World Oral Health Day

Who doesn’t love a sparkling smile and a set of healthy teeth?

But with unhealthy eating habits and a lazy attitude towards dental hygiene this is a dream for many. There are billions of bacteria living inside our mouths at any given time. Many of these bacteria build up as plaque, causing tooth decay (cavities) and gingivitis, which can lead to periodontal (gum) disease. For a healthy smile, you must practice good oral hygiene every day. A good oral hygiene means you can chew well and can avoid toothaches and discomfort.

Here are a few simple ways to maintain good oral hygiene:

1. Start children early. One in four young children develops signs of tooth decay before they start school. Half of all children between the ages of 12 and 15 have cavities. Dental care should begin as soon as a child’s first tooth appears, usually around six months.

2.Use enough — but not too much — fluoride. The use of fluoride helps strengthen enamel, making it less likely to decay. Many toothpastes and mouth rinses contain fluoride.

3. Brush twice a day and floss daily. Gum disease and tooth decay remain big problems for all age groups. Here are a few things to take care:

• Toothbrushes should be changed 3 to 4 times a year.
• Teenagers with braces need special toothbrushes and other oral hygiene tools, consult your orthodontist.

4. Rinse after meals. In addition to brushing and flossing, rinsing your mouth with an antibacterial rinse can help prevent decay and gum problems.

5. Block blows to teeth. Sports and recreational activities build healthy bodies, but they can pose a threat to teeth. Consult your dentist for more details on a mouth guard for contact sports activities.

6. Don’t smoke or use smokeless tobacco. Tobacco stains teeth and significantly increases the risk of gum disease and oral cancer. If you smoke or use chewing tobacco, quit it.

7. Eat smart. At every age, a healthy diet is essential to healthy teeth and gums. A well-balanced diet of whole foods — including grains, nuts, fruits and vegetables, and dairy products — will provide all the nutrients you need..

Most Common Dental Problems

Here is a list of common dental health problems suffered by many:

1. Bad Breath

Bad breath, also called halitosis, can be downright embarrassing. According to dental studies, about 85 percent of people with persistent bad breath have a dental condition that is to blame. Gum disease, cavities, oral cancer, dry mouth, and bacteria on the tongue are some of the dental problems that can cause bad breath. A mouthwash helps cover up breath temporarily, consult a dentist for chronic bad breath.

2. Tooth Decay

Tooth decay occurs when plaque, the sticky substance that forms on teeth, combines with the sugars and/or starches of the food you eat. This combination produces acids that attack tooth enamel. As you age, you can develop cavities as your tooth enamel erodes. Dry mouth due to age or medications can also lead to cavities.

3. Gum (Periodontal) Disease

Gum disease, also known as periodontal disease, is an infection of the gums surrounding the teeth. It is also one of the main causes of tooth loss among adults. Smoking, diabetes and dry mouth also increase your risk of a gum disease. The symptoms include bad breath, red, swollen, tender, or bleeding gums, sensitive teeth, and painful chewing.

4. Oral Cancer

Oral cancer is a serious and deadly disease that affects millions of people. It is most often seen in people over the age of 40. The biggest risk factors are tobacco and alcohol use, including chewing tobacco.

5. Mouth Sores

There are several types of mouth sores and they can be pesky and bothersome. Unless a mouth sore lasts more than two weeks, it is usually nothing to worry about and will disappear on its own.

6. Tooth Erosion

Tooth erosion is the loss of tooth structure and is caused by acid attacking the enamel. Tooth erosion signs and symptoms can range from sensitivity to more severe problems such as cracking. Tooth erosion is more common than people might think, but it can also be easily prevented.

7. Tooth Sensitivity

Tooth sensitivity is a common problem that affects millions of people. Basically, tooth sensitivity involves experiencing pain or discomfort to your teeth from sweets, cold air, hot drinks, cold drinks or ice cream. It also causes discomfort from brushing and flossing.

8. Toothaches and Dental Emergencies

Having a dental emergency can be very painful and scary. Common problems that require an urgent trip to your dentist include a broken or cracked tooth, an abscessed tooth, or a tooth knocked out in an accident.

