Medical science constantly challenges the boundaries by finding not only the cures to the most dangerous diseases, but finds a way to prevent them even before they occur. With years of research, practice and data available for analysis, scientists are using advanced technology in combination with years of research to create a predicting mechanism for often fatal diseases like cancer.

Breast cancer screening has always been done with mammography. The fact is that this method is only 75% accurate, laden with false positives and misses a whole set of women totally- and that too when cancer has already developed. Part of the problem comes from the dense breast tissue which one in three women have. This tissue masks the lumps, which makes it difficult for mammograms to accurately screen cancer.

Some breakthrough scientific methods are changing this by drawing on years of research to predict this deadly disease, years before it can manifest itself.

A genetic test to predict cancer 10-11 years ahead of time
This test was performed to see how environmental factors could influence cancer, along with habits like smoking, abusing alcohol or hormones, genetic changes that occur and are put a large percentage of the women at a high risk of developing this disease.

A simple blood test is used for the genetic analysis of hereditary cancer. Researchers found a biological marker, methylation of the ATM gene, which has a very high ability to predict the risk of developing cancer, several years before diagnosis. 'Methylation' concluded that when one biological indicator is exposed to carcinogenic substances, or other abusive substances like tobacco and alcohol, it may trigger the development of cancer. On the flip side, this test will take time to reach the commercial market and even then cannot give an exact timeline as to when someone may develop the disease.

A simple blood test to predict breast cancer 5 years before it develops
This is the kind of medical miracle the world is looking for. Last year in April, researches in Denmark identified a simple blood test that can predict breast cancer five years before it actually develops with an accuracy of a whopping 80%.

It works by "measuring all of the compounds in the blood to build a 'metabolic profile' of an individual, in order to detect changes in the way chemicals are processed, during a pre-cancerous stage," says Laura Donnelly, health editor at The Telegraph, which covered this development. Danish researchers observed 57,000 participants over 20 years, gathering blood samples along the way, specifically comparing a set of 800 women who remained healthy or developed breast cancer within 7 years of their first blood sample. The researchers found they were able to predict, with 80 percent accuracy, which patients would be affected by the disease, just by looking at the metabolic profiles they built from the participants' blood samples. The results have been published in Metabolomics.


Are you living with the uncertainty of a lump in your breast? It's time you take the first step and consult a specialist here.

Can Breast Cancer Be Predicted Before It Develops?

If you are suffering from bronchitis, it is important for you to recognize whether your condition is acute or chronic in nature. Bronchitis is a condition that involves the inflammation of the airways between your lungs and the windpipe. The lining of these tubes produces mucus in large amounts that trigger a lingering cough.

Acute bronchitis is the form of bronchitis that onsets rapidly after a virus infection in your upper respiratory tract. The viruses that cause common cold or influenza, are also responsible for acute bronchitis. Moreover, the germs that are responsible for measles and whooping cough may lead to acute bronchitis. In such cases, the condition is referred to as acute infectious bronchitis. In case of dust, smoke, or fumes causing bronchitis, it is referred to as acute irritative bronchitis.

Diagnosis

For the diagnosis of acute bronchitis, you will be inquired about the symptoms you are experiencing.
After that, an overall and detailed physical examination is carried out, which confirms acute bronchitis.
In some cases, the patient might have to get an X-Ray done for ruling out other conditions such as pneumonia.
Treatment
Generally, in about two weeks, acute bronchitis resolves on its own without any medical treatment.
Medications: Several medications may be prescribed for the treatment of acute bronchitis.

Antibiotics: These are usually not used for treating bronchitis, as the condition occurs from a viral infection. However, when you have a bacterial infection, antibiotics may be useful for treating it.
Cough medicine: It is recommended for you not to suppress cough bringing up mucus, as the coughing helps in removing irritants from the lungs and air passages. In case of cough that hampers your activities, you may take cough suppressants before going to sleep at night.
Other medications: In case you have allergies, or suffer from asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), an inhaler along with other medications may be recommended for the reduction of inflammation, and for opening the narrowed passages within your lungs.
Prevention

Quit smoking immediately and try to keep away from secondhand smoke.
Keep yourself clean and hygienic during the flu season.
Try to avoid direct contact with people who are sick or infected.
Get a flu vaccine on a regular, yearly basis.
Drink a lot of fluids throughout the year.
Consider using a warm or cool, moist air humidifier for helping to thin the mucus layers blocking your air passages.
It is important for you to consult a doctor on experiencing any symptom of acute bronchitis. This will allow timely diagnosis and treatment, and prevent the condition from worsening.

