The Promota Africa Magazine is the No. 1 African-Briton monthly magazine and has more than .34 million readers. Its properties, the Promota magazine and Promota Marketing, continue the legacy of serving authoritative, credible and inspiring information to the Black community.
Have you been neglecting your microwave and now struggling to remove the build up of all your past splattering's? Cut out that elbow grease by grabbing a lemon and we'll show you the easy way to do it.
Step 1: Mix lemon with water
Cut the lemon in half and squeeze the juice into a microwaveable dish or container and mix with roughly 300ml of water.
Step 2: Microwave
Place the container in the microwave, whack the power on max for 5-10 minutes allowing the steam to condense on the walls and roof of the oven, and put your feet up for a bit.
Step 3: Wipe-out
Once the time is up grab a soft dishcloth and wipe that microwave out with unparalleled easy. Your kitchen will also smell fresh and clean. Lemonentary!
If you can’t help snapping at your other half, blame your dreams. A study found that the content of our dreams spills over into our real-life relationships, triggering rows and doubts in the day to come.
The idea that our waking life influences our dreams has been much studied. But the latest research looks at whether what we think about when asleep affects how we act when we wake up.
The researchers from the UK and US, said: ‘These results provide evidence for the first time that specific dream content predicts subsequent behaviour with relationship partners.
‘These results deepen our understanding of dreams, as a previously unstudied factor that contributes to important relationship processes - particularly love/intimacy and conflict.’
The researchers asked 61 men and women to write down details of their dreams as soon as they woke up.
The volunteers, who were all in relationships, filled in the dream diaries immediately on waking.
They also completed personality questionnaires and details of their waking day.
This included how much time they spent with their boyfriend, girlfriend, husband or wife, how much they rowed, and how loving they were.
All together there were 842 dreams to analyse and 87 per cent of participants dreamed of their partner at least once.
When people felt jealous in a dream about their partner, this led to them reporting more arguments and problems in their relationship the next day.
Dreams that involved conflict with a partner also predicted greater real life relationship difficulties in the following days.
And when the dreamer committed infidelity in their sleep this led to a fall in the level of love and intimacy they showed towards their partner in the next few days, the journal Social, Psychological and Personality Science reports.
Importantly, the findings couldn’t be explained away by what the volunteers had done before dreaming – pointing to dreams influencing life rather than the other way round.
The researchers, including a Reading University psychologist, said: ‘When recalling a dream after waking, the content and/or emotions are active in the mind, and once they are active, may influence subsequent behaviour.’
Not all of the findings were negative. For instance, the study also found that people who had more dreams featuring their partner spent more time with them and were closer to them in real life and the authors said dreams can promote bonding, as well as conflict.
They said it was unclear whether dreams tend to alter moods without conscious reflection or whether dreamers intentionally changed their behaviour after considering the implications of their dreams.
But they added that ‘the social effects of dreams can be potent regardless’.
Female genital mutilation (FGM) has its roots in African tradition. There are different types of FGM ranging from partial to complete removal of the clitoris as well as other procedures including “pricking, piercing, incising, scraping and cauterizing the genital area”. The removal of healthy tissue not only interferes with the natural functions of girls' and women's bodies but often results in immediate acute pain, shock, severe bleeding, and bacterial infection as well long term recurrent urinary tract and bladder infections, complications in childbirth and often leads to painful sexual intercourse. UNICEF estimates that “at least 120 million girls and women have undergone FGM in Africa and the Middle East”.
Thankfully the popularity of FGM is declining however, up to 30 million girls may still be at risk, with “more than 90 per cent of women aged 15–49 years having been ‘cut’ in Djibouti, Egypt, Guinea and Somalia.” Although FGM is illegal in the UK, it is difficult to ensure that families don’t encourage the tradition especially as it is common among migrants from the aforementioned areas to send young girls back to their ancestral homelands to undergo the procedure, usually over the duration of the summer holidays. According to Human rights organization Equality Now it is estimated that “66,000 women and girls have undergone FGM in England and Wales” and up to “24,000 girls under the age of 11 are at risk of undergoing it”. The Evening Standard carried out a Freedom of Information request which found that “over 2,100 women and girls in London have sought medical treatment for female genital mutilation since 2006, with 708 of those needing to be admitted or have surgery.”
Zarah Hassan a devout Muslim living in the UK believes that the barbaric tradition continues to be perpetuated because of the mistaken belief that the practice is rooted in the Koran. She says “sometimes you cannot differentiate what is culture and what is religion: you might think this is the way you have to live.” Zarah actively works with Christian-based charity Initiatives of Change in re-educating her community by encouraging families in the Diaspora not to cave in to immense pressure they face from family members back home who demand they conform and continue the practice.
Pointing out the power exerted by grandparents she says “we have this culture that even if you are a parent, your mother and father are your decision-makers. But if that is the case, don’t take the children out there (to stay with the family over the holidays)”... “I know some grannies who are very powerful, and they will do it (have the girls circumcised) with or without the parents’ consent.” Speaking of some of women she works she says “often, they tell me: ‘My mother is phoning me from back home, telling me it is good to have my daughter circumcised while she is young, under five. She is forcing me.’” As a 51 year old woman who has also been ‘cut’, she believes it is an age old method of controlling women “...it was a form of power-gaining. Men wanted to show the power they have, because when (the vagina) is stitched together, a very narrow gap is left and the man shows his power when he presses there.” She speaks of the ongoing pain suffered during intercourse. Horrifyingly this agony is often relived by some women, who are subjected to “re-infibulation”. Re-infibulation is the process of sewing up the vagina again following childbirth, thus exposing the woman to further pain, health risks and undue complications which may result from repeated interfering with the vagina. This is often carried out by the older women, challenging the notion that it is only men who are the perpetrators of this cruel tradition.
It is commonly believed that removing the clitoris controls women’s sexual desire and behavior. It supposedly protects her honour and virginity however; it has no credible health benefit or religious basis. In countries such as Egypt where it is banned and indeed condemned by the Christian Coptic Church together with the leading Muslim authority Al-Azhar, prevalence remains high with a rate of 91% of 15 – 49 year old women having undergone the procedure according to UNICEF, indicating that attitudes are still to change. Indeed until the 1950s, FGM was even performed in England and the United States as a common "treatment" for lesbianism, masturbation, hysteria, epilepsy, and other so-called "female deviances" according to KosoThomas. Clearly this method of chastity is effective because a study carried out in Sudan in 1981 found that 50% of 1,545 women who had undergone the operation said “they did not enjoy sex at all and only accepted it as a duty...” a clear indicator that FGM may have a detrimental effect on women’s sexuality.
Hardly surprisingly when FGM oftentimes involves complete removal of the clitoral hood, clitoris, labia minora, and labia majora and/or stitching/narrowing of the vaginal opening. Ill-founded claims that it ensures cleanliness, preserves virginity, prevents promiscuity and excessive clitoral growth need to be challenged. It can hardly enhance male sexuality as it commonly thought when the vaginal opening is often so narrow as to prevent penetration altogether! “5.5 percent of women experienced painful intercourse while 9.3 percent of them reported having difficult or impossible penetration.” And far from facilitating childbirth by widening the birth canal “the highest maternal and infant mortality rates are in FGMpracticing regions” thus detreminentally affecting the lives of even the unborn.
