Anxiety is a natural human response to stress or perceived threats, helping us stay alert and prepared for challenging situations. However, it can significantly impact daily life when it becomes excessive or constant. For teenagers, anxiety is especially common, often due to a combination of developmental changes and life stressors. During the teenage years, young people experience rapid physical, emotional, and social shifts. This time of self-discovery and identity formation can heighten feelings of vulnerability or insecurity. Numerous factors, from school pressures to family expectations, can fuel anxiety, making it essential to understand and support teenagers facing these challenges. This article explores critical causes, symptoms, and strategies to help manage stress effectively.

What are parasites? Parasites are tiny organisms that live in or on a person's body. They feed off the person and can cause health problems. Many people think parasites only affect animals, but humans can get them too. Common parasites include worms, tiny single-celled organisms, and bugs like lice and ticks. Parasites exist all over the world. People in areas with poor cleanliness or bad sanitation have a higher risk of getting infected. Knowing the signs of parasite infections is important because early treatment helps prevent serious health issues. This article will explain the different types of parasites that can infect humans, how they spread, what symptoms they cause, and ways to treat and prevent infections.

What Are Lungworms? Lungworms are tiny parasites (worms) that usually live in the lungs of animals like rats, dogs, and cats. Sometimes, these worms can accidentally infect humans too. The most common type that affects humans is called "rat lungworm" or Angiostrongylus cantonensis. Although these infections don't happen often in humans, they can cause serious health problems if not treated. Lungworms have a life cycle that normally involves animals. The worms first live in rats, then move to snails or slugs, and then back to rats. Humans get infected accidentally when they eat something that has lungworm larvae (baby worms) on it. How Do People Get Lungworms? People can get lungworm infections in several ways: Eating unwashed produce: If you eat fruits or vegetables that haven't been washed properly and have tiny snails, slugs, or their slime on them Eating undercooked food: Eating raw or undercooked snails, slugs, or other carriers Drinking contaminated water: Water that has lungworm larvae in it Traveling to certain areas: Infections are more common in Southeast Asia and Pacific Islands

Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) is a condition which occurs as a consequence of women drinking alcohol during their pregnancy. It covers a wide range of symptoms and affects each baby differently. Examples include facial changes and learning disabilities, trouble with coordination or attention and hyperactivity. It can also affect the kidneys, bones, and the heart, and cause growth problems. The term fetal alcohol spectrum disorder is often used interchangeably, but more specifically describes certain collections of symptoms related to damage by alcohol during pregnancy, of which FAS is the most severe end of the spectrum. Symptoms may be subtle and there may be no physical signs, but it’s thought to be underdiagnosed, and numbers have risen in recent years along with alcohol abuse.

Colic is a prevalent condition in babies, and symptoms vary, but there's usually fussing and crying for a prolonged period of time. Some babies can look like they are in intense pain and either scream inconsolably or fuss and whimper constantly. Some babies can sometimes clench their fists, arch their backs, and even go red in the face. Prolonged crying means that a baby can swallow air, usually harmless. If this is the case, passing gas can sometimes provide them with some relief.

Cradle cap, a type of seborrheic dermatitis, is a skin condition common in babies. It usually occurs in their first six weeks of life. It causes yellow scaly patches on the scalp or face that can appear oily. A red rash can emerge under the scales or in folds of skin, such as the groin area. In most cases, this gets better on its own over two to eight weeks. It is not harmful to your baby and should not cause them discomfort or to be unwell. Adults do not get cradle cap, but they may suffer other forms of seborrheic dermatitis, such as dandruff or a red, flaky rash over their nose and cheeks.

Croup is a common airway infection affecting babies and young children. It usually affects those between six months and three years old but can affect younger and older children too. It affects the upper airways – the throat and nose – to cause a distinctive barking cough and a harsh sound (stridor) when they breathe in. A low-grade fever and blocked or runny nose, and a hoarse voice may also develop. Croup is commonly caused by a virus called the parainfluenza virus. Usually, croup can be managed at home and clears up within 24 to 48 hours. However, if children also develop difficulty breathing or look short of breath, it is important to seek urgent medical attention.

Diaper rash is a very common skin infection that occurs in young children as a reaction to urine or poop. A fungal infection called candida is often involved in causing inflamed skin, leaving a very bright red notable rash around the genitals. The skin can also become hot, sore, and blister-filled. Rarely, it is caused by other skin conditions such as eczema or psoriasis.

An ear infection can affect the middle ear, just beyond the eardrum, causing inflammation and pain, and this is called acute otitis media. Bacteria or viruses can cause the infection, but either way, it usually gets better by itself after about 3 days. The middle ear can fill with pus, and the pressure can cause pain. Children can get ear infections due to a cold, flu, letting too much water in the ear after bathing or swimming, or constant allergies

If you've ever run a hand over your baby's head and found sunken bits that feel soft against parts of the skull, you are not alone. These are called fontanelles, and there are several, but the two most defined are at the front of the top of the head (the anterior fontanelle) and at the back of the top of the head (posterior fontanelle). In newborns, the skull is composed of fairly soft bone plates that can squish together and overlap to get the head through the birth canal during labor. They are flexible for the skull to expand for the developing brain. Given time, these skull plates will fuse, eventually forming the hard protective shell that we know as the skull in adults. Before then, fontanelles are little gaps between the skull plates. They are soft because they are made up of membranes rather than bone. They are entirely normal, and can be helpful on occasion in our medical assessment.

Bronchiolitis is a very common lung infection that occurs in young children, typically those under 2 years old, and is caused by a virus. The bronchioles are small airways in the lungs, branching off the two main bronchi, and the ‘itis’ part of bronchiolitis means inflammation, so bronchiolitis is inflammation and congestion of these small airways. Symptoms of bronchiolitis start off similarly to a cold with a blocked and runny nose, cough, and possibly fever. Children can also sound quite wheezy. Bronchiolitis is most commonly caused by a virus called respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) during the winter months and often it gets better on its own. In about 20% of cases of all ages, hospital admission may be required and it’s thought that up to 1 in 3 young children get bronchiolitis at some time.

It’s very common for babies to suffer from dry skin and eczema, and it can first emerge before or around 6 months. It affects about a quarter of children with up to 60% of them developing it during their first year of life. The exact cause of eczema is unknown but genetics are thought to play a major role, so it’s more common if someone in your family has eczema, allergies, or asthma, or if they have light skin and hair. It may also be triggered by environmental factors such as central heating, hard water and the use of soaps. The good news is that even though children may develop eczema in childhood, it doesn’t necessarily mean they will have it forever as many of them grow out of it by 5-6 years old. And - with the right attention to triggers, moisturizing routine and recognition of flare-ups - it can be treated more effectively.