Dengue Facts

What is dengue fever? What is dengue hemorrhagic fever?

Dengue fever is a flu-like illness spread by the bite of an infected mosquito.

Dengue hemorrhagic fever is a severe, often fatal, complication of dengue fever.

What is the infectious agent that causes dengue?

Dengue and dengue hemorrhagic fever are caused by any of the dengue family of viruses. Infection with one virus does not protect a person against infection with another.

How is dengue spread?

Dengue is spread by the bite of an Aedes mosquito. The mosquito transmits the disease by biting an infected person and then biting someone else.

Where is dengue found?

Dengue viruses occur in most tropical areas of the world. Dengue is common in Africa, Asia, the Pacific, Australia, and the Americas. It is widespread in the Caribbean basin. Dengue is most common in cities but can be found in rural areas. It is rarely found in mountainous areas above 4,000 feet.

The mosquitoes that transmit dengue live among humans and breed in discarded tires, flower pots, old oil drums, and water storage containers close to human dwellings. Unlike the mosquitoes that cause malaria, dengue mosquitoes bite during the day.

What are the signs and symptoms of dengue fever and dengue hemorrhagic fever?

Dengue fever usually starts suddenly with a high fever, rash, severe headache, pain behind the eyes, and muscle and joint pain. The severity of the joint pain has given dengue the name "breakbone fever." Nausea, vomiting, and loss of appetite are common. A rash usually appears 3 to 4 days after the start of the fever. The illness can last up to 10 days, but complete recovery can take as long as a month. Older children and adults are usually sicker than young children.

Most dengue infections result in relatively mild illness, but some can progress to dengue hemorrhagic fever. With dengue hemorrhagic fever, the blood vessels start to leak and cause bleeding from the nose, mouth, and gums. Bruising can be a sign of bleeding inside the body. Without prompt treatment, the blood vessels can collapse, causing shock (dengue shock syndrome). Dengue hemorrhagic fever is fatal in about 5 percent of cases, mostly among children and young adults.

How soon after exposure do symptoms appear?

The time between the bite of a mosquito carrying dengue virus and the start of symptoms averages 4 to 6 days, with a range of 3 to 14 days. An infected person cannot spread the infection to other persons but can be a source of dengue virus for mosquitoes for about 6 days.

How is dengue diagnosed?

Dengue is diagnosed by a blood test.

Who is at risk for dengue?

Anyone who is bitten by an infected mosquito can get dengue fever. Risk factors for dengue hemorrhagic fever include a person's age and immune status, as well as the type of infecting virus. Persons who were previously infected with one or more types of dengue virus are thought to be at greater risk for developing dengue hemorrhagic fever if infected again.

What is the treatment for dengue and dengue hemorrhagic fever?

There is no specific treatment for dengue. Persons with dengue fever should rest and drink plenty of fluids. They should be kept away from mosquitoes for the protection of others. Dengue hemorrhagic fever is treated by replacing lost fluids. Some patients need transfusions to control bleeding.

How common is dengue?

In tropical countries around the world, dengue is one of the most common viral diseases spread to humans by mosquitoes. Tens of millions of cases of dengue fever and up to hundreds of thousands of cases of dengue hemorrhagic fever occur each year.

In the United States, approximately 100 cases of dengue are reported each year in travelers returning from tropical areas. Many more cases probably go unreported. A few persons have become infected with dengue while living in the United States. Aedes mosquitoes are found in Texas, Florida, and other southern states, and locally acquired dengue has been reported three times since 1980 in southern Texas.

Is dengue an emerging infectious disease?

Yes. All types of dengue virus are re-emerging worldwide and causing larger and more frequent epidemics, especially in cities in the tropics. The emergence of dengue as a major public health problem has been most dramatic in the western hemisphere. Dengue fever has reached epidemic levels in Central America and is threatening the United States.

Several factors are contributing to the resurgence of dengue fever:

• No effective mosquito control efforts are underway in most countries with dengue.
• Public health systems to detect and control epidemics are deteriorating around the world.
• Rapid growth of cities in tropical countries has led to overcrowding, urban decay, and substandard sanitation, allowing more mosquitoes to live closer to more people.
• The increase in non-biodegradable plastic packaging and discarded tires is creating new breeding sites for mosquitoes.
• Increased jet air travel is helping people infected with dengue viruses to move easily from city to city.

