Author: Sameed Chaudhary

Many people in Pakistan feel a knot in the stomach before speaking in class, attending a family gathering, or walking into a room full of strangers. For most, that nervousness fades quickly. For some, it stays, grows, and starts shaping every decision they make about where to go and who to meet. That persistent, overwhelming fear of being watched, judged, or embarrassed in social situations is what mental health professionals call social anxiety, known in Urdu as سماجی گھبراہٹ (samaji ghabrahat). It goes well beyond ordinary shyness. A systematic review published in PMC found an overall anxiety disorders prevalence of…

Chicken is the most widely eaten meat in Pakistan, and for good reason. Whether it’s a weeknight karahi in Lahore, a steam roast in Islamabad, or a simple grilled piece during a diet plan, chicken shows up on almost every Pakistani table. What most people don’t fully appreciate is just how much nutritional value sits in that everyday meal. Per 100g of cooked, skinless chicken breast, you get roughly 165 calories, 31g of protein, and under 4g of fat, according to USDA data. That combination is hard to beat in a single food. For a country where protein deficiency is…

Rice is the backbone of the Pakistani table. From a simple daal chawal on a weeknight to a festive biryani, white rice is so deeply woven into daily eating that switching to brown rice can feel like a strange idea. But the two grains are not as different as they seem — brown rice is simply white rice that hasn’t been stripped of its outer bran and germ layers during milling. That difference in processing matters more than most people realise. Pakistan already carries a heavy burden of type 2 diabetes, with over 33 million adults affected according to the…

Burnout is a word that comes up a lot in Pakistani workplaces today, yet most people searching for its Urdu meaning get a dictionary entry and nothing more. The actual health concept behind it goes far deeper than a single translated word. In Urdu, burnout is best described as ذہنی تھکاوٹ (zehni thakawat) or جذباتی سوختگی (jazbati sokhtagi), meaning a state of deep mental, emotional, and physical exhaustion caused by prolonged stress. This is not the ordinary tiredness you feel after a long day of work. It builds over weeks and months, quietly, until the person realises they no longer…

Quick Answer Screen addiction is compulsive, hard-to-control use of digital devices — phones, tablets, or gaming consoles — that starts interfering with sleep, relationships, schoolwork, or physical health. It’s not about the number of hours alone; it’s about loss of control and real-life consequences. If putting the phone down feels genuinely distressing, that’s the signal worth taking seriously. Walk into any chai dhaba in Lahore or sit at a dinner table in Karachi and you’ll notice the same thing: everyone is on their phone. Adults scroll through WhatsApp and TikTok; children are handed a tablet to keep them quiet; teenagers…

Blood sugar readings can feel confusing when you are staring at a glucometer for the first time. One number before breakfast, another two hours after lunch, and suddenly you are wondering whether what you are seeing is fine or a warning sign worth acting on. This matters more in Pakistan than in most countries. According to the International Diabetes Federation, Pakistan has one of the highest age-standardised diabetes prevalences in the world, with over 33 million adults living with diabetes as of recent IDF Diabetes Atlas estimates. Millions more are believed to be in the prediabetes range, many without any…

Quick Answer Yes, financial stress can cause real, measurable physical pain. When your brain perceives money worries as a threat, it releases cortisol and adrenaline, which tighten muscles, inflame tissues, and disrupt digestion. A study published in Stress & Health (University of Georgia, 2021) found that financial strain was directly associated with increased physical pain years later, even after accounting for existing illnesses. The body does not distinguish between a tiger and an unpaid electricity bill. Most people in Pakistan know what it feels like to sit with a rising utility bill, a grocery receipt that seems to double every…

Quick Answer A persistent cough is not always a chest infection. While bronchitis and pneumonia are common culprits, a cough lasting more than three weeks may also be caused by asthma, acid reflux, postnasal drip, tuberculosis, air pollution, or a blood pressure medication. In Pakistan, cough variant asthma and TB are among the most frequently missed diagnoses. A cough lasting eight weeks or more in an adult always warrants a proper medical evaluation. Most people in Pakistan reach for a cough syrup and assume a stubborn cough will clear up on its own. Sometimes it does. But when a cough…

Stress is quietly one of the most common health complaints among Pakistanis today. Whether it’s the pressure of a 12-hour workday in Karachi’s traffic, exam season in Lahore, or the financial weight many families carry, the mind rarely gets a genuine break. Meditation is one of the few tools that costs nothing, requires no equipment, and can be practiced anywhere — from a quiet corner of your home to a few minutes before Fajr. According to a Gallup and Gilani Pakistan survey, roughly 14% of Pakistanis frequently experience elevated stress in their daily lives, and mental health experts believe the…

Every June, doctors across Pakistan brace for the same wave. Hospital queues grow longer, paediatric wards fill up, and family WhatsApp groups light up with the same complaints: pait kharab, ulti, motions. Stomach infections are not just back this summer, they are spreading faster than they did last year, especially across Punjab and Karachi. If it feels worse this year, the reasons are uncomfortably simple, and most of them are sitting in your kitchen, your water tank, or your child’s school bag. In Urdu, a stomach infection is usually called پیٹ کا انفیکشن (Pait ka Infection), or معدے کی خرابی…