Mitos Kehamilan, Anak, Makanan & Minuman

Banyak mitos mengenai kehamilan dan kesehatan anak. Namun, namanya juga mitos, tentu banyak juga yang perlu diteliti kebenarannya.

Mitos, mungkin sama tuanya dengan bahasa itu sendiri. Beberapa mitos dapat bertahan karena memberikan nasihat yang sesuai dengan pengalaman sehari-hari. Namun, banyak mitos, terutama mitos sekitar kehamilan dan melahirkan, terbukti salah atau tidak efektif sesuai dengan kemajuan kedokteran dan teknologi.

Sebut saja mitos soal mendeteksi jenis kelamin bayi yang berada dalam kandungan. Mitos mengatakan, dengan menjuntaikan cincin di atas sekitar perut yang mengandung, bila cincin mengayun dari kiri ke kanan atau sebaliknya, maka bayinya perempuan. Bila mengayun berputar, bayinya laki-laki. Tentu saja, pembacaan melalui USG mungkin tidak seasyik menjuntai cincin di atas perut, tetapi hasil tesnya sudah pasti lebih akurat.
Beberapa mitos mengenai kesehatan dan penyakit memang ada betulnya, sebagian lagi tidak terlalu berbahaya. Mitos apa saja yang sering muncul?


Mitos mengenai kehamilan

Bila denyut jantung janin kurang dari 140 BPM : bayinya laki-laki.
Salah. Denyut jantung bayi perempuan biasanya lebih cepat dari bayi laki-laki tetapi hanya sesudah kelahiran. Tidak ada beda antara denyut jantung bayi laki-laki dan perempuan, tetapi kecepatannya bervariasi, tergantung usia janin. Sekitar lima minggu kehamilan, denyut jantung janin mendekati denyut jantung ibunya, yaitu sekitar 80 sampai 85 BPM. Denyut ini bertambah cepat sampai minggu kesembilan, yaitu mencapai 170 sampai 200 BPM, lalu menurun pada pertengahan kehamilan sampai sekitar 120 - 160 BPM, baik janin laki-laki maupun perempuan.

Kelebihan berat pada kandungan bagian depan berarti bayi perempuan; kelebihan berat di sekitar pinggul dan bokong berarti bayi laki-laki.
Salah. Bila wanita memiliki batang tubuh yang pendek, tidak ada ruang bagi bayi untuk tumbuh. Batang tubuh yang panjang dapat memberi ruang untuk mengakomodasi bayi, membuat perut wanita yang hamil menonjol keluar. Perut dengan kandungan yang melebar berarti bayi sedang pada posisi menyamping.

Bila kandungan berat ke bawah berarti bayi laki-laki; bila ke atas berarti bayi perempuan.
Salah. Bila kandungan ke atas, bisa berarti ini merupakan kehamilan pertama atau tubuh ibu memang memiliki bentuk yang bagus. Otot perut cenderung lebih elastis pada setiap kehamilan. Jadi, bila kandungan bukan merupakan kandungan pertama, perut cenderung agak ke bawah.

Puting yang berwarna gelap berarti bayi laki-laki.
Salah. Perubahan warna pada puting tidak ada hubungannya dengan jenis kelamin bayi. Perubahan warna tersebut disebabkan oleh meningkatnya progesteron dan melanocyte, hormon yang mengatur pigmentasi kulit. Puting susu, bercak kelahiran, tahi lalat, atau tanda-tanda lain dapat menjadi lebih gelap warnanya selama kehamilan. Guratan juga muncul di sekitar bagian tengah perut. Biasanya juga muncul garis hitam dari pusar ke bagian pubis. Warna hitam akan menghilang sesudah melahirkan.

Jangan menyusui bayi selama hamil, karena bayi di dalam kandungan memerlukan makanan.
Salah. Bila ibu sehat, menyusui selama kehamilan tidak membahayakan, baik bagi ibu, janin, maupun bayinya. Dokter akan melarang ibu menyusui bayinya selama kehamilan bila ibu mengalami kekurangan gizi, kekurangan berat badan, atau berisiko melahirkan prematur.




Mitos mengenai menggendong bayi atau anak-anak balita


Anak balita yang memakai sepatu akan membantunya lebih cepat berjalan.
Salah. Justru kebalikannya. Membiarkan anak balita tidak memakai sepatu dapat memperkuat otot kaki dan membantu si anak untuk belajar berjalan. Begitu anak balita berjalan, tentu saja mereka memerlukan sepatu yang nyaman yang sesuai dengan kakinya. Pilih sepatu yang lunak, jangan yang keras atau kaku. Sepatu harus nyaman dan sesuai dengan bentuk kaki anak. Beli yang tidak terlalu pas untuk memberi ruang bagi pertumbuhannya.

Baby-walker membantu bayi lebih cepat belajar berjalan.
Salah. Bayi yang menghabiskan waktunya dengan walker belajar duduk, merangkak, dan berjalan lebih lambat dari mereka yang belajar berjalan sendiri. Duduk di walker membatasi gerakan otot mereka. Lebih signifikan lagi, walker berbahaya. Hampir sekitar 14.000 kecelakaan akibat pemakaian walker dan 34 anak meninggal sejak tahun 1973 karena menggunakan walker.

Mitos tentang makanan dan minuman

Cukup makan saat flu. Bila tidak, akan menyebabkan panas tinggi.
Salah. Baik panas tinggi maupun flu dapat menyebabkan kekurangan cairan. Minum banyak cairan seperti air putih, jus segar, dan jus sayuran dapat membantu mencegah dehidrasi. Pada saat terkena panas tinggi maupun flu, sangat baik untuk tetap makan teratur. Kekurangan gizi dapat memperlambat kesembuhan seseorang.

Satu jam sesudah makan baru boleh berenang.
Salah. Tidak perlu menunggu satu jam sesudah makan baru masuk ke dalam kolam renang. Bagaimanapun, dianjurkan agar menunggu pencernaan selesai bekerja, terutama bila Anda makan makanan berlemak dan berniat untuk berenang agak lama dengan mengerahkan seluruh tenaga. Juga disarankan untuk tidak berenang sambil memakan permen karet atau makan karena dapat menyebabkan "shock".

