Did your doctor tell that you had to use a urinary catheter? Since there are plenty of options available, the selection process can be an overwhelmingly difficult task. You can seek the help of a healthcare professional to identify the best one but you must be aware of what type of catheter suits your needs. Intermittent catheters for men An intermittent catheter for men can be described as a thin tube, usually made using silicone, rubber or vinyl. These types of devices are inserted manually into the bladder for draining urine manually and they make the process of draining urine extremely easy. These catheters allow you to do it all your own and they are also called in and out catheters. They are single-use device and since you can wash and reuse them, you are likely to increase your risk of infection. That is why most people use it once only for draining their bladder. These devices have a length of 16 inches and they are available in a wide range of materials and sizes for men. You can choose the most suitable one based on your unique needs. If you find it difficult to use a straight tip catheter due to enlarged prostate, or blockage; you can use one with a curved tip. Major variations of intermittent catheters for men Straight catheters This type of intermittent catheter for men employs a technology that allows you to drain the bladder at frequent intervals. Since the tubes are uncoated, you have to manually lubricate prior to inserting and it can be done by individual-use packets meant for sterile lubrication. When you purchase the device, you can add them in the order. Based on the needs of the user, they can be found with straight and curved tips. Pocket catheters are also available with a U-shaped package and you can easily carry them by tucking into your pocket.

Sitting in a single position for a long time at the office or elsewhere can result in having deep vein thrombosis (DVT). Deep vein thrombosis is the formation of a blood clot or thrombus in a single or more, deep veins in the body, mostly the thighs or lower legs, but can also come up in other areas of the body. It is a serious condition which occurs with leg pain, swelling, redness or warmness but may also occur without any symptoms. What is a blood clot? It is a gelatinous lump of blood in a solid state. Scientifically, DVT can be explained as the interplay of three processes which are changes to the blood vessel wall, an increased tendency to clot (hypercoagulability) and a decreased blood flow rate (venous stasis). It can be life threatening when the clot caused by DVT travels and makes it way to the lungs; this is also called pulmonary embolism. This can lead to many more complications. The symptoms of deep vein thrombosis include the following: Severe leg pain is the most common symptom for DVT that usually begins with the calf but later may spread to your entire legs. Pain alone cannot be a determinant for DVT though it is an important one. Swelling in the feet, leg or ankle mostly on one side is also a sign of a development of DVT in your body. Some areas of the leg feel warmer than the other parts of the body, though this may be temporary in some cases and the person may not think much of it, but it is a factor that many doctors when asked, get a positive revert from the patients. Discolouration or redness-blueness on the area affected is some of the very few visible symptoms of DVT. Distention of surface veins can occur.

Atrial fibrillation or AFib is the most common of all kinds of serious heart arrhythmia. The main cause behind it is abnormal electrical signals in the heart. These signals cause the upper chambers or the atria of your heart to quiver and fibrillate. This fibrillation results in irregular and fast heartbeat. People with AFib may never have any symptoms but suffer from serious complications. The irregular beating will cause the blood to pool in your atria. This will cause clots which will travel to your brain and result in stroke. People with this condition are at five times higher risk of getting a stroke than those without this condition. AFib worsens heart conditions as well as heart failure. However, there are several options available to treat this condition including surgery, medications and other procedures. Lifestyle changes can help in the betterment of this condition as well. Find out below the several ways to treat AFib: The Goals of the Treatment Your physician will plan a treatment strategy to manage your AFib. There would be three goals primarily to address the issue: Restoring normal heart rate. Preventing blood clots. Restoring normal heart rhythm. All these three goals can be achieved using medicines. However, if medicines fail to restore your heart rhythm, there are other options available for surgery or medical procedures. Drugs to Prevent Blood Clots One of the most common causes of premature death in patients suffering from AFib is a stroke. The increased stroke risk is a major concern. There are certain medications that your doctor would like to suggest to prevent the formation of clots that may cause a stroke. These drugs include: Rivaroxaban Warfarin Edoxaban Apixaban Dabigatran The doctor would run a check on your blood regularly to ensure that the medicines are working. Medicines to Restore Normal Heart Rate Another important step in treating AFib is to slow down the heart rate.

