Bee, or honeybee, is the word many people use to describe any flying insect that has wings and a stinger. But honeybees are really only one of a group of insects that includes other bees, wasps, and ants.

Bees are fuzzy insects that feed on flowers. There are thousands of different types of bees worldwide, and they can be many different colors. The most familiar kind of bee is the honeybee. These bees build nests out of wax in old trees and manmade hives (like the ones that beekeepers take care of) and spend a lot of their time collecting nectar and pollen from flowers. Then they turn the nectar into honey for food.

Wasps are closely related to bees, but instead of only feeding on pollen and honey, wasps eat animal food, other insects, or spiders. They are not fuzzy like bees, but seem kind of smooth and shiny, and they have skinnier bodies. There are also thousands of different types of wasps in the world. Two common types of wasps are bald-faced hornets and yellow jackets. Bald-faced hornets are black with white markings, and they build papery nests shaped like footballs in trees and shrubs. Yellow jackets have yellow and black stripes on their bodies and are smaller than hornets and honeybees. They make their nests in the ground or in old tree stumps.

Ants are small insects that can be brown, black, or red. Some have wings and others don’t. Some ants can sting, like the fire ant. Fire ants are tiny and reddish-brown and live in nests under the ground.

What a Bee Sting Looks and Feels Like

Honeybees, wasps, hornets, fire ants, and yellow jackets may look different and have different homes, but they all sting when they are upset! If a person is stung by any of these insects, the sting will feel a lot like a shot at the doctor’s office.

The site of the sting will feel hot and it may itch. A red bump surrounded by white skin will develop around the sting, except for the sting of the fire ant, which turns into an itchy blister.

Wasps and many bees can sting more than once because they are able to pull out their stinger without injuring themselves. Only honeybees have special hooks on their stinger that keep the stinger in the skin after a person is stung. The stinger gets torn out of the bee’s body as it tries to fly away. As a result, the honeybee dies after stinging.

What You Should Do

If you think you have been stung by one of these insects, tell an adult immediately. Some people are allergic to stings from insects. The symptoms of an allergic reaction include hives (red patches on the skin that sting and itch), nausea, dizziness, a tight feeling in the throat, or difficulty breathing. If these symptoms occur, the person needs medical attention right away.

But more often, you can follow these steps after getting stung:

• Have an adult help you remove the stinger, if one is left behind after a honeybee sting. (It doesn’t really matter how it’s removed. What is important is that it’s removed as quickly as possible.)
• Wash the area with soap and water.
• Apply some ice to the area.
• Ask your mom or dad for a pain reliever.

What a Doctor Will Do

You’ll want to check with the doctor if you have redness, swelling, or itching. Sometimes, the doctor will suggest giving a medicine called an antihistamine to control these symptoms. If a person has an allergic reaction to a bee sting, it’s necessary for a doctor to immediately give a shot that fights the reaction. People who know that they are allergic to bee stings also sometimes carry emergency medicine that they can give to themselves to prevent a severe reaction from happening.

How to Avoid Getting Stung

The best way to keep from getting stung by bees is to avoid places where they spend time, like gardens or orchards in bloom. If you are going to be outside in summertime, keep your shoes on and don’t wear sweet-smelling perfume. Dress in long pants and a lightweight, long-sleeved shirt. Avoid bright-colored clothing and clothing with flowery prints. Cover food at picnics and don’t drink soda from open cans at a summer picnic or barbecue — yellow jackets like to climb inside for a sip.

Stay away from garbage cans in summer that are swarming with bees. If you suddenly see a bee flying around you, don’t swat at it or run around. This makes bees angry and upset, and they may sting. Just move slowly or stand still instead, and the bee will be more likely to move on.

What a Bedbug Is

A bedbug is a small (about the size of a pencil eraser), flat, reddish-brown bug that can be found in homes all over the world. It hides during the day and comes out during the night to look for blood. A bedbug has a special ingredient in its saliva (spit) that keeps blood from clotting while it’s eating.

What a Bedbug Bite Looks and Feels Like

If a person gets bitten by a bedbug, the bite will feel itchy. Bedbug bites look like little red bumps (similar to mosquito bites) and they can sometimes occur in a line on the body.

What You Should Do

If you think you’ve been bitten by a bedbug, wash the bites with soap and water. Put on some calamine lotion to help with the itching. An adult can find an anti-itch cream at the drugstore for you. Try not to scratch the bites too much because this can make them become infected.

What a Doctor Will Do

If you get an infection from scratching bedbug bites, a doctor will need to prescribe medication to clear up the infection.

How to Avoid Getting Bitten

The best way to avoid getting bitten by bedbugs is to keep your room uncluttered so bedbugs won’t have places to hide. Changing your sheets once a week and vacuuming the floor often are also important things to do. If you think you have bedbugs, ask an adult about the best way to get rid of the bugs.

source: kidshealth. org

Fruit Juice for Aging Skin:

Ever since Alpha Hydroxy Acids (AHA) have been found to reduce tiny facial lines and fade age spots on the skin, beauty products worldwide are including them in skin creams in the highest concentration the FDA will allow. AHA is made from the juices of citric acid fruits. Higher and more effective dosages are used by Dermatologists and other medical professionals for out-patient skin treatments. AHA reverses sun damage and imparts a more youthful glow to the skin but it cannot get rid of deep lines or sags.

Prostate Cancer: Prevention, Diagnosis and Treatment:

All men should have an annual digital rectal exam beginning around age 40. Another screening technique is a ‘prostate-specific antigen’ blood test which checks for a
special chemical associated with prostate cancer. The test costs about $35 and should be done annually. The newest treatment for prostate cancer and an alternative to surgery, cryosurgery or radiation beams is the implantation of tiny radioactive seeds into the prostate.