More education is needed to alert men as to the severity and consequences of the practice. Some think it is comparable to male circumcision, not so. FGM is far more drastic as it “destroys much or all of the vulva nerve endings.” Male circumcision involves removal only of foreskin, albeit the part with the highest concentration of nerve endings. Some argue that if female circumcision were done in a sterile hospital room, it would be very much the same as that of a male child however, that argument is a non starter as even male circumcision has already been proven to have long-term physical and psychological effects. So circumcision as a whole leaves a sour taste in everybody’s mouth. However a lot more needs to be done to stop the lives of young girls and women being put at risk.
In 2007 two girls died post operation, followed by 13-year old Nermine El-Haddad who bled to death in a hospital room following the procedure, in 2010. The issue has again risen to the fore following the recent death of Sohair al Bata a 13 year old Egyptian girl who suffered “a sharp drop in blood pressure resulting from shock trauma” and subsequently never woke up. As data is not readily available it is difficult to determine actual death rates and according to Koso-Thomas “where medical facilities are ill-equipped, emergencies arising from the practice cannot be treated... a child who develops uncontrolled bleeding or infection after FGM may die within hours.” According to Path studies carried out “in areas in the Sudan where antibiotics are not available, it is estimated that one-third of the girls undergoing FGM will die.” Furthermore, “conservative estimates suggest that more than one million women in Centrafrican Republic (CAR), Egypt, and Eritrea, the only countries where such data is available, experienced adverse health effects from FGM”. Path also found that “there is a direct correlation between a woman's attitude towards FGM and her place of residence, educational background, and work status” Research indicated that urban and employed women with secondary or higher education are less likely than their rural counterparts to support FGM. Meaning that the way to bring about change is to educate and empower these women.
Wrong ideology needs to addressed and challenged. FGM needs to be taken out of the religious and cultural context and treated as a human rights and child protection issue in order to make perpetrators fully accountable. It is worrying that even though it is illegal in several countries not a single perpetrator has ever been brought to justice. A number of countries ratified or at least adopted The Maputo Protocol (TMP) following the “Assembly of the African Union”.
TMP promoted women’s rights and called for an end to FGM as well as right to abortions. Fast forward to today and the UN has introduced a Global Ban on FGM. Furthermore in the UK Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) now considers it to be a child protection issue.
Keir Starmer, the Director of Public Prosecutions (DDP), QC, recently published an Action Plan aimed tackling the problem in the UK.
But it is still very much an exploratory plan rather a provision of concrete solutions because data is very limited. It will throw further light on the issue to enable us to come up with more direct, conclusive solutions, such as demanding greater accountability from parents who send their children abroad for the procedure. Initiatives such as the ‘health passport’ offer a glimmer of hope however they are yet to be tested fully and rely too heavily on cooperation from distant relatives who have been shown to be uncooperative. Thankfully, awareness is increasing.
If you are worried about a child affected or in danger of being affected by FGM please contact NSPCC 0800 028 3550 for information and support.
Alternatively, contact Women's Aid on 0117 944 4411
Female genital mutilation (sometimes referred to as female circumcision) refers to procedures that intentionally alter or cause injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons. The practice is illegal in the UK.
It has been estimated that over 20,000 girls under the age of 15 are at risk of female genital mutilation (FGM) in the UK each year, and that 66,000 women in the UK are living with the consequences of FGM. However, the true extent is unknown due to the 'hidden' nature of the crime.
The girls may be taken to their countries of origin so that FGM can be carried out during the summer holidays, allowing them time to 'heal' before they return to school. There are also worries that some girls may have FGM performed in the UK.
Forms of mutilation
FGM is usually carried out on young girls between infancy and age 15, most commonly before puberty starts.
The procedure is traditionally carried out by a woman with no medical training. Anaesthetics and antiseptic treatments are not generally used and the practice is usually carried out using knives, scissors, scalpels, pieces of glass or razor blades. Girls may have to be forcibly restrained.
There are four main types of FGM:
Type 1 – clitoridectomy – removing part or all of the clitoris.
Type 2 – excision – removing part or all of the clitoris and the inner labia (lips that surround the vagina), with or without removal of the labia majora (larger outer lips).
Type 3 – infibulation – narrowing of the vaginal opening by creating a seal, formed by cutting and repositioning the labia.
Other harmful procedures to the female genitals, which include pricking, piercing, cutting, scraping and burning the area.
Effects of FGM
There are no health benefits to FGM. Removing and damaging healthy and normal female genital tissue interferes with the natural functions of girls' and women's bodies.
injury to vulval tissues surrounding the entrance to the vagina
damage to other organs nearby, such as the urethra (where urine passes) and the bowel
FGM can sometimes cause death.
Long-term consequences
chronic vaginal and pelvic infections
abnormal periods
difficulties passing urine and persistent urine infections
kidney impairment and possible kidney failure
damage to the reproductive system, including infertility
cysts and the formation of scar tissue
complications in pregnancy and newborn deaths
pain during sex and lack of pleasurable sensation
psychological damage, including low libido, depression and anxiety (see below)
flashbacks during pregnancy and childbirth
the need for later surgery to open the lower vagina for sexual intercourse and childbirth
Psychological and mental health problems
Case histories and personal accounts taken from women indicate that FGM is an extremely traumatic experience for girls and women, which stays with them for the rest of their lives.
Young women receiving psychological counselling in the UK report feelings of betrayal by parents, regret and anger.
The legal situation
FGM is illegal in the UK. It is also illegal to arrange for a child to be taken abroad for FGM. If caught, offenders face a large fine and a prison sentence of up to 14 years.
What you can do
If you are worried about someone who is at risk of FGM or has had FGM, you must share this information with social care or the police. It is then their responsibility to investigate and protect any girls or women involved.
See the Useful links, right, for contact information.
These guidelines contain detailed advice and guidance in relation to the protection of girls who may be at risk of FGM, as well as the care and treatment of women who have already undergone FGM.
Other useful resources are listed in the Useful links, right.
Surgical "reversal"
Surgery can be performed to open up the lower vagina. This is sometimes called "reversal", although it cannot restore sensitive tissue that has been removed.
Surgery may be necessary for women who are unable to have intercourse as the vagina is too narrow. In addition, some pregnant women who have had FGM will need to have their lower vagina opened up before labour to allow a safer birth.
FGM increases the risk of the vagina tearing during delivery, which causes damage and can lead to heavy bleeding. It can also increase the risk of the baby dying during, or just after birth.
Surgery is best performed before pregnancy, or at least within the second trimester of pregnancy (between about 12 and 36 weeks).
Surgery involves making a careful incision along the scar tissue that has closed up the entrance to the vagina, to expose the underlying vagina.
Adequate pain relief is essential – the procedure is usually performed under local anaesthetic in the outpatient clinic. However, a small number of women will need either a general or spinal anaesthetic (injection in the back), which would normally involve a one-day stay in hospital.
Where does FGM happen?
FGM is prevalent in Africa, the Middle East and Asia.
