We’ve been asked for another Dorm Food article. Ah yes, freshmen moving into their dormitories, all wailing about the food that sucks. We won’t give you lollipops to soothe your pain, but we will give out one suggestion that will help with those bouts of homesickness.

Electric pancake griddles can be real lifesavers. Sometimes you really do need simple carbohydrates for energy, and throwing some pancake batter bought from the store onto the griddle with some dried fruit chopped into it is a good solution. As long as your dorm room’s got an electrical outlet, plug ‘er in, add water to the pancake mix, and don’t leave out the berries!

Dried cranberries, chopped apricots, almond slivers and dried or dessicated coconut flakes can be stored for a long time, and they add much needed flavor without the excess sugar courtesy of maple syrup or spray-on toffee. Just about every griddle comes with a nonstick coating nowadays, but we still suggest using a bit of cooking spray (butter or popcorn flavor is good) to make cleanup less of a chore.

If your friends or parents really think it’s necessary to give you a college go-away present, a pancake griddle is a great long-term investment. Great nutrition, too. Buckwheat or whole wheat pancake mix is widely available for most of our readers. (And you’ll be an instant hit with your dorm mates.)

An alternative idea is to invest in an electric indoor grill. When you add the microwave in the dorm common room to this multi-purpose appliance, you’ve almost got a whole “kitchen”! It may sound strange, but these appliances are also ideal for single people who aren’t living in dorms. It fits right on your countertop, and you can cook meat, vegetables, brown rice, pancakes and toast bread in the same appliance. Since there are tons of models out there with different brand names, we’re not going to mention any specific names but we will give you the features we recommend instead.

- Does it come with a cover?
The cover should be connected by a hinge and there should be grid ‘lines’ and the same non-stick cooking surface as the bottom half of the grill. When the heat source comes from above and below the food, everything will be cooked twice as fast compared to having only one heat source at the bottom. The non-stick grid should also be removable for gentle washing.

- How large is the cooking surface?
If you spread your fingers wide, then place your hands beside each other, the cooking surface should be at least as wide as that, plus half a handspan to make 2 and 1/2 hands in all. Instead of having to keep a close eye on the grill and prepare your meals in batches, you can place all the food on it at once, and turn the heat up or down as needed after removing the cooked foods to your plate.

- And speaking of temperature control, there should be at least three settings, High, Medium and Low, or Temperature settings in Farenheit or Celsius. Meat usually requires the High setting but vegetables will overcooked on the outside and undercooked inside at this temperature setting. The timer, we’ve found, is more annoying than helpful, since the grill and food heat up and cooks so quickly.

- Grills should come with non-stick handles as well as a non-stick pan to catch fat drippings (yes, it *is* possible to have bacon in your dorm on Saturdays!)and liquids.
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These should fit very close to and under the grilling surface so that you won’t accidentally cause an accident while you reach for a pen and your homework nearby.

There are two things you can do with outdoor grills that you shouldn’t try with your indoor grill (unless you really want to set the smoke alarms off):

- Rubbing the grilling surface with small herb flakes, spice powders or chili flakes. This is likely to start a fire. The cookbook most grills come with will tell you this as well.

- Since there’s very little ventilation in the dorm room, we suggest NOT adding whole chilies or other foods to the grill.

Indoor grills should be available near the rice cookers in kitchen gadgets department of a supermarket near you.

We’ve suggested purchasing a crockpot before, but several readers have asked for more details. Here are the features we recommend:

A removable liner
The stoneware pot should have a coated interior and should be removable for ease of cleaning. Watch out because it gets very hot! A 5-quart pot gives you and your dorm mates plenty to share. Crockpots are convenient for students and busy singles because you can put the ingredients in, leave it at a temperature setting, cover it, then forget about it till you get back. By then, your dorm will be filled with the pleasant aroma of dinner waiting for you.

