Saturday, November 3, 2012

HEART DISEASE





Have  you  ever  wondered how the heart and the circulatory system work? The human heart lies in the upper left center of the chest, next to the lungs .Blood flows in the right side of the heart and out of the left side. To guide the flow of blood in constant direction each chamber connects to the next one through valves that open when the heart contracts.

Deoxygenated blood that no longer contains as much oxygen, because the oxygen has been used by the organs, enters the right side of the heart through large vain called the vena cava. From the right ventricle, blood enters the pulmonary artery to reacquire oxygen in the lungs. The newly oxygen-rich blood leaves the lungs and flows back to the heart’s left side. When this section contracts, blood then rushes into the aorta to repeat its journey around the body. When blood reaches all the organs , it releases oxygen for the body to use to make energy. Once the blood gives up the oxygen, it returns to the heart. This circulatory process continues automatically for as long as you live, your live dependent on it.[1]

            The function of the heart and circulatory system is to keep blood flowing continuously at a consistent rate. This ensures delivery of essential oxygen and nutrients to the body’s tissues. Other processes that occur simultaneously through the circulation include the removal of waste products from cells back to the lungs, liver, and kidney for filtering.

            Unfortunately the heart does not always function perfectly. This is because of the heart problem or also known as heart disease. Heart disease is when u experience chest pains or breathlessness and you realise that something in the body is no longer working the way it should. Heart disease is known to be associated with heart attack, strokes and other cardio vascular disease.

            Heart disease is an umbrella term for a number of different diseases which affect the heart. The most common heart diseases are coronary artery disease, coronary heart disease, ischaemic heart disease, cardiovascular disease, pulmonary heart disease, heridatary heart disease, hypertensive heart disease, inflammatory heart disease, valvular heart disease, pericardial heart disease, congenital heart disease and last but not least heart  failure.[2]

            They are several disorders that can have negative effect on the circulatory process by reducing the blood flow and can lead to heart diseases. The most common disorders are arrhythmias or malfunctions of electric system which cause an irregular heartbeat, congestive heart failure or weakness of the muscular pump which cause fluid to back up into the lungs and other organs, congenital defects such as a hole between two atrial chambers (an atrial septal defect), narrowing the heart valves from calcification (stenosis) or from tumor in the heart, leaking valves which is known as insufficiency causing blood does not flow through chambers optimally and the damage to the heart muscle from blockage of coronary ateries due to atherosclerosis.[3]

Heart failure is one of the heart disease. It  is often called congestive heart failure (CHF), is a common, usually progressive with a poor prognosis. CHF occurs when the heart is unable to pump blood at a rate  sufficient to meet the metabolic demands of the tissue or can do so only at an elevated filling pressure. It can appear during the end stage of many forms of chronic heart disease. In this settings, it most often develops insidiously due to cumulative effects of chronic work overload (such as in valve disease or hypertension) or ischemic heart disease. However, acute hemodynamic stresses such as fluid overload, acute valvular dysfunction, or a large myocardial infarction can cause CHF to appear suddenly.

            In many pathologic state, heart failure is preceded by cardiac hypertrophy, the compensatory response of the myocardium to increased mechanical work. Hypertrophy is dependent upon increased protein synthesis, which enables the assembly of additional sarcomeres. Hypertrophic mycocytes also contain increased number of mitochondria and have enlarged nuclei. The latter alteration appears to be due to increases in DNA ploidy, which result from DNA replication in the absence of cell division. The pattern of hypertrophy  reflects to nature of the stimulus.[4]

            There are a lot of ways to prevent heart disease. One of the way is prevention through prayer.[5]Islam has given a very special attention towards health of the heart, both spiritual and physical. Quran denotes the significance of healthy heart through the words قلب سليم  a peaceful heart. Therefore, Islam has placed remarkable stress on prevention heart diseases through its teachings and practices. Prayer is the most important and fundamental practice of Islam which possesses the highest spiritual and physic-medical significance having positively an effective role in care and treatment of many ailments particularly the heart diseases. Giving identification of the hypocrites, Quran states:

“When they stand up for prayer they perform it languidly.” (Al-Nisa : 142)

            Its means that hypocritical manner of prayer is based on lethargy and carelessness as they get neither any spiritual benefit from prayer nor any physical good is done to their state of health. The Quranic injunction is further elucidated by the Holy Prophet Muhammad SAW tradition:

“Verily the prayer it has cure in it” (Sunan Ibn-i-Mjh)

The constant prayer habit resultantly lessens the hazard of heart disease through this method. Regular prayer habit with real cordial interest and spiritual concentration removes or minimise the strains and provide mental relaxation and contentment which helps in  prevention heart disease. Holy Quran says:

“Surely heart strains and tensions are removed through the remembrance of Allah.”
                                                                                                       (Ar-Ra’d:28)                                     

Islam has prescribed five mandatory prayers a day. The three of them Fajr (morning), Asr (Afternoon) and Maghrib (Sunset) coincide with times when the human stomach is normally is empty. So these prayer comprise less number of rakaats, which involves less quantum of exercise. On the other hand, night prayer (Isha) is normally offered after having the dinner. That’s why it consist of 4 rakaat. 4 parts of exercise which facilitates  the dissolution of excess  cholesterol.

            In the month of Ramadan, the whole day is spent in thirst and hunger. So naturally at the time of iftar there is comparatively more intake of food and drinks. Therefore the night prayer is further added with 20 rakaats of tarawih prayer. There is a very significant tradition of the holy Prophet Muhammad SAW in this respect, reported by Imam Abu Nuaym.

“Dissolve your dietary cholesterol through the process of remembrance of Allah and offering of Prayers.”

            Immediately after meals  neither the sleep is recommended nor any hard exercise. Both can be harmful for heart. Only a soft kin of exercise like the prayer activity is said to be useful. Holy Prophet (PBUH) said :

“Don’t go to bed immediately after the meals; it will harden your heart. Avoid any hard or large quantum of exercise immediately after meals, it will also cause a damage.”               (Abu Nuaym)

            That’s why a very balanced and soft Physico-spritual exercise has been prescribed in the form of prayer activity.

The prayers that provide 5 times mandatory and another 4 to 5 times non mandatory is part of light exercise. This routine is appreciable assistance in accelerating the action of the muscular pump in the calf region. Every time standing up from Sajdah (Prostration) or Qadah (sitting for a new rakaat) a sort of pressure is exerted on the calves. Owing to his process of contraction of the calf muscles, the flow of the abstructed veinal blood is restrored and it rusnes back rapidly to the heart. This helps a good deal in decreasing the pressure on heart and its pumping action somewhat reinforced.

Another way to prevent is prevention through moderate eating habits. Medical research has revealed that most of the heart diseases originate from the stomach. The more one eats the more diseases he contact, whereas abstention from excessive eating is of paramount importance in prevention of heart diseases. The diet and eating habits have a direct effect on the heart itself. That’s why Islam has strongly prescribed the moderate eating habits. Intake of a large quantity of food or having a full breakfast, a full lunch and full dinner daily, is much more than that is essential for good health. Full three meals a day, specially consisting of foods in high calories and saturated in fats, are not only excessive but are highly harmful and surely risky for heart disease.