In the UK, FGM tends to occur in areas with larger populations of communities who practice FGM, such as first-generation immigrants, refugees and asylum seekers. These areas include London, Cardiff, Manchester, Sheffield, Northampton, Birmingham, Oxford, Crawley, Reading, Slough and Milton Keynes.
Why is it done?
FGM is carried out for cultural, religious and social reasons within families and communities.
For example, it is often considered a necessary part of raising a girl properly, and as a way to prepare her for adulthood and marriage. FGM is often motivated by the belief that it is beneficial for the girl or woman. Many communities believe it will reduce a woman's libido and discourage sexual activity before marriage.
Key points
Over 66,000 women and girls living in Britain have experienced female genital mutilation (FGM).
FGM is illegal – it is an offence for anyone to perform FGM in the UK or to arrange for a girl to be taken abroad for it.
FGM causes long-lasting physical and psychological damage.
There are 15 specialist clinics in the NHS that offer a range of healthcare services for women and girls who have been subjected to FGM, including reversal surgery. In some areas women can attend without referral, but in other areas a GP referral letter is required.
Statement opposing female genital mutilation
The school summer holidays in particular are when many young girls are taken abroad, often to their family's birth country, to have FGM performed. The FGM statement highlights the fact that FGM is a serious criminal offence in the UK with a maximum penalty of 14 years in prison.
If you're worried about FGM, print out this statement, take it with you abroad and show it to your family. Keep the declaration in your passport, purse or bag and carry it with you all the time.
If you work with FGM-practising communities, you may wish to order printed copies for your healthcare setting, youth club or community group. Please e-mail: Alison.Humphreys3@homeoffice.gsi.gov.uk stating the number of copies required and a postal address for them to be sent to.
Efua Dorkenoo, head of Equality Now's FGM policy: 'This is the first time we have ever seen FGM addressed at the very highest level.' Photograph: Graham Turner for the Guardian
A major inquiry has been launched into female genital mutilation (FGM) to uncover why there has not been a single prosecution in the UK since it was made a criminal offence, and to try to bring an end to the illegal practice.
After sustained pressure from campaigners who have called for the the government to take action, the home affairs select committee will examine if the current legal framework is fit for purpose and look at why there has not been a prosecution in three decades.
A petition from campaigner Leyla Hussein states that the battle to elimate FGM is failing because "multi-agency guidelines are not statutory, implementation at local authority and NHS level is disjointed, funding is minimal, and nobody is monitoring or holding anyone to account". It has garnered more than 94,000 signatures following her programme The Cruel Cut.
Efua Dorkenoo, head of Equality Now's FGM policy and a long-time campaigner, hailed the news as a significant breakthrough.
"It is brilliant news and I very much welcome the inquiry from the home affairs select committee," she said. "This is a significant move as it is the first time we have ever seen FGM addressed at the very highest level."
She called on the committee to take on board the recommendations made by the Royal College of Midwives report, which called for NHS workers to gather information on FGM and share it with police, education and social care workers as well as treating FGM as child abuse. It asked that health workers who detect evidence of FGM treat it as a crime and inform the police.
"We need a joined-up system with a focus on protection, prevention and prosecution with real leadership and accountability," said Dorkenoo. "If we do not get that then girls will continue to be mutilated. Without leadership from the top it will just be a talking shop."
Nimco Ali, who founded the anti-FGM charity Daughters of Eve, welcomed the news but said without the backing of the Department for Education the issue could not be effectively tackled. "The DfE is refusing to engage with this issue at all, and I would call on Michael Gove to speak to young people affected and make the issue of FGM and violence against women and girls part of the curriculum."
The committee will look at current awareness-raising efforts, the barriers to intervention, and how police, health, education and social care professionals work together. It will also look at the services that are available to girls and women who have suffered FGM and how they can be improved.
The chair of the committee, Keith Vaz, said: "It is shocking that 28 years on from female genital mutilation first being made a criminal offence, there has not yet been a successful prosecution in the UK. The committee's inquiry will seek to find out why this is the case, as well as considering what more needs to be done to protect at-risk girls.
"We would welcome evidence from those affected by this hideous crime as well as those whose responsibility it is to protect them."
The minister for crime prevention, Norman Baker, said the government was taking a firm line on FGM and was working with charities on on awareness-raising and with the DPP to secure convictions: "There is no justification for female genital mutilation – it is child abuse and it is illegal. I am determined we do all we can to bring perpetrators to justice," he said. "The law in this country applies to absolutely everyone and political or cultural sensitivities must not get in the way of preventing, uncovering and prosecuting FGM.
"Nor is there any religion which condones FGM so it's important that we get to the hard-to-reach communities who believe that their religion demands, or sanctions, FGM."
If Magic Johnson had known just how well he could live with HIV, he wouldn't have retired from the Lakers on Nov. 7, 1991.
Johnson would never change what he did for the fight against the HIV/AIDS epidemic when he publicly revealed his diagnosis to a stunned world. His courage that day, along with two subsequent decades of vibrant living, forever altered attitudes about the virus and its effects.
Magic is simply glad the world knows such happy endings are possible with access to treatment and vigilance.
"At that time, it was the right decision," Johnson said Monday on the 20th anniversary of his stunning retirement. "If I knew what I knew today, that I could still play basketball and do my thing, I probably wouldn't have retired. But I'm a guy that doesn't have regrets. I don't look back. I'm happy, because I wanted to be here a long time. We made the right call at that time."
Johnson recognized the occasion at Staples Center on Monday with an upbeat celebration and a message of steadfastness. Dozens of politicians, celebrities and Lakers greats from Jerry West and Pat Riley to James Worthy and Michael Cooper joined Johnson and AIDS researcher David Ho for a luncheon, and the Magic Johnson Foundation announced a $1 million gift to continue its mission for worldwide HIV awareness and testing.
Two decades after his shocking admission and quick retirement at 32, Johnson's doctors say he's a 52-year-old specimen of health, comfortably managing HIV with a daily regimen of drugs and exercise.
While he once took upwards of 15 pills several times a day, he now requires just a few daily medications. He rises around 5 a.m. each day for a vigorous workout – everything from stretching and running to Tae Bo – before spending his days overseeing his large business empire.
Yet Johnson worries his strong health could encourage complacency, and he sees the anniversary of his historic announcement as a call to renew dedication to the cause.
"I often say I'm good for the virus, and bad for it," Johnson said. "Good because I'm doing well, and that I can go out and try and raise the awareness level, get people to go get tested ... but on the flip side of that, people see that I'm doing well, so they've kind of relaxed on HIV and AIDS. People think that now if they get the virus, they'll do well, but a couple million will die this year."
While Johnson mostly remembers a feeling of confidence derived from the unflinching support of his wife, Cookie, on the day of his announcement, his fellow Lakers have no trouble recalling the shock and confusion they felt 20 years ago.
"It stunned me, and I think I was only semi-conscious," Lakers owner Jerry Buss said. "The whole day is just like a blur in my mind. I remember Kareem (Abdul-Jabbar) had to assist me. I don't think I had enough blood in the brain."
