Worldwide, many people suffer from diabetes. It’s a chronic illness where one’s body doesn’t produce enough insulin or can’t use it as well as it should. When this happens, too much blood sugar stays in the bloodstream, which could lead to serious health problems like heart disease, vision loss, and kidney disease. To prevent these complications, individuals living with the condition need to be mindful of their diet, monitor their blood sugar levels, and take medications.

Since it’s an illness that requires lifelong maintenance, people with diabetes often need the support of their loved ones to stay healthy and keep their blood sugar levels steady.  If you’re living with someone who has the disease, there are ways you can help. Here are tips four tips for caring for a family member with diabetes.

Help Manage Their Medication

Just like any person with diabetes, your loved one may need to take several different medications to keep their blood sugar levels stable. And it’s important to take these medications as their doctors prescribed them in terms of dosage and time of day. That said, one way to care for your relative is to make sure they always take their medications on time.

If they’re taking certain pills, tablets, or capsules, it’s a good idea to store their daily dose in a pill calendar. It’s a plastic container labeled with the days of the week and divisions indicating the parts of the day like morning, afternoon, or night. Remember to help your loved one fill the pill calendar every week or month. Also, make sure they have ample supplies of their medicines. If they run out, order their medicine from a reputable online drugstore and get it delivered right away so your loved one won’t miss any doses.

Encourage Eating Healthy

Another way individuals manage their diabetes is by making healthier lifestyle choices, including changes in their diet.  Those with diabetes need to watch what they eat and be aware of how often they must eat to keep their blood sugar levels steady. For some people, this can be challenging to do. To help your loved one to ease into the dietary changes, consider doing these changes with them.

If you’re in the same household as your loved one with diabetes, start by removing foods high in saturated fats, cholesterol, sodium, and trans fats in your pantry and fridge. These are typically found in junk foods and processed meat. Also, avoid bringing home foods high in sugar and carbs like cakes, pastries, and soda to help control their blood sugar. Instead, encourage them to eat healthily by opting for colorful fruits and vegetables as well as adding more fiber-rich foods like whole grains, dried fruits, apples, broccoli, and avocados in their meals.

Make the diet change a bonding experience by grocery shopping and cooking diabetic-friendly recipes together. Doing so won’t just support your loved one manage their disease, you’ll also get the benefit of improving your health.

Exercise Together

Aside from following a healthy diet, it’s good for your loved one to have a regular and robust exercise routine. Staying active and managing their weight can help lower the blood glucose in their body. But like eating healthy, exercising regularly can be just as challenging. If you want to make it easier for your loved one to stick to a fitness routine, consider being their workout buddy. The routine doesn’t have to be long or too hard. Exercising at least four times a week for a 30-minute workout session would make a huge difference in their health.

When exercising, it’s important to pick a kind of workout you both enjoy doing. It will help you stick with it and won’t feel like it’s a tedious chore. Some of your options include walking, biking, jogging, jumping ropes, or practicing yoga. More importantly, exercising together benefits you and your loved one. You’ll increase your energy, manage stress, and lower the risk of developing illnesses like heart disease and cancer.

Understand How Diabetes Works

Learning as much as you could about the disease is also a great way to care for your family member with diabetes. Begin with researching how the illness works and how to prevent complications. It’s also a good idea to read up about hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) and hyperglycemia (high blood sugar) along with their symptoms. Both issues can be very harmful to your loved one and can lead to serious medical problems if left untreated.

For example, hypoglycemia’s common symptoms include headaches, hunger, dizziness, weakness, confusion, and pale skin. If left untreated, your loved one can pass out or have a seizure. In severe cases of hypoglycemia, a person can get into a coma. On the other hand, the common signs of a person having high blood sugar include experiencing headaches, frequent urination, extreme thirst, weight loss, and blurred vision. If hyperglycemia isn’t treated immediately, it can lead to damaging the vessels that supply blood to vital organs. This potentially puts your loved one at an increased risk of stroke, vision problems, nerve problems, and kidney disease.

That said, it’s best to understand the difference between hyperglycemia and hypoglycemia so you can identify if your loved one experiences any of the symptoms and get them immediate medical help.

Caring for your family member with diabetes doesn’t have to involve complicated routines or practices. You can begin with the tips discussed here and research more information. It’s also a good idea to talk to your loved one’s doctor and find out more ways how you can properly care for someone who has the condition. This way, you can help them manage their illness and have a healthy happy life. 

