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Deal with it

Let your eyes be part of the 1 million pledge

Campaign to raise awareness about eye donation kicks off all over India; will be held for a year from now.
by The Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

Vision Sankara Eye Care Hospital has an ambitious plan: it has launched a year-long campaign, ‘Sign4Sight – Year of Million Miracles’, to mark a fortnight observing eye donation from August 25 to September 8. The eye care hospital aims to raise awareness about eye donation through its year-long campaign, and wants 1 million pledges at the end of it.

According to World Health Organisation (WHO), corneal disease is the chief cause for vision loss and blindness. The National Programme for control of Blindness estimates that India has 20% of the global blind population. With about 1,20,000 blind people in the country, the yearly addition of 25,000 to 30,000 cases further tips the scale.

Dr Ashish Bacchav, Vision Sankara says, “In most cases, loss of sight can be corrected by eye donation through a surgical procedure of corneal transplantation. A person can gain vision only when a donor donates a healthy cornea. The corneal transplantation has high success rates of around 95%. Every pledge will give back the boon of eyesight to two individuals.”

Corneal blindness is an affliction due to a damage in the tissue covering the front of the eye, called cornea. The corneas should be removed preferably within an hour of death, but can be removed up to a maximum of 6 to 8 hours.

Mohammed P, a retired serviceman, had his zest for life replenished after his vision was restored post his corneal transplant surgery at the Sankara hospital in Coimbatore. He said, “I have nothing but blessings in my heart for the soul that has given me a second lease on life. As a serviceman I have always been very self reliant and optimistic, with my eyesight restored I can now begin to enjoy playing with my grandchildren and revel in the beauty that life has to offer.”

(Picture courtesy www.zeenews.com)

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Guest writer

Why ‘Straight Outta Compton’ fails women

This successful film does not address hip hop musician Dr Dre’s dark past and his history of violence towards women.
by Beverley Lewis

Straight Outta Compton fails women at a time when 1 in 3 women across the globe face violence in their lifetime.

You don’t have to be a hip-hop aficionado to have watched or at least heard about Straight outta Compton, the film taking the world by storm. This box office winner tells the story about the struggle, rise and disbanding of the Los Angeles-based rap group N.W.A and its significance on popular culture, while paying homage to the spoils of ghetto life, coercion of women into prostitution, and gang rape.

But, one thing this film failed to do was tell the story of Dr. Dre’s history of violence against women. In almost all his tracks, he refers to women as “bitches”. Incidentally, Dre and Ice Cube are producers of the film. This omission sparked some outrage as to why Dre deliberately chose to leave out this big a chunk of his history.

Even since he made it big as a solo artist, Dre has been associated with the glamour and bling surrounding hip-hop, especially when statistics show that violent crimes against women are on the rise. After all, he did discover Eminem and went on to create Beats Electronics, which he then sold to Apple for a cool $3 billion. But, despite becoming a well-known producer and entrepreneur, he has been haunted by his shady past, particularly the brutal beating of rapper and TV host Dee Barnes at a record release party in 1991. “It ain’t no big thing – I just threw her through a door,” Dre said at the time of the incident. Yes, and he still continued to get rave reviews for his work and we went out and bought his records.

He was also violent towards his girlfriend, rapper Michel’le, who alleged that she needed plastic surgery after she was badly beaten by him.

Every year in India and around the world, thousands of women are raped, stabbed, shot, stalked, murdered and are victims of domestic violence, in crimes that are sometimes never even reported. And yet, we chose to ignore the violence and misogynist views associated with this particular genre of music and instead choose to only focus on the glitz and glamour surrounding hip-hop.

 

Music is a crucial factor of any culture and personally I could never live without it. We are constantly surrounded by music in our homes, cars and on our headphones. But can music really influence our behaviour and actions? Or does it simply provide background beats as we go about our daily lives? What about music with violent lyrics? Hip-hop is one genre, which often portrays women as lesser, submissive beings and if research conducted by the Journal of Applied Social Psychology is to be believed, male listeners are more likely to partake in violence against women after listening to degrading lyrics in rap music.

After the wide success of the movie, it reached the 100 million mark, Dre decided it time he issued an apology to the women he abused, via the New York Times. “I apologise to the women I’ve hurt. I deeply regret what I did and know that it has forever impacted all of our lives.”

