Blogs | Antarnaad

08-Jun-2022

Steps of Hand-washing!

We have learnt the importance of hand washing in last few years when the COVID 19 pandemic hit us. But how to wash hands properly? Is there a step-wise procedure?

Yes there is a proper and stepwise protocol for washing hands thoroughly.

WHAT IS THE RIGHT WAY?

World Health Organization ( WHO ) and CDC has endorsed a seven step hand-washing procedure:

1. Wet your hands with clean running water.

2. Apply soap in a quantity that can cover all surfaces of your hands and wrists.

3. Rub your hands together and form lather thoroughly. Rub all surfaces of your hands, fingertips, fingernails, and wrists.

4. Rub your hands and wrists for at least 20-30 seconds.

5. Now rinse your hands and wrists under clean, running water.

6. Dry your hands and wrists with a clean tissue or towel.

7. Use the same to turn off the faucet.

There is also a mnemonic used to remember the steps of proper hand-washing. SUMAN-K where :

S stands for seedha( rubbing palms against each other),

U stands for ulta (rubbing back of your hands),

M stands for mutthi (Making a fist),

A stands for angutha ( thumb),

N stands for nakhun( nails), and

K stands for kalai (wrist).

Need more advice or treatment? Many health care experts at Antarnaad are always here to help you out. Antarnaad is a growing network of experienced physiotherapists, dietitians, nutritionists, fitness trainers and Yoga experts providing treatment for all the conditions. For more information visit our website www.antarnaad.net or call our Consultant: Mb: 9899700187

08-Jun-2022

HYPERHIDROSIS: What to Do?

Do you ever feel that you sweat more than other people? Or you feel sweat in your palms? This all can be due to excessive sweating....called HYPERHIDROSIS.

It is a condition in which your body's sweat glands overact without any apparent reason. This can sometimes be embarassing as well!

WHAT CAN BE DONE?

1. Antiperspirant: contains a low dose of metal salt are usually tried first because they are readily available. Antiperspirants containing aluminum chloride may be more effective.

2. Iontophoresis: a device which passes ionized tap water through the skin using direct electricity.

3. Medications: Drugs like Anticholinergics can help in reducing sweating.

4. Botox: Botox- A has been approved by FDA for treating excessive underarm sweating.

5. miraDry: In this technique, microwave energy is used to permanently kill sweat glands.

6. Lasers: Lasers work on the same line as miraDry as it targets and kills the underarm sweat glands.

7. Surgery: Thoracic sympathectomy is considered to be the last treatment approach in extreme cases.

08-Jun-2022

Are Your Feet Healthy?

Everyone wants to have beautiful feet but in today's hectic lifestyle people are constantly in a hurry and travelling here and there that they don't get the time to pamper their feet.

Our feet deserve more than what we give them.

People have cracked heels, tanned feet making our feet look ugly. Can we do something for it? Yes, we can!

WHY DOES IT HAPPEN?

1. Standing for long time duration.

2. Walking barefoot or using footwear that doesn't cover the feet properly.

3. Hot water showers.

4. Using harsh soaps on skin.

5. Living in areas with low humidity and cold temperature.

WHAT CAN BE DONE?

1. Exfoliation: Soak feet in lukewarm water and then gently rub your cracked heels using a pumice stone or loofah. It exfoliates and removes the dead chapped skin from the heels.

2. Moisturization: Next step to heel care is to moisturize using a good quality moisturizer or heel cream after exfoliating. This helps by locking the moisture inside the heels and prevent them from drying and chapping.

3. Liquid bandages: These can used for treating cracked heels by spraying it so that forms a layer on the heels that prevents from further cracks and infections.

4. Home remedies: There are many other home remedies as well that can be used to treat cracked heels including honey, bananas, coconut oil, Shea butter etc.

30-May-2022

Benefits of Rose Water

Rose water is well known for its use in skincare and food. But does rose water has limited use in food and skincare?

Read the article till end to know about all known benefits of rose water.

BENEFITS OF ROSE WATER (apart from food and skincare):

1. For sore throat: Rose water is very good in sore throat. Although research is yet to be done to prove but it has evidences of its effectiveness in sore throat.

2. Treating infections: Rose water has antiseptic and analgesic (pain-killer) properties. So it is used to treat many kind of infections in the body. It is used in many medicines and eye drops to treat conditions like conjunctivitis etc.

3. For burns and scars: Being antiseptic and antibacterial rose water improves healing of wounds. It provides a cooling effect and is very useful in burns.

4. Anti-aging effects: Since we all know the beauty benefits of rose water, it is not surprising to know that rose water is a major ingredient in many anti aging cosmetic products.

