Health Essentials
‘Bad roads, deadly car tyres’(2)
• Our road could be discribed as death trap
[This is the final part of the article we carried on page 14 of The Spectator on Saturday, March 11, 2023. The first part of the article basically talked about the vital part of our road safety that we so often take for granted. Below is the rest of the article]
ii. Balance & Alignment: This ensures the safety of the driver and the performance of the vehicle.
Unbalanced tyres cause road vibration, which leads to driver fatigue, premature tyre wear. Tyres should be balanced when they are mounted on wheels for the first time or when they are remounted after a repair. They should be rebalanced at the first sign of a vibration or shimmy, and should be balanced at least once a year, regardless. A vehicle is said to be properly aligned when all suspension and steering components are sound and when tyre and wheel assemblies are running straight and true. Proper alignment is necessary for even tread wear and precise steering.
iii. Regular Rotation: Regular rotation is necessary to maintain even tread wear.
There are several methods of rotation. For most vehicles on the road, tyres from the rear axle are moved to the drive axle and crossed to opposite sides of the vehicle. The tyres from the drive axle are moved to the rear, but remain on the same sides. This is known as the “modified X” pattern.
For four-wheel-drive vehicles, it is recommended to switch all four tires, both from side-to-side and in axle position.
If no rotation period is specified on the vehicle owner’s manual for the manufacturer’s rotation recommendations, tyres should be rotated every 5,000 – 8,000 miles. Four-wheel-drive vehicles may require rotation as soon as every 4,000 miles.
iv. Visual Inspection/Tread Depth: Take a look at the treads for any sharp objects that may have punctured the tyres. Even if the puncture is not deep enough to flatten the tyres immediately, the cracking and pitting caused by smaller punctures can eventually worsen and lead to problems down the road.
Look at the wear patterns on the treads as well. Excessive shoulder wear can indicate under-inflation, while wear to the center of the tread can mean over-inflation.
Tyres have tread wear indicator bars moulded into the tread. When the tread is worn down to where you can see a solid bar of rubber across the width of the tread, it is time to replace the tyre. Another method for checking tread depth is to place a coin (20 pesewa) in the tread groove, a tyre with a good tread depth should admit about half of the width of the coin.
Tyre pressure should be checked when the tyres are cold, at least once a month and before long journeys or when carrying heavy loads.
v. Repairs: It is important to know when to repair a tyre and when it should be replaced. If a tyre loses its air pressure, it must be removed from the wheel for a complete internal inspection to be sure it is not damaged.
Most punctures, nail holes or cuts up to 1/4 inch can be repaired by trained Technicians as long as the damage is confined to the repairable tread. DO NOT repair tyres with tread punctures larger than 1/4 inch, or any sidewall puncture. Also, never repair tyres which are worn below 1/16 inch of tread depth.
Replacement of tyres: Tyre age is also crucial to safety on the road. Even though tyre life generally depends on service conditions and the environment in which tyres operate, some vehicle manufacturers recommend that tyres be replaced every four to six years regardless of use. Always, check the owner’s manual for specific recommendations for your vehicle.
Can you tell when your tyres were made? The date tyres were manufactured are indicated on the sidewall of the tyres in the form of four numbers usually preceded by the letters DOT. The four letters represents the week and year of manufacture. In most instances, there are 12 numbers after the DOT but the first four numbers are considered in identifying the age of the tyre. For example, DOT 1015 or DOT 1015 243/47R18 means 10th week of the year 2015.
KCE: Are you willing to meet with companies, groups of people etc. to promote this campaign on safe tires?
AA:Oh yes! I cannot keep this to myself. Safety on our roads is a shared responsibility and as long as individuals, groups of people and companies are willing to get more of such knowledge, I am willing to steer them towards road safety. I intend to work in collaboration with National Road Safety Commission too.
KCE: Is there a slogan on Tyre Safety you would like to leave us with?
AA:Tyre Smartness Saves Lives, Play Your PART (P- Pressure, A- Alignment, R- Rotation, T-Tread)!
