Tag Archives: cough

Could Your Persistent Cough Have Anything to do With Your Antihistamine?

Could your persistent cough have anything to do with your antihistamine?

Do you have a persistent cough that doesn’t want to go away?

Is it driving you nuts?

Lena had sinus issues.

She said her family doctor had made the comment years ago, that her nose was …  “not a white man’s nose”.

Though a funny story, she was at a loss for exactly what that meant, and wondered if the doctor had racial issues.

All Lena knew was that her nose was always stuffed up.

She accepted the daily use of antihistamines as her lot in life.

They seemed harmless enough.  Lena really didn’t notice any side effects, but then she had been using them for so many years she had lost count.

When I began to question Lena about her re-occurring persistent cough, I was actually hopeful that it could be caused by sinus issues.

Lena insisted that the cough was coming from her lungs.

Persistently coughing up clear mucus is indicative of fluid in your lungs. I was hopeful that Lena was wrong.  Fluid in your lungs is a serious issue.

You can often verify fluid in the lungs by listening with a stethoscope, though that fluid will not show up on x-ray early on in the disease process.

In Lena’s case, when I listened to her back over the lowest three ribs on each side for the tell tale popping sounds of fluid, I heard nothing at all.  I heard no air flow in or out.

If Lena had fluid in her lungs it was not audible.

I encouraged Lena to inquire with her doctor about getting an inhaler. Whether or not she had fluid in her lungs, Lena needed to ventilate better.

Lena’s doctor wouldn’t give her an order for an inhaler because she wasn’t wheezing.

After purchasing an over the counter inhaler and giving it a try, Lena was surprised how much more deeply she could breathe.

When I took a listen to her lungs she had little squeaks all over the place, but not necessarily fluid.  This solved the problem of the lack of a prescription inhaler.  Her doctor gave her one right away when she showed up at his office wheezing and squeaky.

However, the persistent cough continued.

I had mentioned to Lena that her daily antihistamine dosing might be problematic many times before.  Shear sleep deprivation and fatigue ate away at her resistance until she was ready to take absolutely any advice and give it a try.

“How can I stop this cough?”

When I brought up the subject of antihistamines with Lena, she protested yet again.  She couldn’t fathom the possibility that her harmless daily antihistamine could possibly be the culprit.

I had to pull out documentation of the side effects to stifle her argument, but that certainly GOT her attention.

She was shocked and in a state of disbelief so I gave her some time to digest the information.

Do you know the side effects of antihistamines? Continue reading Could Your Persistent Cough Have Anything to do With Your Antihistamine?

Water Retention: Is That Bloated and Puffy Feeling Anything To Worry About?

Water retention

“Everyone gets a little bloated and puffy feeling, right?”

If your doctor isn’t concerned, why should you be?

It’s just a little water retention.

There Are Reasons YOU Should Be Concerned About Excess Fluid:

  1. Your body becomes completely out of balance when it holds on to fluid in an effort to protect you.
  2. Any excess fluid interferes with absorption of OXYGEN and NUTRITION!
  3. The sooner you achieve a healthy fluid balance, the less damage will be caused to your kidneys, heart and other vital organs.

Rapid accumulation of fluids can be life threatening.

Creating a healthy fluid balance may be as simple as reducing your exposure to toxins, making better food choices, or supplementation with the right amount of the right nutrient.

Be Aware That Creating Fluid Balance Immediately Could Also Save Your Life!

 

How Do You Know Whether Your Water Retention Is Life Threatening Or Not?

When your body loses the ability to maintain your fluid balance, you are on a slippery slope of deterioration.

If you have swollen ankles or a tight hard belly, have your oxygen levels checked to identify a potentially fatal problem!

Could Shortness of Breath Be Your First Sign Of Big Trouble?

 

This is a process of elimination to identify what the culprit might be.  Why are you retaining fluid? 

You want to look at all possibilities starting with the most dangerous ones!

If your water retention issue doesn’t make you feel short of breath when you climb a flight of stairs and you don’t feel overly concerned about it, then lets look at some other causes of fluid retention.

