Daily Health Tips: How Can I Prevent Incontinence (Leaking Urine)?

Posted on July 20, 2014 by chatwithdrketch

Hallos 😀 I hope you’ve had a great day so far?

I came across this article from a Harvard Medical School newsletter. It gives five tips to prevent urinary incontinence. Urinary incontinence, by the way, refers to inability to control the bladder which may range from occasional leaks when one coughs to sudden urge to urinate followed by voiding of urine if the person doesn’t get to the toilet on time.

Exercise or some form of physical activity was found to be protective of incontinence. Remember that the standard recommendation is a minimum of 150 minutes of exercise per week. You can get this done in so many different ways:

  • Use the stairs instead of the elevators
  • Dance when getting ready for work
  • Park your car farther than you would normally do and walk the distance
  • Get off your bus a bus stop away from your usual stop and walk
  • Get your driver (chauffeur) to stop you by the gate of your house or office and walk
  • Send your documents in the office to a printer farther away from you and go pick it up
  • Encourage your HR department to put the water dispenser farther away from the offices to encourage people to walk. Putting them in the stairwell and having some hidden speakers provide some music is a great idea
  • Arm wrestle with anyone who cares to take you on.
  • Try and participate in the house chores instead of getting your house keeper to do them all
  • Take a 30 minute walk every evening
  • Install a reminder in your laptop to remind you to take ‘activity breaks’ every hour. Example, stretch clock

Honestly, if you put your mind to it, there are a gazillion ways of ensuring you get your 30 minutes of exercise daily. Remember that you need to get as much activity as possible into each day as opposed to trying to do all the 150 minutes at once over the weekend. This may over-stretch your heart.

Excess weight  is believed to weaken pelvic floor muscles causing leaks when one coughs or sneezes. So, if overweight, try losing some weight. It may be helpful

Ensuring that your diet has adequate sources of fiber and water may also prevent incontinence, because straining at stool may also weaken pelvic floor muscles. Fiber adds bulk to your stool and together with water, prevent constipation.

Alcohol and caffeine and alcohol have been linked to incontinence and in this instance (urge incontinence) one feels the urge to urinate even when there is very little fluid in the bladder. Other food substances that are implicated in this include the sweetener, aspartame, spicy foods, carbonated drinks etc

Smoking has been implicated in several health conditions and also makes an appearance here. Nicotine (found in cigarettes) has been associated with incontinence. So, if you smoke, don’t reduce the amount you smoke…just stop 😀 If you don’t smoke, don’t start.

Have a productive week y’all 😀

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Daily Health Tips (video): How To Brush Your Teeth Right!

Posted on July 19, 2014 by chatwithdrketch

Do you have young children who are learning to brush their teeth? Do you help them out or just let them carry on on their own? Here’s a guide to helping them do it right.

http://youtu.be/yiFXbtX8QxA

Posted in Uncategorized | 2 Comments

Daily Health Tips: Why Do I Sweat Excessively Even When It’s Cold?

Posted on July 17, 2014 by chatwithdrketch

Q: Good evening, Doctor! I have been having severe sweating all over my body. The most disgusting one is that most of the time I sweat uncontrollably on my leg even on a cold day! Please what’s wrong with me because it’s bringing a lot of shame to me!!

A: Sweating is normal during strenuous physical activity and in warm weather. In fact, as we sweat and it evaporates, we actually feel cooler. Unfortunately, for some people sweating is an issue as they ‘appear’ to pour the stuff by the buckets or would start the day with patches of sweat on their under-arms etc. This inevitably leads to body odour.

However, there may be other medical causes for your sweats. Symptoms that may suggest medical causes include night sweats, generalized sweating all over the body, worsening sweats etc

Medical causes of excessive sweating include Diabetes Mellitus, Stress, thyroid problems, pregnancy, menopause, cancer, obesity, alcoholism etc. Medications have been implicated in excessive sweating and a spinal injury may cause sweating on one leg.

