Dr. Ashutosh

ज़िका वायरस एक मच्छर से जनित बीमारी है, जो एडीज प्रजातियों के मच्छरों से फैलता है। मच्छरों की एडीज़ प्रजातियां वे हैं, जो डेंगू और चिकनगुनिया वायरस के संचरण के लिए भी जिम्मेदार हैं। ये मच्छर भीतरी और बाहरी दोनों वातावरण में जीवित रह सकते हैं। ज़िका ट्रांसमिशन के लिए जिम्मेदार दो ज्ञात प्रजातियां हैं -एडीस अल्बॉक्टीतुस,जिन्हें एशियाई बाघ मच्छर के रूप में जाना जाता है,और एडीस इजिप्ती,जिसे पीले बुखार मच्छर के रूप में जाना जाता है। ज़िका संचरण के लिए जिम्मेदार दो ज्ञात प्रजातियां हैं -एडीस अल्बोपिक्टस,जिसे एशियाई बाघ मच्छर के रूप में जाना जाता है,और और एडीस इजिप्ती,जिसे पीत ज्वर मच्छर के रूप में जाना जाता है।

1947में,ज़िका वायरस पहली बार युगांडा में बंदरों में पहचाना गया था।1952 में युगांडा और संयुक्त गणराज्य तंजानिया में पहले मानव मामलों की सूचना मिली थी। तब से,अफ्रीका,दक्षिण पूर्व एशिया और प्रशांत द्वीप समूह में इसके प्रकोप दर्ज किए गए हैं। ज़िका वायरस संभोग के माध्यम से भी फैल सकता है। अध्ययनों से यह भी पता चला है कि यह वायरस रक्त,वीर्य, ​​मूत्र,और संक्रमित लोगों की लार,साथ ही आंखों के तरल पदार्थों में पाया जा सकता है।

ज़िका वायरस के लक्षण

ज्यादातर लोग किसी भी लक्षण का अनुभव नहीं करते हैं। यदि लक्षण उत्पन्न होते हैं,तो वे आम तौर पर हल्के होते हैं और लगभग दो से सात दिनों के आसपास रहते हैं। ज़िका वायरस के लक्षणों में शामिल हैं:

1. बुखार
2. लाल चकत्ते
3. जोड़ों का दर्द
4. आँख आना (लाल आँखें)
5. मांसपेशियों में दर्द
6. सरदर्द
7. आंखों के पीछे दर्द
8. उल्टी

ज़िका वायरस संक्रमण गर्भावस्था के दौरान माइक्रोसेफली सहित जन्मजात मस्तिष्क असामान्यताएं भी पैदा कर सकता है। ज़िका वायरस संक्रमण के बाद गिल्लन बर्रे सिंड्रोम विकसित करने वाले लोगों की रिपोर्ट भी सामने आई है। ज़िका वायरस के मामले में अस्पताल में भर्ती असामान्य है। इस वायरस का निदान आमतौर पर एक रक्त परीक्षण के साथ किया जाता है।

ज़िका वायरस का उपचार

ज़िका वायरस के लिए कोई विशिष्ट दवा या वैक्सीन नहीं है। हालांकि,ज़िका वायरस वाले लोगों को निम्नलिखित उपाय करने की सलाह दी जाती है:

1. लक्षणों का इलाज करें।
2. खूब आराम करो।
3. निर्जलीकरण को रोकने के लिए द्रव का सेवन बढ़ाना।
4. एसिटामिनोफेन जैसी दवाओं के साथ दर्द और बुखार से राहत।
5. अपने चिकित्सक से बात करें यदि आप किसी अन्य उपचार का अनुसरण कर रहे हैं।
6. जब तक डेंगू के निदान को नकार न दिया जाए, तब तक एस्पिरिन और अन्य गैर-स्टेरायडल एंटी-इन्फ्लैमेटरी ड्रग्स (एन.एस.ए.आई.डी)न लें।

ज़िका वायरस की रोकथाम

ज़िका वायरस के संक्रमण को रोकने के लिए मच्छर के काटने से बचाव करना महत्वपूर्ण है। ज़िका वायरस को रोकने के लिए निम्नलिखित सिफारिशें दी गई हैं:

1. कीट विकर्षक का उपयोग करें
2. लंबे बाजू वाले कपड़े और लंबी पैंट पहने
3. आप बिस्तर पर मच्छर जाल भी रख सकते हैं
4. यह महत्वपूर्ण है कि बाल्टी,ड्रम,बर्तन,गटर,और इस्तेमाल किए गए टायर जैसे घरों में और उसके आसपास संभावित मच्छर प्रजनन स्थलों को ढांक,खाली या साफ़ किया जाए।
5. पुरुष और महिलाएं जो सक्रिय संचरण के क्षेत्रों से लौट रहे हैं,उन्हें सुरक्षित सेक्स अभ्यास,या छह महीने की अवधि के लिए परहेज़ की सिफारिश की जाती है।

As one of the oldest tree foods to be cultivated by humans, walnuts have long since been known as a wonder fruit that can treat and manage many diseases, even as it ensures that one gets to enjoy many other health and cosmetic benefits. This is a nutrient-laden dry fruit that can be eaten in any season and can also be used as a healthy snack.

