Health, Food & Lifestyle – Page 4

DID YOU KNOW THAT: Loneliness ‘Shortens Lifespan’ Just As Obesity?

06/11/2015 8:16 pm

Being lonely does not just have an immediate effect, in the long run, it shortens your lifespan—and as such, we have to build more healthy relationships.

According to a new research, loneliness shortens lifespan as much as being obese.

“Whether a person feels alone is as much of a predictor of whether they will die prematurely as their weight, researchers found. And they predict a loneliness ‘epidemic’ in the future as more people live alone – and warn people need to start taking social relationships more seriously.

They explained loneliness and social isolation can take different forms. For example, someone may be surrounded by people but still feel alone.Other people might isolate themselves because they prefer to be alone. The effect on lifespan, however, is the same for those two scenarios, researchers found,” MailOnline reports.

The lead author of the study-Julianne Holt-Lunstad, of Brigham Young University, Utah, said; ‘the effect is comparable to obesity, something that public health takes very seriously’ and that ‘we need to start taking our social relationships more seriously.’

The EBOLA VACCINE TRIAL in Ghana | The Deep Ignorance of Ghanaians + My Take

06/11/2015 1:51 pm

by GC Staff bG

Clearly a lot of Ghanaians have no idea of what this whole vaccine trial is about. But that is beside the point, what has really saddened me is how well educated folks who could simply research on it to be informed have refused to do so and yet are busily making public comments on it.

Today, i have tuned in to two big radio stations and on both stations, I was simply EMBARRASSED by radio panel members seriously shouting with passion but sadly too, with a LOT OF IGNORANCE on this whole Ebola vaccine trial.

So I have decided to answer three questions most people ask ignorantly – i don’t mean for you to be offended, just be informed.

1.What is this whole vaccine thing? Are they really introducing Ebola into Ghanaians?

A vaccine is a weakened form of a virus that is introduced into an individual so that the body develops immunity (let’s call this “body soldiers/ ability to fight”) against such disease. Yes, the vaccine contains the virus content. However this is weakened and the amount is too small to cause the disease – this is ensured by passing the vaccine through several tests and using animal subject over and over again.

2. Ghana has no Ebola, why not Liberia, Sierra Leone or Guinea who have had the virus?

People who have already been exposed to the virus (naturally as in the case of people in these countries) may already be producing such antibodies in their systems and so the researcher cannot tell if those antibodies is due to the natural exposure to the disease or by the vaccine they are testing. That is why it wouldn’t be prudent to try vaccines in places already exposed to the disease in this case, Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone.

3. Why Ghana, Volta region, Hohoe?

This is the most unreasonable among the questions. FDA has stated over and over again that the Principal Researcher (the person who is doing this research) is in the University of Allied Sciences in Hohoe.

Additionally, the University have the needed facilities and equipment for such trials which makes it a suitable site for such trials, as was done for Polio, Onchocerciasis, etc.

DID YOU KNOW THAT: Your Birth Month Determines If You Will Get Sick Or Not?

06/10/2015 11:51 am

by GC Staff Sheila

A new research from Columbia University claims that the month you were born does have an impact on how likely you are to become ill—and it’s pretty interesting.

In order to find out the how the month of birth affects a person’s heath, the researchers created software to scour birth and medical records to look for links. After using the algorithm to examine New York City medical databases, they found 55 diseases that correlated with the season of birth.

“Overall, the Columbia University study indicated people born in May had the lowest disease risk, and those born in October the highest.

‘Lifetime disease risk is affected by birth month,’ the researchers wrote in in the Journal of American Medical Informatics Association.

‘Seasonally dependent early developmental mechanisms may play a role in increasing lifetime risk of disease. ‘

‘This data could help scientists uncover new disease risk factors,’ said author Nicholas Tatonetti.

The researchers now plan to replicate their study with data from several other locations in the U.S. and abroad to see how results vary with the change of seasons and environmental factors in those places,” writes MailOnline.

Though a small population was used, it’s interesting that there seems to be a correlation between the month of birth and a person’s health.

DID YOU KNOW THAT: The Less You Sleep the More You Eat?

06/2/2015 1:31 pm

by GC Staff Yaa

For those looking to loose weight, how long you sleep for has a direct effect on how much you eat—consequently on how much weight you can loose.

According to a new analysis of the relationship between sleep and food, the less shut-eye a person gets, the more they eat and this can lead to problems like obesity, type 2 diabetes and heart disease in the long run, the researchers added.

Apparently, when a person is tired, the hormones controlling appetite are affected, so that person feels more hungry.

