Health Essentials
Listen to your gut in 2023; it makes absolute sense
Many of us are beginning to cheat on sleep through no fault of ours. As the year draws to a close and it dawns on you that you have spent more money than you should have, and as the extremely “long” January stares at you, a myriad of things happen to your gut, blood pressure and stress levels but be rest assured that whatever your gut feeling is at this moment is likely to be the truth.
You surely have come across the phrase “go with your gut feeling” and many times we consider that to be our instincts, but the gut, which is the full path that swallowed food travels may be much smarter than we think. It has even been referred to as the “second brain” in some instances.
That uncomfortable feeling in your stomach when you are running late yet stuck in traffic, butterflies in your stomach when you meet that special someone or as you get ready for a critical presentation. We can’t leave out the burning sensation in your chest when you realise you left out a whole examination question just five minutes to time. Our guts have a way of reflecting our moods or emotions sometimes long before we are aware of what is going on.
Our guts call the shots when we are under stress or even feel depressed; the reaction varies in people though. Some people may eat a lot while under stress and others may just shy away from even water. So the next time you find yourself consistently eating more or less than you normally do, take a step back and find out if you have more on your plate than you can handle. Prioritise and manage your time better and you may be able to relieve yourself of undue stress.
That sharp hunger pang you experience is a warning from your gut that your blood sugar is running low. You either listen to your gut or soon you may be sweating, shaking, feeling dizzy and even collapse. You may even lose your life if appropriate help does not come soon. This scenario is aggravated in diabetics on certain medication.
Many people with peptic ulcer disease will tell you of their struggles with or without meals. Some will also enlighten you on factors that make their pain worse such as certain pain medication, spices, caffeine, fizzy drinks and acidic fruits. The list is endless.
Healthy bacteria even exist naturally in the gut and are protective but when these good bacteria are reduced because of a poor diet or inappropriate use of antibiotics, our gut health and general well-being plummet. This is a warning from our gut to check our health. Diarrhoea is one of the numerous ways it will react till we give it the attention it deserves. Stop self-medication!!
I have read very little on appropriate diet for people of different blood groups. I am not a proponent of this trend because I have not read adequately on the subject but also for the simple reason that our GUT is very smart and if we listen to it closely it will react appropriately whenever we take the “wrong” foods and overtime we can exclude foods our bodies cannot tolerate. Remember we are all unique. For now stick to a balanced diet with variety and moderation and definitely watch your portions and meal and snack times. Snacking in itself is not bad, it’s what we snack on that causes all the trouble. Snacking on a fruit or vegetable salad for instance is not in the same league with a snack of butter cookies laced with milk chocolate.
When your gut is unhappy with what you load it with, it may warn you in several ways including;
• “Heart Burns”
• Bloating
• Gas
• Constipation
• Diarrhoea
In diarrhoea, the body may be reacting to a virus, parasite or bacteria in contaminated food or water but diarrhoea that is long standing may be pointing to something that requires a closer look.
In general for good gut health, eat well with a focus on plant based foods with fibre, drink adequate amount of water, get regular exercise to enhance movement of food through the digestive system, make time to relax and de-stress and sometimes together with your doctor you may decide to add a probiotic.
AS ALWAYS LAUGH OFTEN, ENSURE HYGIENE, WALK AND PRAY EVERYDAY AND REMEMBER IT’S A PRICELESS GIFT TO KNOW YOUR NUMBERS (blood sugar, blood pressure, blood cholesterol, BMI)
Dr. Kojo Cobba Essel
Health Essentials Ltd/ Mobissel
(dressel@healthessentialsgh. com)
*Dr. Essel is a medical doctor, holds an MBA and is ISSA certified in exercise therapy, fitness nutrition and corrective exercise. He is the author of the award-winning book, ‘Unravelling The Essentials of Health & Wealth.’
Thought for the week –“Christmas will come and go every year, but indulging in excesses may have long-term effects on your health and pocket.”
References:
1. Unravelling the Essentials of Health & Wealth; Dr. Kojo Cobba Essel
2. Remedy’s Healthy Living: “should you trust your gut?”
By Dr. Kojo Cobba Essel
Health Essentials
Glaucoma – a call to have your eyes checked
As we raise awareness of Glaucoma this week (it should continue all year), the importance of community education to prevent vision loss, regular eye care and early detection of this silent disease is key. The theme “SEE THE FUTURE CLEARLY” puts the whole process into perspective.
