The Spreading of ALS Throughout the Body
ALS begins locally and then spreads throughout the body.
Researchers from the University of British Columbia and Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute have made a discovery.
And that is how ALS spreads throughout the body, from cell to cell. The study suggests a way for the spread of ALS to be blocked.
The study was led by Dr. Neil Cashman. He says that by scientists understanding how ALS spreads throughout the body, that a method can be devised to stop this progression.
What did the researchers uncover? The misfolded, non-mutant SOD1 is transmitted from one region to the next in the patient’s nervous system.
This would explain the progressive nature of this fatal motor neuron disease.
Another revelation from the study is that the progression can be halted with antibodies.
In the investigation, antibodies were created to bind to regions of SOD1 that were exposed when it became misfolded.
However, there is no confirmation that ALS is caused by the non-mutant SOD1 misfolding.
But this particular cause is a suspect, and if it indeed is the cause, the researchers say that the antibodies could stop the spread of ALS in the body.
What is SOD1? It’s a protein. Previous research has shown that a mutant SOD1 is associated with the neurodegenerative disease.
The mutant version causes the shape of other proteins to misfold.
These misfolded proteins build up, and it is this accumulation that is highly suspect in the progressive degeneration of the nerve cells in the spinal cord and brain seen in patients with ALS.
Lorra Garrick has been covering medical, fitness and cybersecurity topics for many years, having written thousands of articles for print magazines and websites, including as a ghostwriter. She’s also a former ACE-certified personal trainer.
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Top image: Shutterstock/KITTIPONG SOMKLANG
Source: sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/02/140218114305.htm
Fluttering Feeling in Lower Stomach: Causes of “Butterflies”
Ever wonder exactly what IS going on inside the lower part of your stomach that causes the “butterfly” or fluttery feeling when you’re feeling anxiety or fear?
“A fluttering sensation in the lower abdomen is most likely caused by muscle contractions of the large intestine (colon),” says David D. Clarke, MD, President, Psychophysiologic Disorders Association (stressillness.com), Clinical Assistant Professor of Gastroenterology Emeritus, Oregon Health & Science University, and author of “They Can’t Find Anything Wrong.”
Dr. Clarke adds, “This may result from colon contractions that are more forceful and/or more rapid than usual, which can result from stress or conditions that cause constipation or diarrhea.”
The colon is actually a muscle, but not the skeletal type. Anxiety, whether acute or chronic, but especially acute, can cause a big wave of fluttering sensations in the lower stomach.
The fluttering is sometimes referred to as “butterflies” and is often attributed to the release of the hormone adrenaline.
But it’s not adrenaline swirling around in the lower abdomen that’s causing these uncomfortable sensations. It’s the contractions from the colon.
Since 1983 Dr. Clarke has successfully cared for over 7,000 patients with stress illness.
Lorra Garrick has been covering medical, fitness and cybersecurity topics for many years, having written thousands of articles for print magazines and websites, including as a ghostwriter. She’s also a former ACE-certified personal trainer.
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Top image: Shutterstock/Twinsterphoto
Chest & Left Arm Pain from Anxiety: Doctor Explains
Here is what a medical doctor says about anxiety causing both chest and left arm pain.
Dr. David D. Clarke, MD, is president of the Psychophysiologic Disorders Association which aims to educate people that so many physical symptoms are rooted in mental stress and anxiety.
Dr. Clarke is also Clinical Assistant Professor of Gastroenterology Emeritus, Oregon Health & Science University.
You’re probably already well-aware that chest pain can be caused by stress or anxiety in someone with a healthy heart (the chest discomfort is non-cardiac, e.g., acid reflux).
But is it possible for anxiety to cause pain in the chest and left arm — at the same time – in someone with a healthy heart?
Dr. Clarke explains, “Acute or chronic anxiety can be associated with a variety of physical symptoms including discomfort in the chest.
“I have never encountered a patient who had anxiety-related pain in both the chest and the left arm simultaneously.
“This combination is more often associated with poor circulation to the heart muscle, i.e., angina or heart attack.”
I know this is not what you wanted to read if you’ve been experiencing simultaneous chest pain and left arm pain.
Now bear in mind that anxiety or stress can trigger angina.
However, angina is a cardiac situation—the result of inadequate blood flow in the heart.
So even though a moment of acute anxiety could set this off, this doesn’t mean the situation is “all in your head.”
