Archive for the ‘Hormone Clinic’ Category

Sonora desert yoga.

A wellspring of wellness-based experiences await you in Scottsdale, Arizona. Certainly, it remains a mecca for PGA Golf tournaments and a boisterous hive for bachelor parties, but considering that wellness tourism is the fastest growing sector in travel, the region has seen a swift evolution in terms of integrating spiritual spa sanctuaries into overall experiential lifestyle stays that encompass a plethora of holistic modalities.

According to data from the Global Wellness Institute (GWI), wellness is an overall $4.2 trillion dollar industry which has seen 12 percent growth in the past 5 year with wellness tourism itself garnering $639 billion in sales. GWI Senior Researchers Katherine Johnston and Ophelia Yeung note that wellness tourism burst into the consumer consciousness just a few years ago, and its hard to grasp the speed of its growth and evolution. They add that hospitality and travel are converging, which sees the introduction of healthy hotels, wellness destinations, retreats and related tours going mainstream: this concept is transforming almost every facet of travel, and wellness tourism will only grow faster in the years ahead.

Meanwhile in Scottsdale, Dr. Meghana Thanki - proprietor of Second Nature Clinic, explains that the city was an early health and wellness adopter of due to its geography (being one with nature), golf + spa resorts, and overall open-minded sensibilities. What Im observing is that locals and visitors are seeking balance. Instead of attending an intense meditative retreat in a secluded location, people prefer to travel to a destination like Scottsdale - enjoy that decadent meal with wine on one day - then seek us out on another to learn about alternative healing and restorative treatments. I think we appeal to a diverse audience because Scottsdale offers this wonderful flexibility - our varying approaches and levels of holistic healing accomodate everyone from the curious to the critical.

With growing receptivity to Eastern and Western wellness philosophies, there is growing agency and programming initiatives being offered by niche and mainstream companies; and as a result, guests and locals can expect to have opportunities that combine classic vacations stays along with elements that benefit mental and spiritual health.

With that in mind, these are the best wellness-based discoveries in Scottsdale:

Spiritual Adventure

REI Co-op Experiences

REI Co-op offers Scottsdale guides tours that include hiking, kayaking, camping, and more.

The easiest way to recharge, connect with yourself, and get a digital detox is to immerse yourself in the natural beauty of the Sonoran Desert. Through REI Co-op, their guided hikes allow you to appreciate the serenity of the region and the glory of its verdant cacti-riddled landscape. You first meet at the McDowell Sonoran Preserve Gateway Trailhead and meander through 3 miles of sandy trails via Browns Ranch to reach the mountain summit. On your journey, your expert guide teaches you about the local flora, fauna, geology and history of the region. Marc Berejka, president of the REI Foundation adds that we aim to shine a light on the symbiotic relationship between health and nature. Nature is good for us, so we must be good to nature, and time outside should be part of every doctors toolkit. At the summit, there is an opportunity to sit, pause and soak up the calming beauty of the area all to yourself.

Rest & Relax

Four Seasons Scottsdale Resort & Spa

Patio with views of Pinnacle Peak at Four Seasons Resort Scottsdale at Troon North.

Hugged by Pinnacle Peak and the Tonto National Forest, the hotel is a mountainous retreat located approximately 30 minutes north of downtown Scottsdale. For the last 20 years, its been the heart of the Sonoran Desert offering guests watercolor vistas and saguaro cacti-enriched landscapes. Along with its spacious 210 casita-style rooms and 22 suites, their spa and fitness programming is a leader in the region. Spa Director Lia Rowland encourages the fusion of fitness and mindfulness. This is best exemplified in their integrative programming, with the following highlights:

Zen Hike: Guests are encouraged to stop, breathe and take in the beauty of nature as they enjoy a guided hike that starts on property and meanders up to Pinnacle Peak. With a duration of about 90 minutes, the trail hike incorporates yoga poses at numerous pit stops on your journey to the summit. With an emphasis on being present in the moment, this is a unique way to invigorate body and mind.

Guided Meditation: Ideal for those who are curious about meditation but dont know how to begin. Participants are given direction and guidance via use of mental imagery, breathing exercises and focusing/channelling of energy - with the desired outcome to attain a state of relaxation for both the mind and the body via the learned skills and cultivation of becoming focused and present in ones state.

Aroma Design Experience: An Alchemista provides guidance to the guest who selects and customizes their own personal essential oil blend to enhance their well-being. Everything from birthdate, biological cycle, mood, and intention are taken into consideration. Once the custom oil blend is added to the organic body butter, the experience is followed by a customized massage.

Tai-Chi: A new offering for the spa and an alternative way to incorporate exercise with present mindfulness. The instructor guides participants through a series of methodical, gentle and meditative movements that resemble that of dancing underwater or moving in slow motion.

Omni Scottsdale Resort & Spa at Montelucia

Joya Spa's Relaxation area at Omni Scottsdale Resort Montelucia.

The spanish-styled hotel is set against Camelback Mountain and conveniently located a 13-minute drive from Old Town Scottsdale and Downtown Scottsdale.

Their award-winning Joya Spa is modelled on the old-world traditions of bathhouse rituals and ceremonies inspired by Moroccan deserts and Andalusia in Southern Spain. The lavish 31,000 square-foot space features numerous intention areas, saunas/steam areas, and treatment rooms. Upon entering the spa, youre greeted by the Joy of Purification - which is a 55lb quartz crystal for which guests are asked to place their hands on and breathe in/exhale to expel negative energy and worries. There are also protective amulets called the Hand of Fatima that are hung outside treatments rooms to bless and empower guests.

Services and treatments are extensive and Joya Spa offers everything from massage and facials; wellness and meditation; and naturopathic services. Highlights include the following:

Neuromuscular Massage: Ideal for those who sit for extended periods of time, such as at the office. Targeting specific areas, the massage is designed to release postural contractions and alleviate soft tissue distress.

Cranial Sacral Massage: A holistic practice which targets the central nervous system. Intuitive pressure is used to provide balance and alignment in mind, body and spirit.

Stress Management Meditation: A useful and practical session that allows you to recognize triggers and stressors. From there, skills and tools are provided to help you focus, achieve balance, reduce tension, release stress, and improve overall well-being.

Holistic Healing and Self-Care

Second Nature Clinic

Second Nature Clinic offers a vast range of services and treatments that include Ayurvedic Medicine, ... [+] Vitamin Shots, IV Drip Therapy, Massages and Aesthetics.

Dr. Meghana Thanki, owner of Second Nature Clinic in Old Town Scottsdale offers Naturopathic and Ayurvedic Medical therapies. She is a strong believer of introducing natural health/self-care into our lifestyle regularly until the point where it becomes second nature. Endeavoring to provide an accessible and comfortable environment, her Zen Lounge Experience is an ideal place to integrate these practices into ones life - such as her Healing and Happy Hour event. Every Thursdays between 5-7pm Dr. Thanki offers healing/restorative treatments for mind, body and soul at special prices that include 50% off vitamin shots, $20 off IV infusions, an aromatherapy bar, meditation workshops, and guest vendors.

The Phoenician Scottsdale

Gemstone healing facial is a 100% natural, vegan experience. Crystals and gem stones are placed on ... [+] and around the body for healing energy, bringing peace, clarity, and physical well-being.

After nearly 30 years of service, the new Phoenician Spa (replacing The Centre for Well-Being) completed its last phase of multi-million dollar renovation efforts in 2019. Now the 40,000 square-foot Phoenician Spa features a rooftop pool, 24 treatment rooms, salon services and an aroma design bar. Indulgent experiences are tailored to your level of comfort, from the more familiar facials and body polishes to modern fusions of Eastern Healing Philosophies such as their energy-transfer sessions (with the use of healing crystals); and Harmonic Bowl Healing, which uses sound energy that corresponds to one of the seven chakras to provide restoration, deep relaxation, or energy - all depending on the guests needs.

Movement Restoration

Floatation Therapy.

Opened in 2006 by certified massage therapist Trisha Haws and partner Brynn Martin, their companys philosophy is founded upon a massage therapy concept that emphasizes the restoration of natural movements via massage treatments - for instance, anything from soreness due to sitting at an office or recovery from that round of golf. Moreover, this popular space is where you can see everyone from fitness buffs to olympic competitors book a visit. The minimalist desert studio offers everything from traditional registered massage therapy, fascial stretching, cupping, to scrapping and floatation therapy via their 180 gallon saltwater float tank - which is said to take pressure off of the body for optimal relaxation and circulation. The magnesium in the epsom salts also boosts mental awareness, calmness, reduces inflammation, and alleviates sore joints and muscles.

We Do Men: The Man Spa

Client receives a facial treatment at We Do Men - A Male Concept Spa.

The wellness trend and respective surge in popularity can bring out staunch skeptics who are unsure of its effectiveness. But wellness doesnt necessarily mean you must dabble in astrological soul reading and energy therapy, rather, it also equates with self-care. For males, We Do Men is an ideal spot for wellness rookies to get their proverbial feet wet. Owner Stacey Grondahl, aka boss lady and manhandler - is all about creating a spa for men that addresses surrounding taboos and stereotypes about the industry, everything from skin care to grooming. She takes a humorous yet professionally direct no-B.S. approach to her respective services for guests. Along with educational one-on-one consultations and tailoring to lifestyle needs via what she describes as learning the way your male mind works, she even offers a booze, tunes and taboos menu - which involves using products with boozy elements in them (e.g. sake and blue agave tequila), as well as provide guests with local spirit samples (in a traditional beverage format).

Viticulture and Gastronomy

LDV Winery

LDV Winery is located in Old Town Scottsdale and features varietals grown from their own winery in ... [+] Southeastern Arizona.

Boasting vegan and natural wines, owners Curt Dunham and Peggy Fiandaca have been grape growing and winemaking over a decade. They champion the viticulture of Southeastern Arizona in each of their wine varietals. Due to the Chiricahua Mountains, theyre afforded a micro-climate of hot mornings and cool nights. As a result, the terroir and its temperature variances actually help intensify flavors and create vibrant acidity. Also, the integrity of wines are preserved as best as possible, so theres no tampering or manipulation done (e.g. no fining and filtration agents are used). Due to growing considerations for health and wellness, more people are exercising conscious consumption and LDV is able to appease to such needs of enjoying quality rather than quantity. If youre unfamiliar with their winery, an ideal starting point is to try their trio of award-winning estate grown Petite Sirah via their PS (Petite Sirah) I Love You package, which can be tasted at the wine bar or ordered online.

True Food Kitchen

Food philosophy of the restaurant is built about delicious dining and conscious nutrition. Pictured ... [+] here is their popular Edamame Guacamole dish.

A homegrown brand founded in 2008 that now boasts numerous locations, arguably their Scottsdale Quarter outpost remains one of the most popular spots. One of the founders, Dr. Andrew Weil explains that the restaurants mantra is simply that eating well is always in season. True Food emphasizes conscious nutrition that can be tasted in every one of the creations - without sacrificing flavor, creativity or indulgence. As much as possible, their dishes feature ingredients that are anti-inflammatory, boosts antioxidants, and immunity. Crowd favorites include their edamame guacamole, butternut squash pizza, and their unbeetable burger that uses beets, kuzu, jicama slaw, vegan mayonnaise, and crushed avocado.

Farm & Craft

Colorful, flavorful and healthy dishes whose food philosophy is featuring a "wellness menu".

Based in Scottsdale and founded by Riot Hospitality Group, Farm & Crafts seasonal wellness menu emphasizes four pillars to health in an overall welcoming and community-minded atmosphere: anti-inflammatory diet, increasing probiotic levels, maintaining high levels of antioxidants, and reducing overall stress. This is accomplished by offering guests sustainable, gluten-free, organic, and hormone-free ingredients in their dishes. Best of all, its flexitarian - whereby, you can opt for a strictly vegan and cleansing meal - such as their Chilled Raw Pad Thai; or something indulgent such as their Grass-Fed Steak Wrap. Beverages also cater to your needs and mood - where you can opt for an alcoholic cocktail thats served in a hollowed out watermelon, or something more holistically-minded such as their Carrot Cleanse juice (which is high in antioxidants, supports vision health, and offers anti-inflammatory properties with its mixture of carrot, orange, turmeric, lemon & ginger).

FnB Restaurant

FnB Scottsdale is owned by Pavle Milic and chef Charleen Badman. They feature uncomplicated seasonal ... [+] cooking and highlight an all-Arizona wine list, including their own vineyard creations from Los Milics Winery.

For an elevated dining experience, seek out this charming restaurant located in the historic Craftsman Court in downtown Scottsdale. Helmed by James Beard Foundations 2019 Best Chef: Southwests Charleen Badman, FnB boasts global flavors and seasonally changing menus. While she does offer traditional protein-enriched dishes (beef, poultry, fish, etc that are hormone-free, sustainable, and ethically raised), its actually her cruciferous creations that showcase her culinary prowess. In highlighting Arizona's bounty of local ingredients from nearby farming and agricultural communities, the veggie whisperer breathes life into otherwise humble ingredients - turnips are transformed with chimichurri; butternut squash is bolstered with sage, roasted garlic and pecorino; and spicy grilled broccoli (a crowd favorite) arrives to the table with the vibrancy of meyer lemon aioli and the salty crunch of pistachios.

Follow this link:
Why Scottsdale, Arizona Is The Best Health & Wellness Destination To Relax And Recharge - Forbes

By ANGELA OKETCHMore by this Author

This is the in thing at universities. A quick way to make money. Egg donation among humans is a biological way to help women who cannot conceive naturally to have children.

However, for many young women in Kenya, the process has been turned into a quick way to earn money from clinics in Nairobi, which are themselves making a killing by selling them to the women who cannot conceive naturally.

Responding to adverts by these clinics on social media, hundreds of young women are giving away their eggs for just Sh50,000 to Sh70,000, oblivious of the risks they are exposing themselves to, and without knowledge of what these eggs fetch for the clinics.

Egg donation involves taking eggs from one woman, fertilising the viable ones, and then transferring them into the uterus of either the aspiring mother or a surrogate, in the hope of achieving pregnancy. This procedure is known as in-vitro fertilisation (IVF).

Last week, the La Femme Healthcare clinic, a fertility clinic along Ngong Road, Nairobi, placed an advert on its Facebook and Instagram pages seeking to recruit voluntary donors who would later be paid Sh50,000 should they turn out to be potential donors.

The voluntary donors were expected to be fit and healthy, 25 years old or younger.

At the end of the ad, the clinic placed Sh50,000 as monetary compensation to the donors. Visit us at the Green House Mall, Ngong Road, the advert states.

Dr Martha Kuruga, a fertility specialist at the facility, says several volunteers are required to match them to the women seeking eggs for IVF.

Interestingly, she says women seeking IVF using donor eggs have to part with Sh500,000. The amount includes the cost of the procedure and the treatment for the donor before the egg harvesting and afterwards should complications arise.

The Nation established that the cost could go as high as Sh1 million in other health facilities.

At the clinic, a donor is required to produce the National Identification card, school certificates and a photograph, for a start.

The information is then shared with women seeking donated eggs, who select a potential donor, based on physical appearance and academic qualifications.

Tests, including to check the blood group, are then conducted to match the donor to the recipient.

Once selected, the young woman is put on hormonal treatment to speed up the production of eggs in preparation for harvesting. Egg production depends on the individuals response to the hormonal treatment, and some women can produce as many as 40 eggs while some manage only five.

At the age of 23, Maria Nyokabi (not her real name) decided to sell her eggs without a second thought just because she needed the money.

Like many of her peers, she had on several occasions found herself broke. Being an orphan with no one to go to whenever she needed the money, she started a small business of packing and selling groundnuts at her campus room.

She would use the proceeds to pay rent and buy food but, with all these, she was still struggling.

So what do you do to realise your dream? How do you pay rent and how do you eat? Yet you have dangling cash at your disposal just to donate an egg?

The possible answer then was to sell my egg at Sh70,000. I was editing my college newspaper and would constantly see ads titled Donate Your Eggs At Sh70,000 and everyone was welcome if you met the criteria. I went for it, says Ms Nyokabi.

At first, she could not imagine that selling her eggs would be an option she would pursue. Fast forward, two years later she developed an interest.

A friend at the university directed her to a clinic where she had done it and was selected.

After tough scrutiny and answering a number of questions, she was chosen as a donor.

