One in Ten Children Diagnosed with ADHD
One in 10 children in America suffers from ADHD (attention-deficit/hyperactive disorder), and two-thirds of these – around 2.7 million – are taking medication, new figures reveal.
About 5.4 million American children, aged from 4 to 17 years, have some form of ADHD, according to the latest figures. This represents a 21 per cent increase over a four-year period.
The current levels could be even worse as these figures represent the situation in 2007, when the survey was carried out. If the trend has continued, 6.48 million American children have ADHD today.
The increase has happened across all socio-demographic groups, and especially among older teenagers, who have witnessed a 42 per cent rise.
Please read my article on ADHD
Prostate Cancer: Wait and See Best Approach
Men over the age of 65 who are diagnosed with localized prostate cancer and choose the conservative approach of “watchful waiting” are living longer. Opting out of undergoing more aggressive treatment is working for many. The finding comes from new research recently published in The Journal of the American Medical Association.
The study revealed that prostate cancer is being diagnosed earlier than ever before with widespread use of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing as part of patient screening. Patients diagnosed with early-stage prostate cancer are faring much better when they choose to initiate active surveillance, meaning to “watch and wait,” instead of undergoing treatment with surgery or radiation.
According to study author Dr. Grace L. Lu-Yao, an associate professor of medicine at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, “The most important message is that the long-term outcome for patients who don’t have surgery or radiation is pretty good.”
Although PSA testing has become a standard for prostate cancer screening due to its proven success in early-stage cancers detection, critics argue that the tool has led to unnecessary treatment for many men, while saving few lives.
Type II Diabetes on The Rise
Over 19 million Americans suffer with type 2-diabetes. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) relates that the incidence of type 2 diabetes (formerly known as adult-onset diabetes) has risen by 33 percent in the past decade and three out of every fifty American adults currently have this diet-related condition. It’s estimated that by the year 2010, some 40 percent of Americans 65 or older will have adult-onset diabetes. Complications related to diabetes are the sixth leading cause of death in the United States. Long-term outcome for those with the disease isn’t good.
Click here to Read my entire article on how to prevent and reverse type
II diabetes.
“Our lives are not determined by what happens to us, but how we react to what happens; not by what life brings us, but by the attitude we bring to life. A positive attitude causes a chain reaction of positive thoughts, events and outcomes. It is a catalyst a spark that creates extraordinary results.” — UNKNOWN
Kiva – Changing the World, One Small Loan At a Time
Kiva empowers individuals to lend to an entrepreneur across the globe. By combining microfinance with the internet, Kiva is creating a global community of people connected through lending. Kiva’s mission is to connect people, through lending, for the sake of alleviating poverty.
Kiva was born of the following beliefs:
People are by nature generous, and will help others if given the opportunity to do so in a transparent, accountable way. The poor are highly motivated and can be very successful when given an opportunity. By connecting people we can create relationships beyond financial transactions, and build a global community expressing support and encouragement of one another.
Kiva promotes:
Dignity: Kiva encourages partnership relationships as opposed to benefactor relationships. Partnership relationships are characterized by mutual dignity and respect. Accountability: Loans encourage more accountability than donations where repayment is not expected. Transparency: The Kiva website is an open platform where communication can flow freely around the world. As of November 2009, Kiva has facilitated over $100 million in loans.
- Total value of all loans made through Kiva: $173,532,575
- Number of Kiva Users: 791,511
- Number of Kiva Users who have funded a loan: 500,668
- Number of countries represented by Kiva Lenders: 208
- Number of entrepreneurs that have received a loan through Kiva: 451,853
- Number of loans that have been funded through Kiva: 237,199
- Percentage of Kiva loans which have been made to women entrepreneurs: 81.80%
- Number of Kiva Field Partners (microfinance institutions Kiva partners with): 121
- Number of countries Kiva Field Partners are located in: 54
- Current repayment rate (all partners): 98.99%
- Average loan size (This is the average amount loaned to an individual Kiva Entrepreneur. Some loans – group loans – are divided between a group of borrowers.): $381.02
- Average total amount loaned per Kiva Lender (includes reloaned funds): $219.34
- Average number of loans per Kiva Lender: 6.49
Yenku’s Story
Yenku nearly didn’t survive May 6, 1998. On that day a rebel army, led by the Revolutionary United Front (RUF), invaded his village of Kondembaya in northern Sierra Leone, and cut off the hands of many of the villagers, including his own. According to the rebel soldiers, this was punishment for using their hands to vote for Sierra Leone’s leader, against whom they were fighting.