Many people are preparing for the holiday season and also prioritize their health conditions to prevent unexpected illnesses during their staycations.

This article talks about how parents should be able to prevent their kids from having bacterial infections because today, schools are now open for face-to-face classes.

Because they’re both common afflictions and share plenty of symptoms, an allergy and a cold often get confused for one or the other. Fortunately, both are treatable at home. In fact, you can easily buy over-the-counter medicines from an online drugstore. However, you first have to know the difference between the two conditions so you know what kind of treatment you need.

Here are some things to keep in mind to help you identify and treat either or both an allergy and a cold:

What Is an Allergy?

An allergy is a condition in which the immune system overreacts to fight or get rid of something that isn’t really bad for the body. For example, pollen from plants and flowers isn’t really harmful. However, if you’re allergic to it, your immune system interprets pollen as an invader and releases histamine to protect the body.

Histamine is an organic compound produced mostly by white blood cells, particularly basophils and mast cells. It’s necessary for various physiological processes but, unfortunately, also causes plenty of symptoms associated with allergies like itching and sneezing.

What Is a Cold?

A cold is a contagious respiratory illness caused by more than 200 types of viruses. Most people will have about 2 to 3 colds per year; children may experience even more. Usually, you can get a cold by inhaling droplets in the air or by touching surfaces with viral droplets and then bringing your hand to your face, nose, or mouth. The latter is why one of the best ways to avoid a cold is to regularly wash your hands.

Some symptoms of a cold that are very much similar to an allergy include a runny or stuffy nose and sneezing.

What Is the Difference Between These Two Conditions?

One of the biggest differences between an allergy and a cold is that only one is contagious. An allergy is an immune response; it can be inherited from a parent, but it’s also possible for a child to develop an allergy even if their parent doesn’t. Meanwhile, because a cold is caused by a virus, it can be easily passed on to another person.

There are also a lot of differences when it comes to symptoms. For example, if your eyes are itchy and watery, you likely have an allergy and not a cold. On the other hand, a fever can sometimes accompany a cold but never an allergy (unless you also have an infection along with your allergy).

Additionally, if you have a sore throat and body aches, you most likely have a cold and not an allergy. You may also notice that the cooler months also bring about more cases of colds. This is because the viruses that cause colds linger in the air longer, so more people end up catching them. Meanwhile, allergies can happen at any time. As long as there’s a presence of an allergen, like pollen, pet dander, or mold, an allergy attack will usually follow.

Finally, a cold usually lasts for about 10 to 14 days while an allergy can disappear in just a few hours. As soon as the allergen is removed and the proper treatment is applied, allergy symptoms will fade. Do note that if your cold lasts for more than 14 days, it’s highly recommended to consult a doctor. It may not just be a cold you have, but rather another kind of infection. It’s also possible that you may develop complications due to a prolonged cold.

How Do You Treat an Allergy?

Treating an allergy requires two main actions: removing the allergens and addressing the symptoms. Common environmental allergens include dust, dust mites, pollen, animal dander, and mold.

To minimize exposure to environmental allergens, make sure to thoroughly clean and disinfect the objects and areas that you or any person with allergies stay in most frequently. Careful attention must be given to beddings, as these can harbor hundreds or even thousands of dust mites.

For those with food allergies, it’s better to eat meals that you prepared yourself. If you want to eat out, it’s helpful to have an allergy card with you; consider calling ahead, too, so that the staff is aware of your allergies and make accommodations.

Of course, you should always be prepared with your allergy medicine. There are a variety of antihistamines available, but your doctor may have a recommendation that’s most suited for your condition. For those with food allergies or with severe allergies, always keep your injectables with you wherever you go.

How Do You Treat a Cold?

The key thing to remember about a cold is that it’s viral. Thus, you cannot and should not treat it with antibiotics. What you can do is take medicine to manage the symptoms you have. If you have a blocked nose, take a decongestant. If you’re experiencing headaches, take a pain reliever. In the meantime, make sure to eat right and get some rest. The cold should go away in about a week or so, faster if your immune system is healthy.

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Caring for newborns requires a tender hand and a watchful eye. Because babies who are just a few days old have yet to develop strong immune systems, they can easily contract illnesses that can cause them great discomfort. Their bodies also don’t know how to properly react to the symptoms because their organs aren’t mature enough and are still “learning” how to coordinate with one another. That’s why a lot of newborns end up staying in the hospital longer or are brought to the emergency room after being at home for just a few days.

