Laryngitis is essentially inflammation at the back of the throat near the voice box. This disorder may occur from a variety of causes like infection, overuse or irritation. The vocal cords play an important role in speech and when this area of the neck gets inflamed, voice can become hoarse and may be accompanied by pain upon swallowing.

The majority of cases of laryngitis are of a short duration; perhaps due to a viral infection. But long term hoarseness generally indicates something more ominous like a cancer.

The majority of people who have laryngitis will complain of a tired voice, sore throat, dry throat or a tickling sensation at the back of the throat. Besides infection other causes of laryngitis include smoking, allergies, acid reflux, excessive alcohol use or cancer.

Short lived cases of laryngitis are usually diagnosed on a physical exam and history. Long term cases need to be examined with a camera to ensure that there is no cancer at the back of the throat.

Acute cases of laryngitis can be treated with rest, fluids and humidification. Sometimes sucking on lozenges or hard candy may help. Acute viral cases usually resolve on their own. Antibiotics rarely help but some physicians may prescribe steroids to children.

Acute laryngitis usually does not result in any major complications; most people recover in a few days with no long term sequelae.

It is reported that Brittany Murphy had laryngitis prior to her death. Experts say that the laryngitis is most likely not related to her death. Rather than speculating on the cause of her death, it is best to wait for the autopsy results which have now been completed.

Police in Poland have recovered the infamous Nazi sign “Arbeit Macht Frei” stolen last week from the infamous death camp museum. The sign was broken into 3 pieces and it appears that the criminals wanted to sell the sign for profit. This predawn theft last Friday outraged many people across the globe.

The men’s arrest came as a result of hundreds of tips said chief police investigator Andrzej Rokita. Police still do not understand why the sign was stolen but believe that it may be part of the Nazi memorabilia market. The suspects are said to be ordinary criminals with no ties to any international gangs.

Said Rokita, “It seems they cut the sign up already in Oswiecim, to make transport easier,” Rokita said at a news conference in Krakow. It was “hidden in the woods near the home of one of them.”

Rabbi Marvin Hier, founder and dean of the Simon Wiesenthal Center was thankful for the sign’s prompt recovery.

“Whatever the motivation, it takes warped minds to steal the defining symbol of the Holocaust from the world’s most renowned killing field,” he said.

At Auschwitz, more than1 million individuals including Jews, gypsies and poles were exterminated using nerve gases, starvation and experimental surgeries. The people of Auschwitz were liberated from the Nazis by the Russian army on Jan 27, 1945.

Sudden cardiac arrest is an unexpected cause of death in many people. During a cardiac arrest, blood flow to the heart is interrupted. This results in lack of delivery of oxygen to the brain and results in unconsciousness within 4-5 minutes.

Most individuals who have no oxygen to the brain for more than 5 minutes have a poor chance of recovery. Cardiac arrest may also occur from a sudden abnormal beating of the heart. There are several dangerous heart rhythms which may occur independently of blood supply to the heart.

Cardiac arrest is a medical emergency. In order for someone to survive, CPR must be conducted within the first 4-5 minutes. A shock may be provided during CPR to re start the heart but if this is not possible other interventions using drugs may be required. Most people who develop cardiac arrest have no premonitory signs or symptoms.

In the USA coronary disease is the number one cause of cardiac arrest but in younger individuals other causes may include heart abnormalities, trauma, rupture of a blood vessel, over dose, a blood clot or drowning.

This morning Brittany Murphy, 32, died of a cardiac arrest. An autopsy will be conducted to determine the cause.

For those who are going down under for their summer vacation, Australia has a number of scenic nude beaches.

The Taylorwood resort at Conway beach in Queensland is a couple’s only resort where individuals can seek solitude under shady palm trees or first timers can join the late night barbecue as an introduction.

The Twins Fall resort in New South Wales offer tranquility in natural surroundings. Accommodation varies from tents to comfortable B & B. The place is always booked so reservations are recommended.

The Jajarawong naturist retreat in Victoria is also a clothing optional resort which offers sauna and hot tubs to ease things for the first time nudist. It offers plenty of water activities.

The Sunland holiday village is set among some of the nicest australian landscape and provides plenty of seclusion with a wide open ocean. If you hate wearing a bathing suit of any type, this is the place to come.

Finally there is the Sun seekers Inc nudist club in Western Australia close to Perth. With a wide range of water activities, it offers accommodation to suit all types of budget.

There are many more nudist resorts in Australia. But tourists should remember that in many parts of Australia there are no legal nude beaches. The local governments have discouraged such beaches in the fear that it may attract deviants.

However, this has not stopped people from undertaking this cathartic experience. Remember to pack your suntan and at least for this vacation you will not have to worry about what to wear.

Every week there is a new ad on cyberspace on how to clean your body and feel great. Now we have physiocleanse. So what is the gimmick all about?

Essentially one buy a kit for a whopping $399 which include a CD manual and a 28 day calendar with a meal plan (sorry, the $399 does not include any packaged foods). All the manual tells you is what you can eat and what you cant. The vendors of this plan say that by adhering to the physiocleanse dietary plan, you can clean your bowels, have a refreshed mind and even lose weight.

Unlike the colon cleansing methods, there are no tubes placed in the rectum. If you use physiocleanse, the diet plan will re energize you and also get rid of all the toxins from your body.

