Saturday 21 February 2015

HEALTHFIRSTAF: ABDOMINAL PAIN TO BE WORRIED ABOUT

HEALTHFIRSTAF: ABDOMINAL PAIN TO BE WORRIED ABOUT:   Abdominal pain can be caused by inflammation,disintegration of an organ or by the loss of the supply of blood to an organ. Inflammation of...

ABDOMINAL PAIN TO BE WORRIED ABOUT

  Abdominal pain can be caused by inflammation,disintegration of an organ or by the loss of the supply of blood to an organ. Inflammation of the bowels can be due to infection or internal organ injury. The loss of blood supply can be due to blood vessel blockage of twisted part of the bowels. Abdominal pain caused by gas and muscle pains are nothing to be worried about. However there are certain types of abdominal pain that poses risk to a the human life. Pains to be worried about include abdominal pain that has lasted for more than 24hrs. 
 Pains accompanied by excessive vomiting , diarrhea or both. Pains to the mid upper abdomen accompanied with distress and trouble breathing.Pain to the flank that radiates to the back. Pain to the right lower part of the abdomen. The pain experienced all over the abdomen that will not go away.Pain accompanied with difficulty urinating. Pain accompanied with unintentional weight loss. Pain in any part of the abdomen that has refused to go away. If you or your family members are experiencing any of the above mentioned kind of pain, contact your doctor  for medical attention.
  Upper middle abdominal pain accompanied with trouble breathing is a medical emergency that needs immediate attention.
            
Photo credit PreventDisease.

Tuesday 10 February 2015

HEALTHFIRSTAF: WAYS TO MANAGE CONSTIPATION

HEALTHFIRSTAF: WAYS TO MANAGE CONSTIPATION:  Constipation can cause severe medical problems that may lead to bowel surgeries. Hence the need to prevent and manage it properly. Constip...

WAYS TO MANAGE CONSTIPATION

 Constipation can cause severe medical problems that may lead to bowel surgeries. Hence the need to prevent and manage it properly.
Constipation can be managed through basic life style changes like diet and exercises.
  To manage constipation effectively, increase fluid intake, preferably water. As juices and other form of fluids may worsen constipation symptoms. Exercise regularly. Eat healthy by eating food rich in vegetables and fruits. Eat fruits ,food and vegetables rich in fibre. Eat more of brown rice instead of white rice. Eat more cooked food instead of fried foods. Eat fibre rich fruits like apples, pears, berries, plums and nuts. Make beans part of your vegetable consumption daily. Eat broccoli and apricots. Eat more of potatoes, not fried but cooked and in any other form. Drink prune juice instead of regular juice. Eat whole wheat grains. If diet does not work, try natural laxatives, like cascara sagrada, rhubarb, aloe, senna tea and buckthorn before using artificial laxatives. Artificial laxatives should be your last resort, as your bowels may become dependent on these laxatives .
    If constipation is not relieved by these remedies, see your doctor as soon as possible for further check up and investigation.
  
Constipation remedies.

Tuesday 3 February 2015

HEALTHFIRSTAF: CONSTIPATION AND ITS IGNORED EEFECTS

HEALTHFIRSTAF: CONSTIPATION AND ITS IGNORED EEFECTS:     Constipation is defined as defecating or having stools less than three time per week .It can also be defined as having hard stool or exc...

Monday 2 February 2015

SPECIAL BLOG ON CONSTIPATION FOR NIGERIAN AUDIENCE :CONSTIPATION REMEDY

   The last blog was on constipation and proposed  follow up blog on constipation  remedy. However I received quite a number of messages from Nigerian audience on how to manage constipation with Nigerian food. Nigeria has one of the best foods in the world. There are so many Nigerian foods that can help manage and prevent constipation. To manage constipation successfully in a warm climate like Nigeria, hydration comes first.
Drink plenty of water, not juice. The sugar in juice may worsen constipation. Drink prune juice if available, it is a natural laxative or eat prune fruit/nectar. Exercise enough, by taking cool evening walks or running where possible. Eat foods rich in fibre like, Oats meal, cereals rich in fibre, garri, water yam,coco yam, okroa, cassava flour or meal, plantain flour(elubo), and  yam flour .Eat more of vegetables, like bitter leaf, water leaf, green leaf, pumpkin leaf, okazi, scent leaf, egusi, ogbono, any form and type of salads etc.
     Cut down on fast foods and sugary baked foods. Eat whole wheat bread instead of white bread. Eat lots of nuts, like groundnut, wall nut, cashew nut. Eat fruits like mangoes, they contain a lot of fibre, oranges with their pulps, pumpkins, sour sup, guava, cashew, cherries,tangerines, pears of any kind, papaya, etc. Eat beans as much as you can in any way or form like moi moi, akara, cooked beans with oil etc.
      Reduce red meat consumption and increase chicken and fish intake. Eat less rice and more vegetable.
Try food and lifestyle changes before laxatives. Let laxative be your last resort.
    If constipation persist despite lifestyle and dietary changes, see your doctor as soon as you can, for further medical investigation.
          
Increase vegetable consumption helps to prevent constipation.


HEALTHFIRSTAF: CONSTIPATION AND ITS IGNORED EEFECTS

HEALTHFIRSTAF: CONSTIPATION AND ITS IGNORED EEFECTS:     Constipation is defined as defecating or having stools less than three time per week .It can also be defined as having hard stool or exc...

CONSTIPATION AND ITS IGNORED EEFECTS

    Constipation is defined as defecating or having stools less than three time per week .It can also be defined as having hard stool or excessive/difficulty straining to stool.
In cases of severe constipation a person defecates as less as one time per week. Constipation may present with signs of lower abdominal pain, having small hard stools like pebbles, rectal bleed, and frequent urge to defecate.
    The dangerous effects of constipation are often ignored by many.  Constipation left untreated either by food or laxative, may lead to :
1, Irritable feelings
2, weight gain
3, Hemorrhoids
4, Body odor due to the accumulation of toxins from bacteria from unexpelled faecal waste.
5, Skin eruptions
6, Headaches
7, Nausea and vomitting
Constipation can lead to severe medical problems. If stool stays in the intestine for too long, the bacteria in the faeces starts to multiply in the intestinal tract and then promote the growth of harmful fungi. Too much stool in the stomach may cause breathing problems .It can also cause to bowel blockage .
Constipation can be treated with food or laxatives, preferably food.
On my next blog, I will be discussing simple and non expensive  remedies for constipation.
Excessive straining to defecate is a sign of constipation