An episode of angina could also include shortness of breath and left arm pain, even jaw and back pain.
In fact, angina, though stereotyped by images of people clutching their chest, can also include dizziness, sweating and nausea.
And yes, angina can be triggered by anxiety or angst, and can present as just the two symptoms of chest and left arm pain.
But if your heart is healthy…why would stress cause a pain in your left arm?
Think about that for a moment. It’s not surprising that of Dr. Clarke’s 7,000 stress-illness patients, he’s never encountered one with a simultaneous presentation of chest and left arm pain in the presence of a healthy heart.
Angina means there’s a problem with the coronary arteries, and there are treatments for this. Do NOT ignore these symptoms!
Tests by a cardiologist would begin with an EKG and cardiac stress test.
However, if you go to an emergency room with complaints of pain in the chest and left arm, you will immediately have an EKG done, blood tests to see if you had or are having a heart attack or have a blood clot in a lung, and a chest X-ray.
Anxiety, of course, is often the cause of a single symptom: chest pain.
Dr. Clarke explains, “The mechanism that produces physical symptoms in anxiety is not completely understood.
“But possible explanations include altered processing by the central nervous system (brain and spinal cord) of sensory signals from the chest and contraction of muscles in the chest caused by signals traveling from brain to muscle via the sympathetic nervous system.”
Since 1983 Dr. Clarke has successfully cared for over 7,000 patients with stress illness.
Lorra Garrick has been covering medical, fitness and cybersecurity topics for many years, having written thousands of articles for print magazines and websites, including as a ghostwriter. She’s also a former ACE-certified personal trainer.
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Top image: Shutterstock/OSTILL is Franck Camhi
Can You Get Diarrhea Every Day from Stress?
You can have diarrhea every day from stress, says a GI doctor.
“Diarrhea results from a normal amount of feces mixed with a greater than normal amount of water,” begins David D. Clarke, MD, President, Psychophysiologic Disorders Association, and Clinical Assistant Professor of Gastroenterology Emeritus, Oregon Health & Science University, Faculty Associate, Arizona State University.
Dr. Clarke continues, “When a person is experiencing stress-related diarrhea, the most likely cause is an increase in the propulsive muscle contractions of the large intestine (colon).”
The colon is actually a muscle, which is why it contracts (though it’s not the same type of muscle that enables you to move, which is skeletal muscle).
Dr. Clarke further explains that the increase in the colon’s propulsive contractions “decreases the amount of time that the colon can absorb water from the feces.
“It is possible for this to continue for as long as the stress is present. This could be for weeks, months or even years.
“In people who suffer this condition for very long periods, the stress is often not fully recognized and often can be linked to adversity in childhood.
“Other causes of diarrhea that can persist for more than two weeks include losing the ability to digest milk sugar (lactose), intolerance of certain foods or medicines that you ingest daily, diseases that result in loss of the ability to absorb nutrients from the small intestine (such as sprue/celiac disease), inflammatory bowel diseases and chronic parasite infection.”
Do you have new-onset diarrhea every day and it seems to have coincided with new-onset stress? This happened to me.
The stress was enormous, and suddenly, I began having diarrhea — not just daily but multiple times a day and even overnight.
And it looked funny, not like the usual diarrhea I’d had in my life.
As I was being prepped for a colonoscopy to find out what was going on, the nurse said that indeed, stress could be a cause, and that he himself had had stress diarrhea every day for three weeks as a result of his divorce.
The colonoscopy revealed that I had microscopic colitis, an inflammatory bowel disease, and to this day, I believe that the anxiety in my life had triggered it (though if you don’t have the gene for this benign condition, you can’t get it).
Since 1983 Dr. Clarke has successfully cared for over 7,000 patients with stress illness.
Lorra Garrick has been covering medical, fitness and cybersecurity topics for many years, having written thousands of articles for print magazines and websites, including as a ghostwriter. She’s also a former ACE-certified personal trainer.
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Top image: ©Lorra Garrick
Here’s How Mental Stress Causes Migraine Headaches
A doctor explains just HOW mental stress and anxiety create a migraine headache.
David D. Clarke, MD, is president of the Psychophysiologic Disorders Association.
Physical ailments from mental stress are a real phenomenon and can persist for years. Dr. Clarke is also Clinical Assistant Professor of Gastroenterology Emeritus, Oregon Health & Science University, Faculty Associate, Arizona State University.
