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12 Eye Care Tips from Lessons Learned: Doc Who Wears Specs

By Dr.Amrita Basu(MBBS,MS) on October 16, 2017 37

I started wearing specs from just before my 12 th board exams.Whether it was my book reading habit or my food habits it was a surprise.As you can guess the first pair of corrective glasses were a full cover, perfect prescription glasses, which didn’t care about style.I was worried.Could I be a doctor?Could I be a surgeon?

I have good news. Yes is the answer to both.Your eyes are an important part of how happy and healthy you are .They are a mirror to your soul and also to your health.Obesity, diabetes, hypertension, stress, poor diet all can dim your lovely eyes .

These are my 12 eye care tips for keeping your lovely sparkling eyes sparkling forever.The lessons which I learned from med school and life!

#1 Be careful of your screen time.

#2 If you use spectacles or contact lenses get your eyes checked regularly on time.

#3 Contact lens care should be diligently followed.Avoid going into the pool with your contact lens on.Its better to wear specs if you are planning on bursting crackers.Smoke and particulate matter can make an eye wearing contact lens have serious problems.Keep your hands clean while putting on and taking of contact lens.Avoid touching them while traveling and with unwashed hands.Never sleep with your contact lens on.Always blink often when you wear contact lens.Use the best type suitable for your eyes and condition.I prefer disposable ones.

#4 Avoid expired makeup for your eyes.It can cause serious problems.

#5While using your computer follow these tips to avoid computer strain.It affects a lot of other things not just your eyes.

#6 Follow Lifestyle rules to prevent avoidable blindness.Diabetes is a major cause of avoidable blindness.It can spoil not only your eyes but every part of your body.

#7 Stop smoking.This helps in slowing down the age-related eye changes.

#8 Maintain the right body weight.Did you know obesity can change your refractive error?Children have changing refraction due to growing age, but this gets worse with fluctuating body weight and childhood obesity.Adults with the problem of obesity may be at risk for diabetes and have a higher risk of fluctuating eyesight.

#9 Have food rich in eye-friendly nutrients.Eat right and keep your sight right!

There is research backed scientific evidence to show that antioxidants in diet will help to reduce risk of age-related eye diseases

Nutrients for eye #BuildingBlocksofNutrition

Most important are vitamins C and E, β-carotene, zinc, lutein, zeaxanthin, and the omega-3 fatty acids eicosapentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid.

Download my book which tells you which fruits have the best vitamins.Its free today!

Egg yolk and maize (corn) have highest mole percentage (% of total) of lutein and zeaxanthin (more than 85% of the total carotenoids). Maize is the vegetable with the highest quantity of lutein (60% of total) and orange pepper is the vegetable with the highest amount of zeaxanthin (37% of total). Significant amount of lutein and zeaxanthin (30-50%) were also present in kiwi fruit, grapes, spinach, orange juice, zucchini (or vegetable marrow), and different types of squash

The best idea is to include different colored fruits and vegetables consumed to increase dietary lutein and zeaxanthin.This article is very helpful.

A balanced healthy diet includes a variety of fresh seasonal fruits and vegetables, pulses, lean meats(organic and grass fed is best), fish, nuts and plenty of water.

These are the sources of the many vitamins and minerals your body needs to fight against age-related eye problems, lifestyle diseases cancer and cardiovascular disease.

12 Eye Care Tips from Lessons Learned Doc Who Wears Specs

#10 The backstory about your family’s eye health can help your doctor understand your problem better.Some eye conditions are hereditary.So you need to know the conditions which you are at higher risk for.This helps in modifying lifestyle accordingly.An important lifestyle condition like diabetes has serious eye conditions associated with it.If your family has a history of diabetes, take care to eat right, exercise and get health check-ups regularly which includes eye tests.

#11 Buy those pretty shades: Your sunglasses are not only your style statement but also helps protect your eyes against harmful ultraviolet rays.Look for ones that block 99 to 100 percent of both UV-A and UV B ultaraviolet rays.They are necessary expenses to keep your eyes healthy and strong.

#12 Rest those beautiful eyes.Look at green plants, meditate, splash water and don’t forget to breathe deep.Avoid stress to your eyes .Theres a lot more to see!