Worthy remembers the Lakers being sent from practice at Loyola Marymount to the Forum, with no idea why. The power forward wondered whether West was retiring from his executive job, or perhaps Johnson was seriously injured after missing the previous week of practice.
"When he announced, it was a reality check, because at that time, it could have been anybody," Worthy said. "A lot of people started to wonder about themselves, especially people who had never been tested before. ... He's taught us all a valuable lesson. Back in the early `90s, you thought it was a death (sentence). You thought it was over. To see him put meaning on a disease that only had one meaning, that was great."
Ho, a pioneering researcher who grew up in Los Angeles idolizing West and Elgin Baylor, said he met Johnson "on one of his darkest days" after his diagnosis. Ho has always been impressed by Johnson's upbeat willingness to acknowledge his condition, using himself to raise funds for research and treatment.
Ho also shot down the long-held suspicion that Johnson easily managed the virus because his wealth and celebrity gave him access to preferential treatment. Johnson's condition is "quite typical" at this point in the virus' treatment, he said.
"All of us working in the field are grateful to him and his foundation for doing so, because this is a plague that continues to rage," Ho said. "Because of therapeutic success, there is too much complacency in this country about this pandemic. We still need to develop new and better drugs. We have drugs that control HIV, but we don't have a cure, so research must continue."
Johnson famously couldn't stay away from basketball after his retirement, spreading the truth about HIV transmission to players and fans who sometimes balked at his participation. He was the MVP of the 1992 All-Star game and won a gold medal at the Barcelona Olympics before briefly coaching the Lakers in 1994 and returning to the court for 32 games in 1996, finally retiring in uniform.
Johnson is now a hugely successful businessman, a basketball commentator, a doting husband and a grandfather to his son Andre's two children. Yet he's still raising money and awareness, always working to create the same limitless future for others.
"The only problem is, I would be happier if the numbers in the black and brown communities would go down," Johnson said, citing the majority of each year's 60,000 new U.S. cases of HIV in minority communities. "There's been millions of people that have died since I announced 20 years ago, and so this is a bittersweet day. Yes, I'm living, but people are still getting this virus even as we speak. We must change the mindset, and we must do a better job educating those who live in urban America about this disease."
Magic Johnson Net Worth Magic Johnson is the 4th richest black american with a net worth: $500 million As May 2009 Source of Wealth: Restaurants, real estate, investmentsThe retired professional basketball after announcing he had contracted HIV, became an entrepreneur. He introduced well-known brands to diverse neighborhoods via Magic Johnson Enterprises. With his several partnerships with companies like Starbucks, 24 Hour Fitness, T.G.I. Fridays, AMC Theatres, invested in urban real estate and companies catering to America’s underserved markets via his Canyon-Johnson and Yucaipa-Johnson funds. He has donated several millions to community-based organizations that focus on HIV/AIDS education and prevention. He now runs Magic Johnson Enterprises, a company that has a net worth of $700 million
Researchers from the University of Washington took a poll of 313 men on their $exual behavior, including their use of c0nd0ms or lack thereof. An astonishing 80% said that they will use excuses to avoid using a c0nd0m and not only that, will use several different ones over the years.
Here are the five most common excuses that men will give to avoid having to use a c0nd0m during sex. 1. “Don’t worry, I am clean” – 73.7% of men feel that if they have a clean bill of health on the STD front than they should have the all clear not to use protection. However, STDs can be asymptomatic and may not always be visible. There is also the problem of preventing pregnancy. Warn him about the chances of getting pregnant and open the c0nd0m before he can argue with you.
2. “I can’t wait, let’s just do it” – It doesn’t take that long to put protection on. 73.2% of men think that a little sweet talk is enough to get you to give in and let them fly free. Keep a few spares in your purse or within easy access near your bed so that he can’t use the excuse that there is no time.
3. “It feels so much better without it” – A little over 50% of men say they have tried this excuse. Some women have an easier time with climax when they don’t have to worry about pregnancy or STDs. There are a variety of c0nd0ms that enhance pleasure as well.
4. “Can I not wear a c0nd0m?” – Some men will come right out and ask without an actual excuse. Make sure he knows, no protection = no sex.
5. “What, you don’t trust me?” – More than 34% of men have tried this jerk move. Explain to him that it has nothing to do with him but you would like to protect yourself just in case.
Diet and exercise are the ways that you can lose weight and keep it off. Studies show that people who do one often neglect the other. Which is better for you to concentrate on if you are one of those people? According to six studies that were published in the journal Psychological Science, people who focused on their diet instead of exercise overall had lower BMIs. The study questioned 1,200 people in China, the US, Canada, France, and South Korea about which they thought was more important. They also took their height and weight measurements to figure out their BMI. The people who said that food management was more important had lower BMIs. Those who said that staying active is more important than eating right had higher BMIs and a higher percent of obesity. They also ate more than those who thought that food management was more important.
Our beliefs are what guide our actions, so if you believe that being more active is more important than being diligent about your diet, you will end up eating more because you are not as concerned with what you are putting in your body. Exercise can absolutely support weight loss and management, but it needs to be coupled with a good diet or it ends not being as beneficial as it could be. On the other hand if you believe that eating better is more important you may forget about exercise because you are so focused on what you are eating.
All of this research shows that a healthy diet is more important than exercise. If you sit down to a 3,000 calorie lunch, exercise is not going to help you lose weight because there is not enough time in the day to work it all off. Exercise should still be an important part of your day, but focus more on what you are putting into your body.
Many effects of a lack of sleep, such as feeling grumpy and not working at your best, are well known. But did you know that sleep deprivation can also have profound consequences for your physical health?
One in three Britons suffers from poor sleep, with stress, computers and taking work home often blamed for the lack of quality slumber.
However, the cost of all those sleepless nights is more than just bad moods and a lack of focus.
Regular poor sleep puts you at risk of serious medical conditions including obesity, heart disease and diabetes – and it shortens your life expectancy.
It’s now clear that a solid night’s sleep is essential for a long and healthy life. How much sleep do we need? Most of us need around eight hours of good quality sleep a night to function properly – but some need more and some less. What matters is that you find out how much sleep you need and then try to achieve it.
As a general rule, if you wake up tired and spend the day longing for a chance to have a nap, it’s likely that you’re not getting enough sleep.
A variety of factors can cause poor sleep, including health conditions such as sleep apnoea. But in most cases it’s a matter of bad sleeping habits. What happens if I don’t sleep? Oversleeping
Although it isn’t as common as not getting enough sleep, sleeping too much can also cause problems.
Oversleeping has been linked to physical problems such as diabetes and heart disease.
According to the Mental Health Foundation, oversleeping can occur in 15-40% of people with depression.
Everyone’s experienced the fatigue, short temper and lack of focus that often follow a poor night’s sleep.
An occasional night without sleep makes you feel tired and irritable the next day, but it won’t harm your health.
It is summer time which means it is time to break out the grill! Most people tend to the typical stuff and grill hot dogs, hamburgers, and chicken. Here are some healthy surprises that you can put on the grill for some great summer cookout meals.
