Day: March 10, 2022

An earthquake with a magnitude of 5.1, jolted 36 km SW of Meulaboh, Indonesia, at 04:26:53 GMT early this morning, the U.S. Geological Survey, said.

The epicentre, with a depth of 50.44 km, was initially determined to be at 3.8882 degrees north latitude, and 95.9188 degrees east longitude.

Source: NAM NEWS NETWORK

An expert from the University of Indonesia Prof. Dr. Hindra Irawan Satari has urged parents to be prepared for the risk of long COVID-19 in children.

“If the child has already been infected, parents need to be prepared for the risk of long COVID-19. So, after recovering, the next month they will need to be checked up by a doctor,” he said during an online discussion on Thursday.

Long COVID-19 is very likely in children with a history of SARS CoV-2 infection who have had at least one persisting symptom for at least 12 weeks after the results of the first swab test and have not been diagnosed with some other ailment, he added.

Such symptoms would have an impact on daily activities and could either last a long time, or come and go repeatedly, he explained.

He also advised parents to take children to the doctor one month after they test negative for COVID-19 to check whether they have long COVID-19.

“But if it seems that there are persistent symptoms, there is no need to wait for a month. It is expected that the doctor will immediately diagnose and treat them so that they will recover quickly,” he added.

The symptoms of long COVID-19 in children can be different, he noted. Some just experience shortness of breath, while some perpetually feel tired, he said.

He then gave some tips to keep children from experiencing long COVID-19, including making sure children get enough rest and are always in a room with good air circulation to reduce the chance of their being impacted severely by the virus.

“A child’s immune system is not fully developed yet. (It is) still vulnerable. They need rest, need enough sleep, need support. These can make them recover completely and not catch long COVID-19,” said Satari.

He also underlined the importance of balanced nutrition, sunbathing to get natural Vitamin D, and vaccination if the child is six years old.

As for children under 5 who cannot be vaccinated, it is important for people around them to offer support by properly following the health protocols, he said.

“Toddlers live at home. So, the risk of exposure comes from people who live at home. For this reason, people staying at home should not carry the virus, vaccinate themselves, not travel (unless necessary), continue to maintain health, thereby reducing the risk of infection in children at home,” he added.

Source: Antara News

Unhealthy habits during adolescence can affect sperm quality later in life, the National Population and Family Planning Agency (BKKBN) has said.

Sperm cells are produced by the scrotum, or the male reproductive organ, the agency’s family planning and reproductive health deputy, Eni Gustina, explained at the ‘Reproductive Health in Millennial Era’ webinar on Thursday.

Male teenagers, specifically millennials, who are exposed to various technologies must inculcate a sharp awareness to maintain their sperm quality, she said.

The scrotal temperature requires to be maintained below 20 degrees Celsius, she added.

A smartphone kept in the pant pocket can likely cause the area around the scrotum to become hot, she said.

The habit of wearing tight pants such as jeans and smoking are also factors that can reduce the quality of sperm, she informed.

Working in an environment with high temperatures, such as a factory, can also affect sperm quality, she said.

According to Gustina, during sexual intercourse, the number of sperms produced by males can reach up to six million.

If only half of these six million cells live, then a male’s reproduction can be called unhealthy, she added.

It is best that unhealthy behaviors be discarded at least six months prior to marriage to improve sperm quality and reproductive health, she advised.

It is because adolescence is a transitional period from childhood to adulthood, wherein biological, cognitive, social, and emotional development occurs, she said.

Hence, this should be prepared for to avoid developmental issues and to achieve the demographic bonus in the future, she added.

Source: Antara News

The National Population and Family Planning Agency (BKKBN) has said that Indonesia is currently facing both opportunities and challenges related to the demographic bonus.

“Indonesia is currently facing opportunities and challenges of a demographic bonus,” Director of Reproductive Health Development at BKKBN Safrina Salim said during a webinar on ‘Reproductive Health in the Millennium Era’ on Thursday.

Indonesia has the opportunity to reap a demographic bonus because the number of people in the productive age of 15 to 64 years will be higher than the non-productive age of 65 years and over, and account for more than 60 percent of the total population, she explained.

The 2020 Population Census data showed that the young generation made up around 27.94 percent of the productive age group, she noted.

“To win the demographic bonus, the government must work to create a qualified population in the productive age. Otherwise, it will be a burden for the state in facing the demographic bonus,” she said.

Teenagers have a role to play by avoiding risky behaviors such as free sex and child marriage, Salim said. Teenagers must also be responsible for their reproductive health to benefit from the demographic bonus, she added.

Each teenager also has the responsibility to organize and plan their future family life, since it is closely related to the health of mothers and babies, and is of particular concern in stunting prevention, she said.

In order to reap the demographic bonus, Salim asked all teenagers to educate themselves about reproductive health to avoid various deviations, increase sex education, and avoid premarital sex.

