Health
Laptop Heat Can Endanger Sperm Count – Expert
A Consultant in Nuclear Medicine and Radiology, Dr Jawa Muhammad, has said that the heat generated from the laptop could affect the sperm count thereby causing infertility.
Muhammad told newsmen in Abuja on Wednesday that heat from the laptop had devastating effect on sperm counts.
The Wikipedia online dictionary describes sperm count, or sperm concentration, as a measure of the concentration of sperm in a man’s ejaculate, it is done to evaluate a man’s fertility.
“It is very true that the heat that generates from electronic devices like the laptop, particularly has devastating effect on the fertility profile or the sexual status of human beings.
“The optimum temperature that is required for the process of production of sperm cells should always be one degree less than the body temperature.”
He said that the testicles were in a flexible skin tissue, noting that during heat period when the body temperature was extremely high, the skin of the scrotum became loose.
“Therefore suspending the testis outside so that the testis temperature will always be one degree less than the body temperature.”
Muhammad said that nature had kindly designed this process of scrotum movement to adjust to temperature of less than one degree in all seasons for normal sperm cells production.
“When you place your laptop particularly on your lap as the name implies, there is a huge heat that is emanating from the laptop, which can cause severe effect on the male testis and scrotum, which can lead to infertility.”
He noted that excessive heat affected sperm cells production and made it defective, which invariably affected fertility.
Muhammad explained that the female ovary was very sensitive to heat, adding that it required low temperature for normal development of eggs for conception.
“Heat damages the egg, causes deformity to the ovary and affects fertility in women.”
According to him, exposure to laptop heat by pregnant women could cause some congenital problems to the unborn child, such as absence of fingers, eye or deformity in some parts of the body.
The nuclear expert said that the best thing was to put the laptop from 50cm to 100cm away from the genital area, especially for men.
“We always recommend that it should be placed on the platform or desk, or table, very far away from the lap area.”
He noted that putting a laptop on top of the lap could damage the surrounding area of the tissue, saying that it caused significant burns to the area of the testis.
He, however, added that with time it could lead to cancer of the spermatocele, which had devastating effect on muscles and blood vessels around the area.
Muhammad said that heat radiation had effect on both male and female, saying that it reduced the integrity of skin, caused cancer and made the person involved in its regular usage more prone to skin infections.
He noted that the screen also had some form of radiation that could damage the retina of eyes as well as cause blindness.
Muhammad urged the public to minimise the manner and way they used the laptop by engaging in other things that would reduce the amount of time people spent on it, to reduce the chances of its health implications.
He advised that people who use laptops should use screens to reduce the effect of radiation.
He also cautioned against the lifestyle of spending too much of time on any electronic device as it had health implications generally.
Two United States scientists who unraveled the human micro RNA have won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2024.
Victor Ambros and Gary Ruvkun won the coveted prize for their work on microRNA as their discoveries help explain how complex life emerged on earth and how the human body is made up of a wide variety of different tissues.
MicroRNAs influence how genes – the instructions for life – are controlled inside organisms, including humans.
Every cell in the human body contains the same raw genetic information, locked in our DNA.
However, despite starting with the identical genetic information, the cells of the human body are wildly different in form and function.
The electrical impulses of nerve cells are distinct from the rhythmic beating of heart cells. The metabolic powerhouse that is a liver cell is distinct to a kidney cell, which filters urea out of the blood.
The light-sensing abilities of cells in the retina are different in skillset to white blood cells that produce antibodies to fight infection.
So much variety can arise from the same starting material because of gene expression.
The US scientists were the first to discover microRNAs and how they exerted control on how genes are expressed differently in different tissues.
The medicine and physiology prize winners are selected by the Nobel Assembly of Sweden’s Karolinska Institute.
They said: “Their groundbreaking discovery revealed a completely new principle of gene regulation that turned out to be essential for multicellular organisms, including humans.
“It is now known that the human genome codes for over 1,000 microRNAs.”
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has begun acting to curb effects of antibiotic pollution.
