As we enter mid-life, changes abound . But for women, it’s not only hot flashes and mood swings that can dominate. Indeed many gals discover that the most disconcerting change of all can be the change in they experience in their sex drive.

In short - it can all but disappear.

For some, replenishing those dwindling hormones -with Mother Nature or Father Pharmaceutical - can be a big help.

But what if hormones aren’t on your agenda? Not to worry - there are still things you can do!

Indeed, oftentimes small changes in areas of your life you might not even connect with sex - like nutrition, exercise, or even sleep - can make a huge difference in your ability to not only enjoy sex, but actually look forward to intimate encounters.

Here are five things from my book ” Your Perfectly Pampered Menopause” that you can try right now to get your libido off and running!

# 1: Take a Nap

Although this probably doesn’t sound either sexy or romantic, experts say that fatigue is the number one killer of great romance, not to mention terrific sex. Because night sweats and hot flashes may be keeping you awake at night, don’t be ashamed to steal away for a cozy nap any time you get the chance. If you arrange for a rendezvous’ with your partner upon waking, you may be surprised to discover how attuned you have become to what may have been “hidden” sexual desires.

# 2 : Eat Your Fruits and Vegetables

In addition to whatever ” aphrodisiac” foods you may have heard of, at mid-life doctors say one of the best sex boosters is a healthy diet. Studies show that when the basic requirements for good nutrition are met, hormones function better. And that means you are less likely to feel the “bumps” in your perimenopause road as easily or as often. Also try eating six small meals a day rather than three large ones. This can help keep blood sugar stable which not only increases your energy level, but also can improve your mood and your desires.

# 3 : Quit smoking

You know it’s bad for your heart and lungs - but did you know smoking can also put a damper on your sex life? In studies conducted on perimenopausal and menopausal women, doctors found that smoking as little as one pack a day had a greater ability to decrease sexual function than the hormonal changes of menopause! Smoking is also linked to a decrease in estrogen, which can impact sexual response and vaginal sensitivity. The good news: Just months after you stub that last butt, you’ll see an appreciable change in your health - including a upswing in your desire for sex!

# 4: Take Time To Relax
Whether it’s curling up with a great book, planting petunias in your garden, or taking a pottery class, take time to relax and watch the benefits flow in the bedroom! Indeed, studies show that stress can be the number one thief of sexual satisfaction, and, some experts say it can put a real damper on desire. The link involves an entire cascade of hormonal activity that is set in motion by your response to stress. Once it starts, it can impact a variety of physiological functions, not the least of which is mood - and desire. And, even if you have the desire to make love, being under stress can inhibit both your ability to become aroused and to reach orgasm. So, take a few deep breaths and learn to relax - and you might be surprised at how much better you feel about making love.

5: Buy New Shoes . . .
…or get a new hairdo, change your color, go for a make-over, get a facial, even lose a few pounds. Anything you can do to feel better about yourself IS going to make you feel better about relating to your partner, not just in the bedroom, but in ALL the rooms of your life! Certainly there are important physiological reasons why sex may not be on the top of your list during this time of your life. Sometimes, however, how we feel about ourselves, and even how we view the idea of aging itself, can greatly influence how we feel about having sex and even influence what we think about our own sexuality. Doing whatever you can to enhance your self image - in your own eyes- often translates into feeling better about your partner, your relationship, and ultimately your sexuality and your sensuality

Colette Bouchez is the author of Your Perfectly Pampered Menopause- Health, Beauty and Lifestyle Advice for the Best Years of Your Life and the director of YourMenopause.com/ YourMenopause.com.

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Tags: diet, Hair, Heart, menopause, quit smoking, sleep, smoking

In the movie Super Size Me, the star eats at a major fast-food chain for about 30 consecutive days. Within that brief time frame, he picks up over 24.5 pounds and is advised by his doctor to end the documentary immediately or risk his life. He experienced liver damage, sexual dysfunction, and mood swings. It took him 14 months to lose the weight. It is frightening to imagine there are millions of human beings consuming diets that are largely the functional equivalent of what the star of Super Size Me ate during the movie.