Stress often causes migraine headaches—but how does this happen?
“Mental stress is capable of causing pain and other physical symptoms almost anywhere in the body including headache,” explains Dr. Clarke.
“Stress can cause routine muscle tension headaches but also headaches that closely resemble true migraine.
“The mechanism is not entirely understood but may involve one or more of muscle contractions around the skull, altered processing of sensory signals by the central nervous system and altered muscle contraction in blood vessels of the head.”
Dr. Clarke continues, “Distinguishing the various types of headache from each other can, at times, be a diagnostic challenge even for specialists.
“The most reliable way to determine if headaches are stress-related is to identify the source(s) of stress, then treat the stresses and see if the headache is substantially or completely relieved.
“Complete relief of headache pain after reducing or eliminating the causative stress(es) is the only way to be completely certain there is no other cause. (This is the case for stress-related symptoms in general: if the symptom goes away after treating the stress, then our confidence is high that stress caused the symptom.).”
What stresses you out?
Your body can’t tell the difference between over-reaction to a minor inconvenience and justified reaction to a major life setback.
Learn to choose your inner battles wisely, for the sake of your body’s well-being. If you’re going to get a headache over something, it shouldn’t be over your daughter’s new hair style.
“The great challenge here is identifying the causative sources of stress, which are often not obvious either to the person suffering the headache or to their physician,” explains Dr. Clarke.
“Many people fail to recognize how much stress they are suffering from sources such as a personal crisis (career, religious, health, financial, gender identity, etc.), lack of self-care skills (difficulty putting yourself on the list of people for whom you care), marital or family issues or workplace problems.
“Other important types of stress that may be unrecognized include the prolonged impact of childhood adversity, post-traumatic stress, anxiety disorders and depression.
“A screening questionnaire that can help identify some, though not all, of these sources of stress is available here: stressillness.com/overview.php.”
An important thing to consider when it comes to headaches is if they are new-onset and accompanied by other neurological symptoms such as visual disturbances, weakness or numbness on one side of the body, slurred speech, confusion or cognitive difficulties, dizziness, strange sounds in the ear or a drooping eyelid.
Do not delay in seeing a physician. A sudden, “thunderclap” headache that’s of the worst pain you’ve ever had warrants a prompt trip to the ER.
Since 1983 Dr. Clarke has successfully cared for over 7,000 patients with stress illness.
Lorra Garrick has been covering medical, fitness and cybersecurity topics for many years, having written thousands of articles for print magazines and websites, including as a ghostwriter. She’s also a former ACE-certified personal trainer.
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Top image: Freepik.com, creativeart
Can Stress Change the Color of Your Poops?
Here’s your answer to whether or not stress can change the color of your stools…
…an explanation from David D. Clarke, MD, President, Psychophysiologic Disorders Association, Clinical Assistant Professor of Gastroenterology Emeritus, Oregon Health & Science University, Faculty Associate, Arizona State University.
“Stress can change the force and/or frequency and/or propulsive coordination of contractions of the large intestine (colon),” begins Dr. Clarke.
“This can result in slower or more rapid transit of the colon by feces depending on the specific type of change.
“In some people under stress, the speed of transit of the colon changes every day or few days.
“Since the colon acts like a sponge with respect to the water content of feces, the longer the feces are in contact with the colon, the more water is absorbed.
“The more water that is absorbed, the darker (and harder) the feces will tend to be. No other changes in color result from stress.”
So in other words, the only color changes in stools that could result from stress would better be described as shade changes: shades of brown.
So if the color of your poops is grey, orange-grey, yellow, whitish, intermixed with red or maroon, or they have a black tarry-like substance intertwined in them…do not attribute these colors to stress!
Even if you’ve been experiencing enormous stress lately, whole color changes in your BMs are something that you need to see your doctor about.
There are many medical causes of color changes in stools, but rest assured that there is one color you never have to worry about: green.
Green indicates either fast transit through the colon (and nothing is wrong with that) or consumption of green foods.
And you now know why those hard, tough-to-void little BMs are almost always a very dark brown:
They’ve been in contact with the large colon long enough to have a lot of their water content absorbed by the colon; hence the very dark brown hue.
Since 1983 Dr. Clarke has successfully cared for over 7,000 patients with stress illness.