An auto-change temperature setting
Every crockpot comes with Low, Medium and High temperature settings, but the crockpots worth your money also come with an Auto Change setting. With an internal thermometer set at 80 C, the crockpot will automatically lower or increase the heat so the contents of your crockpot are not overcooked.

Bakelite or heat-proof handles
So you can lift the crockpot and put it away in the cupboard or under the bed when you need room for the unbelievably thick textbooks.

Invite your classmates “home” for lunch with this nutritious and filling set-it-and-forget-it recipe (it uses ingredients you can store in your room without a fridge):

Crockpot Back-to-School chunky soup

1 cup macaroni shells
1 cup macaroni elbows
4 hot dogs, cut to chunks
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder or soy sauce
half 1 green pepper, chopped
half 1 red pepper, chopped
2 tomatoes, diced
half of 1 onion, chopped
1 can mushrooms, drained
1 can baby corn, drained
1 pepperoni, diced
2 cups low-sodium broth (chicken, vegetable, beef, or other)
5 tablespoons grated cheese
Place all ingredients in the crockpot and set on low for 3 or 4 hours when you leave for class in the morning, and you’ll have lunch and dinner waiting for you. Garnish with some cheese and dried parsley when ready to serve.

Dorm food has a pretty bad reputation - both for making people gain weight and for bad tasting, low-nutrient stuff. True, the rumors are a bit exaggerated, but for those who’ve experienced dorm food, you do get used to the bad stuff. If you’re concerned, you ought to get answers to these questions when choosing a college:

1) What kind of meal choices do I get?

Exam stress and illness should be accomodated. Heavy and oily lasagnas are out during exam time, as we’ve said in our previous articles, and you should have mostly fluids when you’re down with a cold, flu, fever or worse. Does HFS allow for short notice changes to the requested menu due to illness? Does HFS make digesting food easier during exam time? There should be more white meats, more soups, steamed vegetables and nutrient-packed foods for exam stress. Is herbal tea such as mint available as an alternative to coffee to make you alert after an all-nighter? What about religion, celiac disease or diabetes?

Remember, you should be able to obtain widely-available foods such as fruit-flavored yogurt with Lactobacillus (for better digestion and immunity), honey, echinacea tea and Ziplock bags free from HFS.

2) Does HFS take into account dietary restrictions such as calorie and protein intake, as well as extra nutrient-rich foods if I request it?

Many students are combining exercise or amateur sport competitions with their studies. A great way to keep your brain alert, but you also have to watch that your body is able to make the repairs and 3) What kind of meat is used for dishes like meatloaf?

Get around to asking if the meat is leftover meat, meat left on students’ plates or freshly bought meat. The most you can really expect is leftover meat, but meat and other stuff left on plates is unacceptable.

4) Does HFS provide the option of “to-go” breakfasts such as smoothies?

You’re paying tons already for your meal card and tuition. Why should you have to pay extra for pricey smoothies off campus? HFS is sure to have overripe bananas, apples and individual cans of pineapple chunks lying around. Ask for smoothies or canned fruit if you’re in a rush.

5)Ask students living in dorms what they’ve been getting, and how satisfied they are with the food. Don’t be surprised if you hear lots about “Ramen”, “puffed wheat squares”, “triscuit with peanut butter and sugar” and “Rice-a-Roni”. That’s considered gourmet food in dorms when you alternate between these three. Consider a grocery pool; students on one floor of a dorm wing each chips in $0.20 for a bag of 16 grapefruit from the grocery store. Or pears, sweet potatoes or Fuji apples - stuff that’ll keep for awhile without refrigeration. For the grocery pool everyone should take turns going to the supermarket for stuff so that it doesn’t burden one person. It’s helping everyone to eat healthy for more effective studying, cramming and exam-writing, after all.

6) Speaking of refrigeration, do the dorm wings have one mini-fridge at least? Can you get a fridge for your dorm room at all?

Yes, dorm food is unpleasant, as bad as plane food sometimes. But it doesn’t have to be the death knell to your health. Keep fruit and whole grain breads in plain sight, and the money you waste on extra stuff (with service taxes) will be kept to a minimum.