Weeks before the procedure, she wanted to give up but the Sh70,000 outweighed all her fears.

On her appointment day, she sat in the waiting room listening to music and reading a book.

After a few minutes, I received three taps on my shoulder asking me to proceed to the doctors office. We sat and looked over paperwork, blood was drawn, and then I went for an ultrasound to make sure everything looked fine. The doctor warned me that I might become overwhelmed with emotion during the process, she says.

No drinking, no sex, and no exercise until the end of the process, the nurse told me. She showed me how to administer the hormone shots myself, and off I went.

After four days, she had to return to the clinic to check her vitals and get an ultrasound check on how the eggs were multiplying. At the second day, she had a few noticeable symptoms of withdrawal other than boredom, her life revolved around the process.

Each day she went back to the clinic, she had three or four more follicle pouches filled with eggs popping up. Every day something new was happening in her body.

Two days before she was scheduled for the egg retrieval, she had more than 10 follicles in the ovaries, the nurse waved the cold metal rod up, down and around searching for more follicle pouches. The more follicles that appeared, the more uncomfortable she became.

Though painless and quick, the 45-minute procedure was life threatening, she says. She was weak and could not stand on her own. She was given antibiotics.

Third day after the surgery, she felt her body was rejecting everything she tried to put into it.

She had developed ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome and needed to have a procedure to drain all the excess fluid from her abdominal cavity.

She went back to the hospital and the fluid was drained; a suction cup was inserted into her vagina that sucked the liquid out.

I felt better and, from then, I swore never to do it again. I think my body can only survive one egg donation and I would never do it again because of money. That was physically painful, she says.

The same case applied to Monica Nyasukuta (not her real name). Last year, she had no one to turn to when she needed a bailout, fortunately, or unfortunately, when she sought help from her gynaecologist friend, she was advised to go and donate eggs.

Since she was clutching at straws, she had no option but to sign up to donate eggs. It was such a risky and top-secret experience that she only confided in her closest friend.

She doesnt like to talk about it, her friend recounts.

She had a series of tests to confirm her viability to donate eggs. She made the cut and the process began. It earned her Sh80,000 that temporarily put a smile on her face.

She signed a few legal documents that bound her never to go back to the clinic asking for her egg, and she left.

The hospital only keeps tabs when complications related to the procedure arise. If not, it lets go of the girl with it was nice doing business with you written on their faces.

Egg donors still take on medical risks: Women can suffer subsequent health problems, most commonly ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS), in which the ovaries swell too much, causing fluid to leak into the abdomen and chest. This can be fatal, says Dr Paul Mitei, a gynaecologist and obstetrician.

Other symptoms include bloating, weight gain, nausea and, in rare severe cases, blood clots and kidney failure.

He says that before retrieval is done, a donor is first given an oral birth control pill for 21 days to stabilise the egg donors (ED) hormones and make it possible to time other medications. This causes breast tenderness, temporary weight gain, mood changes, missed periods and decreased libido.

She is then placed on steroids to suppress some hormones in donors with polycystic ovaries (PCO) for a week. Then they are later placed on follicle-stimulating hormones to stimulate and mature the eggs that will be donated. The hormones have serious side-effects to the young girls including headache, temporary weight gain, ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (rare), multiple gestations (rare), ectopic (tubal) pregnancy (rare), ovarian twisting and injection site skin reactions. If done continuously, it might interfere with their fertility, he said

The donors are then given injections of gonadotrophin-releasing hormone antagonist to prevent premature release of hormones during the cycle; prevents ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome and human chorionic gonadotrophin, a trigger shot to (36-40 hours before retrieval) fully mature the eggs before they are retrieved

Finally, before retrieval, they are given two small injections of gonadotrophin-releasing hormone agonists to stop the production of some fertility hormones this allows the donor to donate a good number of high-quality eggs.

This is followed by antibiotics to decrease the risk of infection during egg retrieval.

Egg retrieval is always performed under ultrasound guidance. However, there is always a risk that a needle may puncture surrounding tissue or organs causing injury, bleeding and/or infection. Some of the hormones given to the young women are too strong for them and might [not] be necessary at their age, he said.

No one can say exactly what will happen if you donate your eggs because theres not much research into the long-term health risks egg donors may face, says Dr Diane Tober, who studied egg donors.

There have been reported cases of OHSS (which can be life-threatening), ovarian torsion, blood clots, development of long-term health problems, infertility and, according to some researchers, even cancer.

In October, arguing that egg donation carries the same risks as other surgical procedures involving anaesthesia, the San Francisco civil-rights lawyer MonaLisa Wallace petitioned the US Justice Department to crack down on the illegal egg-trafficking industry.

In a website of support and advocacy groups known as We Are Egg Donors, donors have found the donation process to be physically painful, emotionally jarring or both.

Some donors find the experience, which involves hormone injections for 10 days or more until a doctor pierces the vaginal wall with thick needles to suck out the extra eggs, produced differs greatly from the marketing.

There's a huge lack of data there to help women to make informed decisions. This is a big problem, simply because, people are making decisions that could affect their future health, well-being, and their ability to have children, Dr Tober said.

View post:
Young women turning to egg donation for quick cash - Daily Nation

Authors note: I am grateful to the recently-launched caWsbar (Canadian Womens Sex-based Rights) for bringing the McLean Clinic, and its aggressive marketing techniques, to my attention, as well as for files they contributed to this column. Dr. Alicia Hendley, Phd in psychology and founding member of caWsbar told me: Were very alarmed about the current trend of young women having double mastectomies to treat their dysphoria.We urge medical professionals to move beyond the external pressures they are being faced with and to put into action their most sacred principlefirst do no harm.

The rapid escalation of gender-fluid identification amongst young people in the West is nothing short of astounding. Adolescent females are now in a majority of those seeking transition. An Ottawa clinic, CHEO, used to see one or two patients a year. Last year it saw 189. Its the same in other provinces:

Girls who are dissatisfied with their post-puberty bodies and wish to present as boys, naturally focus on their burgeoning breasts. They may use binders to flatten them, or they may seek surgical removal, referred to in the gender-fluidity world as top surgery.

Until fairly recently, a patient needed to undergo psychiatric testing before receiving OHIP approval for funding. Now a patient can be diagnosed by a GP or any other expert in gender health. Effectively, OHIP is now approving funding for any teenager who self-diagnoses as gender dysphoric, since Ontario law forbids any health professional from practicing conversion therapy. That is, any attempt by a doctor to inquire into contributing factors such as autism, anxiety, sexual preference, depression or other influencing factors could easily be construed as illegal.

The primary destination for top surgery in Ontario is the McLean Clinic, run by Dr. Hugh A. McLean, who has himself performed hundreds of top surgeries and who is not shy about promoting his clinic as a place where gender-fluidity dreams come true.

On the clinics Instagram page you can see dozens of photos of post-op FTM (female-to-male) clients posing bare-chested and happy. The clinic cheers on their patientsand prospective patientswith encouraging posts such as Postop one day! What a way to start the holiday season. Nice job, Dr. McLean! and Ready for a topless summer. Some of the females seem extremely young. Other adolescents comment, I cant wait to have this surgery too! Im jealous! In one photo, fellow surgeon Dr. Giancarlo McEvenue (more on him anon) wearing a mask and a Santa Claus hat holds up two buckets labelled Breast tissue, accompanied by a Dr McLean post: For all you good boys, Dr McEvenue is not bringing gifts, hes taking them away!

We already know that adolescence is a notoriously labile period in the maturation cycle, and that teenagers under the age of 18 (at a minimumour brains are not fully mature until 25) cannot be assumed to be making momentous decisions with truly informed consent. This Instagram page straddles a line between affirmation and recruitment.

Dr. McEvenue, Dr. McLeans (until recently) colleague at the McLean clinic (he is listed as a surgeon here now), is as well a paid consultant for Johnson & Johnson, whose products and services are employed in these surgeries. Under their sponsorship, Dr. McEvenue participated in a gender reassignment surgery panel last September in Markham, Ontario. You can watch the panel and his performance here.

In the video, you see a marked transformation in Dr. McEvenues pitch. Hes jettisoned the Instagram-friendly Santa hat and the buckets of breast tissue. He is now the smooth, Madman-esque embodiment of Corporate Guy, representing a mammoth company that brands itself as so LGBT-friendly they are bursting with Pride and self-congratulation.

Dr. McEvenue tells us that there could be as many as two million people with gender dysphoria in Canada about 1.5% of the population considerably more than the DSM-5s estimation of .002-.003%. Not only is the wish for top surgery not indicative of a disorder, he says, but it is even not a distress, and in fact it may not be necessarily exclusively related to gender dysphoria. Sometimes it is just breast dysphoria, he says, a term new to me, which turns out to mean that you dont like your breasts. If that is your issue, Dr. McEvenue is there for you, and will remove them. Because he has a passion for what he does.

At the 14:30 minute mark, Dr. McEvenue inadvertently demonstrates the health communitys general dumbing-down of the transition process that he is abetting.

He says, Believe it or not, when a patient wanted top surgery five or ten years ago, they had to go to a psychiatrist to get diagnosed. (Here he grins, presumably at the craziness of the very idea that a woman wanting to lop her breasts off might benefit from sorting through her motives with a mental health expert). He continues, If a woman comes to me for breast augmentation, I dont make her go to a psychiatrist. I say, okay, are you an adult? Do you understand the surgery? (laughter, applause. This audience really really wants to believe that top surgery on teenage girls is no big deal.)

So lets unpack these statements. Dr. McEvenue is comparing breast removal to breast augmentation as though they were two sides of the same coin. But theyre not. The parallel to a breast augmentation is a breast reduction. Both surgeries are performed on women who identify as women, but for reasons of comfort (reduction) or perceived enhanced sexual allure (augmentation), seek surgical alterations. Of course such women do not require psychiatric evaluations. How is augmentation in any way logically comparable to top surgery for transitioning girls who want their breasts removed so they can present as male? It isnt, unless you are attempting to trivialize both the operation and its psychological implications.

Furthermore, he asks his augmentation patients, are you an adult? But from the photos on the Instagram account, a great number of Dr. McEvenues patients are not adults at all. How does he know they truly understand what they are doing? Why wouldnt he want them to see a psychiatrist beforehand? If they are sure of what they are doing, what harm can deeper exploration do? And if they are not sure, whats the down side of them changing their mind? There is a long waiting list at the McLean Clinic, according to Dr. McEvenue. If one or two drop off it after consulting with a mental-health expert, wheres the tragedy there? Dr. McEvenue claims it is a matter of respect not to challenge his patients self-diagnosis. And at the 18-minute mark, he says, Why would I send [a patient] for a second opinion? Yet second opinions are standard in every other field of surgery, and no other surgeons consider them a sign of disrespect. (I guess its a good thing Dr. McEvenue isnt an oncologist.)

Dr. McEvenue enthuses about the benefits of Instagram (Instagram has been huge for us) and boasts of the clinics 14,000 followers. He claims that he doesnt moderate the discussion generated, although, If I see a negative comment, I delete it. The McLean Clinic is certainly dedicated to FTM transitioning as a fun experience.

Representing the patient experience on the panel is a likable transman, Yuri, who is warm, amiable and articulate, clearly at home in his new persona and eager to extol the benefits of his top surgery. Notably, he is now 30 years old, and had the surgery in his 20s. So he is hardly representative of the growing demographic that is seeking the surgery. If all the clinics patients were in their 20s, this panel wouldnt have been needed. The subject is only controversial because the age of those undergoing it is moving downward. Parents are of course concerned, confused and occasionally desperate for objective advice.

They wont find objectivity on this panel. Two of the speakers, the J & J host and Dr. McEvenue, are stakeholders in the business end of top surgeries. One of the panellists is a mature patient who had gone through years of reflection as an adult before doing it, and the last panellist, Melissa, is the parent of a child to whom she has given her full affirming support since her (then) daughter was four years old and refused to dress in princess clothes.

Melissa, unfortunately, plays the suicide card, saying, Id rather stand beside my son than over top of his grave. Suicide is a big possibility, Melissa says, and a parents job isnt to understand, its to support the dysphoric child. Dr. McEvenue reinforces her message with, a lot of time this is a life-saving operation. But since he is committed never to second-guessing the patients self-diagnosis, he cannot be sure that psychiatric help wouldnt be equally life-saving.

Brown University researcher Lisa Littman, who coined the term Rapid Onset Gender Dysphoria (ROGD) found that many adolescent girls with problems other than gender dysphoriaautism, anxiety, depressionglommed on to gender dysphoria as the source of their troubles through sites like Reddit and Tumblr, where social contagion took hold of them. These sites school new adherents in the kind of tropessuch as threatening suicidethat are sure to get their parents on board and assure instant affirmation from therapists. Parents should know this.

So just how real is the risk of suicide if a young girl does not get her double mastectomy? In a very recent article published in Quillette, psychoanalyst Marcus Evans, who formerly served as Consultant Psychotherapist and Associate Clinical Director of Adult and Adolescent Service at the Tavistock and Portman NHS Trust, the Tavistock Clinic being Englands premier public gender clinic, has this to say on the subject of suicide risk: Those who advocate an unquestioning affirmation-based approach to trans-identified children often will claim that any delay or hesitation in assisting a childs desired gender transition may cause irreparable psychological harm, and possibly even lead to suicide. They also typically will cite research purporting to prove that a child who transitions can expect higher levels of psychological health and life satisfaction. None of these claimsalignsubstantially with any robust data or studies in this area. Nor do they align with the cases I have encountered over decades as a psychotherapist.

What else is missing from this panel presentation? Questions that werent puffballs. For example, nobody asked whether Dr. McEvenue had ever had to reconstruct breasts after a client felt regret over the top surgery? (The McLean Clinic website says that very few trans folk regret their decision to undergo top surgery as part of their transition to their experienced gender, but they do not reference any studies.) Regretful detransitioners abound, and many of them want to be heard, but trans activists make life difficult for them when they speak out. Or another unasked question: Do you talk to these adolescent girls about their sexual preferences before planning their surgeries? Some girls presenting as trans are in fact merely lesbians who have difficulty processing that notion. In such cases, transitioning is neither required or advisable. But the subject did not arise on the panel.

As noted in a balanced, in-depth Atlantic magazine article on the subject by seasoned researcher Jesse Singal, the American Psychological Associations guidelines observe that adolescents can become intensely focused on their immediate desires. It goes on: This intense focus on immediate needs may create challenges in assuring that adolescents are cognitively and emotionally able to make life-altering decisions. The McLean Clinic is marketing itself to this demographic, and far from appearing to see challenge in this demographics vulnerability, they show every sign of seeing only market opportunity.

It will be clear to any objective observer that the McLean Clinics fun approach to top surgery and its dependence on social media promotes a perspective that underplays the complexity of the issue and overplays the magical-solution angle. The McLean Clinics bruited compassion for their patients is commendable. But their Instagram culture makes a mockery of the informed consent they claim to respect.

From a business perspective, the Mclean Clinics long waiting list is a sign of success. Their marketing techniques are not illegal. But are they ethical? That is a subject the Canadian Society of Plastic Surgeons might wish to take under deliberation.

View post:
Teen detransitioners are telling their stories on YouTube - The Post Millennial

When a major new set of international guidelines on exercise and cancer was released in October, most of the headlines understandably focused on two key promises: That appropriate levels of physical activity could enhance quality and possibly length of life in those with a cancer diagnosis; and that they might help others avoid developing cancer in the first place.

The evidence for these two claims was dissected in depth in a pair of papers published simultaneously in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, the fruits of a lengthy roundtable process involving more than three-dozen researchers from 17 health organizations around the world, including the Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology.

Less heralded, however, was a third paper from the same group that addressed a knottier problem thats all too familiar to exercise researchers: How do you move from knowing that something is a good practice to getting people to actually do it? Establishing a regular exercise habit can be challenging for just about anybody, but there are extra hurdles for people with cancer.

Story continues below advertisement

Theyre all in different types of treatment, theyve had different surgeries, says Kristin Campbell, the director of the University of British Columbias Clinical Exercise Physiology Lab and one of the authors of the new guidelines. As a result, cancer survivors themselves have a lot of questions, like Is this safe for me?

The answer, in most cases, is yes but with some adjustments. While a previous set of guidelines published in 2010 had suggested that those undergoing cancer treatment should aim for the same amount of exercise as everyone else, meaning at least 150 minutes of moderate to vigorous exercise for each week, the new guidelines revise that target down to three weekly sessions of 30 minutes each.

