My two-month-old baby has not pooped for four days

My two-month-old baby has not pooped for four days. What causes constipation in babies and what can I do to have his stomach make softer poop? Moureen
Dear Moureen,
Though rare, a two-month-old baby can have constipation, that is, hard stools which may be hard to pass and when passed may even alarmingly be blood-streaked.
However, at two months, a baby may seem constipated because it is having exclusive breastfeeding and its digestive system is actually digesting all the milk, leaving very little to pass as stool.
The little may come after many days but when it is not hard to pass, it is soft and the baby is not showing any discomfort or a ballooned stomach. This means that if the baby is comfortable, no treatment is required but just a wait and see approach.
A baby not getting enough milk may seem constipated and may cry out of hunger than the discomfort of not taking out stool.
Since it is not advisable to give water (before six months), salt or honey (before one year) more breastfeeding will most likely bring a soft motion.
If breastfeeding does not help, some fruit juice (like fresh apple juice) or glucose water on a spoon may help. Failure of these measures to help will require visiting your doctor.
Babies on formula usually get constipated more than those on exclusive breastfeeding and it is these who usually require remedial measures more than a wait and see approach.

My feet smell a lot and I am scared of removing my shoes in public. What natural remedy can help me? I have tried many things including Mumbwa without help.

Gilbert
Dear Gilbert,
Foot odour occurs due to a breakdown by foot bacteria of sweat left to accumulate on the feet. Sometimes a fungus infection between the toes or bacterial foot infection resulting from too much sweat left to accumulate and soften the foot skin can cause the odour. Unchanged socks or closed shoes which hold onto the sweat, bacteria and a fungus can only worsen matters. Sweat itself has no smell but when in excess and accumulates on the skin, it will inevitably be broken down by skin bacteria, leading to a repugnant smell. This is why it is important to maintain proper foot hygiene apart from wearing dry clean shoes and cotton socks.
Washing the feet daily with soap and water and keeping the socks and shoes dry, changed, keeping toe nails trimmed, soaking the feet in salty water or tea for at least 30 minutes (Tea contains tannic acid, which apart from drying out the feet can inhibit growth of germs) can help. Failure of these measures means visiting your doctor.
Foot odour just like any smell after a while will not be detected by the victim’s nose, and as such one may stop being aware of the odour, requiring asking a sincere friend whether it still exists or not.

Whenever I drink alcohol I get a fever. But upon checkup, they do not find germs. Does alcohol make them disappear?
-Erikanjeru

Dear Erikanjeru,
Fever is the body’s way of fighting germs. This is because most germs do not do well with temperatures above 37° C. Also, fever is the body’s way of trying to notify one that there is a health issue requiring attention.
When the body’s thermostat (brain’s hypothalamus) adjusts its set point temperature higher, one will feel cold until the set point temperature is reached and then a person will feel a fever.
Germs, inflammations and destroyed body tissues commonly cause the hypothalamus to increase the set point of temperature either by directly affecting it or through the protective white blood cells producing substances including the so-called cytokines.
Alcohol may also lead to a release of cytokines which causes fever. Alcohol causes superficial blood vessels to dilate, moving warm blood closer to the surface of the skin making one have a warm feeling and sweating. This is what many Ugandans may mistake for a fever.
Alcohol may, however, cause hot flushes but seen in those who are brown as reddening. This which is caused by an inherited problem in breaking down acetaldehyde, a product of alcohol (seen mostly in East Asians).
This breakdown may make one feel nausea, headache, feverish and general physical discomfort. People with this alcohol flushing syndrome require to stop drinking alcohol.
People who have taken long without drinking may have bad withdrawal symptoms which include mental and physical symptoms such as a fever. So, your fever requires addressing. Your body through a fever is telling you it is time to stop drinking.

I have been having a problem of hair loss and when I visited a doctor he told me I was becoming bald. But at 23?
Elly

Dear Elly,
Though hair on our heads protects us from the sun’s dangerous ultra violet rays, it is largely of cosmetic value, the reason balding especially coming early like in your case can lead to lots of stress.
Balding, which is mostly genetic, happens when instead of manufacturing thick hair we start making small hairs which are too tiny to see with our naked eyes. A male hormone (Dihydro-Testosterone), and a substance Prostaglandin D2 have been said to be associated with balding in these people. It is true balding is more common in older people, but in some people with male-pattern baldness, it can begin as early as puberty and may affect women as well, especially after menopause.
That said, there are other causes of balding some of which may be temporary provided the cause is identified and rectified, the reason you require visiting a doctor to rule out these conditions and give you a remedy. The conditions include thyroid problems or alopecia areata where the body’s immune system attacks hair. Others include scalp infections such as ringworm, cancer drugs and stress, among others.
Depending on the cause, sometimes balding may correct itself spontaneously, or after addressing the cause. There are, however, medicines which may help slow or prevent the development of common baldness but are only prescribed by a doctor after diagnosis. It may take up to six months before you can tell if the medicines are working which creates more stress, requiring that apart from drugs you should also seek counselling.