Lycopene, a nutrient contained in tomatoes and tomato products such as tomato sauce, tomato paste and ketchup, is an effective prostate cancer deterrent. Studies show that men who eat these foods have less risk of prostate cancer.
Also, studies show that lycopene fights cancer in men who already have the disease. Prostate tumors are smaller and less aggressive in men who are given lycopene.

Teeth Bleaching: Easier than You Think

Safe ways to whiten the teeth are now available in most dentists’ offices. We hear from Dr. Donald Carmona, DDS, past President of Florida Dental Society, that it usually requires just one initial visit to check teeth discoloration and make molds of the teeth and one follow-up visit in about four to six weeks. During that time, the patient applies the whitening paste to the plastic mold that fits around the teeth and keeps it in for 30 minutes each morning and each evening. It’s painless and easy. Yellowed teeth get better results than teeth stained by medication. Costs vary but range between $500 and $1500.

Cheek Implants

Dubbed the “face lift of the 90’s,” cheek implants have caught on and undoubtedly are here to stay right on through the new millennium. Said to restore the youthful lift to the face, the procedure is a favorite of patients but not necessarily of plastic surgeons. Because the surgeon goes in through the mouth in order to place the implants properly, the risk of infection is higher. The mouth houses more bacteria than almost any other part of the body. Another potential complication is post-surgical movement of the implants causing a lop-sided look.

Laser Surgery for Distance Vision

Laser surgery to correct nearsightedness is the latest high tech eye surgery. It has evolved into Lasik, an incisional surgery in the cornea done by a micro-keratone cutter that lifts up an ultra-thin flap of cornea. The laser is then applied to the intact eye beneath the lifted corneal flap. Nearsighted people are treated with Lasik as an office procedure that takes about 10 minutes. Recovery of vision is instantaneous. Possible side effects: two out of a hundred patients may develop minor complications such as inflammation or infection. This procedure replaces the old laser treatment applied to the front surface of the cornea, a sometimes-painful procedure requiring more time to recuperate. The cost for Lasik, the most advanced surgery to correct distance vision, ranges from $1,500 to $4,000. Insurance does not cover it. Due to hormonal changes lasik is not recommended for pregnant women or women who are planning to get pregnant.

Pills That Zap Fat:

Last Spring, the FDA approved the use of Orlistat, a lipase inhibitor, for weight-loss management. The 120-mg. capsule works by blocking the body’s absorption of dietary fats. For example, if you down a bag of greasy potato chips followed by an Orlistat pill, the body will absorb only some of the fat that it normally would, therefore saving calories and fat. If you take the pill within an hour after eating a fatty meal, you are going to prevent the body from packing on the pounds.

At first, this sounded like the magic pill for which we’d all been waiting. Wow! Eat what you want but gulp down three pills a day and don’t gain a pound. What a way to lose those unwanted 10 or 20 pounds, especially now in the New Millennium.

Then we discovered the real truth. While this pill is definitely a breakthrough in the weight-loss field, it is recommended for morbidly obese people. It can be obtained only by prescription. Doctors prescribe it primarily for people who have health problems related to their obesity and cannot function normally. For instance, a 300-pound man who can’t walk up a set of steps without getting winded; a 250-pound woman who cannot reach down to tie her shoes or hug her child; a person whose high-blood pressure cannot be controlled by other medication and those with family histories of heart disease and stroke who cannot otherwise lose weight.

Maybe you could talk your doctor into it for losing those 20 or 30 pounds if your health-related reasons are justified. You still must exercise and follow a low-fat, low calorie diet while taking the medication. The possible side effects are: diarrhea, oily bowel movements, gas, discharge, urgency and increased number of bowel movements. Orlistat is not recommended for people with food-absorption problems, diabetes or for pregnant or lactating women and for use with certain other medications.

Acrodysostosis

This rare inherited condition affects the development of bones.

The gene responsible for acrodysostosis has not yet been identified and the condition may result from different genetic problems rather than one specific condition.

It appears to be inherited in an autosomal dominant fashion, and seems to be more common among older parents.

People with acrodysostosis have certain bones that mature rapidly, before they’ve had enough time to grow fully. The bones most often affected are those of the nose and jaw, and the long tubular bones of the hands and feet.

This abnormal bone development results in a collection of characteristic features, including a typical facial appearance (short nose, open mouth and prominent jaw), small hands and feet.

Those with acrodysostosis often have some degree of mental retardation and learning difficulties.

There’s no cure for acrodysostosis but appropriate support, especially for learning disabilities, is important.

Antenatal diagnosis may be made by ultrasound examination of the bones in babies whose mother has the condition, but routine screening isn’t done.

Achondroplasia

Achondroplasia is a disorder that causes abnormal formation of the bones, as a result of abnormal growth and development of cartilage.

Achondroplasia is apparent at birth. A child with the condition has a relatively normal torso but short arms and legs, a larger head and prominent forehead.

Achondroplasia is caused by an abnormality in a gene located on chromosome 4, called fibroblast growth factor receptor (FGFR3).

Sometimes the child inherits achondroplasia from a parent who has the condition, but in about 80 per cent of cases the problem results from a new mutation of a gene.

About one in 20,000 children has achondroplasia. It affects all races. When inherited, it’s an autosomal dominant condition.

There’s no cure for achondroplasia. Occasionally, surgery is carried out to increase height, but this can be complicated and painful.

Antenatal testing for the condition is available.