Vaginal Odor; All you need to know about it

PhotoCredit: https://www.womenshealthmag.com/

Definition

According to Mayo Clinic website, vaginal odor is any odor that originates from the vagina. It’s normal for your vagina to have a slight odor. But, a strong vaginal odor — for instance, a “fishy” smell — might be abnormal and could indicate a problem.

Abnormal vaginal odor that happens because of infection or another problem is usually associated with other vaginal signs and symptoms such as itching, burning, irritation or discharge.

Vaginal odor may vary throughout your menstrual cycle and may be especially noticeable right after having sex. Normal sweating also can cause a vaginal odor. Though it may be tempting to douche or use a vaginal deodorant to decrease vaginal odor, these products may actually increase irritation and other vaginal symptoms.

Bacterial vaginosis — an overgrowth of normally occurring vaginal bacteria — is the most common vaginal infection that causes a vaginal odor. Trichomoniasis — a sexually transmitted infection — also can lead to vaginal odor. Chlamydia and gonorrhea infections usually don’t cause vaginal odors. Neither do yeast infections.

Generally, if you have vaginal odor without other vaginal symptoms, it’s unlikely that your vaginal odor is abnormal.

Common causes of abnormal vaginal odor include:

  1. Vaginitis
  2. Poor hygiene
  3. A retained or forgotten tampon left in place for several days
  4. Trichomoniasis

Less commonly, abnormal vaginal odor may result from:

  1. Rectovaginal fistula (an abnormal opening between the rectum and vagina that allows feces to leak into the vagina)
  2. Cervical cancer
  3. Vaginal cancer

All the Smells a Healthy Vagina Can Be

According to Health Line, a healthy vagina smells like a lot of different things — flowers isn’t one of them.

Yeah, we’ve seen those scented tampons ads too. And it seems to us like all that flowery sunshine is another example of the world getting vaginas all wrong.

Just take a quick trip to your local drugstore. You’ll find a wall full of products promising to mask the natural way your vagina smells. Like douching. Widely acknowledged by the medical community as harmful to the natural balance of vaginal flora, this common tool that cleans the vagina might actually cause bacterial vaginosis instead.

1. Tangy or fermented

It’s very common for vaginas to produce a tangy or sour aroma. Some compare it to the smell of fermented foods. In fact, yogurt, sourdough bread, and even some sour beer contain the same type of good bacteria that dominate most healthy vaginas: Lactobacilli.

If it smells curiously similar to that sour IPA you had last weekend, don’t freak out.

Reasons for a tangy odor

  • Acidity. The pH of a healthy vagina is slightly acidic, between 3.8 and 4.5. “The Lactobacilli bacteria keep the vagina acidic,” says Minkin. “This protects against an overgrowth of the bad kinds of bacteria.”

2. Coppery like a penny

Many people report smelling a coppery, metallic vaginal odor. This is usually nothing to worry about. Rarely, it signifies a more serious problem.

Reasons for a coppery odor

  • Blood. Blood contains iron, which has a metallic smell. The most common reason for blood is menstruation. During your period, blood and tissue shed from your uterine lining and travel through your vaginal canal.
  • Sex. Light bleeding after sex can be common. This is usually due to vaginal dryness or vigorous sex that can cause small cuts or scrapes. To prevent this, try using lube.

A coppery smell can also be due to less common, but serious, causes of vaginal bleeding. The metallic scent shouldn’t linger too long after your period is over. If your vagina has had contact with semen, this may change the pH level and cause a metallic smell.

If you’re experiencing bleeding unrelated to your period or the metallic smell continues with itching and discharge, it’s best to see a doctor.

3. Sweet like molasses

When we say sweet we don’t mean freshly baked cookies sweet. We mean robust and earthy. But don’t fret, a sweetish tinge is no cause for concern.

Reasons for a sweet odor

  • Bacteria. Yep, bacteria again. Your vaginal pH is an ever-changing bacterial ecosystem. And sometimes this means you might smell a little sweet.

4. Chemical like a newly cleaned bathroom

An odor similar to bleach or ammonia could be a couple different things. Sometimes, this odor is reason to see a doctor.

Reasons for a chemical odor

  • Urine. Urine contains a byproduct of ammonia called urea. A buildup of urine in your underwear or around your vulva could put off a chemical smell. Keep in mind, urine smelling strongly of ammonia is a sign of dehydration.
  • Bacterial vaginosis. It’s also possible a chemical-like smell is a sign of bacterial vaginosis. “A chemical smell often falls under the category of fishy,” says Minkin.

