Antioxidants refer to a substance that removes potentially damaging oxidizing agents in a living organism such as the skin or even fruit. An example of an antioxidant is vitamin C or E. Oxidizing is dangerous because it causes living organisms to undergo a reaction in which it chemically combines with oxygen. For example, after biting an apple, or slicing an avocado when it is exposed to oxygen it tends to turn brown after some time. This process is called oxidization. When women use foundation makeup on their skin, the shade of the foundation may change to turn a shade darker or two even sometimes to an orange tinge due to oxidization, in the course of the day.

When antioxidants are consumed they prevent oxidization from taking place. This may be of significance especially for the treatment of cancer and heart disease where it plays a role in decreasing or protecting cells from the damage of free radicals. Free radicals are present in heart disease cancer and other diseases as well.

Free radicals are unstable chemical compounds the can damage the cells in your body badly. These radicals occur as a result of metabolic processes that normally take place in the body. They can also be caused by external sources such as through smoking. Now the good news is that it can be controlled to some extent by maintaining a healthy diet, but not entirely. People who have lived a healthy lifestyle can still get a cancer diagnosis. While the body might have its own immune system defense in place, it can do with a boost and this is where the antioxidants come in.

Scientifically speaking, antioxidants bind themselves to free radicals, making them ineffective in damaging parts of your cells. Vitamin A and selenium are also good sources of antioxidants other than vitamin C and E. However, there are several compounds and foods that are lesser known to have antioxidants beneficial to the body. Like any other component related to cancerous treatment, it is difficult to know for sure how beneficial antioxidants are to the body for every individual.

This is because of the complex metabolic process. When food is consumed, it first has to go to the intestine where it is absorbed before moving to the required organ, in enough amounts to create a significant change in the areas being affected by free radicals. Aside from that, there are several interactions that are nearly impossible to pinpoint the specific importance of one antioxidant to your health.

The alternative is to select foods that have antioxidant benefits and consume them. To be sure of their significance on the body, do your research on foods high in antioxidants. For example, tomatoes have been linked to a lower risk of aggressive prostate cancer because of their potent antioxidant lycopene component. This translates into making tomato soups, consuming them raw or cooking them while making your stews among other meals. To boot, they are also delicious and tomato slices go with just about anything. If you include the tomatoes found in salsa and guacamole, it is highly encouraging.

It has been advised that foods high in beta-carotene seem to be associated with a lower chance of breast cancer. For coffee lovers, the beverage is known to be rich in antioxidants and has one of the highest concentrations of any other food. Therefore, that morning coffee is a go to, and this reason right here can excuse your addiction. To make it more potent, brew your own at home with organic grain to get all the benefits. However, your usual java house coffee will do, it will just have more added sugar and sweeteners and all sorts of other ingredients to give you the right kick. This is okay too, once in a while.

Conclusively, although antioxidants have shown to be of importance for keeping free radicals at bay, there is no conclusive evidence to pinpoint their immediate impacts on any diseases directly.

To begin with, let us address what nanotechnology is. By definition, it is the branch of technology that deals with the controlling of matter on the atomic and molecular scale. In layman’s terms, very very tiny. It technically refers to things that are about 100 nanometers across.

Scientists have used and continue to use nanotechnology to detect elements such as carbon nanotubes, zinc oxide nanowires or palladium nanoparticles. These palladium nanoparticles can be detected in nanotechnology-based sensors. They are very small in size. As a result, a few gas molecules are enough to change the electrical properties of the sensing elements.

Nanotechnology has been experimented with on three human studies. In one of those three, only one study showed the passage of nanoparticles. While they are not harmful on their own, they could be harmful when inhaled in the form of nanoparticles which goes into the bloodstream. The effects of the inhaled particles on the body include lung inflammation and heart conditions. Meaning, that in large amounts, it can be potentially very dangerous to human beings when exposed.

