Know your Body

Learn the common causes behind your body’s little quirks. Whether uncomfortable, embarrassing or just plain weird, there are some pretty funky things that our bodies do. Curious about the causes of such reactions as hiccups, goose bumps and eye twitches, we spoke with Eric Plasker, DC, author of The 100 Year Lifestyle, to get the real scoop. Read on to discover the common reasons for 14 peculiar bodily functions.

Charley Horses

These sudden, super-painful muscle spasms can be blamed on several things, including dehydration or electrolyte imbalances often from strenuous exercise. After a demanding workout or an extra-long run, sip a sports drink to keep your system running smoothly. If you experience this type of cramping, walk around to help relieve the pain.


Sneezes


Sneezes happen when your body is trying to expel an irritant from the nasal cavity. If you have allergies, pollen or pet dander is usually to blame. If you have a cold, your body makes mucus to trap the virus, and sneezing helps force it (and the sickness) out of your body. An over-the-counter allergy or cold medicine helps suppress your reaction to allergens or reduce mucus production, which should prevent sneezing fits.

Ear Popping


The Eustachian tube in your inner ear is responsible for maintaining equal pressure on both sides of your eardrum. When you experience a rapid change in altitude during takeoff in an airplane or when riding an elevator in an extra-tall building the Eustachian tube opens to release pressure, and you hear a pop. To force the tube open (and your ears), squeeze your nostrils closed while exhaling forcefully through your nose.

Ear Ringing


Ear ringing, or tinnitus, can happen for two reasons. If you have fluid or an infection in your middle ear, you may hear a constant buzz. However, the more common cause is damage to the microscopic ends of your hearing nerves, which often happens when you are exposed to loud noises. To prevent permanent damage (and preserve your hearing), wear earplugs at concerts and sporting events or even when you mow the lawn.

Eye Twitches


Serious eye twitches can be a symptom of neurological disorders, but often there is a more mundane explanation. Common causes for eye twitches include stress, lack of sleep, extended staring or eye strain. Before you get frantic, try reducing your stress level, cutting back on caffeine and catching up on sleep.

Goose Bumps


Those tiny bumps that cover your skin when you are cold or scared are actually a defense mechanism. Goose bumps occur when the arrector pili, a tiny muscle that connects the hair follicle with skin, contracts and makes the hair stand on end. If you had more hair like cavemen did the upright hair would trap air to keep you warm or make you look bushier and therefore more threatening to predators.

Hiccups


If you have frequently got a case of the hiccups, try slowing down when you eat and drink, suggests Dr. Plasker. Doing either too quickly causes your stomach to swell; this irritates your diaphragm, which contracts and causes hiccups. You may also get hiccups in emotional situations or if your body experiences a sudden temperature change. In both of these cases, the hiccups are a result of a glitch in your nerve pathways, which is why a sudden scare which might shake up and reset your nerves can sometimes end an episode.

Itches


According to Dr. Plasker, our skin most often gets itchy because of dryness associated with the environment or over-washing; water and soap can strip skin of its natural oils, thus sapping moisture. Face or body lotion should be able to keep these types of itches under control; also look for body washes and soaps labeled. If you still have itchy patches, you may be experiencing an allergic reaction to a chemical, plant, food, animal or drug. See an allergist if the itching is persistent.

Limbs falling asleep

When there is consistent pressure on part of a limb-like when you sit on your feet or rest your head on an arm, the pressure squeezes your nerve pathways and scrambles messages sent to your brain. The mixed messages make you lose feeling in the squished body part because your brain has trouble telling it what to do. To prevent a case of pins and needles, avoid sitting or lying in positions that compress your nerves.

Seeing Stars


If you stand too quickly, suffer a blow to the head or are stricken by a migraine, there is a good chance you will see stars as blood surges to different parts of your body. Generally these tiny flashes of light will fade in a few seconds. If you see stars for more than a few moments, you could have a tear or tiny clot in your retina, and you should consult a physician immediately.

Shivers


Shivering, says Dr. Plasker, is full-body muscle twitching. When your temperature drops too low, your body shakes all over in an attempt to generate heat. The only way to cure these kind of shivers is to get your temperature back to 98.6°F.

Sneezes


Sneezes happen when your body is trying to expel an irritant from the nasal cavity. If you have allergies, pollen or pet dander is usually to blame. If you have a cold, your body makes mucus to trap the virus, and sneezing helps force it (and the sickness) out of your body. An over-the-counter allergy or cold medicine helps suppress your reaction to allergens or reduce mucus production, which should prevent sneezing fits.

Stomach Rumbles



As food, liquid and gas move through your digestive tract, your stomach muscles and intestines contract and cause rumbling noises borborygmi is the scientific name. Everyone’s stomach makes noise during digestion, but if you have extra-loud rumbles, a teaspoon of olive oil or a cup of herbal tea with lemon may help ease them, says Dr. Plasker.

Yawns

If your body is low on oxygen, your mouth opens wide and tries to suck more in. Yawning is a way to regulate the amount of carbon dioxide and oxygen in your blood. Unfortunately, yawns are nearly impossible to stifle.

How the Flu Works

Every winter, like clockwork, the flu returns. It infects millions of us -- about 5 to 20 percent of the U.S. population alone, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Health Canada estimates that 10 to 25 percent of Canadians get the flu each year. It leaves us sniffling, sneezing, coughing, achy and generally feeling miserable for anywhere from a few days to a few weeks.

