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In The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Murial Spark, we are allowed the privilege of an insight into the world of young women, supposedly before they enter their prime. A part of the fascination is their great curiosity about sex, but their equal revulsion at the thought of actually doing it, particularly when they get older. As young people with firm and, depending on the viewer, potentially beautiful bodies, there is something “off-putting” about the development of wrinkles. Written sixty years ago, it explores how sexual relationships development in a more strongly puritanical culture just recovering from World War II. Life expectancy was still relatively short with people seeming to age faster and give up on sex earlier. Coming into modern times, the culture of puritanism is still with us and the original narrative would now be viewed through the lens of pedophilia. But one basic truth remains. People of all ages remain sexual animals when they have the chance. Whether older people continue to have that chance is often the source of bitter recrimination and anger. Such is the price we all pay when we toy with each others emotional expectations.

This March sees an interesting article published in the BMJ. It reports the results of two surveys with about 6,000 participants, undertaken in the US, to explore whether older people continue to enjoy sex. The first conclusion is gender-related. Older men were more likely to claim continuing sexual success than women. This was most pronounced in the over 75 years group. But, what is equally clear is that the probability of being able to engage in sexual activity is decided by opportunity. Both genders reported higher levels of sexual activity if they were married or had a regular partner available. All this was, of course, subject to the issue of health. People reporting the best levels of health and strength had sex more often than those whose physical condition made sex more challenging. Why should this matter? Well, as life expectancy inches ever higher, the quality of life we can look forward to as seniors will be affected by our ability to continue sexual activity. Indeed, there is very good evidence to show that happy people have better health and live longer. Thus, as a matter of public policy, the US should be earmarking resources to maintain sexual activity in the aging population.

As it stands, very few doctors have any interest or expertise in sex for seniors. Even when men come into the surgery to complain about erectile dysfunction, the routine (and unthinking) reaction is to write out a prescription for cialis. As the Boomers enter their prime, their expectations should be met. No matter how good cialis (and it is very good at maintaining sexual ability in older men), there should be detailed counseling and support for both married and unmarried couples to help them maintain active sex lives. This is particularly important for women. The development of the erectile dysfunction drugs has left them marginalized. They deserve better. If big government cannot spend money on training the medical profession to deal with this, perhaps the capitalists will see a money-making opportunity to bring couples together and help them develop active lives. Younger people might find the idea of seniors dating unsettling, but there’s a real need for sympathetic services to encourage older people to find happiness and live more fulfilled lives.

Where you go for information on back pain affects the quality of the information you find. Many sites have a specific agenda to sell a particular drug or treatment. This will bias the information. In that sense, this site is no exception. These articles are in support of a particular drug, but we prefer to put that drug into context and give you as rounded a picture as possible. Although we cannot claim to be independent and therefore offer completely unbiased advice, we hope you will find balance here and a freedom to make up your own minds.

Medical research indicates that up to 80% of adult Americans will experience back pain at some point during their lives. In surveys, the respondents consistently report that pain in the lower back is the most disruptive, not only interfering directly with the ability to work and so earn a living, but also affecting the quality of life by:

• disturbing sleep;
• encouraging inactivity and weight gain; and
• even preventing the enjoyment of sex.

When serious pain strikes, the first reaction is usually a consultation with the primary care doctor. At this point, the bad news is received. Although it is always useful to have the possibility of serious underlying diseases and disorders ruled out, even dedicated specialists using the latest in technology, find it difficult to diagnose a specific cause for every case. This is dissatisfying. But doctors are nevertheless able to offer some help in listing treatment options. If a specific cause for the pain has been identified, the treatment can target that cause and, within the limits of technology and surgical skill, produce an improvement if not a cure. Where the cause is not certain, the choices come down to:

• medication – there are a wide range of drugs available both on prescription and over-the-counter to control the pain and relieve tense muscles;
• physical therapy to analyze movement problems and encourage greater mobility through the manipulation of the spine and joints, and the training of muscles;
• cognitive behavioral therapy to teach coping strategies to improve the quality of life, i.e. to help people achieve the maximum within their physical limitations;
• complementary and alternative therapies such as chiropractic and acupuncture – more controversial but nevertheless found effective by many people; and
• specialist medical care for better diagnosis and possible treatment.

The main research conclusions are that practical and hands-on treatment give the best results. This includes both physical and cognitive behavioral therapies. The reason for this preference is the social bond between patient and therapist which improves the mood and encourages a more positive outlook on life. The difficulty, of course, is financial. Many health plans do not include either the professionalized or the alternative therapies. If these cannot be funded out of savings, this forces people into more medical tests and surgical interventions, or restricts them to medications. In this context, flexeril can have an important role. As a drug targeting musculoskeletal disorders, it can relax muscles within the spinal structure and increase mobility. In combination with painkillers and a mixture of rest and exercise, flexeril can often help people recover their quality of life. But if you go down this road, you must commit yourself to exercising. You must maintain muscle tone and build strength. Failing to push yourself into a full range of movement is condemning yourself to stiffen and lose mobility.

