Foot Health Tips For Diabetic Patients

1. Manage your diabetes

Work with the health care team to deal with your increasing blood glucose. Submit your self for medical management such as insulin therapy and diet modification. It is the best way of keeping yourself safe from the complications of diabetes mellitus.

2. Check your feet every now and then

Always inspect your feet for presence of cuts, blisters, red spots, swelling and other forms of wounds. With your bare feet, check the bottoms using a mirror or ask for assistance on any of your family member to help you if you have trouble in seeing. Also, check for any changes in temperature.

3. Wash your feet daily

When washing your feet, use lukewarm of warm water and avoid using hot water. This is to soften the formed skin on your feet. Do not soak your feet as this may put you at risk for any burn injuries or others. Always check the temperature of the water using a thermometer to be sure that you have the accurate temperature of water. After washing, be sure to dry it well including the middle of your toe fingers.

4. Keep the skin soft and downy

Rub thin amount of non-scented lotion on the entire feet, but not in the middle of your toe fingers. I specified the non-scented lotion since most of the scented lotion contains alcohol which is a perfect drying agent. Drying your skin makes it more prone to skin breaks and lacerations.

5. Smooth corns and thick calluses tenderly

Who says a diabetic patient can no longer have a relaxing foot spa? Using a pumice stone to smooth corns and thick calluses is proven safe and effective in your foot health needs. Just take note that you have to use this gently.

6. Cut your toe nails straight-across

In cutting your toe nails, the ideal way is to cut it straight across since this type of cut prevent formation of ingrown, nail problems and file the edges with an emery board or nail file.

7. Avoid walking barefooted

It is a contraindication to diabetic patients to walk barefooted unless you want you leg being amputated. Wear comfortable shoes that fit well and offer full protection to your feet. Do not wear chuck tailor, advan or any canvas shoes since this type of shoes put your feet at risk for punctures. Feel your shoes before putting your feet in it. Make sure that the lining is smooth and there are no objects inside.

8. Protect your feet from hot and cold

Wear shoes at the beach or on hot weather and wear socks at night if your feet gets cold.

9. Maintain good blood flow on our feet

Elevate your legs when sitting. Wiggle your toes and move your ankles up and down for 5 minutes for about 2 to 3 times a day. Avoid cross-leg sitting as it decreases blood flow on your feet. Avoid smoking since nicotine is a vasoconstrictor, thus decreasing the blood flow on the extremities.

10. Know your doctor

Have your doctor assess your bare feet and find out whether you are likely to have serious foot problems. Remember that you may not feel the pain of an impending injury. Call your doctor right away if a sore, cut, blister, or bruises on your feet that does not recover after 24 hours. Follow your doctor’s advice about foot health. Do not self-medicate or use home remedies or over the counter drugs to treat any foot problems. Remember that your foot might be amputated if the situation gets worst.

Precor Fitness Equipment: Treadmills, Crosstrainers and Bikes

PRECOR™: Approximately thirty years ago, after the engineering of a stationary fitness rowing machine by David Smith in his basement, one of the most respected, popular and successful fitness equipment brands was birthed. Spawning from Mr. Smith’s development of an ergonomically correct rowing machine in 1980, Precor has turned into one of the international leaders in the branding, design, production and marketing of fitness equipment. No more than 3 years after David finished the design of the rowing machine in his basement, he was joined by the bright and fitness oriented opportunist, Bill Potts. Mr. Potts brought his knowledge of electronic functionality to the table and sought out to integrate unique exercise programmability for users, as well as easy to read statistical feedback, into the exercise equipment Smith was designing. Mr. Potts believed that allowing people to monitor their stats such as speed, time, distance and other readouts, would increase the popularity of their workout equipment and make using gym equipment more enjoyable for the regular user. Ultimately, making the exercise equipment more interactive from a user perspective, intrigued people because they could monitor their results in real-time. Knowing how fast or long one would have to exercise in order to surpass their previous records, proved to be highly motivating and helped treadmills, stationary exercise bikes and rowing machines become more favorable through the eyes of potential buyers. Through the assistance of Mr. Potts, the popularity of exercise programming options in fitness equipment, and the popularity for Precor fitness equipment as a whole, began to take off. Once 1985 hit, several more additions had been made to the once one man band that was Precor; the Precor brand expanded to carrying treadmills, exercise bikes and rowing machines.

