Four Major Diseases linked to smoking

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2021), Cigarette smoking damages almost every organ in the body, leading to numerous diseases and overall health decline. In the United States, smoking is responsible for over 480,000 deaths each year, nearly one in five deaths. For women, smoking can make it more difficult to conceive and can adversely affect a baby’s health before and after birth. In men, smoking can reduce sperm quality, decreasing fertility and increasing the risk of congenital disabilities and miscarriage. Smoking also harms oral health, potentially leading to tooth loss. Moreover, it increases the risk of cataracts, which cloud the eye’s lens and impair vision. It can cause age-related macular degeneration (AMD), damaging a small spot near the retina’s center needed for central vision. Additionally, smoking is a risk factor for type 2 diabetes mellitus and can complicate its management, with active smokers having a 30-40% higher risk of developing diabetes compared to nonsmokers.

The four major diseases linked to smoking are

• Cardiovascular Diseases
  • Increased mortality rates due to smoking.
  • Elevated risk of ischemic heart diseases.
• Respiratory Conditions
  • Smoking is a primary cause of chronic respiratory deaths.
  • Increased risk of respiratory diseases and tuberculosis.
• Stroke
  • A Study reports a Positive correlation between smoking prevalence and stroke-related deaths.
• Lung Cancer
  • Study reports there is a higher likelihood of lung cancer with increased daily cigarette consumption.
    Strategies for Improving Sleep Quality

    Sleep is essential for the health and well-being of children, adolescents, and adults. Quality sleep supports emotional well-being, metabolic health, cognitive function, mental health, and cardiovascular and cerebrovascular health. Additionally, getting sufficient, high-quality sleep helps reduce the risk of fatigue-related accidents and injuries, such as motor vehicle accidents and workplace incidents.

    Recommended Sleep Duration

    The American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) and the Sleep Research Society (SRS) recommend that adults aim for at least 7 hours of sleep each night to promote optimal health. Similarly, the National Sleep Foundation (NSF) advises adults to get 7 to 9 hours of sleep per night, with older adults requiring 7 to 8 hours.

    Prevalence of Sleep Disorders and Mental Health Impacts

    About one-third of the population experiences insomnia symptoms, such as difficulty falling or staying asleep. Additionally, 4% to 26% of individuals report excessive sleepiness, and 2% to 4% have obstructive sleep apnea. Insomnia is associated with a significantly increased likelihood of mental health issues; individuals with insomnia are 10 times more likely to experience clinically significant depression and 17 times more likely to experience anxiety compared to those without insomnia. Poor sleep is also linked to post-traumatic stress, eating disorders, and psychosis spectrum experiences, such as delusions and hallucinations.

    Improving sleep Quality

    Improving sleep quality benefits mental health, and research reports that sleep plays a causal role in mental health challenges. Better sleep positively affects future mental health, even those without clinical symptoms.

    Strategies for Improving Sleep Quality

    • Creating a relaxing sleep environment
    • Limiting daytime naps
    • Managing stress and worries
    • Being mindful of food and drink choices
    • Sticking to a consistent sleep schedule
    • Incorporating physical activity into daily routines.

    Successful interventions for managing or reducing effects of Postpartum depression (PPD)

    Postpartum depression (PPD) presents a significant public health concern, affecting not only the physical and mental well-being of mothers but also that of their infants. Research suggests that approximately 13 million women worldwide are diagnosed with PPD annually (Xu et al., 2023). Mild depressive symptoms are experienced by around 50% to 75% of mothers, with 10% to 15% developing postpartum depression within the first week after childbirth (Xu et al., 2023).

    Understanding preventive measures to reduce its prevalence is very crucial.