Bacterial vaginosis is a very common infection. Symptoms include:

  • a
    foul or fishy odor
  • thin
    gray, white, or green discharge
  • vaginal
    itching
  • burning
    during urination

5. Skunky like BO or a smoked herbal, earthy scent

No, it’s not just you. Many people find a similarity between body odor and marijuana. Sadly, there isn’t a good scientific answer for this, although Vice did take a stab at it. But thanks to the sweat glands down there, at least we do know why vaginas and body odor can smell so similar.

Reasons for a skunky odor

  • Emotional stress. Your body contains two types of sweat glands, apocrine and eccrine. The eccrine glands produce sweat to cool your body down and the apocrine glands respond to your emotions. These apocrine glands populate your armpits and, you guessed it, your groin.

When you are stressed or anxious, the apocrine glands produce a milky fluid. On its own this fluid is odorless. But when this fluid contacts the abundance of vaginal bacteria on your vulva, it can produce a pungent aroma.

6. Fishy or that fillet you forgot about

You’ve probably heard an abnormal vaginal odor described as fishy. In fact, fresh fish shouldn’t smell like much at all. Decomposing fish is the more apt comparison. Why? Trimethylamine, which is the chemical compound responsible for both the distinct aroma of rotting fish and some abnormal vaginal odors.

Reasons for a dead fish odor

  • Bacterial vaginosis. “You get bacterial vaginosis when there’s an overgrowth of anaerobic bacteria in the vagina,” says Minkin. “And these anaerobic organisms are odorous.”
  • Trichomoniasis. Trichomoniasis is the most common curable sexually transmitted infection and easily treatable with a course of antibiotics. It’s known for its pungent fishy odor. “The trichomoniasis infection can be quite smelly,” says Minkin. “It’s a more pronounced fishy odor than bacterial vaginosis.”

In rare cases, a fishy smell is indication of a more serious condition.

7. Rotten like a decaying organism

A rotten odor that makes your nose wince and your face contort is definitely not the norm. If the smell is putrid, like a dead organism, it may not be your vagina but something in your vagina.

Reasons for a rotten odor

  • A forgotten tampon. Inadvertently letting a tampon go days, even weeks, inside a vagina is much more common than you’d think. “I can’t tell you how many tampons I’ve taken out of patients,” says Minkin. “This happens to lots and lots of people. It isn’t something you need to be embarrassed about.”

Fortunately, Minkin says it’s perfectly safe to remove a forgotten tampon on your own.

When you should see a doctor

In general, abnormal odors should be easy to spot. They’re the ones that make your face scrunch up. Rotting fish, dead organism, decay — these are all red flag odors.

If there’s a serious cause, often other symptoms will appear alongside the smell.

See your doctor if an odor is accompanied with:

  • itching or burning
  • pain
  • pain during sex
  • thick, cottage cheese discharge
  • vaginal bleeding unrelated to your period

Smells change, and that’s OK

Subtle shifts in your vaginal fragrance is normal. Remember, the way your vagina smells has everything to do with its pH. And there are lots of things that affect your pH.

Take penile vaginal sex, for instance. Semen has a relatively high pH, so it’s super normal to notice a different kind of smell after you’ve had penile vaginal sex. Don’t worry though, this change is only temporary.

Menopause also has an effect on vaginal pH. “Due to a lack of estrogen, women in menopause end up with less vaginal mucosa,” says Minkin. “Vaginal mucosa lines the vagina and nurtures the Lactobacilli bacteria. So, without these cells you can end up with a much higher pH.”

Our advice? Don’t be afraid to really get to know your vagina, in all its fragrant glory. The better you understand the smells your vagina produces day to day, the more prepared you’ll be when something goes amiss. After all, vaginas do so many wonderful things for us. It’s about time we start understanding what they’re really all about.

Culled from Health line and Mayo Clinic

stretch mark

Stretch Marks

What Are Stretch Marks?

Stretch marks are set-in streaks that show up on your stomach, breasts, hips, butt, and thighs. These long, thin, rippled marks are also called stria. If you have stretch marks, you probably wish they’d go away. These grooves or lines in your skin aren’t harmful to your health, but they aren’t great to look at, either.

