Take Control of Your Health…It’s About Time

Frustrated, I shut down my laptop. I couldn’t believe this. I had spent almost three hours searching for non-conventional treatment options for osteoarthritis for my mother, but all in vain.

As soon as I typed in the words “osteoarthritis,” hundreds of websites popped up, all claiming to provide cutting edge information. Some were health information sites and blogs, while others were e-commerce and commercial sites, keen to sell their products. Many government and non-government sites also popped up – all providing a piece of the information with bold claims and disclosures.

My mother had already visited half a dozen doctors to get some relief from the excruciating knee pain and stiffness caused by osteoarthritis. All doctors came back with exactly the same options – continue with the painkillers, get steroid shots, or get knee surgery. Whenever, my mother enquired about other non-conventional options, answers of most of the doctors revolved around the same, “I don’t know. I did not go to the medical school to learn about non-conventional medicine.” Perhaps, they were right. Traditional medical schools do not teach about Complementary and Alternative medicine (CAM). Now, we were back to square one, and our only glimmering hope was – “Internet”.

Patients who seek authentic information about their medical problems and non conventional therapies (alternatives to drug therapy) for treatment, often experience disappointment due to the lack of authentic scientific information available on the websites. I said to myself, “people have the right to know what their complete treatment options are.” Only then can they make the best decisions for their own health. Precisely then, the idea for IControlMyHealth was born; to provide people with a 360-degree view of scientifically proven treatment options, both conventional and non-conventional, that are honest, proven, unbiased, and up to date. IControlMyHealth goes a step further and provides head-to-head comparison of conventional and non-conventional approaches, which helps people make better health decisions.

Today, we have our teams of qualified pharmacists, medical writers, and advisory board members who are passionate about serving people. They have been working tirelessly over the past year and doing their part to empower people with reliable information so that they can lead healthier lives. We all work with a single mission, “Reduce suffering and improve health for a better quality of life.”

Over the past one year, our team has extensively researched and authored over 7,500 pages of original content covering Bipolar disorder, Depression, Diabetes, Feeding and Eating Disorders,High cholesterol, High Blood Pressure, Menopause, Mood Disorder, Obesity, Osteoporosis, Pain, and Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS). Our team delves into every therapeutic area, so that we can provide you with comprehensive and complete treatment options – all at one place.

We have also developed a proprietary methodology, in collaboration with renowned experts, to rate and evaluate all non-conventional treatment options so that you don’t have to spend hours researching on the Internet. Furthermore, we constantly brainstorm and develop useful and practically applicable tools and tips so that you can lead a healthier and happier life.

We can’t do all of this alone. I ask you to support and join us in this ambitious mission and cause. There are several ways you can become a part of our endeavor and help us make the world a better place to live:

• Like us on Facebook
• Join our mailing list
• Share your story
• Be an inspiration to others by becoming IControlMyHealth Ambassador
• Recommend somebody to become IControlMyHealth ambassador
• Join our Advisory Board

Last, but not the least, I would love to hear from you. If you have any comments, ideas, or feedback and share our passion of helping patients, please send an email to my attention atinfo@icontrolmyhealth.org.

Let’s make this world a healthier and happier place, together.

Say “NO” to Processed Foods

While taking a tour of the grocery store or supermarket, what catches your eye the most? Is it the flavored fruit juices or cooked spaghetti’s? Or the refrigerators stuffed with different kinds of cured meats such as salami, sausages, or meat loaves?

The processed foods happen to be everywhere and it is not that easy to resist your temptations. However, you must understand that when food is processed, it becomes less healthy and less nutritious. From pre-cooked meals to frozen dinners, salad dressings, bacons, sausages, processed deli red meats, ice creams, and even frozen vegetables are crammed with various additives and preservatives.

According to a survey, Americans eat more of packaged and processed food as compared to fresh food. Although most are aware of the ill effects of consuming these processed food items.

Then why do people eat processed foods? Why are processed foods in such a great demand?

Today everyone is super busy in their packed schedule and don’t have time to cook meals. Unfortunately, there is a tremendous increase in the number of families counting on processed foods, while only few families opt for conventional cooking with fresh food items.

Since, processed foods are easier to store, inexpensive, have less preparation time, and are convenient, most people opt for processed and packed foods.

Although it is really hard to deny these ready-made foods, are they really worth it? The impact of these processed foods on health is quite staggering when consumed on a regular basis.