Various research studies have shown that urinary incontinence or uncontrollable urination can be associated with 10 to 35 percent of older men. However, you cannot link this problem with older men alone. There are several younger men who have been suffering from this problem because of various types of health problems. It has been found that a lot of men with incontinence do show some reluctance to speak about the issue with their doctors. So the actual number of men suffering from this condition can be quite higher. The first step to solve urinary incontinence is to discuss the issue with the doctor. Then only, the doctor will be able to analyze the symptoms and decide the most effective treatment method. Incontinence products for men As mentioned above, urinary incontinence has become a common health problem for several men. A leaky bladder interferes with daily routine and it can cause a lot of inconveniences. In order to deal with this, there are different types of male incontinence products available in the market and these devices help men enhance their daily lives without getting bothered about leaks. Let us take a look at the different types of male incontinence products External catheters External catheters are a very good option for dealing with a leaky bladder. They can be described as flexible tubes that are inserted into the bladder and these tubes offer immediate help by draining urine that is gathered in the bladder. Various manufacturers have come up with different types of catheters and you need to choose a device that fits your needs. Pads and other absorbent products Several men are using absorbent pads to handle the issue of incontinence. They line the underwear of the user for catching leaks. These types of devices are usually very effective and great ease of use can be associated with them.

Heartburn is the burning sensation that you experience in your chest after you eat. This feeling can be intense at times, and in these extreme cases, the person might even experience a chest pain. Heartburn is a fairly common condition that occurs when there is indigestion, and the food doesn’t sit well with your system. This happens when you eat spicy food or overeat. It is also known as acid reflux as the acid in your stomach comes back up into the esophagus causing a burning sensation in your chest. You might also feel nauseous and uncomfortable for a long time. If heartburn occurs more than two times a week, you may have gastroesophageal reflux disease. It can lead to further complications if left untreated. How To Differentiate Heartburn Chest Pain And Heart Attack One of the main symptoms of heartburn is chest pain. This is the reason most people confuse heartburn with cardiac attacks. The burning in the chest causes alarm and has people assuming that they are experiencing a heart attack. This is how you can distinguish between the two: Signs Of A Heart Attack The chest pain you experience when you have a heart attack will slowly spread to your neck, arms, and shoulders. You will have shortness of breath and feel light-headed. There will also be a lot of sweating. There will be a tightness in the chest, unlike the pain you feel in heartburn. Signs Of A Heartburn Patients experiencing a heartburn feel the pain in the chest spreading to the throat. A vomiting sensation and an acrid taste in the tongue are other signs. You’ll feel like the food is coming back into your mouth. Lying down will only intensify the discomfort and pain. Other signs that tell you that you have a heartburn and not a heart attack is, you will not be sweating, and the pain will occur after you have a meal.

Overactive bladder is a condition in which you experience involuntary contractions of the muscles in the bladder wall. It is a syndrome where the convulsions make you feel a urgent need to urinate, which is overwhelming and difficult to suppress, even when the bladder may contain only a small amount of urine. This condition is also known as urinary urgency. In a few cases, an overactive bladder leads to urinary leakage where you are unable to quash the impulse to pee, medically referred as to urgency urinary incontinence. A common type of urinary incontinence found is stress incontinence. Sometimes the pelvic floor muscles, which are essential in supporting the bladder surrounding the urethra, are weak and lead to urinary leakage when there’s stress/pressure on the abdomen or pelvic region. Symptoms of an overactive bladder With an overactive bladder, you: feel a sudden urge to pee that won’t go away have involuntary loss of urine following an urgent need to urinate have urine leakage during physical activity like coughing, sneezing, and lifting have to urinate frequently, usually eight or more times a day experience nocturia where you wake up 2-3 times in the night to make a trip to the bathroom Causes of an overactive bladder Involuntary contractions in the muscles of the urinary bladder may occur due to a dysfunction of the nervous system where the brain may send impulses to the urethra muscles, even though the volume of fluid in your bladder is low. Common reasons for this neural system abnormality are: Injury to the spinal cord Back problems Brain strokes Parkinson’s disease Multiple sclerosis Dementia Neuropathy caused by diabetes Other causes of overactive bladder syndrome include: Infections in the urinary tract Stones in the bladder Prostate enlargement (BPH) Bladder tumors Excess consumption of caffeine or alcohol Declining cognitive function due to aging Treatments for overactive bladder An overactive bladder may have adverse effects on your life, mostly relating to your social commitments and mental health.