April has been an interesting month. The world of politics has entered a new phase after the healthcare reform bill was signed into law. Now, in the discussion of whether the GOP should be a party of “yes” or “no”, we have Sarah Palin proposing the GOP should be the party of “Hell no!” It’s genuinely strange to watch real and imagined candidates strut their stuff with ever more wild ideas. They seem to think the route to elected office is by ranting. This is disturbing because you would always hope government was about taking decisions on the basis of the best available evidence. Yet, when he recently set out to wow the crowds, Newt Gingrich was “out there” with the good news that the GOP could slim down the federal deficit in a year or so while cutting taxes. This kind of political salesmanship depends on the world believing in the idea of a free lunch. As with the housing bubble that burst and pitched us all into recession, we can have macroeconomic gain with no tax pain. The trouble with the current political scene is there is no matching wow factor from the Democrats. For the most part, they are all rather dull. There should be someone to stand up in front of chanting intellectual liberals and proclaim, “We are the party of “Well [expletive deleted] yes!”

This makes us all the more grateful for the world of pharmaceuticals. When it comes to cosmetic conditions like acne, baldness and weight loss, the world wants to believe there are magic bullets to zap the zits, replant hair and dissolve the fat. This is the American dream in action. You can have these miracles if you part with the dollars and take these pills. Except, when it comes to weight loss, the buzz words on everyone’s lips have been: lipodissolve, lipotherapy, lipozap and injection lipolysis. All these names have been coined to sell a very simple idea. The active chemicals in these injections go straight to the heart of the problem, seeking out fat wherever it may lie, hang or sag in your body and then dissolving it. As products and services, they have been heavily promoted by clinics and spas in different parts of the US, and sold through two websites by a Brazilian company.

The FDA has now issued formal warning notices to all the companies selling the variously named products and services in the US, and notified the authorities in Brazil. There’s absolutely no scientific evidence that these products are effective in any way. Indeed, when asked about the idea of any product being able to dissolve fat, the FDA starts with the gentle, “We consider these claims actively misleading.” and ends with “Hell, no!” So, remember the words of the FDA if anyone asks you to pay for any of the named products or their active ingredients phosphatidylcholine and deoxycholate. Instead, buy phentermine online. For a remarkably low price, you get appetite suppression alongside a diet and program of exercise. Put the package together and you get safe and effective weight loss. Remember phentermine hcl, “Weight loss? Hell yes!”

For most people, falling ill is something up with which you put. It’s a part of life. There’s no particular reason to get upset. Yet some diseases and disorders have acquired the reputation of being unfair or, even, cruel. Of course, it’s always open to someone to blame their bad luck. It’s the, “Why me? Life’s so unfair!” brigade. Arguably, erectile dysfunction falls into this class. It strikes at such a personal level of physical performance. It’s something you would wish on your worst enemy – well, any enemy, really. Yet other physical diseases can affect the body in ways that are more obviously cruel. Erectile dysfunction is something you can hide. Parkinson’s Disease is a degeneration of motor skills. It interferes with speech, hands tremble, joints stiffen and it becomes more difficult to move around. There’s also a slow breakdown in mental ability, although not on the same scale as the equally unkind Alzheimer’s Disease. The feature that links all these conditions together is the effect the disease or disorder has on those around you. Erectile dysfunction is destructive of relationships. Parkinson’s makes life very difficult for family and friends who have to watch the “victim” gradually lose all their motor skills.

The American Academy of Neurology is tasked with monitoring progress in the treatment of Parkinson’s. It reviews research and issues fairly regular sets of guidelines recommending best practice. This March sees the release of another guideline. The three most common effects of Parkinson’s that disrupt daily living are insomnia, constipation and erectile dysfunction. Perhaps with unintended irony, the three symptoms group two and one. In two, there is not enough movement. In the third, there is too much movement as the tremors disturb the normal sleep patterns. Focussing on the problems of erection, there’s a general failure of the muscular co-ordination required both to urinate and to respond to sexual stimulation with an erection. Although the muscular movements required are different, the results of failure are more disruptive to the quality of life. Men find the incontinence and sexual failure deeply humiliating.

The treatment for the erectile dysfunction is significantly more effective than for control of urination. This is because the only muscular movements required are more subtle and less demanding. To produce an erection, the only movement required is in the smooth muscle in the walls of the arteries leading into the penis. After that, blood pressure does the rest by pumping an excess of blood into the penis. Managing the bladder and operating the valves to release the flow of urine is significantly more complicated and cannot be assisted by a single chemical process. Erectile dysfunction is “cured” by the use of a PDE5 inhibitor such as cialis. Within the broad context of the treatment for all the movement problems, cialis is the most effective and has the fewest adverse interactions with other drugs. It gives up to thirty-six hours of responsiveness when taken as needed. There’s also a once-daily version that potentially enables sexual responsiveness 24/7. However, for all its record of success, cialis and the other PDE5 inhibitors can only delay the failure of movement made inevitable by the continuing degeneration of the motor skills. There are no “cures” available for Parkinson’s and, no matter what treatment is given, sexual performance will eventually fail. As we started this article, so we end with the thought that some diseases and disorders are genuinely cruel.

