Dr.Micheal Nyemenim
This is the season of climate change. During this period, the temperature drops in the morning and rises in the noon, making the morning very cold and the noon hot.
Apart from the change in temperature, the climate brings in winds and dryness, during this season, the human skin becomes dry and needs constant moisturisation to keep it glowing.
People with specific health conditions are expected to be very careful during this period so as to avoid having certain complications that may trigger off their ailments. Such health issues include; upper and lower respiratory tract infections.
The upper respiratory tract infections will manifest in the forms of cough and catarrh while the lower respiratory tract infections will manifest in the form of exacerbation of bronchial Asthma. When you experience cough that is less than two weeks, it normal for you not to get worried, but this does not mean you should not take the necessary precautions.
To ensure this, you must take warm water,lime water or tea regularly and if you don’t get better after two days, then it is important you book an appointment with your health provider. Also, do not assume that any disease no matter how trivial, is not serious. For example, catarrh should not be taken for granted because any blockage around the nose can lead to an infection into the brain because of the high vascularisation on the face, between the respiratory tract and the brain.
Also, if specks of blood comes out when one sneezes, it might just be that the vessels in the nose that are superficial are cracked but if it occurs constantly with heavier blood flow,then you need to see your health provider as fast as possible.
As far as exacerbation of bronchial Asthma is concerned, it is very important that you use your aerozol or your inhaler only as an emergency object but not as an object of therapy or treatment because it is not a routine treatment object rather it is an object for emergency or care. In any of these respiratory tract issues, the use of hot water is very paramount, also, food should be more of liquids than solids even though this would be difficult to observe in this time of the year but we need to try to see how we can help ourselves.
Avoid alcoholic substances or blending of hot spices with alcohol when you are experiencing respiratory tract problems to avoid triggering off medical conditions such as ulcer. Do not take anything that makes you experience heartburn instead take a lot of hot water or milk,dress properly to generate enough heat into your body.
Christmas is a season when people come together, families cook and eat together, but as you eat, remember that you must be very cautious with what you put into your body, know what you eat and the quantity you eat them to avoid causing the body any harm.
Do not assume that black men do not die from infections because everyday, thousands die from infections. Food poisoning does not necessary mean that someone sprinkled some poisonous substance into your food, rather it has to do with what one carelessly consumes into the system. Avoid eating cold foods, always ensure that your foods are properly warmed.
Do not be in a hurry to go to bed after eating in order to avoid some kind of indigestion or discomfort.
Do not also be in a hurry to wake up and drink alcoholic substances on an empty stomach, it can cause one a lot of troubles. When food are not properly handled, it can lead to what we called typhoid fever. Nobody wants to spend his or her holiday treating one disease or the other.
Always soak your vegetables and fruits in slightly saline or lime water to kill the bacteria in them and also separate the particles from the vegetables/fruits.
[For personal consultations, please call Dr. Michael on 08033424792]