Kopi menghambat pertumbuhan.
Salah. Kopi tidak berpengaruh pada pertumbuhan anak. Jangan masukkan kafein yang berlebihan dalam daftar diet anak-anak. Kelebihan kafein dapat mencegah penyerapan kalsium dan bahan nutrisi yang lain.

Ikan merupakan makanan yang baik bagi perkembangan otak
Betul. Ikan merupakan sumber jaringan asam omega-3 yang baik yang ditemukan sebagai makanan penting bagi fungsi otak. Namun demikian, ikan-ikan tertentu mempunyai tingkatan merkuri yang berarti. Oleh karena itu, disarankan agar wanita hamil atau sedang menyusui mengurangi serta membatasi konsumsi ikan tuna, ikan todak, dan ikan hiu.
Cokelat sebabkan jerawat.

Betul dan salah. Penelitian membuktikan bahwa tidak ada makanan yang spesifik sebagai penyebab jerawat. Makanan tertentu dapat menyebabkan jerawat bagi orang-orang tertentu. Misalnya, ada yang berjerawat sesudah makan cokelat, sementara orang lain justru berjerawat setelah minum kopi berlebihan. Jadi, sebaiknya perhatikan makanan atau minuman apa yang menimbulkan jerawat pada anak dan hindari mengonsumsinya secara berlebihan.

Makanan pedas dapat menyebabkan bisul.

Salah. Pada orang-orang tertentu, makanan pedas dapat memperburuk gejala bisul mereka, tetapi makanan pedas tersebut bukan penyebabnya. Infeksi bakteri atau penggunaan obat analgesik yang berlebihan, seperti aspirin atau obat antibiotik, dapat merupakan penyebabnya.

Makan wortel dapat memperbaiki penglihatan
Salah. Mitos ini dimulai pada perang dunia kedua ketika badan intelijen Inggris menyebarkan gosip bahwa penglihatan pilot mereka sangat baik di malam hari karena mereka makan banyak wortel; mereka tidak mau tentara Jerman tahu bahwa mereka menggunakan radar. Wortel dan sayuran lain yang mengandung vitamin A kadar tinggi dapat membantu menjaga mata yang sehat, tetapi memakannya lebih dari yang direkomendasikan tidak berpengaruh memperbaiki penglihatan.

Mitos tentang kondisi kesehatan

Keluar rumah dengan rambut yang masih basah bisa sebabkan flu.
Salah. Cuaca dingin dan rambut basah tidak sebabkan flu. Viruslah penyebabnya. Orang-orang cenderung terserang flu lebih sering pada musim dingin atau musim hujan, karena virus tersebar lebih mudah di udara kering. Udara kering, baik di dalam maupun di luar ruangan, dapat menurunkan resistensi seseorang terhadap infeksi.

Membaca dengan lampu yang temaram dapat merusak mata.
Salah. Walaupun membaca dengan cahaya lampu yang temaram tidak berbahaya. Cahaya yang baik dapat membantu mencegah mata yang lelah dan membuat membaca lebih mudah.

Terlalu banyak menonton televisi tidak baik bagi mata.
Salah. Menonton televisi tidak merusak mata (tidak peduli seberapa jauh jarak dari televisi), walaupun terlalu banyak menonton televisi dapat memberi pengaruh buruk pada anak-anak. Penelitian membuktikan bahwa anak-anak yang menonton televisi lebih dari 10 jam seminggu cenderung kelebihan berat badan, agresif, dan lambat mengikuti pelajaran di sekolah.

Bila Anda menjulingkan mata, maka mata Anda akan tetap juling.
Salah. Menjulingkan mata tidak menyebabkan mata juling selamanya. Mata juling disebabkan oleh gangguan pada garis mata.

Mengisap jempol dapat menyebabkan gigi maju.
Betul … dan salah. Mengisap jempol sering dimulai sebelum lahir dan umumnya tetap berlangsung sampai usia 5 tahun. Mengisap jempol tidaklah berbahaya bila anak-anak berhenti melakukannya pada usia 4 sampai 5 tahun. Namun, tetap disarankan agar orang tua tidak membiarkan anak-anak mengisap jempolnya sesudah usia mereka mencapai 4 tahun, karena pada saat ini, gusi, rahang, dan gigi tetap mulai tumbuh. Itulah sebabnya, di atas usia 4 tahun, ada kemungkinan mengisap jempol akan merupakan penyebab gigi maju.

Menggigit ujung kuku dapat menyebabkan artritis.
Salah. Namun, kebiasaan menggigit ujung kuku cenderung menyebabkan tangan bengkak, melemahkan genggaman, dan dapat melemahkan fungsi tangan.
Terlalu banyak mendengar suara bising dapat menyebabkan kurang pendengaran.
Betul. Hanya dalam 15 menit mendengarkan musik yang keras dan nyaring, suara mesin, atau suara bising lainnya dapat menyebabkan kurangnya pendengaran dan tinnitus yang bersifat sementara. Suara nyaring dapat menyebabkan gendang telinga bergetar berlebihan dan merusak selaput telinga. Mendengarkan suara nyaring terus-menerus dapat menyebabkan hilangnya pendengaran secara permanen. Misalnya mendengar lagu lewat headphone dengan volume suara yang terlalu tinggi.