That adjustment, based on a wealth of new evidence published in the past decade, is a good change, says Margie McNeely, the director of the University of Albertas Cancer Rehabilitation Clinic, and a more realistic standard for a survivor undergoing or in the early stages of recovering from cancer treatment.

For reasons that arent fully understood theories include reduced inflammation and oxidative stress, better blood-sugar control and changed hormone levels exercise has powerful effects on cancer cells.

Theres now strong evidence that regular physical activity lowers your risk of at least seven different types of cancer, and moderate evidence that it raises your chances of survival if you do get diagnosed. For those undergoing cancer treatment, it staves off reductions in physical function and helps reduce anxiety, depression and cancer-related fatigue.

In other words, the pressing question isnt whether cancer survivors should exercise its how to give them the confidence and information they need to do it.

Oncologists and oncology nurses are not trained in exercise, Campbell points out. They dont really know how to screen people or what to prescribe for exercise, because its just not their wheelhouse.

Story continues below advertisement

In the third roundtable paper, Campbell and her colleagues propose a three-step process for oncologists: Assess, advise and refer. Simply asking about a patients current exercise capacity assessing is a good way to raise awareness, and basic advice about the new exercise guidelines advising may be enough to send some people down the right path.

But many will need a referral for more detailed help from an exercise specialist. Thats where initiatives such as the Alberta Cancer Exercise program, a continuing study led by McNeely, come in. Over the last year, more than 1,500 people with cancer have taken part in the supervised 12-week program at sites across the province.

About a quarter of the participants have what McNeely calls chronic cancer. Theyre not cured, but are living with the disease and will likely live for a long time while cycling in and out of treatment. Prescribing exercise for these people is trickier, but the benefits quality of life, physical function and the fitness to withstand their treatments are even more significant.

Given these constraints, there will never be a single set of generic exercise guidelines that applies to all cancer survivors. But the most essential message, now backed by solid science, is the simplest: Avoid inactivity, Campbell urges. Get out there and start doing whatever youre able to do.

Alex Hutchinson is the author of Endure: Mind, Body, and the Curiously Elastic Limits of Human Performance. Follow him on Twitter @sweatscience.

Live your best. We have a daily Life & Arts newsletter, providing you with our latest stories on health, travel, food and culture. Sign up today.

Excerpt from:
Exercise can help in the fight against cancer, but how do we persuade patients to do it? - The Globe and Mail

Microcrystalline Cellulose (MCC) Market Insights 2018, is a professional and in-depth study on the current state of the global Microcrystalline Cellulose (MCC) industry with a focus on the Global market. The report provides key statistics on the market status of the Microcrystalline Cellulose (MCC) manufacturers and is a valuable source of guidance and direction for companies and individuals interested in the industry. Overall, the report provides an in-depth insight of 2018-2025 global Microcrystalline Cellulose (MCC) market covering all important parameters.

Request Sample Report @https://www.mrrse.com/sample/3594?source=atm

The key points of the Microcrystalline Cellulose (MCC) Market report:

The report provides a basic overview of the Microcrystalline Cellulose (MCC) industry including its definition, applications and manufacturing technology.

The report explores the international and Chinese major industry players in detail. In this part, the report presents the company profile, product specifications, capacity, production value, and 2018-2025 market shares for each company.

Through the statistical analysis, the report depicts the global total market of Microcrystalline Cellulose (MCC) industry including capacity, production, production value, cost/profit, supply/demand and Chinese import/export.

The total market is further divided by company, by country, and by application/type for the competitive landscape analysis.

The report then estimates 2018-2025 market development trends of Microcrystalline Cellulose (MCC) industry. Analysis of upstream raw materials, downstream demand, and current market dynamics is also carried out.

The report makes some important proposals for a new project of Microcrystalline Cellulose (MCC) Industry before evaluating its feasibility.

Request For Discount On This Report @ https://www.mrrse.com/checkdiscount/3594?source=atm

There are 3 key segments covered in this report: competitor segment, product type segment, end use/application segment.

For competitor segment, the report includes global key players of Microcrystalline Cellulose (MCC) are included:

competitive landscape in the market. The study encompasses market attractiveness analysis, wherein end-users are benchmarked based on their market size, growth rate and general attractiveness.

The study provides a decisive view on the global microcrystalline cellulose market by segmenting it in terms of end-users. End-user segments have been analyzed based on present and future trends. Regional segmentation includes the current and forecast demand for North America, Europe, Asia Pacific and Rest of the World (RoW). The report also covers demand for individual end-user segments in all the regions.

The study includes profiles of major companies operating in the global microcrystalline cellulose market. Key players profiled in the report include Asahi Kasei Corporation, BLANVER FARMOQUMICA LTDA, FMC Corporation, DFE Pharma GmbH & Co. KG, J. RETTENMAIER & SHNE GmbH + Co KG, Libraw Pharma, JUKU ORCHEM PRIVATE LIMITED, Sigachi Industrial Pvt. Ltd., Avantor Performance Materials, Inc., MINGTAI CHEMICAL CO., LTD. and Accent Microcell Pvt. Ltd. Market players are profiled in terms of attributes such as company overview, financial overview, business strategies and recent developments.

The report provides the market size of MCC for 2013 and forecast for the next six years. The global market size of MCC is provided in terms of both volume as well as revenue. Market volume is defined in tons, while market revenue is in US$ thousand. Market numbers are estimated based on various key end-user segments of MCC. Market size and forecast for each major end-user is provided in terms of global and regional markets.

In order to compile the research report, we conducted in-depth interviews and discussions with a wide range of key industry participants and opinion leaders. Primary research represents the bulk of research efforts, supplemented by an extensive secondary research. We reviewed key players product literature, annual reports, press releases and relevant documents for competitive analysis and market understanding. Secondary research also includes a search of recent trade, technical writing, internet sources and statistical data from government websites, trade associations and agencies. This has proven to be the most reliable, effective and successful approach for obtaining precise market data, capturing industry participants insights and recognizing business opportunities.

Secondary research sources that are typically referred to include, but are not limited to company websites, annual reports, financial reports, broker reports, investor presentations, SEC filings, Plastemart magazine, TPE magazine, internal and external proprietary databases, and relevant patent and regulatory databases such as ICIS, Hoovers, Onesource, Factiva and Bloomberg, national government documents, statistical databases, trade journals, market reports, news articles, press releases and webcasts specific to companies operating in the market.

Primary research involves e-mail interactions, telephonic interviews and face-to-face interviews for each market, category, segment and sub-segment across geographies. We conduct primary interviews on an ongoing basis with industry participants and commentators in order to validate the data and analysis. Primary interviews provide firsthand information on market size, market trends, growth trends, competitive landscape and outlook, etc. These help validate and strengthen the secondary research findings. These also help develop the analysis teams expertise and market understanding.

The report segments the globalmicrocrystalline cellulose marketas:

Microcrystalline Cellulose Market: End-user Segment Analysis

Microcrystalline Cellulose Market: Regional Analysis

Buy This Report @ https://www.mrrse.com/checkout/3594?source=atm

Reasons to Purchase this Report:

* Estimates 2018-2025 Microcrystalline Cellulose (MCC) market development trends with the recent trends and SWOT analysis

* Market dynamics scenario, along with growth opportunities of the market in the years to come

* Market segmentation analysis including qualitative and quantitative research incorporating the impact of economic and policy aspects

* Regional and country level analysis integrating the demand and supply forces that are influencing the growth of the market.

* Competitive landscape involving the market share of major players, along with the new projects and strategies adopted by players in the past five years

* Comprehensive company profiles covering the product offerings, key financial information, recent developments, SWOT analysis, and strategies employed by the major market players

See the original post here:
Hormone Replacement Therapy Market Analysis, Scope, Future Trends and Opportunities During 2019-2025 - Fusion Science Academy

The Fulton County Health Department has scheduled the following health clinics and services. Please call the number listed with each service for an appointment or more information.

CANTON The Fulton County Health Department has scheduled the following health clinics and services. Please call the number listed with each service for an appointment or more information.

All offices of the Fulton County Health Department will be closed Monday, Jan. 20, 2020 in observance of the Martin Luther King holiday.

Maternal child health: Health screenings, WIC nutrition education and supplemental food coupons for women, infants and children. To make an appointment or for more information call 647-1134 (ext. 254). For Astoria clinic appointments call 329-2922.

Canton - WIC Nutrition Education - Tuesday, Jan 21 - 8-4 - Appt needed

Astoria - Clinic, WIC Nutrition Educ. - Wednesday, Jan 22 - 9-3 - Appt needed

Canton - Clinic - Thursday, Jan 23 - 8-4 - Appt needed

Adult Health Immunizations: Various vaccines are available. There is a fee for immunization administration. Medicaid cards are accepted. To make an appointment or for more information call 647-1134 (ext. 254).

Other times available by special arrangement at Canton, Cuba and Astoria.

Blood Lead Screening: Blood lead screenings are available for children ages one to six years. A fee is based on income. To make an appointment or for more information call 647-1134 (ext. 254). For Astoria appointments call 329-2922.

Family Planning: Confidential family planning services are available by appointment at the Canton office for families and males of child-bearing age. Services provided include physical exams, pap smears, sexually transmitted disease testing, contraceptive methods, pregnancy testing, education and counseling. Services are available to individuals of all income levels. Fees are based on a sliding fee scale with services provided at no charge to many clients. Medicaid and many insurances are accepted. After hours appointments are available. To make an appointment or for more information call the 647-1134 (ext. 244). *Program funding includes a grant from the US DHHS Title X.

Pregnancy testing: Confidential urine pregnancy testing is available at the Canton and Astoria offices. This service is available to females of all income levels. A nominal fee is charged. No appointment is needed. A first morning urine specimen should be collected for optimal testing and brought to the health department. Services are provided on a walk-in basis on the following days each week:

Canton: Every Wednesday & Thursday, 8-3:30 (for more information call 647-1134 ext. 244)

Astoria: Every Wednesday, 9-2:30 (for more information call 329-2922)

Womens Health: A womens clinic for pap tests, clinical breast examinations and vaginal examinations is available by appointment. There is a nominal fee for this service. Medicaid cards are accepted. Financial assistance is available for a mammogram. Cardiovascular screenings may be available to age and income eligible women. To make an appointment or for more information call 647-1134 (ext. 244).

Mammograms: Age and income eligible women may receive mammograms at no charge. Speakers are available to provide information to clubs and organizations. For more information or to apply for financial assistance, call 647-1134 (ext. 254).

Mens Health: Prostate specific antigen (PSA) blood tests are available for men for a fee. To make an appointment or for more information call 647-1134 (ext. 224).

Sexually Transmitted Disease (STD) Clinic: Confidential STD and HIV testing services are available by appointment to males and females at the Canton office. Services include physical exams to identify STDs, a variety of STD testing, HIV testing, education, counseling, medications and condoms. There is a nominal fee for services. Services are available to individuals of all income levels. Medicaid cards are accepted. To make an appointment or for more information call 746-1134 (ext. 224).

HIV Testing and Counseling: Confidential HIV testing and counseling services are available by appointment through the sexually transmitted disease (STD) clinic at the Canton office. To make an appointment or for more information call 647-1134 (ext. 224).

Tuberculosis (TB) Testing: TB skin tests are available at no charge by appointment. To make an appointment or for more information call 647-1134 (ext. 254).

Blood Pressure Screenings: The Fulton County Health Department provides blood pressure screenings at no charge on a walk-in basis during the following times:

Astoria - Screening - Wednesday, Jan 22 - 9-12 - Walk in

Health Watch Wellness Program: The Health Watch Program provides low cost lab services. Through this program adults can obtain venous blood draws for a variety of blood tests. Blood tests offered without a doctors order Comprehensive Metabolic Panel (CMP), Complete Blood Count (CBC), Lipid Panel, Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) test, Hepatitis C test, and Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH). A wide variety of blood tests are also available with a doctors order. There is a charge at the time of service. To make an appointment or for more information call 647-1134 (ext. 254).

Dental Services: The Dental Center offers a variety of basic dental services to children and adults. An appointment is needed. Medicaid and Kid Care cards are accepted. To make an appointment or for more information call 647-1134 (ext. 292).

Read more from the original source:
Health Department announces services for the week of Jan 20 - Galva News

Paul Olson wants everyone to know that he's thankful that Mayo Clinic saved his life ... twice.

That's why he purchased a high-profile billboard on South Broadway proclaiming that "I Beat Cancer Twice!" in big gold letters and thanking his doctors Larson, Kwon and Beahrs.

Actually, it's the second such billboard he put up in Rochester. The first was in 1997, five years after his first bout with prostate cancer.

"I have a perfect life thanks to Mayo. I would have been dead before I turned 50," said the retired 75-year-old Olson. "I think doctors need to get feedback from their patients. ... Everybody hears the gripes. Nobody hears the applause."

His story started in 1992, when he was referred to Mayo Clinic at age 47 and doctors discovered an advanced case of prostate cancer.

"A diagnosis like that is like looking at the end of a gun barrel," said Olson. "But the first thing they give you at Mayo is hope."

A treatment of surgery, chemotherapy and hormone therapy took care of the cancer. Olson, who was president of the Grand Rapids, Minn.-based Blandin Foundation, got on with his life. That meant travelling with his wife, running marathons, playing golf and eventually retiring.

Then in 2017, he ended up back at Mayo Clinic.

"I knew I had something funny going on," Olson said.

A special medical scanner unique to Mayo Clinic that he calls "magical" detected six tumors growing throughout his body. The prostate cancer had returned 25 years later.

Once again, his doctors at Mayo Clinic treated the cancer until no trace of the cancer was detectable in 2018.

"I just wanted to thank my doctors and Mayo for their extraordinary assistance ... for saving my life... again," he said.

Read more here:
Cancer patient shows his appreciation for Mayo Clinic on a billboard thank-you card - PostBulletin.com

The students of Moordale Secondary are growing up in season two of Netflixs breakout Sex Education.

When creator Laurie Nunn introduced her coming-of-age comedy about teenage nobody Otis Milburn (Asa Butterfield), who launches an underground sex clinic at his school, her characters inventive riffs on teen-com clichs that exist somewhere between the present and a nostalgic re-imagining of the John Hughes era were just beginning to awkwardly fumble their way through various sexual rites of passage.

The fumbling continues in season two, a way for Nunn to mine humor and relatability from this tale of a sensitive boy searching for his place (and libido) in the grand scheme of things. But theres a sureness of step now, for both Nunn and her colorful collection of misfits, who use the shows sophomore season to explore urges and fetishes and the kind of hormone-fueled existential crises grown-ups remember with detached amusement.

Season two of Sex Education delivers more heartfelt laughs and engaging storylines about a handful of fan-favorite characters, but it also pushes its storytelling, introducing new faces, confronting even more controversial issues, and asking viewers to grow with it. Before season two debuts Jan. 17, here is a refresher on the biggest storylines from season one and a look ahead at what to expect from the new episodes.

Old Dramas

The debut season ended with resolved conflicts and more than a few unanswered questions. After pining after school rebel Maeve Wiley (Emma Mackey) all season, Otis began a relationship with Ola (Patricia Allison), a fellow weirdo and the daughter of handyman Jakob (Mikael Persbrandt). Jakob and Otis mother, Jean Milburn (Gillian Anderson), were shacking up, but neither teenager knew thatyet. Just as Otis began to embrace his stunted sexual appetites, forgiving his mother for penning a book about his repressed urges and inability to pleasure himself, his romance with Ola kick-started his sex drive.

Meanwhile, Maeve, who spent much of season one struggling to survive on her own, was forced to say goodbye to her unreliable brother and her academic career after shouldering the blame for his illegal drug dealing at school. Eric (Ncuti Gatwa), who was tormented by school bully Adam (Connor Swindells) for much of the year, was left contemplating a confusing, violent hookup as Adams father, Mr. Groff (Alistair Petrie), sent him packing to military school.

Season two will check in on the status of Otis and Olas relationship and that of their parents as well as Erics romantic endeavors and Maeves life at the trailer park now that her business venture and friendship with Otis have been put on the back burner.

New Kids

With a new year comes new students, and a trio of characters make their mark early on in season two.

