Photos of Police averted bomb blast incident in Kano this morning

This afternoon, the Nigerian Police released a press statement claiming to have averted what could have been another devastating bomb blast in the ancient city of Kano this morning. Read that here.
Well, they've just released photos from the incident.

Borno State Governor, Kashim Shettima has replied Asari Dokubo

Borno State Governor, Kashim Shettima has replied Asari Dokubo who has in recent times alleged that the missing Chibok girls is all a scam and the handiwork of the governor. In a statement by the Governor's spokesperson, Isa Gusau, Shettima described Dokubo as a jester who no serious minded Nigerian should take serious. The statement below...

"Governor Shettima is too serious minded to reply Asari Dokubo who is just a joker as most Nigerians regard him. As a onetime journalist covering the Niger Delta, I had come in direct contact with Asari when he organized a rally in support of late Gaddafi in Port Harcourt and also when he organized the 2011/2012 Isaac Boro lecture in Port Harcourt which he kept interrupting, taking over the microphone from people like respected lawyers like Festus Keyamo, intermittently speaking without protocol and without shame like a child. He is just a joke, no reasonable Nigerian takes him serious. He was reported saying Chibok abduction was a sham, I won’t be surprised if by next week the same Asari Dokubo leads another rally to counter the one he just held. Last year, Asari was reported speaking against Presidency, then he changed tune now we don’t know what happened but that is how he is, he uses the media for personal interest and some sort of blackmail." Continue...

“He wants to be regarded as a hero but I tell you that no one sees him as such in the Niger Delta that I had covered. He is trying to force unwilling public to see him different from who he is but like a say goes, ‘you can fool some people all the time, you can fool all the people sometime but you cannot fool all the people all the time. Asari dubiously took advantage of Isaac Boro event which attracts participants to say what he said so that the procession would seem like a support base for his isolated opinion. I saw some pictures of some girls in one house displaying some placards, from the faces, I think he probably assembled some of his immediate and extended family members and gave them placards. One person wrote on all the cards, the same writing, all of which look like a sort of Mickey Mouse scene in cartoon series. How can Governor Shettima reply a jester, how can he respond to such a play by Asari that falls far below the standard of Nollywood when he is busy working very hard with all relevant bodies finding ways on how to secure the freedom of his and Borno’s precious daughters in captivity?” Gusau said.

Gusau advised the President to distance himself from Asari...

Spinach

Spinach is loaded with vitamins A, K, D and E and is a good source of omega-3 fatty acids.  It also has anti-cancer properties and is loaded with antioxidants, besides alkalizing the body and nourishing the eyes. Read on to learn more about the health benefits of spinach.

Like green, leafy vegetables, spinach is an excellent source of beta-carotene, a powerful antioxidant, which can reduce one’s risk of developing cataracts. Studies show that it also fight heart disease and cancer.

Spinach also contains phytochemicals, which helps prevent age-related macular degeneration and lipoic acid which may regulate blood sugar levels.

It is also a good source of dietary magnesium, which is necessary for muscle and nerve function, heart rhythm and maintaining a healthy immune system.

Spinach in packed with vitamin A, which is necessary the growth of bodily tissues, including skin and hair. It also helps build and maintain collagen, which provides structure to the skin and hair.

What Causes Menstruation Pain

Menstruation Pain

Menstruation brings about a number of unpleasant symptoms such as cramps, mood blues, bloating etc. Not many know but these menstruation symptoms are influenced by the food you eat. In order to keep a check on them and get through your periods with the least amount of pain, avoid the following foods.

Caffeine: Caffeine is a stimulant and can worsen mood blues, menstrual pains and can also disrupt sleep. It is recommended that you control your caffeine intake or avoid it completely during menstruation. Caffeine rich foods include coffee, tea, energy drinks and chocolates.

Fatty meat: The fats found in meat are saturated and can influence and worsen pain and inflammation during menstruation. If you can’t avoid meat completely, make sure you only consume lean meat and not the fatty kind.

Snacks and chips: Although snacks and chips may seem like the perfect comfort food, avoid them during your menstruation days. These snacks contain sodium, which can cause bloating and discomfort. Instead, opt for healthy snacks like salt-free nuts and seeds or even fruits.

Sugar: Sugary foods also seem like the ideal comfort food. But sugary foods like candy, cookies or cakes only cause a temporary mood elevation and can soon cause a crash in your mood. Apart from that sugary foods can also worsen cramps. If you need to munch on something sweet, try fruits like melon or mango.

