chatwithketch

Q: Please, Dr my penis is small what can l do?

A: This is an age-old question that has bothered man…and woman 😀 To answer this question, I reproduce a post I had made on this subject

Q: Please, doctor is it only on children health that you give advice?
A friend was complaining that his penis use to be small like that of a child. He was also afraid of being impotent. So he asked me and I said I don’t know why it is so. I now told him that I will ask you. What is the cause and the remedy to it. Thanks

A: Thanks for writing in and yes, it does appear that I ‘minister’ to only children because I appear to have a lot of mothers on this page who ask questions…way to go, mums! But hey, your question is equally important.

The issue of penile length has been a problem forever and people generally think that bigger is better. Is it? The average penile length is about 8 to 13cm when not erect and this can be pushed up to 13 to 18cm when erect, give or take a few. Does the penile size determine whether a man can father a child or not? Absolutely not…penile size does not affect fertility.

A woman’s vagina is about 7.5cm and would lengthen to about 10cm when aroused and so, generally, there should be no problems with sexual intercourse as the average length of a penis can adequately cover this gap.

Now the challenge…a lot of men who think they are small in this area are actually within the average measures but perception can make them think otherwise. For instance, the only way they can assess the size is by looking down at it and this automatically makes it look smaller. If you looked sideways in a mirror, you might just think, it looks longer. Men who are fat also appear to have smaller penises because the fat around the stomach may hide part of the base of the penis, making it look shorter.
It does appear that guys with small penises achieve about 100% increase in length during sexual excitement, probably nature’s way of compensating as opposed to men with longer ones who may achieve about 75% increase in length.

There are all sorts of touted treatments that help increase penile length including surgery, vacuum pumps, extenders, creams, pills etc. There is little evidence that people who go through this are satisfied with the result or that they work. Indeed, some can cause permanent damage.

So, what to do?

Take charge…lose weight if you’re overweight and have a heart-to-heart chat with your partner about this. You just may be surprised to hear that she doesn’t care. If you still feel bad about this, you may try talking with your doctor.

That’s it, guys 😀 Have a good night y’all 😀

Pregnancies affect daddies too! First, this amazing woman they love suddenly becomes a bundle of emotions. He’s not sure from day to day, what is appropriate. Today, he wasn’t affectionate enough; tomorrow, he’s too affectionate in front of people? And the bursting into tears at the most improbable times? What’s going on? Is this the picture of marriage he has to deal with for the rest of his life from now?

‘And then, there’s the constant chatter about the baby! Honestly, I get it. I’m excited too. This is our first baby. A symbol of our love for the whole world to see. I truly can’t wait to also see whether he/she will look like me or her (honestly, I don’t even really care!), whether he/she will share those character traits from my family that have been strong through a lot of generations etc. But honestly, I don’t want to spend every waking moment talking about that nor picking out clothes, colours etc. I sincerely want to be there for my wifey but this is just too much. Am I being selfish?’

No, you’re not! It’s a normal reaction which you’re entitled to, but really have to deal with quickly 😀 That didn’t sound very sympathetic, right?

Some of the issues on the minds of fathers are worries over an ‘impending’ starvation of sexual intimacy, increase in financial responsibilities etc. These are enough to stress the potential Daddy out and lead to the release of the stress hormone, Cortisol, which reduces libido. But, pregnancy does not mean starvation of any kind 😀

For details of Dr Ketch’s thoughts on intimacy during pregnancy and to answer the question ‘when is the right time for a woman to resume sexual intercourse after child birth??’, get a copy of the book, Just For The Health Of It. You can get a copy via the shop now link on our facebook page. Or you can get it through:

1) Jumia.com. Just click on this link http://www.jumia.com.ng/jumia-books-just-for-the-health-of-it-with-dr-ketch-179486.html and get a copy. You have the option of paying when the book is delivered to you or paying online. This service is available all over Nigeria.

2) Another option for those in Lagos is Laterna Bookshop on 13, Oko-Awo Close, Off Adetokunbo Ademola Street,. Victoria Island.

3) If you’re outside the country, please visit Amazon through this link http://www.amazon.com/Just-Health-Ketch-Pregnancy-Parenting/dp/9789398026/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1426246647&sr=1-1&keywords=just+for+the+health+of+it+with+dr+ketch+olalere+nkechi

Okay…so no one loves to have the sniffles; carrying tissues around and sneezing/blowing our noses into tissues and just feeling miserable! We hate even more when we are in the uncomfortable position of ‘rejecting’ a handshake because we want to avoid getting infected by someone who has the flu.

