Dietary(Nutritional) recommendations for Hypertension (High Blood Essay

Dietary(Nutritional) recommendations for Hypertension (High Blood Pressure) - Essay Example When anti-hypertensive drugs are taken with high-salt foods, negative food-drug interactions result. In order to avoid the resulting hypertensive crisis, diet changes are required from â€Å"high carbohydrates/low protein to low carbohydrate/high protein† (Bushra, Aslam & Khan 2011). Propranolol is an anti-hypertensive drug and its serum level can be increased by taking foods rich in protein like fish. For those who cannot eat fish, omega-3 fish oil supplements are available too. But, more than 3mg of fish oil supplements daily is disadvantageous (Smith 2013). Also, orange juice should be avoided when taking medication because Hesperidin in the juice prevents drug absorption causing most of the drug to be excreted. It is recommended, therefore, to taken anti-hypertensive medicines on an empty stomach. It is suggested regarding supplements that calcium can increase the risk of hypertension and even precipitate heart attacks when taken without vitamin D (Brody 2013). The most be neficial thing for health is good diet and not supplements. Brody, JE 2013, ‘Thinking Twice About Calcium Supplements’, The New York Times, viewed 11 May 2014, Smith, MW 2013, ‘Omega-3 Fish Oil Supplements for High Blood Pressure’, viewed 11 May 2014,

Three Different Type of Family Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Three Different Type of Family - Essay Example I was supposed to be at the Saudi Embassy by 11:00 o’ clock. I was in West Los Angeles. My heart was beating fast and I was immersed in perspiration beads. I feared that I might miss the opportunity to apply for the passport in time. It had taken a lot of effort to get the date for application and I could not afford missing that opportunity. I managed to reach the Saudi Embassy in ten minutes. I was pleased I was not quite late, but the staff did not cooperate with me the much I expected them to. They referred me to one another which frustrated me. Anyway, I managed to apply for the passport. I had not done the breakfast to my full and was feeling really hungry. Since morning, I had been moving here and there in frustration. I was overwhelmed with anxiety and wanted a good lunch to energize myself. I was feeling very low and was red in the face. It felt like I was having a very high blood pressure. On my way to Santa Monica, I drove across my girlfriend’s favorite pizza restaurant. Suddenly, I felt a cool breeze filling me. I wondered if love was powerful enough to make me happy at this point in my life when I was feeling very low. My blood pressure started to regulate. I decided to have the lunch, so I parked my car aside the restaurant. Even before I had entered the restaurant, I knew where I was going to sit or what I was going to order. I planned to occupy the same table where my girlfriend and I had sat the last time and order the same meal we had had then. But unfortunately, that table was already occupied by a family. There were a total of three families in the restaurant. The family occupying my table had four members in it; a father, a mother and two sons. This was the first family. It felt very much like a projection of my dream family, wherein I would have two sons from my girlfriend. The family sitting on the left of that table had two members in it. There was a man a child. The man seemed like the father and the child seemed like his son. This was the second family. To the right was another family with six people in it. There was a man and a woman that seemed like a husband and a wife. To the left of the husband were two sons. In between the husband and the wife was a one year old child, and to the right of the wife was a daughter. This was the third family. The first family was a dual parent family. The sons had their biological children with them. The second family represented single parent family. The mother had left the child’s father and had married her lover. The child had no sibling but had his biological father with him. The third family was a merging family. In between the husband and the wife was their biological child. To the right of the wife was the daughter from her previous husband. To the left of the husband were the two sons from his previous wife. The first family was a biracial family. The wife was African American whereas the husband was Caucasian American. The sons had tanned skin whi le the color of one son was darker than the other. The second and third families were uniracial in that all members belonged to the same race. In the second family, both the father and the son were Asian Americans. They seemed like Indians that had immigrated to the US. The third family was of Caucasian Americans. All family members were white. It seemed like the girl’

