Lifestyle Choices

If only everyone knew earlier in their lives how to prevent wrinkles and age spots! Fortunately, it is also known not only how to slow down those tell-tale signs of aging, but also how to reverse some of the skin damage already suffered, using simple techniques that can be employed every day at home.

Some more difficult skin problems such as acne- scarring, conspicuous blood vessels, and deep wrinkles can only be corrected by a dermatologist. Most treatments that may improve your appearance can be completed in just a few visits to a doctor’s office, and such treatments are far less costly than more major plastic surgical procedures (such as facelifts or eyelid surgery). (more…)

“Skin Bleaching” Medical Surgery Basic Procedure

Before a chemical peel, the doctor may recommend that the face be “pre-treated” with a special exfoliating cleanser, with retinoic acid, or with alpha-hydroxy acids so that the peel procedure can be performed on a more even skin surface. Just before the peel, the doctor may ask the patient to wash his or her face thoroughly. Then he or she will clean the patient’s face extensively with alcohol oracetone, rubbing the superficial oil from the skin. (more…)

Skin cancers

Skin cancer is already a common disease but we are seeing it more and more. There may be several reasons for this but an important one is that more fair-skinned people are being exposed to sunlight, either on holiday or having emigrated to a hot country. The problem is so great in subtropical Australia that almost every adult has at least one skin cancer in their life. Much more will be said about the damaging effect of sunlight on skin but it is such an important subject that there is no harm in mentioning it twice. (more…)

Most of the time we take little notice of our hair and nails. During adolescence there may be times we would wish to have different colored or textured hair or curse that our nails break too easily, but after that we pretty well accept our lot. That is until some change occurs. When hair starts to be lost there is not only an immediate cosmetic problem but the scalp may be damaged by sunlight or low doorways. Equally, when finger nails fail to develop properly this problem is both cosmetic and functional: it may become impossible to pick up small objects.

Too little Hair

Male-pattern baldness

This term is used because it is so much more marked in men than in women. The typical changes of receding hair and thinning on top are well known and often run in families: the process may even start before the age of thirty years. Women are much less severely affected and anyway tend to keep the front hair line. However, with increasing age many women notice some thinning on their scalp. The hair loss, in both sexes, is due to the effect of hormones but not an excess of them. The fault lies in the hair roots which become over-sensitive to existing hormone levels. (more…)

Why do you want to reduce? Probably for two reasons. You are not happy over what you see when you look into the mirror, and you don’t like what your friends are saying. But do not be in too much of a hurry to get those pounds off. This is where you might have failed before. It is usually better to reduce more slowly. It is not a temporary low calorie diet that you need, but rather an entirely new pattern of living.

Most likely you will not need to make any drastic changes in your diet. Just be sure it is well balanced. Begin by taking smaller amounts of foods you usually eat. Don’t cut out any single item except, perhaps, those rich desserts that you don’t really need. But remember, some foods high in calories may also be necessary to maintain good health.

Potatoes and whole-grain cereals are excellent foods. They should remain in your diet. Just be careful about the amount of food that you take. Omit those that are especially high in fats and carbohydrates. It is so easy to take more than you actually want. Watch this carefully. (more…)

Which is the stronger sex? That depends on what we mean by strength. If we refer to the ability to survive, there is no doubt that women have most of the advantages. Today they are outliving their husbands by six, eight, and ten years or more. This is true all over the world.

Ever since childbirth infections have been brought under control, the picture has been changing in favor of the women. It would seem that the ladies have more flexibility in their systems. They have more stamina. Their biological resources are greater than those of the men.

This difference begins very early in life, perhaps before the child is born. This is probably nature’s way of preserving the race. Nowhere is the female superiority more clearly in evidence than in pregnancy. A woman at that time seems to have special reserves of strength. Not only must her heart and lungs care for her own needs, but also for those of her baby. Every organ in her body is geared to work that much more efficiently. Later in life those same female hormones apparently protect her from degenerative diseases which are so much more likely to cripple her husband. (more…)

You can only be medically examined to support your statement with your consent. Rape is very difficult to prove medically. What does a doctor look for? Evidence of semen in the vagina and on clothes, as well as evidence of internal and external trauma, such as lacerations. You can telephone a friend or relative from the police station, and normally they would be allowed to telephone you back.

See a doctor: After you have informed the police go, or get someone to take you, to a hospital or doctor. You have three worries : (more…)

Early Warning Signs of TSS

If you develop any of these symptoms during or just after your menstrual period, tell Mom immediately and see your doctor:

• High fever
• Vomiting
• Diarrhea
• Sore throat
• Aching muscles
• Lightheadedness
• Rash (resembling sunburn)

Remember, TSS can be serious, even fatal, but not if it’s caught in time and treated. So if you have any symptoms that worry you, don’t keep them to yourself. (more…)