Continue reading “Stretch marks; common causes and how to get rid of them”

Fibroid

 

Fibroids; Types, causes, risk factors, symptoms, diagnosis and treatment

What are fibroids?

Fibroids are abnormal growths that develop in or on a woman’s uterus. Sometimes these tumors become quite large and cause severe abdominal pain and heavy periods. In other cases, they cause no signs or symptoms at all. The growths are typically benign, or noncancerous. The cause of fibroids is unknown.

Fibroids are also known by the following names:

  • leiomyomas
  • myomas
  • uterine myomas
  • fibromas

According to the Office on Women’s Health, up to 80 percentTrusted Source of women have them by the age of 50. However, most women don’t have any symptoms and may never know they have fibroids.

Continue reading “Fibroids; Types, causes, risk factors, symptoms, diagnosis and treatment”

Things to do after waking up to start your day right

You’re a busy person, there is a tonne of duties that have to be carried out right from when you wake up in the morning. And that’s completely understandable. But, before you get cracking with the day’s tasks, there is a simple to-do list that you must check off if you want to make the best of the day.

4 things you should do immediately after waking up
Photocredit: PharmEasy

These activities are curated to rejuvenate and refresh your body and mind. In this article, we give you the answer to how to start your day –

 1. Water is a must

First things first, drink a glass of water before you leave your bed. If possible, you should opt for lukewarm water. Either keep a thermos full of warm water by your bedside or go over to your kitchen and heat some water. Drinking water early in the morning is the best way to detox your body as it is sure to flush away the pathogens in your body when you urinate.

 2. Get some sun

The best way to start the day is basking in the sun. The early morning sun can do wonders for your health. The soft slanted sunlight is devoid of the usual harmful UV rays. And instead, it can ply you with loads of Vitamin D to make your bones stronger, boost your immune system, improve blood circulation, and help your body assimilate other minerals like phosphorus and calcium.

Besides, after 10-12 hours of nighttime darkness and artificial lights, your body craves for exposure to natural light and this will naturally boost the production of endorphins or happy hormones.

 3. Stretch your body

Sleeping all night will rejuvenate your body and brain but lying in bed all night without getting much activity stiffens all the muscles of your body and reduces the mobility of your joints and limbs. That is why it is compulsory to stretch the different parts of your body to ease out the tension and soreness in your muscles and joints. There are further benefits of stretching after waking up-

  • Relieves headache, anxiety and tension
  • Enhances your overall flexibility

4. Get started with some early morning snacks

Midnight snacks may damage your health, but starting your day with a light snack is actually a good idea. It has been many hours since your dinner. And before its time for a heavy breakfast, it’s actually wise to let your stomach get used to some food with a small and healthy snack. Here are a few snack ideas for you to mull over-

  • A fruit smoothie
  • Yoghurt
  • Whole-grain crackers
  • A piece of brown bread toast with peanut butter smeared on one side

5. Meditate for 10 minutes

Meditation can calm your mind, get a better grip on yourself and channel all your focus and attention on the tasks at hand without getting sidetracked. If you squeeze in even 10 minutes of meditation in your early morning routine, you will reap the benefits throughout the day.

6. Read for half an hour

Reading can include anything you want- a gripping novel that you can’t let go of, the news that will keep you abreast of the times, or a self-help book to keep you motivated. Reading in the morning is a way of enriching yourself before your workday begins. 

7. Prepare your routine

What better way of tackling your tasks efficiently than chalking out a meticulous routine for the day ahead. You can either do it in your head or jot down a to-do list. This way you will not skip or forget anything important.

8. Some self-affirmation will help

If you are going through some trying times, It’s quite natural to feel gloomy and upset. You may even find yourself doubting your own capabilities. But losing faith is the surest path to failure. The best way to start the day is to tell yourself that you are a warrior and that you will take challenges one at a time and find solutions to all of them. Give yourself a mental high-five. This simple act can dramatically raise your confidence and efficiency.

These simple morning tips will help you be a better version of yourself. To make time for them, you will need to wake up a little early, but we promise, it’s worth the inconvenience.

Credit: PharmEasy

Tuberculosis

New WHO recommendations to prevent tuberculosis aim to save millions of lives

Geneva –  New World Health Organization (WHO) guidance will help countries accelerate efforts to stop people with tuberculosis (TB) infection becoming sick with TB by giving them preventive treatment.

