Your Digital Firstaid Box is Ready

Finally, finally HelpYourself app is ready!

HelpYourself (HY) app is one of an array of life-saving solutions designed by Maealth Inc.; a Cameroon registered social enterprise using Information Technology to improve the quality of health information, strengthen national health systems and ensure accessible, high-quality health care for all Cameroonians through software services that have been proven to save lives and improve/develop healthcare systems or structures.

"We're driven by a desire to make sustainable solutions that positively impact the lives of many and to leave our healthcare sector a better place than we found it"- Maealth.

HelpYourself is built in response to some of the health crisis Cameroonians and commonly developing nations face. The app was built based on the following background; 

1. 140,000 people in a developed world like the UK, die each year in situations where first aid could have helped save their lives. What more of our gradually emerging nation Cameroon, with a mediocre health care system?
2. Natural medicines are helping more and more people that are suffering from illnesses that are totally preventable or costly to treat. Because of the high costs involved with manufacturing modern medicines, many people living in developing nations, Cameroon etc simply do not have the the financial resources to pay for them. Making available these information on how to use these natural solutions is the least we could do.
3. Poor access to information on prevention practices and healthy lifestyles for mothers thus contributing to the high infant mortality rates in Cameroon; 53.43 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2015.
4. Low doctor per patient ratios: 1:10,000 urban areas and 1:50,000 in rural areas
5. Period hits once a month; but the exact day they arrive, the severity of cramps, flow and mood swings aren't quite so reliable. It is no wonder, then, that our period tracker feature will be of absolute importance to young girls.
6.  Easily search for nearby hospitals and their emergency telephone contact in case of emergencies

HelpYourself android application is a simple to use, visually appealing app that provides actionable, educative and life-saving health information to users and helps them connect to a platter of healthcare services through the below mentioned app features:

• First Aid
• Natural Remedies
• Mom’s Guide
• Menstrual Period Tracker
• Live Chat with a Medical Doctor
• Hospital Finder 

Download the app here and test for yourself: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.nkdroid.firstaid

Please leave your comments and reviews of what you think of this app (by Maealth) on Facebook and Twitter: @maealth

Medicine Hacks 2: Eating 'Dates' Produces Powerful Health Benefits

A product of the date palm and cultivated since approximately 6000 B.C, the date fruit is one of the sweetest fruits around and also happens to come in many different varieties. Although dates can be eaten fresh, the fruit is very often dried, resembling raisins or plums. But whether fresh or dry, the health benefits of dates are still just as plentiful.

These delicious fruits contain oil, calcium, sulfur, iron, potassium, phosphorous, manganese, copper and magnesium which are all beneficial for the human health and can be used to alleviate many health problems such as heart problems, anemia,  strokes, cholesterol, hypertension, abdominal cancer, intestinal disorders,  sexual dysfunction, constipation, and many other conditions. According to a modern medical survey, it is now accepted that dates are useful in preventing abdominal cancer.

Dates

Here are some of the key recommendations for which and why they should be included in your diet;

Anemia: Dates are rich in iron

Dates have a high mineral content, which is beneficial for many different health conditions, but their impressive levels of iron make them a perfect dietary supplement for people suffering from anemia. The high level of iron balances out the inherent lack of iron in anemic patients, increasing energy and strength, while decreasing feelings of fatigue and sluggishness.

Constipation: Have large amounts of potassium

Dates are often categorized as a laxative food. This is why they are so frequently eaten by people suffering from constipation. In order to achieve the desired laxative effect of it, you should soak them in water over night. Then, eat the soaked dates in the morning like syrup to get the most optimal results. Dates have high levels of soluble fiber, which is essential in promoting healthy bowel movements and the comfortable passage of food through the intestinal tract, which can relieve symptoms of constipation. Dates also help to prevent diarrhea because of their large amounts of potassium which is an essential mineral to prevent diarrhea, relieve the flora of the stomach and intestines, and effectively stimulate bacteria.