This medication should only be bought after a doctor has prescribed it. The medication can be purchased in a variety of dosages: 2.5 mg, 5 mg, 10 mg and 20 mg. This medicine has the same formula and potent substances like the branded medicine. The medication has the equivalent potency of the branded one, in every way. In just a few minutes it begins to have an effect which lasts up to four hours. While it stays in the blood, the persons using it can reach and keep a better erection with a higher level of satisfaction. The muscles of the penis are allowed to relax by increasing the flow of blood during sexual intercourse with this medication. It goes without saying, the medication has improved the life of countless men afflicted with erectile dysfunction or impotency.

If considered along with other anti-impotency medicine, this can be found at cheaper prices. As for Vardenafil, you can purchase it online. Due to the increasing interest in anti-impotency medications such as Vardenafil, many pharmacies have begun to sell them on the Internet. In addition to offering affordable medications, online stores provide specific product descriptions to aid you in their proper usage. It is true that this medicine brings very good results, but similar to other medicines, there is a possibility that common side effects such as headaches, feeling nauseous, unclear vision, back pain, and overextended erection time, might happen. If side effects occur, patients are cautioned to halt usage of the medication and check with their physicians immediately.

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* Heart rate: The original ACOG guidelines were to keep maternal heart rate under 140 beats per minute. You can estimate your heart rate by taking a six-second count, then adding a zero to your result. With the added demands and blood flow in your body, you may find that your heart rate increases far more quickly than before exercise. Some lenience is generally given to women who were highly active prior to pregnancy, but ask your doctor for their specific guidelines relative to you. Current guidelines suggest exercising at 50-60% of your Maximum Heart Rate.

* Overheating: It is incredibly important not to overheat, especially in first trimester. There is a risk of damage to the baby if your core temperature overheats, and this will happen far faster during pregnancy than before. You can help avoid overheating by exercising indoors or in cooler times of day, staying cool and setting your pace so you don’t overheat. Drink plenty of cool liquids, track your heart rate and stay well ventilated. You should never go into a sauna or steam room during pregnancy for the same reason.

* Hydration: Drinking plenty of water is always important during exercise, but it’s especially important when you’re pregnant. The extra cool fluids are important not only for replenishing your body, but also as a cooling mechanism to prevent overheating.

* Proper breathing techniques: It’s important to keep the flow of oxygen going to the baby at all times. During aerobic activity, be sure to breathe deeply and regularly, and decrease your intensity if you find yourself winded. During weight lifting, avoid maneuvers that require the “vasalva maneuver” — grunting exertion to lift a weight. Decrease your weight or avoid those specific moves altogether while pregnant.

* Impact Avoidance: Avoid sports with high impact/risk of falling (such as skiing, water skiing, horseback riding, racquetball, scuba diving and other activities with risk of falling or contact sports)

* Muscle Relaxation: During pregnancy, your hips spread and joints relax. Use caution when exercising as this may affect your overall balance and increase your potential for joint injuries.

* Gravity Change: As your body grows larger and you gain weight, your center of gravity shifts so your balance may be off. Adjust your intensity as needed to accommodate your growing body!

* Excessive Exercise: An excessive level of exercise can actually be harmful to you — and your baby — during pregnancy. Failure to gain sufficient weight (per your doctor’s recommendations) is usually a red flag; and you should never exercise with a goal to lose weight during pregnancy. Talk to your doctor about what exercise level is appropriate for you if you have any doubts.

Who Shouldn’t Exercise?

Generally, exercise is contraindicated (not recommended) if you have any of the following conditions:

* Incompetent cervix
* Preterm labor
* Placenta previa
* Vaginal bleeding during pregnancy
* Pregnancy-induced Hypertension.

There are also other conditions your doctor may have concerns about, so be sure to ask your doctor about your specific pregnancy even if you are already an active exerciser.

