The Medicine Maven

09/08/2026

01/08/2026

Supplement use in India has exploded over the last few years—but are all supplements actually worth your money? 🤔

From whey protein to creatine, multivitamins, omega-3, greens powders, and fat burners, the market is growing faster than ever. While some supplements are backed by strong scientific evidence, many are overhyped, unnecessary, or simply clever marketing.

In this series, I’ll rate the most popular supplements from S Tier to F Tier based on scientific evidence, safety, effectiveness, and value for money. 💊📊

Before you spend your hard-earned money, make sure you know what truly works and what doesn’t.

Which supplement should I rate next? 👇

29/07/2026

Mountain Sickness 🏔️

A common misconception is that “Mountain Sickness” is a separate disease. Medically, it is not.

The correct umbrella term is High-Altitude Illness (High-Altitude Sickness), which includes four major conditions:

• Acute Mountain Sickness (AMS)
• Chronic Mountain Sickness (CMS/Monge’s disease)
• High-Altitude Pulmonary Edema (HAPE)
• High-Altitude Cerebral Edema (HACE)

Acute Mountain Sickness (AMS)
Occurs within hours after rapid ascent, usually above 2,500 m.
Features: Headache (hallmark), nausea, vomiting, dizziness, fatigue, poor sleep.
Treatment: Stop further ascent, rest, acetazolamide, oxygen if required, and descend if symptoms worsen.

Chronic Mountain Sickness (CMS/Monge’s disease)
Occurs after months to years of living at high altitude.
Features: Excessive polycythemia, cyanosis, breathlessness, fatigue, and pulmonary hypertension.
Treatment: Descent to lower altitude, oxygen therapy, and venesection in selected cases.

High-Altitude Pulmonary Edema (HAPE)
A life-threatening emergency caused by fluid accumulation in the lungs.
Features: Severe breathlessness, cough, pink frothy sputum, crackles, and hypoxemia.
Treatment: Immediate descent, high-flow oxygen, nifedipine, and a portable hyperbaric bag if descent is delayed.

High-Altitude Cerebral Edema (HACE)
A life-threatening emergency due to brain swelling, often developing from severe AMS.
Features: Severe headache, ataxia (hallmark), confusion, altered consciousness, and coma.
Treatment: Immediate descent, high-flow oxygen, dexamethasone, and a portable hyperbaric bag if required.

High-Yield Pearls
• High-Altitude Illness is the umbrella term.
• AMS, CMS, HAPE, and HACE are its four major forms.
• HAPE and HACE are medical emergencies.
• “Mountain sickness” is not a separate fifth disease. It is a term used in Acute Mountain Sickness and Chronic Mountain Sickness, while the overall classification is High-Altitude Illness.

18/07/2026

Not a threat. Just a voice. Yet, democracy is being choked.

15/07/2026

Sonam Wangchuk’s indefinite hunger strike has entered its 18th day at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar.

The noted education reformer and environmental activist began his fast on 28 June 2026 in support of a youth-led movement demanding accountability over the alleged NEET-UG 2026 and other examination paper leaks, along with systemic reforms to restore transparency, fairness, and trust in India’s examination process. Protesters have also demanded the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over the controversy.

According to reports, Wangchuk has already lost around 8.5 kg, and doctors have expressed growing concern over his deteriorating health as the prolonged fast continues. Despite this, he has refused to end the hunger strike, stating that his protest is not about politics but about ensuring justice for millions of students whose futures depend on a fair and credible examination system.

As his health worsens, public concern is mounting. Several public figures, academics, and political leaders have appealed to him to end the fast while urging the government to engage in dialogue and address the concerns raised by the movement.



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08/07/2026

A Mumbai govt hospital advised a pregnant woman’s family to consider transferring her elsewhere, as pre-delivery fetal assessment indicates her newborn will likely require NICU care, and all of their NICU beds are currently occupied.

The woman’s husband called Shiv Sena (Shinde) corporator Ramesh Mhatre, who arrived with his goons and assaulted doctors and nurses.

If you understand how hospitals work, you’ll know a bed not being available is not the doctor’s fault. You can’t ask another critical newborn to vacate a bed, nor can you provide NICU care on the floor, nor can you “arrange bed from some other dept” because a NICU bed isn’t just a bed, it comes with ventilators, monitors, oxygen, infusion pumps, and other life-support equipment.

So the blame, if any, goes on the govt. But doctors are the easiest targets, and assaulting them earns politicians easy political mileage.

I know some will say, “Doctors are evil and deserve it,” and that’s fine. I’m not seeking sympathy. This post is for parents and medical aspirants. Unless your parents own a hospital, you choose govt jobs with better working conditions like the Army, paramilitary, or Railways, plan to pursue USMLE (or an equivalent pathway), or intend to move to private practice where you can arrange your own security, think carefully before choosing this profession.

