When the normally clear lens of the eye have a painless clouding, it is called cataract. If you do not treat it in time, it causes blindness. Surgical treatment can however, cure it in time. Most of the people over 60 do suffer from some clouding of the lens. But you can prevent them or treat them by following the simple home remedies below. If you have cataracts or want to prevent them, do the following simple home remedies to take care of the situation: • Drink orange juice: Increasing your intake of Vitamin C will reduce the risk of developing cataracts. It is recommended that you take two times the recommended dietary allowance of Vitamin C to protect against the occurrence of cataract. That means you should include 11/2 cup of strawberries, 1 cup of orange juice or 2 oranges. • Take beta-carotene and Vitamin E: Research has shown that increasing the beta-carotene and Vitamin E intake offer some protection against cataract. Have more of orange and yellow vegetables like carrots, squash and sweet potatoes for beta-carotene and almonds, fortified cereals, peanut butter and sun flower seeds for Vitamin E. • Use sunglasses or hat: Covering your eyes by sunglasses or hats while out in the sun has shown to reduce the incidences of cataracts. Choose sunglasses that have UV protection. There is no need to spend a lot of money on designer glasses. You can purchase sunglasses from the local shops too. • Look away from harmful radiation: Whenever you are near a microwave, oven or x-ray, always look away. Though many manufacturers claim that their microwaves are safe, it is always better to avoid looking at them in order to protect the eyes. The same holds true for x-rays. • Control your drinking habits: Having occasional drinks will not harm your eyes. But prolonged drinking will certainly harm your eyes. This is because alcohol interferes with the nutritional supplies to the lenses and thus leads to cataract formation. Even the alcoholics having good diets can have cataracts due to the interference of the alcohol with the nutrient supply to the eye. • Stop smoking: Research has shown that smokers are more likely to develop cataract than non-smokers. Toxic substances from the smoke of a cigarette damage the lens nucleus and thus cause cataract. When you quit smoking, you have the risk of developing cataracts. • Take pain relievers: People who take pain relievers like aspirin, ibuprofen and acetaminophen have a reduced risk of developing cataracts. This is due to the fact that these drugs, the rate at which your body uses glucose and lesser the blood sugar, lower is your risk of developing cataract. This is also one of the reasons why diabetics are more prone to cataracts.

Heavy metals and aluminum are in every part of our environment and food. These elements are deadly and you will benefit if you are aware of what they do where they come from. Brain tissue has an attraction for heavy metals such as lead, mercury, cadmium, and others. When heavy metals appear in the brain they can interfere with your natural brain chemistry. This interference, overtime, can accelerate the onset of dementia or Alzheimer’s. Aluminum is an element that has been associated with Alzheimer’s. Aluminum has been found in high levels in people’s brain that have died of Alzheimer’s. The evidence points to aluminum been involved with Alzheimer’s. There is a lot of controversy about whether aluminum can bring on Alzheimer’s. But because the Aluminum Industry is so powerful, it has blocked and campaigned against any reports that point to aluminum’s involvement in dementia or Alzheimer’s. Here is a list of products that contain aluminum: Antacids, aluminum wrap, pans, pot, rice cookers, small oven trays, soft drink cans, various food cans, toothpaste tubes, water, roll on deodorants, Here is what heavy metals do: Lead – makes you aggressive and hyperactive Cadmium – makes you confused and aggressive Mercury – gives you headaches, causes memory loss Aluminum – is associated with dementia and Alzheirmer’s Heavy metals come from air pollution, smoking, pestricides, fillings,. Be aware of how heavy metals and aluminum get into your body, since they will end up in your brain and accumulate along your artery walls with cholesterol. Having loss of memory and other mental abilities is not result of aging. It is a result of poor diet and excess consumption of pollution and toxins. Here is how to minimize heavy metal damage. Take a good electrolytic mineral supplement or eat a lot of fruits and vegetables since they contain a lot of minerals. The good minerals compete to get absorb in your intestines with the heavy metals. Good minerals will get absorbed leaving behind the heavy metals. These heavy metals will then be excreted out of your body. Also drinking a lemon and chlorophyll drink is helpful. Chlorophyll attaches to heavy metals and help to remove them from your body. Drink this every morning. Here’s how to make this drink. Combine juice of one lemon, 8 oz of distilled water, and 1-2 oz of chlorophyll.

