How to read your body's warning signs

Fit-as-a-fiddle...... or not? try these simple checks - they take only minutes but can reveal more than you'd think about your health and whether to seek a remedy.

Most alternative medicine is about prevention - how to enjoy good health as opposed to how to get better once you're ill. An Oriental face-reading expert explains: it's about spotting potential problems before they happen, then stopping them in their tracks. Using a combination of alternative and traditional methods, you can get into the habit of carrying out some simple checks. Do them regularly and they should help you to pick up early warning signals that something could be wrong.

Check around your eyes

Puffiness and a dark or bruised-looking area below the eyes can indicate a kidney or adrenal imbalance, according to the oriental theory of face reading.

Get more sleep and reduce the amount of salt, coffee, freezing cold liquid, ice cream and charred food (such as toast, bbq) you eat.
Try eating more hot food, such as soup and stews - particularly bean-based ones - and make sure you get plenty of good quality root vegetables.

Examine your eyebrows

Can you see deep vertical or horizontal lines or creases, redness, a rash or oily skin between your eyebrows? According to Oriental face-reading theory, this means you have an imbalance in your liver. Avoid eating for two hours before bedtime, cut down on animal fat, dairy food, eggs, spices, alcohol, sugar and overcooked food, and eat more salads and dark green vegetables, chewing them slowly.

Test your circulation

Press down hard on the tip of your big toe for two seconds with your thumb, then release it. The nail will go white but should return to its original colour in a few seconds. If it's much slower than that, it may be a sign that you're overtired, run down or even anaemic, according to Chinese medicine. If you have slow circulation combined with other symptoms such as abnormally cold hands and feet or pins and needles, you should see your GP.

Find your resting heart rate

Test your rate when you wake up in the morning, before you get out of bed.

Take your pulse by turning one hand palm upwards and placing the first two fingers of the other just below your wrist crease towards the thumb. Press firmly and wait to feel a throbbing below your fingers, Count the beats per minute. The average count for a healthy adult is 72, but people who are very fit will have a slightly slower pulse. Smoking, stress and poor physical health can cause a higher pulse rate. If your resting pulse is irregular and jumpy, see your GP.

See how fit you are

Make a note of your resting heart rate (see above), then exercise for three minutes. Whatever your fitness level, the activity should be intense enough for you to feel out of breath. Take your pulse straight afterwards: it should have gone up dramatically. Wait for 10 minutes, then take your pulse for a third time. If you're reasonably fit, it should have returned to the resting rate - the longer it takes to do this, the less fit you are. If you're worried about how long it took, consider doing more exercise or losing some weight.

Test your lung power

Hold a lighted match at arm's length, then take a deep breath and try to blow it out. You should be able to do this without any problems, but if you have real difficulty, mention it to your GP. It's worth noting, though, that your lung capacity will be reduced if you're a smoker and will also decrease somewhat with age.

Study your skin colour

Keep an eye on moles and check other skin changes, too.

There are several kinds of skin cancer, apart from melanomas, so be aware of changes in your skin surface or pigment. Lighter coloured patches on areas that have been exposed are a signal that they've had too much sun. Changes such as severe itching or a scab that won't heal, usually on your face or the backs of your hands, can also be a warning, and you should have them checked by your GP.

Run your fingers through your hair

If you've noticed it's thinning, the bad news is: you'll already have lost 15% of your hair by this stage. losing more than about 70 hairs a day, or losing volume because the diameter of the hairs has reduced, could be a sign (in women) of a nutritional deficiency such as low iron or protein, a thyroid gland problem or hormonal changes. Recent studies show that polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) can cause thinning hair. See your doctor or a trichologist who can advise treatment or dietary changes.

Watch for dandruff

If you're feeling under pressure and your scalp starts to flake, it's likely to be caused by stress - probably the most common cause of dandruff, according to trichologists. Stress can eventually have much more serious consequences, so get some help and consider making changes to your lifestyle now. If your dandruff comes and goes each month, however, it may be hormonal.

Smell your breath

Lick the back of your hand and allow it to dry.

If you can detect an odour, the chances are you have a bad breath. This can indicate poor general health or could be a sign that you're not cleaning your teeth well enough. Check with your dentist.

Stick out your tongue

A healthy tongue should be a deep pink colour with a fine, slightly white coat, like moss, on the surface. If it has a thick white or yellow coat, it could be a sign of digestive problems. It could also mean you've had one course of antibiotics too many and the balance of bacteria in your mouth is wrong. This can also cause a brown-coated tongue and bad breath.

Check your urine

Your urine should be pale and the colour of straw. If it's dark yellow, or has an orange tint, you're dehydrated, which means your kidneys are having to work too hard. Drinking the recommended two litres of water a day will help your body flush out harmful substances and waste more easily. Alcohol or caffeine-based drinks are diuretics and won't help. (See also other articles on this website). If you're drinking plenty of water and your urine is still dark, see your GP. It could be a sign of something else, like jaundice.

Look down the loo

Any persistent change in your normal bowel habit, such as diarrhoea or constipation, or change in frequency of going to the loo, could be caused by all sorts of "innocent" emotional things or a stressful chapter in your life, but it could also be a sign of bowel cancer. If the change has lasted for six weeks, visit your GP. If you notice blood in your stools, go to the doctor straight away. It might only be a fissure or piles, but it's worth getting it checked out.

Inspect your nails

Defined grooved or pits in the nails can signify digestive problems. Nails that curl upwards suggest lung or heart problems, and if nails lose their curvature, it could be you're seriously anaemic. Discoloured, yellowish nails can be due to a lack of essential nutrients, smoking or poor circulation. Add more protein, calcium and fresh fruit and vegetables to your diet.

Stare into your eyes

If the whites of your eyes are yellow, it could be a sign of jaundice, which can be caused by a liver infection such as hepatitis or an illness like glandular fever, so see your doctor as soon as possible. If you notice you look pop-eyed, it could indicate an overactive thyroid, especially if you have other symptoms such as palpitations and unexplained weight loss.

Sun, 23 Sep 2007 | Posted in: Miscellaneous | Posted by: Georgette Henson

Comments

There are no comments yet.

Add a comment