Here are top tips for escaping the cold and flu as it makes its rounds:

• Wash Your Hands
Wash your hands with anti-bacterial soap for at least 20 seconds…time taken to sing happy birthday twice. Use safeguard soap and this will not only remove millions of bacteria but stop their re-growth for at least 12 hours. Dry your hands thoroughly.

Get a flu shot
This may not be perfect and certainly does not protect everyone, but you do have more of a chance of beating the flu with it than without it

• Live healthy
A balanced diet, regular sleep and exercise work wonders for your immune system and helps you resist the flu.

• Cover your cough
Don’t sneeze into your hands…you’re more than likely to see someone you know and shake them soon enough…spreading your germs. Rather sneeze or cough into the crook of your arms. This limits significantly the spread of germs.

• Give that immune system of yours some extra boost by:
Taking a break from stress. Stress messes with your ability to stay healthy, especially during cold and flu season. Try taking a mini meditation break during the day – just close your eyes and focus on breathing in and out for a few minutes.

Trying to stick with a bedtime. Consistently geting eight hours of sleep a night gives your body the chance to repair cells and build up your immune system.

Have a great weekend, people 😀

Q: Hi, my lips are very black and I don’t smoke. Ma’am, can you please give me tips on how to get them pink or even lighten it…please?

A: Smoking can, most definitely, make your lips go dark or even black. It may also be due to overproduction of the hormone that leads to the dark colour of black people (melanin). To prevent this, you can use lip balms, especially those with sunscreen and avoid dehydration which can make your lips get dry, chapped and discoloured. Other tips you can try can be found in this post which I had made a while back on this subject.
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If you’ve got children like mine, you’re probably repeating the statement ‘go and put some petroleum jelly on your lips’ very often these days. Maybe they are listening, maybe they are not. 😀 Let’s give you some more tips to prevent or treat dry and chapped lips.

Moisten a kitchen paper or handkerchief and wet your lips (Or you could use an old soft-bristled toothbrush to gently brush out the dry skin. Don’t do this for more than 60 seconds to prevent irritation and bleeding). Then apply petroleum jelly to your lips and rub your lips together to make sure the jelly is well absorbed. Then use lipstick (if you’re female)or lip balm (if you’re male), blot out excess by biting on dry wipes and then apply lip gloss…just enough to give a nice shine. If you’re a guy, I suggest you skip the last step 😀 As the old/dry skin ‘peels’ off, the new ‘lips’ will emerge!

Overnight, apply moisturizer to your lips and around your mouth to allow your lips moisturize overnight. If you don’t want to use a moisturizer, use petroleum jelly.

Drinking sufficient water daily also doesn’t hurt 😀 Be a boy scout and carry lip balm around in your pocket or handbag.

Have a great evening 😀

Q: My mum has been diagnosed of with uterine prolapse. She sees it with the mirror when she spreads her legs. Sometimes she feels it has gone up (back inside). We don’t know the stage. She has been advised to go for surgery, is it the only option? God bless you ma’am.

A: Uterine prolapse occurs when there is a weakening of the support structures for the uterus (womb) leading to it protruding out of the vagina…as appears to be happening in this case. Other symptoms in some people, other than that described already may include difficulty with urinating, back pain, feeling of heaviness in the pelvis etc The causes of this include menopause (due to decrease in the level of estrogen), pregnancy, difficult birth, delivery of a big baby etc People at risk include people who have had any of the listed conditions and people who strain at stool (eg when one has constipation or diarrhea), people who lift heavy things or have had a longstanding cough etc

Is there any other treatment modality except surgery? Yes. First of all, not all cases of uterine prolapsed require treatment. A mild uterine prolapsed which does not really disturb the person who has it does not require treatment except the symptoms worsen with time. For those with symptoms, another alternative to surgery is a device called the vaginal pessary can be slipped into the vagina to hold the uterus in place. This can be left in place for long periods or can be taken out and re-inserted daily. The doctor will advice.

Kegel exercises may help reduce symptoms too. For more on Kegel exrcise, please click on this link:

Daily Health Tips: When Is A Good Time To Resume Sexual Intimacy After Childbirth?

Maintaining a healthy weight, preventing straining at stool, treating long standing coughs etc can help prevent this condition.

It sounds like your mum is not really experiencing symptoms and so this may not require treatment. However, I suggest she be taken to see her doctor who will examine and determine the appropriate way forward.