One of the things that seems to happen to people when they become famous, is a sense they are somehow better than us in everything. We put them up on a pedestal and “worship” them. If worship is too strong a word for you, then we want to see them as role models. They become our heroes. Yet this can be a problem. Some who achieve fame because they are excellent at one thing may be less than perfect in most of the other things they do. Let’s take the thorny question of homosexuality as an example. Ricky Martin has just formally admitted what was an fairly open secret – that he’s a fortunate homosexual man. Although this has made minor headlines, most people have ignored it. This is interesting given two contrasting examples. Elton John and George Michael came out years ago and continue to sell around the world. Yet Adam Lambert has had almost all his recent TV appearances cancelled because he was seen to kiss a man. Incidentally, this has not prevented his sales from continuing at a high rate. His single “Whataya Want From Me” has sold more than half-a-million downloads and his album is platinum in various countries around the world. This creates a dilemma for artists and their marketers. If someone appears to be creating sales based on a heterosexual fan base with women swooning over their hero, what happens when the man comes out of the closet? In practical terms, the answer is probably nothing changes. Fans buy the music. The fantasy is something the fans add on later.

Not entirely changing the subject, the latest gossip about Roger Clemens comes from country music star, Mindy McCready. Apparently, they have been having sex for years, perhaps even starting when she was only fifteen. This is entirely consistent with his image as “The Rocket”. As an all-time, record-breaking MLB pitcher, fans expected him to rack up the strikeouts and outperform off the field. Like Tiger Woods, the stories about his adulteries have only added to the mystique. However, his image was tarnished first by allegations of steroid abuse, and then by stories he was actually suffering from erectile dysfunction. The two are actually connected because men on steroids often do fail in bed. Whether the naked sex video that is due for release soon will confirm sexual failure is not yet known.

In reality, there’s no reason for athletes to be better than anyone else. We should only expect them to be good at throwing, jumping, kicking or whatever their sport requires. Except there are reasons, not connected with erectile dysfunction, why male sporting celebrities may be munching on erectile dysfunction drugs like cialis during their training sessions. Because these drugs dilate arteries, more oxygen-rich blood is carried to the muscles while exercising. This helps to build up strength and stamina. Their performance on the field improves. For those who prefer to build up muscles using steroids, the cialis also helps to restore erections. When you have a wife and multiple partners, you need these drugs to keep you going. Except, it seems Roger Clemens needed a lot of patient handling. Perhaps he was better at being a sugar daddy. Handing out presents and money keeps your partners happy. Although this would not explain McCready’s loyalty. She has money in her own right.

The development of clothing for men had to balance the conflicting needs of fashion and practicality. Before the development of trousers, men wore separate leggings. The upper part of the body was covered by a doublet. Initially, this doublet was long but, as the hemline rose, the result was visible genitals. This gave quick and easy access for urinating, but was not necessarily suitable for mixed social gatherings. So the codpiece was introduced to cover up, but with sometimes extravagant padding to allow men to boast of their prowess. Indeed, men were the leaders of fashion in those days with new materials and intricate workmanship showing off every virtue (and demonstrating wealth to all onlookers). It therefore makes the 20th century rather a boring place for men with no real opportunity to show off their “beauty”. The field of battle was surrendered to women who were encouraged to preen in dress and behavior.

Yet the last twenty years have shown something of a male revival. We are not yet back to the flamboyance of earlier times, but with the arrival of the metrosexual man in 1994, it was suddenly acceptable for men to “care” about their appearance. One of the first signs of liberation was in hair fashion. We had been through long hair with the beatnik ponytail, the afro and dreadlocks, and the mullet, then the strangeness of the mohawk and the various colored spikes held up with gel. Only to find ourselves in an era where style was everything ranging from the undercut to the flattop, the devilock to shaved heads with words picked out. Increasing male self-confidence meant blurring the traditional gender lines with celebrities suddenly appearing in lists suggesting who was the sexiest as they competed with each other to market their own brands of clothing and fragrances. Soccer players like David Beckham have appeared in straight gay ads where the viewers can apply their own standards of sexuality to the images. The body beautiful is back, with handsome faces and toned muscles bulging through tight clothing.

Vanity has become socially acceptable again so long as it’ reasonably understated. Men work out in the gym, shop for clothes and make regular trips to have their hair styled. This creates problems for the young and style-conscious man losing his hair. One option is to flaunt the loss with closely shaved styles. The efforts of aging celebrities like Donald Trump to comb over a balding patch or wear a toupée have become standing jokes. Or there are the various products on the market claiming to stop hair loss. Most are worthless but propecia is a genuine drug, approved by the FDA, and it really does work albeit only as a treatment for male pattern baldness. It’ most effective if the treatment is begun early in the cycle of loss. Remember there are other causes of hair loss and each has its own most appropriate treatment. This makes diagnosis very important. Because it takes at least three months before you will see any signs of regrowth, you need to ensure you have male pattern baldness before you start taking propecia. Otherwise you will waste time and money, and lose more hair in the meantime. Do not guess. Ask a doctor for a proper diagnosis before you start taking any drug.