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Welcome to DOCBEECEE HEALTHY LIFESTYLE TOOLKIT , DOCBEECEE in short . DOCBEECEE is not just a name but it is a lifestyle. This means you can visit this page daily , weekly or monthly to empower yourself to live a healthy normal life. The docbeecee website is where healthy conscious people can find expert , practical advice on healthy lifestyle and disease management. My vision is to see everyone taking control of their health and my goal is to help you achieve that vision and live a healthy lifestyle .

We must not live to eat but eat to live. I hope you will find this toolkit useful whether you want to stay stress free , lose weight , lead a healthier lifestyle or just live life to the full. The toolkit will empower you with the necessary skills and support you to manage your health and reduce the complications caused by bad health habits. Knowledge is powerful when used and education is the facilitator to knowledge. It is my passion that we share this knowledge and sharing is caring.

The toolkit will help you with what I call A.K.A
Assess your health – you should be able to assess your health.
Know your health – after assessment you should be able to know how healthy you are.
Act on your health – I would have failed if I do not get you to take action on your health. This lifestyle toolkit is not intended as a substitute for professional guidance . If you are concerned after reading this , speak to your doctor who should be able to help you further.


First read about what the toolkit is all about and then take a self assessment. The self assessment is about your perception about your health. After getting your score you are guided as to what you can do. The aim of the assessment is to empower you to be able to engage with your regular doctor . The toolkit is not a diagnostic tool but it’s just a guidance to empower you to have an informed discussion with your doctor and live a healthy lifestyle.

What does DOCBEECEE stands for?







The above assessment toolkit is for guidance only . Please see your doctor for further advice.



DOCBEECEE TOOLKIT is not another diet but is a lifestyle. I advice you to give up dieting and stop worrying about losing weight and learn to eat mindfully.

A diet according to the book” I can make you thin” by Paul McKenna ,” is any system of eating that attempts to exert external control over what , where, when or how much you eat.

Many of us want to lose weight and try several diets . Sadly we regain the weight and blame ourselves. We try again and again but the weight we lose always come back. How much we weigh depends on how much we eat and how much energy we burn. Hunger and energy use is controlled by the brain without our awareness.

If we lose a lot of weight our brain reacts as if we were starving. Dr Rudy Leibel of Columbia University has found that people who have lost 10 percent of their body weight burn 250 to 400 calories less because their metabolism is suppressed by the brain. This means that a successful dieter must eat less food forever than someone of the same weight who has always been thin. They may try to offset it by burning more which means that they must exercise daily and burn that energy. In view of that my advice is do not starve yourself? Your body will react .
My message is that prevention is better that cure. It is much easier to prevent weight gain than to lose weight. A temporary gain in weight can become permanent as our brain decides that, that’s our new normal . Any attempts to offset the new normal will be resisted by the body.


Do I need to lose weight to be healthy ? 
Do not worry or get obsessed about the need to lose weight. You can take control of your health by taking control of your lifestyle, even if you cannot lose weight and keep it off. Studies have shown that obese people with no healthy habits are at high risk of death about 7 times as compared to those that are healthy. Interestingly those that are obese and have all four healthy habits have more or less similar risk of death as compared to those who are not obese.

Why am I against dieting ? Studies have shown that 5 years after a diet . Most people have regained their weight and sadly 40% have gained more weight. So in short dieting is likely to make us gain weight in the long run than lose it.

if diets worked , we would all be thin by now me included. Why do we keep doing the same thing and expecting different results ?

What should we do ?
You need to learn mindful eating and appreciate signals from your body such hunger . You must eat when you are hungry and work with your appetite instead of fearing it.

Do not left food control you . Eat when you are hungry and stop worrying or thinking about food.

What should we do then ?



We need to eat mindfully by;
1- To eat when are hungry and not ignore the hunger . We need to know and understand signals from our body so that we can understand physical hunger . Many a times we confuse emotional hunger with physical one .

Emotional hunger is mainly caused by the self inflicted stress where we say negative things about ourselves . We must remember that our thoughts have a significant effect upon our health and well-being . Emotional hunger is sudden and urgent ; physical hunger is gradual and patient. Emotional hunger cannot be satisfied with food but physical hunger can.

If we are eating and eating and never feeling satisfied, it’s because we do not need food but change our feelings .

2- You must eat what you want and not what you think you should . Food must not control you and you must not feel guilt about food you eat.

3- When you are “eating be in the eating “. You must be conscious of what you are eating . Eat the food slowly taking at least 20 mins to eat a meal . You must enjoy every mouthful by chewing the food at least 15 times. Make sure that you are not disturbed by phones, television. Look, smell and admire your food before you eat it. Have time to breath as you eat . Put your fork and knife down as you chew the food and take a deep breath to get enough oxygen into your body. Chewing each mouthful and being aware of eating makes binge eating nearly impossible, as well as bringing some surprise benefits .
It takes about 20 mins for the body to release hormones that makes us feel full. Fast eating and not chewing results in binging .

