Treating Blood Pressure step by step

Many doctors tend to treat hypertension with drugs. However National Institute of Health, India suggest that physicians carefully weigh treatment options, taking into consideration of many factors to undergo a stepped approach..The factors include:

• patient's age
• race
• presence of other disorders

The objective is to reduce and maintain a blood pressure level below 140/90 and lower for people with other conditions, such as diabetes and kidney disease.

Symptoms of High Blood Pressure

1. Headache
2. Heart palpitation
3. A tough time catching your breath after exertion
4. Fatigue
5. A flushed face
6. Blurry Vision
7. Nosebleeds
8. A strong need to urinate often(especially during the night)
9. Tinnitus( a ringing or buzzing in ears)
10. Vertigo ( feelings that you or the world is spinning dizzily)

Step by Step approach to treat High Blood Pressure

Step 1: Adopting healthy lifestyle

This is an effective first step in both preventing and controlling high blood pressure. These include losing weight, increasing physical activity(walking 30min. per day can help), following a healthy eating plan that emphasis fruits, vegetables and low fat dairy foods, choosing and preparing foods with less salt and sodium and if you drink alcoholic beverages drinking in moderation.

If your diastolic pressure is constantly more than 105, there is no question about it. You should be taking medication as prescribed by the physician to lower blood pressure.

If lifestyle changes alone are not effective in keeping your pressure controlled, it may be necessary to add blood pressure medication.

Step 2: Therapy

If your blood pressure does not respond to lifestyle modifications alone, the physician will go for a combination of lifestyle change and first-line anti hypertensive medication therapy.

Step3: 

Once the blood pressure is brought down to safe levels, slowly reduce the dosage of anti-hypertensives and try to maintain the blood pressure with lifestyle intervention. This will minimize the side effects associated with the long term consumption of these drugs which can be severe in some cases.

If you have any side effect from your medicines, talk to your doctor. He or She may be able to adjust the doses or prescribe other medicines. You should not decide on your own to stop taking your medicines.

Courtesy,

Jag Therapy

Dry Eyes

Today dry eyes has been a significant problem among not only adults but also kids. Dry eyes is a common condition due to lack of tears or a poor quality tear film. The lack of moisture and protection damages the surface of the eye. This causes grittiness and discomfort.

Parts affected by Dry eyes

Causes

• Tear production decreases with age. Symptoms are common in post menopausal females.
• Environmental factors such as air conditioning, pollution and pollens also affect the quality of the tear film.
• Long periods of computer use, reading or watching Television, exposure to high voltage television sitting nearby, usage of notebooks or tablets for long hours result in dry eyes as the blink frequency is reduced during these activities.
• Some medications can affect the tear film as well as systemic disease such as rheumatoid arthritis and sjogren's syndrome.
• Contact lens wearers often develop dry eye symptoms as soft contact lenses absorb moisture.

Symptoms

• Redness of the white part of the eye
• Burning or grittiness sensation
• Itchiness of the eye
• Sensitivity to lights
• Watery eyes

Treatment

Immediate consultation to Doctors is highly recommended in first phase. Doctor can determine the diagnosis of dry eyes by the appearance of a reduced tear meniscus and reduced tear break up time. There may be surface changes on the cornea.

The simplest form of treatment for mild to moderate dry eyes is replacement of moisture with artificial tears. These supplement the natural tears, restoring the balance of moisture and electrolytes. people with sensitive eyes may prefer to use preservative - free tears.

Tips if you have Dry eyes

• Avoid polluted environments and strong air conditioning
• Blink frequently when using the computer, watching TV or reading for long periods
• Supplement the moisture in your eyes with artificial tears.

If these simple measures do not resolve your symptoms, a full assessment by your doctor will determine the required treatment ahead.

Important Note:-

Parents should take the responsibility of kids by minimizing their usage in tablets and notebooks. Have noticed most of the parents encouraging kids to use the electronic devices while the parents rest in peace. The peace will be kicked off when your kids get into this problem. Also continuous book reading without blinking leads to this problems. So the pressure is on the parents to guide the kids in right usage of their eyes.

