jow b asked:

About three weeks ago I was doing some shoulder press with very heavy weight, when i felt a sharp pain shoot across my right shoulder. I have had the pain every since. Does anyone have an idea what it might be. It is causing me to not be able to work out. Scared to go to the doctor out of fear I might need surgery. Has anyone had this. Is there a home remedy? Please advise

Mary Bodel, MH replies:

Get to the doctor.  If you do need surgery now is better than later.  If you don’t, physical therapy and pain management can reduce the chance of increasing the injury.

Home remedies can help after a diagnosis is made.  Alternating heat and cold may help as well as capsaicin cream.  Using this as your only treatment could lead to a lot of problems down the road.

Herbal Home Remedies

Christine asked:

I’ve done a little research and I saw that 1 pound of fat is equal to about 3,500 calories. So if I change my diet and exercise routine such that I’m taking in and/or burning a net decrease of 3,500 calories a week for example, I’ll lose a pound of fat in that week (for the most part obviously, I realize it’s not that simple). Am I correct with what I’ve found by doing my research? My plan is to do heavy cardio and drastically reduce my caloric intake in an effort to shed some fat.

 Mary Bodel, MH replies:

Weight loss is a combination of things, and while diet and exercise are important considerations, care has to be taken not to go overboard on either.  For caloric intake, multiply your goal weight by 10 and be sure to consume a minimum of that many calories. 

For burning calories, make sure there is a deficit, but don’t make that deficit to large; it can backfire.  Your body may decide to slow down the metabolic rate due to the “famine.”

Herbal Home Remedies

Robin S asked:

I went to the doctor and my cholesterol was 246 which isn’t so good but my good cholesterol was 65, which she said is great. Is the LDL what’s remaining after the good cholesterol is subtracted from the total? Can you have too much HDL?

Mary Bodel, MH replies:

Actually, your triglyceride levels are also part of the calculation for total cholesterol.  Add HDL and LDL cholesterol together.  Divide your triglyceride levels by five and then add that number to the LDL/HDL numbers for your total cholesterol number.

There is some indication that you can have too much HDL cholesterol, but the numbers are not readily available.

cholesterol

Mary Bodel, MH replies:

I didn’t have any success when I was on diets, I only have had success when I started to be more choosy about what I ate.  There are a number of websites that can tell you what the calorie counts of food and those burned by doing activities.  At the end of the day, if you burn more calories than you ate, weight loss should occur.

There is a caveat to that, however.  If you don’t eat enough, the above won’t work.  Your body will go into famine mode and hang on to every calorie it can.  Multiply your goal weight by ten and be sure to eat at least that many calories each day.

Mary asked:

I’m 16 years old and my entire family is on the heavy side. I’m 5’8” and weight about 160 pounds. My jean size is 14 and I wear a large in shirts. I participate in high-step marching band which is very physical.

Mary Bodel, MH replies:

There are a lot of things that might be sneaking calories into your diet.  For instance, when you buy a 20 oz bottle of soda pop, the nutrition label is for one serving, but the bottle holds over two servings. 

Nutrition labels are your friend, however.  Look at the information for a serving of regular mayo, and compare it with a serving of mustard.  By switching from mayo to mustard, you can have a familiar taste and save 50 calories or more. 

Calories can also be deceiving, because they are not all the same.  100 calories of cake is more likely to add pounds than an equal calorie count of whole wheat bread.  The whole grain has more fiber, and that is more likely to go straight through instead of hanging around the hips.

Exercise is also not all equal.  There is aerobic and anaerobic exercise.  The former will help you burn calories but the latter will greatly reduce the amount of calories burned.  At your age, it is wise to get someone to show you an appropriate routine.  Perhaps a gym teacher or coach at your school can help.

Diet may also need to be discussed with someone who knows you and your family/medical histories.  Young people have different requirements than those who are older, but proper nutrition is still important.

One thing I will advise against is using weight loss supplements.  At your age, these could cause more harm than good. 

Healing-Home-Remedies.com

rachael asked:


i know this should be in the homework section but i wanted the opinions of people answering in the health section. I have to do a presentation of the above question and want some opinions to put in it.
my opinion is that because people have free will government should not control diet and fitness, but because a county will run better if everyone is healthier, schools should have a mandatory class that teaches why and how to be healthy, what calories are, why you need them, why certain foods are bad for your body, how muscle is good, etc.
so what do you think?

Healing-Home-Remedies.com

Donnie Darko asked:

I just need some breathing techniques for when I go running, I get out of breath really fast and I stop and walk for a few minutes and then start running again. What can I do to run longer?

Mary Bodel, MH replies:

You may want to visit your doc.  Asthma can restrict breathing and increased physical activity can make it worse.  I don’t know if that’s what you are dealing with, but it is a possibility.

Healing-Home-Remedies.com

Lisha asked:

I am looking for some good cholesterol lowering foods and also some low cholesterol meals that are yummy. Hereditary reasons have caused me to get on a cholesterol medicine but I also want to be proactive in what I eat.

Jess asked:

I started reading food labels, and I noticed there’s a line called Cholesterol with a number in mg’s. How many mg’s or what is the total amount of cholesterol per day that is recommended for a 20 something female? Thanks.

It is recommended that total daily cholesterol be less than 300 mgs for healthy adults, however if you have heart disease it is recommended that you consume less than 200 mgs.

cholesterol

Alice’s mistake asked:


I’ve been doing the lemon diet for 8 days, planning on completing 45 days, but I’ve been drinking green tea because I can’t seem to find herbal laxative tea.

Is this okay?

Caffeinated Content