Sleep Disorders and Good Health
Recently, one of the renowned neurologists at the College of Medicine, Lagos University Teaching Hospital, LUTH, Professor Njideka Okubadeju warned Nigerians about some adverse health conditions resulting from inadequate sleep. In a lecture: Good Sleep, Healthy Ageing at the 3rd Edition of World Sleep Day, she further affirmed that sleep and good health are closely related.
According to the associate professor, the consequences of lack of proper sleep are devastating and spanned poor memory recall, decreased work productivity, increased risk for hypertension and diabetes, reduced immunity and life span among others. To circumvent the impasse, there must be daily sleep between 14 and 15 hours for infants, 12 and 14 for children and 7 and 9 hours for adults.
As the professor expertly observed, the dictates of modern living have drastically reduced the number of hours people devote to sleep. For this reason, different forms of sleep disorders are at the core of today’s various health problems. Many night duty workers sleep only at day time whereas it is widely believed that day sleep falls short of night sleep in terms of relaxation, recuperation or other beneficial side effects.
Indeed, the neurologist has played up one of the most sensitive areas of national development, quackery in the guise of spiritual intervention in the health sector. The outcome being that medical institutions now complete with spiritual churches or prayer houses in the areas of effective health care delivery. Almost always, the latter gets the upper hand anchoring their performance on the unlimited healing powers of the Omnipotent God.
Modern adverse health conditions resulting from insufficient night sleep ought to be communicated in strong terms to some religious organizations notably the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria, PFN. It organizes night vigils and other nocturnal religious activities two or three times a week. Other religious bodies outside the PFN fold insist sweepingly that night hours are more sacred and ideal for communication with the Supreme God if one is to harvest in abundance divine intervention and blessings.
The Sabbatarians and other Sabbath (Saturday) worshippers believe much the same way and carry out series of night activities during the night rather than the day hours. The practice is also the preserve of prayer houses many of which have successfully usurped the functions of hospitals up to the apex health institutions like university teaching hospitals. In some extreme cases, religions organizations in the PFN family designate some nights as spiritual hospital were people are either healed or cured of their ailments.
The new energetic director-general of Imo State Orientation Agency, ISOA, Prince Ford Ozumba should apply his Midas Touch to the sector and sanitize the practice. From the much he had done so far, he is capable.
Wake Up, OWMC
Sir, it is hard to believe that after two years of a corrective regime in Imo State, the Rescue Mission is yet to impact more positively on the use of the environment.
Imolites, particularly the upper class at night hours still urinate and defeacate like animals.
The descent to the animal level is because of the non-provision of public toilets and urinaries in parts of Owerri urban.
For the younger ones, it is possible to endure the discharge of these human wastes for nearly a day. But it is not so with adults. Biologically, the elderly ones must have developed weak or diseased viscera and so cannot withstand the elimination of either urine or faeces without being embarrassed publicly.
I am therefore appealing to the driver of the Rescue Mission, Governor Owelle Rochas Okorocha to ensure that only resourceful and visionary leaders smell public offices. One is aware that the governor cannot be everywhere at the same time to ensure that things are properly done, yet he is being called upon because the officers cannot ignore his directives.
Users of the public toilet and urinary facilities will be willing to pay for the services as this will offset the cost of their maintenance and upkeep.
With no industries of note in the municipality, if properly handled, the project will generate job and pay the attendants stipends. Please, Mr. SOLAD of Owerri Municipal Council embark on this project and posterity will remember and reward you. Elderly men and women when so pressed become fractious and less human. What is more, Owerri Landlords and tenants are not so generous with their toilets.
No one enjoys seeing his father pulling out his manhood along the road side to urinate. Or a mother prostrating by the road side for the same purpose. In either case, the haste to ease oneself quickly and limit the scope of embarrassment causes urine to spray on the inner wears. This is can be stopped.
Johnson Ibeneme
Owerri Urban
