|
|
|
|
| HEALTH & FITNESS |
|
|
|
How not to mismanage constipation Beware of allergic conjunctivitis Early menopause: Ovary transplant can restore normalcy
|
|
How not to mismanage constipation There are various reasons leading to constipation. According to ayurvedic perceptions, the body charter of a particular individual and his overall lifestyle, including the dietary pattern, form the basis for constipation. While unsatisfactory stool is the inherent symptom of the ‘vata’ prakriti individuals, there are many dietary reasons such as the intake of food which is dry and is residue-free, astringent, heavy and slow to digest which ultimately messes up regular and proper
evacuation . Lifestyle-related factors consist of a vast range of aberrations starting from adopting irregular daily routine and keeping late night engagements, lack of exercise and passing through phases of anxiety and depression. Many times constipation also results as a sequel to the indiscreet use of laxatives, leading to the impairment of natural movements of the intestines. Medical practitioners around the world come across a number of patients who suffer from constipation both in real and unreal terms. Though constipation often robes a person of feeling fresh and easy and frequently leads to complaints of gas, distension, loss of appetite, headache and piles, it is one of the diseases which is, by and large, over-treated by physicians and the patient himself. In many cases, symptoms of IBS are confused with those of constipation, and patients never come out of the vicious circle of taking laxatives, passing loose stools and then again landing up in a state of rebound
constipation. The management of constipation should primarily be aimed at correcting the diet and lifestyle pattern of the patient rather than putting him on laxatives. Ayurveda advises everybody to get up at dawn and first of all drink a glass of water which is kept overnight in a copper vessel. Since it is of little importance whether a person passes his stool before or after morning walk, all able-bodied persons should go out for at least 30 minutes of walk everyday, setting a proper daily schedule. Regular exercise relaxes the tense nerves and improves digestion. It is seen that regular walkers are less likely to be
constipated. The consumption of bulk and roughage-producing food which is at the same time easily digestible is the first dietary improvement a patient of constipation should adopt. Wholegrain ‘atta’, leafy vegetables, unpolished lentils and moderate use of lubricants like milk and butter facilitate proper formation and passing out of the stools. Kitchen spices should be used in a balanced way so that these should only help proper digestion and not
cause acidity. Sufficient intake of water during the day also helps to maintain suppleness of the body and fruits like mango, melon, papaya, guava and grapes facilitate proper bowel movement. Dinner, especially for the patients of constipation, should be lighter than
the lunch. Heavy and fried food items like those made of ‘maida’ such as bread and ‘naan’ and junk and fast-food are slow to digest. Similarly, fruits like apple, pomegranate and unripe banana and grains like polished rice also cause constipation to a majority
of patients. Regularity of daily routine and having meals at the appointed hour help to adjust the body clock. Sleeping when stomach is heavy and filled impairs the digestion and a gap of two hours between the last meals and bedtime is ideal for the food to cross the stomach intestine barrier. Since most of the laxatives are habit-forming, they should be used only occasionally. Persons who suffer from constipation due to faulty lifestyle and improper diet start showing signs of improvement once they make suitable changes. Chronic cases respond slowly and instead of getting restive, they are advised to carefully devise a diet plan for its cure. Finally, it is self care and less of medicines which can give the patients of constipation the joy of satisfactory evacuation. The writer is a Ludhiana-based senior Ayurvedic physician and Guru at the Rashtriya Ayurveda Vidyapeeth. E mail – ayu@live.in
|
|
Beware of allergic conjunctivitis These days one often comes across people or children who have blood-shot eyes. It seems that they have been crying. The eyes seem to be shedding tears and they are rubbing their eyes constantly. This is quite often seen in children also. The real reason for this happens to be an allergy of the eyes, which flares up as the weather gets warm around April. It is more often seen in young people, more so in boys, though modern medical science has been unable to pinpoint the real reason for this. This malady, known as allergic conjunctivitis, flares up in summer, persists throughout this season and gets better as the weather becomes cold. This form of conjunctivitis is different from the bacterial form as it is allergic in nature compared to the contagious one. Symptoms: The symptoms of allergic conjunctivitis happen to redness, irritation or itching in the eyes. The eyes become red because of the allergy as well as the frequent rubbing of the eyes resorted to by the patient due to irritation. Lachrymation or watery discharge from the eyes is another common presence in all cases. There is increased sensitiveness to light and one cannot tolerate light, both natural as well as artificial. There may be a whitish, ropy