Amyloidosis

                                                               Amyloidosis

The Build-up of amyloid proteins in the heart, kidney, liver or other organs. Amyloidosis is when an abnormal protein called amyloid builds up in your tissues and organs. When it does, it affects their shape and how they work. Amyloidosis is a serious health problem that can lead to life-threatening organ failure. 

Causes & types pf Amyloidosis:

  Many different proteins can lead to amyloid deposits, but only a few have been linked to major health problems. The type of protein and where it collects tells the type of amyloidosis you have. Amyloid deposits may collect throughout your body or in just one area. 

 The different proteins include:

   Al amyloidosis(immunoglobulin light chain amyloidosis).
  This is the most common type and used to be called primary amyloidosis. AL stands for amyloid light chains, which is the type of protein responsible for the condition. There's no known cause, but it happens when your bone marrow makes abnormal antibodies that can't be broken down. It's linked with a blood cancer called multiple myeloma. It can affect your kidneys, heart, liver, intestines, and nerves. 

  AA amyloidosis.

  Previously known as secondary amyloidosis, this condition is the result of other chronic infectious or inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn's disease, or ulcerative colitis. It mostly affects your kidneys, but it can also upset your digestive tract, liver, and heart. AA means the amyloid type A protein causes this type. 

Dialysis-related amyloidosis(DRA):

  This is more common in older adults and people who have been on dialysis for more than 5 years. This form of amyloidosis is caused by deposits of beta-2 microglobulin that build up in the blood. Deposits can build up in many different tissues, but it most commonly affects bones, joints, and tendon. 

Familial, or hereditary, amyloidosis:

  This is a rare form passed down through families. It often affects the liver, nerves, heart, and kidneys. Many genetic defects are linked to a higher chance of amyloid disease, for example, abnormal protein-like transthyretin (TTR) can be the cause. 

Age-related (senile) systemic amyloidosis:

 This is caused by deposits of normal TTR in the heart and other tissues. It happens most commonly in older men.  

Organ-specific amyloidosis:

 This causes the deposit of amyloid protein in single organs, including the skin (cutaneous amyloidosis ). Though some types of amyloid deposits have been linked to Alzheimer's disease, the brain is rarely affected by amyloidosis that happens throughout your body. 

Risk factors for amyloidosis:

  Men get amyloidosis more often than women. Your risk for amyloidosis goes up as you grow older. amyloidosis affects 15% of patients with a form of cancer called multiple myeloma. amyloidosis may also happen in people with end-stage kidney disease who are on dialysis for a long time. 

Symptoms of amyloidosis:

 Symptoms of amyloidosis are often subtle. They can also vary greatly depending on where the amyloid protein is collecting in the body. It is important to note that the symptoms described below may be due to a variety of health problems.

General symptoms of amyloidosis may include:

  Symptoms of amyloidosis are often subtle. They can also vary greatly depending on where the amyloid protein is collecting in the body. It is important to note that the symptoms described below may be due to various health problems. 

General symptoms:

  - Changes in skin color
  - Severe fatigue 
  - Feeling of fullness
  - Joint pain
  - Low red blood cell count(Anemia)
  - Shortness of breath 
  - Swelling fo the tongue
  - Tingling and numbness in legs and feet
  - Weak hand grip
  - Severe weakness
  - Sudden weight loss

 Cardiac (Heart) Amyloidosis:

 Amyloid deposits in the heart can make the walls of the heart muscle stiff. They can also make the heart muscle weaker and affect the electrical rhythm of the heart. This condition can cause less blood to flow to your heart. Eventually, your heart will no longer be able to pump normally. if amyloidosis affects your heart, may have:
 - Shortness of breath with light activity
 - An irregular heartbeat
 - Signs of heart failure, including swelling of the feet and ankles, weakness, fatigue, and nausea, among others.

Renal Amyloidosis:

 Kidneys filter waste and toxins from your blood. Amyloid deposits in the kidneys make it hard for them to do this job. When kidneys do not work properly, water and dangerous toxins build up in the body. If amyloidosis affects the kidneys, may here:
- Signs of kidney failure, including swelling of the feet and ankles and puffiness around the eyes
- High levels of protein in the urine.

