Here are 6 signs to watch out for that could indicate 'You need to get your Ears tested':

1. Your TV is blaring: Do you often find people around you shouting above the TV sound complaining that it's too loud? When you find it hard to hear the TV at the average volume and find yourself turning up the sound, this could signify a hearing loss. Doctors are seeing a growing number of patients visiting them after prolonged exposure to loud music and sounds.

2. You find it hard to hear phone conversations: Do you find yourself asking the person on the other end of the phone line to 'repeat' themselves, or find yourself pressing the phone instrument right into your ear? If you are trying so hard to hear, you might find yourself missing out on bits of the conversation as focussing to clearly hear the conversation is exhausting work. Getting a hearing test might be a good option if this sounds like you.

3. You have trouble hearing in noisy environments: When you are out dining with friends or family at a busy restaurant or accompanying a friend shopping in a busy street, all that background noise makes it difficult to hear what the people are saying. People with hearing loss often have problems masking out background noise.

4. Family members telling 'you're going deaf'?: Trust the views of the people closest to you, they never lie about your health. Family members often are the first to sense signs of hearing loss as they find themselves repeating things to you or calling out louder to get your 'attention'.

5. You find yourself staying away from social occasions, family gatherings or avoid being the first to start conversations

6. You find yourself leaning closer to people to follow the conversation or staring at their lips trying to lip-read what's being said.

6 Signs you Need a Hearing Test

How to Prevent Your Child from Developing Type 2 Diabetes?

Type 2 diabetes (T2DM) is a chronic metabolic disorder that prevents the body from processing sugar or glucose. The disorder causes insufficient production of the hormone Insulin (responsible for regulating sugar into the different parts of your body); or the body's failure to respond to the hormone produced. Although no cure is available for T2DM, there are several ways in which you can help prevent Type 2 diabetes in your child. These are:

1. Get your child to indulge in some physical activity

Spending about 60 minutes of the day on physical activity can help your child to ward off Type 2 diabetes. In terms of screen time, it shouldn't be over 2 hours a day. By doing so, he or she ends up building his or her muscles as well as gets rid of extra fat from the body. An active life would also help your child to maintain an optimal body weight with obesity being a cause of this form of diabetes. Whether it's a sport like swimming, cricket or basketball, or even walking and dancing, physical activity in any form can help in preventing your child from developing Type 2 diabetes.

2. Plan a well-balanced diet for your child

Encouraging your child to have healthy foods and making right food choices can also lower his or her chances of getting this metabolic disorder. Foods high in fiber like whole grain cereals and bread, lentils, fruits, and vegetables should be consumed. Similarly, foods low in trans and saturated fats like lean meat, chicken, yogurt and cheese should be included in your child's diet. Processed foods, as well as sugary drinks, should be no-no when it comes to your child's diet.

3. Adopting proper eating habits

It is not only making the right food choices that are important but eating right as well is vital for preventing the onset of diabetes. Having meals with fix portion sizes is a habit that you need to develop in your child. Ideally, half the plate should be filled with vegetables and fruits; a quarter with lean protein like chicken; and the remaining with whole grain. To accompany the meal, make your child have one cup of no-fat or low-fat milk. Desserts like ice cream and cookies should be allowed only once or twice a week.



How to Prevent Your Child from Developing Type 2 Diabetes?

A child s tantrums, especially during teens, are quite common. However, there could be some children who could be exhibiting an extreme version of these symptoms. This is known as oppositional defiant disorder.
Children with this disorder become easily irritable, angry, argumentative, defiant and feel vindictive against most elders (parents, teachers, and others). While this is something very common and can be ignored to be a part of teenage tantrums, the issue is when these symptoms do not seem to end. If they persist for beyond 6 months, it is time to worry. These may then begin to interfere with their daily activities including schooling, where they may not be easy for the teacher to manage.

Diagnosis of ODD: With the changing behaviour of teenagers, it is often difficult to pinpoint and say there is ODD. However, some guidelines for diagnosis are listed below. Angry/irritable, argumentative, defiant and vindictive. If these symptoms are seen for more than 6 months with no inducing reason, happens with non-siblings, and is affecting learning and playing, it is highly likely the child has ODD.

These symptoms can occur at home, at school, or in other settings   seen respectively in one, two, or more settings. Some of the symptoms are listed below.

Repeated temper tantrums
Anger bursts, swearing, using obscene language
Extremely argumentative, especially with people in authority (teachers, parents, etc.)
Annoying others and getting annoyed easily
Noncompliance to rules and regulations at school and institutions
Defending one s mistakes and blaming others for it
These result in poor academic performance, antisocial behavior, substance abuse, and higher suicidal tendencies.
Treatment

Treatment depends on the presenting symptoms, the age of the child, and supportive care available. The child should be able to actively take part in psychotherapy to reap good benefits. It would otherwise be a task with no results.

Psychotherapy will help the child improve its cope and express and control anger. This also improves problem-solving skills.
Cognitive-behavioural therapy tries to mould the behaviour.
If required, the parents also would be involved to improve family s involvement in the treatment. Caretakers are given special training if required so that they can support in long-term medical care.
The child also needs to be trained for appropriate behaviour under different circumstances.
Rewards for positive behaviour and punishments for negative behaviour are useful ways.
Prevention: Early identification can help in minimizing distress to the family and help in the early arrest of the disease. The family is also taught basic and simple steps which can help in supporting therapy. Early rejection at school and loss of learning, can happen which can be managed with early intervention. A nurturing and supportive family can help manage the child very well.

