Children who often sleep less than others from when they are babies may be at risk of developing psychosis in early adulthood, new research shows.
Reasoning in kids is key and very important in learning and also their daily activities.
Recent study which was conducted at the University of Eastern Finland, stated to have improved the diet quality and reduced consumption of red meat, as well as increased time spent in reading and organised sports enhanced reasoning skills among children over the first two school years.
"Children with healthier eating habits showed greater cognitive development than other children.
Diet quality, lower red meat consumption, and higher low-fat dairy product intake were linked to better reasoning skills," says Doctoral Researcher Sehrish Naveed of the University of Eastern Finland.
Children who spent more time in reading and organised sports showed better reasoning skills than their peers.
More time spent on a computer system and unsupervised leisure-time physical activity were associated with poorer reasoning skills.
"In the lives of growing children, diet and physical activity intervention is just one factor influencing lifestyle and reasoning skills.
Based on research, investing in a healthy diet and encouraging children to read are beneficial for the development of reasoning skills among children.
Source:
Materials issued by University of Eastern Finland.
Recently there have been a global trend of rape. In Nigeria this has been a common trend recently which has been overwhelmed by furious rage against the rising ugly incidents. 
It was On a Saturday, June 13th, Nigerians were shocked of the brutal rape and murder of a girl Grace Oshiagwu, inside the house of God in Ibadan, Oyo State.
The 21-year-old student was discovered with deep machete cuts on parts of her body.
This makes Nigerians furious who are yet to come to terms with the rape and murder of Uwaila Omozuwa, a UNIBEN student, on May 27.
On June 1st and 5th, Bello Barakat, 18, and pregnant Azeezat Somuyiwa, 29, were respectively hacked to death after being raped in Ibadan, Oyo State.
Jennifer, 17, suffered the same unfortunate incident as she was ambushed and gang-raped by three, suspected street urchins, in Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State. Luckily, she survived to recount her ugly ordeal.
Elizabeth Ochanya, died on October 17, 2018, following health complications after being serially raped by her guardians in Benue State.
Her demise drew attention to the terrible issue of rape and exposed the failure of the Nigerian society to protect women and the girl child from being prowled on by sexual predators.
Nigeria has increasingly recorded an increase in the number of gender-based violence, especially rape and child defilement.
There is no age limit to this barbaric act, even as tribe, colour or class are irrelevant with this heinous crime
Even though the list of rape victims in Nigeria is endless, it will be difficult to compile a list of those who have had to deal with this menace in the country.
Statistical reports on rape cases over the years have been inaccurate as most incidents go unreported due to fear of stigmatisation and lack of follow-through investigations by law enforcement agents and agencies.
The United Nations Children’s Fund said one in four boys and one in 10 girls under 18 years are victims of sexual violence.
The Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, also said nearly one in five women are raped or sexually assaulted at some point in their lives, often by someone they know and trust.
The World Health Organisation said 35 per cent of women worldwide experience some kind of physical or sexual assault in their lifetime, with adolescent girls much more likely to be victims of rape, attempted rape or assault.
A 2016 report, “Violence Against Children in Nigeria,” by UNICEF revealed that four out of 10 girls experience sexual violence between the ages of six and 11, while it is one in every 10 for boys before they become adults.
Though rape is endemic in many countries, perpetrators in Nigeria seem to be getting more emboldened daily.
According to the Inspector General of Police, Muhammed Adamu, a total of 717 rape cases were recorded between January and May 2020.
Experts and concerned Nigerians say rape has become a pandemic, this is even as governors in the country recently unanimously declared a state of emergency on it.
Already, Nigeria is said to be trailing India, as the most dangerous place for women of all ages.
Concerned, the President, Major-General Muhammadu Buhari (retd), in his democracy day speech said he is determined to fight Gender-Based Violence through the instrumentality of the law and is upset at recent incidents of rape, especially of very young girls.
“The police are pursuing these cases to bring perpetrators of these heinous crimes to swift justice,” he assured.
Victims of rape are mostly stigmatised and blamed by society for being responsible for the crime.
This makes them recall into their shells and become wary of voicing out their encounters – they painfully bear the pain in silence.
Psychologists say the psychological pain caused by sexual violence runs deeper than people can fathom and that the pain is unending as victims are scarred for life.
Beyond rape, victims and their family members live a life of trauma and are daily haunted by the bestial experiences.