I still think that Otis very much leads us through the world, and he's still our protagonist, but I really wanted to be able to kind of get under the skin of some of our other characters, showrunner Nunn told The Hollywood Reporter about the shift in focus.

Expanding the world of Moordale means storylines focusing on fan favorites like Aimee (Aimee Lou Wood), Lily (Tanya Reynolds) and Jackson (Kedar Williams-Stirling). Newcomers include Rahim (Sami Outalbali), a French foreign exchange student who factors into Erics story in surprising ways; Viv (Chinenye Ezeudu), a brilliant young woman who shares a special bond with Jackson following a traumatic event; and Isaac (George Robinson), Maeves sarcastic new neighbor, who comes to her aid when her mother (Anne-Marie Duff), a former addict, pushes her way back into her daughters life.

In many ways, season two seems to bid farewell to childhood, untethering itself from former friendships and expected character arcs in favor of bolder storytelling. Otis seems content in his dalliance with Ola, and though he continues to dole out his brand of "sexpertise" to his fellow students, the days of bathroom confessionals are long gone. Eric, who went through an identity crisis in season one following a horrific assault, sports an enviable amount of self-confidence, even when lamenting his nonexistent love life. Maeve, whose cynicism masked her dreams and ambition, is forced to fight for what she wants for once.

The influx of new characters also means that Andersons soft-spoken sex therapist will take on a bigger role in season two, venturing from the safety of her home office and finding new clientele at Moordale Secondary after an episode of STI hysteria makes it painfully clear just how archaic the schools sex education curriculum is.

More Sex

Speaking of sex, theres certainly more of it, and in greater variety, in season two. Otis, who achieved the impossible by finally having an erection in the season one finale, is mastering the art of masturbation and learning how to please his girlfriend. Butterfield is given a big comedic moment in season two that involves a self-pleasuring montage set to the heavenly choir cover of the Divinyls' I Touch Myself that encapsulates everything this show does well before abruptly ending in the most nightmarish of ways.

This season also explores queer sex, using Eric and Rahims friendship to cover topics that feel taboo, even in these modern times, and forcing other mainstays to question their impulses in interesting, comical ways. There are fetishes and female orgasms galore, but there are also meditations on the aftermath of sexual assault, repressed desires and pregnancy scares.

Even More Questions

One thing Sex Education has also done well, and continues to shine at in season two, is letting its characters exist in a state of ambiguity. Yes, there are big payoffs, victories for underdogs, reconciliations for strained relationships, but Nunn poses as many questions as she answers by the time the eight episodes are over. Will Eric and Adam reunite? Will Maeve and Otis finally admit their feelings for one another? Will Jean write her book? Will Otis lose his virginity? Nothing is tied up too neatly this season, which might disappoint some, but its also proof that this series is fully dialed into the story its trying to tell, a messy, conversation-starting contemplation on the joys and pains of growing up thats as sincere as it is silly.

The second season of Sex Educationlaunches Jan. 17 on Netflix. Stay tuned to THR for additional coverage.

Read the original post:
'Sex Education' Primer: Where Things Left Off and What to Expect From Season 2 - Hollywood Reporter

BEAVER COUNTY (KDKA) A new center in Beaver County is focusing on helping the LGBTQ community.

Central Outreach Wellness Center in Aliquippa provides care while trying to break the stigma surrounding HIV and sexually transmitted diseases.

The clinic which opened Dec. 16, 2019 is the first of its kind for people in Beaver County, and the third location of its kind in the Pittsburgh region.

Alex Tatangelo, a nurse practitioner for the center, said the new location is in an area that lacks LGBTQ services.

Theres a lot of fear in that community still and theres a lot of fear going into a doctor and talking about things that may be concerning to them, Tatangelo said.

The clinic has STD testing, Hepatitis C care and hormone replacement therapy.

For the LGBTQ community, we offer PrEP, which keeps you protected for acquiring HIV, Tatangelo said. We offer HIV care and primary care for individuals who are already HIV positive.

What makes this center even more unique is it shares office space with the LGBTQ agencies PRISM and Project HOPE.

We are a safe space for LGBTQ youth and their allies to come and be themselves, PRISM founder Jaci Palmer said.

Palmer said her goal is to make LGBTQ youth feel like they matter and cut down on teen suicide.

She says LGBTQ teens are five times more likely to commit suicide than their heterosexual friends.

And as for David Adkins, whos HIV positive and the founder of Project HOPE, his goal is to create awareness for people impacted by HIV and AIDs.

He does that through outreach, support groups and fundraisers.

Ive lost a lot of friends to HIV and AIDs, and why am I still here? Theres a reason Im here to do what I can do, Adkins said.

Central Outreach Wellness Center has offices in Allegheny and Washington counties.

The center accepts appointments and walk-ins.

Originally posted here:
We Are A Safe Space: Center In Beaver County Aiming To Help LGBTQ Community And Break Stigmas - CBS Pittsburgh

WAUSAU, Wis. (WZAW) -- Approaching middle age often brings stress and fear, and if you're a woman, you can be at an increased risk of developing a mental illness like clinical depression and anxiety.

Judy Lemke, a professional counselor and clinical social worker from Behavioral Health Clinic joined the Deep Bench on Thursday to discuss the topic. She said as a woman, you cant escape menopause and it comes with changes both physically and emotionally.

The estrogen levels are the things that decrease the most and fluctuates, but thats not the only hormone that gets out of balance. So does dopamine, cortisol and the feel-good drugs. That can bring about mood changes and can create anxiety and depression.

Lemke said when those changes happen, it can make it very difficult to control your emotions.

The most common, you might feel irritable, you might feel very sad. You might be teary one minute and laughing the next, kind of feel like youre all over the map and not know what to expect, she explained.

Lemke add that its not something that everyone can understand, especially if you arent experiencing the same changes.

She went on to explain that if you have a history of postpartum depression, significant PMS or clinical depression prior to menopause, youre most likely to experience a depressive episode during menopause.

But there doesnt seem to be a real specific, scientific proof that you will become depressed or anxious. And theres a lot of women, about 25% that make it through menopause without any type of effects on their emotions, other than the physical effects.

Excerpt from:
Deep Bench: How aging and menopause in women can impact mental health - WSAW

We're taught the basics about the female body in sex ed. But after milestones for women like getting your period and giving birth, many women feel uninformed about the basics of their reproductive system -- especially as they age.

Just like aging is visible outside of your body, many dont realize their internal organs are also going through a transition.

Dr. Jennifer Ashton, ABC News' chief medical correspondent, breaks down four things all women should know about their reproductive system.

"When we look down the road, it should be with optimism and understand that everyone will get through it," Ashton said. "Just like we all got through puberty."

First, its important to understand that the full female reproductive system is more than just the vagina and ovaries.

"Were talking about the whole external and internal urogenital system," Ashton explained, which also includes the bladder, urethra and vulva.

The ovaries are responsible for the production of the hormones estrogen, progesterone and a portion of the bodys testosterone, all of which decrease as a woman approaches menopause.

Estrogen is a major hormone responsible for affecting change in a womans body.

"Everything in the pelvic, genital area is affected by a decrease in estrogen levels," Ashton said. "Dropping estrogen levels are responsible for hot flashes, vaginal dryness, weakening of bones -- you name it and estrogen is likely involved."

A decrease in estrogen levels in the pelvic and genital areas causes the tissues to become weaker and more fragile. This can make this region of the body more susceptible to injury and infection.

Meanwhile, a decrease in progesterone levels can affect mood and also lead to memory loss, while a decrease in testosterone can be related to a decrease in a womans libido.

"A lot of people dont realize that women have testosterone as well," Ashton said. "That drop in testosterone level in a woman is responsible for the dreaded, 'I dont understand why I am gaining weight while Im still exercising and eating well.'"

As the strength and elasticity of muscles in the pelvic region decrease, problems such as incontinence and prolapse of pelvic organs, such as the bladder, uterus and rectum, may occur. A prolapse is when organs fall down or slip out of place

"Any of those organs can prolapse or protrude through the vagina, in most severe cases, outside of a womans body, but most of the time just into the vagina," Ashton said.

Women who have had many vaginal deliveries can be at higher risk of pelvic organ prolapse, but chronic coughing and obesity are also associated causes. Though women of any age can experience issues related to a weak pelvic floor, it is more common in older women.

"The most common symptom is the sensation of pressure," Ashton explained. "Some women will feel a lot of pelvic pressure and some women might have to urinate more frequently."

She notes that medical devices, such as the Yarlap, can strengthen and tone pelvic floor muscles, helping women regain control over their bladder and work to prevent pelvic organ prolapse.

"One thing women should focus on is the importance of the pelvic floor when it comes to the reproductive system," MaryEllen Reider, co-founder of Yarlap, said. "Its a muscle that hasnt gotten a lot of recognition and women shouldnt be ashamed to talk about any issues."

Menopause is defined as one year without a menstrual period.

According to the Mayo Clinic, menopause can happen in women in their 40s or 50s, but the average age is 51 in the U.S. Ashton explained that factors such as family history, smoking and medical conditions can affect the age when a woman begins through menopause.

Common symptoms leading up to menopause include mood swings, memory loss, hot flashes, an increase in body fat, a decrease in bone density and irregular vaginal bleeding, but not all women will experience all of the symptoms.

"In some women, as they approach menopause, their period will just fade off into the sunset and bleeding will completely stop," Reider said. "In other women, bleeding can become more irregular. In some cases, heavier and closer together. There is really no way to predict, it's very individual."

Although menopause is something many women dread, Ashton said women have something to look forward to.

"For many women it might feel like the worst thing ever, but there are treatments and ways to manage it," she said. "Women are now living a third of their life after menopause and those can be really vital and vibrant years."

Read the original:
What women should know about their reproductive system as they age - ABC News

At-home finger pricks used to be synonymous with diabetes. Now, anyone can prick their finger at home to test for virtually any condition they want.

Lab tests and disease screenings historically involve making a doctor's appointment, enduring a couple hours in a clinic and waiting weeks to find out your results. Direct-to-consumer health companies have changed that with mail-order kits that test for everything from Celiac disease to nutrient deficiencies, all with only a finger prick or a saliva sample.

You can test an entire hormone panel to discover the cause behind chronic symptoms -- like daytime fatigue, digestive issues and headaches -- or test for a single compound, such as hbA1c for diabetes.

While you shouldn't use these at-home health tests as a diagnostic tool alone, they can help you avoid unnecessary trips to the doctor if you get negative results -- or spark an informed discussion with your primary care physician if you get positive results.

Remember that these at-home health tests aren't perfect, but the results you get can give you insight to a health concern you've been struggling with. For example, if you've been battling poor sleep and digestive issues, you might have a food intolerance. An at-home allergen-specific test can be the first step in modifying your diet or seeking treatment from a nutrition professional.

With that, we round up eight of the best at-home diagnostic tests for different health concerns.

Chances are you know at least one person who eats a gluten-free diet, whether they have a diagnosed gluten allergy or not. Many people have health concerns about gluten ranging from minor sensitivities to full-blown Celiac disease.

If you suspect you have Celiac disease, the Imaware Celiac Disease Screening Test is a good place to start -- the kit tests for an antibody called tissue transglutaminase (tTG) antibody, or tTG-IgA. This enzyme repairs damaged tissues in your body, but people with Celiac disease often make antibodies that destroy tTG-IgA.

At $99, this at-home Celiac screening is likely to be less expensive than visiting a doctor for a Celiac test, depending on your insurance. If you get positive results, you can follow up with a physician. The only caveat -- you'll need to consume gluten regularly leading up to the test, so if you typically have a negative response to foods with gluten, you might endure a few uncomfortable days.

Read more: On a gluten-free diet? This search engine will make life easier

If you often find yourself keeling over and battling cramps after meals -- or dealing with less severe symptoms such as chronic fatigue and joint aches -- you might have food sensitivities to something you eat on a regular basis.

Check for 240 food items with the Test My Allergy Core Test, an allergen-specific immunoglobulin E (IgE) test. Your body makes IgE antibodies to protect your organs and tissues from viruses, bacteria and allergens -- they look different depending on what they are reacting to, which is how an allergen-specific IgE test can pinpoint what you're allergic to.

Note that you may be better off with a general IgE test that Test My Allergy also offers, which measures the overall level of IgE antibodies in your blood. This is because a high percentage of allergen-specific IgE tests for food intolerances can yield false positives. If you get positive results on either type of at-home test, you should take the results to your primary care doctor for further discussion.

No one enjoys talking about their sexual health, even with a doctor, when things go wrong. If you think you might have a sexually transmitted disease (STD), an at-home test can be a less awkward first step to getting treated.

The Complete 10 kit by LetsGetChecked tests for the 10 most common sexually transmitted infections, including chlamydia, gonorrhea, herpes and syphilis. For this test, you'll collect both a blood and urine sample and mail them back on the same day.

If you get positive results for any infection, see a doctor right away to begin treatment. Also, remember that many STDs don't show any symptoms, so don't rely on symptoms as a sign that you need to get tested: If you're at all suspicious, talk to your partner about the possibility of an infection.

The EverlyWell Men's Health Test checks for levels of cortisol, dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), free testosterone and estradiol, four key hormones that can affect mood, weight and muscle mass, energy and libido in men.

Collect a saliva sample shortly after you wake up and mail the sample back to EverlyWell the same day. You'll get a personalized, physician-reviewed report of your levels of each hormone and how those hormones relate to your current symptoms -- if you've been feeling chronically tired and weak or experiencing a low sex drive, for example, this test can help pinpoint what's wrong.

Via a finger prick and saliva sample, the EverlyWell Women's Health Test checks for 10 hormones thought to affect energy, mood, weight, fertility, sex drive, sleep, skin health, muscle and joint health, headaches, bloating and indigestion, hair health and more in women.

At $399, it's not a cheap kit, but it could help you discover if wacky hormone levels are the culprit behind your daily fatigue, poor concentration or other symptoms. And a full hormone panel at a doctor's office might cost you upwards of $1,000 depending on your insurance.

When your report comes back with information about your hormones and what the detected levels mean, you can decide whether it's worth seeing a professional about your symptoms in person.

Hormones aren't the only things that can cause seemingly unexplained fatigue, disturbed sleep, low libido or poor productivity. If you aren't getting enough essential vitamins and minerals from your food, nutrient deficiencies can spur those same symptoms.

This Nutritional Deficiency Test from 5Strands looks for 115 nutrients with a hair analysis, an incredibly accurate method of testing often used for DNA and drug tests. You'll find out if you're deficient in any amino acids, fatty acids, trace minerals and vitamins, as well as certain hormones (like melatonin) and compounds that affect your metabolism.

This comprehensive at-home hormone panel tests for five hormones, but what's more interesting is that it tests for your cortisol levels in the morning, afternoon, evening and night. Cortisol is often called the "stress hormone" because of its known role in physiological stress -- cortisol surges when you undergo a fight-or-flight response, but it's also important for exercise responses, controlling blood sugar, regulating your metabolism and balancing inflammation.

Cortisol naturally fluctuates throughout the day, but if you have unexplained symptoms at certain times during the day or night, the HealthConfirm Hormone Vitality Complete test can help uncover the cause. For example, cortisol levels should naturally reduce to their lowest at night. If you can't sleep -- and you know it's not caused by too much blue light or other sleep-disturber -- unusually high nighttime cortisol could be the offender.

The information contained in this article is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended as health or medical advice. Always consult a physician or other qualified health provider regarding any questions you may have about a medical condition or health objectives.

See the article here:
8 at-home health kits to test for Celiac disease, fertility and more - CNET

INDIANAPOLIS (WTHR) I remember distinctly the moment I first told my wife we were moving to Indianapolis for a great new opportunity at WTHR. There was elation, followed by her biggest concern the weather!

Even though my wife was born and spent some of her youth in the Midwest, she quickly grew tired of the cold, overcast skies and snow. We were probably spoiled after spending years in the south, between stops in Texas and South Carolina. We both crave sun and warmth, but the reality is, we love Indiana!

So how do you overcome living in the Midwest during December through March?

Well, psychologists have diagnosed it as "Seasonal Affective Disorder," or "SAD" for short.

Experts define it as a type of depression related to the change in seasons. For most, the symptoms typically start in late fall and continue through winter.

Typical symptoms include:

However, there is hope.