Lorra Garrick has been covering medical, fitness and cybersecurity topics for many years, having written thousands of articles for print magazines and websites, including as a ghostwriter. She’s also a former ACE-certified personal trainer.
How Anxiety Leads to Frequent Urination
How anxiety causes you to urinate more is explained by a urologist.
It’s no secret that there’s something about anxiety that causes more trips to the toilet to take a leak.
But what’s really going on here? I was inspired to write this article, with a urologist as an expert source, due to my own experience with this situation.
Some years ago I was up every 90 minutes or less overnight to empty my bladder.
And every minute that I lie awake, I was consumed with enormous anxiety, because while I lie there in the darkness, I kept anticipating that at any moment, I’d begin hearing that awful thumping sound of my parents’ German shepherd having a seizure as a result of an incurable brain tumor.
I was staying with them to take care of this dog, which I loved. The anxiety was torture.
“Anxiety or nervousness can cause frequent urination,” says Kenneth Peters, MD, chief of urology for Beaumont Hospital, Royal Oak, MI.
“The exact reason is not known, however. We see this in people of all ages.
“The brain is involved in processing signals from the bladder. This is how we know when we need to urinate.
“Normally, we can suppress this sensation until it is convenient to void. However, it is not uncommon when people are nervous or upset, that both the bladder and bowel (irritable bowel syndrome) become more active.”
Mechanism Behind How Anxiety Causes Frequent Urination
Dr. Peters explains, “To void normally and empty completely, the pelvic floor muscles that support the bladder and bowel must work properly.
“The pelvis is like a bowl, and the walls of the bowl are lined with muscles (pelvic floor).
“These muscles support the bladder, bowel and pelvic organs. To urinate normally, the pelvic floor muscles must relax, sending a signal to the brain for the bladder to contract.
“When a person is stressed or has anxiety, it is difficult to relax the pelvic floor muscles; thus the bladder cannot contract completely and empty.
“This is commonly seen in men with ‘shy bladder syndrome,’ in which they have difficulty voiding at a urinal when others are present, due to the inability to relax the muscles.
“Chronic tightness of the pelvic floor can lead to bladder irritability and greater frequency.
“Sitting in a warm tub bath or placing a heating pad on the lower pelvis can help with this spasm.
“If symptoms persist, pelvic floor physical therapy, directed at pelvic muscle relaxation, can help.
“Most importantly, stress reduction and management is key. A psychologist can help with stress management. Yoga, meditation and relaxation techniques can also help.
“If symptoms persist. the individual should see a urologist to make certain there is no infection, inflammation or urinary obstruction.”
Even lower levels of anxiety can cause a person to feel the urge to urinate overnight or even during waking hours.
They aren’t voiding a higher volume of excrement (assuming that their water intake is the same as it’s always been).
Instead, they just aren’t voiding it all at each sitting. In my case, each urge felt as though a normal amount of urine was going to finally come out, but it kept ending up more like a trickle.
Dr. Peters, in practice for 30+ years, is board certified by the American Board of Urology. One of his specialties is treating bladder pain.
Lorra Garrick has been covering medical, fitness and cybersecurity topics for many years, having written thousands of articles for print magazines and websites, including as a ghostwriter. She’s also a former ACE-certified personal trainer.
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Top image: Freepik
Tiny Black Dots, Specks in Semen: Urologist Explains
Here is what a urologist has to say about the cause of tiny black dots or specks in your semen.
“This is not an uncommon complaint, but in general, there is no good answer,” begins Kenneth Peters, MD, chief of urology for Beaumont Hospital, Royal Oak, MI.
He continues, “Blood can present as dark spots or strands in the semen.
“This could be due to inflammation in the prostate, seminal vesicles or the ejaculatory duct.”
Blood in semen, also known as hematospermia, can indeed appear as dark spots or streaks in the semen.
Discovering this can be alarming and make a man wonder if he might have prostate or testicular cancer.
However, Dr. Peters adds, “It is rarely a sign of anything concerning. If it persists, it may be worth seeing a urologist to rule out infection (prostatitis).”
In addition to the aforementioned possible causes of black spots or specks in the ejaculate, here are some more possible causes of this unexpected discovery:
1 Minor injuries to the reproductive tract
2 Inflammation or infection of the urethra
3 A cyst
4 A prostate biopsy
Again, if you’ve been noticing black or dark specks in your semen, do not jump to the conclusion that you probably have cancer.
