The Janplex Post

Obesity is a major epidermic in the world.  According to analysis by the International Obesity Taskforce (IOTF) in 2010, about 1 billion adults around the world are either overweight or obese.   In Europe, 60 per cent of adults and over 20 per cent of school aged children are estimated to be overweight or obese.  In the United States around one in four adults is estimated to be either overweight or obese.  Similar problems have also been observed in developing continents such as Africa which was formerly not plagued by obesity.  The issue that arises when discussing obesity is whether sufferers bring the problem upon themselves or whether they have little control over their problem. Before examining this issue raised by obesity it is necessary to consider what constitutes obesity.  A person is considered obese if his or her body mass index (BMI) is 30 or above.  The BMI of a person is established when the person's weight in kilograms is divided by his or her height in meters s

A core feature of western democracy is freedom of speech. People are able to express their views freely on any perceived issues affecting their community or country without any fear of intimidation or arrest. Government listens to these views and if necessary, tends to make adjustment to its policies to reflect the views. In other words freedom of speech serves as a machine of accountability for bringing people in power to account. However, there is a debate about whether the concept of freedom of speech in the West is too broad. Freedom of speech requires us to be tolerant of other people’s views. Some people might share similar views to ours but others might not. The views of these people who cannot share our views might be extreme to ours and hard to tolerate but still we must respect the views for the sake of free speech. After all if we should deny individuals who do not share our views or have views similar to us the platform to express their views, the principle of fre

High blood pressure is a major health problem around the world.   It is estimated that around 1 in every 5 adults suffer high blood pressure.   Due to the fact that there are hardly any symptoms for high blood pressure, most of these sufferers only become aware of their condition after it has reached an alarming stage.   Medication is usually the main treatment for these people whose high blood pressure is diagnosed at a late stage.   However, if high blood pressure has not resulted in irreversible damages to some of the bodily organs of the sufferer there are ways in which blood pressure can be controlled without resorting to medications.  High blood pressure can be lowered by exercise.   Sedentary lifestyle (lack of exercise) is one of the major risk factors for high blood pressure which occurs when the blood pressure readings are above 139/89 mm Hg.   Exercise makes the heart stronger and enables it to pump blood with less effort.   If the heart can pump blood with

Toothpaste is a familiar product across the world which is used for keeping the teeth clean and maintaining general oral hygiene. There are many different types of toothpaste including children’s toothpaste with less fluoride, teeth whitening toothpaste designed for individuals that like to whiten their teeth, and teeth sensitive toothpaste for people with sensitive teeth. The vast majority of us use one type of this toothpaste or another on daily basis to derive the health benefits. Whilst using the toothpaste we tend not to think about the possible dangers associated with the substance. There are a number of dangers relating to the use of toothpaste but I will only explore three of the most serious ones among them below. There are dangers of using fluoridated toothpaste. Some types of toothpaste contain fluoride which is an active ingredient for fighting tooth decay. Although a low dosage of it might not cause any immediate harm, fluoride is a toxic substance that can kill a

The two substances that come up in mind when the word “intoxication” is mentioned are alcohol and drugs.   Many of us are aware that these substances are intoxicants and abuse of them can destroy our life.   Do we know that water is an intoxicant like alcohol and drugs? Water is an intoxicant and considered to be more powerful intoxicant than alcohol and drugs.   A person can get intoxicated with alcohol or drugs for many times and still survive the experience but a person can hardly get intoxicated with water for more than once and survive the experience. There are different symptoms of water intoxication.   In adults water intoxication may be characterised by nausea, slurred speech, headaches, hallucination, seizures, coma, respiratory arrest, and death.   In babies, evidence of water intoxication can take the form of changes in the mental status of the infant such as irritability or drowsiness, and a drop in the body temperature of the infant. Water intoxication o

Our demand for fast food is on the increase as demonstrated by the number of fast-food restaurants being opened on our high streets on regular basis and the ability of these restaurants to continue to operate and make profit.    This demand stems from the fact that some of us cannot cook due to our busy lifestyle while others do not have the skills for cooking.   However, this convenience provided by fast food might be a recipe for our tendency to suffer caner. Consumption of fast-food leads to excessive intake of saturated fat and sugar into the body.   The amount of fat in a big Mac (250g) serving for example is 29g, which is about 45 per cent of the recommended daily intake of fat for an adult.   Fast-food is also accompanied by fizzy drinks which is high in sugar.   The consequence of consuming fat and sugar excessively is an increase in body weight (overweight).   Overweight is a risk factor for a number of cancer including breast cancer, kidney cancer, oesophageal can