Dr. Sarita A. Ranadive

Infants often suffer from certain diseases which need proper care and timely treatment for quick recovery. At times, it can be difficult to communicate with an infant and understand his/her needs and problems but with a close observation you will surely be able to detect any alteration in the baby's behavior and sense it when he/she is ill. Here are some of the most common diseases infants are susceptible to and what you can do about them.

1. Abdominal distension
It is normal for a baby's belly to stick out after he/she has been fed, but if between feedings there is swelling in the abdomen or it feels hard, it can be an indication of a problem. If this symptom is accompanied by vomiting and absence of bowel movements for more than two days, your baby may be suffering from abdominal distention. This condition may have been caused by swallowing of extra air by the baby while crying or feeding. In such a situation, a pediatrician should be consulted for proper diagnosis and treatment.

2. Jaundice
It is common among newborns to develop mild forms of jaundice as the undeveloped liver is often not able to eliminate the chemical bilirubin from the blood. Mostly, this situation proves to be harmless till the level of bilirubin reaches a certain limit. After that, the disease must be properly treated to avoid damage to the baby's brain or nervous system.

3. Rsv infection
Rsv or respiratory syncytial virus is responsible for causing respiratory problems among infants. Rsv infection usually affects the bronchial passage and shows symptoms like cough, runny nose and mild fever which may even lead to bronchitis. Moreover, this infection may also develop into viral pneumonia, which makes it more important to consult a pediatrician if your baby shows any of the above symptoms.

4. Diarrhea
Infants are susceptible to watery bowel movements due to the action of virus, allergens, specific medications or bacteria. If you observe that your baby is passing stools more often than usual and it is watery, then it may be a case of diarrhea. Sometimes, these symptoms are accompanied by high fever, abdominal pain, lethargy, vomiting, dry eyes and mouth etc. In this situation you should consult your pediatrician and focus on replacing the fluids your baby has lost, to prevent dehydration.

Study Smarter and Not Harder!

There are few things I hear over and over again from students -

• How they are studying for so many in a day
• How they do not have even time for anything else in their life due to study pressure
• How they are sleep deprived
• How much they are stressed
• And finally, after all the sacrifices and hard work, their exam performance is not what they expect.

Here are few tips to study smart, improve your grades and yet have a life!

We all know that 2 hours of focused study will be much more productive than 4 hours of distracted study.

And the good news is that concentration is a mental skill that you can develop and improve.
There are two ways to improve your concentration:

First, work on raising your brain's natural ability to concentrate or in other words, learn to increase your attention span.

Second, adjust the environment around you to make concentrating easier.

Improving your concentration takes a little time and effort, but it is worth it. In my personal experience with students, I have seen noticeable improvement in relatively short time.


Ideas for daily concentration-boosting habits include:

• Mindfulness meditation - many studies confirm that 20 minutes of meditation or more per day improves concentration and attention span. Mindfulness meditation, where one focuses on one's breathing, is one of the simplest way of meditation. Start with ten minutes in the morning and ten minutes before bed. To begin with you may try a guided meditation. One can easily find audios for guided meditation online.
• Proper sleep - I am sorry to say this. Pulling all nighters will not help with your grade. Unless you are getting sufficient restful sleep, you are not going to be as mentally focused as you could be to study as well as answer questions in exams.
• Food for your Brain - The more you use certain skills, the more they are reinforced in the brain. So it makes sense that playing concentration games and games that require you to focus will improve your concentration ability. You need to be consistent in this. Play for about 10 to 20 minutes each day. Have fun, and get the benefits but remember not to spend more than 20 minutes a day. Your goal is to improve your concentration and not just keep scoring higher in the game! Try Lumocity and use only free version this will help you restrict your daily play time to 20 minutes and have maximum benefit.
• Eat healthier - your brain needs the proper nutrients to allow you to focus. Eat more vegetables and fruits and avoid consumption of junk food as much as possible. Instead you could keep some nuts such as walnuts, almond or peanuts as in between munches. Lot of research has now proven that sugar is very harmful for our health. Reduce sugar and refined white flour in your diet as much as you could.
• Exercise - is helpful in both reducing stress and increasing energy and focus. At least 20 minutes a day would go a long way. Going for a short jog of 20 minutes will make next 4-5 hours of study very efficient.