Oppositional Defiant Disorder in Kids - How to Deal with it ?

What Causes Eczema? Ways to Prevent Eczema Outbreaks

A skin inflammation, eczema, also known as atopic eczema, refers to the changes that occur in the upper skin layer. These skin changes can be thickened and cracked skin, skin redness, crusting of the affected area and swollen raw skin, among others. The exact cause of this skin condition is not yet known but a mix of factors have been found to be behind this health problem.

CAUSES :

The factors that play a role in causing eczema are:

- Dry skin brings down your skin's ability to fend off irritants as well as allergy causing substances from entering your skin, resulting in an inflammatory condition.

- Genetics is also one of the factors that may affect the proper functioning of your skin as a barrier against harmful substances. Therefore, if either one of the parent or both suffers from the condition, it is very likely that their children too will suffer from it.

- Abnormal functioning of your body's immune system can also lead to this skin condition. This is because it's your body's immune system that fights off infections as well as harmful intruders.

- The presence of the bacteria called Staphylococcus aureus, which brings about sweat buildup, inflames the skin considerably, leading to this condition.

- Even environmental factors like pollen, cigarette smoke lead to the flaring of eczema.

How can you prevent an eczema outbreak?

It is very common for this skin condition to flare-up from time to time. But you can avoid such outbreaks or reduce their severity by following these very simple ways:

- Keep your skin well-moisturized so that it doesn't dry out causing further irritation.

- Sudden changes in temperature can cause the skin condition to break out. So, when the weather is hot, keep yourself cool but during cold weather, use a humidifier to prevent the skin from drying out.

- Keep sweating in check as it can cause an outbreak very easily

- Avoid the use of harsh detergents and soaps, woolen materials as well as the consumption of foods that may lead to flare-ups



What Causes Eczema? Ways to Prevent Eczema Outbreaks

Sleep is the most important aspect for a healthy beign, but for kids it is of utmost priority. Lack of sleep can often have a negative impact on the brain funtioning of kids along with accidents. Listed below are the major sleep disorders in children along with their causative factors:
1. Sleepwalking: It is not uncommon for children under the age of 10 to sleep walk. Despite being harmless on its own, the effects of sleep walking can be dangerous such as stepping outdoors or hurting themselves during sleep. If the child runs into objects while sleep walking, they might wake up and hence further worsen the situation.
2. Nightmares: They might be general or result from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Nightmares, if frequent, can make falling asleep a tedious task. Nightmares in children are common and they usually begin to reduce in frequency by 9 years of age.
3. Obstructive sleep apnea: Snoring might be the result of improper respiration while sleeping and while it isn t a cause of worry, regular snoring might lead to insufficient oxygen during sleep, thus making shut eye a challenge. It might be hereditary or the result of a deviated nasal septum or blocked nose. The snoring might hamper the quality of sleep.
4. Bedwetting: This is something most children experience, but usually grow out of by the time they turn six. It doesn t need to be a cause of concern unless the frequency doesn t reduce over time and more than two instances of bedwetting take place in a week.
5. Insomnia in children: It can be due to a host of factors and coping with changes to their normal lifestyle is one of the biggest triggers. Mental disorders such as anxiety and stress due to a variety of reasons (like the death of a loved one) may also be the cause of distress and lead to troubled or incomplete sleep.
6. Excessive daytime sleepiness: Excess naps throughout the day, always feeling lethargic or experiencing trouble waking up in the morning may be symptomatic of EDS. It isn t uncommon in adults either wherein despite apparent proper sleep; energy levels seem to be low throughout the day.

6 Common Sleep Disorders in Children

If chewing food and retaining a sparkling smile is not enough for you, avoiding toothaches and a visit to the dentist could be reason enough to maintain healthy teeth. Ignoring your tooth health can lead to many problems. Answer yourself the following question. Would you like your teeth inside your mouth or in a glass tumbler beside your bed at nighttime? 

If you opted for the former, then going through the following tips and advices will go a long way in helping you sustain healthy teeth. They are:

1)  Brush and floss twice a day
Brushing and flossing twice a day, on a regular basis will help you maintain healthy teeth and gums in the long run. The ideal time to brush your teeth is 20 minutes after a meal. Opting for a toothbrush with a small head and soft bristles gives you better access to even the deeper portions of your mouth, thus providing comprehensive cleansing to your teeth. Moreover, softer bristles are generous on your gums as well.

2) Nutrition
Whatever you eat, either protects you or makes you more susceptible to diseases and disorders. This stands true for your oral health as well. As such, choosing the right foods early in your life is of vital importance. Foods such as cold drinks, cakes, candies and other such sugary substances facilitate the growth of germ and bacteria in your mouth, resulting in plaque and cavities. Choosing foods that are low in starch and sugar will reduce the development of germs and help eradicate cavities or plaque in the long run.

3) Smoking
Even the pack of smoke that you buy endorses smoking is injurious to your general health. Smoking causes reduced flow of blood to the mouth, which resultantly leads to increased chances of periodontal disease and mouth cancer. Smoking, moreover causes a decline in the ability of the bones and tissues to revascularize (self-heal). All else apart, just stop smoking.

4) Chewing gums
Chewing gums are highly beneficial especially after a meal. They not only increase the flow of saliva in your mouth, but also improves the flow of blood to your brain, thus enhancing your alertness by close to 10%. In addition, chewing gums help neutralize the acid in your mouth, thus helping you cleanse your mouth.

Tips to Maintain Healthy Teeth

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