Antidepressants: can they cure tiredness or premenstrual tension? / Los antidepresivos pueden curar el cansancio y la tension pre menstrual?

A rise in prescribing of antidepressants by doctors who are not psychiatrists, often for uses other than depression/anxiety, has helped build what is now a massive market. According to IMS Health, sales of antidepressants in the United States alone surpassed $11 billion in 2010. Antidepressants are now the third most commonly prescribed drug class in this country. Four out of five physicians prescribing antidepressants are not psychiatrists, and antidepressants are commonly prescribed by primary care doctors. Between 1996 and 2007, the percentage of doctor visits during which antidepressants were prescribed but no psychiatric diagnosis was noted increased from 59.5% to 72.7%, according to the study. Antidepressants have been demonstrated to be clinically effective for only a limited number of psychiatric conditions: major depressive disorder, chronic depression, some anxiety disorders, and a few other well-defined conditions, but antidepressant use is becoming concentrated among people with less severe and poorly defined medical conditions and even problems such as tiredness, nonspecific pain, smoking problems, headaches, abnormal sensations and premenstrual tension. What’s the reason behind this?

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El incremento en la prescripción de antidepresivos por médicos que no son psiquiatras, a menudo para usos diferentes a los de tratar Depresión/Ansiedad, ha contribuido en la construcción de un Mercado masivo en esta industria. De acuerdo con IMS Health, las ventas de antidepresivos en Estados Unidos solamente ha sobrepasado los $11 billones de dólares en 2010. Antidepresivos son la tercera prescripción mas común en el país. Cuatro de cada cinco médicos que prescriben anti depresivos, no son psiquiatras y los anti depresivos son recetados por médicos primarios. El porcentaje de visitas a estos doctores mientras no existía un diagnostico psiquiátrico se incremento de 59.5% hasta 72.7% de acuerdo al estudio. Este tipo de drogas han demostrado que son clínicamente efectivas únicamente en un limitado numero de condiciones psiquiátricas: depresión mayor, depresión crónica, algunos desordenes de ansiedad, y algunas cuantas condiciones bien definidas, pero el uso de antidepresivos se ha ido concentrando en personas con diagnósticos menos severos o incluso pobres diagnósticos como cansancio, dolores inespecíficos, problemas para dejar de fumar, dolores de cabeza, sensaciones anormales y síndrome pre menstrual entre otros. Cual es la razón detrás de esto?   

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Are you more stressed than you think? // Esta usted mas estresado de lo que piensa?

Stress is considered as a psychological and physical response of the body that occurs whenever we must adapt to changing conditions, whether those conditions be real or perceived, positive or negative. Although everyone has stress in their lives, people respond to stress in different ways. Some people seem to be severely affected while others seem calm, cool, and collected all the time. Regardless, we all have it. However, a stage of continues stress could lead to serious health problems and is the door to many of the most common preventable chronic diseases. Here are NINE signs that revel that you are more stressed out than you think. 

Estrés es considerado como una respuesta psicológica y fisiológica de nuestro cuerpo que ocurre cada vez que nos debemos adaptar a condiciones cambiantes. Condiciones reales o percibidas, positivas o negativas. Aunque todas las personas tenemos estrés en nuestras vidas, cada persona responde al estrés de diferentes maneras; algunas personas se pueden percibir severamente afectadas mientras que otras se ven calmadas, tranquilas y contenidas todo el tiempo. A pesar de esto, todos tenemos estrés. Sin embargo un continuo estado de estrés podría conducir a serios problemas de salud y es la puerta para muchos de las más comunes enfermedades crónicas prevenibles. Aquí están NUEVE señales que revelan si usted estaría más estresado de lo que pensaba.

Test to Understand Cancer Risk

This test was developed by the Harvard School of Public Health and evaluates risk factors of the most common types of cancer.  This interactive tool estimates the risk of cancer and provides personalized tips for prevention. Anyone can use it, but it's most accurate for people age 40 and over who have never had any type of cancer.
This tool takes only few minutes to be answered and helps you understand your risk so you can MODIFY them and focus on your prevention efforts. 

Because the best way to fight cancer is to stop it before it starts!

CLICK HERE TO GO TO THE TEST 

Este Test fue desarrollado por la Escuela de Salud Publica de la Universidad de Harvard, evalúa los factores de riesgo de los más comunes tipos de Cáncer. Esta herramienta interactiva estima el riesgo de desarrollar Cáncer y provee consejos personalizados para iniciar la prevención. 

Esta herramienta toma únicamente unos pocos minutos para ser respondida y produce una enorme ayuda para entender SU riesgo de tal manera que usted puede modificarlo y centrarse en los esfuerzos para prevenir.

Porque la mejor manera de combatir el cáncer es detenerlo antes de que comience. 

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Do you wanna get rid of your belly fat? Start exercising.

Jogging Beats Weight Lifting for Losing Belly Fat

Compared with resistance training, aerobic exercise burns 67% more calories, research shows.

By Robert Preidt, HealthDay News

FRIDAY, Aug. 26 (HealthDay News) — Aerobic exercise is better than resistance training if you want to lose the belly fat that poses a serious threat to your health, researchers say.

That's the finding of their eight-month study that compared the effectiveness of aerobic exercise (such as jogging), resistance training (such as weight lifting), or a combination of the two activities in 196 overweight, sedentary adults aged 18 to 70.