Healthy Heart: Dates strengthen heart

Dates are quite helpful in keeping your heart healthy. When they are soaked for the night, crushed in the morning and then consumed, they have been shown to have a positive effect on weak hearts. Dates are also a rich source of potassium, which studies have shown to reduce the risk of stroke and other heart related diseases. Furthermore, they are suggested as a healthy and delicious way to reduce the levels of LDL cholesterol in the body, which is a major contributing factor to heart attacks, heart disease, and stroke. Therefore, when taken twice a week, dates can seriously improve the overall health of the heart. Dates regulate blood pressure. People with high blood pressure should regularly eat the dates as they are high in potassium and do not have sodium. 5 to 6 dates contain about 80 mg of magnesium which is an important mineral that spreads through the blood vessels improving blood circulation. Similarly, 370 mg of magnesium are very helpful in lowering blood pressure.

Different types of dates

Abdominal Cancer

Research has pointed towards dates being a legitimate way to reduce the risk and impact of abdominal cancer. They work as a useful tonic for all age groups, and in some cases, they work better than traditional medicines, and are natural, so they don’t have any negative side effects on the human body. They can be quickly and easily digested for a quick boost of energy as they are high in natural sugars like glucose, fructose, and sucrose. Therefore, they are the perfect snack for an immediate burst of energy. Many people around the world use dates for a quick afternoon snack when they are feeling lethargic or sluggish.

Weight: Dates allow you to control body weight

Dates should be included as part of a healthy diet. They consist of sugar, proteins and many essential vitamins. If dates are consumed with cucumber paste, you can keep your weight at a normal, balanced level, rather than over-slimming. One kilogram of dates contains almost 3,000 calories, and the calories in dates are sufficient to meet the daily requirements for a human body. Of course, you should not eat just dates throughout the day. If you are thin and slim and want to increase your weight, or if you are trying to build your muscles to impress some girl, or you have become weak due to a serious medical problem – you need to eat dates!

If you want to avoid excessive fat, you should eat dates on an empty stomach. This will allow you to control your body weight because the dates do not contain cholesterol. 

Many Muslims break their fast by eating dates and water according to their cultural traditions. Breaking fast by eating dates helps avoid overeating of food after the fast is finished. When the body begins to absorb the high nutritional value of the dates, feelings of hunger are pacified. Also, the nervous system can get a lot of help from consuming dates, since they have such significant amounts of potassium.

Date palm

Nervous System Health

The vitamins present in dates make it an ideal boost to nervous system health and functionality. Potassium is one of the prime ingredients in promoting a healthy and responsive nervous system, and it also improves the speed and alertness of brain activity. Therefore, dates are a wonderful food source for people as they begin to age and their nervous system becomes sluggish or unsupported, as well as for people who want to keep their mind sharp.

Sexual Weakness

Studies have shown that dates are even beneficial for increasing sexual stamina. Soak a handful of dates in fresh goat’s milk overnight, then grind them in the same milk with a mixture of cardamom powder and honey. This mixture becomes a very useful tonic for increasing sexual endurance and reducing sterility caused by various sexual disorders. The science behind this phenomenon is largely due to traditional usage which stimulated formal research. In 2006, Bahmanpour studied the effects of date palms and their oil on sexual functioning and found that the high levels of estradiol and flavonoid components of dates are what increase sperm count and motility, as well as promoting increased testes size and weight. So, if you are looking for a masculine boost, eat some dates, because they are a great natural aphrodisiac!

Night Blindness: The benefits of dates are extensive, and are commonly employed to fight off various conditions affecting the ear, nose, and throat. When the leaves of the date palm are ground into a paste and rubbed on and around the eyes, or when dates are ingested orally, it has been shown to reduce the frequency of night blindness, and this solution is commonly used in rural areas where dates grow as an alternative medicine.

Ajwa dates

Allergies

One of the most interesting facets of dates is the presence of organic sulfur in them. This is not a very common element to find in foods, but it does have a worthwhile amount of health benefits, including the reduction of allergic reactions and seasonal allergies. According to a study done in 2002, organic sulfur compounds can have a positive impact on the amount of suffering people experience from SAR (Seasonal Allergic Rhinitis), which affects approximately 23 million people in the United States alone. Dates are a great way to somewhat stem the effects of those seasonal allergies through its contributions of sulfur to the diet.

Intestinal Disorders

The nicotine content in dates is thought to be beneficial for curing many kinds of intestinal disorders. Continuous intake of dates helps to inhibit growth of the pathological organisms and thus, they help stimulate the growth of friendly bacteria in the intestines. In terms of digestive issues, dates contain those insoluble and soluble fibers, as well as many beneficial amino acids which can stimulate the digestion of food and make it more efficient, meaning that more nutrients will be absorbed by the digestive tract and enter your body for proper usage.

