Food helps us to get nutrition and energy for our daily activates, keeps us healthy and disease free and also maintains our immunity. Eat Colourful to be in the PINK of Health. A diet that contains few colour fruits and vegetables helps us to get almost complete nutrition that is important for a healthy living and happy life.
We can go for recipes that will contain various colour of fruits and vegetables or we can have few recipes for our regular diet that will help us to consume a combination of colour.
Red : Mostly contains carotenoid that helps your body get enough Vitamin A , it is very essential for the body
Eat Colourful
Orange and Yellowish: Mostly contains beta-carotene which helps produce Vitamin A that is essential for improving night vision and keeps skin, teeth and bones healthy
Yellow and Orange: Mostly contains folate, it is an antioxidant that helps prevents neural tube defects in unborn infants. There are many other important nutrients
Greenish: Mostly rich in vitamin E, C and K . These are essential for clotting of blood, lower risk of cardiac disease, good for eyesight, skin and immunity
Blue and Purple: Mostly contains anthocyanins that helps prevent cardiovascular diseases. They also contain flavonoids and ellagic acid, compounds that may help prevent cancer
Whitish and Cream : Mostly white coloured fruits and vegetables like bananas, cauliflower, garlic are high in dietary fiber, helping to protect us from high cholesterol, stroke and cardiovascular disease
It’s scary but true that India has emerged as hub of heart diseases since few years which is going to take the shape of epidemic in near future. By the year 2020 heart diseases will be the cause of 1/3rd of total deaths in India. In a recent survey it is found that heart diseases in India occurs 10-15 years earlier than in the west. Thanks to our unhealthy lifestyle, increasing stress and lack of physical activity.But above all, an important cause of heart disease in India is wrong use of blood thinners or better known as Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory drugs or NSAIDs
NSAIDs or blood thinners are the most commonly prescribed medicines in case of heart ailments regarding blocked arteries or those who have a history of arterial stroke. They make the blood thinner than its usual form so that it can flow freely through the arteries. However, when it is used regularly in case of any chest pain without proper diagnosis it may lead to prolonged illness.
Any medicine if not taken under proper medical advice may be harmful. In case of anticoagulants the risk is far more as it’s concerned with blood that flows throughout our body. Whenever there is a slight chest pain or exhaustion if we take blood thinners as painkillers, it will just be a relief not a solution. Blood thinners cannot stop heart attacks but delays it making it more risky to handle later.
Dangers of NSAIDs and Anticoagulants for Heart Patients
What are blood thinners? What is their function?
The liquid ‘blood’ is a mixture of proteins, nutrients, enzymes, hormones wastes and gases which makes it thick. The medicines that make the blood thinner than usual so that it can flow freely through arteries and veins are collectively called ‘blood thinners’. They are usually of 2 types’anticoagulants and anti-platelet drugs, like ‘Aspirin’ or ‘Clopidogrel’. These medicines reduces the risk of heart attack and stroke.
When are blood thinners prescribed?
Blood Thinners or NSAIDs are prescribed to those who has a history of arterial stroke, in case of heart diseases or blood vessel illness like:
An abnormal heart rhythm called atrial fibrillation
Heart valve surgery
Congenital heart defects
Our heart gets the much needed oxygen-rich blood through arteries.Heart attack occurs due to the death of heart muscle resulting from lack of blood supply.
When these arteries get clogged due to plaque or fats, (blockages) blood cannot flow freely through them to reach the heart, chest pain occurs with exhaustion. Blood thinning drugs make the blood thin so that they can pass freely through the clogged arteries. Taking it as a pain killer will kill the pain for the time being but will not repair the clogged arteries. If the blood fails to reach the heart because of the block then the heart muscle will die causing heart attack.
When does the blood thinners harm us?
Blood thinning drugs makes the blood thin but does not cure the clogged arteries for which heart attack occurs. So it can be said, blood thinners are temporary relief but not a permanent solution. It cannot stop heart attack because blood thinners cannot cure the clogged arteries for which angioplasty is the solution. In case of major block a heart bypass is needed.
Along with the usage of blood thinners one needs to maintain a healthy lifestyle so that arteries do not get clogged further. If we fail to do so, the risk increases as because the arteries get more clogged with plague. As one point of time thinning of blood will not help resulting a heart attack.
What are the side effects of blood thinning medicines?
Using blood thinners as a painkiller aggravates problems. By regular use one can be vulnerable to hemorrhages or excessive bleeding as the blood will take time to clot. Blood clotting is a lifesaving factor in case of cuts or bruises. In this case blood loss will be faster which may be fatal for the victim.