When it comes to cancer treatment, nanotechnology has allowed the exploration of potentially destroying cancer tumors with minimal damage to surrounding healthy tissues and organs. There is also the possibility of early cancer detection and elimination before the tumor itself forms. While these possibilities are exciting, it is currently a potential idea for a future cancer treatment and cure. Most of the efforts being applied to modify cancer treatment now are at the research and development stage.

The developments underway are highly focused and the hope is to make a cure for cancer a reality. While many countries are working in the area of nanotechnology, their combined efforts could lead to a cure in the possibility lying between a decade or so. The US National Cancer Institute is focused on concentrating their efforts to a cure as soon as possible safely.

Some of the cancer treatments under development involve targeting chemotherapy as a tumor-killing agent by delivering an agent called the tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF) to eliminate cancer tumors. The idea is to attach TNF to a gold nanoparticle to along with thiol-derivatized polythene glycol abbreviated to PEG-THIOL, to hide the TNF bearing nanoparticle from the human immune system. Effectively allowing the nanoparticle to flow through the bloodstream without being attacked by the body’s immune system. It cloaks it and deceives the body, like a trojan horse to deliver a killing agent.

Another mind blogging experiment is using heat by application to destroy cancer cells. This technique that is being developed uses nanoparticles called auroshells, to absorb infrared light from a laser to turn the light into heat. Other techniques being explored include using nanoparticles to deliver drugs to tumors for treatment. While another chemo-targeted treatment is being delivered by a different facility for a unique method named cerulean pharma to eliminate the cells. No matter the method of delivery, the end result is focused on either reducing but essentially in eliminating cancerous tumors.

One of the major benefits of using nanotechnology is that the nanodevices are uniquely small. The scale of nanodevices to human cells is one hundred to ten thousand times smaller. They are actually similar in size to large biological molecules like enzymes and receptors. Nanoscale devices can easily enter most cells, making scientific research efforts viable at best to become possible solutions in the near future. They can move out of blood cells and circulate through the body. Due to their small size, they can interact with biomolecules both on the surface and inside the cells themselves.

Since they can access so many areas of the body, their potential to detect disease and deliver treatment in ways that seemed impossible before are now looked upon as achievable science. It is also good to note that biological processes that lead to cancer, happen at the nanoscale of things.

It is that time of the year again. No, not Christmas. It is Halloween. Halloween is a holiday popularized in the American culture and celebrated by wearing costumes, reading scary thrillers, and even watching horror films as part of the Halloween spirit. Teenagers like to throw parties and get dressed up for Halloween, while younger kids prefer to go knocking door to door to collect candy. Partly fun, partly family friendly, partly scary, Halloween is a day full of complicated fun and experiences. However, what is the celebration about?

It is also observed in several countries on the 31st of October. It is also known as All Hallows’ Eve and it traditionally begins with a three-day observance of the day, which is dedicated to remembering the dead, including saints, martyrs and other faithful departed; hence the scary costumes and movies which symbolize the dread that comes with the thoughts of the dead resurrecting, the fictional zombies and the likes.

There are several myths surrounding Halloween, among them is that it is a Gaelic holiday with pagan roots. While others believe that to cleanse the holiday, the early church Christianized it as Halloween and others say that it is actually a Christian holiday separate from other ancient festivals with pagan history attached to it.

On this day, in today’s popular culture it is not unusual to find a woman dressed in a nurse’s outfit. Tailored and fitted to look more promiscuous rather than a well dressed nursed. The outfit is sexualized and commands the attention of the woman who wears it. It is seen as an exciting and fun choice for many young women. The costume pokes fun at the ‘innocent nurse’ gesture and turns to become more sexualized and even having a dangerous character to an extent over Halloween.

The costume has been widely accepted in American culture to take on different roles, depending on the wearer. For some professional nurses, the costume can come off as demeaning to their practice, and they are unappreciative of the different vulgar costumes they come across. While others are not offended at all. They understand the context of the costume and where and when it applies, therefore not having a place in any professional setting. Due to that, it doesn’t bother them.