Improving Patient Engagement and Satisfaction in Health IT

Improving Patient Engagement and Satisfaction in Health IT Sion Davoudi   According to Buntin et al, Health information technology (HIT) has the potential to improve the health of individuals and the performance of providers, yielding improved quality, cost savings, and greater engagement by patients in their own health care (Buntin et al, 2011). In addition to the countless business benefits, HIT really shines when it comes to patient outcome, satisfaction, and engagement. A relatively broad concept, patient engagement refers to both a patients knowledge, skills, ability, and willingness to manage his or her own health and care and intervention strategies designed to increase activation and promote positive health behaviors (James, 2013). Within its core definition, patient engagement aims for patients to take full ownership of their health. This ownership, combined with technological advancements, can directly lead to increased patient satisfaction. The patient engagement movement is relatively new, and is increasingly important given the enormous complexities of modern medicine. Indeed, many patients struggle to obtain, process, communicate, and understand even basic health information and services (James, 2013), and too often health providers are not properly trained or equipped to facilitate increased engagement by their patients. It is for that reason; technology has an important role to play in the promotion of patient engagement. With social media applications, mobile applications, online health tools, smart wearable body sensors (SWS), technology is a primary driver in achieving increased patient engagement across the population. With social media, e-patients can engage in dialogue with other patients and health educators. Various social media platforms can often include patient stories, expert opinions by health professions, and information about what a patient can expect from a particular procedure (Gallant et al., 2011). For example, Facebook walls allow e-patients interact with each other on health inquiries, hospital services and events. Additionally, mobile applications provide patients the flexibility to access information from remote locations. As a patient, I can access my health record, prescription history, access a drug encyclopedia, or e-mail my doctor directly. This convenience and ease of use allows for not only my increased engagement but also eliminates a need to make a trip to my doctors office. A single technological application that can increase engagement, higher satisfaction, and reduce costs. One limitation with this technology is the digital divide, as accessibility among the poor and elderly will need to rise. Lastly, smart wearable body sensors (SWS) have gained popularity over the years thanks to fitness related devices like the FitBit and Apple Watch. Because SWS allow patients to self-monitor and track their data in real-time, they are uniquely suited to guide patient behavior from the flexibility of home, work or travel. I can monitor and track distance traveled, heartrate, and calories burned with my FitBit application. There is little doubt that technology has and will continue to impact patient engagement and satisfaction. We need to continue advancements in technology and increase our use of social media, mobile applications, and wearable devices. However, while the future holds much promise, important limitations must be overcome to ensure this potential becomes reality. References Buntin, M., Burke, M., Hoaglin, M., Blumenthal, D. (2011). The Benefits Of Health Information Technology: A Review Of The Recent Literature Shows Predominantly Positive Results. Health Affairs, 30(3), 464-471. http://dx.doi.org/10.1377/hlthaff.2011.0178 Gallant, L.M., Irizarry, C., Boone,G. Krep, G.L. (2011). Promoting Participatory Medicine with Social Media: New Media Application on Hospital Websites that Enhance Health Education and e-Patient Voice, Journal of Participatory Medicine; 3. James, J. (2016). Patient Engagement. Health Affairs Health Policy Briefs. Retrieved 16 June 2016, from http://www.healthaffairs.org/healthpolicybriefs/brief.php?brief_id=86

The Downfall and Destruction of a King in the Play, Oedipus the King :: Oedipus the King Oedipus Rex

The Downfall of a King in the Play, Oedipus the King I found the tragedy of "Oedipus the King" to be quite interesting. It was not as hard to read as an epic. "The purpose of tragedy is to arouse the emotions of pity and fear and thus to produce in the audience a catharsis of these emotions." (p488, A Handbook of Literature) A tragedy has more drama and builds to the climax. Oedipus' fate was set into motion by the circumstances he created himself because of his own rashness and arrogance. This is called an inciting incident. "He is headstrong and foolish (in not questioning Polybus and Merope in more detail or pursuing his original question with the Delphic oracle)." (Duke) For instance, Oedipus could have asked these questions: (1) How was King Laius killed and where? (2) Who are my real parents? He would not have married his mother and had children with her. He would have become King of Corinth. Jocasta would not have hung herself. Oedipus would not have blinded himself. The city would not have been plagued because Laius killer had not been punished. In today's society Oedipus would not have gotten away with murder. That was very different in the Greek society; murder was viewed as making someone a hero and more powerful. Although, if one had too much pride that was a sin. How can someone get away with murder and not be affected by it? He killed Laius in cold blood and that is all there is to it. However, this is how the overall plot of the play evolved. "When the play opens, the city of Thebes is wasting away under a plague that leaves its fields and women barren. Oedipus, the king of Thebes, has sent his brother-in-law, Creon, to ask the house of Apollo to ask the oracle how to put an end to the plague. Creon returns, bearing good news: once the killer of the previous king, Laius, is found, Thebes will be cured of the plague (Laius was Jocasta's husband before she married Oedipus). Hearing this, Oedipus swears he will find the murderer and banish him. He asks Creon some questions: where was Laius murdered? did anyone see the crime? how many men killed him? Creon answers: Laius was killed outside the city by a group of robbers, and the only witness was a shepherd who still lives nearby.