5. Enhances mood: Rose water relaxes our central nervous system and has antidepressant property. It automatically enhances the mood and relaxes mind.

6. Improves digestion: Rose water improves bile secretion and reduces digestive upset which helps in enhancing the digestive process.

7. Reduces headache: The aroma of rose water has refreshing and stress releasing effects. It is also proven in studies that rose water can improve headaches.

Hence, we can infer that rose water has so many health benefits that cannot be ignored. So, next time whenever you face any health issues go for trying some natural home remedies.

30-May-2022

Postpartum Care: Why and How?

A child bring with it so many emotions and changes. No doubt that becoming a parent is a wholesome feeling and a huge responsibility but every responsibility bring with it lots of duties. Adjusting to parenthood while maintaining that bond with your partner and at the same time taking care of your health and recovery is not a cake walk!

The period of 6 weeks after the childbirth is known as postpartum period. These 6 weeks are so so important for a mother as it is the time when her body recovers from the changes that happened during pregnancy and delivery. Also it is the time when the mother bonds with her child maintaining other responsibilities.

So here we are listing few things that you can do take care of yourself:

1. Take proper rest: It is very important for a new mom to give her body the rest it deserves after the strenuous process of childbirth. Try sleeping whenever your baby sleeps as you have to stay awake while he or she is awake. Maintain your sleep schedule and keep a track of your physical activity level.

2. Nutrition: Nutrition is as important as any other thing. A proper balanced diet is vital for maintaining mother's health which will ultimately affect your baby's health through breast milk.

3. Exercise: Earlier exercise after childbirth was not considered important but with time people realized its importance in maintaining muscle and bone strength, repairing the pelvic floor, preventing urinary incontinence and postural changes.

4. Don't hesitate to seek help: Many a times new mother's hesitate a lot to ask for help in taking care of themselves or the baby. Don't do this!

Understand one thing that childbirth is not an easy task, your body goes through a lot during it and need proper time and rest to recover from it. So go ahead and ask for help. You deserve it!

23-May-2022

CHOKING: What to Do?

You must have faced a situation where you or someone around you started coughing badly while eating due to food entering into the wind pipe, at least once in your life. But how you handled the situation? Just offering a glass of water or rubbing their back won't help. Read the whole article to learn the first aid of choking.

WHAT IS CHOKING?

First of all it is a medical emergency!

It is the blockage of the body's upper airways which prevents the person from breathing normally. It can cause a cough response and even death if the airways are completely blocked. Blockage can be due to food or some other object.

This happens because our food pipe and windpipe lie adjacent to each other in our body. Wind pipe has a flap like lid that covers it while eating and prevents food from entering the lungs. But when this flap fails to close or opens while eating, it can cause choking.

SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS

For Adults:

1. Strong cough response.

2. Universal choking sign, person who is choking grabs his or her throat using one or both hands.

3. Panic and hand gestures indicating difficulty in breathing.

4. Wheezing or whistle like sound.

5. Inability to speak

6. Bluish discoloration of face.

For Infants:

1. Weak cry

2. Weak cough

3. Difficulty in breathing

FIRST AID FOR ADULTS

Stand behind the choking individual. Make a fist with your one hand and hold it with the other. Your arms should be placed firmly on the person's abdomen just where the ribs end. Now apply a firm force in inward and upward direction.

Keep repeating this until the person starts breathing again or loses his or her consciousness.

FIRST AID FOR INFANTS

Infants should be handled very carefully in cases of choking. One cannot give abdominal thrusts to infants so five back blows should be given after picking them up and then five chest thrusts. The head of the infant should be tilted at such an angle that gravity assists in clearing the airway.

SELF FIRST AID

Many a times the situation can be such that the person getting choked is all alone. In this type of cases it becomes very important to stay calm and try not to panic. One can administer self abdominal thrusts the same way it is done for adults( keep your hands in similar fashion and apply thrust in inward and upward direction). Or you can bend your stomach on a hard object and thrust yourself.

23-May-2022

Importance of Exercises in Osteoporosis

Osteoporosis is the mixture of ostoen that is bones and porosis that is pores. So basically, osteoporosis is increased pores in bones or decreased bone density. The body reabsorbs more bone and produces less so the equilibrium is not there. Females are more prone to this problem specially after menopause.

The bones become weak and porous and are thus prone to fractures. Osteoporosis usually develops slowly and remain undiagnosed till the person gets a fracture after a minor injury or fall.

Treatment can be given to reduce pain, prevent fractures, slow down the progression of the disease and maintain activity level.

