adjustable and completely reversible surgical treatment for morbid obesity in the United States. It induces weight-loss by reducing the capacity of the stomach which restricts the amount of food that can be consumed.

Dr. Richard Collier has been performing laparoscopic surgery for over seventeen years and has done thousands of procedures including laparoscopic gall-bladder removal and hernia repair, and laparoscopic colon surgery. In addition, he also performs advanced laparo-scopic procedures such as the laparo-scopic Nissen fundoplication for reflux disease.

I know this sound like too medically inclined terms but what is important is to know about how lap band surgery could help you lead a healthy lifestyle and reduce the weight that you don’t need. Of course there are factors to consider before you decide that lap band surgery is really for you.

*This post is written for richardcolliermd.com*

Have you been to your nearest dentist for any dental procedure? I tell you, dental procedures these days really cost a bomb. I went for a white filling and it costs me RM80, and when the doctor asked whether I would like to do cleaning, I simply said no because I knew I could not afford it. Since not all company give dental insurance coverage, it is really our responsibility to look for other option to save on our bright smile health.

But if you have discount dental plan, you can save a lot on any procedure inclusive of root canal and crowning. For example, a normal root canal treatment for molar will cost $829, but with Aetna Dental Access®, you only have to pay $522 on the procedure. The annual program fee for individual is $99.95 per year while for family it will be $149.95. Of course there are many other discount dental plans such as GE Wellness Plan, Patriot Plan just to name a few.

The advantages of taking such discount dental plans compared to traditional dental insurance are varied. Majority of dental insurance plans limit the maximum amount of reimbursement usually from $1,000 to $1,500 per year. With the discount dental plan, you are free to get as much treatments as you need annually. The plan has no annual limits of saving. So if you pay for the family plan, and both your kids need braces and routine cleaning, the plan will pay for itself in no time!

Don’t wait any further, check out the best discount dental plan for you and the rest of your family, and you will be smiling out of your dentist’s office soon!

I was watching TV yesterday while doing my work when an interim advert about health for children came on. It was said that with the hectic schedule kids these day have - school, tuition, extra activities at school and additional lesson like art and music sent by the parents, they tend to have limited time to really go out and play. Playing and exercising is crucial for their mental and physical growth so we have to think of some sort of activities to let them have that luxury.

The ads suggest that kids go for yoga lesson. So I took some times to read more about yoga for kids and these are what I found:

1. The chanting and breathing will help calm down kids at school and at bedtime.
2. Children will learn self-regulation through the development of awareness.
3. Yoga sessions can provide a very special time to share energy and pleasure with family and friends.

There are actually many benefits that come through yoga practice and I am sure that a proper introduction to it will make your children like the yoga session. Plus it will be like a bonding time between you and your child, doing the pose together.

I was trying to look for info on Pilates when I read about Kegels exercise. I think this type of exercise is really helpful for women especially those after childbirth.

I’ve heard about cases of prolapse and leaking urine after childbirth and believe me it does scare me a lot. But reading the benefit of Kegels exercise and how easy it can be done, gives me hope that I won’t have to worry much about such problems later on in life.

If you need to know more about how to do the exercise, check out this site: Kegel exercises. Actually there are many more sites that share about this Kegel exercise so do look around for more tips and info.

Oh, BTW this Kegel exercise is also recommended during pregnancy as they say it does help during the childbirth to have a well-toned pelvic floor muscles. It also helps prevent urine leakage and hemorrhoids near the end of pregnancy term and long after you have given birth.

If you have sleeping problem, you might have to check for other problem’s possibility. Sleep is like a symptom for many mental problem. Lack of sleep or disability to fall asleep might cause your mental health without you realizing it.

But for me I think it might be of this factors: (Quoted from DBSA site)

Delayed/advanced sleep phase syndrome causes some people to fall asleep and wake up later or earlier. People with these syndromes can still get enough sleep if they are able to change their schedules to accommodate it. Once they fall asleep, they sleep normally.

Aging causes chemical changes in the brain that may make older adults less able to sleep continuously and deeply. They may awaken six times as often as younger people. They are likely to be more sensitive to noise and prone to other medical conditions that keep them awake, including Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s diseases. Decreased physical activity can also affect older adults’ ability to sleep. Older adults may go to sleep earlier, wake more often, and nap during the day.

Hormones such as progesterone can help a person sleep. So when a woman’s progesterone levels drop during menstruation and rise during ovulation, her sleep can be affected. Pregnancy or birth control pills can also disrupt normal sleep.

Now I know why my grandma keep on bugging me for waking up late. She might be irritated by looking at my peaceful looking sleeping face..haha!

I found one article relevant to finding inner peace. I try to find something common that has nothing to do with any religious belief because I would like everyone to try out the tips and understand what is actually ruining our chance to attain inner peace in life.

Quoting from the article, I would like to try this principles of living developed by the Japanese psychiatrist, Shoma Morita in the 1920s:

• Accept your feelings. Don’t fight how you are feeling or try to change it. If you are afraid, be afraid.

• Have goals but know what your purpose is for this hour, this day, this week, and this year.

• Do what needs to be done; take action. For example, don’t just think about your goal start to exercising, do it, now! While you’re exercising pay full attention to what you’re doing. Don’t think about the work you have to do at the office; concentrate on your contacting muscles and the pattern of your breathing.

Hope it will give a stronger and better inner peace feeling inside for me and for you as well.

You might be laughing thinking how silly it could be to ask how do you breathe. Well, most people never think how they actually breathe everyday, because the act of breathing is like so natural, we do it without even noticing.

But do you know that most of illnesses like asthma and fatigue in life starts with wrong way of breathing?

I found one article written by a Certified TransformBreathing™ Trainer who has overcame her own sickness by learning the correct way to breathe. Check out the article - Learning How to Breathe.

I will spend some time today to try the right method to breathe to see the difference it makes for me. I hope it could help alleviate the fatigue and bring back the energetic feeling into my life.

If you never try Pilates, I suggest you do. (I’ve done the Pilates during gym class and at home when I could find free time) It is so smooth yet you can feel the difference. You don’t need much equipment for starting the movement, what is most important is that you must be comfortable and have an exercise mat to lie on.

If you are interested to know more about the benefit of Pilates, check it out here. The page doesn’t have everything in detail but certainly it could help you see how well you could be after trying the exercise.

I’m sure many of us have heard this phrase..aargghh, I’m depressed. But how do you know whether a person is really diagnosed as clinically depressed. What are the symptoms and why people could get depression?

I have read around and find a good information on Depression.com. The information on the site is really good as it covers basic aspects on understanding, treating and living with depression. If you think somebody you love has depression problem, don’t dread as depression is treatable both through medication and therapy.

It’s important that we stand by them and help to seek the way out. Most of depression patients said that the feeling is like black gloomy feeling enveloping their heart and mind. It hurts and really wreck their body and brain function. It is also said that talk therapy is the best and effective way to combat depression.

If you are feeling down for more than 2 weeks now, you can also check this online depression screening test to see whether you should seek further treatment.

If you know anyone in the family or among your friends who have diabetes, ask them to have eye exam. I’m not trying to scare anyone but after reading more about diabetic retinopathy, I think it is really crucial for me to spread the words to everyone.

Diabetic retinopathy is actually an effect of diabetes on the retina. Not all patients with diabetes will have this disease but it is more likely to affect patients with more than 20 years of diabetes. There are different phases of this disease but the first stage is the swelling in the retina which lead to decreased vision.

If you would like to understand more and read about ways to reduce your risks of developing this disease, check out this article on diabetic retinopathy at AllAboutVision.com.