4-When you think you are full, you must stop eating . You need to listen to your body’s signal that it’s full when eating . Try to leave food in the plate all the time and also try to cut your portion. If you do that and you eat slowly but still feels hungry then eat again . You will soon find yourself eating less as the brain become programmed.

You may want to read my article of healthy foods

Healthy eating , what diet should I follow


DOCBEECEE on Dehydration


Dehydration occurs when your body loses more fluid that you take in . If you are already taking small amounts of fluids then you are likely to become dehydrated . When the normal waters content in the body is reduced , it upsets the balance of minerals in the body , which affects the way it functions.

Water is very important to the body as it makes up over two-thirds of the HEALTHY human body . It lubricates joints and eyes , aids digestion, flushes out waste and toxins, keeps the skin healthy.
One simple and easy way of detoxifying is to drink plenty of water and the body will flush out wastes and toxins in the urine, through sweat and on passing stools.

What are the warming signs of dehydration?

Some of the early warning signs of dehydration include:
In adults

feeling thirsty and lightheaded
a dry mouth, lips and eyes
tiredness and exhaustion
having dark coloured, strong-smelling urine
passing urine less often than usual

A baby may be dehydrated if they:

have a sunken soft spot (fontanelle) on their head
have few or no tears when they cry
have fewer wet nappies
are drowsy


If dehydration is ongoing (chronic), it can affect your kidney function and increase the risk of kidney stones. It can also lead to muscle damage and constipation.

What causes dehydration ?

The main cause is us not drinking enough fluids to replace what we lose. The weather , amount of physical exercise one does particularly in hot weather and the diet can contribute to dehydration. One can become dehydrated as a result of illness , such as persistent vomiting and diarrhoea , or sweating from a fever .
It is advisable to make sure that we push fluids in those that are ill. If one is vomiting then we need to wait for about 30 to 45 mins after vomiting and then start to give them fluids. One must drink fluids, little and more often. If this fails to help then the person must go the hospital for further assessment.

Who is at high risk of dehydration ?
We can all get dehydrated but the following are at high risk ;


What can you do when you are dehydrated?
If you are dehydrated the best fluid to take is pure water as it does not contain any calories. Diluted squash may help as long as it is well diluted to avoid too much sugar. Fruit juices are not advised as they contain a lot of added sugar even if they claim to be 100% pure juice. Tea and coffee contain caffeine so they need to be drunk in moderation . Fizzy Drinks contain a lot of sugar so one will add up putting more weight.
Please remember that if left untreated , severe dehydration can be serious and cause fits (Seizures), brain damage and death

Seek urgent medical advice if;
extreme thirsty
feeling unusually tired (lethargic) or confused
not passing urine for eight hours
rapid heartbeat
dizziness when you stand up that doesn’t go away after a few seconds
You should also contact your Doctor if your baby has had six or more episodes of diarrhoea in the past 24 hours, or if they have vomited three times or more in the past 24 hours.

How much should I drink?


A good rule is to drink enough fluid so that you’re not thirsty for long periods, and to steadily increase your fluid intake when exercising and during hot weather. Passing clear urine (wee) is a good sign that you’re well hydrated.


Dehydration in babies

A baby may be dehydrated if they have:

a sunken soft spot (fontanelle) on their head
few or no tears when they cry
a dry mouth
fewer wet nappies
dark yellow urine
fast breathing
cold and blotchy-looking hands and feet


We have looked at drinking of fluids let me end this section by looking at drinking of alcohol.



How many units are in the alcohol that you are drinking?

Before we find out if you are misusing alcohol let us look at the units that are in different types of alcohol and how much is recommended to safely take. Alcohol is measured in units. A unit of alcohol is 10ml of pure alcohol, which is about half a pint of normal strength lager or a single measure (25ml) of spirits. A small glass (125ml) of wine contains about one-and-a-half units of alcohol.

Men should not regularly drink more than 3-4 units of alcohol a day, and women should not regularly drink more than 2-3 units a day. ‘Regularly’ means drinking this amount every day or most days of the week. It’s also recommended that both men and women have at least two alcohol-free days each week.

How do I know that I am misusing alcohol?


You are a low risk drinker or sensible or responsible drinker if you drink 21 units of alcohol a week or less (adult men) or 14 units a week or less (adult women).

You are a hazardous drinker if you regularly drink 22-50 units of alcohol a week (adult men), or 15-35 units a week (adult women). Hazardous drinking, particularly binge drinking, also carries additional risks such as: being involved in an accident, becoming involved in an argument or fight, taking part in risky or illegal behaviour while drunk, such as having unprotected sex or drink-driving.

