Health

By Sarah Johnson Every Monday and Tuesday morning, Bosede Oluwaokere, 48, wakes up at home in Ilorin city in west Nigeria, gets dressed and walks to a nearby stream. She sits beneath a tree and pulls her skirt up around her thighs. For the next six hours she stays in the same spot waiting for a specific type of fly to land on her, so she can catch it using a small plastic tube. Oluwaokere is a human flycatcher – or human landing catch, as the World Health Organization (WHO) terms it – which is considered the “gold standard” for…

By Annabel Bourne While it is tempting to take the lift or escalator rather than use the stairs, even scaling just a few flights a day could give your health and mind a boost. According to research, climbing stairs can have surprising benefits for both your physical health and your brain without needing to hurtle up two steps at a time or break records. Climbing stairs has been found to improve balance and reduce the risk of falling for older people and improve their lower body strength. Other studies also find that climbing a couple of flights of stairs can…

From John Ekah, Gusau Milk of human kindness flowed freely from the wife of Zamfara State Governor, Hajiya Huriyya Dauda Lawal, as she donated 28 Bajaj motorcycles and two Toyota Hillux vehicles for use by state supervisors of Tuberculosis (TB) and Human immuno-deficiency Virus (HIV) programs in the state. Also to deploy the vehicles are assistant supervisors and ward program officers. She reiterated that all forms of treatment for eradication of TB/HIV is free of cost. Hajiya Lawal spoke as she received an Award of Excellence to champion the cause of the program in the state. The event took place…

Your reaction times can reveal a surprising amount about what's going on inside your body, from your brain health to your risk of an early death. Of the course of our lifetimes, our reaction times will slowly wane. It's one of the reasons why athletic performance tends to drop off from our 30s onwards. Scientists are finding that being able to maintain an average reaction speed can be a key indicator that our brain is still in good working order, even into our latter decades. But that isn't all they can reveal. From your heart health to your overall risk…

By Okerafor Athanasius, Jalingo President Bola Tinubu's wife, Senator Oluremi, has flagged off a health advocacy campaign tagged 'Free to Shine Campaign' in Taraba State, North-East Nigeria. Performing the ceremony at the gym hall of the Jolly Nyame stadium in Jalingo,the state capital, Mrs Tinubu said the campaign encapsulated the elimination of mother-to-child human immuno-deficiency virus (HIV) transmission and treatment of children born with HIV/AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome). According to the Nigeria First Lady, the campaign is a triple elimination of HIV/AIDS, Syphilis and Hepatitis among youths and women of reproductive age. Explaining that the campaign will cover the…

Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) again reaped huge from its investment in medical excellence as one of its own, Dr. Yibala Akpama Edimek, emerged Overall Best Candidate in the Fellowship Examination of Faculty of Obstetrics and Gynaecology of the highly prestigious West African College of Surgeons (WACS). The extraordinary achievement is a testament to what the organizers described as the punctilious and rigorous training programme of FCTA's Hospitals Residency Training Scheme, which continues to produce world-class specialists that distinguish themselves both within and beyond Nigeria. The WACS is a globally-acclaimed professional body dedicated to advancing surgical education, training, and research…

By Prosper Okoye Civil society organisations (CSOs) have urged the government to provide essential infrastructure and other interventions in Kwoyi, a community in Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC), Federal Capital Territory (FCT). The call was made on Saturday, February 22, during a medical and humanitarian outreach organised by the Aisha Achimugu Foundation (AAF), YALI Network Abuja, Timawale Inclusive Health Foundation, and Celade Community and Empowerment Initiative in the community. According to AAF’s Programme Director, Kiema Ogunlana, Kwoyi’s territorial nature and remoteness make it a hard-to-reach community, which may explain the lack of attention it receives in terms of development. “There…