Category: Health

{Eating the right foods when pregnant is important as the baby in the womb depends on you to provide the nutrition they need.}

Here are 6 fruits every pregnant woman should add to her diet.

{{1.AVOCADOS}}

Avocados help your baby’s brain and nerve development due to its choline content. Avocados also help leg cramps in pregnant women due to its potassium and magnesium content. Avocados are also rich in vitamin C, B and K.

{{2.ORANGES}}

Oranges are rich in folate, a B vitamin that helps prevent brain and spinal cord defects. Oranges are also rich in vitamin C.

{{3.APPLES}}

Apples are rich in vitamin A, and C. Researchers have also discovered the benefits of eating apples when pregnant and according to a study published in the journal Thorax, eating apples when pregnant will reduce your baby’s chances of having asthma and allergies.

{{4.MANGOES}}

Mangoes are rich in vitamin A and C. It’s important pregnant women eat diets rich in vitamin A as it has been found that vitamin A deficiency at birth is associated with lower immunity.

{{5.BERRIES}}

Berries are another important fruits pregnant women should eat as they are rich in vitamin C, folate, carbohydrates and fibre.

{{6.BANANAS}}

According to researchers, vitamin B-6 may help relieve nausea and vomiting in early pregnancy and bananas are a rich source of vitamin B-6. Bananas are also rich in fibre, vitamin C and potassium.

{The rate of obesity in children is really growing, and a recent research conducted by Kaiser Permanente found that Pre-pregnancy obesity and excessive weight gain during pregnancy was associated with an increased risk of the child becoming overweight at age two.}

The researchers studied 15,710 women who delivered babies at Kaiser Permanente medical facilities in Southern California in 2011, and they found the following:

A woman being obese (BMI of 30.0 or higher) prior to getting pregnant increased the odds of her child being overweight at age 2 by more than two-fold compared to women who had a normal pre-pregnancy weight (BMI between 18.5 and 25), after adjusting for weight gain during pregnancy, gestational diabetes and breastfeeding.

A woman being overweight (BMI between 25.0 and 29.9) prior to pregnancy was associated with 50 percent increased odds of her child being overweight at age 2.
Excessive weight gain during pregnancy was associated with 23 percent increased odds of a child being overweight at age 2 compared to women who had healthy weight gain during pregnancy after adjusting for pre-pregnancy weight, gestational diabetes and breastfeeding.

Breastfeeding for at least six months was associated with a 24 percent reduction for the odds of a child being overweight at age 2 regardless of a mother’s pre-pregnancy weight, gestational diabetes or excessive weight gain during pregnancy.

According to the study’s lead author, Anny H. Xiang, PhD, of the Kaiser Permanente Southern California Department of Research & Evaluation: “Childhood obesity is linked with adult obesity and long-term negative health outcomes, which is why it is important to explore which factors may contribute to excessive weight during early childhood,”

“Our study findings highlight the need for more public health efforts to reduce maternal obesity, appropriate gestational weight gain and to promote breastfeeding.” He explained.

{Food can directly affect everything in our bodies from our mood and energy levels to our memory. Paying attention to what you eat is important if you want to boost your brain power.
}

Here are 5 foods that boost your brain power.

{{1. DARK CHOCOLATE}}

Dark chocolate contains flavonols that improve blood flow to the brain. The improved blood flow to the brain improves cognitive function and memory. Dark chocolate also contains caffeine and theobromine which can improve brain function in the short-term.

{{2. SPINACH}}

Eating spinach will also help boost your brain power because it contains nitrates which increase blood flow to the brain thereby improving mental performance.

{{3. WALNUTS}}

You should cultivate the habit of eating walnuts because they are good for the brain and nervous system. Walnuts are a good source of vitamin E which protects the brain from free radicals.

{{4. PUMPKIN SEEDS
}}

Eating pumpkin seeds will supply your body with tryptophan which the brain converts to serotonin to boost your mood and combat anxiety and depression. Pumpkin seeds also contain zinc which enhances memory and thinking skills.

{{5. COCONUT OIL}}

Low levels of fats in your diet can contribute to Alzheimer’s and dementia so it’s important you add healthy fats like coconut oil to your diet. Coconut oil has also been linked to help prevent some brain disorders.

{The government of Rwanda and Oshen Health Care Rwanda Ltd, a branch of Oshen Group from Angola, have signed long term agreement where the latter will handle the management of King Faisal Hospital (KFH).}

Following yesterday’s agreement, the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning (MINECOFIN), Ambassador Gatete Claver, said that the management of KFH is handed to a company of international repute which will invest in the facility and expand medical services offered for long term benefits.

“We want King Faisal Hospital to become internationally competitive to the extent of becoming a regional referral. We have been referring patients abroad for medical care but now we hope foreigners will come to Rwanda. We expect with minimum international referrals,” he said.

The CEO of Rwanda Development Board, Francis Gatare, said that Rwanda has, for long, been looking for a partner to make King Faisal Hospital an excellent medical services provider which Oshen Health Care has demonstrated to have the potential.

“We have not sold the hospital nor offered it to foreigners but rather a kind of collaboration aimed at boosting medical services delivery,” he said.

The government of Rwanda has also constituted an inspection team to ensure proper and articulate implementation of the agreement by both parties.

Alex Lifschitz, the deputy director of Oshen Health Care Rwanda Ltd who signed on behalf of his company said at the beginning much efforts will be directed towards investing in KFH and training Rwanda doctors.