The Effects of Motivation on Work

In a world of abundance filled with unmatched economic lows, there has never been a greater calling for the understanding of the effects of motivation in the workplace. We will look at motivation as the light needed to see positive change in our work life, the change necessary to improve the economic stature of our family and peers. Though motivation cannot be taught, it can be stimulated by an employer or an individual. Stimulated in a way that creates the foundation to breed and exceed expectation. To understand why motivation plays such an important role in one’s career it is clearly definite we must understand the true meaning of the word and how it works in different forms. Motivation comes from the Latin root meaning â€Å"to move† (Wade & Tavris, 2009). As if this root meaning is not enough to grasp the idea, Psychologists define motivation as the process of which a person or animal move toward a goal, or away from a negative situation (Wade & Tavris, 2009). There is no difference in the way motivation works when we are trying to achieve within the workplace or the motivation to eat when we are hungry. The force it creates is the same though the desired need is different. Motivation is also broken down into two varying factors. These two factors of motivation must be understood because they influence our mentality of achieving or more so, why we choose certain aspects of following our motivations. Intrinsic motivation is the pursuit of an activity for its own sake whereas extrinsic motivation is the pursuit for external rewards (Wade & Tavris 2009). We can see that motivation propels us in a way that we consciously and subconsciously move forward to attain what it is that we seek, and it also used to push or pull away from a situation that would be possess negative attributes to our motivations. We also know that motivation is influenced by different motives. In this research paper we will discuss motivation in the workplace, be it positive, negative, or null. We will also discuss some studies behind the thoughts of how we function mentally at work, to work, and for work. Working within a company that creates a positive mental attitude mantra is detrimental to the success of the company and well-being of the employee. Companies can launch campaigns to replicate motivation, but unless the companies approach is truly sincere and consistent the value is lost. In Douglas McGregor’s book, â€Å"The Human Side of Enterprise,† published in 1960, McGregor states that human beings have a natural dislike for work and avoid it if they can (McGregor, 2010). So if we as human beings dislike work in general, how could we ever become motivated? In Frederick Herzberg’s book, â€Å"The Motivation to Work,† Herzberg discusses how a workplace can create a motivating environment for its employees. He lists factors that result in motivation and dissatisfaction in the workplace. He calls them motivators and hygiene factors (Herzberg, 2002). We will discuss the hygiene factor later in this paper. The satisfying motivators he lists are as follows: achievements, responsibility, work itself, recognition, advancement, and growth (Herzberg, 2002). These factors provide positive motivation in the work place. His beliefs of how a company can motivate also include ideas such as when an employee shows the ability to take on more responsibility the company should honor the individual, that the company should work to utilize the full capability of the employee, and that if a person’s capabilities cannot be used the company should replace the individual to maintain the state of motivation in the staff (Herzberg, 2002). A company can try all that it can to motivate the work force, but what causes one employee to be more motivated than another in the same position. An individual’s positive motivation they bring to work each day can produce tremendous success in their career. Where does their desire come from? What makes one employee more motivated than others? These are two great questions that will assist in determining what fuels an individual to perform at work with non-motivational attempts by the company. There are several conditions that positively affect our individual motives for attaining success. One answer is goals. Goals are said to improve performance when three conditions are met: the goal must be specific, challenging yet achievable, and designed to gain what you want rather than what you don’t want (Wade & Tavris, 2009). This means when someone knows exactly what they want, as long as it isn’t ridiculously out of reach, and they work in a direction that when completed provides maximum satisfaction, one will begin to perform better. A goal is just the vehicle of motivation, the vehicle requires the fuel of motivation to reach your destination. So in essence, goals breed motivation. There are two types of goals that assist in growing as a person. A performance goal is framed to do well in front of others, be judged respectfully, and avoid criticism (Wade & Tavris, 2009). A mastery goal is designed to increase ones competency and skillset. (Wade & Tavris, 2009) When these two goals are set into motion, our motivation is called upon and we will ultimately produce further success. Another factor that will cause motivation is very definition of the intrinsic and extrinsic motivation factor (Wade & Tavris, 2009). For example, a new car, new family home, sales contest, bonus, and advancement are all attributes that require an individual to become more motivated at work and produce greater results. Also in Frederick Herzberg’s book â€Å"The Motivation to Work,† he lists factors that create motivation within an individual to succeed at work as achievement, recognition, work itself, responsibility, advancement, and growth (Herzberg, 2002). Motivation from within also can spawn from self-expectancy (Wade & Tavris, 2009). When one expects to succeed, they work harder and become more motivated to work (Wade & Tavris, 2009). In direct correlation to expectations is self-efficacy. Self-efficiency is the belief that he or she is capable of producing desired results, mastering skills, and achieving goals (Wade & Tavris 2009). This too, cannot be taught. It is developed. We now see a relationship with how a company and an individual can produce motivation at work and why it is important. What we see is that it is the same basic process, but it all starts with an understanding that the person must be willing to both do and want greater results. There are also motivating factors that can discourage an employee at work. We will call this motivation, a negative motivation. As with all the factors that cause positive motivation, when their values are reversed negative motivation will occur. If there is no advancement opportunities, tasks are repetitive, the work in itself is not meaningful, there are poor relationships with superiors, or the worker does not feel appreciated then the motivation and overall mood of the individual turns awry (Herzberg, 2002). The â€Å"Hygiene Factor† we touched on earlier explains that the dissatisfaction one finds at work is a motivator buzz kill (Herzberg, 2002). He calls these dissatisfying factors hygiene because just as in health hygiene, these factors are maintenance factors (Herzberg, 2002). Maintenance factors are what we must do to avoid dissatisfaction (Herzberg, 2002). These factors include: company policy, problems with superiors, work conditions, salary, and problems with peers (Herzberg, 2002). These factors are directly related to the effect of the work environment. In summary, it seems when one has to work, to work, the mindset becomes negative about the specific job. As with detractors in the workplace, one can have detractors within themselves that are disturbing their ability to become motivated in a career. These detractors are feelings, emotions, and events in one’s personal life that are causing negative influence on their work mentality. Finances, time, family life, and lack of fulfillment are all negative factors that weigh against ones motivation. If one believes they are not following their dreams or living up to their full potential they will suffer, if one isn’t spending enough time with their family they will also suffer, and if one is struggling financially they will obviously have issues within themselves. Depression is another factor that can take away motivation. Depression causes the inability to function in several varying forms. These are just a few rationales as to why an individual may struggle to motivate themselves. When motivation is lost within the mental confines attributed to our career, whether individually or bred by the employer, one could become resistant to change, null to growth, and inconsistent in task. This makes it hard for one to complete daily tasks, yet alone go to work with the motivation achieve great results. However, motivation is a multifunctional psychological ability. Multifunctional because it can possess negative, positive, and null results. It can also produce an effect where one will work with the fear of losing their position. They will do what is necessary to maintain their status, all the while living with the fear of their comfort level changing. Working in this capacity causes a poor mental attitude both at work and at home. We have studied the multiple sides of the effects of motivation in the workplace. We found many common ideas, theories, and studies that associate both positive and negative motivation. For a workplace to provide a positive environment there are clearly defined structures to produce the desired outcome. As an individual, we must sincerely feel comfort, challenge, acceptance, and growth to become and remain in a motivated state. A tall list sure, but in order to grow as individuals these are all very important aspects that we must understand and be able to handle. In conclusion, motivation clearly affects each and every one of us in different ways, at different times, with unpredictable results.