Although seeing newborns in distress is alarming, the reasons behind their cries can come from common health conditions that can be easily addressed. Knowing this can give parents some relief, because they can buy medicine online and administer the right treatment after having their babies checked by their pediatricians.

As a parent, you want to ensure that you’re giving your newborn the best care, especially when they’re sick. Let’s take a look at 5 common health conditions affecting newborns, so you can spot the signs and symptoms early in order to give your baby the right treatment.

Colic

If your baby looks healthy but is fussy and constantly crying, they may have colic. Colic is quite common for babies who are 6 weeks old, and it usually occurs in the evening. Sometimes, it doesn’t take long for your baby to stop crying; unfortunately, there are also times when it takes a lot more work trying to calm your baby’s colic episode.

The exact cause of colic isn’t really known, but there are theories that suggest that it could be due to:

• Gas trapped in your newborn’s stomach
• Hormones that cause stomach pain
• An imbalance of healthy bacteria in the digestive tract
• Overstimulation

Colic typically resolves itself after your newborn has passed gas, experienced bowel movement, or after crying it out. Nevertheless, you can still help your baby manage it by using soothing strategies rubbing their tummy, rubbing their back, or simply rocking your baby. If colic persists, however, then you should take your baby to the doctor. Excessive fussiness and crying could indicate an illness or other underlying conditions.

Infant Jaundice

Jaundice occurs when your baby’s skin and the whites of their eyes have a yellowish tinge. Because of your newborn’s immature liver, their bilirubin levels are much higher and this causes their skin and eyes to yellow. Infant jaundice typically appears in babies who are 3 or 4 days old. Mild jaundice doesn’t require any treatment and can last for two to three weeks. In most cases, exposure to sunlight can help break down bilirubin faster. Babies experiencing moderate or severe jaundice, however, will need to stay in the hospital longer

Ear Infections

Newborns are more likely to suffer from ear infections because of their underdeveloped immune systems and their smaller Eustachian tubes (the part that connects the middle ears to the back of the throat). Having an underdeveloped immune system makes it harder for newborns to fight off infections. Smaller Eustachian tubes, on the other hand, make it difficult to drain fluid out of their ears.

Since your baby can’t tell you that their ear hurts, they’ll express their discomfort by pulling or scratching of infected ear, crying more, and showing irritability. They may also develop a fever and have difficulty sleeping. Taking your newborn to your pediatrician is the best solution, so your doctor can prescribe an antibiotic to deal with the infection.

Oral Thrush

Oral thrush, or oral candidiasis, occurs when a yeast called Candida albicans overgrows in the mouth. It causes the babies’ mouths to become irritated and their tongues and inner cheeks to develop white patches that can’t be easily wiped away. Small amounts of Candida albicans live in everyone, including babies, and a healthy immune system and good bacteria can control the growth of this fungus. Since a newborn’s immune system is not yet fully developed, their bodies have a difficult time controlling the fungus’ numbers.

Some cases of oral thrush disappear within one to two weeks without medical treatment. However, it’s best to bring your baby to the pediatrician to have it checked. Serious cases can cause your baby to feed poorly, since sucking makes their mouth feel sore. Administration of anti-fungal medication is needed to combat severe oral thrush.

There are several ways you can prevent oral thrush. If your newborn uses a pacifier or is formula-fed, make sure that the silicone nipples are thoroughly cleaned after each use. This ensures that the yeast won’t cling to the nipples and re-infect your baby. If you breastfeed your baby, on the other hand, check the conditions of your nipples. If they’re sore and red, you might have a yeast infection and you’re passing it to your newborn. Visit your doctor to get an antifungal ointment for your nipples.

Skin Problems

Your newborn’s skin is sensitive, so they can easily develop skin problems like cradle cap, diaper rash, and newborn acne. Skin irritation doesn’t only cause discomfort, but it can also be painful for your baby. Some skin problems can be addressed by using high-quality diapers, applying diaper rash creams, and practicing good skincare and hygiene. For severe skin issues, it’s best to bring your newborn to your pediatrician so they can find the underlying cause and prescribe the right treatment.

Seeing your newborn in great discomfort is worrying. By being knowledgeable about the aforementioned health issues, you can stay calm and give your baby the care they need to feel better as soon as possible.