They are subjected to detrimental mental torture, which experts say leads to depression, suicide ideation and deviant behaviours.
In the words of Sonia Okodo, a victim, “The invisible wounds from rape are far more devastating and far harder to repair.”
According to Rutgers-New Brunswick study, the mind of a rape victim is a constant battleground where blame, regrets, suicidal thoughts and depressive spells fight for supremacy.
It notes that victims of sexual assault experience more vivid memories than women coping with the aftermath of other traumatic, life-altering events not associated with sexual violence.
Studies revealed that 70 per cent of rape victims experience moderate to severe post-traumatic stress disorder and have a hard time overcoming it.
This medical condition typically takes the form of nightmares, anger, depression, suicidal thoughts, flashbacks, eating disorder, feelings of guilt and shame that can surface immediately or years after.
Bukola Lameed, a psychologist, counsellor and therapist, explained that, regardless of age or gender, the impact of rape goes far beyond any physical injuries.
She explained that the trauma of rape or sexual assault can be shattering, leaving victims feeling scared, ashamed and alone.
She warns that if not properly handled, in the case of a minor or teenager, it could further push the victim into trauma.
“They become withdrawn, resort to bedwetting, thumb-sucking, aggression, cluelessness, drug addiction, bold mindset to venture into prostitution, depression, followed by suicidal thoughts.
Some become lesbians because they detest the opposite sex.”
Prof. Kayode Taiwo, a clinical psychologist and personality assessment, Lagos State University, said victims can only find closure if they come to terms with it as one of life’s challenges.
“It would not seem as if it never happened. It would be like a wound that seals, leaving them stronger and more determined.
“The first step to healing is seeking help, professionally or by speaking with a close, trusted person,” he said.
Finding closure, in the words of Maymunah Kadiri, a psychiatrist and psychotherapist, is a long road to traverse for victims. She said rape equates to losing something too precious, hence, victims go through stages of grief to heal.
“To get closure, a rape victim will have to first go through shock or denial stage, then anger, bargaining, depression or full clinical depression. Acceptance is the last stage. They must go through counselling and mental evaluation.”
Many have blamed the risen on the inability of public institutions to address the menace.
Punishment for rapists, they averred, is like a mere slap on the wrist. The police and other law enforcement have variously been accused of complicity and treating suspects with kid gloves.
Laws against rape, many insist is not deterrent enough and has fueled a pervading culture of silence on rape.
In Nigeria Criminal Code, punishment for rape, as spelt out in Section 358, is life imprisonment, while an attempt to commit rape attracts just 14 years.
Not much has been heard about the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act passed into law in May 2015, and which came up based on agitations for protection of persons against the different forms of violence.
The criminal and penal codes of 1990 laws guiding rape justice in Nigeria has also been adjudged to be deficient in many ways.
Many have concluded that the voice against rape is criminally silent; the law, ineffective, while the institutions to render support are sick and culpable.
Rape will continue to happen until a highly deterrent law to curtail the act is enacted and enforced.
However, beyond security and legal measures, punitive steps and advocacy, victims of rape should get psychological and psycho-social support to ensure wholesome healing.
CULLED FROM PUNCH
It is thought that she could be the only person in the world to exhibit such three symptoms at a go.
When she was diagnosed, the consultant geneticist told mum Niki Trepak, 32, she had never seen the disorder before which allows the youngster to go THREE DAYS without sleeping.
People with chromosome disorders suffer from missing or re-arranged genetic material - one common disorder being Down’s Syndrome.
Mum-of-five Ms Trepak, of Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, said: "Doctors have called her the bionic girl, she's made of steel. She's got no sense of danger.
"She was dragged about 10 car lengths down the road. It was horrendous, I don't think it's something I will never get over.
"I was screaming and all my other children were screaming as she ran out.
"But Olivia was just like, 'What's going on?'. She just got up and started walking back to me.
"Because of the impact she should have had severe injuries. She had a tyre mark on her chest. But her only injuries were she had no skin on her toe or her hip.
"The doctors think what saved her from injury was she didn't tense up."Full-time single mum Ms Trepak said she knew she was different to her other children, especially when she stopped napping during the day at nine-months-old.
She did not sleep and would make up excuses not to go to bed and the first time she ever yawned, her mum recalled, was when she started school.
