Assessing your risk factors can put you in a better position to understand the symptoms, to recognize the condition and to better treat it. Assess if you have one or more of the following risk factors: Gender and age: women tend to develop carpal tunnel syndrome more than men and it is most frequently diagnosed between the ages of 30 and 60. Occupation: having a job that requires a lot of use of your hands, such as factory or assembly line work, puts you at a greater risk for the syndrome. Underlying conditions: those with metabolic disorders, rheumatoid arthritis, menopause, obesity, thyroid disorders, kidney failure, or diabetes have a greater chance at developing the condition. Lifestyle factors: smoking, high salt intake, sedentary lifestyle may increase your risk of carpal tunnel syndrome If you notice any of the following five symptoms in your wrist, hand, or arm, you might be developing or already suffering from carpal tunnel syndrome: Tingling in the hand, fingers or wrist. Numbness in the hand, fingers or wrist. Swelling in the wrist. Pain in the hand, fingers or wrist. Weakness of the hand. Keeping track of your symptoms can put you in a better position to diagnose and treat the condition, should you have it. Your doctor can also diagnose the condition better if he/she has a more detailed history of the condition. Symptoms generally show up gradually. Symptoms often first appear during the night. As the condition worsens, you'll start to feel the symptoms during the day. Symptoms that do not go away with time (unlike in the case of a temporary injury) and gradually become worse as time moves forward. This is an easy test that can be used in the diagnosis of carpal tunnel syndrome. There are several ways to test this. Try the following: Sit at a table and place your elbows on the table. Let your wrist fall to maximal flexion to increase the pressure in the carpal tunnel. Hold this position for at least one minute. Another way to do the test is to place the backs of both hands together in front of you, pointing fingers down (like an opposite prayer position). Any pain and tingling of hands, fingers and/or wrist and numbness in the fingers, specifically, at the height of thumb, forefinger, and a part of the middle finger, are positive results. Several tests for diagnosing carpal tunnel have been described but the specificity of these tests is questionable. You may still try them: The Tinel's sign is done by tapping the wrist and carpal tunnel with your fingers or a tendon hammer. If it causes tingling in the fingers, it is believed to be a positive test. The Tourniquet test is based on temporarily increasing the carpal tunnel pressure by applying a blood pressure cuff to the upper arm or forearm. Inflate the cuff between systolic and diastolic pressure to obstruct venous return from the arm and increasing blood volume in the hand. If this causes symptoms, the test is positive. However, don't perform this test unless you are comfortable using a blood pressure cuff correctly. The hand elevation test is done by elevating the hands above the head for two minutes. If this causes symptoms, then the test is positive. The Durkan's carpal compression test relies upon direct pressure applied over the carpal tunnel to increase the pressure. Press the carpal tunnel with your thumb or ask a friend to do this. If this causes symptoms, the test is positive. If the symptoms become worse or don't go away, the pain is unbearable, or you're having a hard time keeping up at work, consult your doctor. Your doctor can diagnose and treat the symptoms appropriately and exclude any serious, underlying conditions.

Summary: Assess your risk factors for carpal tunnel syndrome. Recognize the symptoms. Keep track of your symptoms. Try the Phalen's Test. Try the other carpal tunnel tests. Ask yourself if you should see a doctor.

If you're substituting powdered buttermilk for actual buttermilk, the amount you need will vary by brand. Check the label of your powdered buttermilk. However, as a general rule of thumb, you usually substitute 1/4 cup of buttermilk (60 mL) mixed with 1 cup of water (240 mL) for every cup (240 mL) of buttermilk in a recipe. When substituting powdered buttermilk for liquid buttermilk, follow the recipe as you normally would. Simply add your mixture of powdered buttermilk and water when you would normally add the buttermilk. The recipe should turn out more or less the same. Liquid buttermilk, or powdered buttermilk mixed with water, is usually added while you're mixing ingredients like eggs or butter. However, if a recipe calls for powdered buttermilk, it is added to the dry ingredients. For baked goods, you mix the buttermilk in with flour, baking soda, salt, dried spices, and any other dry ingredients used.
Summary: Substitute powdered buttermilk for liquid buttermilk. Bake your recipe as usual. Mix your buttermilk into the dry ingredients if a recipe calls for it.