Removing a Painful Splinter Has Never Been Simpler!

Splinters are small fragments of metal, glass, or wood that are embedded in your skin. They can be very painful and need to be dealt with as quickly as possible in order to relieve discomfort and the possibility of infection. The majority of us try to dig the splinter out using a needle or some tweezers, but this is not a safe method as it can significantly increase the risk of infection. There are loads of other safe and simple home remedies that make it easier to remove splinters without added complications.

Here are the top 10 home remedies to remove splinters safely and without pain:

1. Duct Tape

This is one of the easiest methods to remove a splinter. This simple remedy works best when some of the splinter is still sticking out of the skin. It will not work for fully embedded splinters.

Method

1. Use lukewarm water and soap to wash the skin surrounding the splinter, and allow it to dry.

2. Place a piece of duct tape over it.

3. Gently rub over the top of the tape with your fingertip.

4. Wait 5 minutes, then pull the tape off in one motion. The splinter will come out with the tape.

5. Finish by cleaning the area again with some lukewarm water.

2. White Vinegar

White vinegar is another very effective home remedy for splinters as the acidity of the vinegar will cause the splinter to break through the surface of the skin, making it easier to pull out with some tweezers.

​Method

1. Pour some white vinegar into a small bowl.

2. Soak the affected area for 15 to 20 minutes.

3. Check whether the splinter has risen out of your skin. If so, pull it out using some tweezers. If not, continue to soak the area until it does so.

4. After the splinter has been removed, rinse the area with lukewarm water.

3. Baking Soda

Baking soda is good for those splinters that are difficult to see, as well as those that are deeply embedded in the skin. Baking soda helps to reduce pain and pushes the splinter to the surface, so it is easier to pull out.

Method

1. Mix water and 1/4 teaspoon of baking soda to form a thick paste.

2. Spread this paste onto a bandage and place the bandage over the affected area.

3. After 24 hours, take the bandage off.

4. If the splinter is visible, pull it out. If not, repeat the above steps and wait another 24 hours.

5. After the splinter has been removed, rinse the skin gently with lukewarm water.

For more uses of baking soda, click here.

4. Hydrogen Peroxide

Hydrogen peroxide disinfects the area and reduces inflammation so that the splinter is easier to remove.

Method

1. Soak a cotton ball in 3% hydrogen peroxide.

2. Secure the cotton ball on the affected area with tape.

3. Leave it for a few hours.

4. Remove the cotton ball and pull the splinter out with a pair of clean tweezers.

5. Rinse the area with lukewarm water.

5. Epsom Salt

Epsom salt works wonders on deeply lodged splinters as it draws water out of the skin cells, bringing the splinter to the surface.

Method

1. Place a pinch of Epsom salt on a bandage.

2. Place the bandage on the affected area.

3. Leave it there for the whole day.

4. Remove the bandage in the evening.

5. Pull the splinter out using some tweezers.

If you would like to read about other uses of Epsom salt, click here.

6. Banana Peel

Banana peels contain enzymes that will soften the skin and make the splinter move to the surface. Furthermore, its moisturizing and antimicrobial properties will prevent any further infection.

Method

1. Cut a small piece of banana peel.

2. Place the peel (with the white side down) on the affected area, and secure it with some tape.

3. Leave it overnight.

4. The next morning, remove the splinter using some tweezers.

Banana peel also has many other uses, you can read more about them by clicking here.

7. Raw Potato

This remedy works best when the splinter is partially visible, not when it is embedded deep in the skin.

Method

1. Wash a raw potato and cut off a thick slice.

2. Place the potato slice on the splinter, make sure the fleshy part is touching the splinter.

3. Gently press down so that the splinter pierces the potato.

4. Carefully remove the potato slice, along with the splinter.

8. Lavender Essential Oil
Lavender oil will help draw the splinter out, and thanks to its antimicrobial properties, it will also help prevent any infections from occurring.

Method

1. Apply a couple of drops of lavender essential oil to the affected area.

2. Leave it for a few hours.

3. From time to time, check whether the splinter has risen to the skin's surface.

4. Once it has, remove it with a pair of tweezers

9. Honey
Honey encourages the splinter to move toward the surface so it's easier to remove. Furthermore, due to its moisturizing and antiseptic properties, it will sooth the skin and prevent infections.

Method

1. Spread a lot of honey onto the affected area.

2. Place a bandage over it and leave overnight.

3. The next morning, pull the splinter out using some tweezers.

4. After rinsing with some lukewarm water, reapply some more honey to heal the skin.

10. Bread and Milk

This remedy has been used for centuries to remove splinters.

