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Understanding Anemia

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what Is Anemia? Anaemia results from a lack of red blood cells or dysfunctional red blood cells in the body. This leads to reduced oxygen flow to the body's organs. Symptoms may include fatigue, skin pallor, shortness of breath, light-headedness, dizziness or a fast heartbeat. Treatment depends on the underlying diagnosis. Iron supplements can be used for iron deficiency. Vitamin B supplements may be used for low vitamin levels. Blood transfusions can be used for blood loss. Medication to induce blood formation may be used if the body’s blood production is reduced Symptoms  common to many types of  anemia include the following:     Easy fatigue and loss of energy. Unusually rapid heart beat, particularly with exercise. Shortness of breath and headache, particularly with exercise. Difficulty concentrating. Dizziness. Pale skin. Leg cramps. Insomnia. Causes The body needs red blood cells to survive. They carry hemo...

Ways to Boost Your Metabolism for Fat Loss

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Can You Make Your Metabolism Better? Boosting metabolism is the holy grail of weight watchers everywhere, but how fast your body burns calories depends on several things. Some people inherit a speedy metabolism. Men tend to burn more calories than women, even while resting. And for most people, metabolism slows steadily after age 40. Although you can't control your age, gender, or genetics, there are other ways to improve your metabolism. Here are 10 of them. Build Muscle Your body constantly burns calories, even when you're doing nothing. This resting metabolic rate is much higher in people with more muscle. Every pound of muscle uses about 6 calories a day just to sustain itself, while each pound of fat burns only 2 calories daily. That small difference can add up over time. After a session of strength training, muscles are activated all over your body, raising your average daily  metabolic rate. Step Up Your Workout Aerobic exercise may not build big muscles,...

Back Anatomy: All About the back Muscles

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The muscles of the back can be divided into three groups – superficial, intermediate and deep: Superficial – associated with movements of the shoulder. Intermediate – associated with movements of the thoracic cage. Deep – associated with movements of the vertebral column The deep muscles develop embryologically in the back, and are thus described as intrinsic muscles. The superficial and intermediate muscles do not develop in the back, and are classified as extrinsic muscles. This article is about the anatomy of the superficial back muscles – their attachments, innervations and functions. The superficial back muscles are situated underneath the skin and superficial fascia. They originate from the vertebral column and attach to the bones of the shoulder – the clavicle, scapula and humerus. All these muscles are therefore associated with movements of the upper limb. The muscles in this group are the trapezius, latissimus dorsi, levator scapulae and the rhomboids. The trapezius and...

Chest Anatomy: All About the Chest Muscles

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The chest anatomy includes the pectoralis major, pectoralis minor and the serratus anterior. Learn about each of these muscles, their locations, functional anatomy and exercises for them. Function of the Chest Muscles The chest is part of a larger group of “pushing muscles” found in the upper body. The chest, as part of this group, enables you to perform pushing actions such as the barbell bench press or a daily activity such as moving a heavy dresser. To fully develop your chest, you need to hit it with heavy weight using a couple smartly chosen exercises. Read on and learn more about each chest muscle, and how to properly perform exercises that adequately challenge them. Pectoralis Major The pectoralis major is a large, substantial, fan-shaped muscle. And as you might guess from the word “major,” it makes up the majority of the chest muscle mass. It originates at your clavicle, ribs, and sternum, and inserts into the upper portion of your humerus (up...

6 Awesome Arm Exercises You Can Do Without Weights

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Triceps The triceps are found on the back of the arm, and are often neglected by men in particular who would rather train the muscle that they can see – their biceps ( curls get the girls etc ). But it’s worth paying particular attention to the triceps because they are a bigger muscle group than the biceps. If you want bigger arms it follows that you need to place added emphasis on training them. Training the triceps isn’t just important for men, though. Women are genetically predisposed to storing more fat than men, and in different places. Whereas a man typically stores fat on the upper body (resulting in beer bellies), women tend to store it on their thighs and arms. The most effective way of losing fat, and thus getting rid of ‘turkey/bingo’ wings is through  But it is also crucial to strengthen the muscle underneath – the triceps – to give the arms shape and definition.                         ...