A quarter of the world‘s population is estimated to be infected with TB bacteria. These people are neither sick nor contagious. However, they are at greater risk of developing TB disease, especially those with weakened immunity. Offering them TB preventive treatment will not only protect them from becoming sick but also cut down on the risk of transmission in the community.  

As we mark World TB Day 2020, the disease remains the world’s top infectious killer. In 2018, 10 million people fell ill with TB worldwide and 1.5 million people lost their lives to this disease.

“COVID-19 is highlighting just how vulnerable people with lung diseases and weakened immune systems can be,“ said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General. “The world committed to end TB by 2030; improving prevention is key to making this happen. Millions of people need to be able to take TB preventive treatment to stop the onset of disease, avert suffering and save lives”.

Dr Tedros highlighted the importance to continue efforts to tackle longstanding health problems, including TB during global outbreaks such as COVID-19. At the same time, programmes already in place to combat TB and other major infectious diseases can be leveraged to make the response to COVID-19 more effective and rapid.

Continue reading “New WHO recommendations to prevent tuberculosis aim to save millions of lives”

breast cancer

 

What Is Breast Cancer?

Breast cancer is a type of cancer that starts in the breast. Cancer starts when cells begin to grow out of control. (To learn more about how cancers start and spread, see What Is Cancer?)

Breast cancer cells usually form a tumor that can often be seen on an x-ray or felt as a lump. Breast cancer occurs almost entirely in women, but men can get breast cancer, too.

It’s important to understand that most breast lumps are benign and not cancer (malignant). Non-cancerous breast tumors are abnormal growths, but they do not spread outside of the breast. They are not life threatening, but some types of benign breast lumps can increase a woman’s risk of getting breast cancer. Any breast lump or change needs to be checked by a health care professional to determine if it is benign or malignant (cancer) and if it might affect your future cancer risk. See Non-cancerous Breast Conditions to learn more.

Where breast cancer starts

Breast cancers can start from different parts of the breast.

  • Most breast cancers begin in the ducts that carry milk to the nipple (ductal cancers)
  • Some start in the glands that make breast milk (lobular cancers)
  • There are also other types of breast cancer that are less common like phyllodes tumor and angiosarcoma
  • A small number of cancers start in other tissues in the breast. These cancers are called sarcomas and lymphomas and are not really thought of as breast cancers.

Although many types of breast cancer can cause a lump in the breast, not all do. See Breast Cancer Signs and Symptoms to learn what you should watch for and report to a health care provider. Many breast cancers are also found on screening mammograms, which can detect cancers at an earlier stage, often before they can be felt, and before symptoms develop.

 

Coronavirus Outbreak, what you need to know

Coronaviruses (CoV) are a large family of viruses that cause illness ranging from the common cold to more severe diseases such as Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS-CoV) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS-CoV)A novel coronavirus (nCoV) is a new strain that has not been previously identified in humans.  

coronavirus
PHOTOCREDIT: www.webmd.com

Coronaviruses are zoonotic, meaning they are transmitted between animals and people.  Detailed investigations found that SARS-CoV was transmitted from civet cats to humans and MERS-CoV from dromedary camels to humans. Several known coronaviruses are circulating in animals that have not yet infected humans. 

Continue reading “What you need to know about the new coronavirus”

Prostate Cancer, meaning and as it affects men

What Is Prostate Cancer?

Cancer starts when cells in the body begin to grow out of control. Cells in nearly any part of the body can become cancer cells, and can then spread to other areas of the body. To learn more about cancer and how it starts and spreads, see What Is Cancer?

Prostate cancer begins when cells in the prostate gland start to grow out of control. The prostate is a gland found only in males. It makes some of the fluid that is part of semen.

The prostate is below the bladder (the hollow organ where urine is stored) and in front of the rectum (the last part of the intestines). Just behind the prostate are glands called seminal vesicles that make most of the fluid for semen. The urethra, which is the tube that carries urine and semen out of the body through the penis, goes through the center of the prostate.

The size of the prostate can change as a man ages. In younger men, it is about the size of a walnut, but it can be much larger in older men.

Prostate cancer
PhotoCredit: cancer.org

 

Types of prostate cancer

Almost all prostate cancers are adenocarcinomas. These cancers develop from the gland cells (the cells that make the prostate fluid that is added to the semen).

