From the Rodale book, The Female Body: An Owner's Manual:
Edit id 1081 Nose
Nose What do Barbra Streisand, Steffi Graf and Anjelica Huston have in common? Besides the fact that they''''re all powerful and successful women, they share a facial characteristic that''''s not the vogue: a sizable proboscis. While Barb, Stef and Anjie opted to keep their outsized noses--and managed to look quite attractive in the process--many women decide that less is more. Whatever your preference in nose sizes--or whatever the shape of your own--there''''s a lot to admire about the way it works. This intake chamber has to warm the air that comes in, filter it and pump up the humidity before passing that air along to your lungs. In addition to heating, moistening and vacuuming, your nose is a notoriously keen-scented sniffer--able to detect a man wearing Aramis, a well-spiced soup or the "change me" signals from a baby''''s diapers. Those are just a few of the 4,000 or so distinctive odors that your alert schnozz can detect. The nasal hound dogs that track down fragrance are two smell receptor sites, each about the size of a nickel, stuck way up near the top of the nasal cavity. The scent perception is done by millions of nerve fibers, which pick up the odor of frying bacon or the subtle hint of fresh gardenias as the air containing these odors swirls around them. Signals shout to the sprightly limbic system and hypothalamus in the brain, which quickly sort things out to make sure you don''''t eat gardenias for breakfast or put bacon in a fresh bouquet. | Is a New Nose Good News? If you''''re a candidate for a rhinoplasty operation--resculpturing of the nose--there are a few things to keep in mind. The surgery usually takes two to three hours and is performed in a doctor''''s office or at a hospital. Most incisions are made from within the nose, and the bones on the top and side of the nose are broken and adjusted in most cases, according to Victoria Vitale-Lewis, M.D., a plastic surgeon in private practice in Melbourne, Florida. To get an idea of what your nose''''s proportions should be, the plastic surgeon can measure dimensions of your forehead, nose and chin, notes Dr. Vitale-Lewis. Some plastic surgeons use computers to get an idea of what the finished product will look like. The result should fit your face and ethnic background and, most important, look natural, notes Darrick Antell, M.D., assistant clinical professor of plastic surgery at Columbia University and attending plastic surgeon at St. Luke''''s Roosevelt Hospital Center, both in New York City. "Most patients say that their friends couldn''''t even tell, because the result was so natural." Before you take the leap you should check the credentials of your surgeon with your local county medical society, notes Dr. Antell. "Make sure that she is a board-certified plastic surgeon with a minimum of three years of general surgery or a similar prerequisite." Also make sure that the surgeon is specifically certified in plastic surgery. "Some surgeons don''''t say what they''''re board certified in--it could be in podiatry," he notes. A warning signal: If the surgeon doesn''''t have hospital privileges for plastic surgery, it probably means that she''''s not board certified. |
Appearances, Appearances Too often, though, we''''re too busy critiquing the nose''''s exterior to pause and praise its inside work. In fact, when it comes to major reconstruction, many women like to do a major number on their noses. Rhinoplasty, commonly referred to as a nose job, is the fifth most popular plastic surgery performed on 30- to 50-year-old women in the United States. Many people who want nose jobs have a bump on the nasal bridge that you can see from the side, notes Victoria Vitale-Lewis, M.D., a plastic surgeon in private practice in Melbourne, Florida. Rather than give women tiny pixie noses the way surgeons did in the 1950s, the trend is to go for the natural look. "In the past, a lot of times, doctors used to oversculpt the nose. Now we only take down some of the hump until it''''s straight and put the tip out a little bit," she notes. "It''''s not scooped out or phony-looking." No One Knows the Trouble It Sees The poor nose. It''''s blown, rubbed, subjected to smoke, air pollution and dry air and picked and scratched almost on a daily basis. The problem with your proboscis is often with the mucous membrane that lines the interior of the nose and is covered with minute hairlike projections called cilia. Blood vessels in the nasal cavity are the space heaters that