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
Health Essentials
Do you want to be happy?
Don’t we all dream of a life that is filled with laughter? That may be a reason for chasing big bucks, which like the Golden Fleece eludes the majority of us.
Financial Wellness is extremely important but there are other factors that make us happy and healthy and eventually wealthy.
I will introduce a few everyday activities that are guaranteed to make you happy if you continue practising them.
You definitely do not need to live in Finland to experience happiness even though many people agree that is the “headquarters” of happiness.
1. Wake-Up Ritual
a. Say to yourself that today will be a beautiful day or a great day!
b. Ask God what He has in store for you. Use me Lord (if not a Christian what you believe in will be useful as well.
c. Remind yourself of your purpose in life and get out of bed.
d. Do Not grab your phone as the first thing for the day.
2. Pray
a. Talking to God has a way of calming our nerves. It brings about unexplained peace and when we add praise and worship then the floodgates open. That is how to win battles against unhappiness.
3. Smile
a. Definitely floods your body with feel good hormones and insulates you from stress.
b. Smiling is infectious so the more you smile the better and you set off a smiling OR happiness domino effect.
4. Meditate
a. Extremely good for your brain and an easy way to start is to do deep-breathing and just focus on your “breath” excluding all others. That is what some will prefer to call mindfulness. Being in the moment has immense benefits. Things you never knew existed suddenly spring up.
5. Exercise
a. That wonder drug that trumps virtually all others. Like smiling it does pour out feel good hormones. Strength training even goes an extra mile causing our muscles to act as “pharmacies” that pour out life-changing signals every time they contract.
6. Be kind to yourself & to others
a. We are often too harsh on ourselves. Give yourself a break. Self-care is the real deal!!
b. Being harsh to others has no benefits.
7. Spend some time doing nothing!
a. We need to re-set from time to time. Spend about 10 minutes a day doing absolutely nothing. There is happiness and innovation in “idling”. Do not abuse idling though.
8. Spend time with loved ones.
a. This is another powerful happiness “hack”. You have to make time and be intentional about this; talk on phone, send messages, arrange to meet for a drink or meal. Social Wellness ranks very high on the happiness index and it’s fairly easy to plug into it.
b. While spending time together remember that your choice of food and drinks also impacts on how happy or sad or anxious you may feel.
9. Indulge in a hobby.
a. Our bodies and brain love variety. Do you have a hobby? Get one
10. Write in your gratitude diary.
a. That is all it takes – keep doing it regularly.
11. Get a pet.
This list is not exhaustive but definitely a good start. Share your happiness hacks with me via email and together we can keep the world smiling and happy.
At the end of each day ask yourself if you did better than the previous day. That is all it takes. Doing better than the previous day for 365 days, for 5 years, 10 years… How amazing that will be!!!
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/ Medics Clinic
(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 Essel
Health Essentials
Measure your blood pressure accurately, control it, live longer
May 17 is World Hypertension Day and please do not panic. This is not a stress-filled day that aims at increasing your blood pressure but rather it’s a day set aside to increase awareness of a serial yet silent killer. That is exactly what Hypertension it; its killing the young and old at an alarming rate yet in most instances people with high blood pressure may feel absolutely well.
The theme for this year is “Measure your blood pressure accurately, control it, live longer”
Do these when you take your blood pressure since the accuracy of the reading matters:
• If you have been walking or running rest for at least 5 to 10 minutes
• No caffeinated drinks or alcohol two or three hours before checking blood pressure
• Sit (sometime you may need to stand or lay in bed) comfortably with your back rested/supported and your arm for the cuff resting on a table of firm surface
• Have your feet flat on the floor and not legs crossed
• Ensure the cuff is the right size for your arm
• If using an electronic monitor ensure battery is working well
• If clothing covering arm is thick remove
• Loosen your neck-tie or belt if uncomfortable
• If you are not conversant with checking blood pressure, get the appropriate training
Global statistics show that only 50 per cent of those with hypertension are actually aware and that awareness in some areas may be as low as 10 per cent while awareness may exceed 75 per cent in a few areas.
The bitter truth is some people do not have enough information about the condition, a significant number do not have easy access to measuring their blood pressure and a few stubborn ones think it is better not to know if something is going wrong.
What do we need to understand about our blood pressure numbers? There are ALWAYS two numbers in a blood pressure reading such as 120/80mmHg. The top figure represents the force of the blood against the artery (blood vessel) walls as your heart beats and the lower value represents the force on the walls in between beats or while the heart rests. Both numbers are important.
Essentially when your blood pressure is higher than it should normally be all organs in the body are exposed to elevated pressures since arteries supply blood to every part of the body. These sustained high pressures will be causing harm gradually every minute of the day.
Prevention of high blood pressure is based mainly on adopting the appropriate lifestyle, while having regular medical check-ups to pick up conditions that can may lead to hypertension if not tackled early. Management of hypertension on the other hand requires a three-pronged attack in most situations;
• Lifestyle modifications
• Regular medical checks to pick up other conditions that be worsen our hypertension or general wellbeing
• Use of appropriate physician prescribed medication
Age and our genes may have a way of increasing our blood pressure or predisposing us to hypertension, but since we have no control over the choice of our family and years rolling by, it may be worth focusing on the above three that we can control to a large extent.
Lifestyle Modification
• Exercise adequately
• Do not smoke
• Limit or avoid alcohol
• Aim at fat (weight) loss
• Manage stress appropriately
• If you have sleep apnoea (intermittent snoring during sleep and feeling tired and sleepy on waking up) seek medical intervention
• Adopt the DASH (dietary approaches to stop hypertension) diet; low sodium (salt), increased potassium from fruits and vegetables, low or no saturated fats and increased fibre.
• Control conditions such as diabetes, cholesterol challenges and kidney disease.
Exercise need not be rushing to the gym to sweat out only, but taking walks, gardening, cleaning your home, using the stairs and many others. Exercise increases heart function and lowers blood pressure but there is a little hitch: the benefits of exercise on blood pressure do not last beyond 72 hours.
In short frequency is the watch word. Do not be a once a week or once a month exercise fan. The effect of exercise on the heart does not rely on past glory so if you were an athlete years ago but you have now become one with your sofa, I am sorry to disappoint you but you need to get moving NOW!
All types of exercises will benefit you and lower your blood pressure but a word of caution here;
• When your blood pressure is not controlled DO NOT lift weights above your head
• Do not overdo exercises of the upper body but lower body exercises such s squatting will enhance lowering of your blood pressure.
• Breathe properly especially while you train with weights; breathe out during the exertion phase as you lift a weight and breathe in while you relax.
• Of course brisk walking, swimming, use of the treadmill and other exercises that target heart function are also a must
When all is said and done, you can never know our blood pressure without measuring or checking it. Take a few minutes to check your blood pressure and ensure at least one other person checks their blood pressure before the end of the month.
Associations, companies and all identifiable groups should ensure they check their blood pressure and go an extra mile and as a corporate social responsibility help to check the blood pressure of hundreds or even thousands of people. You will be saving lives.
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
(dressel@healthessentialsgh.com)