What is the Flu?
The flu is a respiratory illness caused by the influenza virus. The flu is not the same as a cold, although they share many of the same symptoms. The cold is caused by a different virus, and it tends to have milder symptoms than the flu. Colds are also less likely to cause serious complications.

Flu symptoms can include any or all of the following:

Coughing
Sneezing
Fever
Body aches
Runny nose and/or congestion
Tiredness

These symptoms, although uncomfortable, are generally not dangerous. But the flu also weakens the immune system, leaving it vulnerable to more serious infections. High-risk individuals (see Who is at Risk?) in particular are susceptible to serious complications, such as:

Bacterial pneumonia
Dehydration
Sinus problems and ear infections (primarily in children)
Worsening of preexisting conditions, such as asthma or diabetes

How do People Get the Flu?

Flu season in North America runs from November through March, but dates can vary from year to year. January and February tend to be the most active flu months.

The "Stomach Flu"
The term "stomach flu" is actually a misnomer. Vomiting, diarrhea and stomach aches can be caused by a virus, but they are rarely related to the flu. The flu is a respiratory illness, not a gastrointestinal one.

How is the flu spread?
The flu is highly contagious. It is spread primarily by coughing and sneezing (which people who have the flu tend to do a lot of). Let's say you have the flu virus. Every time you cough or sneeze, you release tiny droplets of fluid into the air. Those tiny droplets can fly pretty far -- up to 3 feet (about 1 meter). If some of those droplets land on the nose or mouth of a person standing nearby, that person is likely to get as sick as you are, usually within one to four days. You can also spread the virus if you touch something (like a doorknob or table) after you've sneezed or coughed into your hand, and then other people come along and touch the same doorknob or table and put their hand on their nose or mouth.

If you have the flu, you're not just contagious when you have symptoms. You can pass along the virus one day before you start sniffling and sneezing, and you can keep passing it along for seven days after you start sniffling and sneezing. Children can be contagious even beyond the seven days.

Who is at Risk?
Anyone can get the flu, but some groups are more susceptible than others and are at greater risk for more serious complications or even death.
Risk groups include:

Children under the age of 2 (whose immune system is not yet fully developed)
Seniors over the age of 65 (most flu deaths are among seniors)
Anyone who has a chronic medical condition (such as asthma or diabetes)
Pregnant women
Health care workers
Nursing home residents

How Can You Treat the Flu?

Unfortunately, there isn't a pill or a liquid you can take that will "cure" you of the flu. Penicillin and other antibiotics won't work, because they only kill bacteria, and the flu is caused by a virus.
There are, however, a few approved antiviral drugs, including Symmetrel®, Flumadine®, Relenza® and Tamiflu®, that have been shown to shorten the duration of the illness.

Relenza® (zanamivir) and Tamiflu® (oseltamivir phosphate) are neuraminidase inhibitors. They work by blocking the action of a protein called neuraminidase, which sits on the surface of a cell and normally helps the influenza virus enter and leave the cell. Neuraminidase inhibitors trap the virus once it enters a cell.

By stopping the virus from spreading to other cells, Relenza® and Tamiflu® lessen the severity and shorten the duration of the flu infection.

Symmetrel® and Flumadine® also lessen the severity and shorten the duration of the flu, but they only work against influenza A. Both are antiviral medications that work by stopping the virus from replicating.

All four drugs are by prescription only and do have potential side effects, so they should only be taken with the advice of a doctor.

The best advice for treating the flu is to rest and drink plenty of liquids. Over-the-counter cold and flu remedies can alleviate some of the symptoms, at least temporarily. Aspirin may relieve fever and aches, but it should not be given to children and adolescents because of the risk of a rare but potentially dangerous illness called Reye's Syndrome.

How Can You Avoid Getting the Flu?

Experts say the best way to avoid catching the flu is to practice good hygiene during flu season. Here are a couple of tips:
Wash your hands throughout the day with warm water and soap.
Avoid anyone who is coughing or sneezing.
If you do get sick, you can avoid infecting others if you:

Stay home until you're feeling better.
Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue whenever you cough or sneeze.
If you have to sneeze or cough into your hands, wash them thoroughly afterward with warm water and soap.
Remember that you can spread the flu for up to seven days after you get sick, so be careful with your germs even after most of your symptoms have passed.
In the next section, we'll take a look at the flu vaccine and see how it wards off this illness.

The Flu Vaccine
Another way to prevent the flu is by getting a vaccine at the beginning of each flu season (October or November). The earlier you get vaccinated the better, because it takes about two weeks for the vaccine to take its full protective effect. Children under the age of 9 who have never had a flu shot especially need to get an early start, because they will need to have two vaccinations administered about one month apart.

The flu vaccine works by triggering your body's immune system response. When you get a flu vaccine, your body recognizes the flu virus as a foreign invader and produces antibodies to it. The next time your body encounters the flu virus, it will remember that it is a hostile invader and quickly launch an immune attack to kill off the virus.

But if your body remembers the virus, why do you need to get a flu shot every year? First, because flu strains differ from year to year; and second, because immunity declines over time.

The flu vaccine comes in two forms: a shot and a nasal spray.

Reference : www.howstuffworks.com