Sponsored Video: Help a Child Reach Five

In an exclusive video for Lifebuoy, Bollywood actress and mother, Kajol shares her opinion about a video featuring Gondappa which has gone viral. She explains how as a mother, she constantly worries about the health of her children and how a minor things like a cold or a cut can make her extremely worried about her child.

Gondappa's story is a heart breaking one. He walks the entire way from his house to the village temple on his hands on a hot summer noon, never putting his feet down before he reaches the deity's shrine. He does all of this to thank the gods for his child has turned five. His actions might seem bizarre at first but when we realize that Gondappa is one of those few unfortunate parents who has lost his children to diarrhea, his actions don't seem misplaced. This is his first child to have survived.

As a parent, one's child's health is the prime priority and as Kajol mentions even a sneeze and bruise can get mothers worrying about their child's health. And to imagine having to lose one's infant is unimaginable.
You might like to watch the original video about Gondappa where he tells his story. See it HERE.

" Every year two million (2000000) children under the age of five die of infections like diarrhea and pneumonia."

The most surprising aspect is the fact that these diseases which take such a huge toll of lives every year are diseases which can be very easily prevented. The only basic requirements of personal hygiene can keep these fatal diseases at bay. Washing one's hands before and after eating, after using the toilet, before cooking and handling food, and keeping the house clean are the basic few requirements which can help in prevention of the disease. Unfortunately, a large majority of parents are completely oblivious of these.

Lifebuoy as one of India's leading brands has come forward with the Help a Child Reach Five campaign to spread the importance of personal hygiene to the remote rural areas of India. They have set to focus on Thesgora, a village in India with one of the highest rates of diarrhea and have started to spread the awareness regarding the need for basic personal hygiene and bringing in real change to help prevent a large number of infectious diseases leading to child deaths. For every share of the video, Lifebuoy has promised to pay Re.1 towards the campaign.

Join Lifebuoy's campaign on their Facebook page, their Youtube stream and on their website to help reduce the number of child deaths in India due to diarrhea. Share Gondappa's story and if possible, donate to the campaign if you can and spread the word so that no parent has to go through the horror of losing their beloved child.

This post is sponsored by Lifebuoy but all opinions are my own.

Walking Down Memory Lane- The Colgate Clock

Hello, beautiful people!

At this time of the year, with so many high school kids stepping into the 'real world', or what we call college,  one cannot help but think about all the various career choices we had in mind when we were younger. As a little kid, I once thought I'd like to be a dentist- and that had nothing to do with staring into people's mouths.

I was a typical chocoholic (I still am  ) , and cavities never really came as a surprise. So, I was used to visiting the dentist and enjoyed watching him work. I often found myself observing things like the little aquarium in the lobby where I had to wait for my turn, or the way the receptionist smiled at kids who were scared of getting their teeth ripped out. And of course there were those magic fairy tales about tooth fairies and I was always eager to get my tooth extracted only hoping to see one (no, not Dwayne "Rock" Johnson, the prettier ones in tutus ). While I never got to see one, I always found the little gift she dropped under my pillow to spend on something nice 

The thing that fascinated me most, however, was a particular clock on the wall - I have to admit that it was that which made me wish I would grow up to be a dentist. Because I was under the impression that only dentists are allowed to own such a beautiful clock. Whenever I would get terrified of the creepy instruments that were shoved into my mouth, I'd fix my gaze on the Colgate Clock, as I called it, since it had the Colgate toothpaste logo on it. This one had a strange appeal to it ; the second hand was in the shape of a toothbrush and I would follow its progress with a mesmerized expression, from what I'm told. 

I did not mind the pain that came with every visit to the dentist, because I would get the chance to eat a huge ice cream sundae whenever my tooth was removed. But one day, I sorely regretted taking this lightly. I was old enough to have developed permanent teeth- and when one of THOSE got a cavity, I was horrified at the thought of having to go without one. Nightmares began to haunt my sleep, of looking like a toothless granny whenever I would smile. And worst of all, I realized I'd no longer be allowed to eat as many chocolates as I would like to! I felt like I'd been taken to Willy Wonka's chocolate factory and thrown out as a result of bad behaviour (Oh the horror!!). 

Thankfully, my friendly neighbourhood dentist told me I can get away with a 'filling'.  What he meant to fill, I hadn't known- but as long as I could retain my poor little tooth, I was willing to go along with any other plan.  Afterwards, I was advised to brush my teeth twice a day, even if it kills me. Initially, I was so relieved to have my tooth 'rescued', I would slather a generous amount of Colgate toothpaste onto my  toothbrush and brush my teeth fanatically each time I had something to eat. I gradually lost the over enthusiasm but I still make sure I brush at least twice a day. The terrifying process of having the dentist drilling into my teeth  and stuffing it with the silver-ish filler is something I sure don't want to go through again!!

Now I only happen to go to the dentist for a regular check up, but mercifully it isn't because of awful tooth problems. 

I remember Colgate starting a wonderful initiative towards creating a better awareness in people, especially kids regarding oral healthcare. Regular wooden ice-cream sticks were replaced by a wooden brush shaped stick which was revealed after the bar of ice cream was consumed, a very clever way to remind people to rinse and brush their teeth after consuming anything sweet.

Did You Know?

