REFLECTION SERIES

I have had many of my friends ask me this question; WHY DO I HAVE STRETCH MARKS?   I believe there are many others like my friends who want to know why they have stretch marks and what to do about it. A friend asked me to write this article and it is intended for those who have stretch marks, those whose relations have stretch marks and those who want to know more about them and how to deal with them. What is stretch mark? Stretch marks are linear strips or lines that appear on the skin that has been overstretched. They normally run perpendicular to maximum lines of tension in the skin. They begin as flat red lines, and over time they may appear as slightly depressed white streaks. Stretch marks usually occur near the armpits, on the chest, breasts, abdomen, thighs, buttocks, and groins. Their appearance is similar to changes seen in the surface of rubber balloons that have been overinflated. Striae Distensae is the medical name for stretch marks. It is genera...

Overweight and obesity refers to the abnormal or excessive accumulation of fat in the body that may impair the individual’s health. Overweight and obesity are of major concern to a lot of people today. In my everyday interaction with people, many of them ask me how they can burn some fat to reduce their weight. Some of them out of fear of gaining weight decide to starve than to eat. Overweight and obesity was once considered to be the problem of high-income countries but unfortunately it is now on the rise in low- and middle-income countries. To determine if a person is overweight or obese, body mass index (BMI) which is a simple index of weight-for-height is used to determine. Body mass index (BMI) is defined as a person's weight in kilograms divided by the square of his height in meters (kg/m 2 ). After calculating, a person would be said to be overweight when his BMI is greater than or equal to 25 or Obese when the BMI is greater than or equal to 30. ...

Introduction We are surrounded by people who have kidney failure or had died from kidney failure. There are many more people in our society today who rely on dialysis for survival. The kidneys are very important organs in the human body. They are responsible for filtering the blood to get rid of harmful waste products such as urea, excess protein and uric acids from the body. The kidneys do not only filter the blood to get rid of waste products, but they play a key role in balancing the electrolyte levels in the body, controlling blood pressure, and stimulating the production of red blood cells.   The kidneys are two bean-shaped organs about five-inches long, three-inches wide and one-inch thick located in your back on each side of your spine. They are situated above your waist, with the left kidney a little higher and a little larger than the right kidney. The two kidn ey are protected by the lower ribs. Inside the kidneys are tiny units called Nephrons in whic...