1. Health
Bites
The Best Shots in Life
July 2015•HEALTHTODAY 25
Stressed out? Looking
for that work-life
balance? Get a head
start with our handy
little guide.
Words Lim Teck Choon
GiveYourself the
Best Shot
Dr Haji Hazlee Bin Abdul Hadi
Occupational Health Specialist & Medical Advisor
Prince Court Medical Centre
L
ife can be stressful at
times, don’t you agree?
High cost of living (the GST
doesn’t make things any
better), workplace blues, relationship
woes... all of these can create a great
deal of stress in our lives, and stress
is closely linked to our physical and
emotional health. If we are healthy,
both physically and emotionally, we
are in a better position to manage
our stress and to take steps in getting
closer to attaining that perfect work-
life balance.
In this Mini Report, occupational
health specialist Dr Haji Hazlee bin
Abdul Hadi shares with us the simple
little things we can do that are able to
make a positive difference in various
aspects of our lives – personal, work,
love and family. Read on to learn how
you can give yourself the best shots
in life. HT
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2. Health
Bites
The Best Shots in Life
26 HEALTHTODAY•July 2015
T
he key to personal
happiness is health. Family,
wealth, career success –
they mean nothing if we are
too ill to appreciate them. Therefore,
there are some healthy habits we can
practise to keep ourselves in good
health.
› Eat balanced meals every day.
This means eating a variety of food
from every food group, in the right
amount or portion.
› Move more every day. Ideally, we
should be physically active for at
least 30 minutes daily.
However, even the most health-
conscious of us sometimes overlook
an important aspect of good health:
getting vaccinated against infectious
diseases.
“I got all my shots when I was a child,
so what more do I need?” you may be
thinking.
Well, there are vaccines that are very
much relevant and important, even
when we are adults. The Tdap vaccine
is one such example.
“Physical fitness is
not only one of the
most important keys
to a healthy body,
it is the basis of
dynamic and creative
intellectual activity.”
– John F. Kennedy
HealthandHappiness
Begin with
You
It’s a 3-in-1 Deal
In the past, the Td vaccine was given to
protect against tetanus and diphtheria.
In 2005, a new type of vaccine, Tdap,
was recommended for use as this
new vaccine confers protection not
only against these two diseases but
pertussis as well. It is a 3-in-1 shot
that is... well, worth a shot!
Is Tdap necessary? Judging from the
severity of the diseases it protects us
from, the answer is yes.
“Tetanus is a disease that causes
painful muscle tightening in the body.
When the muscles of the head and
neck tighten, the patient may find
it very hard to open the mouth or
even breathe,” explains Dr Hazlee.
“Diphtheria is very contagious, and it
causes breathing difficulties and, in
severe cases, heart and nerve damage
as well as paralysis.Pertussis is also
very contagious, and it can lead to
severe breathing problems that can
be fatal, especially in infants. Since
infants can be infected by adults such
as their parents (who may not be
aware that they have the disease), it is
important that adults are vaccinated
against pertussis.”
A single shot of Tdap confers a lifetime
protection, and it can be given even
if we have received the Td shot in the
past. Dr Hazlee points out that the
US Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC) recommends that
the following people should receive the
vaccine:
› Adults aged 65 years and above.
› Healthcare workers who regularly
come into direct contact with
infected patients.
› Caregivers of infants under 1 year
old (such as parents, grandparents,
babysitters, staff members of day-
care centres).
› Expecting mothers in their 3rd
trimester (27th
–36th
week) – the
vaccine confers protection to the
newborn during the first months
of life.
› New mothers who have never
received the vaccine before. HT
So, talk to your doctor
about shots (including
Tdap) that you are
missing out on.
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3. Health
Bites
The Best Shots in Life
July 2015•HEALTHTODAY 27
Y
our work is piling and
the deadline looms
dangerously close. And
then it happens – your
colleague, Mariam starts sniffling and
coughing, Raju follows suit, and the
next thing you know, you too are down
with a horrible flu.
A flu attack is awful enough, with fever,
sore throat, cough, body aches and
tiredness being common symptoms.
It can also affect our work performance.
Too many sick leaves can increase our
stress level as work piles up, and it
may also be counted against us during
the annual performance review – not
a good thing if we are eyeing that
promotion or pay raise!
“Flu is not the same as a common
cold,” says Dr Hazlee. “Flu – which
is short for 'influenza' – is more than
just a bad cold; it can lead to serious
complications, including death.” The
fact that it is an acute viral infection
which can spread easily from person to
person only makes things worse.
The flu bug has become a yearly
“visitor” to our workplaces, but there
“Nothing will work
unless you do.”
– Maya Angelou
MakingWork
"Work"
is one simple way to protect ourselves
from it – getting a flu shot.
A shot a year keeps the
flu bug away
You may be thinking, “Wait, I need a
shot every year?”
According to Dr Hazlee, right now a
flu shot is effective only for a year
because the flu virus can change its
form (or mutate) over time. As a result,
the flu virus that attacks during one
particular period (or season) may not
be the same one which came the
previous season, or the one that would
come the next season.