If, like me, you’re wondering whether the success of the film prompted the apology or if he feels genuine remorse, well the jury is still out on that one.

(Picture courtesy www.forbes.com)

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Wellness

Research centre wants to save children from cancer

Conducting free seminars in 14 Mumbai schools, the DS Research Centre wants to educate children about substance abuse and cancer effects.
by The Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

Cancer is a dreaded disease and is often caused by many wrong lifestyle choices. In the current times, it has been found that children studying in classes 9 and 10 show an increased inclination for addictives like drugs, cigarettes and alcohol. They may or may not be aware of the consequences, especially that these addictions can lead to many diseases, especially cancer.

The DS Research Centre, Mumbai has launched a ‘Spread It to the Roots’ campaign to educate around 4,000 children from 14 schools across Mumbai about cancer.

Spread It to the Roots majorly speaks about healthy habits and healthy lifestyle. It explains about the challenges that students face in maintaining healthy habits, including the negligence of healthy food and regular eating due to academic pressure. It has been found that students abuse alcohol, tobacco and drugs when they see celebrities indulging in these habits.

“Students are the future of the human race. Increase in cancer incidence due to false habits picked up by students is really sad. Having an awareness programme for them will really prove beneficial for their future,” said one principal of a city school. Schools like St Stanislaus (Bandra), Holy Family (Andheri), Cathedral and John Connon (Fort), Sacred Heart (Santacruz), Anjum-I-Islam (Fort), St Elias (Bandra) and St Michael (Mahim) etc. are among 14 schools where the seminars are to be held.

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Deal with it

Lessons in oral cancer at Kumbh Mela

Indian Dental Association is trying to spread awareness about oral cancer through free camps, check-ups for pilgrims thronging the Kumbh Mela.
by The Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

Indian Dental Association (IDA), as part of their endeavour to create awareness about oral health and hygiene and Oral Cancer amongst the masses, are participating in the Jana Swasthya Abhiyan, an initiative of Department of Public Health, Government of Maharashtra.

Today, India has undesirably come to be known as the oral cancer capital of the world. People across the country are addicted to various tobacco products. Such habits can lead to oral cancer. The Kumbh Mela, being a meeting point of masses from diverse parts of the country, proves to be an ideal platform for IDA to provide oral care education and awareness.

Health centre at NashikAs part of the Jana Swasthya Abhiyan, IDA will conduct free oral health check-up camps for 15 days in 4 different phases during the ongoing Mahakumbh in Nasik and Trimbakeswar, starting from August 26, 2015. The aim of the campaign is to create awareness about oral health and hygiene and oral cancer amongst thousands of pilgrims who will be converging at Maha Kumbh from across the country.

According to Dr Ashok Dhoble, Hon’ble Secretary General, Indian Dental Association,“We are aiming to influence thousands of lives by creating awareness about oral health and hygiene and Oral Cancer amongst them. Through this initiative, we will be moving closer to IDA’s vision of improving oral health and quality of life, achieving ‘optimal national oral health for all’ by 2020.”

IDA will be present at 10 locations at Nasik and Trimbakeswar Maha Kumbh to conduct free oral health check-up camps in association with Karmaveer Bhausaheb Hiray Dental College and Hospital, Nashik.

(Pictures courtesy www.bms.co.in, IDA)

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Deal with it

Experiment with symmetry in your home

The human mind gravitates towards symmetry but is intrigued by asymmetry. Set new rules with geometric designs in your home.
by Reyna Mathur

A few years ago, a study in the UK asked a group of men to study several photographs of women’s faces, and to rate the most attractive ones. In almost all cases, perfectly symmetrical faces – eyes set at almost the same distance from the bridge of the nose, the same lower jaw on both sides, perfectly aligned ears – were rated the most attractive.

Our eyes naturally gravitate towards order and symmetry, Hence, we are more comfortable with a space that has proportion in size and dimension. Geometric shapes are more attractive to us than amorphous ones. Symmetric designs and shapes give a sense of order and discipline, and are more preferred visually than asymmetric ones.

For those looking to add style and panache to their home, there are several ways to make symmetry in design rock a plain dwelling. There is no need to purchase expensive materials to bring about this change – you can get creative and let geometry work its magic on your home.

