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Saturday, June 19, 2010

Two Suns on 21stJune 2010

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Two Suns on 21stJune 2010



21st June - the Whole World is waiting for . . .

Star Aderoid will be the brightest in the sky, starting 10 June. It will look as large as the sun from naked eye.

This will culminate on 21stjune when the star comes within 34.65M miles of the earth.

Be sure to watch the sky on june. 21 at 12:30 pm. It will look like the earth has 2 suns!!

The next time Aderoid may come this close is in 2287.

By: Victor B. Valido

FOOD AND DRUGS ADMINISTRATION WARNING ABOUT FOOD SUPPLEMENTS

FDA THROWS FULL SUPPORT BEHIND DOH AND SECRETARY CABRAL ON HERBALS A.O.
Press Release/ 16 June 2010

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the government regulatory arm tasked to ensure the safety and quality of food products, drugs, cosmetics and other devices in the country, today reiterated its “full and unequivocal support” for the Department of Health’s issuance of Administrative Order No. 2010-0008 which requires the translation of the cautionary statement “No Approved Therapeutic Claims” into Filipino.
“DOH Administrative Order 2010-0008 was issued mainly to inform the public that food/dietary supplements are not drugs and should not be used to treat disease. As the State’s main arm in the task of promoting and protecting the health of the people, the DOH must explore all possible means to fulfill its mandate. We are of the staunch belief that the DOH was well within the bounds of reason and authority in the issuance of the questioned Administrative Order”, said the FDA in an official statement.
The issuance of the aforesaid A.O., which will now require herbal food supplement manufacturers to use the statement “HINDI ITO GAMOT AT HINDI DAPAT GAMITING PANGGAMOT SA ANUMANG URI NG SAKIT” on all their advertising and promotional materials has raised a howl of protest from the multi-billion peso herbal food supplements industry. The industry responded by dragging Secretary Esperanza Cabral before the Court and the Office of the Ombudsman.
“The regulation of claims attributed to all health products in general is imbued with public interest as such claims can influence a person’s belief regarding a particular health product. Reliance on false and misleading claims regarding a health product may have harmful consequences to a person’s health”, the FDA further said.
The FDA cited laws and regulations such as the Consumer Act of the Philippines, Codex General Guidelines on Claims and Guidelines on the Use of Nutrition and Health Claims, apart from the law that created the FDA itself, in illustrating the State’s commitment to ensuring that no false and misleading claims are made for health products such as herbal food supplements.
The herbal industry has recently been granted a preliminary injunction by the Court that effectively stalled the implementation of the A.O. in the meantime. While the FDA complied with the Court’s orders by maintaining the status quo, it remained “unfazed and solidly behind the DOH and Secretary Cabral”.
“We have the utmost trust and confidence that the Court will render a judgment that will protect and promote the general welfare”, the statement concluded.
BE CAUTIOUS IN BUYING FOOD SUPPLEMENTS - DOH
Press Release/25 February 2010
The Department of Health (DOH) urged the public to be cautious in buying food and herbal supplements, saying that these are not meant to be alternatives to medicines and sound medical advice from physicians.
The sale of food and herbal supplements has exploded into a billion-peso industry in the Philippines over the past few years, with the advertisements bombarding the public in all forms of media. The employment of celebrity endorsers with testimonials about their supposed "curative" effects has made it an even more lucrative venture.
Health Secretary Esperanza Cabral, however, expressed her concern that many people are wasting hard-earned money on these supplements. "Many are being misled into thinking that these supplements can cure diseases when in fact they can't", said the health chief. Former Health Secretary Dr. Alberto Romualdez, chair of the Medicines Transparency Alliance Philippines (MeTA-Philippines), also said in recent media reports that of the P150 billion being spent for health in the Philippines, about half goes down the drain because there are used on products which have no effects on the health or wellness of people.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which is under the DOH, has repeatedly issued warnings to the public to always check whether the products they buy are approved by the FDA and are marked with the disclaimer "NO APPROVED THERAPEUTIC CLAIMS". Secretary Cabral has also ordered the translation of the warning into Filipino for the greater understanding of the public. Manufacturers of food supplements shall be required to put the Filipino translation of the disclaimer in the packaging of their products, as well as in all advertising, promotion and sponsorship materials.
"We are not against the food and herbal supplements industry, but it is in the best interest of the people that they be armed with the right information on these products". Cabral said.

Thursday, June 17, 2010

Fwd: FW: Two Suns on June 21, 2010


 

SHARE THIS WITH YOUR FRIENDS, AS NO ONE ALIVE TODAY WILL EVER SEE IT AGAIN.

Two Suns on 21stJune 2010

Fun & Info @ Keralites.net

21st June - the Whole World is waiting for . . .

Star Aderoid will be the brightest in the sky, starting 10 June. It will look as large as the sun from naked eye.

This will culminate on 21stjune when the star comes within 34.65M miles of the earth.