The 10 Golden Rules of Trading

1 Introduction In this article we cover the few important rules that should never be broken in trading. If you can apply these rules consistently, and with discipline, you will be well on the way to being a profitable trader. The rules we cover are: • Have specific goals and objectives • Be consistent and disciplined • Let profits run • Cut losses short • Never add to a losing trade • Don’t take too much risk • Only trade positive expectancy systems • Minimize all trading business costs • Be well educated • Don’t trade scared money Each of the rules will now be discussed. 2 The Golden Rules of Trading The following sections outline a set of rules that can significantly improve your chances of success if they are understood, practiced, and implemented consistently in your trading. These rules have been learned the hard way, by study, research, trial-and-error, and the inevitable mistakes that everyone makes when they start a trading business. We hope that you can learn from the work we have done, and benefit from our experience. The rules will now be discussed. 2.1 Have specific goals and objectives Few things are more important to your trading success than having set (i.e. written) goals and objective for what you are aiming to achieve. It is amazing to me how often we hit our targets, meet our objectives, and reach our goals only when we articulate them and write them down. For any business to be successful it must have measurable objectives that are actually achievable. In trading (obviously) the primary objective is to make money, but it is important to have other objectives that are not purely cash-related. We must always remember that reward and risk go hand-in-hand in trading and that we cannot expect to achieve high returns without planning for high risk (i.e. draw-downs). Your objectives and goals will be very specific to you, but they must have the following characteristics to be useful: • Be measurable (in completion and timeframe) • Be achievable • Be worthwhile • Be positive As an example, here are some of our current objectives (this is only a partial list): • Develop 2 new positive-expectancy trading systems each year • Make fewer errors implementing our trading systems each year • Achieve a return to maximum draw-down ratio of 1.5:1 • Take 2 weeks vacation each year Note that only one of them is about making money, and that has a measurable objective that is relative to draw-down, not absolute (i.e. make 100% per year). If you know what you are trying to achieve, and when you are trying to achieve it, the whole business will be focused on meeting your objectives and help guide you to only pay attention to things you really want to achieve with your limited time and resources. This will also give you a way to measure the success and progress of your trading. Generally traders with well-defined objectives will be much more successful than those that do not have pre-defined goals. 2.2 Be consistent and disciplined In order to realize the full potential of your trading systems it is critical that you take every trading entry, adjust every stop, and close out every trade as and when your system says you should do. This takes extreme confidence in your trading systems, good robust reliable technology, and the mental discipline to stick to your trading plan whatever happens (assuming it is complete). An underlying assumption about being consistent and disciplined is that you have a pre-defined plan for every situation you may face in your trading, so that you know how you are defining what being consistent is. Your plan needs to include at least the following items: • All your trading rules for entering, adding to, and exiting positions • What you will do if your trading computer, internet connection, broker, power, telephone etc. fails • What you will do if you are unable to trade • What you will do if you lose X% of your account • What you will do if all the markets are closed and you can’t exit your positions Unless you write the answers down to all these issues, you cannot be consistent and disciplined in your approach to trading and if you lose money you will not know whether it is because you didn’t follow your plan, because your plan is incomplete, because your systems do not work, or simply because you are going through a losing period. 2.3 Let profits run This simple rule is the key to being a successful trader. It is three simple words that are very hard to actually implement. When we get a profitable trade our natural fear of losing the unrealized cash kicks in and we truly want to close it out now and take the money. Most trading consists of long periods of small winners and losers followed by a few huge winners that make the difference between overall profitability and simply breaking even or losing due to trading costs(commissions, spread, and slippage). It is our ability to let the huge winners become just that - huge - that determines how we will perform overall during the year. The key to letting winners run is to have trailing stops that are outside the daily noise of the market so that they are not tight enough to get stopped out during ‘normal’ trading. This means being prepared to give up a significant portion of a winning trade’s open profit and is the thing that makes this so hard to implement. In fact, we should be adding to a winner and widening stops rather than working out how tight our stops can be to capture maximum profit. The trade has already shown you that it intends to be a winner, and the chances are it is a low-risk idea to add to the position now rather than ‘strangle it’ with stops that are too tight. It is very important that your position management rules allow for large winning trades, and that the rules are pre-defined and understood before you place the trade. This will allow you (if you have confidence in your method and discipline) to stick to your rules when you do get the big winner. 2.4 Cut losses short This is the sister rule to the previous one, and is usually just as difficult to implement (although it is very easy to define). In the same way that profitability comes from a few large winning trades, capital preservation comes from avoiding the few large losers that the market will toss your way each year. Setting a maximum loss point before you enter the trade so you know before-hand approximately how much you are risking on this particular position is relatively straightforward. You simply need to have a exit price that says to you ‘this trade is a loser and I will exit before it gets any bigger’. Due to gaps at the open, or limit moves in futures we can never be 100% certain that we can get out with our maximum loss, but simply having the rules, and always sticking to it will save us from the nasty trades that just keep on going and going against our position until we have lost more than many winning trades can make back. If you have a losing position that is at you maximum loss point, just get out. Do not hope that it will turn around. Given that trades are either winners or losers, and this one is shouting ‘Loser’ at you, the chances that it will turn around and become a large winner is tiny. Why risk any more money on this losing trade, when you could simply close it out (accept the loss) and move on. This will leave you in a much better place financially and mentally, than holding the position and hoping it will go back your way. Even if it did do this, the mental energy and negative feelings from holding the losing position are not worth it. Always stick to your rules and exit a position if it hits your stop point. 2.5 Never add to a losing trade One of the few trade management rules that we can state we never break is ‘Never add to a losing trade’. Trades are split into winners and losers, and if a trade is a loser, the chances of it turning right around and becoming a winner are too small to risk more money on. If indeed it is a winner disguised as a loser, why not wait until it shows it’s true colors (and becomes a winner)before you add to it. If you do this you will notice that nearly always the trade ends up hitting your stop loss and does not look back. Sometimes the trade turns around before it hits your stop and becomes a winner and you can count yourself very fortunate. Sometimes the trade hits your stop loss and then turns around and becomes a winner and you can count yourself unlucky. Whatever the result, it is never worth adding to a loser, hoping that it will become a winner. The odds of success are just too low to risk more capital in addition to the initial risk. 2.6 Don’t take too much risk One of the most devastating mistakes any trader can make is risking too much of their capital on a single trade. One thing is certain in trading and that is if you lose all your capital you are out of the game. Why risk so much you could be prevented from continuing? There is a saying in poker than going all-in (risking all your chips) works every time but once. This is true of trading. If you risk all your account on every trade it only takes one loser to wipe you out (and no trading method is 100% accurate), so you will be out of the game at some point – it is only a question of time. In general, we only risk 1-3% of the available capital allocated to a system on any individual trade. This is calculated using the size and, the difference between our entry price and our maximum stop price, and the amount of capital allocated to the system. With the win probability and ratio of size of winning trades to losing trades we are almost certain never to lose all of our trading capital. In fact, the chance of us hitting our maximum drawdown for the year is tiny. All trades should be of a size that almost seems insignificant. If you are worried about the size of a trade then it is too big and you should reduce the size immediately. Remember that longevity is the key to making money by trading – slowly over a long time with minimal risk, is always preferable to rapidly with too much risk. 2.7 Only trade positive expectancy systems If you have a positive expectancy trading system, the only factors that determine how much money you will make per year are the number of trades the system generates, how much capital you allocate to the system, and how accurately you implement the trading signals. If you do not know whether your trading system is positive expectancy then why are you trading it? Expectancy is calculated using the profit or loss on each trade (net of trading implementation costs) divided by the initial risk (using your stop loss) and then taking the average of this number of a series of trades. Systems that have positive expectancy will make money on average and those with negative expectancy will lose money. Successful traders only trade systems where the odds of success are in their favor (i.e. the system is positive expectancy) so they know that making money is the result of accurately implementing the system and not just pure luck. 2.8 Minimize all trading business costs Some trading systems have only marginal profitability, and trading implementation costs (commission, spread, and slippage) can be the difference between profitability and making a loss. With the easy availability of modern electronic brokers, and fully-automated trade processing and execution, it is definitely worthwhile looking for a very low cost way to implement your trading system. High commission, wide spreads, and large amount of slippage can be reduced considerably simply by carefully choosing a broker. This can be the difference between a system (especially a high frequency one) being useable or not. Paying too much for trade implementation is an avoidable way to lose money. 2.9 Be educated In order to compete at the highest level in the trading business and be one of the few truly successful participants you must be well-educated about what you are doing. This does not mean having a degree from a well-respected university – the market doesn’t care where you were educated. Being well-educated means that you have thoroughly researched and tested your trading ideas and know why your trading system worked in the past and is continuing to work now. It means understanding all the technology and applications that your system needs to perform accurately. It means understanding your goal and objectives and how trading will achieve these. It means understanding yourself and how your personality affects your results. It means understanding the markets and instruments you trade. In order to succeed you really need to become an expert in your own trading business to understand how it all fits together, when it is broken, and how it can be improved. As with all worthwhile endeavors, this takes commitment, hard work, dedication, and more hard work. 2.10 Don’t trade scared money Lastly, no one ever made any money trading when they had to do it to pay the mortgage at the end of the month. Having a requirement to make X dollars per month or you will be financially in trouble is the best way I know to completely mess up all trading discipline, rules, objectives, and leads quickly to disaster. Trading is about taking a reasonable risk in order to achieve a good reward. The markets and how and when they give up their profits is not under your control. Do not trade if you need the money to pay bills. Do not trade if your business and personal expenses are not covered by another income stream or cash reserve. This will only lead to additional unmanageable stress and be very detrimental to your trading performance. 3 Summary In this article we have covered the rules that we believe should never be broken in trading. If you work on never breaking them, your trading should improve dramatically. We sincerely hope this information has helped you to improve your trading performance. Good luck in yout trading.