warm the air to about 95°F. For the cleaning work, you have mucous membranes, which secrete about a quart of gooey mucus every day, plus millions of cilia. Cilia are relentless mucus movers, thrashing away at all that goop at the rate of 12 to 15 beats per second as they move it along toward the throat. Like a miniature wet-dry vacuum, the moving mucus flushes away dust and debris and is swallowed, so it steers clear of your pollution-sensitive lungs. "The lining of the nose is quite thin. In cases where the air is dry or the lining becomes irritated, it may be the source of bleeding," notes Anthony J. Yonkers, M.D., professor and chairman of the Department of OtolaryngologyHead and Neck Surgery at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha. "The result can be a wide range of troubles ranging from crusting to recurrent bouts of bleeding." Although most nosebleeds tend to be spotters rather than frightening gushers, they can still be annoying. Here are a few tips to stop them before they start. | Sniff Power The nose knows disrespect. Few people doubt the importance of the sense of hearing or sight, and even taste and touch are considered vital to quality of life. But smell? Well--so what if you can''''t smell a rose or a cake baking in the oven, right? That''''s what Immanuel Kant thought, anyway. In the hierarchy of the senses, the idealist German philosopher rated smell last. Unlike sight, hearing and touch, which really tell it like it is, said Kant, the sense of smell is purely subjective. Smell has to do with more than superficial things such as perfume and potpourri. It''''s a powerful link with our emotions and memories, says Alan Hirsch, M.D., psychiatrist, neurologist and neurological director of the Smell and Taste Treatment and Research Foundation in Chicago. "The quickest and surest way to produce an emotional response is with smell." What''''s in a Sniffer? We actually have two olfactory (smell) systems. One is connected to the conscious part of the brain. The second goes to the limbic system of the brain, which is directly connected to our emotions and to the unconscious. To understand smell, you have to know the nose. Its most vital function is to perform warm-up for the respiratory system. As you breathe, your nose raises the temperature of the air to 95°F and filters dust and debris through its mucus. Two postage stampsize smell receptor sites are located at the top of the upper chamber of the nasal cavities, packed with five million yellowish hairlike fibers. When you smell, air swirls over these nerve fibers and is registered in the limbic system and the hypothalamus of the brain. It''''s this direct connection with the limbic system, or the emotional part of the brain, that causes scent to stir up visceral reactions in people, notes Dr. Hirsch. After all, who can catch a whiff of floor wax and chalk dust without thinking of grade school? And doesn''''t the smell of a certain aftershave bring back memories? Such responses are especially strong in women, whose sense of smell is more discerning than that of men. If you have a normal female nose--and are free of the sniffles--you can detect about 4,000 different odors on a good day. In a survey he did of 989 people from 45 states and 39 countries, Dr. Hirsch discovered that nostalgic odors vary depending on a number of factors. Among the variables were gender, birthplace and year of birth. Men, he found, tended to remember the smell of meat barbecuing, while women recalled the smell of baked bread. People born before 1930 remembered more natural smells, such as pine, roses, manure and hay, while those born between 1930 and 1980 recalled more artificial smells, such as Play-Doh, crayons and Windex. Besides the link with our emotions, the sense of smell has practical applications. Try eating an apple with your nose pinched shut. For all you know, you could be eating an onion. Smell is responsible for 90 percent of our sense of taste, notes Dr. Hirsch. And don''''t forget being able to sniff out spoiled milk or leaking gas or even the odor of a baby''''s soiled diapers. More to It Than Meets the Nose An innate preference for certain smells is an instinct that kicks in at birth. In a research study of 30 infants, 22 chose an unwashed nipple over a washed one while breastfeeding. Researchers concluded that the babies were responding to attractive odors produced by glands in the unwashed breast. That blind date you found very attractive but nonetheless weren''''t attracted to? Blame your crass indifference on pheromones, those