Symptoms of GI bleeding can include:

- Rapid heart rate.

- Pains in the chest.

- Respiratory difficulty.

- Pale skin.

- Presence of blood in the stool.

- Vomiting of blood.

- Low blood pressure.

- Dizziness

- Anemia.

As you lose fluid, your heart rate increases to ensure blood is being supplied to the vital organs. If blood volume is lowered, it also means that there is less oxygen available resulting in breathing problems.

Causes:

Heartburn:

The presence of blood in the GI tract can also be attributed to repeated contact of stomach acids with the esophageal lining. This is most evident in heartburn symptoms. Heartburn is caused by reflux of gastric acids into the esophagus as a result of improper closure of the lower esophageal sphincter, or LES.

If the lining of the stomach is being repeatedly exposed to stomach acid, it can result in bleeding and scar tissue may form.

Esophageal Varicies:

Bleeding in the intestinal tract can also be due to unusually enlarged veins in the lower esophagus that rupture and hemorrhage. The enlarged veins are most often due to blocked or restricted blood flow to the liver.

This leads to blood backing up into the esophagus, including the rectum and stomach, causing them to become engorged with blood. If not treated, engorged vessels will eventually burst and massive bleeding can result.

Stomach ulcers:

The stomach is naturally protected from gastric acids due to secretion of a mucous lining. However, if this mucous lining is reduced it can allow the development of an ulcer to form on the stomach wall. Stomach ulcers can become inflamed, leading to erosion into a blood vessel and subsequent bleeding.

However, one may have referred pain to the abdomen i.e. the pain may start from somewhere else, like your chest or pelvic area. You may also have a generalized infection, such as the flu or strep throat, that affects many parts of your body. So, keeping in mind the various organs in the abdomen, the possible causes include appendicitis (inflammation of the appendix), bowel obstruction, Cholecystitis (inflammation of the gallbladder) with or without gallstones, Chronic constipation, Dissecting abdominal aortic aneurysm, Diverticular disease, including diverticulitis, Early-stage shingles (a viral infection where pain begins before the appearance of a rash), Excessive gas, Food allergy, Food poisoning (salmonella, shigella), Gastroesophageal reflux, Heartburn or indigestion, Obstructed Hernia, Infectious mononucleosis, Inflammatory bowel disease (Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis), Intussusception — while uncommon, this is a serious possible cause of pain in an infant who may be bringing the knees to the chest and crying, Irritable bowel syndrome, Kidney stones, Lactose intolerance, Pancreatitis (inflammation of the pancreas), Parasitic infections (Giardia), Sickle cell crisis, Spinal fracture, Ulcers, Urinary tract infections, Viral gastroenteritis (stomach flu) etc.

The treatment depends on the whether there is mild inflammation, infection or involvement of the intestines etc requiring surgery. Abdominal pain without fever, vomiting, vaginal bleeding, passing out, chest pain, or other serious symptoms often gets better without special treatment. Taking rest, light home diet, fluids and anti-inflammatory like Tylenol/ibuprofen, antacids are treatment enough in such cases. In severe pain not improving with time and home care, a doctor evaluation is needed. Then depending on the cause, appropriate antibiotics or intravenous fluids/injections can be given. In cases like appendicitis, intestinal obstruction etc, immediate surgery is needed.

Abdominal Pain is also known by other name “Bellyache”. It can be defined in a simple way as pain in the belly. The abdomen extends from below your chest to your groin. You may feel abdominal pain anywhere between your chest and groin. Abdominal pain is a common problem. Due to the many organ systems in the abdomen the pain may arise in any of the organ from chest to groin. These organs include the stomach, small intestine, colon, liver, gall bladder, and pancreas. However, pain can be mild or serious which may put you into health dilemma. Abdomen pain can be classified into two categories namely acute abdomen pain and chronic abdomen pain. The causes of abdominal pain also rely on sex and age of the patient. An abdominal pain can be easily caused to small children and adults too. The abdominal pain usually is used to explain pain originating from organs within the abdominal cavity.