1. When you think of lettuce, you think of a cold salad. But if you sprinkle some olive oil on it, a little salt and pepper or vinegar, and throw it on the grill until it is slightly charred it makes a great side dish with some cherry tomatoes and cucumbers.
2. Did you know that you can grill watermelon? Cut it into slices, sprinkle a small amount of salt on if you wish, and grill. It intensifies the sweetness of the watermelon and gives it a smoky hint of flavor.
3. Pizza can be great when it is grilled. Take some pizza dough, make sure the grill is really hot or the dough will stick, and roll it out with a rolling pin. Place it on the grill until it comes off easily and then add your favorite toppings to the grilled side and put it back on the grill to cook the other side.
4. Grill up some mango for a sweet addition to your burger.
5. Portobello mushrooms are great on the grill and taste great in a salad or on your burger. They contain some minerals that are good for you that are hard to find in other foods such as selenium.
6. If you are making kabobs, throw some grapes on the skewers. They have no fat or cholesterol and have vitamins C and K.
7. Grilling pineapple is something that goes great with grilled teriyaki chicken kabobs.
8. Grilled asparagus is a perfect pairing with chicken and steak.
9. Put some strawberries on a skewer, coat them with cider vinegar and a little salt, and you have a new summer treat.
10. Peaches are a July superfood, so why not throw those on the grill too? They are packed with vitamins and minerals.
A taskforce of experts and scientists from 19 European countries have formed a International network called GENIEUR (Genes in Irritable Bowel Syndrome Europe), Led by Dr. Beate Niesler at Heidelberg University Hospital’s Institute of Human Genetics and Scientific teams from the Sahlgrenska Academy, Unversity of Gothenburg and Karolinska Instituet, (Sweden) they have formed an multidisciplinary network who are researching into the causes of IBS with the aim of better understanding the condition and improving diagnosis and treatment. Up to 1 in 5 people in the UK develop IBS during their life, it is one of the most common causes for being off work after the common cold and has a considerable impact on quality of life and the economy with 66% of IBS sufferers reporting in sick during the last six months.
Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is well known as a chronic and relapsing condition which is typically characterised by abdominal pain or discomfort associated with bloating and a change in bowel habit ie diarrhoea and or constipation. It is a functional disorder meaning that there is a problem with the gut function but there is no structural abnormality. As well as the above, sufferers may also have nausea, headaches, belching, loss of appetite, fatigue, muscular pains and heartburn.
IBS is thought to originate from an over activity in part or parts of the gut but the essential trigger factor is not always known.
However, there are several theories suggested:
Over activity of the nerves or muscles of the gut which may be due to stress or emotional upset. (A new study from the University of Michigan Health System showed that stress does not cause IBS but it does alter Brain Gut interactions and stimulates Intestinal inflammation leading to the familiar IBS symptoms.)
Intolerance to certain foods, but not very common.
After a Gastrointestinal infection about 1 in 6 cases develop into IBS.
There is no single defining test for IBS and diagnosis in Primary care is usually done via the History ,symptoms described earlier and by exclusion. Blood tests can help to rule out anaemia, and distinguish between an Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) such as Ulcerative colitis or Crohn’s disease, antibody testing for Coeliac disease is also recommended. This is all supported by the NICE guidelines and the British Society of Gastroenterology(BSG) .
Once a positive diagnosis of IBS has been made there is currently no known cure, symptomatic relief should be provided depending upon the presenting symptoms. Self management is regularly encouraged and advice on diet and lifestyle and stress management offered if appropriate. The initial approach in managing IBS is one of dietary modifications and the addition of fibre, probiotics plus pain relief using antispasmodics. Those suffering with constipation will benefit from a medication called Linaclotide. This relatively new medication to the market is useful for this symptom plus abdominal pain. If diarrhoea is the problem then Loperamide may be helpful. If all other treatments have not helped then antidepressants may be considered. A good patient Doctor relationship has been shown to help their IBS, this type of continuity will lead to improved outcomes especially in chronic conditions. Remember, IBS comes in a variety of guises and various subtypes have been identified over the years.
IBS sufferers should be referred to secondary care only if the following Alarm features are present: Rectal Bleeding, unexplained unintentional weight loss, a family history of bowel/ ovarian cancer, late onset >50 years old.
Ultimately the prognosis for IBS is good. Most sufferers will tend to have long term symptoms, but their severity will change from intense to mild and sometimes and there may be long periods without any symptoms at all. Treatment is usually very effective in “flare ups” and in a few cases the problem may resolve completely. IBS is not known to alter you expected lifespan does not lead to bowel cancer or cause intestinal blockage. Combining this with the new exciting research may finally lead to unravelling the puzzle that is IBS
References: NICE Guidelines, The British Society of Gastroenterologists,The IBS Network, The British Journal of General Practice,Gastroenterology, Family Practice. What’s the Best Diet for IBS?
The answer to that question is, it depends. I know many readers will not like that answer, but it’s IBS Banquet Tablethe truth. Each individual should journal and review their dietary intake for about 2 weeks, and see if they can find any discernible pattern to what causes an increase in IBS symptoms. In picking a diet for IBS there are foods that you should stay away from:
Dairy
Caffeine
Certain Sugars and Carbohydrates
The specifics are too many to list here, but there are great resources out there IBS Diet Menus. The most talked about and utilized diet for IBS is the FODMAP Diet, which concentrates on avoiding the items listed above.
Whatever your choice of diet for IBS, make sure you do your self-examination and homework on what causes you the most difficulties with your symptoms.
When to see your GP Visit your GP if you think you have IBS. They will want to rule out other illnesses, such as an infection, coeliac disease (a digestive condition where a person has an adverse reaction to gluten) or chronic inflammation of the gut.
They will ask about your symptoms and whether there is a pattern to them – for example, if they tend to come on when you are under more stress than usual or after eating certain foods. Your GP may suggest you keep a food diary to see whether your diet affects your symptoms.
Further tests will only be needed if you have certain "red flag" symptoms that indicate you may have another serious condition. These symptoms include:
unexplained weight loss a swelling or lump in your abdomen or back passage (bottom) anaemia (a lack of red blood cells)
Today wine is big business. Our appetite for wine seemingly insatiable. And so too is the competition to win your wine pounds. 3 for £10 or £4.99 is common.
So how good is this wine?
Here’s a little food for thought. Every bottle of wine that is imported into the country has a number of costs associated with it.
So let’s go buy a £4.99 bottle of plonk. How much wine am I actually getting?
- Duty (charges by HMRC on each bottle of wine under 15% alcohol) £1.96. This charge applies no matter how much the value of the bottle.
- VAT on our bottle. £0.98
- Winery labour and shipping costs £0.60
- Margin for the seller £1.30
- Wine quality £0.15!!!!!!!
Pretty scary. Very inexpensive wine has been found to have more sulphites which can cause headaches and even migranes.
Here’s the good news though. Spend £6.99 and you get £1.27 worth of actual wine. That’s over eight times the value of wine you are getting for just £2 more! Treat yourself to a £9.99 bottle and almost one third of the cost is for the wine itself.
Does this mean any wine is better if I pay more?
Unfortunately not. It’s a good place to start though. There are some terrific wines that are still underpriced because they are not as popular as others and you can grab yourself a real bargain if you know what you are looking for.