Sleep apnea is a very common sleeping disorder in which a person experiences problematic and irregular breathing patterns. It is also referred to as ‘Sleep Apnoea’ and results in shallow and paused breathing while you are sleeping. It can occur a number of times during the night. A typical snoring sound will follow when you might wake up a number of times with a slight grunting or choking sound. Self-tests for sleep apnea It is imperative that you know about the problem really early so that you can start better and faster treatment. In this context, the article will cite certain best and the most effective self-test for sleep apnea. These tests and the parameters will help you to understand and conclude whether you have the problem of sleep apnea or not and the consequential treatments that you require. Basic problems revealed from your self-test for sleep apnea In case you have reached the following conclusions from the self-test for sleep apnea then it must be clear to you that you do have the problem of sleep apnea and you must arrange for a proper treatment: You are experiencing sleepiness during the daytime You do not feel refreshed after you wake up from your sleep. You have a very strong feeling of fatigue You are developing the problem of insomnia You often happen to wake up with a choking or a gasping sound and effect. You are short of breath when you wake up. Your bed partner is often complaining about you snoring at night. You have the problem of Nocturia or that you need to wake up at night to visit the bathroom. You have splitting headaches in the morning. You have difficulty while concentrating. You are facing a loss of memory. You have a lower sexual desire as compared to the earlier times.

Deep Vein Thrombosis or DVT is a condition where a blood clot appears in a deep vein in the body. When a blood clot occurs, the blood turns gelatinous. A blood clot from deep vein thrombosis is more likely to appear in your thigh or lower leg. But these clots can also occur in other parts of the body. This is a condition called a thromboembolism. Vulnerable age groups The symptoms of deep vein thrombosis appear more commonly in people over the age of 50. Certain physical conditions can also increase the risk of deep vein thrombosis in your body. It’s important to identify the symptoms of deep vein thrombosis early to prevent the problem from getting worse. Once you identify the cause of the problem, it’s easy to seek treatment. The factors which are likely to cause deep vein thrombosis are as follows: Injured or damaged veins Being overweight or obese puts a lot of pressure on the veins in your pelvis and legs. This can aggravate the risk factor. So if you’re obese, keep an eye out for symptoms of deep vein thrombosis. A history of deep vein thrombosis in the family can also make you more prone to it. Placement of a catheter in the vein could also lead to the problem.Women who are taking birth control pills regularly may also experience deep vein thrombosis. If you’re undergoing hormone therapy, you may find yourself experiencing some symptoms of deep vein thrombosis. Smoking is one of the biggest triggers for deep vein thrombosis. Lack of physical exercise, a sedentary lifestyle, and the accompanying obesity risk is another major factor that could lead to symptoms of deep vein thrombosis manifesting at a younger age. Stay Vigilant, Stay Safe People over the age group of fifty should stay vigilant for the early symptoms of deep vein thrombosis.

Cleaning the house is not as easy as it appears. Before starting, you must know precisely how, when, and what to clean because trial and error might not help. Sometimes, you could be making cleaning mistakes without realizing it, which do not allow you to get the desired results. To prevent that and help you keep your home clean and tidy, we have listed the top five cleaning mistakes to avoid. But before we get there, if you have a cat at home, Fresh Step® regular cat litter is an easy and convenient way to keep your indoors clean and odor-free. It contains activated charcoal and highly porous clay that quickly neutralizes odor and carries no additional fragrances. The company also provides options like non-clumping litter. Moreover, if you’re looking for cleaners, Clorox Disinfecting cleaners are a great way of ensuring your laundry and furniture are squeaky clean without any unwanted odors. Clorox cleaners can effectively rid your home of common harmful bacteria like E. coli and Salmonella. These cleaners do not compromise their quality of fabric or leave behind a slimy layer on your furniture. Read on to know the top five cleaning mistakes to avoid. Starting at the wrong spot in the room Nobody wants to spend more time than necessary cleaning. You will have to backtrack and redo if you commence at the wrong spot while deep cleaning. So, start by decluttering the things you do not want in the room. Put them back in their original spot or discard them. Now, as you start cleaning, begin from the top, and go all the way down. If you start from the bottom and move to the top, the dirt and dust from the top will travel downwards, and you may have to clean it again. People often use cheaper garbage bags to collect dirt and debris.