The pain caused by the abdomen may be mild or serious. It is said in abdominal pain that the pain can be minor which may lead to threatening condition, such as colon cancer or appendicitis. Severe abdominal pain can be from light situations, such as gastric problem or viral gastroenteritis.

Acute abdomen can be defined as stern, constant abdominal pain of sudden start that is probable to involve surgical intervention to treat its cause. Often the lower abdominal pain can be linked with nausea and vomiting, abdominal distention, fever and signs of shock. Even a small child or an adolescent are prone to abdominal pain. It is difficult to apportion the ratio of abdominal pain in accordance to the age of a person.

Consult your doctor immediately if feeling mild or severe pain. Medical aid should be taken if the abdominal pain is sudden and sharp, having pain in the chest, neck or shoulder, and if you are eliminating blood from your body.

Thus, abdominal pain should be taken care of within time. Don’t take the stomach ache or belly ache to lightly as then it can invite serious health problems. Make a habit to enhance a healthy eating lifestyle blending with fruits or juice in good of your healthy abdomen.

Source

There is a wide spectrum of severity within the disease. Some sufferers only rarely experience symptoms, usually in response to triggers. Whereas other more severe cases may have marked airflow obstruction at all times.

It exists in two states: the chronic steady-state and the acute state of an exacerbation. The attacks are different depending on what state the patient is in.

Signs of an episode include wheezing, prolonged expiration, a rapid heart rate and lung sounds (audible through a stethoscope). During a serious attack there may be the presence of a pulse that is weaker during inhalation and stronger during exhalation plus over-inflation of the chest.

A sufferer can turn blue from lack of oxygen and can experience chest pain or even loss of consciousness. There is a chance that the patient will feel numbness in the limbs and palms may start to sweat just before slipping into unconsciousness. The person’s feet may become icy cold.

Allergy practitioners are a great resource and are generally very competent in critical areas that impact asthma patients. Their particular niche keeps them abreast of what the current challenges are within a particular area or geographic location. And as they are familiar with environmental complications that asthma sufferers are encountering throughout the year (seasonal allergies, outbreaks of flu, pollen blooms, pollution alerts, etc), they hold a frontline position in the army of asthma doctors and practitioners.

Common symptoms of asthma in a steady-state include: nighttime coughing, shortness of breath with exertion but not at rest. Others are a chronic ‘throat-clearing’ type cough and complaints of a tight feeling in the chest. Severity often correlates to an increase in all of the above. They can worsen gradually and unnoticed.

A point worthy of note is - not all sufferers wheeze. Between attacks there may be no asthma signs and symptoms.

The physiotherapist will begin the assessment by reading the patient’s observation charts and medical notes to familiarize themselves with the doctor’s treatments, diagnosis and prognosis. The physiotherapist will be familiar with the usual values for the typical respiratory blood tests. The physiotherapist introduces themselves and asks the patient about their illness whilst observing the patient to acquire useful information. The effort the patient makes to breathe, the use of neck or arm muscles to help make breathing easier, the patient’s weight, how well they look, the rate per minute of their breaths, the use of treatments such as oxygen, the colour of the extremities and the face, all these things give useful information and help with the objective examination.

Having gathered a lot of information very efficiently by observation the physiotherapist can then decide what form the objective examination should take. The patient’s lung expansion and air entry are assessed by the physiotherapist feeling the rise of the ribs with their hands and deciding if it is normal and the same on both sides. Listening to the chest via stethoscope indicates the status of air entry to the peripheral airways, whether there are any areas of consolidation, collapse or bronchospasm giving wheeze. This part of the assessment will indicate how much further investigation is needed and what treatments might be indicated.

Initial treatment concentrates on deciding whether the patient is getting the correct concentration of oxygen. If the patient’s oxygen saturation is low then oxygen could be prescribed at a particular percentage such as 24% or 28% through a specific device which ensures the correct percentage. The correct oxygen level is extremely important to maintain before any other treatments are attempted as too much or too little oxygen administration can be harmful. Due to the drying effects of constant gas delivery the oxygen should be humidified through a system which heats the gas as it humidifies it.

