K E R A L A H E A L T H M O N I T O R JUNE 29 2004
PIA links Ras Al Khaimah to Karachi with a weekly flight More News
One more new health club for ladies in Thiruvananthapuram
Mermaids Health club inaugurated
By R.S.Priya
Thiruvananthapuram June 25: The Kerala women are not more confined to kitchens. Health clubs have a boom time because the traditional Kerala women are becoming more and more conscious of health, fitness and physical appearance. A growing number of Health clubs in the political capital of Kerala is an interesting development. A new health club- Mermaids Health Zone, located at the heart of the city on convent road was inaugurated here by Cine and TV star Chippy Chippy, one of the role models for modern Kerala girls. Photo of Inauguration New Health Club in Trivandrum (click)
This new health club headed by Mrs Shivapadmam. intends to combine aerobics/cinematic dance, exercise in gymnasium along with yoga. Its members are also advised to follow a diet pattern to reduce excess weight. The club offers various courses for different categories of people. There are special course called Teens special which combines Aerobics, Yoga and Gym. "Mom's Special" consists of Yoga and relaxing exercises. "Through Workout Special-a combination of Aerobics, Gym, Yoga and diet the club promises to reduce 10 kg in one month. Stay Young special combine Gym, Yoga and Diet. The new club also provides facilities for body massage and steam bath. Classes for cooking, baking, embroidery, stitching, stuffed toy making, fabric painting, fabric printing, glass painting and flower arrangement are also offered in the club. The health club would work on all days except Monday from 7 AM to 12 PM and from 2 PM to 6.30 PM.
Manjula Sreekanth, Health Engineer
Manjula Sreekanth, an engineer also runs a kindergarten near AKG Centre here. She says exercises, yoga and dance are important methods to maintain physical fitness. She feels that dieting alone does not reduce obesity, which is calculated taking into consideration the person's height and weight. Exercises in the gym will reduce the fat content of particular body parts. Exercising helps to loosen muscles in that part of the body where fate is accumulated. By following a strict diet pattern, fat could be reduced. Manjula is the daughter of Padmam who heads the club.
According to her, old people who are obese cannot do strenuous exercises or take fast dance movements. For them yoga and relaxing exercises are the best option. "Yoga can help exercise the body and help you feel more relaxed and happy. The whole body will feel refreshed and in turn refresh your mind. There are various kinds of exercises in Yoga, which would help both reduce fat and help relax mind and body. "For women, menopause usually occurs after they turn 55. However, for some women menopause could take place at a very early age. Yoga is quite good for women who have menopause at a young age and helps heal some diseases.
For young obese people the club is offering courses with gym, aerobics or yoga, or all combined together depending on factors like the person's height, weight, the amount of fat to be reduced, age and health condition. Young people would enjoy dance classes and aerobics classes. It would also help them remain active all day through.
"Water is a healing agent. It helps to cleanse the body and reduce fat", says Manjula. "If you drink more water, you would eat less food. It is quite helpful in reducing weight. So it is advisable to drink lot of water everyday," she added. When asked about the use of coconut water in reducing fat, she said the amount of glucose in it would not help fat reduction.
Diet with more Water
While on a diet, it is important to avoid food items with more calories. "Fried food items and sweets contain loads of calories and they increase obesity. Meat items with more calories help to increase fatness. It would be better to avoid non-vegetarian food items. Vegetables and fruits have very less calories and more of fiber content, which helps to increase energy level in the body. It is always advisable to include vegetables and fruits in the daily diet.
"Walking is an exercise, which can close down all health clubs" she says. "Walking is an exercise, which is most effective for all body muscles. Now a days people don't walk much and use vehicles. This is one reason for people growing fatter. The modern women don't find much time for exercising. Naturally they have to depend more on health clubs.
Aerobics exercise is different from cinematic dance -dancing is quite faster than Aerobics. "Aerobics is more of a relaxed kind of dance, which helps you enjoy more and feel more relaxed and happy. Dancing is another good exercise for all body muscles. It easily helps reduce fatness. Women come to health clubs because they can exercise in an enclosed area and away from their home, where they may get distracted. Manjula says her own experience of reducing much of her obesity through dance and following diet pattern. She feels that present-day women can reduce their fat by following a strict diet pattern along with good exercise.
Young Instructors
The club staff consists of instructors for gym and aerobics classes. Rajani a plus-two student is the aerobics/cinematic dance instructor. She took her training for classical dance from Vijayalakshmi teacher. She is learning Bharatanatyam and Mohiniyattom too.She feels that exercise by dancing is not just good for health but also provides happiness for mind. "It helps to exercise every muscle in the body and reduce fat. Manju another instructor is doing her degree. Manjula Sreekanth is an all rounder in gym, dance and yoga.
