Dear Madam,
I am a nineteen years old boy. From the age of seventeen, I started using hair gel. I have used Nova dry gel, Park Ave, and Gatsby wet gel. At present I am experiencing massive hair fall. Please help me. How can I stop hair loss? Is applying gel harmful for hair?
- Troubled teen.

Dear Troubled teen,
No, gel is not harmful provided you wash it off at the end of the day. Using too much on the roots result in a dry, itchy scalp, which leads to dandruff and hair loss. Apply a mixture of beaten eggs, 2 tbsp of onion juice, 1 tbsp hair oil to your scalp to contain hair loss.

Dear Sadia,
I am a fifteen years old girl, and am facing some problem with my terribly dry skin. Since I was 14, I have been noticing a dark line around my waist, which has now become ever darker. I used to wear 'tight' belts, which might have caused this problem. I also have this dark mark on my knee. I usually offer my prayers kneeling. Please do help me out. I have even tried hydroquinone creams over the dark marks after consulting a physician, but nothing seems to work. I felt that, you could help me out, as you do with the others.
- Desperate.

Dear Desperate,
At your age you are going through hormonal changes in your body, which can give rise to the symptoms you mentioned. They do lighten with age but to help it along use the following scrub.

1 tbsp cold cream (ponds/Johnsons), 1 tbsp turmeric powder, 1 tbsp ground, mushur daal, 1 tbsp uptan (Aarong), ½ lemon juice, 1 tbsp yoghurt. Mix into a paste. Apply all over the body, let it semi dry, then massage off concentrating on dark areas and take a shower.

Dear Sadia,
Hi. I am a 25 years old male.I would like to seek help from you for the following problem:

I have a thick, rough and very dry hair! I shampoo my hair 3/4 days a week & condition it after that but it doesn't seem to work! I have tried a lot of shampoos and conditioners but neither seemed to work. How can I make my hair soft, silky and shiny?
- In-a-fix.

Dear In-a-fix,
Try deep conditioning treatments at a salon. You could try using leave-on conditioners. At home after a shampoo, towel dry your hair. Apply conditioner. Leave on for 15-20 min with a hot towel wrap on the head. Rinse.

Dear Sadia,
Hope you are doing well. My problem is, in the past few months I've lost quite a large amount of weight through dieting and exercising. Probably due to this reason my skin has become very dull and rough. I basically have a tanned complexion and now with all these breakouts and black spots, it looks darker than ever. My eyes have sunk and there are some lines around them. For the acnes I'm using Eromycin 3% solution acne treatment lotion as recommended by my dermatologist and recently started using biotique fruit pack. Could you please tell me if there's any treatment available at the beauty parlours, which can rejuvenate my sensitive skin? I feel awful looking at my skin. Please help me.
- Distressed

Dear Distressed,
Yes, excessive dieting can really stress out the skin. Please drink plenty of water and fresh fruit and vegetable juice during the course of the day.

Have cod liver oil capsule twice a day with 500g chewable Vit. C tablet. Go ahead and continue with your dermatologist's recommendation for acne. Yes there are several types of facials available at salons ranging from herbal facials, to spa facials, front and whitening facials. La Belle offers an Intensive facial, which comes with a head and body massage. Ideally I would like to see you face to face to support which facial would be best suited for you.

Dear Doctor,
I am working in a pharmaceutical company. There is strong evidence that infection can spread from dental instruments to others. Can diseases like AIDS, Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C viruses spread while getting dental treatment if instruments are not sterilised? How do dentists maintain the level of precaution in Bangladesh? Are they taking sufficient measures? What will be our duties regarding this issue?
Asad, Dhanmondi

Dear Mr. Asad,
Thank you for your queries. Yes I do agree with you about the possibilities of spread of infectious disease from dental instruments if not properly sterilized. Dental professionals, who do not use proper infection control protocol on the transmission issue, are doing a crime. It is the duty of all dental professionals to use infection control guidelines. Those who do not use infection control are playing with AIDS, Hepatitis virus, and other unknown germs possibly threatening themselves, their staff, their patients and their families. Any surgical instrument, once used, becomes a potential source of infection to another patient and to anyone handling the instrument. To minimize the potential risk, each instrument must be cleaned and sterilized as soon as possible after use. Common methods of sterilization in dentistry are steam under pressure (autoclave).

