• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

THE BRIGHTEST HUB FOR HEALTH AND WELLNESS

  • Home
  • Health
  • Medicine
  • Alternative Medicine
  • Diet and Nutrition

Transferred post

Causes and Home Remedies for Metallic Taste in Mouth

February 11, 2010 by rfcamat Leave a Comment

Mouth_illustration, Image from Wikimedia CommonsMetallic taste in mouth or medically known as dysgeusia is an alteration or distortion of the sense of taste in which an individual feels like there is something metallic inside his or her mouth. The foul taste could either be sour (acidic) or bitter (alkaline) that doesn’t go away even a person doesn’t eat anything. Most cases of metallic taste in mouth are not serious but the illness negatively affects the comfort of eating to people with the condition. It may temporarily reduce a person’s appetite. There are different causes of metallic taste in mouth which are discussed below.

To give you light on what causes metallic taste in your mouth, you better visit your doctor to examine you. Before you make that doctor’s appointment you might also want to check on the status of your health insurance. Most packages cover doctor’s fees at least partially. Ask your health or life insurance provider for more information on what you should be paying and what you will get in return. Your doctor will give you professional advices on how to treat your metallic taste in mouth. The best time to seek medical help is when the metallic taste in your mouth becomes persistent or doesn’t go away for many days.

Causes of Metallic Taste in Mouth

  • Aging – Taste bud number decreases with age affecting taste perception.
  • Mouth dryness – Inadequate amount or absence of saliva in the mouth causes mouth dryness, with metallic taste in mouth as a consequence. The saliva is important in taste perception because it distributes food molecules into the taste buds. Dry mouth is also associated to bad breath since saliva is involved in regulating mouth bacteria.
  • Fungal infection in the tongue or the mouth area – Fungi act negatively on the taste buds affecting taste perception.
  • Various medical conditions such as Parkinson’s disease, Bell’s Palsy, Sjogren’s syndrome, diabetes, gastro-esophageal reflux disease (GERD), jaundice, and others are associated to metallic taste in mouth.
  • Injuries to the mouth, nose, or head resulting to the damage of nerves that relay taste information in brain centers.
  • Chemotherapy or radiation treatment can also cause metallic taste in mouth.
  • Certain medications such as anti-thyroid drugs, antidepressants, antibiotics (e.g. Flagyl), zinc preparations, neurologic drugs, and others could also cause metallic taste in mouth as a side effect.
  • Dietary ketosis caused by high protein diet has been associated to metallic taste in mouth.
  • Leakage of metals such as gold, silver, and mercury from dental fillings can cause metallic taste.
  • Bleeding in the gum due to gingivitis can also cause metallic taste in mouth because blood hemoglobin contains iron metals.
  • Deficiency to certain vitamins like Vitamin 12 and minerals like zinc.
  • Illnesses that affect the sense of smell such as nasal infection, nasal polyps, sinusitis, flu, cold, etc. can cause metallic taste in mouth. It is because the sense of smell is needed for a normal taste perception.
  • Metallic taste can also be an indication of copper toxicity, mercury poisoning, lead poisoning, and selenium overdose. Note that metal poisoning needs immediate medical attention because it can be fatal.
  • Steel welders and workers in brass foundries reported metallic taste in mouth.
  • Heavy smoking is also linked to metallic taste in mouth since tobacco contains metal residues.
  • Head and neck cancers affecting important nerves.
  • Copper ions from copper cookware and copper pipes can leak into food and drinking water respectively. This will result to copper taste in mouth. Note that too much intake of iron (iron overload) can cause health problems.
  • Drinking unfiltered underground water can also cause metallic taste in mouth because the water contains trace metals such as calcium and magnesium.

[ad#co-1]

When to Seek Doctor’s Help?

Note that any medical illness or disease can not be treated without first knowing its root cause. Let your doctor examine you. The doctor will ask you few questions that could help him in diagnosing the cause of your illness. What questions would you expect in your visit?

