At the Biophyscial Society’s recent 60th annual meeting, scientists revealed that a peptide found in the venom of the Peruvian green velvet tarantula could one day be the answer to a high-potency painkiller with fewer side effects. In the meantime, follow these tips to ease your pain!
This article was originally published in Her World Malaysia, May 2016.
While there’s no definite way to get rid of monthly cramps, Dr Smita Sinha, consultant obstetrician and gyneacologist at Pantai Hospital Cheras, recommends investing in a heating pad and placing it on your lower belly. The heat will open up blood vessels, thus improving blood flow and dissipating the pain. Alternatively, you can try exercising because the better shape you’re in, the less likely you are to suffer from chronic aches and pains.
If your wrists are sore from typing, Dr Anbanandan Subramaniam, consultant orthopaedic surgeon at Pantai Hospital Klang, suggests taking a break from your computer once in a while to do extension (bending the palm down, towards the wrist) and flexion (raising the back of the hand) movements. This will stretch the muscles and therefore improve blood circulation. Proper support like a wrist brace is also recommended while using the keyboard and mouse. If you wish to, you can invest in ergonomic furniture, but make sure there’s not too much extension or flexion of your wrists.
After spending long hours in front of a computer screen, the eyes are bound to be overworked and tire easily. Dr Wong Hon Seng, consultant ophthalmologist at Gleneagles Kuala Lumpur, advises that adequate rest in between tasks is crucial as it’s one of the best fixes for tired eyes. Dr Wong also warns that as a general rule, puffy eyelids should not be persistent or progressive. If this happens, it may be a sign of something chronic like kidney impairment, heart failure or an allergic reaction.
Though backaches are a common problem, it’s not something that we should take lightly. One of the best ways to prevent back injury is good body posture. Dr Anbanandan recommends placing a lumbar support on your chair. It could be as simple as a pillow for your lower back to relief the paraspinal muscles after sitting for a long period of time. Do make time to get up and stretch your body, as prolonged sitting is bad for your back muscles.
Close your eyes and rest in a quiet, dark room; relax your back, neck and shoulders. If that doesn’t help, Dr Shashi Menon, consultant general physician at Pantai Hospital Ampang, suggests warming up your neck by putting a heating pad or warm cloth around your neck area and the base of your skull to ease tension caused by headaches. What you eat or drink also plays a big role, so limit your caffeine and alcohol intake and have regular meals.