5 Excellent Pelvic Floor Exercises

With age and after childbirth, you may notice that your pelvic floor muscles have weakened. Although they are hidden from view, you shouldn't underestimate their importance - the pelvic floor muscles support the bladder, bowels, and uterus. They also play an important role in sexual function. Strengthening the pelvic floor muscles improves bladder and bowel control and reduces the likelihood of incontinence. Like other muscles in your body, the pelvic floor muscles will become stronger with a regular exercise program. 

 

The most well-known way to do so is through kegel exercises, which you can learn more about here. Today, we’ll introduce you to 5 additional pelvic floor exercises that are also beneficial for other muscles. All the exercises are safe for pregnant women unless stated otherwise. 

 

1. Upper body twist 

Let’s start with an easy exercise that activates your spine, posture, and pelvic floor muscles.

 

Sit up straight, with your legs stretched in front of you, shoulder-width apart, and toes towards the ceiling. 

 

Place your hands behind your head with your thumbs underneath your ears. Make sure that your elbows are creating a straight line. 

 

Sit up as tall as you can and rotate your upper body to the right without moving your feet or arching your back. 

 

Rotate back to the center, and to the left. 

 

Repeat for about a minute.

2. Single Leg Lift 

The following exercises are all done while lying down. The first of the three will help you strengthen both of your legs and the pelvic floor.

Lie on the back and bend the knees, with the feet flat on the floor about hip-width apart. Keep the arms by the sides with the palms facing down. 

 

Lift your right leg to tabletop position (knee in line with the hip, shin parallel to the floor). Make sure that your pelvis stays on the ground. 

 

Lengthen your leg forward so that it’s 45 degrees off the ground. Bend your leg back, and go back to the starting position. 

 

Repeat with the left leg. Continue the exercise for about a minute. 

 

3. Straight Leg Bridge 

This is an extended version of the glute bridge exercise, which is great for strengthening the pelvic floor muscles, too.

Lie on the back and bend the knees, with the feet flat on the floor about hip-width apart. Keep the arms by the sides with the palms facing down. 

 

Contract the buttocks and pelvic floor muscles, and lift the buttocks several inches off the ground. 

 

Slowly raise and extend one leg while keeping your pelvis raised and leveled. 

 

In this position, continue lifting and dropping your buttocks 8 times. 

 

Relax the buttocks and pelvic floor muscles and lower the buttocks to the ground.

4. Spread Knees  

The third and final lying-down exercise is excellent for your abdominal muscles, legs, and hips, as well as your pelvic floor.

Lie on the back and bend the knees, with the feet flat on the floor about hip-width apart. Keep the arms by the sides with the palms facing down. 

 

Lift your legs to a tabletop position. Inhale, and slowly spread your knees to the sides. 

 

Exhale as you bring your knees back together. 

 

Repeat 10-15 times in three sets. 

 

5. Lunges  

 

This is a great exercise to finish your workout, as it is quite easy on the body and safe for pregnant women, too.

Start by standing up tall. 

 

Place your hands on your waist and look forward. 

 

Step forward with one foot until your leg reaches a 90-degree angle. 

 

Stay in this position for about 5 seconds.

 

Lift your front lunging leg to return to the starting position. 

 

Repeat 10 to 12 reps on one leg, or switch sides until you've totaled 10 to 12 reps on each side.

This is only for your information, kindly take the advice of your doctor for medicines, exercises and so on.   

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6 Signs That Indicate You Need To Consult a Urologist

When it comes to women’s health and well-being, the urinary system is either ignored or taken for granted. Most of the time, women are embarrassed to consult urologists or gynaecologists, and some fear that even a simple consultation might be intrusive and uncover grave issues.

It is extremely important to take good care of your urinary system, especially if you’re a woman, because if there’s a problem which remains ignored, it can lead to many grave health complications.

The urethra of a woman, or the tube connected to the urinary bladder from which the urine is passed out of the body, is smaller than that of a man. This is also one of the reasons why women have higher chances of contracting urinary tract infections (UTIs).