  • Do you smoke?
  • Do all drinks and foods taste the same?
  • How long has the metallic taste lasted?
  • Does the metallic taste affect your ability to eat?
  • Do you have any problem with your sense of smell?
  • Have you recently changed the brand of your mouthwash or toothpaste?
  • Have you been ill or injured lately?
  • What drugs or food supplements do you take?
  • Besides from metallic taste, do you notice other symptoms like breathing problems?
  • Do you have gum problem, tooth decays, and dental plaques? When is the last time you visited your dentist?

Home Remedies for Metallic Taste in Mouth

If the metallic taste is bothering you, here are soem home remedies that will give you temporary relief from metallic taste:

  • Counter the metallic taste by consuming citrus juices, lemonade, and other sour substances (e.g. vinegar). Sour substances stimulate salivation which facilitates washing away of the metallic taste. You need to salivate especially when your mouth is dry.
  • Try rinsing your mouth with a salt solution containing a teaspoon of table salt and eight ounces of water. You can also use baking soda, but dissolve only ¼ teaspoon.
  • Eat small portions of raw condiments such as clove and cinnamon. Doing so can give you temporarily relief from metallic taste.
  • When you brush your teeth, make sure to brush the tongue area. This can help lessen the metallic taste in your mouth.

[ad#afterpost]

References

Taste Impairment – NIH WebsiteA Bad Taste In Her Mouth – Dr. Rob of MSN Health & Fitness

Filed Under: Medicine, Transferred post

The Dangers of Flagyl and Alcohol Interaction

February 1, 2010 by rfcamat Leave a Comment

Alcohol drinks, Image from Wikimedia CommonsIt has long been thought of that consuming alcohol while taking Flagyl causes adverse reactions in the body. However, this popular notion of Flagyl and alcohol interaction is being debunked by recent researches. Find out in this article if mixing Flagyl and alcohol together can really makes a person sick.

Overview of Alcohol and Flagyl (Metronidazole) Interaction

Flagyl is the brand name for the drug metronidazole, an antibiotics used to treat infections caused by anaerobic bacteria and protozoa such as bacterial vaginosis, pelvic inflammatory disease, pseudomembranous colitis, peptic ulcer disease, and among others. The drug is marketed in the U.S. by Pfizer, globally by Sanofi-Aventis (still under the Flagyl brand name), and by different generic manufacturers.

Common side effects of Flagyl include nausea, diarrhea, and metallic taste of the mouth. There are people who reported on the adverse effects of taking Flagyl and alcohol together. These people who consumed alcohol (even in small amounts) while taking Flagyl experienced severe nausea, vomiting, flushing of the skin, trachycardia (fast heartbeat), and shortness of breath. These symptoms are very similar to the effect of taking alcohol while taking Antabuse (disulfiram), a drug used to treat alcoholism by causing patients to become ill when they drink.

People who are under Flagyl medication should also avoid using products that contain alcohol such as mouthwash and cold medicine. Some kind of food contain small amount of alcohol since alcohol is being used in cooking; they should be avoided while under medication. It is usually advised to patients under Flagyl therapy not to drink alcohol for at least 48 hours after completion of treatment.

Flagyl and alcohol reaction is being questioned as an established pharmacologic fact because significant clinical evidences are lacking.

[ad#co-1]

What causes the bad reaction of Flagyl and alcohol interaction in the body?

Because alcohol-Flagyl body reactions (e.g. nausea, trachycardia, flushing, etc.) are similar to alcohol-Antabuse reactions, scientists originally presumed that they work in the same manner. Antabuse (disulfiram) works by inhibiting the second step in alcohol metabolism in the liver. The first step is the break down of ethanol (alcohol) into acetaldehyde and the second step is the break down of acetaldehyde into acetic acid. Since Antabuse inhibits the second step, acetaldehyde will build up in the blood causing vomiting, flushing, trachycardia, etc.

