Alcohol-related Neurologic Disease

In the Encyclopedia of Medicine there is an article on "Alcohol-related neurologic disease". Alcohol has a direct toxic affect on nerve and muscle cells; it also damages the brain, peripheral nerves, and muscles. Alcohol can lead to memory loss, seizures, weakness, and incoordination. There are many different alcohol-related neurologic diseases which include: Wernicke-Korsakeoff disease, alcoholic cebellar degeneration, and alcoholic myopathy. These all have the same causes, which is drinking a fatal dose of alcohol. Symptoms include: insomnia, fever, respiratory failure, seizures, vomiting,double vision, and these all lead to death or chronic longterm irreversible damage to any level of the nervous system. The best prevention requires abstinence from alcohol, but persons who consume small or moderate amounts of alcohol decrease risks for neurologic complications of alcohol use. People find it hard to quit drinking, because it's very addictive. The definition of addiction by the article is "a dependence, on a behavior or substance, that a person is powerless to stop." (40). People who are addicted need to find help by talking to a family member, friend, or a doctor.

I chose this topic to research because all of the other sources talk about how awful alcohol is for your body when abused. I decided to learn more, and look in the Encyclopedia of Medicine. I learned a lot about how the long term effects of alcohol eventually lead to disease. I also agree about how abstinence and moderation are the best way to handle alcohol. This was a great article that I enjoyed reading.

Olendorf, Donna. The Gale Encyclopedia of Medine. "Alcohol-related Neurologic Disease." 6 vols. Famington Hills: Gale Research, 1999.

Sleep and Rest

In The Seven Pillars of Health, by Don Colbert, an arrangement of topics that lead to better health is listed. Among the list I read an informational chapter on sleep and rest. I learned that sleep builds procedural memory, which means what you practice during the day; you continue to learn while sleeping. I learned that most adults need between seven and nine hours of sleep each night, and when you’re sleep deprived, you have an increased chance of forming type two diabetes. Certain snacks before bedtime can increase quality of sleep, but some snacks can hurt sleep. Snacks that are good include low sugar and zero caffeine foods. Don Colbert believes, “Maintaining a bedtime ritual is essential to a good night’s sleep for children and adults. Exercise is one way to improve the quality of your sleep.” (Colbert).

Overall this was the most informative post I’ve done so far. The chapter had so much information and tips that hopefully will help me. Being a typical high school teenager, it’s hard to get the amount of sleep I need, but there are so many health benefits of proper rest. Hopefully I’ll be able to retain everything I learned and practice the methods I was taught.

Colbert, Don. The Seven Pillars of Health. “Pillar 2: Sleep and Rest”.Lake Mary, FL: Siloam, 2007.

The Effects of Bad Habits

Jack Lalanne had a very popular series of tv shoes that helped people stay in shape and live a healthier, longer life. In this specific tv show Jack talks about the bad habits of eating non-natural foods. He talks about how processed foods are bad, and that overcooked foods cook out all of the nutrients. During the show he says, "Most people think that the body is made out of hat is this body really made out of cigarettes, coffee, cakes, pies, donuts, and french fries; this is not the truth" (Lalanne). All people can eat healthy, because the same store that sells processed, sugary foods also sell natural and whole grain foods. Currently Jack Lalanne just turned 95 and expects to have another 50 years before he dies.

Everything that Jack Lalanne is talking about is very true. Nutrition is key in determining the health of your body. I also think it's very sad how often people eat fast-food. Fast-food is nothing but poison entering our body. I also think it's crazy how old Lalanne is and how he still is in great shape. I don't know any other 95 year olds who can still do handstand pushups.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_bGktVjk-M

Bigger, Stronger, Faster

Bigger, Stronger, Faster is a documentary made in 2008 about American's health and the way it affects our society. It's a story about a man named Chris Bell and his two brothers who grew up idolizing muscular giants like Hulk Hogan, Sylvester Stallone, and Arnold Schwarzenegger - who went on to use steroids thorughout their life. Chris says in the documentary, "When you discover that your heroes have all broken the rules, do you follow the rules, or do you follow your heroes? (Bell).


I really enjoyed this documentary and would recomend it for anyone. After anaylzing the documentary, at the beggining of the movie Chris was very anti-steroids and everything seemed to be biast against it. As the documentary progressed it started turning into a pro-steroid movie, through facts and evidence supporting them. After watching it all the way through it really does make you question American society and how we want to be bigger, stronger, and faster.





http://www.megavideo.com/?v=JPVTUU6S

Excercise Allows Longer Life and Better Health

This web article, written by Melissa Mitchell, explains that exercise improves life quality and adds years to your life. Exercise also improves yourself psychologically. This study was led by Professor Edward McAuley, "McCauley said the study -- which assessed physical activity levels, quality of life, physical self-esteem, self-efficacy and affect in a large sample (174) of adults over age 65 -- is believed to be the only one to date to examine the relationship between physical activity and quality of life over such a long time." Even with this information most people refuse to act on it, the article talks about this also.

I learned a lot from this article, and nothing that I've learned so far contradicts with the source. This inspires me to keep exercising and learning about how I can remain healthy. Hopefully when I'm 65 I will still be doing some sort of physical activity. I can also see that it's easy to ignore this advice and remain lazy, but it's not the right thing to do.

Mitchell, Melissa . "Do exercise and you will live longer and enjoy better health as well". University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. 3/26/10 http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/33464.php.