E-Readers May Help People With Dyslexia

Reading is a fundamental need but many people face challenges and barriers to reading effectively. E-readers may be a solution for at least some people, such as those who have dyslexia, say researchers.

A study published in the journal PLOS One, says that the accessibility options available with e-readers are what makes the difference for some readers. The option that had the strongest effect was the ability to reduce the number of words per line, making them shorter than in traditional paper books. This allows the reader to focus more readily on the individual words in front of him or her and not be distracted by too many words of to either side.

Earlier studies in to how e-readers may help people with dyslexia have looked at how fonts and page formatting can be adjusted, but the strongest positive finding to date seems to be that reading is easier when there is more space between letters, as well as words, “counteracting an effect known as crowding that impairs object recognition in the presence of clutter, an effect observed to be more severe in many people with dyslexia,” wrote the authors.

E-readers can be polarizing - some people love them, others hate them - and their reasons vary considerably. However, if it does turn out that the devices can be helpful to people who have difficulty reading, then it would make sense to integrate them into their daily lives, particularly in schools, to boost the students' chances of success.

Yesterday Was World Sepsis Day 2013 - More Awareness Needed

Since 2011, the month of September has been Sepsis Awareness Month in the United States. Last year, September 13th was declared to be World Sepsis Day. The combination of the two, the month and the day, has raised the profile of this little known and little understood disease that kills so many.

Never heard of sepsis or not convinced it's a serious issue? Why not go have a look at the Sepsis Awareness Month Sepsis Victim Counter now and then go back for another look when you've finished reading this piece. See how many people have died in that short period of time. The counter will run throughout the month.

Sepsis Alliance, an organization that I work with, commissions an annual poll with Harris Interactive to gauge sepsis awareness in the United States. While there is some improvement, the results are still disappointing. Four in 10 adults in the United States have not heard the word sepsis. Even worse, many who have heard the word weren't sure what it is. How can we fight a disease so few people know of? The answer is, we can't - we need more awareness and more education.

Sepsis Awareness Month and World Sepsis Day are working. There were several stories online, in print, and on TV in the US, the UK, and elsewhere; many more than there were two years ago this month. People are talking about it, sharing their stories of having survived sepsis or losing a loved one to it.

So, you may be asking - what is sepsis? I've said how serious it is, how people don't know it, but I haven't told you what it is yet. It's very simple: it's your body's over reaction to infection. If you have an infection - influenza, pneumonia, an infected cut, a urinary tract infection, etc., - your body stimulates the systems to fight it. However, sometimes the body over reacts and it not only starts to fight the infection, it starts to fight the body too. As some people say, it's like friendly fire. As your body goes haywire, your blood begins to clot inside the blood vessels, depriving body tissues of much needed oxygen and other nutrients. Body organs begin to malfunction and even shut down. Death is a definite possibility. For many who survive, they live with limb amputations or organs that don't work properly. Many live with post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other cognitive issues. We call this post-sepsis syndrome. But if we think sepsis isn't recognized enough, post-sepsis syndrome is even worse.

It's not unusual for some healthcare professionals to say to a sepsis survivor that they're cured simply because they made it out of the hospital. But what many don't understand is that there are so many lasting issues that affect many of the survivors. Not everyone has problems after surviving sepsis - they recover and they get on with their lives - but others are left with issues that range from mild, nagging problems to life-changing ones.

While sepsis does affect more people on the opposite ends of the life spectrum (the very old and very young), as well as people who are already ill with other issues, it can strike the healthiest of people at any age, of any ethnicity, of any socioeconomic group. You can see a mosaic of faces, at the Faces of Sepsis - to see what this really means.

Often, pictures are better than words, so I recommend you have a look at these videos to learn more about sepsis. If you know about it, you can help protect yourself and loved ones. And don't forget to go back to look at the counter. Look and see how many people died while you were reading this.

Sepsis in Older Americans
In Practice

Do You Use E-Cigarettes?

E-cigarettes are the newest thing in tobacco-less nicotine intake. Many products have been launched and most failed, but the e-cigarettes seem to be here to stay. They're quickly becoming a very lucrative industry and - of course - the tobacco companies have taken notice and are trying to get in on the action as well.

What exactly is an e-cigarette? It's an electronic cigarette that has a small chamber in which you have your nicotine and additives. There's a battery that sets off the device, which produces vapour that you inhale. While many people still call it smoking (a visit to some e-cigarette forums show that even users often call it smoking), people are using the term "vaping" rather to describe the inhalation of the vapour.

