Eczema Cure Review

WEIGHT LOSS compass

Doctor — Sat, 07 Jan 2012 18:49:36 +0000

Khoury had always been a big bloke who liked his fast food.

When his family bought a takeaway pizza business, it was like handing the keys to a Maserati to an impetuous P-plater. He regularly ate three pizzas a day and had a similar appetite for KFC. “I could eat three meals in one sitting, no problem at all,” he says. He could also put away the booze big time on nights out.

As time went on, his delivery- boy diet left him feeling increasingly lethargic. “I knew something was wrong when I started feeling tired during the day,” he says.

THE CHANCE

Khoury has a family history of heart disease, high cholesterol and type 2 diabetes. With that in mind, he visited the doctor, who confirmed his blood pressure was elevated. Khoury walked out of the clinic and straight to the gym, where he began by forcing out 90 minutes on the cross-trainer and walking laps of the pool.

The health scare also gave him the motivation he needed to curb his pizza and KFC binges, and he went from eating bacon and eggs for breakfast seven days a week to five. “I made small changes, as I thought they would be more likely to be long-lasting,” he says.

After a year, Khoury introduced light resistance training to his routine, before switching to high- intensity heavy lifting sessions once the weight started to come off. “I tried a lot of things, and if they didn’t work, I tinkered until I discovered what worked for me,” he says. “I found I needed weight training to burn fat.”

THE RESULT

Khoury lost 20 kilograms in the first 12 months and another 20kg the next, dropping from size 46 jeans to 34 in the process. These days, it’s salmon, poached eggs and mushrooms for breakfast, and lean protein and steamed vegies at lunch and dinner.

After changing his wardrobe once, Khoury now faces a new dilemma. With the switch to

weight training, he’s lost more than six centimetres from his waist and bulked up on top. “I’m starting to get the V-shape back and my shirts are getting tight around the arms,” he says.

Not surprisingly, he now has a can-do attitude. “When you drop a lot of weight, you approach life more head-on because you’ve come from so far back.”

THE ADVICE

You can do it. “Before I started training I couldn’t do a push-up. Now I’m doing 60.”

Look and learn. “Watch what other people are doing and what they’re eating,” says Khoury. “I’ve got a lot of tips and motivation over the years from randoms in the gym.”

DRILL TO YOUR CORE

Doctor — Sat, 07 Jan 2012 18:48:05 +0000

Use timed circuit training to burn fat as you build your upper body

SURE, YOU COULD prep for a shirtless beach debut by working your upper back and core, but that may not burn the flab in front of those muscles. That’s what this workout can do. “Done as a timed circuit, these three exercises have a metabolic component that can help you grow lean,” says its creator, strength and conditioning coach Chris Bathke.

H ROTATIONAL SQUAT 5 reps per leg

Stand with your legs straight and toes pointed forward. Step back diagonally and to the right with your right foot, your toes now pointed out. Keep your torso upright, elbows bent and eyes forward. This is your starting position. Drop into a deep squat, keeping your right foot flat on the floor while letting the toes of your left foot rise, and extend your arms out to the front as you squat down. Return to the starting position to complete one rep.

muscle cdmpass

	MUSCLE
	GUY

Expert workout advice from sports scientist Paul Haslam

□

What are the best moves to build biceps and triceps mass? – EW

The consensus among experienced weight trainers is that the close- grip (underhand) chin-up is best for biceps, while the bar dip is best for triceps. Analysis of each helps explain their efficiency in the creation of larger arms: 1) they are both compound (multi-joint) exercises that allow greater loads to be utilised compared with their isolation (single-joint) counterparts. The correlation between muscle size and weight lifted is well established; 2) they are both “natural” exercises that are involved in climbing and scaling

- activities that were commonplace in our evolutionary past.

In my experience, the body responds better to these actions compared with free weights and resistance machines. You only have to witness the arm development of top-level gymnasts, achieved from performing these types of movements alone.

□

I used to be a big swimmer, but now that I’ve stopped, I have a chest to rival my girlfriend’s. How can I blow away my man-cans? – SM

Your man boobs are a product of efficient male energy storage, an adaptation to help our species survive periods of famine. In the Developed World, modern man no longer has extended periods of little food, and driven by your hormones, fat readily accumulates around the torso.

