It is not possible to make any definite recommendations about treatment. The following are some suggestions for normal healthy baby care. It is not known for certain whether these will prevent cot death but they do improve the care of normal babies. Before making any changes to the way you care for your baby, please check with your pediatrician or maternal health sister.

• Before becoming pregnant try to be as healthy as possible.

• Ensure good antenatal care.

• Do not use morphine or other hard drugs.

• Avoid maternal smoking during pregnancy as this can contribute to lower birth weight or premature babies who are believed to be more at risk.

• If possible, try to breast feed as this appears to reduce the possibility of respiratory infections.

• Do not give the baby certain antihistamines or “knock out drops” which have a sleep-inducing effect.

• Parents should consult their maternal and child health nurse or doctor as to the best sleeping position for their baby.

• Maintain a warm, even temperature for the baby. In winter, keep the baby’s room heated evenly or have it sleep in your room in order to keep a check on major fluctuations in temperature.

• Maintain a smoke-free environment. Research shows that babies living with smokers are more at risk as they inhale significant levels of carbon monoxide.

• Keep the nose and mouth free from obstructions.

• Ensure your child is immunized at the correct age.

• Try not to take the baby to crowded places during winter and avoid having people with colds handling the baby.

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• Get into the habit of nibbling on healthy foods in between meal Chew nuts, raw vegetables (you will be surprised how sweet many of these are), seeds, fruit cheese or even hard-boiled eggs This will stop you feeling you have to reach for the sweet thing In the early days of weaning yourself off sugar, it is a good id» to have fruit, for example, in the car.

The trouble with sugar addiction is that, like any other addiction it makes your body produce abnormal physical reactions – in this case a rise in insulin to combat the rise in blood sugar. Unfortunately, a rapid release of insulin produced in too large an amount in a sugar addict causes the blood sugar to fall about an hour later producing the classical effects of hypoglycemia. These are so unpleasant that it often does not take much will power to stop this self-destructive behaviour. Don’t see nibbling in between meals as bad-make it a virtue by nibbling at the right sort of foods. If you are eating healthily at mealtimes you will probably find you need fewer in-between meals snacks anyway. It is far better to eat six bulky, high-fit meals a day than two or three energy-rich, sugary blow-outs.

• Eat more high-fibre foods and complex carbohydrates. Unfortunately, the majority of sugar addicts like these foods least îf all so this could take a few weeks to get used to.

• Take more exercise – in particular, do something physical when you feel you would like to binge on sweets. When you crave sugar get down on the floor and do some push-ups or some other strenuous exercises.

• Use artificial sweeteners if you have to as a crutch while you wean yourself off sugar, but don’t substitute one for the other permanently. A cloud hangs over the safety of all the artificial sweeteners and using them to overcome your addiction simply substitutes one form of sweetener with another. Aim to be off all sweeteners within a couple of months of getting rid of your addiction for sugar.

• Keep well away from confectionary vending machines. They are disastrous for the sugar addict.

• Research has found that the  vitamins, especially nicotinamide, help kill the hunger in sugar addicts. Whole grains, fresh vegetables and wheat-germ are all sources of this vitamin.

• Eat more chromium, manganese and zinc. The trace element chromium is known to be vital in sugar metabolism, and zinc and manganese help stabilize blood sugar. Zinc has a vital role in taste generally and a recent study found that it can help control a sweet tooth. Ten healthy people were fed zinc supplements for fifteen weeks to see how it would affect their senses of sweet, sour and saltiness. The most dramatic finding was that they could all get by with less sugar.

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What is it?

A potentially lethal venereal disease that affects mainly the homosexual community and those who have received infected blood by transfusions. The letters of the name stand for Auto-Immune Deficiency Syndrome-the condition is so named because it produces a breakdown in the body’s ability to combat infections.

AIDS appears to be a new disease and at the time of writing the total number of cases reported worldwide is less than 12,000. Just why some people who develop AIDS die and others seem to be able to cope with the infection is not known but most people who contract the disease probably do not realize they have it. Only about one in ten of those with the AIDS virus go on to develop a more serious form of the disease.

There is no treatment for AIDS and this makes prevention all the more vital. Gamma interferon, Inter-leukin and bone-marrow transplants have all been tried unsuccessfully.

The first signs of AIDS are night sweats, fevers, rapid weight loss, lethargy and general malaise. Sometimes these symptoms are clear-cut and then disappear. Swelling of the lymph glands and the appearance of skin blotches are signs that the full AIDS condition has developed. Symptoms can take from six months to four years to appear after the initial contact with someone with the virus.

People who have AIDS usually die from pneumonia or skin cancer as a result of the breakdown of the immune system.

What causes it?

AIDS is caused by a virus that was only identified in May 1984. Since then the entire genetic structure of the virus has been discovered but vaccines may take a long time to develop because the AIDS virus, unlike that of certain other viral diseases, appears to be able to live alongside the antibody to it in the blood. The virus is also very changeable (rather like the ‘flu viruses) and this again makes for problems in combating it.