I spoke to Dr. Danielle Henderson, a clinical psychologist with IU Health, about ways to cope. Some of the tips are simple enough: get outside, take a walk, sit by a window if it's too cold to go out, make plans or make yourself go out with family and friends. She says if those don't do the trick, then it's definitely time to schedule an appointment with your primary care physician to talk about your mood and symptoms.

According to the Mayo Clinic, most experts say that shorter days and less daylight in winter cause a chemical change in our brain. The sleep hormone melatonin might play a part too. Doctors say the body makes more melatonin when it's dark, and since it's darker longer in winter, you may have more melatonin in your system, which could cause some fatigue. The brain chemical serotonin could play a part too. Reduced sunlight can cause a drop in it, which could cause depression.

If they deem you do indeed have SAD, then obviously there are medications, even mild anti-depressants that can be prescribed, according to Dr. Henderson.

"With Seasonal Affective Disorder, we might notice these symptoms kind of staying around a little bit later into the winter and then hopefully starting to improve around the springtime when our weather and seasonal changes do happen," Dr. Henderson said.

However, she said if symptoms still last through spring and summer, then speaking to a trained professional is paramount. Also, if a friend, family member or co-worker comes to you to talk about their concern, they may have SAD. Dr. Henderson said to be sensitive to that. Listen to them. Be a support system. Offer counsel.

For Christine Winger of Fishers, she admits she's suffered from the winter blues since early adulthood.

She's never been diagnosed with SAD, but she definitely notices change this time of year.

"It really hits January, February," Winger said.

Winger is a school counselor at Carmel Middle School, so she's not shy about opening up regarding her mood in the winter time and how the the change of season affects her.

"The lack of sun, lack of being able to get outside...I've noticed that I've just struggled with like lower energy levels. I feel like I'm more irritable," Winger said.

Experts estimate SAD impacts about 10 million Americans. They say another 10 percent to 20 percent may have mild SAD, which is most likely the category Winger and my wife fit in.

Research shows SAD is four times more common in women than in men. So, Winger has found ways to cope with the winter blues that work for her.

"Definitely running and exercise is the biggest thing that helps me get through it," Winger said.

She runs at least a mile a day. It's a challenge she enjoys. It gets her outside, breathing fresh air and sometimes, the sun is even out!

Dr. Henderson agrees that's a great way to conquer the winter blues but knows that each case can be unique.

Find healthy and safe ways that work for you!

Again, it's important to remember to never be afraid to talk to someone.

Remember, we at WTHR are proud partners with Community Health Network. If you or someone you know is struggling with depression or suicidal thoughts, you can find resources for assistance by clicking here.

Excerpt from:
Beating the 'Winter Blues' - WTHR

Theyre not at home, she said. They are not sleeping well, because things are buzzing and bumping at night. Theyre loaded up with a whole bunch of medicines. Its not a restful place to be.

That disorientating, sleep-depriving atmosphere likely is the reason that hospitals and intensive care units in particular are common places for the phenomenon known as sundowners syndrome, said Greminger, an Essentia Health internist and faculty member at the University of Minnesota Medical Schools Duluth campus.

Also known as sundown syndrome, sundowning syndrome or just plain sundowning, its the emergence or worsening of agitation (or) other types of potentially problematic, challenging behaviors that occur in the late afternoon or early evening, said Joseph Gaugler, director of the School of Public Health Center on Aging at the University of Minnesota.

Some of the behaviors can include confusion, anxiety, aggression, ignoring directions and pacing or wandering, according to Dr. Jonathan Graff-Radford, a neurologist at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester whose specialties include Alzheimers disease and dementia.

Sundowning is by far most common among people who have forms of cognitive impairment or dementia, the experts said, although it doesnt necessarily accompany dementia.

Sometimes we hear from patients and their families that sundowning was one of the earliest symptoms, Graff-Radford said. Patients who have "dementia with Lewy bodies" seem to be particularly susceptible, he added.

It often does, the experts say. Also, its very common in older adults who are living in nursing homes or assisted living, Greminger said.

The unfamiliar surroundings seem to be a trigger.

Any change in environment, whether it be a hospitalization or a move to a new living environment, can prompt this, Graff-Radford said.

The short answer: No one knows. Theres actually not much research on sundowning, Gaugler said.

Some theorize that its a disorder in the circadian rhythm, Greminger said. Another theory in the early stages, Gaugler said, is that its related to the hypothalamic pituitary adrenal axis (HPA) and its production of the stress hormone known as cortisol.

Again, the answer isnt known. According to Alzheimers Association data from 2006, anywhere from 2.4 to 25% of patients with Alzheimers also have sundowners, Greminger said.

Its certainly a well-known, if not well-understood, phenomenon.

I would say every hospitalist has seen it, Greminger said. Its not uncommon.

No. Sundowning syndrome is exactly that, Gaugler said. Its this unique pattern of symptoms that happens at that time late in the afternoon, earlier in the evening.

But its similar to delirium, Greminger said. Delirium, which isnt limited by time of day, is a confused state that may be induced by medical treatment.

Delirium tends to be brief; hours or days, she said. Its not a long-term pattern. It fluctuates during the course of the day.

Patients symptoms often do diminish when they return home to a familiar environment, Graff-Radford said. But maybe they dont get quite back to where they were before.

Its important to not just assume the problem will go away when your loved one comes home, Gaugler said. I dont think its as simple as well get them out of the hospital and well get them home; its all great, he said. There does need to be some ongoing care management.

Hospitals should try to help patients achieve somewhat normal sleep patterns, Greminger said. Maybe not doing labs during the middle of the night; not taking vital signs during the middle of the night.

She disagrees with telling patients to leave their glasses and their hearing aids at home.

Im not going to say that hospitals or nursing facilities have never lost them, Greminger said. That happens. But in reality, having those things, having the ability to hear like you would at home, having the ability to see like you would at home, having proper adaptation reduces the risk.

Research suggests melatonin therapy, light therapy and moderate exercise may have benefits for those with sundowners, Gaugler said.

So can turning off TVs in the evening.

Ive been in many nursing homes where the TVs always on blasting through dinnertime and such, and these kinds of distractions I dont think are helpful for behaviors and people with memory loss, he said.

Both Greminger and Gaugler gave two thumbs down to antipsychotic medications, at least as a first line of treatment.

They have a number of very adverse effects and consequences, Gaugler said. Too often theyll be used as chemical restraints by nursing homes. Thats not good for the quality of life, and its not good for the person.

If you can place familiar objects in the room such as pictures of family members, you can lower the risk of your loved one developing sundowners while in the hospital or nursing facility, Graff-Radford said.

Or bring yourself.

Having someone familiar around them could be very helpful, Greminger said.

Also, Graff-Radford said, if you have a loved one with dementia who is going into the hospital for even a routine procedure, you should make sure the medical team is aware of the dementia diagnosis.

Read this article:
Why late afternoon, evening in hospitals can be the worst time of day - Brainerd Dispatch

The more sex you have in middle age, the later youll enter the menopause. Thats about the gist of recent headlines after a new study, that followed 3,000 middle aged women for a decade, found those having weekly sex went through the menopause later than those having it less than once a month.

One of the study authors, Megan Arnot, who is studying for a PhD at University College London, said of the studys findings:Theres a use it or lose it kind of thing going on.

However,as a menopause doctor, I think we should take these findings with a pinch of salt. Partly because the study involved questioning women about their sex lives, which always raises the question of how truthful and accurate the answers are. And secondly because the issue of menopause and sex is such a complex one.

Rather than weekly sex delaying the menopause, it could be that women who are in the early stages of the menopause start to have less sex. And this could be for several reasons.

None of the women who took part in the study had yet entered the menopause. However, 46per cent were beginning to experience symptoms, such as changes in their period and hot flushes, which means they were very likely to be perimenopausal, which is the transitional stage leading up to the menopause. Oestrogen and testosterone, two hormones that begin to dip as you approach the menopause and then decline as you go through it,can bevery important for self esteem, self worth, weight gain, and body image. Which, as every woman knows, are very important when it comes to how much sex you feel like having.

See the rest here:
The truth about sex and the menopause, by a menopause doctor - Telegraph.co.uk

The Fulton County Health Department has scheduled the following health clinics and services.

CANTON The Fulton County Health Department has scheduled the following health clinics and services. Please call the number listed with each service for an appointment or more information.

Maternal child health: Health screenings, WIC nutrition education and supplemental food coupons for women, infants and children. To make an appointment or for more information call 647-1134 (ext. 254). For Astoria clinic appointments call 329-2922.

Canton - Clinic - Monday, Jan 13 - 8-4 - Appt needed

Canton - WIC Nutrition Education - Tuesday, Jan 14 - 8-4 - Appt needed

Canton - Clinic/Immunizations - Wednesday, Jan 15 - 8-4 - Appt needed

Astoria - Clinic, WIC Nutrition Educ. - Wednesday, Jan 15 - 9-3 - Appt needed

Canton - Clinic - Thursday, Jan 16 - 8-4 - Appt needed

Adult Health Immunizations: Various vaccines are available. There is a fee for immunization administration. Medicaid cards are accepted. To make an appointment or for more information call 647-1134 (ext. 254).

Canton - Immunizations - Wednesday, Jan 15 - 8-4 Appt needed

Other times available by special arrangement at Canton, Cuba and Astoria.

Blood Lead Screening: Blood lead screenings are available for children ages one to six years. A fee is based on income. To make an appointment or for more information call 647-1134 (ext. 254). For Astoria appointments call 329-2922.

Canton - Clinic - Wednesday, Jan 15 - 8-4 - Appt needed

Family Planning: Confidential family planning services are available by appointment at the Canton office for families and males of child-bearing age. Services provided include physical exams, pap smears, sexually transmitted disease testing, contraceptive methods, pregnancy testing, education and counseling. Services are available to individuals of all income levels. Fees are based on a sliding fee scale with services provided at no charge to many clients. Medicaid and many insurances are accepted. After hours appointments are available. To make an appointment or for more information call the 647-1134 (ext. 244). *Program funding includes a grant from the US DHHS Title X.

Pregnancy testing: Confidential urine pregnancy testing is available at the Canton and Astoria offices. This service is available to females of all income levels. A nominal fee is charged. No appointment is needed. A first morning urine specimen should be collected for optimal testing and brought to the health department. Services are provided on a walk-in basis on the following days each week:

Canton: Every Wednesday & Thursday, 8-3:30 (for more information call 647-1134 ext. 244)

Astoria: Every Wednesday, 9-2:30 (for more information call 329-2922)

Womens Health: A womens clinic for pap tests, clinical breast examinations and vaginal examinations is available by appointment. There is a nominal fee for this service. Medicaid cards are accepted. Financial assistance is available for a mammogram. Cardiovascular screenings may be available to age and income eligible women. To make an appointment or for more information call 647-1134 (ext. 244).

Mammograms: Age and income eligible women may receive mammograms at no charge. Speakers are available to provide information to clubs and organizations. For more information or to apply for financial assistance, call 647-1134 (ext. 254).

Mens Health: Prostate specific antigen (PSA) blood tests are available for men for a fee. To make an appointment or for more information call 647-1134 (ext. 224).

Canton - Clinic - Monday, Jan 13 - 8-12 - Appt needed

Sexually Transmitted Disease (STD) Clinic: Confidential STD and HIV testing services are available by appointment to males and females at the Canton office. Services include physical exams to identify STDs, a variety of STD testing, HIV testing, education, counseling, medications and condoms. There is a nominal fee for services. Services are available to individuals of all income levels. Medicaid cards are accepted. To make an appointment or for more information call 746-1134 (ext. 224).

HIV Testing and Counseling: Confidential HIV testing and counseling services are available by appointment through the sexually transmitted disease (STD) clinic at the Canton office. To make an appointment or for more information call 647-1134 (ext. 224).

Tuberculosis (TB) Testing: TB skin tests are available at no charge by appointment. To make an appointment or for more information call 647-1134 (ext. 254).

Blood Pressure Screenings: The Fulton County Health Department provides blood pressure screenings at no charge on a walk-in basis during the following times:

Canton - Screening - Monday, Jan 13 - 8-4 - Walk in/Room 108

Cuba - Screening - Monday, Jan 13 - 8-12 - Walk in

Astoria - Screening - Wednesday, Jan 15 - 9-12 - Walk in

Health Watch Wellness Program: The Health Watch Program provides low cost lab services. Through this program adults can obtain venous blood draws for a variety of blood tests. Blood tests offered without a doctors order Comprehensive Metabolic Panel (CMP), Complete Blood Count (CBC), Lipid Panel, Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) test, Hepatitis C test, and Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH). A wide variety of blood tests are also available with a doctors order. There is a charge at the time of service. To make an appointment or for more information call 647-1134 (ext. 254).

Canton - Clinic - Monday, Jan 13 - 8-12 - Appt needed

Dental Services: The Dental Center offers a variety of basic dental services to children and adults. An appointment is needed. Medicaid and Kid Care cards are accepted. To make an appointment or for more information call 647-1134 (ext. 292).

Link:
Health Department announces services for the week of Jan 13 - Canton Daily Ledger

A new study helps illuminate how weight loss can contribute to the remission of type 2 diabetes and how putting pounds back on can cause the disease to return.

The findings, published in December 2019 in Cell Metabolism, suggest that individuals with type 2 diabetes who achieve remission after weight loss may relapse if they regain weight in part because this leads to an accumulation of fat in the liver.

Researchers examined data on 57 overweight and obese people with type 2 diabetes who participated in a prior study, which was published in March 2019 inThe Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology. Those study authors goal was to see if following a low-calorie diet for three to six months would help participants lose at least 15 kilograms (about 33 pounds) and lower their blood sugar levels enough to achieve remission of diabetes. Researchers checked participants weight, blood sugar, and fat levels in the liver and pancreas after 5, 12, and 24 months.

After five months, 28 people achieved the targeted weight loss and diabetes remission. By the end of two years, however, 13 of them had relapsed. People who achieved lasting remission lost more weight initially, kept more weight off than those who relapsed, and had less fat in the liver and pancreas by the end of the study.

Excess calorie intake over many years will initiate vicious cycles of fat accumulation within both the liver and the pancreas that eventually causes diabetes, says lead study author Ahmad Al-Mrabeh, PhD, of Newcastle University in the England.

Decreasing liver fat can lead to remission of diabetes, Dr. Al-Mrabeh says. When you do, he adds, the liver stops sending out excess fat to the rest of the body, and therefore pancreas fat levels decrease.

RELATED: Study Suggests How Much Weight Loss Is Needed to Put Diabetes in Remission

Type 2 diabetes is a multifactorial disease, with genetics and lifestyle both contributing to risk. The disease is also associated with obesity and inactivity, and develops when the body cant effectively use the hormone insulin to regulate blood sugar, according to the World Health Organization. The pancreas produces insulin, and must increase production when the body doesnt use this hormone efficiently. Yet theres a limit to how much insulin the pancreas can make, and diabetes results when the pancreas can no longer keep up with the bodys insulin demands to keep blood sugar levels in check.

Left untreated, type 2 diabetes can increase the risk of kidney failure, heart attacks, strokes, blindness, lower limb amputations, and other potentially life-threatening complications.

Regular exercise, eating well, and maintaining a healthy weight can help prevent type 2 diabetes. These lifestyle habits can also help lower blood sugar and minimize complications when people do develop diabetes, according to the World Health Organization.

While weight loss has long been linked to diabetes remission, the current study offers fresh insight into how the two are related, says senior study author Roy Taylor, MD, also of Newcastle University.

When people cut calories, the body will get the energy it needs by burning up fat thats stored under the skin, Dr. Taylor says. By contrast, when people consume too much food, these fat stores fill up and then excess fat starts accumulating in the liver.

Excess liver fat will lead to higher supply of fat to all tissues, including the pancreas, Taylor says.

When fat builds up in the pancreas, this interferes with insulin production, making it harder for the body to regulate blood sugar and contributing to diabetes. When people achieve diabetes remission through weight loss, regaining weight can restart the process of fat accumulation in the liver, and then the pancreas, and lead to relapse, according to the study.

RELATED: Which Types of Diabetes Can Be Put in Remission?

At the start of the study, all of the participants tended to have higher A1Cs. A1C is a blood test used to diagnose diabetes and determine how well blood sugar is being controlled. It shows the percentage of hemoglobin (a molecule on red blood cells) that is coated with sugar, and reflects average blood sugar levels over two to three months. Readings above 6.5 signal diabetes, according to the Mayo Clinic.