As momentum gained through popular reviews, it became clear that Precor fitness equipment was rated to be at the top of the industry in the near future. However, in order to be an industry leader in fitness supplies, Precor had to be a player in the national heath clubs and gyms. Without substantial sales to commercial fitness centers and gyms, it is hard to be a real player in the business of fitness equipment manufacturing in the United States. Therefore, proving the foresight of fitness experts true, in 1990, Precor entered the health club scene, with a series of commercial treadmills, built to withstand all day wear and tear, by people ranging from skinny to fat, and tall to small. There is a major difference in the structural integrity and mechanical capacities between commercial (health club) and residential exercise equipment. Whereas a solid home treadmill can be used at most up for up to four hours a day, a gym quality treadmill can be used for up to four times as long. Precor now had their own line of commercial treadmills. Precor now had a line of heavy duty gym equipment with the necessary the size, mechanical capacities, speed and structural integrity, to compete with the other leading brands in the fitness equipment industry.

The year of 1995 was another breakthrough year for Precor, as they invented the first elliptical cross-trainer and put it on the map in the form of their Precor EFX 544 cross-trainer. The Precor EFX 544 was designed with an adjustable cross-ramp and fixed arms. The adjustable incline ramp makes it easy for users to work out different muscle groups in their lower body through the simple adjustment of the angle on the incline ramp. The EFX 544 was so popular that Precor decided to continue their production of elliptical cross-trainers for usage in health clubs and homes. One of the first additions to the Precor line of elliptical cross-trainers was a cross-trainer with moving upper body arms. After already having the cardiovascular fitness industry in the palm, through the acquisition of Pacific Fitness in 1998, Precor made giant strides towards building a successful line of strength equipment. A result of this merger was the extremely popular Precor Stretch Trainer, that is a favorite of fitness trainers and gym patrons.

In 1999, Premark International, which was parent company of the Precor brand at the time, was bought out by International Tool Works. Soon after ITW acquired Precor, popularity for Precor increased, as their equipment become more affordable and focused on consumer needs. With a bigger bankroll and more steam built up, Precor was acquired by Amer Sports in 2002 as part of a 180 million dollar deal. Amer Sports coming into the picture resulted in Precor changing their primary goals. After years of revolving around industrial products, Precor’s new aim was to become an international distributor of a wider range of fitness equipment and sporting goods.

With all of the success and momentum that Precor had built open over the last 2 decades was great, but they still did not have a dominant and consumer friendly line of strength equipment. That all changed in 2004 when Precor established an Icarian line of strength equipment. Icarian strength equipment can be found anywhere from private home gyms to large health club franchises. The line of strength equipment itself has all home gym products ranging from bench presses, to multi-station and plate loaded home gyms, to weight racks and other strength training machines.

A very popular feature on the Precor cardio line of fitness equipment originated in 2004 as well. The cardio theater feature on Precor cardiovascular equipment, came as a result of their relationship with an entertainment technology firm, ClubCom. For example, if you are familiar with the Precor 956i Treadmill, it can be purchased with a cardio theatre attached to the display console. Having an entertainment center to use when you exercise has proven to allow some people to workout up to 75% more than they did on the same treadmill, without the cardio theater. The year of 2006 also marked the year that Precor introduced its Experience Series line and the Cardio Theater was an option for all Experience Series treadmills and elliptical cross-trainers. After gaining the support of consumers across the U.S., the Cardio Theater went on to win awards at the annual international product design competition, hosted by Business Week.

Around this time is when Precor struck a deal with the Hilton Family, that would make Precor gym equipment the main supplier of Hilton hotels such as the Double Tree, Embassy Suites and The Hilton. Catapulting Precor into the mainstream, the widely publicized commercial deal between Precor and Hilton Hotels, cemented Precor’s status as a premier brand in fitness equipment.

Several years after Precor began their quest to become an international player with strength based fitness equipment, the production amounts of their Icarian strength line increased by 300%. The year of 2006 also,marked the year that Precor introduced its Experience Series line and the Athletic and sporting good brands such as Wilson, Atomic, Suunto, Mavic and Salomonare are all different product lines under their parent company, Amer Sports Corporation. Precor fitness equipment is also owned by Amer Sports Corporation, who according to Precor.com, “is the worlds leading sports equipment company”. Since Precor has a mission to be “the most respected brand in fitness equipment (Precor.com)”, their relationship makes perfect sense.