Infection with the virus does not necessarily mean death as was thought until very recently. Having said this, once someone has the disease itself (as opposed to being infected with the virus) at the current state of knowledge death is certain. The disease has only been around for six years or so and it is clear that the incubation period can be this long. There is now concern that carriers of the virus might remain symptom-free for perhaps much longer and then finally develop the disease-all the time passing it on to others unwittingly.

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Vitamin D

Vitamin D is necessary for a healthy immune system; a deficiency will hamper the “cell eating” (phagocytic) functions of the white blood cells. In large amounts, however, vitamin D can suppress the immune system.

Vitamin D is made in your body by the action of sunlight on the skin. This vitamin is also added to milk, milk products and flour. Most people get enough vitamin D naturally. I don’t generally recommend more than the RDA of vitamin D for my patients unless a condition such as osteoporosis makes it necessary.

Check with your physician before taking vitamin D supplements.

Magnesium

There is plenty of evidence to indicate that the immune system suffers in animals who are deprived of magnesium. A deficit of magnesium causes an unhealthy enlargement of the thymus, which leads to reduced T and B-cell response. Some of the immunoglobulins may also be lowered. An increased incidence of a particular cancer, called malignant lymphoma, has been reported in magnesium-deficient animals.

Like copper, magnesium helps to fight free radicals and cancer as part of the SOD molecule.

Magnesium intake has been reported to be low in the general population, especially among our elderly members.

Manganese

A great deal of research has focused on the relationship between manganese and the immune system in animals. Growth and reproduction are greatly reduced by a manganese deficit. Adequate manganese in the body allows antibody levels to elevate in response to challenges. Manganese is important to humans as well, for it is part of the very important SOD molecule that protects the body against free radicals.

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VIRAL PNEUMONIA: viral infection that involves the lungs and respiratory passages. In schools and the military, viral pneumonia is responsible for 75 percent of all lung^ infections. CMV and herpes are two of the many viruses that can cause viral pneumonia.

Signs and Symptoms: usually headache; loss of appetite; fever; aches in muscles. Patient feels weak and tired. There is a cough, usually with yellow sputum; rarely bloody.

The diseases I have listed aren’t meant to be a respresentative cross section. They are simply a few of the immune-system problems I’ve treated over the past 20-plus years. Any of the signs and symptoms I’ve described could signal impending immune-system failure.

For all its prowess, the immune system is very fragile. There are so many ways to harm it. And the signs and symptoms of immune-system failure may not become evident until the disease is firmly entrenched in your body. An innocent cough that lasts too long may be nothing. But what if it’s signaling tuberculosis or cancer? And that fever—is it nothing, or the first sign of AIDS? That’s why I feel it’s so important to get persistent signs and symptoms checked out by a physician, even if they seem trivial. Better still, adopt the Immune For Life program and prevent the signs and symptoms from occurring.

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Breast cancer may or may not produce pain. Symptoms of the cancer may be severe or may not appear until later on. There may be tenderness in the breasts, hardening or thickening of the breast or a sore on the breast. A lump may be discovered, and there may be swelling under the arms. The nipple may be ulcerated or inverted (turned in). There may be a discharge from the nipple, which can contain a bloody or a nonbloody fluid.

Pancreatic cancer may cause severe symptoms or no symptoms, although there is generally a loss of appetite and loss of weight as the disease progresses. The cancer may be characterized by severe abdominal pain, often in the center but spreading out to both sides of abdomen. In many cases the pain goes through to the back. In fact, back pain may predominate, causing the person to be treated for a back problem. If the head of the pancreas is involved, the bile ducts can be obstructed, and there is usually a painless jaundice (the skin and the whites of the eyes become yellow, the urine becomes dark and the stool becomes light in color). The liver or gallbladder may enlarge, and pain may be experienced under the lower right ribs or the right upper side of abdomen.

Uterine cancer may be indicated by vaginal bleeding from a woman who hasn’t had a period for a long time, or periods may become longer and irregular. There may or may not be pain.

Prostate cancer grows very slowly, so signs and symptoms occur gradually. There may be difficulty in urinating, frequent urination, or some trouble in starting or stopping urinatation. Later on there may be blood in the urine, pus or obstructions to urination. If the cancer spreads to the bones of the pelvis and lower back, there may be severe pains in those regions. In fact, many low-back problems in men over 65 are due to cancer of the prostate.

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Lymphocytes are special kinds of white blood cells associated with the lymph tissue of the body. (“Lymph” refers to lymph tissue, “cyte” to cells.) Lymphoid tissue is a specialized complex of tissue in the body.

There are two main categories of lymphocytes: Tlymphocytes and B-lymphocytes. Tlymphocytes are called T-cells because they receive their programming from the thymus gland. Like the phagocytes, T-cells engage the enemy in hand-to-hand combat. B-lymphocytes, called B-cells, are more like artillery. From their positions in the lymph tissue, B-cells set in motion the machinery that manufactures “guided missiles” (antibodies), which home in on and destroy antigens.