References:

1) Clin Interv Aging. 2013; 8: 741–748.
Published online 2013 Jun 19. doi: 10.2147/CIA.S45399 Pubmed

2)Nutrients for the aging eye
Helen M Rasmussen1 and Elizabeth J Johnson2 Pubmed

3)Fruits and vegetables that are sources for lutein and zeaxanthin: the macular pigment in human eyes
O. Sommerburg, J. Keunen, A. Bird, and F. J G M van Kuijk Pubmed

I am taking part in The Write Tribe Problogger October 2017 Blogging Challenge .Have you joined?

#writebravely #writetribeproblogger

Google Analytics:Easy set up guide for mompreneurs

Step 1 :

Make a GA account with your email which you use for the blog.

Step 2

First time setup, you will be asked to add your website details and your personal details to get started.

Already have an account?

Step 3

In the GA dashboard on left-hand side, there’s a menu bar.Scroll to the bottom till you can’t scroll anymore.

You will see the admin icon at the end.

Click on it .

Click on admin tab > select account and click on add new property.

Step 4

On the next page you need to add your website details to get the tracking code.

Step 5

Click on Get tracking ID and you will be moved to the page with tracking ID for your website.

GA Tracking info the UA number and the code

The tracking code is a piece of code which helps google know what’s happening on your site .Who visits it ,from where,what they like and more fun stuff .You will know that your audience is real.

More tweaks are needed .But this is the first step.

The UA code is one at the top (mine is covered behind the greenbox) and the code you need to insert is in the box below

What to do after you get the tracking ID ?

You have to put it in your site’s theme header

Plugins Method (Recommended) if you want the easiest way.

There are tons of plugins available to add Google Analytics to your site. However, it is best to just use a simple light-weight plugin like:

Insert Header and Footer(Check compatibility with blog)

Paste the Google Analytics code in the plugin’s setting page.

In the Header box .

Second method Direct Paste Method

Copy the code that you received, and paste it in your theme’s header.php right after the <body> tag.

Try this if you are confident and have no plans of changing themes.

Warning : Take a full backup of your site before you do anything with your blog theme.

You can also take a backup from your Cpanel dashboard.

How do you know GA set up properly?

With real-time traffic info.

Go to your blog .Keep the tab open

Sign it to GA. Go to properties.View(In a seperate tab)

Select reporting real time ,then overview.If you are getting real time data.That means you are being GAd

The easiest way: Open your blog (not WP dashboard) look for page source (Ctrl+u) and look for GA code. If its there, it works !

Disclaimer : Kindly try this only if you are confident and have someone to manage the backend if needed.

Childhood Hearing Loss: Act Now Here is How!

By Dr.Amrita Basu(MBBS,MS) on October 13, 2017 34

Does Your Child Have a Hearing Problem?

Unlikely right?Not really. Hearing problem is the top cause of the sensory deficit. It also ranks as the second commonest disability in India. Four in every 1000 children are suffering from severe to profound hearing loss. That’s, not a good number. That’s also only half the story.

Also, that’s only half the story.

There are unfortunately few government centers for teaching the hearing challenged and rehabilitation. The even bigger problem the awareness level for early detection and treatment is woefully lacking.

When the child hears, the sound signal is carried to the brain via nerves. The brain on receiving the sound makes it understandable and coordinates with the speech centres for the needful.If the brain receives no or low sound, speech is difficult and may be impossible. Even if the speech mechanism is working fine, they never speak.t

The brain doesn’t know what to speak! It has never heard you see! We learn languages by hearing and understanding.For a hearing challenged brain, it simphealthwealthbridge.com/cochlear-implantwhat-you-need-to-know-part1ly doesn’t know.

WHO survey about causes of hearing loss

Ear wax: reversible hearing loss.
Middle ear infections
Genetic causes, of congenital hearing loss: About 50% of all cases of congenital hearing loss are due to environmental factors, congenital hyperbilirubinemia, ototoxic medication exposure, neonatal hypoxia, viral infections, and meningitis. Rest 50% are genetic causes.

Children having birth trauma, maternal TORCH infection(Toxoplasmosis, Rubella, Cytomegalovirus, Herpes can all cause severe congenital hearing loss)

3 Things you should know about hearing loss in children

Early detection is very important.

