With significant numbers of people suffering prior to the Winter Olympics, it’s vital you know how to avoid this unpleasant and potentially dangerous problem.

If you were as gripped by the recent Winter Olympics as we were then you’ll now know your skeleton from your luge and your half pipe from your curling. The Games were held in Pyeongchang County, Gangwon Province in South Korea, and almost 3,000 athletes from 92 nations participated in more than 100 events. However, it wasn’t all fun and games when it came to the health of those involved.

Ahead of the events, a serious case of traveller’s diarrhoea led to dozens of members of the organization being quarantined, and the South Korean military being deployed.

In total, around 1,200 members of the security staff were quarantined and tested for norovirus. The Korea Centre for Disease Control (KCDC) stated that it suspected food and drink were to blame for the infection.

Here we have an example of just how unpleasant traveller’s diarrhoea can be. Traveller’s diarrhoea is a harmful, potentially dangerous condition which requires constant care and vigilance if it is going to be avoided and treated. So if you’re planning to go abroad this spring, here is the information you need in order to stay safe and avoid developing traveller’s diarrhoea.

What do you need to know about traveller’s diarrhoea?

Most cases of traveller’s diarrhoea occur within the first week of your travels, and thankfully the majority of cases are mild and resolve themselves within 3 to 5 days. However, sometimes additional symptoms occur which make traveller’s diarrhoea more serious, meaning treatment will be required.

Traveller’s diarrhoea can be defined as passing three or more loose bowel movements within a 24 hour period. It can be accompanied by any of the following symptoms: fever, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain or cramps and the urgent need to pass a bowel movement.

The condition can be caused by a variety of different sources, such as bacteria like E.coli, parasites like Giardia or viruses like norovirus. All of these organisms are spread through consuming contaminated food and water, or through contact between the mouth and contaminated crockery, cutlery or hands.

Preventing the onset of traveller’s diarrhoea is largely dependent on practicing good hand hygiene and effective food and water precautions. You should wash your hands thoroughly before eating or handling food, and after using the toilet. You should also avoid ice in drinks, food that has been kept warm for an extended period of time, raw food, dairy products, unbottled water and food from street vendors. Instead, opt for consuming packaged and sealed food, sterile (pre-boiled) and sealed water from a bottle, canned food and freshly cooked food which is piping hot.

If you do contract traveller’s diarrhoea, rest and hydration are key to treating it effectively. This is particularly true for young children. Clear fluids such as sterile water, diluted fruit juices or oral rehydration solutions should be consumed regularly.

There is also effective medication available for traveller’s diarrhoea, such as Azithromycin. This is a kind of antibiotic used to treat cases of bacterial traveller’s diarrhoea, specifically for travellers who have journeyed to South Asia or South East Asia, such as India or Thailand respectively. One tablet, taken daily for a three day period, can significantly help to treat a case of traveller’s diarrhoea quickly, helping the sufferer to become well again in as little time as possible.

Azithromycin is available from Express Pharmacy.

For more guidance, support and treatment regarding a wide variety of common health concerns, contact Express Pharmacy today. Call us on 0208 123 07 03 or use our discreet online live chat service.

There is a lot of information out there about emergency contraception. But how do you know what to believe?

Emergency contraception is an effective method of ensuring that sexual intercourse doesn’t result in pregnancy, especially following unprotected sex. Even if other contraceptive methods are used, using the morning after pill can help provide extra protection for any margin of error.

However, many people get confused about the prospect of using emergency contraception, and there is a lot of misinformation fuelling the fire. When should you use it? What are your options? Is it safe? Let’s myth-bust some common misconceptions about emergency contraception.

“There is only one option when it comes emergency contraception”

Actually, there are several emergency contraception options out there which can help prevent pregnancy after unprotected sex. There are two main forms of emergency contraception: the emergency IUD (otherwise known as the emergency coil) and the morning after pill. Whilst the morning after pill is the more commonly used of the two, it’s important to speak to a healthcare professional about which option is best for your specific circumstances.

There are also options within these options too. Both Levonelle and ellaOne are popular and effective emergency contraception tablets.

“Emergency contraception can terminate a pregnancy”

The morning after pill and the abortion pill are two completely different kinds of medication and should never be used interchangeably. If you are already confirmed to be pregnant, emergency contraception like the morning after pill will make no difference to the development of your pregnancy. It should only be used to prevent pregnancy.

“Emergency contraception affects your future fertility”

There is no evidence to suggest that even multiple uses of the morning after pill can affect your fertility in the long term. It will not reduce your future chances of falling pregnant. Even if you have unprotected sex again several days after taking the contraception there is no evidence that your chances of falling pregnant will be any lower.

