How Clean is Your Dishwasher?

 

 

Think your dishwasher gets a good clean every time you use it? Think again! You may be horrified to hear researchers have discovered that over 60 per cent of dishwashers contain potentially harmful fungi that could be responsible for problems such as lung illnesses and skin infections. The findings, which were published in the journal Medical Mycology, showed that the warm, damp conditions within dishwashers provide the ideal habitat for certain fungi to thrive. Some fungi even love the salty environment created by dishwasher salt.

 

So how can you prevent potentially harmful fungi from spreading through your dishwasher? The trick is to keep it clean and dry between washes. Even if your dishwasher looks clean, tiny food particles, grease and soap scum can all accumulate over time.

 

It is recommended that you clean your dishwasher whilst it is empty. The racks should be removed and washed in hot water on a monthly basis to keep them in tip top condition. The inside of the dishwasher should also be wiped down and allowed to dry thoroughly. A particular spot to keep an eye on is the door where fungi can rapidly breed within the rubber seal. And remember to check your dishwasher filter regularly for any items which may be clogging it. Refer to your dishwasher’s manual for precise instructions on how to clean it.

 

Keeping your dishwasher clean will also help it run more efficiently and help prevent bacteria and germs from spreading.

 

For more information on kitchen hygiene, visit: http://www.hygienecouncil.org/

Categories: dishwasher, fungi, harmful, harmful fungi, nbsp, potentially harmful, prevent

Could 3D Printers Be As Bad For You As Cigarette Smoke?

When you think about the environmental hazards in today’s world, you probably think about things such as smoking, chemical fumes, pollution and emissions from vehicles. The threat that a simple 3D printer could have on your wellbeing is probably not something that crosses your mind in the slightest.

 

It should, though, as new research has shown that using a 3D printer in your home could be more hazardous for your wellness than smoking.

 

This startling new research from the Illinois Institute of Technology has warned consumers that they should not use these 3D printers in any part of the home that is not extremely well ventilated. This is the first study that has been carried out into the effects of 3D printers. These printers are supposed to be environmentally friendly as they melt down common plastics and reform them into other items, such as toys, but the new research has revealed that during the process they fire off harmful ultrafine particles (UFPs) into the atmosphere of your home. It was found during the study that when the printers create a plastic item, the emission rates go up to around 200 billion UFPs per minute, and this is roughly the equivalent of smoking a cigarette in an unventilated room, or using a gas stove in a room that has no ventilation at all.

 

The UFPs that are released during the process can be extremely harmful to the health, as they are normally deposited straight into the pulmonary and alveolar regions of the lungs, as well as in the airways and in the head. They can even enter the brain through the olfactory nerves in the eyes, and the inhalation of the harmful particles can cause all kinds of devastating effects, such as stroke, shortness of breath, cardiac arrest and even sudden death.

Categories: 3d, 3d printer, 3d printers, harmful, Home, printer, printers, Research, Smoking, Toxin

How Do We Tackle Harmful Sexual Behaviour in Children?

Children who exhibit problematic sexual behaviour in Bristol and South Gloucestershire are being targeted by a new £450,000 specialist treatment programme. Working with children between the ages of eight and 12, the programme will seek to improve their sexual health, and, as a result, the wellbeing of others whom these children could be harmful towards.

The North Bristol NHS Trust and Barnardo’s South West are launching the extended Be Safe Children’s Service, which has received £444,500 from the Big Lottery Realising Ambition fund to set up the programme. The sexually harmful behaviour of children can be directed towards other children and their parents or caregivers, often because the children have been the victim of abuse themselves.

For the last five years, the Be Safe Service has been delivering services to teenagers with concerning sexual behaviour and their families, but now the new funding has enabled the service to launch an intervention programme to work with younger children. According to Stephen Barry, a specialist clinician for the Be Safe Service, there is a significant gap in service for this age group, and the new service could really meet that need.

He commented, ‘We know that children who behave in a sexually harmful way towards other children are often victims of abuse themselves. This could be sexual, physical, emotional abuse, exposure to domestic abuse and/or neglect – although this is not always the case. It is important therefore that we work in partnership with other organisations to reach some of the most troubled young people in the community, identify harmful behaviour and provide the support and treatment needed to deal with it at an early stage’

The Oklahoma University Health Sciences Centre in America developed the programme, which works by providing cognitive behavioural and psychological treatment and support, in the hopes eliminating or reducing problematic sexual behaviour in children. In the UK, the programme is being run as part of the Children’s Community Health Partnership.

Annie Hudson, Bristol City Council strategic director for children and young people, noted, ‘Be Safe is a tried and trusted service for professionals who work with children to make referrals when young people show worrying sexual behaviour. By extending the service to younger children we now have greater opportunities to tackle the issue early in life to help prevent problems later on.’

Google+
How Do We Tackle Harmful Sexual Behaviour in Children?

Categories: harmful, sexual behaviour, tackle

Could Calcium Supplements be Doing More Harm than Good?

Calcium supplements are routinely prescribed to postmenopausal women, as their wellbeing is at risk of osteoporosis, a debilitating brittle bone condition. However, a study has found that for these women, stronger bones may come at a cost, and the organ that’s paying the price? Your heart.

Though the mineral supplement can be easily attained from your local pharmacy or health shops, the Swedish researchers warn that taking them puts you at significant risk of heart disease. According to study leader Professor Karl Michaelsson, ‘most people in the UK’ do not need the pills, but ‘those who have low calcium intakes perhaps should take them, maybe if they do not take dairy products.’ However, if you do eat a bit of dairy here and there, then boning up on calcium could affect your heart wellness.

Published in the British Medical Journal, the results of the study indicate that women over 50 who take calcium are twice more likely to die from heart disease than those who do not. The researchers also found that, on top of increasing your risk of having cardiovascular disease, stroke and heart attacks, if you take calcium supplements you could actually increase your risk of bone fractures. This was based on a 19-year study, carried out at the University of Uppsala, which monitored the calcium intake of over 61,000 women born between 1914 and 1940.

It was discovered that the calcium intake of the majority of women who died from heart and cardiovascular disease was far above average, and those with a calcium intake of 1,400mg a day were at the highest risk of cardiovascular or heart disease. According to Professor Michaelsson, it is estimated that half of middle-aged and older women in Britain are taking calcium supplements, even though they don’t need to. ‘Those who eat a little cheese or yoghurt simply don’t need supplements,’ he said. ‘In fact this study shows they could have very serious underlining health implications.’

Maureen Talbot, of the British Heart Foundation, commented, ‘This research does not prove that long-term calcium intake directly contributes to the onset of cardiovascular disease in women. However, the link does warrant more research to establish if calcium intake can directly cause heart problems.’ Claire Bowring, medical policy manager for the National Osteoporosis Society, added ‘We would encourage people to look at their diet first before taking supplements.’ You can attain calcium from foods such as dairy products, leafy green vegetables and certain tinned fish.

Google+
Could Calcium Supplements be Doing More Harm than Good?

Categories: calcuim, good, harm, harmful