Health & Living

 If you’re over 60, or if you’re caring for an elderly family member, you’re no stranger to health issues like diabetes or heart disease. But the mental health of our senior citizens may not be something we pay enough attention to. What are the mental health issues that are prevalent among our elderly, and how do we recognise them? We find out more from Dr Wan Izwin Wan Hass...

Has the smoking ban in eateries been sufficiently enforced during the pandemic? Should we take the pandemic as an opportunity to ban smoking in all public places? Are we seeing more or fewer smokers during the pandemic? These are some of the questions that have been raised over the past year, and part of what we discuss on the show, in conjunction with World No Tobacco Day (31 May). Joining us on...

Last week, the Special Committee for Ensuring Access to COVID-19 Vaccine Supply (JKJAV) confirmed which COVID-19 vaccines are suitable for pregnancy and breastfeeding women in Malaysia. We check in with consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist Dr Premitha Damodaran to understand these recommendations. * At the time of airing, JKJAV’s guidelines only recommended the Pfizer vaccine, from week...

Are your kids on their devices 24/7? Are you aware of TikTok, Snapchat, and all the apps they’re on? With kids spending more time on their gadgets and on digital platforms, parents are, understandably, worried about the impact on children’s social connections and mental health. We speak to a senior counsellor on how to guide your children’s digital life, and also hear directly fr...

For many women, dealing with menstrual cramps and the pain that comes with it is all too familiar, and they might even be used to it happening every month. But what if the pain is so severe that it is debilitating? One of the medical conditions that could cause this is endometriosis, and to help us understand how common this condition is are consultant obstetrician & gynaecologist Dr Hoo Mei L...

Many of us would associate hypertension with adults, but it is a condition that can also affect children, and that could be worrying for parents. But is childhood hypertension a growing problem? How do other conditions like obesity and kidney disease factor in, especially as childhood obesity rates are high in Malaysia? To find out more, we speak to Dr Yiaw Kian Mun , consultant paediatric nephrol...

Today, there is better acceptance and understanding of depression as a mental health condition. But people with depression still face a challenging journey when it comes to getting proper treatment and support. Consultant psychiatrist Dr Michael Ang walks us through the spectrum of treatment for depression, and why patients shouldn’t lose hope. This show is part of Health in a Pod, a health...

There has been a lot of talk about variants of concern when it comes to COVID-19, especially with the surge of cases in India being linked to the B.1.617 variant. In Malaysia, the Ministry of Health has reported a number of cases due to several variants of concern. With an equally alarming rise in cases here, we find out what kind of bad news these variants signal for our pandemic, from Assoc Prof...

There has been a lot of talk about variants of concern when it comes to COVID-19, especially with the surge of cases in India being linked to the B.1.617 variant. In Malaysia, the Ministry of Health has reported a number of cases due to several variants of concern. With an equally alarming rise in cases here, we find out what kind of bad news these variants signal for our pandemic, from Assoc Prof...

In March, it was reported that six Dr Seuss books will cease publication because of racist themes in them. What should parents do when children come across inappropriate themes or stereotypes in books, movies or games? Should we shield children from such content, or should we talk to them about it? We find out from consultant developmental paediatrician Dr Rajini Sarvananthan and Li-Hsian Choo, a...

One-third of Malaysians have hypertension – that means one in three of us is walking around at risk of a heart attack, stroke or kidney disease. With the condition being a silent disease, how many people could have severe hypertension without knowing it? Dato' Dr Yap Lok Bin, Consultant Cardiologist from Subang Jaya Medical Centre , warns us about the dangers of severe hypertension and...

Is it alright for a doctor to have a romantic relationship with a patient? What if your doctor or hospital insists on giving you a treatment that you refuse? How should COVID-19 vaccines be distributed? These are ethical concerns in health and medicine that we all come across at some point in our interactions with healthcare. Dr Sharon Kaur Gurmukh Singh, Senior Lecturer at the Faculty of Law, Uni...

