Body sculpting

With movies like 300 and TV shows like Spartacus, women are very aware what a fit man looks like and african women are no exception. In this generation, big tummy and flabby arms are so not cool..so boys...this is a general introduction to enable you be on your way to getting that GLADIATOR body.

Body sculpting is reaching the crest of being physically fit. If you think that you are in good shape but just need focus on few areas of your body, the following excises are just perfect for you to achieve the goal. One important aspect that is often overlooked by men while they’re planning a complete body sculpting is maintaining the balance.

If your upper body happens to be rock solid, you cannot ignore the lower body. The exercises written below will help you achieve the perfect middle ground.

Going for complete body sculpting routine needs you to take different routes.Every exercise helps you define in some or the other way, what you need to do is exercise in a way that improves your fitness level. First thing you need to start exercise with is a bench press. Exercise is excellent to build muscles in pectorals and arms. You can also alternate the daily benching exercises in such a way that one day you focus on higher weight benching with fewer reps and the other day you can try pressing a smaller weight with twice the number of reps.

The next thing that you need to do is Triceps dips. All you need to do is face away from the front of weight bench and then place your arms over the seat of the bench. Now extend your legs outwards so that your experience all the weight over your hands. Start lowering and raising your body in the way of you would perform push-ups.

The next area that you should focus on is your abs. Having a perfect abs is a great way to balance the upper body. You can perform declining sit-ups for achieving the same. You can use a decline bench and secure your feet over the top and then slowly start performing the sit-ups. The gravitational resistance will make your job tough but it will provide maximum attention to your abs.

Make sure that you exercise your lower body for an equal quantity of time so that the sculpting routine remains balanced. You can strengthen your legs using squats. You can also work on quads. A quad is basically an extension machine which is effective for leg muscle exercises.


Reference : www.menshealth.com

Male Cancer : Introduction

Men and Women have different kinds of risks as far as cancer is concerned and this is due to differences in biological features. below is an introduction to types of cancers that could affect Men. Each type would be elaborated on in future posts.

Prostate Cancer:

Prostate belongs to the reproductive system of the males and it is a gland of walnut size. It is located under the bladder, surrounding the urethra.
Age is an important factor in this kind of cancer. As you get older, you are likely to get affected and if you have a family history, it becomes more risky.

Diagnosis is through a rectal test and a blood test which measures antigens which are specific to prostate, and a protein which signals if there is high level of prostate cancer.

This condition is treated through radiation, surgery and hormone therapies.

Lung Cancer:

This can be a severe form of cancer which affects both the genders. Smoking and inhaling second hand smoke are main causes of cancer. Similarly, pollution or asbestos dust can cause the disease. It is diagnosed through X-rays and CAT scans(Computerised Axial Tomography). Surgery can be opted if cancer has not spread.

Colorectal Cancer:

This is cancer of the digestive parts specifically the rectum and colon . It's prone to attack people with family history and genetics. A high fat diet is also said to be a contributing reason.

It is diagnosed through Colonoscopy, which guides a lighted tube with a camera, inserted into the rectum so that large intestines can be examined. The cancer can be treated through colonoscopy, but if it is advanced it may necessitate a portion of colon to be cut out.

Testicular Cancer:

Testicles are a pair of sex glands in males, just under the penis. They produce and store sperm and are the main source of testosteron. This cancer affects men who have un-descended testes or some birth defects.

The cancer can be felt through unusual lumps, enlargement of testicles or pain in that part. Blood test and biopsy are used to confirm this disease. The affected portion can be removed surgically, after which radiation and chemotherapy can follow.

Penile Cancer:

The penis can also be affected by cancer. Human papillomavirus (HPV) infection is linked to penile cancer. Similarly, if you don’t maintain personal hygiene especially in case of uncircumcised men, it can be a risk.

It is diagnosed through physical examination and biopsy tests. Treatment is usually by surgery, chemotherapy, as well as radiation therapy. If surgery is done precisely, the tumor can be removed leaving the penis intact.


Breast Cancer:

Men are at risk of breast cancer just as women are although its very rare. it accounts for less than 1% of all cancers in men, and less than 1% of all diagnosed breast cancers. Most men are between 60 and 70 years of age when they are diagnosed, but cancer may develop at any age. Worldwide, male breast cancer appears to be becoming more common, particularly in younger males. risk factors includes obesity, increased oestrogen, family history, and Gynaecomastia (enlargement of the male breast tissue).

diagnosis is the same as for women and this includes mammography, biopsy, full blood count and CAT scan.

Treatment is also similar to that in females - by radiotherapy, chemotherapy and hormonal therapies.

Men: your biological clock is ticking too :D

MEN who put their career before having a family should be aware that the ticking of the biological clock is as important for fertility in men as it is in women.
American scientists have discovered that genetic damage to sperm routinely starts to cause infertility in men as young as 35. The strongest biological evidence yet for a significant drop in male fertility in the late thirties is a warning to the increasing number of grey-haired fathers who are leaving it later to have children.