A recent clinical research found out that metronidazole does not inhibit the breakdown of acetaldehyde in the liver and there is no significant increase in blood level of acetaldehyde when metronidazole and alcohol are taken together. The researchers said that a different mechanism may be at work. Karamanakos and colleagues (2007) suggested that the reactions may be due to increase serotonin level in the brain when Flagyl is taken; they have observed this scenario in the laboratory rats.

Visapaa et al. (2002) reported that Flagyl-alcohol reaction may not be as common as previously thought because there are only ten human case reports on the problem. However, the researchers noted that it is possible that Flagyl-alcohol reaction occur in subgroups of people so it is still advised not to drink while under Flagyl medication.

In an online forum on Flagyl-alcohol interaction, few people said that they didn’t experience any adverse effect on mixing Flagyl and alcohol. However, some of the people reported that drinking even small amount of alcohol or exposed to alcohol-containing products, experienced adverse reactions.[ad#afterpost]

References

Visapää, J. P. et al., “Lack of disulfiram-like reaction with metronidazole and ethanol.” Annals of Pharmacotherapy 2002 Jun; 36(6):971-974. Retrieved Jan. 29, 2010.

Karamanakos, P. N. et al.,”Pharmaceutical agents known to produce disulfiram-like reaction: effects on hepatic ethanol metabolism and brain monoamines.” International Journal of Toxicology 2007 Sep-Oct; 26(5):423-432. Retrieved Jan 29, 2010.

Disclaimer

The information in this article is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Please seek advice from your doctor before taking any action suggested on this article.

Filed Under: Medicine, Transferred post

The Genetics of Cleft Chin – What Causes Cleft Chin?

January 25, 2010 by rfcamat 1 Comment

Cleft Chin of Pres. William McKinley (Image from Wikimedia Commons)What do you think Ben Affleck, John Travolta, Michael Douglas, Elijah Wood, Jessica Simpson, and Marc Anthony have in common? They simply have attractive cleft chins.  Do you have cleft chin or do you know somebody who has one? Do you want to know what causes cleft chin? Read this article to learn the genetics of cleft chins.

Overview of Cleft Chin Genetics

Cleft chin is a facial characteristic that looks like a dimple or an indentation to a person’s chin.  It is caused by the failure of the lower half of the jaw to fuse together during fetal development.  It is an inherited physical trait which is observed more prominently in men than in women. In the general population, the number of people with cleft chins is lower than those with the normal chin (it doesn’t mean that people with cleft chins are “abnormal”, they are in fact attractive). Like any of our facial characteristics (dimples, broad forehead, hook nose, etc.), genetics is what causes cleft chin.

Cleft chin is a dominant trait; it masks the expression of the gene for the normal chin. The “masked gene” is said to be the recessive gene and normal chin is the dominant trait. In genetics, a dominant trait is symbolized by a capital letter (C for cleft chin) while the recessive gene is symbolized by a lower case letter (c for normal chin).

In order for a child to have a cleft chin, he should at least inherit the gene for cleft chin from his parents. If the child inherits two cleft chin genes from his parents, he would develop cleft chin by being homozygous to the trait (CC). If he inherits only one cleft gene from his parents, he would still develop cleft chin by being heterozygous to the trait (Cc). If no cleft gene is inherited from the parents, the child will develop the normal chin.

If both parents are homozygous to cleft chin (CC x CC), there is a 100% chance that all their children would have cleft chins.  If they are both heterozygous to the trait (Cc x Cc), their children have 75% chance of developing cleft chins. If one of the parent is homozygous to the trait (CC) and the other parent is recessive (cc), the children’s chance of developing cleft chins is 100 %. If one of the parent is heterozygous to the trait (Cc) while the other parent is recessive (cc), there is 50% chance (Cc x cc) that each of their children will develop cleft chins.

Take note that the percentages above were computed using the Punnet square. Learn more about Punnet square here.

