Dr. Phil Hariram's Health Blog

Whenever you are feeling pain and discomfort, you’d usually reach for your painkillers for relief. While they do relieve the pain, they also bring along side effects that comes with taking foreign chemicals into your body. As much as modern medicine has developed drugs that can relieve pain right off the bat, do you [...]

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Magnets were discovered in China and Greece. In China it was used in fortune telling and as a guide to building. By 1200 AD they were used in ships as compasses. Ever since, sailors and navigators have used compasses and the earth’s magnetic field to guide them in their journeys, whether on land [...]

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There are many arthritic patients and sufferers in pain that use magnets. Some are very certain that the magnets they are using are a great help.
There are no large controlled clinical trials to evaluate the benefits of magnets on arthritis.
Doctors in general do not think they work to relieve pain in [...]

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If you have arthritis and you are looking to control pain without drugs, then the first thing you need to do is to  reduce your weight or maintain a normal weight. If you are overweight, weight loss will be the most important thing you can do to improve the level of pain, [...]

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This form of arthritis treatment is increasing in popularity and more health food shops are stocking their shelves with alternative treatment for arthritis. There are many reasons why sufferers are turning to this form of treatment.
Conventional medicine is not providing the expected benefits patients want. Ideally I would expect for arthritis a drug [...]

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Glucosamine and chondroitin are widely advertised as remedies for osteoarthritis. The benefits, however, are not clear.
A qualitative assessment of various trials were done by T.E. McAlindon et al. to evaluate the benefits of glucosamine and chondroitin products for osteoarthritis of the knee and/or hip.
The studies were randomised, double blind, placebo controlled of four [...]

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Glucosamine is an amino acid sugar produced by the body and present in cartilage. It has been widely promoted as a treatment for osteoarthritis.
There is no conclusive evidence that this drug is effective. It is up to you to make your own mind up on it. There are individuals who swear by it [...]

Pain from acid reflux in the elderly can often present as chest pain and can be easily be confused with pain of cardiac origin. The typical heartburn is more common in the younger age group.
Acid reflux is the most likely cause of non cardiac chest pains in the elderly but at the time the patient [...]

Herbs are considered natural remedies and can be bought over the counter. The impression is that because they are just herbs, they are safe. This is not always the case.
During pregnancy you have to be very careful. Some herbs can cause miscarriage, raise your blood pressure or affect your baby. My opinion is that [...]

Yoga is a combination of exercises that relaxes the body and help digestion. The breathing exercises and various techniques employed relax muscles and reduce stress. Yoga experts suggest that during meals you eat slowly and chew properly to promote good digestion. In between bites you should take a deep breath.
Do not practice yoga soon [...]