Yahoo! editors have selected this article as a favorite of 2012. It first appeared in Yahoo! Health in September and was one of the highest clicking stories of the month. Its oddball it yourself angle likely appealed to readers. You able to theoretically discover something new about your health without visiting the doctor.
Have you ever wondered why your doctor asks you to do odd things like touch your nose during an office visit, then scribbles notes in your chart? It because there are many physical tests that can tell whether your body is functioning as it should. While we tend to leave it to doctors and medical tests to figure out if something wrong, we can actually use many of these checks ourselves to determine whether all systems are go. Press the nails together and you should be able to see a tiny, narrow, diamond shaped space between your nails where the nails come flat together but the nail beds don touch each other.
What it means: If your nails are rounded over and can press flat together, it a sign of a thickening of the fingertips that occurs when not enough oxygen is circulating in the bloodstream. Clubbing can be a sign of cardiovascular disease, such as coronary artery disease or heart failure, or of lung disease, like COPD, lung infection, or lung cancer. In some cases, inflammatory bowel disease and cirrhosis of the liver also cause clubbing.
What to do if you fail: Look closely at your fingers for other signs of clubbing. Measure the thickness of your fingertips all the way around; if they clubbing, you notice that they noticeably thicker above the top knuckle than below it. Now close your eyes and stay that way for a full minute. How do you feel: perfectly balanced, or as if you swaying or falling forward? It best to do this test with someone watching you to detect swaying. A variation of this test is to do it standing heel to toe on a straight line.
What it means: This test measures proprioception or positioning, considered the sense that tells us where our bodies are in space. Proprioception requires accurate sensory input from our joints and muscles and healthy functioning of the dorsal columns of the spinal cord, which allow us to perceive the position of our limbs both in relation to other parts of our bodies and to the environment. When you can balance with your eyes closed, it considered a sign of sensory ataxia, or loss of motor coordination, which can be a sign of diabetic neuropathy, multiple sclerosis, inner ear problems, lumbar spinal stenosis, or another degenerative disease. Romberg test is also sometimes used as a test of intoxication or drug use.
What to do if you fail: It is possible to fail this test when nothing is wrong with you, but because it can also indicate a serious condition it worth discussing with your doctor. . . .
How to do it: Hold your hands flat and look closely at the lengths of your fingers in relation to each other. Is your index finger shorter than your ring finger?
What it means: A recent study at the University of Nottingham in England found that if a woman index finger is shorter than her ring finger, she more than twice Tom Jackson Authentic Jersey as likely as others to develop osteoarthritis of the knee or hip. There no scientific explanation yet for the connection between finger size and arthritis risk.
Several other studies have found another use for finger measurement: It can be used to guess at Tom Jackson Womens Jersey penis size. According to studies done in South Korea, if a man ring finger is significantly longer than his index finger, he likely to be well endowed, while a short ring finger indicates average to below average size. Previous studies have shown that a long index finger is an indication of lower testosterone exposure in the womb.
What to do if you fail: Women: In this case, there no immediate action to take. Just be on the alert for signs of osteoarthritis such as knee, hip, shoulder, or back pain. If you do develop pain and suspect osteoarthritis, you might mention the finger length research to your doctor. Close your eyes and try to touch your nose with your finger. Then do it again with the other hand. You should be able to do this smoothly and accurately. Next, lie down and run the heel of one foot up and down the shin of the opposite extended leg.
What it means: These are two components of basic neurological testing, which evaluates coordination and fine motor movement indicative of the health of the cerebellum, the part of the brain that governs motor movement, coordination, balance, and muscle tone. Failure to do the nose and heel tests accurately can be one sign of a neurodegenerative disease such as multiple sclerosis or a brain tumor or lesion.
What to do if you fail: Try these tests several times Womens Tom Jackson Jersey before you conclude something wrong, as many factors such as having had a glass of wine can affect it. See if your pinky finger stands straight, as it supposed to.
What it means: If you aren able to place your hands flat against each other, it suggests that either your wrists don bend flexibly or your fingers and knuckles aren straight. This is a possible indicator of rheumatoid arthritis (RA), which makes joints swell and stiffen and fingers become gnarled or bent. The inability to extend the little finger is another indicator of RA, because the little finger tends to be the first thing to lose function.
What to do if you fail: If you suspect you developing rheumatoid arthritis, which is an autoimmune disease, schedule a visit with your doctor. Before you go, survey your family to determine if there a family history of RA, which often has a genetic basis.