Furry friends go beyond companionship

Sure, furry friends are nice to have around, but the benefits of owning a pet may go beyond companionship.

Since the 1980s, studies have linked dogs and cats to health benefits such as higher survival rates after illness, fewer doctors visits, and better physical and psychological well-being in the elderly. Cat owners, for example, may be less likely to die from a heart attack or stroke, according to a study presented at the 2008 American Stroke Association Annual Meeting.

Not all researchers agree on the relationship of pet ownership and health, but animal lovers don’t need much convincing. Thousands of pet-praising blogs (including ones written by the pets themselves.)

Although most pets aren’t dragging little boys out of wells, they are involved in saving lives. Seizure dogs provide an alarm system for epilepsy patients, and diabetic alert dogs are trained to identify the scent changes that accompany hypoglycemia. Research has even shown that dogs may be able to smell melanoma and other types of cancer.

All about seizure dogs

Seizure dogs can help when a family member is having a seizure. A few dogs may even be able to predict when people will have a seizure.

They’re companions. They’re an alarm system. They’re helpers, protectors, and service providers. They may even be able to sense in advance when someone they’re close to is going to have an epileptic seizure. So-called seizure dogs can be all these things - and more.

America’s interest in seizure dogs began in the mid-1980’s, when a woman with epilepsy who was taking part in a Washington state prison project involving dogs discovered that one of the dogs seemed to know when she was going to have a seizure. The news media picked up the story, and the phrase “seizure dogs” was born. The Lifetime television drama, “Within These Walls,” is based in part on this experience.

Seizure dogs help in many ways

Now the term is used in a broader sense, and covers a variety of activities associated with epilepsy. Some dogs have been trained to bark or otherwise alert families when a child has a seizure while playing outside or in another room. Some dogs learn to lie next to someone having a seizure to prevent injury. Others are even said to be able to activate alarm systems.

On the other hand, some dogs are frightened by seizures and have to be reassured and trained to deal with them calmly.

Dogs that are trained to respond in various ways when people have a seizure are no different from other service dogs. When the question of seizure prediction comes up, however, it’s a different story.

Most people who report having dogs with this ability say that it develops over time and comes as a surprise to both the owner and the family.

In 1998, Roger Reep, Ph.D., an associate professor in the department of physiological sciences at the University of Florida, surveyed 77 people between the ages of 30 and 60 who had epilepsy.

The survey asked about their quality of life, medical status, attitudes toward pets, ownership of dogs, and their pets’ behaviour prior to and during a seizure. Most of the people responding to the survey had epilepsy for a long time (average: 25 years); more than half had at least one seizure per month.

Most said they had dogs for companionship.

In interviews following the survey, 3 out of the 31 felt that their dogs seemed to know when they were going to have a seizure (10 percent). Another 28 percent said their dogs stayed with them when they had a seizure.

Dr. Reep reported his findings at the 1998 National Conference of the Epilepsy Foundation.

He concluded that reports of seizure-alerting behaviour in dogs should be viewed as credible, but with caution. According to his research, the behaviour seems to occur spontaneously and may occur in as many as one in ten situations when the owner is having at least one seizure per month. In his survey, no particular breed appeared to be better at sensing an oncoming seizure than any other.

Researchers train dogs to warn of seizures

Dr. Stephen W. Brown, a British neuropsychiatrist and epilepsy specialist, and Val Strong, a behavioral scientist and animal trainer, reported in 1999 in the European Journal of Epilepsy Seizure that, working with people with epilepsy and dogs together, they were able to train some of the dogs to warn of seizures.

The training was based on reward-based operant conditioning - that is, the dogs got a reward every time their owners had seizures. “After a while those dogs that are going to be able to act as seizure-assistance dogs start to alert and expect their reward before the person’s had the seizure,” Dr. Brown said. The dogs he was training were sometimes able to give warning as much as 15 to 45 minutes before the actual seizure occurred.

The way the dogs behaved took different forms, from pawing in a special way to simply approaching the person and barking.

Could this kind of training make people more likely to have seizures in response to something that looks like a warning? Not according to Dr. Brown.

In fact, in his study group, the actual number of seizures went down.

Public interest in the seizure dog phenomenon has created a demand for information about how to get a dog with these various talents, especially the ability to predict seizures. While some people have been very pleased with their new canine friends, others have been disappointed.

The Epilepsy Foundation recommends that people take great care in reviewing trainer claims and results, especially when thousands of dollars are involved.

Health.com

Incontinence...... Does it kill your normal life?