People who never achieved remission in the study started out with more severe diabetes, with average A1C readings of 7.9, compared with average A1C readings of 7.4 among people who did experience remission.

Weight loss initially brought about similar reductions in the percentage of fat in the liver and pancreas for people who achieved diabetes remission, as well as for those who didnt.

After five months, people in remission had 3.4 percent liver fat compared with 2.6 percent in people who didnt achieve remission but this difference wasnt statistically meaningful.

Participants also experienced similar decreases in fat levels in the pancreas after five months: a decline of 0.91 percentage points among people who went into remission and 0.17 points for those who didnt. This difference also wasnt statistically meaningful.

By the end of the two-year follow up period, though, pancreatic fat levels had dropped by 1.65 percentage points among people with sustained remission and only 0.51 percentage points among those who didnt.

One limitation of the study is that it was small, and researchers based their two-year analysis on only 20 people who sustained remission and 13 people who relapsed.

Its also not clear from the study whether people took medication for diabetes, what they ate, or how much they exercised factors that can influence whether people achieve remission.

It would have been helpful if the study included more information about how weight loss was accomplished, says Sheri R. Colberg, PhD, professor emerita of exercise science at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia.

RELATED: 6 Great Exercises for People With Diabetes

The most important message is that people have to do whatever they can with their lifestyle to improve their insulin sensitivity, says Dr. Colberg, who wasnt involved in the study. Insulin sensitivity refers to how efficiently the body can use the hormone to convert sugars into energy.

Dietary restriction can help with this and insulin resistance decreases even before significant weight loss but weight regain is very common, Colberg adds. Both a low-carb diet and consistent workouts can help people with diabetes lose weight and lower blood sugar, she says.

But many people who rely on diet alone to maintain weight loss regain many of the pounds they lose, Colberg says. Exercisers, on the other hand, can keep weight off when they continue to be active.

Physical activity is likely the most important way to keep muscles insulin sensitive and to avoid excess carbs being converted into fat and stored in the liver and pancreas, Colberg says.

RELATED: 7 Exercise Motivation Tips for People With Type 2 Diabetes

More:
Study Sheds Light on How Fat Loss Can Put Type 2 Diabetes in Remission - Everyday Health

Photo Credit Getty Images

The month of January is regarded as National Thyroid Awareness Month that aims to bring to public attention the need to take good care of the important tiny gland in the neck known as Thyroid. The entire month is used to make people aware of the diseases associated with this gland as it is very important for the timely diagnosis of different health ailments.

The World Health Organization estimates about 750 million people around the world suffer from a thyroid malfunction. Women are up to eight times more likely to experience disorders than men.

Relevance of Awareness

According to the Indian Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism an estimated 42 million people in India are suffering from thyroid diseases. Out of this, over 20 per cent women in India live with an undiagnosed thyroid problem and do not even realize that it is the cause of various health issues including infertility, health experts have noted. Moreover, the global prevalence of thyroid disorders are also on the rise day by day. Hence it becomes essential to become aware of ones thyroid and its relationship to health and how best to take care of it.

Thyroid gland

The thyroid is a small, butterfly-shaped gland located in the base of the neck just below the Adam's apple. Although relatively small, the thyroid gland influences the function of many of the bodys most important organs, including the heart, brain, liver, kidneys, and skin. Ensuring that the thyroid gland is healthy and functioning properly is important to the body's overall well-being.

Role of the Thyroid

Thyroid gland is the most crucial determiner of a persons metabolic rate and energy. The thyroid as part of the endocrine system, keeps the metabolism under control through the action of thyroid hormones - which it makes by extracting iodine from the blood and incorporating it into its hormones. Thyroid cells are unique in that they are highly specialized to absorb and use iodine. Every other cell depends on the thyroid to manage its metabolism.

The main role of the thyroid is to produce and release the hormones that your body uses to determine how much energy to use, says Dr Hussein Saadi, chief of the Medical Subspecialties Institute at Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi. The hypothalamus of the brain produces the thyroid-releasing hormone (TRH), which stimulates the pituitary gland to produce thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH). That prompts the thyroid to produce and secrete thyroxine (T4) and triiodothyronine (T3) hormones into the bloodstream.

Thyroid Hormones and Functions

The two main hormones the thyroid produces and releases are T3 (tri-iodothyronine) and T4 (thyroxine). A thyroid that is functioning normally produces approximately 80% T4 and about 20% T3, though T3 is the stronger of the pair. To a lesser extent, the thyroid also produces calcitonin, which helps control blood calcium levels

These hormones are crucial for the optimal functioning of the brain, kidneys as well as liver alongside playing a vital role in the growth and development of the body. They also help in breathing, regulating the cholesterol level, body weight, improving muscle strength and maintaining heart rate.

Thyroid Problems

There are many diseases and disorders associated with the thyroid. Overactivity or underactivity of the gland may lead to a hormonal imbalance in the body that would be evident through various symptoms. They can develop at any age and can result from a variety of causesinjury, disease, or dietary deficiency, for instance. But in most cases, it can be briefly summarised as:

Common Thyroid Disorders

Hyperthyroidism: Hyperthyroidism is caused by too much thyroid hormone due to an over active thyroid. People with hyperthyroidism are often sensitive to heat, hyperactive, and eat excessively. The symptoms include anxiety, shaking, weight loss, irritability, restlessness, nervousness, trouble in sleeping etc. Goiter is sometimes a side effect of hyperthyroidism; due to an over-stimulated thyroid and inflamed tissues. Hyperthyroidism is often diagnosed by checking the levels of TSH and T4 - an increased level of T4 and a low level of TSH can usually confirm the condition.

Hypothyroidism: Hypothyroidism is a common condition characterized by too little thyroid hormone due to the inactivity of the gland. This may lead to symptoms like depression, memory problems, dry skin, constipation, dry skin, weight gain, slow heart rate etc. In infants, the condition is known as cretinism which has very serious side effects, including abnormal bone formation and mental retardation. If hypothyroidism is detected as an adult, one may experience sensitivity to cold, little appetite, and overall sluggishness. Low levels of thyroid hormone can interfere with ovulation, which impairs fertility, experts point out. Hypothyroidism often goes unnoticed, sometimes for years, before being diagnosed. A high TSH level and low T4 mostly confirms the condition.

Goiter: A goiter is a bulge in the neck- a toxic goiter is associated with hyperthyroidism, and a non-toxic goiter, also known as a simple or endemic goiter, is caused by iodine deficiency.

Solitary thyroid nodules:Solitary nodules, or lumps, in the thyroid are actually quite commonin fact, its estimated that more than half the population will have a nodule in their thyroid. The great majority of nodules are benign. Usually, a fine needle aspiration biopsy (FNA) will determine if the nodule is cancerous.

Thyroid cancer: Thyroid cancer is fairly common, though long-term survival rates are excellent. Occasionally, symptoms such as hoarseness, neck pain, and enlarged lymph nodes occur in people with thyroid cancer. Thyroid cancer can affect anyone at any age, though women and people over thirty are most likely to develop the condition.

Thyroiditis: This is an inflammation of the thyroid that may be associated with abnormal thyroid function, particularly hyperthyroidism. Inflammation can cause the thyroids cells to die, making the thyroid unable to produce enough hormones to maintain the body's normal metabolism. There are several types of thyroiditis, and the treatment is specific to each.

Hashimotos disease: This condition of thyroiditis occurs when the bodys own immune cells attack thethyroid gland by mistakerendering it unable to producehormones anymore. Also known as Chronic Lymphocytic Thyroiditis, itcan affect anyone regardless of age though its is most common in middle aged women. The condition is characterised by fatigue. dry skin, thinning of hair, constipation among others.

Measures for a healthy thyroid

(The author is Director- TGL, Chairperson CSA, Sr Dir, FWO, Editor - The International Journal)

See the original post:
Know your Thyroid Gland and How to take care of it - Mathrubhumi English

Researchers at the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM) developed a new nanoparticle drug formulation that targets a specific receptor on cancer cells and appears to be more effective than a standard nanoparticle therapy currently on the market to treat metastatic breast cancer, according to a study published today in the journalScience Advances. The new DART nanoparticles bypass healthy cells and tissues and bind to tumor cells, dispersing evenly throughout the tumor while releasing the chemotherapy drug paclitaxel.

The marketed drug Abraxane, a nanoformulation containing paclitaxel that is currently used to treat women with aggressive breast cancer, is an effective agent, but it was not designed to selectively deliver paclitaxel to only the cancerous cells within the body, said study corresponding co-authorJeffrey Winkles, PhD, a Professor of Surgery at UMSOM. Our DART nanoparticle specifically targets the Fn14 receptor found abundantly on breast cancer cells; it uses this receptor to gain entry through the plasma membrane and deliver the drug to destroy the cancer. Dr. Winkles group discoveredthe Fn14 receptorand described its potential as a target for new therapeutics more than a decade ago.

For this study, UMSOM researchers engineered and tested a new therapeutic nanoparticle platform to deliver the drug paclitaxel to treattriple-negative breast cancer. About one in five women with breast cancer have this type of aggressive tumor, which is particularly difficult to treat; these cancers lack receptors commonly expressed by most breast cancer cells, like hormone receptors, for which effective drugs have been designed. But many triple-negative breast cancers express high levels of Fn14; indeed, most solid tumor types, including lung, prostate and colorectal cancer, overexpress this cell surface receptor.

To accomplish this, the research team attached a monoclonal antibody called ITEM 4 to the surface of the nanoparticle because it specifically binds to Fn14, providing a key to unlock entry into the cancer cell. The surface of the nanoparticles was also coated with polyethylene glycol to keep them circulating through the bloodstream and lymph system until they reached the tumor and to prevent them from being quickly flushed out of the body.

Many drug delivery carriers exhibit nonspecific binding to healthy cells and tissues in addition to the diseased cells they are targeting, which often leads to unintended side effects or toxicities, said study corresponding co-authorAnthony Kim, PhD, Associate Professor of Neurosurgery and Pharmacology at UMSOM. This DART nanoparticle platform has unique capabilities to improve therapeutic delivery to difficult-to-treat locations within the body, while also allowing us to potentially increase the maximum tolerated dose of the encapsulated drug without increasing side effects to patients.

The researchers filled their optimized DART nanoparticle formulation with paclitaxel and tested it against Abraxane (the marketed nanoparticle which also contains paclitaxel) in animals with triple-negative breast cancer tumors. In one set of experiments, the nanoparticles were delivered to mice harboring breast tumors grown above the natural breast region. They found the DART formulation led to a significantly increased median overall survival (68 days) compared to Abraxane treatment (45 days). They also saw a clear benefit to using the DART nanoparticles when they compared the treatments again in animals that harbored breast tumors implanted in the brain (akin to a metastatic brain tumor).

This is a compelling finding and significant step forward in the use of nanoparticles to treat cancer, saidUMSOM Dean E. Albert Reece, MD, PhD, MBA, University Executive Vice President for Medical Affairs and the John Z. and Akiko K. Bowers Distinguished Professor. It fits squarely with our School of Medicines mission to advance the field of potentially lifesaving therapies for patients with the most difficult to treat cancers.

The UMSOM researchers are members of the University of Maryland Marlene and Stewart Greenebaum Comprehensive Cancer Center. A former Ph.D. student, Jimena Dancy, PhD, and a former Postdoctoral Fellow, Aniket Wadajkar, PhD, are listed as co-first authors on the publication. Researchers from the Translational Genomics Research Institute in Phoenix, Arizona and the Mayo Clinic Arizona in Scottsdale also contributed to the work.

This study was primarily funded by the National Institutes of Health.

Future research includes testing the DART therapy in other cancer types, including an aggressive form of brain cancer calledglioblastomaand developing a similar version of the nanoparticle designed to work specifically in humans. This would involve using a humanized antibody on the surface of the nanoparticle and scaling up the formulation. The researchers recently received a grant from the TEDCOMaryland Innovation InitiativeCommercialization Program to move forward with efforts to adapt their nanoparticle system and eventually test the treatment in cancer patients.

Reference: Dacy, et al. (2020) Decreased nonspecific adhesivity, receptor-targeted therapeutic nanoparticles for primary and metastatic breast cancer. Science Advances DOI:10.1126/sciadv.aax3931

This article has been republished from the following materials. Note: material may have been edited for length and content. For further information, please contact the cited source.

Read the rest here:
Team Develops New Nanoparticle Drug To Treat Aggressive Breast Cancer - Technology Networks

In a few months, a bunch of testosterone-loving men will host a convention in Florida aimed at teaching women how to be great great wives, great mothers and great sexual objects. Its called The 22 Convention: Make Women Great Again, and we cant quite wrap our minds around it. At first, second and third glances, the website almost seems like satire. We couldnt tell if it was real, with descriptors like the mansplaining event of the century. But this is a bona fide anti-feminist organization charging $2,000 per ticket.

Its with some reluctance that were even responding to this mind-boggling and pathetic news. To these guys, any press is good press, and they revel in any backlash, threats or uproar created by their hyper-masculinity and incredibly toxic views on women. They are bullies, and we should just ignore them. But taking that high road has become more and more exhausting for women, as its stretching longer and higher. And were tired.

Were tired of men legislating, governing, raping, abusing, judging and body shaming us. Were tired of men telling us to smile. Were tired of men trying to upend our reproductive rights. Were tired of men telling us to sit down and be quiet. Were tired of men.

Not all men, of course. But the good guys rarely make headlines. And they definitely dont host viral conferences on how to make women great again. The good guys dont get enough credit for supporting us, respecting us and lifting us up. But, unfortunately, talking about the good guys isnt enough right now.

So that you get an idea of how awfully ludicrous this event is, know that one of its speakers is alt-right, proud white nationalist Stefan Molyneaux. Perhaps the most damaging part of this event isnt even the male hosts themselves, but the women who believe that their entire sense of self should be manufactured, manipulated or otherwise established by someone else.

This very first 22 Convention is actually a spinoff of the long-running 21 Convention, which is a celebratory event for men and fathers. That figures. We can list all the reasons why this incredibly detached-from-reality thought process is detrimental to the success, wellness and happiness of womankind, but wed like to think most people know what that list would look like. Instead, we broke down the three points these men think will make women great again.

Lets begin with what weve dubbed the great sexual objects part of the conference. One part of the 22 Convention goes like this, according to its website: Men admire healthy, fit women. They are after all sizing you up for reproduction, and your decisions will be passed on to your children through the choices you make via epigenetics. And the descriptions go on to bash the body positivity movement, and explain that overweight women are not beautiful, with one source linking to a Wikipedia page.

Deep breath in. OK.

Lets remind these men that a healthy lifestyle is not synonymous with any one body type or shapebecause were women and are used to defending and justifying our own bodies, sadly.

Weight-wise, a healthy adult woman because these men seem to thinkhealthy and fitare simply based off of weight will have a body mass index ranging from 18.5 to 24.9, according to the Mayo Clinic. This writer can tell you firsthand that her BMI is within this criteria, and she hasnt been comfortable in a bikini since her early 20s. After all, many of us have birthed children, wreaking havoc on our bodies, causing stretch marks, loose skin and less-than-perky breasts which, by the way, the 22 Convention men should be prepared for because they, according to their own website, want more women to be mothers. We cant wait until they announce the 23 Convention, tackling how to better the postpartum womans body, with special sessions on techniques to hide your stretch marks from your husbands so theyll still find your body desirable. But we digress.

Wed be remiss if we didnt mention that, according to the websites own source link, a Wikipedia page for Obesity in the United States, 19 million more men are overweight or obese than women. I guess these guys didnt see that part. Whats the old Bible verse? "Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? Even as an atheist, this writer can still appreciate the sentiment. Pay attention, 22 Convention bros. Better put in a few extra laps.

Now, lets address that epigenetics part. According to futuremedicine.com: It has been identified that several lifestyle factors such as diet, obesity, physical activity, tobacco smoking, alcohol consumption, environmental pollutants, psychological stress and working on night shifts might modify epigenetic patterns.

We thought wed break down some of those lifestyle factors by gender.

According to webmd.com, 15% more men are obese than women. According to drugabuse.com, 3.1% more men use tobacco than women. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, men are more likely than women to drink excessively. And, just a side note, according to the CDC, Excessive alcohol use can interfere with testicular function and male hormone production resulting in impotence [and] infertility. Tell us more about epigenetics, guys.