 

One very common cause of fluid retention is vitamin and mineral deficiency.

*  The American Medical Association says that magnesium is the most prevalent mineral deficiency.

Magnesium is a valuable electrolyte, if you are deficient you will have fluid balance issues!

*  You may quickly shed water weight when you address deficiency!

You may be carrying a significant amount of excess water around, and not even be aware of it.

Click on the link below to check the list of water retention symptoms to see if you should be worried.

Signs Of Water Retention

 

Many blessings,

Carrie Tucker, RCP
The Life Breath Coach
Heart Failure Solutions

 

PS– Remember everyday:

  • Relax and Release tension
  • Exhale Slowly
  • Be active in a way that adds joy to your life

Plus pure water ~whole foods~sunshine~and laughter

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Do You Use Cough Medicine?

Well doesn’t everybody use cough medicine?

Isn’t it a harmless over the counter cold medicine?

 

Over the counter cold medicine is ANYTHING but harmless!

The chemical makeup of cough medicine can be deadly.

You cough up mucus because your body is over loaded with toxicity, and needs to clean house.

 

“Are you saying that germs don’t cause the common cold?”

 

Actually, that is exactly what I am saying.  If your immune system is up to snuff, no “germ” will “attack” you.

If germs caused the common cold, then everyone would get sick EVERY TIME they were exposed to germs.

So if you get a “cold” it is because your immune system is weakened.

In fact, snot and fever are a couple of ways that your body attempts to purify your system and strengthen your immune system.

Cough medicine is more harmful than beneficial to children.

Even if you aren’t a child, your cough is necessary to clear your lungs.  If you suppress your cough, Continue reading Do You Use Cough Medicine?

Food Matters!

Have you seen the trailer for the new movie?  I stumbled across it on You Tube and began jumping for joy.

At LAST an effort to get the message out!

You are what you eat!

Are you killing yourself with the food choices you make?

Food Matters!

Food Matters is an educational organization based in the UK.

They offer tutorials on every disease process you may be addressing.  Educate yourself so you will not be fooled with misinformation and you will feel confident to resist your doctors urge to drug your symptoms without taking action to address cause.

As the “Life Breath Coach” I recommend that my clients supplement their nutrition while they learn what to put in their shopping cart and what to avoid.

Vemma is my supplement of choice because they have a safe track record even with their weight loss line of products!

I’m hearing awesome testimonials of folks getting OFF of drugs for blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar!

This is GOOD stuff!

Nutrition Matters

 

Many blessings,

Carrie Tucker, RCP

The Life Breath Coach

Heart Failure Solutions

 

PS– Remember everyday:

  • Relax and Release tension
  • Exhale Slowly
  • Be active in a way that adds Joy to your life

Plus pure water ~whole foods~sunshine~and laughter

What Foods Help Get Rid of Fluid Retention?

Fruit & Nuts, Juhu Beach

Today one of my clients asked me what they could eat to get rid of fluid retention.

It isn’t an easy question to answer because there are many causes of fluid retention that will not be healed by eating foods that make you pee.

Some foods can make you retain fluid by slowing down your kidneys, while others can help your kidneys work better.

Anemia, protein deficiency, and an abnormally high need for one or more vitamins or minerals can cause fluid retention as well.

Keep in mind that fluid retention is NOT  simple to treat.

Maybe you aren’t even aware that those difficult to lose pounds are actually fluid rather than fat!

You don’t lose fluid weight the same way you lose weight from fat!

You can burn fat, but you don’t “burn” water you release it!

This subject can be a bit overwhelming, so don’t let yourself get complacent!

Fluid retention drains your health!

 

Cover the simple stuff first:

  •  sip water all day even when you feel bloated (unless your doctor advises you not to because of kidney failure)
  •  have your hormones checked
  • treat all low oxygen levels with supplemental oxygen

The most common cause of fluid retention is dehydration!  So sip all day and if you are on fluid restriction, it’s a good idea to stick to water with fresh lemon.

Hormones are another issue that could be causing your fluid retention and your doctor can evaluate if this is a problem for you.