     1. Exercise intervention has proven effective in preventing PPD disorders. In a 12-week exercise intervention study, aerobic exercise was found to relieve postpartum depression symptoms in PPD patients. Engaging in suitable aerobic exercise during pregnancy has been reported to promote pelvic mobility and improve birth canal space to relieve maternal labor pain. However, it also aids in preventing pregnancy complications. Studies suggest that PPD symptoms may manifest during pregnancy, with a similar 12% occurrence rate of depression reported, which indicates that preventive measures during pregnancy may have a significant impact on reducing PPD (Xu et al., 2023).

    Moreover, research indicates that the antidepressant effects of exercise can persist beyond the cessation of physical activity. Therefore, research suggested that incorporating aerobic exercise into prenatal care may substantially prevent PPD more than exercise as a postpartum treatment strategy.

    Engaging in moderate exercise during pregnancy can reduce the likelihood of developing postpartum depression (PPD) among expectant mothers. Partaking in at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise per week significantly enhances the efficacy of physical activity in preventing and treating PPD (Xu et al., 2023). Moderate aerobic exercise prompts the release of endorphins, which uplift mood and alleviate symptoms of anxiety and depression. Additionally, it helps regulate hormone levels, improve sleep quality, and enhance self-awareness and self-esteem, thereby positively influencing the mitigation of postpartum depression (Xu et al., 2023).

    Also, social support plays a vital role in maintaining the mental well-being of pregnant and postpartum women, with supervised exercise and team-based exercise serving as effective avenues for providing such support. For instance,

    • Team exercise fosters a positive environment for maternal emotional communication, and sharing maternal emotions enhances mothers’ childbirth knowledge and skills, reduces fear of labor pains, alleviates negative emotions, improves interpersonal communication, and enhances self-efficacy (Xu et al., 2023).

    • Supervised exercise, which involves physical activities piloted and supervised by healthcare professionals or fitness trainers, ensuring that exercises are safe and suitable for individual pregnant and postpartum women. Participating in supervised exercise classes or programs also offers opportunities for social interaction, which is critical for mental well-being and can lighten feelings of isolation by connecting with other new mothers and professionals in a supportive setting (Xu et al., 2023).

    2. Music therapy, when used as an adjunct to conventional psychotherapies, has been shown to improve physiological symptoms and effectively reduce negative emotions without any adverse side effects. It can positively impact and alleviate symptoms of PPD, offering a safe and affordable substitute to standard treatments. Music therapy is considered to reduce the need for pharmacological interventions during PPD treatment. Research has indicated that music therapy interventions such as music listening, improvisation, songwriting, singing, relaxation and meditation, and lyric analysis effectively reduce the risk of prolonged PPD and it can encourage strengths, empower individuals, and foster connections with themselves and others (Patch & Short, 2022).

    References

    Xu, H., Liu, R., Wang, X., & Yang, J. (2023). Effectiveness of aerobic exercise in the prevention and treatment of postpartum depression: Meta-analysis and network meta-analysis. PLOS ONE, 18(11), e0287650–e0287650. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0287650

    Patch, M. C., & Short, A. E. (2022). Addressing the “Baby Blues”: Developing a Music Therapy Model for Prevention and Treatment of Postpartum Depression. Australian Journal of Music Therapy, 33(2), 82–90. https://eds.p.ebscohost.com/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=10&sid=e5bc3ad9-8160-4ed8-bb4f-752141ecd9c5%40redis

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    How to Survive During Rising Costs and Government Shutdown

    With the government shutdown, many aspects of daily life have been severely impacted. The rate of food insecurity is increasing, and challenges related to housing, transportation, and other social determinants of health are becoming more pressing. SNAP benefits have been frozen, leaving many families struggling to put food on the table. As a result, more individuals and families are turning to food pantries and community resources for support.

    At the same time, the cost of food and necessities continues to rise, deepening the struggles faced by countless households. These are difficult times, but I want to encourage everyone affected to stay strong, remain hopeful, and trust that better days are ahead.

    Here are some practical ways to cope and survive during the rising costs and government shutdown:

    Prioritize Your Needs

    • You must focus on needs such as housing, food, transportation, utilities, and medication.
    • Decrease or pause non-essential spending, such as new purchases, entertainment, or dining out.

