What are the right foods for a pregnant?

There is no need to eat for two during the pregnancy. It is recommended that for the first trimester the food intake should remain about the same as it was prior to the pregnancy. During the second and third trimesters the food intake should be increased upto 30%. It is easy to achieve this with more fruits intake.

It is important to eat variety of foods to ensure the nutritional needs of both mother and the baby. The recommendations include:

• Fruits and vegetables very generously
• Whole grain products and cereals, but not milled grain products
• Milk and dairy products should not be eaten in excess
• Lean meat, chicken and fish in moderate amounts
• Avoid excess intake of fats, sugar and salt
• Beans, pulses, nuts and seeds
• Drink enough water

Do not diet if you are a pregnant. This bad for you as well as to your baby. Green leafy vegetables are very important for the intake of folic acid. Folic acid supplement is recommended for the health of your baby. It is better to consult your doctor before you take a supplement.

With proper food it is possible to manage the iron content of your body also. Iron supplement could be taken only if your doctor recommends it.

Avoid excess of vitamin A intake and vitamin A supplements are not required. The excessive intake of vitamin A may cause birth deformities.

I have too much stress. Can stress cause hair loss?

There are two types of hair loss if you have too much physical or emotional stress. This can be pregnancy, surgery, severe weight loss or gain or death of a family member.

In this condition large number of growing hair are pushed into a resting phase. In due course the affected hairs may fall out suddenly. You lose many hairs during combing or hair wash or taking bath. The hair can grow back once your stress is gone, but normally it takes time, may be many months.

The second condition of hair loss by intense stress is medically called alopecia areata. Here the white blood cells attack the hair follicle and this stops the hair growth. Within weeks the hair loss starts as a small round patch. But it may spread to the whole head. In some cases the body hair can also fall. Normally the hair grows back, but this problem can come repeatedly.

If you have this kind of hair losses go to your doctor immediately. Sudden hair loss may be caused by underlying health problems and these must be treated.

Stress can be managed well if you really want this. If you have problems take necessary help to reduce your stress.

My son has to take methylphenidate; can you inform me about this drug?

It is a drug used as part of a treatment programme for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder with symptoms of more difficulty in focusing, controlling actions and remaining still or quite than others who are at the same age.

It is also used to treat narcolepsy, a sleep disorder which causes excessive daytime sleepiness.

The side effects methylphenidate include dizziness, nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, nervousness, loss of appetite, stomach pain, headache, painful menstruation, difficulty in falling sleep or staying sleep, fast and irregular heartbeat, shortness of breath, chest pain, dizziness, faintness, excessive tiredness, slow or difficult speech, numbness of an arm or leg, seizures, agitation, blurred vision, hallucination, abnormal thoughts, mood changes, depression, fever, hives, sore throat, unusual bleeding, joint or muscle pain, skin rashes, itching and difficulty in breathing or swallowing.

Caution: Methylphenidate may cause sudden death in children and teenagers with serious heart problems or heart defects. In adults heart attack or stroke with heart defects or serious heart problems may occur. Talk to your doctor about these problems, particularly the risk of this drug in medication.

Methylphenidate may slow children’s growth and may give problems in weight gain. Your child’s doctor must accompany you both during the whole therapy to take necessary action immediately when it is necessary. All the other forms are not serious and may be dangerous to your child’s health.

Fixing the therapy for three months may not bring always the best results, the child’s doctor and the psychologist must work together to find the right medication and therapy. The role of phosphates in food and also a healthy food in general without any junk as well as processed foods is also necessary during this medication to achieve good results.

Methylphenidate should not be used in children under 6 years of age, since safety and efficacy in this age group have not been established.

There are no studies available in pregnant and breastfeeding women. If you are pregnant or breastfeeding while you use methylphenidate check with your doctor and he will advise you the benefits or risks. If it is possible to manage without drugs it is the best during pregnancy and breastfeeding.

The half-life period of methylphenidate is 2 to 4 hours.

What are the causes of constipation?

Constipation is when the bowel movement is less than three times a week. The stool is usually dry, pellet like and in some cases difficult to pass.

