Men and women are different on so many levels. That includes the types of cancers they can get. There are certain cancers only men get and there are certain cancers only women get. There are certain cancers which plague women more than men and vice versa. It’s important to know which cancers you should be concerned about.

Cancers Only Women Get

This is probably pretty obvious. The cancers that only women get are gynecological cancers – which of course are cancers which start in places like the cervix, uterus, vagina, vulva, ovaries, and sometimes the fallopian tubes (very rare). It goes without saying that these cancers are only found in women because women are the only ones with these parts.

And while you might think only women get breast cancer, this is not the case. Men have breast tissue as well and can develop breast cancer. So the only cancers women get that men can’t get are gynecological cancers of the reproductive organs.

Cancers That Are Most Prevalent in Women

There are some cancers which strike women very fiercely. The most common types of cancers that really affect women are breast cancer, colorectal cancer, endometrial cancer, lung cancer, cervical cancer, skin cancer, and ovarian cancer.

Breast cancer is the most common cancer women get aside from skin cancer, but it’s followed closely by lung cancer and then colorectal cancer.

However, breast cancer has a better survival rate amongst women than lung cancer does. Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths among women who are white, black, Asian/Pacific Islander, and Indian/Alaska Native women.

Lung cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death among Hispanic women. The number one most fatal cancer for Hispanic women is breast cancer. And the third leading cause of cancer deaths among all women, no matter what nationality, is colorectal cancer.

Surely the great screening and early detection techniques we have to screen for breast cancer is why the survival rate is higher. Caucasian women have the best survival chance when it comes to breast cancer. African-American women and Hispanic women are at a greater risk of succumbing to breast cancer than Caucasian women.

Low income families are more at risk from breast cancer. This likely has to do with the limited access they might have to screenings like mammograms. This is why it’s so important to support breast cancer non-profits. With the survival rate increasing exponentially with early detection, providing necessary early screenings to low income family is of the utmost importance.

Across the board (male or female), lung cancer remains the top killing cancer amongst patients. Oddly enough it’s the easiest to prevent getting. It is estimated that 87%-90% of all lung cancer deaths are related to smoking. It seems simply enough – if you stop smoking, you decrease your chances of dying from lung cancer.

Because lung cancer doesn’t have a reliable early detection test like breast cancer does, it’s hard to diagnose early. This is why more people die of lung cancer; once you begin showing signs you are already so far into the progression of the disease that saving you from lung cancer is much more difficult.

Finally colorectal cancer is the third leading cause of cancer-related deaths in men and women. This appears to be on the decline, though. With better testing, polyps are being found and diagnosed early, leading to earlier treatment. Plus the treatment for colorectal cancer has improved, so the survival rate from this type of cancer is on the rise.

These are the kind of cancers that plague women the most and what you have to watch out for. Remember, early detection is key in increasing your survival rate. So don’t blow off that mammogram or colonoscopy. A few minutes of discomfort just might save your life.

People who are busy with their work are usually the ones who are having problems in sleeping. This is because the exhaustion and their hectic schedule keeps them from getting better sleep on daily basis. If you are one of those who are having trouble sleeping due to too much work, it is now time to reflect what might be causing these and address it properly.

One of the things that hinder people from getting better sleep is the set of foods that they eat. This is because these foods might contain ingredients and other properties that can really affect the person’s chemical balance. If you think that the foods that you are eating affects you in getting better sleep, try assessing your food intake for one day.

What you can do is list down all the foods-including the drinks-that you have taken in for one day and make an assessment after that day. In this way, you can track down which are the foods and drinks you have taken affect your sleeping habits especially at night. The following are just some of the list of foods that might lead one to troublesome and uncomfortable sleeping at nighttime:

1. Too much food intake. This is considered as the major culprit why many people-especially those who don’t have sleeping problems before-are having a hard time sleeping all of a sudden. Experts say that if a person have overeaten, the tendency is that the stomach will have a hard time digesting it. Too much food may also affect the how the digestive system work and may even cause clinical conditions such as ulcer if done regularly.

2. Foods that contain too much fat. Experts say that people are eating foods that have too much fat are prone to not sleeping well at night because it creates a lot of digesting work for the stomach. If one wants to get better sleep, he or she should cut down on foods that are too rich or fatty so there will be lesser work for the stomach especially at nighttime.