The popular worry that career women risk losing the chance to have children has long been supported by infertility research focusing on how the quality of women’s eggs deteriorates with age. Researchers from the University of Washington in Seattle have now provided the first firm molecular explanation for why childless career men should worry too. The chances of having a baby are reduced if the man is in his late thirties or forties.

The study examined the sperm of 60 volunteers aged between 22 and 60. All the men had healthy sperm counts.

they found that, whatever the sperm count, its genetic quality was closely related to age, with a cut-off point for serious damage of about 35.

Men in the older group had higher concentrations of sperm with broken strands of DNA, more acute levels of such genetic damage and their immune systems were much less efficient at getting rid of faulty sperm. The sperm of the older men were also less vigorous swimmers.

the findings cast new light on the often overlooked problem of male infertility.
apparently about a third of all infertility is male factor. “Male-factor" infertility is more prevalent than people think. It’s not generally in the public’s mind that male sperm quality does indeed go down with age, from, as we now see, the age of 35.”

Men concerned about their fertility should avoid activities such as smoking that may damage the DNA of their sperm. there’s nothing anyone can do about getting older so men who want to retain their own best capacity to father children should try to minimise contact with toxic agents and maintain a healthy lifestyle.


The findings do not suggest that most men who wait until after 35 to try for children will have problems, particularly if the man’s partner is in her twenties or early thirties. But the study does alert fertility doctors to another potential problem when older couples have difficulty in conceiving

Reference: the sunday times

Men get yeast Infections too...

Few men know that they also can get yeast infections. Yeast infections are not gender specific. The cause of yeast infections, an out of balance Candida Albicans fungus level in the body, can affect either men or women, and when out of balance, can produce negative symptomatic consequences in the genitals .
Sexual transmission with a partner who also has a yeast infection is a method of commuting this bacterial malady. To protect yourself from sexual transmission, open communication with sexual partners about the possibility of sexually transmitted diseases and infections, as well as the use of barrier protection, such as condoms have been known to reduce infections.

A man with a yeast infection will most likely experience some similar symptoms as those of women, such as genital itching, discomfort, or even discharge. If any of these symptoms occur, immediate medical attention should be sought in order to rule out more serious medical conditions before seeking over the counter remedies.

Other symptoms might not lead the man to think of yeast infections at all when experienced. Severe stomach cramps, uncontrollable or increased passing of gas, and other abdominal discomforts would not signify a genital bacterial infection by first glance. Erectile dysfunction on the other hand may be thought of at first as a sign of serious medical or chronic ailment but might actually be a bacterial infection that can be treated with antibiotics.

The treatment for men with yeast infections are the same as they are for women, however the application methods do vary. Male yeast infection OTC treatments can be found for both men and women. Be sure to read the ingredients and follow the instructions carefully.
Wearing loose fitting clothing around the midsection and avoiding scratching the area as well as following your prescribed treatment schedule can aid recovery from a male yeast infection greatly.

If you are a man and you are experiencing any of the above symptoms, reluctant as you may be, you should contact you physician and schedule an examination as soon as possible.

Men who have Sex with Men

What group of the population is nearly 9 times more vulnerable to HIV infection in many developing countries but are almost never targeted by HIV prevention activities? According to recent research, and an editorial from the AIDSTAR portal: men who have sex with men (MSM).

The term is used to describe people who engage in a particular behavior rather than a label for sexual identity, which at times can differ. MSM can also have sex with women, or may do so for only a short period of time, but the key is that they are not always identified as people who engage in sexual relations with other men which can make them difficult to identify. To complicate things further, the behavior is frequently illegal in developing countries making it difficult to launch effective prevention programs.

Men who have sex with men are very rampant in Nigeria. Unfortunately, culture and society make it very difficult for people to express their sexual orientation confidently. unless this changes, anyone could be at risk. Studies of African men who have sex with men have shown that unprotected anal sex is commonplace, and HIV prevalence among men who have sex with men is as high as 25.3% in some west African countries. In Kenya, a country where homosexuality is illegal, HIV prevalence has reached as high as 43% among some groups of men who have sex with men.

Although statistics like these give an idea of the impact that AIDS is having on men who have sex with men, data is still extremely scarce in many countries e.g Nigeria. This is largely due to the fact that men who have sex with men often have no separate social identity, and are simply counted as part of the general population. It is also due to the reluctance of governments to acknowledge men who have sex with men, and to monitor this group. Another factor blurring statistics is that it’s not always possible to tell how a man became infected. If he is having sex with women as well, he may well report that HIV was transmitted to him from a woman (or even if he is only having sex with men, he may lie because of stigma). This can distort figures

The AIDSTAR initiative, supported by USAID, seeks to begin to fill the gap in terms of what we know about MSM and what we know works in MSM prevention and control.

Reference:

http://www.aidstar-one.com/focus_areas/prevention/prevention_resources/emerging_areas/hard-to-reach_men_who_have_sex_men