The participants in the aerobic group did the equivalent of 12 miles of jogging per week at 80 percent maximum heart rate, while those in the resistance group did three sets of eight to 12 repetitions three times per week.

The Duke University Medical Center researchers looked at how these types of exercise reduced the fat that's deep within the abdomen and fills the spaces between internal organs. This type of fat — called visceral and liver fat — is associated with increased risk of heart disease, diabetes, and some types of cancer.

Aerobic exercise significantly reduced visceral and liver fat and improved risk factors for heart disease and diabetes, such as insulin resistance, liver enzymes and triglyceride levels. Resistance training didn't deliver these benefits. Aerobic exercise plus resistance training achieved results similar to aerobic exercise alone, the investigators found.

"Resistance training is great for improving strength and increasing lean body mass," lead author and exercise physiologist Cris Slentz said in a Duke news release. "But if you are overweight, which two-thirds of the population is, and you want to lose belly fat, aerobic exercise is the better choice because it burns more calories."

Aerobic exercise burned 67 percent more calories than resistance training, the researchers found.

The study was published in the Aug. 25 issue of the American Journal of Physiology.

Why Boozing Can Be Bad for Your Sex Life

Sure, you're more likely to ask for her phone number after throwing back a few. But when it comes to your sexual health, alcohol can be one big turn off. Here's why.

By Chris Iliades, MD

Medically reviewed by Farrokh Sohrabi, MD

http://www.everydayhealth.com/erectile-dysfunction/why-boozing-can-be-bad-for-your-sex-life.aspx?xid=tw_everydayhealth_20120106_boozesex

Drink a little alcohol; kiss your bedroom jitters goodbye: Anyone who’s transformed into Don Juan after a couple of cocktails knows that. But beyond that newfound confidence, is alcohol good for your sex life?
Actually, the effect can be the opposite as your blood alcohol level increases. Alcohol is a depressant, and using it heavily can dampen mood, decrease sexual desire, and make it difficult for a man to achieve erections or reach an orgasm while under the influence. In fact, overdoing it on booze is a common cause of erectile dysfunction.
That doesn’t mean you need to cut back completely — most experts say moderation is key. But what's “moderation” exactly? According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), moderate drinking is no more than two drinks a day for men (and one drink a day for women). The liver can only break down the amount of alcohol in about one standard-size drink an hour, so regularly drinking more than that means that toxins from alcohol can build up in your body and affect your organs, including those involved in sex.
Here’s why you should think twice about tossing back too many.

5 Ways Alcohol Can Wreck Your Sex Life

For men, heavy drinking can lead to:
Temporary erectile dysfunction. Researchers have found that too much alcohol affects both your brain and your penis. In one University of Washington study, sober men were able to achieve an erection more quickly than intoxicated men — and some men are unable to have an erection at all after drinking.
That’s because pre-sex boozing decreases blood flow to your penis, reduces the intensity of your orgasm, and can dampen your level of excitement (in other words, even if you are able to have sex, it may not be nearly as pleasurable as it would be without the excess alcohol).
Long-term erectile dysfunction. The risk for long-term erectile dysfunction has been linked to chronic heavy use of alcohol. In fact, studies show that men who are dependent on alcohol have a 60 to 70 percent chance of suffering from sexual problems. The most common of these are erectile dysfunction, premature ejaculation, and loss of sexual desire.
Ruined relationships. According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, alcohol use beyond moderation is associated with relationship problems that include conflict, infidelity, economic insecurity, and divorce. In addition, 90 percent of all sexual assaults involve alcohol consumption.
The sexual repercussions of smoking. If you are someone who tends to light up while drinking, you could be further increasing your risk for ED. For men under the age of 40, smoking is the biggest cause of erectile dysfunction — and studies show that men who smoke more than 10 cigarettes daily are at an increased risk for erectile dysfunction.
STDs. Another big risk when combining sex and alcohol? Getting exposed to a sexually transmitted disease. Studies show that almost 50 percent of unplanned sexual encounters involve alcohol, and 60 percent of STDs are transmitted when alcohol is involved. Young adults who use alcohol are seven times more likely to have unprotected sex.

Why Less Is More

The relaxing effect of alcohol and the feeling of well-being that comes with a drink or two have made alcohol humans’ favorite beverage for about 10,000 years. Though some studies confirm that alcohol (in moderation!) is good for your heart and circulation (which can work against erectile dysfunction), it’s important to remember that sex and alcohol are a delicate balancing act.
If you've experienced a lack of sexual desire, premature ejaculation, relationship problems, or erectile dysfunction because of mixing alcohol and sex, you may be letting alcohol get the best of your sex life.

Last Updated: 01/04/2012

MIAMI WELLNESS AND HEALTH is a bilingual blog (English - Spanish) intended to promote healthy habits and share information in areas like Public Health, Mental Health, Behavioral Medicine, Psychology and Disease Prevention. the readers are encouraged to participate by sharing comments and information or asking related questions to the articles posted.

MIAMI WELLNESS AND HEALTH es un blog bilingüe (Español - Ingles) que tiene la intención de promover hábitos saludables y compartir información in temas de Salud Publica, Salud Mental, Medicina Conductual, Psicología y Prevención de Enfermedades. Los lectores están exhortados para participar compartiendo sus comentarios e información o haciendo preguntas relacionadas con los artículos publicados.