No Plunger? No Problem. Secret To Unplugging Your Toilet
“My toilet was stopped up. My guests were on their way. And I couldn’t find a plunger!”
Lucky for me, I’d learned the secret: Just squirt some liquid dish detergent, wait 15 minutes, and my home and guests were good to go.
How often have you been caught in a situation like this — or any of thousands of other household mishaps? Spills, breaks, lost items — family heirlooms nearly ruined. Too often, right?
Joan and Lydia Wilen, better known to TV viewers as “The Wilen Sisters,” have the secret to saving the day on these and thousands of other potentially disasterous mishaps.
Learn more…
The Mysterious Appearing-Disappearing “Tumor”
Imagine one day you look in the mirror and you notice a small bulge in your abdomen, like a cotton ball or acorn was planted under the skin. You worry about it for a while and then forget about it and later realize the bulge has vanished. Phew — it’s gone. But then, it comes back again later that day or the next and continues coming and going. It’s not your imagination… it’s the classic description of a type of abdominal hernia. These hernias develop when a weak spot occurs in the abdominal wall that allows its inner lining to protrude. By far the best known and most frequent type of hernia appears in the groin area and is called a direct or indirect inguinal hernia, accounting for 80% of all the abdominal hernias and affecting both adults and infants. But there is another kind you don’t hear much about even though 1% to 5% of the population develops one — this is the epigastric hernia, and although rare in children, it can and does show up in both men and women, especially women who have undergone natural childbirth and those men and women who spend time at the gym working on six-pack abs.
In most hernias, the abdominal bulge is a sac filled with a part of the intestine, but in epigastric hernias, the contents are usually fat. Epigastric hernias are also not located in the lower abdomen but somewhere between the navel and the breast bone. Some people poke the bulge back into the abdominal wall and go about their business.
I wanted to know more about these peculiar hernias, including who is most apt to get one and at what point people should consider medical care to repair it. To find out I called William N. Bothwell, MD, a hernia surgeon at the North Penn Hernia Institute, in Lansdale, Pennsylvania.
WHERE THEY COME FROM
Dr. Bothwell says there are two schools of thought about why people develop an epigastric hernia. One is that some people simply are born with a weakness in the abdominal wall that makes them vulnerable. The other is that someone does some sort of straining or heavy lifting that stresses the lining so much it causes it to split, much as fabric tears. Most likely, though, is that these two factors combine in certain people causing them, under the right circumstances, to develop an epigastric hernia. Men are three times more likely to develop one, says Dr. Bothwell and exercisers, whether male or female, can get one when workouts overstress the abdominal wall. Epigastric hernias are most likely to show up, though, in people who are overweight for several reasons. First, excess weight stretches the abdominal lining, thereby making it thinner and weaker. Second, there is a more ample store of fat behind the lining and so it is more likely to protrude.
ONCE YOU HAVE ONE
Once an epigastric hernia shows up, it does not go away on its own. In many cases, that doesn’t really matter, says Dr. Bothwell, because the person can continue to push it back in. Dr. Bothwell advises his patients with small, asymptomatic epigastric hernias to avoid abdominal muscle strengthening exercises such as sit-ups, crunches or leg presses since these exercises significantly increase intra-abdominal pressure and can make their hernias larger or symptomatic. But eventually — or suddenly — surgery may become necessary. Emergency surgery is called for if the hernia becomes incarcerated — that is, a piece of fat tissue, the intestine or the stomach becomes caught and could eventually be strangulated by the hernia. Symptoms of this are intense and dramatic — there is excruciating pain… the hernia becomes rock hard and painful to the touch… the area becomes red, purple or discolored… and the patient may throw up or become constipated. Do not ever try to second guess these symptoms. Go immediately to the ER, he warns, even if it is the middle of the night. Have someone else drive you or take an ambulance.
However, more typically, surgery is not an emergency and the situation isn’t urgent. Anyone with an epigastric hernia should have their doctor keep an eye on it, watch to see if it becomes larger — say from an acorn size (or smaller) to a golf ball size — or if it starts to cause pain and become more difficult to push back in. These are all signals that discomfort has set in and a repair is in order. Conventionally, surgeons sutured the abdominal lining together, but today most doctors use mesh to strengthen and seal off the area instead. Mesh allows for outpatient surgery with local anesthesia and the success rate is substantially better than suturing alone. These hernias can be detected sometimes with a CT scan or ultrasound, but are usually diagnosed with a physical exam. A common problem with sutures is that, although the stitches pull the lining together, the holes they create ultimately make the lining vulnerable to a recurrence. The recurrence rate with mesh is about 1% of patients, says Dr. Bothwell.
REPEAT OFFENDER
Once having had an epigastric hernia, though, you are more apt to develop another one. Dr. Bothwell explains that this is often because there are actually multiple defects in the lining along the middle of the abdominal wall — some too small to have been detected originally. About 20% of patients have such multiple hernias. To help avoid lack of detection, surgeons run their finger from the breast bone to the belly button during the surgery and use mesh to repair any defect they find. However, new hernias can also form over time and do so in nearly 10% of patients, especially patients who put on weight post surgery, thereby stretching the lining again.