If a child suffers from severe neonatal jaundice, with Neonatal intensive care unit admission, meningitis , and other traumatic birth events, are all risk factors for hearing loss.

The family history of the similar problem, in parents or in another sibling to be ruled out.Consanguinity is also an important factor to be kept in mind . Especially for hereditary and genetic causes.

How is early detection possible?

At the hospital during NICU admission for meningitis etc.
At the high-risk baby clinic
Child development clinic
At home with a high level of suspicion

It may be done with the screening bedside Otoacoustic emission testing.If this shows abnormality a BERA test (brain stem evoke audiometry ) is done. Both these tests are non-invasive with no discomfort to the child and help to identify whether sound waves are reaching the brain.

At home, parents need to be aware: How can you know?

Does she startle on hearing a loud sound?
Does the doorbell wake her up?
Whether baby turns head toward your voice(at 8 to 12 weeks)

BERA test: Studies recommend at least six months as the earliest age when results will help us . By 9 months we can be sure that there’s a problem.

Treatment options for hearing loss

Childhood Hearing Loss -Act Now Here is How!

The isolated hearing loss in children has excellent chances of rehabilitation.Cochlear Implant can restore the gift of sound, to both congenital hearing loss and sensorineural hearing loss due to other causes.

Hearing loss due to middle ear infections will need ear surgeries for removing ear infections. Hearing rehabilitation in these cases can be through surgery or a hearing aid. A cochlear implant in these cases is also considered.Ear wax is easily cleaned using ear drops as prescribed by your ENT specialist.

A hearing aid helps in augmenting hearing in children. This is important. If the hearing is not augmented, the remaining hearing may suffer untimely damage. Disuse atrophy for nerves is a real danger.So never delay. The magic is in the timing of intervention.I wrote about who needs a cochlear implant here. You can learn about the need for careful selection to help more people, on time.

Do not delay and avoid indigenous experiments. This only serves to delay the process.

The brain has maximal plasticity for 2 years to 1000 days. To some extent, up to 7 years of age. The quicker we diagnose and rehabilitate, the better it is. Rehabilitation needs a lot of patience. It’s not magic, but prayers always help.

Some problems which make this a challenge:

Parents find out too late. The child is already around 2 to 3 years when parents start worrying about speech delay. The best way to avoid the loss of golden time is universal screening at birth. That’s the best way to catch the problem early and help them.

Cochlear implant :What you need to know Part 1

Cochlear implant: Who needs it?

Childhood Hearing Loss: Act Now Here is How!

#ThankfulThursday:One Social Media which Helped Me Grow Effortlessly

By Dr.Amrita Basu(MBBS,MS) on October 12, 2017 3

One of the biggest reason for writing thank you posts every week is to make it a habit.Our bodies and minds respond well to system and habits.We know Monday starts with #MondayMommyMoments and on Thursday we have #ThankfulThursdays and Saturday calls for weekend fun.

Today we are writing about our favorite social media. For me it’s twitter .[bctt tweet=”I am a twitter girl forever #ThankfulThursdays #Thankful for @Twitter” username=”misra_amrita”]

But Pinterest is a close second.

I am relatively new on twitter. Though I started the account when I launched my blog 3 years back.Ir was only during the #MyFriendAlexa campaign 1.0 in 2016 that I started tweeting.There has been no looking back.

What I love about twitter

It’s no-nonsense .fuss free easy to manage and maneuver even for the total greenhorn .

All my online friends are on twitter .I found some of the most suppotive men and women right here with the blue bird.
Its super fun doing twitterchats when the topic is interesting.Its like a party onlyy online.Everything moves fast but the fun is in the extract !

Its alive !
Yes, it’s truly madly vibrantly alive, breathing and pretty crazy sometimes.

All the biggies in politics, entertainment, sports are on twitter and often behind their own handle.The only social media where you might have a chance to connect with the biggies in your industry .

Its great for bloggers.My second biggest traffic source is twitter .I have so much fun with twitter that its no trouble sharing others work and your own .Its analytics are also great.
Its great to curate topics depending on #hashtags .It helps you find important events happening and news, very much in real-time.It’s a wonderful way to connect with brands .It also has great contests .

