On 17/04/05 16:07, in article [email protected],
"nitram" <[email protected]> wrote:

    >> What was the cause of the cataracts? When they develop quickly, they
    >> may be secondary to something else.
    >
    > As you mentioned after your years of research, age.

Like back problems, the onset age is about 50.

Earl

On Sun, 17 Apr 2005 16:35:15 +0200, Earl Evleth <[email protected]>
wrote:

    >On 17/04/05 15:54, in article [email protected],
    >"Mxsmanic" <[email protected]> wrote:
    >> What was the cause of the cataracts? When they develop quickly, they
    >> may be secondary to something else.
    >Nobody quite knows, generally it has been blamed on exposure to UV-B.
    >I think the hardening of tissue slows down the diffusion of oxygen
    >and the tissue dies. That tissue is normally not furnished with
    >blood oxygen but gets it from the air.
    >If I remember correctly the fluorescence comes from cross-linked
    >tryptophane in the proteins, this absorbs and reradiates light.
    >That gives the obsolesced effect.
    >But in fact the cause seems unknown. I would bet on metabolism
    >changes, different for different people of the same age. Nobody
    >has learned to combat it, I would bet on some sort of tissue
    >softening to be partly effective. It is irreversible.
    >Our dog has an evolving problem with his corneas which in fact
    >looks like cataracts but eye drops have stopped its further
    >development. Ironically the medicine used is not approved for
    >human use, so it goes to the dogs.

Like a lot of the food and Mixi.

On Sun, 17 Apr 2005 16:36:15 +0200, Earl Evleth <[email protected]>
wrote:

    >On 17/04/05 16:07, in article [email protected],
    >"nitram" <[email protected]> wrote:
    >>> What was the cause of the cataracts? When they develop quickly, they
    >>> may be secondary to something else.
    >>
    >> As you mentioned after your years of research, age.
    >Like back problems, the onset age is about 50.

People start ageing as soon as they stop growing. Discuss!

Good for 5 milli seconds research and another 300 posts

On Sun, 17 Apr 2005 16:02:25 +0200, in rec.travel.europe, Earl Evleth <[email protected]>
arranged some electrons, so they looked like this :

... On 17/04/05 12:02, in article [email protected],
... "Mxsmanic" <[email protected]> wrote:
...
... > Most cataracts are age-related and progress with extreme slowness. A
... > 14-month wait is thus not necessarily a hardship; there will hardly be
... > any change in vision over such a short period.
...
...
... The advantage of waiting is that the patient may die of something and
... cost the system nothing.

I lost a friend (in England) to this "system". He had testicular cancer and had to wait at
least three months for an appointment. While he waited the cancer spread to his hip bones
& bladder and he died. The Perfide Albion pocketed his meagre pension and health care
costs, and is very happy.

Earl Evleth writes:

    > Nobody quite knows, generally it has been blamed on exposure to UV-B.

A sudden development of cataracts implies a recent cause. Has she been
exposed to UV-B excessively in recent years? What about microwaves or
infrared radiation? Is she diabetic (or has she become so)?

    > But in fact the cause seems unknown. I would bet on metabolism
    > changes, different for different people of the same age. Nobody
    > has learned to combat it, I would bet on some sort of tissue
    > softening to be partly effective. It is irreversible.

The main question is why it developed so suddenly. Something presumably
changed.

--
Transpose hotmail and mxsmanic in my e-mail address to reach me directly.

On 17/04/05 16:44, in article [email protected],
"Magda" <[email protected]> wrote:

    > I lost a friend (in England) to this "system". He had testicular cancer and
    > had to wait at least three months for an appointment. While he waited the
    > cancer spread to his hip bones & bladder and he died.

As a non-doctor, my first question would be how fast does this type of
cancers spread? It is possible that the spreading had occurred prior to
even determining that he had a problem.

One web site says: "Advanced signs of metastasis may be present before a
testicular mass is noted." It also stated that the 5-year survival rate for
patients with a good prognosis is 91%, for intermediate prognosis is 79%,
and for poor prognosis is 48%. So death can be delayed.

Clearly, if a preliminary exam indicates he had possibly had cancer (there
are serum markers which can be used to judge the degree this cancer has
spread), he needed immediate care. In France this would have occurred
immediately, within days.

Earl

On 17/04/05 16:40, in article [email protected],
"nitram" <[email protected]> wrote:

    > People start ageing as soon as they stop growing.


Well some would claim it starts immediately on the first
cell division.

"Telomers are short sequence repeats on the ends of chromosomes. As the cell
divides successively, the telomers shorten -- they are not replicated
properly, but are sort of "chewed up" a little with each successive cell
division. If a chromosome does not have telomers of the proper length, the
cell will not divide. This is good and proper, because we don't want our
cells to continue dividing."

I read somewhere that the average human cell divides about 30 times and dies
since essential information is not reproduced.

