The United Nations says without more efforts to tackle preventable child deaths, 48 million children under the age of five might die between 2020 and 2030 globally, a newly-released report warns The global body said last year, 5.2 million children died of preventable causes before reaching age five, and that 82 per cent of those deaths were concentrated in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. It added that without more efforts to tackle preventable child deaths, 48 million children under five could die between 2020 and 2030, the report warns. “Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, a child under the age of five died every six seconds somewhere around the world,” UNICEF executive director, Henrietta Fore said in a Press release. “Millions of children living in conflict zones
Whether a child should go to school depends on their health condition, the current transmission of COVID-19 within their community, and the protective measures the school and community have in place to reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission. This is the advice the World Health Organisation has given as governments all over the country and beyond move to reopen schools in the light of the ongong COVID-19 global pandemic. While current evidence suggests that the risk of severe disease for children is lower overall than for adults, special precautions can be taken to minimise the risk of infection among children, and the benefits of returning to school should also be considered. “Current evidence suggests that people with underlying conditions such as chronic respiratory illnes
One in three children could have been exposed to poisonous lead, potentially causing irreversible harm, research into the global risk of exposure has found. Unicef and Pure Earth estimate around 800 million children might be affected, with most in low and middle-income countries. South Asia accounts for almost half the global total. Poorly recycled lead batteries, e-waste, mining and paints are the main sources of poisoning, the report says. Vehicle batteries prime culprit The report's authors say their findings were mainly based on data from the Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) at the University of Washington, which obtained results of blood tests on tens of thousands of children across the globe. "Vehicles in low and middle-income countries ha...
The quest for urgent solution or clues on how to curb the COVID-19 pandemic currently ravaging the world has engaged scientists and health experts across the world in scope never before experienced in recent history. The idea that children were much less vulnerable than their parents or grandparents to the most fatal complications brought on by Covid-19, is likely to warrant re-examination if an unusual syndrome displaying among children in the western part of the world ends up being associated with the new coronavirus. Of late, cases of strange ailment affecting children in high COVID-19 burden countries of Italy, United Kingdom, and Spain with signs associated with Kawasaki Disease has increased apprehensions on the possibility of a coronavirus infection in children in those countri
The nature of children is that they are usually very active and sometimes even restless – you just can’t keep a child in one place, it is not in their nature! Thus kids ought to be allowed to feel and live their lives naturally for them to develop wholly and be healthy all round. Experts say kids below five years of age especially require spending a little amount of their time sitting down and watching TV or looking into a smartphone or tablet etc.; they are not to be confined to prams and seats. According to the World Health Organisation, children also should be allowed to get good quality of sleep while engaging more actively in playing. All of this advisory is contained in the new guidelines supplied by the world health authority as requirements for the growth of children if they are t
Lots of kids are very active. But when it’s time to stop and settle down, they typically manage to put a stop. They might kick a ball around one minute and sit quietly with a toy five minutes later. But some kids just can’t keep still. They’re forever fidgeting, grabbing things, talking, or running even after they’re told to stop. They’re more than just active. Experts would describe them as hyperactive or with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). ADHD is a complex neurodevelopmental disorder that can affect your child’s success at home, school, as well as their relationships. The symptoms of ADHD vary and are sometimes difficult to recognise. Some common symptoms of ADHD in children are: regular outbursts of anger at inappropriate times (Younger children may have temper tan
Although children take responsibility for taking their medications at different ages, involving parents, and where possible, children in decision making, is key to medicines optimisation, experts are saying today. Children are a complex group of patients, not only because of their differences in drug handling; they are also at greater risk of medication errors. Children and young people use accident and emergency (A&E) services more frequently than adults, and recurrent emergency admissions are common, especially for children with chronic conditions such as asthma and epilepsy. In 2015–2016, ten conditions accounted for 42% of all emergency admissions for children and young people in the UK, with the top three being viral infections, acute bronchitis and other upper respirato
Bed time routines are important for children regardless of age. A bed time routine consists of everything that you do with your child just before and up until the time you put him/ her to bed. Some of these include taking a bath, diaper change, reading a book, etc. Regular bedtime routines or schedules help us get the necessary sleep that we need which in turn helps us function at our optimum. For children a routine is very important, establishing and maintaining a good bed time routine helps your child fall asleep, stay asleep and wake up refreshed and fully rested. Having a good sleep routine not only helps you provide a structure that enables your child sleep well, it also provides the opportunity for you and your child to have a special time before going to bed. There are no har...