subtle scents we emit that attract or repel humans of the opposite sex. "It could go back to what was imprinted in your emotional brain while you breastfed," says Robert Francoeur, Ph.D., professor of human sexuality at Fairleigh Dickinson University in Madison, New Jersey, and co-author of The Scent of Eros. "You could react to a similar smell later in life." In fact, many doctors also link what could arguably be called the most important application of all--sexual attraction--to the sense of smell. It''''s a fact of life in animal circles. Male moths, for instance, can be driven to distraction by the sex attractant chemical that''''s produced by a female from two miles away. |
Humidify. Using a hot-air humidifier in the bedroom helps keep the nasal tissues moist, notes Alexander C. Chester, M.D., clinical professor of medicine at Georgetown University Medical Center in Washington, D.C. "Many of the new office buildings have no humidifiers at all, so you could bring a humidifier to work as well." Pass the jelly. Wiping a thin layer of petroleum jelly just inside the nose is another good membrane moistener, notes Dr. Chester. Another solution is a bacteria-killing ointment such as mupirocin (Bactroban). It''''s only available through prescription. Measure your pressure. If you get chronic nosebleeds, it is important to have your blood pressure checked, says Dr. Yonkers, "Nosebleeds may be an indicator of high blood pressure." Pinch an inch. If bleeding does occur, despite preventive measures, Dr. Yonkers recommends holding your head level while pinching your nose closed with the thumb and forefinger of one hand. With your other hand, hold a towel or handkerchief under your nostrils to stop the dripping. If bleeding persists after 10 to 15 minutes, seek a doctor''''s help, he says. If all else fails, doctors can pack your nose with gauze or with water-filled balloons that help stop the bleeding. But don''''t try to do this yourself, doctors caution. Grab a towel and cubes. A towel soaked in cold water or an ice bag pressed to the back of the neck can ease the bleed as well, notes Dr. Yonkers. A Swollen Lining Another troublemaker is the nasal polyp, a benign growth in the mucous membrane of the nose that can lead to sinusitis and nasal obstruction, notes David Zwillenberg, M.D., otolaryngologist at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia. "It''''s an inflammatory reaction. The lining of the nose gets so swollen from irritation that it herniates downward. I''''ve seen them so big that they hang down from the back of the throat," he says. About half of all polyps develop as the result of an allergy, so managing sniffles and congestion is a key to treatment, notes Dr. Zwillenberg. Another polyp aggravator is aspirin, notes Dr. Chester. "Some people with polyps are highly sensitive to aspirin as well as certain dyes and foods such as apples, melons and citrus fruit. They should be aware of it and use Tylenol." Often, polyps can be treated with a nasal steroid that''''s injected in the area where the polyps are growing. They can also be removed surgically, but about 50 percent of the time, they''''ll grow back. A Bad Curve? Another nose plugger is the deviated septum. The septum is the partition separating the two nasal cavities from each other, and you have the condition known as deviated septum when that partition is bent or twisted. The most common problem resulting from deviated septum is an inability to breathe well through the nose, which can cause problems with snoring and dry mouth, notes Randy Oppenheimer, M.D., clinical instructor of otolaryngology at the University of California, San Diego. How easy is a diagnosis? "We just look up with a nasal speculum, and we can tell in one second. It''''s a very common problem. A lot of people have deviated septums and don''''t even know it." | Common-Scents Advice for Improving Your Life To think that all this time you''''ve been wasting your time dabbing Chanel No. 5 behind your ears and wrists! All you really had to do was dig into a slice of pumpkin pie and rub it in. That''''s right--the way to a man''''s heart really is through his stomach. That''''s just one of the fragrant tidbits that Alan Hirsch, M.D., psychiatrist, neurologist and neurological director of the Smell and Taste Treatment and Research Foundation in Chicago, has uncovered during his study of scents. On the other hand, scents are so powerful, there may be times when you don''''t want to use them, notes Dr. Hirsch. If you have a job interview or want to