9. Unattractive Smile

While an unattractive smile is not technically a "dental problem," it is a major reason why many patients seek dental treatment. An unattractive smile can really lower a person’s self-esteem. Whether it’s teeth whitening, dental implants, orthodontics or other cosmetic dental work, chances are that your dentist can give you the smile of your dreams.

How can I prevent tooth decay?

The best way to prevent tooth decay and remove plaque is by brushing and cleaning between your teeth every day.  

Proper Brushing and Flossing Techniques:

Brushing

• Place your toothbrush at a 45-degree angle against the gums.
• Move the brush back and forth gently in short (tooth-wide) strokes.
• Brush the outer tooth surfaces, the inner tooth surfaces, and the chewing surfaces of the teeth.
• Use the tip of the brush to clean the inside surfaces of the front teeth, using a gentle up-and-down stroke.
• Brush your tongue to remove bacteria and freshen your breath.

Flossing

• Break off about 18 inches of floss and wind it around the middle fingers of each hand. Hold the floss tightly between your thumbs and forefingers.
• Guide the floss between your teeth using a gentle rubbing motion.
• When the floss reaches the gum line, curve it into a C shape against one tooth. Gently slide it into the space between the gum and the tooth.
• Bring the floss back toward the contact point between the teeth and move the floss up or down the other side, conforming the floss to the shape of the tooth.

Use mouth rinse for added protection

Antimicrobial mouth rinses reduce bacteria and plaque activity, which cause gingivitis and gum disease. Fluoride mouth rinses also help reduce and prevent tooth decay but are not recommended for kids 6 years and younger.

Are you or a family member suffering from a dental condition. Consult dentists at Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital for the best dental advice and treatments. Please find below link for more details:

https://www.kokilabenhospital.com/departments/clinicaldepartments/dentalsurgery.html

Is your health your priority?

Or does it come after your kids, work, family and home responsibilities?

Personal health takes a backseat for most women, with their hectic schedule of taking care of work, home, and all the people in their lives. This Women’s Day, make a positive change yourself and encourage around you to make “health” a priority. Ignoring health and living an unhealthy lifestyle can have bad repercussions on your health.

Here are some simple steps that’ll boost your health:

• Manage stress better – Stress is a part of everyday life while managing work, home chores, children responsibilities as well as social commitments. Plan in advance and learn to prioritize. Take some time out to meditate or practise yoga to deal with stress effectively. Setting aside even 10 minutes will help you relaxed, it helps deal with stress better leaves you calmer to start the next day.
• Quit fad diets – Fad diets don’t work and may do more harm to your body. Instead, focus on eating healthy foods of all varieties in moderate quantities. Cut down on salt and sugar intake, fried foods and processed foods and take out time for a fitness class.
• Choose the right fats – Avoid vanaspati (trans fatty acids), decrease refined oil content in your diet and add some ghee and coconut oil which are good fats to your diet.
• Attend menstrual discomfort – If you are facing irregular periods, heavy bleeding or severe period pain then it needs the attention of a gynaecologist. Do not take it lightly as this directly affects your reproductive health.
• Eat fresh – Eat home cooked meals as fresh food is richer in nutrients, antioxidants, vitamins and micro-nutrients when compared to preserved and packaged food. Choose natural foods, seasonal fruits and vegetables, whole grains, high-fiber greens, and leaner cuts of meat instead.
• Get enough sleep – The function of sleep is to not only to relax the body but also to rest and restore the mind. It is necessary to heal and repair your heart and blood vessels. Commit to sleeping a minimum of seven hours a day while aiming for eight, and you will feel yourself getting healthier and happier in a short amount of time.
• Say goodbye to sugar – Research suggests that eating too much sugar has serious ramifications on your health. From weight gain to high levels of cholesterol and blood sugar, sugar intake has been linked to a number of avoidable health issues.
• Stay hydrated – If you tend to forget to drink water through the day, make your bottle of water more visible. Keep it on your desk or in your room. Your goal is simply to finish drinking at least eight glasses or two litres of water in the course of the day.
• Do not skip meals – There will always be meetings and busy schedules to contend with. However, it is important to ensure that your daily schedule does not take time away from your meals.
• Exercise regularly – Whether you choose to take a walk, start your day with yoga routines, hit the gym for some strength training, or join an aerobics class adding a little bit of exercise to your daily routine can help reduce your cortisol levels. Daily activity will boost the health of your body as well as your mind.