Low oxygen levels are potentially fatal, so you want to look for them when you are active and distressed as well as when you are sleeping!

 

Discovering what foods help get rid of fluid retention is only slightly helpful early on in your disease process.

Is this the information you were looking for?

Foods that cause you to release fluid:

  •  celery
  •  onion
  •  parsley
  •  garlic
  •  peppermint
  •  eggplant
  •  cabbage
  •  cranberries
  •  asparagus
  •  corn
  •  cucumber
  •  grapes
  •  watermelon

Some sources say to reduce intake of parsley and celery to avoid water retention.  They are both high in chlorophyll so it’s no wonder they are hugely helpful in addressing the issues that may contribute to fluid retention.  A list of foods high in magnesium will help as well.  Magnesium is the “relax mineral” so it helps fluid retention in several ways.

Herbs that help you to release fluid:

  •  uva ursi
  •  buchu
  •  horse chestnut (also used to promote leg vein circulation in Europe for many years)
  •  dandelion root or tincture (good for kidneys, adrenal glands, and liver)
  •  Dong Quai (also soothing to intestines and bladder)

Be careful with herbs, like drugs, they are potentially harmful!

 

Fluid Retention can be very uncomfortable.

The discomfort of fluid retention can be eased with the use of essential oils.

Essential oils, used in baths, gargles, mouthwashes, vaporizers, inhalants, as well as compresses and massages can be helpful:

  •  cypress
  •  geranium
  •  juniper
  •  lavender
  •  rosemary

 

Fluid BALANCE is the goal, and many foods can be helpful in righting your fluid balance.

Helpful foods, vitamins, and minerals:

  •  brazil nuts
  •  fish
  •  Vitamin B6
  •  Vitamin A
  •  Vitamin C
  •  magnesium (would a list of food sources help?)
  •  selenium

 

Give your attention to a few other concerns that effect fluid retention!

Avoid constipation, eat foods high in dietary fiber:

  •  grains
  •  beans
  •  fruits

 

AVOID the following:

  •  table salt (for severe fluid retention use only potassium chloride)
  •  sugary foods and drinks
  •  too much protein OR not enough protein
  •  unhealthy fats
  •  being still for long periods of time
  •  crossing your legs
  •  tight clothing
  •  alcohol
  •  smoke
  •  coffee
  •  black tea
  •  processed foods
  •  fast foods
  •  white flour foods

There is no quick fix for fluid retention but it is likely to cause oxygen and nutrition problems because it interferes with absorption.

Better safe than sorry!

 

Get your oxygen levels checked and nourish yourself with a quality nutritional supplement.

Heart Failure Solutions recommends Vemma products because of their safe track record.

Click on the link below and learn more about what nutrition can do for you!

Nutrition Is Your Medicine

 

Many blessings,

Carrie Tucker, RCP

The Life Breath Coach

Heart Failure Solutions

 

PS– Remember everyday:

  • Relax and Release tension
  • Exhale Slowly
  • Be active in a way that adds Joy to your life

Plus pure water ~whole foods~sunshine~and laughter

Fluid Retention Steals Your Health, Want To Stop It?

Female feet on scales

When you retain fluid oxygen and vital nutrients can’t get where they need to go!

Fluid retention is such a big problem because the extra water in your system is in the way!

When oxygen and other vital nutrients cant’ get where they need to go, you deteriorate!

If you don’t want your health to fade, watch for signs that you may be retaining water:

  • When you press your fingernail firmly into your thumb-pad, does it stay deeply dented for more than a second or two
  • When you press the tip of your finger into the inside of your shinbone, does your nail make a dent?
  • Do your ankles ever swell?
  • Does your shoe size increase as you get older?
  • Do your rings sometimes not fit?
  • Is your tummy ever tight and swollen?
  • For women, do you suffer from breast tenderness?
  • Does your weight fluctuate by several pound within the space of only twenty-four hours?

You should be concerned if you recognize water retention symptoms, even if your doctor isn’t!

 

Fluid Retention TO DO LIST:
Continue reading Fluid Retention Steals Your Health, Want To Stop It?