Have a great night, people 😀

Q: After eating and I sleep, especially siesta, I become more hungry than I was before eating. I don’t know if it’s normal?

A: Interesting question! Well, it depends on what you ate and how long you slept too.
Generally, foods with a lot of fibre when eaten, absorb water and give the feeling of satiety (feeling full) for a lot longer. These foods cause less fluctuations in blood sugar when compared with processed foods. So, if you ate fibre-rich foods, you would not be feeling hunger pangs too soon afterwards.

If however, you feed on processed foods like pies, cakes or even starchy foods like polished rice etc, the release of glucose from these foods into the blood prompts the release of insulin which efficiently moves the glucose into the cells. This prompts the release of counter hormones which cause hunger pangs soon after one had felt very full.

For a related topic, please click on this link:

Is A Diet Of Carbohydrates Only, Dangerous?

Have a good night, everyone 😀

Q: Good day doc, first, thanks for the good work you are doing. Please, my 2 month-old has catarrh and I have been managing it by keeping him warm, applying Vaseline on his nose and removing excess mucus using bulb syringe or nasal aspirator. But this would only work when his nostrils are not blocked, so my question is, what do I use to de-congest the nostrils when they are blocked? I learned I could use saline nose drops but not sure I can get this in our medicine stores

A: Thanks for writing in and for your kind words. I’m sorry to hear that your baby is feeling poorly.

You’re already doing well with the measures you already adopted but you are right, these may not work for when the nose is blocked. If you ask at a registered pharmacy shop, you should be able to get a saline spray. Use a humidifier or let your baby inhale some steam. For details of what to do, I reproduce here, a post I had made a while back which has the answers you are looking for.

Q: Good morning Dr Ketch, please this is very urgent. My two months old baby is having a serious cough and I took him to the hospital and I was told he cannot take a cough syrup until he is a year old. So they gave him some antibiotics but the cough is still persistent. Today makes it a week since he has been coughing. Please how true is it and what can I give my baby again to relieve him of this cough?

A: As a parent, it’s very normal for you to feel worried when your baby is ill especially when it appears you’re helpless and really can’t do anything to help him/her. However, when your baby has a cough, giving cough syrups may not be the way to go…and I’ll tell you why.

First, if your baby’s cough is due to a cold, you really don’t need to give your baby any drug. A cold is a viral infection and once it causes an infection, it will run its course before it stops. And so, with or without drugs, a cold will go. It would usually last for about a week to 10 days and then disappear. There’s no need for antibiotics for a viral infection. Indeed, taking antibiotics when they are not needed leads to antibiotic resistance where the antibiotics can no longer properly do their jobs when they are really needed to fight infections.

Then some of the ingredients in the cough syrups can also cause a baby’s heart to beat faster, may cause convulsions and basically do not treat the cause of the cough. They are actually not supposed to be used for children younger than 2 years of age.
Now, what can you do in the mean time:
Let your baby sleep in your arms or in a semi-upright position.

You can prop him up with lots of pillows at night.

Offer your baby fluids and if there is congestion in the nose, use a saline spray. You can ask your doctor or pharmacist for this.

An air humidifier also moistens the air and makes it easier for your baby to breath. If you don’t have this, you can let your baby breath in steam from a hot shower.
A suction bulb can also help remove mucous from your baby’s nose. You can ask for one in the hospital or a pharmacy.

Please see your baby’s doctor if this cough continues and/or your baby develops a fever and this cough lasts more than 2 weeks. If your baby also has difficulty breathing, cannot breath or feed, you should also see his/her doctor.

Have a great night, everyone 😀

Q: Dr, please what causes dryness of vagina and what will I do to get wet again??

A: Vaginal dryness can occur due to variety of reasons and at any age. Usually the vagina has a thin film of fluid that coats it. This fluid helps lubrication during sexual intercourse, maintains the normal environment of the vagina preventing the overgrowth of organisms like fungi, flushing out dead cells and menstrual blood. The level of this fluid/moisture varies with the level of estrogen released in the body. During sexual intercourse, there is increased blood flow to the vaginal area leading to an increase in the volume of moisture. During menopause, however, the level of estrogen is very low leading to vaginal dryness, loss of elasticity and thinning.

The main consequence of vaginal dryness is the fact that it affects sex life such that these women experience significant pain and sometimes, bleeding. Other problems that vaginal dryness could cause include soreness, itching and burning around the vaginal area, recurrent urinary tract infections and frequency of urinating etc.