Other types of cancer that can start in the prostate include:

  • Small cell carcinomas
  • Neuroendocrine tumors (other than small cell carcinomas)
  • Transitional cell carcinomas
  • Sarcomas

These other types of prostate cancer are rare. If you are told you have prostate cancer, it is almost certain to be an adenocarcinoma.

Some prostate cancers grow and spread quickly, but most grow slowly. In fact, autopsy studies show that many older men (and even some younger men) who died of other causes also had prostate cancer that never affected them during their lives. In many cases, neither they nor their doctors even knew they had it.

Possible pre-cancerous conditions of the prostate

Some research suggests that prostate cancer starts out as a pre-cancerous condition, although this is not yet known for sure. These conditions are sometimes found when a man has a prostate biopsy (removal of small pieces of the prostate to look for cancer).

Prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia (PIN)

In PIN, there are changes in how the prostate gland cells look when seen with a microscope, but the abnormal cells don’t look like they are growing into other parts of the prostate (like cancer cells would). Based on how abnormal the patterns of cells look, they are classified as:

  • Low-grade PIN: The patterns of prostate cells appear almost normal.
  • High-grade PIN: The patterns of cells look more abnormal.

Low-grade PIN is not thought to be related to a man’s risk of prostate cancer. On the other hand, high-grade PIN is thought to be a possible precursor to prostate cancer. If you have a prostate biopsy and high-grade PIN is found, there is a greater chance that you might develop prostate cancer over time.

PIN begins to appear in the prostates of some men as early as in their 20s. But many men with PIN will never develop prostate cancer.

For more on PIN, see Tests to Diagnose and Stage Prostate Cancer.

Proliferative inflammatory atrophy (PIA)

In PIA, the prostate cells look smaller than normal, and there are signs of inflammation in the area. PIA is not cancer, but researchers believe that PIA may sometimes lead to high-grade PIN, or perhaps directly to prostate cancer.

 

What Causes Prostate Cancer?

Researchers do not know exactly what causes prostate cancer. But they have found some risk factors and are trying to learn just how these factors might cause prostate cells to become cancer cells.

On a basic level, prostate cancer is caused by changes in the DNA of a normal prostate cell. DNA is the chemical in our cells that makes up our genes, which control how our cells function. We usually look like our parents because they are the source of our DNA. But DNA affects more than just how we look.

Some genes control when our cells grow, divide into new cells, and die:

  • Certain genes that help cells grow, divide, and stay alive are called oncogenes.
  • Genes that normally keep cell growth under control, repair mistakes in DNA, or cause cells to die at the right time are called tumor suppressor genes.

Cancer can be caused by DNA mutations (or other types of changes) that keep oncogenes turned on, or that turn off tumor suppressor genes. These types of gene changes can lead to cells growing out of control.

DNA changes can either be inherited from a parent or can be acquired during a person’s lifetime.

Inherited gene mutations

Some gene mutations can be passed from generation to generation (inherited) and are found in all cells in the body. Inherited gene changes are thought to play a role in about 10% of prostate cancers. Cancer caused by inherited genes is called hereditary cancer. Several inherited mutated genes have been linked to hereditary prostate cancer, including:

  • BRCA1 and BRCA2: These tumor suppressor genes normally help repair mistakes in a cell’s DNA (or cause the cell to die if the mistake can’t be fixed). Inherited mutations in these genes more commonly cause breast and ovarian cancer in women. But changes in these genes (especially BRCA2) also account for a small number of prostate cancers.
  • CHEK2ATMPALB2, and RAD51D: Mutations in these other DNA repair genes might also be responsible for some hereditary prostate cancers.
  • DNA mismatch repair genes (such as MSH2MSH6MLH1, and PMS2): These genes normally help fix mistakes (mismatches) in DNA that can be made when a cell is preparing to divide into 2 new cells. (Cells must make a new copy of their DNA each time they divide.) Men with inherited mutations in one of these genes have a condition known as Lynch syndrome (also known as hereditary non-polyposis colorectal cancer, or HNPCC), and are at increased risk of colorectal, prostate, and some other cancers.
  • RNASEL (formerly HPC1): The normal function of this tumor suppressor gene is to help cells die when something goes wrong inside them. Inherited mutations in this gene might let abnormal cells live longer than they should, which can lead to an increased risk of prostate cancer.
  • HOXB13: This gene is important in the development of the prostate gland. Mutations in this gene have been linked to early-onset prostate cancer (prostate cancer diagnosed at a young age) that runs in some families. Fortunately, this mutation is rare.

