World's seven billionth human will be born tomorrow

By Nilma DOLE

Our world's population is growing at an alarming rate and it is a big issue. You might be just one in seven billion and you might feel a small statistic but the change that you can make is big. By making decisions to reproduce responsibly and ensuring you are not a burden to the economy and can live sustainably, you're contributing to the difference that one person in a seven billion world population can make.

The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) launched the '7 billion' campaign to build global awareness around the opportunities and challenges associated with a world of seven billion people. Themes will be revolved around creating awareness on key issues such as poverty and inequality, women and girls empowerment, reproductive health and rights, the youth, the ageing population, environment and urbanisation.

UNFPA supports countries in using population data for policies and programs to reduce poverty and to ensure that every pregnancy is wanted, every birth is safe, every young person is free of HIV/AIDS, and every girl and woman is treated with dignity and respect.

When the world's population reaches seven billion tomorrow, this milestone in human history will portray both an achievement and a challenge. According to the UNFPA, it will have an impact on every single person on the planet as a world of seven billion has implications for sustainability, urbanisation, access to health services and youth empowerment - however, it also offers a rare call-to-action opportunity to renew global commitment for a healthy and sustainable world.

Sri Lanka, in comparison to its South Asian counterparts, has done well for itself, already achieving Millennium Development Goals and developing sustainably. For the first time in Sri Lanka's history, this year marks that a majority of our population are young people. "Adolescents and youth comprise 26 percent of Sri Lanka's population," said Lene Christiansen, Country Representative of UNFPA in Sri Lanka. Even though the unemployment rate was up to 30.8 percent in 2005, today that rate has dropped with more opportunities for youth. According to the UNFPA, the average age of marriage is 25 years for women and 27 years for men with pre-marital sex becoming increasingly common. However, reproductive health education focuses on married couples and neglects adolescents because of taboo and social stigma pertaining to sex. "Of the 5.6 million young people in Sri Lanka, four million are school-going and it is estimated that 50,000 are enrolled in higher education," said the representative. It was mentioned that adolescents, inluding teenaged girls, face lower levels of gender discrimination at home and school compared to adolescents in the rest of South Asia.

Sri Lanka is a fitting example for loving and valueing the girl child but opportunities are still limited after they are educated. The UNFPA said that the number of unemployed women with higher education qualifications is double or more than that of men. The Nuwara Eliya and Badulla districts have a higher proportion of female labour force due to the large number of female labourers in the plantation sector.Even though Sri Lanka had the world's first woman prime minister in the modern world in 1960, there are only 13 women members of parliament of a total of 225 parliamentarians today. Sri Lanka has a long way to go in giving women the right opportunities later in comparison to early education, but the future looks positive.

In terms of education and statistics on reproductive health, knowledge of family planning is widespread in Sri Lanka. "The national rate of contraceptive use has also increased from 61.7 to 68.4 from 1987 to 2007," said the representative. However, contraceptive use rates vary on a district level, with the rate being low in Batticaloa at 34.5 percent and high in Polonnaruwa at 77.8 percent. About 99 percent of births are attended by skilled personnel making Sri Lanka the country with the lowest maternal mortality rate in South Asia (43 deaths per 100,000 live births). The infant mortality ratio (deaths per 1000 live births has decreased from 25 in 1990-1995 to 11 in 2005-2008).

The UNFPA states that there are still significant regional disparities in the maternal mortality ratio, namely in the Kilinochchi and Nuwara Eliya districts. Health experts say that even though AIDS and HIV awareness is done in schools, reproduction is a subject that is not broached upon directly. In this way, sexual health still remains a grey area and this has led to misconceptions on premarital sex. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), sexually-transmitted diseases are also a public health concern in Sri Lanka with estimates of 60,000 new cases estimated every year.

But even though unplanned pregnancies might be an issue, Sri Lanka's ageing population is one of the fastest in the region. Presently, 10 percent of the population is over the age of 60 years. By 2025, the elderly will account for 20 percent of the population with women outnumbering men.With a larger ageing population, Sri Lanka has to face age-related issues in health services, long-term care, living arrangements, income and social security protection against abuse and special attention in emergencies. Hambantota records the highest life expectancy at birth at 79.6 years while the lowest life expectancy rate was recorded for Colombo district and the northern province at 66.9 years.Whatever the situation, where population is concerned, Sri Lanka is way ahead of our South Asian counterparts but unlike countries such as India which might have the space to accommodate their population, Sri Lanka doesn't. Being an island nation, it is just as well we keep our population to an optimum and reproduce responsibly.

Moreover, Sri Lanka's population will head to 22 million in about 25 years with the elderly making a considerable percentage.

