Dr Champion

He never knew he was wrong.... and could cause complications

Please if you love your family members, stop doing this.

Rest and knowing when to pause is part of preventive medicine

Saturday mornings can be tempting. You wake up, look at the time and decide you'd rather stay in bed a little longer. But sometimes, getting outside for a walk is one of the best things you can do for yourself. You don't have to run. You don't have to walk for miles. Just start with what you can manage. Regular walking supports heart health and can help with blood pressure and blood sugar control. So, tell me, are you someone who enjoys morning walks, or do you prefer exercising later in the day?

I remember a man once came to the clinic because of a small wound under one of his feet. He had noticed it some days earlier but couldn't remember how it happened. Since it wasn't painful, he didn't consider it much of a problem. He had cleaned it, applied ointment and continued with his daily activities. But it wasn't healing. When I examined his foot, I noticed something that concerned me. He wasn't feeling light pressure properly. Further examination showed that sensation in his feet was reduced. We had to look beyond the wound itself. His blood tests revealed diabetes. He had apparently been living with it without knowing. This is something worth understanding about diabetes. It may not always manifest with obvious symptoms. Sometimes, a person only discovers a complication before realising they have the condition. Diabetes can damage the nerves in the feet. When that happens, someone may have a cut, blister or even an injury from stepping on something and barely notice it. Think about that for a moment. You could have an injury under your foot, keep walking on it every day and not realise the damage is getting worse. Repeated pressure can prevent the wound from healing. Poor circulation and infection can make matters worse. This is why I take foot wounds seriously, particularly when there is reduced sensation or a history of diabetes. And it isn't only about people who already know they have diabetes. A chronic, nonhealing wound deserves attention, even if it doesn't hurt. If you have diabetes, make a habit of checking your feet daily. Look under your feet and between your toes. Wear proper footwear and avoid walking barefoot. If you notice a wound, get it examined early rather than relying on ointments. A wound that is not painful is not necessarily a harmless wound.

You’re exhausted all day. You finally lie down, fully ready to sleep… and somehow find the energy to scroll for another two hours. It’s almost impressive. Feeling too tired to do anything else and still unable to put the phone down aren’t contradictions. Your body can be exhausted while your mind is still drawn to the next thing on your screen. Anyone else get weirdly energetic the second they open their phone at night?

At work, he was the dependable one. He met his deadlines, answered calls and helped everyone who needed him. But when he got home, even the simplest things felt like too much. Nobody at work knew. Perhaps he didn't want them to know. Perhaps he didn't even know how to explain it himself. We sometimes mistake being able to function for being okay. They are not the same thing.

This swelling on the elbow has been growing slowly for more than seven years. Seven years. No pain. No sudden change. Just a gradual increase that was easy to ignore until it looked like this. A lot of us do the same thing with our bodies. Something changes slowly, doesn’t hurt, and we tell ourselves we’ll deal with it later. Later becomes years. At times slow really does mean less urgent. Other times it just means the problem has had more time to grow before anyone looks at it properly. This is one reason the story behind a symptom matters, how long it’s been there, whether it ever hurt, and what finally made someone come in. Have you ever ignored something on your body because it was growing slowly and didn’t hurt? And why did you finally see a doctor?

A 10-year-old handed her 3-year-old brother a bottle and told him to swallow the medicine. It wasn’t a tablet or syrup. It was benzyl benzoate, a lotion meant only for the skin to treat scabies. The bottle had been left where the children could reach it. The parents realized what happened, but the child didn’t get to the hospital until more than 24 hours later. Thankfully, he remained well. No vomiting, no seizures, nothing. This is how some childhood medicine poisonings happen. Not from a stranger or a locked cabinet. From something left on a table, a shelf, or a bag within easy reach. How safely are the medicines in your home actually stored?

Saw a 42-year-old man in the clinic today. Blood pressure was reading was 170/100 mmHg. I asked if he was having headaches or feeling off. He laughed and said, "Doc, I run 3 miles every morning and I’m in the best shape of my life." That’s what makes high blood pressure so dangerous. You don't feel it. Over a billion people live with hypertension, and nearly half don't know it because they feel completely fine. Meanwhile, it’s quietly straining your heart and kidneys while you’re working, traveling, or hanging with your kids. A few simple habits actually make a difference: • Watch the hidden salt in seasoning cubes, canned sauces, and pre-packaged foods (that’s where most of it comes from, not the salt shaker). • A brisk 20 to 30-minute daily walk can drop your numbers • Stop by a local pharmacy or grab a not-too-expensive home cuff to get a baseline. Don't wait for a symptom that might not show up until it's an emergency. When was the last time you actually checked yours?

A middle-aged man came to the clinic today. He looked tired, but he wouldn’t admit it. He told me this was just how work felt now. As we talked, he described waking up in the morning and still feeling exhausted. By 2 or 3 pm, he was already struggling to keep going. But he still got through the working day, so he didn’t think anything was wrong. He had been living like this for so long that it had become normal to him. When did you last wake up and actually feel rested?

A patient came into the clinic today completely worn out. She sleeps 8 hours, eats clean, but by 2 PM her head is pounding and she can barely think. Her blood work was perfectly normal. Turns out, she drinks a large black coffee the minute her alarm goes off at 6:30 AM, another at 11:30, and crashes at 2. She was convinced the midday cup was the issue. It was actually the first one. How long do you wait after waking up before having your first coffee?

Had a chat with a guy today who joined the gym a month ago to lose weight. Scale's barely moved. By all traditional metrics, he "failed" his goal. But his wife told him he's nicer to live with, and he's sleeping better. Feels ironical how we chase numbers on a scale when our minds are usually what's crying out for the workout. Ever happened to you?