The MPs however say the method should a matter of choice if one needs to adopt a family planning method in his home.

Pastor Joseph Sserwadda of Victory Christian Church.

Pastor Sserwadda is said to have recently told a congregation that Uganda’s population growth can only be tackled by government making it a policy for men to have a specific number of children and thereafter go for vasectomy.

Ajuri County Member of Parliament in Alebtong district, Benson Obua Hamson, says the method already exists in the country but that it must however be optional for men who want it as family planning method in their families but shouldn’t be made a policy.

“You cannot deny a man the number of children he wishes to have. If it is introduced as a policy, it will be a human rights violation on the part of the man because he will have not consented to it. It is however good to control the population but using other available methods,” Obua says.

Buliisa County MP Hon Stephen Birahwa Mukitale.

Buliisa County MP, Stephen Birrahwa Mukitale, says that though population of the country is exploding, this kind of family planning method can be taken up if there is thorough sensitization in the communities instead of use of force.

He says Ugandans especially the youths should be sensitized at an early age so that they can make informed decisions on how many children they would love to have before they get married.

Experts say as of 1 January 2017, the population of Uganda was estimated to be 40, 953, 469 people. This is an increase of 3.26 % (1 293 318 people) compared to population of 39, 660, 151 the year before. In 2016 the natural increase was positive, as the number of births exceeded the number of deaths by 1 326 235.

In the East African region, Uganda ranks third with Kenya at 44 million people will Tanzania has the highest population of 49 million people.

It is also reported that Uganda has the youngest population in Africa followed by Niger state in West Africa.

Vasectomy male sterilization is a form of contraception that involves surgically cutting or blocking the tube that transports sperm from the testicles to the penis.

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A man looks after a herd of cattle where hepatitis b disease is most rampant.

Maracha County Member of Parliament, Denis Lee Oguzu, has asked  government to come to the rescue of the people of Maracha districtfrom hepatitis B as soon as possible.

Speaking to journalists at parliament today, Oguzu said the disease is widely spread in the district and that many persons are suffering from it yet testing kits and medical supplies are not available.

He expressed concern that due to the high prevalence rates of Hepatitis B, people from the district are now discriminated against when it comes to opportunities since Maracha people are regarded as hepatitis B sufferers.

According to the Ministry of Health, Hepatitis B virus infection is highly endemic in Uganda, with transmission occurring in childhood and adulthood. Most infections occur in North eastern region including Karamoja.

Statistics also show that about 1.4 million adults are chronically infected and some communities disproportionately affected by the disease in Uganda.

The virus is mainly transmitted by sexual contact, Needle sharing to inject drugs and from mother to baby.

The Health ministry has previously rolled out the hepatitis B infant immunization programme so as to sustain and catch-up vaccination considered for older children.

However, Oguzu says the government is becoming a exclusive in the way it responds to the disease especially in Maracha County.

“I am disappointed in government because it seems to be selective in responding to the disease in Karamoja region. Whereas there have been responses to curb the spread of the disease before, our various calls for help in  Maracha County are particularly neglected. We need to also be considered so that we save lives of our people,” said Oguzu  .

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Nutrition experts warn that the continued the feeding of children and pregnant mothers with none nutritional foods will impact negatively on the country’s economy and health living of the population. The nutrition specialist at Jinja regional hospital, Toko Mansuru says  that most Ugandans have failed to provide their children and themselves with nutritious foods but instead opt to feed on foods that they come across which has caused malnutrition among most Ugandan children. He says that foods which are not with nutrition  developed  severe conditions like acute malnutrition thus resulting into serious deficiencies among them being diabetes, high blood pressure and obesity for those who are over fed, cancers among other diseases which are expensive to treat at health facilities.

Meanwhile, Alex Kisembo the marketing director, RECO industries, a company that manufactures fortified foods which are given to persons who are malnourished says that its better for Ugandans to always feed on a balanced diet than just eating for the sake of getting satisfied. Kisembo adds  that to avoid such  conditions they should eat fortified foods so as they do not spend over three months in hospital. He further calls for a combined effort and strategies from all government  departments and agencies to expeditiously address the issue of malnutrition among Ugandan children if this burden is to be solved.

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According to the national coordinator pediatric and adolescent HIV care at the health ministry, Dr. Cordelia Katureebe revealed  that they have for long been receiving complaints from parents and guardians of the children living with HIV about the bitterness the current drug has been pausing to the kids which has also seen them neglect to swallow the drug which makes their lives  riskier, making them develop  more health complications as a result of not being able to take their drugs religiously. She also stresses that with the clinical trial that  started in May  this year and will end in 2017, they are targeting over 3000 children under 15 years across the country and health experts hope to roll it out by 2018.