Forex Trading Online - 7 Reasons You Should!

Forex trading online is a fast way to use your investment capital to it's fullest. The Forex markets offer distinct advantages to the small and large traders alike, making Forex currency trading in many ways preferable to other markets such as stocks, options or traditional futures. Here are seven reasons why you'll want to look into Forex Trading online. 1 - Forex is the largest market. Forex trading volume of more than 1.9 billion, more than 3 times larger than the equities market and more than 5 times bigger than futures, give Forex traders nearly unlimited liquidity and flexibility. 2 - Forex never sleeps! You can execute forex trading online 24/7, from 7AM New Zealand time on Monday morning, to 5PM New York time on Friday evening. No waiting for markets to open: they're open all night! This makes Forex trading online a very attractive component that fits easily into your day (or night!) 3 - No Bulls or Bears! Because Forex trading online involves the buying of one currency while simultaneously selling another, you have an equal opportunity for profit no matter which direction the currency is headed. Another advantage is that there are only around 14 pairs of currencies to trade, as opposed to many thousands of stocks, options and futures. 4 - Forex Trading online offers great leverage! You can make the most of your investment resources with Forex trading online. Some brokers offer 200:1 margin ratios in your trading accounts. Mini-FX accounts, which can typically be opened with only $200-300, offer 0.5% margin, meaning that $50 in trading capital can control a 10,000 unit currency position. This is why people are flocking to Forex trading online as a way to highly leverage their investments. 5 - Forex prices are predictable. Currency prices, though volatile, tend to create and follow trends, allowing the technically trained Forex trader to spot and take advantage of many entry and exit points. 6 - Forex trading online is commission free! That's right! No commissions, no exchange fees or any other hidden fees. This is a very transparent market, and you'll find it very easy to research the currencies and the countries involved. Forex brokers make a small percentage of the bid/ask spread, and that's it. No longer any need to compute commissions and fees when executing a trade. 7 - Forex trading online is instant! The FX market is astoundingly fast! Your orders are executed, filled and confirmed usually within 1-2 seconds. Since this is all done electronically with no humans involved, there is little to slow it down! Forex trading online can get you where you want to go quicker and more profitably than any other form of trading. Check it out and see what Forex trading online can do for you!

Learn Forex Trading - a guide for beginners

One can learn forex trading as easily as one would like to learn other subjects or train in other professions. The criteria for learning forex trading is an analytical / logical bent of mind and some number crunching abilities. Reading specialized books on the subject matter, enrolling for college and other programs, which specifically teach one to do forex dealing, one can understand Forex trading. Still other ways are through the Internet and training under a forex dealer / professional. Essentially the forex market comprises of currencies, which are bought and sold according to certain parameters. There are major currencies in the market, which are trade and are the most liquid. These are US Dollar, Japanese Yen, Euro, British Pound, Swiss Franc, Canadian Dollar and Australian Dollar. Then there are other currencies, which are not so liquid. However currency trade is done in almost all currencies across the world. The forex market is truly a twenty-four market with only a minor break during the weekend. It opens in Sydney, then in Tokyo and then in London and New York in that order according to the way that the Earth rotates and the sun rises. Therefore forex brokers and investors can choose their time of operation. Essentially it's a matter of selling and buying the currencies. The goal is very simple, that of making a profit in the currency transactions that you participate in. The currency market operates like most other markets and therefore for many traders 'migrating ' form other trades such as stock market can be quite simple. Essentially one can learn forex transactions by creating a virtual account. The first lesson is that currency trade is done in pairs only like Euros / US$, Japanese Yen/ Canadian Dollars etc. When you have set up a virtual account with the amount of initial investment, keep the following pointers in mind · According to your investment strategy and time frame, choose the currency pair best suited to your needs. Some currency pairs can be very aggressive and the changes can be quite volatile. While others may not show any movement. Therefore choose the currency pair with care. · Decide the time frame. Do you want to spend a few minutes on the forex trade or you want to go the whole hog and devote the entire week to the forex trade (swing trade) · Have an exit plan ready before you start the currency transactions. Know when to place your 'stops' and do so accordingly. · No risk no gain. Be willing to take risk. You can take calculated risks in order to earn good profits. Know whether you want to be an aggressive trader or are you happy being a safe trader. · Read and analyze the news and the technical data that is generated on the currencies that you deal in to understand the market conditions better. Of course you can grasp the modus operandi of the forex trade. But for doing the real thing, you need to be in the forex transaction market for real.

