Category: Health Walk

Mrs. Amosun advised parents of children with autism to accept the emotional brunt attached to the disorder and tasked the parents to take proper care of affected children to reduce discrimination, saying autism could affect anyone, irrespective of ethnic, race or social backgrounds. Speaking during the Advocacy Programme for Autism organised by Guaranty Trust Bank held at MUSON Centre, Onikan in Lagos on the 9th of April, 2013, the wife of the former governor explained that the brain disorder usually affects a child’s communication, social interaction and behavior, hence making it difficult for child affected to communicate and relate well with others. She noted that the disorder affects one in every 88 new born and the most obvious signs appear during the first three years of life. She also noted that the disorder is four times common among boys than girls with symptoms ranging from mild learning and social disability to severe impairment. “The ultimate power to live with and overcome autism lies in our willingness to love the child with autism absolutely and unconditionally. However, with unconditional love and understanding we can guide them to intended destination and help them achieve great things,” she said. She commended the efforts of Guaranty Trust Bank’s Autism Orange Ribbon initiatives for the sensitization campaign geared towards creating awareness on autism to enable people know autism is no demon-afflicted disease or witchcraft but a spectrum disorder that causes disability in children, pointing out that government alone could not meet the health need of the people and called on individual and private organisations to join in the crusade. Also speaking at the occasion, Founder, Children Developmental Centre, Dr. Yinka Akindayomi called on government at all levels to include autism in their policies, actions and services in their health care delivery programmes, saying proper assessment of our children would help in dealing with the disorder. She advised the public to accept children with autism as human beings who also deserved a chance to live a meaningful life, adding that solutions to the disorder could only be real when adults with autism were seen as valid citizens, form part of Nigerian workforce and have true community membership.

As part of activities marking the 85th Annual Conference of the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN), the Wife of the Former Governor of Ogun State, Mrs. Olufunso Amosun on the 13th of November, 2012 joined members of the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN) for a health walk from Kuto in Abeokuta to sensitize the public on how to use medicine safely. Speaking at the occasion, Mrs. Amosun advised traders at Kuto and Oba Onipede markets in Abeokuta to ensure they buy drugs from certified and approved pharmacies to avoid buying fake/counterfeit and expired drugs that could cause complications or untimely death. Mrs. Amosun noted that a lot of people, most especially women and children had lost their lives using fake or expired medicines, urging that only medical personnel and pharmacists should be consulted for appropriate information on what to use when they want to buy drugs in order to reduce maternal mortality and child morbidity in the country. According to her, “Our health is very important, so let always endeavor to read the leaflet of the medication and check for NAFDAC registration number before using the drugs for precautionary measures.” PSN National President, Pharm. Azubuike Okwor expressed appreciation to the Wife of the Former Governor for associating with the group and pledged their readiness to partner with her to ensure safe use of medicine for enhanced healthy living.

Wife of the Former Governor of Ogun State, Mrs. Olufunso Amosun had advised people to always ensure a good hygienic environment, describing oral heal health as an important part of human general health. Speaking at the Flag-off ceremony of Oral Hygiene Sensitization/Awareness programme in Abeokuta on the 13th of December, 2012, she said most people don’t give much thought to oral health until something goes wrong. According to her, “Oral health is very important, to an individuals general health and overall well-being, good oral health is necessary so we can eat, speak, smile and laugh without pain, difficulty or embarrassment. It is very important to keep our teeth and mouth in healthy conditions for us to feel confident when communicating with others. Our mouth performs quite a number of activities the teeth are responsible for biting and chewing of food, while the tongue is the taste sensor, while the mouth in general is responsible for producing saliva and facilitating the swallowing process. “All these put together make the mouth one of the most useful organs of the body, it can give us a great deal of pleasure or become a source of terrible discomfort for us when we do not take proper care of it. We need to pay attention to our oral health on a daily basis, we should visit the dentist regularly for routine checks and not wait to visit the dentist only when we have toothaches or other oral discomforts” she said. She also advised people to cut down on sugary food, rush the teeth after each meal and eat nutritious food such as fruits and vegetables as much as possible, adding that health is wealth. She later demonstrated to the people how teeth and gums can be cleaned properly and stressed that this needs to be done regularly at least two times a day using a toothbrush and toothpaste that contains fluoride or a chewing stick.