There is no doubt that Uganda for sometime has been steadily registering high level of economic growth and development especially for the last 27 years of NRM’s governance. This economic growth and development is characterized by improvement in provision of social services such as health and education, reduction in poverty levels, improvement in infrastructure, and reduction in illiteracy levels, among others.

As a result of improved health services and literacy among Ugandans, disability as a result of polio which was hitherto the traditional cause of disability was contained. This would be a great cause to celebrate by all Ugandans irrespective of their political ideologies.

However, for us in Ultimate Media Consult, we are concerned that there are increasing cases of disability in spite of the successful fight against polio in Uganda and great improvements in Ugandan citizen’s knowledge and health.

The focus of my (Walakira Nyanzi) article is on spina bifida and hydrocephalus, conditions which cause physical disability. This news piece comes in the recent wake of revelations by Dr Michael Muhumuza, the Acting Head of the Neurosurgical

Unit at Mulago Hospital and Uganda’s hosting of an international conference on spina bifida and hydrocephalus.

Dr Muhumuza says in his report to the conference that seven-ten children with spina bifida are produced at Mulago hospital alone every week. This translates to about 480 children produced with this condition in just one year and at Mulago hospital alone. This is a very big number which cannot be ignored by medical practitioners and of course our health news team headed by Walakira Nyanzi.

Dr. Muhumuza says that a person can have both spina bifida and hydrocephalus, or either of the two conditions. Most people with these conditions normally have severe and multiple disabilities.

You could find many of the victims of spina bifida and hydrocephalus confined in wheel chairs, having epilepsy, slow learners and brain injury. Such a person and the family find the life very challenging as they are mostly likely to live in a life of great poverty and miserly.

You may be all aware that disability causes poverty and poverty also causes disability. The good thing is that these conditions can be managed and preventable to some extent.

However, managing the conditions is as expensive as the child may need surgery and services of many specialists such as physiotherapist, occupational therapists and close supervision and review of doctors and nurses. We are aware that these specialists are not available in our Ugandan communities and where they are available, their services are so expensive. The children also need assistive devices, rehabilitation and clean intermittent catheterization and bowel management as they cannot control urine and bowel movement.

Dr. Muhumuza therefore says that the government and the communities should highly concentrate on the preventive measures of spina bifida and hydrocephalus because it is cheaper to prevent the cause than managing the effects of spina bifida and hydrocephalus. The two basic preventive measures are mandatory fortification of foods (adding folic acid to foods) because spina bifida is caused by lack of folic acid by pregnant mothers. The other one is improvement of the health service delivery more especially maternal health, avoiding of infections and cerebral malaria. These are highly responsible for causing hydrocephalus. Spina bifida and hydrocephalus are some of the types of physical disability currently crippling Ugandans.

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The post How to add folic acid to foods to prevent spina bifida and hydrocephalus first appeared on Uganda Multimedia News & Information.

A human body can have fats ranging between 50 to 200 billion fat cells distributed around the body. For most females (women), a high percentage of the subcutaneous fat tissue surrounds the areas of the breasts, waist, hips and buttocks.

However, most males have a high percentage of fats distributed around the chest, abdomen and buttocks.

In the Republic of Uganda fat women are considered beautiful, while men with fats around the abdomen (men with big berries) are perceived as wealthy.

However, Doctor David Sali, a prominent medical practitioner in town says that fats deposited along the abdomen cavity makes hormones and chemicals, which increases the risk of diseases like colorectal cancer, high blood pressure, diabetes, stroke, cancer of the pancreas, breast and prostate.

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The post High percentages of fats cause colorectal cancer first appeared on Uganda Multimedia News & Information.

Tongue piercing is not safe because the tongue is an extremely vascular organ, which means that it has loads of blood vessels.

A tremendous amount of swelling is expected when the tongue is pierced and a large oversized barbell is initially placed to accommodate for the expected swelling. This can cause difficulty in breathing and swallowing.

Eating, drinking and speech are also impaired. The large barbell flops around and can cause un-restorable fractures to the teeth when accidentally bitten.

The barbell can also unscrew and you could end up swallowing it or possibly aspirated and sucked into the lungs which would require surgery for it to be removed.

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The post Piercing tongue causes cancer first appeared on Uganda Multimedia News & Information.

Dr. Kizza Besigye at a rally

The two were blocked after they intended to go on a roads inspection tour in Kawempe division and later hold a rally at Kalerwe.

However police under the command of Sam Omara quashed their plans blocking them from accessing the division.

According to Kampala central  District Police Commander  James Ruhweza, police they will continue monitoring them closely to ensure that they dont cause commotion in the city.

