Posted on: February 22, 2012
By Carly Jones
The Vale of Glamorgan council aims to use this years’ Olympics to get children, parents and teachers excited about sports and encourage them to make exercising part of their everyday lives.
Children took part in traditional Olympic events such as hurdles, high jump, long jump, javelin shot-put all in one day. Many of them were being introduced to these competitions for the first time. At the end of the day, youngsters were given a certificate to take home.
Organisers at Cowbridge leisure center, hope todays’ mini games will be the first of many in Wales. They hope schools will use them as part of their Physical Education classes
Matt Logsdon ran the event today and he says London 2012 is a perfect time to get kids interested in the games and parents and teachers should make sure they don’t miss this great opportunity to get children excited about the games, introducing them to sports like this that they’ll actually enjoy doing, they’ll want to go out and do it rather than feeling like they have to, that could prevent them sitting at home, eating badly, not doing enough activity and not enjoying life I suppose”
Parents at the event today were keen on ensuring their children maintained a health and active lifestyle and are grateful for events like the one today.
Shamilla, is from Manchester and is visiting family, she brought her two daughters to today’s event.“I think exercise should be a way of life really. I obviously helps children from getting overweight but there’s load of other things that come with plating sports and doing exercise… stuff like team building and social skills”
Carrie Williams brought her seven year old Kate. “Exercise and sport is part of my daily life and my husband and because of that we’ve always done sports and exercise with our children fortunately for us they both adore it… I think the fact that the Olympics are in this year and there’s so many sortn of advertisements and media interest about it, it’s bound to catch the children’s interest and imagination
When they can watch something on the television and see all athletes of all different shapes and sizes from different cultures and different countries all working towards the same goal, I think it’s a great role model for them, I really do.”
The most popular event of the day was the high jump, followed closely by the hurdles. The children seemed to have a really good time and said they’d love to take part again.
Those who don’t have a mini Olympics in their area, can make their own… All that’s needed is a garden or a small few props found around the house. An obstacle race is a great place to start – You can easily make mini hurdles by placing bamboo canes across buckets or plant pots. People can use oranges as miny shot-puts. To create a long jump competition all that’s needed is need to do is lay a tape measure out on the ground. It’s also always nice to award effort with a little prize and so a Mini Olympic medal ceremony is an integral part of the day.
http://soundcloud.com/carlydawn/favourite-activities
Children in South Wales take part in their own mini Olympics
By Carly Jones
The team train at Llantrisant Leisure centre, in Rhondda Cynon Taff.
Cllr Robert Bevan, Rhondda Cynon Taf council’s cabinet member for culture, recreation and tourism was at the event, but the real star was wheelchair-rugby paralympian from Neath, David Anthony. He’s hoping to represent Great Britain in the London 2012, Paralympic games.
“It’s very nerve wracking but exciting. you know being at London 2012 is a big thing especially because it’s a home olympics, famly and friends are gonna be there, and 20,000 people screaming GB at you. It’s going to be a very nervous but exciting time”
Amanda Thomas, who’s the regional support officer at GBWR (Great Britain wheelchair Rugby) and runs the Cardiff Pirates and organised today’s event said there are so many benefits for wheelchair users who play wheelchair rugby.
“Some of these guys find day to day living tasks quite difficult. The jump into one of these chairs and it’s absolutely fantastic – they’re involved in a team sport, the social side of it is brilliant. Also, because it’s full contact as well you can actually get rid of some aggression it’s a fantastic way to keep fit. All round it’s very very good all round”
Wheelchair rugby is a fast sport, played indoors on a basketball court. Two teams of up to twelve players tackle each other using specially designed wheelchairs, scoring points by carrying the ball over the goal line.
Athletes must have some form of disability with a loss of function in both the upper and lower limbs. Players are classified according to their functional level and assigned a point value ranging from 0.5 (the lowest level) to 3.5 (the highest) The total classification value of all the players on the court for a team must not exceed 8 points. Wheelchair rugby classification is conducted by personnel with medical training, such as a physician or physiotherapist.
Wheelchairs are designed to meet the individual needs and ability.
Wheelchair Rugby is an expensive business. The wheelchairs’ themselves can cost up to £6,000. Amanda Thomas told us most all the funding for the South Wales group comes from funding.