            The first story about heart disease is about Doug an old handyman. Doug had been an active person  his whole life. Not even retirement could keep this sixty-six-years-old handyman from staying busy, building cabinets and sheds, repairing leaky faucets and rewiring lights. Looking at him now, no one would realise that Doug had almost died of a heart attack several years earlier. Doug’s wife, Joan, always worried about her husband need to “work,work,work.” After all, both of his parents died from heart attacks- his mom at fifty-two and his dad at seventy one. That mean Doug had an increased risk of heart disease. But Doug did not want to slow down. Working with his hand made him feel young and alive.

Then everything changed  when  Doug had his first heart attack, at age fifty-six. Fortunately, it was a mild one, and medicine and rest helped to nurse him back to health. But three years later, Doug had another heart attack. For a while it seemed like he recovering from this one, too. Then things took a turn for the worse. One morning, Doug woke with his lungs filled with fluid. He could hardly breathe, and he had trouble walking, Joan brought him to emergency room. After taking X-rays, the doctor said that he had enlarged heart. Over the next several months, Doug went back and forth to the hospital for evaluations but his conditions only get worse. Doug was no longer lively, energetic guy Joan once knew. Now her husband looked frail, and he could barely walk across the room, dress himself, or even eat. Doug’s heart was badly damaged, and his only hope was a heart transplant. Without it, he would not survive. Doug was put on the heart transplant list, but he was told it could be a long while before they could find  a suitable donor.

Fortunately, Doug’s blood type was A positive which is common and this could help speed up the search for a match. Amazingly, Doug had to wait for only twenty days. Many patient  have to wait for more than a year. In fact a couple of Doug’s friend had died while waiting for a heart. Doug knew how lucky he was. The new heart, which come from a nine-teen-year-old on a respirator, gave Doug another chance at life. Now with a new, healthy heart, Doug is once again back to his active self.[6]

            The second real story is about a young teenager who suffers heart disease. Heart disease is something that old people get, right? That’s what most people think. But New Jersey teenager Jessica Melore found out that it can happen to anyone. As a sixteen years old high school student, Jessica was bright, popular,  outgoing and athletic. She was an avid tennis player and seemed to be generally healthy.

Then one day, celebrating her aunt’s birthday at a restaurant, Jessica suddenly became dizzy. Her arms felt heavy, and pain seemed to be pressing out from her chest up to her neck. Her parent called 9-1-1 and an ambulance rushed Jessica to hospital. The doctors at the emergency room said she was having a heart attack. Test showed that large blood clod was blocking a major artery leading to Jessica’s heart. Emergency surgery to clear up the clot didn’t help neither did the operation to bypass the block by attaching other arteries to the heart muscle. Jessica’s heart was failing and her lungs were filling up with fluid.

The doctors told her parents that Jessica probably  would not survive. They called a priest to give her last rites. Though Jessica did make it through the crisis, her heart was badly damaged. LVAD (a mechanical pump) help her to keep alive through the long wait for the heart transplant. It took more than nine months for a matching donor heart to become available. A few days before she was to graduate from high school, she got new heart and a new lease of life. Four years later, Jessica was one of the American Heart Association volunteers who gathered in May 2003 to ask their senators to support more funding for research on heart diseases and stroke.

There are lot of perspective about heart disease. Al-Kindus known as the philosopher of the Arabs introduced for the first time a scale to define the drugs degrees in order to allow physicians to quantify the potency of their prescriptions. In addition, he wrote numerous encyclopedias on herbs and their pharmaceutical properties, with highly accurate precision.For instance, black seeds (Nigella sativa) can be considered effective for either food consumption or as a preventive of high blood pressure and heart diseases. This also mention in the Holy Quran and in the Hadith of the Prophet Muhammad.

             Abu Hasaan Al tabari a younger colleague of Ibn Masawayh, wrote several medical books, the most famous of which is his Paradise of Wisdom. It discusses the nature of man, cosmology, embryology, temperaments, psychotherapy, hygiene, diet, and diseases, both acute and chronic, and their treatment. He was also precise in describing his therapeutics. To strengthen the stomach and ensure good health, he prescribed black myrobalan powdered in butter, mixed with dissolved plant sugar extract from the licorice. This remedy should be taken daily.[7]

            It is given by Robert Koch  was not solely or even  principal the result of thechnological advancement or empirical discoveries. Instead it rested upon a theoretical reformulation of the nature of disease, which one correctly understood. Cater describes this shift in understanding of disease as the result of the adoption of an “etiological standpoint” which he defines as follow:
  The etiological standpoint can be characterized as the belief that diseases are best controlled and understood by means and cause in particular by causes that are natural, universal and necessary. This concept is defining of modern western thinking.

            Next, Lama Zopa Rinpoche, a highly realised Tibetan Lama, says that the most powerful healing method of all are those based on compassion, the wish to free others being from suffering.

            From my perspective, heart disease is an umbrella term for any type of disorder that affects the heart. Heart disease mainly effect older people but it is not possible for younger people. Like the example I have given above the New Jersey’s teenager, Jessica who suffers heart disease. People always take for granted about this matter they think that they are still young to get this kind of disease. Actually age is not the main factor for the disease. So we should take the precaution from having the disease. There are a lot of ways that we can use in order to prevent the heart diseases. One of the way is the Islamic teaching. Islam is comprehensive it cover all aspect of life event how to prevent and cure disease. Allah do not simply give test to His servant such as the disease. Allah know wheter His servant can bear it or not. It is also stated in the holy Quran :

“Our lord! Do not lay on us a burden that we are uable to bear.”                                                                                                                (Al baqarah:282)

So we should have faith in him, even if he give us a test like suffer from heart disease there must be a reason behind it perhaps blessing in disguise.

As conclusion, our heart does not always function perfectly. This is because the heart diseases. In general heart diseases is when u experience chest pains or breathlessness and you realise that something in the body is no longer working the way it should. Heart disease is an umbrella term for a number of different diseases which affect the heart.

Heart failure is type of heart disease. It usually occurs because of the chronic heart diseases that people get and lead to heart failure. The are many ways prevent the heart disease. One of them is prevention through prayer. As we know islam is syumul even prayer can help us to prevent disease. Allah almighty is very merciful in everything we do actually has the benefit to our life or even to the community. Sometimes we do not realise it because we are too busy about the world life instead of hereafter.

Heart disease can happen to anyone regardless of your age, not only old people can get the disease even young people like Jessica Melore, the 16 years old teenager who suffer heart disease. This is because when Allah said it will happen it will happen. This is also mention in the Holy Quran :

 “ Verily, when He intends a thing, His command is, "Be," and it is! “
                                                                                              (Yasin:82)

In this world everything happen with the will of Allah. We as His servant must worship Allah and keep prayer and have faith in Him. There is blessing in disguise for everything that happend because Allah is the best planner and he know what best for His servant. However we still should take precaution in order to prevent heart disease.
“Verily never will Allah change the condition of a people until they change it themselves (with their own souls)” (Al Ra’ad :11)

            Next is everything is happen with the permission of Allah. Like the example i have shown above about peoples who suffer heart disease. Doug the old handyman only have to wait only for 20 days for available and suitable for heart for himself while Jessica Melore took more than nine months in order to get new heart which suitable for herself. We can see from the story that even there is available heart but it is not suitable for the body, nothing that we can do. Only with the permission of Allah it can happen like the the story of the Doug, he only have to wait for 20 days with the permission of Allah. If Allah do not allow it to happen it would not happen. The Prophet Muhammad SAW said:
“ Be aware that if the whole of mankind gathered together in order to do something to help you, they would only be able to do something for which Allah had already written for you. Likewise, if the whole mankind gathered together to harm you which Allah had already written to happen to you.”








