The Nanotechnology

A nanotechnology application in healthcare is usually expressed as nanomedicine. "Use of nanotechnology in drug delivery, in vitro diagnostics, smart and multifunctional biomaterials, imaging and active implants together come under the umbrella of nanomedicine," says Dr Professor Amarnath Maitra, Department of Chemistry, University of Delhi and Visiting Scientist, Department of Pathology, Johns Hopkins Medical Institute, Baltimore, USA.

Nanomedicine may be defined as the monitoring, repair, construction and control of human biological systems at the molecular level, using engineered nanodevices and nanostructures. Nanotech in healthcare has invaded areas like drug delivery systems, pharmaceuticals, biocompatible materials, micro-engineered devices, improved cardiac catheters and stents. Some examples include nanotechnology- based synthetic bone for maxillofacial applications, for treating fractures, and as a scaffold for tissue engineering and differentiation of stem cells, nanoparticles for pulmonary and ocular delivery, and microengineered transcatheteral devices for minimally invasive cardiac surgery.

According to Dr Bellare, however, the potential impact is large, inclusive of artificial organs, tissue engineering, diagnostics of various sorts (at home, bed-side, ambulatory) battlefield, and outer space. "The impact will be felt on virtually every facet of healthcare, from pre-birth to post death," says Bellare.

Source: http://www.expresshealthcaremgmt.com/200803/knowledge01.shtml

GEOGRAPHY OF WOMEN

Between the ages of 15 - 20 a woman is like Africa.
She is half discovered, half wild.

Between the ages of 20 - 30 a woman is like America.
Fully discovered and scientifically perfect.

Between the ages of 30 - 35, she is like India & Japan.
Very hot, wise and beautiful !!!!!!!!!

Between the ages of 35 - 40 a woman is like France.
She is half destroyed after the war but still desirable.

Between the ages of 40 - 50 she is like Germany.
She lost the war but not the hope.

Between the ages of 50 - 60 she is like Russia.
Very wide, very quiet but nobody goes there.

Between the ages of 60 - 70 a woman is like England.
With a glorious past but no future.

After 70, they become Siberia.
Everyone knows where it is, but no one wants to go there.

Women face increased Cancer Risk

One in seven women could develop breast cancer if public health trends do not improve, experts warn.

Researchers found the risk to women carrying a gene which can lead to the disease has increased dramatically in the last 60 years.

The study, at the Genesis Breast Cancer Prevention Centre in Manchester, suggests a lifestyle change is key.

Having families earlier and avoiding long term use of female hormones in HRT and contraceptives were recommended.

Experts also suggested regular exercise and a healthy diet could make a difference.

One in 10 women in the UK currently develop breast cancer by the age of 80 but researchers fear this may rise to one in seven by 2024 unless changes are made.

Gene mutations

Around one in 500 people are said to carry the gene mutations which result in an 85-90% chance of developing breast cancer.

Professor Gareth Evans, who led the study of more than 1,400 women who carried the high-risk genes, said: "This rise in the incidence of breast cancer is reflected in the general population.

"In 1984 only one in 13 women were projected to develop breast cancer.

"In 2004 this reached one in 10 and, if the rates rise as they are currently doing so, it is predicted that by 2024 one in seven to eight women will develop breast cancer by 80 years of age.

"That will translate into an extra 4,000 deaths, unless further improvements in treatments occur."

The report, by the consultant in medical genetics at St Mary's Hospital and Christie Hospital, both in Manchester, will be published in the BMC Cancer journal.

It showed that women born before 1920 who carry faults in the high-risk genes had a 7.5% chance of developing breast cancer by the age of 40.

However, women born after 1960 had a risk of up to 40%.
The Genesis Appeal, a breast cancer prevention charity, has funded the purpose-built £14m centre in Wythenshawe which brings together medical experts to conduct diagnosis, education and research into the disease.

Meditation Basics: Choosing The Incense Right For You!

Meditation sessions are fantastic to help you manage and balance your day-to-day life. One of the important elements you can include as part of your meditation session is incense and for a beginner this really is an important tool and can make the difference between a successful meditation session and an unsuccessful meditation session.

Humans have five core senses including touch, sight, hearing, taste and smell. Each sense plays a role in keeping your mind active and playing a role in the way you feel. The brain takes each of the sensory inputs from these senses and defines how you are going to react to your surrounding. For example, research has found that certain types of music influences the way shoppers will actually purchase products.

One research organisation found that Baroque Music played at 60 beats per minute will infact influence shoppers to spend an additional 38% in their shops. Further to this the use of incense during a meditation session can in fact make a huge difference between a successful meditation session simply because the incense will influence the sense of smell.

The most important thing you can do is to choose the right incense type. Let us take a moment to look at the different types of incense choices. I should note one thing, that there are many different incense choices which will influence your choice of incense.

#1 Starting Out – Lavender Fragrance and Incense

When you are starting out with meditation you will often be stressed, tense and all those other horrible feelings and the best type of incense to start out with is Lavender. There are many theory’s as to why lavender is a create start off tool but the bottom line we have learnt that it relaxes you and distresses you.

So, when starting out use the lavender incense in either a stick or powder form. The best incense type from a safety point of you is the stick incense. If you choose to use the powder incense type make sure that you put sand over the incense once you have finished using it.

#2 Inducing Sleep – Violet or Jasmine Incense

If your meditation session is to help induce sleep, then whilst incense may help the process of relaxation, the best type of incense to consider is the violet or jasmine incense.

#3 Sexual Energy – Rose, Gardenia or Orange Blossoms

If your meditation session is with your partner to help increase sexual desire and passion, then the best type of incense is Rose, Gardenia or Orange Blossoms. More so, if you are trying to use meditation to help sexual desire then in conjunction with the incense look at using fragrance oils as well to help spark the feeling of passion.