“We do get some support form Disability Sport Wales (DSW) but it’s a very expensive sport. We’ve just got to get out there look for funding and sponsorship and apply to kind people.”
The club is run successfully thanks to the help of staff members and the manager of Llantrisant Leisure centre, Gary Dolton. Amanda Thomas says “they go out of their way to accommodate the needs of the club.”
Wheelchair rugby, started in Canada 1970s. It grew as a sport in the 1980′s when it became popular here.
Team GB is said to be one of best in world. They’ve been crowned European champions on three consecutive occasions and finished in 4th place in Athens and Bejing.
GBWR hope to get more people involved with wheelchair rugby and “promote, grow and sustain it.”
The video above was produced by Geraint Thomas and Carly Jones
By Becky Hoskins
There should be a minimum price for alcohol in Wales, according to Alcohol Concern Cymru.
The charity believe there should be tougher restrictions on alcohol marketing and advertising. This includes an end to drinks industry sponsoring sporting and cultural events.
According to the charity, alcohol advertising on television or radio should also be stopped, as more than 10% of the viewers or listeners are under 18.
Alcohol Concern Cymru believe establishing a minimum price for alcohol would help prevent people developing alcohol problems. Mark Leshon said,
“We know alcohol is much more affordable than it was twenty or thirty years ago and consumption overall has risen as a result.
What we would like to see is a minimum price per unit of alcohol, which we think would get rid of the cheap alcohol on offer, particularly in supermarkets, which we all know is so tempting to everyone.”
Recent figures from the Office of National Statistics show Wales has one of the highest numbers of alcohol-related deaths in the UK. In 2010, almost 500 adults in Wales died from alcohol-related causes. These include alcohol dependence, chronic liver disease and cirrhosis.
The figures show there has been a big increase in alcohol-related deaths in Wales over the last 20 years, whilst 1.5% of all deaths in England and Wales are alcohol-related.
Health Care Out of Africa!
Posted on: February 13, 2012
Lenghthy waiting times and complaints of unclean hospital facilities, this is how most of us would talk about the Health System in Wales and the UK. Whether its moaning about the fact you have to wait 40 minutes to see the doctor or whether the most common cure for anything given by your doctor is “Take a paracetamol and drink lots of fluids.”
For the local people walking the 20 mile trip to the local clinic in Zimbabwe to receive any help they can, there are fewer things to worry about. For these patients wanting to see a doctor, the wait is longer than most of us would care to contemplate. The doctor visits Embakwe Mission Clinic once a month. For the rest of the time, patients rely on the nurses to give them medication for the hundreds of diseases and illness’s that are rife in Zimbabwe.
Last year’s cholera epidemic in the country saw over 90,000 people infected with the disease which is caused by unsafe water. With the economic and political downturn within Zimbabwe, good available health care is hard to come by. Mrs Ncube is a nurse at the Embakwe clinic and she says medical supplies are very limited.
Unicef gives us medicine’s and equipment to help treat the ongoing problem with diahorrea and skin infections but when we run out we have to pay for them ourselves.
Mrs Ncube doesnt often get paid but still attends work so she can help her community. The clinic is located 40 minutes drive away from the nearest hospital which has more equipment. Patients who need immediate medical attention sometimes dont make it on the way to the hospital. The well equiped and speedy ambulances here in Wales are a decade ahead of the old truck that has to drive over rugged terrains and dirt road to get to the Hospital in Plumtree.
Thousands of elderly people and young babies die in Zimbabwe every year but without the care delivered by rural clinics like Embakwe mission, many more would die. But with limited support from the Government and a country that has ongoing political problems, the NHS waiting times and cramped halls don’t seem all that bad. 
By Becky Hoskins
The rate of stillbirths in Wales is the same as it was 25 years ago, according to a charity.
The Holly Martin Stillbirth Research Fund says more needs to be done to stop stillbirths. According to Isobel Martin, the founder of the charity, a baby is stillborn in Wales every other day.
Dr Alexander Heazell, a clinical lecturer in obstetrics at St Mary’s hospital in Manchester, told the BBC:
“It’s something people are quite reluctant to talk about, and because it’s not talked about, people find it hard to warn parents to be aware of things like babies’ movements. One of the great changes that Isobel and people like Isobel are bringing about is to discuss stillbirth and ways we might reduce it.”