The nurse costume has not caused a public disturbance, but more of a public discomfort should a nurse or anyone else who may come across it being worn in an environment that is not suitable. Today, it has been fully accepted as a costume used to enhance relationships or make for an interesting costume over Halloween. More so, the nurse costume and the actual nurses’ uniform are not the same. The costume does not represent the actual uniform nurses wear, it is more of the character they embody when wearing the costume that spells out it is a nurse costume.

The costume itself should not be banned. In a democratic and liberal society such as the American one, it would be outrageous to ban the costume. It is a world where individuals are free to speak and do as they wish, hence the tag ‘the free world’. The costume should not be banned, but instead, the costume should have regulations to its tailoring to be distinct from the original nurse’s uniform, and refrain from replicating an authentic nurses’ uniform completely.

The regulations can also be applied in specific states, to avoid replication of uniforms that replicate the exact fashion of the real nurses’ uniforms for the states in question and those of the health facilities around. Additionally, if there are any institutions and nursing groups or unions that feel violated by the uniforms they should go ahead and act against it, instead of applying for a nation-wide ban on the nurse costume worn over Halloween and other holidays.

However, it is perfectly legal as t, is done in a light-hearted fashion, not meant to offend nurses themselves.

We all want our bodies to be in tip-top shape, but what about our minds? When it comes to wellness and fitness, people tend to focus more on their external appearance, forgetting that we feed the mind is what contributes to the beginning of a lasting wellness, journey. Body, mind, and soul. What you feed the mind is productive, or counter-productive. You either contribute to a conversation with knowledge, stay quiet or look foolish. Either way, it is important to make your contribution, even if it just to answer the questions of a curious child. It sounds easy but when you are asked: “where does the sun come from?” You start thinking too.

You must have heard the phrase, ‘we never stop learning’. It is a true quote. Every day, the human being learns, if they accept the lesson. IT can come from relationships, losses, new beginnings and the obvious academics. We learn from people we meet, those whom we choose to keep in our lives like mentors, and when we further our studies. However, to have and keep a healthy mind does not have to be expensive. You do not have to spend a costly sum for a further education, but you can.

Quiz it

Today, to keep learning all you need is a quizzical app and an open mind. There are several apps available via the Appstore for Android and iOS where users can access to do daily quizzes to give the mental stimulation. It is well known that higher education makes for better mental health. This is because of the challenge. The mind needs constant stimulation to work efficiently each time and do better than before. It is like sharpening a knife, and any tool after substantial dormancy becomes blunt.

Academia: Higher Education

This is why higher education is encouraged and celebrated. Education is considered to be an investment in oneself because of the rewards of making efforts towards achieving more mental efficiency. It translates into better opportunities for one who is better educated. The old school way of keeping your brain healthy lies in reading books. All kinds of books. It keeps you curious and interested.

Healthy body, Healthy Mind

Another way to have a healthy mind is by exercising. Regular exercise gets the blood flowing and allows oxygen to travel around the body reaching the brain. For mental efficiency, we all need oxygen or eventually, pass out. Eating well is also a significant factor. Too much alcohol or binge eating makes the body sick. As the saying goes, too much of anything is poisonous, and that lies in what we consume as well. A cup of coffee serves as a good pick me up, and the caffeine in the beverage enables us to become more alert and thus, work better.

Vary your activities, for many people a routine workout stops challenging the body. The same goes for your mental work as well. When you do the same set repetitively until it becomes easy, it stops becoming interesting because the challenge is lost. This is an indication that you need to progress. Make the challenge harder or try something new. This is one of the reasons online learning is so convenient. There are several free new courses available at the click of a button to challenge yourself.

Stop bad habits

As mentioned before, drinking and overindulgence limit brain functionality. This includes the intake of tobacco. This is especially through smoking cigarettes and the occasional or frequent use of marijuana. This also may lead to limited brain functionality, sometimes with long-term effects. These effects may lead to permanent brain damage and overall declined health, which affects brain function.

Garbage in, garbage out. What you feed your mind is what you reveal, therefore, if the mind is treated like a precious and limitless tool that has potential, it can be sharpened ever so frequently with what you feed it.