Sunburn is a heat bum, usually of the first degree. Babies and children who have fair complexions are particularly susceptible to sunburn, even on cloudy days or in shade. Occasionally, sunburn causes a skin rash which resembles hives. This condition is called sun poisoning. Signs and symptoms Sunburn causes the skin to become inflamed, blistered, [...]

It will be clear from the above that preventing suicide can be difficult. However, almost anyone who is close to or connected with a suicide victim blames themselves to some extent, feels guilty and wonders what they could have done to prevent it. Some ideas for prevention have been mentioned above. Here are some more [...]

Alcoholism is a complex and ill-defined condition in which a person is addicted to alcohol either physically, psychologically or socially. It is almost impossible to know exactly how many people are affected by alcoholism, if only because the boundary between heavy social drinking and true alcoholism is so difficult to define. Alcohol certainly affects the [...]

The immune-system laboratory tests I listed in Chapter Seven, Nutri-Prevention, give your your doctor an idea of how your immune system is functioning. Here’s an explanation of what the tests are, what they measure and what the results may mean. Let me caution you once again not to make a diagnosis on the basis of [...]

The B-complex family of vitamins has been studied extensively. It has been shown that animals and humans who are low in B vitamins have much less resistance to infections. Many of my patients who have suffered from recurrent infections have had low blood levels of some of the B complex vitamins. Vitamin B6 (Pyridoxine) Vitamin [...]

COMMON COLD: a virus that attacks the upper respiratory tract, especially the nose and throat. Signs and Symptoms: occur one to three days after exposure if the immune system fails to resist the cold. Generally an ache in the throat; runny nose; sneezing; a feeling of malaise. Adults may or may not have fever, children [...]

Sometimes the delicate systems of checks and balances in our body fail, and our fighting cells do turn against us. When this happens, we call the problem an autoimmune disease. One of these diseases, called systemic lupus erythematosis, is an often-fatal illness that afflicts mostly young women. There’s also idiopathic ulcerative colitis, which may cause, [...]

Whether you’re having a problem with your arms or your legs, it’s extremely important with any of the Body Signals in this chapter that you determine if the symptom appears equally on both sides of the body or affects only one side. When you’re examining your symptoms, you should always notice the changes in size, [...]

The period of time between premenopause and menopause usually takes a few years. One sign that you’re about to enter your premenopausal stage is that the regularity of your cycle changes. You might experience bleeding more frequently, less frequently, or in unpredictable patterns. Instead of 28 days between periods, for instance, you may have your [...]

As your body ages, your breasts flatten out slightly and start to droop as gravity continues its long-range plans. Since you are probably already aware of these changes, you might not know that other changes in the contour of the breast—such as dimpled or pitted skin—might signal a serious medical problem. Some women might just [...]