Central to the problem of dealing with bird flu is diagnosis. A number of upper respiratory infections have similar symptoms—at least at the onset of the illness, including the common cold, seasonal influenza, and bird flu. Seasonal flu and bird flu have almost identical symptoms—including fever, cough, malaise (feeling unwell), nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. This is, needless to say, a gigantic problem in accurately diagnosing bird flu—which is critical to beginning appropriate treatment as well as initiating infection control procedures and public health measures. Currently, accurate testing for bird flu and other vial infections that can cause similar symptoms is difficult and requires specialized testing. This testing is time consuming and only available in specialized reference laboratories, which are few and far between. Fortunately, this may change in the near future. According to Richard Janeczko, Ph.D., executive vice-president and chief scientific officer, Tm Bioscience, located In Toronto, Canada, is feverishly working to complete the final stage of development of an amazing test—not only for bird flu, but for more than 15 other viral infections (including severe acute respiratory syndrome or SARS), many of which can mimic the symptoms of bird flu (personal communication). (Tm Bioscience is a DNA-based diagnostics company developing a suite of genetic tests. Tm Bioscience’s product pipeline includes tests for genetic disorders, drug metabolism, and infectious diseases. Additional information about Tm Bioscience can be found at http://www.tmbioscience.com.) The test, called the Multiplexed Respiratory Test, discriminates influenza A from influenza B and identifies the H5-subtype of influenza A (bird flu is “H5N1”) from all other H subtypes. In addition, it can identify almost all the other common—and some uncommon—viruses that cause influenza-like illnesses. This is extremely important in managing patients, communities and economic issues. Other tests have lower clinical sensitivities and specificities which can lead to both false positives and false negatives. By incorrectly identifying an outbreak as due to H5N1, patients could be treated with anti-virals unnecessarily (thus raising the chances of selecting for drug-resistant strains), unneeded vaccination programs in asymptomatic individuals could be initiated, and damage to local and national economies—through such measures as culling of commercial poultry operations—could occur. Conversely a false-negative test result could lead to catastrophic outcomes, including a pandemic. The assay utilizes swab specimens taken from the nose and takes less than 5 hours to perform. It was developed for use as a diagnostic tool and for infection control in hospitals. The assay has been slated for expedited review by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and TM Bioscience is hoping to have an FDA-cleared test available by the end of January 2006. If this assay delivers what it claims, it will have huge applicability on a global basis and save many lives. Bradford Frank, M.D., M.P.H., M.B.A. The Frank Group P.O. Box 138 Lakewood, NY 14750 http://www.AvoidBirdFlu.com

Pediculosis, is the technical term for infestation of lice. Lice are parasitic insects that live on the bodies of humans. Often times this condition is known by its more common street names: Head/Pubic/Body lice. Some quick information:

1. Children aged 3-10 and their families get Head lice more often

2. Females are more likely to get head lice than males

3. In the United States African-Americans have head lice less often

4. Human lice do not occur on pets or other animals

5. Lice do not have wings and cannot jump.

6. Lice cannot burrow into the skin.

A lice are spread by direct contact with a person who is infested. Body lice are spread through first person contact with the body, clothing or any other items of a person that are already infested with lice.Pubic Liceare most often spread by intimate contact with an infested person. Head lice take place on the head hair of a person, body lice on the clothing, and pubic lice mainly on the hair in the groinal region of a person. Each lice egg may hatch one nymph that will grow and develop to the adult size live. Lice when fully grown are about the size of an average sesame seed. Lice will feed on blood off their carrier once or more a day by piercing the skin where they are located with their tiny sharp mouth parts. Most commonly symptoms of lice infestation include itching. If excessive this itching or scratching of the infested areas can cause sores. These sore area’s can become infected. Lice that exist on the body and hair can and are usually treated with medicated shampoos or cream rinses. Special combs, Nit Combs, can be used to remove lice and nits from the hair. Washing clothes in a high heat environment can eliminate body lice quite quickly. When trying to eliminate lice, efforts should be focused on the source, hair/body/clothes, and not the surrounding environment.