Babies are very precious to their parents. Do you know when parents would feel happy regarding their babies? They would feel happy when they come to know that their baby is healthy and growing perfectly. The parents would feel reassured when they see their baby is growing perfectly. Important signs that newborn is growing perfectly are Sleeping 14 -17 hours per day: The bodies of babies are developing and their brains are maturing. As a result, the babies sleep a lot in a day. Truth is that sleeping is essential for memory, body repair and brain functions etc. Frequent hiccups: It is true that newborns would get frequent hiccups and this would indicate that the baby is growing perfectly. The hiccups in the babies would be due to the underdevelopment of diaphragm. The hiccups in the babies are normal and harmless. Feeding every 1 to 2 hours: It must be noted that the stomach of babies is small and it would be able to digest milk rapidly. It is due to this reason that mothers must feed their newborn every 1 to 2 hours in a day for the sake of adequate calories and nutrients for normal growth. Sleep smiling: During the rapid eye movement or REM period, sleep smiling would occur in the babies. Working brain development is indicated by this. Crying while urinating: The babies would cry while urinating and this would occur for a short time. It is worthy to note that in the babies the response is due to a new sensation and it is normal. Parents must consult a doctor if the baby cries persistently. Frequent sneezing: A mechanism by which the body expels mucus, milk, dust etc from the nasal passage is sneezing. It is brought out that in the babies this reflex would maintain healthy and clean airways. Steady weight gain: One important predictable sign of baby development is regular weight gain. It is worthy to note that a baby would regain birth weight in 10 to 14 days and would gain 150 to 200gms per week in the initial months. Baby acne: Due to maternal hormones, neonatal acne can occur on the face of the baby. Truth is that baby acne is not dangerous and would go away after a few weeks. Noisy sleeping: Newborns while sleeping would make sounds like grunting, squeaking etc. It is worthy to note here that these sounds are produced as the nervous system of the newborn matures and the baby adjusts to breathing and digesting.

In the monsoon season, have you felt tired, sluggish and puffy? Monsoon season not only brings a welcome break from heat but also diseases etc too. Water retention in the monsoon season would make us feel uncomfortable due to swelling in the legs, weight gain etc. It is worthy to note that by eating the right kind of food and following simple habits we would be able to reduce water retention in us, especially in the monsoon season. Reason for water retention in monsoon season: Our body`s ability to regulate fluids would get regulated due to humidity in the monsoon season. As a result, water would get trapped in our tissues. There are also other reasons for water retention in the monsoon season and these are intake of salty foods, absence or reduction of physical activity, irregular hydration and sluggish kind of digestion etc. Various signs or water retention in us are swelling in the ankles, feet etc, puffiness in face/eyes,  sudden weight gain, feeling of heaviness etc. Various foods to eat to lower water retention in the monsoon season are Intake of cucumber: It is noteworthy that cucumbers are the simplest and most effective foods to eat to lower water retention in us. By eating cucumber with high water content excess sodium would be flushed out of the body. It is known that sodium can lead to water retention in us. In the humid months, intake of cucumber could cause a soothing cooling effect on the digestive system. Intake of bananas: For regulating water balance in us, consuming bananas would be amazing. It is learnt that bananas rich in potassium would counter sodium and prevent water retention in us. In addition, bananas are gentle on the stomach plus would provide us energy. Intake of watermelon: Especially in the rainy or monsoon weather, few fruits like watermelon would feel satisfying for us. By consuming watermelons rich in water content would help the body to flush out excess fluids through urination. Natural antioxidants present in watermelon would support digestion and boost hydration. Intake of coconut water: Especially in the monsoon season, if there is a drink that can be an alternative or substitute for sugary drinks then it is coconut water. It has been brought out by research study in 2021 ththat coconut water would replenish electrolytes like potassium and magnesium etc and acts as a mild diuretic. Intake of bottle gourd: It must be taken into account that bottle gourd or lauki can be a superb remedy for water retention. By regulating fluids and supporting digestion, bottle gourd plays a huge role. Bottle gourd can be consumed in the monsoon season. Intake of yoghurt: By promoting gut health and indirectly controlling water retention, yoghurt does superbly in the monsoon season.  It must be noted that a healthy gut would improve digestion and would prevent sluggish/ bloated kind of feeling in the damp weather. Intake of green tea: It was revealed in a study in 2019 that green tea is diuretic and would help in the removal of excess water. The antioxidants in the green tea would support digestion and immunity etc. By drinking a cup of green tea, we could reduce puffiness and heaviness due to water retention in the body in the monsoon season.

Belonging to the family Linaceae, flax seeds or linseed is a flowering plant and is mostly seen growing in temperate climates across the world. Flaxseeds are known as Alsi in Hindi language. It is good to consume one to two teaspoons of ground flaxseeds every day. Intake of flaxseeds every day could improve our health in numerous ways. That is due to the presence of many nutrients in it.  Various nutrients present in the flaxseeds are fibres, proteins, carbs, minerals like copper, manganese, magnesium, phosphorus, selenium, zinc etc. Moreover, flax seeds also have vitamin B6, folate etc. Health benefits of intake of flaxseeds every day are Boosts heart health: The omega 3 fatty acids rich (ALA or alpha linoleic acid) flaxseeds would boost our heart health. It must be noted that intake of these seeds would lower inflammation and prevents atherosclerosis. It has been brought out by research that daily intake of ALA rich flax seeds would lead to reduced death due to heart disease. Protect against cancer: Here, lignans present in flaxseeds play a big role due to their cancer fighting properties. Research study has revealed that intake of flaxseeds could be beneficial against various types of cancers like colon, lung, blood and skin etc. Prevents constipation in us: The fibre rich flax seeds would be superb for us and we could avoid issues like constipation etc. It is known that constipation refers to difficult and irregular bowel movements. There are many people who suffer from this issue. Our gut health would be superb by intake of flaxseeds having both soluble and insoluble fibres. Lowers cholesterol levels: Consuming flax seeds everyday would lower the bad cholesterol in us.  This would help in improving our heart health. Lowers blood pressure:  Having high blood would be dangerous and it could result in many complications. Intake of flaxseeds every day would help us to lower BP and this would prevent us from serious issues like heart attack strokes etc. Controls diabetes: Like BP, diabetes has now become a very common issue. Managing or controlling diabetes or high blood sugar levels is essential for our lives to be normal and safe. In this regard, intake of flaxseeds daily would be superb.b. The soluble fibre present in flaxseeds would lower the blood sugar levels in us. Helps in weight management: Weight gain or weight increase would be dangerous as it could lead to many health issues in us. Many of us struggle to lose our excess weight. In this regard, consuming flax seeds daily would help us. The digestion would get slowed down due to the soluble fibres in the flaxseeds. Feeling of fullness would get more and by this we would not consume excess foods. By this, we could lose excess weight also. Important note: Intake of flaxseeds is not for everyone. It must be noted that those persons who are taking blood thinner medicines, those with digestive issues like inflammatory bowel disease, pregnant and breast feeding women etc. Those persons who are allergic to flax seeds must refrain from consuming flaxseeds.