Other inherited gene mutations may account for some hereditary prostate cancers, and research is being done to find these genes.

Acquired gene mutations

Some genes mutate during a person’s lifetime, and the mutation is not passed on to children. These changes are found only in cells that come from the original mutated cell. These are called acquired mutations. Most gene mutations related to prostate cancer seem to develop during a man’s life rather than having been inherited.

Every time a cell prepares to divide into 2 new cells, it must copy its DNA. This process isn’t perfect, and sometimes errors occur, leaving defective DNA in the new cell. It’s not clear how often these DNA changes might be random events, and how often they are influenced by other factors (such as diet, hormone levels, etc.). In general, the more quickly prostate cells grow and divide, the more chances there are for mutations to occur. Therefore, anything that speeds up this process may make prostate cancer more likely.

For example, androgens (male hormones), such as testosterone, promote prostate cell growth. Having higher levels of androgens might contribute to prostate cancer risk in some men.

Some research has found that men with high levels of another hormone, insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1), are more likely to get prostate cancer. However, other studies have not found such a link. Further research is needed to make sense of these findings.

As mentioned in Prostate Cancer Risk Factors, some studies have found that inflammation in the prostate might be linked to prostate cancer. One theory is that inflammation might lead to cell DNA damage, which could contribute to a normal cell becoming a cancer cell. More research is needed in this area.

Exposure to radiation or cancer-causing chemicals can cause DNA mutations in many organs, but so far these factors haven’t been shown to be important causes of mutations in prostate cells.

 

Prostate Cancer Risk Factors

A risk factor is anything that raises your risk of getting a disease such as cancer. Different cancers have different risk factors. Some risk factors, like smoking, can be changed. Others, like a person’s age or family history, can’t be changed.

But having a risk factor, or even several, does not mean that you will get the disease. Many people with one or more risk factors never get cancer, while others who get cancer may have had few or no known risk factors.

Researchers have found several factors that might affect a man’s risk of getting prostate cancer.

Age

Prostate cancer is rare in men younger than 40, but the chance of having prostate cancer rises rapidly after age 50. About 6 in 10 cases of prostate cancer are found in men older than 65.

Race/ethnicity

Prostate cancer develops more often in African-American men and in Caribbean men of African ancestry than in men of other races. And when it does develop in these men, they tend to be younger. Prostate cancer occurs less often in Asian-American and Hispanic/Latino men than in non-Hispanic whites. The reasons for these racial and ethnic differences are not clear.

Geography

Prostate cancer is most common in North America, northwestern Europe, Australia, and on Caribbean islands. It is less common in Asia, Africa, Central America, and South America.

The reasons for this are not clear. More intensive screening for prostate cancer in some developed countries probably accounts for at least part of this difference, but other factors such as lifestyle differences (diet, etc.) are likely to be important as well. For example, Asian Americans have a lower risk of prostate cancer than white Americans, but their risk is higher than that of men of similar ethnic backgrounds living in Asia.

Family history

Prostate cancer seems to run in some families, which suggests that in some cases there may be an inherited or genetic factor. Still, most prostate cancers occur in men without a family history of it.

Having a father or brother with prostate cancer more than doubles a man’s risk of developing this disease. (The risk is higher for men who have a brother with the disease than for those who have a father with it.) The risk is much higher for men with several affected relatives, particularly if their relatives were young when the cancer was found.

Gene changes

Several inherited gene changes (mutations) seem to raise prostate cancer risk, but they probably account for only a small percentage of cases overall. For example:

  • Inherited mutations of the BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes, which are linked to an increased risk of breast and ovarian cancers in some families, can also increase prostate cancer risk in men (especially mutations in BRCA2).
  • Men with Lynch syndrome (also known as hereditary non-polyposis colorectal cancer, or HNPCC), a condition caused by inherited gene changes, have an increased risk for a number of cancers, including prostate cancer.

Other inherited gene changes can also raise a man’s risk of prostate cancer. For more on some of these gene changes, see What Causes Prostate Cancer?

Factors with less clear effect on prostate cancer risk

Diet

The exact role of diet in prostate cancer is not clear, but several factors have been studied.

