Nurses
can’t nurse their own health
They work day and night to restore your health.
But long working hours, constant overtime owing to staff shortage and low
salaries are taking a heavy toll on the health of nurses working in city
hospitals.
A study titled Stress causing psychosomatic
illness among nurses carried out by Pune-based researcher Pratibha Kane
from Maharashtra Medical Research Society shows that 90% psychosomatic
illnesses (disorders having emotional origins causing physical symptoms)
reported by nurses are due to chronic stress.
The report of the survey covering 102 nurses
working in Pune hospitals has been published in Indian Journal of
Occupational and Environmental Medicine.
Around 60% nurses admitted to suffering from
headache caused due to lack of sleep because of overtime and missing meals.
Similarly, acidity affects 62% nurses and anaemia
was found in 32% staff. Backache (47%) and stiffness in neck and shoulders
(43%) were other problems highlighted by the study.
Hospital administrators and matrons agree that
work stress is a major reason for the falling health of these health-keepers.
“Owing to high attrition rates, we face shortage
of nurses throughout the year. Nurses on duty are assigned extra tasks and work
for longer hours. Double shifts tire them physically and mentally leading to
illnesses. Many fail to report to duty again citing acidity and body ache and
the extra pressure falls on the already stressed out nurses,” said Bharati
Hospital matron and incharge of 338 nurses Anjali Gurav.
Source: www.dnaindia.com
20.05.2012
Is
instant baby food healthy or all hype?
A visit to a supermarket is enough to introduce a
mother to an array of infant and child products - baby wipes, talc, shampoo,
soap, toothpaste, infant formula and milk additives. The huge range of products
available and the force with which they are advertised confuses parents. Which
products are worth the extra investment and which are just hype?
Ahmedabad-based Consumer Education and Research
Centre (CERC) and its partner organisation CHOICE, Australia conducted a survey
and concluded that most such products are unnecessary for your child.
Says Pritee Shah, chief general manager of CERC,
"For almost every adult product in the personal care department there's
invariably a 'baby' or 'child' version available, often at a price premium.
With the marketing hype parents could be convinced that these products are a
'must have' when in fact they are not."
Parents in Ahmedabad seem to be unaware about
this fact. While in foreign countries constant research and surveys on baby
products keeps people updated, in India this is not so.
Stores record huge sales of these products.
Parents seem to be eager to try new products on their babies. Baby wipes and
infant formula are the highest selling baby products according to the local
medical shops and baby stores. They say that fancy advertisements are
responsible for this.
As far as infant formula, solid baby food and
milk additives are concerned many parents wrongly believethey will give
additional nutrition to their child.
Doctors in Ahmedabad support the result of the
CERC-CHOICE research. Says Dr Roshan Naik, a pediatrician, "Most baby
products are absolutely unnecessary for a child. Instead of baby food bought
from a store a baby must be given wholesome home-cooked food. That is the
healthiest option.
Infant formula (breast milk substitute for babies
younger than 12 months) must be used only when a mother is not able to devote
time for breastfeeding and it becomes necessary to use an alternative." Infant
formula and solid baby food vary in nutrients, calorie count, taste, ability to
be digested and cost.
"These products are good for the convenience
of being instant and ready to use. They are very handy while travelling where
home-made food is not available. As long as fresh home-made food is available,
do not use such products," advises Dr Hiral Naik, pediatrician.
Source: www.dnaindia.com
20.05.2012
Learning to ignore things is one of the great paths to inner peace
No comments:
Post a Comment