The post FDC President Kizza Besigye stopped from accessing market first appeared on Uganda Multimedia News & Information.

Women who miss at least three menstrual periods in a row may have a condition in science or medical language called amenorrhoea.

And this may apply to girls who have not begun their menstruation by the age of 16. Amenorrhea is the absence of menstruation.

The most common cause of amenorrhea is pregnancy and other problems come with the reproductive organs and with the glands that regulate hormone levels.

The symptoms of amenorrhea depending on the cause may include milky nipple discharge, hair loss, headache, vision changes and excess facial hair. Women need to visit their doctors if they miss three menstrual periods in a row. However women who take birth control pills may sometimes miss periods because when oral contraceptives are stopped, the body may take three to six months to resume regular ovulation and menstruation. Experts tell us that contraceptives that are implanted may cause amenorrhoea.  Other factors of amenorrhea are stress, low body weight, hormonal imbalances and excessive exercise.

Walakira Nyanzi

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The post What makes women to miss periods? first appeared on Uganda Multimedia News & Information.

Symptoms of kidney stones are pain on one side of the lower back, in the belly and down into the groin.

Other symptoms include a frequent urge to urinate, blood and sediment in the urine, nausea and vomiting, chill and fever (if the kidney stones cause a blockage and an inflection).

The root causes of kidney stones include a poor diet, dehydration, urinary PH balance, allergies and food sensitivities.

Infections that disturb the flow of fluids, obesity, inactivity, magnesium and potassium deficiency, an inherited inability to absorb calcium properly or to excrete too much oxalic acid may also cause kidney stones.

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The post Symptoms of kidney stones first appeared on Uganda Multimedia News & Information.

Madam Aisha, you may be more likely to develop ulcers if you are infected with pylori Bacterium or when you have taken drugs like aspirin, ibuprofen or naproxen. Some people get ulcers as a result of a family history of ulcers, have another illness such as liver, kidney failure or lung disease, or drink alcohol regularly.

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The post List of drugs that cause ulcers first appeared on Uganda Multimedia News & Information.

Tight underwear or undergarments have been found to cause the testes to remain too close to the body, overheating them which may damage your sperms.

Damaging sperms many times results in infertility and testicular torsion. There is also a long-term possibility that the testicles may become twisted internally. It becomes extremely painful when your balls get twisted and it can lead the testicles to become dead.

When your testicles die the doctors have no option but to be removed. In women Abra works well and should fit well and feel comfortable. A tight bra can spark off back pain and cause marks on the shoulders. Tight lingerie in women also increases chances of infections like Candida.

Walakira Nyanzi

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The post Wearing tight underwear damages sperms and in women causes Candida first appeared on Uganda Multimedia News & Information.

Toilet papers as the name suggests is primarily meant to be used in toilets though it has acquired a lot of secondly functions now days like blowing the nose and being used as cheaper alternative sanitary pads, especially among school girls.

 Using toilet papers as cheaper alternative sanitary pads is dangerous because it can cause infections because of its off tinny particles which could find their way into the birth canal, attach onto the small threads of the device and eventually cause infections in the womb.

Some of the toilet papers we have on the Uganda market are not safe, therefore unsafe to use as pads or handkerchiefs. Certain toilet papers produce very small dust particles which may be inhaled by the user while blowing the nose. This can induce sneezing which may mimic allergy.  There are disposable paper handkerchiefs meant for that but not toilet papers.

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The post Toilet papers trigger allergies and cause infections-new research first appeared on Uganda Multimedia News & Information.

The skin of a baby suffering from eczema may break due to scratching, thus introducing more bacteria into the body.

Scientists tell us that in addition to introducing more bacteria in the body, a child may fail to sleep due to excessive itching. Some eczema drugs contain steroids (potential chemical substances) which affect the growth of a child.

ECZEMA, also known as dermatitis is a common immune skin disorder among children. It presents in stages and usually starts as an irritating itchy red patch.

The skin may become inflamed and moist though sometimes the rash is dry and scaly, manifesting on the knees, elbow joints, wrist, joints and ankles.

Babies below one year may develop eczema in the face, and around the neck. Its causes are the following: it can either be Endogenous or Atopic eczema e.g. it may run in families, so if apparent, chances are that each child in a family would develop it.

Antigens such as pollen and dust can also cause eczema. Irritants found in urine and feaces, human wastes contains ammonia which some babies may react to also causes eczema. Keeping babies in wet or soiled diapers for long time may stimulate napkin eczema around the genital areas. Babies who use cosmetics and wears jewelleries are at risk of getting eczema, also some soap, jellies, powders and earrings may cause it.

The post Drugs for people suffering from eczema first appeared on Uganda Multimedia News & Information.