3. Too much spicy or acidic foods. These sets of foods can very much affect one’s sleeping habits especially at nighttime. If one eats too many sets of spicy foods especially at night, it can lead to troubles in the stomach and even heartburn which makes it harder for you to lie down and get better sleep at night.

4. Too much alcohol intake. Some people say that alcohol may help one to get better sleep but on the contrary, it doesn’t especially if he or she has taken too much of it.

5. Foods that contain caffeine. These are another set of culprits for people who are having trouble sleeping. If you are prone to not sleeping, it is best to avoid foods as well as drinks that have high caffeine content such as coffee, chocolates, sodas that are caffeinated as well as teas. To get better sleep, it is best to not consume these for a while. Or if you really cannot do without these, try minimizing your consumption even for a couple of days. Once you get your sleeping pattern back, you may go back to consuming these but only to limited content so you would not go back to having sleeping problems again.

As you may have known, your brain works in a complicated manner. The left portion of your brain controls the actions and movement of the right part of your body while the right portion of your brain controls that movement of the left part of your body. Thus, it may be possible that the side of your brain which controls you dominant hand is more used than the other side. So, if you use your non-dominant hand into doing some of your daily activities, would it better your brain’s performance?

If you are a right handed person, then most of the time you are stimulating the left part of your brain. Now, if you use your left hand in doing certain tasks, then you are able to stimulate the right side of your brain as well. By doing so, you are awakening the part of your mental faculties that is intuitive and creative. On the other hand, if you are a left handed person, and you use you right hand in doing simple tasks, then you are stimulating the side of your brain that is rational and organized.

This idea is supported by Tony Buzan, the author of a book entitled Using Both Sides of the Brain. According to him, doing simple exercises or cross-trainings like this bring in additional features to one’s mental functioning, and at the same time there will be a total improvement in one’s brain power. By doing so continuously, a person may stay mentally young and fresh.

Other activities which can stimulate the other side of your brain may be done without really straining yourself. You can just simply walk around your room with your eyes shut close, or you can get dressed and strip of them with closed eyes. You can also revisit your childhood games; the game when you rub your stomach with one hand while your other hand is tapping your head is also a good brain exercise. Simple tasks like these already constitute physical exercise for your brain, and they can already bring good effects to your brain, no matter how trivial they may be.

So, you may start to wonder regarding the mental condition of those people who are blessed to be able to use both their hands for complicated tasks such as writing, or simply put the ambidextrous. You may think that since they are stimulating both sides of their brain that they are more intelligent than others. This is a misconception; there are no studies or researches which can attest to this idea.

There are people who are able to teach and train themselves to use both their dominant and non-dominant hands to do tasks, and sports like the cricket players. But their training does not necessarily turn them into academic geniuses; so perhaps, this is just too much to ask for.

So, whether or not these simple exercises may make you a little bit more intelligent, these physical exercises are still believed to have good effects on your brain. Academically, the results may just be minor, or even unnoticed, but there can be other aspects which are affected, such as your creativity, organization and other features. One thing worth noting is that by doing these exercises, you are stimulating the part of your brain which is not used as often as the other part. Don’t you think it is always best to keep them balanced? If you want to better your brain’s performance, you might as well try to stimulate you whole brain, and not just a single portion.

The human brain is a multifaceted organization of cells and around fifty million neurons that work with utmost complexity in order to keep you going healthy and strong. It is believed to be five times bigger than an average brain of a mammal with the same body size. In human beings, the frontal lobes and the forebrain are especially expanded since these parts are the ones responsible for self-control, planning and reasoning. Thus, in order for you to have a stronger and healthier body, try to better you brain. Healthier mind means healthier body.

It is during our childhood, or the early stage of our lifespan that the development of the brain and the central nervous system is critical. As we grow older, the body’s capacity to absorb nutrients is weakened. Thus, it becomes more difficult for us to protect ourselves from illnesses, injuries and stresses. Simultaneously with our aging process, we also lose neurons, or commonly called as the brain cells. Unlike the other body cells, the neurons do not regenerate nor do they replicate; and they do not have the capacity to repair themselves. Because of this, our brain is not able to perform as well as when we were younger.

