Monday, 8 June 2015

Weight loss plan - Week 2 - Choose an exercise plan

NHS Weight loss plan

Week 2: Let's get moving

With Week 1 under your belt, we hope keeping track of your calories is becoming more straightforward. Make sure you’re using online calorie counters – they make calorie counting so much easier.

From this week, we’d like you to start increasing your activity levels. We’ve got lots of tips to help you do this gradually as well as structured exercise plans, such as our Couch to 5K running plan and Strength and Flex workout.

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Saturday, 6 June 2015

Why people take herbal medicine

Why people take herbal medicine

Mohammad Shamsuddin Khaled

Nowadays, many people of our country know about herbal treatment or herbal medicine. In Bangladesh, herbal medicine means Unani & Ayurvedic medicine. It is also called Traditional Medicine. Recently, the World Health Organization estimated that 80 per cent of people worldwide rely on herbal medicines for some aspect of their primary health care.

In our country people have become dependent on allopathic medicine. These medicines have different side effects which have bad impact on our physical health. But natural medicines have no side effects. So, anyone can take it without any doubt.

The history of herbal medicine

Plants had been used for medicinal purposes long before recorded history. Ancient Chinese and Egyptian papyrus writings describe medicinal uses for plants as early as 3,000 BC. Indigenous cultures (such as African and Native American) used herbs in their healing rituals, while others developed traditional medical systems (such as Unani, Ayurveda and Traditional Chinese Medicine) in which herbal therapies were used. Researchers found that people in different parts of the world tended to use the same or similar plants for the same purposes.

The Bangladeshi system of medicine was called the Unani & Ayurvedic. The Bangladeshi materia medica, or list of herbs used as medicines, was quite extensive. As early as 800 BC one Bangladeshi writer knew 500 medicinal plants and another knew 760 - all indigenous plants of Bangladesh. Bangladeshi herbalism or Unani & Ayurvedic is still practiced today, and many authentic, traditional formulations are available outside of Bangladesh.

In the early 19th century, when chemical analysis first became available, scientists began to extract and modify the active ingredients from plants. Later, chemists began making their own version of plant compounds and, over time, the use of herbal medicines declined in favour of drugs. Almost one-fourth of pharmaceutical drugs are derived from botanicals.

Recently, the World Health Organization estimated that 80% of people worldwide rely on herbal medicines for some part of their primary health care. In Germany, about 600 - 700 plant based medicines are available and are prescribed by some 70% of German physicians. In the past 20 years in the United States, public dissatisfaction with the cost of prescription medications, combined with an interest in returning to natural or organic remedies, has led to an increase in herbal medicine use.

Importance of herbal medicine

As our lifestyle is getting techno-savvy, we are moving away from nature. However, we cannot escape from nature because we are part of nature. We have not yet fully explored what nature has stored in for us. This fact can be disturbing point with humans. Certain European and Oriental countries have been exploring the use of herbs and has been in practice over the centuries. Great work has been done which eluded the common man's reach and knowledge. With life on tech-route for every individual in the 21st century, human sufferings are coming out with different names. The basic herbs have the answer. The overall key is no side effects and effective remedies. The remedies are in sync with nature which is the biggest plus point where no other medicine can claim these facts. The golden fact is use of herbal treatments is independent of any age groups.

How do herbs work?

In many cases, scientists aren't sure what specific ingredient in a particular herb works to treat a condition or illness. Whole herbs contain many ingredients, and they may work together to produce a beneficial effect. Many factors determine how effective a herb will be. For example, the type of environment (climate, bugs, soil quality) in which a plant grew will affect it, as will how and when it was harvested and processed.

Where will patients get the treatment?

Every government hospital and health complex in different districts has the facilities to take Unani & Ayurvedic treatment. There are BUMS (Bachelor of Unani Medicine & Surgery) & BAMS (Bachelor of Ayurvedic Medicine & Surgery). Doctors are providing traditional treatment. They listen to the patients' problems very carefully. This treatment is also cost effective. So, its popularity is increasing day by day. Besides, there are different private chambers where people can take traditional treatment.

http://www.thefinancialexpress-bd.com/2015/06/06/95455

Thursday, 4 June 2015

Indigenous medicine needs recognition - Professor Gibson

Indigenous medicine needs recognition – Professor Gibson

Windhoek

The effectiveness and importance of the use of traditional medicine around the world are overlooked and therefore such medicine lack recognition as being as useful as scientifically tested pharmaceutical modern medicine, a visiting South African professor told a public lecture.

