Questões de Inglês

Viagra abuse in teens
There are several reasons why teenagers may experiment with erectile dysfunction medication. Of course, a common reason why teens may be tempted to take an erectile dysfunction (ED) medication is out of sexual curiosity. Teens may mistakenly think that these medications will increase sexual potency, make them somehow “better” sexually, or make them last longer. Premature ejaculation is common in this age group, and they may be hoping to find a pill to help. However, they do not realize that Viagra will not help them last longer.
Beyond sexual curiosity, another major reason why some teenagers may think they want Viagra or other erectile dysfunction drugs is that they may have heard a rumor that it can improve their athletic performance. Research has been discussed in The NY Times and NY Daily News about the use of Viagra to relieve constriction of blood vessels in the lungs, improving blood flow, breathing, and athletic endurance.
Another reason why teens may try Viagra or another erectile medication is to attempt to increase the effect of other drugs or alcohol; despite the fact that this is a very dangerous use of these medications. Sometimes this is also related to sports performance, as someone on steroids may think it will enhance the effect of the steroids, or resolve steroidrelated erectile dysfunction. There have also been reports of teenagers and twentysomethings taking Viagra with alcohol or with Ecstasy (the combination called “Sextasy”), since Ecstasy or alcohol may heighten desire while lessening erectile ability. This dangerous combination could be deadly, and at the very least contributes to a reduction of safer sex practices.
Teenagers, (or anyone of any age who does not have clinically diagnosed erectile dysfunction and a prescription from a doctor), must stay away from Viagra, Cialis, Levitra, or any other erectile dysfunction medication. They can certainly cause physical side effects like dizziness, headache, chest tightness, vision problems including loss of vision, irregular heartbeat, and more severe issues. Teachers and parents must teach teenagers about drugs — and sex.
Adaptado de: <http://sarilocker.com/blog/2009/07/31/viagra-abusein- teens/> Acessado em 01 de maio de 2015.

How stress affects your health
Stress: We've all felt it. Sometimes stress can be a positive force, motivating you to perform well at your piano recital or job interview. But often — like when you're stuck in traffic — it's a negative force. If you experience stress over a prolonged period of time, it could become chronic — unless you take action.
Even short-lived, minor stress can have an impact. You might get a stomach-ache before you have to give a presentation, for example. More major acute stress, whether caused by a fight with your spouse or an event like an earthquake or terrorist attack, can have an even bigger impact.
Multiple studies have shown that these sudden emotional stresses — especially anger — can trigger heart attacks, arrhythmias and even sudden death.
When stress starts interfering with your ability to live a normal life for an extended period, it becomes even more dangerous. The longer the stress lasts, the worse it is for both your mind and body. You might feel fatigued, unable to concentrate or irritable for no good reason, for example. But chronic stress causes wear and tear on your body, too.
Stress can make existing problems worse. In one study, for example, about half the participants saw improvements in chronic headaches after learning how to stop the stressproducing habit of “catastrophizing,” or constantly thinking negative thoughts about their pain. Chronic stress may also cause disease, either because of changes in your body or the overeating, smoking and other bad habits people use to cope with stress. Other forms of chronic stress, such as depression and low levels of social support, have also been implicated in increased cardiovascular risk. And once you're sick, stress can also make it harder to recover. One analysis of past studies, for instance, suggests that cardiac patients with so-called “Type D” personalities — characterized by chronic distress — face higher risks of bad outcomes.
Adaptado de: <http://www.apa.org/helpcenter/stress.aspx> Acessado em 01 de maio de 2015.

How stress affects your health
Stress: We've all felt it. Sometimes stress can be a positive force, motivating you to perform well at your piano recital or job interview. But often — like when you're stuck in traffic — it's a negative force. If you experience stress over a prolonged period of time, it could become chronic — unless you take action.
Even short-lived, minor stress can have an impact. You might get a stomach-ache before you have to give a presentation, for example. More major acute stress, whether caused by a fight with your spouse or an event like an earthquake or terrorist attack, can have an even bigger impact.
Multiple studies have shown that these sudden emotional stresses — especially anger — can trigger heart attacks, arrhythmias and even sudden death.
When stress starts interfering with your ability to live a normal life for an extended period, it becomes even more dangerous. The longer the stress lasts, the worse it is for both your mind and body. You might feel fatigued, unable to concentrate or irritable for no good reason, for example. But chronic stress causes wear and tear on your body, too.
Stress can make existing problems worse. In one study, for example, about half the participants saw improvements in chronic headaches after learning how to stop the stressproducing habit of “catastrophizing,” or constantly thinking negative thoughts about their pain. Chronic stress may also cause disease, either because of changes in your body or the overeating, smoking and other bad habits people use to cope with stress. Other forms of chronic stress, such as depression and low levels of social support, have also been implicated in increased cardiovascular risk. And once you're sick, stress can also make it harder to recover. One analysis of past studies, for instance, suggests that cardiac patients with so-called “Type D” personalities — characterized by chronic distress — face higher risks of bad outcomes.
Adaptado de: <http://www.apa.org/helpcenter/stress.aspx> Acessado em 01 de maio de 2015.