Stress during labour

Childbirth can be a time of intimacy, excitement, wonder and openness. It can also be a time of fear and pain, sometimes in a place that is forbidding and lacking in warmth. There may be all kinds of left-over feelings, which are usually repressed. First of all, the birth hurts you — it is quite natural for some women to be angry about this. Secondly, you may resent the way your delivery was handled. Unfortunately, the case history above is not an isolated example. I have heard of so many similar and worse cases that it sometimes makes me feel ashamed of my profession as a doctor. The resentment is usually related to lack of consultation on decisions. Medical interventions are sometimes carried out (for instance, routine episiotomies, injections to speed up the birth of the placenta) without any explanation of side-effects. If the side-effects occur, the natural reaction is anger, but this is often repressed, with the explanation that the doctor knows what is best. It is this attitude of the patient handing over authority to the doctor and the doctor taking assumed authority over another’s life that may lead to later feelings of resentment. Some women have told me they felt like a nonentity, going through a process that was designed by the hospital to maximize speed and efficiency. Others have told me that it felt like being taken over by machines and fingers. The residue of resentment may go very deep and is usually repressed, with a resultant depression of spirits in general. (more…)

Disguised depression

Living with someone who is depressed can be an exasperating and difficult experience. If you are honest and tell the depressed person how exasperating he is, he agrees with you, feels confirmed in his negative view of himself and gets even more depressed, which makes you even more exasperated. It seems there is nothing you can do to help and that everything you do is wrong. What to do depends, to some extent, on thelevel of depression.

Sometimes depression is completely denied. The first sign of disguised depression may be resigning from a job for no very good reason, drinking more alcohol, or feeling physical pain— perhaps an old injury or ache getting worse. If you suspect something is wrong with your partner or friend, try to get him to talk. In his desire not to drag you down or not to admit to himself how bad he feels, he may try to talk on the bright side. It may be helpful to ask, “But in your darkest moments what are your worst fears or your worst thoughts?” This way you may learn the reality ofthe situation. (more…)

If you have a positive attitude to ageing, you are far more likely to be fulfilled and content in your later years. The following points may be helpful.

• Do not take any notice of any information you may have heard (or are just about to read) about losing brain cells as you get older. Although it is true that brain cells are gradually lost throughout your adult life, the capacity of the brain is vast. There is a well-known case of a man with hydrocephalus (water in the brain) who gained a university degree with nine-tenths of his brain volume missing. You will lose only a small percentage of your ten billion cells, and your mental abilities may be sharp until you die — it depends very much on how much you practice. Using your brain maintains your mental agility, whereas lack of practice may steadily lessen it. However, whether you practice or not, you may well find that your short-term memory gets worse. Don’t worry about this: use a note pad and always keep it in the same place.
• It is normal to require less sleep as you get older.

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If you have read most of this book so far, you probably know far more about depression than most GPs. Most doctors have surprisingly little training in mental illness and handling people, though some are naturally good at it. This is partly because medical education tends to lag behind society and discovery. Though it is now well known that at least 50 per cent of people who see their family doctors do so partly or wholly for social or emotional reasons, and though medicine is gradually accepting Pasteur’s belief that the host and its resistance or susceptibility is much more important than the bug, it is likely to take medicine at least 50 years to catch up. This is because: (more…)

….Nobody’s perfect. Everyone is occasionally bothered by small skin problems. The following is a run-down of some common complaints and what you can do about them.

Warts

Warts are hard, raised lumps on the skin that can be unattractive. No, warts are not caused by touching frogs! Warts are actually caused by a virus, and there are many ways to get rid of them. Try salicylic-acid-based remedies found in drug stores.

Some people swear by home folk remedies to get rid of warts. These include rubbing the wart three times a day with a gold ring, covering the wart with a bandage until it disappears, (more…)

1. Diabetes

Insulin is a hormone that controls the provision of blood sugar (glucose) to the tissues of your body where it’s used for energy. Diabetes is a metabolic disease that affects your body’s ability to make or respond to insulin. Type 1, or insulin-dependent diabetes, is an inherited disease that affects your pancreas, destroying its ability to make insulin. Type 1 diabetes usually occurs during childhood or adolescence.

Ninety per cent of people with diabetes have type 2 (or non-insulindependent) diabetes. In this type, your body cannot use the insulin properly. Type 2 diabetes usually occurs after age 30.

Take charge, take care, take action

A. If you have a family history of diabetes, watch out for any signs or symptoms. (more…)

Osteoporosis is a common condition in South African women. It is a progressive disease in which the bones gradually become weaker, and is associated with loss of bone density and thinning bone tissue. It is a silent and painless disease, primarily affecting women after menopause when the hormone oestrogen begins to decline. The lack of oestrogen triggers an increase in bone resorption, i.e. bone loss. The average woman begins to lose bone mass from about age 35; those who have been physically active are far less prone to osteoporosis.

1. The risk factors for osteoporosis include a thin body frame, women who smoke and drink alcohol, and lack of exercise. While osteoporosis causes no specific symptoms until it is advanced, some early warning signs include a gradual loss of height and a stooping of shoulders. Eventually the bones will fracture, causing significant problems in many areas from the spine to the wrists.
2. Did you know that osteoporosis is almost entirely preventable? But don’t only start thinking about it at 45! The earlier you think about it, the better. Eat calcium-rich foods and engage in regular weight-bearing exercise.
3. For good self-care, especially while you are younger, make sure you are taking sufficient calcium, exercising regularly and eating a well- balanced diet. It is best to take calcium in a formulation, together with magnesium in a dosage of at least 800 micrograms of calcium daily. and eat good quality low-fat dairy products. Cut back on coffee and alcohol. They both leech calcium from your bones.

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