I recommend a two-pronged attack. First, high-intensity interval training. Research has shown that this stimulates the body to reduce the deep-trunk fat stores associated with your problem.

Using a work/recovery ratio of 1:1, perform 1-2 minutes of high-intensity (>85 per cent maximum heart rate) exercise, followed by the same time period of low-intensity training (<65 per cent max HR). Start with 30-minute sessions and progress up to 60 minutes. Swimming, running, cycling, rowing and the cross-trainer are all good options. Second, do some upper-pec movements

- incline barbell press, incline dumbbell press/fly. These will help add mass to the clavicle region and assist in creating an illusion of having less lower-pec volume.

Got a question for Paul? Log onto yahoo7.com.au/menshealth.

THE SQUAT SUPERCHARGED

Doctor — Sat, 07 Jan 2012 18:45:47 +0000

SQUATS COME IN many variations, so how can you tell which one is right for you? We asked Dr Chris Proulx, professor of movement science at Westfield State University in the US, to help sort them out. Proulx and his students tested five different squats: the four freestanding versions shown here, plus one machine exercise. (See “What about Machines?”, below.) Volunteers performed the exercises standing on force platforms – hi-tech devices that measure the pressure exerted through a lifter’s feet. The researchers also attached electrodes to the volunteers’ legs to see how hard the moves made their quadriceps and hamstrings work. Their pain, your gain.

BEST FOR …

FUNCTIONAL LOWER-BODY
STRENGTH

Decades of sports
science have correlated
squat strength with
speed, power and athletic

performance. With the back
squat, you generate a lot of force
through your leg muscles – so,
with practice, you’ll be able to
squat a lot of weight.

AVOID IF …

you’ve had back pain or injury.
The bar on your shoulders
compresses your disks.

BEST FOR …

PURE STRENGTH AND
LOWER-BODY MUSCLE
DEVELOPMENT

The wide stance
brings your inner-thigh

muscles into the exercise,
allowing you to lift heavier
weights and build muscle
more quickly.

FRONT SQUAT

BEST FOR …

CORE STRENGTH AND LOWER- BODY MUSCLE DEVELOPMENT

By placing the bar on the front of your shoulders, you force your torso to stay upright. This requires and builds core strength and stability.

GET YOUR MOTOR RUNNING

Doctor — Sat, 07 Jan 2012 18:43:46 +0000

Use V8 Supercar driver James Courtney’s workout
to rev up your metabolism, build core strength and

develop quick, oncoming-concrete-wall reactions

HOW FIT DO YOU need to be to triumph on the
race track? In a typical two-hour race, Holden
Racing Team driver James Courtney endures

cockpit temperatures of up to 60°C, maintains a
heart rate of 180 beats per minute and shifts a
25-kilogram gear stick while applying brake-pedal
force of up to 100kg. It’s no wonder Courtney’s
fitness was recently rated alongside elite
footballers’ by Exercise Research Australia.

“It’s like doing a CrossFit session in a sauna
with 28 guys throwing concrete blocks at you,”
says Courtney, who won the 2010 V8 Supercars
championship and will race in the upcoming
Sydney Telstra 500 (v8supercars.com.au).

In a typical training week Courtney cycles up to
400 kilometres and combines two weights circuits
with boxing and swim sessions, plus multiple
workouts on trainer Phil Young’s speed and
reaction apparatus, the BATAK machine.

Get cockpit cut with this circuit performed three
times a week. Repeat the circuit three times with
two minutes’ rest in-between.

nBALL BEARINGS

Throw a Super Reaction
Ball ($9.95; ausport.com.au)
into the air, let it fall and catch
on the first bounce. Repeat for
three minutes. Next, stand two
metres from a wall and throw

the ball against it and catch. Repeat
for three minutes, stepping closer to
the wall with each throw. “A good
alternative to the BATAK machine,”
says Young.

REAL DEAL WINS OUT

Doctor — Sat, 07 Jan 2012 18:31:13 +0000

An online “affair” may give cheaters a thrill initially, but it appears it won’t scratch that itch forever, according to a study by the University of Nebraska and Washburn University.