secretion also. The conjunctiva beneath the upper eyelid gets hypertrophied and forms a pattern of polygonal raised areas, white in colour, and such lesions may also be seen over the lower lid. Since this malady is allergic in nature, blood tests reveal a raised eosinophil count confirming its allergic origin. The difficulty is that the offending allergens are usually too difficult to pinpoint, thus making prevention difficult. Usually, both eyes are affected though one may be less than the other. Prognosis is good and no serious complications are seen. It may keep recurring for several years but eventually subsides. Is it contagious? Often it has been reported by patients, more so by students, that they had been sent back by the school as the teachers thought this to be a conatagious disease. Therefore, it is pertinent to mention here that one should be very clear that this form of conjunctivitis does not spread from one person to the other by contact or by any other means like touching or by sharing clothes, etc. Therefore, there is no need to avoid contact or proximity to any person suffering from this disease. This form of conjunctivitis is allergic in nature and not bacterial or viral, which are of the contagious variety. Management: Cold compresses are very effective as they soothe the sore and irritating eyes. Avoiding going out in the sun or at least direct exposure to sun by using good quality dark glasses that provide protection against harmful UV rays is advised, as the eyes are sensitive to light. Wearing glasses has the added benefit of protecting against minute dust particles, pollutants, other allergens and warm air. Homoeopathy is very effective in the treatment of this malady as it is able to completely cure the disease. The writer is a Mohali-based homoeopath. He can be contacted at
drharshsharma@gmail.com
|
|
Early menopause: Ovary transplant can restore normalcy Kitty, 28, was diagnosed this past month as a case of early menopause. “It explains a lot of the feelings I have had in the last seven years. I even got to the place of being suicidal because I didn’t know what was happening to me, but I was miserable. Now I am relieved to finally have concrete diagnosis and the prospects of ridding of the annoying symptoms. The only downside is that I am infertile, and would be trying to get my feet on the ground that I won’t bear children,” said Kitty with tears rolling down her cheeks. Hoping against hope, Kitty asked her gynaecologist “Can you tell what early menopause is, why it occurs and is there any way that the cry of a child can be heard in our home?” What is early menopause? If your period cycle stops before the age of 45, then it will be known as early menopause. Early menopause can occur to some women in their 30s or even in 20s. If ovary stops producing eggs before this age or if you are experiencing hormonal changes or if ovaries have been damaged or removed by surgery for any other reason, then you will have early menopause. Menopause is a period in woman’s life time when her ovaries stop producing eggs as well as hormones and when her menstrual cycle stops. Many symptoms! Early menopause may produce physical as well as emotional symptoms — irregular periods, hot flashes, night sweats, vaginal dryness, sudden weight gain in hip, skin irritation and itching, hair loss, hair growth in face, severe head ache, body pain, joint pain, dryness in mouth and change in the smell of the body are some of the physical symptoms of menopause. Most of these women experience bladder control problems. That means most women experiencing early menopause may want to pass urine frequently and most urgently. Some women face sleeping problems in their early menopause period. Some others feel nervousness and heart beating faster. Sudden weight gain in the waist and tenderness in the breast may also be the symptoms of early menopause. The woman experiencing menopause may have memory loss, irritability, anxiety, confusion, lack of concentration and some other emotional symptoms. She may feel deserted and get angry soon. Hormones and vitamin supplements may reduce hot flashes and other symptoms. Ovary transplant can put the clock back! Women with early menopause face infertility problems as well. Even if you do not have any other symptoms, you will not be able to get pregnant due to early menopause. The latest breakthrough came after three women conceived and gave birth to seven babies after receiving ovary transplants. One of the women had her tissue frozen and inserted back into her at a later date, while the other two received ovaries extracted from an identical twin to prevent rejection. The results showed that transplanted ovaries could remain effective for at least seven years and raise the possibility of being able to stop the menopause and allow women to restore child-bearing. Experimental stage “The research is potentially significant in two respects — first, women can preserve their fertility by freezing their ovarian tissue, and second, pregnancy may be possible even after the tissue remains frozen for a long time,” scientists say. It can be used to treat early menopause and bring back the look and feelings of being youthful. However, it may be too premature to conclude that it will be a routine procedure to restore youth or reproduction to all cases, but it can bring hope to a selected
few. The writer is a Chandigarh-based senior gynaecologist.