      Manage Your Money Wisely

    • Avoid any unnecessary debt.
    • Prioritize rent/mortgage and food.
    • Discuss with your utility company, landlord, or bank to explore any available payment plans or deferments during the shutdown.

    Explore any available community resources

    • Assess community and faith-based resources (Local food banks, churches, non-profits) for support with food and bills.
    • Check your city’s website to find out what supports are available to access.

       Protect Your Mental and Emotional Health during the difficult time

    • Financial insecurity can be draining. Stay connected with family, friends, and coworkers for emotional support.
    • Get good exercise, rest, and be consistent with your routines
    • Have faith and be hopeful that the challenges are temporary and will surely pass
    • Focus on what’s within your control.

    Maintain Perspective

    • Use this period to build your financial discipline and strength
    • Celebrate each time you pay a bill and make meals; a win is worth celebrating
    • Reflect on value by focusing on more relationships, essentials, and faith than on any material things

    Should we throw away our medicines after the ‘Best Before’ or Expiry date?

    Introduction

    One of man’s best inventions is drugs, especially disease-specific ones. Drugs are substances other than food, which can prevent, relieve the symptoms, or cure an abnormality or disease. Globally, the cost of drugs has soared over the years, resulting in a situation whereby low-income earners are unable to buy branded medications. In underdeveloped and developing countries where food and drug agencies have poor capacity to perform their regulatory functions optimally, we tend to see the proliferation of substandard or fake drugs. So many times, this ugly trend is energized by not just greed but by the market demands for affordable medications.

    Why Medication exceeds expiry date

     To mitigate the challenge of not being able to buy drugs, when necessary, people from resource-limited settings stack up some essential medications in their homes, which eventually exceed the best before or expiry dates on them. Sometimes, doctors could change a patient’s prescription because of reactions, allergies, or inability to purchase the drug, which could result in leftover drugs that eventually exceed the expiration date. Also, big pharmacies and patent-drug stores cannot sell all their stock, leading to the expiration of some drugs. This situation has raised many questions about the safety of these drugs after their expiration or beyond the “best before” date. Because of the importance of drugs and the health risks involved when taken wrongly, people have always consciously discarded unused drugs when it’s past the expiration date, even one day.

    How Safe is a drug after the expiry date?

    The debate about drugs being safe after their expiration date has persisted over the years, as many people still hold the opinion that pharmaceutical companies deliberately label their drugs with short shelf lives to guarantee steady patronage. Eventually, most of these unused drugs are discarded. The context that drugs can still be safe for a long time after expiration has gained several affirmations. In a recent study by Benjamin Davido and others titled ‘Efficacy of Expired Antibiotics: A Real Debate in the Context of Repeated Drug Shortages’ published in MDPI Journal “Antibiotics”, it was reported that when appropriately stored in line with the expected conditions, no expired antibiotics tested failed to be potent after one year of expiration. In another study by Sushil Sharma and others, titled ‘A study to investigate the chemical potency, physical stability, and efficacy of analgesic agents over a period of two years post their expiry date’ published in the “Medical Journal Armed Forces India”, it was seen that drugs such as Diclofenac, Piroxicam, and Ibuprofen retained their stability, analgesic efficacy, chemical active ingredients and by implication their potency up to a duration of two years after expiration.

    Important factors to consider

    However, the issues of proper storage and handling can play a big role, especially in the tropical climate of West Africa and other geographical regions. Hence, people in the tropics may have to rely on their capacity to store their drugs in the required condition in deciding whether to use a drug past the expiration date or not.

    Conclusion

    This article doesn’t advocate for the use of expired medication but to reduce anxiety about accidental use. It is essential to understand factors that impact drug stability.

    (Written by Ebenezer Dic-Ijiewere PhD.)

    NB: Always consult your healthcare professionals regarding expired medications to ensure medication safety and effectiveness.