Dr. R. A. R. Perera,

Consultant Psychologist

While incontinence is clinically non-fatal, a person who suffers from incontinence experiences a marked reduction in quality of life. It can be socially terminal. As one person said, “Incontinence doesn’t kill you, it just take your life away”.

Incontinence can be defined as involuntary leakage of faeces or urine. Generally 5% of the adult population suffer from this condition. This figure may in fact be much higher since incontinence tends to be an under-reported problem. Yet 80% of sufferers did not seek help due to various social reasons.

Incontinence is a highly stigmatized condition seen as dirty and equated with a loss of control, incompetence and a lack of civilized veneer. It is also associated with the lack of maturity that being in control signifies, which may be one reason people do not disclose the condition to their doctor.

A person may feel humiliated or even guilty about being incontinent. They may dismiss it as simply a bother rather than a legitimate medical complaint. Older persons often believe incontinence as a normal part of ageing and that there is no medical help.

Incontinence is not only taboo in the general public but in health circles as well. Medical questioning often omits the issue of incontinence. Patients report that doctors often dismiss the problem as a low priority or inevitable for patient groups like the elderly or after a childbirth. The lack of awareness about the severity of the problem is a real barrier to its recognition and treatment.

The incontinent person cope this situation by developing elaborate strategies to keep their problem private such as wearing only dark clothing, restricting fluid intake, wearing strong perfumes and constantly checking smells.

Many avoid physical activity - including simple things like gardening or taking a walk. They are afraid to travel or visit their friends in case they soil themselves.

They memorize public toilets, plan activities around accessibility to toilets and constantly empty their bladder. When this constant vigilance breaks down, social isolation is the result. Add to this the financial burden of incontinence are increased laundering and transport costs associated with having to take taxis and cars as opposed to the bus or train.

Loss of quality of life issues such as loss of social interaction and personal fulfilment can not be measured. Incontinence deprives sufferers of many of the pleasures in life, wearing away at self-esteem in the process.

Urinary incontinence is a symptom, not a disease and has multiple causes. Most incontinent patients can be effectively treated or managed by doctors with conservative treatment alone. Conservative treatment include, keeping a bladder diary, which makes patients aware of bad habits, doing bladder retraining, pelvic floor exercises and drug treatment.

Incontinent person often perceives doctors’ disinterest and even physician disapproval. For the older patient, incontinence is often the cause of admission to hospitals or nursing homes when carers can no longer cope.

The best approach is a multidisciplinary one, with allied health professionals such as physiotherapists, urogenital specialists and a psychologist. A physiotherapist can help by advising on pelvic floor muscle exercises.

Incontinence needs to be given due recognition for the physical, economic and psychosocial impact it has on the lives of sufferers and their carers.

Doctors and psychologists are best placed to effectively coordinate management of incontinence and by doing so, can help their patients continue to lead active and fulfilling lives.

Achieving a healthy balance

Eating too many fats of any kind can be harmful to health but excluding fats can cause a dietary imbalance.

The body requires about 25 g of fat a day to enable it to absorb fat soluble vitamins and beta carotene. Fats are also vital for the provision of essential fatty acids (omega 3 and omega 6 fatty acids) which the body cannot produce itself.

Here are some tips for making sure the diet is balanced.

* Replace trans (check food labels for TFA content) and saturated fats (animal fats such as butter, the fat on meat) with monounsaturated (olive, canola, avocadoes, nuts) and polyunsaturated (safflower, sunflower) fats.

* Try to eat only fish (such as slamon, tuna, sardines and mackerel) at least twice a week. These fish are excellent sources of omega-3 fatty acids.

* Choose low fat dairy products and lean cuts of meat trimmed of fat. remove the skin from poultry.

* Eat natural sources of fat such as nuts, seeds, grains, avocadoes and fatty fish to obtain extra nutrients and phytochemicals.

How much fat should you take daily?

Children 30-60g

Teenagers (Active) 40-80g

Women 30-60g]

Men (Active) 40-80g

Heavy Activity/Athlete 80-120g

Hydrogenation is a process which adds hydrogen molecules directly to unsaturated fatty acids such as those found in vegetable oil. Hydrogenated oils contribute unique properties to foods - the make margarines more spreadable and pastries such as roti prata flakier. Trans fatty acids also occur naturally in meat and dairy products.

The US national Academy of Sciences has concluded that trans fatty acids have a similar effect to saturated fats on blood cholesterol - they raise low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol. TFAs may also lower high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol. Intakes of trans fatty acids should therefore be kept as low as possible.

- Food Facts Asia