[1]-MurdocKhaleghi, MD –The Everything Guide to Preventing Heart Disease –Adam media -p.4-5 -2011
[2] Kumar,Abbas,Fausto,Aster-Robbins Catron Phatologic Basis Of Disease-Saunders Elsevier-p.271-2010
[3]-MurdocKhaleghi, MD –The Everything Guide to Preventing Heart Disease –Adam media –p.10-12 -2011



[4] Kumar,Abbas,Fausto,Aster-Robbins Catron Phatologic Basis Of Disease-Saunders Elsevier-p.189-193-2010
[5]Shaykh Ul-Islam,Dr Muhammad Tahir Ul-Qadri-Islam on Prevention of Heart Disease-Minhaj ul-Quran Publications-p.8-12-1993

[6]Alvin & Virginia Silverstain& Laura Silverstain Nunn: Heart Disease,Twenty-first Century Books,p.21-22,2006
[7]Bashar Saad and Omar Said: Greco-Arab and Islamic Herbal Medicine,John& Willey Sons,Inc.,p.56-57,2011

DISEASE: HEADACHE




Head is the most important part of our body. Most of the things we do are controlled by the ‎brain directly or indirectly, and so it is not surprising that there are so many ways in which the ‎head can ‘go wrong’. If you break your ankle, you get pain in the ankle. When something ‎related to the head goes wrong, you can get a headache. Since the head is in charge of most ‎things, including the way your ankle function, something wrong in any part of your body can, ‎in theory, give rise to headache. Perhaps you can see why doctors have such a difficult job to ‎do when working out why you have a headache. It is one of the common sicknesses that ‎happen in our life. But, even it is normally happens, doctors have identified as many as 150 ‎different types of headache upon their causes.‎

‎  Headaches differ in both intensity and in type, or quantity and quality if you like, which ‎means that two headaches of similar type but differing in intensity can end up in two ‎categories. However, as with many things in life, there can be confusions in the grey areas ‎where one category meets another. In addition, how long you have them can influence ‎whether a doctor perceives you to be a victim to either acute or chronic headaches.

‎  To make it simple, headache is very close to dizziness. Dizziness is an uncomfortable, ‎troubling sensation that can feel like spinning, unsteadiness, or light-headedness. Some people ‎will often say they have a migraine when actually they do not. Similarly, some people with a ‎migraine think that they simply have a ‘bad headache’. ‎

‎  Migraines tent to be on the side of the head only (they are unilateral). Many people know ‎that a migraine is going to occur because they might feel irritable, unduly tired, crave certain ‎foods or even yawn excessively for hours or even days before it begins. This period is called ‎the ‘prodrome’. Some people then experience an aura which tends to begin just before the ‎migraine itself. This aura is often in the form of a visual disturbance. For those people who ‎have an aura, it can be useful warning to enable them to can take a painkiller or seek out a ‎quiet place before the migraine starts properly.‎

‎  In contrast with headache, it can be any pain in the head which is not a migraine. The most ‎common true headache is the tension-type, which might be called a ‘stress headache’ by your ‎doctor. Stress headaches are the ordinary everyday headaches that most people have every ‎now and then, and they are usually brought on by some kind of muscular stress in the neck ‎and shoulder. This type of headache can be the result of psychological stress, because stressed ‎people hunch up and tense their back and neck muscles even if they are not aware of it. ‎Tension-type headaches can last for days but are often relieved quite quickly it the person ‎takes some aspirin or other painkiller. They tend to be all over the head, commonly feeling as ‎if someone has put a tight band around the head. They do not tend to be associated with ‎other symptoms, unlike migraine , although some sickness can occur.‎

‎  Cluster headaches are rarer than migraines or tension type headaches, but are still the third ‎most common. If you have a cluster headache, you will probably be in intense pain in your ‎eye socket, and the eye might be red and weeping. The terrible pain will be last up to a few ‎hours and go away again only to return later. Cluster headaches are very distressing for their ‎sufferers, and the pain is so strong that they can do nothing during an attack other than try to ‎cope with it. Getting on with household chores or watching TV are generally not options. The ‎pain is too intense to allow you to do everyday things, and sufferers often dance or pace ‎around to try to relieve the agony.‎

‎  Most people – that is, around 90 per cent – have primary headaches. These are headaches ‎which exist entirely on their own and are not related to any other medical condition. Quite ‎simply, they are headaches that are not really a sign of any other underlying disease or illness.‎

‎  Secondary headaches, on the other hand, are related to other conditions, and they are ‎known as ‘secondary’ because they are a ‘secondary symptom’. These types of headache ‎occur precisely because you have some other physical problem. For example, your headache ‎may be the result of high blood pressure (hypertension) and people with diabetes can get ‎headaches for the same reason. ‎
‎  The first time anyone has a headache (probably as a baby) it is obviously an acute headache, ‎because there is no history attached to it. Most of us go through life having occasional ‎headaches and they are generally seen as individual acute episodes (you will also find that ‎doctors talk of ‘episodic’ versus ‘chronic’ headaches and migraines). Similarly, if someone has ‎an outburst of eczema one every 10 years we would also regard this as acute. As you can see, ‎therefore, the acute/chronic distinction is really about the frequency of occurrence of ‎something, not its strength, and not even that it recurs. Our difficulties arise when we try to ‎pin down exactly some borderline between acute and chronic headaches, or indeed other ‎conditions, because that is very difficult to do.‎
‎  Headaches can stem from many of the things we eat or the things missing from our diet, ‎disorder sleep, stress, noise, lighting, environmental pollution, hangover, overwork, and a ‎myriad of other factors. But here will be explained two of the causes only. ‎

‎  In some societies, arguably most headaches occur as a result of ‘the night before’. Drinking ‎alcohol (hangover) in large amounts poisons the body, and the result, for most people is a ‎headache the next day. Binge drinkers are especially prone to this, but moderate drinkers (a ‎glass of wine with a meal each day, for instance) rarely experience a hangover. The headache ‎that is felt from a hangover is due to inflammation of the meninges, a membrane covering the ‎brain. The brain itself is not sore, since that is not possible, but the sac of skin surrounding it ‎has lots of nerve cells that can respond to poisoning.‎

‎  Next on the list is stress. Stress probably affects all human beings, at least to some extent. In ‎some societies it is ; caused by interpersonal conflict (arguments and disagreements, for ‎instance) and by work or study ; in others it may even be caused by fear for one’s life (in ‎dangerous political situations or in places where people are at risk from life-threatening ‎events). In everyday life, even minor hassles, as they are called, contribute to stress. Queuing ‎at the bank or waiting for a late train, having minor disputes with our neighbours, needing ‎minor repairs to our cars and being served the wrong dish in a restaurant are all examples of ‎little stressors that can add up for us. ‎

‎ Stress is linked with anxiety and worry and all contribute to headaches. Tension-type ‎headache are often called ‘stress headaches’ because they are often caused by muscle tension ‎in the neck. We tend to tense up when stressed, hence the therapeutic value of a massage to ‎relax us. ‎

‎  Health psychologists have spent many years studying stress because it can damage the body ‎and the mind significantly and is so common. Therefore, a stressed person is much more likely ‎to become ill, especially with viral infections such as colds and influenza. ‎

‎  The following story shows how much a so-called normal headache, the tension-type, can ‎easily be confused with migraine. In some cases, the main difference is in intensity rather than ‎quality. In all of the talk about how terrible migraine can be, it is easy to forget the suffering ‎that tension-type headaches, especially chronic ones, can bring. ‎