These synthetic foods are full of fat, coloring agents, and many preservatives. These preservatives contain:

• Sodium or Salt: Salt or other sodium compounds are added to the processed foods during preparation or processing for flavor or preservation. Excessive amounts of sodium can lead to many health problems such as high blood pressure, overweight, and obesity; strong risk factors for various heart diseases
• Nitrates: In processed foods, nitrate preservatives can promote atherosclerosis and lower glucose tolerance; this could result in higher risk of heart disease and diabetes

Preservatives and additives are generally used to sustain safety and prolong the shelf life of food. Heavy tampering and devious modification are done by manufacturers to make these foods alluringly delicious. However, during processing of foods, essential vitamins and enzymes are destroyed which are required by our body to thrive, hence these foods become detrimental to human health. One of the recent study revealed that preservatives present in the processed foods, increases the risk of Cardiovascular Diseases (CVD).

We all can change our lives with some planning and commitment. Although, we all have spent years doing damage to our body, it’s never too late to fix this damage by switching our diet. The alluring taste of these processed foods is not easy to avoid, but some measures need to be taken to make our lives better. Here are some tips to avoid these processed and packaged foods:

References

1. Micha R, Michas G, Lajous M, et al. Processing of meats and cardiovascular risk: time to focus on preservatives. BMC Medicine. 2013;11:136.
2. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. http://www.cdc.gov/bloodpressure/sodium.htm. Accessed on August 12, 2013.

Feeling good after eating that salad? Think again…

As I ordered that salad, I felt pretty good that I have again beaten the temptation of devouring that cheese dripping Panini and made a healthy choice, yet again. I love salads, pretty much any kind. Lots of greens and veggies combined with turkey or chicken, some nuts, and a light dressing makes for a perfect lunch.

On a recent trip to London, UK, I was trying to order a salad and was amazed at how fewer the choices were. Finally, when my salad arrived, it was just lettuce, spinach, carrots, and tomatoes. Oh, how much I love my American salads! However, this made me thinking. What is a right kind of “healthy” salad? Are we just fooling ourselves (or getting fooled) that we are eating a healthy meal – a salad, but not reducing our calorie intake and therefore not seeing an impact on our waistline. When salads are loaded with tortilla chips, lots of meat, nuts, bacon, and a full fat dressing, etc., it is packing way more calories and fats, which is actually defeating the purpose of having a salad. In fact, many salads are unhealthier than a regular burger (read Men’s Health article “20 salads worse than a whopper”).

Then, came my entrée. Interestingly, it was probably half the size of what I would have got in America. Another questions that came to my mind – what is the right portion size? Was the salad I got in London the right size, or the salads I get here in the US, the right size?It is no secret thatAmerican portion sizes have significantly grown over the past two decades. As per National Heart Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI) Portion Distortion, “Anyone eating on the run or at restaurants has probably noticed that food portions have gotten larger. Some portions are called “super size,” while others have simply grown in size and provide enough food for at least two people. With this growth have come increases in waistlines and body weight.”

This unconscious eating and larger portions has already started crating havoc to our health. Today, obesity is reaching epidemic proportions. As per WHO, one in every third adult is obese in the US. Although obesity is becoming a global phenomenon, Europe is still far healthier and fit than we Americans (Prevalence of obesity in percent: US-34.1, UK-24.9, Germany-21.3, Spain-24.1, Italy-17.2, France-15.6).

Therefore, let’s learn something from our healthier European friends – eat salads like salads are meant to be and mind your portions. This will not only help your pocket, but your health too. Finally, be a smart shopper, don’t get fooled by the catchy advertisement and learn how to read food labels.

Helping You to Help Yourself,

IControlMyHealth Editorial Team

References:

1. Overweight and obesity. http://www.who.int/gho/ncd/risk_factors/overweight/en/index.html. Accessed August 5, 2013

2. Portion Distortion and Serving Size. http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/heart/obesity/wecan/eat-right/distortion.htm. Accessed August 5, 2013

3. Portion Distortion! Do You Know How Food Portions Have Changed in 20 Years?http://hp2010.nhlbihin.net/portion/index.htm Accessed August 5, 2013.

- See more at: https://www.icontrolmyhealth.org/health-blog/salads-and-waistline#sthash.wlxd7MmU.dpuf