Eye Vision Correction Surgery to Remove Refractive Errors

Vision correction surgery is needed to remove the eye refractive errors such as myopia (nearsightedness), hyperopia (farsightedness), astigmatism and presbyopia.

Generally people use the contact lenses or eye glasses to prevent or reduce the effects of myopia or hyperopia. But there are many options available to eliminate or reduce the use and dependency on glasses or contact lenses.

An eye vision correction surgery is required in case you need a permanent solution against the refractive errors. Vision correction surgery can benefit the patients of myopia, hyperopia and astigmatism.

To get the suitable treatment first we need to understand about these refractive errors

Myopia – Myopia or nearsightedness occurs when you are able to see the objects near to you clearly but the far objects are appeared blurry. In this case the eyeball might be longer as compared to its normal size or might be curving in sharply. This size and shape of eyeball lead to the shift of light form retina and results in fuzzy vision of far objects.

Hyperopia – In the case of hyperopia or farsightedness the opposite signs are noticed, the size of eyeball might be shorter than the normal eyeballs or the shape of cornea might be too flat. This change causes blurry near objects and clear far objects.

Astigmatism – Astigmatism is referred to as the distorted vision. In this case the shape of eyeball surface is somewhat irregular as compared to normal eyeball surface. This causes in creation of many focal points and the distorted vision.

Presbyopia – In this condition eyes progressively looses the ability to focus on near objects with the age. Most of the times people with age between 40 to 50 years feels this problem for the first time as they can not read the objects which are closer to them

During the vision correction surgery the shape of cornea is changed so that without the use of contact lens or eyeglasses the light focuses on the back of eye.

Vision Correction Solutions

There are various surgery procedures and option available today to treat the vision problems.

1. Radial keratotomy (RK) – It is a popular treatment procedure for astigmatism; in this, a precision calibrated diamond knife is used to make cuts circumferentially parallel to the edge of cornea.
2. Intracorneal ring segments (ICR).
3. PRELEX (presbyopic refractive lens exchange) or clear lens extraction.
4. Phakic intraocular lens implants.
5. Laser vision correction – Under laser vision correction surgery there are some surgery procedures which includes the use of laser.

I – Photorefractive Keratotomy (PRK) – During this surgery a small amount of tissue from the corneal stroma is removed by vaporization using an excimer laser to change the shape of the anterior central cornea.

II – Laser in Situ Keratomileusis (LASIK) – Lasik eye surgery also a laser eye surgery procedure. It is same as Photorefractive Keratotomy (PRK) procedure but it provides a faster patient recovery and can remove all three types of refractive errors Myopia, Hyperopia and Astigmatism instead of only astigmatism in PRK

Some other Laser surgery procedures which are not so popular are:

III – Femtosecond laser-assisted LASIK or iLASIK

IV – Conductive Keratoplasty (CK)

V – Laser thermal Keratoplasty (LTK)

Among all the above surgeries LASIK is the best option for vision correction.

A Simple Seated Isometric Exercise Workout For Seniors

First of all, let me tell you that I am 70 years old and have been doing this basic exercise program, along with some other activities for several years.

Since you might not be familiar with isometric exercises, just a quick run down.

These are exercises done where one muscle group, for example the biceps (front of upper arm… curls the arm), pulls or pushes against either another muscle group, for example the triceps (back of upper arm… extends the arm), or, an immoveable object.

The muscle is tensed in contraction or extension for between seven and ten seconds.

I always do a slow count to 10, myself.

Caution, while the recommendation for most rapid results is to tense the muscle to 75% of its maximum capacity, you have no way of measuring this, and, at first, you are at greater risk of injury, so, as you start, just tense until you feel resistance and gradually you will begin to sense the “sweet spot”. Also, supporting muscles may not be as strong as the main muscle being exercised, and you don’t want to have to stop because you have injured some smaller muscle.

There is a tendency during extreme effort to hold your breath.

This is another little rule of thumb of mine. If I have to stop breathing to do the particular isometric exercise, I’m trying too hard and risking injury… not just to the muscle, but to the heart.