‎  “The worst thing about tension headaches is that other people don’t always sympathy ‎because they just think I am having normal, everyday headaches. It’s true, I am, but I don’t ‎just get headaches like anyone else. I think they are worse, if only because I have them quite ‎regularly.‎

‎  I have headaches 10 to 20 times a month. What’s more worrying is that I have had them for ‎years and years at this level. They are a dull pain, and they just don’t go away. They are worse ‎when I move my head. Sometimes I feel sick, but not always, and once I also had blurred ‎vision. At first I thought I had migraines, but the doctor ruled that out. When I get them, they ‎can last two or three days, and I stop being able to concentrate on things because the constant ‎pain just gets me down. Of late, the doctor has been suggesting that I might be depressed. ‎The trouble is, he’s right, but it’s not that simple because I think that anyone who had these ‎headaches for so long would start to get depressed anyway. What I mean is that depressed ‎people hate getting up in the morning, and so do I, but in my case it is often because I have ‎gone to bed with a headache and woken up with a headache and know that I’m going to have ‎headache all day unless I am lucky and painkillers get rid of it, which they do sometimes but ‎not always. ‎

‎  I have tried lots of things to deal with them, and painkillers seem to be the best, but I don’t ‎want to use them very often because I know they are not good for me in the long run. If my ‎husband massages my shoulders I very often get relief, but it doesn’t always last, and the ‎headache can come back an hour after he stops. I have also tried Indian head massage, and ‎that works too, but I can’t get someone to do that to me at three in the morning when I can’t ‎sleep and my head feels like it is in a vice. ‎

‎  Anyone who has headaches like mine has a job on their hands. Sometimes, I wish I had ‎migraines instead, because I know that they hurt more, but from what I have heard they don’t ‎take up as much of your time. The problem with chronic headaches is that it’s hard to get ‎anything done when half of your life is spent with pain in the head.”‎

Sue, 55‎
‎  Other story, we can try to remember our own experiences, when facing with headache. ‎Although it is not chronic like the above story, it’s already bothered our life. Usually, students ‎face headache cause by stress or sleep disorders. When we got a lot of task that we do not ‎done yet, we will feel stressed. Then we will force ourselves to do not sleep as to complete all ‎our tasks. Other problem will occur actually, which is headache. When the disease comes, we ‎have no more intention to complete our works. Our brain can’t work like normal anymore, so ‎we will only choose to go to sleep. Rest our pain mind. ‎

‎  We actually can avoid this headache to happen. In Islam, it is already prohibited for us to do ‎not drink the alcohol. The prove is narrated by Abdullah ibn Umar, Allah's ‎Messenger saw said, "If anyone drinks wine Allah will not accept prayer from him for forty ‎days, but if he repents Allah will forgive him. If he repeats the offence Allah will not accept ‎prayer from him for forty days, but if he repents Allah will forgive him. If he again repeats ‎the offence Allah will not accept prayer from him for forty days, but if he repents Allah will ‎forgive him. If he repeats it a fourth time Allah will not accept prayer from him for forty ‎days, and if he repents Allah will not forgive him, but will give him to drink of the river of ‎the fluid flowing from the inhabitants of Hell."‎

‎  But from international views, they allow people to drink the wine but not drinking it to ‎excess. From their words ; “The best way to avoid a hangover is by not drinking alcohol to ‎excess, but if you do then drink large quantities of water before going to sleep. The best ‎advice is to drink water along with the alcohol, volume for volume. So, for every glass of ‎wine you drink, have a glass of water.” ‎
‎  Allah knows the best for His slaves. Allah knows that the alcohol will bring many problems/ ‎diseases to us, thatis why Allah prohibited it. How beautiful is Islam.‎

‎  In addition, Islam also has many ways to avoid stress from being happened. For example, ‎Islam teaches us to be patient, accept all what Allah gives and do not give, do not mad and ‎stay calm in whatever situation. Narrated from Abu Huraira, Allah's Messenger saw said, ‎‎"Allah says, 'I have nothing to give but Paradise as a reward to my believer slave, who, if I ‎cause his dear friend (or relative) to die, remains patient (and hopes for Allah's Reward)."‎

‎  However, in international views (other than Islam), most of them avoid stress by drink the ‎wine. “You can use alcohol when you are stress or any drug in order to relax your mind”. ‎Their perspective is exactly wrong as drink the alcohol or take drugs will cause many other ‎problems and will probably cause the headache. It will never reduce stress and avoid ‎headache, but encourage them. ‎
‎  For me, this illness or other illness can be avoid if we truly keep away from what Allah ban ‎and follow all what Allah asked us to do. Allah already guided us with good rules. So we ‎must follow in order to take care all what Allah gave to us.‎

‎  As a conclusion, headache looks simple and normal, but it actually has many branches that ‎we need to know. We have to spend our time to see a doctor (when we are facing the pain) ‎and ask doctor, what category of headaches we are facing. Is it a bad headache or migraine? ‎Is it acute or chronic? If acute, don’t feel satisfied, because it may change to chronic. The ‎most important thing is to avoid ourselves to be stressed, as it is one of the factors to get ‎headache.‎

DISEASE: Gastritis





Gastritis is an inflammation of the lining of the stomach, and has many possible ‎causes. The main acute causes are excessive alcohol consumption or prolonged use of ‎ non steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (also known as NSAIDs) such as aspirin or ibuprofen. ‎Sometimes gastritis develops after major surgery, traumatic injury, burns, or severe infections. ‎Gastritis may also occur in those who have had weight loss surgery resulting in the banding or ‎reconstruction of the digestive tract. Chronic causes are infection with bacteria, ‎primarily Helicobacter pylori, chronic bile reflux, stress and certain autoimmune disorders can ‎cause gastritis as well. The most common symptom is abdominal upset or pain. Other ‎symptoms are indigestion, abdominal bloating, nausea, and vomiting and pernicious anemia. ‎Some may have a feeling of fullness or burning in the upper abdomen.  A gastroscopy, blood ‎test, complete blood count test, or a stool test may be used to diagnose gastritis. Treatment ‎includes taking antacids or other medicines, such as proton pump inhibitors or antibiotics, and ‎avoiding hot or spicy foods. For those with pernicious anemia, B12 injections are given ‎. ‎

Gastritis is the combination of two words, gastric and itis. Here, gastrium or gastric ‎means the stomach and itis refer to the inflammation. Meaning to say, gastritis is the ‎inflammation of stomach. More specifically, gastritis is nothing but the inflammation of the ‎mucus lining of the stomach. Stomach is the first main digestive organ of the digestive track. ‎It is the first hollow organ (oesophagus is the pipe and not hollow organ as big as stomach) ‎where the food is brought. Stomach mixes certain secretions with the food and churns it. The ‎chime is then moved forward. Any irritation present in the stomach will make its lining ‎inflamed producing the condition called as gastritis. Gas and diarrhea may join gastritis ‎depending upon the cause ‎. ‎