“Adolescents as potential couples of childbearing age need to be prepared carefully and have knowledge about reproductive health from an early age. So that later they can carry out their reproductive functions well, form a family and give birth to a healthy and intelligent generation,” she elaborated.

Meanwhile, Deputy for Family Planning and Reproductive Health (KBKR) at BKKBN Eni Gustina said that the 2020 Population Census showed the proportion of the productive age population has risen to 70.72 percent.

This is a sharp increase from 53.39 percent in 1970. The figure shows that the country has entered the era of demographic bonus, she added.

However, Indonesia is also facing challenges since the proportion of the elderly population has continued to increase, she said.

In 1970, the proportion of elderly people aged over 65 years was 2.49 percent. That number has now increased to 5.95 percent, she highlighted.

Likewise, the proportion of the population aged 0–14 years fell from 44.12 percent in 1970 to 23.33 percent in 2020, she noted.

Gustina said the state should learn from countries such as Japan and Singapore, which have faced problems with high life expectancy of the elderly. The state must help the elderly to live productively and independently so that they do not become a burden on the younger generation, she added.

“We must be able to anticipate this by learning from other countries whose life expectancy is already high. Do not let the elderly population become a burden on the younger generation,” she emphasized.

Source: Antara News

The Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) stated that a 5.1-magnitude tectonic earthquake in West Aceh, Aceh Province, on Thursday, 11:26 a.m. local time, was caused by the Indo-Australian Plate subducting under the Eurasian Plate.

In a written statement received here on Thursday, the BMKG stated that the earthquake was earlier recorded at 5.2 magnitude. The epicenter of the earthquake was located at coordinates 3.83° north latitude and 95.83° east longitude, or precisely, located at sea at a distance of 48 km southwest of Meulaboh City, Aceh, at a depth of 54 km.

“Given the location of the epicenter and depth of the hypocenter, the earthquake was a shallow quake due to the subduction activity of the Indo-Australian Plate under the Eurasian Plate,” Head of the BMKG Earthquake and Tsunami Center Bambang Setiyo Prayitno noted.

According to Prayitno, analysis of the source mechanism showed that the earthquake had a thrust fault mechanism.

The earthquake had an impact, and its tremors could be felt in Meulaboh, with an intensity scale of MMI III-IV, wherein the tremors could be felt by several people in their houses. Moreover, the earthquake of MMI III was felt in Calang wherein the tremors were felt inside the house akin to a truck passing by and also in Banda Aceh with an intensity scale of MMI II, wherein the shaking could be felt by several people, while the hung light objects swayed.

Furthermore, the earthquake of MMI II was felt in Tapak Tuan and Sigli.

“The modelling results show that this earthquake has no tsunami potential,” he stated.

Prayitno remarked that as of 12 a.m. local time, the results of BMKG’s monitoring had not shown any aftershock activity.

The BMKG appealed to the public to remain calm and not be influenced by unverified issues. They are also advised to avoid buildings that are cracked or damaged by the earthquake.

Moreover, people are advised to check and ensure that the buildings they live in are earthquake-resistant or keep an eye out for any damage caused by the earthquake’s vibrations that endanger the stability of the structures before they plan to return home.

Source: Antara News

Secretary general of the Health Ministry, Kunta Wibawa Dasa Nugraha, has reviewed preparations in Yogyakarta for the first G20 Health Working Group (HWG) and said the province is ready for hosting the meeting.

The first HWG meeting will take place from March 28–30, 2022.

“Still, we must prepare for the enforcement and supervision of health protocols implementation amid the meeting,” he said in a statement received here on Thursday.

Out of the 43 invited countries and international organizations, 13 have confirmed their representatives will attend the meeting in person, he informed.

They will be represented by around 70 foreign delegates and 50 local participants, he said.

The ministry’s secretary general visited Yogyakarta on March 9, 2022, to inspect the preparedness of the region for hosting the meeting.

He informed that a bubble system will be implemented for the meeting, in accordance with the Circular Letter of the COVID-19 Task Force Number 6/2022 on the Implementation of Bubble System Health Protocol in G20 Meetings in the midst of the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Yogyakarta Provincial Secretary Raden Kadarmanta Baskara Aji said that he will fully support the implementation of the first 2022 G20 HWG in the province.

The agenda for the meeting will be the harmonization of global health protocol standards, he said. The participants of the meeting will be allowed to attend in person or virtually, he added.

In addition to the main agenda, a side event on raising global commitment and increasing sustainable investment for the handling of tuberculosis will be implemented concurrently, he said.

The HWG meeting is themed ‘Reorganizing the Global Health Architecture,’ he added.

The working group will raise three priority issues: building global health system resilience; harmonization of global health protocol standards; as well as expanding global manufacturing and knowledge centers for pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response, he informed.

A total of 150 meetings and 200 side events will be held in 20 locations throughout Indonesia during its presidency of the grouping.

At least 25 meetings are scheduled to be conducted in Yogyakarta starting from March to October 2022.

Source: Antara News