Aphrodisiacs May Kill You

After a man died from poisoning caused by an aphrodisiac he used made out of toad venom, New York health officials are warning the public to stir clear from this illegal aphrodisiacs that are becoming popular.

The city's poison control issued this warning after they received a medical report from a local hospital indicating that a 35-year-old man who consumed a hard, brown substance believed to have been toad aphrodisiac. The product, usually sold under names likes Piedra, Love Stone, Jamaican Stone, Black Stone and Chinese Rock, are becoming popular and readily available in many sex shops and neighborhood stores.

The products popularity got higher even after the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) banned them from being sold to th public.

City health officials stated that the victim was admitted to the hospital after complaining chest and abdominal pain. He died only two days after. They also said that this was cause by one of the ingredients of the aphrodisiac, Bufo genus, which contains chemicals that can disrupt heart rhythms.

The aphrodisiac was supposed to have been applied to the skin, not eaten, but authorities said even that use can be harmful. People should just not use them.

That same product have also killed a 40-year-old man from Brooklyn in 2002, and four others in the earlt 1990s. Another 17-year-old boy also got seriously ill from using the product but was able to survive after extensive medication and treatments.

Exercise for Different Sexes (Nope, Not the Dirty Kind)

The question about male and female equality may never well be answered, well at least when it comes to physical fitness. This is one of the points presented in a study conducted at the University of New England in Biddeford, Maine. According to Danielle Day, one of the researchers involved in the study, said that female may never had the chance to catch up with men when it comes to physical strength and capabilities.

This is because men are bigger and have more muscle and higher levels of that powerhouse hormone testosterone than women. But as researchers have begun to unravel the differences between the sexes with regard to physical activity, they're learning that there's more to the story. Men and women also differ in energy metabolism, lung function and other factors during exercise.


But this study was not conducted to undermine the female population. This is done in an effort to pave the way to sex-specific training regimens for athletes and recreational exercisers as well.

"We're not the same. Our physiological systems are not identical," says Earl Noble, director of the school of kinesiology at the University of Western Ontario in London, Ontario, Canada. He likens exercise to a drug "that needs to be given in the appropriate dose and intensity and should be varied for sex differences."

One real-world application of such research may be the development of workouts that optimize weight-loss for women and men. That is after several researches confirm what frustrated women have long known to be true — that females have a harder time losing weight through exercise than men, says Day. Men's bodies respond more favorably to exercise, whereas women's bodies go into survival mode, slowing metabolism and hanging onto fat. She and other experts say that's an evolutionary response intended to keep a woman healthy for child-bearing.

This is actually good news to everyone, both male and female, as there will be specific exercise, not only to target their needs with different body parts but also needs as a man or women.

Men Can Also Have Breast Cancer

After extensive research, doctors from San Antonio, Texas are trying to encourage men to consider getting tested for genes that raise the risk of breast cancer. According to them, male relatives of women with such genes often realize that they too may carry them. And at the same time, face greater risks of developing male breast cancer, as well as prostate, pancreatic and skin cancer.

"Everyone thinks of breast and ovarian cancer and just assumes it's all women. They don't even realize these genes can be inherited from the father's side of the family," a Dr. Mary Daly of the Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia said.

After seeing breast cancer in several male patients, a further study was conducted until finally concluding that men, especially those who are related to someone who had this disease should take a gene test.

However, it seems that very few men want to.

Breast cancer is the most common major cancer in American women. More than 178,000 new cases, and more than 40,000 deaths from it, are expected in the U.S. this year. But men get it, too — about 2,030 cases are estimated to occur this year, accounting for about 1 percent of all breast cancer cases, according to the American Cancer Society. About 450 of these male cases will prove fatal.

Erectile Dysfunction May Just Be The Beginning

According to a recent study conducted, sexual problems such as erectile dysfunction on men ma also signal other health problems such as heart disease. In fact, ED can prodict cardiovascular troubles that include chest pain, heart attack and stroke, which may ultimately lead to death of men, according to two studies published in the Journal od the American College of Cardiology.

This news came after discovering that ED is a side effect of diabetes, adding insult to injury of about 80 per cent of men suffering the disease.

That is why professionals like Dr. Peter C.Y. Tong of the Prince Wales Hospital at the Chinese University of Hong Kong warn men with type 3 diabetes not to ingnore the warning and have themselves checked even if it's embarrassing. "You must take action now to improve upone these modifiable risk factors," Dr. Tong said in a email.

Men who have difficulty achieving or maintaining erections should tell their doctors without delay so they can be evaluated for further cardiac risk. Interventions might include changes in diet, exercise or medication, experts said.

Of 118 men with erectile dysfunction, 30, or 25 percent, reported a serious cardiac problem over seven years. That compared to 19 of 173 men without impotence, or about 11 percent. Erectile dysfunction is a good predictor of heart disease or stroke because both conditions occur when certain arteries fail to expand fully in response to stimulus. Because the arteries in the penis are smaller than those in the heart, for instance, the condition might show up sooner.

Frequent Weight Loss May Lead to Bone Deterioration on Men

A good physique and lean body have been among the standards to beauty nowadays. That is why most people, including men, have been somewhat conscious when it comes to their body weight and physical appearance. That is also the reason that's why there have been so many diet regiments and exercise products coming out in the product to help people lose weight. But a recent study showed that frequent weight loss may actually weaken bone quality, especially on men.

The study conducted by the Norwegian Institute of Public Health in Oslo which involved 4,601 men suggested that weight cycling in adulthood may lead to fragile bones later in life. According to Dr. Anne Johanne Sogaard, one of the researchers who participated in the study said that the more frequently men slimmed down and regained weight between the ages of 25 and 50, the more likely there were to suffer a fractured arm after the age of 50.

Weight cycling could increase skeletal fragility by causing microscopic damage to bone structure. It could also lead to the weakening of muscles on men.

Aside from these findings, the research also found out that frequent weight loss may also lead to metabolic syndrome and diabetes. This is after examining data from the study conducted in 1972-1973 and later on in 2000. It showed that those men who had lost weight frequently and lost more weight with each slimming bout were more likely to develop the said conditions.

Prevent Prostate Cancer, Drink Green Tea

A study conducted by several researchers at Japan's National Cancer Center revealed that drinking green tea may reduce the risk of advanced prostate cancer. The study said that men who drink five or more cups of green tea a day may actually reduce their chance of developing advanced prostate cancer in half, as compared to those who only drinks one cup a day or less.

According to Norie Kurahashi, one researcher who participated in the study, however said that this does not mean that people who drink green tea are guaranteed to have reduced risk of prostate cancer. These results, according to him, are just preliminary and needs further researches to verify the inference. But they claim that the study may point to the hope that green tea can be used to prevent prostate cancer.

Prostate cancer is not very common among Asian men as compared to Western men, and is believed to have been partly due to the effects of the high consumption of green tea in Asia.

However, the British Charity Cancer Research in United Kingdom said on its website that a study of almost 20,000 Japanese men published last 2006 found no relationship between green tea and prostate cancer.

Women's Perspective: Erectile Dysfunction

You've heard about it many times already. But here is another look at one of the most dreaded disease among the male population, erectile dysfunction. And remember, you are not the only one who will suffer if you don't do anything about your problem. Because your partner will suffer too you know.

Watch this short video and find out how ED affects women too.




Cure Impotence