The goal is to help you get, and stay, in shape, not make you into a professional athlete. Isometric exercises should never be your only exercises. You should walk or do other forms of aerobic activities, at the least. It’s also a good idea to do some exercises which actually require movement, as an isometric exercise contraction does not exercise a particular muscle through its entire range.

That’s why, by the way, I do some exercises of the same muscle in different positions.

At the end of the workout itself, I will give you a couple of hints to improve your result, both with the isometric exercise workout itself, and with adding a bit of aerobic activity in the process.

THE WORKOUT

Get yourself a sturdy chair without arms. Kitchen table style will do. Set it in position.

Now, walk around the house for a minute or two to “get the blood flowing”.

You will want to do the exercises one right after another, once your body is acclimatized to the isometric workout, but, at first, don’t push it and always take as much rest between exercises as you need. This is supposed to help you get healthier… not push you into becoming an Olympic level athlete… or having a heart attack.

Slowly lower yourself to a seat on the chair… BUT…

Just before you are actually seated and still in sort of a skier’s pose, stop and hold position for a slow count of 10.

To save time, and typing, from now on, I won’t say “slow count of 10”, I will just say to hold the position.

Sit on the chair as far forward as you can as later you will want to rock back and forth a little.

ARMS, CHEST, BACK

These exercises will be done in three groups of threes to let the individual muscles rest a bit between the exercises. At the same time, this allows you to get a small amount of aerobic results from isometric exercises, which is hard to do.

First set:

Arms Exercise 1:

Hold one arm so that it is at your side and forms a 90 degree angle at the elbow in almost the classic “look at my muscle”. Put the palms of your hands together and, pull up with the first arm while pushing down with the other and hold. Reverse hand positions and repeat.

Chest Exercise 1:

Put the fist of one hand into the palm of the other in front of your chest. Push them against each other, and hold.

Back Exercise 1:

With hands still in front of you, grasp hands, pull, and hold.

For Set 2, repeat the isometric exercises with your hands in a low position, at or below your waist.

For Set 3, repeat the exercises with your hands in a high position.

Don’t worry about form. You are doing this for you, and, how you look doesn’t really matter. Also, as you get stronger, become more familiar with the exercises, and how they feel, you will begin to realize that you can concentrate the contraction where you want it.

CORE PLUS

I used the word “plus” because while the concentration of the next exercises are on the core, or middle area of the body, you will be doing a few things for other parts as well. We will not be doing multiple positions of these.

Core Exercise 1:

Put your hands on top of your knees and, using your abdominal muscles as much as possible, push down, and hold.

Core Exercise 2:

Put your right hand on the outside of one knee and pull towards the other side as if you are trying to turn in that direction. Try to use your core muscles and just use your arm as if it were a “stick”. Hold. Then repeat going the other way.

Plus Exercises 1 & 2:

At this point, for a mini-break in my core exercises, I put my hands between my legs, press the backs of my hands against the insides of my knees, press outward, and hold.

When this is done, put your hands on the outside of your knees and press inward and hold.

Core Exercise 3:

Place one hand on top of your opposite knee (right hand on left knee or left hand on right knee). Using your core (abdominal) muscles, press down, and hold. Reverse and do with the other hand and knee.

NECK

Neck Exercise 1:

Place your hands against the front of your forehead. Push forward with your neck and resist with your hands.

Neck Exercise 2:

Put your hands behind your head. Pull back with your neck muscles and pull against that with your hands and hold.

LAST EXERCISE

Start to stand up, BUT, just as you clear the chair, stop and hold for that slow count to 10.

Stand up, put the chair away and stroll around the house for a couple of minutes.

TIPS

While at first you may just want to do the isometric exercises and let the rest go, if you want to get a little more aerobic effect, and, make the exercises more effective at the same time, add a little movement to each exercise, just before the “hold”.

For example, in the arm exercises, I alternately curl and extend my arms for about three or four times before I put them in the “hold” position. In the chest exercise, I move my arms in and out before I actually set up for the exercise. I try to make each move as if I were moving into position and just keep going three or four times.

I mentioned sitting forward on the chair. This is so you can rock back and forth before the abdominal exercises. For the neck, I move my chin to my chest and raise it up, or, look up at the ceiling and straighten my head back up.

HOW OFTEN?

Since I can put a lot of effort into each “hold”, I only do this workout four times a week, two days on, one day off, two days on, and two days off. However, you may have to play around, especially at first.