That is the bad news.

But the worse news is:

"Telomerase is the enzyme responsible for maintaining these telomers. They
have found active telomerase in 85% of human tumors. That means, the cancer
cells have healthy telomers and divide out of control."

Cancer cells live longer.

Earl

On 17/04/05 17:09, in article [email protected],
"Mxsmanic" <[email protected]> wrote:

    > Earl Evleth writes:
    >
    >> Nobody quite knows, generally it has been blamed on exposure to UV-B.
    >
    > A sudden development of cataracts implies a recent cause.

No, not at all. It can be accumulative and hit a catastrophic phase.

It is like progressively bending a stick. The stick bends and bends
then "crack" it breaks.

    > Has she been exposed to UV-B excessively in recent years?

Not more than me.

    > What about microwaves or infrared radiation?

I would think not. We don`t have a microwave oven nor a portable telephone!
Both are heating radiation, and do not generate photochemical events.

The UV-B hypothesis is based on the fact the proteins absorb light at the
bare edge of the UV-B spectrum. The damage should be slow (years)
in showing itself. Unless one is working in a lab with high powered
Xenon lamps. Ironically I have but I have no cataracts.

The two amiino acids which do this are phenylalanine and tryptophan, the
latter is known to under do some photochemistry in this region mainly
through photoejection of an electron into the surroundings and the reaction
of that plus the cation of tryptophan. This is a bit like radiation damage
generally although different things occur when exposed to radioactive
substances which are highly ionizing.

The main problem with exposure to UV-B is in the summer months or in the
arctic regions which have an ozone hole. UV-B radiation is monitored
internationally at various sites. Incidents of increase cataract formation
have been reported at the Southern tip of South America.

I have known my wife since she was a teenager (we have been married 50 yrs)
and can`t say her exposure to UV-B is greater than mine. Just bad luck.

One reference http://www.molvis.org/molvis/v9/a78/ crosslinking may occur
anyway, at normal body temperatures.

    > Is she diabetic (or has she become so)?

Not yet, but she watches her steps (does 10,000 a day!). She has an
pre-diabetic sugar problem meaning she does not eat the stuff
and exercises to keep the blood sugar low. This works. She takes
no medication, she doesn't have to.


    >> But in fact the cause seems unknown. I would bet on metabolism
    >> changes, different for different people of the same age. Nobody
    >> has learned to combat it, I would bet on some sort of tissue
    >> softening to be partly effective. It is irreversible.
    >
    > The main question is why it developed so suddenly. Something presumably
    > changed.

I think it develops slowly and then cascades. It would not be hard
to program a series of couple chemical reactions in which a certain
effect develops slowly and then explodes. If the repair mechanisms
breakdown, which they will with ageing, the cataracts could just
"happen". It is like dying. It is sometimes a slow process
but death itself is a "quantum jump" into nowhere.

Earl

Earl Evleth writes:

    > I would think not. We don`t have a microwave oven nor a portable telephone!
    > Both are heating radiation, and do not generate photochemical events.

Microwaves supposedly denature proteins in the lens, producing a loss of
transparency opacities. I believe infrared is thought to work in the
same way. Both are known to cause cataracts (an occupational hazard of
glassblowers).

Also, cataracts are a common occupational disease of electricians, but
nobody really knows why.

    > ... death itself is a "quantum jump" into nowhere.

It's a quantum jump into _elsewhere_.

--
Transpose hotmail and mxsmanic in my e-mail address to reach me directly.

On Sun, 17 Apr 2005 17:09:33 +0200, Mxsmanic <[email protected]>
wrote:

    >Earl Evleth writes:
    >> Nobody quite knows, generally it has been blamed on exposure to UV-B.
    >A sudden development of cataracts implies a recent cause. Has she been
    >exposed to UV-B excessively in recent years? What about microwaves or
    >infrared radiation? Is she diabetic (or has she become so)?
    >> But in fact the cause seems unknown. I would bet on metabolism
    >> changes, different for different people of the same age. Nobody
    >> has learned to combat it, I would bet on some sort of tissue
    >> softening to be partly effective. It is irreversible.
    >The main question is why it developed so suddenly. Something presumably
    >changed.

The main point is that you are not an expert and frequently pretend
you are. You fool nobody except yourself.

    > From: Mxsmanic <[email protected]>
    > Organization: None
    > Newsgroups: rec.travel.europe
    > Date: Sun, 17 Apr 2005 17:09:33 +0200
    > Subject: Re: The best places to get sick
    >
    > Earl Evleth writes:
    >
    >> Nobody quite knows, generally it has been blamed on exposure to UV-B.
    >
    > A sudden development of cataracts implies a recent cause. Has she been
    > exposed to UV-B excessively in recent years? What about microwaves or
    > infrared radiation? Is she diabetic (or has she become so)?