Gastrointestinal Amyloidosis:

 Amyloid deposits along your gastrointestinal tract slow down the movement of food through the intestine. This interferes with digestion. If amyloidosis affects your GI tract, you may have:

- Less Appetit
- Diarrhea
- Nausea
- Stomach pain
- Weight loss

Amyloid Neuropathy:

 Amyloid deposits can damage the nerves outside your brain and spinal cord called the peripheral nerves. The peripheral nerves carry information between your brain and spinal cord and the rest of the body. Brain perceive pain if you burn your hand or stun your toes. If amyloidosis affects nerves:

- Balance problems 
- Problems controlling your bladder and bowel
- Sweating problems
- Tingling and weakness
- Lightheadedness when standing due to problems with your body's ability to control blood pressure.

Diagnosing Amyloidosis:

 A thorough physical exam and a detailed and accurate account of your medical history are crucial in helping your doctor diagnose amyloidosis. Blood and urine tests can spot abnormal proteins. 

 Depending on your symptoms, your doctor may also check your thyroid and liver. Biopsy to confirm a diagnosis of amyloidosis and know the specific type of protein you have. The tissue sample for the biopsy may be taken from your belly fat, bone marrow, or sometimes your mouth, rectum, or other organs. It's not always necessary to biopsy the part of the body damaged by the amyloid deposits. 

  Imaging tests can also help. they show the amount of damage to organs like your heart, liver, or spleen. 

 Amyloidosis can be deadly, especially if it affects your heart or kidneys. Early diagnosis and treatment are important and can help improve survival. 

 Researchers continue to question why some types of amyloid make people sick and how the formation of amyloid can be stopped.  

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Loneliness is good or bad?

                                             Loneliness

  Loneliness has clear consequences for mental health, aggravating anxiety, depression, and stress-related symptoms. Additionally, it sabotages our physical health. According to two leading researchers, loneliness triggers an inflammatory response and threatens our immune system. 

  The health consequences of loneliness have become of the focus of widespread public dialogue in recent years, as media such as The New York Times, Forbes and the BBC warn of a loneliness "epidemic". Britain's government appointed a new "minister for loneliness" in January to help address the health and social toll of loneliness. 

 Loneliness is distinct from the number of friends a person has or how much time he or she spends alone but is rather defined by a longing for greater social interaction. In other words, you are lonely when your appetite for social interaction is unsatisfied. So, just as you may be able to spend your days alone but never feel lonely, you could be constantly surrounded by friends and family yet still be wanting. 

 Just what makes loneliness so toxic? Scientists are looking for answers by delving into how to human body responds to feeling alienated. By concentrating on understanding the genetics and biological mechanisms involved, researchers are on the path to solutions, if not eradicate loneliness, then at least to blunt its harmful effects. 

  Those who study loneliness typically subscribe to one of two potential explanations, the first is that loneliness is a source fo stress, and stress is known to have a wide range of negative health consequences, including high blood pressure, sleeplessness, indigestion, and poor dietary habits. 

 This need to belongs is a fundamental part of being human. It's like the air we breath. we need oxygen and we need healthy, thriving relationships equally as much. Without these relationships, bad things result, including health problems. 

  One such bad thing types of research are focusing o is the impact of loneliness on immune response, particularly its role in chronic inflammation. Unlike acute inflammation, which people may experience as swelling and redness when they get a cut or are exposed to an allergen, chronic inflammation does not necessarily produce obvious symptoms, but signs of it can be detected via blood tests. 

Inflammatory molecules circulate throughout the body, including the brain. Chronic inflammation is one of the major fertilizers for many of the illnesses associated with loneliness, including heart disease, cancer, and neurodegenerative disorders. 

 Differences in the gene expression in the white blood cells of lonely people, compared with non- lonely people. Rather than being in the default anti- viral stance, the immune systems of lonely people appeared to be tipped in favor of producing inflammation.   

 One way of thinking about loneliness is it.. is constantly activating this defensive stance in our body that's getting us ready to be injured. This too may be adaptive, since when humans are alone, they are more vulnerable to predators and enemy attacks. 

 High levels of inflammation in chronically lonely people have led some researchers to wonder whether anti-inflammatory drugs, such as ibuprofen, could block the harmful effects of loneliness. 

  Conceptually, at least, this may be possible, Jarema says, but it does not address the underlying problems. If you were to, stop using those drugs, and you are still lonely, then you are going to experience high inflammation again, 

  Loneliness, after all, serves an important function, studying how much of loneliness is genetic. Professor of psychiatry and vice-chair of basic research explains loneliness may be a warning signal that motivates people to try to develop social links, in the same way, the pain of a burn motivates people to move away from a hot flame. 

 It's important to maintain social connections for child-rearing, for generating food, etc. It's important to be part of a group, He says so it's uncomfortable when you are failing to do that because that is actually a danger.' 