When you experience frequent bloatedness, wind, constipation or diarrhoea, you’ll probably shrug them off. But these are the same symptoms often overlooked in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), an autoimmune condition that can lead to complications when not properly treated. In conjunction with World Inflammatory Bowel Disease Awareness Day on 19 May, consultant gastroenterologist Prof Dr Raj...

We are back for our monthly open clinic segment, where we get our doctors to address your health concerns. Consultant paediatrician Dr Sanjay Woodhull answers all your questions about fevers and other common health problems in children. Image source: Shutterstock See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Imagine a computer being able to diagnose cancer better than a team of doctors. That was the promise of artificial intelligence – that it would render human intelligence obsolete one day. But is this more hype than reality? We speak to Prof Ng Kwan Hoong, Medical Physicist and Professor, Department of Biomedical Imaging, University of Malaya, and Dr Evelyn Ho, Consultant Clinical Radiologist...

After 17-year-old Ain Husniza Saiful Nizam started the #MakeSchoolASaferPlace movement, she received rape threats, lewd comments and harsh criticisms. Her experience shows that bullying and violence against children is more prevalent than ever, especially on social media. On this show, two teenage girls share their experiences of being bullied and body-shamed, while consultant psychiatrist Assoc P...

Your musculoskeletal system bears the weight of your body. So if you’re carrying excess body weight, there are effects on your bones, joints, and soft tissue, as well as an increased risk of injuries. Dr Loke Yean Hwe, Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon from Ara Damansara Medical Centre, joins the show to discuss the link between weight and musculoskeletal problems, as well as how exercise can h...

Your musculoskeletal system bears the weight of your body. So if you’re carrying excess body weight, there are effects on your bones, joints, and soft tissue, as well as an increased risk of injuries. Dr Loke Yean Hwe, Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon from Ara Damansara Medical Centre, joins the show to discuss the link between weight and musculoskeletal problems, as well as how exercise can h...

The idea that you can provide personalised medicine – i.e. tailoring treatment approaches to patients’ individual risks and needs – seems like a niche concept that belongs in the annals of the future. But personalised medicine is here and could have far-reaching public health implications on funding, treatment decisions, and allocation of resources. We find out from Prof Dr Teo S...

The numbers vary, but it is estimated that we spend anywhere between two and four hours a day hunched over our phones. If you feel your head tipping forward, and your neck and shoulders getting tense right now, you may be suffering from ‘text neck’. Could this lead to serious problems and how do you correct your posture, considering mobile phone use is unavoidable? We hear directly fro...

The numbers vary, but it is estimated that we spend anywhere between two and four hours a day hunched over our phones. If you feel your head tipping forward, and your neck and shoulders getting tense right now, you may be suffering from ‘text neck’. Could this lead to serious problems and how do you correct your posture, considering mobile phone use is unavoidable? We hear directly fro...

If you are above 60, or have an elderly parent, you’re probably familiar with going for annual health checkups. But when was the last annual vaccination? Vaccinations are not just for children, as there are many infectious diseases – apart from COVID-19 – that are dangerous to older adults. Consultant Geriatrician Prof Dr Shahrul Bahyah Kamaruzzaman, and Consultant Respiratory Ph...

With certain COVID-19 vaccine candidates hitting hurdles before they’re even introduced into Malaysia’s National COVID-19 Immunisation Programme, it’s become clear that building trust in COVID-19 vaccines is not a sprint but a marathon. We take a look at what it will take for us to maintain and increase the level of vaccine confidence, if we are to achieve herd immunity by Februa...

We return with our monthly mental health clinic with consultant clinical psychologist Paul Jambunathan. In this segment, we address your concerns regarding mental, emotional and psychosocial issues – with a special focus on fear. Image source: Shutterstock See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Once, hospitals were among the most dangerous places to be in. Patients lost their lives due to infections acquired in hospitals. Then an infectious disease physician made it his life’s work to introduce hand hygiene as a standard of care in hospitals. In conjunction with World Hand Hygiene Day, Prof Didier Pittet, Director, Infection Control Programme, University of Geneva Hospitals –...