Be sure to watch the sky on june. 21 at 12:30 pm. It will look like the earth has 2 suns!!

The next time Aderoid may come this close is in 2287
.

By: Victor B. Valido

 

 

"

Thursday, March 18, 2010

SIMPLE THINGS TO DO TO SAVE OUR ENVIRONMENT

SAVE THE ENVIRONMENT BY USING PAPER BAGS
Re-published 02/12/2011

(Filed under Uncategorized · Tagged environment, environmental tips, stop pollution)

If you want to know more about the monstrosity of plastic bags, you have to delve to the very root…

Based on reliable sources:
(experts/scientists/researchers)

Plastics are petroleum products. They come from polymers by virtue of ‘biogeochemical’ manipulation. One thing that plastic bags and paper bags have in common is that they are both recyclable. In recycling plastic bags, they are melted and reformed. Re-melting is the process that sterilizes the plastic. After this process, plastic can be used to create hospital products.

It can be recycled several times until unfit or brittle. The disadvantage, however, is that in the process of recycling, dioxins are given off. These dioxins destroy you and your environment. This is the reason why plastic bags are considered monsters – ogres that destroy the people’s environment and health.

Another drawback in connection to plastic bags is that they do not compost. There is no such thing as biodegradable plastic. That phrase is merely made to deceive. Plastic products stay in the landfill for centuries. Don’t be amazed when you see your plastic wares in your landfill still whole and strong. Bear in mind that they don’t break down.

Perhaps, you should start worrying about the 450 trillion of plastic bags that business is providing. Where do they go? Well, hanging around or under. Just imagine fast forwarding a few years. Whoa! We can be buried in plastic bags. That’s terrible!

Do you believe that it is high time to think about your children’s children? Do you think it is high time for you to consider reusing bags or opt for paper bags, which are biodegradable? When it comes to strength, paper bags are now vastly improved compared to the older version. Nowadays, paper bags are tough and cannot be easily torn.

When it comes to durability, paper bags already have the ability to be reused over and over again. In fact, they can even withstand snow exposure without damaging them.

When it comes to capacity, you may not know this but paper bags can hold four times the content of plastic bags. Hence, a paper bag can save you from carrying multiple plastic bags simultaneously.

Both paper bags and plastic bags destroy natural resources and ecosystem. Both contribute to green house gasses. However, plastic bags are more hazardous. When recycling or incinerating plastic, dioxins are produced and sent off to air. These dioxins are the ones responsible for ruining the ecosystem and the environment in general. Only one to three percent of all plastic bags are recycled. The rest are found in the streams, floating on the sea and flying around the streets.

The best solution is the use of reusable paper bags. Paper bags do not pollute the environment the way plastic bags do. They are also biodegradable. Paper bags compost and become fertilizer or material for brick thus, eventually become useful.

In time, paper bags have improved a lot. Materials are better, designs more diversified, shapes more experimental, quality more advance and recycling process more environment-friendly.

Reusable paper bags are the best alternative to save your ailing environment as well as your poor health conditions. When will you take part in this cause? When it is already too late to react? Or when the world is already a big mess?

Researched & published by:
Victor Bañaga Valido
Dumaguete City

Note: There was a proposal last year (2009) from the City Council of Dumaguete City to use paper bags in our City Public Market. I have no update if it was filed as a resolution in the City Legislative Council.

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

The Truth and Facts About Global Warming

Glaciers are melting, sea levels are rising, cloud forests are drying, and wildlife is scrambling to keep pace. It's becoming clear that humans have caused most of the past century's warming by releasing heat-trapping gases as we power our modern lives. Called greenhouse gases, their levels are higher now than in the last 650,000 years.

We call the result global warming, but it is causing a set of changes to the Earth's climate, or long-term weather patterns, that varies from place to place. As the Earth spins each day, the new heat swirls with it, picking up moisture over the oceans, rising here, settling there. It's changing the rhythms of climate that all living things have come to rely upon.

What will we do to slow this warming? How will we cope with the changes we've already set into motion? While we struggle to figure it all out, the face of the Earth as we know it—coasts, forests, farms and snow-capped mountains—hangs in the balance.

Greenhouse effect

The "greenhouse effect" is the warming that happens when certain gases in Earth's atmosphere trap heat. These gases let in light but keep heat from escaping, like the glass walls of a greenhouse.

First, sunlight shines onto the Earth's surface, where it is absorbed and then radiates back into the atmosphere as heat. In the atmosphere, “greenhouse” gases trap some of this heat, and the rest escapes into space. The more greenhouse gases are in the atmosphere, the more heat gets trapped.

Scientists have known about the greenhouse effect since 1824, when Joseph Fourier calculated that the Earth would be much colder if it had no atmosphere. This greenhouse effect is what keeps the Earth's climate livable. Without it, the Earth's surface would be an average of about 60 degrees Fahrenheit cooler. In 1895, the Swedish chemist Svante Arrhenius discovered that humans could enhance the greenhouse effect by making carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas. He kicked off 100 years of climate research that has given us a sophisticated understanding of global warming.