The situation is not something to lose sleep over. It’s just not likely that cancer is responsible for this.
Nevertheless, it is essential to consult a urologist if the symptom persists, and especially if it is accompanied by other issues that are new in onset.
Examples of co-occurring and concerning symptoms would be difficulty with ejaculation, difficulty with urinating, pain or burning when urinating, the sensation of a full bladder even though you keep relieving yourself, pain in a genital, back pain, leg pain or unexplained weight loss.
There’s also the possibility that co-occurring symptoms, such as the ones just described, are coincidental and do not have anything to do with any black specks or dots in your semen.
Dr. Peters, in practice for 30+ years, is board certified by the American Board of Urology. One of his specialties is treating bladder pain.
Lorra Garrick has been covering medical, fitness and cybersecurity topics for many years, having written thousands of articles for print magazines and websites, including as a ghostwriter. She’s also a former ACE-certified personal trainer.
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Top image: ©Lorra Garrick
Sudden-Onset, Foul-Smelling Urine: Causes & Solutions
Here is what a urologist has to say about sudden-onset, foul-smelling urine.
“The most common cause of sudden onset, foul-smelling urine is food related,” says Kenneth Peters, MD, chief of urology for Beaumont Hospital, Royal Oak, MI.
Dr. Peters explains, “Ingestion of asparagus in particular will lead to a very strong odor to the urine; this will resolve after several hours and multiple voids.”
Asparagus makes urine smell bad because it contains sulfur-containing compounds, particularly asparagusic acid.
When your body breaks down asparagusic acid during digestion, it produces volatile sulfur compounds like methanethiol and dimethyl sulfide.
These compounds are released in the urine and have a strong, distinctive odor.
Some people don’t notice the smell due to genetic differences that affect either the production of the compounds or the ability to detect them.
Medications and Supplements
Medications, too, can leave your urine smelling bad.
Dr. Peters notes that multivitamins can also have this effect, not just causing bad odor but also a dark discoloration.
Take note of any new medications or nutraceuticals you’ve been taking lately.
Don’t stop taking any prescription drugs without first consulting with the prescribing physician, but see if stopping the multivitamin resolves the problem.
“The first thing to do is increase hydration to dilute the urine, and most of the time the odor will resolve,” says Dr. Peters.
“Of course a bacterial infection of the urine or UTI needs to be ruled out if the odor persists; in which case individuals should see a clinician.”
Dr. Peters, in practice for 30+ years, is board certified by the American Board of Urology. One of his specialties is treating bladder pain.
Lorra Garrick has been covering medical, fitness and cybersecurity topics for many years, having written thousands of articles for print magazines and websites, including as a ghostwriter. She’s also a former ACE-certified personal trainer.
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Top image: Shutterstock/Lipik Stock Media
Can Cancer Cause Burning Urination?
Yes, a urologist says that cancer can cause burning urination, but there are many non-malignant reasons why urinating can be painful.
“Urine is toxic, so the bladder and urethra must protect themselves,” begins Kenneth Peters, MD, chief of urology for Beaumont Hospital, Royal Oak, MI.
“With a UTI [urinary tract infection] the protective layer of the bladder is damaged, exposing the urine to the underlying nerves, leading to pain and bladder irritability and ultimately the symptoms of a UTI.”
Benign Causes of Burning Urination Besides Bladder Infection
“First, if an individual is dehydrated, the concentrated urine can lead to discomfort in the bladder while voiding; increasing fluid intake to dilute the urine can help,” continues Dr. Peters.
“Certain foods can be bothersome for certain patients. The worst offenders are caffeine, along with spicy and acidic foods. such as tomato sauce.
“There are other conditions that can lead to burning urination. A stone in the bladder can result in bladder irritation and burning.
“A urethral diverticulum is a rare condition in which a sac develops along the urethra that results in trapping of urine in the diverticulum, resulting in chronic inflammation and pain while voiding.
“Other conditions such as urethral trauma or urethral infection can lead to burning. If symptoms persist, the individual should be evaluated by a urologist.”
Dr. Peters, in practice for 30+ years, is board certified by the American Board of Urology. One of his specialties is treating bladder pain.
Lorra Garrick has been covering medical, fitness and cybersecurity topics for many years, having written thousands of articles for print magazines and websites, including as a ghostwriter. She’s also a former ACE-certified personal trainer.
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