By Roquiyya Fatima
The proverb ‘Health is Wealth’ clearly defines the value of health. In the present-day lifestyle, it has become a challenge to eat and live healthily. The trend of eating fast food or junk food has become common. It has impacted the health of an individual at a very early age. The illness that we used to hear among the elderly population are now very common among youth at a very young age. It is, therefore, mandatory to have an awareness of the various health disorders.
Unfortunately, we lack knowledge of basic health and medicine. The records of India show how many people suffer from several health issues because of carelessness and ignorance. The urban lifestyle has created a challenge for people to lead a healthy lifestyle. The purpose of writing this is to collect information about the various health issues with symptoms, and remedies of some major health problems.
Heart Attack
Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are related to heart and blood vessels. They are among the common causes of death globally. The sedentary lifestyle, stress, and several other factors have made it possible to suffer from such a disease at a very young age. According to the World Health Organization, it was estimated that 17.9 million lives are lost due to CVDs, and more than four out of five CVD deaths are due to heart attacks and strokes, and one-third of these deaths occur prematurely in people under 70 years of age. Following may the causes of heart attack:
Atherosclerosis: It means the hardening of the arteries. An abnormal thickening of the walls of the arteries is due to cholesterol on the arterial inner wall, or in other words, the buildup of fatty deposits in the coronary arteries.
Coronary Heart Disease: It is a condition in which the blood vessels supplying the heart become narrowed or blocked due to fatty deposits. This restricts the blood flow to the heart muscles and leads to serious chest pain.
Angina Pectoris: It is more a symptom than a cause of heart attack. It is a chest pain that occurs when the heart muscle doesn’t get enough oxygen-rich blood. It is a symptom of coronary heart disease. There is tightness, pressure, heaviness, or burning pain felt behind the breastbone that also spread to the shoulders, left arms, neck, jaw, or back.
Heart Attack: It is complete blockage of the heart, or when the blood flow to the heart is blocked. It is also called myocardial infarction or MI.
Symptoms of Heart Attack
Symptoms of heart attack may include:
- Chest pain
- Pain in the left arm, neck, Jaw, back, or stomach.
- Shortness of breath
- Sweating
- Nausea (i.e. an urge to vomit) or vomiting
- Dizziness
- Extreme fatigue
- Heart palpitations
According to Dr. Issac Pessah, University of California, co-authored research showing chemicals in lipstick can hit your heart. A chemical commonly used in lipsticks, hand washes, and other personal care products may cause heart problems and muscle impairment. The triclosan, a synthetic antibacterial and antifungal agent used in many household products, can hinder the process by which muscles, including the heart, receive signals from the brain.
There is a difference between heart attack and cardiac arrest. One needn't be confused with the other.
Kidney Stones
Kidney stones are hard mineral salt deposits that form inside the kidneys. Approximately 12% of India's population is estimated to be affected by kidney stones, according to a report from MASSH Hospital.
A study has provided evidence to explain why some people are more prone to developing Kidney stones than others. Scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis found that, other than diet and not drinking enough water, genes are to be blamed as well. A common genetic variation in a gene called Claudin-14 has recently been linked to a substantially increased risk of roughly 65% of getting kidney stones.
Symptoms of Kidney Stones
- Severe back pain
- Pain during urination
- Blood in urine (Hematuria)
- Frequent urge to urinate
- Foul-smelling urine
- Nausea and Vomiting
- Fever
Treatment
- Small stones can pass on their own by drinking plenty of fluids.
- Pain relievers like Paracetamol, Tramadol and Acelofenac strictly under urologist's supervision.
- Extracorporeal Shock Wave Lithotripsy (ESWL)- It uses sound waves to break stone into smaller pieces.
- Ureteroscopy- a thin scope is inserted via the urethra to remove or break up the stone using a laser.
- Percutaneous Nephrolithotomy (PCNL) – surgical removal by small incision in the back.
- Open Surgery
- Not but not the least, avoiding self medication or taking over the counter drugs.
Diabetes
Diabetes is a disorder of insufficient production of or reduced sensitivity to insulin. Insulin is a protein pancreatic hormone secreted by the beta cells of the Islets of Langerhans that is essential, especially for the metabolism of carbohydrates and the regulation of glucose levels in the blood, and that when insufficiently produced results in diabetes mellitus. Insulin is necessary to metabolize glucose. In Diabetes, blood sugar levels increase, and excessive sugar is excreted in the urine.
Symptoms
- Increased urine output
- Thirst
- Extreme hunger
- Blurred vision
- Weight loss
- Weakness
- Neuropathy (A nerve problem that causes pain, numbness, tingling, swelling, or muscle weakness in different parts of the body, including the feet)
- Excessive Sweating
TYPE 1 or Insulin-Dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM), and an immune disease in which no insulin is produced. Autoimmune disease- any disease caused by an immune response against antigens in the tissues of one’s own body.