Levels of greenhouse gases (GHGs) have gone up and down over the Earth's history, but they have been fairly constant for the past few thousand years. Global average temperatures have stayed fairly constant over that time as well, until recently. Through the burning of fossil fuels and other GHG emissions, humans are enhancing the greenhouse effect and warming Earth.

Scientists often use the term "climate change" instead of global warming. This is because as the Earth's average temperature climbs, winds and ocean currents move heat around the globe in ways that can cool some areas, warm others, and change the amount of rain and snow falling. As a result, the climate changes differently in different areas.

Aren't temperature changes natural?

The average global temperature and concentrations of carbon dioxide (one of the major greenhouse gases) have fluctuated on a cycle of hundreds of thousands of years as the Earth's position relative to the sun has varied. As a result, ice ages have come and gone.

However, for thousands of years now, emissions of GHGs to the atmosphere have been balanced out by GHGs that are naturally absorbed. As a result, GHG concentrations and temperature have been fairly stable. This stability has allowed human civilization to develop within a consistent climate.

Occasionally, other factors briefly influence global temperatures. Volcanic eruptions, for example, emit particles that temporarily cool the Earth's surface. But these have no lasting effect beyond a few years. Other cycles, such as El Niño, also work on fairly short and predictable cycles.

Now, humans have increased the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere by more than a third since the industrial revolution. Changes this large have historically taken thousands of years, but are now happening over the course of decades.

Why is this a concern?

The rapid rise in greenhouse gases is a problem because it is changing the climate faster than some living things may be able to adapt. Also, a new and more unpredictable climate poses unique challenges to all life.

Historically, Earth's climate has regularly shifted back and forth between temperatures like those we see today and temperatures cold enough that large sheets of ice covered much of North America and Europe. The difference between average global temperatures today and during those ice ages is only about 5 degrees Celsius (9 degrees Fahrenheit), and these swings happen slowly, over hundreds of thousands of years.

Now, with concentrations of greenhouse gases rising, Earth's remaining ice sheets (such as Greenland and Antarctica) are starting to melt too. The extra water could potentially raise sea levels significantly.

As the mercury rises, the climate can change in unexpected ways. In addition to sea levels rising, weather can become more extreme. This means more intense major storms, more rain followed by longer and drier droughts (a challenge for growing crops), changes in the ranges in which plants and animals can live, and loss of water supplies that have historically come from glaciers.

Scientists are already seeing some of these changes occurring more quickly than they had expected. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, eleven of the twelve hottest years since thermometer readings became available occurred between 1995 and 2010.

published by: vbvalido
source: GN-WA 2010

Sunday, January 31, 2010

Environment and Politics in the Philippines

The government has no comprehensive contingency plan for the projected long drought estimated to last for six months. Concerned agencies and sectors in the government should come up with a very specific plan that both covers the "domestic household" and agriculture sectors in light of a possible water crisis.

Malacanang ordered the reactivation of the Task Force and set aside billion of pesos to agricultural sectors and it will be used to fund various livelihood programs in areas affected by the long drought.

The government should also focus on water supply for domestic use such as for drinking, cleaning that will have adverse health effects on many families especially in the urban areas such as Manila and Cebu.

Concerned agencies must submit their contingency plans and made it public as some areas in our country were already felt the effect of the El Nino phenomenon.

We need political will of the government to implement contigency program and actions to soften the impact of the long drought.

Sunday, January 17, 2010

Plastic-Styro Recycling Facility

The St. Paul University of Dumaguete (Department of Science and Technology) is the only school in the (Region Seven - Central Visayas) with Styrofor Waste Recycling Facility. This facility will be used for two years allowing the neighboring schools to bring their used styrofor to SPUD and have them recycled into floor tiles. This facility is safe and ecologically friendly and will surely answer many of the community's waste disposal problems.

The SPUD was also awarded 1st place in the Regional Search for the Most Sustainable and Eco-Friendly school all over Region VII.

SPUD introduced several environmental programs. As a result of their initiatives, the school shall serve as the center from which neighboring public schools can gain some training on how the programs can be implemented. It also give enviromental trainings to all sectors in the community that are interested in the program especially in the area of Solid Waste Management.

The school's Eco-Solid Waste Reduction Management (ECO-SWARM) consists of different committees such as: Education and Livelihood, Monitoring and Evaluating, Research and Innovation, Communication and Documentation, and Collection and Segregation.

Mabuhay to all the members of the Paulinian Community.

Saturday, January 16, 2010

How to Protect Our Mother Earth

There are several government agencies especially the non-government organizations sectors worlwide involved in the preservation of our mother earth. Many programs were already in placed and some were being introduced in the schools, in our community centers and a lot of these were posted in the internet.

But as a concerned individual or group, what do you think you may contribute to make our mother earth a better place to live in especially for the next generation.