Gaming Laptops - The Five Essential Features To Consider When Buying A Gaming Laptop

Gone are the days when you would have been laughed at if you walked into an all-night LAN party carrying your trusty laptop and expecting to hang with the giant computer towers standing at everyone’s feet. The gaming laptop computers of today sport huge, crisp LCD screens, cutting-edge video cards and full-size keyboards. Not only can these gaming laptop computers hang with the standard clunky computer tower, but they can also be ordered fully custom to meet the exact specifications of any gamer. Since there are so many customizable components in these laptops, a standard practice has been to create what some call a “system builder.” This is the page where you get to add and subtract components through drop-down menus in order to create the best gaming laptop computer for your needs and your budget. This type of page can be overwhelming to someone just starting the gaming laptop shopping process, but it is very manageable if you take it just one component at a time. The Gaming Laptop GPU This is the heart of a gaming laptop computer. The GPU – graphics processing unit – is a component that will make or break your gaming experience. If your GPU isn’t up to snuff, your games won’t play. Without getting into specific models since they change all the time, the key is that the graphics card not share resources with the computer. A gaming laptop video card must have its own memory on board. Generally speaking, standard off-the-shelf laptops will not have this feature. The two current makers of laptop video cards are nVIDIA and ATI. Without the Screen, You Don’t Have Much What good is a gaming laptop without a screen that can actually render your games? Now certainly, you can connect an external monitor, but if you can’t actually play on your gaming laptop without that external monitor, then your laptop isn’t all that mobile. While the technology and terminology for LCDs (liquid crystal displays) could take up an entire article in itself, there are a few key points to keep in mind when choosing from available LCD options for your new gaming laptop computer: native resolution, aspect ratio, rise and fall time, contrast, viewing angle, and size. Native Resolution. The native resolution is simply the setting at which your screen will render the clearest images. Since games are constantly in motion, slightly soft edges may not bother most gamers, but keep in mind that while this is your gaming laptop, you will likely also use it for other things like surfing the Internet. If the resolution isn’t comfortable, you aren’t going to enjoy using it. Aspect Ratio. As you probably know, a movie theater screen and a TV screen have different proportions. Likewise, there are widescreen format gaming laptops and there are laptops that have a standard aspect ratio – like that of a TV. A widescreen format gaming laptop has advantages and disadvantages. Many games today do not have a widescreen mode. This means that the game may stretch across the screen and become distorted or you may run it with black bars that fill in the sides. There are ways to get around this, but if you want an out of the box perfect experience, the widescreen format may not be for you. That said, a widescreen LCD does offer plenty of screen real estate for web surfing and other type of computer activities, and a game played in a wide format setting offers an expansive field of view. For this reason, there are some very loyal widescreen-loving gamers out there. Do your best to find a balance between current and future technology and what your computer habits are beyond gaming. Even with its limitations, the widescreen format is found on most of the best gaming laptop computers. Rise and Fall. The phrase ‘rise and fall time’ is used to describe how fast the LCD can respond to changes. In the past, LCDs have been plagued with the inability to render images as fast as computer games can spit them out. This presents a major problem for laptop gamers because if they can’t see the images properly, they can’t play the game properly. This lag can mean the difference between playing to win and barely playing. Fortunately, gaming laptop LCDs have come a long way and they are only getting better. While once it was impossible to game on a laptop screen, the gaming laptop LCDs of today offer 25 milliseconds or less rise and fall time while generally off-the-shelf laptops have 40 milliseconds or less rise and fall time. Contrast. If a gaming laptop LCD has poor contrast, that means that the black areas aren’t quite as black as they should be and the white areas aren’t quite as white. This is important to a laptop gamer because you have to see the game properly – as it was intended to be seen – in order to compete effectively. Look for a contrast ratio of 400:1 or higher in a custom gaming laptop computer. Viewing Angle. This is an often-overlooked LCD feature, but it must be considered if you are building a gaming laptop computer. Many high quality LCDs on the market are difficult to see clearly at any angle other than straight on and at the right height. This can be a big drawback to gaming on a LCD screen because a screen with poor viewing angles won’t allow others to watch the screen as you play and also hurts your view when doing something as simple as adjusting your seating, which can require you to then adjust to position of your laptop screen to see it properly again. But gaming on a laptop does not mean that you are doomed to have poor viewing angles. There are LCDs on the market that have amazing viewing angles – up to 120 degrees. These screens not only allow gaming onlookers, but they also allow you to use that giant, crisp screen to do things like play movies and even make presentations. Size. In a gaming laptop computer, size is everything. Most gaming laptops are large, robust pieces of electronics. Having a machine of this stature means you also get to have a large screen. The best gaming laptop computer LCD screens out there are at least 15 inches. A crowd favorite is a 17 inch widescreen (even with the challenges that widescreens present). Largr 19 inch laptop screens are just starting to be talked about with consumers expecting to see 19 inch or even large models on the market in the near future. The best way to really get a feel for what laptop LCDs are all about is to take a trip to a local box store and play with the LCDs on the display laptops while keeping in mind what you have read here. While these laptops are not custom gaming laptops, you can see what the sizes really look like, what different resolutions look like, and what the viewing angles truly are so you can start to develop your own preferences. The RAM – What Type and How Much? The RAM (random access memory) found in laptops is called SODIMM (small outline dual inline memory module). The RAM is responsible for your processing power. If you are shopping for a custom gaming laptop, you will generally be offered DDR2 RAM with the choice of how much you want in your computer. Most high-end games being released today need 1GB of RAM for optimum, lag-free game play. Some people are going with 2GB to ensure that they can run multiple applications along with the game and not experience any slow down in response time. This is a large investment and you want to be able to use this gaming laptop for some time in the future. Most custom laptops are user upgradeable, but this should be left up to professionals. The CPU – Not Just Mobile Technology The CPUs (central processing units) found in many custom gaming laptops are identical to those found in desktops. These chips require a great deal of cooling power, which in turn can make your laptop louder than light weight, lower power ultra portables when the fans kick on and it can become somewhat warm to the touch. Don’t be alarmed by this – it is normal. And with these desktop processors comes screaming power! Don’t waste your money on the latest CPU release that likely has an inflated price tag (and that price will likely come down before long). Stick with a current CPU speed that is offered by a reputable custom gaming laptop reseller, and you really can’t go wrong. The Gaming Laptop Hard Drive This is the final component to consider when building a gaming laptop. Laptop hard drives come in a variety of speeds and capacities ranging from 4200 to 7200 RPMs and 40 to over 100 GBs. For the most part, this is user preference. Whenever possible, go for a 7200 RPM hard drive, but if you need a capacity not offered in this speed, it’s okay to go for the 5400 RPM drive. Take a look at your current computer, and buy your capacity based on this. Also keep in mind that with many custom gaming laptop manufacturers, you have the ability to upgrade or add another hard drive at a later date. At the end of the day, gaming laptop computers are all about power. Don’t expect a twelve-pound notebook with a desktop processor, numerous fans, a giant heatsink, and independent video card to last on battery power all that long. But do make sure to enjoy the jawdrops that you’ll get as you walk into your regular LAN party location with your new, screaming-fast gaming laptop computer. Crack that puppy open, fire it up, and stand clear of the drool as you take on your favorite game with fellow gamers gathered around to take in the action. Gaming is not just for desktops anymore!