Men who eat a lot of red meat or high-fat foods (especially dairy products) appear to have a slightly higher chance of getting prostate cancer. These men also tend to eat fewer fruits and vegetables. Doctors aren’t sure which of these factors is responsible for raising the risk.

Some studies have suggested that men who consume a lot of calcium (through food or supplements) may have a higher risk of developing prostate cancer. Dairy foods (which are often high in calcium) might also increase risk. But most studies have not found such a link with the levels of calcium found in the average diet, and it’s important to note that calcium is known to have other important health benefits.

Obesity

Being obese (very overweight) does not seem to increase the overall risk of getting prostate cancer.

Some studies have found that obese men have a lower risk of getting a low-grade (slower growing) form of the disease, but a higher risk of getting more aggressive (faster growing) prostate cancer. The reasons for this are not clear.

Some studies have also found that obese men may be at greater risk for having more advanced prostate cancer and of dying from prostate cancer, but not all studies have found this.

Smoking

Most studies have not found a link between smoking and getting prostate cancer. Some research has linked smoking to a possible small increased risk of dying from prostate cancer, but this finding needs to be confirmed by other studies.

Chemical exposures

There is some evidence that firefighters can be exposed to chemicals that may increase their risk of prostate cancer.

A few studies have suggested a possible link between exposure to Agent Orange, a chemical used widely during the Vietnam War, and the risk of prostate cancer, although not all studies have found such a link. The National Academy of Medicine considers there to be “limited/suggestive evidence” of a link between Agent Orange exposure and prostate cancer. To learn more, see Agent Orange and Cancer.

Inflammation of the prostate

Some studies have suggested that prostatitis (inflammation of the prostate gland) may be linked to an increased risk of prostate cancer, but other studies have not found such a link. Inflammation is often seen in samples of prostate tissue that also contain cancer. The link between the two is not yet clear, and this is an active area of research.

Sexually transmitted infections

Researchers have looked to see if sexually transmitted infections (like gonorrhea or chlamydia) might increase the risk of prostate cancer, because they can lead to inflammation of the prostate. So far, studies have not agreed, and no firm conclusions have been reached.

Vasectomy

Some studies have suggested that men who have had a vasectomy (minor surgery to make men infertile) have a slightly increased risk for prostate cancer, but other studies have not found this. Research on this possible link is still under way.

 

Culled from cancer.org

 

The advantages and disadvantages of video conferencing in schools

In video conferencing terms, everything is bigger in India. When you have a population in excess of 1.3 billion, you need to take full advantage of all the communication methods you can access. That’s especially true when it comes to rolling out a common curriculum across thousands of schools.

The government of the south Indian state of Tamil Nadu, for example, will this month begin offering classes via video conferencing in more than 1,000 public schools. The classes will be staged at a central source in the capital city of Chennai and broadcast in real time, with live interaction from students across the state.

It’s a good example of the power that video conferencing has to reshape education in the coming decades. However, employing video in the classroom isn’t as simple as just seating students in front of a webcam. For all the promise of video conferencing, there are downsides as well.

To illustrate the complexity of this new educational technology, we’ve put together a list of the advantages and disadvantages of video conferencing in schools.

Video conferencing room
PhotoCredit: Cisco.com

The Advantages and Disadvantages of Video Conferencing in Schools

Disadvantages:

  1. Less Personal Interaction
  2. Technical Issues Can Interfere with Lessons
  3. Ongoing Costs
  4. Separates the Haves and the Have-Nots

Advantages:

  1. Sharing Resources
  2. Learning Beyond the Classroom
  3. Creating Digital Citizens
  4. New Ways of Learning

Disadvantages:

1. Less Personal Interaction

The downside to having, say, one teacher in charge of teaching several classrooms of students via video conferencing is that it diminishes the opportunity for personal interaction. We’ll stand by the argument that video conferencing’s ability to combine audio and visuals in real-time conversation counts as personal interaction (we dealt with this question in our post on kid-friendly video chat apps), but when you’re faced with a revolving group of 20 to 30 students, there’s precious little time to work one-on-one with the kids. As a result, the danger is that video conferencing becomes a one-way medium, more like a seminar than a class, with scant time allowed for questions and comments from the students themselves, especially if the classes are conducted in large group formats.