Researchers surveyed 5187 users of infidelity website AshIeyMadison.com. They found that about two-thirds of adulterers hadchcated online (by sending explicit messages and images of themselves to another person), but more than three quarters had done so in real life. The respondents reported being more interested in finding real-life partners, for both dating and sexual encounters, than online-only partners.

The authors say it’s probably because, “ultimately, humans are social creatures”.

Sacrificing style over function when enjoying the outdoors this summer is a thing of the past, thanks to OPSM. With our brand-new range of sunglasses and advances in lens technology, OPSM now fits prescription lenses in over 80 per cent of sunglasses in store. It means you can now shield your eyes from 99.9 per cent of UV rays, while still maintaining crystal-clear vision and wearing sunglasses that suit your personal style. Previously, highly curved sports or some classic sunglasses weren’t capable of carrying prescription lenses. But now, whether your weekends are spent hitting the surf with mates or tackling the track solo, you no longer have to sacrifice your personal style over function. And you’re guaranteed to see clearly while enjoying the outdoors.

LISTEN TO YOUR HEART

Doctor — Sat, 07 Jan 2012 18:28:50 +0000

We’ll say this loudly and slowly so you don’t miss it: high
cholcstcrol could hamper your hearing’.

Researchers from the University of Sydney looked at hearing
loss and dietary data for almost 3000 people over 50, and

found that those with a cholesterol intake of390 milligrams

a day (a large egg contains around 200mg) had a 33

per cent higher risk of hearing loss than those who

consumed 190mg.

While more research is needed, the study
recommends cutting back on cholesterol

and uppingyour intake of
monounsaturated fat, found
in vegetable oils, nuts,
seeds, olives and

avocados. Your
ticker will thank
you, too.

A mandarin a day may keep the heart doctor away. A study by Jichi Medical School found that people who ate citrus fruit nearly every day had a lower risk of cardiovascular disease than those who rarely did.

The high antioxidant levels in citrus may block the formation of free radicals and repair existing damage, according to the study. Try orange, mandarin or grapefruit sections in salad, or substitute diced citrus for tomatoes in salsa to use as a

More About Eczema

Doctor — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 10:33:37 +0000

What’s already known about this topic?
• Occupational hand eczema may be persistent even if the
previous exposure does not continue, but the prognostic
factors for the continuation are not clear. Long-term
prognosis has been analysed in only a few studies.
• Change of occupation has, in some studies, but not in
all, led to better prognosis.
What does this study add?
• In this study, sample size and response rate were high,
and the study population included all occupations.
• The strongest risk factor for the continuation of occupational
hand eczema was a long duration of eczema
before diagnosis, which emphasizes the importance of
early diagnosis and interventions.
• Contact allergies did not impair the healing.
• Medical and economic prognosis was better among
patients who had changed their occupation.

