The Science of Erections

An erection happens when the penis fills with blood and gets hard. The penis has 2 main chambers that run along side the top of the penis shaft. This area, the corpora cavernosa, is made up of spongy tissue, veins, arteries, spaces, and smooth muscles that hold in-flowing blood. Erections happen when more blood flows into the penis and less blood flows out. The erection process is perfectly normal and can happen at any time throughout the day.

Most healthy males get erections during REM (rapid eye movement) sleep (the time of sleep when dreams happen). Also, erections when waking up are a sign of good penis health. Usually, erections happen during physical arousal or fantasizing, but other things can cause it to occur. Such causes include pressure on the genital area and pressure from the urinary bladder from the need to urinate.

For an erection to happen, some kind of stimulation makes the brain and penile nerves to get excited. They tell the smooth muscles of the corpora cavernosa to let blood in, and stop blood from flowing out. This has the effect of expanding the penis size. As the penis gets larger in length and girth, it is normal for it to rise at an angle. This angle is usually anywhere from parallel to the floor to pointing almost straight upward.

Sometimes men are stressed out and can't get an erection. This is just the body's way of dealing with stress (or the “fight-or-flight” response). Worrying about a small penis size or having an unattractive partner can make it impossible for a man to keep an erection.

Other things that affect erections are: the amount of sleep a guy gets, how active he is, and in general, age causes changes in hormone levels, like testosterone.

Erection problems

If a man can't keep an erection for 25% of the time, he may have erectile dysfunction, or ED. Treatments for erectile dysfunction can include penile injections, vacuum pumps, surgery, prosthetic devices, Viagra, hormone therapy, counseling, and natural penis exercises.

Some of these methods try to physically help a guy get an erection, while others improve his sex drive so he can perform better. Methods like injections, prosthetic devices, and vacuum pumps do not require arousal, as they are based on an automatic response.

Other methods like pills and the natural exercises improve the blood flow into the penis, and make erections possible upon sexual arousal. Some pills work each time you take them, while others work for more long lasting benefits. Regular erections are a natural part of good male sexual health. The ability to get erections decreases with age, but there are things men can do to improve themselves.

Erectionproblems can be forever cured with modern methods like surgery, counseling, pills, and even exercises.

Saunas Then And Now

The origin of the sauna is lost in the mists of time, but its history goes back over 1,000 years. The nomadic peoples of Finland had a primitive type of sauna around the first millennium that was made by building a fire inside a tent-like structure. When the heat had built up and the fire was out, people would enter the sauna to bathe. This was very similar to the American Indian sweat lodge.

This type of sauna evolved into a smoke sauna -- a small building with a stone fireplace inside with a hole in the roof for the smoke to escape. The smoke sauna was commonly used until the 1920s, when it started to be replaced by the modern form of sauna. The smoke sauna, however, has enjoyed a recent revival in Finland. Many people consider it to be the finest type of sauna. The modern introduced a new type of stove which allowed the rocks to be heated without being placed directly over the fire flames. This allowed the fire to burn while the sauna was being used. The earliest stoves of this type used wood as a fuel, but later models used electricity.

 

Types of Saunas

Saunas can be built in many shapes and styles. They can be separate buildings or they can be installed in a house or apartment. Traditional saunas use separate wooden structures.

The worldwide popularity of saunas has spurred innovative new designs. One of the most unusual is the portable sauna; a folding sauna that can be used almost anywhere. The folding sauna is just big enough for 1 person to sit in. There is a hole for your head and slits for your hands if you wish to read or talk on the phone while you are enjoying this sauna. Another unusual design is the barrel sauna. This is a small cabin constructed using barrel-making techniques, which holds 6 to 8 people. Barrel saunas can be installed either inside or outside the home.

Infrared saunas have been used since the 1960s. The heating source here is an infrared heater. Unlike traditional heaters that heat the air in the sauna, infrared heaters heat objects and people, but not the air. Since infrared offers deeper tissue penetration, its proponents believe infrared saunas have superior health benefits.

 

Sauna Construction

Almost every type of sauna is made of wood. The walls, ceilings, floors and benches are all made from a wood such as cedar or hemlock. The only non-wood materials are the stove and the rocks that are heated on the stove.

The sauna creates a dry heat--usually between 150 degrees and 200 degrees F. From time to time, water can be thrown on the rocks. This creates a cloud of steam, which has the effect of immediately raising the temperature. The sauna can be heated with an electric or wood stove. Wood stoves are traditional in the countryside, but most urban saunas use an electric heater. Whatever the type or construction, you owe it to yourself to treat yourself to a sauna. It may just become your favorite mode of relaxation.

5 Healthy Ways to Prevent and Heal Stretch Marks

Stretch marks are a common dermatological problem in both sexes of all ages. Stretch Mark scars are formed when our skin needs to be stretched quickly. A sudden weight gain, pregnancy, puberty, height gaining, and sudden weight loss may cause cases like that. The inner layer of the skin tears as the normal production of the major protein that makes up the connective tissue in our skin, collagen, is disrupted. Trying to heal the wounds, the skin is increasing the amount of collagen in the overstretched tissue, resulting in those familiar pinkish lines.