The Mermaids health club is the sister concern of "Aurobindo School for perfect Eyesight", which is on the second floor of the same building. The head of both the concerns is Shivapadmam who is assisted by her daughter Manjula Sreekanth and husband Raghunathan. Aurobindo School for perfect Eyesight aims to reduce sight problems through eye excercise. It has been 12 years since the center has been started says Sati, staff of the center. The main consultant of this center is Raghunathan who had taken training from Pondicherry. The center claims to help people avoid glasses for eyes and in providing good eyesight. -Keralamonitor.com
FIRST GULF BANK OPENS NEW BRANCH IN ABU DHABI
Abu Dhabi, 27 June 04.First Gulf Bank, one of the leading financial institutions in the UAE, has opened a new branch in Abu Dhabi. HH Sheikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of Information & Culture has officially inaugurated the opening of the branch with the presence of government officials and businessmen.
The new branch, located on Al Salam Street, is the largest First Gulf Bank branch offering all financial products & services to both corporate and retail customers. The branch is characterised by its openness and modern designs and equipped with the latest technology, products & tools ensuring personalized and efficient service to every customer. According to Abdulhamid Saeed, Chief Executive Officer First Gulf Bank, “Part of our strategy is to enhance our services and network distribution to improve our reach to customers. This branch is located in the heart of the city and provides various financial services to customers for institutions or individuals.”
The bank operates across the UAE with seven branches located in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah, Ajman, and Al Ain. The bank is scheduled to open its new headquarters in Al Khalidiya later this year. There are further plans to open more branches, according to Saeed, “We are exploring new opportunities and markets in the UAE, and we will continue enhancing our distribution networks to effectively reach out to customers.”
The bank has reported AED120.9 million profit for the year 2003 and AED 51.3 million in the first quarter in 2004. Moreover, the bank has recently announced the increase of equity by AED 800 million issued as convertible bonds to four strategic partners. The opening of the Al Salam branch with its modern designs and technology indicate the bank’s commitment to grow and expand its services to customers. (KM News Bureau Abu Dhabi)
Internet Under Surveillance
Obstacles to the free flow of information online
A call for vigilance
The Internet has a bad reputation. With authoritarian regimes, that's no surprise. It's to be expected the enduring dictatorship in Beijing (and we must call it that, whatever the fans of the Chinese "economic miracle" think) has set up a big Internet police force. Dozens of Internet users languish in Chinese prisons for imaginary crimes - for looking at banned websites or, even "worse," daring to post news online about forbidden topics such as the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre and repression in Tibet.
China is unfortunately not the only country where dissident Internet messages are tracked down. In Vietnam and Tunisia, big shots (official or otherwise) are distinctly unenthusiastic about this vast discussion forum and information exchange they have so much trouble controlling.
In this very long list of regimes opposed to freedom, we find habitual human rights violators such as Burma, Ukraine and Belarus but also countries that are places people dream about - tropical holiday destinations beloved of Western tourists. The Maldives, for example, where the other side of the picture postcard is shabby and two Internet users have been sentenced to life imprisonment for criticising a dictatorship in paradise that has been in power for the past 40 years.
This is all very logical. No surprise that Fidel Castro gives orders about the Internet as he does about everything else in Cuba, except of course for those "useful idiots" (as Lenin used to say) - the package tourists with cigars and obliging local girls thrown in.
What's more worrying, at first sight anyway, is the distrust of the Internet among the supposedly solid democracies of Europe and North America. Why the United States, France and the United Kingdom take their place in this report alongside the thugs that are quick to lock up the merest opponent calls for an explanation.
First there are the universally-condemned child-porn, xenophobic and racist websites found everywhere. Even though a very tiny part of the Internet - less than 3 per cent of online activity according to experts - they are rightly disturbing. The authorities cannot and should not ignore them, even if that offends the purists who advocate an Internet free of all monitoring and interference. Calls for violence and appeals to hatred must be fought. But by respecting civil liberties and avoiding abuses. These pages highlight those who have failed to do that.
But this isn't the most commonly-cited reason for Internet surveillance in traditionally democratic countries. It's the fight against terrorism that governments say justifies repressive controls and laws. With some reason, too, in view of the e-mails exchanged by the authors of the 11 September 2001 attack on the World Trade Center in New York. It's understandable that the price of our safety is some encroachment on our freedom. But only as long as parliaments approve all such measures, which doesn't always happen, and police always act only at the request of judges, which sometimes isn't done.
This report describes a wide range of circumstances, none of them comparable. Routinely authoritarian regimes and those that may make mistakes (which can be corrected) cannot be lumped together. The report should not be seen as a kind of ranking of regimes by their repression of the Internet, but more as an appeal for vigilance in countries where, as in democracies, it's still possible to exposes abuses and flaws. And also an appeal for solidarity with those who are flagrantly deprived of freedom, such as the 70 or so cyber-dissidents currently in prison around the world.
Robert Ménard
Secretary-General, Reporters Without Borders More