Writing in the Journal of Health Psychology, the study’s authors, Alyssa Lundahl and Timothy D Nelson, of the University of Nebraska, said: ‘It is well recognised that food intake is implicated in many chronic health issues including obesity, diabetes and heart disease, and diet is often a target of treatment to prevent the onset of these conditions.

LIFESTYLE GUIDE: ‘Out & Taste’ in East Legon-Accra | That Perfect Take Away Joint You Should Note Down

05/12/2015 6:18 pm

by GC Staff Tisha

Being a foodie/foodienne/glutton/munch-all-you-like, the eyes in my belly always seem to notice new eateries around town, no matter if my stomach is already groaning from excess. So imagine my excitement when I whizzed past a new take-away on the way to the office!??! It was like utopia.

“Oooh, I must go there!” I thought, hoping not to forget where I’d seen the sign. So when the opportunity presented itself a couple of days ago I knew exactly where I’d like to fill my belly!

“Out & Taste” in East Legon’s American House is a little take away offering a selection of Ghanaian food served on time and presented well. I was later to learn that this week old venture was the business owner’s second branch; the first being located in Haatso.

It is evident that a lot of thought has gone into the branding for “Out & Taste”; the black, white and red colour scheme is present throughout the restaurant, staff uniform and the takeaway packaging. The logo is simple, original and effective – there is no doubt that this is a place to eat. Overall the branding creates the sense of consistency which is unfortunately a concept that has not been embraced by many business owners in Ghana. I remain impressed.

LIFESTYLE GUIDE: Thinking About Trying A Turkish Restaurant? | CharcoalGrill Or Gokyuzu Can Be A Good Start…

05/2/2015 1:07 pm

by Chris-Vincent Agyapong, Founding Editor

When many of us are looking to spend less and have the best of food, we head to the Chinese restaurants; they are good at giving you some tasty fried rice or noodles on budget, especially when we are with friends. It’s just not the Chinese restaurants alone which can offer this—and if you love to try different kinds of food from different countries, the Turkish restaurants are relatively inexpensive and you would be amazed at what the little money you allocate for a Lunch or Dinner can fetch you.

A platter for 3-4 people in a North London Turkish restaurant like the CharcoalGrill in Woodgreen where I recently visited will just cost you something around £27—and it comes with a tasty Mediterranean salad, a Turkish meze starter and the famous sweet Turkish bread.

DID YOU KNOW THAT: A Power Nap Of Just 45 Minutes Can Boost The Memory Five-Fold?

03/23/2015 3:33 pm

by Comfort Asante, GC Staff Writer

According to researchers, a power nap of just 45 minutes can boost memory by five times. This has immense benefit particularly for students as a short doze helps to retain information you have learned and ‘significantly’ improves recall.

Of course it’s difficult to wake up after such a short nap when you are really tired—and that is why most people avoid it but considering the benefits, its worth the struggle.

Scientists from Saarland University in Germany who conducted the research say; during sleep, bursts of brain activity known as sleep spindles play an important role in consolidating newly learned information.

Professor Axel Mecklinger said a nap of just 45 minutes to an hour ‘produces a five-fold improvement in information retrieval from memory’

‘The memory performance of the participants who had a power nap was just as good as it was before sleeping, that is, immediately after completing the learning phase.

World Health Organisation Study Says Listening to Music For Over An Hour A Day Is Damaging To Your Hearing

03/3/2015 7:04 pm

by Comfort Asante, GC Staff Writer

Music has become such a prominent aspect of daily life these days, and one virtually cannot go an entire day without coming across it in some shape or form, willingly or unwillingly.

Especially the youth, who seem to go everywhere with a pair of ear/head phones plugged in. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), a huge chunk of the world’s population is at risk of hearing loss due to unsafe listening practices.

They identified the highest risk zones as ‘nightclubs, bars, and sporting events’, according to the BBC.

Per the data gathered, the figure of young people worldwide at risk of hearing loss stands at 1.1 billion. That’s a staggering figure when you consider the study focused on people aged 12-35.

Do You Shower Every Day? | 4 in 5 Women Do Not Shower Every Day…

02/24/2015 3:15 pm

by Comfort Asante, GC Staff Writer

Of course this is a UK survey so it has nothing to do with most African women who take their shower as a religion—but it’s pretty interesting to know how others treat the act of showering.

According to a publication by UK’s Telegraph, “Four out of five women admit they don’t shower every day, and a third say they can go for three days without washing their body.

The personal hygiene of Britain’s fairer sex – or the lack thereof – has been laid bare in a survey of 2,021 women aged 18 to 50 for skincare range Flint + Flint.

It also found that almost two thirds can’t be bothered removing make-up before they go to bed, and one in eight own up to not brushing their teeth before they sleep.”