Being unscientifically tested and approved, traditional medicine therefore remains unrecognized to have the right and consent to be used freely and to be widely available to those who need it. This was stated at the public lecture held at a resort in Windhoek on Tuesday night, presented by Professor Daina Gibson from the University of the Western Cape in South Africa.

The lecture was about “Medicinal plants as players in the health system.”

“There have been controversies between professional medicinal doctors failing to recognize the use of traditional medicine, describing it as being unfit for use, as bio-scientific tests have not been conducted on them,” stated Gibson.

She added that traditional medicine should be given recognition to be used in cases when there is a lack and shortage of modern medicine but warned that traditional medicine should not be used simultaneously when using pharmaceutical medications.

Those with the know-how should pass on the knowledge to others in order to preserve the ancestral knowledge, although it is very difficult to know those possessing indigenous knowledge as such individuals usually keep this knowledge to themselves.

Gibson gave the example of Chinese and Indian medicine as being useful, urging that they should be brought on board to share the knowledge on how they pursued their traditional medicines so that others could learn and follow the same route.

“There should be policies and regulations that will see that such things are preserved and given a platform where they can be practised freely. Traditional medicines don’t have side effects as they come natural, thus we should protect and preserve them through planting more of the species used instead of harvesting everything,” stated the Western Cape university professor.

The Directorate of Traditional Medicine, African Traditional Medicine Day, National Drug Policy of 1996 Medicines and Related Substances Amendment Act (No 72 of 2008), Traditional Health Practitioners Act (22 of 2007), Interim Traditional Health Practitioners Council in 2013 and Draft of National Policy on African Traditional Medicine were listed as some of the structures, policies and regulations followed in South Africa. Gibson said traditional medicine practices in the Western Cape are prevalent to such an extent that they harvest and trade in approximately 700 tons of traditional medicine around the world and 100 tons in South Africa.

Gibson is a trained anthropologist specializing in medical anthropology.

She has previously published national and international journals on hospital ethnography, transformation of the South African health care system, ex-combatants and trauma; gender sexuality and reproductive health; masculinity, gender based violence and tuberculosis.

https://www.newera.com.na/2015/06/04/indigenous-medicine-recognition-professor-gibson/

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Our vision is of a society where no one should experience discrimination on the grounds of their mental health.

Mental health problems are extremely common across society, with one in four of us experiencing them in any year. Despite being so common, people from all communities will still experience discriminatory attitudes and behaviours that can prevent people from speaking out, seeking support and playing full and active roles in our communities. The impact of mental health stigma and discrimination will vary between communities as mental health has a cultural context that affects the way communities talk about the subject and engage with people who have mental health problems. In some cultures depression, for example, doesn't exist and in others an experience of a mental health problem can be attached to a sense of shame.

For the African and Caribbean communities a key issue is the overrepresentation of young African and Caribbean men in mental health services. Misconceptions and stereotypes have led to a perception that this group is more likely to pose a risk of violent behaviour and, as a result, they are more likely to be treated as inpatients and sectioned when compared to other groups. It is well documented that this has led to a fear of talking about mental health issues more openly and a fear of using mental health services. Research by the Race Equality Foundation (2011) also highlighted fears that discrimination against Black & Minority Ethnic (BME) communities and migrant service users will increase in the austerity climate and whilst commissioning arrangements change.

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· Provide information, advice, advocacy

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Objectives of our Diversity Living Programme:

· To promote the inclusion and participation of diversity communities* in integrated care.

· To inform policy, locally and nationally, and assisting in the formulation of effective policies, strategies and good practices in integrated care in order to contribute to improved health outcomes for the people from the diversity communities (e.g. Black and minority ethnic communities) and to ensure health services are able to meet their specific needs.

· To improve the quality of life for diversity people with disability, mental health problems and their families and carers through integrated care by providing inclusive advocacy and information.

· To provide service that enable diversity groups and individuals with disability /elderly and their carers to make the right choice for themselves and have an influence on decisions made about their future.

· To promote the rights of diversity people with disability, their families and carers and make sure their rights are safe and protected.

· To promoting access to information regarding healthcare issues and to raise awareness of the needs of diversity disabled children, young people, older people and their families.

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*Diversity communities are older people, disabled people, Black, Asian, refugees, migrants, asylum seekers and other ethnic minorities.

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