Irrespective of the fact that our body has an inherent built-in system that protects it from the different malicious element in the environment, there are instances when the bacteria and viruses override it and plague the body. Our immune system does a commendable job of protecting us from the diseases prevalent in the environment, but the magnitude of the disease and our fitness plays a major role in deciding whether or not we will be affected by it. Common cold or influenza is a common ailment that almost every person might have contracted at some point in time. However, this common cold, when neglected, can result in nasal congestion. Though nasal congestion isn’t a life-threatening condition, it does have serious repercussions. If you wish to learn more about nasal congestion and ways to treat it, keep reading. Nasal congestion – Causes and symptoms Nasal congestion or stuffy nose as it is commonly known as is a result of a blocked nasal passage. This blockage is caused due to the swelling of the membrane lining which is, in turn, a result of inflammation of the blood vessels. Usually, the common cold is the cause of nasal congestion, but at times, there are other sources which give rise to nasal congestion. The causes of nasal congestion are as follows: It has been observed that a deviated septum can also be responsible for causing nasal congestion. The various allergens in the environment are also known to trigger nasal congestion especially if the allergy manifests itself in the form of cold and sneezing. When the individual is exposed to certain chemicals, it can lead to nasal congestion. Hay fever is also one of the causes of nasal congestion. Nasal congestion is also triggered when we react to the medications prescribed to us. At times, the medicines are rejected by the body, and it gives rise to allergic reactions.

Pink eyes, also known as conjunctivitis, is caused when there is swelling and redness of the conjunctiva. The conjunctiva is the mucous membrane which surrounds the eyelid and the surface of the eye. Causes of pink eyes Conjunctivitis is a common eye infection. The infection normally subsides in about 7 to 10 days. To ease the discomfort, you can use eye drops for pink eyes that are available over the counter. Pink eyes can be caused due to a bacterial or viral infection. Chemicals, smoke, and fumes can also cause conjunctivitis. Other causes include dry eyes (caused due to lack of tears because of exposure to wind/sun) and any other allergies can trigger pink eyes. Types Based on what causes the pink eye, the condition is classified as viral pink eye and bacterial pink eye. Viral pink eye A viral pink eye is caused by the adenovirus. The herpes virus can also be the reason for viral pink eye. The associated symptoms typically last for 3 to 5 days. In some cases, the infection can become chronic and last for up to 3 weeks. The symptoms include the following: Excessive release of tears The white part of the eye becomes red Swollen eyelids Itching and burning sensation Clear or sticky discharge from the eyes Swelling and tenderness in the region near the front portion of the ears You don’t require any medication to treat viral pink eye. It will subside on its own. Maintain proper hand hygiene, and keep a separate face towel to stop the spread of the infection. In case the infection is caused by the herpes virus (which is a rare occurrence), antiviral medicines are administered. Bacterial pink eye When bacteria enters either of the eye or the area around the eye, it can cause bacterial conjunctivitis.

Different kinds of foods can cause acid reflux. Acid reflux is referred to the condition when the acid from the stomach backflows to the esophagus. This is caused due to the damaged or weakened lower esophageal sphincter (LES). The LES closes to avert the food present in the stomach from moving up to the esophagus. Given below is a list of some foods that cause acid reflux and hence should be avoided Tea, Coffee, and Soda Caffeinated beverages like tea, coffee and soda trigger the symptoms of acid reflux. Even decaffeinated tea can trigger acid reflux as well. It is best to avoid them altogether. Cheesecake Although delicious, it is one of the food items that cause acid reflux. The high content of fat in cheesecake causes the issue. Broccoli If you get acid reflux due to indigestion and gas; vegetables like broccoli will increase gas in your digestive system which will trigger acid reflux in return. Citrus Fruits The acid containing the citrus fruits will trigger acid reflux because they calm the lower esophageal down. Moreover, citrus fruits have more acid which aggravates the symptoms in most people. Alcohol Liquor of any kind like wine, beer, etc. causes acid reflux symptoms in two ways. Firstly, the alcohol calms the lower esophageal sphincter muscles letting the acid into the esophagus and secondly, alcohol helps in producing more stomach acid, which in turn causes acid reflux. Spicy Foods Among the most common causes of acid reflux, spicy food is one of them. If you suffer from the condition of acid reflux, it is best to avoid hot and spicy foods like curry and chili. Chocolate Both dark and milk chocolate are known to cause acid reflux. It contains a compound known as theobromine which relaxes the esophageal sphincter muscles thereby allowing the acid to travel upwards to the esophagus.

