Wednesday, November 18, 2015

Stressors effecting children around the world

There are many different stressors world wide that effect different groups of children from 
different economically sectors.  It is no not only the poorer children that are effected by 
stressors due to their economical situation but also children that fall pray to chaos or violence 
within their family unit.   am fortunate enough to say that I did not experience any major 
stressors growing up, but I did live in a county where there were many children less fortunate 
than myself.   Growing up In South Africa in the late 70’s and 80’s was a very different experience to what it 
would be now.  The law of apartheid was rife and black people had little to no rights.  
They were severely discriminated against and unfairly treated.  Children did not have right to 
education or other basic rights that the white children received.  This absurd ruling led to 
major poverty and an uneducated generation of people, suffering to survive their circumstances.  
My father, a karate instructor, was very involved with the battle against apartheid and didn’t 
see color or race as something that should be differentiated.  He strove to have people of all 
and every race practicing karate.  He was passionate in his conviction and this led him to later
being under house arrest for breaking the rules of apartheid.  I feel blessed to have been 
bought up in a family where my father made a difference in a time where there was so much 
hatred and so much discrimination.  The children of these impoverished and underprivileged 
families would have suffered a lot from their living conditions they would have endured 
malnutrition and poor health due to bad living conditions.  These people had a great sense of 
traditions and culture even within these boundaries, this was a great savior to their people and 
their families. The children were loved and cared for by not only their families but their 
neighbors and other people in the community.  They came together and stood together.
 With poverty and racism come violence and these children were no exception to that.  
Many witnessed  things that no child should every be a part of, and this lead to many grown up 
criminals.  When thinking about the consequences and the effects on their bio-social, cognitive and psychosocial development, one can clearly see that they would have had 
major disadvantages growing up with no access to education and little access to a clean and 
safe living environment. With little to no education you can imagine that their cognitive 
development was effected and with their poor diet and  threat of disease they would have had 
major effects on the development on a whole. Developmentalists have noted that the 
consequences of malnutrition and poverty have noticeable intellectual effects.

I am pleased to say that South Africa has come a long way, but sad to report that their are still 
many children that are not getting the basic needs that they should be getting.  It will take a 
long time to undo the damage of the past. 



References:

Berger, K. S. (2015). The developing person through childhood (7th ed.). New York, NY: Worth Publishers.



Sunday, November 8, 2015

IMMUNIZATION 

Immunization is very controversial subject and is often the center of discussion around moms
with newborns.  I wanted to research more and find out how immunization effects a child’s 
healthy development. It is a very big decision to make as parents and can often be something 
that parents do not agree upon.  I have a Dutch husband and I am South African, fortunately 
our countries were very similar in what they schedule for immunizations.  
We also did lot of research and my husband being a doctor had an advantage of  having dealt 
with immunizations and knowledge of them.   In both South Africa and Holland immunizations 
are strongly recommended but not compulsory.  They are funded from the government and there 
are also a number of private ones you can get if you wish.  My boys were born in South Africa 
and of course are exposed to more disease than they would be in Holland.  In South Africa it is 
recommended that babies have the BCG (anti-tuberculosis vaccine). South Africa has the second 
highest tuberculosis in the world after neighboring country, Swaziland. (Health 24, 2014). 
In the village where we lived in Cape Town, SA, there were a group of people who were against the 
vaccinations and who made the decision not to give them to their babies.  
While I agree with each and everyone having the freedom of choice I have to say that I found 
this disturbing. I feel that the only reason they have the luxury to not vaccinate is because
most of the children around them have been vaccinated. 
In 1998 claims of a link were made between the MMR vaccine and autism by Andrew Wakefield.  
This became a very hot topic and the use of the MMR vaccine dropped to an all time low in 2003/04.  
The higher the percentage of unprotected children got the higher the cases of measles became.  
The decade before saw only a handful of cases and those were imported from out of UK.  
After the drop in vaccine usage the outbreak of measles went from below 2 cases to over 2000.  
Measles is highly contagious and 1 in 15 cases of the illness can lead to complication such as 
inflammation on the brain and pneumonia. They are now facing a generation of unprotected children 
in secondary school.  The links made between the MMR vaccine and autism have since been discredited.
 (BBC News, health 2013, May 2).