Most govt hospitals are hellholes. You can serve patients well for decades and still end up being abused or assaulted by a tenth-pass corporator, a publicity-hungry politician chasing cameras, or patient relatives who think every death could have been prevented if only the doctor had “tried harder.”

03/07/2026

It was supposed to be just another emergency duty.

A young woman doctor was moving from one bed to another inside the emergency ward of Bundelkhand Medical College, Sagar.

On one bed was a critically ill patient.
On the next bed was another patient receiving treatment.

According to the doctor’s complaint, while she was focused on examining the patient beside him, something completely unexpected happened.

She alleges that the patient suddenly stretched out his hand and touched her buttocks inappropriately.

Shocked, she immediately removed his hand and stepped away.

But that, she says, was only the beginning.

Within moments, the patient’s companions allegedly entered the scene, started abusing the doctors and nursing staff, threatened them with serious consequences and allegedly issued death threats.

The doctor says that instead of feeling safe inside a government hospital, she suddenly found herself fearing for her own safety while simply doing her duty.

Reports also claim that the accused has links with a local political leader, making the matter even more sensitive. The allegations are now under police investigation.

In protest, junior doctors, nurses and hospital staff have gone on strike demanding one simple thing:

Safety.

Because no doctor should have to choose between treating a patient and protecting themselves from assault.

Hospitals are meant to heal people—not become places where healthcare workers fear harassment, violence or intimidation.

If those who save lives aren’t safe, how can healthcare ever be truly safe for patients?

Madhya Pradesh Police Asian News International Press Trust of India (PTI) INDIANS
Aditya Raj Kaul CNN
The Times of India Hindustan Times Divya Kochar Shreya Ghosh Zee News English Barkha Dutt Palki Sharma Upadhyay Lomas Jha Newslaundry Firstpost Sumita K The Indian Express The New Indian Express India Today Rajdeep Sardesai ._.journo Jehangir Ali@satyam_abn@siddhantvmishra Anmol Bali .richhariya Anuja Jaisswal
R**t Kaur Sahni

30/06/2026

📩 Save this so that you never have to search bout your farts again 🤪

✨

Share it with your always farting friend.

More farts = fermentable fibers !

Fart alone is rarely from any disease.

Gas without redflags is mostly normal.

Passing gas is normal 😎

27/06/2026

Another doctor assaulted. Another hospital turned into a crime scene.

A poisoning patient dies despite every possible medical effort, and the response is to beat the doctors who were trying to save that life.

Read that again.

The poison caused the death.
Not the doctor.

No profession can survive if every unsuccessful outcome is answered with fists, kicks, and violence.

Doctors are expected to work through exhaustion, emergencies, and impossible odds. What we are not expected to do is wear helmets to work because we might be attacked for doing our job.

This is not grief.
This is criminal violence.

Every assault on a healthcare worker pushes another doctor closer to burnout, fear, and leaving the profession. One day, when there are fewer doctors willing to take these risks, society will pay the price.

Enough.

Treat violence against healthcare workers as a non-negotiable crime. Hospitals are meant to save lives—not become battlegrounds.

27/06/2026

Not every hair fall is the same.
And not every oil, shampoo, or home remedy will work.

Understanding why you’re losing hair is the first step toward treating it.

Swipe through before you spend money on another “hair growth” product.

👇 Save this guide for future reference.



Hair fall isn’t one disease.

The 4 most common causes look similar—but they happen for completely different reasons.

Getting the diagnosis right is often more important than the treatment itself.

Swipe to learn how to tell them apart.

Did your hair suddenly start falling out after dengue, COVID, childbirth, surgery, or severe stress?

It may be Telogen Effluvium.

The good news?
Most people recover completely once the underlying cause is corrected.

Don’t panic—understand the cause first.

Pattern hair loss is the most common cause of permanent hair thinning.

It’s driven mainly by genetics and sensitivity to DHT—not by wearing helmets, hard water, or shampoo.

Early treatment can make a big difference.

Don’t wait until most of the hair is gone.

A round bald patch isn’t always the same problem.

Sometimes it’s an autoimmune disease.
Sometimes it’s a fungal infection.

One needs immune treatment.
The other needs antifungal medicines.

That’s why self-treatment often fails.

Healthy hair begins long before expensive products.

Protein, iron, vitamin D, zinc, B12, sleep, exercise, and stress management all support healthy hair.

But remember—

A perfect diet alone cannot cure every type of hair loss.

Should you oil your hair?

How often should you wash it?

Does frequent shampooing increase hair fall?

These are some of the biggest myths I hear every day.

Evidence is often very different from social media advice.

Sulfate-free.
Herbal.
Ayurvedic.
Natural.

Marketing sounds impressive.

But no shampoo can permanently reverse most forms of hair loss.

Choose products based on your scalp—not advertisements.

There is no single medicine for every kind of hair fall.

Different causes need different treatments.

The earlier the diagnosis, the better the chances of preserving your hair.

Please avoid self-medicating.

Hair fall