Speleotherapy and asthma, allergy and other respiratory diseasesWritten by LTiba
Speleotherapy or underground climatotherapy is an alternative or complementary method of therapy for asthma and other respiratory diseases that is used in Eastern and Central Europe for many, many years. This involve spending 2-4 hours a day underground, in salt caves or mines for over 2-3 months period, but results are impressive. The salt micro particles, salt dust, reach lung alveoli, bronchi, bronchioles and clear all airway passages, in upper and lower respiratory tract. Due to fact that inhaled saline has mucokinetic, bactericide, hydrophilic and anti inflammatory properties, will help to reduce inflammation leading to widening of airway passages, kill bacteria and restore normal transport of mucus and unclog blockages. Although not known in North America, salt therapy is an old and very popular method of therapy in Balkans, Europe. There are many salt sanatoriums in heart of salt mountain and doctors are involved in clinical researches, in some countries treatment being covered by health minister. An old study describes a speleotherapy course which was 4 hours a day for 6-8 weeks, with 100 COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease) and asthma patients and reported improvement which lasted 6 months to 7 years (Skulimowski, 1965). Similar studies are published in Pub Med (MEDLINE) from Poland, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, and Russia. Recent clinical study at Pulmonary Clinic, Ambulatory Section, Timisoara, Romania, on a lot of 30 patients (19 Asthma, 11 Chronic Bronchitis) revealed that use of a speleotherapy device (also called Halotherapy device) for a time period of one year significantly reduced sore throat, nasal obstruction, snoring, cough, sputum secretion, associated rhinitis, annual hospitalization and symptomatic medication intake. Also have shown significant improvement of sputum elimination, olfactory sense recovery (smell, taste), sleep at night, morning condition and clinical state.
| | The changing shape of family financesWritten by Rachel Lane and Cashzilla
Families are becoming an increasingly complex unit when it comes to money management. Parents are working longer hours, couples are spending less time with each other and children are becoming increasingly sophisticated in their material wants and information needs. Whilst centralising funds is important in family, so is an analysis of individual roles and associated financial requirements.Super-mums It seems that proof of maternal efforts is no longer found in pudding … it’s in spending. Women are increasingly outsourcing personal grooming tasks and pressure of looking good, feeling healthy, maintaining a tight ship and IQ level has meant that housecleaning and gardening are again fashionable methods to promote family brand; housewifery is now a career, with all attitude of 21st century post-feminism. It emerged in a recent BBC report, that a new type of parent was surfacing….the “manager mum”. Manager mums tend to use internet to save time on tasks and streamline activity, using Web to undertake jobs such as grocery shopping or banking. Once they’ve got their partner, it doesn’t seem women can relax about their appearances, with women in relationships spending more on their appearance than their single counterparts. UK housewives spend a massive £5 billion on ‘keeping up appearances’, in terms of gardening, home furnishings and personal grooming, according to a study by Virgin Money Credit Cards. UK women are splurging out an average of £3,488 each on personal appearance and their home and garden. Of £3,488, 47% is spent on home and garden, whilst remainder goes on clothes, haircuts, beauty products and treatments. The pressure to look good may be a factor in women being labelled as worst savers, as reported by Guardian Unlimited. In an annual study by IFA Promotion, 63% of women who stated that they were unable to put aside further savings, admitted to spending their spare cash on costly and unnecessary luxuries, whilst 28% of women get themselves into debt with expensive purchases. Women apparently seem to be content with spending up to 75% of disposable income and saving less than 20%, in contrast to men who save over 25% of their income and invest 8%.
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