TATTOO AND CANCER: WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

With the increasing acceptance of tattooing, it is important to consider the possible health effects tattoos have on your body − especially any increased risks for cancer.

Permanent tattoos are made by using needles to inject coloured inks below the skin’s surface. Inks are less likely than before to contain inorganic salts such as mercury, cadmium, and cobalt. 

Aluminium, oxygen, titanium, and carbon are common ingredients of tattoo inks irrespective of the colour. Known allergenic metals such as chromium, nickel and cobalt have been found to exceed safe allergic limits.

Health risks associated with tattooing include infections, allergies, scarring, granulomas (small knots or bumps that can form around particles of tattoo pigment), and MRI complications such as swelling or burning when people with tattoos undergo an MRI.

Studies have also shown that benzopyrene, a chemical in black tattoo ink, can induce skin cancer in test animals, while other cancer-causing chemicals can damage collagen.

Nanoparticles, also found in tattoo ink may be capable of evading the body’s natural defense more easily. In fact, black tattoo pigments are almost pure nanoparticles, which have been shown to migrate away from the skin, damage collagen, and accumulate in the spleen and kidneys, with possibly harmful effects for health.

ARE YOU AT RISK OF THE SECOND CAUSES OF DEATH?

A 45 year study in middle-aged men has shown that the impact of low physical capacity on risk of death is second only to smoking. The research is published today in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology.

The benefits of being physically active over a lifetime are clear, Low physical capacity is a greater risk for death than high blood pressure or high cholesterol.

Researchers found that low aerobic capacity was associated with increased rates of death. The association between exercise capacity and all-cause death was graded, with the strongest risk in the tertile with the lowest maximum aerobic capacity. The effect of aerobic capacity on risk of death was second only to smoking.

We have come a long way in reducing smoking. The next major challenge is to keep us physically active and also to reduce physical inactivity, such as prolonged sitting

GLOBAL COMMUNITY CELEBRATES WORLD HEPATITIS DAY

Every year, the global community celebrates World Hepatitis Day to draw peoples’ attention to the importance of eliminating Hepatitis in the society.

The annual commemoration of the day is usually organised by the the United Nations and the World Hepatitis Alliance, who work with individuals and community groups to promote awareness by raising campaigns worldwide about hepatitis.

World Hepatitis Day is commemorated annually on July 28 to promote awareness of hepatitis, a disease that affects the liver, and to encourage prevention and treatment.

Hepatitis is a term used to describe the inflammation of the liver as a result of viral infection or exposure to harmful or toxic substances such as drugs or alcohol.

World Viral hepatitis infection affects about 400 million people worldwide, which is more than 10 times the number of people affected by HIV. Yet at present, just one in 20 people with viral hepatitis know they are infected, and only one in 100 with the disease is being treated.

While some types of hepatitis will pass without causing permanent damage to the liver, chronic cases can cause cirrhosis, liver failure or cancer.

According to the UN Health agency, the World Health Organisation, more than 680,000 people die annually due to complications of hepatitis B, including cirrhosis and liver cancer, and approximately 700 000 people die each year from hepatitis C-related liver diseases.

In developing countries with poor sanitary conditions and hygienic practices, about 90% of children have been infected with the hepatitis A virus before the age of 10.

WHO estimated that 240 million people are chronically infected with hepatitis B.

In 2013, an estimated 1.45 million people died of the disease, up from less than 500,000 people in 1990.

According to the Director General of the World Health Organisation, Dr Margaret Chan, the world has ignored hepatitis at its peril, and it is now time to mobilize a global response to hepatitis on the scale similar to the one generated to fight other communicable diseases like HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis.

With better understanding of its prevention, timely interventions and adequate treatment, thousands of lives could be saved every year.

There is a vaccine and treatment for hepatitis B, and none for hepatitis C, but the antiviral medication has made it possible to cure 90% of patients within two to three months.

The Theme for this year's World Hepatitis Day is '' Hepatitis Elimination: It's up to you''.

NAHIMAT

UN RIGHTS GROUP CONDEMNS FEMALE GENITAL CUTTING

A human right activist, Suzanne Bowles has condemned the practice of female genital mutilation, saying the eradication of the practice requires a grassroots approach.



Suzanne Bowles was one of the rights activists who attended a recent UN meeting on the issue to represent the human rights group, Tostan.

According to Bowles, the practice affects more than two million women and girls and is considered a 'social norm' in many parts of the world, but the UN has condemned it as a human rights violation.

Female genital cutting or mutilation, as it is known, is the altering of female genitalia for non-medical reasons. 

She explained that her organisation was able to educate people on the need for the eradication of the practice through community networks, religious leaders and through different sensitization programmes. 

Bowles however urged other organisations to adopt the same strategy to stem the tide of female genital cutting in most communities around the world.

NAHIMAT 

CODEINE: WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW?

Codeine is a moderately strong opiate drug that is used in pain relief and for the suppression of coughs. But strong or weak, it is still an addictive drug with many symptoms of use in common with other opiates.

Codeine can be highly addictive and provides the user with an overall sense of calm and feelings of pleasure. When codeine is used it enters the brain and causes the release of neurotransmitters that stimulate the reward centre of the brain, leaving the user feeling intense feelings of wellbeing and pleasure. This kind of pleasure can lead to both psychological and physical dependence. The road to addiction to codeine usually starts with an increasing tolerance to the drug.

After prolonged use an individual develops a tolerance for this substance and needs to take more and more of the drug in order to feel the effects. 

Some individuals use for legitimate medical purposes, but over time develops an addiction problem. Other individuals become addicted to codeine and begin to use it to manage other problems in their lives, such as emotional pain or stresses due to the euphoric feelings it causes. Many who become addicted to codeine will use it with other substances.

CAUSES OF CODEINE ABUSE

Genetic: Individuals who have relatives, especially a parent who are addicted to substances are more likely to develop an addiction problem later in life.

Brain Chemistry:  to make up for a lack of the naturally-occurring neurotransmitter. Codeine may be used as a form of self-medication in order to make up for the deficiency.

Environmental: Another hypothesis is that children who grow up in an unstable home environment and may be exposed to drug abuse by watching their parents or older siblings use.

Psychological: Sometimes individuals who become addicted to substances such as codeine are self-medicating in order to deal with an untreated mental disorder. Codeine is used in an attempt to control unpleasant side effects of the underlying mental disorder.

SIGNS OF ABUSE

Drowsiness, slurred speech, Short attention span, impaired judgment, dilated pupils, lack of coordination, uninterested behaviour.

SIDE EFFECTS

Acute pancreatitis, major depression, liver damage, kidney damage, financial problems, legal issues, domestic problems, job loss, heightened pain sensitivity, uncontrollable muscle twitches, muscle spasms, cramps, and pain, loss of productivity at school or work, impaired social relationships, seizures, incarceration, respiratory depression, bradycardia, cold, clammy skin, decreased muscle tone and coma.

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