2. Technical Issues Can Interfere with Lessons

Relying on video conferencing technology as the basis for learning brings with it a reliance on the hardware, software, and miles of internet connections that make it possible. If you’ve ever sat idle in a video meeting while someone tries to fix the audio or watched helplessly as your video link freezes and drops out, you’ll know there’s always a chance that digital gremlins will derail the entire process.

The same potential trouble lurks within a video meeting staged in a classroom. Only now, you’ve got a teacher struggling to keep the attention of two-dozen students as their lesson plan for the day falls apart.

3. Ongoing Costs

Video conferencing is composed of hardware and software that is in need of continual maintenance and upgrade, just like any other form of school equipment. Webcams and digital screens become obsolete as new technologies emerge–4K video conferencing, for example, is beginning to take hold at the commercial level but requires high-end bandwidth and cameras to be effective. Similarly, new video conferencing platforms with advanced features are released every year that bring new features to the classroom or emerge as the dominant service within a school district.

Of course, new features and capabilities are great, but they bring with them cost and the need for training, which can introduce a new burden to the school budget.

5. Separates the Haves and the Have-Nots

As with the advent of any new technology, there is always the danger that better-resourced communities will gain an advantage over their humbler neighbors. While the internet may seem like an essentially universal commodity, 72% of U.S. school districts don’t have connection speeds high enough to make internet-based learning experiences a central part of the curriculum. In fact, around 2.3 million students attend schools that don’t have reliable internet access at all.

If video conferencing and related technologies become dominant platforms for learning initiatives, there is a chance some students will be left behind.

Advantages:

1. Sharing Resources

The Indian example is a large-scale demonstration of how video conferencing can be used to leverage knowledge resources across schools. The expertise of specialist teachers and the non-core electives they teach can be shared across many schools regardless of their disparate locations. The labor cost can also be shared across institutions allowing expert lessons to be brought to areas that would otherwise not have the population or demand to justify their own courses.

A single teacher sitting in front of a webcam could remain in their office all week and reach out digitally to dozens of classroom and hundreds of students.

2. Learning Beyond the Classroom

Video conferencing is at heart a form of travel. It allows people separated by the tyranny of distance to share face-to-face conversation with the intimacy of friends sharing a park bench. In educational terms, that means using video to take students beyond the walls of the classroom without ever having to leave their desks. It offers the possibility of virtual field trips, conversational interactions with students in other states or nations, and visits to the locations of scientific and cultural investigation. It’s cheaper than any bus or plane trip, and there’s no way anyone gets lost or left behind.

3. Creating Digital Citizens

Students live in a digital world. Their home and social lives are far more likely than not to be littered with smartphones, computers, tablets, and on-demand resources. Central to any school curriculum is the need to prepare young people to participate in the adult world that awaits them after the final school bell rings. That means creating empowered and informed digital citizens who understand the dangers and benefits, the conventions and underlying technology that will govern their future employment and social interaction.

Video conferencing is rapidly growing in popularity and is likely to be a staple of most businesses and means of collaboration into the future. That means it’s important that students are exposed to it from a young age.

4. New Ways of Learning

Video conferencing is a relatively new form of communication and with it come opportunities for new ways of learning. We’ve already seen it employed to completely reverse the traditional educational model throughso-called flipped classrooms. This form of learning lets the student first encounter new material on their own, through online, peer-to-peer interaction, and leaves the teacher to offer more in-depth and personalized attention in the classroom.

Video conferencing also offers a more visual learning environment, one that pulls in other technologies such as film, online gaming, and interactive software-based tools. In this way, video conferencing in the classroom is quickly becoming an added feature that can transform solo learning into a conversational and cooperative experience.

Culled from  VCDAILY

 

Hackers take over Artificial Intelligence

Last year, two data scientists from security firm ZeroFOX conducted an experiment to see who was better at getting Twitter users to click on malicious links, humans or an artificial intelligence. The researchers taught an AI to study the behavior of social network users, and then design and implement its own phishing bait. In tests, the artificial hacker was substantially better than its human competitors, composing and distributing more phishing tweets than humans, and with a substantially better conversion rate.

cyber crime
Photocredit: FBI

The AI, named SNAP_R, sent simulated spear-phishing tweets to over 800 users at a rate of 6.75 tweets per minute, luring 275 victims. By contrast, Forbes staff writer Thomas Fox-Brewster, who participated in the experiment, was only able to pump out 1.075 tweets a minute, making just 129 attempts and luring in just 49 users.