Hypertension
second largest killer of pregnant women
A study conducted by the BMC has
revealed that hypertension is the second-largest killer of pregnant women,
claiming more victims than even tuberculosis and sepsis (a life threatening
ailment that can occur when the body reacts to an infection). Excessive
bleeding was found to have caused the deaths of maximum pregnant women.
According to data collected by the civic body, out of the 248 pregnant women who died in the city's hospitals from April 2012 to January 2013, most (11 per cent) died due to excessive bleeding during and after childbirth and hepatitis, followed by 10 per cent due to hypertension, tuberculosis (8 per cent)and sepsis (5 per cent).The remaining were attributed to other medical conditions.
Hypertension affects a woman's organs during pregnancy. However, what medical experts dread is the onset of a serious condition called 'Preeclampsia', where the woman starts passing protein in her urine. The condition can affect the placenta as well as other vital organs like the kidneys, liver, and brain. It can also lead to convulsions or seizures. Medical experts pointed out that while there were cases of women have pre-existing hypertension (or high blood pressure), in a majority of the cases, they developed it during their pregnancy. "Pregnancy in many ways alters the mechanism of controlling blood pressure. Soone has to keep a constant watch on the patient's blood pressure," said Dr Y M Nandanwar, head of the gynaecology department of Sion Hospital, which performs 12,000 deliveries a year, the highest in the city.
According to Dr Nandanwar, while BMC's data gave an overall picture, 50 per cent of the pregnant women coming to Sion hospital had hypertension.
According to gynaecologist Dr Suchitra Pandit, attached to Kokilaben Ambani Hospital, early detection is the best way to prevent maternal deaths resulting from hypertension. "Constantly monitoring blood pressure and maintaining a chart would beideal.If the mother has a history on hypertension during the first birth, doctors can administer a low dose aspirin, which is an anti-platelet drug during her second pregnancy to delay the onset of severe hypertension," said Pandit. Blood pressure can also be controlled through lifestyle changes like reducing salt intake and exercise, advised Dr Nandanwar.
01.04.2013
Chewing gum
could make you fat
A
new study has found chewing gum could make people fat since its minty taste
makes sugary food more tempting. Scientists found people given to chew gum eat
higher calorie sweet foods. This is because the chemical responsible for the
minty flavour of gum makes savoury foods, especially fruit and vegetables,
taste unpleasant, Daily Mail reported.
The
study’s co-author Christine Swoboda, a doctoral candidate in nutrition at Ohio
State University, told LiveScience website: ‘The chemical change is the same
reason why when you brush your teeth and then drink orange juice, it tastes
bad. ‘We were also interested in seeing whether this helps with weight loss.’
Swoboda and her colleague Jennifer Temple of the University of Buffalo,
enrolled 44 volunteers for their study and asked each candidate to play a game
in exchange for food.
Some
played for pieces of fruit, while others played for crisps and sweets.
Before participating in the experiment, half of the volunteers had chewed either fruit gum or mint gum. During an experiment, the volunteers were asked to keep a food diary. For a part of the time, the volunteers were asked to chew mint gum before meals, while for the rest of the time they were simply asked to note down their food intake.
Before participating in the experiment, half of the volunteers had chewed either fruit gum or mint gum. During an experiment, the volunteers were asked to keep a food diary. For a part of the time, the volunteers were asked to chew mint gum before meals, while for the rest of the time they were simply asked to note down their food intake.
The
food diaries showed while chewing gum, people ate fewer meals but that they did
not consume fewer calories as a result. Swoboda said the explanation could be
that the menthol in mint interacts with nutrients in fruits and vegetables to
create a bitter flavour and that this was making healthy food seem unappealing.
01.04.2013
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