The Bottom Line

The bottom line is that you should always talk to your doctor about exercise if you’re pregnant, or planning to get pregnant soon. There are many benefits — both physically and emotionally — to moderate exercise during pregnancy. For a small percentage of women, however, the risks far outweigh the benefits and you should be sure that you are not in this category before beginning to exercise. For the vast majority of women, you’ll probably get the green light to continue your current exercise program, or even start a new moderate level program as long as you follow some simple guidelines and listen carefully to your body. So talk to your doctor and find out what’s right for you, and best wishes for a safe and healthy pregnancy!

Actually, the opposite is true, in general. Exercise during pregnancy can help keep you fit and feeling good about yourself. It increases circulation, strengthens muscles, decreases heart rate, decreases insomnia, decreases constipation, helps with back pain and improves self-image. Some studies show a correlation between exercise levels during pregnancy and shorter labors, better maternal stress management, lower intervention/c-section rates and lower risk of premature delivery. Women who exercise during pregnancy also reported an overall lower level of discomfort during pregnancy — always a plus!

So how do you know if it’s okay for you to exercise? And how intense can your exercise routine be? Well, one general rule of thumb is that you shouldn’t start an intense exercise regime during pregnancy. That is to say, if you were a runner before you got pregnant, you can probably keep running — although at a slightly lower intensity level — during pregnancy. If you lifted weights, or did step aerobics, or most other activities, you can probably continue your program, albeit with a few modifications.

So what’s with all of the disclaimers? Why “probably,” “maybe” and “usually”? Well, the fact is that each woman’s pregnancy is different. Your body and your needs may vary from those of every other pregnant woman. While none of us look forward to the inevitable weight gain that comes with pregnancy, it’s a fact of life and if you’re exercising purely to avoid weight gain you may need to re-think your goals. However, if you want to continue an existing exercise routine, or add in some reasonable activity to your life, your doctor will probably give you their blessing.

There are some important reasons to talk to your doctor before starting (or even continuing) an exercise routine during pregnancy, though. As your body responds to the demands of the baby growing within you, the demands upon your body change as well. In general, this means that you have extra blood, an increased heart rate, increased blood pressure, muscle relaxation, changes in your center of gravity, enlarged breasts and uterus, excess stress on your lower back and more.

So what activities are okay during pregnancy? Your doctor will discuss these with you, and you may find that this is a good time to explore some new activities as well. In general, as long as you keep your core temperature down (don’t overheat), stay hydrated and avoid high impact/jolting/traumatic activities, you can stay active as long as your body allows! Many women exercise right up until the day they deliver — albeit with some modifications to accommodate their changing bodies!

Some activities that are popular with pregnant women include cycling, swimming, water aerobics and floor exercise. Non-weight bearing activities are best. Strength training is good for keeping your muscles toned (and great for self-image!), as long as you avoid moves that require the vasalva maneuver (defined below). Squats and lunges can help increase your leg muscle strength and tone, just keep your loosening joints in mind!

Abdominal exercises are not forbidden, as previously thought, rather, moderate abdominal work can actually strengthen your muscles and help you recover more quickly! Be sure not to lie flat on your back after four months (which can compress vena cava, carrying blood to the baby). Side-lying exercises are generally allowed as long as doctor says it’s okay. Check regularly for abdominal separation (a gap between the muscles in your central abdomen) and stop abdominal work immediately if this occurs. Discuss this with your doctor to prevent further injury to this area, which can affect your muscle recovery.

See part II

Cosmopolitan and Maxim compliment each other in their appeal to young adult audiences. Each claims an insider’s view on the opposite sex and thus instructs young women and men on how to make themselves more appealing to their love interests mentally, emotionally, and, most importantly, sexually.