PRIMARY OSTEOPOROSIS

Osteoporosis that develops due to no definite cause but contribution of many factors like estrogen deficiency, adrenal dysfunction or prolonged negative calcium balance.

SECONDARY OSTEOPOROSIS

It develops as a result of side effects of medications after prolonged use or some other condition that hinders calcium absorption in the body.

PHYSIOTHERAPY IN OSTEOPOROSIS

1. Weight-bearing exercises: Exercises like walking and hopping acts by maintaining and improving the bone density. Weights and resistance bands can be used to strengthen the muscles and increasing bone density at specific muscle attachments.

2. Flexibility increasing exercises: It helps in improving functional activity and postural control of the body. It also helps in reducing the risk of falls by improving postural control.

3. To improve posture: Exercises and stretching can help in improving the posture and preventing and correcting deformities.

PRECAUTIONS TO BE TAKEN

1. Wear good and flat footwear to avoid falls.

2. Regular eye check-ups.

3. Proper lighting at home and staircase.

4. Have a well balanced diet rich in calcium and vitamin D.

15-May-2022

Lockjaw: What to Do?

Lockjaw or trismus is the spasm of jaw muscles that affect the jaw movements. People who suffer from this condition are not able to wide open their mouth. The cause of this condition can be medication side effects, injury to muscles, ligaments, tendons or nerve.

It can also occur due to temporomandibular joint disorders and infections.

In this condition, the person can not open their mouth more than 35 mm which is equal to 3 fingers width

SYMPTOMS OF LOCKJAW

Symptoms can include:

1. Inability to completely open the mouth

2. Jaw pain

3. Headache

4. Pain in the ear

5. Stiffness in the neck muscles

6. Inflammation of oral cavity

7. Dry mouth

8. Difficulty in eating

9. Grinding of teeth

10. Dental problems due to ineffective brushing of teeth.

11. Facial swelling

MANAGEMENT OF LOCKJAW

MEDICATIONS:

1. Muscle relaxants can be given to relieve muscle spasm and thus unlock the jaw.

Commonly, Botox injection is given to relax the spasm.

2. Aspirin can also be used to relieve pain.

PHYSIOTHERAPY TREATMENT:

1. Heat can be used as a way to reduce muscle spasm.

2. Massage: It improve blood to the jaw and relaxes the chewing muscles.

3. Exercises: Stretching and strengthening exercises can aid in relief from lockjaw by releasing it.

4. Devices: There are devices available in the market like bite openers, mouth openers, tongue blades etc that can be used to reduce the symptoms and complications of lockjaw.

15-May-2022

Benefits of Coconut Water

Coconut has become a very popular drink in the recent years due to it's health benefits and almost zero side effects. It's found to be safe and healthy for almost everyone from kids to aged people. Seeing the harmful effects of aerated beverages, coconut water is a great replacement to them.

Here we are stating 10 amazing health benefits of coconut water that will make you go out and buy or order one for yourself right away.

HEALTH BENEFITS OF COCONUT WATER:

1. Aids in hydration: Coconut water is a great source of hydration as it is healthy, tasty as well as contains so many electrolytes that if drunk in hot summer, it can prevent from dehydration.

2. Improves skin health: Dehydration can lead to unhealthy and dry skin. Coconut water replenishes the lost hydration and provide vitamin C and antioxidants that helps in collagen synthesis making skin healthy and look radiant.

3. Improves digestion: Coconut water is both a source of hydration as well as magnesium. Magnesium is the element that prevent constipation and improves digestion.

4. Post workout recovery: Coconut water is a great source of carbohydrates, potassium, magnesium and various other nutrients. It helps a lot in post workout recovery by maintaining the fluid balance in the body and reducing lactic acid accumulation in the body.

5. Reduce chances of developing cardiovascular problems: Potassium is very important for maintenance of our heart health and coconut water is a great source of it. Drinking coconut water prevents against various heart problems and stroke.

6. Controls weight: Drinking coconut water can help in reducing the calorie intake as sometimes we mistake thirst for hunger. Also it is a great replacement of carbonated drinks that are unhealthy and makes one obese.

7. Hangover management: Drinking too much alcohol can make you feel dehydrated and foggy next day. Coconut water being a good source of nutrients can quench your thirst as well as prevent electrolyte imbalance.

8. Good for diabetics: Since glycemic index of coconut water is very low, diabetics can also consume it. But do consult your doctor before adding anything to your diet.

9. Urine infection cure: Coconut water has diuretic properties which can help in removing out toxins from body through urine and prevent infections.

10. Adds nutritional value: Adding coconut water to your diet is a great option as it has very good nutritional value and various health benefits.