Causes of Gastritis are regular and long term usage of aspirin or anti-inflammatory ‎drugs like ibuprofen or naproxen. Excessive alcohol consumption and smoking, ‎or Helicobacter Pylori(H.Pylori) bacteria infection in the stomach are the common causes too. ‎Aspirin can be seen as a common drug as there are more than 300 drugs found to contain ‎certain form of aspirin in it. Other less commonly causes of gastritis include consumption ‎‎(eating or drinking) of corrosive substances that will damage the stomach lining e.g. acid, ‎poison or lye. Bile reflux, pernicious anemia (or any other autoimmune disorders), prescription ‎of steroids (e.g. prednisone), potassium supplements or iron tablets, infections like ‎tuberculosis, syphilis, fungal infections, parasites and worms are some other causes too. Lye is ‎an alkaline substance and it is corrosive, mainly used in the making of soap, production of ‎biodiesel and other household uses. Bile reflux refers to bile backflow from bile tract into the ‎stomach. After medical procedure like endoscopy, gastrectomy (removal of part of the ‎stomach), radiation therapy or treatment for cancer (musositis), patients who had chronic ‎vomiting, critically ill or injured after an accident, or having stress may develop gastritis. Too ‎much stress will result in excess gastric acid secreted in our stomach and damage the ‎protective layer of the stomach in long term. Endoscopy is a medical surgery that involves ‎scoping the stomach with a physical small-lighted tube to check for serious medical ‎conditions like stomach ulcers, polyps or in worse case, stomach cancer. In rare cases, ‎swallowing of foreign objects like pins or paper clips may result in gastritis too ‎.‎

Many people with gastritis experience no symptoms at all. However, upper ‎central abdominal pain is the most common symptom is the pain may be dull, vague, burning, ‎aching, gnawing, sore, or sharp. Pain is usually located in the upper central portion of ‎the abdomen, but it may occur anywhere from the upper left portion of the abdomen around ‎to the back. Besides that, it causes Nausea, Vomiting (if present, may be clear, green or ‎yellow, blood-streaked, or completely bloody, depending on the severity of the ‎stomach inflammation), Belching (if present, usually does not relieve the pain much), ‎Bloating, feeling full only after a few bites of food, loss of appetite, unexplained weight loss.‎

Treatment usually involves taking drugs to reduce stomach acid and thereby help ‎relieve symptoms and promote healing (Stomach acid irritates the inflamed tissue in the ‎stomach). Antacids or other medications, such as Tagamet (to decrease or neutralize gastric ‎acid in the stomach) or proton pump inhibitors such as Prilosec, will usually eliminate the ‎symptoms and promote healing. Medications known to cause gastritis should be discontinued. ‎Gastritis caused by pernicious anemia is treated with vitamin B12. Avoidance of certain ‎foods, beverages, or medicines may also be recommended. Following a diet recommended for ‎peptic ulcer sufferers may help. For recommended foods, and foods to avoid, you can follow ‎these foods lists. If your gastritis is caused by an infection, that problem may be treated as ‎well. For example, the doctor might prescribe antibiotics to clear up H. pylori infection. Once ‎the underlying problem disappears, the gastritis usually does too. Talk to your doctor before ‎stopping any medicine or starting any gastritis treatment on your own. For instance, if the ‎gastritis is acute and likely caused by too much alcohol or NSAID use, the stoppage of these ‎substances may eliminate the condition. If gastritis is chronic or is caused by the H. pylori ‎bacteria, you may be given antibiotics, medications (prescription or over-the-counter) to block ‎or reduce acid production, or antacids that neutralize stomach acid. In some cases, probiotics ‎are recommended to help suppress the H. pylori infection. Probiotics are helpful if taking ‎antibiotics to combat the H. pylori, because they help to replace the good bacteria being ‎destroyed by the antibiotics ‎. ‎

Medications that block acid production and promote healing.Proton pump inhibitors ‎reduce acid by blocking the action of the parts of cells that produce acid. These drugs include ‎the prescription and over-the-counter medications omeprazole (Prilosec), lansoprazole ‎‎(Prevacid), rabeprazole (Aciphex), esomeprazole (Nexium), dexlansoprazole (Dexilant) and ‎pantoprazole (Protonix). Long-term use of proton pump inhibitors, particularly at high doses, ‎may increase your risk of hip, wrist and spine fractures. Ask your doctor whether a calcium ‎supplement may reduce this risk. Medications to reduce acid production. Acid blockers — ‎also called histamine (H-2) blockers — reduce the amount of acid released into your digestive ‎tract, which relieves gastritis pain and encourages healing. Available by prescription or over-‎the-counter, acid blockers include ranitidine (Zantac), famotidine (Pepcid), cimetidine ‎‎(Tagamet) and nizatidine (Axid). Antacids that neutralize stomach acid. Your doctor may ‎include an antacid in your drug regimen. Antacids neutralize existing stomach acid and can ‎provide rapid pain relief. Side effects can include constipation or diarrhea, depending on the ‎main ingredients. Amoxicillin is the most commonly prescribed antibiotic for the treatment of ‎gastritis. H. Pylori infections respond quite well to this gastritis medicine. The patient is ‎supposed to follow this antibiotic therapy for a period of 10-12 days to completely eradicate ‎the bacterial infection. Clarithromycin is yet another antibiotic that can help to eliminate ‎bacterial infections of the stomach. This oral gastritis prescription medicine is powerful ‎enough to kill as well as stop the growth of H. Pylori. Stomach ulcers caused by H.pylori are ‎also treated with clarithromycin.‎

The first true story is, More than 1,400 years ago Allah and His messenger Prophet ‎Muhammad (S.A.W), told us that honey can heal a variety of medicinal problems. Allah says ‎in the Quran, ‎ ‎"And the lord inspired the bee, saying: Take your habitations in the mountains ‎and in the trees and in what they erect. Then, eat of all fruits and follow the ways of your ‎Lord made easy (for you)'. There comes forth from their bellies a drink of varying colour ‎wherein is healing for men. Verily in this is indeed a sign for people who think." The Prophet ‎‎(S.A.W) has also told us of the healing found within honey for a variety of medical problems, ‎including stomach ailments. One hadeeth, reported by Bukhari, states that a man came to the ‎Prophet (S.A.W), because his brother had a stomach disorder. The Prophet said "Let him ‎drink honey." The man returned a second time and again the Prophet (S.A.W), responded ‎again, "Let him drink honey." The man returned again, and said "I have done that." The ‎Prophet then responded, "Allah has said the truth, but your brother's stomach has told a lie. ‎Let him drink honey." He drank it and was cured. Tirmithi, Ibn Majah and Baihaqi also ‎reported that the Prophet (S.A.W), said "Make use of the two remedies: honey and the ‎Quran."‎

The second true story is by Connie; she expressed ‘I had surgery for stomach cancer in ‎September and 1/2 of my stomach was removed. Also, after surgery I had 3 blood clots pass ‎through my heart and also had MERSA. It was all very painful and scary; but, even though ‎my oncologist jokes that they tried to kill me 3 times, he shakes his head and can only say I ‎caught it in time while I was still healthy. I am now on Gleevic which is supposed to help ‎with stomach tumors and Warfarin for my thick blood. I have had no bad affects from either. ‎I originally went to the doctor because I was very tired and my blood tests showed that my ‎red blood cells were disappearing fast. They did the gastro tests showing an ulcer and another ‎mass. Even a scan could not identify what it was, therefore, the surgery. I can only believe ‎that God has a reason for keeping me here. Today, at 67 I am retired but still work 12 hours a ‎week at the college I am affiliated with and only once in a while feel tired. The doctor is ‎amazed because I am eating just about everything’ It shows that Connie faced Gastritis and ‎managed to cure it before the Gastritis spread in her stomach. ‎