“How to Get Picked Up at a Party” provides insights on the five essential aspects on how to snag “Mr. Right”: the entrance, ensemble, entourage, execution, and exit. First off, they poignantly remind their female readers that men “need to be hit over the head—especially at a party where every woman is clad in black.” They suggest thinking in color—something bright, like red, that makes you stand out against an often black tableau. The authors also advise us that guys would rather see you laughing naturally with your friends than coyly pointing at them from across the room; pointing, according to Maxim, implies flaws and thus scares men away. After making eye contact, maintain an assertive, but natural tone and approach them. Making this step is essential in the evening’s conquest, as you’ve taken the “initiative” in the situation. You’ve shown you’re interested. It’s all downhill from there and assuming all goes well you’ll be able to slide your interest in seeing him again into your grand exit. If he hasn’t asked for your digits, pull what Maxim refers to as a “Jedi mind trick” and suggest that he get in touch with you to partake in whatever spare-time activities graced your conversation. Maxim reminds us though that there’s a “clincher” to the pick up scenario that most girls neglect: get his number too as often times men are “pathetically disorganized” and often lose the napkin, pizza box, or other miscellaneous scrap of paper on which you scribbled your number.

So yeah, Maxim successfully shares with Cosmo’s audience the same, dignified advice our older sisters and mothers have been sharing with us all along. The problem I’m finding with their good advice is that it is equally as demeaning. Actually, the demeaning debauchery of the article seems to outweigh its redeeming aspects. Every one of their foci comes back to one common theme: getting the guy into your bed or vice versa. Maxim advises the readers to enter the party with less attractive friends thus establishing yourself as the so-called “pretty one.” They propose that when planning your evening’s ensemble you aim to make dad disapprove, the tighter, lower, and flashier the better. The authors not so tactfully remind us that “no man will ever learn about [your personality and wit] if you don’t entice him.” In a quote box titled “Words to the Wise,” the authors provide a list of pick up lines my favorite of which are “Can I show you my new panties? Whoops, must’ve forgotten’em!” and “Wow, I’m sooo drunk!” Amusingly, asking for his number at the end of the evening is only the second best option for the evening’s exit. Their preferred parting activity is asking him for sex with a catchy phrase like “I no want talk. Sex now.” Right …

I’m hardly what one might consider an “angry feminist” and neither are my friends. I don’t hate men and must admit that I often scan bars and fraternity parties for that certain man that could be a “good guy.” But whoever told Maxim that’s the kind of guy I, or any of my female peers, want to see again, is probably only thinking with his penis. Okay, so that’s a little harsh but I do have a sneaking suspicion that the random guy who gets your number because you tell him that you want sex or happen to be naked under that oh so tight and conveniently short ensemble is not quite what you had in mind.

There is a wide variation in price, rates, and offered services of prepaid calling cards. So buyers must take all the factors into consideration so that they do not pay more than they have to or confront other problems using the calling card. This is some advice on choosing and using prepaid calling cards.

You should start by comparison shopping when you want to buy a calling card. Don’t just buy the first calling card you see. Compare all the prepaid calling credit cards from different companies, looking at their prices, costs, and terms. Even though the card with the best rates may look like the best deal, don’t buy it without looking closer at all the costs.

Rates per minute are prominently advertised on all cards along with their ads. Although, there is no similarly enthusiastic mention of terms of use or call connection charges. Read the fine print always as the second step, which is usually a shock. This is due to the fact that as soon as you begin using the “cheap” prepaid calling cards, you might discover that the connection charges are very expensive, and you wind up paying more for your calls in the long run.

This is because the calling card company sets the connection rate higher to make up for the lower per minute talking rate. Users who generally make short calls will end up paying a lot of money. While the price per minute to talk is only pennies, the connection charge is often more than a dollar or even several dollars. You have to pay a connection charge, maybe $1.50, each time you use it.

If your calls are short, you will make more calls for a given card value than if you buy a calling card that has a higher per minute talking rate, but a lower connection fee or none at all. So you need to take all factors into account when comparing prepaid calling card; how often and how long will your calls be? It is important to know that connection charges for certain calls, like long distance or international calls, will carry a higher fee.