Whatever the cause, the resulting body odour is always a challenging outcome of this problem. To deal with this, take a shower twice a day or failing that, at least once a day. This helps wash away sweat as well as reduce the number of bacteria on your skin. 

Towel off after a bath or shower. Pay close attention to areas where you sweat a lot. Sweat causing bacteria love moist areas. 

Use a deodorant or anti-perspirant on your underarms twice a day, in the morning and the evening. 

When sweating heavily or in very hot weather, please change your clothes and socks frequently.

If the condition is caused by medications, your doctor may consider changing it. Other treatment options that take care of the symptoms include surgery and medications. Other treatment options include the use of botox injections and using low intensity electrical current If you’re overweight, you may want to consider losing some weight.

Please see your doctor as soon as possible so he can make a definitive diagnosis and advice on treatment.

Good night, people 🙂

 

 

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Daily Health Tips: Why Do I Have Sores And Whitish Spots In My Mouth?

Posted on July 16, 2014 by chatwithdrketch

Q: Good day Doc. May God bless and uplift you for your assistance to humanity. Doc., I have been experiencing a persistent ulcer in the mouth for some years now which appears as a small and whitish spot in different positions of my mouth ranging from the tongue to inner section of the lip. Initially I thought it was caused by the toothpaste I used, but I later discover that it was not from the toothpaste after changing toothpastes several times. Sometimes it can take up to month before it appears again. Please Doc. what are the causes if this and its treatments?
A: Amen and Amen to your prayers! 😀

And to your question…

There are a couple of causes mouth sores with or without whitish spots. I’ll briefly mention 3:

There is oral thrush or oral candidiasis. This is a fungal (yeast) infection and is common in people with compromised immune system. For this reason, it is common at the extremes of ages: the young and the old. It is also common in people who have just used antibiotics, people with dry mouths, people who wear dentures, diabetics etc People with this condition usually have creamy or whitish sores in their mouths. Treatment depends on the cause eg regular cleaning of dentures and removing them at night, good oral hygiene etc Taking yoghurt with probiotics may also help.

Cold sores which are also called fever blisters are caused by a virus, Herpes Simplex. They typically occur around the mouth or under the nose and may recur in people who have had them when they have a fever, are emotionally upset etc. Treatment can be with anti-viral drugs or it can be left well alone and it will disappear after a couple of days. Local anesthetic drugs may help reduce the pain of the sores.

Tongue irritation can lead to a condition called Leukoplakia in which there are white patches in the mouth and on the tongue which cannot be wiped out. It is usually found in people who use tobacco products of any kind and may eventually be associated with cancer.

In your case, this situation has been on and off for a while. It is important to get a doctor to check you out and confirm the exact cause as soon as possible.

Goodnight, good people 😀

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Daily Health Tips: Any Remedy For Baldness?

Posted on July 15, 2014 by chatwithdrketch

Q: Hello Dr Ketch, I am a 33 year old guy from Lagos. I am experiencing rapid hair loss which is resulting in baldness. Please I’d like to know if there are natural remedies or vitamin supplements for men with no side effect on fertility. Cheers.

A: Baldness is excessive hair loss from the scalp. It usually starts from thinning hair before it involves wider areas of hair loss.

How does this happen? Usually, a hair follicle produces hair and each hair grows from a follicle for as long as three years before it is shed and a new one produced. Testosterone is produced normally by the hair follicle and these follicles now convert testosterone to Dihydrotestosterone (DHT). In baldness, the hair follicles are overly sensitive to the effects of DHT causing the hair to thin out and also last less than the usual 3 years.

Now it is usually assumed that being bald is a sign of great virility but studies have shown that this is not true. Bald people do not have more than normal amounts of male sex hormones, their hair follicles are just more sensitive to the effects of the hormones.

Baldness runs in families and may start as early as late teens in some people with most men at 6o years of age having experienced some level of hair loss. It is, of course, more traumatic when it happens at an early age like 33years as in this case.