The physiotherapist will then move on to the efficiency of air entry into the lung peripheral airways, as the airways can become blocked by sputum from infections or may collapse down. This compromises air entry and reduces the patient’s ability to maintain blood oxygen levels. Breathing exercises are taught initially by the physiotherapist to attempt clearance and re-inflation of the collapsed airways and if that is not successful then IPPB (Intermittent Positive Pressure Breathing) can be used. IPPB uses a machine to force air at a controlled volume into the patient’s lungs at a greater volume than they can do themselves.

Many respiratory problems are the result of temporary problems. This can be a cold, or even some forms of the flu. Such infections are caused by bacteria or viruses, and they usually need to be combated by medications. We call these viruses and bacteria “germs,” and they can be caught from other infected people. Sometimes you have to touch the person directly, and other times all you need to do is breathe in the air that has germs in it. In any cases, it can cause very unpleasant symptoms, including fever, sweats, chills, and inflammation. Plenty of rest and fluids are needed, in addition to prescribed medications, to cure such respiratory problems.

Other respiratory problems are of a more permanent nature. Asthma is one of the most common respiratory problems. This usually shows up in youth, and affects the way that you breathe. Strenuous activity can cause the airway to close, making it difficult to breathe. Most people who have asthma have inhalers that distribute steroids, or they take them orally. This helps the airway open back up so that the person with asthma can breathe more easily. Many people learn to control their asthma well enough to play sports. One of the Olympic gold medallists in swimming is asthmatic.

Other respiratory problems are the results of carcinogens getting into the lungs. One of the emerging problems of this nature involves asbestos. This type of poisoning ruins the lungs and makes them inoperable. People who worked with buildings back in the 50s and 60s are just now finding out that this dormant carcinogen is awakening to wreak havoc with their lungs. Another carcinogen caused disease is emphysema. While this disease does exist without smoking, most people who develop it either smoked at one point, or were around smoke, especially cigarette smoke, a great deal.

Now we are finding out that air pollution can aggravate any of the above respiratory problems. What we have done to our air, especially in the more polluted cities, is actually causing higher instances of asthma and could possibly contribute to increased rates of emphysema in non-smokers. It is important to be careful when it comes to going outside in air pollution.

Depending on where the hypersensitivity reaction takes place and how many antibodies or lymphocytes are involved, the consequences may vary from sudden, life-threatening episodes to delayed ones that cause inflammation in just one part of the body.

In dogs and cats, most hypersensitivity reactions that result from eating foods cause either skin disease (characterized by scratching) or various gastrointestinal (GI) signs such as diarrhea and/or vomiting. Sometimes both the skin and the GI tract are affected in animals that have a food allergy, but many animals with food hypersensitivity have either skin or GI signs but not both.

The GI signs of food allergy sometimes occur immediately after eating (i.e., immediate-type hypersensitivity reactions). However, food allergy in pets is more commonly a . ‘delayed” hypersensitivity reaction, meaning that the consequences arise hours or days after eating the food and then persist for hours or days after each exposure. Because most pets eat the offending antigens every day, GI signs tend to be more or less constant.

There is seldom a clear-cut association between eating and the onset of signs, making it hard to determine that eating a particular food is causing the disease. To help diagnose this problem, we can look for microscopic changes on small pieces of intestine obtained by doing surgery or by passing a long instrument from the outside into the stomach. However, changes that suggest allergy (i.e., eosinophilic inflammation) are usually a form of inflammation.

Inflammation caused by food allergies usually resembles that caused by other diseases. The best way to diagnose a food allergy is to feed the pet a hypoallergenic diet (i.e., a therapeutic dietary trial) and see if the problems disappear.

When performing a therapeutic trial for a food allergy, the diet must be carefully chosen. Because there is no one diet that is hypoallergenic for all pets, one must design or find a diet that is appropriate for each animal.

The pet may be allergic to almost any component of its current diet; therefore, we want foodstuffs that the pet has not eaten before. We usually choose a diet that

(1) contains as few ingredients as possible,

(2) contains foodstuffs that we know the pet has not eaten in the past (and hence is unlikely to be allergic to), and

(3) contains foodstuffs that we know hardly ever cause allergic reactions (e.g., potato, rice).