Thus, in order to keep our brains performing well, we have to follow some do’s and don’ts. This way we can help our brain maintain its fitness and strength.

What to do:

See to it that you exercise regularly and that you engage yourself in physical activities that can help you maintain your vitality.

Your mind is exercised more if you participate in active learning. Try new experiences so that you can learn from such experiences firsthand.

Maintain your social life as well. Do not isolate yourself from your social groups; instead, you should keep in touch with each of them. A happier life would mean a healthier life.

You should always be in control of your life. Do not feel as if you have no power over things. Maintain a positive self-image and a positive outlook on life.

Do not be overwhelmed by stress. You should know how to handle them all.

A balanced diet will definitely keep you healthy. So, as much as possible, you should eat a balanced meal and foods that are rich in antioxidants and vitamins.

You should get enough rest and sleep. Professionals believe that you should sleep for at least six to eight hours a day.

If you have any health problems, you should give attention to them as early as possible. Never take your health for granted.

What not to do:

Avoid drinking excessive alcohol and smoking too much cigarette. Also, do not do illegal drugs!

Never forget to inform your doctor of your mental condition. Important changes should always be reported.

Do not miss a visit to your doctor when these changes occur.

Never self-medicate because some drugs may interact negatively with your mental status, especially if you are taking more than one drug.

Do not live alone by isolating yourself from the others.

Never stop yourself from experiencing new things.

Most importantly is the fact that in order for you to have a healthy mind, you need to always have a positive attitude. Be ready to face all the challenges that life may bring, and never lose hope! Be in command of your life. Better your brain by having a better attitude about life.

It may be true that as you get older, your memory also deteriorates. But this does not mean that if you are younger, your brain is not capable of memory deterioration. Aging is just one cause of memory loss, but there are other factors. Thus, if you want to prevent this, you may want to read these tips to a better your brain performance.

1) More Relaxation Period, Better Thinking

If you want to protect your recent memories, you should stay away from stress. Stress can trigger the release of cortisol, a neuro drug which can interfere with the brain’s performance, especially with handling recent memories. Furthermore, with chronic stress, the part of the brain which handles recent memories may even shrink. If you want to prevent this from happening, you should learn to relax a little and release the tension from your body. You should never let stress overwhelm you.

2) Refrain From Cigarette Smoking

Cigarettes affect the flow of blood in your veins. Because of this, there may be a chance of reduced blood flow to your brain; and reduced blood flow means reduced oxygen. With lesser oxygen to consume, the brain may not function well as expected, hence the memory may be prejudiced.

3) Stay Away from Brain Toxins

As you may know, illegal drugs may cause harm to your brain’s functioning. However, you should also know that prescription drugs, if misused, may also have the same toxic effect to your brain. Thus, you should always follow the prescription given to you be your doctor, and never self-medicate. This may affect your brain’s normal performance. Prolonged use of drugs may cause memory loss.

4) Eat Healthy

Your brain functions according to the nutrients that it receives from the food that you eat. Thus, if you are deprived of certain nutrients, then it may have an adverse effect on the functioning of your brain. You most certainly would not want this to happen. Thus, as prevention, you should eat a healthy and balanced diet so that you will absorb all the vitamins and nutrients that your body needs. Also, you should stay away from junk foods.

5) Exercise Your Brain

Find ways to use and improve your thinking skills. Some mentalists propose techniques which are designed to improve mental skills. We all have the potential to possess a good functioning memory, thus it should be something that we can all improve. All we have to do is to find ways and try techniques that can effectively help us develop our potentials.

Most people believe that by engaging themselves into educational activities, they are improving their mental faculties. This is true, and you can try this even at home. Simple activities like crossword puzzles can exercise your brain. This may help your brain functioning to get better, if not, to prevent it from deteriorating easily.

6) Shield Your Brain

There is no point of improving the brain if you cannot protect it physically. You should always protect your head from injuries because trauma may affect the functioning of your brain. Even simple injuries should be avoided, because repeated minor injuries, if accumulated, may cause damage to your brain. Thus, you should try simple prevention, like putting helmets when bicycling, in order for you to avoid situations that may damage your brain functioning.

If you want to be able to think better, your brain’s health is the key. Thus, you should keep it as healthy as possible and avoid all those factors which may expose you to mental deterioration.