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Water not enough when exercising in heat EYESIGHT
Don’t ignore breathing disturbances at night
Tanning beds increase skin cancer risk
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Water not enough when exercising in heat
Washington: Drinking plenty of water may not be sufficient to stay healthy if you work out in hot weather conditions, according to a new study.
Dr James Muntz, an internist with The Methodist Hospital in Houston, insists sports drinks containing electrolytes, such as potassium and magnesium, is also required. “Water is important, but sports drinks might be more important. Electrolyte drinks provide energy in the right quantities, so you don’t get sick. The carbohydrates, sodium, and potassium help move fluids out of the body and to the muscles, where it needs to be when we are working out in the heat.” While water is still important, drinking too much water in a short period of time can lead to a condition called hyponatremia, which occurs when you have low sodium in your body. When sodium levels drop in the fluids outside the cells, water will get in there and attempt to balance the concentration of salt outside the cells. The abundance of water causes the cells to swell. Most cells can adapt to the change, but the brain cannot. When this occurs less than 48 hours after exercising, in extreme cases it could be fatal if not treated immediately. Symptoms of hyponatremia include vomiting, loss of appetite, headache, restlessness/fatigue, abnormal mental status (hallucinations, confusion, etc.), muscle weakness and convulsions. Other factors to keep in mind when exercising in the heat include: *
Make sure you are sweating properly. If you stop sweating when you are exercising you are
dehdydrated. * If you realise your pulse rate in the morning is 10 to 15 beats higher than your normal rate, you should take the day off from exercising. Normal pulse rate is around 70-90/ minute. *
Get acclimated to the heat before you begin an exercise regimen. Start off with 15 minutes and slowly work your way up to 45 or an hour. *
Forget about the “no pain, no gain” mantra. Recognise warning signs and take the appropriate action immediately. *
Avoid exercising between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m., the hottest part of the day. *
Don’t try to diet by sweating. It will only result in water loss, not true weight loss. *
Wear loose-fitting, light-coloured clothing, and sunscreen. Muntz concluded: “It’s very important to use common sense when you exercise in heat. If you follow a few simple rules when it comes to hydration and pay attention to what your body is telling you, you will get the results you are looking for.” — ANI
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EYESIGHT
Squint (crossed eyes) is a medical condition. Unfortunately, those who suffer from it are often made the objects of ridicule and laughter. The science of ophthalmology now offers a cure to all such patients — correcting the squint to bring back the beauty in their eyes and the smile on their face. Squint or strabismus (crossed eyes) is a condition in which both eyes are relatively misaligned and point in different directions. It is more common in children than in adults. A constant squint can sometimes lead to problems like lazy eye, poor depth perception (stereopsis), inadequate vision in one eye, abnormal head posture or a combination of any of these. What causes squint? The exact cause of squint is not known. It is surmised that it is possibly due to the loss of coordination between the eye muscles. Certain neurological disorders like cerebral palsy, Down’s syndrome and brain tumours can also cause squint. Squint has also been associated with ocular complications like cataract, injury, corneal opacity or retinal problems. If one of the eyes has poor vision due to any of these ocular conditions, it often deviates. In the case of children, a high refractive error, mostly hypermetropia (long sightedness) can sometimes cause an inward deviation of the eyes. What is binocular single vision? When both eyes are aligned, they form a single three dimensional image in a person’s brain. This is known as binocular singular vision. However, when the eyes are not aligned, they focus on two different objects, creating confusion in the brain. In such cases, two different images reach the brain. When this happens with a child, the brain rejects the image from the deviated eye and uses only one image. This leads to a loss of depth perception. Over a period of time, if the image of one eye is ignored, it leads to poor visual development in that eye. This is known as lazy eye. In the case of adults, the two different images projected by the two misaligned eyes are perceived by the brain. As none of these images are ignored, the patient presents with double vision or diplopia. The symptoms When a child is born, his or her eyes are usually not aligned. However, by the age of 3-4 weeks, the child learns to align its eyes. If deviation of the eyes persists after the age of one month, it is advisable to consult an ophthalmologist. Older children with squint will complain of photophobia (unnatural sensitivity to light) or decreased vision, or suffer from frequent blinking. Adults may have diplopia (double vision) or an apparent squint. Only an ophthalmologist can diagnose squint. Some children may falsely seem to have the appearance of squint due to a broad nasal bridge (pseudosquint). The cure Squint is treated to mainly align the eyes and restore binocular vision. The ability to appreciate depth develops quite early in childhood. So, an early treatment for squint is always recommended as it helps develop better vision in adulthood. In cases when the deviating eye has poor visual potential, surgery may be performed to improve cosmesis. The first step is to check the eyes for any refractive error. A significant refractive error should be treated first. Surgery is not always necessary to treat squint. A few cases of squint can be treated with glasses alone. Surgery involves weakening or strengthening of the relevant muscles to restore the balance and to achieve good coordination. When should surgery be
undertaken? Early treatment yields better results. Depth perception develops mostly in the first 3-5 years of life. Hence, an early eye alignment through squint surgery is recommended. Consult your eye specialist for the right treatment, because your eyes bring out the best in you and every eye deserves the best. Social awareness message: As you immunise your child without having any disease, similar routine eye check-up is needed for your child even as early as six months by a paediatric ophthalmologist. The writer is Chairman & Medical Director, Centre for Sight, New Delhi. Email: drmahipal@gmail.com