Intoxication: Dates are commonly used as a remedy for alcoholic intoxication. Dates provide quick relief and have a sobering effect in case you feel as though have consumed an uncomfortable amount of alcohol. They can also be used the following morning to prevent severe hangovers. Again, they should be rubbed and soaked overnight for the best results.

Although dates carry tremendous nutritional values, great care should be taken in their selection because their surface is very sticky, which often attracts various impurities. Therefore, you should only consume dates that are processed and packaged properly. Also, make sure to wash them thoroughly before you eat them, as this will help remove the impurities present on the surface.

Medicine Hacks: Health Benefits of Vinegar (Cider)

Drinking cider vinegar before bedtime will change your life for good

You may not know, but you possess in your kitchen an incredible ingredient! A miracle that is full of taste and medicinal qualities. It is vinegar, which has established itself in diet but also in the treatment of certain ailments. There is now a great variety of vinegars, in this article we will be interested in cider vinegar.

The benefits of vinegar

Over time, vinegar has found its place in many homes because it allows to preserve certain foods, promotes digestion and acts as an effective antiseptic. Here we will analyze the many benefits of cider vinegar that stand out from other vinegars. It is an energizer that provides vitality and tonicity in case of fatigue, a stimulant of digestion, an agent that cleanses and regenerates cells and an anti-cholesterol among others.

Cider vinegar is rich in magnesium, phosphorus, calcium, fluorine, sulfur, boron and silica; all these minerals give it its energizing and healing power. It is also a source of essential acids, enzymes and potassium (up to one gram per liter). Potassium is used to clean the body thoroughly and to neutralize substances that may attack or even poison it. Finally, it is an excellent antioxidant that contains up to 600 mg per liter of phenolic compounds (antioxidant organic molecules).

Here is a list of troubles that can be alleviated by ingesting cider vinegar, you should use non-industrial, unpasteurized cider vinegar and always dilute it with water.

In the event of fatigue and allergy

If you tend to suffer from fatigue or allergy frequently, there is a cocktail of cider vinegar that can be taken for a month, either in prevention or in treatment; This is the Jarvis cocktail: mix 2 teaspoons of cider vinegar and 1 spoon of honey in 25cl of water rich in sodium. You can drink up to three drinks a day.

Cold and irritated throat

If you have a hoarse throat, mix 25 ml of cider vinegar and 75 ml of water and gargle once an hour. If you have a greasy cough, cider vinegar will help you liquefy and expectorate the mucus. To do this, you must mix 4 tablespoons of honey and 5 teaspoons of vinegar and take 1 teaspoon of this syrup three times a day. It is also advisable to drink plenty of green tea and infusions to promote the liquefaction of thick mucus.

Intestinal disorders

In case of diarrhea, the body dehydrates because it loses a lot of liquid and minerals. Cider vinegar, as a re-mineralizer and antibacterial, is able to repel germs, protect the intestinal flora and regulate transit. 2 teaspoons of cider vinegar should be diluted in a glass of water and this mixture should be drunk before each meal until the disorder has disappeared.

On the other hand, in the case of constipation, it is possible to use cider vinegar as follows:

Mix 2 teaspoons of cider vinegar in a glass of water and consume this drink several times a day.
Make warm foot baths by diluting a glass of cider vinegar and 4 teaspoons of salt in 4 liters of water.

Diabetes

If you drink cider vinegar during meals, your level of blood sugar will decrease as well as the manufacture of insulin and triglycerides through acetic acid. This component also blocks the amylases in the small intestine, which are enzymes that convert starch into glucose. A part of the starch is thus expelled instead of being transformed into sugar and stored in the body.

Oral Dysfunction

For good oral hygiene, it is recommended to make mouthwashes with a mixture of cider vinegar and water (mixing a teaspoon in a glass of water) once or twice a week after brushing teeth. Thus, the gum will be irrigated and the bacterial inflammations eliminated. However, this operation should not be carried out using pure vinegar because it tends to damage the enamel. Make sure to always dilute the vinegar with water to take no risk.

Joint Problems

Cider vinegar cleans the body by neutralizing the toxins and waste stored in the joints, tissues and organs and helps to thin the blood that has been thickened by consuming high protein foods.

