Despite our best intentions to keep our eating and drinking under control during the festive season, is these temptations are usually near impossible to resist. We know we should consume reasonable portions and pass on seconds, but inevitably we overindulge and end up feeling miserable. What is overindulgence? Overindulgence is defined as excess, overeating, lack [...]
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Depression
Depression is a very common, debilitating, life-threatening and often chronic medical disease. Research has shown that 15% of severely depressed people will ultimately commit suicide. Depression is classified as a mood disorder Mood disorders are defined by the presence of mood episodes (which can either be major depressive, manic, mixed, hypomanic mood episodes).These mood episodes [...]
Gout – The disease of Kings
Gout is often referred to as the disease of kings. This “rich man’s” disease has been documented by the Egyptians (2600 BC) as arthritis of the big toe! The name gout is derived from the Latin word “gutta” which means a drop of liquid! Never mind history, but gouty patients spend nights in torture. What [...]
Emergency contraception: Pharmacist to the rescue
Accidents happen. Condoms break. Women are sexually assaulted. Someone forgets to take their combined oral contraceptive pill. There are numerous reasons why a client may ask you about emergency contraception (also known as ‘the morning after pill’). South Africa is one of the many countries around the world where Emergency Contraception is available without a [...]
Putting an end to pain
Pain is the world’s number one medical symptom. Everyone experiences physical pain at some point in their lives. Pain can signal anything from a heart attack to a stubbed toe, making it one of the trickiest symptoms to manage. Identifying an emergency Should you call 911? People don’t always think their pain is serious enough [...]
First Aid – Cuts and Scrapes
Minor cuts and scrapes usually do not require a trip to the emergency room. Yet proper care is essential to avoid infection or other complications. These guidelines can help to care for simple wounds: It is essential to calm the patient and to assure him/her that you can help. Always wash your hands thoroughly. Stop [...]
Diabetic Ulcers
Diabetes mellitus is a common condition affecting almost every organ and system in the body. The skin, the body’s largest organ can be severely affected. Diabetic ulcers are a complication of the condition and often these ulcers precede amputation of the lower extremities. Diabetes is the predominant cause of non-traumatic lower limb amputations in America. [...]
Foot Care
In our daily vernacular, there are so many idioms and sayings that refer to feet. ‘She is a strong person and will always land on her feet’, ‘you really put your foot in it with that remark’ and of course, ‘you’d better put your best foot forward’ Well, let’s hope that that foot is a [...]
Urinary Tract Infections
Some conditions can be ignored, a person can carry on despite being in pain or uncomfortable. An acute, severe urinary tract infection however is not such a condition. It is uncomfortable, urgent and will demand that a person suffering from it addresses it immediately. It is the second most common type of infection in the [...]
Nausea and Vomiting
The body responds in a number of ways to protect itself from a wide variety of invaders and irritants. Sneezing ejects intruders from the nose, coughing from the throat and lungs, diarrhoea from the intestines and vomiting from the stomach. Nausea is the uneasiness of the stomach of having an urge to vomit. Vomiting is [...]