The Holly Martin Stillbirth Research Fund is due to give evidence at a health and social care committee of the Welsh Government
What is stillbirth?
A stillbirth is when a fetus dies in the uterus. Under British Law, a stillborn is a baby who is born dead after 24 completed weeks of pregnancy [The Stillbirth Definition Act, 1992]
In around half of cases, the reason behind the stillbirth cannot be established. Possible causes include problems with the mother’s health or problems with the placenta.
Sometimes stillbirth can be a result of birth trauma, for example the umbilical cord can become wrapped around a baby’s neck.
More information about stillbirth can be found on the NHS website.
The Statistics
- There are 4000 stillbirths each year in the UK – that’s around 11 every day.
- There were 180 stillbirths in Wales in 2009.
- One in every 200 births leads to a stillbirth.
- Approximately 10 times more babies are stillborn than die of cot death every year.
Watch where you eat!
Posted on: December 29, 2011
By Kelly-ann Bradnick
Have you ever wondered how clean the restaurant you’re eating at is? Well now you will be able to find out the hygienic rating for restaurants, takeaways and supermarkets.
The government has set out new plans that will force all food buisness’s by law to display the hygiene rating in their premises. The government hopes that the new bill will force restaurants with lower ratings to improve their cleanliness.
Currently, people can access the ratings of restaurants in Cardiff online at http://ratings.food.gov.uk/. Business’s are scored between a 0 and 5.
With the recent outbreak of E coli which has led to several deaths in Wales, Health minister Lesley Griffiths and Professor Hugh Pennington have backed the move to improve food hygiene in Wales.
Lesley Griffiths says:
I believe food hygiene is vital for the protection of public health, and this scheme will help drive up standards and benefit consumers and businesses alike.Compulsory display of hygiene ratings will encourage all businesses to improve their procedures and drive up standards. Professor Hugh Pennington, who chaired the public inquiry into the 2005 E.coli outbreak supports such a scheme as an inexpensive way of driving significant improvements in food safety.
In a survey carried out this year 94% of people thought hygiene ratings should be displayed in all business’s. The scheme is hoped to be brought into action by 2014.
What do you think about the new mandatory hygiene ratings. Would you be less inclined to eat from a particular restaurant if they had low ratings.
By Carly Jones
Extra bank holiday weekends, the Olympics and other sports are ocassions that most of us will be looking forward to in the new year. But NHS Blood and Transplant fear a bumper sporting calendar and extra days off work will keep donors away
NHSBT statistics show that 93% of donors give blood during the working week. So when there are big sporting events or a string of bank holidays donation levels drop. Last year bank holidays around Easter and the Royal Wedding Week in 2011 resulted in thousands of fewer donations. The combination of particularly warm, sunny weather, the World Cup Quarter Final and Andy Murray’s Wimbledon Semi Final lead to a 12% drop in donations.
“2012 is going to be an exciting year for the UK but we’re concerned that the cluster of major events could dramatically impact the number of blood donations coming in” – Jon Latham, NHSBT Assistant Director Blood Donation.
Approximately 2 million units of blood will be needed by hospitals throughout England and Wales in 2012, and the equivalent of 500 extra donations will be needed each week in the first six months to help build blood stocks and cover extra potential need from Olympic visitors. A significant drop in donations could have a massive impact on the thousands of people in England who require blood. Blood ‘products’ are not just for road traffic accidents, they are used to treat people with cancer, rheumatoid arthritis, sickle cell disease, for new mums and babies, and during surgery.
Over 4% of the eligible population are active blood donors
The NHS needs 7,000 voluntary donations of blood daily
A unit of blood is measured as 470mls (or just under a pint)
Whole blood donors can give every 16 weeks. That’s three times per year
First time donors should be aged between 17-65, weighing at least 50 kg (7 stone 12lbs) and in general good health
Source: NHS Blood and Transplant
Why not make giving blood your New Year’s resolution?
To find out more information and /or make an appointment.
- Visit www.blood.co.uk
- Call 0300 123 2323
- Follow NHSBT at http://www.facebook.com/NHSBlood
- Follow them on twitter @givebloodwales
Welsh / Cymraeg http://iechydcymru.wordpress.com/2011/12/30/bygythiad-i-gyflenwadau-gwaed-yn-bosib-yn-2012/