Other side effects of using these drugs are
Passing of blood in the urine
Passing of blood in the faeces
Passing of blood while vomiting
Intestinal bleeding
Chest pain or breathlessness
Passing of blood while coughing
Dizziness with severe headache
Muscle weakness
Hair loss
Rashes
In women , heavy blood flow during menstruation
What can be done with it?
Stop taking blood thinners as pain killers. If there is chest pain or exhaustion go for a health checkup. Chest pain may be due to various reasons; heart ailment, indigestion and many others. Just gulping down pills without knowing the actual reason will never help. But right solution in right time with right step always helps.To nip the problem from the bud don’t gulp down the pills, but get a cardiac checkup and if advised by the doctor go for an angiogram.
Angiogram or CAG is an x-ray image of the arteries to find out if there are any blockages in heart. If any blockage is found proper treatment can be done to get rid of the problem.
Don’t have time to go for a checkup?
One of the important reasons of heart disease as discussed earlier is the increasing amount of stress and workload so much so, that there is no time to get a checkup done when needed. Moreover if an angiogram is prescribed there is no time to go for it.
Desun Hospital at EM Bypass does painless angiogram through radial route and within 6 hours patient is discharged with reports and CD. So long hospital stay is not required at all.
Points to remember:
NSAIDs or blood thinning medicines are not painkillers.
Blood thinnersshould be used under instructions of an expert.
Blood Thinnersare just a temporary relief not a solution in case of ill heart.
Sooner or later surgical intervention will be required in case of clogged arteries. Delaying the problem with pills will prove risky.
Consumption of blood thinnersas pain killers can have grave effects later.
Stop taking blood thinners and get an angiogram done for your safety.
The information shared in the blog is on the basis of internal survey of patient history, done at DESUN over the period of time. It has been found that majority of the patients admitted at DESUN for treatment of heart attack, regularly consumed anticoagulants without expert’s advice.
Dementia is not a single disease but a term used to describe group of brain disorders that involve total or partial memory loss, weakening of thinking abilities and other brain functions.
Dementia
Types of Dementia
Alzheimer’s Disease
Symptoms: The most relevant symptom is memory loss. Other symptoms are
Poor judgmental capabilities
Poor planning and management capabilities
Mood swings
Personality changes
Confusion about dates, days, even years
Difficulty in speaking
Difficulty in writing
Parkinson’s disease dementia: This type of dementia is caused to the patients suffering from Parkinson’s disease
Vascular Dementia: Majorly caused by stroke by which the brain gets affected
Symptoms: The most relevant symptoms are poor planning, management, decision making and organizational capabilities. Other symptoms are
Mood swings
Personality changes
Getting irritated often
Difficulty in speaking or understanding other’s speech
Falling off frequently
Problem in walking
Disruption in memory
Mixed Dementia: This type of dementia is a weird combination of Vascular dementia and Alzheimer’s disease
Fronto-temporal Dementia:
Symptoms:The most relevant symptoms are poor planning, management, decision making and organizational capabilities. Other symptoms are
Mood swings
Personality changes
Speaking difficulty
Physical balance problems
Muscle spasms
Vocabulary problems
Hungtington’s Disease: This type of dementia is a result of genetic problem. It’s hereditary. This type of dementia shows its symptoms in between 30-50 years of age
Symptoms:
Difficulty in concentration
Memory problems
Poor planning and organizational abilities
Poor judgmental abilities
Poor reasoning capabilities
Creutzfeldt – Jakob Disease: This is a rare type of dementia where the brain takes abnormal shapes. It shows up all of a sudden and gets worse quickly.
Symptoms:
Difficulty in concentration
Memory problems
Poor judgmental abilities
Depression
Mood swings
Problems in sleeping
Muscle spasms
Problem in walking
Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus: This type of dementia is caused due to accumulation of fluid in the brain.
Symptoms:
Difficulty in concentration
Problem in walking
Mood swings
Personality changes
Wernicke – Korsakoff Syndrome: This type of dementia is caused by excessive shortage of vitamin B1 i.e. Thiamine. The most relevant symptom in this case is problem with memory.
Treatment: The most important treatment in case of dementia is care. Dementia patients may need regular medical care and it is best to be in touch with specialist doctors and follow the advice.
It is advisable to undergo health checks atleast one a year for healthy people and for people sufferings from diabetes, blood pressure and other health related problems need to take prescribed medicines, get required health checks done and also follow medical advice to prevent damage of any organ in the body that may result in many a complications directly or laterally.