“The basic investment in five years will be Euro 21 million. We target to take the hospital to international competitiveness through reforms, bringing in doctors and new management helping to attain envisaged goals,” he said.

He revealed a plan to work with competent insurance companies to create facilities of foreign referrals to King Faisal Hospital And acquire international certification offered by Joint Commission International (JCI) within five years.

Dr. Emille Rwamasirabo, the CEO of King Faisal Hospital has told IGIHE that Rwanda targets to have specialists in treating heart and cancer diseases within few years will be attained through training of Rwandan doctors expected to be offered by new investors.

He explained that Rwanda will save much money since it would require more than Euro 60,000 per year to invite a specialist doctors from abroad adding that the price would even double when the doctor is a specialist in aggravated diseases.

Oshen Health Care will establish a new management of King Faisal Hospital. Dr Rwamasirabo says that it is a new opportunity for him to find enough time to take care of patients as a specialist doctor.

Oshen Health Care will start managing King Faisal Hospital on August 1st, 2016.

{The Ministry of Health (MINISANTE) has declared to have distributed 2, 680,011 mosquito nets within a year which have been distributed in districts mostly affected by Malaria. A total of 6, 201,501 mosquito nets are needed throughout the country.}

The Ministry says they have distributed mosquito nets in Kamonyi, Gisagara, Huye, Nyanza, Muhanga, Ruhango, Rwamagana, Kayonza, Ngoma, Kirehe, Nyagatare, Gatsibo and Bugesera district but plans to reach other districts and boarding schools to contribute to eradication of the disease.

In a message conveyed on the International Day of Malaria marked today, MINISANTE requested the population to sleep under treated mosquito and avoid diverting their usage to other activities as it was realized for some citizens.

MINISANTE called on citizens to seek medical care as soon as they realize malaria symptoms, embrace hygiene, avoid bushes and stagnant waters that are breeding grounds for malaria transmitting mosquitoes.

The ministry says that households form Nyagatare, Bugesera, Gisagara, and Kirehe receive insecticides to apply on mosquito nets twice a year as a way of preventing malaria in these regions where it is rampant.

Recent statistics of show that Malaria cases were 514,000 in 2012 and raised two million in 2015.

{While civilization has improved our standard of living, it has also increased the number of people suffering from loneliness.}

Several studies show that loneliness is detrimental to the health. Here are a few facts about loneliness you should know.

1. It might shock you to know that more than 60% of lonely people are married. You can get lonely even when married when you stop sharing your deepest feelings, thoughts and experiences with your partner.

2. Having a lot of Facebook friends doesn’t protect you from loneliness. According to a study, there’s no correlation between people’s Facebook usage and their overall friendship satisfaction.

3. You can have lots of friends and relationships and still be lonely. The quality of your relationships and not quantity will protect you from loneliness.

4. Loneliness can shorten your lifespan. A study by researchers at Brigham Young University found that the subjective feeling of loneliness increases death risk by 26 percent.

5. Loneliness affects the immune system and puts you at an increased risk for developing all kinds of illness and diseases.

6. Loneliness doesn’t only affect your mental health but also affects your physical health. Chronic loneliness is as harmful to your health as smoking up to 15 cigarettes a day according to a study published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health.

7. Chronic loneliness increases the risk of cardiovascular disease because the body is under constant and unrelenting stress.

So it’s important you have quality time with family and friends. Chronic loneliness isn’t good for the health.

{Prostate cancer is the development of cancer in the prostate, a gland in the male reproductive system; the cancer cells may even spread from the prostate to other parts of the body, making prostate cancer a very dangerous sickness.}

However, a new study has found a 98.6 percent cure rate.

The study was conducted by researchers from UT Southwestern Medical Center.

They found the cure in a noninvasive form of radiation treatment that involves high-dose radiation beams entering the body through various angles and intersecting at the desired target. It is a state-of-the-art technology that allows for a concentrated dose to reach the tumor while limiting the radiation dose to surrounding healthy tissue.

According to Dr. Raquibul Hannan, Assistant Professor of Radiation Oncology and lead author for the study: “The high cure rate is striking when compared to the reported five-year cure rates from other approaches like surgery or conventional radiation, which range between 80 to 90 percent, while the side effects of this treatment are comparable to other types of treatment,

“What we now have is a more potent and effective form of completely noninvasive treatment for prostate cancer, conveniently completed in five treatments.”

Conventional treatment options for early stage prostate cancer include:

Prostatectomy, the surgical removal of the prostate gland, which can be done with minimally invasive techniques and robotic assistance;

Brachytherapy, in which doctors implant numerous small radioactive seeds about the size of a grain of rice into the prostate gland using multiple large needles inserted through the skin in the operating room. Once implanted, the seeds release their radioactivity directly into the prostate gland; and external beam radiation, which involves 42 to 45 treatments administered over two or more months, five days a week.

“The current form of radiation is 44 treatments given over nine weeks. In contrast, the SBRT therapy we used allows the delivery of highly focused radiation in only five treatments, allowing patients to return to their normal lives more quickly,” said senior author Dr. Robert Timmerman, Director of the Annette Simmons Stereotactic Treatment Center at UT Southwestern, and Professor and Vice Chairman of the Department of Radiation Oncology. “SBRT is both more convenient and has increased potency.”

UT Southwestern served as the lead site for the multi-institutional clinical trial, which involved first-time prostate cancer patients diagnosed with stage I or stage II (low and intermediate risk) prostate cancer. A total of 91 patients were treated prospectively and followed for five years, with only one patient experiencing a recurrence of his cancer.