Method

1. Dip some bread in some warm milk.

2. Apply this to the area and secure with a bandage.

3. Leave overnight.

4. Remove the next morning - the splinter should come with it.

5. Clean the affected area with some lukewarm water to prevent infections.

Additional Tips

    Once the splinter has been removed, make sure that the area is cleaned properly to prevent infections.
    Keep the area clean until it is completely healed.
    Don't squeeze a splinter to try to push it to the surface, It could break into tiny pieces and make it even more difficult to remove.
    Use rubbing alcohol to sterilize the tips of the tweezers you are going to use to remove a splinter.

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

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Source: top10homeremedies

Burden of colorectal cancer is rapidly shifting to younger individuals

The burden of colorectal cancer is swiftly shifting to younger individuals as incidence increases in young adults and declines in older age groups, according to the latest edition of Colorectal Cancer Statistics 2020, a publication of the American Cancer Society.

A sign of the shift: the median age of diagnosis has dropped from age 72 in the late 1980s to 66 during 2015-2016; in other words, half of all new diagnoses are now in people 66 or younger.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most commonly diagnosed cancer and the third leading cause of cancer death in both men and women in the United States.

Rapid declines in CRC incidence occurred in people 50 and older during the 2000s, largely because of increased screening with colonoscopy, which can prevent cancer by removing premalignant polyps.

In recent years, however, declines in incidence have been confined to people 65 and older, among whom rates dropped by 3.3% per year from 2011 through 2016. Among those 50 to 64, declines in incidence of 2% to 3% per year during the 2000s have reversed in recent years, with rates increasing by 1.0% per year during 2011 through 2016.

This is similar to the uptick occurring in people under 50, in whom incidence rates have been increasing since the mid-1990s and rose by 2.2% per year from 2011 to 2016.

These increases likely reflect elevated disease risk in generations born since 1950 that is being carried forward over time as people age, a phenomenon referred to as a birth cohort effect.

Although rising incidence in those under 50 was previously driven by rectal tumors, in the most recent five years of data (2012-2016), incidence rates rose by 1.8% per year for tumors in the proximal and distal colon as well as in the rectum.

Rising incidence in people younger than 65 is driven by trends in non-Hispanic whites, although rates in American Indians/Alaska Natives are also increasing steeply.

In 2020, there will be about 18,000 cases of CRC (12%) diagnosed in people under 50 in 2020, the equivalent of 49 new cases per day. In addition, 3,640 CRC deaths (10 per day) are expected in 2020 in this age group, partly owing to delays in diagnosis; 1 in 4 patients (26%) younger than 50 is diagnosed with metastatic disease compared to 19% of those 65 and older.

CRC death rates overall have been decreasing since the late 1940s in women, but only since 1980 in men, likely reflecting differences in incidence trends, which are unavailable prior to 1975. However, incidence and mortality trends have been very similar between the sexes over the past three decades.

Like incidence, CRC mortality patterns vary by age, with rapid decreases in the oldest age groups and increasing trends in young adults. Over the past 10 data years (2008-2017), death rates declined by 3% per year in people 65 years and older but by only 0.6% per year in people 50 to 64, while increasing by 1.3% per year in those under 50.

The uptick in CRC death rates in adults under 50, which is most rapid among non-Hispanic whites (2% per year), began around 2004 and was preceded by declines of 1% to 2% per year since at least 1975.

Rapid declines in overall CRC death rates of approximately 3% per year during the 2000s decelerated to 1.8% per year from 2012 to 2017, perhaps reflecting slower gains in screening uptake and lower rates of first-time testing, as well as rising trends in younger adults.

Wide differences in the prevalence of CRC risk factors, such as smoking and excess body weight, as well as access to high-quality health care, including screening, result in large disparities.

The incidence rate during 2012-2016 ranged from a low of 30 per 100,000 among Asian/Pacific Islanders to 46 per 100,000 among blacks and 89 per 100,000 Alaska Natives.

The pattern for mortality is the same, although the magnitude of the disparity is twice as large as that for incidence. For example, CRC incidence rates are about 20% higher in blacks (46 per 100,000) than in non-Hispanic whites (39 per 100,000) whereas death rates are almost 40% higher in blacks (19 versus 14 per 100,000).

Even more striking are death rates among Alaska Natives (40 per 100,000), which are double those among blacks. American Indians/Alaska Natives are the only racial group in which overall CRC death rates are not declining.

Of all racial/ethnic groups, black patients are the most likely to be diagnosed with distant-stage CRC (25% vs 20% of non-Hispanic whites and Asians/Pacific Islanders) and also have the lowest overall 5-year survival rate (60% vs 66% among non-Hispanic whites and 68% among Asians/Pacific Islanders).

