chatwithketch

Q: Hi, I have a problem. My periods smell really bad on the first day. Second day to my last day they are fine. What may be the problem?

A: Menstrual blood usually has some odour – not strong but definitely there as blood takes on its own scent as it comes in contact with air. The bacteria in menstrual flow can also raise a stench 😀

So how do you deal with this? Here are top tips to maintain personal hygiene and smell fresh during your period.

• Take a bath regularly. Twice a day would be great or failing that at least once a day. If your flow is heavier than normal, you just may have to increase the frequency. Remember that to wash your delicate inner self where you’re bleeding from, you usually do not require more than water and your hands.
• Change your sanitary towels often. As soon as you notice they are significantly stained, please change them. This should be every 4-6 hours at the very maximum. Aim for the lower limit 😀
• Avoid scented products. Feminine sprays, scented wipes and scented pads or tampons can make menstrual odor worse as they contain chemicals that irritate the vagina, which can lead to increased discharge, infections and increased vaginal odor.
• Carry a spare pack of deodorant and use that liberally whenever you have a pad change. Be sure not to attempt to smell like you soaked yourself in a bottle of perfume. It might also be a pointer that perhaps you’ve got something to hide.
• Scrub your hands thoroughly after a pad change. Observe all the rules of proper hand washing. This ensures that you get rid of all the bacteria and may have got on your hands and ensures that you keep the odour level down.
• Dispose of your sanitary towels properly. Do not flush them down the drain and if there is no trash can in the bathroom you are using to dispose of it, have a disposable ziplock bag to put it in and dispose it appropriately as soon as you can. Make sure that this is kept in a zipped up compartment of your bag.
• If the odour persists or becomes very strong, please see your doctor and get tested for vaginal infections. Strong odor can signify infections like bacterial vaginosis, yeast infections or trichomoniasis. These infections can be easily treated with medications, and the odour will disappear as soon as the infection is treated.

Remember that, even when the smell is not so strong, you can smell your genitals oftentimes because they are well, practically south of your nose…it doesn’t necessarily mean other people can smell them provided you’re obeying the rules of simple hygiene. And be sure to use an air freshener in the bathroom where you just changed. We don’t want to leave any tell-tale signs or smells now, do we?

For a related post, please click on this link: https://chatwithdrketch.com/2016/01/07/daily-health-tips-whats-the-cure-for-foul-smelling-genitals/

Have a great evening 😀

Q: Good evening, Please Doc I read that ninety percent of a child brain growth takes place by the time he is five years old, Does it mean that anything given to a child above five years will not help develop the child’s brain anymore or just ten percent?

A: Hi dear, thanks for writing in.

A baby’s brain starts developing in pregnancy and continues after birth as a result of interactions around them. This is why it’s important to ensure that babies get the right nutrition and stimulation from when they are born all the way to adulthood.

So are you correct in your assertions? The baby’s brain develops very rapidly in the first 3 to 5 years of life and the entire structure and building blocks are present by the time the child is 9 years old. Some studies show that the size of the brain does not alter much between 5 and 20 years, but the connections between developed parts continues. Getting different areas of the brain to be functionally connected happens over a period of time, and may continue up till 30 years of age.

So, to your question, even though the baby’s brain may not develop beyond the 5^th year, vital connections are happening which enable a human being act as one complex being with parts that work together even if they have different functions.

So, what can you do to encourage brain development?

• Feed your child well. Breastmilk has all the nutrients that babies need until they are about 6 months old. 6 months, introduce other nutrients like fibre, vitamins and minerals that are found in foods like fruits, vegetables, grains, dairy and meat to ensure baby is developing well
• Mother should stay off alcohol when pregnant and also teach child to stay off too as he grows
• Talk to your children, starting from when they are in the womb and after they are born. Talk to and with them. Explain things and try to understand and acknowledge their thoughts and feelings
• Provide a safe environment
• Believe in them and encourage them
• Reward them but also provide clear boundaries. They need to know what lines they cannot cross

I hope this helps.

Have a great evening J

Do you have an ailment or condition that makes you take pain medication often? Are you absolutely fed up with taking pills? Have you wondered if it’s possible to handle pain without taking pain medication? If you answered yes to any of these questions, you should read this article.

https://www.health.harvard.edu/pain/6-ways-to-use-your-mind-to-control-pain

Are you one of those who take pain killers – when needed and when not needed? You should read this!

https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/are-you-taking-too-much-anti-inflammatory-medication-2018040213540

7^th April of every year marks the World Health Day. This year, the theme of the celebration is ‘Universal Health Coverage: Everyone, Everywhere’

Do you know what universal health coverage means? It means that you (yes you!) have the right to receive good quality health services when you need it without getting into financial difficulties. This sounds like one of those high-sounding WHO declarations that mean nothing to you in your small corner of the world. But guess what?! This applies to you. Your government agreed to it, signed off on it and indeed declared that it would ensure that 15% of its budget was dedicated to health so that you will not have to suffer any financial difficulty in choosing to access care or worse still have to choose between certain death and financial ruin when you fall ill.

So, how can you ensure that in Nigeria (and other countries where a lot still has to be done) we have access to the care we need without becoming penniless? We hold government accountable. There’s no better time than now. It’s an election year in 2019. National discussions are ongoing. When there are major road traffic accidents, we spend a few days to castigate the country’s leadership and how they have failed us in years past – leading to poor health service delivery in all aspects. But guess what? You control the narrative now. As the elections draw closer, let’s ask all those who wish to lead us their plans for UHC. It’s not something that happens in foreign lands…no! Examples of amazing progress towards UHC abound around us from East, South, Central and other West African countries. We can replicate same and better in our various countries.