References: www.srilanka.unfpa.org and www.7billionactions.org

Ageing gracefully

Sri Lanka's senior citizen population has grown ten-fold and people are living longer than we could have ever imagined. Part of the reason is the fact that we have efficient health services and the high literacy and education of women.

Policy recommendations: For countering labour market contraction Improving LFPR (Labour Force Pension Retire-ment) of old people Reducing labour market rigidities that force retire-ment Increase LFP of women (family friendly policies, part-time work)n Changing attitudes of employers (awareness pro grams) Improving the productivity of the labour force Improving skills of old workers (investments in life long leaning) Improving Labour Market flexibility (formalisation and better mobility) Improving health outcomes of informal sector workers For improving the welfare of old people Extend the coverage of old age income support

Last year, Sri Lankans in the 60 plus population amounted to 12 percent of our total population and it is estimated to grow to 29 percent by 2050.

According to the United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division, Sri Lanka's fertility rates have gone down from 2.1 percent in 1994 but life expectancy has increased with men living up to 69 years and women living more than men at the age of 77 years.

While birth control is at an all-time high, this means that longevity has increased. In a couple of decades, the share of 60 plus population in Sri Lanka will be as much as that in Europe or Japan. A higher share of 60 plus population brings in many challenges to the economy and this is why addressing the ageing population issues is imperative.

According to a World Bank study, in 2006, 2.1 million (10.6 percent) of the population were over the age of 60 years. A larger proportion of women are 60 plus, and the percentage of women in the population increases with age. Due to higher life expectancy of women, a large proportion of elderly women are widowed with only six percent of widowed women who live alone.

About 80 percent of widowed women live with their children and a small percentage live in communal homes. Even though Sri Lanka is still a lower middle income country, there is a considerable emphasis on health, women's health and educating the girl child. In Sri Lanka, women seeking healthcare is much more than men as they know of the services and ensure that they always get themselves checked.

Health professionals always ensure that young girls, from the time of immunisation to pregnancy and even after childbirth, have close ties to the midwife, doctors and medical professionals as they seek out health services.

This has led to the increase in life expectancy and longevity in women as opposed to men. Men, on the other hand, dislike going to the doctor and more often than not, do not get themselves checked. Likewise, it has contributed to women living longer than men.

The challenges for Sri Lanka pertaining to its elderly population is that old-age pension schemes do not cover a major part of the population and there are hardly any benefits to offering them a better retirement lifestyle. Health care systems have yet to develop and offer comprehensive care programs for the elderly which goes into long-term care. According to Nisha Arunatilake of the Institute of Policy Studies, health systems are not ready to address the needs of old people. "Long-term care facilities are not available or if they are available, they are expensive and old age income support for the elderly is limited," she said at a Sanasa forum discussion.

Moreover, Sri Lanka does not have a universal pension scheme that provides minimum assistance to old people such as South Africa. "Old people will have to be either dependent on their children or social assistance and most existing contributory schemes provide inadequate income support with a low coverage," she said.

Unfortunately, with migration, having less children and rise in cost of living is affecting the traditional family support system where monetary and financial implications are taking its toll on ethics. "In an age where children took care of their parents unconditionally even after they got married, the problem arises with children leaving the country for greener pastures and less children means a sole breadwinner's salary isn't enough to support their family which extends to their parents. So it's quite an issue when it comes to taking care of the elderly," said the expert.

Hence, more people will need social assistance in the future but Sri Lanka does not have a cash transfer program specifically for the old.

A broader income support scheme for the elderly population such as the Samurdhi provides some assistance but it doesn't tackle the problem fully.

However, given that 80 percent of the elderly are living with children, there are benefits to this approach but there are also arguments for targeting the old. In 2008, about 23 percent of the 65 plus population were shown to benefit from Samurdhi but the issue was that some rich households also got assistance where the family members were working. This goes to show that the deserving people are not getting the right assistance even though they might qualify. A large proportion, 70 percent in poorest quintile, do not receive Samurdhi with benefits being very low.

There is some minimum income provision for the old people through Samurdhi schemes but this is still inconsistent.

"At the moment, there are some pension schemes but it depends on what is best for every individual," said Arunatilaka. Only 28 percent of employees are covered by the above schemes with proposals for extending coverage underway but nothing has been implemented as yet. According to Arunatilaka, pension schemes are not adequate and does not cover a large part of the population as traditional family support is under stress. Economic reasons are the most compelling reason, for part-time economic participation.

Arunatilaka said that the elderly are compelled either rely on savings, informal sources of support or employment (in informal sector mainly) to supplement income, when they are old but it isn't sure how it would tally. Health was the main reason for retirement and reaching the mandatory retirement age for both genders. Employees who have been in the formal sector as regular white-collar employees are most likely to be completely retired in their elderly years.