What is UV-B? Is this a fancy name for sunlight? (A friend of our niece,
who was here with her during the time I was having my operations, was sure
this was my problem. But you know how much sunlight we get here in Paris.)
I don't think it's microwaves, since we don't even have a microwave oven. I
am not diabetic. I have impaired fasting glucose, but it has responded to a
program of diet and exercise, without medication.
So the mystery remains.

Donna Evleth
    >
    >> But in fact the cause seems unknown. I would bet on metabolism
    >> changes, different for different people of the same age. Nobody
    >> has learned to combat it, I would bet on some sort of tissue
    >> softening to be partly effective. It is irreversible.
    >
    > The main question is why it developed so suddenly. Something presumably
    > changed.
    >
    > --
    > Transpose hotmail and mxsmanic in my e-mail address to reach me directly.

On 17/04/05 18:30, in article [email protected],
"Mxsmanic" <[email protected]> wrote:

    >> I would think not. We don`t have a microwave oven nor a portable telephone!
    >> Both are heating radiation, and do not generate photochemical events.
    >
    > Microwaves supposedly denature proteins in the lens, producing a loss of
    > transparency opacities.

That is a heating effect. The micowaves largely heats up the water in
things, They attempt to activate the rotational modes of molecules
but in the liquid or solid phase these are hindered. If a molecule
has a dipole moment the microwave will attempt to "grab hold of it"
and twist it. OH bonds are high polar so it interacts with those.
The twisting eventually gets dispersed and cause molecular vibrations.


    > I believe infrared is thought to work in the same way.

Pretty much, IR actives the vibration in bonds,


    > Both are known to cause cataracts (an occupational hazard of
    > glassblowers).

Particularly dangerous is working with quartz, which has to been
heated to a much higher temperature, so much so that UV light
is emitted. Moreever some of the silicon oxide actually is vaporized
and breating than can cause silicosis. So a glass blower working
with quartz had to work under hood conditions (taking the air
away so it can not be breathed) and goggles to protect from
the UV. Glass (usually pyrex) is heated to a much lower
temperature and neither of these dangers exist. You can
get hot, however!

The main danger (I used to work glass) is picking up a piece
of hot glass after one thinks it had cooled. One hears the
"sizzle" before one feels the pain. Almost any chemist
will learn some glass blowing but even some glassblowers are
not good with quartz. They don't like the stuff. You can
get cancer of the skin from the radiation, and you have to
work with your bare hands for the manipulation. It is something
they might use robots for now;

    > Also, cataracts are a common occupational disease of electricians, but
    > nobody really knows why.

Interesting, never heard that. Maybe the sparking.

Earl

On Sun, 17 Apr 2005 17:26:17 +0200, in rec.travel.europe, Earl Evleth <[email protected]>
arranged some electrons, so they looked like this :

... As a non-doctor, my first question would be how fast does this type of
... cancers spread? It is possible that the spreading had occurred prior to
... even determining that he had a problem.
...
... One web site says: "Advanced signs of metastasis may be present before a
... testicular mass is noted." It also stated that the 5-year survival rate for
... patients with a good prognosis is 91%, for intermediate prognosis is 79%,
... and for poor prognosis is 48%. So death can be delayed.
...
... Clearly, if a preliminary exam indicates he had possibly had cancer (there
... are serum markers which can be used to judge the degree this cancer has
... spread), he needed immediate care. In France this would have occurred
... immediately, within days.

He already had cancer when we met in 98; I should have said "he would never see his doctor
more than 4 times a year", need it or not - I mean, every time he felt the need to see his
doctor he had to wait at least three months. I tried to say something, suggest that he
come to France and be treated here, but he had faith in the English system and would not
listen to me. He was 70+ and very hard-headed. :))

Earl Evleth writes:

    > Interesting, never heard that. Maybe the sparking.

Sparking is rare. My guess is that it has something to do with strong
electromagnetic fields, but I don't really know. Neither does anyone
else, apparently, but there are lots and lots of electricians who get
cataracts.

--
Transpose hotmail and mxsmanic in my e-mail address to reach me directly.

Donna Evleth writes:

    > What is UV-B? Is this a fancy name for sunlight?

It's one of several different bands of ultraviolet light. Some bands
produce more biological damage than others.

    > A friend of our niece,
    > who was here with her during the time I was having my operations, was sure
    > this was my problem. But you know how much sunlight we get here in Paris.

Practically none, although I still wear sunglasses. At the end of the
summer, I have only a hint of a tan on my legs. In my hometown, I'd
have more than that in 72 hours.

    > I don't think it's microwaves, since we don't even have a microwave oven. I
    > am not diabetic. I have impaired fasting glucose, but it has responded to a
    > program of diet and exercise, without medication.
    > So the mystery remains.

X-rays from any source? Exposure to powerful electric fields? IIRC,
electric shocks have been known to cause cataracts.

--
Transpose hotmail and mxsmanic in my e-mail address to reach me directly.