The third is about a 75 years old lady Mrs B. P. (Patient reference No. L7924) came ‎with the complaint of burning pain in the abdomen since 18 months. She was diagnosed ‎having chronic gastritis and duodenitis with superficial ulcerations in the stomach. She had no ‎history of nausea, vomiting, bleeding from the gastrointestinal tract ‎. Her burning pain was ‎relieved to an extent by cold milk. She was on antacids which does not relieve her burning ‎pain at all. Based on her totality and taking into account her illness, Sulphuric Acid 200 was ‎prescribed to her. After about 6 months of regular treatment, patient reports of 75 to 80% ‎relief in her burning pain. She can pass stools with much ease, without the use of laxatives. ‎She has been off antacids since 2 months. She is more comfortable, her mood is more ‎cheerful, is able to do her daily activities. This case illustrates to us that even obstinate cases ‎of gastritis and duodenitis that do not respond to conventional treatment show excellent ‎response to Homoeopathic treatment.‎

Based on Islamic perspective, according to the scholars of hadith, barley is very ‎nutritious and provides energy for the body, besides this is also beneficial in pharyngitis and ‎cough. It resolves the inflammation of the stomach (Gastritis), expels the toxins from the ‎body and a good diuretic. It quenches the thirst. Barley water is a good remedy in kidney ‎problem, to quench the thirst and provide the best nutrition for indisposed and weak persons. ‎Preparation of Barley water is described by ‎ Ibn Al-Qayyim. According to him, barley with ‎five times water should be boiled, till the contents become 3/4 and the colour of the mixture ‎becomes milky. Meanwhile, according to ‎ Firdous Al-Hikmat the suspension prepared from ‎one part of barley and fifteen part of water until after boiling this volume becomes 2/3rd of its ‎basic solution, is beneficial for at least hundred diseases of the body.‎

The international scholars are by Barry Marshall which was born in Western ‎Australia in 1951 and after graduating from medical school in Perth became a junior doctor in ‎gastroenterology in the early 1980s.  He wanted an interesting research project and came into ‎contact with a colleague Robin Warren who as a pathologist had observed small curved ‎bacteria in stomach biopsies taken from patients with acute gastritis.  Neither knew the ‎significance of these findings. Then, quite by accident, one of the patients whose stomach ‎biopsy had contained the unidentified bacteria reported that following a course of antibiotics ‎for a chest infection, his indigestion had improved.  Barry Marshall promptly performed an ‎endoscopy to inspect the stomach wall and found the bacteria had disappeared. Since the ‎patients’ symptoms and the bacteria in the stomach had vanished after antibiotics, he drew ‎the obvious conclusion that the organisms might have been the cause of those symptoms. This ‎revelation sparked a flurry of excitement and activity.  Over the next 12 weeks Dr Marshall ‎performed gastroscopies on many more patients and found a high prevalence of bacterial ‎infections in those with gastritis and in every single patient with peptic ulcer ‎. ‎

Besides Marshall, John Robin Warren is one of the international scholars. He ‎received his MBBS degree from the University of Adelaide, having completed his high ‎school education at St Peter's College, Adelaide. In 1967 he was admitted into the Royal ‎College of Pathologists of Australasia and became a senior pathologist at the Royal Perth ‎Hospital where he spent the majority of his career. At the University of Western ‎Australia with his colleague Barry J. Marshall, Warren proved that the bacterium is the cause ‎of stomach ulcers. Warren helped develop a convenient diagnostic test (14C-urea breath-test) ‎for detecting H. pylori in ulcer patients. In 2005, Warren and Marshall were awarded ‎the Nobel Prize in Medicine.‎

In my perspective, Gastritis needs to have an early cure so that the infection does not ‎spread more widely in the stomach. The longer it stays the pain it gets. That is based on my ‎perspective. Besides that, people need to get a self-precaution in term of anything. It is better ‎to take precaution to avoid Gastritis. Nowadays, people are lucky because of there are ‎medicine that can cure Gastritis. Even though it is good for us people but still, people should ‎alert with this kind of disease. Gastritis literally means inflammation of the stomach. This term ‎may refer to acute gastritis or chronic gastritis, two very different disease entities. ‎

In conclusion, in patients with atrophic gastritis, the only histological evaluation of ‎Helicobacter-like organisms colonization in gastric biopsy specimens, appeared to ‎underestimate the true prevalence of current HP infection and the importance of the ‎bacterium in the pathogenesis and progression of such disease. Since HP infection is often ‎associated with an increase of proliferative index, the eradication of HP could induce a ‎musical protective effect against the other carcinogen factors, although it is extremely unlikely ‎that it can promote the regeneration of a normal gastric mucosa. Gastritis is one of the most ‎common health conditions. It occurs when the stomach lining becomes inflamed and swollen. ‎Gastritis can be brief and sudden (acute gastritis) or linger for months or years (chronic ‎gastritis). Gastritis can have multiple causes and treatment depends on the exact cause. A ‎common condition, it accounts for approximately 1.8-2.1 million visits to doctors’ offices ‎such year. Gastritis has several causes and treatment depends on figuring out what caused it ‎in the first place. Treatment depends on removing those stresses to the stomach lining, which ‎may involve lifestyle changes. A number of traditional and natural medications target its ‎symptoms and causes.‎

As we all know, that every disease is common in every people’s life. Gastritis is one of ‎them. Allah is sovereign over all His creation. He controls all that happens in the world; ‎nothing happens apart from His wish and determining. “If Allah touch thee with affliction, ‎none can remove it but He: if He touch thee with happiness, He hath power over all things.”‎ ‎ ‎Anything cannot be completed without the permission from Allah S.W.T The Almighty.‎



DISEASE: OBESITY



                                             


Obesity will be the major health chronic problem of this century. Obesity have ‎reached epidermic proportions in some nations and as the Information Age  and the global ‎economy bring homogeneity to life styles. Its incidence in rapidly increasing in developing ‎nations and traditional cultures. Although the underlying cause are debated, the social and ‎economic ramifications of this problem can no longer be ignored. Unfortunately , despite the ‎vast medical literature on the topic, progress in understanding obesity has no kept pace with ‎the magnitude of the problem . Nevertheless , new basic and clinical research has advanced ‎the field dramatically.‎