Dengue hemorrhagic fever is also on the rise. Persons who have been infected with one or more forms of dengue virus are at greater risk for the more severe disease. With the increase in all types of virus, the occurrence of dengue hemorrhagic fever becomes more likely.

How can dengue be prevented?

There is no vaccine to prevent dengue. Prevention centers on avoiding mosquito bites when traveling to areas where dengue occurs and when in U.S. areas, especially along the Texas-Mexico border, where dengue might occur. Eliminating mosquito breeding sites in these areas is another key prevention measure.

Avoid mosquito bites when traveling in tropical areas:

• Use mosquito repellents on skin and clothing.
• When outdoors during times that mosquitoes are biting, wear long-sleeved shirts and long pants tucked into socks.
• Avoid heavily populated residential areas.
• When indoors, stay in air-conditioned or screened areas. Use bednets if sleeping areas are not screened or air-conditioned.
• If you have symptoms of dengue, report your travel history to your doctor.

Eliminate mosquito breeding sites in areas where dengue might occur:

• Eliminate mosquito breeding sites around homes. Discard items that can collect rain or run-off water, especially old tires.
• Regularly change the water in outdoor bird baths and pet and animal water containers.

Escape the Stress of Urban Living

Living in the city is quite stressful. The fast paced lifestyle along with the pollution, traffic and an unhealthy diet could quickly damage our body. For this we need to take some time off and relax. We need to be in an environment which is condusive to re-energizing ourselves and to getting rid of stress.

Let us offer to you Krystal Wellness Center. The center offers a wide variety of massages and treatments that could relieve stress, aches and pains and make you look and feel younger. The facility is fully equipped with the latest in health and anti-aging technologies. Our staff is also well trained and courteous.

For more information contact Krystal Wellness 209 Aguirre Ave. BF Homes Paranaque 9732045 / 09178712813. We look forward to servicing you.

Fruit Shake Recipe

1 cup fruit yogurt
1 piece banana
4 ounces frozen orange juice
½ piece apple
6 ice cubes

Blend until smooth

Jasmine Tea Benefits

About Jasmine Tea

Cultivated widely for its beautiful flowers, jasmine is any of the diverse subtropical and tropical plants with more than 200 species and fragrant flowers of white, yellow and red. Its blossoms are generally picked around midnight when they are in full bloom. Then these flowers are placed over the green tea leaves with the aim of transferring the fragrance, which creates a strong taste and a powerful scent of green tea jasmine. However, jasmine teas are made not only on the base of green teas, but also some variations of black tea flavored with various herbs.

Benefits of Jasmine Tea

Regarded as one of the healthiest teas enjoyed by tea drinkers all over the world, jasmine tea health benefits are considerable. By eliminating free radicals it prevents some forms of cancer, which also arrests aging. It also connects with cholesterol and blocks it, decreases level of cholesterol in blood, as well as prevents bad cholesterol, caused by oxidation. The impact of jasmine tea on circulatory system is even more beneficial, since it is believed to prevent brain strokes, heart attacks, thrombosis and arterial sclerosis. It is good for diabetes prevention and reducing high blood pressure.

In addition, jasmine tea fights viruses and bacteria, preventing thus influenza, cavities and food poisoning, including cholera, dysentery, mouth bacteria damaging teeth and piccoli causing gastric ulcers. One of the jasmine tea health benefits is to improve intestine conditions by blocking development and growth of bad bacteria and strengthening good bacteria. Connecting with such substances as human waste, meat, fish and breath, the tea prevents odor. Gargling with jasmine green tea is also believed to be one of the most effective ways to protect oneself from influenza, as the tea performs anti-viral functions.

Apart from such jasmine tea health benefits as prevention of cancer and heart diseases, recent studies show that drinking jasmine tea may fight fat. People who consumed tea with green tea extract during the period of three months lost more fat as compared to those who consumed regular oolong tea. According to researchers, substances found in jasmine tea, known as catechins, trigger weight loss by decreasing body fat and stimulating body to burn calories.

The content of catechin generally varies by the amount of jasmine green tea used, as well as steeping time. However, it is recommended to consume at least four cups a day. Also available are green tea extract supplements, which reduce LDL bad cholesterol. Thus, drinking jasmine green tea has proved to be an effective means of lowering cholesterol and burning calories, as well as reducing body fat.