Tap the symmetry trend for your house:

1) Combine the beauty of geometry with the whimsy of colour. Pick a plain rubber doormat and draw geometric shapes like squares, rectangles and triangles on it in a design of your choice. Next, colour in certain overlapping sections created in the design with neon colours to create an eye-popping statement right at your doorstep.

Glass vases arrangement2) Create an eccentric arrangement of identical glass vases of different sizes in a prominent corner of your living room. Arrange the vases in a straight line as per colour or descending size. To add a twist, place a single long stemmed flower in each such that the tops of each of the flowers are at the same height. This is a visually confusing but striking arrangement, and will make visitors steal glances at it from time to time.

3) Define the geometry of your TV set by embellishing its four corners with square paper cut-outs. Add depth to the design by sticking 3D pyramids (base on the TV) in the four corners. Or you can make concentric squares on each paper cut out and colour each square a different colour for an interesting optical effect.

4) Beautify a bare wall by marking a rectangle space with pencil in the centre of the wall. Further divide this rectangle into evenly spaced squares. Inside each square, place a painting or a photograph of the exact same size. Or you can get creative with poster colours and paint each square a different colour in even strokes.Paper wall hanging

5) Create your own symmetrical wallpaper or wall hanging, using long lengths of thick paper. Select the area for the wallpaper or wall hanging. Now cut out rectangular strips of thick handmade paper or coloured mount board, ensuring that they are the same length and width. Place them crisscross or intertwined over each other to create the pattern of your choice. Glue the overlapping parts firmly. Once the assembly is set, snip of the ends in a straight line and encase the edges in a picture frame or a length of sturdy cloth. Hang on a suitable wall.

6) Break the severity of your geometrically designed room with a table or chair of asymmetric form. For this to be visually appealing, the rest of the room must be completely symmetrically designed, preferably in monochrome. You can then give a fun twist to the room by placing a bright red or yellow chair on one side, or a shape-shifting couch of a bright hue.

(Pictures courtesy tomsplans.biz, www.guidinghome.com, decorideaz.com. Images used for representational purpose only)

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Beauty

Simple remedies to remove under-eye wrinkles

Do you suffer from tired, puffy eyes? Grappling with wrinkles under your eyes? Read on for some simple fixes from the kitchen.
by Rohit Soni

Wrinkles are a big problem. Many people think that wrinkles occur only at an old age, but wrinkles start appearing around the eyes even when one is young.

Wrinkles under the eye look terrible and also affect one’s confidence. Squinting, over exposure to sunlight and smoking are some of the most common causes for the problem. However, it is easy to combat these wrinkles with quick fixes from the kitchen. If you suffer from wrinkles in the eye area, you need to use these tips:

Cucumber

Cucumber slicesCucumber is very beneficial for your skin and the hydrating and repairing properties of cucumber effectively treat the problem of eye wrinkles. Grate a fresh cucumber and apply it over and around your eyes for about 10 to 15 minutes, followed by rinsing off with cold water.

Tea bags

Almost everyone has tea bags at home. This little bag is a potent weapon in the prevention and treatment of wrinkles. Soak a tea bag in water and apply it over your eyes for some time. This simple trick tightens the skin around the eyes and prevents further wrinkling. Use a green tea bag for added benefit.

Honey

The sweetest way to get rid of eye wrinkles is to use honey. Honey is beneficial and improves the overall health of your skin. Mix some rice powder and honey to make a paste. Apply this mixture over the eyes for about 5 to 10 minutes, then rinse off with plain water. Repeat 3 to 4 times a week for best results.

Strawberries and yogurt

Mash strawberries in yogurt. The nutrients in strawberries tighten the skin and yogurt helps remove dead skin cells. Let it sit on the skin for half an hour, then Strawberries and yogurtclean it off with rose water. Apply daily.

Potato juice

Potato juice helps in reducing the stress and puffiness in the skin around the eyes. All you have to do is apply potato juice over and around the eyes and let it dry. Wash off with cold water.

Ice cubes

Too lazy to try the above tips? Grab some ice cubes and rub directly around your eyes for about 5 minutes. This simple tip is very effective in reducing the appearance of eye wrinkles. Do this at least twice a day.

(Pictures courtesy blog.luminessair.com, healthyeating.sfgate.com, eatdrinkbetter.com. Images used for representational purpose only)

 

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