Treatment runs from doing nothing (always an option :D), wearing wigs or styling hair in such a way as to cover the bald patch if possible to surgery where individual hair strands are transplanted. Other treatment options include the use of medications like Finasteride (which prevents conversion of testosterone to DHT thus allow the hair follicles to enlarge back to normal) and Minoxidil. It usually take about 4 months for any effect to be noticed, though. There are still issues surrounding the effects of these drugs on fertility.

Diet may not really help with baldness. However, ensure that your diet has sufficient amounts of protein and iron rich food to prevent thinning out of hair.

So, have a chat with your doctor and hear what he suggests. Ultimately, you may very well decide to just love the skin that you’re in and leave well alone or perhaps, settle for a wig.

Have a good night everyone 😀 

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Daily Health Tips: How Do I Get Rid Of Excessive Facial Hair?

Posted on July 14, 2014 by chatwithdrketch

Q: Good day Doc, after watching your health tips on DSTV, I am so in love with your style of handling situations. Please Dr, I’ve got a problem. What can I do? Over my body and face, there’s a lot of hair. I’ve tried laser and permanent removal but the price is much and other means are not permanent. Even to get a gynaecologist here is not easy. Ma’am, you are my last hope. Ma’am, what drugs do you think I can take to stop the facial and body hair growth? God bless Dr Ketch

A: Thank you so much for your kind words.

What you’ve described sounds like hirsutism which is a situation in which there is excessive hairiness in a woman in places like the face, chest and back. Funny enough, growing up, very hairy ladies were considered pretty special…In a good way 

This situation can be caused by any situation that increases the male sex hormones (androgens) or increases the response of hair follicles to androgens. Some conditions that can cause this include Poly Cystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS), some drugs, obesity etc It is more likely in people who have a family history of this and in people of Asian, Mediterranean and Middle Eastern origin. This can also be found in women with no risk factors and women where no specific cause can be found.

If specific causes are found eg obesity or PCOS, these should be addressed. 

As you have found out, permanent methods of getting rid of the facial and other unwanted hair like laser treatment (which does not destroy the hair follicles) and electrolysis (which destroys hair follicles but may leave small scars on face) are expensive with laser being more popular and more expensive. 

Mild cases of hirsutism can be dealt with by shaving, waxing, plucking or using depilatory creams…much as you would take care of underarm hair. 

Birth control pills used over a period of 6 to 12 months may improve this condition by helping reduce the effects of androgens and reducing the production of more sex hormones. Anti androgens drugs can also be used.

So, make out time to go find a gynaecologist as soon as you can and discuss this. He will carry out a detailed investigation and then confirm treatment options that would work best for you depending on his findings eg whether the contraceptive pills are an option for you etc

Until you’re able to do that, you may have to keep shaving, plucking, waxing or using depilatory creams. As soon as you can afford it, laser treatment should be considered.

Have a great evening, y’all 

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Daily Health Tips: Can My Breast Milk Get Sour If I Don’t Express It And My Baby Refuses To Feed?

Posted on July 13, 2014 by chatwithdrketch

Q: I learnt that breast milk doesn’t get sour except you express it out of the breast and leave it in a container; then it get sour after 8 hours. So my question is, if you don’t express it out how long does it stay in the breast if the child refuses to suck it before the breast milk gets bad?

A: Thanks for your question. 

Indeed, breast milk does not get sour unless it’s out of its natural ‘container’: the breast. Breast cannot get sour in the breast even if the baby does not suck for a while. The main issue you will be contending with at that time is breast engorgement as your breast gets filled with all that milk that is not being taken. Subsequently, if this continues for a while, the milk production may reduce as the production and supply of breast milk is related to the demand for it. If the demand reduces, the supply reduces…sounds like economics in a sense, right? 😀

So, we need to focus on finding out why the baby is not sucking. Is he ill? Please see his/ her paediatrician to determine what’s going on. In the meantime, you could try expressing the breast milk and store in the fridge/freezer as I had advised in my post, a couple of days ago, if power supply is not a problem. Please click on the link below for more information on storage of breast milk.

https://chatwithdrketch.com/2014/07/10/daily-health-tips-how-long-should-i-store-expressed-breast-milk-before-it-expires/

Have a great week ahead, people 🙂

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | 6 Comments

Daily Health Tips (video): Adolescent Questions About Menstruation.