The human body comprises 75% of water. On an average, people drink 7–8 glasses of water per day and most of the water is lost from our body in the form of stools. Drinking sufficient water helps to digest our food and prevents the hardening of the stool. Our body needs a lot of water for the normal functioning of the digestive system. Constipation occurs if people do not drink an adequate amount of water or if their fluid intake is less. Moreover, constipation occurs due to unnecessary retaining of stool in our body for a longer time. If it’s difficult, uneasy, painful, or infrequent to pass the stool it can lead to chronic constipation. Constipation is very common nowadays due to changes in one’s lifestyle, and it’s not considered as a disease but as one of the symptoms of a disease. Constipation is considered as one of the gastrointestinal disorders and it represents one of the major public health concerns. Constipation is more prevalent among women than men and it progresses with age. Constipation is related to colon and rectal diseases and it can affect other organs if medical supervision is not taken. Constipation affects the quality of our life, well being leading to stress and anxiety thereby weakening the immune system. Causes of severe constipation Constipation is difficulty in passing stools out of our body or irregularity in bowel movements. Causes of constipation range from various factors depending on dietary patterns, age, gender, exercise, and bowel habits. – Lack of physical activity and exercise can lead to constipation. Lack of exercise or living a sedentary lifestyle can contribute to the same. – Side effects of prescribed medicines, over-the-counter medicines, and a certain dosage of drugs can lead to constipation. Medicines or drugs alter our bowel movements causing its irregularity.

An individual’s eyes are highly sensitive and are the first ones to react to any sort of allergy. The most prominent symptoms include a peculiar burning sensation, redness, and watery discharge from the eyes. Allergies are temporary in nature and can be avoided by staying away from the potential source. If triggered, home remedies work best to cure them. However, if the symptoms persist for a considerable period of time, it is sensible to give your doctor a quick visit. Watery eyes caused by allergies can be experienced as a result of the body’s reaction to a particular allergen that is found specifically during a change in the seasons. Hence, these are called seasonal allergies. For example, allergy caused by pollen during the season of autumn. Moreover, an individual might be allergic to basic, day-to-day substances such as dust, perfumes, smoke, etc. Such type of allergies are known as perennial allergies as their causes cannot be dispensed with and hence, they keep on triggering an allergic response. The eyes discharge a typical watery liquid as a reaction to irritation, especially for cleanliness purposes. Moreover, since the eyes are connected to the nasal cavity, any type of nasal allergy also initiates a watery discharge. The antigen can either be a virus or pollen. Following are some of the ailments that cause watery eyes from allergies: Hay fever – This is a type of nasal allergy that is activated by an immune response to a very commonly found allergen such as dust. Seasonal changes aggravate the allergy. It results in watery eyes along with sneezing and a running nose. Conjunctivitis – Conjunctivitis or eye flu, turns one or both the eyes watery and gives a deep pink color. This happens when the outermost layer of the eye, known as conjunctiva, gets inflamed and infected.

There might be many reasons for the bottom of foot pain, and it is important to remember that not all of this pain gets originated in the toes or upper and lower region of the foot. These also do not necessarily develop due to injury in the foot. Bottom of foot pain also arises at times due to problems in the lower back region. Sometimes foot pain arises due to associated pain in the legs. Symptoms of bottom of foot pain symptoms Limited ability to bring the foot up Patients who suffer from this symptom are not able to move the feet forward and sometimes face numbness in the foot. This condition occurs when one of the spinal nerve roots in the lower back gets pressed. Foot heaviness and weakness This pain originates in spinal nerve root in the lower back; foot heaviness produces pain that radiates down over the top of feet and goes to the bottom of feet. Difficulty in walking on tiptoes Bottom of foot pain also occurs in case the sciatic nerve spinal nerve root gets pressed. Some of the typical symptoms of this condition include weakness of gastrocnemius muscles, and it makes walking on tiptoes difficult. The person who suffers from this medical complication is also not able to raise the heel from the ground and finds it difficult to walk and move around. Causes of foot pain Bottom of foot pain occurs due to varying diseases and deformities or wearing of improper footwear. Infectious diseases, fungi, and bacteria also cause pain in the foot. Plantar warts and athlete foot are some of the foot diseases which are caused by virus and bacteria. All of these lead to the bottom of foot pain. An ingrown toenail is also a common cause of foot pain. Systemic diseases as gout, rheumatoid arthritis and lupus also result in foot pain.