Ms Trepak said: ”As a baby I always said she was made of steel as she never cried.
”I never thought she'd feel no pain, it was just a joke.
"I remember when she was at nursery, once day the rang me and told me she'd fallen and her bottom teeth had gone through her bottom lip.
"She had to have plastic surgery and when the surgeon was examining her, he was pulling her lip and she wasn't even flinching.
"He said to me, there's something not right about her."
“People called her a boy all the time."
Olivia who is 'conditioned' to eat is a happy child at home but can suffer from violent outbursts, her mum said.
She said: ”She doesn't let any of this affect her - because for her, she's normal. She's never experienced pain, or hunger, or tiredness.
"But it was such a battle for us to find out what was causing her symptoms. The doctors had no idea what could be wrong with her.
"To look at Olivia you don't know anything's wrong with her. I want people to know and to stop judging. I want to raise awareness or chromosome 6 problems."
Olivia and her mum have been supported by chromosome disorder support group Unique.
About one in 200 babies is born with a rare chromosome disorder but each one can be very different, making them exceptionally rare.
A photo of a boy by the bedside of his dying 4-year-old sister has gone viral.
A father whose young daughter died of a tumor in her brain and spinal cord has shared a crushing photo of his son saying goodbye to his sister.
“A little boy should not have to say goodbye to his partner in crime, his play mate, his best friend, his little sister,” wrote Matt Sooter of a tender moment shared between his kids on the Facebook page “Hope for Addy Joy – Fighting DIPG” on June 2. “This isn’t how it’s supposed to be. But this is the broken world we live in. Addy’s symptoms have progressed rapidly over the past day and a half.
Yesterday she woke up as her spunky playful self. While we still see short instances of our girl she can no longer eat or swallow without difficulty and she’s sleeping most of the time now and we’ve admitted her into inpatient care. Most likely she doesn’t have much time left.”
Matt added, “For our family and close friends if you feel you need to tell her goodbye we recommend you contact us and do so soon.
Pray for Jackson. He doesn’t want to leave her side and we won’t make him. Pray for us. That we have the right words and can make the necessary arrangements in time.
Always remember: God is in this situation, He’s up to something, and He’s up to something GOOD.”
The photo has collected 3,600 likes and almost 1,000 shares.
In November 2016 Addy, who lived in Rogers, Ark., was diagnosed with diffuse intrinsic pontene glioma (DIPG), which, according to Boston Children’s Hospital, is a “highly aggressive and difficult to treat” tumor at the brain’s base.
Addy Sooter, 4, passed away from a brain tumor.
In an essay published by the Advertiser, a Lafayette, La.-based website, Matt wrote that signs of Addy’s illness presented at a Missouri theme park when his mother remarked that the girl, then 2, was having trouble walking, a symptom the family surmised was fatigue or a growth spurt.
However, when Addy began falling and experiencing tremors in her hand, she was given an MRI, followed by an unthinkable diagnosis. “The short version, they were fairly certain our daughter had a tumor growing in her brain stem, it was aggressive, there was no treatment and therefore no cure, and it was going to take our little girl from us in a matter of months,” wrote Matt.
Last year Addy underwent experimental treatment in Monterrey, Mexico, trips that Matt told People could last 12 days at a time.
The magazine also reported that the family spent more than $200,000 in medical expenses.
On May 10, Matt shared a solemn update with the Facebook group. “I know you’ve all been waiting for MRI results.
I wish I had better news,” he wrote. “Addy’s MRI shows that her tumor has spread. It has moved down the brain stem into the cerebellum which is likely what caused the need for her shunt.
There is also a large mass in her spine that is placing pressure on her spinal cord…our doctors here have no options for us, and it seems the treatment in Mexico is no longer working. We’re out of options. We are shattered.
Everything within us screams to keep fighting, but we’ve run out of weapons with which to do so. Addy is losing ground quickly. We don’t know how much time we have her for so we’re going to make the most of it. Thank you for your prayers.”
The little girl passed away on June 3 “stubbornly but also peacefully,” wrote Matt on Facebook. “She wasn’t in any pain at the end. For those who were wishing to say goodbye I’m so sorry.
This all happened so much faster than we expected, but that in itself is a blessing because she suffered so little at the end. We will let you all know once services are scheduled.
Thank you for being a part of our little girl’s miracle. While this is only goodbye for now we miss our baby girl terribly.”
