Health issues in Urban city

We all are familiar with this popular saying that  "Health is wealth". But seems like nowadays in this fast moving urban environment we are running after wealth of money and we are ignoring the wealth of health.

As in most of Indian cities, people in Pune too, are eating more but doing very less to burn their extra calories. Obesity is one of the major challenge in Indian cities. I remember my grandfather saying me that he hardly use to see so many people with belly 20 years ago, but now people with belly are a common sight. High level of sugar intakes in urban cities is one of the major causes of it on the diet side, further aggravated because of sitting jobs as a techie in their cubicles in front of PCs or laptops. Stress of workplace along with not so great physical health is putting the urbanites at a risk for various kinds of health ailments.

One other commonly known fact about any typical urban city is air pollution. Air pollution level of pune is also very high at 61-90 ug/cubic meter. This is in same league with cities like Bangalore, Mumbai & hyderabad. Air pollution increases heart diseases. It is not just the lungs and lower respiratory tract, the cardiovascular system is also affected. The largest contributions to urban air pollution include motor vehicles (cars, bikes, buses, trucks, etc) , small scale manufacterers , coal fired power plant, and increasing deforestation. Air quality guideline as suggested by World Health Organisation (WHO) of PM10 is 20 micrograms per cubic metre as annual average. Pune is atleast 3 times to 4 times of this.Then we have water pollution and many other issues affecting health.

A study shows that air pollution can cause a lot to us w.r.t. lives & health.

Now the questions is what we can do about it. I can just say 4 basic points

• Prevention :- 
• Diet control, physical work, yoga, exercises, healthy food, etc
• Clean water, Mask in roads, etc
• Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan by our Prime Minister is one very important step in this direction.
• Earlier detection of diseases
• Earlier diagnosis of diseases can really help, as earlier detection will help control and stop the disease much easily.
• Delayed diagnosis and absence of proper action can convert a normal disease into a lethal one.
• Cure & care
• After diagnosis and finding of any disease one need to take care & cure of the disease.

For a good diagnosis and care, finding a good hospitals in Pune is also very important. Wrong diagnosis can cause a diseases birth actually or worsen the situation. So one need to check private hospitals in pune as well as private clinics in pune.

Infant Care

I was very happy with the news that I will be a father soon. And then started the care for 9 months. In excitement, we started planning for baby names, future plan, thinking about the way he or she may look, etc. We were blessed with a baby who was born on 22nd September 2014. At that moment I thought that now its all fun and I can play n enjoy with my baby. Once I was back home with my baby I realize that the care is not just over after 9 months. And the intensity of care is going to increase. Sharing my learning as a father which I came across as time passed by. Now my baby is close to 7 months old and has started crawling.Few times I have visited Pediatricians in Ahmedabad to get a better understanding of my child needs.

Learning in first week:-

• Wash your hands before touching the baby. I found it hard to do it again and again. Hence I started using sanitizer.
• Handle your baby sensitively especially take extra care for neck & head.
• Don't play with your baby like a doll. E.g. Jumping with baby or running or tossing baby up in the air. Don't even try, you will have a furious mother looking at you like never before.

Learning in three month:-

• Diapering your baby is not easy and I learned it hard way. Whenever he will have a bowel movement or diaper is wet, before you start make sure you have everything ready with you. E.g. next diaper which you are going to make your kid wear or where are you going to throw the old dirty diaper, etc.
• Too much Usage of Diaper can cause diaper rash. So don't make baby diaper 24/7. We typically only used diaper when we are outside home. If you have to use diaper, try to frequently change them as soon as bowel movement is done. Let the baby go not diapered for some time. In case the rashes are there for more than 3 days, it could be a fungal infection. 
• For Diaper rashes lasting more then 3 days I contacted people practicing Pediatrics in Ahmedabad and they guided me well, along with some more information on child care.
  • 
• Umbilical cord falls off in close to a week or so.
• Naval heals completely in a less than a month - In our case they applied some liquid ; I don't remember the name though. Few doctors recommend rubbing alcohol, while some recommends leaving the area alone. For this contact you can contact the pediatricians in Ahmedabad

 

Learning in six-seven months:-

•  Sleeping : Initially sleeping duration of a baby is close to 16 - 18 hours and it slowly keep on decreasing to close 12 -13 hrs for a six to seven months old child. 
• Once your baby starts crawling try to make sure that you block few things which baby can be hurt with. E.g. In my case I had electric switches at the lower part of the wall. I have got them sealed. Also I have moved my bedding from bed to the ground to reduce the chances of baby falling from a height.
• My UPS and inverters were exposed, I have got a new cover for them. Basically try to make your home - child safe.
• Check with your Child Specialist about the diets which needs to be changed. I discussed with Child Specialist in Ahmedabad and I have slowly started giving my baby a variety of food based on need which is slowly changing / improvising his digestion.

 

I am still going through this awesome journey of fatherhood. I will keep updating whenever I get chance.

 

Happy Fatherhood !!!

Dental Services & Care Needed for Children

I have a small kid of age approx ~7 months. Now he is having a lot of teething sensations. This made me to do some study to understand the Do's & Don'ts w.r.t. Dental care for children.

First thing is what are name for different type of teeth we have.

The teeth shown in the above diagram is of an adult. Many may wonder if there is a need to take care of infant's teeth (referred to as milk teeth by many) which anyways will fall off.  And to make sure that my kid has a nice smile, his teeth also needs to look good and care needs to be taken from childhood itself. As a parent, its my responsibility to be aware & take care of the dental care, precaution and services needed.

Many might be first time parents (especially male) similar to me and may not be aware of few of the below facts

1. First teeth normally appear when baby is close to 6-8 months
2. Front 4 teeths - 2 top & 2 bottom are the first to appear
3. By 3 years, most of the infant teeth ( aka milk teeth) have already come. Typically 20 in number

Baby teeth are very important for many reasons. They act as guide to adult teeth. They make child look good and helps in speech along with biting & chewing food.

The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (AAPD) suggests that an infant can go within six months after the first tooth comes out. Early child care is often neglected in our country. I will suggest you to refer the below pics to understand when to go to dentist. Just  get your kid to open the mouth and check atleast once in a week to help gauge health of the teeth.

Healthy teeth & Gums

chalky, white spot on the tooth near gums. This could mean start of gum decay. Show it to Dentist.

Brownish-yellow discolouration or cavities. Visit Dentist Immediately

Advanced decay of teeth. Visit Dentist Immidiately

I am not a dentist, but I want to be aware of different aspects of my child, Akshaj's health. Dental health is one of the most ignorant areas by Indian parents and I don't want to be part of those. Lets be more aware and careful.

Good Dentist for Kids in Ahmedabad are listed here.

If you are not kid, then also don't shy away from dental services. I recently got my Root Canal done by taking Dental Services in Ahmedabad and I am happy to take it early rather than delay it & aggravate the condition. Dental specialists in Ahmedabad are available in plenty. Same is the case with other cities also. 

Take care of your Dental health.

Happy Smiling !!!