Because some patients that are allergic to multiple antigens require a strict hypoallergenic diet, homemade diets are sometimes needed. Although inconvenient and restrictive, they are often the most successful in treating the allergy. Most homemade diets are not balanced but are adequate for use in mature animals for the 2 to 4 months when the animal is having the trial. We have to make many assumptions when we choose these diets, and it is possible that the pet is allergic to something unexpected.

When such a dietary trial is begun, it is imperative that absolutely nothing else be fed. Even flavored pills or toys can contain enough antigens to cause signs of food allergy to persist. The dietary trial must be performed long enough to allow the clinical signs of delayed-type hypersensitivity to disappear.

Some patients evidence improvement within a day of dietary change, whereas others require 4 to 8 weeks before improvement is seen. If a patient has a dietary allergy, it may have a genetic predisposition to allergy and may eventually become allergic to the ingredients of the hypoallergenic diet that it responded to well at first.

Thus when it combines with Echinacea it should called Echinacea & Goldenseal

Echinacea & Goldenseal Description:

Vcaps Wild countryside echinacea purpurea root and echinacea angustifolia root plus goldenseal root. Including e - d - s, an enzyme delivery system from 100% plant sources. Available in easy-to-swallow vegetable capsules for maximum assimilation and absorption.

Echinacea is a Native American plant, occupying the number one spot as the most popular herb in the United States with an almost 10% market share. This herb has a reputed ability to increase the immune system response and thereby ward off colds, flu and other infectious respiratory problems.

Health Benefits of Echinacea

Goldenseal has long been valued for its ability to soothe inflamed or infected mucous membranes. It is found in popular herbal blends for taming intestinal and gallbladder inflammation. Traditional Chinese healers give goldenseal (berberine, specifically) to cancer patients whose immune systems are weakened as a result of chemotherapy treatments. Its even being explored as a treatment for liver disorders.

Goldenseal may help to:

* Curtail colds, flu and other respiratory infections. If you feel that you may be developing a cold or the flu, take some goldenseal at once. The herb has both anti-infective and immune-system stimulating properties that may shorten the course of the illness. Goldenseal is often combined with echinacea for this purpose. In addition, because goldenseal can soothe mucous membranes, gargling with a tincture (diluted in warm water) or drinking the tea may relieve a sore throat.

* Combat infections of the urinary tract and vaginal area. Goldenseal may help in controlling urinary tract infections if taken at the first signs of infection. Along with reducing inflammation, drinking goldenseal tea can also help to flush bacteria away from the urinary tract. In addition, a goldenseal douche may be useful for vaginal yeast infections. There are also goldenseal vaginal suppositories commercially available.

* Treat eye complaints. Historically, goldenseal has been used for a variety of eye infections, including conjunctivitis (pinkeye). The eyes mucous membranes respond particularly well to an eyewash made of cooled goldenseal tea.

Control canker sores. These painful sites of viral infection–often the result of stress or local trauma–may resolve more quickly under the influence of goldenseals anti-infective and soothing actions. The herb can be taken internally or dabbed directly onto canker sores.

Forms

Tincture, Tablet, Suppository, Softgel, Powder, Ointment, Liquid, Dried herb/tea, Cream, Capsule,

General Interaction

There are no known drug or nutrient interactions associated with goldenseal.

If you like to have the latest in state-of-the-art technology, then an ionic air purifier might be a good choice for an air purification system in your home.

The ionic air purifier first took center stage with a huge marketing effort by the large cataloger and retailer Shaper Image, with their Ionic Breeze Air Purifier.

While similar technology for air purification had existed before, Sharper Image made some advancements in design and had the marketing muscle to make their purification systems a household name in no time.

Since the Sharper Image brand of ionic purification systems was introduced, there are now other companies as well that market similar air purifiers which operate on the same basic premise.

Unlike the more traditional and common HEPA air cleaners, the ionic purifiers do not use filters as the main way of removing particulates from the air.