Fruits and Vegetables good for eyes

• Carrots, sweet potatoes, squash, eggs, and green leafy vegetables are rich in Beta carotene and Vitamin A - essential for eyes
• Eggs, kale, spinach, turnip greens, collard greens,lettuce, broccoli, zucchini, corn, garden
  peas and Brussels sprouts are rich in Lutetin and Zeaxanthin

Facts about Cervical cancer

1. Cervical cancer is the only cancer specific to women which an be prevented.
2. It is caused by Human Papilomavirus(HPV). Studies have shown that upto 4 out of 5 women will acquire HPV infections in their lifetime.
3. It is caused by a common virus, which can take upto 20 years to develop into cervical cancer.
4. certain lifestyle factors increase the risk of cervical cancer to as much as 10 times. These include smoking, women who have had sexually transmitted infections, having had sex at an early age and multiple partners.
5. Regular pap smear testing combined with cervical cancer vaccination can reduce your risk of cervical cancer by up to 94%.

Reference:

Power over Cervical cancer,
Help protect all women,
www.pocc.sg

Polycystic Ovaries

Several young woman today have started to experience the symptoms of hormonal imbalance and of menstrual irregularities beside weight gain, facial hair growth etc. If the symptoms are ignored in the initial stages then they can grow worse as the time passes by. An answer of the common female disorders can help to initiate timely intervention and prevent undue complications.

Women’s health problems are major yet mostly unattended issues. Being a woman means worrying about a whole bunch of major medical concerns particularly in relation to reproductive system. From missed period to painful periods, menstrual cycle problems are common.

Female reproductive System

The female reproductive system consists of internal parts i.e. uterus, vagina, ovaries and fallopian tubes and external part i.e. vulva which includes the labia, clitoris and urethra.

Woman normally have two ovaries, each about the size of walnut and located on each side of uterus, Ovaries store and release egg, one egg itch month.

Benign Ovarian Cyst

Man ovarian cyst is fluid filled sac surrounded by a very thin wall, within an ovary. Ovarian cyst can affect woman of all ages but common in the reproductive age group. Most ovarian cysts are functional, benign and asymptomatic in nature. However, some may cause problems, such as bleeding and pain.

Polycystic Ovary

Polycystic-appearing ovary is diagnosed based small cyst present around the outside of the ovary. It can be found in “normal” woman as well as woman with endocrine disorders. Polycystic-appearing ovary is different from the polycystic ovarian syndrome, which includes other symptoms in addition to the presence of ovarian cysts.

Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS)

Polycystic ovary syndrome is characterized by ovaries containing multiple cysts, mild obesity, irregular menses and sign of androgen excess (acne).

In PCOS, the ovaries are bigger than average and the outer surface of ovary has an abnormally large number of small follicles. These follicles remain immature, never growing to full development or ovulating to produce an egg capable of being fertilized. The woman rarely ovulates and so is less fertile. In addition she does not have regular periods and may go for many weeks without periods.

Symptoms

Symptoms typically begin puberty and worsen with time. Some or all the following symptoms may be present, though it is possible not to experience any symptoms.

Absent or an infrequent period is a common symptom of PCOS. Period can be as frequent as every five to six weeks, but might only occur once or twice a year, if at all.

Increased facial and body hair: usually found under the chin, on the upper lip, forearms, lower legs and on the abdomen.

Overweight/Obesity: A common finding in woman with PCOS because their body cells are resistant to the sugar-control hormone insulin. This insulin resistance prevents cell using sugar in the blood normally and the sugar is stored as fat instead.

Acnes: Strange nodules that feel like bruises under the layer of skin, oily skin, dandruff and skin discolorations.

Infertility: Infrequent or absent periods are linked with very occasional ovulation, which significantly reduces the likelihood of conceiving.

Miscarriage (sometimes recurrent): one of the hormonal abnormalities in PCOS, a raised level of luteinizing hormone. Woman with raised LH have a higher miscarriage rate compared with those who have normal LH values.

Dull Aching: Severe, sudden sharp pain or discomfort in lower abdomen. Constant or intermittent pain in pelvis, vagina, thigh & lower back. There may be fullness, heaviness, pressure swelling or blotting or feeling of lump in the lower abdomen.

Breast tenderness with pain during or shortly after beginning or end of menstrual period.

Change in frequency or ease of urination or difficulty with bowel movements due to pressure on adjacent pelvic anatomy.

Non specific symptoms like nausea vomiting, fatigue, headache in some cases.