One thing to really watch out for is soreness. While there may be a little soreness with any form of exercise, particularly a new one, if you are really feeling pain, you are trying too hard. In fact, I recommend that for the first few weeks that you make the pressure fairly light and gradually increase it until you are experiencing real resistance.

No hurry. The fact that you are doing this little isometric exercise program, which probably only take about 10 minutes or so, on a regular basis will soon begin to provide results. Now, you may not lose a lot of weight, or increase your strength greatly, but, you should notice a bit more energy, and a looseness in your clothes after a few weeks.

How To Find The Best Quality Ergonomic Chair And Save Money Too

Ergonomics simply refers to the study of designing objects, like chairs, office chairs, keyboards, and workstations that are adapted to the form of the human body. It’s not likely you’ll find a really cheap ergonomic chair or cheap ergonomic office chair but you can find good quality low cost ergonomic chairs. Many times you can find them at a good discount. Some people spend thousands of dollars on new computers, and then buy a cheap chair from their furniture or office supply store, without giving a thought to their ergonomic health.

Ergonomics can be applicable in many work environments including, medical, industrial and laboratory but it’s growing more important than ever in today’s office environment. Everyone should pay more attention to ergonomics when shopping for or buying anything they are going to be using daily that can seriously affect one’s health resulting in chronic back pain, varicose veins, neck pain, headaches and many other medical or health complaints. Sitting posture is important. When buying an ergonomic chair you’ll want to choose an ergonomic chair that has all the necessary features you need and adjustments and still be affordable.

For business owners, ergonomic comfort is very important to help keep employees alert and less likely to develop lumbar and other back and neck pains resulting in sick days. If you are going to buy just one chair make sure to ask for a business discount. If you’re buying more than one chair you should be able to get a multiple chair discount. Just ask.

If you want an ergonomic executive office chair it usually has an adjustable headrest or neck rest. If you want an industrial chair it should have the durability for long-lasting use on a plant or manufacturing floor.

The fabric selection is important with ergonomic industrial chair because cleaning it may be an issue. Ergonomic intensive use chairs are durable and especially need to be ergonomic in design, because workers are usually sitting for many hours at a time. Deluxe drafting ergonomic chairs, medical chairs and dental chairs benefit greatly from using ergonomics. Clean room chairs and ESD chairs are also available; these chairs come with height adjustable options as well as seat pan and back option and they have inflatable lumbar support and footrest options.

The seat pan is the component of the chair that supports the majority of the weight of the user. Height adjustment pneumatic levers or also called gas lifts adjust seating height while in the chair. Three or four of your fingers should fit between the seat pan’s front edge and the back of the knees.

Use an ergonomic chair with casters and a 5-point base to ease movement and minimize possible tipping over. Your weight should be evenly distributed on the chair seat so look for a rounded or waterfall edge at the front of the seat, which prevents the seat from catching behind the knees and cutting off the circulation. Both home and office ergonomics are important because we spend a lot more hours when we work at the office or home office and then using the computer at home for other reasons. So be sure to use an ergonomic computer chair.

Look for adjustable width and height to support various tasks at hand, including writing and reading, to ease neck and shoulder tension and to help prevent carpal tunnel syndrome. Inadequate lumbar support places excess pressure on the spinal cord. Remember, a lumbar support cushion properly placed behind the small of the back can help support the lumbar region.

Get ergonomic chair ratings: check out brands of ergonomic chairs and get ratings for the Herman Miller Aeron chair among others. Check out the ergonomic office chairs at Costco and make sure they are truly ergonomic and not just ergonomically designed. There is a difference. Prices are generally cheaper at the big box stores if you buy offline, however you can get many bargains online. Free shipping is often offered.

There are some online stores that will rent you ergonomic chairs and other expensive ergonomic equipment; you can try a chair for a month before deciding if you want to buy it and if you decide to keep the chair, the stores will apply the rental price toward the total cost. This may be a good deal if you want an expensive Aeron chair but need to know if it is the best mesh chair for you.

Whenever you see the designation ergonomically designed, find out if it’s truly an ergonomic chair or just a marketing ploy. Other ergonomic products you can buy cheaply enough include: document holders, ergonomic workstations, telephone mounts, ergonomic keyboards and mouse devices, footrests and speaker stands.