What will you do if after years of enjoying the beauty of the world through your eyes, you wake up one day and realize your eyes are failing or have failed you? It could be a major life-changing event. You may even run the risk of causing accidents. Imagine what one goes through during the DUM phase of DUMSOR.
Now imagine life perpetually in DUM. All this could be prevented if you make time to care for your eyes: check your eye pressure and have your sight checked as well.
Glaucoma is a group of eye conditions that damage the optic nerve (nerve of the eye) leading to loss of vision. It is most often but not always associated with an increase in eye pressure.
In Ghana, glaucoma is a leading cause of blindness second only to cataract. Ghana appears to have many challenges with “vision” (note the pun) as we have been identified as the country with the second (some data quote third) highest prevalence rate of glaucoma.
Glaucoma is sometimes referred to as the “silent thief of sight” because it can damage your vision so gradually that you may not notice any loss of vision until the disease is at an advanced stage. The most common type of glaucoma, primary open-angle glaucoma has no noticeable signs or symptoms except gradual vision loss. As always, the key is to be diagnosed early and managed since this can prevent or minimize damage to the optic nerve. Early diagnosis is only possible if we have regular check-ups. I checked my eye-pressures six months ago, what about you?
Isolating the risk factors
1. Age – Anyone can get glaucoma, but it most often occurs in those above forty years.
2. Ethnicity – Africans and African Americans are at an increased risk compared to Caucasians. In high-risk groups it may be necessary to have your eyes checked even in your 20s.
3. Family History/ Genetics – You are at an increased risk if a member of your family has glaucoma.
4. Medical Conditions – Diabetics and people with hypothyroidism are also prone
5. Nearsighted/shortsighted – For this group of people, objects in the distance appear fuzzy without corrective lenses.
6. Prolonged Steroid use – especially if used as eye drops, increases our risk for glaucoma.
7. Other Eye conditions – Severe eye injury, some of which may even cause the eye lens to dislocate. Retinal detachment, eye tumours and some eye infections may also predispose us. Some eye surgeries may occasionally trigger glaucoma.
Recognising the warning signs
It is important to drum home the point that just as in high blood pressure, there may be no warning signs. As stated above, the commonest form of glaucoma will hardly warn you. In some forms of glaucoma, however, we may experience the following:
1. Gradual loss of peripheral (side) vision leading to tunnel vision where one is able to see only objects directly in front of him/her
2. Redness of the eye
3. Blurred vision
4. Halos around lights
5. Severe eye pain is sometimes associated with nausea and vomiting
6. Sudden onset of poor vision especially in low light
Overview of tests available
1. Measuring eye pressure. This is a simple painless procedure. It is often the first line for screening for people with glaucoma.
2. Visual Field Test – your doctor will use this test to determine whether glaucoma has affected your peripheral vision
3. Several other tests are available and include testing for optic nerve damage and measuring corneal thickness.
Treatment options
There is NO CURE for glaucoma, but it can be successfully managed. Our options include eye drops, oral medication or surgery, which reduce pressure in the eye to a level that is unlikely to cause further optic nerve damage.
You may not be able to prevent glaucoma, but you can avoid its complications if diagnosed and its management started early. Talk to your healthcare professional and have eye examinations when necessary.
This is the only way to ensure that you can “…see clearly now the rain is gone. I can see all obstacles in my way” and you will enjoy this great vision for years to come.
Glaucoma is “a silent thief of sight.” This is another reminder that NOT ALL SILENCE IS GOLDEN! Get checked.
AS ALWAYS LAUGH OFTEN, ENSURE HYGIENE, WALK AND PRAY EVERYDAY AND REMEMBER IT’S A PRICELESS GIFT TO KNOW YOUR NUMBERS (blood sugar, blood pressure, blood cholesterol, BMI)
Dr. Kojo Cobba Essel
Health Essentials Ltd (HE&W Group)
(dressel@healthessentialsgh. com)
*Dr. Essel is a Medical Doctor with a keen interest in Lifestyle Medicine, He holds an MBA and is an ISSA Specialist in Exercise Therapy, Fitness Nutrition and Corrective Exercise. He is the author of the award-winning book, ‘Unravelling The Essentials of Health & Wealth.’