Yenku’s father used the family savings to hire a motorbike to take Yenku for treatment in a hospital hours away in the country’s capital city, Freetown. It took 3 days to find a motorbike they could use, and for these three days Yenku waited without any medical treatment.
Due to the treatment he received at a hospital in the nearest city, Yenku eventually recovered from the physical wounds. In other ways, however, his life was destroyed. He was incapable of taking care of himself and eventually resorted to begging in the streets of Sierra Leone. At about 21 years old, Yenku’s daily life had been reduced to asking for handouts, with little hope of change, little chance for something better.
Yenku Sesay would still be begging today, had he not been approached by Salone Microfinance Trust (SMT), in 2006, about taking out a group loan with four other local borrowers. No other institutions were even willing to consider Yenku for credit because of his amputee status. However, through lengthy discussions with Yenku, SMT saw in Yenku natural business skills and a drive to be self-reliant. He was approved for 300,000 Leones from SMT, the equivalent of approximately $100 USD.
Yenku used this money to develop a modest retail business. At first the business was no more than Yenku selling small items in the street, such as packaged biscuits, soaps, and other sundries. Over the past two years, by reinvesting the profits and building his credit with SMT, Yenku’s business has grown to become a small shop selling an assortment of clothing, shoes, drinks, and other packaged food products.
Yenku dedicated himself to his business, and every month he made his repayments on time and often early. With the profits from his retail business, Yenku has recently expanded into livestock and agriculture. The result is that Yenku is now self-reliant. Instead of being a burden to his family or the community, Yenku has become a provider. He is able to support his family. He can feed and clothe his three children. He sends both of his school-age children to primary school, and he even pays for his younger brother’s education.
Take time to learn more about Kiva and its mission – www.kiva.org
Top 10 Most Polluted Cities
According to the American Lung Association’s annual State of the Air report, nine of the top twelve most ozone-polluted cities reside in the Golden State. In fact, it is home to 12 of the top 25. For more than a decade, the American Lung Association has been publishing their annual report, a study that examines the ozone and levels of particle pollution in metropolitan cities and surrounding counties throughout the United States. Studying the air quality requires meticulous monitoring during various 24-hour periods during the year to determine an annual average.
The majority of the U.S. population—58 percent—live among pollution levels that “are often too dangerous to breathe” and 28.9 million Americans live in counties where the outdoor air failed all three tests covered in the State of the Air report. These types of pollution affect millions of people with asthma, chronic bronchitis, emphysema, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes, not to mention children
and senior citizens who are more susceptible to contracting diseases and experiencing ill effects of pollution.
The most widespread kinds of air pollution are ozone (smog) and particle pollution (soot). Breathing either can harm your body and risk your life. When inhaled, ozone irritates the lungs, resulting in something like a bad sunburn. Breathing in particle pollution can increase the risk of early death, heart attacks, strokes and emergency room visits.
On a map pinpointing the worst offenders, America’s heartland, as well as New England, are relatively unscathed and pollution-free. Meanwhile, western, eastern and southern states are littered air pollution.
Long-term, Year-round Particle Pollution
#1: Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ #2: Bakersfield, CA #3: Los Angeles-Long Beach-Riverside, CA #4: Visalia-Porterville, CA #5: Pittsburgh-New Castle, PA #6: Fresno-Madera, CA #7: Birmingham-Hoover-Cullman, AL #8: Hanford-Corcoran, CA #9: Cincinnati-Middletown-Wilmington, OH-KY-IN #10: St. Louis-St. Charles-Farmington, MO-IL #11: Charleston, WV #12: Detroit-Warren-Flint, MI #13: Weirton-Steubenville, WV-OH
Short-term Particle Pollution
#1: Bakersfield, CA#2: Fresno-Madera, CA#3: Pittsburgh-New Castle, PA#4: Los Angeles-Long Beach-Riverside, CA#5: Birmingham-Hoover-Cullman, AL#6: Sacramento-Arden-Arcade-Yuba City, CA-NV#7: Salt Lake City-Ogden-Clearfield, UT#8: Visalia-Porterville, CA#9: Modesto, CA#10: Hanford-Corcoran, CA#11: Merced, CA#12: Philadelphia-Camden-Vineland, PA-NJ-DE-MD