Although abdominal pressure can trigger an epigastric hernia, Dr. Bothwell says there is no reason to forego doing sit-ups and the like, if you don’t already have one. If you develop a hernia, he advises gently pushing the hernia back in at the end of your workout, but he cautions that it may grow bigger over time and at some point require surgery. Always check any abdominal lump with your doctor who will then help you monitor the situation.
Forever Young
Getting old can be awful. Aches… pains… illnesses… constant bouncing from doctor to doctor. We all dread it.
You can’t stop the clock, but you can banish the miseries that sometimes come with it.
- Bulging belly
- Cholesterol-choked arteries
- Brain failure and fatigue
- Weakness and impotence
- Frozen joints or back pain
- Spotted, decrepit skin
- Tumors taking over your body
- Parkinson’s tremors
- Menopausal miseries
- Fading, cloudy vision
- And all other indignities of aging!
Read on…
Finding the Hidden Salt in Your Diet
Last year, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) made it mandatory to include information about trans fat on food labels, and now experts are taking aim at another dietary ingredient. In June 2006, the American Medical Association (AMA) called for new labeling about the salt content in foods. However, while there’s nothing good to say about trans fat, sodium is essential to our health. It’s just not healthy in the high quantities in which it appears in processed foods ranging from bread and cereal to canned soup, frozen snacks and prepared meals, and macaroni and cheese.
To look further into this matter, I consulted Suzanne Havala Hobbs, DrPH, MS, RD, the author of Get the Trans Fat Out (Three Rivers). Dr. Havala Hobbs is a doctor of public health, and clinical assistant professor at the School of Public Health at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She told me that it’s high time that we work on federal food policies that will support each American’s efforts to cut down on sodium intake.
HIDDEN SODIUM IN PROCESSED FOODS
Reading labels is a good idea, especially for people who are salt-sensitive (individuals with high blood pressure that elevates or decreases with sodium intake or reduction) and must closely monitor their intake. Some people are more greatly affected by higher sodium intakes than others, but none of us need the extreme levels found in most processed foods, observes Dr. Havala Hobbs. However, reading all the labels in the world cannot protect your health if you continue to eat a diet high in processed foods and low in whole foods like fresh fruits and vegetables.
A BEHIND THE SCENES LOOK AT SALT REGULATION
Dr. Havala Hobbs shared some “behind the scenes” information about how salt is regulated. While the US government’s 2005 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee discussed the Institute of Medicine’s national sodium recommendation of 1,500 milligrams per day, they recommended a daily sodium level of less than 2,300 milligrams. Some experts speculate that it is because the food industry lobbied heavily against the lower level, arguing that salt is such an integral part of the food production system, used as a flavor enhancer, for texture, and as a preservative. The food industry also called the lower sodium level unrealistic to meet and suggested that the government not base its sodium recommendations on the 25% of population that is salt sensitive.
The governent seemed to adopt the industry’s position. In the end, then, the new salt guideline doesn’t tell you what’s really best for your health, says Dr. Havala Hobbs. It tells you what the government thinks is doable, she added. Many people would likely benefit from reducing sodium intake considerably, and the sodium that naturally occurs in whole, unprocessed foods provides all the sodium we need, says Dr. Havala Hobbs.
GETTING THE SALT OUT
When it comes to sodium intake, the danger lies not so much in the salt shaker as in the hidden quantities of salt in processed foods. As a result, your best bet is to limit processed foods to the absolute minimum. In my cupboard, for instance, you might find canned beans (no salt additives, please) and some high-quality low-sodium canned soup for emergencies — but you won’t come across microwaveable bean burritos and other pre-made processed foods. Sodium in canned beans, added as a preservative, can be easily rinsed away by placing beans in a colander and rinsing in running water, adds Dr. Havala Hobbs. Unfortunately, there’s often no practical way to remove excess sodium cooked into most processed food.
The take-home message is to spend the majority of your time in the outer aisles of supermarkets — home of whole foods, from fresh produce to meats and fish. The best recipe: Prepare more meals at home, using as many fresh ingredients as possible, and make foods in their natural state as large a part of your diet as you can, recommends Dr. Havala Hobbs. That is advice that’s consistent with all other health messages, and it’s within everyone’s means to control. The greater the degree of processing and convenience of the prepared food, the lower the nutrient value and the greater the potential the food is a health risk.
Be well,
Carole Jackson
Bottom Line’s Daily Health News
America’s Most Beloved Health Researchers Cured a 2-Day Migraine in Minutes
While the Wilen Sisters were appearing on a TV program, the show host told them he’d been suffering from a huge headache for two entire days.
Right on the air, he implored them to help him out. Well, he asked for it! They rubbed some lemon rind on his temples, then tied a cloth on his head, just like they tell readers in Bottom Line’s HEALING REMEDIES. He did look a little unusual! But, at the end of the interview, he turned to the camera and said to everyone watching,
“I swear to you, I have no headache now!”
Read on…
Sources:
The Mysterious Appearing-Disappearing “Tumor”
- William N. Bothwell, MD, hernia surgeon, North Penn Hernia Institute, Landsdale, Pennsylvania.
Finding the Hidden Salt in Your Diet
- Suzanne Havala Hobbs, DrPH, MS, RD, author of Get the Trans Fat Out (Three Rivers), clinical assistant professor, director, Doctoral Program in Health Leadership, Department of Health Policy and Administration, School of Public Health, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
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