The  project manager paediatric HIV, at drugs for neglected diseases initiative (DNDi) Dr. Olawale Salami confirms that previous clinical trials on the same pallets have been carried out in Kenya and now in Uganda with results indicating positive thus the need to have it used in our countries with children under 15 years.

But one of the mothers who has a positive child found  at Joint Clinical Reserch Centhre in  Lubowa says the current syrup administered to children is bitter and not very good for kids to consume but with the new formulation of pellets will help and make it easy for the positive kids to swallow their drugs.

The  statistics carried out last year in the country by the ministry of health shows  that 95000 children are estimated to be born with HIV and only 60,000 (63%) are on treatment with 37000 not yet on treatment.

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Fluoride Gels are acidic, highly concentrated fluoride products that dentists topically apply to a patient’s teeth about two times a year to prevent them from decaying. According to the Ministry of health, about 75.9 percent of children below 5 years and 93.1% adults suffer from tooth decay in the country. Nabbanja adds that the program which is supported by Canadian government will last for five years for only primary five and six pupils.

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Gender, labour and social development minister, Muluri Mukasa

The gender, labour and social development minister, Muruli Mukasa is advising parents to always take off time and speak to their children about the deadly HIV/AIDS disease if the country is to scale down on new infections among the adolescents.

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‘Progress on Women, Children and Adolescents’ health will be followed’, Rugunda said.

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The research discovered that early-age exercise in mice has positive effects on adult levels of voluntary exercise in addition to reducing body mass — results that may have relevance for the public policy debates concerning the importance of physical education for children.

According to the World Health Organisation, childhood overweight and obesity have increased dramatically since 1990. There is a need for effective interventions starting as early as infancy to reverse anticipated trends. A study done by WHO in 2010 noted that, 43 million children (35 million in developing countries) were estimated to be overweight and obese; 92 million were at risk of overweight. The worldwide prevalence of childhood overweight and obesity increased from 4.2% (95% CI: 3.2%, 5.2%) in 1990 to 6.7% (95% CI: 5.6%, 7.7%) in 2010.

Obesity in South Africa has been called the biggest challenge since HIV by The Observer. It continues to state that obesity is on the rise in poorer nations even among children; more than a quarter of girls and almost one in five boys in South Africa is overweight.

Children playing soccer

NHS UK notes that obesity is generally caused by eating too much and moving too little. “If you consume high amounts of energy from your diet, particularly from fat and sugars, but do not burn off the energy through exercise and physical activity, much of the surplus energy is then stored by the body as fat.” Theodore Garland, a professor of biology, who led the research project said “These results may have implications for the importance of regular physical education in elementary and middle schools, if kids exercise regularly through the school years, then they may be more likely to exercise as adults, which could have far-reaching positive effects on human health and well-being.”

The research was done by Theodore Garland in partnership with Wendy Acosta, Thomas H. Meek, Heidi Schutz, Elizabeth M. Dlugosz and Kim T. Vu using a grant from the National Science Foundation.  “Although the positive effect of early-life exercise lasted for only one week, it is important to note that one week in the life of a mouse is equivalent to about nine months for humans,” Garland said. “Our results suggest that any positive effects of early-life exercise on adult exercise propensity will require reinforcement and maintenance if they are to be long-lasting.”

Exercise is always good for the body and emotional wellbeing of a person; now we have science to prove it. If you did not exercise early in life, you can do so now and take the whole family with you on the ride. It is never too late to start something worthwhile.

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Police statistics shows that during the Christmas long holiday children offenders take advantage of the negligence of some parents and care takers to abuse the children.

This month alone, 3 children have reportedly been ritually sacrificed in areas of Mityana and Jinja an incident worrying the public that the habit is up again.

Kibuule however says this can be avoided if parents and the public in general remain vigilant and report any suspicious characters in the community.

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In their petition the children also want Government to ensure that all schools have facilities that promote learning for children with special needs, reduce prices for assisting devices like wheel chairs, clutches, among others so that they can benefit from formal Education and feel included.

The children’s  petition comes as the whole world  celebrates the spina bifida and hydrocephalus day, under the theme, improving the quality of life of persons with spina bifida and hydro cephalus through interdisciplinary care and support.

Spina bifida is a birth defect that involves the incomplete development of the spinal cord or its coverings while Hydrocephalus is a buildup of fluid inside the skull that leads to brain swelling.

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