You don’t have to drink inferior wine just to fit a tight budget. There are some great wines available that are consistently cheaper than others because they are simply not as well known or are made closer to home.
Italian wine has an enviable reputation around the world, producing some of the world’s best and has hundreds of wine varieties to offe
In the white corner…..Gavi.
It’s from Northern Italy in the Piemont region about 100Km South East of Turin, produced from Cortese grapes and grown on a small strip of land around the town of Gavi. It has a fresh and aromatic wine with a touch of tangy lemon and a freshness to the wine that is brought about by lovely mineral notes.
It’s not the same as a Sauvignon Blanc but I have converted many a Sauvignon Blanc drinker onto this. Additionally, you can pick up a bottle from as little as £5.00. This wine punches well above its price.
Try it with a pesto pasta.
…And in the red corne
The big boys are Chianti, Valpolicella, Barolo and Montepulciano to name but a few. However one of the most widely planted grape in Italy is Barbera. Century old vines produce deep complex wines with great tannins (that mouth puckering feel). Maligned at times for its high acidity, it has now been softened with better wine making techniques and adding oak or a little Cabernet Sauvignon (Sauvignon meaning savage). Available in many stores for around £6 and change. It’s a truly great buy – great to drink on its own or with a pot roast.
These are just two wines from one country. The beauty of wine is there are so many options. Next time you are in need of a bottle get some advice from your local wine merchant. Tell them your budget and what you are drinking it with, and you may be in for a pleasant surprise.
The songs, the decorations, the parties, and especially the food. Yet as a registered dietitian, I'm all too aware that the standard holiday fare can play havoc with good intentions, especially if you're trying to watch your weight.
But it doesn't have to be this way. In fact, it's perfectly possible to enjoy yourself over the holidays, enjoy the occasional treat, and still keep the weight down. Here are some strategies to help you do it.
Practice mindful eating
It's easy to fixate on what you should or shouldn't eat, but just as important is how you eat. Mindful eating, or the art of knowing and honoring your food, is important at any time. But during the holidays, when we are confronted by snacks, buffets and temptations at every turn, it becomes a particularly useful strategy. So pay attention to what you are eating and when. Ask yourself whether you are really hungry or just indulging because it is there. And consider keeping a food journal to help you keep track. You can also try setting a timer for 20 minutes, and then making sure your meal lasts that length of time. (That's probably easier done at home than out in public, but you could still make a mental note of when you start and stop eating.) Another method that many people find useful is to put your utensil down after every bite — making sure you chew your food properly before shoveling more in.
Stay active
I never recommend that someone go on a diet during the holidays; it's better to simply aim to maintain your weight. There's just too much temptation, and a failed diet can lead to lack of motivation in the new year. (Ongoing healthy eating habits are more important than dieting anyway.) But as Morieka Johnson's fitness guru noted, starting or maintaining an exercise routine can be a great way to both burn off excess holiday calories and set you up for more vigorous efforts when January rolls around.
Go for the greens
When you are staring at a seemingly endless spread of delicious holiday treats, try this simple trick to help moderate your intake: Go for the fruits and veggies first. Because fruits and vegetables are packed with healthy dietary fiber, they create that "full" feeling, reducing your appetite for whatever else is on offer.
That doesn't mean you can't have a brownie too, but fill up on salads and veggie sticks first and you'll find yourself much less tempted to overindulge.
Trick your mind, use a smaller plate
We already know that using smaller plates at home can be a great way to limit portion sizes. But how many of us think to use this trick when we are out? If you are at a party, look to see if there are smaller plates available — perhaps by the desserts — and use that for your entire meal. It will visually trick your mind into thinking you're eating bigger portions, and it also means you have to make a special effort to get up and refill if you want seconds.
Watch the alcohol
I know, I know, this is easier said than done. But alcoholic drinks can be extremely calorific. For example, 12 ounces of beer, 5 ounces of wine, and 1 1/2 ounces of liquor are all about 100 calories. A margarita is 200 calories and a spiked eggnog is a whopping 400 calories!
Try limiting yourself to one or two glasses at a party, and if you know you're not good at resisting temptation, consider offering yourself up as the designated driver so the choice is out of your hands. You can also try cutting back on your drink of choice at home, if you know you've got a busy season of parties ahead.
Go easy on yourself
The holidays are about being together, and enjoying the good things in life. For many of us, that includes some holiday favorites that aren't exactly Weight Watchers-approved. That's OK as far as I am concerned. Moderation, not self sacrifice, tends to be the best method for long-term, sustainable weight management — so allow yourself to enjoy the occasional treat without too much guilt.
Jenni Grover, MS RD LDN, is a registered dietitian and co-founder of Realistic Nutrition Partners in Durham, N.C. She specializes in child, maternal and prenatal nutrition, with a focus on whole foods.
Back in 1995, South Bronx-born music promoter Maria Davis was on top of the world -- young, beautiful, happy, and getting her first real taste of success. Her weekly “MAD Wednesdays” hip-hop showcase was a hot industry event, and as its host she even scored a guest spot on Jay-Z’s debut album “Reasonable Doubt.”
But then came the letter that sent her entire world crashing down. When she was forced to take a blood test for a life insurance policy, Davis learned she was HIV positive, and had contracted the virus from her fiance. Three years later, she was diagnosed with full-blown AIDS.
That was 14 years ago. Today, despite the odds, Davis is not only alive and well but also on a mission: She is a Making AIDS History Ambassador, and together with the Foundation for AIDS Research (amfAR), she’s spent the last 18 years of her life fighting to stay alive and to help spread awareness within her community and raise money to support research for a cure.
We know all about her public battles, but when we sat down with Davis we asked her how living with AIDS has affected her private life. She opened up about her desire to find a soul mate and the hurdles the disease has created along her path to true love.
How many friends have you lost along the way because of HIV/AIDS? MARIA DAVIS: At least 20. It’s just always a reality check for me. [But] nobody can write you off. I lost a friend recently, and when I got to the funeral, I saw this young lady, and she just started crying and wailing. Her good friend looked at her and said, “What the heck is wrong with you?” I asked her, too. She said to me, “They told me you were dead.” I feel good because I hear those stories all the time. People are always telling me that they heard I passed away, but I haven’t. I guess people just assume that I’ve died by now. I’m thinking, what is wrong with these people? Have hope. I do.
Have you dated a lot since your diagnosis? What’s dating been like for you? DAVIS: It’s been very fearful. But I love love. Tyler Perry is a big inspiration. I’m always watching his movies and the relationship dynamics that he puts in them. They’re all about a woman being hurt and finding love, and I’m crying and thinking to myself, Man, I want to be in love too. I’m not having a relationship with anybody unless I know their status. You can be re-infected. Another part of it is the person I’m sleeping with could have a different strain of the virus than I do. So whereas your strain is manageable, you could get another strain and it could take you out of here. The only way you can know for sure is to go and get tested together. That’s for anyone, in any kind of relationship. Whether you’re jumping the broom, just dating, whatever – before you sleep with someone, you should know him or her in and out. You have husbands and wives who have given each other HIV.