[ad#co-1]

Genetic Factors that can Affect the Expression of Cleft Chin Trait

In theory, parents with cleft chins would have children with cleft chins since the trait is dominant. On the other hand, parents that do not have the cleft chins could not have children with the trait since they do not carry the genes for cleft chin. However, these instances are not always observed. It can happen that parents with cleft chins couldn’t produce children with the trait and parents with no cleft chins could produce children with the trait. These phenomena are due to variable penetrance or the presence of modifier genes.

Variable penetrance means that even a dominant trait like cleft chin cannot be expressed phenotypically. The environment can affect the expression of a gene. For example, the fetal environment has done something in the complete fusion of the lower jaws even though the fetus carries the genes for cleft chins from both of his parents.

Modifier genes are the genes that affect the phenotypic expression of other genes. It is possible that the genes that control the incomplete fusion of the chin are suppressed by a modifier gene. If this happens, even a fetus that carries his parent’s genes for cleft chin will not develop cleft chin.

Attractive?

People have different views or attitude on cleft chin. Some people consider it attractive while others consider it ugly. Do you consider cleft chin attractive? Share your answer in this poll now.

[ad#afterpost]

Filed Under: Genetics, Transferred post

Low Sodium Side Effects

January 19, 2010 by rfcamat Leave a Comment


Low sodium or hyponatremia is a physiological condition wherein there is inadequate amount or concentration of sodium in extracellular fluids or the fluids outside the cell. Sodium is important for the body because it involves in the maintenance of blood pressure, muscle contraction, nerve functions, and among others. Low sodium concentration in extracellular fluids, causes fluid to enter the cell to maintain water balance inside and outside the cell. As a result, the cell swells to accommodate additional water. Cells in the body can handle the swelling except in the brain where the cells are confined in the skull. Swelling of the brain causes the symptoms of hyponatremia. Brain swelling can cause death if no medical attention is given to an individual with low body sodium.
[ad#co-1]

Three types of Low Sodium or Hyponatremia

1. Euvolemic hyponatremia- Total body water increases but body sodium remains the same.
2. Hypervolemic hyponatremia- The sodium and water content of the body increase but water gain is greater
3. Hypovolemic hyponatremia- Water and sodium are both lost from the body, but loss of sodium is greater.

Low Sodium can be Side Effect of Certain Illnesses and Diseases

• Vomiting and Diarrhea
-Sodium is an important electrolyte involved in digestion and it is continuously recycled by absorption. Too much vomiting and diarrhea cause the body to lose sodium.
• Sweating
-Sodium is released through the sweat.
• Congestive heart failure
• Liver cirrhosis
• Kidney Diseases
-Inability of the kidney to reabsorb sodium. Sodium is lost through the urine. An example is the salt-wasting nephropathy.
• Taking medications called diuretics which cause frequent urination.

Low Sodium can be Side Effect of Drug Interaction

• Interaction of Diachlor and Tegretol
• Interaction of Aldochlor and Tegretol
• Interaction of Chlorothiazide and Tegretol
• Interaction of Naturetin and Tegretol
• Interaction of Bendroflumethazine and Tegretol
• Interaction of Tegretol and Thiazide

Low Sodium can be Side Effect of Certain Drugs, Medications, or Substances

• Deavynfar
• Insogen
• Novo-Propamide
• Carboplatin
• Diabenese
• Chlorpropamide
• Apo-Chlorpropamide
• Prozac
• Celexa
• Paxil
• Zoloft
• Trileptal

Symptoms of Low Sodium

• Headache
• Fatigue
• Convulsions
• Irritability
• Appetite loss
• Muscle spasm
• Vomiting
• Nausea
• Restlessness
• Confusion
• Coma
• Hallucination [ad#afterpost]

Filed Under: Medicine, Transferred post

Symptoms of a Strawberry Allergy

December 8, 2009 by rfcamat Leave a Comment


In this article you will learn the signs of strawberry allergy, what is in strawberry that causes allergy, the tests for strawberry allergy, and how to manage strawberry allergy.

What Are The Symptoms of Strawberry Allergy?