There are other conditions, other than menopause that can lead to low estrogen and consequent vaginal dryness. They include childbirth, breast feeding, cigarette smoking, some medications (like anti-estrogen drugs used to treat cancer) and douching. Douching refers to the practice of cleaning the vagina with a ‘cleansing’ fluid. For more on this topic, please click on this link: https://chatwithdrketch.com/…/daily-health-tips-what-is-dou…/

Other very common causes of vaginal dryness include a lack of foreplay during sexual intercourse, feelings of guilt, relationship issues, allergy etc

Treatment depends on cause. If it’s due to low estrogen, the focus would be on replacing this either through Hormone Replacement therapy or through the insertion of estrogen pessaries (tablets, cream or ring) into the vagina) should help. If due to rushed foreplay, there should be a conscious effort to slow down allow enough time for foreplay and sometimes, discussion with the partner may be helpful. Avoid heavily perfumed products like sanitary towels, tissues etc which may lead to irritation of the vagina and subsequent dryness etc.

I hope this helps.

Have a good night, y’all 😀

Ever heard of those amazing pieces of advice that people have repeated and passed along through various eras that they have practically taken the place of the truth about pregnancy! I will address some of them and let you know my verdict…fact or fiction 😀

Advice
Pregnant women who deliver in hospitals are not brave

Verdict: Fiction
This is not true! This has led to a situation where women who ought to seek medical care in the hospital stay home to prove they are brave. Please be sure to register for your antenatal classes, attend regularly and follow your doctor’s advice to the letter.

Advice
Pregnant women should not sleep on their backs as this may damage your baby’s eyes

Verdict: Fact and fiction
In the first trimester, if you’re used to sleeping on your back, you can continue. However, as you get into your second trimester, it is fact that pregnant women should not sleep on their backs especially close to term. However, the reason is not because of damage to baby’s eyes. It’s because the woman may feel dizzy as the growing uterus puts pressure on the vein that returns blood from the body making the woman feel dizzy on getting up and the baby may also not get enough nutrients from the placenta in that position

Advice
If a pregnant woman drinks cold water, her baby may get pneumonia

Want to know what we think of the cold water and pneumonia advice? Get details from the book, Just For The Health Of It. You can get a copy via the shop now link on our facebook page. Or you can get it through:

1) Jumia.com. Just click on this link http://www.jumia.com.ng/jumia-books-just-for-the-health-of-it-with-dr-ketch-179486.html and get a copy. You have the option of paying when the book is delivered to you or paying online. This service is available all over Nigeria.

2) Another option for those in Lagos is Laterna Bookshop on 13, Oko-Awo Close, Off Adetokunbo Ademola Street,. Victoria Island.

3) If you’re outside the country, please visit Amazon through this link http://www.amazon.com/Just-Health-Ketch-Pregnancy-Parenting/dp/9789398026/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1426246647&sr=1-1&keywords=just+for+the+health+of+it+with+dr+ketch+olalere+nkechi

Pregnancy is such an awesome time. Okay, I know those of you who have a hard time with pregnancy are wondering whether to throw rotten tomatoes at me 😀 Hold your peace! But the truth is, when you’re not feeling absolutely horrible, you’re elated at the thought of the life growing in you, aren’t you. It’s such an awesome responsibility to be given…the nurturing and birthing of this child. Don’t get me started on this….

Okay, with this huge responsibility comes even more responsibilities 😀 There is the need to eat right to nurture the growing life inside that huge tummy. Eating right is not necessarily eating for two…I know we’ve all heard the feeding for two fable. Trust me, in pregnancy, your calorie requirement doesn’t increase in first trimester, increases by just 300 calories in second trimester and about 400 calories in the 3rd trimester …if you’re carrying just one baby. For multiple pregnancies this increases slightly.

Here are 5 nutrition tips for a pregnant woman:
• Eat a balanced diet with a variety of foods from different food groups.
• Be sure to include a lot of high fibre foods like vegetables, whole grain cereals etc to deal with the constipation associated with pregnancy.
• Ensure you take your antenatal medications (prenatal vitamins) in addition to eating well.
• Be sure to also take foods rich in iron eg and foods rich in folic acid eg green leafy veggies and beans. Folate prevents deformities of the spine.
• Drink at least 4 servings of milk, other dairy products or calcium rich foods. If you don’t eat enough, your baby will start drawing on your own stock from your bones. So, drink up your milk!
Pregnancy provides an opportunity for a mother to adequately prepare her baby for life in 9 months. Make sure that you get all the nutrients that give your child a great health boost.

Have a great weekend y’all 😀