Health Comes First on World Health Day and Beyond

Like any other mothers I strive to keep my family healthy by practicing basic health measures and by continuously staying updated on current healthcare issues. However, the fact remains that there is still so much more that can be done to improve the health of every family and the nation.

Good thing, we have the World Health Day to celebrate yearly and to remind us that health should always come first. And, in celebration to this years World Health Day which was last April 7, 2016, Safeguard launched "Health Watch", a lecture series aimed to equip Filipino moms with the information and the skills that they need to continue to keep their family healthy.

I'm with my 2 year old Brianna because before the Health Watch lecture, we attended the Superdudes meet and greet event which I blogged about here 

It was a privilege to be one of the mommy bloggers who get to attend the first Health Watch lecture held last April 6, 2016 in Makati City. UNICEF shared with us figures about the State of Filipino Children’s Health. According to a report entitled “A Decade of Tracking Progress for Maternal, Newborn, and Child Survival” conducted in 2015, sad to say that Philippines is among 26 countries which has contributed to 80% of global deaths of children under 5 years old.

Another report by A Promise Renewed cited that 3 out of 100 children under 5 years old in the Philippines die due to:

• neonatal health conditions (45%), 
• pneumonia (18%), and 
• diarrhea (7%).

But did you know that some of these deadly diseases are easily prevented through the simple act of handwashing? Handwashing with soap and water helps reduce the incidence of diarrhea among children by up to 50% and respiratory illnesses such as pneumonia by up to 25%. Among infants, handwashing has also helped reduce infections, which constitute 16% of neonatal conditions.

To address this problem, Procter & Gamble, through Safeguard, partnered with UNICEF in implementing its Water Sanitation and Health (WASH) Program, which includes health and hygiene education among children. I remember last month my son Tristan who is in Kindergarten went home from school with a bottle of safeguard hand soap and a Clean Hands, Healthy Kids activity book. According to him, someone went to their school and taught them to always wash their hands to fight germs and sickness. It made an impact on my son, he likes washing his hands now more than ever, thanks to the WASH Program, I find it highly effective. 

However, beyond this program to help reduce the incidences of deadly diseases, Safeguard also recognizes the importance of health in the context of everyday activities at home. So on World Health Day, Safeguard emphasized that proper hygiene every day also plays an important role in keeping families healthy.

Actual demo of proper hand washing

At the first Health Watch lecture, Safeguard taught us about First Aid basics, including proper wound care, in partnership with the Philippine Red Cross (PRC). According to the PRC, the simple act of washing a wound with soap has been beneficial in reducing infections among children, infections which could eventually develop to more serious diseases. Wounds are often the primary entry point of germs and bacteria, thus, wound care is considered a crucial step in disease prevention.

But before treating our children’s minor burns and wounds, proper sanitation is equally important among us mommies. As the First Aiders, Parents must be aware that the first important step is washing our hands before treating our children. Washing the wound with soap and water for 5 minutes also greatly reduces the chance of infection, tetanus, scarring, and tattooing of the skin from dirt left in the wound.

We were also taught the proper use of bandage

So mommies, whether it’s a serious disease like diarrhea or everyday complaint like a new wound from playing outdoors, we should always be alert in keeping our family protected.

We learned a lot from the lecture thanks to Safeguard and their partners from DOH, UNICEF and PRC for a successful Health Watch Lecture

And, with the slogan "Family Germ Protection" the trusted name Safeguard continues to be committed and consistent in promoting health and hygiene for 50 years now. There's nothing more reassuring than knowing that we have partners in health, right mommies?

So beyond just World Health Day, Safeguard reminds us to put our family’s health first!