Different Categories of Computer Games

Computer games can be categorized mainly into PC games that are played in your computer after installation using the CDs that contain the software, downloadable pc games, and the online games. Many websites provide you with the downloadable version of the PC games. Category based on permission to use The games can be categorized based on licenses. Some of the games are free and they can be downloaded on the internet free. Some pc games are free downloadable games but are shareware. Shareware games have limitations in the features. Some of the shareware can be used for only 30 days time and some are limited by the number of times that software is used. Trial versions of the software are also available which are time limited or feature limited. Online Games Online games are those that are played online. The user who is playing the online games should have an internet connection in his PC. You should be aware that your internet bill is on the rise during the time you play the online games. Yahoo games are one among the popular online games. Many websites provide you online games. Some of the sites require you to become a member to play these online games. Some charge you on per game basis for playing. PC Games PC Games are those that require an installation through a CD to play the pc games. Some of the games even require the CD to be present in the CD drive to play the game. These software CDs are to be purchased by the user. There are many pc games available like Tomb Raider that requires you to purchase the CD. Most of the games that contain Car races and Motorbike races require the software to be installed through the CD bought by you. Downloadable PC Games These games can be downloaded from the internet and can be installed in your computer. Most of the free game downloads are small enough to be downloaded from the internet. There websites like www.download.com that can be searched for free game downloads. A good search engine would give you thousands of links to free downloadable games. What you need in your PC to play these games? Most of the games can be played without any additional hardware. If you are having the latest configuration of the PC, which has the software pre-installed in your computer, then you might not need any additional software to be installed. Some of the online games require you to install plug-ins to run the online games. Plug-in is additional software that is required to run an application in your computer. You will be provided appropriate links to download the plug-ins required by your browser or your computer. You need to check the system requirements for the computer games that is downloaded or installed in your system and install them before you start playing the game.

Copying XBOX Games

There really is no shortcut to copying XBOX games. In fact, this is a mightily complicated process and has stumped some really techie people. This is evident with the prevalence of the question on copying XBOX games in Internet message boards and tech chat rooms. But why does one need to be going about there and copying XBOX games? Is this not legal? If you have an XBOX and you have purchased original games to play on it, chances are you must have ran through a huge chunk of your savings. Original games are very expensive and because CDs are not exactly immortal, you can eventually wear out a game especially if you use it every minute of the day. To give value to consumers, most countries allow original CD buyers to make back-up copies of their XBOX games in case their original got damaged or got lost provided that they are aware of the law against pirated software and that they actually own an original cd and are only copying XBOX games for their personal use only. While it is relatively easy to do the copying of XBOX games, the same cannot be said in actually using the XBOX games that you have copied. Most software contain an encryption that must be met when inserted in an XBOX. Copying an XBOX game, however, does not copy this encryption. This is a protection system that most XBOX consoles have as protection against flagrant copying of XBOX games. To be able to run XBOX games that you have copied, you need to modify your XBOX. This can be a daunting task especially to beginners who are afraid of destroying their XBOXes with their tinkering. According to most tech experts, there are a lot of ways to modifying your XBOX in order to accommodate the practice of copying of XBOX games. Some are quite complicated and only a tech expert could do while other ways can be expensive but easy. One is to buy and install a MOD-chip. This will allow your console to play XBOX games that you have copied as well as play imported games from other countries with perfect sound and video with no problem at all. While it may seem that all you have to do is purchase a MOD-Chip and then voila, you have another think coming. There are actually a lot of things that you should consider when buying a MOD-Chip. Most recommend the Divineo Modchips, which are purported to be really reliable. Some of the popular brands are the Xecuter 2 and 3, Xenium, SmartXX, X-bit, Alladin, Chameleon and Xchip. Another way in copying and using XBOX games is to change the BIOS of the XBOX so that it will no longer read the requirements of the digitally-signed software. This is basically reprogramming the whole BIOS. You might also consider purchasing a bigger hard drive and just save all your games inside the XBOX. This way, you already have copy of your favorite games inside and would no longer need to swap CDs. The third way is to do the game swapping technique, wherein you will first boot the original CD and then swap the copy once it has already booted up. This might be very complicated and will not actually serve your purpose in copying your XBOX games… that is to preserve your original CDs.