Dementia Awareness Article by Desun Hospital and Heart Institute
Holi or Dol jatra is festival of colours, people in india and around the world who participate in this festival use colours , gulal (Abir) , water , pichkari (a device that can help spray water and can be carried in hand)
People eat sweet dishes, there are specially cooked delicious recipes and people enjoy a lot during the festival.
Nowadays we also come across chemical based colours in market, there colours can be very harmful for skin, eyes and health in general , it is best to use organic colours that are safe, easy to wash and not harmful.
Holi Colours
Quick points on the colours people use in holi and the dangers of chemical colours
Copper sulphate in green colours is dangerous for eyes and can even cause temporary, partial or complete blindness
Chromium iodide in purple colours can cause bronchial asthma and several other allergies
Aluminum bromide mostly used for manufacturing of silver colours is carcinogenic
Lead oxide in blackish colours can impact renal health
Mercury sulphite in colour red can be responsible for skin cancer and disease like retardation of mind, impaired vision and and even partial or complete paralysis
The glitter in colours is added by powdered glass
The oil or paste colours may contain low quality oils that may cause skin infections and even blindness
Water filled balloons may cause injuries to eye, nose etc
Natural colours can be obtained from tea, tea boiled in water, turmeric (haldi), mehendi, sandalwood, fruit peels, flower petal etc. Simple preparations by boiling, grinding, drying etc can be used to prepare such colours. Organic colours are also available in market as chemicals based colours.
Swine flu or H1N1 virus is named so several years’ back. It was mostly common with people who had come in contact with pigs, but now it is like any flu that can impact people who have not been in contact with pigs.
Myth: Consuming pork will not infect a person with swine flu.
World Health Organization: WHO has declared swine flu or H1N1 to be pandemic and it affects people in many parts of the world each year.
Vaccine: vaccine is available for swine flu; it is good to take the flu vaccine to prevent swine flu.
It is highly infectious and catches quickly. The spread is rapid if one gets exposed to another person who is infected with swine flu. The infection is in the air as people sneeze, it can also get transmitted if one touches objects that may have traces of the virus, like sinks, mobile phones, taps and other such objects recently touched by an infected person not cleaned thereafter.
It usually gets transmitted through our eyes, nose and mouth.
Prevention of Swine Flu
Vaccine or flu shots can help
If one is infected with swine flu the person should stay indoors, do not go to public places or among people. The person needs to keep all the objects he uses away from others, sterile or keep it clean and hygienic.
Hand hygiene is very important. It is imperative to wash our hand well (with soap and water rubbing between fingers, a little above the wrist with some time) , before eating
It is best not to touch eyes, lips, inside the mouth, nose or any other facial area near the mouth without washing hands well.
People suffering from diabetes, asthma, high blood pressure, any other infection or ailment, weak immune system needs to be more careful in terms of contact with objects, hand hygiene and good health habits.
Balanced diet and maintaining a healthy body can also help in prevention of swine flu. Diet rich in vitamin C, Vitamin D, Omega 3 and Zinc can be helpful for some.
Salt water Gargle once or twice a day and also clean your nostrils once a day with lukewarm (warm you can tolerate comfortably and feel safe) after blowing them clean. Salt water is an effective protection as the virus takes 2-3 days to spread and show the impact.
Symptoms of Swine Flu or H1N1
The impact usually stays for 7 days for adults with normal health condition, for children it may go upto 10 days, people with other health ailments or weak immune system may require more time
Some common symptoms includes
Cough
Sore throat or pain in throat
Runny nose or stuffy nose
Fever
Body ache
Chills
Fatigue
Diarrhea
Headache
Vomiting or nausea
Rashes
It is important to see a specialist doctor without delay if there is sudden body ache, runny or stuffy nose and fever or any other above mentioned symptoms/s
More complications
Things can get complicated for people suffering from high diabetes, asthma and cardiac related problems.
People already suffering from neurological problems may get confusions or seizers
Respiratory support may be required during treatment for some patients
Treatment
Medicines are available; also some patients may need other health supports like special nutrition or respiratory, cardiac or neurological supports that are mostly available in superspeciality hospitals with modern health infrastructure for latest medical treatment.
Proper diagnosis facility, medicines and specialist doctors are also needed.
Spread the Awareness
Avoid traveling in areas from where large number of cases is reported. If you are traveling please do read and follows medical advice.
Spread Awareness
Spread the message among your near and dear ones, social and community circles about the hygiene steps to be followed by infected and non-infected individuals
Use the social media, mobile sms, whatsapp to send article links to people. Share and post articles on swine flu updates.
Help people infected with swine flu to get specialist doctors, reach hospital, get medicines and do other social responsibility to help others and make people aware.