Starwberry, Image from Wikimedia CommonsThe symptoms for strawberry allergy occur after exposure to strawberry fruit and strawberry products (e.g. strawberry jam, strawberry ice cream, etc.). Strawberry allergy symptoms differ from person to person but the common symptoms are the following:

• Your eyes become watery.
• You are vomiting.
• You have diarrhea.
• You have hives.
• Rashes are appearing at your skin.
• You feel itchy.
• You have trouble breathing.
• There is swelling in your tongue, mouth, and/or throat.

[ad#co-1]If a person are showing this symptoms, he or she should be given immediate medical attention because a severe allergic reaction called anaphylactic shock may occur. Anaphylactic shock is fatal.
Take note that latex allergy symptoms are similar to the symptoms of peanut, hair dye, mold, and sulfite allergies.

What is in strawberry that causes allergy?

The strawberry is made up of different proteins and some of these proteins act as allergens or substances that can trigger allergic reaction to an individual. The protein allergen from the strawberry is recognized by the body as foreign and can be dangerous to the body so the human immune system reacts by releasing histamine- the one that initiates allergic responses such as blood vessel dilation(causes the swelling), fluid secretion (in the eyes and the lungs), muscle spasm, etc.

A group of researches from the University of Lund, Sweden have identified a particular protein from the strawberry which they thought is the culprit why strawberry causes allergy. They said that the protein is among the proteins that give the strawberry its red color. They added that the protein allergen is not found in the white variety strawberry. The allergen has also some similarities with the birch pollen- another allergen that can trigger allergic reactions. People who are allergic to birch pollen can be allergic to strawberry but not vice versa.

What is the test for strawberry allergy?

You may get the service of a professional allergist to test you for strawberry allergy. The allergist will perform the skin test on you. In this test, he will scratch a needle with the allergen (substance from strawberry) in a small portion of your skin. If after few minutes, a small bump appear in the portion of your skin where the needle was scratched then you may be allergic to strawberry.

How to manage strawberry allergy?

The best way to manage strawberry allergy is by avoiding eating strawberry fruits. You should not also eat processed strawberry products (e.g. strawberry flavored foods, beverages, jams, etc) because the allergen is still present in these foods. Always read the labels of food products before consuming them because they may contain strawberry. Try the white variety of strawberry; it doesn’t contain the allergen but its taste is somewhat different to the red variety.

Disclaimer

The content in this article is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Please consult your doctor before taking any action suggested on this page.

 

 

Filed Under: Allergies, Transferred post

  • « Go to Previous Page
  • Go to page 1
  • Interim pages omitted …
  • Go to page 8
  • Go to page 9
  • Go to page 10

Primary Sidebar

RECENT ARTICLES

  • Why Do I Feel Tired After Eating?
  • Adverse Effects of Artificial Food Coloring on Children
  • List of Flowers You Can Eat and Their Health Benefits
  • Tips on How to Boost Your Metabolism
  • Best Workout Music for the iPod
  • What is the average bench press for a man?
  • Top 5 Healthiest Types of Cooking Oil
  • The Best Exercises for an Apple Body Shape
  • Beyonce’s Workout Secrets for a Sexy Physique
  • How Healthy Can Kimchi Be?

TOPICS

  • Allergies (5)
  • Alternative Medicine (22)
  • Biology (28)
  • Chemistry (1)
  • Diet and Nutrition (9)
  • Environmental Science (8)
  • Genetics (19)
  • Health (126)
  • Laboratory Tests (5)
  • Medicine (71)
  • Physical Fitness (1)
  • Science and Technology (1)
  • Transferred post (59)
  • Uncategorized (3)

Footer

MEDICAL DISCLAIMER

The contents of the TheBrightestHub.com Site, such as text, graphics, images, and other material contained on the TheBrightestHub.com Site (“Content”) are for informational purposes only. The Content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on the TheBrightestHub.com Site.

Copyright © 2023 · Genesis Sample on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

7ads6x98y