The new guidance on wastewater and solid waste management for antibiotic manufacturing sheds light on this important but neglected challenge ahead of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) High-Level Meeting on antimicrobial resistance (AMR) taking place on 26 September 2024.
The emergence and spread of AMR caused by antibiotic pollution could undermine the effectiveness of antibiotics globally, including the medicines produced at the manufacturing sites responsible for the pollution.
Despite high antibiotic pollution levels being widely documented, the issue is largely unregulated and quality assurance criteria typically do not address environmental emissions. In addition, once distributed, there is a lack of information provided to consumers on how to dispose of antibiotics when they are not used, for example, when they expire or when a course is finished but there is still antibiotic left over.
“Pharmaceutical waste from antibiotic manufacturing can facilitate the emergence of new drug-resistant bacteria, which can spread globally and threaten our health. Controlling pollution from antibiotic production contributes to keeping these life-saving medicines effective for everyone,” said Dr Yukiko Nakatani, WHO Assistant Director-General for AMR ad interim.
Globally, there is a lack of accessible information on the environmental damage caused by manufacturing of medicines.
“The guidance provides an independent and impartial scientific basis for regulators, procurers, inspectors, and industry themselves to include robust antibiotic pollution control in their standards,” said Dr Maria Neira, Director, Department of Environment, Climate Change and Health, WHO. “Critically, the strong focus on transparency will equip buyers, investors and the general public to make decisions that account for manufacturers’ efforts to control antibiotic pollution.”
In a concerted effort to curb brain drain, the Kebbi State Government has harmonised medical doctors’ salaries to be at par with their colleagues in the federal government’s tertiary health facilities.
Kebbi State Commissioner for Health, Musa Inusa-Isma’il, disclosed this at the handing over of ambulances to the state-owned health facilities at the Ministry of Health in Birnin Kebbi yesterday.
Inusa Isma’il, according to a statement by Ahmed Idris, the Chief Press Secretary to the governor, said the essence of the harmonisation was to retain the existing medical doctors and attract more to the services of the state.
According to him, the doctors across the state had already started enjoying the new salaries from August 2024.
He said the release of the vehicles was in fulfilment of Governor Nasir Idris’ promise to uplift health care services in the state.
“His Excellency said I should inform you, the beneficiaries of this gesture, that the vehicle should be strictly used for the intended purpose. It should not be used for anything else.
“If there is no referral case, each of the vehicles must be parked at the hospital by 6 pm. The governor said you should warn your drivers against reckless driving as well as violating the instructions.
“We should also do everything possible to reciprocate the gesture by working according to the terms and conditions attached,” he advised.
The benefiting health facilities included Sir Yahaya Memorial Hospital, Birnin Kebbi; State Teaching Hospital, Kalgo; General Hospital, Argungu; General Hospital, Yauri; General Hospital, Zuru; and General Hospital, Bunza.
In his speech, the permanent secretary of the ministry, Dr Shehu Koko, recalled that the ambulances were handed over to the ministry last Friday by the governor for the onward handover to the benefiting hospitals.
He observed that the ambulances would go a long way in improving the referral system in the state, adding that delays in reaching the secondary and tertiary facilities would be eliminated.
The permanent secretary attributed the high rate of maternal mortality in the country to delays in getting to the health facilities for proper medical care.
“We believe with the provision of these ambulances, part of the gaps we have in our referral system will be addressed, whereby patients who require secondary healthcare could be easily transported to secondary and tertiary health centres, where they can get such help,” he said.
In a goodwill message, Commissioner for Information and Culture Alhaji Yakubu Ahmed expressed gratitude to the governor for the support he has given to the ministry to excel.
While advising the beneficiaries to use the vehicles judiciously, the commissioner advised that services and maintenance of the vehicles must be prompt to derive the maximum benefits from the vehicles.
The commissioner also highlighted some achievements recorded by the government in the last year, including beautification of the state capital, completion of a multimillion-naira ultramodern state secretariat, road construction, construction and renovation of classrooms and upgrading of some health facilities, among others.