16 Dec 2015

The ministry of Health (MoH) has introduced new ideology dubbed six health commandments which will be the guiding principles during the festive season and beyond.

When unveiling the six commandments at a press briefing in Gaborone, the permanent secretary in the Ministry of Health Ms Sheenaz El-Halabi said December 25 marked an important day worldwide.

“It is that time of the year when we look forward to leaving our workplaces to spend time with families for Christmas celebrations,” she said.

Ms EL-Halabi advised on the  importance of  adhering to the six health commandments during the festive season in order to stay healthy.

The first commandment is ‘thou shall avoid over eating’, which leads to overweight and obesity. 

“This will in turn lead to ill health that includes diabetes, hypertension, heart disease and cancer. In addition you tend to feel tired, lazy irritated and experience muscular and joints pain,” she said.

The second commandment is ‘thou shall wash hands in accordance to the health hygiene technique or proper hand washing.

She said consequences of not washing hands will lead to diarrhoea and food contamination through handling. She said hands must be washed with soap and water because one’s health is in the hands.

The third commandment is ‘thou shall eat safer foods to avoid food borne disease’ to which Ms El-Halabi advised that food should always be kept clean and separate raw from cooked food to avoid cross contamination.

She also stated the fourth commandment as ‘thou shall drink more water during this festive season. 

She said with this commandment, dehydration will be avoided and she also encouraged the public to stay away from excessive heat to prevent heat stroke and heat rashes for children.

Ms El-Halabi further noted the fifth commandment as ‘thou shall not abuse alcohol and drug’. “Alcohol abuse and use of other hard drugs is extremely harmful to one’s health. They lead to increased road traffic accidents, assaults and domestic violence, “she said.

She highlighted the last commandment as ‘thou shall condomise to avoid STI’s including HIV as well as unplanned pregnancy’.

She mentioned that HIV/AIDS still remained a public health concern in Botswana. She said the incidence rate was still high as well as the cost of providing treatment to those infected.

Ms El-Halabi implored all to adhere to the commandments throughout the festive period and even beyond without compromising caution. 

 

She encouraged  everyone to take good care of themselves put health first because ‘one’s health is one’s responsibility’. Ends