Healing of hand eczema

Doctor — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 10:32:42 +0000

Healing of hand eczema

The healing of OHE 7–14 years after the diagnosis, defined
as absence of eczema during the last 12 months, is presented
in Table 2. As many as 40% of the patients had no hand
eczema during the past 12 months. The healing of OHE was
poorer in patients with skin or respiratory atopy compared
with those with no atopy. The duration of hand eczema
before the diagnosis correlated most significantly with healing:
it was most frequent among patients whose hand
eczema had lasted a year or less. The presence of workrelated
chromate allergy was associated with poor healing. In
the multivariate logistic regression analysis, change of occupation,
duration of hand eczema before diagnosis, and skin
and respiratory atopy were significant risk factors for the
continuation of OHE (Table 3).
Table 2 Healing of occupational hand eczema (not present during the
last 12 months) at 7–14 years after diagnosis (n = 605)
OHE healed, n (%)
Sex
Men (n = 275) 105 (38)
Women (n = 330) 135 (41)
Agea
< 45 years (n = 320) 128 (40)
‡ 45 years (n = 285) 112 (39)
Atopy
No atopy (n = 440) 192 (44)
Skin atopy (n = 93) 29 (31)
Respiratory atopyb (n = 72) 19 (26)
P = 0Æ004
Patch test results
Negative patch tests (n = 128) 41 (32)
Nickel allergyc (n = 146) 60 (41)
Any other contact allergy (n = 331) 139 (42)
Duration of OHEd
0–1 year (n = 184) 103 (56)
1–2 years (n = 109) 33 (30)
2–5 years (n = 127) 50 (39)
5–10 years (n = 86) 29 (34)
Over 10 years (n = 85) 18 (21)
P < 0Æ0001
Occupationa
Dental personnel (n = 55) 24 (44)
Food-related occupation (n = 52) 16 (31)
Machinery mechanics (n = 42) 19 (45)
Farmers (n = 34) 15 (44)
Hairdressers (n = 32) 13 (41)
Machinists (n = 29) 10 (34)
Health care workers (n = 25) 9 (36)
Other (n = 336) 134 (40)
Diagnosis
ACD (n = 354) 151 (43)
ICD (n = 251) 89 (35)
Work-related allergy
Rubber chemicals (n = 49) 15 (31)
Formaldehyde (n = 38) 12 (32)
Epoxy chemicals (n = 36) 21 (58)
Acrylates (n = 31) 20 (65)
Chromate (n = 15) 2 (13)
Other (n = 436) 170 (39)
P = 0Æ001
All (n = 605) 240 (40)
aAt time of diagnosis. bOnly respiratory atopy without skin
atopy. cMay include other contact allergies. dFrom onset of
symptoms to diagnosis. OHE, occupational hand eczema; ACD,
allergic contact dermatitis; ICD, irritant contact dermatitis.
P-values are shown only when P < 0Æ05.
Table 3 Odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for
continuation of occupational hand eczema (OHE) at 7–14 years after
diagnosis (n = 605)
OR (95% CI)
Agea
< 45 years 1
‡ 45 years 0Æ80 (0Æ53–1Æ21)
Sex
Women 1
Men 1Æ30 (0Æ83–2Æ04)
Atopy
No atopy 1
Skin atopy 1Æ86 (1Æ08–3Æ19)
Respiratory atopyb 2Æ69 (1Æ44–4Æ92)
Patch test results
Negative patch tests 1
Nickel allergyc 0Æ74 (0Æ39–1Æ40)
Any other contact allergy 0Æ67 (0Æ39–1Æ18)
Duration of OHEd
0–1 year 1
1–2 years 3Æ05 (1Æ78–5Æ21)
2–5 years 1Æ90 (1Æ16–3Æ09)
5–10 years 2Æ57 (1Æ44–4Æ58)
Over 10 years 4Æ55 (2Æ38–8Æ71)
Occupationa
Other than below 1
Dental personnel 1Æ13 (0Æ55–2Æ32)
Food-related occupation 1Æ86 (0Æ91–3Æ80)
Machinery mechanics 0Æ72 (0Æ35–1Æ49)
Farmers 0Æ78 (0Æ36–1Æ67)
Hairdressers 0Æ91 (0Æ39–2Æ10)
Machinists 1Æ27 (0Æ53–3Æ03)
Health care workers 1Æ07 (0Æ40–2Æ86)
Change of occupation
Yes 1
No 1Æ55 (1Æ03–2Æ34)
Work-related contact allergy
No work-related contact allergy 1
Rubber chemicals 1Æ58 (0Æ75–3Æ33)
Formaldehyde 1Æ08 (0Æ47–2Æ46)
Epoxy chemicals 0Æ58 (0Æ25–1Æ37)
Acrylates 0Æ50 (0Æ19–1Æ29)
Chromate 2Æ83 (0Æ58–13Æ78)
Other than above 0Æ85 (0Æ53–1Æ38)
aAt time of diagnosis. bOnly respiratory atopy without skin
atopy. cMay include other contact allergies. dFrom onset of
symptoms to diagnosis. Statistically significant results are shown
in bold.

