We can help you discreetly with any sexual problems you may being suffering due to diabetes.

By Kathleen Blanchard RN, Emaxhealth

Many patients living with diabetes remain sexually active, despite less desire. Men with diabetes are more likely to experience erectile dysfunction. Women and men may have difficulty with orgasm. New findings show that even though diabetes hampers sexual activity, 70 percent of men and 62 percent of women living with diabetes enjoy sex 2 to 3 times a month.

The number of diabetics found in the study engaging in sexual activity was comparable to those withoutdiabetes. The findings highlight the importance of recognizing problems experience by diabetics that can impair sex.

Diabetes Effects on Sexuality

Erectile Dysfunction is a recognized complication caused by vascular disease, pelvic trauma, peyronies disease, diabetes, hormone imbalances, psychological conditions, neurologic conditions, and mant others.

Researchers say the psychological effects of diabetes may have an effect on sexual activity. Men especially report lack of desire and erectile dysfunction. Men report climaxing too quickly, while both genders say they have trouble reaching orgasm.

“Patients and doctors need to know that most middle age and older adults with partners are still sexually active despite their diabetes,” said the study’s lead author Stacy Lindau, MD, associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology and of medicine at the University of Chicago. “However, many people with diabetes have sexual problems that are not being addressed.”

Diabetic women with partners tend to avoid sex. They also don’t want to talk about it with their physician. Compared to 47 percent of men, only 19 percent of women said they had initiated discussion with their healthcare provider about sexual problems.

Some diabetics don’t know they have the disease. In the study that took place between July 2005 and March 2006 via questionnaires and interviews, 22 percent of men and 19 percent of women had diabetes not yet diagnosed. The findings are from the National Social Life, Health and Aging Project that included 2,000 people aged 57 to 85. Until now, there has been limited information about sexual activity among patients with diabetes.

“Failure to recognize and address sexual issues among middle-age and older adults with diabetes may impair quality of life and adaptation to the disease,” said Marshall Chin, MD, senior author of the study and professor of medicine at the University of Chicago. “Sexual problems are common in patients with diabetes, and many patients are not discussing these issues with their physicians.”

To read more, visit: http://www.emaxhealth.com/1020/diabetes-hampers-sex-many-patients-remain-sexually-active

Keep track of how well you’re keeping  your stress levels down with Invacare’s blood pressure monitor.

By Susannah Felts and Jeannie Kim, Health.com; CNN.com

Permission granted: You can officially stop feeling guilty about those little “bad-for-you” habits you can’t seem to break. Turns out, many of life’s greatest indulgences bring big health benefits — helping you stay slim, fight off the blues, and kick disease to the curb.

And we’ve got the 10 best right here, conveniently ranked by Health magazine’s expert panelists. Start at the top of the list to get the most bang for your healthy buck, and keep moving on down to learn how to boost your well-being in the most decadent ways possible.

Pleasure No. 1: Getting your zzz’s: Our experts unanimously agreed: Sleep is free and has virtually zero health drawbacks, making it the one treat no one should skimp on. Pillow time gives you energy, bolsters your immune system, boosts your memory, and even helps you get (or stay) slim.

Cut slumber short, and you’ll find it harder to make decisions (no surprise to anyone who’s struggled through a workday after a too-late bedtime). Plus, you’ll increase your risk for anxiety and depression.

Semi-automatic, energy efficient, blood pressure unit with large digital display is fast, easy, accurate and great for travel.

“Lack of sleep has also been associated with hypertension, glucose intolerance, and belly fat — all risk factors for heart disease,” says Nieca Goldberg, M.D., medical director of the New York University-Langone Women’s Heart Program.

Aim for seven to eight hours of sleep a night, the amount that studies show is ideal. If you’re up-and-at-’em on less, don’t sweat it: Some people are just wired that way, Goldberg says. But if you have trouble falling or staying asleep, or can’t seem to drag yourself out of bed on a regular basis, talk to your doctor about possible underlying causes, such as anxiety or sleep apnea.

Pleasure No. 2: Playing hooky: There’s a reason it’s called a mental-health day. Studies confirm that time off — whether on a trip out of Dodge or a 24-hour staycation — relieves stress, lowering your blood pressure and your risk for heart disease.

It also promotes creative thinking (attention, bosses!). And women in a 2005 study who took two or more vacations per year were less likely to be depressed than women who took one every two years.

Can’t swing more than a few days away? No problem: The length of a vacation had no bearing on how happy it made people, according to a recent study in the journal Applied Research in the Quality of Life.

What’s more, the biggest thrill came before the vacation. So spread around the joy of that sweet anticipation by planning short jaunts throughout the year instead of one big blowout trip.

To read more, visit: http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/08/19/ten.healthy.vices/index.html