Sweating is a natural process by which the body tries to regulate its temperature by emitting the excess heat in the form of sweat. Therefore, you need not feel bad about it and it’s actually healthy to sweat. However, some people have the tendency to sweat a lot when it comes to intensive workouts or when the body is in peak activity stage. If you are among those people who go through a lot of sweating throughout the day, then at some point you would need to try and stop that with an effective approach. After a hectic schedule, taking a bath with cold water can help you feel refreshed, but that won’t help you to control your excess sweating. For that, you would need some of the best deodorants for excessive sweating. Listed below are some of the top ones that will not only help you control your body odor and sweat but are also clinically approved so that you don’t get rashes or allergies. SweatBlock antiperspirant for men This SweatBlock clinical strength antiperspirant can be the perfect choice for you if you suffer from excessive sweating. This antiperspirant will stay with you for a long time with just one application. Moreover, the company promises that there will be no signs of allergic skin reactions on applying this deodorant and the smell will stay for one week after its single application. You can definitely use this deodorant on intensive workout days as well as when you are outdoors. Phoenix antiperspirant from AXE for men This antiperspirant by AXE is one of the best deodorants for excessive sweating. It is specially made to keep you dry throughout the day. It comes with a strong musky scent and comes at an attractive price range too. Cool Wave Endurance Antiperspirant Deo for men by Gillette This antiperspirant deodorant from Gillette comes with a cool and refreshing scent that will give you an immediate, unique cooling effect.

Probiotic word has been derived from the Greek words Pro, which means “promotion” and Biotic, meaning “life”. Our body has a vast amount of bacteria- both good and bad, which have been with us since birth. But what is important is the optimal balance of these in the body. A subsequent imbalance is called dysbiosis, which can cause diseases related to the intestinal tract. So, probiotics are actually bacteria or live microorganisms which help prevent or even treat some illnesses. While the idea of having bacteria in the body that help instead of harm is a bit difficult to take in, probiotics actually help promote a healthy immune system as well as a healthy digestive tract. The following are the health benefits of probiotics: Balancing the good bacteria in the body An imbalance between the good and bad bacteria in the body can cause allergies, obesity, mental health issues and more. Probiotics restore the natural balance of gut bacteria upon consumption. These live beneficial microorganisms prevent an imbalance that might have been caused by various kinds of medications, illnesses, poor diet and more. Diarrhea treatment One of the most common side effects of taking antibiotics is diarrhea. This occurs due to the antibiotics negatively affecting the balance between good and bad bacteria. But one of the probiotic benefits is to help reduce or prevent diarrhea, especially antibiotic associated diarrhea. Studies have also proven that they can reduce infectious diarrhea by an average of 25 hours and traveler’s diarrhea by 8%. But, the effect varies depending on the type and dosage consumed. Improving mental health conditions Gut health has been linked to mental and mood health often, and in accordance, probiotic supplements have been found to decrease some mental health disorders like anxiety, stress, depression, OCD, memory and more. Keeping the heart healthy Bile is a fluid mostly made up of cholesterol which helps with digestion.

Wondering how to naturally lower LDL levels? Well, you should first know that cholesterol is an essential substance which helps the human body to build cells. It travels through the blood on proteins which are called lipoproteins. These proteins are classified into LDL or Low-density lipoprotein and HDL or High-density lipoprotein. HDL or good cholesterol absorbs cholesterol and carries it back to the liver, excess of which is flushed out of the body. On the other hand, LDL or bad cholesterol make up most of the body’s cholesterol. When our body has LDL in excess, it can build up on walls of blood vessels, making it narrow. These narrow blood vessels blocks flow of blood to and from the heart, thus causing a heart attack. A lesser known fact is that HDL can lower risk for heart disease and stroke. The LDL particle concentrations are typically categorized by percentiles and the optimal range is 0 – 20% in adults. What causes LDL? Cholesterol is vital to the human body, and hence it is produced naturally. But there are some foods that can only increase the LDL level, more than the body actually requires. Unhealthy food habits or a diet rich in saturated and trans fats, lack of physical activities, exposure to smoking and excess weight are the main reasons for high cholesterol levels. Some people inherit genes from their previous generations too. How to naturally lower LDL? Cholesterol enters our body through two sources. The liver makes all the cholesterol which is required by the body. The remainder of it comes from food from animals and dairy products. There are lifestyle changes that can improve cholesterol levels. So, if you are wondering how to naturally lower LDL in your body, include these in your diet. A variety of fruits and vegetables Fruits and vegetables are the main source of soluble fibers which absorbs cholesterol in intestines by binding it with bile.