I wrote this today for the Carnegie Council in honour of Dr. Halfdan Mahler, former WHO Director General, who led the successful fight against smallpox, and convened the 1978 Alma Ata conference. Dr Mahler died 17 days ago at the age of 93 years:

http://www.globalethicsnetwork.org/profiles/blogs/nationalism-version-2-0-is-congruent-with-globalization?xg_source=msg_appr_blogpost

Humidity drops to as low as 15% during Harmattan; and this is responsible for some of the medical ailments associated with the season.

Sleeping mattress should be very hard and non-sagging, to prevent musculo-skelatal pains and degeneration. While sitting on a chair, one should not slop, but sit upright, with straight back. All these measures help to protect the spinal cord

Containers for many locally made drinks are sourced un-hygienically. Producers need to ensure safety, while consumers need to ensure hygienic sources

There are several conditions known to be associated with the cold Hermitian season:
1. Sinusitis
2. Conjunctivitis
3. Respiratory tract infection
4. Worsening of asthma
5. Worsening of Sickle Cell Disease
6. Scabies
7. Emotional disturbance
8. Burns and scald

The health hazards of Harmattan are numerous. I will be discussing one daily for the next seven days.

The speed limit in Nigeria is 100Km/hour. Any speed in excess increases the risk of accident and dangerous injuries or even death

Talcum Powder and Possible link to Ovarian Cancer

By

DR. MUKTAR A. GADANYA, MBBS, MSc, FMCPH, MFR

Cumulative medical researchers suggest that there is a link between use of talcum powder for intimate feminine hygiene and development of ovarian cancer.

Even though talcum powder is an essential item in many homes and nurseries across the world, linkage between its use for female perineal hygiene and increased ovarian cancer risk has being on the radar for decades.

In 1971, researchers drew attention to a probable connection between the dusting of female perineum with talcum powder and development of ovarian cancer. They postulated that talc powder enters a woman’s body through the vagina and travels through the cervix to the uterus, before finally reaching the ovaries, where it continuously irritate them and cause cancer.

The world reputable medical journal, The Lancelet, reported that a majority of ovarian tumors had particles of talc intensely entrenched in them.

The Lancet study was followed by a subsequent research published in 1982 in the famous journal, Cancer, which provided important data linking the powder and ovarian cancer. Since then, about 20 researches have showed similar findings.

Three years ago, in June 2013, a study was published by the highly ranked journal Cancer Prevention Research. Their conclusion was that there is risk increase of 20 and 30 percent for women who used talcum powder for perineal hygiene. This research validated the results of an earlier publication by the journal Anticancer Research in 2003, which concluded that use of talcum powder on female genitals increased risk of ovarian cancer by almost 30 percent. The authors arrived at that conclusion after comparing data from 16 separate research works.

In 2013 a woman in the United States who was diagnosed with ovarian cancer after 30 years of using talcum powder, sued the manufacture and won the case based on a decision of a jury.

Brief information about the author

Dr. Muktar Gadanya MFR was awarded the National Honour of Member of the Order of Federal Republic (MFR) at the age of 29 years. Muktar is a Fellow of the National Postgraduate Medical College of Nigeria, where he won the prestigious Professor Adetokubo O. Lucas and Dr J.D Soleye Prizes for the Best Graduating Fellow, and Best Public Health Dissertation. He has the Masters degree (MSc) of University of London, United Kingdom, in Reproductive and Sexual Health Research. He was trained on Intervention Mapping for HIV Prevention at the University of Maastricht in the Netherlands. He was the 2^nd prize winner in The Higher Education Academy Essay competition for postgraduate students in the United Kingdom in 2010. He is a Fellow of the US President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), and is a member of the International Consortium for Research and Action against Health Related Stigma (ICRAaS). He has published in learned peer-reviewed academic journals locally and internationally.

On our fortnightly HSE Bulletin this week, we bring you a Q&A Session with an expert, Dr. Muktar A. Gadanya, on Job-related Stress.