Malaysia has been experiencing a rapid phase of industrialization and urbanization in ‎recent decades and has often been recognized as a role model for developing economies. ‎Statistics available from several Ministries for the last two decades suggest that as the ‎population achieve affluence, their intake of energy, fats and sugars increase, as reflected in ‎the rising and now substantial size of the food importation bills. The ‘westernization’ of global ‎eating habits has also brought about an increase in the number of fast-food outlets in Malaysia ‎during the last decade.WHO further projects that by 2015 , approximately 2.3 billion adults ‎will be overweight and more than 700 million will be obese. At least 20 million children under ‎the age of 5 years are overweight globally in 2005. Once considered a problem only in high ‎income countries, overweight and obesity are now dramatically on the rise in low and middle ‎income countries, particularly in urban settings.‎
Until fairly recently, doctors paid little attention to their patient’s weight or body type. ‎Being “portly” or “stout” was a sign of wealth in the early twentieth century. Then doctors ‎begun to regard physical mass and body fat as important markers of health. Weight ‎measurement alone does not distinguish between pounds from body fat and those from lean ‎body mass or muscle. Being overweight means having an access of total body weight based ‎on population averages for people of your same height. And body type. Athletes and very ‎muscular people may be overweight, but that does not mean they obese. Obesity is an access ‎of body fat regardless of weight. In other resource, obesity is an excess proportion of total ‎body fat that may impair health . A person is considered obese when his or her weight is 20% ‎or more above normal weight. Obesity means having too much body fat. It is different from ‎being overweight, which means weighing too much.‎ ‎ Overweight and obese people are at risk ‎for many serious medical conditions. Obesity is not just a cosmetic consideration; it is a dire ‎dilemma directly harmful to one's health. In the United States, roughly 300,000 deaths per ‎year are directly related to obesity, and more than 80% of these deaths are in patients with a ‎BMI over 30. For patients with a BMI over 40, life expectancy is reduces significantly (as ‎much as 20 years for men and five years for women). Obesity also increases the risk of ‎developing a number of chronic diseases.‎ ‎ The term “obesity” comes from the Latin obedere ‎which means “overeat”. Ob means “over” and edere means “to eat”. Obesity occurs when ‎your body stores too much fat. This lead to an unhealthy weight gain. “unhealthy” is the key ‎word her. Being obese is not same as being overweight. Being overweight is simply mean the ‎people overweight is more than is typical for people of same height and age.‎
Health-care experts have developed tools for measuring healthy weight and body mass. The ‎most widely used measurement of adult weight is body mass index (BMI) , which measures ‎your weight in relation to your height. A formula yields a number that provides more accurate ‎measures of body fat. Belgian scientist Adolpha Quetelet came up with the BMI method. Its ‎calculations are based on the metric system of measurement. BMI is calculated by dividing ‎the weight in kg by the square of the height in meter. Health experts say that , for adults, a ‎BMI of 18.5 and 24.9 represent ideal weight. Research  shows that people who have BMI  of ‎‎25 to 29.9 are described as overweight. And those with a BMI between 30 and 39.9 are ‎termed obese. A BMI of 40 or more usually means having more than 45 kg of excess weight.  ‎Weight experts label people with BMI in this range as morbidly obese. Their weight may be ‎life-threatening because many health problem occur with this excess.‎
Other more accurate methods for measuring body mass include hydrodensitometry and ‎dual x-ray absorptiometry (DXA). Hydrodensitometry uses a tank of water to weight ‎someone. Because the densities of bone and muscle are higher than water and fat is less dense ‎than water, doctors can compare the weight of the person out of the water with the submersed ‎weight. They use a standard formula to come up with relative fat-to-lean composition. In ‎DXA , an X-ray machines scans the entire body and shows exactly where the fat is ‎distributed. Doctors also use skin fold testing this is a kind of pinch test using a device known ‎as a skin caliper. Skin fold testing measures the thickness of fat beneath the skin at certain ‎points on the body and compares result with healthy norms.‎
The fundamental cause of obesity and overweight is an energy imbalance between ‎colories consumed on one hand and calories expended on the other hand. Obesity occurs ‎when a person consumes more calories than he or she burns. For many people this boils down ‎to eating too much and exercising too little. The Holy Prophet warned us about the dangers ‎and health hazards of overeating. He advised us to fill our stomach with 1/3 food, 1/3 for ‎drink, and 1/3 for air.‎ ‎ ‎
Holy Prophet saying: “No human ever filled a vessel worse than the stomach. Sufficient for ‎any son of Adam are some morsels to keep his back straight. But if it must be, then one third ‎for his food, one third for his drink and one third for his breath.” ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ Ibn Masaweh, a Muslim ‎doctor, said after reading this hadith: “If the people only used these words, they would avoid ‎all diseases and maladies and the clinics and pharmacies would be idle.”‎
But there are other factors that also play a role in obesity,one of them is age, as you get ‎older, your body's ability to metabolize food slows down and you do not require as many ‎calories to maintain your weight. This is why people note that they eat the same and do the ‎same activities as they did when they were 20 years old, but at age 40, gain weight. Next ‎factor is gender. Women tend to be more overweight than men. Men have a higher resting ‎metabolic rate meaning they burn more energy at rest than women, so men require more ‎calories to maintain their body weight. Additionally, when women become postmenopausal, ‎their metabolic rate decreases. That is partly why many women gain weight after menopause.‎
Obesity (and thinness) tends to run in families. In a study of adults who were adopted ‎as children, researchers found that participating adult weights were closer to their biological ‎parents' weights than their adoptive parents'. The environment provided by the adoptive ‎family apparently had less influence on the development of obesity than the person's genetic ‎makeup. In fact, if your biological mother is heavy as an adult, there is approximately a 75% ‎chance that you will be heavy. If your biological mother is thin, there is also a 75% chance that ‎you will be thin. Nevertheless, people who feel that their genes have doomed them to a ‎lifetime of obesity should take heart. Many people genetically predisposed to obesity do not ‎become obese or are able to lose weight and keep it off. ‎
There are a lot of scholar in economy either in islamic scholar or international scholar.Every ‎scholar have their own perspective and studies result. In islamic scholar, Ibnu Sina has ‎touched about obesity in medical theory. He said disease not specific to one part. For Ibnu ‎Sina, conditions not specific to one bodily part. If one is obese he or she has tendency to face ‎many  obesity related health risks and problems.  Obesity is also linked to many health ‎conditions like diabetes, cancer, breathing problems and sleep apnea.‎
Although Roman were famous gorging at sumptuous banquets, obesity was frowned ‎up. The Roman physician Galen (c. 129-199) was the first to Davide obese people into types. ‎The first was moderate obesity , which Galen saw as a sequence of life and aging. This type ‎was acceptable and show economic success. The second type immoderate obesity was a ‎character flaw from a life of overindulgence and lust.Galen believed that people with second ‎type, of obesity was impossible to treat and were defiant in nature. He even wrote of his ‎struggle with overindulgence in his on work On Passions.‎
Why don’t we just follow the advice? Why on earth do we have an obesity problem, ‎let alone an epidemic, when we so desperately want to be slim?Zoë Harcombe set out to ‎answer that question in the late 1980’s and her book The Obesity Epidemic: What caused it? ‎How can we stop it? is the culmination of that quest. At the time of starting her research, ‎obesity levels for men and women in the UK had reached double figures. By the end of the ‎millennium, UK obesity rates were 22.6% and 25.8% for men and women respectively and ‎have worsened further since.‎
In international scholar, Zoë was the first person from her state school to graduate ‎from Cambridge University, having won a scholarship to read mathematics/economics at this ‎famous institution. The paradox of escalating obesity and overwhelming desire to be slim has ‎been a constant fascination to her.During her 20′s (and before the Internet made research ‎relatively easy), Zoë discovered that there are three medical conditions that cause insatiable ‎food cravings. She also experienced all three first hand. And so her first book came about – ‎the answer to the million dollar question. Why do you overeat? When all you want is to be ‎slim was published in 2004 and it continues to change the lives of people who read it.‎
Since putting her own advice into practice, Zoe has lived craving free and a constant 8 ‎stone for over 15 years.“Stop Counting Calories & Start Losing Weight: The Harcombe Diet” ‎was published in 2008, to share the message as simply and passionately as possible with ‎readers world-wide. By popular demand, a recipe book came out at the same time. Zoë has ‎also appeared on TV and Radio and writes regularly for magazines and newspapers. ‎
Zoë is a qualified nutritionist with a Diploma in Diet & Nutrition and a Diploma in Clinical ‎Weight Management, but she is first and foremost an obesity researcher. She works ‎exclusively in the area of weight and obesity and reads, writes and talks about obesity as ‎many hours as possible, seven days a week. Her complete goal and drive is to reverse the ‎obesity epidemic. She has clear views on how it started and what we need to do to stop it and ‎these were published in 2010 in the 134,000 word book: “The Obesity Epidemic: What caused ‎it? How can we stop it?“.Ref : Colleen S.W. Rand and Alex M. C. Macgregor, “Successful ‎weight loss following obesity surgery and the perceived liability of morbid obesity”, ‎International Journal of Obesity, (1991).‎
Among women who have been treated for breast cancer, heavier women are more ‎likely to have their disease come back and more likely to die of cancer, according to a U.S. ‎study.Previous studies have tied obesity to a higher chance of getting breast cancer and a ‎worse outcome in women who have already been diagnosed.‎
But the current study, said lead researcher Joseph Sparano, associate chairman of ‎medical oncology at the Montefiore Einstein Center for Cancer Care in the Bronx, New ‎York."Obesity seemed to carry a higher risk of breast cancer recurrence and death, even in ‎women who were healthy at the time that they were diagnosed, and despite the fact that they ‎received the best available chemotherapy and hormone therapy," he said.‎
The relationship with weight may be because certain hormones that are linked to body ‎weight may also fuel tumor growth in the most common form of the disease, known as ‎estrogen receptor-positive cancer.Data for the study came from trials sponsored by the U.S. ‎National Cancer Institute of women with stage I, II and III breast cancer who were given ‎standardized treatment, with drug doses adjusted based on weight.Out of close to 5,000 ‎women treated for cancer, about one-third were obese and another one-third were ‎overweight.Over the next eight years, one in four women had their cancer come back and 891 ‎died - including 695 from breast cancer.‎