A common myth persists that urologists are meant only for men. No, ladies! You must also consult a urologist if you are facing issues or noticing certain symptoms.

At times, it can be tough to decide whether you should visit a urologist or a gynaecologist, which is. Why it is important to understand the difference between a urologist and a gynaecologist. A urologist treats infections pertaining to the urinary tract, which is a complex system made of tubes, muscles, and organs like the urinary bladder, kidneys, ureters, and urethra. A gynaecologist, on the other hand, should be approached for menstrual or any issues related to the reproductive system. If a urological condition is ignored, it could potentially spread to one or both of the kidneys and infect them. This could further enter your bloodstream and lead to something fatal. All these reasons should be enough for women to understand the importance of maintaining good urological health.

Listed below are some symptoms of urological issues that must not be ignored:

If it burns while urinating or Dysuria: Apart from this being a potential symptom of a sexually transmitted infection (STI), it also indicates the possibility of a urinary tract infection. If you are finding it difficult to pass urine, it could mean an onset of any of the urinary infections, which can be as grave as kidney stones. Consult a urologist and identify the issue to get it treated before it advances.

If you’re passing blood with urine or passing cloudy/dark urine: This may not always be because of an infection, and may have to do with what you have eaten during your previous meal or snack. Fruit and vegetables like berries or beetroot can cause your urine to change colour.

But if you’re sure the urine is bloody or cloudy, then you might have a condition called hematuria. It could potentially indicate a serious disorder of the urinary system like enlarged prostate, kidney infection, or in worse cases, cancer. Hence, it is better to visit a urologist and get your urine tested.

Pain on the sides of your lower back or in the abdomen area: This is a common symptom that you can get while you’re approaching your period or are going through menopause. However, if you suffer chronic, piercing pain on any of the sides of your lower back or the abdomen area, you must visit the urologist.

You suffer from UTIs frequently: If you’ve been diagnosed with UTI twice or more in six months, it’s best to consult a urologist. Frequent UTIs could mean you may have bladder or kidney stones, or a serious abnormality in the urinary tract. If unattended or ignored, this could lead to a more grave condition of the kidneys or the urological system.

Constipation is chronic: If you’re already hydrating yourself well and are consuming a good amount of fibre, and yet you suffer from chronic constipation, then there might be a problem with your urinary tract.

You find it hard to control your bladder: Urinary Incontinence, or the inability to control the bladder, can indicate that there’s something wrong down there. It’s best to consult a urologist in this case.

As you age, so do your organs and hence they become more prone to infections like UTIs. It is more prevalent in ageing women with existing mental health issues like dementia or Alzheimer's, and physiological issues like kidney ailments, diabetes etc. Hence, women must take great care of their urinary system.

For the overall health of your urinary and reproductive system, it is advisable to inculcate healthy eating habits, get regular exercise and stay away from harmful habits like cigarette smoking and alcohol consumption.

This is only for your information, kindly take the advice of your doctor for medicines, exercises and so on.     

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The Comprehensive Guide to Alzheimer's Disease

Alzheimer’s disease is a debilitating neurodegenerative disease that affects some 50 million people around the world. Due to the terribly massive reach of this affliction, it’s very uncommon for a person to go through life without being affected by it, whether directly or through interpersonal relationships with sufferers or caregivers.

That’s why it’s important to be fully aware of the way in which Alzheimer’s works, which is why we created this comprehensive guide, which will inform you about every aspect of this disease, as well as how you can effectively prevent and manage it.
 

We will continue to update this page with new studies and research information, as well as personal cases and examples. Please visit us here again to check for updates.

What Is Alzheimer’s Disease?

 Alzheimer’s is a disease that forms within a sufferer’s brain, and which slowly begins to impact their memory and thinking skills. In the long run, Alzheimer’s usually ends up impacting a person's ability to carry out even the simplest of tasks, such as eating and speaking and will inevitably drastically reduce their quality of life and cause them to become dependent on others.