Read on to know how walnuts can help you in the health department!s

1. Weight Management: One can obtain weight loss by switching deep fried and other snacks with this fruit as the snack of choice. This will help in weight loss because it is known to be loaded with many ounces of protein as well as omega-3 fatty acids, which can make your metabolism work overtime so that you end up burning all that useless fat. Regular consumption of walnuts will ensure that you get the right amount of calories in just a fistful of this dry fruit. You can also combine this with almonds and raisins for a healthy breakfast, if sprinkled in your oats or any other cereals.
2. Glowing Hair: If you have been facing problems like thinning hair, and hair loss as well as dandruff, then walnuts can easily come to your rescue. Eating lots of walnuts will help in restoring the oil and moisture balance of the scalp which will make your hair rich and bouncy again. You can also apply walnut oil to your scalp in order to boost the health of your hair to a great extent. This is due to the fact that walnuts contain Vitamin B7 which is known to prevent hair loss.
3. Heart Disease: You can prevent a majority of cardiovascular issues and heart disease with the help of walnuts. This is due to the fact that walnuts also contain a lot of antioxidants, which can help in regulating the cholesterol levels as well. One can actually remove the bad cholesterol and keep the good cholesterol so that lifestyle issues and conditions like diabetes and heart disease can be avoided. One should have at least 28 grams of walnuts in a single day so that these kinds of diseases can be successfully prevented.
4. Fertility: Walnuts are very important for male fertility. One of the main things in male fertility is the sperm, especially the quality of the same. So, if you have had a sperm test and it does not have very encouraging results, then eating walnuts can easily solve this problem along with whatever other medication you may be having for the condition. One should have at least 75 grams of walnuts every day in order to increase the vitality of the sperm for those men who fall in the age group of 21 years to 35 years of age. If you wish to discuss about any specific problem, you can consult a dietitian-nutritionist.

If you are hungry at a time that is well past your bedtime, a dollop of peanut butter spread on crackers makes for a handsome little meal. Researchers suggest that if you can control your intake, peanut butter is actually helpful for your health.

The benefits of peanut butter are as follows:

1. Peanut butter contains a fairly large amount of unsaturated fats. The consumption of a moderate amount of peanut butter regularly keeps your heart in good shape.

2. Peanut butter has high potassium content. Consumption of a moderate amount of peanut butter is useful to combat the ill effects of the harmful sodium content, which is abundant in most of the foods you eat on a daily basis. Potassium also helps in the growth and damage repair of the body muscles while aiding clotting of the blood vessels.

3. Peanut butter is also a rich source of antioxidants, magnesium and fibres (which regulate the body function) all of which make peanut butter a rare combination of taste and health.

4. Peanut Butter also contains a rich amount of protein. A serving of 2 table-spoons of peanut butter contains roughly 7 grams of protein.

5. A moderate consumption of peanut butter might also help in providing energy for a sustained period, as it contain fats and proteins from which the required calorie intake is fulfilled.

6. Consuming controlled amount of peanut butter might reduce your chances of suffering from diabetes; cutting the risks by about a whopping 30 percent.

7. Peanut butter contains a fair amount of Vitamin E. Vitamin E is very helpful in protecting your body against toxic materials. It is also helpful in preventing you against cataract and Alzheimer’s disease.  

8. For women suffering from premenstrual syndrome, intake of peanut butter helps regulate the symptoms.

9. Peanut butter also helps to keep you full for a long time as it contains sufficient amount of protein and fibre. This is also effective in initiating weight loss.

10. Peanut butter also contains trace amount of zinc that helps in the development of the body’s immune system. If you wish to discuss about any specific problem, you can consult a doctor.

June 14, is celebrated around the world as the World Blood Donor Day every year. The event, established in 2004, helps raise awareness about the need for safe blood and blood products like platelets. This day is observed to thank all the blood donors worldwide for their voluntary, life-saving gift of blood.

Why should you donate blood?
You may not know this but blood donation by just 1% of the population can meet a nation’s requirements for blood. Blood transfusion can save lives and improves health this is a fact that we all know and acknowledge, but many patients requiring transfusion do not get timely access to safe blood, resulting in preventable death. 

You would not wish such a death on our near and dear ones, would you?
This is the reason why healthy, voluntary donors like you and us must donate blood regularly. Voluntary, unpaid blood donors are also the backbone of a country’s blood donor base as they are the safest group of donors with the lowest prevalence of blood borne infections like hepatitis and HIV. Low risk populations are people who do not indulge in high-risk activities like unprotected sex, drug use etc. The World Health Organization’s goal is for all countries to obtain their entire blood supplies through voluntary unpaid donors.

Blood transfusion is needed for:

1. Women with complications during pregnancy, like ectopic pregnancies, also called high-risk pregnancies, and hemorrhage before, during or after childbirth
2. Anaemic children due to malaria or malnutrition
3. People with severe trauma due to accidents and natural disasters
4. Complex medical and surgical procedures like for cancer
5. Regular blood transfusions for people with conditions such as thalassaemia and sickle cell anemia, a disease where the blood can’t transmit enough oxygen to body cells.
6. To make products such as clotting factors for people with haemophilia
7. Fresh blood is needed all the time because blood can be stored for only a limited time before use.

Hence, regular blood donations by an optimum number of blood donors who are healthy are required to ensure that safe blood is available whenever and wherever it is needed.

• Indeed, blood is the most precious gift that you can give to another person. It’s a gift of life.
• Your decision to donate your blood can save a life, or even several lives. This can happen if your blood is separated into its components like red blood cells, platelets and plasma. These can be used individually for patients with specific conditions like platelets can be used for treating dengue because this viral infection can damage one’s blood platelets.

Need another reason to donate blood?
Well, you can get a number of health benefits when you donate blood. You will receive a mini physical at the time of blood donation to check your:
• Pulse
• Haemoglobin levels
• Blood pressure
• Body temperature

And contrary to belief, your body replaces the blood lost at the time of a donation effortlessly and without any harm to your system. So donate blood regularly and save lives. If you wish to discuss about any specific problem, you can consult a General Physician.