 |
Tuesday,
October 30, 2001, Chandigarh, India  |
Focus on eyes Moderate dieting, exercise safe for lactating mums
|
|
Focus on eyes ANUBHA graduated last year from college and joined as computer operator in a private company. She has long work hours, involving meeting a deadline everyday. She has to stare at the computer screen all day long, without blinking eyes, at times. Sometime back, she started complaining of fatigue, irritation, redness and discomfort in her eyes. A number of visits to eye specialists earned her several antibiotics and steroid drops, which have worsened her discomfort. Recently, she was diagnosed as suffering from computer-related dry eye and prescribed tear substitutes and frequent blinking of the eyes and break from work at regular intervals, which have helped her. Anubha is not alone; with increasing women workforce in different departments and increasing use of computers in almost every field, the number of women sufferers from dry eye and other problems is on the rise. Eye strain from computer screens, hormonal changes occurring during pregnancy or menopause, exposure to harmful ultraviolet sun rays, cosmetic related allergies and infections, besides several gender-specific preponderance of diseases show that women’s eyes require special attention. The eyes of a woman are predisposed to injury and disease more than ever before in this modern age due to greater exposure. While outdoor activities expose the eyes to ultraviolet rays and environmental pollutants, work in laboratories and industries expose them to the risk of chemical or thermal injuries. A village-woman is at risk of suffering from eye infections at home due to poor hygiene and injuries with ultraviolet rays and mechanical injuries with straw, in the fields. That explains a high incidence of corneal ulcers, opacities, pterygium, cataract etc. Delay or denial of preventive and curative measures either due to ignorance or gender discrimination to these hapless women compounds their problems, with resultant high incidence of partial or complete blindness in one or both eyes. It has also been seen that the incidence of glaucoma and diabetes-related eye complications is higher in women. Fluctuations of hormonal levels in the women at the time of pregnancy can predispose to precipitation of diabetes or hypertension and consequent retinal involvement and loss of vision. Women in the menopausal age group are not only at greater risk of suffering from heart disease or silent bone fractures but also the discomfort and blurring associated with dry eye. Similarly, careless or excessive use of cosmetics around the eyes can pose risk of allergy or infection to the eyes. Eyes and hygiene
|
|
Moderate dieting, exercise safe for lactating mums OBESITY and dieting are
perennially controversial and current for health freaks. Women, specially, love to talk about obesity and food to maintain themselves. The teenaged, the young and even the middle-aged are conscious of how they appear. In some cases, far from losing, women gain weight in the post-partum period. Excessive weight gain during pregnancy makes a woman obese and at times look ugly. This may have long-term effects on her health. Should the new mother, on whom the neonate is totally dependent for survival, take to dieting? How harmful or how useful is dieting after pregnancy and during lactation? These questions cloud the lactating mother’s mind. Since proper diet is essential for the mother who, along with herself, also feeds her child, the very thought of dieting troubles her and the family in which she lives. The infant’s health and diet obviously are more important than the mother’s excessive weight. How far dieting influences the breast-fed child? Though breast milk protects infants against all nutrient deficie-ncies, the rapid growth of the infant raises the demand on the mother. Malnutrition or inadequate intake of nutrients may affect the normal functions of the mammary gland. A key study was conducted by the Institute of Medicine, USA on baboons. This study suggests that moderate energy restriction is safe both for the lactating mother and the infant. Extreme dieting has to be avoided. In many observational studies in developing countries by brown and Dewey it was observed that even moderate dieting may adversely affect a woman with low fat reserves. A 10-week study was found valid in which the infants of initially overweight, lactating mothers who exercised and dieted to lose an average 5kg per week grew normally. Moderate weight loss in overweight lactating mothers neither affects the growth of the newly born nor the health of the mother. It is important to note that a diet regimen should not be undertaken before the child is four weeks old. This is a critical time when the process of lactation is being established. During this period women’s body undergoes significant changes and she is in the process of building a long-term bond with the new one. Moderate dieting and an aerobic exercise programme do not harm the infant when the mother is overweight and has adequate body fat stores to simply energy for milk production. Aerobic exercise has metabolic effects that maintain milk production even when there is energy deficit. Furthermore, milk maintenance also depends on the continued infant demand. If mothers feed their little ones on demand (when the infant shows signs of hunger rather than at a fixed time) the production of milk is facilitate by the release of prolactin. Prolactin is a harmony that maintains milk supply by channeling the maternal nutrients toward the mammary gland. Moderation is the key word for dieting and exercise during lactation. Slowly and steadily, over a certain time, the new mother can achieve her original figure and health.
|
 |
| Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir | Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs | Nation | Editorial | | Business | Sport | World | Mailbag | In Spotlight | Chandigarh Tribune | Ludhiana Tribune 50 years of Independence | Tercentenary Celebrations | | 121 Years of Trust | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | Suggestion | E-mail | |
The most vulnerable period of womanhood is pregnancy and lactation. Maternal weight retention after giving birth to a child averages between 0.9and 3.3 kg at 1 year or longer after giving birth. But many retain much more than this.