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Low-Level Laser Therapy vs. Stem Cells – Which is better?

April 18, 2021April 18, 2021

Low-level laser therapy and stem cells are non-invasive and effective treatment options for a wide range of conditions. Both treatments can help relieve discomfort, inflammation, and pain.

The latest advances in laser therapy and stem cells offer faster recovery times for patients. Studies show that stem cells can cellular repair, regeneration, and healing. In today’s article, we will compare laser therapy and stem cell therapy. Read on!

Low-Level Laser Therapy

Low-level laser therapy, also known as cold therapy, uses photonic energies of wavelengths between 600 and 980 nm. The photons enter the soft and hard tissue to trigger cellular mechanisms that reduce inflammation, decrease pain, and promote regeneration.

Benefits of Low-Level Laser Therapy

Low-level laser therapy is an effective treatment option for a wide range of conditions, such as skin rejuvenation, inflammation, minor injuries, and sprains, wound healing, acupuncture, and post-surgery rehabilitation for pain management.

Health professionals also use laser therapy for precancerous growths, polyps, and tumor destruction. Research shows that low-level laser therapy can relieve cancer symptoms, remove kidney stones and part of the prostate, improve vision, repair a detached retina, and treat hair loss resulting from aging and alopecia.

It is also an effective treatment option for chronic back pain, including lumbar spine pain and sciatica. Low-level laser therapy has excellent potential for new applications. Researchers say that this type of treatment would treat spinal cord injuries, traumatic brain injuries (TBIs), Parkinson’s disease, and Alzheimer’s disease in the near future.

Downsides of Low-Level Laser Therapy

Low-level laser therapy is not useful for cancerous lesions, carcinomas, pregnant women, and thyroid patients. Studies show that it can cause impaired vision if the radiation penetrates eye cells.

Pregnant women must not undergo laser therapy because it can affect the fetus, leading to congenital disabilities. Another downside of low-level laser therapy is that patients do not relieve symptoms in one session.

Stem Cell Therapy

Stem cells can turn into different types of cells. Scientists use stem cells to replace damaged tissues and organs and correct internal structures of organs to make them function properly. Stem cells are also used to research causes of hereditary defects at cellular levels and test new medications for effectiveness and safety.

A health professional takes the patient’s blood and processes it in a specialized centrifuge. The purpose is to isolate a large number of protective proteins from the blood. The professional then inserts an isolated enzyme into the affected area to produce new stem cells.

Stem cells are extracted from different areas of the body. For example, stem cells taken from the patient’s abdomen area can be used to treat degenerative disc disease or optimize spinal discs.

The professional inserts platelet-rich plasma, proteins, and growth factors to neutralize your body’s acidity, which is caused by damaged discs. Stem cell therapy is an effective treatment for various spinal disorders, leading to reduced inflammation and pain.

Benefits of Stem Cell Therapy

Stem cells contain growth factors that function naturally in your body to accelerate its healing response. It reduced pain caused by injury or disease without using pain-relieving medications. Stem cells use in regenerative medicine has many benefits in medical procedures and pain management, such as:

Effective pain reduction
Increased flexibility and range of motion
Quick injury reversal
Prevents nerves damage
Regulates the immune system
Regenerate normal blood flow
Replace damaged cells and tissues
Promote intercellular and intracellular communication

Downsides of Stem cell Therapy

After harvesting stem cells from an embryo, they require a longer period for growth. Extracting stem cells from an adult bone marrow is not easy, leading to discomfort and pain. Besides, stem cell therapy has higher rejection rates than laser therapy.

Adult stem cells contain various abnormalities due to errors in the replication process, environmental hazards, toxins, etc. Therefore, adult stem cells are less adaptable and may lead to complications in receivers.

Final Words

Considering the benefits and downsides of low-level laser therapy and stem cells, we conclude that laser therapy is more effective, safe, and affordable. However, it can’t be used during pregnancy. On the other hand, stem cells have shown some promising results, but more research is needed to establish their efficacy.

Treatment Options for Lazy Eye

March 18, 2021March 18, 2021

Lazy eye, also known as amblyopia, is a health condition characterized by poor vision. Research shows that this health condition affects 3 out of every 100 children, and people with this condition have one stronger eye than the other. The reason is that the weaker eye does not communicate well with the central nervous system.

Nerves that create communication pathways between the brain and eyes develop in childhood. That’s why lazy eye treatment is more effective in younger children or those below the age of seven. In today’s article, we will talk about several treatment options for lazy eye. Read on!

Lazy Eye Treatment Options

A child who uses his weaker eye can quickly correct amblyopia. It is a common treatment option for children that involves putting a path over the stronger eye. However, there are several other treatment options to correct amblyopia, such as:

Eye Glasses or Contact Lenses

Differing eye vision is one of the leading causes of lazy eye. For instance, one eye suffers from myopia (nearsightedness) or hyperopia (farsightedness), leading to a different vision sharpness between the eyes. The condition is known as refractive amblyopia, which can be treated with corrective eyeglasses or contact lenses.

Bangerter Filter

People who don’t feel comfortable wearing eyepatches can use Bangerter filters, which are opaque coverings fitted inside the eyeglass lens. Health professionals recommend wearing a Bangerter filter over the stronger eye. You must wear the filters full time, and a qualified ophthalmologist or optometrist can modify the opaqueness and density over time to improve your symptoms.

Eye Drops

Eye Drops are an effective treatment option to correct amblyopia. You can use medicated eye drops to blur your vision in the stronger, letting your lazy eye work harder. That way, you can balance the vision between each eye.

The most common medication used to correct amblyopia is atropine. The medication dilates your eye’s pupil, which eventually leads to blurry vision. Depending on your condition, you may use it several times a day to blur your dominant eye vision.