Moving on to the great wives portion of the conference. The 22 Conventions website says this: ...both positive masculinity and femininity have been under relentless attack for decades. Both have taken catastrophic social, cultural, personal, and philosophic damage for tens of millions of people. The result is a depolarized mess where men act like women, women act like men, everyones confused, and nothing 'works' anymore. There is no source linked for this tens of millions of people claim. The website continues with a promise to help women find awesome men, that women belong in the kitchen and the bedroom, becoming the ultimate wife material and the truth about submission and dominance.

OK. Another deep breath in.

According to Psychology Today, women initiate nearly 70% of all divorces. And, according to Business Insider: Compared to being single, marriage is a bum deal for many [women]. Accordingly, married women are less happy than single women and less happy than their husbands, they are less eager than men to marry, they're more likely to file for divorce and, when they do, they are happier as divorcees than they were when married (the opposite is true for men) and they are more likely than men to prefer never to remarry. The writer, who has a doctorate in sociology, refers to this as a "paradox of declining female happiness." If women are marrying these convention bros, its really no wonder were filing for divorce at such high rates.

And while we could unpack the entire depolarized mess where men act like women, women act like men part of the conventions description, well just say this: Psychology Todayalso reported results of women rating mens attractiveness on their masculinity. These results are interesting because they show that women are not performing a binary trade-off, preferring more macho men in one situation and less macho men in another. Instead, a womans personal circumstances affect her preferences to different degrees depending on the men she encounters. In other words, the macho man agenda these MWGA guys promote as what all women want is bullshit.

Onto the great mothers segment of this shit show. The conventions website says: For decades, feminism has derided women who want to prioritize motherhood and family. Shamed them, mocked them, ridiculed them as servants of some mysterious patriarchy boogeyman. These clever manipulations were designed to weed you out of the gene pool and forever prevent you from embracing the sacred responsibility, honor, and adventure of motherhood. Our speakers will teach you the skills to get wifed up, knocked up, and have as many babies as your heart desires with the time and fertility you have left, and how to bounce back to amazing health and wellness without extreme diets or stress. The clock is ticking and your babies are soon to be kicking!

Lets just pour ourselves a stiff drink at this point.

First, and again, there are no sources linked to these statements of women suffering ridicule for decades for not wanting kids. Its true that a lot of women do not want to have children, but that should play no part in a mans opinions on a woman, unless she is his partner and he wants kids. Its that simple. Also, these guys talk a lot about preserving the gene pool. Sounds familiar.

Regarding the idiotic idea that motherhood is a responsibility for women, let us remind men the gender that cannot become pregnant that not only do women not have to have children, not all women CAN have children. I guess theyll address that in Convention 24 where well all learn how wives can pretend to have children so their husbands will still love them.

As far as the ticking clock of our fertility, more women are having children in their 40s, according to The Atlantic: Birth rates also declined last year for women under 40 but rose for women older than 40. And, according to The New York Times, immediately after a husband and wifes first child, the pay gap between spouses doubles ... entirely driven by a drop in the mothers pay. So, convention bros, were going to need you to take over most, if not all, finances if were to have as many babies as [our] heart desires.

We can say this: Women who truly believe that they are inferior to men, that they dont take up as much space as men, that they want to live a life of obedience to men and have $2K to cough up to hear from men on how to be attractive and wanted by men, then go to this event. For anyone else who identifies as a woman, who understands their worth, enjoys all aspects of womanhood and likes men who can find a clitoris, lets just keep being great.

Diamond Rodrigue is layout editor and writes about music and culture for the Dallas Observer.

Read the original here:
Florida Men Who Have Never Touched a Woman Free of Charge Want to Make Women Great Again - Dallas Observer

CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Xeris Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: XERS), a specialty pharmaceutical company leveraging its novel technology platforms to develop and commercialize ready-to-use injectable and infusible drug formulations, today announced positive topline results from the in-clinic stage of a Phase 2 study of its developmental ready-to-use (RTU) glucagon for the prevention of hypoglycemia during and after moderate-to-high intensity aerobic exercise in adults with Type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1D).

Results from the in-clinic stage of the Phase 2 Exercise-Induced Hypoglycemia (EIH) study show that a mini dose of RTU glucagon was adequate to maintain normal blood glucose levels during prolonged, moderate-to-intense aerobic exercise. Episodes of hypoglycemia were observed both during and after the prescribed exercise session. Overall, there were more EIH episodes among subjects who received standard of care (placebo plus 50% insulin pump reduction) than subjects who received RTU glucagon plus 50% insulin pump reduction. The use of glucose tablets to treat hypoglycemia during and after exercise was less with RTU glucagon when compared to standard of care. Treatment-emergent adverse eventswith a mini dose of RTU glucagon were comparable to placebo, including negligible injection site reactions. In this phase of the study, mini doses of RTU glucagon were safe and well tolerated, and no serious adverse events occurred.

For people with Type 1 diabetes, prolonged and vigorous aerobic exercise can be dangerous if not planned out and executed carefully. The current standard of care includes multiple preparation steps, such as insulin pump reduction well before exercise, and eating high glucose foods before, during, and after the exercise session. These steps can be a barrier to exercise, and therefore, many people with diabetes do not achieve 2 hours of aerobic exercise per week as per ADA guidelines, said Paul R. Edick, Xeris Chairman and CEO. Our goal with this study is to show that a mini dose (150 g) of Xeris liquid stable glucagon, administered immediately prior to aggressive aerobic exercise, can alleviate this burden and prevent exercise-induced hypoglycemia. This data from the in-clinic portion of our ongoing Phase 2 study, we believe indicates that we can do just that. The second half of the study, where subjects will be exercising on their own at home, will inform us further as to the safety and effectiveness of using mini doses of glucagon to reduce the risk of experiencing hypoglycemia during exercise for this population.

This study is a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind, two-treatment, two-period, crossover comparison in a clinical research center setting, followed by a randomized, placebo-controlled, two-treatment double-blind with a parallel open label, 3-arm comparison in an outpatient setting to evaluate the preliminary efficacy and safety of RTU glucagon to prevent EIH in adults with T1D, who perform regular, moderate-to-high intensity aerobic exercise. The in-clinic stage is now unblinded and complete, while the blinded outpatient stage is currently ongoing. The results of the outpatient stage will be available in the first half of 2020. For more information, visit http://www.clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT03841526.

About Exercise-Induced Hypoglycemia (EIH)

For persons with diabetes, especially with T1D, the lack of pancreatic-cell function leads to the requirement for exogenous insulin (introduced into the body by injection or infusion). Circulating levels of insulin consequently cannot be regulated endogenously and depend on the quantity and timing of insulin taken by the individual before exercise. Thus, insulin levels are often higher than they would be in the absence of diabetes, which has the result of limiting glucose production by the liver while stimulating glucose uptake by muscle, adipose, and liver cells for storage. As a result, blood glucose levels often decrease dramatically during physical activity for individuals with T1D unless carbohydrates are consumed before, during, and after exercise. This condition of low blood glucose with physical activity is known as EIH.

About Glucagon

Glucagon is a metabolic hormone secreted by the pancreas that raises blood glucose levels by causing the liver to rapidly convert glycogen (the stored form of glucose) into glucose, which is then released into the bloodstream. Glucagon and insulin are two critical hormones in a glycemic control system that keep blood glucose at the right level in healthy individuals. In people with diabetes who are dependent on insulin, this control system is disrupted, and insulin must be injected to avoid high levels of blood glucose (hyperglycemia). The opposite effect, or low blood glucose (hypoglycemia), is also prevalent in this population due to dysregulated glucagon secretion. Severe hypoglycemia is a serious condition and can lead to seizures, coma, potential brain injury and, if untreated, death.

Glucagon is the standard of care for treating severe hypoglycemia. According to the American Diabetes Association, glucagon should be prescribed for all individuals at increased risk of clinically significant hypoglycemia, defined as blood glucose <54 mg/dL (3.0 mmol/L). Leveraging XeriSol, one of Xeris two proprietary formulation technology platforms, Xeris has the potential to provide the first ready-to-use, room-temperature stable liquid glucagon for use by people with diabetes and other conditions to prevent or manage various forms of hypoglycemia and improve glucose control.

AboutXeris Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Xeris (Nasdaq: XERS) is a specialty pharmaceutical company delivering innovative solutions to simplify the experience of administering important therapies that people rely on every day around the world. With a novel technology platform that enables ready-to-use, room-temperature stable formulations of injectable and infusible therapies, the company is advancing a portfolio of solutions in various therapeutic categories, including its first commercial product, Gvoke. Its proprietary XeriSol and XeriJect formulation technologies have the potential to offer distinct advantages over conventional product formulations, including eliminating the need for reconstitution, enabling long-term, room-temperature stability, significantly reducing injection volume, and eliminating the requirement for intravenous (IV) infusion. With Xeris technology, new product formulations are designed to be easier to use by patients, caregivers, and health practitioners and help reduce costs for payers and the healthcare system.

Xeris is headquartered inChicago, IL.For more information, visitwww.xerispharma.com, or follow us onTwitter,LinkedInorInstagram.

Forward-Looking Statements

Any statements in this press release about future expectations, plans and prospects for Xeris Pharmaceuticals, Inc., including statements regarding the acceptance of Gvoke in the marketplace, the market and therapeutic potential of its product candidates, expectations regarding clinical data, the timing or likelihood of regulatory approval and commercialization of its product candidates, the timing or likelihood of expansion into additional markets, expectations regarding the timing of the commercial launch of Gvoke HypoPen, the potential utility of its formulation platforms and other statements containing the words "will," "would," "continue," and similar expressions, constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements as a result of various important factors, including, without limitation, the regulatory approval of its product candidates, its ability to market and sell its products, if approved, its reliance on a single source supplier for Gvoke HypoPen and other factors discussed in the "Risk Factors" section of the most recently filed Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, as well as discussions of potential risks, uncertainties, and other important factors in Xeris subsequent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Any forward-looking statements contained in this press release speak only as of the date hereof, and Xeris expressly disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

The Company intends to use the investor relations portion of its website as a means of disclosing material non-public information and for complying with disclosure obligations under Regulation FD.

Read the original:
Xeris Pharmaceuticals Announces Positive Results from the In-Clinic Stage of a Phase 2 Study of Its Developmental Ready-To-Use (RTU) Glucagon in...

IN the perfect world, every time you get between the sheets will be a magical experience.

But in reality it doesn't always work that way.

1

Lots of people will go through various problems throughout their life when it comes to sex.

Now health subscription brand EveAdam has uncovered the 10 most common difficulties encountered in bedrooms in the UK and in the US.

Their study involved analysis of Reddit threads compared with Google search data.

The findings revealed that erectile dysfunction was the most searched term at 286,000 searches per month.

And Cardiff was the city googling the term the most.

Here are the top 10 most common sex issues... and how to combat them:

Erectile dysfunction (ED) is very common it affects about half of men aged between 40-70 year olds.

It can be a symptom of other medical conditions, such as diabetes or being at high risk of heart disease, so its important to talk to your doctor.

Dr Sarah Jarvis, GP and clinical lead at Patient.info, told The Sun Online: "Its also vital to remember that excess alcohol is an extremely common cause of ED.

"In recent years, several tablets have been developed to treat ED Viagra is perhaps the best known but there are several others, which work for different lengths of time.

"Theyre effective for about 4 in 5 men and are now available from many pharmacists, as well as on prescription.

"Its really important not to be tempted by cheap email offers of miracle cure tablets for ED theyre often counterfeit, which means they may not work and can even be dangerous."

Most women use contraception at some point.

There are dozens of different types, which may or may not include hormones.

Dr Jarvis said: "If your current contraception isnt suiting you, its important to speak to your GP or family planning clinic.

"For instance, if youre taking the contraceptive pill, it may be possible to change you to a different one which suits you better.

"Or you may prefer a long acting form of contraception such as the copper coil, a hormone-releasing coil or an implant, which you dont need to remember to take every day or use every time you have sex."

Vaginal dryness becomes much more common after the menopause, when levels of the female hormone oestrogen drop.

Dr Jarvis said: "If this is your main problem, a topical form of HRT, such as pessaries, gel or a vaginal ring, can often solve the problem.

"Several non-hormonal vaginal moisturisers are also available from the pharmacist.

"However, vaginal dryness can also arise because of lack of arousal or anxiety if you think this might be the case, speak to your GP."

Premature ejaculation is common and isnt due to a serious underlying medical condition.

Dr Jarvis said: "One of the most common causes is anxiety and its more common in younger men.

"Sometimes just relaxing and taking your time about sex is enough to solve the problem.

"Otherwise, there are creams and tablets available on prescription."

Lots of women worry about conceiving, but often there is no cause for concern.

Many couples take several months to conceive, but six in seven will conceive within a year of trying and more than nine in 10 conceive within two years.

Dr Jarvis said: "If you have been having regular sex for at least a year, you and your partner should visit your doctor together.

"Your GP can arrange some tests to see if early referral to a specialist clinic is needed.

"If these tests are normal, your doctor wont usually be able to refer you until you have been trying for at least two years.

"However, if youre not having periods or have very irregular periods, or if the woman in the couple is over 36, you may be referred sooner.

"There are a variety of treatments depending on whether a cause (such as low sperm count or blocked fallopian tubes) is found.

"Being overweight, drinking too much alcohol, being physically inactive and smoking can all reduce your risk of conceiving.

"Getting into good physical shape may increase your chances of getting pregnant, and can certainly help you to have a healthy pregnancy."

Getting pregnant is your decision ideally your decision as a couple.

Nobody else should have any say in when you start trying for a baby.

Dr Jarvis said: "If you feel friends or members of your family are trying to put pressure on you, speak to your partner and get their support for both of you to have a gentle chat with those people.

"If youre feeling the pressure yourself for instance if youre trying to get pregnant and its not happening the best thing you can do is remember that most people dont get pregnant straight away.

"Many couples take several months to get pregnant and women who get pregnant the first time they try are the exception.

"Take steps to get yourself in good physical shape stopping alcohol and smoking, exercising regularly, losing weight of youre overweight, taking a daily folic acid supplement. And then enjoy trying!"

Performance anxiety is really common its anxiety about performing a specific act or task, and one of the most common anxieties is in relation to sex.

It often leads to a vicious cycle... perhaps you had too much to drink on one occasion and couldnt perform in the bedroom.

This preys on your mind and next time youre planning to have sex, your anxiety level increases.

Anxiety makes it harder to get or keep an erection, so you cant perform next time and so on.

Dr Jarvis said: "The best way to reduce performance anxiety is to relax and take things slowly, although this can be easier said than done.

"You may think that alcohol will help loosen you up but actually, it can often have a negative impact on your ability to perform.

"If youre worried about performing with your partner, talk to her about it she may be really relieved, as she may believe you were avoiding sex because youd gone off her.

"Set the tone with a romantic date, away from distractions and stresses, and take things slowly.

"If this doesnt work, you may find it helpful to ban sex for a few weeks but still cuddle and be close this takes the pressure off the need to get an erection, which may mean youre more likely to achieve one.

"If its having a significant impact on your life, speak to your GP sometimes counselling can help."

There are lots of reasons for low libido in both men and women.

Sometimes theyre hormonal men may have low levels of testosterone, and low libido is common after the menopause in women.

"Relationship problems are a common cause you may not feel like sex with your partner but fancy other people." says Dr Jarvis.

"If youre a man, continuing to get early morning erections can be a sign that theres a psychological cause.

"Or it can be a symptom of depression.

"If its bothering you, speak to your GP the treatment will depend on the cause."

Body image issues have always been around but they have undoubtedly become more common with the rise in social media.

So many of us depend on likes for our self esteem, and forget that the images other people put out on social media are doctored to look more beautiful.

Dr Jarvis said: "Taking some time off social media is sometimes all that is needed.

"However, its important to remember that poor body image is closely linked to eating disorders, and to be aware of the warning symptoms.

"Poor body image is also closely linked to depression it can be a symptom or a cause of depression.

"If its affecting your life, speak to your GP counselling may help you to identify whats causing your body image issues and help you to become more realistic and realise youre beautiful just as you are."

Millions of women in the UK have weakness of their pelvic floor, which can lead to leaking urine when you cough, sneeze, laugh, run or jump.

Lots of factors including childbirth, menopause, constipation and being overweight can make it worse.

