Many tropical plants have a long history of use in folk medicine, although modern medical science has yet to fully investigate and corroborate traditional claims.

While weight gain is listed as one of the common side effects on most types of birth control, this may be misleading. Birth control itself doesn't cause weight gain. It can, however, cause you to retain water, which can create the appearance of weight gain. The hormonal changes may also increase your appetite.

During most surgeries, the patient is made unconscious and paralyzed to protect him from pain and damage from involuntary movement. As a result of this paralysis, machines called ventilators must take over the work of breathing for the patient.

Ankle tendinitis refers to short-term inflammation of the tendons that surround the ankle joint. Tendons are fibrous tissue that connect muscle to bone and enable movement of the joint. Thirteen tendons cross the ankle joint. Ankle tendinitis can occur with increased use or an ankle injury, such as a sprained ankle.

Although carbonation provides an interesting and unique fizzy mouth feel to drinks, it can have a less-than-pleasant effect on your stomach, especially if you have too much at one time or have conditions such as peptic ulcers or irritable bowel disease.

Nighttime coughing is frustrating for parents and toddlers. It interferes with your toddlers sleep, making it difficult to get some much needed rest. The Food and Drug Administration, however, doesn’t recommend cough medication for toddlers, reports the Mayo Clinic.

While a fever may not be too concerning for most healthy adults and even older children, fever in newborns can be a very serious matter. Their tiny bodies can't yet regulate temperature, and getting too hot can be dangerous. Fever can also signal a number of serious problems.

When you’re walking, the sensation of a popping hip joint can be very unnerving. Fortunately, a pain-free snapping or clicking in the hip region is rarely of immediate concern. In many cases, popping in your hip is the result of muscle and tissue imbalances that are often correctable by using stretches and exercises.

Although the common cold often resolves without medical intervention, it can be miserable while it lasts. A cold is typically caused by one or more of a group of over 200 viruses.

Many women wish to enlarge their breasts naturally, and avoid surgical implants. Larger, firmer breasts are highly sought-after for cosmetic reasons. A woman may feel a boost of self-confidence or feel more attractive with larger breasts. Still, breast augmentation surgery can be painful, invasive and costly.

Paronychia, a bacterial, fungal or yeast infection of the skin around the fingernail or toenail, occurs when the area is damaged by a manicure, biting the nails or trimming a hangnail. High-risk individuals include diabetics and people whose hands are wet all day.

The parasympathetic nervous system activates the relaxation, or "rest-and-digest," response. Roughly the opposite of the "fight-or-flight" response of the sympathetic nervous system, the relaxation response involves restoration of energy reserves and other "peace time" functions, such as repair and reproduction.