Posted on July 13, 2014 by chatwithdrketch

Do you have children who are adolescents or do you have adolescents that look up to you? Have you had cause to answer their questions on menstruation? How did you fare? Here’s a guide for the next time it happens.

Posted in Uncategorized | 2 Comments

Daily Health Tips: How Can I Make My Breastfeeding Baby’s Nose Pointed?

Posted on July 11, 2014 by chatwithdrketch

Q: What do I do and what food do I take to make my breastfeeding baby’s nose pointed?

A: This question reminds me of my childhood. My mother jokingly tells me till date that I don’t have a flat nose because she made sure she always pulled my nose 😀 At that time, I couldn’t figure out if that pull was done as a means of showing anger or pleasure 😀 And my mum is a doctor oh 😀 But I digress….

There’s no evidence that pulling or pressing your baby’s nose makes it more pointed. Most babies are born with flat or squashed noses. The reason for this is not hard to imagine considering the tight, squashed and compact spaces that nose was pressed against on its way out of mummy’s womb 😀 Given all of that, it usually takes a couple of weeks and maybe even months to get the nose all straightened out and looking like it really belongs on your baby’s face…without your help, mind you 😀

In the same way, if your baby’s head appears a bit lopsided or bigger on one side as opposed to the other when born, you may not need to worry. During the process of childbirth, the baby’s skull bones are molded to enable the baby pass through the birth canal. Thus, sometimes when the baby is born the head may be lopsided because of uneven molding. It could also happen after birth in babies who lie on their backs a lot. Where in doubt, please see your doctor.

So, back to our nose pressing gist…give your baby’s nasal bridge a chance to develop well, on its own. You may actually be tampering with that process by pressing it continually.

To answer your question, what should you do? Nothing 😀 What should you eat? Healthy stuff…to make you and baby healthy. It has nothing to do with your baby’s nose 😀

Have a great weekend, people 🙂

 

 

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Daily Health Tips: How Long Should I Store Expressed Breast Milk Before It Expires?

Posted on July 10, 2014 by chatwithdrketch

Q: How long does extracted breast milk stay before it expires for a working class lady?

A: Well, breast milk does not quite distinguish between a working class lady and a stay-at-home lady 😀 It’s the same duration before expiry for everyone. Don’t mind me…I’m just pulling your legs 😀

To express milk for your baby, first, you have to be committed to be hygienic because you don’t want to introduce germs into your baby, do you? Always scrub your hands with soap and water whether you are using the breast pump or your hands.

Having expressed the milk, when stored at room temperature, be sure to use up the milk within 6 hours.

When stored in the fridge,
• Ensure that the temperature in the refrigerator is below 5 degrees centigrade.
• Do not store on the door of the fridge. Please store on the shelf towards the back of the refrigerator where it’s cooler
• At this temperature, you can store milk for up to 5 days.

When stored in the ice compartment of the refrigerator, you can store milk up to 2 weeks

When stored in the deep freezer, you can store milk up to 6 months.

To thaw frozen milk, please put it in the fridge. When it’s thawed, you may feed your baby with it but if your baby prefers it warm, you can run some warm water over the bottle until it’s just right. Do not microwave it as this may create some hot spots in the bottle which may cause scalding of your baby.

Once thawed, please don’t re-freeze the milk as this might encourage the growth of micro-organisms.

Make sure that the container used for storing milk is sterilized to prevent any potential introduction of germs into the milk. Use small containers that hold just about the amount that your baby finishes per feed.

If you express a lot of milk, be sure to label the different containers and use the oldest pack first. Please stick with the duration of storage guideline we’ve given.

Now, it goes without saying that you should not store milk close to contaminants like meat, fish or even strong smelling foods like onions 😉

Have a good evening y’all 😀

Posted in Uncategorized | 2 Comments