Oral Hygiene

June 11th, 2007 by Sherri Granato
Dental Health
Do you have dinosaur breath? It is a common misconception that bad breath comes from not brushing your teeth. While this does contribute to a person having bad breath, there are many other reasons for chronic halitosis (bad breath). Not brushing and flossing, tooth decay, severe dry mouth, Illness,gum disease and smoking, just to name a few. Hormonal changes have even been implicated with bad breath. During menstruation, estrogen causes sloughing of body lining tissue including that of the mouth. This gives additional nutrition for anaerobic bacteria. Dairy foods such as milk, cheese, yogurt, and ice cream also cause bad...

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Gene Therapy

June 7th, 2007 by Bill Tuscan
General Health
Gene therapy has the aim of inserting a normal gene in place of a defective one. The next bold step would be to insert an "improved" gene in place of a normal one. This technology is in its infancy. Theoretically, there are two types of cells that gene therapy could effect. Somatic cells are most of the cells of the body. Then there are germline cells such as stem cells, sperm and eggs. The focus of all gene therapy at this time is with the cells of the body which are the somatic cells. The highly controversial prospect of engineering germline...

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Asthma

June 1st, 2007 by Della Davis
Diseases
Asthma can be a frightening and life-threatening disease. Statistics show that it is on the rise among children who live in polluted areas. One of the first lines of defense against repeated asthma attacks is clearing the home of indoor allergens. Experts advise to get rid of any insects, especially cockroaches in the home, and reduce the dust mites in the bedding. Dust mites are microscopic insects that live in warm, moist environments. They thrive in beds, bedding and carpets. It is best to remove carpets from bedrooms and replace them with hardwood floors or tile. Beds need to be...

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