Diary of a Doctor

The season has changed and it is now Fall or Autumn, which marks the transition from summer to winter. It comes with the beautiful change in the color of the landscape as the trees gradually change color from green to orange and brown. It is beautiful. However, do not forget that fall is affiliated with flu. Hence, it is called the "Flu season". This is because the Flu viruses are common during the fall and winter months. Influenza activity begins to increase in October and November. Most of the time, the activity peaks between December and February and can last as late as May. Last Flu season, I published an article on the Myths and Facts about the Flu. You can read about it here. Also earlier in the year, I published another article on The Flu and You. You can read about that here . Influenza (the Flu) is an acute respiratory illness caused by influenza A or B. We know it predominantly occurs in winter. It generally presents following an incubation period of 1-...

October is a month that usually commemorates breast cancer awareness. I actually did a post on Breast cancer prevention last year. You can read about it here . I have read different articles all over the internet where people place emphasis on self breast examination only, which is contrary to the latest suggestion of  the American Cancer Society. They proposed  that self-breast examination is no longer recommended as a screening tool for women with average risk of breast cancer. This is based on ongoing uncertainties raised by various studies. Over the years, there has been some debate over just how valuable breast self-examination is in detecting breast cancer early and increasing the likelihood of survival. For example, a 2008 study of nearly 400,000 women in Russia and China reported that breast self-examination does not have a meaningful impact on breast cancer survival rates and may even cause harm by prompting unnecessary biopsies (removal and examina...

Recently, there is a growing concern for Acute Flaccid Myelitis (AFM) especially in the United States of America. So far, the CDC has reported over 62 cases across 22 States including Wisconsin, Minnesota and Iowa. The AFM is a rare condition that affects the nervous system, precisely the area of the spinal cord called the grey matter. This disease usually causes the muscles and reflexes in the body to become weak. This illness usually starts suddenly and is common in children. Although the illness is not new, the rising trend since 2014 is new. The CDC estimates that less than one in a million people will get AFM every year. Causes A variety of possible causes of AFM include: Viruses (Such as polio virus, non-polio enteroviruses, adenoviruses, and West Nile virus) Enviromental Toxins Genetic Disorders The September 26, 2014 CDC health Advisory that decided the cases identified enterovirus 68, a member of the enterovirus D species as a suspected cause. ...

Many people love sweet things. Seriously, who would not want a taste of sweetness in their lives ? Every now and then the human body craves for something sweet which is only fair. I mean life itself could be so tough already, and adding a little something to sweeten it does not sound like a bad idea at all . At least not initially. Just like most things in life, sugar in itself is not bad ,but when it is taken in excess, that is where the problem starts. Now ,the hard part is actually trying to put a measurement on 'moderation'. At what point does 'a little' become 'too much'? Also, 'moderation' is a very relative term. In a context, what is deemed moderation might be a little too much ,while in another context it is outrightly in excess. Can you believe that there is 39 grammes of sugar in a 12 ounce can of  regular coke? Shocking, right ? Let me help paint the picture a little more vividly. It literally means about 9 1/3 (9.7...

The year is going by pretty fast and  many people are trying so hard to avoid exhaustion in the pursuit of their goals and ambitions. Hence the importance of this article. A little "something" to give a boost to the usual day to day hassles. More often than not, when it comes to the issue of maintaining a healthy lifestyle, it is so easy to focus on the "big" issues such as weight loss, exercise, smoking cessation, cutting down alcohol consumption, reducing salt intake,working out, balanced diet and a host of others. However, people don't tend to appreciate the benefit of "small" but important things such as consciously getting in some antioxidants. An Antioxidant is a substance that reduces damage to the human body due to reactive oxygen species, especially those caused by free radicals. These free radicals are dangerous to tissues and cells of the body.  Experiments have shown that antioxidants interacted with free radicals and stabili...

Summer is around the corner and we are seriously looking forward to loads of sunshine and happiness associated with it. This makes it imperative to remind ourselves of the importance of drinking water. Almost everybody knows that drinking water is good, but not everybody can give specific details on all the health benefits of drinking water. Water is a universal solvent. The chemical composition of living cells comprises of hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, carbon, sulfur and phosphorus which normally make up more than 99% of the mass of living cells. 99% of molecules inside living cells are water molecules . Living cells are composed of about 70% water. Water is very important to every living thing on earth. All forms of terrestrial life require water. There is an adage from my fatherland that says "No one forms enmity against water". Meaning  that water is everybody's 'friend'. A human can go for more than three weeks without food, after all Mah...