At many schools it is compulsory to have all the scheduled vaccinations, in order to protect the
children around us.  In an interesting article I read that  most of the outbreaks of vaccine-preventive disease came from non-vaccinated children. (Lancet, 2006)

In Australia the government have stated that families who choose not vaccinate their children could 
loose up to $11 000 a year in child benefits.  This of course is highly effective and increases the cases 
of vaccinations.  Certain North European countries are less forceful and although they recommend 
vaccinations and fully fund them, they still leave the choice in the hands of the parents.  
These are however countries where most families choose to vaccinate and disease is low.
Personally I feel that the benefits far outweigh the risks of vaccinating.  In my opinion it is our 
responsibility to keep our children safe and well and in doing so we give other children the same chance. 


 References:
(2014, February 14). SA TB rate among the highest in the world. Health 24. Retrieved from 

South African’s immunization schedule is in line with World Health Organizations recommendations on 
how children should be vaccinated. By Child Magazine. Retrieved from: 

BBC News, Health(2013, May 2). Measles outbreak in maps and graphs. 
Retrieved from: http://www.bbc.com/news/health-22277186

Salmon, D. A., Teret, S. P., MacIntyre, C. R., Salisbury, D., Burgess, M. A., & Halsey, N. A., 
(2006, February 4). Compulsory vaccination and conscientious or philosophical
exemptions: past, present, and future. Lancet, 367, 436-442. Retrieved from http://www.commed.vcu.edu/IntroPH/Communicable_Disease/
cmpulsoryimmunization.pdf

Sunday, November 1, 2015

The magic of childbirth

Childbirth is a magical and extraordinary experience.  I know for some it is a frightening and anxious time and for others it is more clinical but for many it is a natural and exhilarating journey.
I come from South Africa where 70% of woman with private health care opt to have a selective cesarean.  It is a worrying figure and is not getting any less.  I respect the choice and feel that we all need to chose what is going to be the best option with the least amount of stress on the mother and baby alike. 
My husband is a doctor, born and raised in Holland and studies medicine in Amsterdam. We lived together in Amsterdam for 8 years and during that time our friends started to have babies.  In Holland childbirth is an extremely nature procedure and from early on in the pregnancy it is treated so.  A woman chose a midwife and unless there are complications she never sees a doctor.  There are 2 scheduled scans and the birth can either be at home (which is very common) or at the hospital under the guidance of the midwife.  Once the baby is born (and this is usually with no epidural or pain relief) the mother and baby leave within three hours to go back home.  The government provide each family with a nurse that comes to the house for 10 days and teaches the family how to take care of their baby, she relieves the family of other duties and even makes tea for the visitors that come to meet the baby.  These are long standing traditions that have not changed in Holland.  Having experienced this, when it came to my turn I was very calm yet excited.

We had moved to Cape Town, South Africa, two months before the birth our first son, Joshua.
I found a midwife (which was not as easy as in Holland).  I didn't read very much about birth but felt that it was a natural process and that I would know what to do at the time.  I felt a strong sense of trust in my midwife and also knew that my husband would be beside me throughout.

At around 3pm I felt the first contractions start and so the excitement began. We took a long walk and played boardgames, we drank tea and counted the minutes between the contractions.  They were far apart and I knew it would be some time still. We went to bed and I slept as much as I could while having contractions every 20 minutes.  The next day we went about as usual and things started to speed up.  The midwife came to the house around 4pm and said I was 6 Cm's and that she would meet us at the hospital (after peek traffic). So my husband had a swim, mowed the lawn and then we took off around a windy mountain pass to the hospital.  By this point I was unable to sit so was on all fours at the back of the car.  I was in a lot of pain but could bear it and kept thinking that each contraction was one less to meeting my little boy.  
At the hospital we went into the active birthing room and I got into the water.  My husband rubbed my back and the labour got heavier.  We were a great team and my husband's calm and loving presence made me calm and able to continue.  After four hours I was able to start pushing and an hour later Joshua was born.  A healthy little boy weighing 3.4kgs.  Maarten phoned his parents and mine to let them know and then I heard a loud cheer from outside the window - they had been camping out, patiently waiting on any news! Joshua was put straight onto my chest and Maarten cut the cord. I got back into the water and washed him and myself. He came back to me and that is where he stayed.  After 2 hours we went home and I kept him on my chest for days after that. It was a beautiful experience and I am grateful that I had no complications.  My two other boys came a lot faster but just as naturally.  I consider myself lucky and look back on the experience with such love and joy.