“Hunter in the Dark” by Monica Hughes Essay

Monica Hughes, a truly gifted novelist, has written a first class book titled Hunter in the Dark. I chose this gripping novel, which was published in 1982 because I have immensely enjoyed some of her other works. After reading the preview, I expected that the story would give me a greater appreciation for life, since it focused on a boy’s struggle with leukemia, and how he overcame it. Hughes uses theme to weave a well-developed plot by using her unique style of writing. Sixteen-year-old Mike Rankin is preparing for a hunting trip, with his best friend Doug O’Reilly, that he has been planning and waiting for all year. He is sent to the hospital for treatment, as a result, he misses the hunting trip. Mike’s parents refuses to tell him about his sickness for fear of hurting his feelings, and he had to discover that he has leukemia by tracking down his symptoms and treatments at the library. He becomes angry that his parents hid his sickness from him and wants to discontinue his treatment due to the fact that he feels that he doesn’t have anything to live for. He thinks about how nice it would be if he could go hunting and decides that he wants to go hunting one last time before he dies. With Doug’s help, he plans a solo-hunting trip, and prepares mentally and physically for what he could encounter in the bush. He leaves his protective house and drives into the bush. After numerous days, Mike tracks down a massive whitetail buck and prepares to fire his rifle when he suddenly has a flashback to when he was still in the hospital. He remembers when the nurse clipped a plastic tag, a badge of slavery, around his wrist, and he wonders with despair when it would be cut off. He realized he wasn’t running away to go hunting, he was running away so that he could forget about his sickness and pretends that everything was fine. He saw his life through new eyes. Mike lowers his rifle and prepares to head back home. The following passage from the novel illustrates the author’s descriptive style of writing. â€Å"The pickup was there, just where Doug had parked it. Mike had had an irrational twinge of fear that somehow it might have vanished overnight. But there it was, tan-coloured, squared and business-like, sparkling with frost under the blue lights.† You can tell that Hughes has a descriptive style of writing  because this passage is loaded with adjectives and similes. Some examples are: tan-coloured, squared and business-like and blue lights. These descriptive elements help form a picture of the pickup in the reader’s mind. Monica Hughes has written a fantastic novel, which I couldn’t put down. Hunter in the Dark has a fast paced plot that flowed from event to event. This, along with the suspenseful situations she created, impelled me to continue reading. The characters were complex and seemed as if they were real, due to the fact that their reactions and how they act were realistic. Also, the author used vivid details to form a clear picture of every scene in the reader’s mind. This book deserves to stay on the reading list because it is an outstanding novel.