Acute Bronchitis - 6 Tips To Help You Prevent It!


Here are some well advertised and well-loved foods that most youngsters cherish. These foods cause far more damage in even small quantities. 

Try to avoid these foods now, to prevent from further damage as you grow older.

1) Frosting- The creamy layer that you lick off from the top of a cake is one of the most unhealthy foods ever. It contains trans-fat, which lowers your good cholesterol and can raise heart rate, increase belly fat and lead to heart diseases or diabetes. Plus, frosting has just too much of sugar.

2) Packaged Fruit Juices- ‘But juices are good for you!’ is something that most people say to defend why they drink packaged fruit juices. It is true that juices are great, but the ones that are packaged aren’t any good. Firstly, the ones available in packed forms have a limited amount of real content (look at the concentrate, which is sometimes lesser than 10% of the total packaging). At the same time, most of these are filled with artificial flavours and a lot of sugar. Do yourself a favour and drink only fresh juices.

3) Artificial Sweeteners- Artificial sweeteners can actually cause diabetes and are as harmful as natural sugar. In fact, they are also responsible for a number of allergies, cancers, seizures, weight gain and obesity.

4) Soda Beverages-   They are the worst! There is absolutely no reason why you should be popping out that bottle of soda or fizzy drinks with so much of caffeine every time. These bottles contain 10 packets of sugar, highly synthetic flavors and have absolutely zero nutritional value. In fact, they promote the ugly fat deposits on all the wrong places. High content of phosphoric acid in sodas can lead to heart and kidney problems, muscle loss, and osteoporosis, as well as trigger accelerated aging.

If you have any further questions on issues related to nutrition or diet, ask me by clicking on 'consult'.

From Lybrate: If you found this tip useful, please thank the doctor by clicking on the heart icon below. Also, spread good health by sharing this tip with your loved ones over WhatsApp, Facebook and other media.

Avoid These 4 Foods to Stay Healthy

Depression is recognized as a mood disorder characterized by the prolonged feeling of sadness and loss of interest in otherwise regular activities. The symptoms include loss of sleep and appetite, loss of interest, persistent feeling of sadness and lowered self-esteem. These symptoms should last for a minimum of 4 weeks for the individual to be diagnosed with depression. Sometimes, at its later stages, depression can also be accompanied by suicidal tendencies.

How it can be treated?

Role of anti-depressants: Depression has become rather common in the present day scenario. The treatment varies from prescription drugs to therapy. People who have depression are usually given mood enhancers and anti-depressants. Antidepressants are medicines used to help people who have depression. With the help of these depression medications, most people can achieve significant recovery from depression. Most antidepressants are believed to work by slowing the removal of certain chemicals from the brain. These chemicals are called neurotransmitters (such as serotonin and norepinephrine). Neurotransmitters are needed for normal brain function and are involved in the control of mood and in other responses and functions, such as eating, sleep, pain, and thinking. Antidepressants help people with depression by making these natural chemicals more available to the brain. By restoring the brain s chemical balance, antidepressants help relieve the symptoms of depression. Specifically, antidepressant drugs help reduce the extreme sadness, hopelessness, and lack of interest in life that are typical in people with depression. However, these are but short-term solutions to depression and don t necessarily cure the individual completely. For the treatment to be effective, the drug intake must be combined with therapeutic techniques to solve the problem at the root level.
Therapy: Different therapeutic techniques are used to treat depression depending majorly on the individual, the cause of depression and general history and state of mind. Research suggests that client centered therapy and cognitive behavioral therapy are a good start with an average case of depression. The therapists usually incorporate several other methods based on the client s need to get maximum effect. Adlerian techniques, where individuals are made to comprehend the thoughts and emotions which influence their lifestyles and adopt a more productive and positive way of life, are rather helpful with most clients who suffer from depression.
Note
Depression is a fairly common mental health disorder today, affecting a large population. Depression must be acknowledged as a proper mood disorder and not just a passing phase. It is completely curable with proper medicine and therapeutic sessions. The individual is able to move over the feelings of unhappiness and lack of interest with proper care and acceptance from loved ones in addition to therapy and the drugs, of course.