Is making your status known right away most important to you when you’re dating someone new? DAVIS: Absolutely! I’m a spokesperson. The only way you really don’t know I have HIV is if you haven’t read or seen anything about me. But I make it clear that I am living with AIDS. Actually, when I’m in a relationship, I’m more afraid of an individual than they are of me, trust me. They know what I have coming into the relationship, but I don’t know what they have. Are you telling the truth? Are you being honest? Are you telling me one thing, but it could be another thing? If so, then my life is in jeopardy all over again.
Do you feel it’s been harder to find love because of your diagnosis or your fears? DAVIS: Let’s be for real: It’s because of my diagnosis. I’ve had guys tell me I’m fine, or they try to talk to me. Then when I tell them that I’m living with AIDS they kind of back off. I do have one friend I’ve been in and out of a relationship with. But his head isn’t ready yet.
Do you encourage young women to use protection or hold off on sex until marriage instead? DAVIS: All of that. I’ve given out thousands and thousands and thousands of condoms. But what does a condom mean if a person doesn’t care about himself or herself? My goal is for the young men and women to figure it out mentally. It’s an inner thing, not an outer thing. A condom is an outer thing, that’s a barrier. The inner barrier gives more power than the outer. If they can just stop for one second and say to themselves, "Hey, this is not worth it"... Condoms can break, but who are you having sex with? Are they worthy of you? Do they deserve your time? You are a pearl. You are a gift from God. You can’t throw your gifts away to people who are not deserving of you. Everybody has issues. He could be a great person, but are his intentions great? He might not have found his greatness yet, but you have to find your greatness in you. Once you find it, other people see that greatness, and they’re not going to come to you with crap.
What advice would you offer to women who are recently diagnosed and feel their chances at finding true love are over? DAVIS: I’m going to be honest. Of course your dating life is going to change. Accept it. But that doesn’t mean that you won’t find love, or you won’t find anyone. Just accept the changes that come with any illness. Once you accept and embrace that change, you open yourself up for so many other things. If you’re in denial and you try to go against it, then you get locked into bad behaviors. Then you’re trying to find yourself within people that don’t understand you, because you don’t understand yourself. Will I ever be in a relationship again? I pray so, and I would love to. But if it never happens again, that’s okay too. A relationship with a man doesn’t identify who I am. I’m still lovable.
The Foundation for AIDS Research (amfAR) is one of the world’s leading nonprofits dedicated to AIDS research and ending the AIDS epidemic. Since 1985, amfAR has invested more than $340 million in its programs and helped catalyze the search for a cure for HIV/AIDS. To get more facts about how to prevent the spread of HIV and AIDS your community, visit the Making Aids History official site or amfAR’s website now.
Prevention was the biggest AIDS theme of 2011, with new study findings showing that early antiretroviral treatment can reduce the risk of HIV transmission by nearly 100 percent, and data demonstrating that pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP, can significantly reduce infection – at least for some people, some of the time.
But many researchers and advocates are looking beyond the latest advances in antiretroviral therapy and biomedical prevention toward a goal that not long ago was considered too far-fetched to warrant serious discussion: a cure for HIV.
"Cure is the next frontier," said Rowena Johnston, vice president for research at amfAR, the Foundation for AIDS Research. "We want to make 'cure' into a family-friendly four-letter word."
AmfAR has put its money where its mouth is, recently announcing $2.1 million in grant awards with an emphasis on cure-focused research; among the 13 grants, three went to researchers in San Francisco. The funding will also cover fellowships to support promising young researchers in the HIV/AIDS field.
The resurgence in cure-related research in recent years has come from the realization that, even with today's highly effective antiretroviral drugs, people will not be able to treat their way out of the epidemic.
"Antiretrovirals are pretty good, but people have to adhere to them for a lifetime, they are costly, and they have side effects," Johnston told the Bay Area Reporter .
Further impetus was provided by the "Berlin patient," San Francisco resident Timothy Brown, who appears to have been cured of HIV after receiving two bone marrow transplants to treat leukemia, using stem cells from a donor with naturally resistant CD4 T-cells.
While the grueling and expensive transplant procedure is not suited for widespread use, it offers clues about how cells might be protected from the virus – clues that have spurred efforts to recreate this effect using gene therapy to artificially remove an HIV receptor known as CCR5 from patients' T-cells.
The International AIDS Society has made curing HIV one of its key focal areas. An IAS working group, spearheaded by Nobel laureate Francoise Barre-Sinoussi and Steven Deeks of UCSF, is developing a global scientific strategy for cure-focused research to be presented at the 2012 International AIDS Conference next summer in Washington, DC.
Local grants
Researchers are exploring a wide range of approaches to either completely eradicate HIV from the body or – more likely – cripple the virus enough that a person's immune system can keep it under control without lifelong daily treatment.
In addition to gene therapy to protect cells from infection, several strategies involve flushing latent HIV out of resting T-cells, making it vulnerable to antiretroviral drugs and immune defenses. Other strategies attempt to boost immune responses to tackle the virus.
AmfAR's local grants will fund three research teams at UCSF that are taking three completely divergent approaches to the problem. The grants are each for $120,000.
Koh Fujinaga and colleagues will study reactivation of HIV gene expression using compounds known as HDACs and PKC agonists. A better understanding of how HIV maintains latency in resting cells may aid development of therapies to eliminate this viral reservoir, enabling people to stop antiretroviral therapy without the virus coming back.
Hiroyu Hatano and her team will study whether angiotensin-converting enzyme or ACE inhibitors – a type of drug usually used to treat high blood pressure – can reduce the buildup of scar tissue in lymph nodes.
"Lymph nodes become scarred with collagen in response to HIV, and this scarring prevents immune cells that fight HIV from recognizing infected cells," Hatano explained. "We will test whether ACE inhibitors will decrease the amount of scarring and whether this helps the immune system to fight HIV better."
Finally, Douglas Nixon's team will study endogenous retroviruses, or pieces of ancient "junk" viral DNA in human chromosomes that can be reactivated when HIV infects cells; he hopes to learn more about the resulting immune response and harness it to produce a therapeutic HIV vaccine.
"In medical practice, viruses are not routinely cured," Johnston told the B.A.R. "We want to revolutionize not only how we deal with HIV, but also how we view and may ultimately eradicate a whole host of infectious diseases."
According to amfAR CEO Kevin Frost, the organization now spends 60 percent of its research grant dollars on cure-related research.
Support from independent organizations is increasingly important as government research budgets are reduced in the wake of the global financial crisis. Last year the AIDS Policy Project, a cure advocacy group, calculated that the U.S. government spends only about 3 percent of its total HIV research funding on cure-related studies.
"We're increasingly excited about the work that emerges from the cure-focused studies we fund," Frost said. "As we keep uncovering new information about the virus, we're increasingly confident that we will be able to find a cure for HIV/AIDS in our lifetime."
It's been thirty years since HIV-AIDS made world headlines but there's still no cure for the disease.
The most notable advance against HIV-AIDS has been a combination of anti-retroviral drugs which have kept full-blown AIDS from totally destroying the body's immune system.