The causes of constipation include:

• Less physical activity
• Less fibre in the diet
• Do not postpone always your defecation which can cause constipation
• Milk and other dairy products can cause constipation.
• Consumption of less fluid can cause constipation.
• Eating meals irregularly can also cause constipation. Eat a healthy diet on the same schedule each day and chew your food well which helps to reduce the work of the digestive system.
• If your body is not getting enough rest, that can also cause constipation.
• Stress and worry can often cause constipation.
• The side effects of many medicines such as blood pressure medicines, pain killers, diuretics, antidepressants, anticonvulsants, antacids, antispasmodics, and antiparkinson’s disease drugs can cause constipation.
• Do not avoid fat completely from your food.
• Pregnancy, depression and travelling are also reasons for constipation.
• Do not take laxatives if you are not actually constipated and artificial help to complete the natural digestive process make it dependent and can cause constipation.

These are the commonly known reasons for constipation. It is in your hands to eat healthy food.

Is it necessary to take folic acid if we plan a baby?

Yes, folic acid is important before you plan because in the very early stages of pregnancy. Folic acid plays a vital role in cell formation and division.

Folic acid should be taken if you plan for a baby because it is important immediately after fertilization. If you take after you know that you are pregnant it is too late.

Folic acid is used in our bodies for cell formation and multiplication, DNA replication and formation of red and white cells. It can significantly minimise the risk of giving birth to a baby with a congenital neural tube defect.

Dark green leafy vegetables, pulses, legumes and nuts are rich in folic acid, but it is always impossible to take the daily intake from these foods because so much we cannot eat. So I recommend folic acid supplementation if you plan for a baby. It is good as a part of vitamin B complex tablet, it is not necessary to buy costly folic acid mono preparations. If you want to buy a vitamin B complex without folic acid, then it is not a real vitamin B complex, then better do not buy it.

Recommended daily intake is 400 micro g, pregnants need 600 micro g. Too much, around 1000 micr g. from food supplemets could cause mild side effects. In this case consult with your doctor nd reduce the amount.

The benefits of folic acid is better than the mild side effects caused by them.

Condom

Condom is made of very thin latex rubber or plastic. A condom fits over the penis and can be used to prevent pregnancy as well as to prevent HIV infection and other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). It works by stopping sperm from reaching the eggs.

It is easily available in medical shops or family planning centres or even in youth organizations. Unlike many other contraception condoms does not have any side effects including physical or psychological effects. It can tear and break by accident and mostly the long nails can damage it. It can also slip off the penis.

Persons who have latex allergy must avoid the latex condom and can try with plastic.

If you use condom use only water based creams and fat based like Vaseline can dissolve the latex condoms.

The condom is 99% safe and effective if it is used properly.

The birth control pill or oral contraceptive pill

The oral contraceptives contain different levels of estrogens and progesterone or progesterone alone. It is prescribed by the family doctor after considering the family history and medical records of the woman. These pills stop the ovaries from releasing eggs every month. They also make the lining of the uterus thinner so that the fertilized egg could not attach there.

The disadvantages are that the pill must be taken everyday without any break. Even if you have vomiting or diarrhoea the effect of the pill is gone and you can become pregnant. If you forget to take the pill for a day then also the risk of pregnancy is there. Every year you need three months interval for the regeneration of the hormone household of your body, otherwise infertility may be the result. There are many side effects from these hormone pills.

Side effects:

If you have the following symptoms, go to your doctor and talk to him. These include severe headache, severe vomiting, speech problems, dizziness, faintness, weakness or numbness of arms or legs, coughing up blood, shortness of breath, crushing chest pain or chest heaviness, double vision, partial or complete loss of vision, bulging eyes, pain, warmth or heaviness in the back of the lower leg, severe stomach pain, jaundice, loss of appetite, extreme tiredness, weakness or lack of energy, fever, dark urine, pale stool, swelling of the hands, feet, joints and lower legs, mood changes and depression, unusual bleeding, skin rash and menstrual bleeding which is unusually heavy or that lasts more than 7 days in a row.

The other side effects are nausea, vomiting, stomach cramps or bloating, diarrhoea, constipation, swelling of the gum, increased or decreased appetite, brown or black skin patches, acne, hair growth in unusual places, white vaginal discharge, swelling, redness, irritation, burning or itching of the vagina, breast tenderness, enlargement or discharge, painful or missed menstruation, changes in menstrual flow, bleeding or spotting between menstrual periods, weight gain or weight loss and difficulty in wearing contact lenses.

Oral contraceptives may increase the risk of developing liver tumours and breast or liver cancer. The risk of getting a heart attack, a stroke or a serious blood clot may also be increased. Consult with your doctor about these serious effects.

Cigarette smoking increases the risk of serious side effects from oral contraceptives, including heart attacks, blood clots and strokes. If you are older than 35 years or smoke 15 or more cigarettes per day, then the risk is higher. If you take birth control pills, you should not smoke.