Its great for earning .Yes you can host sponsored twitter chats .Promote a brand .Run a contest,giveaway announce products.One of the easiest ways to monetize your social media presence is twitter. I use the Skreem app for this.(recommended by Utpal Krishna @foodietweeter ).

Favourite Twitter chats are:
#Bufferchat and #Blogchatter on Wednedays
Unique contest on Twitter: #Tiniature
Other twitter chats I have heard great things about
#SocialChat – Mondays
#BlogElevated – Mondays
#BufferChat – Wednesdays
#SproutChat – Wednesdays
#TwitterSmarter Thursdays
#ViralChat – Thursdays
#MediaChat – Thursdays

I schedule a lot of my work .That way I am free to tweet for fun .My favourite scheduling twitter tool are

Recurpost
Buffer
Hootsuite

Now exploring commun.it !It’s good to learn new stuff which makes life better !

Cool things you can do with twitter:

Make your own moments with your own tweets, curated tweets and publish them.
IFTT scheduling of Instagram with twitter.Its a fun and painless way of saving time.
Use storify to put curate tweets on a particular topic or # .
Find brands you want to work with .Follow people in your niche to make meaningful connections.

Cons:
Your tweets have to be saved in moments if they are precious or for brand work .Otherwise you will lose them.
Trolling on twitter is pretty ugly.

In between: The political debates on Twitter.Everything gets said in your face and loudly.

But all good things have to battle evil and Twitter is here to stay.Writing this for #ThankfulThursdays .

ThankfulThursdays 40 prompt this week

What’s your favorite social media platform which makes you Thankful?

#ThankfulThursday prompt :Thankful for Social media — #ThankfulThursday prompt: Thankful for Social media

ThankfulThursdays Featured winner this week is Gayatri.

She tells us about how Home is where the heart is.Read her heartwarming post here.

ThankfulThursdays-thankful Heart winner Gayatri

Rules of linky:

Write on the prompt and Link Up.We have a fun new option.

You can submit tweet links and Instagram posts too.

You can also link up other posts.Just comment on this post and my co-hosts post and any two of the posts in the link up.Share using #ThankfulThursdays hashtag.
We deeply believe in community spirit.Eagerly looking forward to visiting your blogs.

Follow @misra_amrita @twinklingtina, on Twitter
Prompts will be announced every Wed 20:00 hrs IST

Linky opens on Thursdays 00.00 hours.
The linky closes the following Wednesday 23.55 hours.

Write the post and Link Up with Amrita, Tina

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By Joining the linky you are giving us permission to email and or tweet you a weekly reminder.
We share your entries on Twitter and other social media platform generously.

Who doesn’t like blog promotion?
Read, comment, share on the host and co-hosts posts and at least two more posts linked in the party.

Pro Tip – Networking and commenting are good for your blog’s health.Who
doesn’t like their blog to be read?

Cochlear Implant:What you need to know (Part1)

By Dr.Amrita Basu(MBBS,MS) on October 10, 2017 44

Cochlear Implant: Hope

A world without sound is lonely.Cochlear implants are the most promising method of giving a hearing life to the hearing and speech challenged.

There are grossly 2 Type of hearing loss

Post-lingual hearing loss: When a child develops normal speech and then loses it due to some event.
Most commonly post meningitis, a cochlear implant can change lives. But timing is everything.

Can your child hear you?

Prelingual hearing deficit: Hearing and speech challenged since birth.Nowadays it’s possible to have excellent results even with babies as young as 12 months.

3 most important things to help children who are hearing challenged:

#1 Early identification is most important.

If there’s any event before or after birth which can cause a hearing problem, your doctor will ask you to consult an ear doctor.Parents have the biggest chance of detecting whether baby responds by startling to loud hand clapping.

The earlier you know the more you can help.

Why is early detection important?

Your brain is an amazing organ.It is rewireable depending on the stimulus. Nature and quality of stimulus are important.

This brain plasticity or ability to learn is greatest up to age 2 and excellent till age five . Pediatricians call it the 1000 days of promise. It decreases with age and other associated problems.Speech development is deeply interlinked with hearing abilities. What the brain can’t hear the mouth can’t speak.

That’s why the early restoration of hearing can help develop normal speech in the prelingually (speech never developed)hearing challenged.

