Strange+Diseases,+Strange+Facts

In a world full of strange diseases, you're bound to get some strange facts

"Fun" Facts-

-People that use mobile phones are 2.5 times more likely to get cancer on the side of the brain adjacent to the ear they use to talk on the phone.

-Cancer patients treated with chemotherapy lose hair. For some, it grows back straight instead of curly or comes back as a different color.

-A popular superstition is that if you put a loaf of bread in a baby's crib, it'll keep away diseases.

-Headaches and inflammatory pain can be reduced by eating 20 tart cherries.

-A person who has hexadectylism has 6 fingers or toes on their feet or hands.

-Over 40 million Americans have chronic bad breath.

-Native Americans used pumpkin seeds for medicine.media type="youtube" key="BkKWApOAG2g" height="219" width="294" align="right"

-It's been proven that laughter is a painkiller.

-3000 children die of malaria every day in Africa.

-It is possible to have a two-headed person. Conjoined twins, Abigal and Britney Hensel are living examples (see the video to the right)

Truly Strange Diseases-

Elephantiasis- Caused by parasitic worms transmitted by mosquitoes. Affects 120 million people worldwide, 40 million of which are severly diseased. These parasites accumulate in blood vessels and resist circulation. This means the fluid in tissues builds up and enlarges the limb. Drastically.

Pica- People with Pica have an insatiable desire to eat objects like pencils, erasers, dirt, paper, glue or clay. It's believed to be linked to mineral definciency, but experts have found no real cause or cure. (the picture to the right shows 1,446 items removed from a Pica patient's stomach)

Walking Corpse Syndrome- It is a syndrome of mental depression and suicidal tendencies. The patient believes they have lost everything and may even think they are now dead. The delusion may go as far as the patient being able to smell their own "rotting" flesh or even feel worms crawling underneath their skin.

<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif;">Progeria- Caused by a small defect in the kid's genetic code. On average, the kid will be dead by age 13. Their bodies fast forward through life, causing premature baldness, arthiritis, heart disease and thinning bones. Only 48 people are living with this disease in the whole world. (to the right is a picture of a child with Progeria)

<span style="display: block; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: left;">Click here to see a couple of science "fails".

<span style="display: block; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: left;">Want Deadlier Diseases? Click here.

<span style="display: block; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: left;">How do diseases get to be epidemics? <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: left;"> <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: left;">Check out today's cures to yesterday's diseases! <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: left;"> <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: left;">Back to Home Page.

<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">Bibliography:

//Glore Stomach Display//. 21st Century. Glore Psychiatric Museum, St. Joseph,

Missouri. //Wikipedia//. Web. 14 May 2012. <http://upload.wikimedia.org/

wikipedia/commons/0/03/Glore_Stomach_Display.jpg>.

Oddee. "Ten Weirdest Diseases." //Oddee//. Oddee, 11 May 2007. Web. 27 Apr. 2012. <http://www.oddee.com/item_84847.aspx>.

FunShun. "Amazing Disease Facts." //FunShun//. FunShun, 2012. Web. 26 Apr. 2012. <http://www.funshun.com/amazing-facts/diseases-human-body-facts.html>.

//Child with Progeria//. N.d. //Progeria//. Blogspot, n.d. Web. 7 May 2012. <http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_z7aFDj6O8yg/S88KV29K8DI/AAAAAAAAAAU/mqg2CG3Ei6k/ s1600/progeria.jpg>.

TLC. //Conjoined Twins, Abby & Brittany, Turn 16//. //Youtube//. Youtube, 13 Sept. 2007. Web. 16 May 2012. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BkKWApOAG2g>.