Caution:

Oral contraceptives will work only as long as they are taken regularly. You may need to use a backup method of birth control if you vomit or have diarrhoea when you are taking this drug. You can consult your doctor to choose the correct backup method and for other advices.

The women who have family histories of diabetes, high blood pressure, migraines, blood clots and breast cancer should not take this. It is same with the progesterone-only pill also. Although both pills are 99% effective if taken properly these are not suitable for women who change their partners often because they give no protection from HIV virus and other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs).

The patch - it is a big plaster with hormones of the combined pill oestrogen and progesterone and is applied on the skin. The hormones reach the blood through the skin. Apart from the side effects of the birth control pill here is the possibility of red skin and rash are there.

The advantages and disadvantages are the same as the birth control pill. The same precaution should also be taken as the oral pills.

This a prescription drug, but in India…..

Pulling out before ejaculation – the most frequently asked question from teenagers and young women in our whole world

Pulling out the penis before ejaculation does not lead to pregnancy, is it correct?

This is the most frequently asked question from teenagers and young women in the world. The young man tries to convince the young woman that she will not become pregnant if he pulls out before ejaculation and many believe also in course of time this.

The woman can still become pregnant because the lubrication fluid from the penis can contain few sperms and this is enough to make her pregnant.
The chance of getting HIV infection and other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) are also high and never accept this argument.

There are some other myths and every woman must know this clearly.

Sex and pregnancy - you cannot predict anything because your psychology also plays a vital role.

Some of the myths include:

• She has her first sexual intercourse, so no chance of pregnancy – here also she can become pregnant
• Sex during her periods – she can become pregnant. It may be because sperm can stay alive for 3 to 5 days in a warm and moist environment
• Sex in the standing position – she can become pregnant because sperm can swim in any direction

There are as such no safer days during the menstrual cycle and a woman can become pregnant at any time.

Whether a Western girl in her puberty or an Indian woman with two children needs contraception it is always better to consult the gynaecologist for the right type of contraceptive method for her.

Relationship between “Early Puberty, Pregnancy and Breast Cancer”

There are no advantages of early puberty. Early puberty and first menstruation, late or no child birth and late menopause are considered the risk factors for breast cancer.

Are there any disadvantages of early puberty?

There is one very important disadvantage of early puberty. When a girl reaches puberty her breast cells undergo a rapid growth and development. It is the time when there are more undeveloped breast cells which are vulnerable to cancer-causing agents like chemicals, radiation, virus and estrogens. So when girls reach puberty earlier the risk for breast cancer also starts. To make it clear in the beginning of 20th century the first menstruation was between 16 to 18 years and now it is between 9 to 13 years.

How this risk for breast cancer could be avoided?

There are three possibilities to minimise this risk and they include:

• Avoiding early puberty
• Avoiding risks like environmental poisons, radiation, virus etc.
• Pregnancy

Avoiding early puberty: If a girl is physically very active with aerobic exercises, sports, swimming, walking, gym, bicycling, team sports like basket ball and volleyball her puberty starts later. Intake of too much of carbohydrates including rice, sweets, chips and chocolates consumption is also a main cause of early puberty. Late puberty and normal pregnancy between 20 to 25 years decrease the risk of breast cancer.

Avoiding risks like environmental poisons etc.: Pesticides and many chlorinated chemicals (xeno-estrogens) which are in our environment, food or water have low estrogenic activity which also favours early puberty. It is better to avoid these chemicals. For example, organic vegetables, fruits and whole grain foods are the best. If organic vegetables are not available, buy fresh vegetables and wash them well with enough water so that up to 30% of the pesticides residues could be removed.

Fast food, junk food and processed food must be avoided. Food containing hormones should be avoided.

An individual diet plan from an expert is important from the childhood because unfortunately many mothers know very little about the right selection of the foods. The ads in the media spoil them also.

(Read the author’s book “Food and our Health, Facts and Misconceptions” and “Environmental Poisons and Illness” from Aaron Verlag Publishers Private Ltd.)

Pregnancy: The hormones of pregnancy, particularly estriol and progesterone, make these undeveloped breast cells to mature to cell types which cannot be easily damaged and transformed into cancer cells. Late puberty and early pregnancy between 20 to 25 years can decrease the risk of breast cancer.

Phyto-estrogens (Plant-estrogens) are important to our health, the action mechanism is completely different and these are not stored in our body. But, xeno-estrogens are fat soluble and are stored in our body fat.

The rest hereditary risk is always there.