The Centers for Disease Control recently ranked obesity second only to smoking as the leading cause of preventable death. The growth in obesity can be tied to the upward trend in the consumption of high-fat foods, sugary foods, candies, and soft drinks. More than 10% of the worlds children are overweight with this figure rising to over 30% in many industrialized countries. For every $1 spent by the World Health Organization (WHO), the food industry spends $500 on promoting processed foods.

The food industry is approaching one trillion dollars in the U.S. With a world advertising budget of over $40 billion dollars, this figure is larger than the gross domestic product of over 70 percent of the world’s countries. Children are the most susceptible to this pervasive flow of imagery designed to influence them. The World Health Organization (WHO) reports increases in chronic diseases such as heart disease, cancer, and diabetes amongst the global population. The organization further notes a “probable” or “convincing” link between many of these diseases and the patterns of food consumed.

The WHO cites the negative effects of the following three points: 1) the adverse effects of high intake of energy (calorie) dense, low-nutrient foods; the adverse effects of high-intake of sugar-sweetened beverages; and 3) the adverse effect of heavy marketing of energy-dense foods and fast-food outlets.

These “non-communicable” diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, and obesity are considered to be communicated through cultural transmission from parents to children, from corporations to consumers, and from developed to less developed countries. The organization is calling for policies that will protect the world’s children from developing dietary habits that may result in disease and premature death.

There is a greater awareness of obesity, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and diet-related cancers than ever before. A greater adoption of the “western” style diet high in fats, sugars, and salt threatens to undermine the health gains of the past century. With mature and developed markets around the world becoming saturated, multinationals are looking to less developed markets such as Eastern Europe, Latin America, and Africa as ripe opportunities to sell their products.

According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization the shift from subsistence farming to importation of foods from the industrialized world has led to a shift from diets dominated by grains and vegetables to ones dominated by high fat and sugar in developing countries. Japan presents a case-study for a progressive approach to dealing responsibly with the nutritional needs of school children.

In Japan, school children are prohibited from purchasing food or beverage while traveling either to or from school. The School Lunch Law sets nutritional standards for school lunches. Each school follows a well-balanced, low-fat (fat is limited to 25 to 30% of total calories), low-salt lunch of rice or bread and soup, 2 to 3 side dishes, milk, and desert. Families are provided with a menu each month providing caloric and nutritional breakdown.

Around the world there are aggressive community-based efforts to combat the enormous marketing pressures of multinational food corporations. For example, the Save Harry program has sent almost 30,000 letters to the author of the Harry Potter series attempting to persuade her to abandon her advertising agreement with Coca Cola.

Fight the Obesity Epidemic was established in New Zealand to address the growing challenge there. In New York City, school menus feature low-fat and low-salt menus, and sugary drinks have been replaced by fruit juice and water. The Naked Chef, Jamie Oliver, has forced changes in the entire U.K. public school lunch system.

There are efforts to make better choices for our children around the world, but there must be a sustained counter to an industry that is approaching a trillion dollars in annual revenue. It is a huge task, but what’s in the balance is our children’s long-term health prospects. It is worth the fight in my opinion. The star of Super Size Me stopped his experiment, but for millions of poor children this choice simply does not exist.

Michael Imani, Ph.D. is a diet expert who works with clients to find solutions for weight and life issues. He is the author of The Diet Code: 4 Steps to Permanent Weight Loss. michaelimanicoaching.com michaelimanicoaching.com

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Burning backache especially in the lower back takes many forms and can result from many conditions and causes. Usually the cause could be from a fall or a person has lifted a heavy load. Some backaches could be the result of illness or spinal deformity. Often enough burning backache comes on gradually and it is not easy to diagnose the cause. Back pain could be acute or chronic. Poor posture is one of the main reasons for chronic burning backache. Nervous tension, improper footwear, slouching, sleeping on a very soft mattress, female pelvic disorders, rheumatism, slipped disc, sciatica, degeneration of the spinal column, arthritis and other bone diseases are some of the other reasons which are the cause of back pain.