 
If you are in one of these situations, watch out, you don’t want to see these lines on your skin later. Stretch Mark Treatments are often ineffective and in some cases very expensive. It is better prevent than to treat, so here are some prevention tips for you:

• Follow a balanced diet. Keep your weight gain within the recommended range, as sudden weight gain or weight loss is the most common cause of stretch marks as well as other health problems. If you have weight problems or sudden weight changes consult your doctor or dietician.
• Drink plenty of water. Hydration is important for your overall health and it is critical to healthy skin. Skin needs water for elasticity. Dehydration makes skin looking dry, lined and feeling delicate, being vulnerable enough for stretch marks and scars.
• Vitamins are a certain way to ensure proper nutritional status and shiny strong skin in and out. All vitamins are essential for healthy skin but you can make sure that you take enough of the skin beneficial vitamins; Vitamin A is critical for normal life cycle of skin cells, vitamin C, iron and copper which are important for the synthesis of collagen, folate is important for rapidly dividing skin cells, Vitamins B1 and B2 are critical for energy production in the cells and vitamin B12 is essential for a variety of synthetic processes in the cells.
• You can also use a body brush to massage the areas where you have or want to prevent stretch marks from appearing, such us the thighs, buttocks, breasts and arms. This massage will increase circulation to the area, adding points to your efforts.
• Moisturize your skin externally. You can apply several moisturizing creams and oils. Daily massage the area with a substance of your choice. Olive oil, vaseline, vitamin E cream, different types of butter such us cocoa butter, coconut butter and shea butter will do fine. There are also special creams marketed especially for stretch mark prevention, formulas that are designed to help enhance collagen production and support the dermis. These moisturizers will help keep your skin supple and elastic plus serve as nutrition for your skin.

 
Finally, keep in mind that the appearance of stretch marks is not entirely in your hands. Heredity and skin complexion is also important. Stretch marks are the result of a healthy body trying to heal itself. So, if despite your efforts you continue to see stretch marks on your skin, do not despair. You are a healthy individual and your marks tell a story. There are always new treatments waiting for you to try, and cosmetic science is always progressing rapidly in this direction.

Treatment of Childhood Eczema with Aromatherapy

Childhood Eczema is increasing and is becoming a common problem to school age children. According to National Eczema society of UK it is a common disease effecting children up to one fifth of all children in UK. The harshness of this disease can vary in different forms. This disease shows its effect on the skin of child and so the symptoms of this disease can also be judged from the inspection of the child’s skin. In its initial forms the skin is hot, itchy and dry while in more severe forms the skin becomes raw, broken and which also results in bleeding which looks very unpleasant and cause uncomfortable ness, sleeplessness to child but it is not infectious and it cannot spread to others just by touching. The Aromatherapy treatment can reduce the effect of Eczema in child.

The treatment of Eczema can be done with Aromatherapy by the application of Essential Oils on the child through massage but before applying these essential oils it is advisable better not to take risk and should consult from professional Aromatherapist rather than self prescribe this is to avoid any harm because these essential oils can cause harm to children if applied incorrectly. This has been proved by one experiment. The experiment was done to find a better, efficient and effective solution to Eczema. The experiment was that a group consisting of eight children was taken to test the application of Aromatherapy.

These children were divided into two groups randomly in which first group received treatment of Aromatherapy in which the essential oils choose to massage the children skin were from among 36 commonly used essential oils. These Essential oils were German Chamomile, Thyme, spike, lavender, benzoin and Litsea cubeba. While another group of children received massage without essential oils. This was done for the period of eight weeks in which massage was given by the therapist once a week while for remaining times mother gave massage to their children. The treatments were evaluated day by day. Children from both groups showed improvement but there was no differences in the improvement of both the groups.

Facts About LASIK Eye Surgery

The term LASIK stands for Laser-Assisted in Situ Keratomileuses. LASIK eye surgery is a medical procedure performed on a patient who has eye problems. These eye problems can be any of the following: being farsighted or nearsighted, and astigmatism. Furthermore, LASIK  eye surgery is performed so that a person with any of the aforementioned eye problems would not have to wear eyeglasses or contact lenses.

Nowadays, LASIK eye surgery is one of the most common medical procedures that an eye doctor performs on a patient. Once a  patient decides to undergo this kind of surgery, the shape of the cornea will be permanently changed. This is because a rounded “flap” is created on the cornea. Afterwards, with the use of laser or an instrument called the ‘microkeratome’, there is a part of the eye which will be vaporized to correct the eye problem.

LASIK eye surgery has become quite popular in the medical circle because of its painless-free operation. One more advantage that it has over other medical procedures to correct an imperfect vision is: the results are instantaneous. Right after the operation, you just need to let a day or two pass and you will see a definite improvement with your vision.

However, there are some disadvantages to this type of medical procedure. First, the rates can be quite steep so you better check with your eye doctor or ophthalmologist if you plan to undergo such a surgery. Second, just like any other medical operation, there are complications that the patient may suffer in the aftermath of the operation. Third, some job types will not allow an employee to undergo any form of eye surgery.

If you decide to go for LASIK eye surgery, you need to do your part and research so that you will know everything about the procedure. Also, have a thorough talk with your doctor so  that you would know what to do before the operation. Finally, you can ask about the results and improvements with your vision problem right after your LASIK eye surgery.