Q Whats causing my palpitations and how can I get rid of them?

The causes for palpitations are - strong emotions such as anxiety, fear, or stress; palpitations often occur during panic attacks; caffeine, nicotine, alcohol, or illegal street drugs such as cocaine; some medical conditions, including thyroid disease, a low blood sugar level, anemia, low blood pressure, fever, and dehydration; hormone changes associated with menstruation, pregnancy or menopause etc. In most cases, palpitations are found to be harmless and often go away on their own. Treatment depends on the cause of your palpitations. Some lifestyle changes like exercise and yoga and quitting smoking and alcohol help a lot.

Q My baby has a white curd-like coating in the mouth. It bleeds when I try to clean it. What could it be? Is it normal?

Hello. The white coating you have described in your babys mouth could be a fungal infection! It is not normal. It could be acquired from the mothers birth canal at the time of birth and called as thrush in medical terms. It looks like elevated white patches of cheese or curd on tongue or cheeks and leaves behid a red bleeding surface when cleaned. Dont worry! It is not dangerous; but, it is surely painful for your baby and interferes with the feeding. In some babies the condition is self limiting and needs no treatment. In others an antifungal gel or medications might be needed.

Q Are growing pains real?

Growing pains are seen in children of the age group 5 to 12 years. Thses always concentrate in the muscles, rather than the joints. Most kids have pains in the front of their thighs, in the calves, or behind the knees. The children with growing pains can be helped by massaging the area, stretching or by placing a heating pad on the area.

Q Hello doctor, my grandfather was diagnosed with an alzheimers dementia; could u give me more info about this disease? What is the cause? Is it hereditary? Any treatment for the same?

Alzheimers disease is the most common form of dementia, a serious brain disorder that impacts daily living through memory loss and cognitive changes. Alzheimers is a degenerative disease, progressing from mild forgetfulness to widespread neurological impairment and ultimately death. nAlthough a direct cause of Alzheimers is not known certain common factors are found in the clinical picture of sufferers. These include; prior personality organisation of the individual and stressfulness of their life situation. You are at higher risk, if family history of this disease is there.nAlthough there is no cure for Alzheimers, and various psychotherapies appear to be ineffective, there are ways to treat some of the symptoms of the disease: Use of medications to treat cognitive decline and memory loss. Also appropriate activities such as exercise, recreation, and adult day care services appear to assist in the management of the patient.

Q Hi, My son is 5 years old. About a year ago he had adenoidectomy and insertion of grommet in his ear for ear infection. Now one of the grommet is coming out and he is complaining of ear pain. Can you advise if he needs repeat surgery?

If the grommet is coming out and he is complaining of ear pain, there is need of reinsertion of grommet. My advise to you is revisit your ENT surgeon, who have operated your son. Because he is in a better position to advise you and do further management.

Q My child drank one full bottle of cough syrup. He has some reactions like swelling on body and face, please advise what to do .

Your child has had an overdose of medication. Rush to the hospital immediately along with the bottle. Any delay can compromise the health of the child.

Q What is "Selective Mutism"?

Selective mutism is a condition in which a person who is normally capable of speech is unable to speak in given situations or to specific people. Selective mutism usually begins in childhood. It usually co-exists with shyness or social anxiety. Its important to understand that when the mutism happens, the child is not voluntarily refusing to speak but is literally unable to speak, feeling frozen. In time, they learn to anticipate the situations that provoke mutism and do all they can to avoid them. Example: selective mutism while interacting with the opposite sex. Other attributes of children or adults with selective mutism are nervousness, socially awkward, clingy, excessively shy or withdrawn, stubborn or aggressive. Behavioral therapy forms the mainstay of treatment with medications used in a few older patients. Most children will work their way through SM with sympathetic support, although they may remain reserved and anxious in social situations.

Q Can toddlers have thrush?

yes, thrush can be present at any age and needs treatment too.

Q Can local honey cure seasonal allergies?

Honey contains powerful antioxidants, antiseptic and antibacterial propertise. It is said to cure some allergies particularly localised honey to that area can cure seasonal allergy as the bees feed on pollens of that area which finally form honey. At the same time there are studies showing that its effect is nothing more than a placebo.

Q What is Bulimia? What are the causes of the same?

It is a type of eating disorder. A person with bulimia eats a lot of food in a short amount of time and then tries to prevent weight gain by getting rid of the food either by vomiting or with the help of laxatives. The causes for the disease include - family history, any mental illness or stress, cultural factor etc.