There are international surcharges on certain prepaid calling cards that can be more than a few dollars per call. Taxes, rounding and maintenance fees might also be present in addition to the other charges already present. As an example, if the card rounds calls up to 5-minute units, then even a two-minute call will be charged as if it lasted 5 minutes long. This sort of hidden charges are overlooked by a lot of people, who pay more in the end.

Check the billing increments for the cards, as this is an important issue. Look at the billing increments for the available cards. As an example, if the billing increments are in three minute units, you have to pay for 6 minutes as soon as the length of your call goes over 3 minutes, even if it was only 4 minutes long. You can save a lot of money with the right billing increments.

A further thing to take into account is the pay phone cost if you use one of these phones to make your call. This fee is mandated by the FCC, but the amount can vary depending on the company. Different rates may apply if the call using a prepaid calling is made from a cell phone. In addition, you need to know if you can recharge a particular card, or not. It is important to shop around and find the best card for your needs.

Heartbreak: The Political Memoir of a Feminist Militant, Dworkin’s latest work, is highly unlikely to alter that impression. This short volume, purged of its few references to recent political events, would easily be mistaken for a feminist broadside circa 1972. Not one for the linguistic legerdemain of the lit-crowd, Dworkin instead offers punchy, dime-store sentences chock-a-block with obscenities. One can picture graduate students perusing Heartbreak with bewildered consternation: hasn’t she ever read certified academic gurus like Lacan, Derrida, Irigaray?

Dworkin tells us that “You might say that in some sense I was fully formed in the sixth grade.” This observation offers more insight into Dworkin than she might care to admit. Dworkin’s prose, with its heavy peppering of expletives and a fascination with matters scatological, is indeed puerile. And Dworkin’s description of her career is equally sophomoric. She presents herself as the saintly champion of the downtrodden, fighting a lonely battle against the Forces of Evil.

It is not surprising, perhaps, that Dworkin’s interest in self-hagiography warps her understanding of gender relations in modern America. Indeed, Dworkin presents a very skewed, black-and-white portrait of women’s lives in the United States. To Dworkin, “Men are shits and take pride in it”; “good, civic-minded citizens” have “no empathy” for rape victims. (Dworkin clearly means “sympathy,” and not “empathy,” but no matter: the charge is ludicrously simple either way.) No one, in short, ever believes a woman—save Andrea Dworkin. In Dworkin’s life—at least as she presents it—men, with frighteningly few exceptions, have been nothing but deadbeats, exploiters, and rapists.

This is all particularly unfortunate because it impairs Dworkin from offering cogent analysis of the horrors of rape—a subject with which, by virtue of her position within the women’s movement, she is thoroughly familiar. The frightening stories of the rape victims she has known—which constitute some of the few genuine moments in Heartbreak—are almost lost in Dworkin’s extremist, divisive rhetoric. One is left with the sense that Dworkin, despite all her years listening to the grim tales of raped and abused women, has strikingly little insight into the ghastly phenomena that so enrage her.

Yet even those fiercely in-step with Dworkin’s rancor are unlikely to draw much from Heartbreak. The book’s chapters—vignettes, really—are so short that they present little more than the crudest insights into their topics. Dworkin is content to hurl insults in the place of offering argument. In one characteristic moment of the book, Dworkin tells us that “The backlash against feminism has been deeply stupid,” but then fails—as usual—to offer any explanation. A few angry tirades against equity feminists again demonstrate Dworkin’s modus operandi; she excoriates one writer as a “wife of a multi-millionaire” who “pursues a golden career writing (without talent) about how she wants to be home mopping up infant vomit.” Everyone who disagrees with Dworkin is a sell-out, a member of the “pro-rape contingency,” or an abettor of the “patriarchy.” With the exception of a handful of moderately entertaining tales—a run-in with Allen Ginsberg, and some collegiate hijinks, for example—the chapters of Heartbreak merely chronicle the seemingly endless ire of their author.

