Let me share with out some of the tricks I've found useful, over the past seven years since my ileal conduit was installed, to keep on good terms with my appliance. I keep attached with a three-piece appliance, (a base which is fastened to my abdomen by cement, a vinyl pouch attached to the base by an elastic "0-ring "and a belt). For ostomates, as much as for Scouts, our word is "Be Prepared." I keep a fairly complete supply of extra pouches, etc. in my office, as well as at home, including extra underwear for the rare, but potentially devastating occasions when my appliance comes loose while I am at work. I always take my extra kit with me when I travel. Another device which helps me keep' prepared is the hole, specially cut in my cotton under shorts, to fit around my appliance. This serves not only to place cloth between my pouch and my skin to absorb and prevent sweating, but also to serve as an early warning signal when the base begins to separate. An ear syringe comes in handy every morning, for squirting diluted white vinegar into my pouch, through the lower tip, for rinsing urea crystals from my stoma, as well as cleansing my pouch. I fill the pouch to soak my stoma while I'm shaving, then empty it, leaving the pouch refreshed. This routine also confirms whether I ought to change pouch at that time, since the pressure from the filled pouch (with the tip drawn up and tucked under my belt) will stimulate beginning leaks. When dampness appears, I look carefully to see whether it comes from a seam in the pouch which would then need to be thrown away and replaced.
Via. Ostoline, Sherman Area Ostomy Association
via Vancouver, BC Ostomy Highlife
via Okanagan Ostomy News
Tea contains substances called polyphenols, believed to fend oft cancer and heart disease. Some times, the decaffeination process can strip these beneficial components from tea. But teas that are decaffeinated by a more expensive water-and-carbon-dioxide process (called effervescence) aren't stripped of polyphenols. The following teas are decaffeinated by effervescence:
All Lipton teas, Celestial Seasoning Green Tea, Mandarin Orchard Green Tea, and Salada Green Tea
Source: Runner's World, June 2000
via Aviation Medical Bulletin;
Metro Halifax News (Nov-Dec 2000)