These disparities are largely driven by socioeconomic inequalities that result in differences in access to early detection and the receipt of timely, high quality treatment.

Two-thirds (66%) of individuals 50 and older were current for colorectal cancer screening in 2018, ranging from 58% in Puerto Rico and 60% in Wyoming to 76% in Massachusetts.

However, less than half of people ages 50-54 years were up-to-date, which is particularly concerning given increasing CRC incidence and mortality in this age group. Screening is also low among immigrants in the U.S. less than 10 years (26%), people who are uninsured (30%) or Medicaid-insured (53%), and Asian Americans (55%).

Although overall colorectal cancer incidence and mortality continue to decline, this progress is increasingly confined to older age groups and is marred by vast disparities,"

Unfortunately, tools that are very effective at reducing the burden of this disease are not being fully utilized. One in three people 50 and older is not up-to-date on screening; many of them have never been screened at all.

We could save countless lives by increasing access to screening in rural and other low-income areas, especially in Alaska, and incentivizing primary care clinicians to ensure that all patients 45 and older are screened, as well as facilitating healthier lifestyles in our communities.  Rebecca Siegel, MPH,  Study Lead Author

"More timely diagnosis among younger patients remains critical while we await answers to why CRC incidence is rising in young and middle-aged adults," said Ms. Siegel.

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Wearable artificial kidney may improve peritoneal dialysis

Automated wearable artificial kidney is effective in removing toxins from the blood of patients during peritoneal dialysis, claims a recent study.

 The study was presented at ASN Kidney Week at the Walter E. Washington Convention Centre in Washington, DC.

Researchers are testing the potential of an automated wearable artificial kidney (AWAK) device for peritoneal dialysis (PD) treatments, which would allow dialysis to be performed on-the-go, overcoming the challenge of long hours of therapy and connection to large dialysis machines.

A sorbent-based regenerative technology in the AWAK PD therapy allows for high dose dialysis to be delivered with a low volume of dialysis solution.

The technology regenerates and reconstitutes used dialysis fluid into fresh fluid while removing toxins.

In a first-in-human study, 15 participants underwent over 100 AWAK PD sessions. There were no serious adverse events up to 1 month after treatment, and the AWAK PD sessions were effective at removing waste substances from the blood.

"The regenerative sorbent technology used in AWAK PD is an innovation with the potential to revolutionise the way peritoneal dialysis has been done in the past 40 years, providing portability and flexibility of treatment," said principal investigator.

"This technology also helps to reduce wastes and save resources by reusing dialysis fluids," she added.

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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Cancer vaccine that cured mice to be tested in humans this year

A cancer vaccine that cured 97 percent of tumours in mice will be tested on humans with low-grade lymphoma later this year.

Patients receiving the vaccine, which contains two drugs proven for their safety, will not require any chemotherapy, with the jab's side effects expected to be just fever and injection-site soreness. 

If approved, researchers do not expect the treatment to be available for another year or two.

Rather than creating lasting immunity, the jab works by activating the immune system to attack tumours.

This is expected to be effective in low-grade lymphoma, which affects certain white blood cells and generally responds to treatment, due to it often being detected by the immune system, unlike other forms of the disease, such as bowel cancer.   

Around 1.7 million new people develop cancer every year in the US. 

Lead author said: 'We have a huge problem in cancer and we will never be satisfied until we find solutions for everyone.'

What the study will involve
The vaccine will be tested across two studies. 

A total of 35 lymphoma patients will take part in the trials overall.

Each participant will receive a low dose of radiation alongside two rounds of the vaccine. 

Further details, such as the time between vaccines and participants' ages, are unclear.

'Tip of the iceberg' of cancer treatment 

A similar immune-system targeting approach is already approved for types of leukemia and lymphoma.

This involves removing immune cells from patients' bodies and genetically engineering them to attack tumours before they are reintroduced.

Yet such a treatment, known as CAR-T, costs around half a million dollars per patient and can cause fever, confusion, organ failure, and immune-system dysfunction. 

Cancer specialist said: 'It's not a trivial therapy.'

She adds research should be carried out to determine if tumours can be manipulated to make them respond better to the immune system.

Dr said: 'Can we make the tumor more visible to the immune system? We are at the tip of the iceberg right now.'

Cancer drug hijacks tumours' 'survival mechanisms' 

This comes after research released in January this year suggested a cancer drug is in development that could stop the disease in its tracks.

The unnamed medication targets a specific enzyme that fuels the spread of tumours.

It does this by binding to the membrane of rapidly multiplying cells, a study found.

This hijacks cancer's 'survival mechanism' and prevents tumours from attaching to the protein they need to thrive. 

It is unclear when the drug could be available. 

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