Although Heartbreak is clearly intent on ruffling feathers, the appropriate response to Dworkin is not shock, but pity. Hers is a world in which six out of every five women are the victims of rape, and eleven out of every ten men are maniacal troglodytes. Dworkin has paralyzed this rancor into a career as a powerful, famous feminist—now that’s a real heartbreaker.

Taking a hot bath is one of the most popular and effective methods to help relieve arthritis pain and the best time to do this is just before going to bed, since arthritis pain is at its worst when we are inactive or sleeping. You can bathe in plain, hot water or you can add bubble bath or Epsom salts, which are known to help relieve joint pain. In some cases, arthritis sufferers enjoy adding ingredients like mud or eucalyptus leaf. It is critical to remain immersed in the hot water for a half hour while your muscles relax.

Extremely popular and very helpful are sunbaths and saunas. They help relieve the pain and stiffness, but monitor your blood pressure when using the sauna and do not overdo it. And when you are in the sun, be sure to use sunscreen.

Many arthritis patients consume high doses of Vitamin C and this brings relief to many. (It is important to follow the instructions on the bottle or consult with your physician before using this supplement.) Vitamin C is good for combating ailments and boosting immunity to various diseases and illnesses.

Alternative medicine also provides remedies for the relief of arthritis pain, through the use of homeopathy, herbs, aromatherapy and acupuncture. After doing necessary research and seeking advice, each person should use any reasonable remedy available to relieve their pain. Just remember that results of alternative treatments are not guaranteed to work.

In terms of herbal ingredients, some of the options are lavender, chamomile, eucalyptus, juniper, plus a number of others. These can be mixed with oils and used in compresses, which can be applied to the painful area.

Some beverages are also said to relieve arthritis pain, such as the juice of an orange mixed with cod live oil, or cranberry juice, or the juice of a lemon taken three times a day. Generally, including lots of fruits and vegetables in your diet is helpful.

It is hoped that soon we will have the perfect remedy to alleviate the pain of arthritis; better yet, maybe we will have a cure! Until that time, we will continue to try any reasonable remedy, because living in constant pain is like having no life at all.

Osteoarthritis occurs when the cartilage between the joints breaks down. The knees, fingers, and the wrists are usually affected. Rheumatoid arthritis may impact joints as well as different areas of the body, such as circulation, lungs, and heart. For those with pain in the knees or wrists, it is likely that this type of arthritic condition is present. This illness is quite painful and disconcerting; it can have a profound impact on our lives, causing depression and making us miserable during work and free time. As there is no cure, all we can do is try to relieve its symptoms.

In treating arthritis pain, medications are available. Non-prescription medications such as acetaminophen, Ibuprofen, and aspirin can be helpful, but they must be used with care. Using these medications too often or for too long a period of time can cause liver damage and other medical issues.

Prescription drugs are continually being developed. Anti-inflammatory drugs can be prescribed by your physician, including medications like Naxopren, Meloxicam, or Celebrex and higher doses of Ibuprofen. We hope that in the near future researchers will discover a safer and more effective medication for this serious ailment.

In topical treatments, application is made directly on the painful joint area with a lotion such as BenGay. They provide relief with few side effects. Steroids are administered as well, primarily as injections in the impacted joint area. They hurt a lot, and don’t last for long.

It is important to be active when trying to get relief from arthritis pain. While medicines are helpful, it is also crucial to put in individual effort to improve how we feel.

Exercise that does not strain the joints is an excellent way of controlling weight (as there is a link between obesity and arthritis) and maintaining a healthy body. Regular exercise such as walking, stretching exercises, and attending yoga class will help control the symptoms of arthritis. Swimming is a good exercise for your joints, just beware of the humidity.

Studies show that food and arthritis are related. People feel better when they consume more fruits and vegetables, and reducing fat and sugar is important. When treating arthritis patients, physicians frequently check the levels of cholesterol and sugar in the blood. It is also wise to consume lots of water, as this helps to eliminate toxins from the body and keep it healthy.
to be continued…