impress a male boss, it''''s better to wear no scent at all, he says. "Otherwise, they could interpret it as your trying to manipulate them." Here are some other details on the ways that scent can affect the course of relationships . . . and other things. Love life. Measuring penile blood flow of men wearing masks scented with various odors, Dr. Hirsch discovered that pumpkin pie mixed with lavender was tops--causing a 40 percent increase in blood flow. Doughnuts and black licorice were also | A Whiff of That Special Someone The same type of chemical that drives a male moth mad with longing could also have the desired effect on the male of your choice. A lot of it is in the pheromones, scientists say. A pheromone is a hormone-derived aromatic messenger that subconsciously influences the sexual development and behavior of a species of animal. It''''s also a big player on the sexual stage. In the brain, pheromones influence the production of gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH), which is responsible for starting the cycle of sex hormones that originate in the pituitary gland and filter down to the adrenal glands, ovaries and testes. Although we can''''t smell them, pheromones have a subconscious influence over us, notes Robert Francoeur, Ph.D., professor of human sexuality at Fairleigh Dickinson University in Madison, New Jersey, and co-author of The Scent of Eros. An example of their effect? Well, consider how women living in the same dorm room begin to have synchronized menstrual cycles, notes Dr. Francoeur. "They''''re constantly smelling the pheromones of the other women, and the woman with the dominant scent becomes the point of synchronization for all the other women." What effect does smell have on the love act itself? Dr. Hirsch says that it rates right up there with the water bed and candles. "During sexual excitement, the nose gets engorged and one starts to breathe through the mouth. This means that you have a better ability to detect odors at that time." Another scent-sational fact: Some 90 percent of people who lost their sense of smell through head injury reported some sexual dysfunction, says Dr. Hirsch. |
turn-ons--causing a 32 percent increase, with the combination of doughnuts and pumpkin pie stirring up a 20 percent increase. On the other hand, floral perfume only speeded things up a measly 3½ percent. Why does food work such magic? It''''s probably because such odors elicit vivid, fond memories of the past, notes Dr. Hirsch. It might also have to do with the fact that, throughout history, people congregated at the sites of food kills, which is where they had the best chance of meeting a mate and procreating. (Which doesn''''t explain the pumpkin pie phenomenon--unless our ancestors did a lot of their necking on Thanksgiving.) Learning. A mixed floral scent doubles the rate of learning, notes Dr. Hirsch, so if you have a job where you''''re constantly having to take in new information, try wearing a mixed floral perfume. Room size. If you have a small office or apartment and want people to perceive it as larger, try a green apple scent or a cucumber scent. For some reason, one or the other of these scents makes rooms seem larger. On the other hand, barbecue-smoke scent makes a room seem smaller. Relaxation. Lavender increases alpha waves in the back of the brain and helps relieve stress. On the flip side, jasmine stirs up beta waves in the front of the brain and makes you more alert and awake. Weight loss. Can scents make you eat less? Dr. Hirsch says maybe. For six months 3,193 people were given blasts of green apple, banana or peppermint spray whenever they were hungry. For people who inhaled between 18 and 285 sniffs a day, the average weight loss was five pounds a month. One reason it works is that the brain interprets the amount you''''ve smelled as the amount you''''ve eaten, Dr. Hirsch notes. Exercise. Whiffing the scents of strawberries and buttered popcorn increases the number of calories you burn in a three-minute period, notes Dr. Hirsch. "It could be that they distract you or reduce your level of fatigue. In theory, you could put a bowl of strawberries or buttered popcorn near your treadmill." Sleeplessness. Lavender increases alpha waves, which make people more relaxed and help them fall asleep quicker. |
To straighten a deviated septum, doctors remove or restructure the pieces of cartilage and bone that are causing blockage. It''''s a simple hour-long procedure done on an outpatient basis, notes Dr. Oppenheimer. See also Respiratory System |