Homeopathic Management for Polycystic Ovaries

Homeopathy is very effective in treating women’s reproductive problems because it stimulates the body to heal itself rather than inhibit or suppress the body’s attempt to become well. There are many homeopathic remedies that treat women’s discomforts related to hormonal changes like premenstrual syndrome, painful periods, PCOS, menstrual irregularities, perimenopause, menopause, recurrent east infections, etc.

Homeopathic Remedies for Polycystic Ovaries

Aconite, Alumen, Apis Mel, Aurum Met, Belladona, Calc Carb, Colocynthis, Conium Mac, Graphites, Hamamelis, Iodum, Kalium Brom, Lachesis, Lecithinum , Medorrhinum, Mercurius Cor, Oophorinum, Palladium Met, Phosphorus, Sabal Ser, Onosmodium, Staphysagria, Thuja, Zincum Val, etc.

Consult a Qualified Homeopathic Doctor for the appropriate treatment.

Self medication is not advisable.

Courtesy

Dr Manjusha Balekundri

D.Hom(S'pore), D.I.Hom(London)
D.H.Hom(S'pore), D.H.Hom(London)
Homeopathy Consultant
Tel:(65) 6755 9705
eMail: manjusha@satguruhomeopathy.com

Kidney Failure - An awarness !!!

About Kidneys

Our body has two kidneys, each the size of the fist that is located on either side of the backbone at the level of the bottom rib. Our kidneys perform different functions, but its main task is to remove toxic wates from blood. It maintains our body's water content, acid balance and amount of salt and potassium in the blood.

Our kidneys also produce hormones that regulate blood pressure, produce redblood cells and lastly, Vitamin D to ensure that the bones are strong and healthy. Each day, our kidneys filter up to approximately 200 lires of blood through millions of filtering units called the nephron.

Function of kidneys

They work round the clock to ensure that their filtering function is met. This made possible through the nephron, the basic filtering unit of the kidney, which is made up of tiny blood vessels called capillaries that are linked with tiny tubes. Filtration starts when the blood passes through these capillaries where essential substances are re-absorbed into the blood. The rest of the filtrate, composed of toxic substances and excess water, are sent out from the tubes to the ureter in the form of urine.

Miseries of Kidney Failure

When our kidney fails, there will be accumulation of waste products and fluid reention in th body. if this persists for a long time, it may cause permanent and irreversible damage to our boy cells, tissues and organs.

Symptoms of Kidney failure

• decreased urination
• blood in the urine (tea-coloured or fresh blood)
• nausea and vomiting
• swollen hands and ankles
• puffiness around the eyes
• itching
• loss of apetite
• tiredness

A person can stay with one kidney also. However individuals with kidneys that function below 20% of their requires capcity, need some form of renal replacement therapy.

Possible treatments for kidney failure

There are two ways - dialysis or kidney transplantation. Some sptoms of kidney diseaase can be controlled with medication and diet if it is detecable at an early stage. However, there is no recovery from end-stage renal failure. To survive, the patient has to undergo regular dialysis treatment or receive a new kidney through transplantation. there are two types of dialysis treatments:

1. Haemodialysis - where an artificial kidney machine takes over the functions of the real kidney
2. Peritoneal dialysis - where the dialysis solution is placed inside the abdominal cavity to draw out toxic wastes.

Prevention is better than cure. Save your life. Your life in your hands.

Courtesy: NKF, Singapore

Thalassemia - A glance

What is Thalassemia?

Thalassemia is a haemoglobin chain abnormality in which the red blood cells do not form properly and cannot carry sufficient oxygen. This condition begins during childhood and lasts throughout life. It is the most commonly inherited single gene disorder in the world. In this disease, lack of blood (anaemia) and retarded growth, decrease the survival possibilities of the patient. The patient needs frequent blood transfusion and costly treatment to avoid the side-effects of loaded iron in the body. Thalassemia major, which was considered a fatal disease, can now be treated by regular blood transfusions and iron chelation. Many patients with this disease are now living in the fourth decade of life, also married and having children.

How to prevent thalassemia?

The burden of this disease can by reduced by avoiding the birth of affected children. Currently, this can be achieved by antenatal diagnosis.

Before Marriage: Get the blood tested for diagnosing the disease/trait. If you are suffering from the trait and not married yet then avoid marrying a person with the trait.

After marriage: If both husband and wife do have thalassemia trait, then chances of baby having thalassemia might be 25%. So get the pregnancy tested for the disease in early pregnancy to decide whether to carry on with the pregnancy.