KCE: What are your final words on tyre safety?
AA: We all sit in cars, be it our own or as passengers. Cars move with tyres and the safety of tyres plays a significant role in reaching our destinations in time, delayed, dead or alive. Hence, let us all be tyre safety conscious and always remember to play your PART in order to be tyre smart!
KCE: Thank you very much Abenaa. Almost everyone comes into contact with a car tyre on a daily basis and will find these tips extremely beneficial.
AA:Thank you for hosting me! Let us all join hands to promote tyre safety in order to save lives, properties, disabilities, avoid litigations and compensations. Let us always remember that generally, Safety, Health and Environment incidents are rare but they have huge impacts, when they hit us, they hit us badly. Thank you.
AS ALWAYS LAUGH OFTEN, ENSURE HYGIENE, WALK AND PRAY EVERYDAY AND REMEMBER IT’S A PRICELESS GIFT TO KNOW YOUR NUMBERS (blood sugar, blood pressure, blood cholesterol, BMI)
Dr. Kojo Cobba Essel
Health Essentials Ltd/Mobissel
(www.healthessentialsgh.com)
*Dr. Essel is a medical doctor, holds an MBA and is ISSA certified in exercise therapy, fitness nutrition and corrective exercise. He is the author of the award-winning book, ‘Unravelling The Essentials of Health & Wealth.’
Thought for the week – “Whatever you practice grows stronger. What will you like to see grow stronger in your life?”
Resource Person: Abenaa Antwiwaa Adusei
Her References:
1. Basic Tyre Fundamentals, GOOD YEAR PLUS, www.goodyearplus. com
2. ABC News: http://abcnews. go.com/Blotter/story?id=4988518
3. Rubber Manufacturers Association: http://ww.rma.org
4. The telegraph, www.telegraph. co.uk
Abenaa may be reached on: healthandsafetygh@gmail.com or 0500777 775.
Our road could be discribed as death trap
By Dr. Kojo Cobba Essel
A good relationship with your boss is critical for job success and career development. Supervisors have a great influence on your stress level, your team and company culture, and ultimately, whether you succeed or fail in a role.
They are also your best resource for support, problem-solving, and personal development. Building a strong relationship with them can be transformative for your work experience and professional growth, but navigating this connection can be complex.
Here are some key values and characteristics that will help you along the way.
- Be authentic
It is important to be yourself when building any new relationship. Do not be over-the-top trying to impress or kiss up to a manager. Be authentic and try to build a genuine connection with them instead. This will be incredibly helpful when it comes to dealing with personal issues, having difficult conversations, and building trust.
- Be empathetic and respectful
Bosses are human beings with their own professional pressures and personal lives, so it is important to maintain empathy toward them. Strive to get to know them on a personal level; you do not need to be best friends, but knowing the basics, like their family and hobbies, can be meaningful.
Also, help your supervisor look good. Every leader wants a high-performing and successful team. By developing trust, understanding, and excellent communication, you can help your boss achieve their goals.
- Build trust and add value
Showing initiative will win you big points with almost any boss. Whether setting up regular one-on-ones, volunteering for new projects, or offering help, the benefits of this dedication are twofold.
Proactivity makes leaders feel supported-like you are looking out for them. It also provides opportunities for your individual growth.
Whenever possible, add value beyond the limitations of your job description. Whether you have a special interest or extra capacity, find ways to support your team and relieve pressure. – Source:careers.vikingservice.com
..To be continued
This week I bumped into Deborah, one of my avid readers and I promised her I will be writing this weekend. So Deborah, this is for your reading pleasure and to pick some golden nuggets for the future.
The quest to find the best way to make one’s golden years, happy, exciting, healthy and a time most people look forward to continues unabated. One factor that keeps popping up is the need to grow friendships with people more than 20 years younger than yourself.
Do not take this for granted. It is a form of “social security” since these close friends who are much younger than you will step in to support you in more ways than you can ever imagine.