Now, scientists are again talking about finding a cure or at least paving the way towards one.
BENKIRANE: We have a very powerful drugs against HIV and these drugs really do a great job in terms of suppressing the virus in the blood. We have about 15 years experience with these drugs, and we know they will not cure HIV. So I think one of the challenges is to try to understand why and try to develop new drugs that will make us able to cure the virus. We're talking about two types of cure: either the complete eradication of the virus from the body; or, just functional cure. What we mean about functional cure is actually to be able to stop the therapy without having viral rebound, so people can live without treatment.
Question: And central to the search for a cure, I understand is this modulator protein. Can you tell us about this modulator protein and how it works?
BENKIRANE: This is a different issue, this is more like related to the immune responses. So this protein that we actually identified is a protein that protects dendritic cells from being infected by HIV. So what are the dendritic cells? Those are the cells that normally initiate innate immunity and also orchestrate the adaptive immunities, specific immunity against a virus or an invader. The problem with this is that HIV escapes and is not sensed by these cells, so when these cells capture the virus, they do not do their job. What they do, however, because they capture the virus, they express the receptor and everything required for the binding and they take the virus up to the lymph nodes, where the virus likes to replicate the most, which are the activated CD45 T cells. Because these cells are the first cells that contact the virus during transmission, what is aimed is to actually make these cells able to sense the virus and one way to do that is to make them permissive to the virus. To achieve this, we have to identify the restrictions so that they operate in these cells and that is the SAMHD1 that we identified. The hope here actually is to see if we act on this protein, if we make these dendritic cells permissive to the virus, that will initiate innate immunity and they will also orchestrate a good and very early adaptive immunity against HIV which may lea d to a better control of the virus.
Question: Dr Benkirane, it's World AIDS Day. What is your assessment of the medical and scientific work that's been going on so far towards finding a cure? Thirty years on, is there global collaboration, are we moving forward?
BENKIRANE: Yes, there is global collaboration. I think there have been really great progress in HIV AIDS in terms of treatment, vaccine and prevention. I think the most important thing that we recently learned is that treatment is prevention, because people who are treated, people who are under suppressive drugs barely transmit the virus. I think this is some really important information.
Now the vaccine field is moving very nicely, I think because of the recent Thai trial. I think it's the first time we have some hope. It's not going to beat that, but I think it's a good starting point. The other challenge that I think we're going to have to face is the cure, trying to develop a way to help the anti-viral therapy that we currently make, either to be able to eradicate the virus or at least have a functional cure.
THE clocks have gone back and winter is on its way. As illnesses start spreading around work places and schools, it is likely that many of us will be struck down with some kind of ailment in the next few months.
But to try and avoid it there are a number of steps you can take to keep yourself as fit and healthy as possible.
Always eat plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables and try to exercise regularly and get plenty of sleep, says Dr Charlotte Jones, deputy chair of the British Medical Associations Welsh GP committee.
Wash your hands regularly to avoid the spread of infections and wipe down hard surfaces and handles regularly to kill off germs.
At this time of year, vulnerable people, including the elderly, should take extra precautions to keep themselves healthy.
Mathew Coffin, Ageing Well Team Leader at Age Concern Cardiff and Vale of Glamorgan, said: One of the most important ways to stay well this winter is to get the flu jab.
We recently did a survey about why people are not having it and many people already think they are fit and healthy so they would not have it. They feel they have never had a problem before and that the flu jab might even give them flu, which can’t happen as it is a dead virus. People often said they felt unpleasant side effects from the flu jab but it is often that they have caught something else at the same time.
People should always try to keep warm in their own home. Many people are turning down the thermostat because of rising fuel costs but we can give thermometers out that monitor the temperature, which should be between 18C and 21C.
Eating well is also important to stay healthy and people should make sure they stock up their cupboards. We have had a bit of snow in the last couple of years so people may not be able to get out and they work their way through their cupboards and don’t eat very well. Trying to stay active in the winter months will also help. We tend to stay inside during winter but some exercise will help.
Dressing well for warmth is also an issue. It’s almost common sense but we say that a few layers is better than just putting on one jumper. Wearing a hat can also help.
However, if you do succumb to viruses and other illnesses, Dr Jones has provided tips on ways to minimise your symptoms and get you back on your feet sooner rather than later.
She said: If you do get ill, don’t forget the catch phrase ‚catch it, bin it, kill it’. Sneeze or cough into tissues and bin tissues immediately.
Many of the winter ailments are due to viral infections. These are often unpleasant but don’t require antibiotic treatment as antibiotics are only effective with bacterial infections.
Also, many people are unaware that if they are given antibiotics wrongly, they run the risk of getting antibiotic resistance. This means more difficult to treat infections that don’t respond to the usual antibiotics and can be a major problem.
Coughs and colds are often quite mild and tend to clear up within five to seven days. The main treatment for all viral illnesses is to drink plenty of fluids, eat healthily, rest and take paracetamol as per pharmacy or medical advice. Steam inhalation is helpful as it helps the nose drain. Honey and lemon can help with a sore throat.
Avoid sneezing over other people, in particular pregnant women and patients with immune problems or having cancer treatment. If someone truly has flu it will make them very unwell. They will have a high temperature, all joints and muscles will be aching and they may be sweaty and clammy. The main treatment is to drink plenty of fluids, rest, try steam inhalations and take paracetamol or ibuprofen (provided they don’t have asthma or stomach problems) regularly.
If people are getting worse despite this or if they have breathing difficulties, then they need to seek urgent medical advice. People more at risk with chronic illnesses such as asthma or heart problems should always speak to their doctor or pharmacist for further advice.
Of course anybody who is eligible for the flu vaccine should make sure they get it before the flu season starts and should be booking themselves in now.
Sore throats are mainly viruses and very rarely require antibiotics unless you are having huge difficulty swallowing or not responding to pain relief or medicines to reduce your temperature. For patients aged over 16, gargling aspirin can help.
Around 90% of viruses should settle without antibiotics, but if it is getting worse rather than better, and the patient is having difficulty or severe pain on swallowing or not able to swallow their own saliva or a thickened voice then they might need further treatment and should seek advice.
Dr Brendon Mason, Consultant Epidemiologist at Public Health Wales, warned of a return of flu and winter vomiting bug norovirus this year and provided advice on what to do if you are unlucky enough to fall victim to them.
He said: Obviously eating five fruit and vegetables a day and exercise will help keep you healthy in general, but it won’t be a fool-proof barrier to viruses.
The two diseases that we tend to think about during winter are the winter vomiting disease and flu.
If you have either of these illnesses, do not go to work and do not let children who have them go to school. Anyone with diarrhoea should not go back to work for 48 hours after the symptoms have resolved. Most of us will try to stagger into work but it really is better to stay at home. Providing you are reasonably fit you can self-treat drink plenty of fluids and rest.
If you are ill, being well insulated and keeping warm is always good.
If you need medical help, you can get expert advice from the NHS, your local pharmacist, and your GP.
and mix with roughly 300ml of water.
Today wine is big business. Our appetite for wine seemingly insatiable. And so too is the competition to win your wine pounds. 3 for £10 or £4.99 is common.
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