How stress affects your health
Stress: We've all felt it. Sometimes stress can be a positive force, motivating you to perform well at your piano recital or job interview. But often — like when you're stuck in traffic — it's a negative force. If you experience stress over a prolonged period of time, it could become chronic — unless you take action.
Even short-lived, minor stress can have an impact. You might get a stomach-ache before you have to give a presentation, for example. More major acute stress, whether caused by a fight with your spouse or an event like an earthquake or terrorist attack, can have an even bigger impact.
Multiple studies have shown that these sudden emotional stresses — especially anger — can trigger heart attacks, arrhythmias and even sudden death.
When stress starts interfering with your ability to live a normal life for an extended period, it becomes even more dangerous. The longer the stress lasts, the worse it is for both your mind and body. You might feel fatigued, unable to concentrate or irritable for no good reason, for example. But chronic stress causes wear and tear on your body, too.
Stress can make existing problems worse. In one study, for example, about half the participants saw improvements in chronic headaches after learning how to stop the stressproducing habit of “catastrophizing,” or constantly thinking negative thoughts about their pain. Chronic stress may also cause disease, either because of changes in your body or the overeating, smoking and other bad habits people use to cope with stress. Other forms of chronic stress, such as depression and low levels of social support, have also been implicated in increased cardiovascular risk. And once you're sick, stress can also make it harder to recover. One analysis of past studies, for instance, suggests that cardiac patients with so-called “Type D” personalities — characterized by chronic distress — face higher risks of bad outcomes.
Adaptado de: <http://www.apa.org/helpcenter/stress.aspx> Acessado em 01 de maio de 2015.

In Europe, Fear of Ebola Exceeds the Actual Risks

After more than a decade working as a charity director setting up schools in West Africa, Miriam Mason-Sesay got an unpleasant surprise recently when she returned to Britain and could not find a school willing to teach her own 9-yearold son.

Ms. Mason-Sesay said, her son, Kofi, had always enrolled for short periods at a primary school near Manchester, in northern England, but this year the school refused to take him because the parents of other pupils were frightened: They did not want their children sharing classes with a boy who had spent time in Sierra Leone, one of the three countries hardest hit by the Ebola epidemic.
Across Europe, as in the United States, a virus that, outside Africa, has infected only a handful of people, all of them medical workers in hospitals treating Ebola patients, has stirred a wave of alarm that doctors and psychologists say reflects the insecurities of the modern mind far more than any significant danger to public health.
The result has been a string of unfounded Ebola scares, which in some parts of Europe have led to entire buildings being sealed off and the people inside being held so they could be examined for symptoms.
“People think that Ebola is lurking behind every tree and bush and waiting to get them,” said Ms. Mason-Sesay, the British charity director. She added that the banishment of her son — who had been certified healthy by doctors — pointed to a disturbing mood of fear fueled by ignorance and misinformation.
In a statement, Elizabeth Inman, the principal of St. Simon’s Catholic Primary School, said she had made a “pragmatic decision” not to admit Ms. Mason-Sesay’s son.
Adaptado de: <http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/18/world/europe/in-europe-fear-ofebola-far-outweighs-the-true-risks.html?ref=health> Acessado em 18 de outubro de 2014.

In Europe, Fear of Ebola Exceeds the Actual Risks

After more than a decade working as a charity director setting up schools in West Africa, Miriam Mason-Sesay got an unpleasant surprise recently when she returned to Britain and could not find a school willing to teach her own 9-yearold son.

Ms. Mason-Sesay said, her son, Kofi, had always enrolled for short periods at a primary school near Manchester, in northern England, but this year the school refused to take him because the parents of other pupils were frightened: They did not want their children sharing classes with a boy who had spent time in Sierra Leone, one of the three countries hardest hit by the Ebola epidemic.
Across Europe, as in the United States, a virus that, outside Africa, has infected only a handful of people, all of them medical workers in hospitals treating Ebola patients, has stirred a wave of alarm that doctors and psychologists say reflects the insecurities of the modern mind far more than any significant danger to public health.
The result has been a string of unfounded Ebola scares, which in some parts of Europe have led to entire buildings being sealed off and the people inside being held so they could be examined for symptoms.
“People think that Ebola is lurking behind every tree and bush and waiting to get them,” said Ms. Mason-Sesay, the British charity director. She added that the banishment of her son — who had been certified healthy by doctors — pointed to a disturbing mood of fear fueled by ignorance and misinformation.
In a statement, Elizabeth Inman, the principal of St. Simon’s Catholic Primary School, said she had made a “pragmatic decision” not to admit Ms. Mason-Sesay’s son.
Adaptado de: <http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/18/world/europe/in-europe-fear-ofebola-far-outweighs-the-true-risks.html?ref=health> Acessado em 18 de outubro de 2014.