“You will experience a lot of unpleasant side effects”

Like many medications, emergency contraception carries with it the risk of experiencing side effects. However, like many medications, most people will be able to use the treatment without experiencing any negative symptoms at all. If you do experience side effects, they will most likely be mild and temporary.

Possible side effects of the morning after pill include headaches, nausea, stomach pain and irregular menstrual flow.

“It only works if you take it straight after sexual intercourse”

Modern emergency contraceptive treatments like Levonelle and ellaOne have an extended period of effectiveness, meaning you can take them up to 3 to 5 days after unprotected sex and still reduce your chances of falling pregnant.

However, it is true that the sooner you take emergency contraception, the more effective it is. EllaOne has been shown to be around 98% effective if taken within twelve hours of sexual intercourse, but can be taken anytime up to 120 hours after unprotected sex.

Similarly, Levonelle is 95% effective if taken within 12 hours of unprotected sex, 85% if taken between 12 and 24 hours after sex, 75% effective if taken between 24 and 48 hours after sex and 58% effective if taken between 48 and 72 hours after sex.

“Emergency contraception is difficult to get”

Research suggests that only 7% of women are aware of just how simple it is to acquire emergency contraception. It can be obtained directly from your local pharmacy, from a sexual health clinic, your GP or a walk-in centre. You can even obtain it without leaving the house by ordering from trusted online pharmacies like Express Pharmacy.

For treatment and advice on emergency contraception and other healthcare queries, contact the team at Express Pharmacy today. Call 0208 123 07 03 or use our discreet online Live Chat service.

In the UK alone, there are over 1.6 million people estimated to be directly affected by an eating disorder. Of this 1.6 million, 11% are male and 89% are female, and 14-25 year olds are the group most affected by eating disorders.

Conditions like anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa are common and serious issues in the UK.

On average, 149 weeks go by before someone experiencing symptoms of an eating disorder seeks help. This equates to almost three years, 37 months or 1,043 days during which they suffer in silence.

There are up to 18 new cases of bulimia per 100,000 people every year in the UK, and around 1 in 100 women aged between 15 and 30 is affected by anorexia.

Anorexia & Bulimia

Although both conditions are more common in young women, anorexia and bulimia can affect men and women of any age. Anorexia usually involves sufferers trying to keep their weight as low as possible by not eating enough food or by exercising too much. Bulimia sufferers tend to go through periods of eating a lot of food in a short amount of time and then forcing themselves to be sick, use laxatives or do excessive exercise (or a combination of all three) in an effort to stop themselves gaining weight.

Both of these conditions can be recognised by severe weight loss, fear of putting on weight and being very critical of weight and body shape — to the point where sufferers believe they are overweight despite being a healthy weight or underweight. Both disorders are also often accompanied by mood changes, including feeling very tense, tired, anxious and acting secretively.

Sufferers may miss meals or avoid certain foods they see as fattening, and will often have an unusually low Body Mass Index (BMI) and/or be smaller and thinner than expected for their age. They may resort to medications to fuel their condition.

Both anorexia and bulimia can manifest themselves in a variety of physical conditions, and not just through a loss of weight. Sufferers may also experience dry skin, dizziness or even hair loss. Some sufferers of anorexia can even experience unwanted facial hair.

Migraines are also common in individuals with eating disorders. One study by Neurology Reviews found that 84% of participants with anorexia suffered migraines, as did 74% of bulimia sufferers.

Find out more about effective migraine treatment from Express Pharmacy.

Recovery

Recovery from an eating disorder can be a difficult and long process, and is sometimes something sufferers must battle for the rest of their lives. It’s hugely important that if you suspect you may be experiencing eating disorder symptoms, you consult your GP as soon as possible. From there, you’ll be given help and support. Your GP will ask you questions about your eating habits and overall wellbeing and they will be able to refer you to a specialist who can help you with a tailored treatment plan and therapy program.

For help, support and treatment for a variety of health concerns, contact Express Pharmacy. Call the team today on 0208 123 07 03 or use our discreet live chat service.

We are delighted to have won the Gold Trusted Service Award 2018 from FEEFO. This is the most prestigious accolade available from the highly regarded independent review company.

We are thrilled with this achievement, which is a reflection of the hard work and dedication we put into maintaining the highest level of customer satisfaction.