Sparano and his colleagues found that compared to women of normal weight, obese ‎women were 40 percent more likely to have a breast cancer recurrence over the study period ‎and 69 percent more likely to die from breast cancer or any other cause.Even among ‎overweight but not obese women, there was also a general trend toward a higher risk of ‎recurrence and death with increasing weight.‎

The link was especially strong for women with estrogen receptor-positive cancer, ‎which accounts for two-thirds of breast cancers.Although the new study can't prove that extra ‎weight and fat have a direct impact on certain breast cancers, Sparano said it was "biologically ‎plausible."Women carrying extra fat have been shown to make more estrogen, meaning that ‎this may fuel the growth of the estrogen receptor-positive tumors, he said."Insulin levels are ‎known to be higher in patients who are obese because they develop insulin resistance... (and) ‎insulin can stimulate the growth of breast cancer cells," he added.‎

This is true story about morbidly obese. I'm 24 years old and weigh 129 kgs and am 5'2 ‎in height and am the biggest in my family. although my other family members are big too, ‎nobody is as morbidly obese as me. i was very thin as a child but when puberty hit, i started ‎gaining weight and slowly food became my only friend. every time I'd have a fight or i felt ‎stressed out or sad or angry, I'd eat comfort foods and yes, i felt good afterwards but all this ‎has just made me become fatter and fatter with passing years and i cant seem to stop it. it has ‎gotten to the point where I have isolated myself from the world for the past 2 years, do not exit ‎the house. i have tried many times to change but only after a few days my will power dies and ‎i go back to my old ways, i know i need to do something now because at this rate i might end ‎up at the hospital and so i need help and support. my sister is supportive towards me but she ‎really doesn't understand all the problems of my weight, she doesn't know how it feels when ‎people humiliate me or mock me on the street because of my weight or how petrified i am of ‎small, fragile furniture. i was a very good student but somehow my weight issues have always ‎kept me from experiencing life as a normal teenager and young person, and so i made up for ‎the frustration of not having a boyfriend or friends by eating, wasting time watching TV and ‎spending excessive time on the Internet. its been almost 10 years since my weight problems ‎started and i think most of those years were spent making virtual friends than real ones, i ‎always ended up losing my real friends because i couldn't do activities with them or didn't feel cool ‎enough to be part of their gangs. I've been depressed throughout this time and often ‎contemplate ending my life. my family environment isn't very healthy because my parents split ‎up and I have also been sexually and verbally abused. i live with my mom and she hates me, ‎keeps cursing me for not working, for being so ugly and tells me that it would be better if i ‎died. i rebel by abusing her back and stuffing my face with more food. I'm tired of this life, of ‎so much sadness and tears, of feeling so under confident and defeated.‎

In my own perspective, there should be no reason for Muslims to be obese or for that ‎matter over weight. Because Islam is Syumul which is mean comprehensive. Guidelines for ‎healthy lifestyle are provided. We just need to follow that rule. InsyaAllah, with Allah ‎permission we can avoid from obesity. Unfortunately ,70% of the womenfolk in Gulf ‎countries are obese according to research and according to Economist, the countries with most ‎obese population are Muslim or Arab countries. This just shows that Muslims have a long way ‎to go to become better followers of Islam.‎

Lastly, what i want to remind is body was gift from Allah that we all must treat in the ‎best way. Eat to the point you are not hungry. Do not eat to the point you are being full. ‎Eating well can help decrease disease and cancer by 50%. The hazard of obesity can be prove ‎by holy Quran in “do not cast yourselves into destruction by your own hands”(2:195)‎

In conclusion, obesity is defined as abnormal or excessive fat accumulation that ‎presents a risk to health. It is the disease of this era which exhausts the resources of countries. ‎To understand why people become obese, it helps to understand how and why we store ‎fat.We may know the term “calorie” is linked with food. As usual Allah almighty in His holy ‎book preceded all scientists and researchers in solving different humanity's problems. Very ‎few people know that Islam has multiple ways of making sure that people do not become ‎obese, or for that matter even a little overweight. In fact a practicing Muslim should not be ‎Obese unless of course due to some medical condition. There are some listing of the ways in ‎which an Islamic lifestyle can keep us fit and healthy.‎

Firstly is with Ramadan Fasting. This is the most well known way. Fasting helps our ‎body in many different ways and the best way is by teaching our body discipline in eating. ‎People restrain them self from eating or drinking from dawn till sunset. After sunset they may ‎eat a bit more than the usual dinner, but is still less than eating two times and the junk food ‎that we keep stuffing ourselves with. (And those who, when they spend, are neither ‎extravagant nor niggardly, but hold a medium (way) between those (extremes).)(Sûrat Al-‎Furqân-verse67).Ramadan is a month to cure all eating disorders.‎

Next is walking to Mosque which is practising exercise. Praying in Mosque is highly ‎recommended and along with that its recommended walking to mosque. The more you walk ‎to mosque, the more rewards there are for the believers. One of the hadiths state, "The person ‎who will receive the highest reward for Salat (prayer) is the one who comes to perform it in ‎the mosque from the farthest distance."‎

Eating dates also one of action to prevent obese. Dates also known as Khajoor have ‎been mentioned in Quran and Hadith as a super food. Dates was one of the main nutritional ‎food used by the Arabs in the desert and was their main source of supply of many vitamins ‎and minerals. In Quran, Allah tells Mary (pbuh) via angel, "And shake the trunk of the palm ‎tree towards thee – thou wilt cause ripe dates to fall upon thee". Allah is emphasising a food ‎by name to tell us that its beneficial for us. We learn from the hadith that prophet (pbuh) said, ‎‎"When any of you breaks his fasting he should eat dates cause dates are blessing, if he didn’t ‎find dates then drink water cause water is purifying". Another hadith says, "A household that ‎has dates doesn’t feel hunger". Nowadays people feel ashamed of eating dates. They would ‎only eat it in Ramadan as its recommended but other times this super food is ignored as its ‎cheap.‎