chatwithketch

Q: Please ma’am, my baby is 3 weeks old. I was induced and since I gave birth the baby has had cough. He’s gone through the third prescription now, but they have all failed.

A: Thanks for writing in.

I’m not sure what prescription the baby has been on. Cough syrups? Antibiotics? When you say prescription, do you mean it was prescribed by his paediatrician?

Generally, cough could be due to common cold, allergies or other irritants in the environment, croup, whooping cough etc.

If your baby has a common cold, giving an antibiotic does not help as it is not a bacterial infection. Indeed, giving antibiotics when they are not needed can make organisms develop antibiotic resistance. Cough syrup is also not a great idea as it may contain substances that could speed up baby’s heart rate. A common cold is a viral infection. With or without medication, the infection will run its course and resolve.

So what can you do? Your baby probably also has nasal congestion too. So:

Try to prop up baby’s head when he’s sleeping at night.

Use an air humidifier to make it easier for your baby to breathe. If you don’t have an air humidifier, you can run a warm shower and take baby into the bathroom to inhale the steam. Be careful that the air is not too harsh and of course, we don’t want to deal with burns.

Be sure to give baby sufficient fluids. At his age, he should still be on exclusive breastfeeding. So, breastfeed judiciously. If nasal congestion interferes with breastfeeding, you can use a cup and spoon to feed the baby. The mouth breathing practised by these children due to nasal congestion exposes them to dehydration and so there is a need for adequate fluid intake.

A suction bulb can help remove mucous from the nose especially if it’s interfering with breathing.

If baby’s cough lasts more than 2 weeks or he develops your fever, please get him to his doctor.

For a related post, please click on this link:

Daily Health Tips: Is It Okay To Give My Baby Cough Syrup?

Have a good night, people 😀

For Nigerians, now that the elections are over, let’s get on with the business of making Nigeria bigger and better. Our country, Nigeria, is the ultimate winner 😀

Excerpts 2 from JFTHOI

As the festive Easter season comes up, what do you plan to eat? Are you going to ‘misbehave’ and then find yourself trying to lose all that weight, weeks later?

Well here is an excerpt from my book, Just For The Health Of It, with tips on how to avoid eating wrong.

Enjoy the read.
You can get a copy of the book in any of the three following ways:
1) By visiting jumia.com. Just click on this link http://www.jumia.com.ng/jumia-books-just-for-the-health-of-… and get a copy. You can pay when the book is delivered to you or you can pay online.

2) If you’re in Lagos, please visit Laterna Bookshop on 13, Oko-Awo Close, Off. Adetokunbo Ademola Street,. Victoria Island.

3) I you’re out of the country, please click on 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

Have a fab weekend 😀

Do you know that healthy living starts in your kitchen with the little things…washing your hands, how you treat the food you eat etc

Here are some tips to set you on the right road to hygiene and health.

Wash your hands before and after handling food

Use separate chopping boards. 1 for Fruits and fresh vegetable for salads, 1 for poultry, seafood and meats and another for all other produce. This prevents cross-contamination of foods.

Wash your knives, boards and other utensils before using on a different set of produce. Again, this prevents cross-contamination of foods.

Freeze/refrigerate meats you are not going to use immediately.Constantly bringing out your meats, thawing them and then freezing them back again, provides an opportunity for bacteria to thrive. So, if you buy a lot of meat, put them in small packs according to how much you use every time. This way, you ensure that you’re going to use everything in a pack you bring out.

Thoroughly wash fruits and vegetable before cutting and serving. You can use salt and/or vinegar water to wash vegetables

Be sure to wash your kitchen napkins and dish towels in hot water often. I wash mine at the end of the day and next morning they are nice and fresh!

Remember that hygiene is two-thirds of health! So, don’t be caught napping 😀

Q: Dr, your programmes are wonderful. During delivery of my baby girl two years ago, I had placental abruption. It came with severe bleeding. I want to know if there is a possibility of it recurring in my next delivery and if so, how can I avoid it. God bless you.

A: Amen! God bless you too!
The placenta is an ‘organ’ which develops during pregnancy, attached to the side of the uterus and is the means of transport of nutrients and oxygen to the baby and transport of wastes out of the baby via the umbilical cord. So, the placenta is absolutely essential during pregnancy. It maintains its position, normally during pregnancy until the baby is born and the placenta is then delivered.

In the situation described above, placental abruption, the placenta separates, completely or partially, from the wall of the uterus before the baby is born. This situation is not very common but when it does happen, it can deprive the baby of vital nutrients and oxygen and lead to bleeding in the mother. This situation may happen suddenly or may develop gradually with symptoms like vaginal bleeding, abdominal and/or back pain, sore uterus, fewer baby movements, contractions etc

We don’t really know the cause of placental abruption apart from the fact that it could be caused by trauma to the abdomen. Other risk factors include:
• A previous history of placental abruption
• Multiple pregnancy
• Premature rupture of membranes
• Substance abuse eg smoking
• Maternal age greater than 40 years

Now, remember that having a risk factor doesn’t automatically mean that you will come down with the ‘disease’.

Treatment depends on the severity of the abruption, the age of the pregnancy and the effect on the baby. Your doctor will make the call as to whether to go for an emergency Caesarian Section or keep patient on bed rest while waiting for baby to mature some more, depending on these factors.

Can this be prevented? Well, given the fact that we’re not quite sure of the cause, we can’t really do much other than try to guide against risk factors that can be prevented like not smoking.
Just be sure to let your doctor know that you have had this problem before so he can be extra watchful. With the right care, you should be fine.

By the way, if you’re in Nigeria and a Nigerian, I hope you have your PVC. Be sure to use it and take a stand for the kind of government you want. No violence, please!!!

Have a good night, y’all 😀