The lymphoid tissues of your body, where the T- and B-cells “live,” include the bone marrow, spleen, gastrointestinal tract, pulmonary tract, tonsils, the many lymph nodes all over the body, and the thymus gland. (Tap the middle part of your breast bone with your finger. The thymus is located right under your finger.)

Picture a lymph gland in your mind; imagine that it is a fort, full of T-cells and B-cells awaiting instructions. When they get their battle orders, they eagerly study them, scrutinizing and memorizing the features of their enemy: the antigens.

Then an amazing thing happens. Certain T and B-cells swing into action, and the lymphocytic “assembly lines” spew out weapon after weapon. Meanwhile, other lymphocytes are acting like computers, receiving and storing information about these antigens. If they ever come back, your immune system will be ready for them.

What are these marvelous weapons? Sensitized T-cells and B-cell antibodies. Let’s begin with a look at the T-cells, then examine the B-cells.

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As I talk with my midlife and older patients about how aging affects their bodies, I find that one of their most common complaints is how they find it increasingly difficult to keep pace with the busy lives they lead. In fact, the medical problems that bring patients into the office more often than any other illness involve limitations of movement and their concern that they’re not able to run around as easily as before. The enormous sums of money that are spent on prescription medications, over-the-counter preparations, physical therapy, and surgery that promise to help us stay mobile attest to the frustration we feel when we can’t move freely.

Many of these mobility problems are due to one of several kinds of arthritis—osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis among them—and the related health problems that stem from these diseases. In fact, as many as 60 percent of the population over 55 reports having a form of arthritis, whether it’s mild or severe.

Arthritis is not the only disorder that affects our ability to stay mobile. Certain skin disorders and diseases of the heart, lungs, kidneys, and vascular system affect us as well, and aging affects the movements of our joints, ligaments, and muscles: the ligaments become less elastic, and the muscles lose some of their strength as a result of the decrease in muscle mass that is inevitable as we age—even in bodybuilders. No matter what, the best way to keep the joints, ligaments, and muscles in top working order, despite the effects of age, is to remain active and get some exercise every day.

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BODY SIGNAL ALERT Call your doctor immediately if you experience any of the following symptoms:

SYMPTOM POSSIBLE MEDICAL CONDITION

You are postmenopausal and have Cancer vaginal bleeding?

You are premenopausal and are Fibroid inflammation, cancer experiencing irregular vaginal bleeding.

You feel pain in your lower pelvis.

Appendicitis, ovarian cyst, on the side pelvic inflammatory disease.

You feel pain when urinating and Urinary tract infection your urine is cloudy or foul-smelling.

You have urinary incontinence.

Urinary tract infection, reaction to medication, fallen uterus.

You have a vaginal discharge and feel Ovarian cancer bloated and fatigued.

You feel an abrasion or lesion on the Sexually transmitted disease lips of your vagina.

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It’s a good idea to perform the self-exam the week after your menstrual period has ended. Your breasts will be less congested at this time, and any new growths will be easy to detect. Some women do their self-exam in the shower, because moist skin makes it easier to massage the breast in a circular motion, which is the best way to detect a lump.

First, stand before a mirror and check the nipples and skin of your breasts for any visible changes. Have the nipples or areola changed color since your exam last month? Does any portion of the skin of the breast appear puckered like an orange peel? Is there any noticeable swelling?

Next, raise your arms above your head. Do you notice any difference in the symmetry or appearance of your breasts?

The next, most important step can be done either in the shower or lying on your back. Start with your right breast. Raise your right arm above your head, and, holding your fingertips closely together, start at the top of the breast, at what would be twelve o’clock. Gently move your fingers in a circular motion while you check for any lumps. Next, move to one o’clock, and so on, until you have checked for lumps at the position of every hour on your breast. Next, follow the same motion for the area of the breast that lies under the nipple. Then, gently squeeze the nipple to check for any abnormal discharge. It’s also important to check the area under your armpit, where lymph nodes are located.

Repeat the procedure for your left breast.

If you discover a lump in your breast, you should see your doctor. A regular monthly self-exam can be helpful because it helps you to become familiar with lumps or masses that appear in your breasts and are noncancerous, and also to be aware of changes in your breasts that might indicate the presence of a malignancy. If you have trouble distinguishing between normal breast tissue, glands, and a lump, ask your gynecologist if she has a breast prosthesis that you can feel so you know what a lump feels like. Normal breast tissue can have masses and stringy tissue, but a lump is usually hard and starts out the size of a small pebble.

If you detect a lump, immediately see your doctor, who will then determine the status of the mass. Most lumps are not cancerous, but any new masses that you may find and that your doctor deems suspicious will require further examination. She may choose a mammogram, ultrasound, or biopsy.

A monthly self-exam can mean the difference between successful treatment and a fatal illness. Get in the habit of checking your breasts every month without fail.

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