Depression - Is it Curable?

Struggling with extra weight and flab? Well, we are here to help! Remember to take it slow and easy with your weight loss journey so that the effects are more lasting. Reducing weight in a month is a matter of making the best use of dietary tweaks and a work out regimen. 

Here are a few tips to lose weight in a month. Set a realistic goal of about 5 to 6 kgs in a month and get set go!

1. Food Diary: What you eat is the first thing that affects how smooth and effective your weight loss journey is. Remember to take stock of what you are eating in a day. Maintain a food diary for at least a week and take a look at it at the end of the week to realise where you may be going wrong. Remember to report even a bite of a snack or that piece of chocolate you took! You will be surprised with your findings. 

2. Diet Alterations: Get your diet under control by dividing it up into five or six small meals. Include vegetables, fruit, grains, water and some amount of dairy. Try to eliminate meat and sugar from your diet for a month. Also, you can substitute white rice with brown rice or other grains like quinoa. Have oats for fibre and remember to drink plenty of green tea and water. 

3. Dietary Additives: Adding ingredients like almonds, prunes, blue berries, and even chia seeds will do wonders for your overall diet plan. When you are in the mood for a snack, reach out for these fat burning substances that will get your metabolism to work overtime. 

4. Mental Hunger: Do a quick check every time you get hungry out of turn. If it is not your meal time, there may be chances that you are suffering from emotional or mental hunger, which usually passes in a few minutes once you down a glass of water and distract yourself with an enjoyable activity and deep breaths. 

5. Exercise: This is one aspect that many people ignore. Work out everyday to support your diet and weight loss journey. Have coffee an hour before your workout session for quick fat burning. 

Tips to Reduce Weight in a Month

Sciatica is a very common neuropathic pain that is caused by damage to the sciatic nerve, a large nerve that runs from the lower back region down the end of each leg. It is the largest single nerve in the body.
This condition affects around 4 out of 10 people at some point of their lives. The nature of the pain varies from a mild ache to a sharp stinging sensation and may cause feelings of numbness and extreme weakness.

Causes of sciatica
The causes for the onset of sciatica are numerous. Some of them are as follows:
-slipped lumbar disc
-muscle inflammation
-internal bleeding
-pregnancy
-obesity
-awkward sleeping position
-uncomfortable footwear
-spinal injury

How can physical therapy help?
There are many ways of treating sciatica, such as medication, acupuncture and surgery, which can provide relief. The most common and easy treatment method however is physical therapy. A progressive and controlled exercise routine that is specifically tailored to the nature of the condition in consultation with a physical therapist acts as an effective remedy in treating the problem. It alleviates pain and also eliminates the chances of relapse.

Physical therapy exercises used to treat sciatica are of many types. They are a combination of core strengthening, muscular stretching and aerobic conditioning routines, which aim at correcting the root of the problem.

The different types of exercises employed to treat sciatica include the following:
Strengthening exercises
These aim at strengthening the spinal column and the pelvic region, which includes the hips and buttocks. They help in making the muscles and ligaments in this region more robust and allow for improved flexibility and support. Lunges and squats are some of the examples.

Stretching exercises
These provide pain relief through improved agility and flexibility. The most important aspect of these routines is stretching and exercising the hamstring. Hamstring, stretches, calf stretches and tricep stretches are a part of stretching exercises.

Aerobic conditioning
These are cardiovascular exercises of low intensity, which provide pain relief through the release of endorphins and the facilitation of fluid and nutrient exchange. Examples of these are swimming and brisk walking.

Reduce Sciatica Pain With Physical Therapy

Don't wait any longer, manage your Kaumar Bhritya Specialist online with a Lybrate doctor today

Consult for Kaumar Bhritya Specialist - Online and Easy!

FilterClear All

COMMON SPECIALITIES

COMMON ISSUES