|
|
Nasal spray to combat heart disease London: A nasal spray that could remove fat in arteries which dramatically raises the risk of heart attacks could be on the market in five years, according to researchers. Researchers found that the new treatment was much more effective in removing fat from arteries than established methods. The vaccine can be given as an injection or in a slightly different form as a nasal spray. The product, as yet unnamed, is waiting for regulatory clearance. A study by Lund University in Sweden found it could reduce plaque by 60 to 70 per cent during tests on mice, the Mirror reported. A trial on 144 heart disease sufferers is under way in the US and Canada. British Heart Foundation medical director Prof Peter Weissberg said the vaccine was “very promising”. It works by stimulating the body’s immune system to produce antibodies which tackle the build-up of fatty deposits in arteries called plaque. The new vaccine or nasal spray could be licensed within five years, the Frontiers in CardioVascular Biology conference in London heard. “The antibody therapy is likely to be expensive so you could probably only afford to give it to people at high risk rather than everyone,” said Lund University’s Prof Jan Nilsson. The scientists’ conference also heard of promising attempts to repair heart muscles scarred by cardiac arrests in mice. Injections of a virus carrying three genes were successful.
— ANI Fat cells can protect our body against diabetes London: Researchers have shed light on how fat cells protect the body against diabetes – the finding that may lead to a new therapeutic strategy for preventing and treating type 2 diabetes and obesity-related metabolic diseases. In the last decade, several research groups have shown that fat cells in people play a major role in controlling healthy blood sugar and insulin levels throughout
the body. To do this crucial job, fat cells need a small portion of the sugars derived from food. Obesity often reduces the dedicated sugar transport molecules on fat cells, blocking the glucose from entering fat cells. As a result, the whole body becomes insulin resistant, and blood sugar rises, leading to diabetes. The new study by researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) revealed why glucose is so important to fat cells. The team discovered a new version of a gene inside fat cells that responds to sugar with a powerful systemic effect. — ANI Shorter, more vigorous workouts `healthier than moderate
exercise` Washington: A short and intense exercise could be more beneficial than a longer, more moderate session that burns the same number of calories, a new study has suggested. Researchers found that the people who engaged in the most vigorous exercise reduced their risk of developing metabolic syndrome by two-thirds, compared with those who did no vigorous exercise, even when the total amount of calories per pound of body weight the participants burned while exercising was the same. Vigorous exercise includes activities such as running and jumping rope; moderate exercise might consist of walking or going for a leisurely bike ride. People with metabolic syndrome may have excess weight around the waist, difficulty controlling blood sugar levels, high blood pressure and low levels of “good” cholesterol. Having the condition puts people at heightened risk for heart disease, stroke and diabetes.
— ANI |
Good and healthy digestion consists of two vital factors: appropriate assimilation of the dietary nutrients and regular elimination of the waste product from the body. Transportation of stool in the body again takes place in two phases — forward motion activity of the colon and expulsion of feces from the rectum. Constipation in caused when any of these aspects is interfered with, resulting in the failure of eliminating stools regularly and satisfactorily.