Exercises

Eye exercises are a natural treatment option for correcting your lazy eye. A qualified ophthalmologist or optometrist prescribes eye exercises as part of the overall treatment plan. Eye exercises can help correct amblyopia, strabismus, convergence insufficiency, and other eye conditions. Some of the best eye exercises that you can perform at home are:

Pencil pushups treatment
Coloring within the lines
Brock string exercise
Playing video games dichoptically

Surgery

Surgery for amblyopia involves adjusting the eye’s muscle length. It is an effective option for people with lazy eye caused by cataracts, squint, and a droopy eyelid. Research highlights that surgical procedures for amblyopia require additional methods, including eye patching to balance vision between two eyes.

The success rates of surgery vary from individual to individual. However, it typically ranges between 30 and 80%. Your insurance policy, geographic location, the intensity of the condition, and health clinic are a few factors determining the cost of this type of surgery. However, reports show that the average cost of lazy eye surgery is between $3,000 and $6,000.

How Much is Medical Evacuation Insurance?

March 18, 2021March 24, 2021

Medical evacuation insurance provides coverage in an emergency, especially when you require immediate evacuation for medical treatment. The insurance policy will ease transportation costs to the nearest health facility, often by an air ambulance or helicopter.

Although medical evacuation insurance is vital for anyone, it offers many benefits to people who travel to and from remote areas. What is the cost of medical evacuation insurance? Let’s find out in today’s post.

Cost of Medical Evacuation Insurance?

Research shows that medical evacuation insurance has an average cost of $200 per year. Your insurance policy will cover all medical trips for 12 months. Likewise, a single-trip medevac insurance plan costs $45 to $70, depending on the insurance provider.

Make sure your insurance company covers you if the health condition is life-threatening. Choose an insurance agency that approves all types of medical and emergency evacuations.

Medical Evacuation

Medical evacuation coverage allows you to get treatment in a hospital with all the necessary equipment and tools. You won’t have to pay the expenses out of your pocket. Medical evacuation insurance covers you even if you require the most appropriate treatment center than the nearest facility.

While this would have cost tens of thousands of dollars, you can avoid the expenses through medical evacuation coverage. The average cost of medical evacuation insurance is between $200 and $300, depending on various factors, such as your age, individual or family plan, single-trip, annual insurance, trip length, and optional coverage.

Emergency Evacuation

Emergency evacuation is another type of medical insurance covering people threatened with environmental problems, natural disasters, hurricanes, etc. Remember, this type of insurance may or may not cover illnesses or injuries. The cover protects you by ensuring you are evacuated from the location of risk.

Every situation is different, meaning the cost of emergency evacuation with or without medical reasons depends on your location, available resources, the severity of the problem, and the location of the nearest facility. Emergency evacuation is very expensive, especially if you need to travel back to the U.S from abroad.

For instance, if you need evacuation from Mexico, it will cost $15,000 to $20,000. Likewise, the cost is 100,000 for South American countries, 50,000-100,000 for European nations, 90,000 to 150,000 for Russia, and over 220,000 for the Middle East, Australia, and Asia.

Because emergency evacuations can cost a lot of money, we recommend you have insurance coverage. It will lower the cost to $300 to $500 per trip or annually, depending on the type of plan you choose.

Final Words

There are three primary types of evacuations: medical, emergency, and political evacuation. All these evacuations have different coverage options within the insurance plans. Most companies that offer comprehensive programs include medical and emergency evacuation coverage in the premiums.

If you have a basic insurance plan, the provider may require you to add medical evacuation insurance separately. Therefore, it is essential to do your research, determine the costs, and compare the findings to choose a plan that best fits your needs.

Busting Some Health And Exercise Myths

March 13, 2021March 17, 2021

I am sure that the majority of the population of human beings on this planet desire to get them and lean. Well, it is probably because they want to fit into the image that society has cooked up. Some of them actually want to get in shape, because they care about their health. Let me tell you that it is actually factual that when you are fit, your health is at its peak, and your body will obviously tend to have a better immune system and, you will be falling sick less often. You will also be very energised. Laziness is thrown out of the window.

Being fit is something that will definitely make you a much more productive person. Just because you have a fat belly, does not mean you should continue to have the fat belly. You will soon be able to fit into skinny clothes, and your beach body dreams will not be so distant anymore. Every single day, you should think about new ways of getting healthy, and you should exercise every single day. If you want a chiselled body, you must make sure that you come up with a routine that will get you fit.

Below I have listed out some myths that actually surround the stubborn fat in the belly. These are some illusions that have been busted. Take a look and rejoice, because your view on belly fat is about to change.

The first message that I would like to talk about is a very simple one. A lot of people believe that you can do crunches and burn your belly fat away. Well, for some people, it may actually work, but if you want to get rid of stubborn belly fat, you need to mix it up with some efficient workouts, and you should work on reducing the entire body weight. You should implement strength training with some intense cardio sessions.
The second myth is a very prevalent one. People believe that just because they work out a lot, they can eat whatever they want. This is very inaccurate, arrogantly false and very misguided as well. It is a blatant effort if you consume 2000 cal a day, munching down burgers and fried junk, and burning of 1000 cal in the gym. If you need to lose weight, you should be on a calorie deficit diet. It means that you should be burning more calories in the gym or when you’re working out and consuming much less than what you have burnt.

There is another myth that should be driven out of peoples minds. If you eat less, it does not mean you will lose the belly. It is a very naive idea to look for shortcuts when you are trying to lose the belly fat. Cutting food out of your life is a little ill-advised, because it is not going to get you the beach body that you are after. You should integrate a healthy diet with proper fitness routines, to get rid of stubborn belly fat.