The post-lingual (speech developed, then list)hearing challenged have excellent results as they already have language skills which are helped after surgery.

#2 Training before implant

Preimplant language training by sign language (aural-oral) helps in speech development after implant.
Also, digital hearing aid is prescribed before implantation to help with adjustment to wearing an earpiece.

#3 Motivation of parents and child for continuing follow-up and training

Post-implant continued training to help in the rehabilitation of the child.The family has to be committed towards this goal.

So how can you detect earliest in babies who have never developed hearing and speech?
Tests needed:1)Testing the hearing: BERA/Tympanometry /OAE/ASSR

2)HRCT Temporal bone

3)MRI

Just to check whether the child is hearing BERA or Brainstem evoked response Audiometry test is useful CT /MRI helps to check for congenital structural defects.

Updated: November 2018

Cochlear Implant: What you Need to know(Part 1)

Cochlear Implant: Who needs it? ( Part2)

When do Babies speak(part 3)

Motherhood & Career:Finding the Right Balance #Internationaldayofthegirlchild

By Tamanna Khanna on October 9, 2017 20

Striking the Right Balance between Motherhood and Career

Being a stay-at-home mom is a full-time job. Having a career is a full-time job too. And, as Indra Nooyi, the hugely successful Chairperson and Chief Executive Officer of PepsiCo and mom, once pointed, “The biological clock and the career clock are in total conflict with each other. At the time when you have to have kids, you have to build your career.” Her single piece of advice to working moms, to help them work around this unfortunate irony: Develop Coping Mechanisms!

So, here are some tried and tested coping mechanisms that will enable you to enjoy both your Career and your Kids and Family.

Remind yourself that you are a multi-faceted individual – While being a mother may seem really important to you, there are other aspects of your life that make you who you are. Without other roles in your life, you could easily bury the essence of who you are and this could leave you feeling incomplete. Would that be optimal for you and your family?
Create a good support structure – Take time and effort to get create a robust support structure that could comprise of family or hired help on the home front. It will serve two purposes: it ensures that your little one(s) are well cared for while you are away and it allows you to remain stress free while at work. Ensure that it is flexible enough to accommodate your working hours, if erratic. For additional support, if possible, cultivate a structure of colleagues at work who can fill in for you when you have to stay home.
Use technology – Set alarms for different chores including paying bills, attending PTMs, the kids’ sports meets and stage performances, etc. Stay in touch with other school moms through Whatsapp groups, use Facebook and Pinterest for project ideas, etc. CCTV cameras at home which can be viewed on the phone are good too, if they do not become a distraction at work.

#MondayMommyMoments Motherhood & Career-Finding the Right Balance

Stay in touch with your kids and their caregiver – While it is impossible for you to be at two places at once, try to be available for a casual chat with the children when they may feel the need to speak with you, for instance, when they come home from school or have to leave for extra-curricular activities, etc.
Proxy yourself when you can’t be there – Ensure that your spouse or family or friends make it to any event that you miss. If nothing else, devise a special lucky charm that symbolizes your bond with your child and make sure it accompanies him or her to events which you cannot attend.
Schedule sacred ‘us’ time – Block a regular time slot one or twice a week, or even more often if your job permits it, that is specifically for your kids and spouse. Make sure you never give this slot to any other activity. This regular bonding time inculcates a feeling of security for the children and spouse.
Most importantly, be disciplined – Manage your time at work and home well. This may mean less TV and internet surfing, gossip with colleagues, long lunches, etc. Get used to planning your day in advance, especially the activities that involve the kids, such as snack- boxes and bag-packs, etc. Last, but not the least, avoid multi-tasking while you are with the kids; your time with them must makeup in terms of quality what it may lack in quantity.

Check out all about Tamanna Khanna here.You can find her professional profile on https://www.linkedin.com/in/tamannakhanna/

Linking this up with #MondayMommyMoments 41

I am taking part in The Write Tribe Problogger October 2017 Blogging Challenge .Have you joined?

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12 Eye Care Tips from Lessons Learned: Doc Who Wears Specs

These are my 12 eye care tips for keeping your lovely sparkling eyes sparkling forever.The lessons which I learned from med school and life!

Nutrients for eye #BuildingBlocksofNutrition

Google Analytics:Easy set up guide for mompreneurs