What can you do in these circumstances? In order to ensure your safety, observe your dentist at work very carefully. But what should you be looking for? Note carefully whether your dentist takes complete medical history, changes gloves routinely for every patient, if he is particular about personal hygiene and washes his hands regularly, and most importantly, whether the dentist uses sterilized instruments and disposable needles and suction tips. Please ask your dentist whether he has or used an autoclave. Simply boiling the instruments in a boiler, a common practice, is neither helpful nor advisable. Remember, these essential measures increase the cost of providing care. Finally if you catch a dentist not complying with these essential cross-infection control procedures, condemn his or her gross negligence aloud in his office. You will be doing a great service towards promoting the safety of other patients before you walk out.

Dear Dr Khan,
I am your regular reader of dental wise and your fan! I have dental phobia and a fear of dental drilling. I had bad experiences while getting dental treatment during my childhood. Can you advise me on painless filling?
Kishor

Dear Mr Kishor,
The reason people fear visiting the dentist are varied and include the fear of pain, bad previous experiencse and also the fear of unknown. I believe many dental surgeons in Bangladesh can assure you a painless treatment.

Dentistry has come a long way over the last few years and many of you will be surprised in your next visit. To eliminate the discomfort associated with injections, topical agents are now applied to tissues prior to the injection. Whatever the new advances in dentistry “A clean soothing atmosphere and a calm, reassuring dentist can make your next dental visit more pleasant”.

On a different Note

Melancholy

As I sit here, at the edge of the bed, blankly staring at the hideously painted ceiling, I cannot help but wonder about all the people that I have lost throughout my twenty-one years of existence. Sounds like a very short period of time...doesn't it? Then why is it that I feel otherwise? Why is it that I feel like I have been in this world for decades? Is it because I have played hide and seek with death too many times? Or is it because I have seen death up close and personal?

I cannot even begin to imagine how it would ever be possible for a child to live without the shelter of their parents. It always rips my heart apart to hear about sudden deaths of parents leaving their new born babies or children behind. I wonder about their uncertain future, their lifeless lives, and their naive minds. How does a mother explain to her innocent little children about their fathers' demise? Would they even understand the meaning of death? Would they know that they will never ever in a million years be able to see their father again? Would they realize that when they are tucked in bed at night, waiting for their father to read them their favourite story book and kiss them good-night, he will never show up? What happens when a mother passes away leaving her precious family behind? How does one cope with that? Likewise, how does a mother or a father feel upon seeing the lifeless body of their ever so loved son or daughter resting in the morgue? Like I said, I cannot even begin to comprehend what it must feel like.

In fact, I find it quite ironic that even though death is a factual part of life and rather inevitable, we still treat it like something absurd and out of the blue. The thing is we don't wake up in the morning thinking that, “okay…today someone I love is going to die. So, get ready…and simply accept it…it is after all a part of life…and just calmly move on”. Death has a way of creeping up on you when you least expect it. In many cases you do expect it, which is in my opinion ten times more terrifying, frightening, horrifying, petrifying…whatever you are comfortable calling it. Excuse my language, but it does scare the living hell out of me.

I have to say though, to all those people that have gone through this excruciatingly agonizing experience and are still able to continue on with their lives, you are absolutely amazing. In my book, you are fantabulous superb beings for having the courage and determination to stand up once again and challenge all that life throws at you. To possess that kind of willpower and use it to strengthen, not just yourself, but others as well is no simple task. I personally feel that nothing loved is ever truly lost, and pain is a small price to pay for memories. After all, saying “goodbye” is often another way of saying “I remember”.

In loving memory of the departed souls of my dearest ones.
By Shahinta Bhuiyan