Dr. Gadanya, MFR is a Public Health Physician and a Lecturer at the Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital/Bayero University, Kano. He has variously provided health promotion services to organizations, and the general public, through media houses like BBC, Voice of America, Deutsche Welle, NTA and Freedom Radio. He is a member of the Emir of Kano Muhammad Sanusi II Committee on Health. He is a Member of the Order of Federal Republic, Global Youth Actionnet Fellow and an Associate Fellow of Nigeria Leadership Initiative.

Enjoy the Interview

Q: What is job related stress?

A: These are stretches (real or perceived) beyond the physical and mental resilience (coping ability) of workers that arise from work and work demands, and can bring about changes in their performance, well being, mood and general health. Moderate stress has some benefits in enhancing performance and reaching deadlines; however, when stress is excessive, it leads to job related stress, which has effect on performance, inter-personal relationship, general health and job-related accidents and injuries.

Q: What are the causes of job related stress?

A:  The most widely recognized causes of Job-related stress are

a.      Improper planning: this can arise from inadequate time allocation for the job, or delay in commencement of activity due to procrastination that leads to excessive accumulation of workload towards the deadline.

b.      poor ergonomics that leads to physical and mental drain on workers

c.       improper fit between assigned tasks and skills of the worker

d.      difficult interpersonal relationship between co-workers

e.      extreme environmental factors like fringes of temperature (too hot or too cold, too humid or too dry etc)

f.        background physical and mental health of the worker

g.      looming deadlines

Q: What are the signs and symptoms of work-related stress?

A: The signs and symptoms can be varied and are often multiple, and can include:

1. Excessive tempers that leads to clashes with co-workers and customers/clients
2. Recurrent medical ailment and work absenteeism
3. Being prone to accidents and  job related-injuries
4. Declining productivity and performance, leading to loss of job or lack of career progress
5. Personal and family problems
6. Can lead to drug abuse
7. Can lead to anxiety and depression
8. A worker can experience declining appetite, poor sleep, persistence feeling of impending crisis (arising from anxiety), lack of concentration, inability to meet set targets, feeling of being persecuted and being unliked, excessive tiredness, feeling of worthlessness, unexplained body pains, lack of satisfaction with job and excessive tendency to resort to "chemical crutches" like sleeping pills and drugs to increase arousal during day time.

Q. How can job related stress be prevented?

A. Prevention is by

1.      careful planning and allocation of time to tasks not leaving a job undone until the last minute

2.      proper fit of task and skills by workers

3.      improved interface between workplace, tools and workers (ergonomics)

4.      Regular medical check-up and early seeking of medical care

5.      Improving work and social life balance

6.      Increased physical activity especially for those with sedentary lifestyle and sedentary work; this is most important for senior managers and executives

7.      Regular and balanced meals, as low glucose level in the blood (i.e. hypoglycemia) can lead to poor performance, accident proneness and tension with co-workers

8.      Optimizing one's weight as obesity is linked to poor sleep and difficulty performing work task during the day

9.      continuous self development and learning on the skills required for the job

Q. How can this be treated?

A: The best methods of treatment for Job-related stress are

1. Health Education of  workers about the causes, effects and ways to address job related stress
2. getting adequate exercise, rest and nutrition
3. Early seeking of help for stress related problems
4. Treating underlying cause of the job related stress- like physical or mental ill health
5. Creating good balance between work and leisure
6. Interpersonal communication training of workers to engender smooth social working environment

Optimal daily hours of sleep for adults is 6-8 hours, and his has several benefits including preventing obesity and occurrence of Diabetes.

Adequate intake of water is associated with myriads of health benefits, including positive weight loss. Body sometimes confuses thirst with hunger, and staying hydrated ensures that this doesn't happen.

"Power" and "Energy" drinks lead to spikes in the level of sugar and subsequent counter-spikes in the level of insulin. This has two implications: a sudden decline in sugar level after a sudden rise of  the same (leading to weakness and low mood), and risk of development of Diabetes.

If you sleep while on a journey, it raises your risk of cervical injury from awkward movements of the head, and sudden jerks that can come from sudden brake application. If you must sleep while on journey use seat-belt and neck support/rigid collar.

This blog is going to be active on daily basis, and will share health tips!