The symptom for a backache or burning backache depends upon the cause of the problem. If your back has had an injury or strain, stiffness, muscle cramps and spasms may result. The pain usually creeps up slowly or suddenly in the lower back or the buttocks which can be aggravated by further injury or movement which will last for 2 to 3 days and then gradually it will decrease over the next few days. Sciatica is the worst pain you could get. It can come slowly or suddenly and sends a shooting burning pain from the buttocks down towards the leg and the foot. Usually one leg and foot is affected. The other indication of back pain is tingling, numbness and weakness in one or both the legs. Smoking is another cause of backache causing malnutrition in spinal discs. Usually smoking affects people with small stature. When backache persists it is time to go to the doctor for a check up. Who knows the pain could be due to a minor condition only.

If the burning backache is a mild one then relief may be possible by taking aspirin, vitamin s B1, B6 and B12 under the guidance of a doctor. Rest and sleeping on a hard bed will give immense relief from backache. Application of a heated pad will also give much wanted relief from the pain. Back pain can also be avoided by wearing low heeled shoes, observing correct posture while sitting, using chairs with proper back rest, adjusting work surfaces height and using a pillow behind the back when on long drives. Extra support may be needed for car seats. Avoid sitting on soft heavily padded chairs. Be careful in lifting or carrying heavy loads. If you have to lift a heavy load use your strong leg muscles. The correct method is to keep the back straight and bend the knees till you are low enough to grasp the load you want to lift. Then raise the load and yourself slowly by simply straightening your legs. You should also avoid bending too much forward while ironing clothes especially for the housewife. Willow bark can also be used to reduce pain and inflammation. If still burning backache persists then surgery may be the option.

Paul Osborne is the executive editor of backpain-resources-online.com backpain-resources-online.com &
lowerbackpainrelief.org lowerbackpainrelief.org
Both sites offer a host of information, tips and advice for
lowerbackpainrelief.org lower back pain relief.

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Body Piercings are a form of self expression. Many people feel that certain piercings bring out their personality and show thier individuality. Some take body piercings to a religious level stating that body piercings saved their lives. The say this because when Jesus was hung on the cross, nails pierced through his body and that is what held him on the cross. No matter what your reasoning is, there is still some thing you should know and consider before getting any type of body piercing.

Deciding on the type of body piercing you want is the hardest part. Whether it be naval, nose, tongue or genital you need to decide what would be the easiest for you to take care of or which would be the least to notice if you are in a professional field. After you have decided what type of piercing you are going to get, then comes the decision of what piercing studio you are going to get it done at.

When deciding on a piercer and a studio there are certain things you want to look for. One of those above all is cleanliness. Is the area the piercer works in clean and free of any debris or infectious causing materials. You also want to make sure that the utilities used for the piercing are sterile and packaged in the sterilizing materials. You wouldn’t go into a hospital and let a doctor stick you with a needle that he/she just used on the patient before you, would you? So why should it be any different when getting a body piercing? And last but certainly not least, you should see previous work done by the piercer before hand. Find out how many piercing he/she has done. How many have resulted in unsuccessful piercings? Get as much informatino as you can so that you can make the best decision.

Aftercare of your body piercing is very important. You have to make sure you take extra special care of the piercing so that you do not get an infection. Whether it’s a simple nose piercing or the more extreme piercings such as industrials or orbitals, each has just as much important aftercare as the other. Be sure to follow the care instructions given to you by the piercer. If care instructions are not given, ASK!!!!!

Like I stated before, I’m NOT a doctor or a body piercer. I know what I know from others who have experienced it first hand. Here are a few tips for the aftercare of body piercings.

With a tongue piercing, you will use a lot of mouth wash. You want to rinse your mouth out with the mouth wash after meals; if you’re a smoker, after smoking and of course whenever you drink something. It is recommended to not change the piercing for 2 weeks after. You will also want to avoid any kind of deep kissing for about 4-6 weeks.

Nose, Naval & Ear piercings are somewhat easier to take care of. Just wash the area with an antibacterial soap and keep some sort of product like Neosporin on it to keep the area from getting dry.

Some of your daily or recreational activities may have to be changed. For instance, you will want to avoid swimming in a pool or the ocean because you have an open wound. Salt and chemicals could get into the piercing and cause an infections. Be sure to never touch your piercing without washing your hands before and after. Also avoid wearing clothing or other items which may rub or tug on the piercing and cause irritation.

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