But then, we should take into consideration the climatic conditions because of you live in the Tropics where you sweat like hell; you cannot go for 3 days as a woman without showering—you will smell like the famous Ghanaian ‘Koobi’.

LIFESTYLE GUIDE: Stanbic Bank and Their Wahala | Better Stay Away From Them

11/1/2014 8:45 am

by GC Contributor | Catherine Degbor

It is funny how some banks find it so easy to take your money when opening a new account but frustrate you when you want to close that same account.

Months ago, I signed up for internet banking with Stanbic bank and was told it would take 24 hours to activate but guess what, it took almost three days. Aden? I relocated from Ghana so was counting on doing some transactions online but my password failed to work hence I was left powerless.

A few days ago, I got back into the country and needed some quick cash at the airport but to my dismay my bank card refused to work. You know how embarrassing that is when you have a queue right behind you.

I headed straight to the Airport branch of Stanbic to withdraw the money and then close my savings account as I had relocated and had no need for it. I was able to do the former but was told the process of closing an account takes a while so I should come back the following day at noon to retrieve the remaining money in my account.

Being the diligent person that I am, I arrived punctually at Stanbic, waited fifteen minutes for a staff member who pretended to be so busy processing my request( which I felt should have been done the day before), only to be told I couldn’t close my account at that branch as I opened it at another branch. Can you imagine? Are they mad?

Why wasn’t I told this the day before? And why do some banking staff feel they are doing you a favour by serving you? ‘Massa’, if the job is frustrating you, quit. There are millions of people waiting to occupy your position in a microsecond.

Both US Nurses Who Contracted Ebola from Liberian Thomas Duncan Declared Free of the Virus | What Can Ghana Learn from That?

10/25/2014 11:18 am

by GC Staff GS

It seems the United States is extremely well prepared to win their war on Ebola.

The deadly hemorrhagic fever has killed over 4,500 Africans since the genesis of this latest outbreak, but for the United States every single case has been beaten back with the victim declared virus free a short time after contracting the infection.

Nurses Nina Pham and Amber Vinson both got infected whilst caring for Thomas Eric Duncan, the Liberian who carried the virus onto US soil and died shortly thereafter. Both were immediately placed into quarantine and received specialist care which seems to have helped in containing the infection.

US health officials have declared both free of the virus, with test retuning negative results for Ebola in their blood. Nina Pham has already been released and even met with President Obama hours later, whilst Amber would remain in treatment for a while longer in Atalanta.

Microsoft Co-founder-Paul Allen Pledges $100 Million to Fight EBOLA

10/24/2014 9:04 am

by GC Staff bG

Microsoft co-founder-Paul Allen has joined Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Mark Zuckerberg and the many others who have donated huge sums of money to help fight Ebola.

Allen has stated he will contribute at least $100 million to the fight against the deadly disease-Ebola, which has so far killed over 4500 people in Africa.

Yesterday, the billionaire mentioned that among the initiatives he’s supporting is the development of two medevac containment units that the U.S. State Department can use to safely evacuate health workers who become infected.

More Ebola in the US as New York Doctor Tests Positive

10/24/2014 8:42 am

by GC Staff GS

If Ebola hasn’t given you a scare yet, you probably live on the sea.

Given how Mali also reported its first case of Ebola yesterday, Ebola is no longer a West African peculiarity. It is ravaging countries faster than other epidemics.

Craig Spencer, a doctor in New York City, is sick with Ebola. The New York Times reports.

Doctor Spencer recently returned from treating patients in Guinea and tested positive for Ebola yesterday becoming the first person in the city to test positive for Ebola.

He was diagnosed and he is presently in isolation at Bellevue hospital centre.

Ebola Serum for Africa Could be Ready as Early as December Says WHO

10/22/2014 9:18 am

by Edith Osei Bonsu

The World Health Organisation has announced that a large scale operation is underway which could see the development of a serum capable of curing Ebola patients- and that it could be ready as early as December this year.

This Ebola outbreak has been the severest in history, spreading to countries outside the continent as well. Whilst less than 10 non-Africans have died from the virus, it has killed over 4,000 people on the continent, mainly in the epicentres of Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone…

The BBC reports the assistant director general for health systems and innovation at the World Health Organisation, Dr Kieny, has announced that a serum is in development which would hopefully cure the disease entirely.

Almost Half of US Citizens Do Not Want to Take International Flights Because of EBOLA

10/17/2014 12:25 pm

by GC Staff bG

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xf_ZFd9I0z4 According to RT, a new poll suggests that almost half of US citizens do not want to take International flights for fear of contracting EBOLA. Even though Ebola seems to spreading fast across the world from Africa, the panic and fear lead the spread—sending shocks to those who are even far from Africa. Actually, … Read more

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