Alcohol: Avoid alcohol completely during menstruation as it causes the blood to thin out, thereby increasing your flow. Alcohol also increase other PMS symptoms like cramps and pain. 

Is Soy a Fertility Food?

Does soy increase fertility or deplete your baby making potential?

Several weeks ago, I received a generous thank you note from a holistic practitioner who works with fertility issues. She was thanking me for clearing up some conflicting information on fertility foods and soy products. Her note note made me realize just how contentious a subject soy is, even among experts in the fertility field. So I thought it might be useful to offer a quick summary of what I have come to in the last two  decades of observing my own, as well as my clients’ response to soy.

Over eighty percent of the women I’ve worked with as a fertility educator, wrestle with various levels of digestive difficulties. A large percentage battles impaired thyroid function.

The good news is that as we begin to view food-related adjustments not as restrictions but as a source of power, dietary changes become easy. A baby is the one shiny apple, most of us will do just about anything, to reach.

During the pre-conception cleansing phase—fresh, live, high-water-content, easily digestible combinations of fertility foods (see recipe section of The Fertile Female), a close attention to individual nutritional needs and a supplementation with specific high potency, absorbable fertility supplements—is where we begin.

My article Fertility Supplements documents some of my research on the link between supplements and fertility.

As far as soy goes, my clients do best with fermented soy products such as tempeh, tamari, miso and nato.

The protease inhibitors in unfermented soy foods, such as soy milk, tofu, processed soy cheeses, inhibit the key enzymes that help us digest protein and can cause bloating, intestinal disorders and impaired pancreatic function. Fermentation on the other hand adds beneficial microorganisms that help break down complex proteins into highly digestible amino acids and fatty acids.

Women who, like myself, have been diagnosed “irreversibly infertile” due to high FSH and low estrogen levels, and generally most women over 35, do well with incorporating fermented soy in their food plan.

Fermentation also deactivates the soy’s mineral depleting phytates and other anti-nutrients. Otherwise the impaired mineral absorption—of calcium for example—especially for women with fertility challenges such as depleted ovarian reserve, can be a serious concern.

Women with thyroid related issues have done well with a moderate amount of fermented soy, combined with iodine rich foods such as seaweed. (See the Hijik Joy Salad recipe and other fermented soy recipes in The Fertile Female.)

Of course, no fertility food adjustments or fertility supplements will “get to where the trouble is” unless our entire Holy Human Loaf cooperates with the repairative process. Which is why I passionately encourage using the Ovum tools around food to reveal the hiding places of our inner Orphans, learn to love them through the choices we make, and call on our Visionary and the Ultimate Mom to plan the menu of the day. When we do that, the perfect “fertility diet” unfolds for us one bite at a time.

Last night in our fertility food-centered Visonary Mom Teleconference we decided to make one Visionary-rooted change that involves food. I am letting go of the Organic Nectar Pistachio Gelato I’ve been attached to lately. It’s great stuff, non-dairy, agave sweetened and there is really nothing wrong with a treat, but just as an experiment, I want to see what comes up for me as I let go of it for a while.

Perhaps you want to embark on an experiment of your own, making one fertility enhancing food change as you plan your menu for tomorrow.

Whatever you ultimately choose to place on your dinner table, let go of guilt and eat it with pleasure and gusto, and it will become the most potent fertility food!

By Julia Indichova.

Sleeping Position Of A Baby

As a mother, you are mindful of numerous developments and habits related to your tiny tot. Your checklist includes things like the food she eats, the medicine she is prescribed and the colour of her poop, among other things. While getting enough sleep can be challenging, until your baby finds her cosy nook, watch out for the sleeping position. Sleeping on the stomach can raise a few alarms. Here’s the dope on what might happen.

Paediatricians will almost always discourage parents from making infants sleep on their stomach. This has been a cause of concern for doctors all around the world since the revelation of Sudden Infant death syndrome (SIDS).

Dr. Ashu Sawhney, Consultant, Neonatology, Fortis La Femme, Delhi, says, “Infants should not be put to sleep on their stomach as it increases the risk of SIDS. The exact causes for SIDS are not clear, but putting babies to sleep on their back has reduced its incidence worldwide.”

We asked around a little more and found that there is a specific age after which parents can ease up on the position their infants sleep in.

Dr. Shailesh Patil, Paediatrics, Seven Hill Hospital, Mumbai, informs, “Babies can sleep on their stomach only after six to nine months when their movements are defined and nothing should obstruct their breathing.”

What is SIDS?