Medical tests

Women’s bodies go through so much, from hormonal ups and downs to childbirth and menopause. Today’s fast-paced lifestyles only add more hurdles when it comes to maintaining a healthy daily routine. Regular screening ensures that any health issues are identified early. Being proactive regarding your health can prevent several health problems. We highly recommend that women must take these routine medical screening tests once they have crossed 35 years of age:

1. Pelvic Examination

It is always advisable that you visit your Gynaecologist periodically and have a complete pelvic examination and a Pap smear test. Cervical cancer is a leading cause of death amongst women in India.

2. Breast Examination

Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer deaths in India despite being easily identifiable. It is recommended that every woman should regularly undergo breast cancer screening with a mammogram. Early detection ensures better chances of recovery. Complete breast self-examination is also recommended every month. Examine your breasts for pain, tenderness, lump, thickening, or any discharge. Talk to your doctor if you spot anything unusual.

3. Bone Density Test

Osteoporosis is a common degenerative condition of the bones where vital minerals like calcium leach from the bones making them weak and brittle. This condition affects 80% of women and aggravates dramatically after a woman achieves menopause. This happens due to declining levels of hormone estrogen which plays a protective role on bones in women. Hence a bone density test helps to detect your bone condition.

4. Thyroid Test

Many women complain of unexplained weight gain, hair loss, brittle nails, and exhaustion. A common reason for this is an underactive thyroid or hypothyroidism which controls the metabolism of the body. Get your thyroid levels checked.

5. Diabetes Screening

A blood sugar test helps to diagnose diabetes and pre-diabetes. Diabetes is becoming an epidemic and is being detected at a much younger age than before. Diabetes has a tremendous impact on a woman’s health and has severe long-term complications. This test is recommended if you are overweight or are pregnant, have high blood pressure, or a strong family history of diabetes.

6. Lipid Profile Tests

This test checks for good and bad cholesterol along with triglycerides and total cholesterol levels. Cholesterol is a fat molecule, which is present in higher levels can get accumulated in the blood vessels and can affect the health of your heart, blood vessels, and brain.

7. Vitamin D Test

This is a vital nutrient needed for bone growth and maintenance. The most important source of vitamin D is exposure to the sun. Fatty fishes and fortified dairy products are also a good source. As we age, the tendency to synthesise this nutrient decreases.

8. Heart-Health Test

Sixty-four per cent of women who die from sudden cardiac death have no previous symptoms of this disease. The symptoms of heart disease also differ from men to women. Get your cardiac check-up done if you have a family history of hypertension, heart disease or if you’re overweight, or if you are a smoker.

From pregnancy to childbirth, menopause to cancer, as well as many other women’s health conditions is attended at Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital. Consult our experts, please visit the below website for more details:

https://www.kokilabenhospital.com/

What is Infertility?

Infertility can take a toll on your life emotionally and may hamper your relationship with your spouse too. Most people will have a strong desire to conceive a child at some point during their lifetime. Understand what defines normal fertility, this helps you know when to seek medical help. Approximately 85 % of couples will achieve pregnancy within one year of trying. Infertility is defined when couples are unable to conceive a child, even though they’ve had frequent, unprotected sexual intercourse for a year or longer. Up to 15 per cent of couples are infertile. In over a third of these couples, male infertility plays a role.

Infertility can be caused due to factors affecting the female or the male partner.

Female Infertility

Here are a few common reasons in women that lead to Infertility:

1) Advancing maternal age: Female age-related infertility is the most common cause of infertility today. For unknown reasons, as women age, egg numbers decrease at a rapid rate. And as ageing occurs, egg quality, or the likelihood of an egg being genetically normal, decreases as well.

2) Ovulation disorders: Normal and regular ovulation, or release of a mature egg, is essential for women to conceive naturally. There are many disorders that may impact the ability for a woman to ovulate normally.