Harmful drinking means drinking over 50 units of alcohol a week (adult men) or over 35 units a week (adult women) weekly and experiencing health problems directly related to alcohol. In some cases, harmful drinking may cause obvious problems such as: depression, acute pancreatitis (inflammation of the pancreas – a gland that produces insulin) and an alcohol-related accident, such as a head injury.

Many health problems that occur as a result of harmful drinking don’t cause any symptoms until they reach their most serious stages. These include: heart disease, high blood pressure, cirrhosis (scarring of the liver) and some types of cancer such as mouth cancer and bowel cancer. This means it can be easy to underestimate levels of physical damage caused by harmful drinking. Harmful drinking can also cause social problems, such as relationship difficulties with your partner or family and friends, as well as problems at work or college.

Alcohol is both physically and psychologically addictive. It’s therefore possible to become dependent on it. Being dependent on alcohol means you feel unable to function without it, and drinking becomes an important (or sometimes the most important) factor in your life. One way to think about whether you’re dependent on alcohol is to ask, “Do I carry on drinking even though I know it’s harming me or upsetting my family?”

You could be misusing alcohol if:

You feel you should cut down on your drinking,
Other people have been criticising your drinking,
You feel guilty or bad about your drinking and you need a drink first thing in the morning to steady your nerves or get rid of a hangover.

Read my personal story about alcohol







When you see your doctor and you are prescribed any medication please make sure that the following questions are addressed;

What are the treatment options ?
What is the effect of not taking the medication ?
What are the side effects of treatment ?
What to do if you get side effects from the treatment ?
Why should you take your medication?
How should you take your medication?
When should you take your medication ?
What will happen after treatment ?


If you are already taking medication please maker sure that you attend at least once a year for MEDICATION USE REVIEW

What is Medication Use Review (MUR)

This is one of the best practice service that aims to help patients use their medicines more effectively. In the United Kingdom , this service is offered for free by pharmacists and general practitioners (GP).

Aims of the service
To improve patient knowledge, adherence and use of their medicines by:

1- Establishing the patient’s actual use , understanding and experience of taking their medicines

2- identifying, discussing and resolving poor or ineffective use of their medicines identifying side effects and drug interactions that may affect adherence.

3- improving the clinical and cost effectiveness of prescribed medicines and reducing medicine wastage .
Commons questions that may be asked during a MUR ?

1- How are you getting on with your medicines?

2-How do you take or use each of your medicines?

3-Are you having any problems with your medicines, or concerns about taking or using them?

4- Do you think they are working?

5- Do you think you are getting any side effects or unexpected effects?

6-Have you missed any doses of your medication?

7- Are you happy with the information you have on your medicines?


No excuse for not reviewing your medication. Read about Sharapova’s case


Sharapova and medication use review




Tobacco use is the leading preventable cause of death in the world and it kills half of all lifetime users and half of those die in middle age (35-69). Tobacco is a risk factor for six of the eight leading causes of death in the world ( Ischaemic heart disease, Cerebrovascular disease, Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, LUNG CANCER, Lower respiratory tract infection, Tuberculosis).

Tobacco kills nearly six million people each year. More than five million of those deaths are the result of direct tobacco use while more than 600 000 are the result of non-smokers being exposed to second-hand smoke. Approximately one person dies every six seconds due to tobacco, accounting for one in 10 adult deaths. Unless urgent action is taken, the annual death toll could rise to more than eight million by 2030. Approximately 80% of the deaths would occur in low- and middle-income countries like Zimbabwe.

Tobacco products are made of extremely toxic materials. Tobacco smoke contains more than 7000 chemicals. At least 250 of these chemicals are known to be harmful and at least 69 are known to cause cancer. All tobacco products are harmful. Tobacco smoking can damage every part of the body, causing many actual medical conditions such as shortness of breath, exacerbation of asthma and respiratory infections as well as many chronic diseases including heart disease, strokes, cancer and chronic respiratory diseases.

Smoking is responsible for one in every five deaths in adults aged over 35 in England, and half of all long-term smokers will die prematurely due to a smoking-related disease.

See your doctor for advice on how you can successfully stop smoking.


5 years after stopping smoking the stroke risk is reduced to that of a non-smoker. 10 years after quitting smoking the risk of lung cancer falls to about half that of a smoker and the risk of cancer of the mouth, throat, esophagus, bladder, cervix, and pancreas decreases. 15 years after smoking cessation the risk of coronary heart disease is that of a non-smoker’s.

It’s never too late to stop smoking but it’s best to stop early. If one stops at the age of 30 then they will gain almost 10 years of life expectancy as compared to those that continue to smoke. If stops at 40 they will gain 9 years of life expectancy and stopping at 50 years of age they will gain 6 years. If stops by age 60 they will gain 3 years .

Read more about smoking





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