    The Struggle to Survive: Living Through the Rising Cost

    The rising cost of living has become a significant public health concern, particularly for low-income individuals who are struggling daily to survive. Addressing the social determinants of health among this population remains an urgent issue, as many face ongoing challenges accessing essential needs such as food, housing, transportation, and healthcare. During my assessment of some of the low-income individuals, I found that several individuals eat only once a day to save money for rent. Many reported choosing to go hungry rather than risk homelessness. Some have been living in their cars for nearly a year, while others rely on the homes of friends to shower and change clothes. It is heartbreaking to witness the difficult situations people endure every day to stay alive.

    The rising cost of living has multiple impacts on health and well-being. According to Grewal et al. (2024), increasing housing costs—one of the key components of living expenses—can have both direct and indirect health consequences. Their study indicates that:

    • Financial strain from high housing and living expenses contributes to increased stress, anxiety, and depression, particularly among renters and low-income individuals.
    • Food insecurity often results when households must prioritize rent or transportation over nutrition, leading to poor dietary intake and higher risks of chronic diseases.
    • Limited access to healthcare arises when individuals cannot afford medical visits, medications, or preventive care due to competing financial demands.
    • Housing instability or homelessness can expose individuals to unsafe environments, lack of sanitation, and interrupted social support networks, which worsen both physical and mental health outcomes.

    Overall, Grewal et al. (2024) emphasize that the effects of rising housing and living costs are unequally distributed, disproportionately affecting low-income individuals who already face multiple barriers to health. This highlights the need for comprehensive policy approaches that integrate housing affordability, income support, and healthcare access as essential strategies to promote health equity.

    Source: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-024-18360-w

    The Health Risk Hiding In Your Light Switch and How to Prevent It

    Light at night (LAN) refers to the use of artificial or natural light during nighttime hours for visibility purposes.

     Deprato et al. (2025) reports that approximately 80% of the global population is exposed to light-polluted skies, and LAN is now considered a major environmental pollutant. Sources include streetlights, vehicles, homes, industries, and even atmospheric reflections.

    LAN disrupts the body’s circadian rhythm, the internal 24-hour clock regulated by the brain’s suprachiasmatic nucleus. When artificial light interferes with natural dark–light patterns, it delays the circadian clock and sleep-wake cycle, leading to melatonin suppression, sleep disturbances, and an increased risk of various diseases (Deprato et al., 2025). Blue-rich and bright LED lights cause the most significant disruption (Deprato et al., 2025). The study reports that LAN exposure is linked to higher rates of depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety, and other severe mental disorders, likely due to circadian misalignment, sleep deprivation, and changes in brain chemicals such as serotonin and dopamine.

     Implications:

    1.The findings suggest that light pollution and artificial light exposure at night are not only environmental/visual concerns but also have mental health implications.

    2. Encourages rethinking nighttime habits — including screen use before bed, bedroom lighting, blackout curtains, and managing exposure to streetlights or indoor lights at night.

    3.The implications of light at night may vary by culture or by groups

    4. Designing homes and neighborhoods that minimize intrusive nighttime lighting in bedrooms, promoting lighting standards that consider human health

    Prevention/ Mitigation strategies

    1.Reduce screen time before bed: Use “night mode” or blue-light filters on devices, dim the brightness, and avoid stimulating content.

    2. Improve bedroom lighting: Use blackout curtains, turn off or dim indoor lights, remove bright electronic indicators, and opt for warm, low-intensity lighting in the evening.

    3. Maintain a consistent sleep–wake schedule: Even if artificial light is present, a regular circadian rhythm helps mitigate disruptions.

    4. Use lighting design for sleep: In the evening, switch to warmer (red/orange) wavelengths; avoid bright overhead white/blue light late at night.

    5.Monitor and adjust ambient outdoor lighting: If streetlights are intrusive, consider using blackout curtains or an eye mask; if indoor lighting spills into the night, turn off non-essential lights.

    Source: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2025.179188