The Gold Trusted Service Award is given to a high quality, reliable business which has maintained a score of 4.5/5 or higher across at least fifty reviews. This shows the positive impact of our customer service, with a wide variety of medications simply and discreetly available through fast, effective and honest service.

In fact, Express pharmacy holds a 97% approval rating with FEEFO based one 1,022 reviews.

At Express Pharmacy we understand that sometimes seeing your GP can be difficult, whether it’s due to transport issues, getting an appointment or simply due to nerves or embarrassment. But we don’t believe that this should stop anyone from receiving the treatment they need. This is why our service covers many different health concerns and includes next day delivery, free consultations, and free prescriptions.

The Express Pharmacy treatment process involves just 3 steps: select your treatment, undergo a free consultation and head to the checkout. It’s that quick and simple.

FEEFO is a leading customer review provider, helping customers and businesses connect. Thanks to partnerships with Google, Yahoo and Bing, FEEFO provides genuine reviews to help businesses discover exactly what their audience expects from them.

FEEFO has won countless awards for their technology and services, including being featured in The Times’ Tech Track 100. They also have partnerships with other leading companies, including The Guardian, BBC News, Mashable and Tech Crunch.

Businesses such as T.K. Maxx, Iceland, Thomas Cook and The White Company all rely on FEEFO in their business. This makes the team at Express Pharmacy even prouder to have received their most prestigious accolade.

To experience Express Pharmacy’s award-winning service for yourself, why not order online today. If you wish to speak to a member of our team, we are contactable on 0208 123 07 03 or via our discreet Live Chat service.

Studies show that men and women rate male sexual performance differently. Let’s clear the air on premature ejaculation

A study by Men’s Health asked men to rate their own sexual performance. The magazine then asked over a thousand women the same thing about their male partner. The results found that men are potentially more worried about conditions like premature ejaculation than they need to be.

According to the survey:

- Just 23% of men feel they always last long enough during sexual intercourse
- 52% of men feel they usually last long enough
- 20% of men said they sometimes experience difficulties with lasting long enough
- 5% of men feel they rarely last as long as they want to during sex

However, the same survey found these responses from women:

- 38% say their partner always lasts long enough
- 43% say their partner lasts long enough most of the time
- 13% say their partner finds it difficult to last long enough
- 6.5% say their partner rarely lasts long enough
- Only 22% claim that how long their man lasts is their main complaint.

The most common complaint was that men spend too little time engaging in foreplay

These results show that, in general, men were much more critical of their own sexual performance time than their female partners. In some ways this isn’t surprising, as there is no firm definition of how long sexual intercourse should last and therefore no exact definition for premature ejaculation.

Premature ejaculation is generally defined as a man reaching climax too quickly, often with little stimulation necessary. It is the most common ejaculation problem. In a study of 500 couples from five different countries, the average length of sexual intercourse was around five-and-a-half minutes, and most medical professionals define premature ejaculation as reaching climax within two minutes or less.

Understanding and treating premature ejaculation

Premature ejaculation is something most men will experience at least once in their lifetime, but around 20-30% of men are thought to experience the condition regularly. Sadly, many men suffer in silence due to embarrassment.

There are wide variety of factors which can increase your risk of experiencing premature ejaculation. Common physical causes of premature ejaculation include prostate problems and thyroid problems — such as an overactive or underactive thyroid gland — and factors like high blood pressure, diabetes and spinal injury. Lifestyle factors can also play a part, such as excessive alcohol consumption, recreational drug use and smoking.

The cause can be also psychological, caused by factors such as stress, anxiety, guilt, nervousness, depression and relationship problems. It can also be the result of underlying trauma.

Because of this, it’s important to include your partner in your concerns as much as possible. Some men find that simply discussing their symptoms with their partner (or attending sessions such as couples therapy) can have a positive effect on their premature ejaculation symptoms. It also allows you to discuss new sexual possibilities with your partner which might help increase the length of your performance.

If you’re guilty of any of the potential lifestyle causes, it can also be beneficial to practice healthier daily habits. These might include cutting down on smoking and drinking, as well as stopping the use of any recreational drugs.

It is also possible to treat premature ejaculation with safe and effective medication. Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are designed to treat depression, but they can also help to delay ejaculation. Priligy is one effective example of an SSRI which can be used to treat premature ejaculation by stopping the ejaculatory expulsion reflex from reaching your brain too quickly. It has been found to potentially increase sexual performance time by 200 to 300%.

Priligy is currently available from Express Pharmacy alongside a range of other sexual health treatments. If you have concern but are not sure what to do about it, why not call the team on 0208 123 07 03 or use our discreet live chat service.