3) Tubal occlusion (blockage): A history of sexually transmitted infections including chlamydia, gonorrhea, or pelvic inflammatory disease can predispose a woman to have blocked fallopian tubes. Tubal occlusion is a cause of infertility because an ovulated egg is unable to be fertilized by sperm or to reach the endometrial cavity.

4) Uterine fibroids: Fibroids are very common (approximately 40% of women may have them) and the mere presence alone does not necessarily cause infertility. The size and position of the fibroid determine its effects on your pregnancy.

5) Endometrial polyps: Endometrial polyps are finger-like growths in the uterine cavity arising from the lining of the uterus, called the endometrium. They can decrease fertility by up to 50% according to some studies.

6) Endometriosis: Endometriosis is a condition whereby cells very similar to the ones lining the uterine cavity, or endometrium, are found outside the uterine cavity. It is found in approximately 10-50% of reproductive-aged women and can be associated with infertility as well as pain during intercourse and/or menstrual periods.

Quick Facts About Infertility

• Infertility is a disease of the reproductive system that impairs the body’s ability to perform the basic function of reproduction.
• Infertility affects men and women equally.
• Twenty-five per cent of infertile couples have more than one factor that contributes to their infertility.
• In approximately 40 per cent of infertile couples, the male partner is either the sole cause or a contributing cause of infertility.
• Irregular or abnormal ovulation accounts for approximately 25 per cent of all female infertility problems.
• Most infertility cases — 85% to 90% — are treated with conventional medical therapies such as medication or surgery.
• It is possible for women with body weight disorders to reverse their infertility by attaining and maintaining a healthy weight.
• Men and Women who smoke have decreased fertility.
• The risk of miscarriage is higher for pregnant women who smoke.

Male Infertility:

Male infertility is due to erectile dysfunction, low sperm production, abnormal sperm function or blockages that prevent the delivery of sperm. Illnesses, injuries, hormonal imbalances, chronic health problems, lifestyle choices and other factors can play a role in causing male infertility. The semen analysis is one of the main tests to evaluate the male partner.

Factors that determine male fertility:

• You must produce healthy sperms and sufficient semen volume.
• There needs to be higher sperm concentration to increase chances of conception.
• Sperm must have the motility to be able to move for conception to happen.
• The sperm morphology or shape determines its ability to fertilize the egg.

Risk factors linked to male infertility include:

• Smoking tobacco.
• Using alcohol.
• Using certain illicit drugs.
• Being overweight.
• Being severely depressed or stressed.
• Having certain past or present infections.
• Being exposed to toxins.
• Overheating the testicles.
• Having experienced trauma to the testicles.
• Having a prior vasectomy or major abdominal or pelvic surgery.
• Having a history of undescended testicles.
• Being born with a fertility disorder or having a blood relative with a fertility disorder.
• Certain medications.

Fertility treatments for females:

• Fertility drugs and hormones to help the woman ovulate or restore levels of hormones.
• Surgery to remove tissue that is blocking fertility (such as endometriosis) or to open blocked fallopian tubes.

Here are a few assisted reproductive technology or ART treatments used for male as well as female infertility problems:

• IUI (intrauterine insemination): Sperm is collected and the placed directly inside the woman’s uterus while she is ovulating.
• IVF (in vitro fertilization): The sperm and egg are collected and brought together in a lab. The fertilized egg grows for 3 to 5 days. Then the embryo is placed in the woman’s uterus.
• GIFT (gamete intrafallopian transfer) and ZIFT (zygote intrafallopian transfer): The sperm and egg are collected, brought together in a lab, and quickly placed in a fallopian tube. With GIFT, the sperm and eggs are placed into the fallopian tube. With ZIFT, a fertilized egg is placed into the tube at 24 hours.

Are you getting sleepless nights due to your infertility issues?

Are you waiting for your parenting journey to start?

Consult our Reproductive Endocrinologists for in-depth knowledge of your medical condition and how best it can be overcome. Our team offers the latest fertility treatments along with counselling support. Please find below link for further details:

https://www.kokilabenhospital.com/departments/clinicaldepartments/reproductiveendocrinologyfertility/reproductiveendocrinologyandinfertilityrei.html