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Don’t ignore breathing disturbances at night Obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) is a breathing disorder. To understand this disorder, it is relevant to know what it stands for. Apnoea is defined as total cessation of breathing for at least 10 seconds despite chest and abdominal breathing movements. A hypopnoea is a reduction in airflow by at least 30 per cent with a decrease in oxygen saturation of 2 per cent or more for at least 10 seconds in the presence of chest and abdominal breathing movements. Thus, OSA is obstruction of breathing during sleep. It more frequently affects obese individuals, males, post-menopausal females, individuals with endocrine diseases, especially thyroid disorders, nasal obstruction and craniofacial anomalies. During sleep normally the muscles loose their tone and are lax, but there is sufficient space available for breathing to continue without obstruction. But in cases that are obese, because of accumulation of fat within the oral cavity, there is obstruction in breathing resulting in a decrease in the amount of oxygen that normally should reach our organs and hence resulting in symptoms suggesting hypoxia. If it persists, it can gradually increase the risk of heart diseases and stroke by almost four times. Hence early suspicion and evaluation are a must as treatment may reduce the risk of cardiac diseases and stroke. The main symptoms are snoring, excessive daytime sleepiness, morning headaches, not getting up fresh, memory impairment and gradually decreasing interest in sexual activity. These patients should be evaluated for their drinking habits, smoking, drug history, especially sedatives and thyroid disorders. The diagnostic test is polysomnography, also known as sleep study, in which the degree and extent of breathing disturbances at night are recorded primarily. The management of this entity not only includes weight reduction, correction of the dietary habits, especially liquor if any, cessation of smoking, withdrawing sedatives, correcting the thyroid profile but also relieving the obstruction of the airway either medically, with oral appliances or with surgical methods. The gold standard of care is provision of CPAP (continuous positive airway pressure), which is an appliance that provides airflow at a pressure sufficient enough to keep the airways open during sleep. It is to be applied for at least six hours per night and its usage helps in the reduction of weight as well increasing alertness and activity. Gradually its use can be reduced, depending upon the improvement in the symptomatology. Oral appliances in the form of mandibular advancements are to be used if there is craniofacial anomally in consultation with your physician. Surgical options are to be taken up if there is poor tolerance to CPAP and basically volume-reduction surgeries initially are undertaken. If these do not suffice then it may require the advancement of the jaws as well. The writer is an ENT consultant at
Fortis, Mohali.
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Tanning beds increase skin cancer risk
Sydney: Experts have once again called for tanning beds to be banned after a startling new research confirmed they dramatically increase the risk of skin cancer. The study is the first of its kind to examine all types of tanning beds and comes only months after an audit of salons across Sydney showed most operators were flouting regulations by exposing customers to excessive doses of UV radiation, and treating children and fair-skinned adults. But the state government has refused to ban the beds, despite calls from the NSW Greens. The research found that those using beds emitting UVA rays were almost four times more likely to develop melanomas, while those using beds with mostly UVB rays were almost three times more at risk than people not using tanning beds. —
ANI |
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Health Notes Washington: Researchers have discovered that an extract of green tea may be helpful in treating chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL) patients. Researchers at Mayo Clinic say that use of the chemical epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), the major component of green tea, may reduce the number of leukemia cells in patients with CLL. This laboratory finding was followed by a successful phase I clinical trial — the first time green tea extract had been studied in CLL patients. “Although only a comparative phase III trial can determine whether EGCG can delay progression of CLL, the benefits we have seen in most CLL patients who use the chemical suggest that it has modest clinical activity and may be useful for stabilising this form of leukaemia, potentially slowing it down,” says Tait Shanafelt, a Mayo Clinic haematologist and lead author of the study. — ANI
Alcohol use, smoking linked to migraines in teens
Washington: A new study has linked alcohol consumption and cigarette smoking to increased migraines and tension-type headaches (TTH) in high school students. Coffee drinking and physical inactivity were associated specifically with migraines in the study by German researchers. Prior studies have indicated that headache is one of the most frequently reported health complaints in adolescents with 5-15 per cent of this age group suffering from migraine and 15-25 per cent with TTH. Modifiable risk factors such as alcohol use, cigarette smoking and coffee drinking, which have been associated with headache in adults, have not been fully explored in a youth population. — ANI
EU critics say WHO exaggerating H1N1 threat
Washington: European criticism of the World Health Organization’s handling of the H1N1 pandemic has intensified with the release of two reports that accused the agency of exaggerating the threat posed by the virus and failing to disclose possible influence by the pharmaceutical industry on its recommendations for how countries should respond. According to one of the two reports, the WHO response has caused widespread, unnecessary fear and prompted countries around the world to waste millions of dollars. There is also criticism over its over-reliance on advice from drug experts.
— ANI
Hip exercises effective in reducing knee pain in runners
Washington: Hip exercises can reduce a common type of knee pain in runners, according to researchers. The study by Tracy Dierks, assistant professor in the Department of Physical Therapy at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis, found a twice weekly hip strengthening regimen performed for six weeks proved surprisingly effective at reducing and in some cases eliminating knee pain referred to as patellofemoral pain (PFP) in female runners.
— ANI
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He said: “Ten or 15 years ago we told everyone to drink as much water as possible to replace fluids. Now we know that is not such a good idea.