How to get 50 High PR One Way Links Each Month

It’s easy. So easy it’s almost criminal. But I can get one-way High PR links whenever I want. How? Come closer. Let me whisper in your ear. It involves articles, the google toolbar and a tracking sheet. That’s it’s. Because there’s really nothing to getting high PR one way links. ====> Two Must Finds All you do is find sites to post your articles on that do a good job of directing pagerank (PR) to their articles pages. Sadly many do not. Others may but they don’t include that coveted live link from your article. This just means you’ll have to look a little harder. Since the crown jewel in your search for sites to submit articles to is to find those with other articles that show lives links. And the pages they’re on sport at least PR 3 or higher. Here’s why this is so powerful. You’ll typically get the lion’s share of that PR. Since unlike a links page, quite often the only external link is to the author’s web site. Just think. While others are thrashing around trading links, you’re quietly developing high search rankings by simply submitting articles. Nifty seo twist on the idea of article marketing isn’t it? ====> Your Tracking Sheet Setting up your tracking sheet is simple too. You want at least three headings including website URL, PR, Live Link. What goes in the first should be obvious. Jot down the PR of the article pages themselves in the second. The third you simply note “Y” for yes if there is a live link from the article’s resource box back to the author’s web site. Or “N” for no if there is not. Now for the tedious part - finding sites to host your articles. Typically article banks, directories and the like are NOT going to be your best bet. Sorry. I’m not saying you shouldn’t submit articles to them as part of an overall article marketing scheme. Just don’t do so in the hopes of snapping up many high PR one way links is all. Instead you want to use Google to help you find individual web sites that post articles. There are many ways to find them. Let me share one. ====> One Way to Find Sites to Submit to Simply search on your “target keyword phrase + articles”. And don’t forget the quotes. Doing so tells Google to return all pages with both the keyword phrase and the word articles on them. This should return a healthy list of sites in that keyword niche that host articles. Now you want to do this search in Internet Explorer with the Google toolbar turned on. At each site visit a few article pages that have been around for awhile. (Sometimes sites will show the date posted. Other times you just have to kinda guess which might have been there longer.) Keep an eye on the PR of those pages. Checking out three or four such pages should give you an idea of the PR potential. Note the highest PR you find on your tracking sheet. Also take note if the links in the resource box are live or not. Once you run through the first list try another focus keyword. Or try a related niche. Just be aware you’ll start to see peats and repeats. Still don’t stop until you’ve got a nice starter list of 25-30 sites that have higher PR and a live link back. After you’ve got your list write the best, most informative, helpful article you can. No self promotion. No affiliate links. No hype whatsoever. Then have at it. Submit it to the list you just developed. If you’ve got a better than average article you can expect at least 10 or maybe even 15 out of 30 sites to post it. And you’re on your way. Just like that you’ve got 10-15 higher PR one way links. Which is probably more than most of your competitors have. And that’s just one article. That’s right. Once you’ve got one article in motion, look for more sites. Write another high quality article. Submit it first to those who posted your previous article. They should be your favored class and get first crack at your new one. Then submit it to the rest. Pretty simple isn’t it? Yet this pretty much lays out how I get 50+ high PR one way links each month. Now you can too.

Top Five Ways to Earn Extra Money Online at Home for Free

Here's a fact: everybody wants to earn extra money. We all have bills to pay, families to feed, and the list goes on and on... Discover several legitimate ways to earn extra money online for free using your computer at home. You probably wonder how much extra income you can make? Well, it depends on how much time and energy you are going to put in. Here are five legitimate online opportunities for everybody to earn extra cash fast: 1. Get paid to read email This is probably one of the oldest online income opportunity. In order to get started all you need is your own e-mail address. If you have an Internet access at home, you probably already have an e-mail address too? Otherwise, you can open your own email account and receive your personal e-mail address for free at: http://www.yahoo.com or http://www.hotmail.com Actually, be prepared to use your e-mail address with any of the extra income opportunities that I have listed in this article. How 'get paid to read email' programs work? Simply, online advertisers pay commissions to the paid email companies for sending their advertisements via e-mail to members who want to get paid for reading emails. When you receive a paid e- mail, in order to receive your cash you should click on the link and visit an advertiser's web site. How much you can earn? Not much. The paid email companies pay from $0.01 up to $1.00 per e-mail that you read. Usually the more they pay, the higher is their payout minimum. It means that you can request your payment only after you have earned a certain amount of money. It really wouldn't be worth your time if paid e-mail companies didn't have referral or affiliate programs. As an affiliate you can refer new members to their programs and get paid a percentage of what your referrals earn. Note that if you want to make serious money you'll need to recruit at least several hundred referrals. Not to worry though - there are some free ways to accomplish that, as you will soon discover. Besides, visitor to sign up conversion ratios are very high, since get paid to read programs are totally free to join! It is very important to select only legitimate paid email companies. Here's a short list of proven 'get paid to read e-mail' companies: i) WowEarnings - http://www.cash4offers.com/r/wowearn ii) InboxDollars - http://www.cash4offers.com/r/idollars iii) E-mailPaysU - http://www.cash4offers.com/r/epaysu 2. Get paid to take surveys When you join paid survey programs, online merchants pay you for your opinions on their products and services. The problem is that in order to access top paid survey companies you have to pay an access fee. Here are some top-notch web sites that offer huge databases of paid survey programs: i) Survey Scout - http://www.cash4offers.com/r/sscout ii) Paid For Free - http://www.cash4offers.com/r/paid4free iii) Survey Platinum - http://www.cash4offers.com/r/surveyp 3. Get paid to complete offers At the moment, this is one of the most lucrative ways to earn extra money online working from home. Again, online merchants pay commissions to visitors... but not for opinions, not for their ads delivered via e-mail, but for trying their products and services. The offers include credit card applications, ISP services, membership clubs, free trials and samples, etc. You can earn up to $70 extra money just for a single offer completed. Usually, the more extra cash you earn per offer, the more you have to pay per S&H or trial membership. However, if you really need a product or service that is offered, this is a great opportunity to accept it on the Internet, simply using your computer at home. Plus, you get paid extra cash for accepting terrific deals! Top get paid for offers programs: i) Cash4Offers - http://www.cash4offers.com ii) WowEarnings - http://www.cash4offers.com/r/wowearn iii) CashFiesta - http://www.cash4offers.com/r/cashf iv) SearchCactus - http://www.cash4offers.com/r/scactus v) InboxDollars - http://www.cash4offers.com/r/idollars 4. Get paid to shop online This way to earn extra money is very similar to paid offers opportunity. You get paid a certain percentage of what you spend at online stores. Cash4Offers and WowEarnings have super get paid to shop online stores. So, if you like to shop online, why not get paid for doing it? 5. Get paid for marketing affiliate programs As I mentioned earlier, you cannot earn a lot cash unless you join affiliate programs of these 'get paid to' companies, and earn commissions from your referrals. If you don't want to get involved in the affiliate marketing, the only option is to join a get paid to complete offers company and earn several hundred dollars by completing offers that interest you. However, if you are serious about making extra income online from the comfort of your home, you should join 'get paid to' (or other) affiliate programs and promote them on the Internet. Ideally, you should create your own web site. Here are some useful resources from top online affiliate marketers that will help you to get started: i) Corey Ruld - http://www.cash4offers.com/r/crcourse ii) James Martell - http://www.cash4offers.com/r/jm iii) Ken Evoy - http://www.cash4offers.com/r/sbires Of course, you can succeed as an affiliate even without your own web site. The best free way to drive targeted traffic to your affiliate programs is by writting your own articles and submitting them to major article directories: * http://www.goarticles.com * http://www.articlecity.com * http://www.article-emporium.com * http://www.ezinearticles.com * http://groups.yahoo.com/group/article_announce If you think that you cannot write, check out Jim Edwards' "Turn Words Into Traffic" letter. I hope that he will convince you that you can: http://www.cash4offers.com/r/jearticles When joining a 'get paid to' affiliate program look what affiliate marketing tools & resources the company gives you. The only 'get paid to' affiliate program that offers two-tier affiliate commissions, ready-to-use articles, free reports that you can give away to your web site visitors, affiliate e-course and much more, is Cash4Offers. As you can see, some 'get paid to' companies offer you several ways to earn extra money in one place. For example, WowEarnings gives you an all-in-one-place extra income opportunity to get paid to read e-mails, complete offers, shop and refer your friends. But if you want to make the most extra income working from home in your spare time, you should get involved with affiliate marketing, and start with the Cash4Offers affiliate program.