PS: Cider vinegar and apple cider vinegar are by and large the same product. Cider vinegar is usually made from apples. However, cider vinegar can also be made from other fruits; for instance, raspberries, in which case it is called raspberry cider vinegar. Cider vinegar is usually made by fermenting apple or other fruit juice using a substance called "Mother of Vinegar," which contains bacteria. The bacteria break down the sugars in the juice to acetic acid and malic acid, resulting in the sour-flavored vinegar.

Preparing for health care “e-volution” in Cameroon

Digitizing Healthcare

Communication and information technology is changing rapidly worldwide. This digital revolution will have a profound impact on how physicians and health care delivery organizations interact with patients and populations. Over the coming decade, face-to-face patient/doctor contacts will become less common and exchanges between consumers and providers will increasingly be mediated by electronic devices. 

This rapidly evolving e-health support infrastructure will forever change the way providers and consumers interact. It is essential that clinicians, managers, policymakers, and researchers gain an increased understanding of how this transformation will likely take shape so health care systems of the future can adapt, adopt, and embrace these technologies

The digitization process is gradually underway within our healthcare systems as we can appreciate from startups like Maealth, CamerHealth, Cardiopad, The Giftedmom and more. But over the coming decades, in all reaches of the nation, clinicians, managers, policymakers, and scientists will need to work closely with consumers to plan, design, develop, implement, and evaluate the ever-expanding e-health infrastructure. There are many factors that must be in place for digital systems to be effective. Given that clinician/consumer communication and interaction is at the center of most e-health and Health IT activities, before new technology can become fully ingrained within our health care systems, we must delineate, understand, and resolve many issues that surround this nexus. Some of the critical challenges and knowledge gaps that must be grappled with as these e-health systems are introduced will include: 

1. How e-health will impact traditional communication and interactions between clinical professionals, health care systems, consumers, caregivers, and communities.
2. How to design individual components of the ICT/HIT system to optimize provider/consumer communication and how best to educate and prepare all parties for effective communication within this new environment.
3. How best to integrate the many distinct "digital silos" representing the separate EHR, ICT, m-health, e-health, and IT components into a functionally integrated system that maximizes effective communication and interaction.
4. How to ensure that communication mediated by e-health systems is secure, confidential, and conforms to ethical principles.
5. How to shift from the past medical model of the 15 minute face-to-face, one clinician/one "patient" interaction, towards the concept of population health and wellness support in place 365 days a year, 24/7.
6. How to ensure that the disparities associated with a "digital divide" (i.e., between those with and without e-health tools and e-health literacy) can be surmounted in order to target the benefits of e-health to those with the greatest need (who currently may have the least access).
7. In regard to doctor-patient communication, they’re three key objectives of interaction during traditional (face-to-face) encounters and which are to create inter-personal relationships, exchange information, and to decide how best to treat the problem at hand [26]. In an e-health environment, how can the "inter-personal" human-to-human connection (which is all important to the healing relationship) be maintained, or even enhanced?
8. The design, development, and evaluation of e-health systems will require skills from multiple professional disciplines. How best should we pull together the required expertise which will include specialists with backgrounds in: inter-personal and mass communication, human factors, clinical sciences, health informatics and IT, computer science and engineering, public health/population sciences, and health management and policy?
9. How do we ensure that the design and implementation process is evidence-based? Given the significant cost of e-health systems and limited evidence to date regarding return-on-investment, it is essential that e-health effectiveness research become widespread. This line of work should be sure to incorporate a focus on the domain of provider/consumer interaction and communication. E-health tools are very amenable to the incorporation of fully integrated, ongoing e-supported performance assessment and monitoring, since most data items needed for the evaluation are already captured digitally and in real time [20].
10. Over the next several decades the "e-volution" of health IT, m-health, and other e-health systems will likely embody very rapid change and metamorphosis. In most cases this change will be disruptive to the current doctor/patient communication status quo. We will need to learn how to effectively manage the change and diffusion of e-health tools within professions, delivery systems, communities, and health care systems. For example, we must develop effective private and public e-health change management initiatives such as strategic planning, financial investment, research & development, market facilitation, training & education, evaluation, and regulation. As we plan, assess, and implement e-health systems across the country and around the globe, we must never lose sight of the ultimate end game, which is to improve the health and well being of the individual consumer and society-at-large.