Optimize your mental state and environment:

In addition to building the habits described above into your daily routine; also adjust your environment and your current mental state to improve your concentration when studying.

Create a study space - Your brain loves routine. Create a place where all you do is study. An obvious choice is a secluded desk of some kind, but the trick is to make sure you only study in that spot. Studying in bed is a bad habit, for example, because your body is trained to want to sleep once you get into bed.
Remove distractions - Turn off the ringer on your phone and take other steps to prevent interruptions. Don't study with the television on or with radio playing. Some studies have shown that soft instrumental music (no vocals) can help improve your concentration.
Reduce background noises - If you have to study or work in an environment where it is too loud (classroom or open space) or too quiet (such as at home or at a library) you can get easily distracted by outside influences. With the right amount of background noise you can actually block out distractions and enhance your creative thinking.
Use timer - Set a time limit when you need to study new material. For example, let's say you want to read one chapter in a book (and remember it). Decide in advance that you can have 45 minutes to read the chapter, and 15 minutes to review it. Set a timer to keep yourself honest, then pace yourself to keep within the allotted time.
Stay motivated - If you see studying as burden, it's hard to concentrate. One way to stay motivated is to set up a reward system. Tell yourself you have to earn that hour of watching your favorite show later in the evening by first completing 2-3 hours of intense studying.
That way, even if the material is dry, you have the reward to look forward to.
Take breaks - Take a break every two hours. You mental energy will begin to decline after a long period of study. So every two hours or so, take a ten minute break. Walk around, eat a light snack, or just stare at the wall to relax your mind.
Concentrating is the first step to learning anything new. It only makes sense that if you improve your concentration, your memory will improve also.

How can I help?

If you want to get individualized expert opinion about how you are studying currently and what ways you can improve; book an audio consultation with me. Once I know what your current study methods are, I will be able to give you specific tips to improve upon. Most likely once you incorporate my tips you will be spending less time studying and your grades will improve. That's what is studying smarter and not harder means!!

Are you observing red, crusty patches on the surface of your infant’s skin during his/her first month after birth? This is an indication of infant eczema. It is a dry, itchy skin condition which may occur on any part of your child’s body and is commonly found on the cheeks, legs and arms. This condition is sometimes confused with cradle cap, which is another skin condition.

Causes-

Eczema usually runs in families and is hereditary. If you have eczema, it is likely that your child may have it too. Several problems in the skin barrier allow germs inside and moisture to go out. This is a common cause of eczema in infants. The condition occurs when the body makes insufficient fatty cells or ceramides. When there is not enough of these, the skin loses water and becomes extremely dry.

Does Eczema In Infants Go Away By Itself?

In many cases, infant eczema goes away on its own and most infants outgrow the condition by the time they are ready for school. However, some children do get eczema during their adulthood. This may continue for years without specific symptoms. Such children also tend to have dry skin.

Treatment-

Here are some home treatment options for infant eczema:

1. You should use moisturisers on your child. Moisturisers containing ceramides are a good option, which are available at all over-the-counter (OTC) stores by prescription. You can also opt for good moisturisers, fragrance-free creams and ointments like petroleum jelly. This helps in keeping your baby’s skin in retaining natural moisture. Apply these after a bath.

2. A lukewarm bath is beneficial for your child. It helps in hydrating and cooling the skin. The water should not be very hot and the bath should not exceed 10 minutes. You can also add oatmeal soaking products to your baby’s scrub for soothing itchiness.

3. You must use mild and unscented body soaps for your baby. This is because perfumed, antibacterial and deodorant soaps are rough for your baby’s skin. Scrub some soap on areas of your child’s body where there is dirt, such as the genitals, feet and hand. Do not rub or pat his/her skin.

4. Several medicines are also used for the treatment of infant eczema. These include hydrocortisone creams and ointments, which help in easing inflammation and itching. You should not apply these medicines in excess as they can thin the skin on the affected areas.

You should consult a doctor on observing any signs or symptoms of eczema on your child’s skin. This will help in proper diagnosis of the problem and an early treatment plan will prevent further deterioration of the symptoms.