Kidney, Urinary, Gastro Intestinal, Liver

By maintaining a healthy gut or gastrointestinal tract, you can ward off a host of uncomfortable symptoms like bloating, flatulence and constipation and conditions like bowel cancer, Depression and IBS. Tips from Nutritionist Kohila Govindaraju. The importance of gut health Gut health is important. The health of the body starts with the gut to help reduce the risk of conditions like bowel cancer, constipation, etc. The food you consume is broken down to fats, proteins, and simple carbohydrates…

 A new study published in the journal BMJ Open compared the health outcomes of people prescribed Proton Pump Inhibitors(PPI) and H2 blockers for Heartburn/Acid Reflux and this is what they found. The people who were prescribed PPIs (for eg. esomeprazole, or Nexium, and lansoprazole, or Prevacid) had a 25% higher risk of dying during the study period than those who took the H2 blockers (such as famotidine, or Pepcid, and ranitidine, or Zantac) In a new study published in the journal…

Saswati Singh, Trustee member with Navprerna Foundations, a welfare organisation for the training and rehabilitation of persons with Autism and other developmental disabilities, talks about how important food intake can be for people with autism as well as other disabilities Autism is a developmental disorder, which affects social skills, communication, thought and behaviour. This is more of a neuro-physiological disorder and affected persons have difficulty in processing and integrating…

This time in our Health by Numbers/Medical Tests series, Dr Shital Raval takes a look at the importance of Calcium levels in the metabolic panel. Read the previous parts on Sodium Levels, Potassium Levels and Chloride Levels CALCIUM: Calcium is an important component of our bones, teeth, nerve cells and organs such as heart and kidneys. A blood calcium test is ordered if there are any symptoms of any bone or neurological disorders, kidney stones etc or can be a part of a Comprehensive…

Dr Vinit Shah, an eminent Urologist from Mumbai, helps us understand frequently asked concerns about urology and men’s health. What are the five most common urological conditions you see in daily practice? The commonest problems we seen in our daily practice are prostate, stones, urinary infections, urinary incontinence and male sexual problems. What are the different causative factors of infertility? Male infertility can have several factors. You can have pre-testicular causes due to hormonal…

This time in our Health by Numbers/Medical Tests series, Dr Shital Raval takes a look at the importance of Chloride levels in the electrolyte panel. Read the first part on Sodium Levels and second part on Potassium Levels An electrolyte panel is a blood test that measures the common minerals in the body such as sodium, calcium, chloride, magnesium, phosphorous, and potassium. Electrolytes are essential for the proper functioning of the heart, muscles and brain as they are needed to…

This time in our Health by Numbers/Medical Tests series, Dr Shital Raval takes a look at the importance of Potassium levels in the electrolyte panel. Read the first part on Sodium Levels  POTASSIUM: Potassium is both a mineral and electrolyte. It is important for heart, muscle, digestive and nerve functioning.  The potassium test is often part of a routine or done to check on the electrolyte balance of the body. The best sources of potassium are: Leafy greens such as swiss chard,…

This time in our Health by Numbers/Medical Tests series, Dr Shital Patel takes a look at our electrolyte levels in our blood. An electrolyte imbalance, commonly caused by loss of body fluids through prolonged vomiting, diarrhoea, sweating or high fever, can result in various health disorders, like restlessness, anxiety, kidney diseases or even cardiac arrest. An Electrolyte Panel is a blood test that measures the common minerals in the body such as sodium, calcium, chloride, magnesium,…

WORLD LIVER DAY Did you know Type 2 diabetes (T2D), insulin resistance, obesity, metabolic syndrome and NAFLD (Non Alchoholic Fatty Liver Disease) are particularly closely related? Dr Parijat Gupte, Consultant Hepatologist or Liver Specialist, provides us with a basic knowledge on NAFLD and what it can signify. What Is NAFLD? In simple terms, NAFLD or non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is abnormal or excess accumulation of fat in the liver. Normally, liver does not contain more than 0-5% fat.…

A simple change in the type of foods consumed can reduce the frequency and severity of gout. Nutritionist Kohila Govindaraju recommends a gout-friendly diet that that will help you avoid pain, swelling and tenderness in the joints and keep major flare ups in control. Gout is a type of arthritis, typically caused by a build-up of uric acid in the blood. Uric acid normally dissolves in the blood and gets excreted by the kidneys. When the body makes extra uric acid and the kidneys cannot excrete…