People with chronic diseases are more at risk of seeing a doctor during the holiday season, when people eat more and drink more alcohol. Small gestures can save us from an emergency situation.
Abundant meals can bring us great inconvenience PHOTO: archive
Gastrointestinal, cardiovascular and nephrological diseases were the ones that brought the most patients to the Emergency Department in the few days that passed since Christmas. The number of patients who arrived urgently at the hospital started to increase since the first day of Christmas, reaching, in the Emergency Reception Unit of the Slatina County Emergency Hospital, almost 300 patients/24 hours, from an average of 160-180 or at most 200 patients daily.
Nephrologist Emilian Postelnicu says that in the case of certain ailments, health can deteriorate even without too much excess.
“Gastro-intestinal conditions became more acute. cirrhosis hepatic, bile discharges, digestion problems. Also, cardiovascular diseases, because it is eaten abundantly and rich in sodium. Nephrological conditions, because there is a tendency to make retentions and exacerbate chronic kidney diseases, but also psychiatric conditions, against the background of excessive alcohol consumption, or depression related to the holidays”the doctor specified.
Patients with nephrological conditions ended up in the emergency room mainly due to the consumption of foods with high salt intake. Patients in this category, due to the decrease in the glomerular filtration rate, are restricted in sodium consumption to a maximum of 5 grams, in order not to cause fluid retention. However, these days the consumption of foods with a high sodium content has increased, and patients have faced edema, hypertensive jumps, etc.
“Five grams is a teaspoon, all day and from everything you eat. (… ) If he eats two or three pickles, it is more than the necessary allowance for a day”, the doctor explained.
Although it may seem surprising, the greatest intake of sodium comes from the consumption of bread, adds the doctor, because Romanians eat a lot of bread and few of the patients who need to be careful about sodium consumption choose unsalted bread.
And in the case of aggravation of liver cirrhosis, the increased intake of sodium contributed, causing edema, the increase of blood pressure above the limit values and, if alcohol consumption was also added, the liver suffered even more, some patients even ending up in a coma.
Unsuitable associations, a danger
Serious situations can also occur as a result of alcohol consumption, which either makes the drugs no longer have their effect, or even causes more serious effects. And other combinations are harmful.
“Some patients combine treatment. I say – I took my treatment, I take the treatment by God. But the treatment, antihypertensives, in general, are canceled by excessive sodium intake. If we eat salty, the antihypertensives don’t really work. As the antibiotic is with alcohol, so is the antihypertensive with sodium. says the doctor. Alcohol does not play well with antihypertensive drugs either, regarding the association of alcohol with certain antibiotics or antidepressant drugs, the effects can be even worse than the simple inactivation of the drugs.
Moderate portions, more vegetables and fruits
To guard against the risk of ending up in the hospital, whether we have pre-existing conditions or not, we should eat sparingly. “Moderate portions, with lots of vegetables and fresh fruit. With traditional dishes let’s make one meal a day – beef salad, sausages, steaks, alcohol. Otherwise, in the morning – a cheese, a light dairy product with a tea, in the evening – a tea, toast, a salad with a little lean protein – chicken breast or cheese or a boiled egg. Under no circumstances three meals consisting of mayonnaise, fries, minced meat and sprinkled with alcohol, because you need to give your body a digestive rest.” the doctor also said. It will not be a tragedy if we even manage to skip certain meals, on the contrary, we will give the body time to recover.
