With the onset of this decade, a disease has started to spread all over the world, called the Novel Coronavirus also known as the nCoV-2019. While this disease originated in China, it has started to spread to multiple countries including India. We should take proper precautions to ensure that we remain healthy and safe from this virus.

Do’s :

• Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer
• Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash
• Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces

Don’t’s :

• Avoid spreading fear and anxiety, as mass hysteria is never helpful in such cases
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands
• Avoid close contact with people who are sick

We are proud to announce our brand new website, www.familydoctor.co.in which is now bigger and better in every way than our previous website. We have introduced many new options and features, and have totally revamped it’s design to match, and in some ways even exceed standards. Be sure to go ahead and check it out to enjoy all the new features and the comfortable layout designed specifically for user convenience. Please let us know what you think of the website, and how it can be improved or enhanced. We look forward to your suggestions.

High blood pressure is also called a “silent killer,” as it usually has no warning signs. But the good news is that high blood pressure, or hypertension, can often be prevented or treated. Early diagnosis is the key. Simple, healthy changes can keep high blood pressure from seriously damaging your health.

Over time, hypertension can harm several important organs, including your heart, kidneys, brain, and eyes.

The common causes of hypertension are:
 Smoking
 Being overweight
 Lack of physical activity
 Too much salt in your diet
 Drinking too much alcohol on a daily basis
 Sleep apnoea

Because it usually has no symptoms, the only way to know for sure that you have hypertension is to have a blood pressure test.

Blood pressure is given as 2 numbers. The first number represents the pressure in your blood vessels as the heart beats (called systolic pressure). The second is the pressure as your heart relaxes and fills with blood (diastolic pressure).

Normal blood pressure—is 120/80, meaning systolic blood pressure is 120 and diastolic pressure is 80.

For Healthy Blood Pressure

 Keep a healthy weight.
 Be physically active. Get moving for at least 30 minutes most days of the week
 Eat a healthy diet. Rich in vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and low-fat dairy and low in saturated fat and added sugars
 Cut down on salt
 Drink alcohol in moderation, if at all.
 Don’t smoke. Smoking raises your risk for heart disease, stroke, and other health problems.
 Get a good night’s sleep. Tell your doctor if you’ve been told you snore or sound like you stop breathing briefly when you sleep—a possible sign of sleep apnoea. Treating sleep apnoea and getting a good night’s sleep can help reduce blood pressure
 Avoiding or learning to manage stress can help a person control blood pressure.

Pre Diabetic State

is a condition when your blood sugar level is higher than it should be but not high enough for your doctor to diagnose diabetes. It’s also called impaired fasting glucose or impaired glucose tolerance.
Treatment for pre diabetes can prevent serious health problems, including type 2 diabetes and subsequent problems with your heart, blood vessels, eyes, and kidneys.

Symptoms

 Polydipsia – You’re more thirsty than usual
 Polyuria – Increased frequency of urine
 You’re a lot more tired than usual

Causes and Risk Factors

 Age – especially over age 45
 Waist larger than 40 inches for a man and 35 inches for a woman
 Eating a lot of red and processed meat
 Drinking lots of sugary beverages
 Not eating much fruit, veggies, nuts or whole grains
 Being overweight, especially if you have extra pounds around your waist
 High cholesterol, high triglycerides, low HDL cholesterol and high LDL cholesterol
 Sedentary lifestyle – no exercises
 Gestational diabetes
 Polycystic ovary syndrome
 Sleep apnoea or work changing shifts or night shifts

Tests and Diagnosis for Pre-Diabetes

Fasting plasma glucose test

 Normal if your blood sugar is less than 100 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL)
 Prediabetes if your blood sugar is 100 to 125 mg/dL
 Diabetes if your blood sugar is 126 mg/dL or higher

Oral glucose tolerance test

First, you’ll have a fasting plasma glucose test. In the second test, if your blood sugar is less than 140 mg/dL, it’s normal. It’s Prediabetes if your blood sugar is 140 to 199 mg/dL after the second test and Diabetes if your blood sugar is 200 mg/dL or higher after the second test

Hb A1c test

This blood test shows your average blood sugar levels for the past 2 to 3 months.
 Normal if it’s 5.6% or less
 Prediabetes if it’s 5.7 to 6.4%
 Diabetes if it’s 6.5% or above

Complications

Without treatment, prediabetes can become type 2 diabetes and subsequent problems
 Kidney disease
 Blindness
 High blood pressure
 Nerve problems (peripheral neuropathy)
 Loss of a limb (amputation)

Treatment to Reverse Prediabetes

 Eat a healthy diet and lose weight
 Exercise – like brisk walk 30 minutes a day, 5 days a week
 Stop smoking
 Get your blood pressure and cholesterol under control

Many people start their new year by making a resolution, and then try their absolute best to stick to it. Usually, the majority of these resolutions are associated with getting fitter or forming a new habit which generally pertains to living a healthier life. However, statistics show that more than 80% of people fail their new year’s resolution by mid February, or sometimes even mid January!

Switching gears for a moment. We, at the Family Doctor strive to make healthcare affordable and available to everyone. All our health packages, tests and staff (nurses and doctors) push towards the betterment of our customers to live a healthier life! So why not start your new near’s resolution with us ?

The Swasth Packages that we offer, is designed to make all kinds of health tests available and affordable. Our General Physicians and Specialists, are eagerly waiting to help you find what’s best for your health and make sure you continue to live a healthy life by scheduling regular visits. We also offer free sample collection at home, and you can schedule the sample collection by downloading our App or by calling our Call Centre*. It’s that easy!

The choice now rests with you. So why don’t you start your new year by getting a full body check up from our new “Swasth and Health Packages” at a very affordable price and make the year 2020 YOUR year, where you live your life in the best possible way : healthily and happily.

We at the Family Doctor wish everyone a Happy New Year filled with health and prosperity.

For the month of November, we as a company introduced new packages and features to help better serve our customers. A new Swasth Package was introduced, the “Swasth 3.0” which offers many new tests at even beter and affordable prices. “Thefamilydoc” app received a major upgrade as payments can now be made through the app with a 5% discount available to all customers who use this feature.

We had the priviledge of working with Adarsh Palm Retreat on two separate occasions. The first one being a successful CPR and first aid training camp for the residents, whereas the second one being a full body health camp for almost 200 of the hired help working at the community. Both the events were received with great praise and appreciation from the residents of Adarsh Palm Retreat. Also, we had a general health and eye screening camp at Mantri Tranquil, a gated community.

On the corporate front, we conducted a three day annual health check up camp for over 200 employees working at Unibic Cookies, who also happen to be one of our Corporate Clients.

Continuing the tradition of health camps, two successful camps were held in Bangalore. One in the Coffee Board Park in Hebbal, which saw more than 80 attendees, and the second one held in the Kasturi Nagar park also saw over 60 people in attendance.

The Family Doctor wishes it’s customers, investors and staff a Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!