Some of the benefits of the diet plan include clean eyes and skin, you will remain young forever, have greater focus and motivation and of course you will stay productive.

Basically for the first few days you drink a lot water and change your diet. You can only eat diets recommended in the book and voila in 3 weeks, you will be a new individual.

The question is does this expensive program work? On cyberspace there are many negative testimonials about the product and there is not a single scientific study to back up the claims made by vendors of Physiocleanse. Nutrition experts claim that is just another scam with a lot of false promises.

So for all of you want who clean the body and feel great- there is another easier and cheaper way. Health experts say, “Eat healthy, exercise regularly and stop smoking.” This advice is free and you do not even have to watch a 3 hour DVD.

Most consumers indicate that if there is one thing they could perk up about their face- it is the color of their teeth. Teeth whitening is now a common procedure performed by many cosmetic dentists and it is one of the most requested procedures by consumers. Today there are various methods available to whiten teeth- the only criterion is how much money you want to spend.

There are an assortment of bleaching chemicals that can be used by the dentist or at home. The home made kits are readily available in most pharmacies but none of them work great. The general belief is that these kits are useless.

Teeth whitening does work when carried out by a professional. Most individuals who have had teeth whitening treatments with a dentist remain satisfied. The end result is moderate to gorgeous milky white shinning teeth which improve facial appearance. One should remember that there is no permanent tooth whitening procedure and touch ups are required in the future.

Brite smile is another teeth whitening procedure, while it does make teeth white, it is also prohibitively expensive.

To keep your teeth white, avoid drinking too many dark beverages, do not smoke and practice good oral hygiene, Brush and floss after every meal- and this will keep your teeth healthy for a long time.

Auschwitz Birkenau was the largest Nazi German concentration camp where Jews were gassed and exterminated during the Second World War. The camp derived its name from the nearby town of Oswiecim, near the German- Polish border. When the Germans invaded Poland in 1939, Oswiecim was incorporated into Germany and renamed Auschwitz. The term Birkenau was later added because it is at this nearby town where most prisoners arrived on their way to Auschwitz. Later, the Germans did decimate the town to maintain secrecy of their Camp.

During the Second World War, terrible atrocities took place at this concentration or death camp. At the Nuremberg trials after the war, it became evident that millions of Jews and other ethnic minorities were gassed at this concentration camp.

Others were killed by systematic starvation, forced manual labor, executions and medical experiments. In 1947, Poland converted this concentration camp into a Museum. Over the years, millions of people have visited this somber graveyard.

The people of Auschwitz were liberated by the Russians on Jan 27, 1945 which today is celebrated as International Holocaust Remembrance Day in many parts of the world.

When entering the camp, there is a sign in German “Arbeit Macht Frei” meaning “Work makes you free.” Recently this sign was stolen.

Everyone is worried about viruses and malware on their computers. Many computer owners are so paranoid about viruses that they buy a new anti viral software program every few months. The anti viral software program is a billion dollar industry but most of these antivirus programs are junk. The latest program to be hyped as great is spy eraser.

The vendors of this program claim that it can detect the latest viruses and has an intelligent alert warning system, backup and restore features (mind you all antivirus programs say the same thing). Fact: Spy eraser can scan your PC but does not remove all the malicious software. Worse it will give you a list of all the bad things in your computer and stop at that. It simply does not delete the majority of malware. The only great thing about spy eraser is that it knows what is innocent and does not turn off bone fide programs.

Compared to the available antiviral software, spy eraser performs considerably poor and is not worth the money.

Large surveys have shown that whenever something goes wrong with the computer, consumers always blame a virus and rush off to buy the latest antivirus software. In most cases, the problem is the user and nothing to do with the virus.

If you want to avoid problems with virus and malware, play safe and do not download from suspicious sites- and that means avoiding many of the porn sites

Every week there is a new product on the market that is hyped up to be the most effective at reducing weight. The most recent one is use of leptin. Leptin is a small human protein hormone that is produced by white and brown fat cells. It is also found in the brain, liver and parts of the brain. While its real function in the body remains a puzzle; it has been shown to regulate weight by suppressing the appetite center in the brain. Other work has shown that it may burn away excess calories.

There is a lot of literature on leptin on cyberspace and the majority of it is written by people who sell the product or promote it for some manufacturer. Leptin was discovered 15 years ago and is still looking for a disease it can cure or prevent. All the work on weight loss and leptin has been in mice and rats.

There is some evidence that obese rats when administered leptin may lose weight. Now there are hundreds of companies on cyberspace marketing leptin as a weight loss product. But there is not a single randomized study in humans that shows benefits of leptin as a weight loss aid. Leptin is a protein and is easily digested by acid in the stomach. So how an oral pill of leptin would work is a mystery because the majority of this product would be destroyed by the acid in the stomach!

Recently there was a leptin diet book published. The book goes into a lot of details about metabolism and the usual boring details about calories. More over these authors even recommend leptin to prevent aging. All the reports on leptin are anecdotal reports and most are by people who sell this product.

Leptin supplements are expensive and more likely a scam. Fakes and counterfeit products with health loss supplements are plenty. So if you really want to lose weight, start today by eating less and walking more; and stop spending your money on sham products. The only thing leptin does reduce, is the weight of your hard earned money.