• Two out of every three Indians suffer from gum problems, and are unaware of it. 
• The statistics of people with a tooth/gum related problem is way higher than any other disease. 
• Teeth and gums being integral parts of our body without which we can't enjoy all those yummy saliva-inducing delicacies, it becomes a necessity that we take proper care of them.
• Apart from those flashing white teeth, we also need to pay attention to our gums which hold them. Loose and receding gums can lead to tooth loss.
• Bleeding and swollen gums can be a sign of deeper underlying problems like gingivitis or periodontitis  that need to be addressed immediately.
• Bleeding gums can cause bad breath due to increased bacterial activity in your mouth.
• We must not ignore signs that our body gives us- what would happen to our winning smiles, and by extension our pretty pictures, if we lost our teeth? Go get yourself a dental check up this week, and do take care of you dental health.

This is my entry for the IndiBlogger contest The Moral of the Story Is...... in association with Colgate Total ProGum Health. For cool tips regarding dental care, visit My Health Speak :)

Hope y'all have a great time today!

The first three images are not mine. Thank you, Google!!

Situs inversus

Hello bloggy-friends

If you've read my post on Heterochromia iridis, you'll know that I've a special love for the human physiology and psychology (sadly, I don't happen to study either). I have always been intrigued by everything different and unnatural. What is weird and freaky to most is interesting to me. So I have decided to do posts here on rare and very less known disorders of the human body. After my post on Heterochromia iridis, here comes the next on the list-

Situs inversus

Situs inversus /oppositus / transversus is a gene linked disorder. It is in fact the shorter version of the Latin phrase "situs inversus viscerum" . As the very words "transverse" or "inverted" suggest, this disease has something to do with an inverted order. In this case, it is the visceral (meaning internal) body parts. People suffering from this disorder have their internal organs placed in the opposite order to the normal placements. That is the organs that are normally placed on the right side are placed in the left and vice versa. A total mirror image placement as you might say in simpler terms.

A normal arrangement of the internal organs in a human body is situs solitus. In this arrangement organs like the heart is placed towards the left and the liver on the right. A person having situs inversus will have their organs placed in the opposite sides. Take a look at this picture-

source

See the mirror image placement of the vital organs?

Now you might ask why is that word "totalis" included in that picture. Well, there are two kinds of situs inversus -

1) Situs inversus with dextrocardia (the heart being on the right side instead of the left) called situs inversus totalis.

2) Situs inversus with levocardia (the heart being on the left side) called situs inversus incompletus. This condition is comparatively rare and has much more complications that the former.

As I mentioned earlier in the post this is a genetic disorder. It is autosomal recessive meaning that a person inherits the disease only when both the chromosomes responsible for the arrangement, each coming from either parent are affected. People who are carriers and have one defective chromosome live like normal individuals.
But in some cases this may also be linked to the X chromosome (one of the sex determining chromosomes). This condition can be found in mirror twins who have identical features in their body placed in opposite sides to each other. For example one twin is left handed and the other is right handed.

Leonardo da Vinci had seen and drawn dextrocardia way back in the 16th Century. People with situs inversus totalis usually lead normal lifestyles and may not even be aware of their condition. However, the incompletus can come with several complications.

Source

The Canadian- American actress Catherine O' Hara (the lady who played mum to Macaulay Culkin in Home Alone) had mentioned in interviews that her organs and reversely placed.

Source

NBA basketball player Randy Foye was also diagnosed with situs inversus but thankfully, it will not have an impact on his performance.

Do you know anybody who has this rare condition?

P.S.- I'm no medical student and everything written here is from my understanding of the disease from the information given on online medical forums. 

Bye till next!! 

Stay healthy...stay happy ( vice versa is also applicable here :P) :D

Heterochromia iridis

I had a cat years back which had eyes with two different eye colors, one gray and one blue. The vet told me the condition was called Heterochromia iridis or Heterochromia iridum . Later after googling for this condition, I found out that it is not only restricted to cats and dogs but also found in humans.

Heterochromia is a medical condition when a difference in coloration is present in the eyes, hair or the skin. It is caused by the excess or lack of melanin,which is primary for body coloration. It can be genetic, inherited or due to some disease or injury.

Heterochromia iridis is a special condition when the color of the iris varies in an individual. It can be


1) Complete- when one iris is of a different color from the other.

 I don't have a snap of my cat but it looked some what like this,except that its right eye was gray and not green. Looked really creepy at night.

This picture clearly shows that the two eyes have two very different colors, the left iris blue and the right brown.

 

The Friends with Benefits star, Mila Kunis has complete Heterochromia iridis, one eye brown and the other greenish hazel. Click on the images to have a closer look.

2) Partial or Sectoral - Where two different colors are present in the same iris.

This picture clearly shows how the same iris has two different colors, brown and greenish gray.

These are Kate Bosworth's eyes. She has partial Heterochromia iridis, her left eye is partially brown.

There is a special case in this category called Central heterochromia where the two irises are of the same color but the central region is of a different color from the peripheral zone. This is probably the most common  form of Heterochromia iridis in humans.

Clearly visible,this eye had a brownish coloration in the center whereas the rest of the iris is green.

Have you known anyone who had or has this condition??

All images are taken from the internet and information is partially taken from wikipedia.