Dry eye refers to a medical condition where your eyes fail to produce the sufficient lubrication and moisture on its surface, i.e., the tears. No moisture leads to dryness in eyes that may cause irritation or other symptoms that would require further consultation and medication. The eyes may turn red and inflamed because of dryness. It is most commonly seen in women who are going through the postmenopausal issue. Dry eyes syndrome may result from a number of causes, some of them being – • Dusty and windy environments • Increasing age • Seasonal allergic reactions • Laser eye surgery • Vitamin A deficiency • Diabetes • Birth control pills Common Symptoms Of Dry Eye Symptoms of dry eye are divided into two types, visual and physical. The symptoms associated with both the types are discussed below. Visual: • Blurred Vision : It is one of the major symptoms of dry eye in which the objects surrounding us, which may either be near or far, start appearing faintly and out of focus. Blurred vision makes it difficult to look around with precision. • Photophobia : It is a symptom in which one experiences sensitivity to light, resulting in irritation in the eye and headaches. Photophobia happens because the light that enters the eye starts scattering instead of reflecting due to dry eyes. This leads to discomfort in the eyes and a condition which may worsen if not tended. • Trouble In Driving At Night : Usually when the darkness sets in, the eye pupil becomes large so that more light can make its way through the eyes. But, in case of dry eyes, the same light scatters and leads to vague vision. Due to this scattering, people see halos, i.e., circles around the sources that provide light at night. Thus driving at night becomes difficult as the light of the headlights from other vehicles may make this symptom worse.

Are you experiencing redness on your skin all of a sudden? Redness on your skin is accompanied by an itching or burning sensation? Well, many of you may consider it as a sign of allergy, which will get automatically cured with time. Though mild allergies may at times cause red rashes on the skin, it may not always be self-healing. Red and itchy rashes on the skin can be a sign of contact dermatitis as well and require proper treatment. Contact dermatitis is generally restricted to a certain area of your body. It generally affects the body part, which has come in contact with the allergen. If you are also experiencing any such problems, you can check out the symptoms of contact dermatitis mentioned below. Signs and symptoms defining contact dermatitis To ease the diagnosis of patients, contact dermatitis symptoms have been further sub-divided into two categories: these include irritant contact dermatitis and allergic contact dermatitis. Though both types of contact dermatitis cause red and itchy rashes, the one that occurs due to allergic reactions comes along with dry, flaky or scaly skin, oozing blisters, hives, or sun sensitivity. Apart from skin redness, some may also get leathery or darkened skin with a burning sensation. In case of facial or groin allergies, patients may also experience swelling of their skin. Extreme itching is also not quite uncommon with allergic contact dermatitis. Irritant contact dermatitis comes along with blistering or cracking of the skin. Swelling, tightness, or stiffness of skin along with ulcerations and open sores leading to crust is also not uncommon in case of irritant contact dermatitis. Causes of contact dermatitis While symptoms are divided into two categories, causes are further divided into three sub-divisions, which are contact dermatitis, photo-contact dermatitis, and irritant contact dermatitis. Allergic contact dermatitis, as the name says is caused when the skin gets exposed to any allergy causing foreign substance.

Overactive bladder is a condition in which you experience involuntary contractions of the muscles in the bladder wall. It is a syndrome where the convulsions make you feel a urgent need to urinate, which is overwhelming and difficult to suppress, even when the bladder may contain only a small amount of urine. This condition is also known as urinary urgency. In a few cases, an overactive bladder leads to urinary leakage where you are unable to quash the impulse to pee, medically referred as to urgency urinary incontinence. A common type of urinary incontinence found is stress incontinence. Sometimes the pelvic floor muscles, which are essential in supporting the bladder surrounding the urethra, are weak and lead to urinary leakage when there’s stress/pressure on the abdomen or pelvic region. Symptoms of an overactive bladder With an overactive bladder, you: feel a sudden urge to pee that won’t go away have involuntary loss of urine following an urgent need to urinate have urine leakage during physical activity like coughing, sneezing, and lifting have to urinate frequently, usually eight or more times a day experience nocturia where you wake up 2-3 times in the night to make a trip to the bathroom Causes of an overactive bladder Involuntary contractions in the muscles of the urinary bladder may occur due to a dysfunction of the nervous system where the brain may send impulses to the urethra muscles, even though the volume of fluid in your bladder is low. Common reasons for this neural system abnormality are: Injury to the spinal cord Back problems Brain strokes Parkinson’s disease Multiple sclerosis Dementia Neuropathy caused by diabetes Other causes of overactive bladder syndrome include: Infections in the urinary tract Stones in the bladder Prostate enlargement (BPH) Bladder tumors Excess consumption of caffeine or alcohol Declining cognitive function due to aging Treatments for overactive bladder An overactive bladder may have adverse effects on your life, mostly relating to your social commitments and mental health.