As with most things, there are two sides of the story - and maybe a third, who knows for sure? The medical community, in general, doesn't like the e-cigarettes. There are others who feel that e-cigarettes are a great alternative to combustible cigarettes, because users don't get all the additives, such as tar.

I wrote a piece on the safety of e-cigarettes (What Are Electronic Cigarettes and How Safe Are They?) for which I interviewed a lung cancer specialist, as well as an e-cigarette advocate. As a nurse and someone who writes about health, I ended up agreeing with the physician's stance: inhaling vapours of nicotine and other substances isn't healthy. It might be healthIER than smoking a traditional cigarette, but that doesn't make it healthy.

In my mind, it's like saying, "Speeding is dangerous, but if you're going to speed, wear a seatbelt." Smoking is the speeding and e-cigarettes are the seatbelts.

I did receive several comments in response to my article. Not surprisingly, most were against what I wrote. A few were respectful, pointing out where they felt I went wrong, but - as is usually the case - some were angry and not too polite. That's to be expected, I guess. I was surprised though to get a couple of not-so-nice comments to another article I wrote for that same site, More Women Dying of Heart Disease, Yet Men Still Get More Treatment. That surprised me - one of the comments was that the article was just female propaganda. Go figure.

Anyway, back to the e-cigarettes. Do you use one or have you ever used one? What do  you think? Is it the lesser of two evils or is it a legitimate option, in your opinion?

Meditation: Sharing as I Start This New Journey

Do you meditate? Meditation is becoming increasingly popular as more people learn of its benefits and few drawbacks. This ancient practice helps not only the mind, but the body as well. Anxiety and stress are so prevalent in our society today, we need to do something about them. (Identifying Anxiety and Seeking Help) Some people undergoing treatments for serious illnesses such as cancer have found that meditation helps them cope with the side effects and it gives them another tool with which to fight their disease. Meditation helps reduce pain levels and stress; it can even lower blood pressure. Meditation makes people happier and more focused. And it can be done anywhere by anyone.

Meditation in its various forms has been studied and much as been written. Even the New York Times offered an opinion on it (Morality of Meditation) earlier this month. So what's not to like about meditation? Why doesn't everyone meditate? That's a great question, particularly since I am embarking on a meditation path, seriously for a change.

I've tried meditating before, although "trying" is a relative term. I'm not one to say that I'm too busy, because I know that if something is important enough to me, I will make time for it. But every time I tried, I complained about how my mind wandered too much, I was bored, I wasn't able to do it. The funny thing is, I don't have any problems sitting and doing nothing with just my thoughts to keep me company. For example, I like being on a bus or plane, just being there. But as I just wrote that, I realized it's not the same thing. I'm not just being there, along with my thoughts.  I'm also watching, listening, observing life around me.

I used to say that I was really trying - was I? I'm not so sure. But the past year has been a year of change for me. Between going to the gym and getting into shape - enough that I can enjoy a 20 km bike ride along the waterfront in less than an hour without feeling like I'm going to collapse - and working hard on my thoughts and how I feel about myself in relation to the world, maybe the time is right now to really work on meditation. The trick is to find what is right for me.

I have tried the just sitting there and meditate approach. Didn't work for me. I've had two psychologists give me recordings that they have made. Didn't work for me. I've tried yoga. Nope, didn't work (but I haven't given up. More on that in another blog post). I've bought a few meditation CDs. No go. So what to do?

Someone I trust and respect suggested I try a program that uses neuro-audio technology that he uses. I had to buy it, so I am taking a chance but I felt confident with the recommendation. I ordered the demo CD first and have been using that for the past week. It's only 20 minutes long, so I don't feel that I'm taking away too much from my other daily activities. However, it is recommended that the full program be done over an hour every day. I can already feel the excuses coming on: I'm devoting an hour several times a week to going to the gym already - what about the other stuff I have to do? Well, maybe I don't need to spend so much time reading news online? Maybe I could get up 15 minutes earlier? Or does it even have to be first thing in the morning? Maybe I can make the time later in the day.

And then there's the order of things that bug someone like me: when to actually listen. I'm very, very routine oriented. For example, if I've not left for the gym by 6:30 or 6:45 at the latest, I feel I can't go. Not because I don't have the time but because by the time I get back, I've thrown my morning routine off. So should I listen before the gym or after? It's probably an easy thing for most people, but I obsess over things like this. Just thinking about it is bugging me. What to do?

Well, I'll have to wait and see what I can do. I should get the full program within the next week. And we'll give it a try. I've not named the program yet because I want to try it first and I'm trying to see if I can get an interview with the founder - that's the writer in me.

Do you meditate? If so, do you have any words of wisdom for me as I start this journey?