Article: Stem cell therapy is not a cure-all for diseases. Using stem cells, especially unregulated or unproven stem cell therapies, can possibly result in infection at the injection site, the growth of tumors, and rejection of donor cells by your immune system. For this reason, it is important that you talk to your primary care doctor before starting therapy. Avoid going to so-called “stem cell clinics.” These clinics often promote unregulated and unproven therapies, which can cause unpredictable side effects and injures. There are currently only 2 treatments known to be safe and effective forms of stem cell therapy. These are blood stem cell transplants for blood and immune disorders and skin grafts for skin injuries and disorders.  If you have 1 of these conditions, talk to your doctor to see if stem cell treatment is right for you.  You can find clinics promising to treat any condition with stem cell therapy, but that does not mean that it has been scientifically proven that stem cell therapy can treat it. Currently, stem cells are being studied to treat macular degeneration, diabetes, multiple sclerosis, spinal cord injury,  and heart disease. If you have either of these conditions, talk to your doctor about joining a clinical trial instead. A good doctor will make you aware of all of your options for treatment, not just stem cell therapy. They will be honest and upfront about your risks and benefits of stem cell therapy. If the doctor tries to push you into stem cell therapy or if they will not answer your questions, find another doctor. You might ask:  "Is this a routine or approved stem cell treatment for my condition? What other treatments available that may be as effective?" "What are the benefits of using stem cell therapy instead of other treatments for my condition? What are the risks of stem cell therapy compared to other treatments?" "How will you administer the stem cells? What types of stem cells are you using and where do they come from?" "Will you use my own stem cells or stem cells from a donor? If you are using a donor, how will you prevent my immune system from rejecting the cells?" "What accreditation does your clinic have? What is the accreditation of the facility that makes the stem cells?" Your doctor may take stem cells from bone marrow, your bloodstream, or from donor umbilical cord blood. The stem cells will be administered through an intravenous (IV) line. Each treatment can take between 1-5 hours.  Usually only 1 transplant is needed. It can take up to 1-2 years for you to fully recover, however. During this time, your doctor will continue to monitor your blood. Talk to your doctor to determine if this type of transplant is right for your condition. This treatment is often used for cancers like leukemia and neuroblastoma. The FDA has approved a list of cord blood agents that can be used safely in the US. Check that the cord blood your doctor gives you comes from one of the facilities on this list: https://www.fda.gov/biologicsbloodvaccines/cellulargenetherapyproducts/approvedproducts/default.htm A skin graft is a treatment where healthy skin is attached to injured or burned skin. The healthy skin contains stem cells. Typically, the donor skin comes from a healthy part of your own body or from a donor. Some laboratories are even growing skin sheets from stem cells. Your doctor will advise you on the best treatment for your condition. It take up to 2-3 weeks for a skin graft to fully heal.
Question: What is a summary of what this article is about?
Educate yourself about the risks of stem cell therapy. Talk to your doctor about stem cells if you have blood, immune, or skin conditions. Ask the doctors questions about the treatment's credibility and process. Get a blood stem cell transplant to treat some blood and immune disorders. Get a skin graft to treat injuries and some skin disorders.
Article: Set a specific bedtime for yourself that is eight hours before your alarm normally goes off. Continue this bedtime ritual for several weeks (including weekends). Over time you will start getting a good understanding of your body’s natural sleep requirements.  Keep a notebook next to the bed where you can log each day when you fell asleep, how easily you fell asleep, whether you woke up before your alarm went off or not - notate any and all information about your sleep/wake cycle. After establishing your natural sleep patterns, you can start training your body to wake up earlier, since you'll know how much sleep your body naturally wants. Our bodies make and secrete into our bloodstream a hormone called melatonin, which stimulates sleep and controls sleep/wake cycles. Melatonin supplements are available to buy over the counter at almost all pharmacies and grocery stores (look in the vitamins and supplements section). To help reset your body’s clock, try taking a low dose of melatonin (0.5 to 1.0 milligrams) approximately five hours before bedtime for several days in a row.  After a few days of this, your body will reset its internal clock, allowing you to get to sleep earlier and also wake up earlier the next day. Melatonin supplements are generally considered safe for everyone, but always consult your physician before adding a new supplement to your daily intake, especially if you have any serious health conditions or take other medications. Instead of making a drastic change overnight, this method will ease you into being a morning person. Determine what your new wake up time will be and set that as your goal. Keep your current wake up time, and start waking up earlier by one minute each day. Your body’s internal clock will begin to naturally reset itself. For some, this method might seem too slow. However, keep in mind that the least jarring and most successful sleep schedule changes happen slowly and gradually. If you want waking up earlier to become habitual for you, maintaining the same schedule on the weekend that you do during the week is a must! The continued repetition of a consistent sleep schedule will ensure that the habit of waking up earlier is established within your body’s internal clock. Studies show that having a specific sleep schedule during the week and sleeping later on the weekend to recover can actually cause a person to feel tired and jet-lagged once the new week begins. This throws off all of the progress you made during the week!
Question: What is a summary of what this article is about?
Get to know your body’s internal clock. Try melatonin supplements. Wake up one minute earlier every day. Stick to your new sleep/wake schedule on the weekends.