Paediatric researchers suggest that good sleep affects more than the mood of a child, it also affects the child’s health. According to recent findings sleep is as important as nutrition and exercise as it concerns the health of the child. It is during sleep that the body repackages neurotransmitters; these are chemicals that enable brain cells to communicate. Experts also say that sleep helps the body get rid of toxins in the body each night. A study conducted in Dalhousie University, Nova Scotia showed that the consequences of sleep deprivation are visible in children just after four nights of not getting adequate sleep. The senior author, Penny Corkum Ph. D. in an article on the magazine “Parents” stated that they expected to see some difference when children get inadequa
Adult depression has long been associated with shrinkage of the hippocampus, a brain region that plays an important role in memory and response to stress. Now, new research from Washington University in St. Louis has linked participation in team sports to larger hippocampal volumes in children and less depression in boys ages 9 to 11. “Our findings are important because they help illuminate the relationships between involvement in sports, volume of a particular brain region and depressive symptoms in kids as young as nine,” said Lisa Gorham, lead author of the study and a senior majoring in cognitive neuroscience in Arts & Sciences. “We found that involvement in sports, but not non-sport activities such as music or art, is related to greater hippocampal volume in both boys a
The debate on whether the use of the popular talcum powder causes cancer has refused to go away. Indeed, the use of talcum powder has become a controversial issue as growing evidence suggests that its use may be related to an increased risk of ovarian cancer. Talcum powder is made from talc, a mineral made up mainly of the elements magnesium, silicon, and oxygen. As a powder, it absorbs moisture well and helps cut down on friction, making it useful for keeping skin dry and helping to prevent rashes. It is widely used in cosmetic products such as baby powder and adult body and facial powders, as well as in a number of other consumer products. In its natural form, some talc contains asbestos, a substance known to cause cancers in and around the lungs when inhaled. While mesothe...
Arguably, these days many children eat fast foods. Many children and families today have busy schedules. These make it hard to sit down to homemade meals every day. Many kids’ diets involve a lot of convenience and takeaway foods. But these foods can be unhealthy. Do you know that how your child eats today can have a huge impact on their health throughout adolescence and adulthood? Diet and nutrition are key factors in the health and growth of a child. Children require lots of nutrients to help their bodies develop all the necessary functions and tissues they need, and the quality (or lack thereof) of these nutrients can have a big impact on health. It is important to remember that your kids are not born with a craving for “French fries” and “pizza”. This conditioning happens ov
The idea that race or class determines brain power has been debunked after a seven-year global study found babies can thrive regardless of their background. The research, by the University of Oxford, used data from more than 1,000 children worldwide to try and settle the nature versus nurture debate for good. Professor Stephen Kennedy, the co-director of the Oxford Maternal and Perinatal Health Institute said: “At every single stage we’ve shown that healthy mothers have healthy babies and that healthy babies all grow at exactly the same rate. “It doesn’t matter where you are living, it doesn’t matter what the colour of your skin is, it doesn’t matter what your race and ethnicity is. Receiving decent medical care and nutrition is the key.’ The INTERGROWTH-21st P
We hear all sorts of things about sugar: that it is bad, and also that it is not bad after all. I have heard people say that it doesn’t matter if you give children soft drinks as they sometimes need sugar to boost their energy levels. Nowadays you find kids at home and school parties not only gulping soft drinks, while also eating loads of sugar sweetened foods under the watch of parents. The last thing a child needs is to add to their sugar intake through fruit juices, sodas and ice cream among other sweetened foods. It is tempting always for parents to reward good behaviour by giving treats of sweets to kids. Kids love sugar, but consuming too many foods and beverages with added sugar, puts kids at risk of obesity and other health-related problems. Like many parents, you ma
The sleeping position of new infants is a very important issue for new parents. This is largely due to the fact that wrong sleeping positions in infants or new-borns can sometimes lead to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). Most times, SIDS is caused by suffocation or strangulation. Hence, knowing the right sleeping position that can prevent SIDS is indeed necessary. While sleeping on the stomach is a really cute position for babies, it’s not the healthiest. In fact, experts describe it as a highly unsafe position for sleeping because it entails the following risks: • This position could place some pressure on the baby’s jaws and block the airways making it difficult for the baby to breathe. • It places the baby’s nose very close to the mattress. This could easily re