Other jasmine tea health benefits include the ability to reduce the risk of blood clot, prevent allergy and flue, reduce high blood pressure and blood sugar, keep fluid balance, boost the immune system and provide oral care and fluoride that helps protect cavities and prevent tooth decay.

Most green teas with jasmine contain a significant amount of polyphenols, plant-based substances which have proven to have antiviral, anticancer and antioxidant properties.

Thomas Edison on Health

"The doctor of the future will give no medication, but will interest his patients in the care of the human frame, diet and in the cause and prevention of disease" - Thomas Alba Edison

Dangers of Microwave Cooking

In a study published in the November 2003 issue of The Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture found that broccoli cooked in the microwave with a little water lost up to 97 percent of the beneficial antioxidant chemicals it contains. By comparison, steamed broccoli lost only 11 percent or fewer of its antioxidants.

When microwaving, caracinogenic toxins are leached from the plastic containers or plastic wrap used to microwave foods.

If you are familiar with homeopathy, you will instantly realize the problem. Microwaves heat your food by causing it to resonate at very high frequencies. While this can effectively heat your food, it also causes a change in the chemical structure of the food that can lead to health issues.

Microwave cooking changes the molecular structure of food. In test subjects who ate microwaved food, the following changes in blood chemistry were observed:

Decrease in hemoglobin values
Decrease in HDL Cholesterol (the good kind)
Decrease in lymphocytes and leukocytes (white blood cells, the ones that kill germs)
Increase in luminous power by luminous bacteria exposed to blood of volunteers (in essence, radioactive energy was passed on from the microwaved food to the blood cells of those who ate the food)

In other words, the implications are that a person who eats microwaved food for an extended period could become anemic due to destruction of hemoglobin, have an increase in heart disease from the decrease in good cholesteral and the ratio between good and bad cholesterol, and could become subject to a host of contagious diseases due to immune system compromise.

It has also been discovered that when microwaved, molecules are torn apart and deformed. These cells become extremely vulnerable to viruses, fungi, and other micro-organisms. These cells' ability to repair themselves is suppressed so that rather than producing water and carbon dioxide in the process of cell repair, hydrogen peroxide and carbon monoxide are produced. Can you imagine eating food filled with carbon monoxide? Can you imagine your own cells producing this compound?

When food is exposed to microwaves, the destruction and deformation of the molecules produces substances called radiolytic compounds, and the effects of these substances upon health is unknown.

Caesar's Salad Recipe

For the Croutons:

• 2 large garlic cloves
• Pinch of salt
• 3 tablespoons virgin olive oil
• 2 cups French baguette slices cut up into 1/2 inch cubes (white bread works too)
• 
  

For the Salad:

• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 medium garlic clove, crushed
• 1 pinch salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 1 1/2 teaspoons anchovy paste or 4 flat anchovies
• 1 teaspoon capers
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1/3 cup virgin olive oil
• 2 medium heads of romaine lettuce -- outer leaves removed
• 1/3 cup Parmesan cheese -- grated
  

Prep Work

Prepping the croutons - Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Crush the garlic cloves with the side of a chef's knife (be very careful) or with a garlic press. Slice up the baguette and cut them into 1/2 inch cubes.

Prepping the salad - Again crush the garlic. If you are using flat anchovies out of a can, mince one or two to make 1 1/2 teaspoons worth. Grate the Parmesan cheese. It's always better to grate it yourself if you have the opportunity.

How to Make at Home

Croutons - Combine garlic, oil, salt, and bread cubes in a bowl. Mix until cubes are coated evenly. Spread the coated cubes onto a baking sheet and bake until the croutons are golden. This should take about 10 minutes.

To make the salad - Bring a pot of boiling water to boil, add egg and cook for just 45 seconds....NO MORE. This is coddling the egg. Remove from heat and let it cool off.

Meanwhile, mix the Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, garlic, salt & pepper, anchovy, mustard and capers in a bowl. Crack egg and add to these ingredients. Whisk until smooth.

Now for the tricky part. Slowly add the oil in a steady stream while constantly whisking again until smooth. Reason: if you add the oil too quickly, the dressing will be separate and not emulsify.

To serve:

Tear the romaine lettuce into 1-2 inch pieces and add them to a large bowl (wooden if you have one). Add half the dressing, toss, add remaining dressing, Parmesan cheese, and croutons and toss again. Serve on chilled plates.