Most sufferers of Alzheimer’s are over the age of 65, and the risk of getting it increases as you age. However, it’s important to note that developing Alzheimer’s certainly isn’t an inevitable part of aging, which is why it’s important to take plenty of steps throughout your life to prevent it.

Can Alzheimer's be cured?

Unfortunately, Alzheimer’s disease still has no cure, however, there are many treatments available that can help slow down its development or suppress some of the symptoms altogether.

The Difference Between Alzheimer’s & Dementia

Alzheimer’s disease and dementia are two terms that are often used interchangeably by people since there’s a common misconception that they both refer to the same condition. However, Alzheimer’s disease is actually just one of the many paths that can lead to dementia.

This is because dementia is merely an umbrella term for a group of symptoms that affect a sufferer’s thought processes and memory. When a person is diagnosed with dementia, they are simply being told that they are suffering from a particular set of symptoms. The next step would then be to work out exactly what causes these symptoms to appear in the first place.

The most common reason for the onset of dementia is, in fact, Alzheimer’s disease, since it has been estimated to be responsible for as many as 70% of dementia cases. However, there are many other causes of dementia, including Huntington’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, and Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome.

Another key difference is that, in certain cases, dementia can be a temporary and reversible condition, while Alzheimer’s disease has been found to be a permanent condition, which only ends up getting worse, as time goes by.

The 3 Main Types of Alzheimer’s Disease

Nearly everyone who suffers from Alzheimer’s disease will eventually begin to experience the same symptoms, including confusion, memory loss, trouble with once-familiar tasks, and difficulty in making decisions. However, there are 3 main types of Alzheimer’s disease, and their differences lie in the way that they are contracted:

1. Late-Onset Alzheimer’s

By far the most common form of the disease, at around 95% of all cases, Late-Onset Alzheimer’s is the kind that occurs in people over the age of 65. It may or may not be genetically-linked, since researchers have yet to find a particular gene that causes it, despite their suspicions.

2. Early-Onset Alzheimer’s

This kind of Alzheimer’s is a lot less common and only accounts for around 5% of all cases. It occurs in people who are under the age of 65, typically in their 40s or 50s, and people who suffer from Down syndrome have a higher risk of getting it.

Scientists have found that early-onset Alzheimer’s has an even greater effect on the brain than its late-onset counterpart, and has linked its formation to a DNA defect contained within chromosome 14. A muscle twitch known as myoclonus is also more common for sufferers of early-onset Alzheimer’s.

3. Familial Alzheimer's Disease (FAD)

This is a rare form of Alzheimer’s that is 100% genetic, which accounts for less than 1% of all Alzheimer’s cases. In affected families, members of at least two generations have typically had this kind of Alzheimer’s, and many cases of early-onset Alzheimer’s are actually linked to FAD.

The Stages & Symptoms of Alzheimer’s Disease

Alzheimer’s disease is a condition that gradually gets worse over time, and that’s why its symptoms are often split into 3 sections: early, middle, and severe stages.

In the early stages of Alzheimer's a person may:

• Find it hard to remember things
• Ask the same questions repeatedly
• Get lost in familiar places
• Lose things or place them in unusual places
• Have trouble handling money and paying bills
• Take longer than they normally would to finish daily tasks

Once Alzheimer's has progressed to the middle stages, the symptoms, particularly memory loss and confusion, grow worse. Other symptoms include:

• Difficulty learning new things and coping with new situations
• Trouble carrying out tasks that involve many steps, such as getting dressed
• Impulsive behavior
• Forgetting the names of common things
• Hallucinations, delusions or paranoia
• Problems recognizing family and friends
• Wandering away from home
 

Once Alzheimer's has progressed to the more severe stages, symptoms include:

• Total lack of communication
• Spending a lot more time asleep
• Weight loss
• Trouble swallowing
• Incontinence
• Complete dependence
 

This is only for your information, kindly take the advice of your doctor for medicines, exercises and so on.     

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https://gseasyrecipes.blogspot.com. feel free to view for easy, simple and healthy recipes    
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