Your shoulder is a combination of many joints. The joints meet the muscles and tendons of the arm to provide a full range of motion to the arm. The shoulder facilitates thousands of activities in everyday life. These vary from scratching one’s back to bowling, to carrying bags, and even driving. But your shoulder’s mobility may deteriorate over time, leading to issues such as instability & soreness. It may even affect the functioning of the bones or soft tissue in the shoulder, resulting in pain. The pain could be consistent and chronic, or you might feel the pain only when you move the shoulder. If the pain is temporary, it is easy to deal with, but if it lasts for a long time, this may call for medical attention. We need to understand the anatomy of the shoulder to understand shoulder pain in a better way. Anatomy Of The Shoulder The shoulder comprises of three major bones. They are as follows. Humerus, or the upper arm bone Scapula, or the shoulder bone Collarbone, or the Clavicle There is a round socket in the shoulder blade called the glenoid. The top part of the humerus, or the upper arm bone, fits into the glenoid. A host of muscles and tendons works toward keeping the arm bone stable in the glenoid. This is called the rotator cuff, and it covers the top of the humerus, and it attaches the humerus to the shoulder blade. Let’s go through the top four common types of shoulder problems: Tendon inflammation or tendon tear, also known as bursitis or tendinitis Loss of stability Broken bones or a fracture Arthritis Some other problems, which are rarer, but can cause shoulder pain, are: Tumors Infections Issues involving nerves Let’s run through some of the treatment options you have at your disposal for treating shoulder pain:

Most people suffer from knee pain in their lives at some point in time. Exercise, sports, etc. cause tendinitis, muscle strains and serious injuries to cartilage and ligament. Many people are so severely affected by knee pain that their daily activities are restricted. There are others for whom even mild knee pain is a matter of concern as they hinder the active lifestyle they want to live. It is important to investigate the reason that is causing the knee pain and treat it immediately to avoid further damage. Given below some of the most common causes of knee pain: Knee ligament injuries The ligaments connect your thigh bone to the lower leg bones. They hold the bones together and also keep the knees stable. In sports, sprains and knee ligament tears are extremely common and occur to the posterior cruciate ligament (PCL), anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and medial collateral ligament (MCL). If you suffer from any of these injuries, you would experience extreme pain in the knee and may need surgery as well. Knee cartilage tears Other injuries like tears can happen in the cartilage. It is a semi-hard tissue which covers the end of the bones. There are two menisci on both sides of the joint- the lateral meniscus found on the outside of the knee and the medial meniscus positioned on the inside of the knee. Meniscus tear causes knee pain. A knee cartilage tear is a quite common and needs surgery to treat it. Arthritis of the knee Arthritis causes severe knee pain and sometimes disability as well. It is a degenerative condition that needs surgery eventually. There are three main kinds of arthritis. These are osteoarthritis, post-traumatic arthritis, and rheumatoid arthritis. Any of these conditions can result in swelling, the stiffness of the knees. You may find it difficult to bend the knees as well.

Bags under the eyes are one of the signs of aging. They are an abnormal bulge of the fat pads appearing on the skin of the lower eyelids. When these fat pads swell, they cause the skin to protrude giving rise to bags under the eyes. You can recognize bags under eyes when you have a swelling and puffiness under the eyes. They are mostly seen among elderly people. Do not worry if you have bulging pouches on your lower eyelids. It is not a grave medical condition. However, it might become a cosmetic condition as one would feel conscious about their appearance. Know the symptoms Have you noticed sagging skin under your eyes? It means you are experiencing the problem of bagginess. Also, you may have itching, pain or redness under the eyes. The bulging of fat under your eyes may appear and then go again at an irregular interval. However, it is neither malicious nor causes health problems. Understand the causes Some of the factors that contribute to the formation of eye bags have been listed (in no particular order) as follows: – With age, the muscles and tissues associated with your eyelids weaken and the skin starts to sag. Fat around the eye advances to the area below your eye. Moreover, fluid can gather in the area below your eyes making it look swollen or puffy. – On hot and humid days, the fluid remains in the body system instead of flushing out. – Hormone levels. – Consuming salty foods. – Skimping on sleep. – Allergies or inflammation of the skin. This happens particularly if redness and itching occur along with puffiness. – Heredity. – Alcohol and tobacco may cause stress, tiredness, and hormonal changes. All these may culminate to fluid retention and swell around the eyes.