Thought for the week – “The next big thing in Healthcare in Ghana is the Medics Clinic. Visit https://medicsgroupgh.com/ for more information.”
References:
1. 37 Military Hospital Eye Department infomercials
2. Mosby’s ACE the BOARDS
3. www.mayoclinic.com
By Dr. Kojo Cobba Essel
Health Essentials
Making the most of your visit to the doctor
Very often we leave the doctor’s office only to remember that we left out a major complaint. Some patients immediately rush back to the consulting room totally oblivious of the privacy that the next patient is entitled to. They expect that as they walk in, the doctor should ignore the seated or positioned patient and attend to them. That is totally outrageous. Others go home and continue to live with the condition hoping to be healed miraculously.
Most of us will be extremely lucky to spend fifteen (15) minutes with our doctor and this time is often much shorter in countries/communities where the doctor-patient ratio is so low that at best it can be described as criminal.
We are still in the first quarter of 2025, and I highly recommend that you see a doctor not only when you are unwell but as a means to assess your state of wellbeing and take the needed precautions.
To make the most out of our time with the doctor we need to PREPARE. If your condition is an emergency, then you do not have the benefit of time to prepare.
A must do!
Kindly ensure your personal hygiene is excellent.
- Take a good bath and brush your teeth
- Wear clean clothes that also make undressing easy, especially if you need to expose some areas for inspection/examination.
This may sound ridiculous, but the opposite does happen in real life.
Remember that doctors are human and when you are unkempt you may not get adequate contact with your doctor.
Research on the symptoms
If you have access to the internet or a book worth its salt you may read about your symptoms or wait to read after your doctor tells you your diagnosis.
Remember that if you need to research on the internet, it is essential that you use a reputable site.
In tune with your complaints
- Write down your complaints/symptoms if you think you may forget
- If you have had a similar problem and have the results of any investigations e.g. Laboratory tests, x-rays, CT scans etc kindly carry them along
- Let your doctor know if you react to any drugs
- Be truthful about any medications you have taken for the condition, if you do not remember the names make sure you go with the containers
- If you have any other medical conditions (and medication) make the doctor aware
- Remember to make a note of the following
- When did the symptoms/complaint begin?
- How long have you had these symptoms?
- Is it getting worse?
- Does anything make the condition worse?
- What makes you feel better?
- Is anything related to their onset?
- How often does it occur?
- How long does it last e.g. in pain conditions as well as rash, allergies etc
- Does anyone else in your family have them?
- How do they affect your daily life?
- Is it related to work or home?
You may need to modify these slightly when you have skin lesions, swellings etc. This list is by no means exhaustive, and you may not need to find answers to all of them before getting help, but they will definitely help you ace the visit to your doctor.
If your doctor books you for surgery, do not leave his presence without finding out the following:
- Will you go home on the same day of the surgery?
- Will you need assistance to go home or can you drive unsupervised for instance
- What form of anaesthesia will you be given?
Then, if your visit is for a medical examination, do remember that also being aware of disease conditions in your family will help your doctor select the appropriate tests and make the whole experience and time useful.
See you in the consulting room soon.
AS ALWAYS LAUGH OFTEN, ENSURE HYGIENE, WALK AND PRAY EVERYDAY AND REMEMBER IT’S A PRICELESS GIFT TO KNOW YOUR NUMBERS (blood sugar, blood pressure, blood cholesterol, BMI)
Dr. Kojo Cobba Essel
Health Essentials Ltd (HE&W Group)
(dressel@healthessentialsgh.com)
*Dr. Essel is a Medical Doctor with a keen interest in Lifestyle Medicine, He holds an MBA and is an ISSA Specialist in Exercise Therapy, Fitness Nutrition and Corrective Exercise. He is the author of the award-winning book, ‘Unravelling The Essentials of Health & Wealth.’
Thought for the week – “The next big thing in Healthcare in Ghana is the Medics Clinic. Visit https://medicsgroupgh.com/ for more information.”
References:
By Dr. Kojo Cobba Essel
