chatwithketch

Q: Hello doc, I just watched your programme about how healthy milk is for children. I have a concern because when my son was about a year plus, I started noticing some irritations on his skin which made him itch. We went to his paediatrician who said it is some kind of allergic reaction that we should watch whatever aggravates the irritation especially proteins. I then noticed he becomes more irritated when he takes milk and by the way he loves milk. we were told to switch to soy milk which he tolerates well. Recently, he started having sore eyes with sticky discharge in the morning, We took him to the eye clinic and was told it is allergic conjunctivitis and he is on treatment. My concern now is how exactly do we manage it and does it mean he won’t be able to take full cream milk?

A: Interesting…

Q: Hello Dr Ketch, please I want to know how to get rid of washer man’s finger. It’s really spoilt 6 out of my 10 finger nails. Thanks so much.

A: So sorry you are experiencing this. I can just imagine what you may be going through. From the description of your symptoms, it’s rather difficult to say exactly what is going on with your finger nails/ hand. The term washerman’s finger, which you used may have beclouded what you really wanted us to address. Then mentioning your fingernails being spoilt, gives it the picture of a fungal nail infection. There are quite a number of conditions that can affect the hands, fingers and the nails, some of which can be a bit challenging to diagnose and even treat. I would advise you see a doctor, who would be able to have a look at your hands, fingers and nails…

As we approach the festive season and the time when people cook a lot to celebrate, I reproduce a post I had made before. I have received a lot of questions on cancer since the post I made on it and I have also been asked this question on re-using oil, frequently. So, here goes!

Q: Should we re-use oils that have been used for frying?

A: This is a very important question. How do we tell the woman who has used a whole lot of oil to fry akara (bean cakes) to pour all that oil away afterwards? In these economic times? The truth is, even if she wanted to do that for her health, the economic imperatives make it impossible! Do you know how much that oil cost? 
Okay, so what can we do? Re-using oil can be done safely. First, the focus is on oils that have…

Olive oil has always been the poster boy for all things good – anointing (in the christian circles) and healthy (in the culinary and healthy eating circles). And then, from nowhere, in comes coconut oil! All of a sudden, the media is awash with all the great health benefits of coconut oil for the skin, hair and general health, pushing former super star, Olive oil, to the background 😀

This post reviews both oils and proclaims a winner. And the winner is…..

You have to read this to know!

https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/olive-oil-or-coconut-oil-which-is-worthy-of-kitchen-staple-status-2020061820077

Q: Good morning, Doctor. Please as the subject states its rather an emergency. For the first time in 23 years of my life I had unprotected sex. I lost my virginity in the process due to my inexperience with things like this. I did not know what next to do. When I felt a bit strange, I decided to go for series of tests: Pregnancy test, HIV and ulcer. Only the ulcer came out positive; the rest were negative. After 2 months, I had sex again and it was painful. I spotted blood. Also, I quickly took a contraceptive and after three days I started having serious abdominal cramps and I saw blood like I was on my menstrual period and I had already seen it this month, that is, making it 2 times in a month. These cramps hurt like hell and I am scared. Please, what is the…

Q: Good morning, Doctor. My wife is doing exclusive breast feeding but my daughter sucks intensively, an average of 14hrs everyday…she could suck from 12am to 4am sometimes, making it difficult for the mom to do any other thing.

1) Can we start introducing a little water so that I could help wife some nights?
2) Can we give her gripe water? Mother insists it helps babies to ease stomach upsets that is normal with babies.

A: Trust me…you’re not the only husband who wonders whether their new babies are on a mission to deplete their wives of their very lives given their frequency of sucking! When I had my last baby, I would jokingly say that I felt light-headed after breast feeding him…he sucked that much 😀 So, I know exactly what you’re talking about! And thank you so much for being a caring husband that feels for his…

Q: Hello Doc, my baby is around 5 weeks now. From birth I have been feeding her formula and breast milk. Should I still be giving her water. If yes, should it be warm water.

A: Hi dear, congratulations on your new baby! She will be a blessing to her generation.

Now, if you’re a regular follower of this page, you will know that I am ‘almost’ fanatical about breastfeeding. You should be giving your breastfeeding only from birth to 6 months with no water at all. Breast milk contains all the required nutrients and sufficient water for your baby.

Having said that, if you’re giving your baby formula feeds, the same dictum also applies. You have to ensure that that you follow the instructions properly so that you don’t make feeds that are too thick (and likely to cause constipation) or make feeds that are too watery (and likely…

Q: Please what is tampon?

A: Tampons are products like sanitary pads used
to absorb menstrual flow. A tampon is cylindrical in shape and has a string at
one end that can be used to pull the tampon out. Sometimes, this string may go
inside your body but you can usually feel the tampon and pull it out.

There is a
dangerous infection that can occur in females who use tampons. It’s called
Toxic Shock Syndrome (TSS). It is not caused by tampons but because tampons in
the vagina create a perfect environment for bacteria (staphylococcus aureus in
this case) to thrive, a toxin is created that causes severe illness. Young
teens with fewer antibodies to the infection are more likely to experience this
than older females.

Symptoms of
TSS includesuddenhigh fever, headaches, redness
of the eyes, mouth and throat, vomiting, diarrhea, seizures etc. If you
experience any of these…

Q: Good
day Doc I would like to know. What is the cause of blood always reading
positive to pregnancy but urine doesn’t test positive? Looking forward to your
response.

A: When
pregnancy tests are done, they usually test for the presence of the hormone, Human
Chorionic Gonadotrophin (hCG). The presence of this hormone signifies pregnancy
and its absence denotes no pregnancy.

Blood
pregnancy tests are typically very accurate.

A
positive result on blood pregnancy test, as I already noted above, could mean
that you’re pregnant. If you’re not, then the false positive result could be
due to medications like fertility medicines or some meds used for the treatment
of seizures

It is also possible that one was
pregnant at the time of the previous blood pregnancy test and miscarried soon
after. This type of early pregnancy is referred to as achemical
pregnancy

An ectopic pregnancy, a situation
in which…

Q: Good
evening Dr. Ketch. please can women with PCOS who can only menstruate, ovulate
by taking medication, conceive and put to birth without miscarriage?

A: Ovaries are small
bean-shaped organs on either side of your womb. Every month, your ovaries
develop sacs called follicles from where eggs are released monthly and female
sex hormones produced. After the egg is released every month, the sac
disintegrates. But sometimes, the egg is not released and the sac remains or
the egg is released and the sac does not disintegrate. This follicle becomes
the fluid-filled cyst sac. Usually this is not a problem as it could form
during every menstrual cycle and usually resolves on its own. These cysts are
called the functional cysts. However, these cysts could get very big and in
some instances become twisted or they could rupture causing problems. This
latter type is called pathological cyst.

Examples of…