#4 Mood Enhancement – Fruity Fragrances

Mood enhancement incenses like fruity scents will help your mood. For example if you are feeling down then using fruit based oils and incenses like berries, bananas, melons, plum and apricot will enhance your internal mood. Might I also say your partners as well.

#5 Energy Enhancements – Citrus Fragrances

If your meditations are about getting that much needed energy and freshening the mind then the citrus fruit incense is the choice for you. You need to consider incense like bergamot, mandarins, orange, apple and even grapefruit. Even Citronella is a fantastic citrus scent for this meditation type plus it repels the moths and more importantly the mosquitos.

#6 The Sweet Smell Enhancements – Vanilla Fragrances

Sweet smell enhancements like coffee and peppermint can make a huge difference to your meditation session. The key reason we use these types of incense is simply to enhance our feelings. These also help bring forward clarity and stimulation and energy.

One word of warning though, be careful with some herbs and spices. Some herbs and spices can form foul smelling odours when burned and more so, some spices can be poisonous.

Choosing the right incense can make a huge difference towards a successful meditation session. When you are starting out then the best incense you should be using is Lavender but if you have mastered the basics then you could even try out a combination of these incense types.

Learning Meditation does not have to be difficult with our Book on Meditation. We also have Music Meditation CDs available from our website as well.

Source: http://www.articleheaven.com

To a Wise Woman, Garlic Held The Answers To Life's Quandaries

We were in the kitchen and as usual, I was relegated to the mundane duty of opening wine. In this house, there was only one cook. I was the sampler, occasionally invited to stir a pot while she chopped garlic in artistic style, again insisting that the misshapen cloves were key ingredients for every recipe.

I had to laugh at her endless, yet impassioned assertions that many of life's lessons could also be discovered from cooking with the wily bulb. Waving knife in hand, the kitchen her stage, she liked to discuss esoteric similarities lost on many, yet understood and reserved for a soul held softly in the hands of the Divine.

To her, garlic simply held the answers to all life's quandaries. Her name was Julie, but only mom called her that. To the rest of us she was Geege, a pet name sounding like Judge, only with the long E.

"Did you ever really look at garlic?" She asked with big eyes. "

"Not too much." I replied.

"It's nothing to look at, but it's so awesome once it's peeled. It reminds me of me when I was young and afraid."

"That's why we call you Geege--Garlic Geege!" I laughed.

As I reached for the bottle of wine, she watched me in disbelief. After all, this was garlic we were talking about. Pouring the wine, I offered the toast.

"May garlic always be in your life." I clinked her glass.

"It's already in my life." She replied and toasted back. "I only hope you find it too."

We had no idea that in another year, at the age of 40, she would be diagnosed with an autoimmune disease resulting in liver failure. However painful, Geege would accept her diagnosis with optimism and incredible courage. At the time she was balancing a marriage, raising two daughters and running a flower shop. If she had a premonition that her time was near, she offered no insight that evening.

"I wonder how any of us can ever become who we're really meant to be without first shedding that protective layer we all wear so well? And you know," she held up a whole garlic head, "it looks so deceiving. You got to get inside a person." She scrunched tiny shoulders and giggled as she tossed me the gnarly cluster. "Just like with garlic."

God, I miss those precious hours and that spicy, lingering scent that filled the house. And for a long time after, I thought about our discussions, always peppered with her sage insight. Of course it wasn't just the excellent food, but a rare chance to share an essence of life with a girl I loved dearly. Where, I asked myself now, did that time go? Those fleeting moments held close in my heart now seemed blended with a sudden and painful dose of life's realities.

After months of battling, searching for a transplant, I gingerly entered her room. With tubes and needles inserted she'd let go her need for answers. Instead, with a forced smile, she fixed me with dark eyes and seemed to exist in the moment, visibly grateful for the opportunity to live and to love for one more day. I searched her hand for assurance, but in my heart I knew she was dying and I had no idea how to tell the others.

A few months before she'd asked me to speak at her funeral and I cried. No, I wouldn't. There would be no funeral and she would make it. Like garlic, she was resilient. After, she held me as I sobbed and when I was finished, when I was again intent on forcing life to keep her, to give her the time we needed, she stared into my eyes and I knew. I knew it would be soon.

As she faded, I sat beside her. Tangled beneath a wadded gown and hospital covers, her thick, dark hair was matted. Machines whirled and beeped as I stayed near. Eyes closed, I knew she couldn't continue to fight this battle. New blood would give her life for another day, but the reality was clear. She was leaving soon.

When she finally opened her eyes, I tried to offer a smile through my tears, but merged souls already have an understanding. They seem to know, to communicate without words. She found my hand and squeezed. Finally I had to ask.

"Geege, what should I say? What should I tell them?"

Oblivious to her wishes and stymied in my own sorrow, I must not have heard her whispered reply, or perhaps I was simply filled with too much anger, but in patient verse she repeated herself.

"More Garlic." She said.

And again, her words brought me back. It was to be our last visit in the kitchen--a brother and a sister, aging and looking back, but finally with enough understanding to contemplate life with certain humility. I wish I'd understood then that the prophecy of her final words would impact me so greatly.

A pot simmered, and she'd finally stopped her sacred ritual with the illustrious bulb. Then she turned to me in serious tone.

"Name me someone who hasn't been called to the stage of life after being chopped and smashed, and yet, aren't we still expected to somehow enhance the show? You know, it might just be the finale and that's all right too, but I think we just have to give it our all."

She lived two years with her donated liver--not nearly enough time, but forever for someone like Geege. You see, in her struggle she ultimately discovered that each day is indeed a gift and tomorrow does not always come.

And like with her garlic, in the end she was chopped and smashed, but she gave it her all.