Overall, while employment would keep the elderly going, there needs to be more policy changes in helping them age gracefully and help them have a good pension scheme in place so that they can retire without any problems.

References courtesy Institute of Policy Studies

-N.D.

Good immune system, vital for health

by Dinukshi PERERA

Even though mothers today race against time juggling both house and office work, they never forget to look into their child's nutrition because of the bond that exists between a mother and child.However, mothers should not focus on satisfying a hungry child with just any meal but with meals containing good nutritional values.

According to doctors' opinion, a balanced diet is important not only for nutrition but also for the proper functioning of the immune system. If the immune system is working well it means that the child is growing healthy and strong.

A well functioning immune system ensures that the child does not fall victim to diseases unduly.

To define immunisation: it is the means by which a disease-causing germ is blocked from entering the body, thus preventing the spread of disease in the body. The immune system is complex, and when a disease-causing germ enters the body different controls come into play in the system. Skin, digestive tract and even tears can be cited as appropriate examples for these.There are specialised controls in place to manage all kinds of germs that may find their way into the body. Along with these, the white blood cells, lymphocytes, lymph nodes, bone marrow,spleen and digestive tract are extremely important for the proper functioning of the immune system.

The food a child consumes, too, can affect the performance of the immune system. The digestive tract is a major portal of entry for disease causing germs in a child's body.

If disease causing bacteria happen to enter along with the food consumed, the ultimate result would vary from vomiting to illnesses like diarrhea. These can be prevented by adopting a healthy nutrition plan that will lead to a well-functioning immune system.

While the immunity needed for the digestive tract begins at the mouth, salivary glands and the stomach acid known as hydrochloric acid, are responsible for destroying many bacteria. In addition, the germs that enter the body through the digestive tract are prevented from venturing further by the help of the mucous membrane.

These bacteria too are successfully destroyed bymucus in the mucous membrane as well as white blood cells, lymph nodes, lymph system and chemicals in the stomach.Just as the food we consume affect the immune system, good bacteria in the small and large intestines also influence the system. These bacteria while aiding the immune system immenselydo not cause diseases.

In fact they enable the development of the immune system and digestion; aiding also the production of vitamins in the body. The good bacteria help in fighting bad bacteria and keep the gut immunity in perfect balance. In this manner bad bacteria is destroyed and germs that dwell in the gut are controlled.

They also destroy possible environments bad bacteria may find livable, by producing various chemicals.Today it has become important that children receive a good food supplement packed with Probiotics.

These probiotics contain the much needed good bacteria which ultimately improves gut immunity. This has already been proven in medical research.As any loving parent that cares for their child's well-being: by including probiotics supplements in 1 out of 3 meals for your child you will ensure good growth and health for your child.

Compiled based on the information provided by Dr. J. V. Sanjeewa Aryasingha, Consultant - Gastroenterologist

DNA and maintaining youthful looks

Latest research into maintaining youthful looks points in the direction of our DNA. According to expert opinion, exercising our DNA enables us to stay younger, longer. They maintain that the strands of DNA in our bodies are protected by telomeres, which work like plastic ends on shoelaces, slowing down their wear and tear.

Telomeres play an important role in protecting our chromosomes from critical damage. The shortening of the telomere disrupts vital cellular function and promotes the previously seemingly inevitable onset of aging and various diseases, including cancer and Alzheimer's.

Britain's Daily Mail quoted Dr Dave Woynarowski, Chief Medical Education Officer of T.A. Sciences, on the research that confirms telomeres can slow down and protect the strands of DNA; which in turn reduces the risk of age related diseases. He describes ageing as a disease, "As yet we can't cure it, but we can already slow it down far more dramatically than most people realise," he told the newspaper.

Factors such as fast food, stress, lack of exercise and generally a faster paced life have all been linked to accelerating the ageing process. However including certain vitamins and minerals in the diet, is said to slow this process down.

Dr Dave Woynarowski goes on to suggest that the Omega-3 found in Cod Liver Oil can help protect against cellular ageing by slowing down the rate at which these telomeres shorten. The research indicated that higher levels of Omega-3 shielded the DNA contained within the telomeres, helping protect against inflammation and other ageing processes.

Omega-3 is regarded as 'essential' as it cannot be produced by the body and can therefore only be obtained through the diet. For many, it is not always possible to include oily fish in the daily diet; thankfully there are easier ways of ensuring we achieve the levels of Omega-3 in the form of Cod Liver Oil which is a rich natural source."In Sri Lanka, we have always trusted and known Cod Liver Oil for generations" says Dr Mrs. B.H Maya S. de Silva