"For most women, regular pelvic floor exercises can make a major difference, and can sometimes solve the problem completely," says Dr Jarvis.

"Youll need to learn how to do them properly, and to do them regularly for several weeks before you notice a significant improvement."

More:
The 10 most common sex issues revealed and a doctors tips to combat them - The Sun

A new ruling from the B.C. Court of Appeal reaffirms a 15-year-old'sright to undergo hormone treatment to transition to male, despite his father's objections.

But the ruling also throws out part of a lower court order that said the father's misgendering of his son constituted "family violence"under the Family Law Act.

The teen, who was 14 when the conflict began, had decided to undergo medical treatment for gender dysphoria recommended by the Gender Clinic at B.C. Children's Hospital. The teen's mother approved of the treatment, but his father objected.

The teen, his father, mother, and the many health professionals named in the case cannot be identified, due to apublication ban.

The reasons for the appeal court's decision, which was written by two justices and concurred by the third, detail mixed outcomes for the teen and his father one of the lower court orders wasupheld, while some were dismissed in part.

The appeal judges found there was no reason to strike down the B.C. Supreme Court ruling that the teen's consent to undergo the hormone treatment was valid.

In their written reasons, the justices did slightly limit the order, saying the teen was exclusively entitled to consent to aspecifictreatment if it is one he understands, not treatment for gender dysphoria, generally.

The father won a partial victory in the case on Friday when the decision was handed down. A lower court order forbid him from attempting to convince his son to stop medical treatment, use female gender pronouns, usethe female name the teen was given at birth, or refer to him as a girl.

The father had given interviews and made public comments about his son referring to him as a girl.

A B.C. Supreme Court judge had ruled thatidentifying the teen as a girl would be considered family violence under the Family Law Act, given the harm it had caused him. That has been struck down by the new ruling.

In the decision, the judges write that misgenderingthe teen does not constitute a act of family violence, which was part of a protection order enforceable by police. Instead, the appeal court made what's called a conduct order that the father refer to his son as a boy, use male pronouns and his male name. A conduct order is not enforcable by police.

The appeal judges ruled that the father is entitled to his views and to communicate those views to his son, and that, though there was evidence the father's refusal to accept the teen's gender was clearly harmful, there was not sufficient evidence that the father intended to hurt his son.

In the justices' reasons, they call the father's conduct "seriously misguided." They urgethe father to engage with his son's medical team "in an effort to consider other points of view," and to "exercise restraint" with his son and listen to his point of view.

Under the appeal court decision, the father is allowed to express his opinion and share his son's private information in private communications with family, close friends andadvisors, but the appeal judges upheld the part of the B.C. Supreme Court order that he not express those opinions publicly.

Do you have more to add to this story? Email rafferty.baker@cbc.ca

Follow Rafferty Baker on Twitter: @raffertybaker

Continue reading here:
B.C. Court of Appeal decision a mixed outcome for trans teen and disapproving father - CBC.ca

NewsIf Ms Evans and Mrs A's case wins, a clinical decision to prescribe puberty blockers will soon become a legal one

Friday, 10th January 2020, 4:38 pm

Susan Evans, a former nurse who worked with transgender people, intends to file a legal case with 'Mrs A', the mother of a 15-year-old teenager with autism who wants to take puberty blockers. The duo want to establish a minimum of age of 18 for puberty-blocking treatment.

Ms Evans, a former healthcare worker who has now had her proposal supported by the likes of Transgender Trend, an organisation that sends out information packs to schools saying it's better if teachers don't affirm a child's gender identity, said the treatment should only be offered to those aged 18 and above.

But specialists have stated that raising the age of consent for gender diverse children would pose medical, ethical, and legal complications - some of which could be life-threatening for transgender people.

How do puberty blockers work?

The treatment, given through injection or implant, is given to children and young adults before the onset of puberty so they can consider whether they'd like to permanently transition through cross-sex hormones, before they develop adult characteristics that can only be altered through surgery.

"The puberty blockers put the pause button on puberty," Dr Caroline Salas-Humara, adolescent paediatrician at Hassenfeld Childrens Hospital at NYU Langone, told i.

"The treatment pauses irreversible changes in their body, such as breast growth, voice deepening, body hair, or an Adam's apple developing, which a young person would need surgery later to change if they transitioned. This way, the blockers can stop irreversible changes while being a fully reversible intervention, and it helps the young person feel like theyre not experiencing the wrong puberty.

"If they started and stopped the treatment, whether they've realised they don't want to transition or they decide they want to take cross-sex hormones, puberty would recommence."

How are puberty blockers prescribed?

A GP will refer a person suffering from gender dysphoria to a gender identity clinic, with seven specialist practices operating in the UK.

But for children under 18, there is just one funded clinic in England and Wales, the Gender Identity Development Service, known as GIDS.

At the clinic, specialists will decide whether puberty blockers are right for their patient. But Ms Evans believes that the treatment is offered with little clinical guidance.

The nurse, who left her job at gender identity clinic The Tavistock Centre in 2004, said: "The alarm bells began ringing for me when a colleague at the weekly team clinical meeting said that they had seen a young person four times and they were now recommending them for a referral to the endocrinology department to commence hormone therapy."

While her words triggered an internal enquiry, Dr Peter Dunne of University of Bristol Law School, an expert on the law surrounding gender identity and sexual orientation,said that the UK generally has a "conservative approach" to puberty blockers.

"In the UK, it's more common for patients to access puberty blockers once their puberty has already started," he told i.

"If you look globally, transgender and gender diverse people who want to change their gender are offered puberty blockers at the very onset of gender dysphoria. When you administer the treatment early, it saves a child going through a process that can be quite harmful," he explains.

The teenager, who was fourteen at the time, says the delay had more of an impact on his mental health than the medication itself.

"I was thankful, because the process was starting, but I was frustrated at times," he said.

"And it's not an easy ride, because you're assessed by the clinic, and challenged on your ideas of who you are. But I know those waiting times are important, and I know blockers can be great for the people who dont know what they want."

Age of consent for blockers?

According to the argument put forward by Ms Evans and Mrs A's lawyer, the concern doesn't regard the grievances she brought forward in 2004, but the age in which children can take the blockers.

We are essentially seeking to say that the provision at the Tavistock for young people up to the age of 18 is illegal because there isnt valid consent, said Paul Conrathe, a solicitor with Sinclairslaw, which is representing Evans and the mother.

The allegation is in dispute of a landmark legal case over the age of informed consent for children receiving medical treatment without the permission or knowledge of their parents, known as the Gillick competency test.

The test is based on the case of Roman Catholic mother Victoria Gillick, who challenged the right for children and teenagers under the of 16 to be offered the contraceptive pill in 1984.

She was unsuccessful, with the House of Lords ruling that the medication could be offered to under 16s if the child achieves sufficient understanding and intelligence to fully understand what is proposed."

But Mrs A believes that her teenager, who is 15 and autistic, might not understand the decision, writing on a Crowdfunder page for the legal case that she worried that no one (let alone my daughter) understands the risks and therefore cannot ensure informed consent is obtained".

Dominic Wilson, consultant neonatologist and professor of ethics, at the University of Oxford, told i the decision to supply blockers is all down to a patient's understanding.

"The key ethical principle for decisions about medical treatment for a child or young person who cannot consent is whether the treatment is in their best interests, do the benefits outweigh the risks? It is important for the young person (if they are able) to be involved in the decision, but their consent is not crucial. The consent of the child's parents is important.

"If a young person is mature enough to be able to make a decision by themselves, the ethical question is slightly different. Then the focus is on whether the young person understands the risks and benefits of the treatment, and believes that overall it would be best to proceed. They may receive the treatment if they consent to it, even if their parents do not support the treatment."

It is that competency test that clinicians like Dr Salas-Humara use to determine whether their patients are viable and ready for the treatment.

"There is an evaluation process, its based on maturity, and the capacity to send for these hormones," said the specialist.

But the medical professional recognises that patients over the age of 18 would tend to be offered cross-sex hormones rather than the blockers, as puberty is very likely to have already taken place.

"In my own clinical experience, oftentimes, I see smart people who are 9, 10, 11 who understand the risks and benefits. Puberty starts earlier than 18," she added.

What are the pitfalls?

Because of these effects, anti-trans campaigners and beyond have referred to puberty blockers as "experimental treatment," with the treatment in need of further study.

While experts are in agreement that treatments for trans people require significantly more research, Dr Salas-Humara has said the treatment has been successfully used on children who haven't experienced any dysphoria symptoms.

"First of all, it's important to know that medical bodies across the world follow specific guidelines on administering treatment such as puberty blockers. What people don't necessarily realise is that this treatment has been safely used on patients for more than 30 years," said Dr Salas-Humara.

"The treatment was first used to treat people with central precocious puberty, to stop children experiencing hormonal changes who had started puberty too early. Because of this, we have been aware of the safety and efficacy of the treatment for children and young adults for a lot longer than people realise."

Trans children 'falling by the wayside'

If Ms Evans and Mrs A's case wins, a clinical decision to prescribe puberty blockers will soon become a legal one - one Dr Dunne believes will result in treatment for transgender children "falling by the wayside."

"In England were married to the welfare of the child through the Children Act. All childrens law is about doing whats best for the welfare for the child. If you have a young person with a clinical determination, that this is a young person who would benefit, then putting in place for obstacles for that child accessing those seems in contradiction with that ruling," said the Law lecturer.

"Prohibiting access to puberty blockers would not be in the best interest of the child, and if an age cap was put on the treatment, it would be"a blanket ban that doesn't take into account these individual considerations. If this became a judicial process, the real fear would be those that can afford it go to court, with other cases falling by the wayside."

But for trans kids that are currently struggling with gender dysphoria, Dr Salas-Humara insists it is crucial that their concerns are taken seriously.

"Theres data to suggest that those 62 per cent of transgender people have experienced mental health problems when they were refused gender affirming care, and 44.8 per cent have attempted suicide. If a young person comes to me, and they are who they are, and theyre suffering with mental health issues, because of societal implications, it would feel wrong to not use our medicine to help them," the paediatrician said.

See the article here:
The medical, ethical, and legal complications surrounding the puberty blockers case - inews

The Muse S biofeedback and score-keeping rankles traditional mindfulness teachers, but its data-driven approach could be a game changer for high-level entrepreneurs and executives.

Heres an inspiring story for the first week of the new year, when even the steeliest of resolutions confront the nagging drag of entrenched habits: The most sophisticated new device to promote mindfulness comes from the restless mind of a once-failed meditator.

I was a psychotherapist and would teach my patients to meditate, but I, myself, was never able to crack the code. I always had a million ideas, had an entrepreneurial mind, and the thought of silencing it was quite uncomfortable to me, says Ariel Garten, cofounder of Muse, the app-based device used by more than 100,000 people since its debut in 2014. I was just never able to stick with it.

Ariel Garten. Photo courtesy of Muse

This week, Gartens company launched its most advanced version: the Muse S, which has a soft headband embedded with sophisticated electroencephalogram (EEG) and photoplethysmogram (PPG) sensors to monitor brain activity, heart rate and breathing. Users get real time feedback, in the form of nature sounds like falling rain, that prompt them when they become distracted. The app documents brain and heart rate, keeping a log that users can review after each session. (The device retails for $350; an additional $95 buys a yearly subscription to more than 300 guided meditations.)

For many meditators, particularly for those new to the practice, the biofeedback and the accompanying documentation provide reassurance, Garten says.

Most people have a misconception that your mind is supposed to go blank, but if you try to meditate with that belief, youre setting yourself up for failure. Your mind never goes blank, she says. Muse shows you what youre supposed to be doing: Youre putting your attention on your breath, youre notified when your mind wanders, you return to your breath. Just knowing what the process is, is tremendous for people.

The company has a lofty pedigree: Garten studied neuroscience at the University of Toronto, researched Parkinsons disease and hippocampal neurogenesis in labs at the Krembil Neuroscience Centre, has guest lectured at MITs Neurotechnology program and worked in the Mann Lab, a pioneer in wearable technology, with Muses cofounder Chris Aimone.

In the early 2000s, Garten and Aimone were working with brain-computer interface technology, creating experimental concerts during which the audience controlled music with their minds. Participantsslipped an EEG on the back of their head, and as they relaxed, the change in brainwave activity altered the quality and volume of the rooms audio output.

We spent a long time thinking that our work was going to be about controlling technology with your mind and later realized that the most powerful part of this was showing what was going on in your own mind, Garten says. We were giving you insights and feedback on your own mental activity. The best way to apply this was to help more people meditate.

Since its launch, Muse has been used for breast cancer patients at the Mayo Clinic, as well as at other prestigious institutions like Harvard and NASA. A 2018 paper on a four-week study at the Catholic University of Milan documented neuroplastic changes to Muse users brains and reduction of their stress levels.

Garten cites studies by Harvard professor Sara Lazar that demonstrate long-term meditators have improved thickness in their prefrontal cortex, the part of the brain responsible for higher order processing, cognition and metacognition, as well as more connections between the left and right sections of the brain. Aging, too, is helped by regular meditation, which decreases the presence of cortisol, a stress hormone that can shrink the hippocampus.

Successful meditation, Garten says, promotes higher functioning by helping regulate the competing messages in our brain.

Our amygdala, the part of our brain responsible for our fight or flight response, gets freaked out at all sorts of things that may or may not be relevant. Theres this dance between the amygdala, which is the child, and the prefrontal cortex, which is the parent, she explains. Through meditation process, youre strengthening your prefrontal cortexs ability to actually rise above, see whats going on in the situation, and then make a better choice about it.

That ability, and the promotion of emotional intelligence, is resonating with corporations like Shopify, as well as major media and banking companies that have also enlisted Muse for workshops and meditation challenges.

Garten says her corporate clients gain increased productivity, focus, job satisfaction and decreased stress levels and employee conflict. In the workplace context, metacognition is key, she says. Its the difference between being driven by habits and frustration, and being a more disciplined, wiser individual.

Among Muses fans: executive coach Alex Charfen and Trend Micro president Wael Mohammed, a Muse user who became an investor.

Its a tool that high value performers use across the board. Youre a high-level entrepreneur because you like data, feedback and the ability to make good decisions. This charts your progress and makes it actionable, which is very appealing, Garten says.

Muses success reflects a broader, and recent, cultural shift: Garten, Aimone and their third cofounder, Trevor Coleman, initially marketed the technology in Muse as a cognitive trainer, decorated with logos of brains with muscles, Garten recalls. In 2012, when the trio tried to get funding, investors balked.

Muse S. Photo courtesy of Muse

Theyd say: You have this incredible technology that can read brains. Whats your killer app? Wed say, Meditation, and theyd look at us like, Are you guys kidding? Garten recalls. Today, most educated people understand that you need to eat well, exercise and relieve stress through meditation. Its part of the canon of things that we do, but thats an incredibly recent market trend.

Still, for some meditation teachers, an app based on rewards and control undermines the central premise of mindfulness.

Theres a lot of gaming involved and its very Western, external and goal-oriented. We are so addicted to and dependent on devices that, for me, its almost ironic to use a device on our heads to get out of our heads, says Cathy Trentalancia, founder of MindScience and a meditation teacher who works with companies like American Express, Sony, Moinian, Simpson Thatcher, Shiseido, Carnegie Hall, and at MNDFL studios in New York.

Muse definitely seems fun, but meditation isnt necessarily about having fun. Its about learning to create space and learning how to be comfortable with whatever is there. When you yourself notice your mind is wandering, thats mindfulness. An external entity shouldnt do that for you, she says.

While Trentalancia is skeptical about Muses device, she does recommend guided meditation apps like Dan Harris Ten Percent Happier; Insight Timer and Journey LIVE. I think Muse can offer something very interesting in the EEG experience. Its fascinating, but its not the same journey, she says.

Garten agrees that experienced meditators may ultimately eschew Muse and says that while she still uses Muse as a base tool, she has expanded her practice to multiple other forms of meditation. Still, for beginners, and for those wanting to honor New Years resolutions to pursue a more mindful life, Muses empirical, data-driven approach may create useful habits.

Muse was the thing that really taught me to meditate, it was the thing that finally gave me that aha moment of, Oh, this is what meditation is, she says. It taught me the discipline of coming back to my breath, and the comfort of being able to let go of stray thoughts.

An indispensable guide to finance, investing and entrepreneurship.

Read this article:
The New Device Promising to Help YouFinallyMeditate - Worth