Some conditions may make life challenging for older adults but knowing these Geriatric Giants helps us to take the necessary steps to reduce our risk.
“Geriatric Giants” refers to a group of chronic health conditions that are common in the elderly, typically 65-year-olds and older.
These conditions quite often co-occur and can impact on the independence, dignity and overall wellbeing and quality of life of an elderly person.
These Geriatric Giants include:
- Impaired Intellect/ Memory (e.g. Dementia)
- one of the major battles we need to deal with is challenges with memory
- Exercise, adopt the Mind Diet, build a great social network and enjoy time outdoors
- Keep reading and solving puzzles for as long as possible
- Instability – leading to much feared falls
- A good reason to indulge in Balance Training and Core Strengthening exercises from today
- Ensure your home is safe; avoid clutter such as cables crisscrossing floors, toys etc. These are all trip hazards and should be avoided
- Many healthy, happy and fun-loving older adults have died soon after a fall with its attendant complications.
- Do whatever it takes to avoid falling
- Immobility (opening the doors to pressure sores, joint stiffness)
- Even when you are unable to move about on your own it is important to get support to change positions as often as possible or get an appropriate mattress or bed that prevents prolonged pressure over any single point.
- Make sure you passively or actively move joints daily.
- Incontinence (urine, faeces or both)
- This is one of the reasons older adults prefer to stay at home and avoid going out to meet friends etc.
- Iatrogenic Disorders – adverse effect of medication
- Quite often most older adults are on several medications and some side effects such as drowsiness may seem to cause more unhappiness and may even lead to falls.
- Inappetite – this may result in poor nutrition
- This may also be linked to loss of teeth thus making chewing very difficult or limited.
- The loss of smell and taste may also reduce the amount of food one may willingly eat.
The power to reduce the impact of the Geriatric Giants starts now and should be a lifetime commitment. It is never too early to start making the appropriate lifestyle modifications, nor is it too late to reduce the impact of the giants on one’s life.
Other conditions that significantly impact on the lives especially of the elderly are:
- Sleep Disorders
- Good sleep has the power to give us energy, improve our thought pattern and even helps us to make good choices.
- Good sleep sets the tone for a healthy life
- Constipation
- This is a challenge that confronts quite a number of older adults.
- Movement, fibre and lots of water go a long way to reduce the stress that frequent constipation generates.
- Fraility
- Muscle loss is real and as we age, we lose a significant percentage of our muscle plus our bones also become brittle.
- Make sure strength training is part of your exercise schedule
- Polypharmacy
- Another headache that needs to be confronted head-on
- Everyone especially older adults need a good primary care physician or a general practitioner who can coordinate all medicines from the different Specialists who may be attending to an elderly person. This ensures that unnecessary medicines are dropped
The goal of care at all times is to optimise the quality of life. As family, professional caregivers and friends we should always show respect so that the dignity of the elderly is preserved at all times. For those of us who are not yet in the age group with such challenges, we need to start the conversation about the type of care we will prefer and take steps to stay healthy and independent for as long as possible. The goal should be a long Healthspan and not just a long Lifespan.
AS ALWAYS LAUGH OFTEN, ENSURE HYGIENE, WALK AND PRAY EVERYDAY AND REMEMBER IT’S A PRICELESS GIFT TO KNOW YOUR NUMBERS (blood sugar, blood pressure, blood cholesterol, BMI)
Dr. Kojo Cobba Essel
Health Essentials Ltd (HE&W Group)
(dressel@healthessentialsgh.com)
*Dr. Essel is a Medical Doctor with a keen interest in Lifestyle Medicine, He holds an MBA and is an ISSA Specialist in Exercise Therapy, Fitness Nutrition and Corrective Exercise. He is the author of the award-winning book, ‘Unravelling The Essentials of Health & Wealth.’
Thought for the week – “There is no magic formula to being happy but making a conscious effort to be happy goes a long way.” – Dr. Kojo Cobba Essel
By Dr. Kojo Cobba Esse
