Cold hands all the time

Why are my hands cold all the time? I am a 31-year-old female.

 

There are some people who develop cold hands even though they are not in a cold environment. In most people, cold hands are the body’s natural response to the outside temperature and is not a major cause of concern. 

However, some people who have persistent cold hands  may have a circulatory problem or a problem with their nerves. There are also some medical disorders that can cause cold hands. A disorder known as Raynaud’s is quite common and usually presents with both cold hands and feet. When exposed to the  cold, the skin may change in color from blue to white followed by an intense red. There may also be associated numbness, tingling, blisters or redness over the affected area. 

Other common causes of cold hands include diabetes, raynaud disease, scleroderma, buerger disease and even anemia. 

There is no magic bullet for treatment of cold hands. Try wearing gloves and avoid exposure to cold. If you smoke, then stop. If cold hands still persist, you may want to see your doctor. There are drugs to help increase blood flow to the hands, but often these pills have side effects, are expensive and most times do not work.

Potty Training

What is the best time to potty train a child?

There is no right or wrong way to teach a child how to potty as long as one is not abusive to the child. For most children, potty training should begin round the age of 2-3. If you are patient, have energy and the child shows interest, he/she will be diaper-free in no time. Potty training is generally not a scheduled event in the life of a parent. There should be no time tables and deadlines. And even after the potty training, there will always be some accidents for the first few months. 

Most healthy children are potty trained by the age of 3. In some cases where potty training has been delayed till the age of 3-4, the major reason is that the parent has not made any effort to wean the child off diapers. And that simply means more poop to clean up afterwards.

Treating colicky baby

How does one treat a colic baby?

 

There is a lot of trial and error in the treatment of a colicky baby. You try something and if it works- fine, if it does not, do something else. There is no right or wrong about it. The only thing you have to know that sooner or later, colic will end.  And then you will have to deal with attention deficit disorder or autism, a few years later.

Colicky baby

What causes colic in babies?

 

We have gone to the moon and come back and have the latest technology in medicine. We can see further in the skies and checked out the Moon (unless NASA is lying about that) but we still have no reasonable explanation of what is colic or how to best treat it. No one knows what causes colic.

Everyone is simply guessing and almost everything under the sun has been blamed for colic. If you go to 10 different healthcare workers, you will be recommended 100 different treatments. There are some babies who are just fun to raise and then there are some babies who are a real pain in rear.

What does colic mean?

What is meaning of the word colic?

 

All new parents want to know what is colic and how does one know if the baby has colic. Colic is a term used so often that most parents think that it means a constantly crying baby. In fact there is no real definition of colic. If you speak to ten health professionals you will get 50 different answers.

Colic can occur in all babies, sick or healthy. In general if a baby cries for 3 hours a day, 3 times a week and is between the ages of 3 weeks and three months, then a probable diagnosis of colic is made. However, this is not a rigid rule; because the majority of colicky babies fall outside this definition. In some  cases, it is the parent who has a problem and not the infant.

Shoulder pain and acupuncture

I have had shoulder pain for a few months and have been thinking of acupuncture. Do you have any suggestions?

Shoulder pain can be from a variety of causes and not all respond to one standard therapy. Sometimes shoulder pain can be long standing and be very debilitating. Many types of drugs and non-drug therapies are used to treat shoulder pain. Acupuncture is widely touted to treat a variety of pain syndromes. It is widely believed that acupuncture acts by releasing chemicals, over-ride pain signals or allows good energy to flow. Based on the literature, some studies do show that acupuncture can help relieve pain which is of short duration. However, the treatment does not work if the pain is from full thickness muscle tears, shoulder dislocation and chronic arthritis. 

To date the evidence for acupuncture in treatment of shoulder pain is very weak. Moreover acupuncture requires many sessions and is prohibitively expensive. If you have pain in your shoulder, first find out the cause and see a decent rheumatologist. Sports physicians and orthopedic surgeons are not initially recommended as they tend to order expensive tests and recommend surgery, even when not indicated. If you are ever recommended surgery as a first treatment for shoulder pain, always get a second opinion. Results after surgery on the shoulder SUCK.

Alcohol and BPD

I have been diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Could this be because I drink too much alcohol?

Bipolar disorder is a complex mental disorder whose cause is unknown. The disorder is lifelong and has severe disabling mood swings. Many individuals who have been diagnosed with bipolar disorder are also known to use illicit drugs and abuse alcohol. However, alcohol itself is not a cause of the disorder because many people who drink never develop bipolar disorder. In addition, discontinuation of alcohol does not cure bipolar disorder. 

On the other hand, bipolar disorder does increase the risk of alcohol abuse. In some cases, the symptoms of bipolar are often diminished by alcohol and the diagnosis is delayed. However, over time alcohol can worsen symptoms of bipolar disorder and make treatment very difficult.

If you drink alcohol and have bipolar disorder, you need treatment for both these disorders. You may be able to discontinue alcohol drinking but treatment of bipolar disorder is quite difficult and lifelong.