The immune system has two ways to prevent such a response; destruction of lymphocytes in the thymus before and it must be treated by insulin injections
TYPE 2 or Non-insulin- dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM), in which tissues do not respond to insulin, is linked to hereditary and obesity and may be controlled by diet; it accounts for 90% of all cases, many of which go undiagnosed for years, untreated diabetes leads to accumulation of ketones in the blood, followed by acidosis (high blood acid content) with nausea, vomiting and then coma.
Complications, including heart disease, diabetic retinopathy (a leading cause of blindness), kidney disease, and nerve disorders, especially in the legs and feet, account for most deaths.
Note: Ketone is used in the manufacture of paints, textiles, etc. It accumulates in the blood and urine in abnormal amounts, usually because of starvation or a metabolic disease such as Diabetes Mellitus.
Diabetes Insipidus
It causes excessive thrust and excess production of very dilute urine due to a lack of the hormone Vasopressin, which regulates kidneys’ water conservation and urine production.
Diabetes Mellitus
High Levels of Sugar in the blood
Treatment for Type-I Daibetes
- Daily insulin injections
- Blood Sugar Monitoring
- Healthy Diet
- Regular exercise
Treatment for Type-I Daibetes
- Careful attention to content and timing of meals, with periodic checking of blood sugar, may manage diabetes
- Regular exercise
- Oral Medications (e.g., Metformin)
Metformin, an anti-diabetic drug, may slow aging, from the University of Belgium- the drug causes an increase in the number of toxic oxygen molecules released in the cell, and this, surprisingly, increases cell robustness and longevity in the long term. The drug causes a slight increase in the number of harmful oxygen molecules. This makes cells stronger and expands their healthy lifespan.
Arthiritis
Arthiritis simply means inflammation of joints. Basically, a joint is where one bone moves on another bone. Ligaments hold the two bones together. The ligaments (elastic band) keep the bones in place, or muscles relax or contract to make the joint move.
Cartilage covers the bone surface to stop the two bones from rubbing directly against each other. The covering of cartilage allows the joints to work smoothly and painlessly. A capsule surrounds the joint. The space within the joint cavity has synovial fluid (SF). It nourishes the joint and the cartilage. The SF is produced by the synovial membrane, which lines the joint cavity. It could be that the cartilage is wearing away, a lack of fluid, autoimmunity (your body attacking itself), infection, or a combination of other factors.
Some of the types of Arthritis
Osteoarthritis
The cartilage loses its elasticity. As the cartilage becomes damaged, tendons and ligaments become stretched, causes pain. Eventually the bone may rub each other causes pain.
Symptoms
- Pain in joint
- Joint will stiff, especially in the morning.
- Tenderness, when pressure is applied to the joint.
- Joint loses its flexibility
- Swelling of the joint
- Hard lumps, bone spurs, may appear around the joint
Rheumatoid Arthritis
The synovial membrane is attacked, resulting in swelling and pain. It is common in women aged between 40 to 60.
Symptoms
- Joints are painful, stiff, swollen, inflamed
- Fingers, arms, legs and writs are commonly affected
- Joint is tender when touched
- Symptoms are worst in the morning and stiffness last for 30 minutes.
- Hand may be red or puffy
- Bumps of tissues under the skin of the arms
- Tiredness and weight loss
- Spreads from the smaller joints in your hands, wrists, ankles, feet to your elbow, knees, hips, neck, shoulder and jaw.
Septic Arthritis/ Infectious Arthritis
It is due to infection of the synovial fluid, basically due to bacteria, viruses, and fungi. They spread through the bloodstream from infected tissues.
Symptoms
- Fever
- Joint inflammation and swelling
- Sharp pain
- One joint is affected mainly
- Pain in mostly Knee, shoulder, elbow, wrist and finger.
Treatment
- Medications- Ibrufen and Acetaminophen (for pain reliving) under medical supervision.
- Physical Therapy
- Lifestyle changes
- Hot and cold therapy
- Surgery
- Stem cell therapy/Gene therapy
Drug prescribed for Rheumatoid Arthritis consist of two fused components:
1) A component of the drug is the body’s immune messenger Interleukin 4 (IL-4). Zurich researcher has coupled an antibody to IL-4 that, based on the key-lock principle, binds to a form of a protein that is found only in inflamed tissue in certain disease. As a result of the combination with the antibody IL-4 reaches the site of the disease when the fusion molecule is injected into the body. It allows us to concentrate the active substance at the site of the disease. The concentration in the rest of the body is minimal, which reduces side effects.
2) Researchers studied the fusion molecule combined with dexamethasone, a cortisone-like anti-inflammatory drug already used to treat rheumatoid arthritis.
When used separately, the new fusion molecules and dexamethasone managed only to slow the progression of the disease in the affected animals.
Roquiyya Fatima is Ph.D. candidate at the Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh
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