Facts About Cigarette Smoking

Question:

What are the effects of cigarette smoking?

Answers:

Many people smoke because they believe cigarettes calm their nerves, smoking releases epinephrine, a hormone which creates physiological stress in the smoker, rather than relaxation. The use of tobacco is addictive. Most users develop tolerance for nicotine and need greater amounts to produce a desired effect. Smokers become physically and psychologically dependent and will suffer withdrawal symptoms including: changes in body temperature, heart rate, digestion, muscle tone, and appetite. Psychological symptoms include: irritability, anxiety, sleep disturbances, nervousness, headaches, fatigue, nausea, and cravings for tobacco that can last days, weeks, months, years, or an entire lifetime. Risks associated with smoking cigarettes are the following:

• diminished or extinguished sense of smell and taste
• frequent colds
• smoker’s cough
• gastric ulcers
• chronic bronchitis
• increase in heart rate and blood pressure
• premature and more abundant face wrinkles
• emphysema
• heart disease
• stroke
• cancer of the mouth, larynx, pharynx, esophagus, lungs, pancreas, cervix, uterus, and bladder

Cigarette smoking is perhaps the most devastating preventable cause of disease and premature death. Smoking is particularly dangerous for teens because their bodies are still developing and changing and the 4,000 chemicals (including 200 known poisons) in cigarette smoke can adversely affect this process. Cigarettes are highly addictive. One-third of young people who are just “experimenting” end up being addicted by the time they are 20.

About Alcohol and Alcohol Drinking Problem

Questions:

What is alcohol drinking problem? Is it the same as alcoholism? How to distinguish a person with alcohol drinking problem?

Answers:

Alcohol drinking problem (also know as alcohol abuse) is a pattern of drinking problem that results in health consequences, social, problems, or both. However, alcohol dependence, or alcoholism, refers to a disease that is characterized by abnormal alcohol-seeking behavior that leads to impaired control over drinking. Short-term effects of alcohol use include:

• distorted vision, hearing, and coordination
• altered perceptions and emotions
• impaired judgment
• bad breath; hangovers
• long-term effects of heavy alcohol use include:
• loss of appetite
• vitamin deficiencies
• stomach ailments
• skin problems
• sexual impotence
• liver damage
• heart and central nervous system damage
• memory loss

Now, how will you know if you or someone close to you, has a drinking problem? Here are some signs to observe and take a look:

• Inability to control drinking – it seems that regardless of what you decide beforehand, you frequently wind up drunk.
• Using alcohol to escape problems.
• A change in personality – turning from Dr. Jekyl to Mr. Hyde.
• A high tolerance level–drinking just about everybody under the table.
• Blackouts–sometimes not remembering what happened while drinking.
• Problems at work or in school as a result of drinking.
• oncern shown by family and friends about drinking.

If you have a drinking problem, or if you suspect you have a drinking problem,  you can either ask doctor online or personally for some guidance or counselling.

Benefits Of Online Medical Consultation

Medical consultation online service (other known as “telemedicine” service) is a great and very convenient resource for those who have limited or no health insurance, who are too sick to leave the house to go to the doctor’s (where other sick people are!), and those who are away from home often. This is also ideal for those people who are always on the go and have no time to go to ask a doctor for a medical certificate for work or school. Medical consultation online is also convenient for those who are paying too much for basic medical care by making repeat visits to the doctor’s office for acute simple conditions such as sinusitis, bronchitis, athletes foot, and many other simple illness. This type of service also comes in handy when a patient is embarrassed by a certain medical condition, and would prefer to ask doctor online.

Medical consultation online services providing many of the services that regular doctors’ offices provide, but offer lower costs and the ability to obtain service from the doctor via phone or internet. Plus, online medical consultations and prescriptions are available wherever you happen to have internet access and a computer or other internet-connecting device, and are available 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. Pacific Standard Time, Monday through Sunday, eliminating the need to wait in lines, sit with other sick people in waiting rooms, or schedule appointments at the office’s convenience.

With online medical consultation, and through the services provided by the online doctor prescription, you choose where and when you get your consultation. Any sort of minor medical condition, such as colds, flu, ear infections, rashes, insomnia, and other simple illness are treatable through online medical consultation.

What Is Medical Consultation?

A medical consultation is a consultation which takes place between an employee and a licensed physician for the purpose of determining what medical examinations or procedures, if any, are appropriate in cases where a significant exposure to a hazardous chemical may have taken place. Medical consultation is important because it is the main opportunity for the doctor to explore the patient’s problems and concerns and to start to identify the reasons for their ill health. Traditionally, medical history-taking has been based on a conventional medical model and assumed that disease can be fully accounted for by deviations from normal biological function. It gave little consideration for the social, psychological and behavioral dimensions of illness.

Medical consultation starts by preparing for the consultation. You should plan for an optimal setting in which to conduct the interview. In general practice or in the outpatient department, the consulting room should be quiet and free from interruptions. Patients often find that the clinical setting stokes up anxiety and thought should be given to making the environment welcoming and relaxing. For example, arrange the patient’s seat close to yours, rather than confronting them across a desk. Hospital wards can be busy and noisy, and it may be difficult to prevent your consultation being overheard and maintain confidentiality. If possible, therefore, try and find a quiet room in which to talk to the patient. If you consult with a patient at the bedside, sit in a chair alongside the bed, not on the bed, and ensure the is comfortable and able to engage with you without straining.

It is important to establish rapport and put the patient at ease in first meeting with a patient . It’s a chance for you to demonstrate from the outset your respect, interest and concern for them. You should greet the patient, introduce yourself and clarify your role, giving the patient an outline of what your intentions are. It may sometimes be appropriate to give an idea of how long the interview might take. Communication consists not only of verbal discourse but also includes body language, especially facial expression and eye contact. The first contact should also be used to obtain or confirm the patient’s name and to check how they prefer to be called. Some people like to be addressed by their first name, while the others may prefer the use of their surname.

Next, identify the problems and concerns. Begin by asking the patient to outline their problems and concerns by using an open-ended question (e.g. ‘Tell me, what has brought you to the doctor today?’). Open-ended questions are designed to introduce an area of enquiry but allow the patient opportunity to answer in their own way and shape the content of their response. Closed questions require a specific ‘yes’ or ‘no’ response. Remember that patients often have more than one concern they wish to raise and discuss. The order of their problems may not relate to their importance from either the patient’s or doctor’s perspective. It is therefore particularly important in this opening phase not to interrupt the patient as this might inhibit the disclosure of important information. Research has shown that doctors often fail to allow patients to complete their opening statements uninterrupted and yet, when allowed to proceed without interruption, most people do so in less then 60 seconds.

Once the problems have been identified, it is worth reflecting on whether you have understood the patient correctly; this can be achieved by repeating a summary back to them. It is also good practice to check for additional concerns: ‘Is there anything else you would like to discuss?’ You may write down a summary of the patient’s comments, but constantly maintain eye contact and avoid becoming too immersed in writing (or using a computer keyboard).