Classification of diagnoses and atopy

Doctor — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 10:31:36 +0000

Classification of diagnoses and atopy
Data on diagnosis, occupation, skin and respiratory atopy, and
contact allergies were collected from the patient files.
The diagnoses were based on a clinical examination by a
dermatologist and patch and skin prick test results. All patients
were tested with extensive patch tests including occupationspecific
test series and with patients’ work-related chemicals
and materials.
OHE was categorized as occupational allergic contact dermatitis
(ACD) or irritant contact dermatitis (ICD). The definition
of ACD included a work-related contact allergy confirmed in
patch tests and relevant occupational skin exposure and hand
eczema. ICD was defined by the following criteria: exposure
to irritants at work, the clinical picture of the hand eczema
correlating with the exposure at work, the eczema clearing up
when not working, and the absence of relevant work-related
contact allergies. Only one main diagnosis (either ACD or
ICD) per patient was analysed.
Skin atopy was defined as either present or past atopic
dermatitis. If the patient had no skin atopy, but had a history of
hay fever or atopic respiratory disease and ⁄or positive skin prick
tests to common environmental allergens, the classification of
respiratory atopy was applied. Data on occupational ACD from
chromium compounds, rubber chemicals, epoxy chemicals, acrylates
and formaldehyde were analysed separately.
The duration of the eczema was calculated from the onset
of symptoms to the time of diagnosis.

Longterm Eczema

Doctor — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 10:28:52 +0000

Background Long-term follow-up studies on the prognosis and consequences of
occupational hand eczema (OHE) and the prognostic risk factors for persistent
OHE are sparse.
Objectives To determine the medical and occupational outcome after a follow-up of
7–14 years in 605 patients diagnosed with OHE and to identify the prognostic
risk factors for the continuation of hand eczema.
Methods Patients examined at the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health in
1994–2001 completed a follow-up questionnaire 7–14 years after diagnosis.
Results The hand eczema had healed (no eczema during the last year) in 40% of
patients with OHE. The duration of hand eczema before diagnosis was strongly associated
with the continuation of eczema. Age, sex and diagnosis (allergic or irritant
contact dermatitis) were not associated with the prognosis, but skin atopy, and
especially respiratory atopy, were correlated with the continuation of hand eczema.
Contact allergies in general were not risk factors for persistent OHE, but the presence
of a work-related chromate allergy was associated with poor healing. A total
of 34% of patients had changed their occupation due to OHE, and their long-term
prognosis was better than those who had not. The hand eczema of patients originally
in food-related occupations continued on an unfavourable course.
Conclusions In the logistic model, risk factors for the continuation of OHE were a
long duration of hand eczema before diagnosis, respiratory atopy, skin atopy,
and continuation in the same occupation. Those who ended up changing
occupation due to their OHE had a better medical and economic prognosis.
Hand eczema is often a chronic condition. In follow-up studies
of nonoccupational hand eczema (non-OHE), healing rates
have ranged between 18% and 41%.1–6 In studies with varying
follow-up periods, occupational hand eczema (OHE) has
been reported to heal in 21–72% of all cases.7–20 Only a few
long-term follow-up studies have been published previously,
7,10,15,18–20 and the prognosis in these has not always been
better than that in short-term studies. In some studies, a
change of job or occupation has not led to improvement of
occupational skin disease.8–10,21 The most frequently reported
predictive factors for poor prognosis (continuation of the
OHE in the absence of further exposure) include
atopy,7,12,15,22 contact allergies,7,8,12,23 older age,21,24,25 and
the severity21,26 and duration26 of the eczema.
In our previous study, the occupational skin disease had
healed in 27% of the patients 6 months after diagnosis.27 To
determine the long-term prognosis of OHE, we sent a questionnaire
to the patients diagnosed with OHE at the Finnish
Institute of Occupational Health (FIOH) 7–14 years previously
who had answered the earlier questionnaire.
Materials and methods
Study population and design
FIOH is a national referral unit to which patients are referred
by insurance companies, occupational physicians and dermatologists.
Patients who were diagnosed with an occupational
skin disease during the period 1994–2001 at FIOH and who
had answered a follow-up questionnaire 6 months after their
diagnosis were sent a new questionnaire in 2008. In total,
605 patients who returned the completed questionnaire and
who had OHE in the fingers, palms, dorsa of the hands, wrists
or forearms were included in this study. The response rate
was 80Æ1% (605 of 755).