Menjaga Gula Darah Tidak Rendah atau Tinggi

Kadar gula manusia kadang terlalu tinggi atau terlalu rendah yang keduanya tidak bagus untuk kesehatan. Kadar gula harus dijaga dalam posisi normal agar tubuh tetap sehat. Bagaimana menjaga agar gula darah tidak tinggi atau rendah?

Gula darah dalam istilah medis dikenal sebagai glukosa. Gula di dalam darah ini diperlukan karena menjadi sumber energi bagi sel-sel tubuh.

Seperti dilansir buzzle, Minggu (4/7/2010) rata-rata tingkat glukosa darah normal pada manusia adalah 70 mg/dl hingga 120 mg/dl dan biasanya akan meningkat setelah makan. Gula darah masih termasuk normal jika setelah makan angkanya masih di bawah 220 mg/dl.

Jika gula darah di bawah 60 mg/dl akan terjadi hipoglikemia atau kadar gula yang rendah. Sebaliknya jika sudah melebihi 225 mg/dl maka akan terjadi hiperglikemia atau gula darah tinggi.

Gula darah yang kelewat rendah bisa bisa menyebabkan orang koma (hilang kesadaran). Tanda-tanda gula darah rendah adalah lelah, fungsi mental yang menurun, perasaan gemetar, berkeringat, perih pada mulut, pusing, perasaan linglung dan jantung berdetak keras hingga kehilangan kesadaran.

Penyebab gula darah rendah biasanya kurang mengonsumsi makanan yang manis, asupan karbohidrat yang kurang, melakukan aktivitas yang berlebihan dan mengonsumsi alkohol tanpa adanya makanan yang masuk ke tubuh.

Orang yang mengalami hipoglikemia, sebaiknya segera diberikan sesuatu yang manis agar kadar gula darah dalam tubuhnya cepat meningkat. Karena jika tidak bisa mengganggu tingkat kesadaran seseorang dan akibat yang paling buruknya adalah bisa menyebabkan kerusakan otak.

Agar gula darah tidak rendah:

1. Makanlah tepat waktu dengan gizi yang seimbang
2. Disela-sela jam makan harian selingi dengan makanan kecil tiap 2-3 jam bisa berupa buah atau makanan rendah lemak
3. Jangan merokok
4. Jauhi kafein dan alkohol

Sedangkan gula darah tinggi bisa menyebabkan stroke, serangan jantung dan diabetes. Tapi orang dengan diabetes juga bisa terkena gula darah rendah setelah jika kelebihan menggunakan obatnya.

Nah, gula darah yang tinggi lebih banyak menjadi masalah karena komplikasinya dan penanganannya yang tidak mudah. Untuk menurunkan kadar gula darah tinggi sebaiknya:

1. Hindari stres, Tubuh yang stres akan menyulitkan orang untuk mengontrol gula darahnya, sebaliknya jika kondisi tenang orang akan lebih rileks untuk mencari menurunkan kadar gula darahnya.
2. Latihan atau olahraga selama 20-30 menit setiap hari seperti jalan kaki terbukti membantu menurunkan kadar gula darah
3. Hindari makanan seperti roti putih, pasta atau nasi karena karbohidratnya begitu tinggi yang memicu kenaikan gula darah.
4. Menambahkan kayu manis pada makanan karena membuat tubuh lebih sensitif terjadap insulin. Jika sensitivitas tubuh baik terhadap insulin maka tubuh akan lebih sedikit menggunakan insulin.
5. Sediakan lemon atau jeruk limau karena memiliki kemampuan mengurangi indeks glisemik terhadap beberapa makanan.
6. Ganti karbohidrat dengan makanan tinggi serat dan protein contohnya seperti sayuran mentah, buah-buahan kecuali pisang, gandum, biji-bijian.
7. Minum teh hijau secangkir setiap hari.
8. Makan 2-3 jam sekali bisa berupa buah atau jus tanpa gula membantu menjaga kestabilan gula darah dan mencegah makan terlalu banyak.

Menurunkan gula darah bukan hal yang mustahil meskipun dibutuhkan waktu.

Tips to Oily Skin

With the various types of facial skin, certainly among you many who have oily skin problems which ultimately affect the growth of acne on your face.

For those of you who have oily skin, you can cope with:

1. Do not use soap

2. Clean the face in the morning and at night before bed on a regular basis

3. Use a cleanser and freshener in accordance with your oily skin types

4. Try to sleep enough rest time

5. Water consumption min. 8 glasses a day

6. Keep your hands to keep it in a clean condition when you want to hold or do something on your face.

Clean your face regularly should really be considered as if the skin of the face in a dirty condition then the dirt that will clog pores and this will reduce the flow of oxygen and ultimately causes the growth of ACNE.