Instead, ionic purification technology relies on the use of electrostatic plates to apply charge to the pollutants in the atmosphere of the home. When the charged particles pass through the unit, they are electrostatically attracted to collector blades inside the unit. Then the indoor pollutants can be simply wiped off the collection blades for easy disposal of the contaminants.

Another difference between the ionic purification technology and the typical HEPA ones is that these units do not depend on fans to circulate the air, but instead use the electrostatic technology to pull air through the device.

This allows the air purifiers to operate virtually in silence. They can run continuously without adding to the noise level in the home and consequently, cause no interference with sleep.

Because of the lack of fans in the ionic purification systems, these machines are also extremely energy efficient, using much less electricity to operate on a daily basis than their counterparts with blowers.

This helps to greatly lower the cost of operating these units and since air purifiers must be run everyday around the clock, this can add up to significant savings over the course of a year.

Another area of savings that you will enjoy by using an ionic air purifier, is that no replacement filters will ever be needed. With HEPA purification systems, the filters must be replaced on a regular basis in order to maintain a high level of efficiency and effectiveness in pulling the dangerous pollutants from the air. This cost can add up greatly over the life of the machine.

The ionic air purifier units are more expensive than the HEPA filtered units, but over time, you will save money in ongoing operation and maintenance costs.

There are some refurbished units available that can save you some money, as well as smaller units that are less expensive that could be used in the area of the home where you spend the bulk of your time. There are also other ionic purification systems on the market that claim to offer better value, such as the Ionic Pro purifier.

In order to enjoy the best effectiveness from the ionic air purifier that you have in your house, you should always be sure to keep the house closed up, leaving doors and windows sealed. What this does is help the purifier to be able to remove the most contaminants from the trapped air.

Of all the muscles in the body, the muscles we use to breathe are the only ones over which we have dual control; that is, they can work both automatically and voluntarily. In healthy people, breathing in and out happens automatically but, when necessary, we can also control it. We do this, for example, to avoid inhaling smoke and fumes, when singing, or when swimming under water.

How We Breathe

The respiratory system is made up of the rib cage and intercostal muscles, the diaphragm - a sheet of muscle between the chest and stomach - and the respiratory tract, which comprises the airways and lungs.

When we breathe, the muscles in the thorax that link the ribs contract, pulling the ribs up and out. The diaphragm pulls the chest cavity down, and together these two processes cause the lungs to expand. Cold air is drawn in through the nose where it is warmed and then taken down into the lungs. When enough air has been inhaled successfully (which is called inspiration), the muscles and diaphragm relax and the air is exhaled as the lungs compress (called expiration). Then the diaphragm contracts once more and the cycle begins again.

When the air passes through the nose it enters the trachea (the windpipe) and the bronchi, Which are small airways that run through each lung.These bronchi become smaller and smaller, eventually taking the form of bronchioles, which end as tiny air sacs called alveoli. The alveoli are linked to blood capillaries, which exchange oxygen and carbon dioxide at a very quick rate.

On average we take about 12 breaths per minute, and that rate is controlled by the body according to its needs at a particular point in time. If there is too carbon dioxide and too little oxygen, the rate of respiration will increase and the body will gulp or gasp for air. This may, for example, occur during strenuous exercise, an asthma attack, or in fright. When the levels of oxygen and carbon dioxide return to normal, breathing returns to its normal rate of respiration.

When we are stressed, we may breathe at an accelerated rate. Rapid breathing is a general response to stress, and it leads to overall tension of the muscles and eventually dizziness, faintness, and a sensation of pins and needles caused by metabolic changes in the body. Overbreathing causes the concentration of carbon dioxide in the alveoli of the lungs to fall, leading to a buildup of alkali in the bloodstream and tissue fluid. This alkalosis produces the symptoms outlined above.

When we breathe normally, and efficiently, we use our diaphragm, which contracts and becomes flat, increasing the space in the chest into which the lungs can expand. When lungs are able to expand to their full capacity, all residual carbon dioxide is expelled and more oxygen can be inhaled. Many adults have to relearn breathing because of lifelong bad habits.

A variety of disorders - physical injury, infections, viruses, allergies, and diseases - can disrupt and endanger the normal breathing processes.