So, the next time elections come around, let’s vote with our heads (facts) and not our hearts (sentiments). We can get this right!

Have a great week y’all 😀

https://www.instagram.com/p/BhQkuPeFvD3/?taken-by=ddrketch

Q: Good day Doctor, may God continue to bless you for the words of encouragement and the tips you are giving to us. Thank you, Doctor . I am having problems with my ear and it’s over 2 weeks now. My ear is making noise. I met an ENT doctor last week about it and she washed my right ear and the noise now stopped; but I started hearing the noise again in my left ear. It is during the night when everywhere is cool that I notice it and it’s giving me sleepless nights. I am taking the drugs she gave me when I went back to complain about the second ear. Doctor what do I do? Please help me. God bless you and your family .

A: Thanks for writing in and for your prayers. Amen to every one of them.

Noisy ears as you have described is, medically, called tinnitus. This is a sensation of hearing noise or ringing in the ears. The noise in the ears has also been described as whistling, humming, grinding, hissing, buzzing etc. This is, most times, not a sign of a serious medical condition and would just be a minor irritation as it comes and goes. In other instances, it is continuous, significantly impacting everyday life. It is worse when background noise is low (like at nights, as in your case) and worsens with age. Generally, it would get better over time or with treatment.

Other conditions associated with tinnitus include:

• Middle ear infection
• Ear wax build-up
• Inner ear damage
• Some medications like aspirin taken in very large doses and some antibiotics like Neomycin etc
• Medical conditions like high blood pressure, diabetes etc
• Perforated ear drums caused by violent events

Men, people who smoke, are exposed to loud noise on a prolonged basis, older people and those with cardiovascular problems are more likely to develop tinnitus.

There is really no treatment for tinnitus except there is a specific cause like ear wax build-up, high blood pressure, specific medication etc. In such situations, the cause is treated (e.g. removal of ear wax changing medication etc.) and symptoms may get better.

In other instances where there is no cause, focus is on helping one live with it through counselling, therapy to change the way one thinks about the noise so that they are better able to deal with it, introducing one to neutral sounds, which help distract from the ear ‘noise’ etc. Some medications can also help reduce the severity of symptoms.

So, the first thing to do is to get your brother down to see an Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) specialist. He/she will make a diagnosis and then advice on the next course of management.

Have a great evening, people 😀

Q: I’m doing well, I have a question. I had unprotected sex a month ago and developed slight itching at my penis and started taking antibiotics though still not healed completely. Can that infection be due to stress that I was infected?

A: Thanks for writing in.
Unprotected sex is always a no-no! Please remind yourself of the ABCs guiding this: The first is abstinence. Honestly, this is your safest bet. If you’re not ready to deal with the responsibilities of having a baby, please leave well alone. You can’t have an STI, HIV/AIDS, or otherwise if you don’t have sex. And of course, you can’t get pregnant. Now, if abstinence is a problem, be faithful to one partner…who hopefully is being faithful to you too. If you can’t swear on this, revert to plan A. Finally, if all else fails, ensure that you use a condom to prevent STIs and pregnancy. Interestingly, the latex used to make condoms may lead to balanitis and in such cases, treatment will focus on the use of latex-free condoms. Unprotected sex is never an option.

Skin irritation of the head of the penis, known as balanitis, could present with itching as you described. Causes include:
• Irritation under the foreskin caused by urine
• Candidiasis
• Use of shower gels, soaps and other skin irritants
• Skin conditions like eczema
• STI
• Poor hygiene

Your doctor will work with you to determine the cause and treatment is dependent on that. We will only dwell with one cause here.

Candidiasis, which is a yeast infection caused by Candida albicans, can occur in both men and women. This yeast (fungus) occurs naturally in the human body especially in warm, moist areas like the genitals and mouth. It usually does not cause problems unless certain conditions occur to upset the delicate balance between good bacteria and the fungi, making the latter to multiply.]

Candidiasis is very common in diabetics (the sugar in their urine makes the genitals a rich culture medium for them), in obese people and those whose immune systems are compromised. It also happens in people who take a lot of antibiotics (like yiu appear ti be doing now without a prescription) destroying the good bacteria as described earlier.
Personal hygiene plays a role in genital thrush. If you do not dry your penis properly after a bath, the warm, moist environment encourages yeast to grow and thrive. Perfumed soaps can irritate the skin of the penis, making thrush more likely. Though this infection can be passed on through sexual intercourse, it’s not really called an STI because people who are not sexually active can be infected with this.

Symptoms of genital thrush in men include:
· Irritation, itching or burning on the tip of the penis or under the foreskin
· Thick, whitish discharge under the foreskin, which may look like cottage cheese or egusi
· Redness under the foreskin or tip of penis
· Difficulty pulling back the foreskin of the penis

Treatment is usually with anti-fungal cream and/or tablet.

Until treatment is complete, please avoid sexual intercourse to avoid infecting your partner. Actually, both of you should be treated at the same time. If you must, please use a condom. To prevent re-infections, remember to clean your penis after a bath, wear loose fitting, cotton under-pants, avoid perfumed soaps and generally keep penis cool and dry.

I suggest you see a doctor to confirm that this is indeed thrush and not some other condition.

I hope this helps.

Have a good night everyone 😀

Q. Does it get harder to cope with stress as you age? I feel like it takes more of a toll on me now than when I was younger.

Find out more here: https://www.health.harvard.edu/newsletter_article/does-stress-management-become-more-difficult-as-you-age