 Mental health America suggests a variety of options for combatting loneliness. Outdoor activities and experiencing nature support emotional wellbeing and decrease depression and anxiety. Taking classes of interest refreshes our mind and helps us make new connections. 

 The National Institutes of Health reminds us of the value of volunteering. Helping others is one of the best ways to break the cycle of loneliness. It also encourages us to practice gratitude, a habit strongly linked to happiness and wellbeing. Business leaders can create volunteer opportunities throughout the workplace to build teamwork and company morale. Badd habit of not taking advantage of fo their much-needed vacation time. Vacations are an essential way to reconnect with family and loved ones, especially since many families are spread out geographically in the U.S.A culture that makes employees feel guilty for using vacation time is counterproductive in the long run. 

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Thumb sucking

                                                Thumb sucking

 Thumb sucking is a behavior found in humans, chimpanzees, captive ring-tailed lemurs, and other primates. It usually involves placing the thumb into the mouth and rhythmically repeating sucking contact for a prolonged duration. It can also be accomplished with any organ within reach and is considered to be sooting and therapeutic for the person. As a child develops the habit, it will usually develop the habit, it will usually develop a favorite finger to suck on. 

 Thumb sucking is appropriate and useful behavior for every young child, "it allows them to comfort and entertain themselves."

  At birth, a baby will reflexively, suck any objects placed in its mouth, this is the sucking reflex, responsible for breastfeeding. From the very first time they engage in nutritive feeding, infants learn that the habit can not only provide valuable nourishment, but also a lot of pleasures, comfort, and warmth. Whether from a mother, bottle, or pacifier, this behavior, over time, beings to become associated with a very strong, self- soothing, and pleasurable oral sensation. This reflex disappears at about 4 months of age, thumb sucking is not purely an instinctive behavior and therefore can last much longer, moreover, ultrasound scans have revealed that thumb sucking can start before birth, as early as 15 weeks from conception, whether this behavior is voluntary or due to random movements of the fetus in the womb is not conclusively known. 

  Thumb sucking is sometimes retained into adulthood and may be due to simple habit continuation. Using anatomical and neurophysiological data a study has found that sucking the thumb is said to stimulate receptors within the brain which cause the release of tension, mentally and physically which shows a scientific standpoint regarding the psychological basis of thumb sucking. 

  Children stop sucking on thumbs, pacifiers or other objects on their own between 2 and 4 of age. No harm is done to their teeth or jaws until permanent teeth start to erupt. The only time it might cause concern is if it goes on beyond 6 to 8 of age. At this time, it may affect the shape of the oral cavity or dentition. During thumbsucking, the tongue sits in a lowered position and so no longer balances the forces from the buccal group of musculature. This results in the narrowing of the upper arch and a posterior crossbite. Thumbsucking can also cause the maxillary central incisors to tip labially and the mandibular incisors to tip lingually, resulting in an increased overjet and anterior open bite malocclusion, as the thumb rests on them during the course of sucking. 

  As children move past toddlerhood and into the preschool years, the thumb sucking crowd begins to dwindle. Nevertheless, one in five children will still be sucking his thumb or finger past his 5th birthday. Thus is the merciless age, the time when teasing begins. Parents begin to worry because the thumb sucking is causing social difficulties for the child. 

 Prolonged finger sucking also can cause minor physical problems like chapped skin, calluses, and fingernail infections. 

Methods to stop sucking habits:

 - Praise children for not sucking, instead of scolding them when they do.

- If a child is sucking their thumb when feeling insecure or needing comfort, focus instead on correcting the cause of the anxiety and provide comfort to your child. 

- If a child is sucking on their thumb because of boredom, try getting the child's attention with a fun activity. 

- Involve older children in the selection of a means to cease thumb sucking.

- The pediatric dentist can offer encouragement to the child what could happen to the child's teeth if he does not stop sucking. 

 - Only if these tips are ineffective remind the child of the habit by bandaging the thumb or putting a sock/glove o the hand at night. 

- Place a bitter-tasting liquid on the nail, at night, as a reminder not to suck. Products for this purpose are sold over the counter, but home remedies can be just as effective. Gloves, or a finger- splint may also be worn at night. 

  While your child is trying to change his or her behavior, it essential to give lots of praise and support, an extra cuddle, a special outing playing a new game together. Be aware of situations that might promote thumb sucking, like tv or riding in the car. Use your imagination to guide your child to other means of solace that are more age-appropriate. 

  If this program doesn't work, don't despair. Breaking a longstanding habit is difficult and some children may need additional help. Talk to your child's dentist, who may recommend inserting a device in the child's mouth that prevents sucking. 


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