Sudden Infant Death Syndrome is a phenomenon which results in the death of the infant all of a sudden. It is also known as cot death or crib death. The reason is yet to be medically explained, but infants under four to six months of age are at a higher risk of SIDS and are mostly affected in their sleep.

Dr Bijal Srivastava, Pediatrician at Dr L H Hiranandani Hospital, Mumbai says,“Several studies state that the cause for Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) is the sleeping position of babies. Sleeping on the stomach has led to higher deaths in babies lesser than six months of age. Hence, doctors today caution parents not to let babies sleep in the prone (on stomach) position.”

Safe to Sleep Campaign:

A campaign called the Safe to Sleep campaign previously popular as the Back to Sleep Program was started by the US National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) to make parents aware of the dangers of babies sleeping on their tummy and encourage them to make their babies sleep only on their backs or the supine position. As mentioned earlier, this position decreases risk of SIDS in kids.

Dr. Himanshi Kashyap, Paediatrician, Rockland Hospitals, Manesar shares, “SIDS is a fatal fear but results have shown a 50% decreases in SIDS cases since the Back to Sleep Program was initiated.”

The downsides of the supine position:

However, Dr Srivastava adds, “There are also some disadvantages with the supine position. It may lead to mild delay in motor milestones and there are higher chances of torticollis or stiff neck. Also, plagiocephaly – flat head syndrome – may be caused. It is advisable that parents supervise the sleeping position of babies while awake, and try to keep them in prone position (on the stomach) atleast 15-20 mins two to three times during the day.”

Although not all sleeping positions are harmful, but parents need to take care not to obstruct the breathing of their child through external factors.

“Babies can sleep sideways but parents should make sure that they do not get suffocated in anyway. Parents have a habit of making kids sleep in decorated cribs stuffed with soft toys. They should be careful of anything that can cause the child harm. Beds should be clear of all clutter,” explains Dr. Kashyap

Thus, we conclude that it is not ok for babies to sleep on their stomach. As responsible parents, make sure your tot sleeps only on the back to avoid any risks of SIDS at least until the baby is six months old.

Importance of Calcium

Many people know that adequate calcium intake is important to health. However, national nutrition surveys show that less than 50 per cent of adults aged 20 and older are consuming the calcium they need to maintain bone health and minimise bone loss that occurs with ageing. Unfortunately, many do not know how much calcium they need and many mistakenly believe that they are consuming enough.

Calcium is an essential nutrient your body needs every day. And, it's not just important for women. Optimal intake is crucial for children, adolescents, men and the aged too. The majority of calcium in the body makes up your bones and teeth and keeps them strong. However, beyond bone health, calcium is also needed to regulate certain body functions. Without calcium, muscles would not contract normally, blood would not clot and nerves would be carry messages.

Calcium and bone health go hand-in-hand. Increasing scientific evidence indicates that adequate calcium intake reduces the risk of several major chronic diseases, most notably osteoporosis, a potentially crippling disease of thin and fragile bones. If you do not get enough calcium from your daily diet to regulate body functions, your body will leech or “rob” the calcium from your bones to make up the difference. Over time this can reduce bone strengh and lead to osteoporosis. Optimal of calcium throughout life, from early childhood and adolescence though the postmenopausal and late adult year, reduces the risk of osteoporosis.

Research suggests that calcium also helps protect against colon cancer, high blood pressure and recurring premenstrual sydrome, and possibly cardiovascular disease and kidney stones. Your calcium needs extend throughout your lifetime. It is essential during childhood to young adulthood, the year that bones are forming and growing. The calcuim that you provide to your bones when you are young is one factor in determining how well they will hold up later in life. Gender plays a significant role in the need for calcium too. Pregnancy increases calcium requirements because of the needs of the devloping baby and because alterations in calcium absorption and metabolism occur throughout pregnancy. Lactating women need calcium to meet their needs and the requirements for milk production. During menopause and post menopause, the body produces much lees estrogen the risk of osteoporosis, which in turn increases calcium needs.

Both women and men over the age of 65 years need more calcium to combat calcium deficiencies. ''A certain amount of loss is a normal consequence of ageing," stated Nancy Wellman, Ph.D., R.D., professor and director, National Policy & resource Center on Nutrition and Ageing at the Florida International University. For instance, the age-related decline in the body's ability to absorb calcium can interfere with calcium levels. Also, lactose intolerance can lead to avoidance of calcium-rich foods.

Most adults need between 1,000 and 1,500 milligrams of calcium every day. Requirements for young children and adolescents range from 800 mg to 1500 mg daily. Some good food sources with their calcium content are:

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