“Each year, the flu vaccine is the result
of a well-orchestrated worldwide effort
to predict which virus strains would be
prevalent, and which strains should
be included in the flu shot,” explains
Dr Hazlee.
He adds that, currently, some
researchers at the University of
Melbourne, Australia and the Fudan
University in Shanghai, China are
collaborating on the possibility of
developing a single flu vaccine that can
provide lifelong protection.
Until that research bears fruit, let’s get
a flu shot every year, preferably well
ahead of a flu season.
So, ask your doctor
about the tetravalent
flu vaccine.
Other tips to stay ahead
at work:
› Work smart. Too many things to
do and too little time to do them
all? Prioritise and make lists. Plan
your time carefully so that you
finish what you can without having
to spend so many late nights in the
office.
› Watch what you snack. If you
grab a bite often to keep yourself
alert at work, choose healthy
snacks such as fresh fruits and
plain crackers over sugary snacks.
› Get enough sleep. Try to get at
least 8 hours of sleep a day, so that
you will come to work with a clear
head and full of energy. HT
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4. Health
Bites
The Best Shots in Life
28 HEALTHTODAY•July 2015
A
ccording to William
Shakespeare, the course
of true love never did run
smooth. And yet, the 13th
century Persian philosopher Jalāl ad-
Dīn Muhammad Rūmī believed that
we are all born of love. More recently,
actress Jennifer Anniston declared,
“I love that feeling of being in love,
the effect of having butterflies when
you wake up in the morning. That is
special.”
People who are looking for love make
sure that they look their best, worry
about saying the right things and plan
anxiously for that perfect moment to
declare their feelings. People who are
in love dream of the future and strive
to strengthen their bond over time.
Throughout beautiful moments, it may
be hard to imagine that diseases and
ill health may tear them apart. But
it can happen – and it can also be
avoided, sometimes with the simple
act of vaccination.
Take the case of HPV, for example.
Happily HPV-free
HPV is short for the human
papillomavirus. “HPV infection
is spread easily during sexual
intercourse, as well as through oral sex
and other close skin-to-skin contact
(touch) during intimate moments,”
explains Dr Hazlee.
“Sexually active people may get HPV
at a certain point in their life,” he
adds. Infected people may not show
any signs or symptoms, or they show
symptoms years later after being
infected. Therefore, one may get
infected and unknowingly spread it to
his or her sexual partner. It takes only
one encounter with an infected person
to get infected.
While most of the time the HPV
infection clears on its own, Dr Hazlee
points out that some people may
develop genital warts. In some cases,
certain kinds of cancer can follow.
Persistent high-risk HPV infection
has been linked to cervical cancer,
the 2nd
most common cancer among
Malaysian women.
Fortunately, we have vaccinations
that can help protect us from HPV. For
women, getting vaccinated is one way
to greatly reduce the risk of cervical
cancer. As for men, it is a means to
protect their loved ones from the virus
– certainly a more valuable gesture
of love compared to flowers and
diamonds!
So, talk to your doctor
about taking the HPV
vaccination.
Other tips for keeping
love alive:
› Be sensitive to your partner’s
needs. Know and understand your
partner’s verbal and non-verbal
cues, and build a relationship
around your consideration for his or
her likes and dislikes.
› Spend time together. Work,
kids and in-laws can sometimes
overwhelm a relationship, so
allocate some “just the two of us”
time to rekindle the magic.
› Give and take. No two people
will agree all the time, and
healthy relationships are built
on compromises. Resolve
disagreements with respect
and love. Talk to a counsellor
or a trusted third party if you
need help in overcoming difficult
disagreements. HT
In Sickness
andInHealth
“Love is not only
something you feel,
it is something you do.”
– David Wilkerson
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5. Health
Bites
The Best Shots in Life
July 2015•HEALTHTODAY 29
W
e hope this Mini
Report has shown
you that vaccinations
are a vital component
of your efforts to stay healthy. They
are not merely for children – even
as adults, certain vaccines can help
protect us from infectious diseases
that threaten our efforts to find
fulfilment and joy with our loved ones.
Table 1 is a summary of recommended
vaccines for adults from the US
Centres for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC). Please consult your
doctor for more information.
The Ministry of Health Malaysia
made it compulsory for children and
teenagers to receive the following
vaccines (for free, of course). See Table
2. If you missed out on any of these,
consult your doctor on getting yourself
vaccinated. HT
“Now, when you get a viral infection,
what normally happens is it takes
days or weeks for your body to
fight back at full strength, and that
might be too late. When you're
pre-immunized, what happens is
you have forces in your body pre-
trained to recognize and defeat
specific foes. So that's really how
vaccines work.”
– Seth Berkley
So,ready
for a shot?
Table 1
Vaccine Recommendation
Influenza 1 dose every year
Tetanus, diphtheria,
pertussis (Tdap)
Substitute 1-time dose of Tdap booster for Td booster,
then boost with Td every 10 years
Varicella (chicken pox) 2 doses
Zoster (shingles) 1 dose for adults over 60
Pneumococcal
• 1 dose for adults over 65
• For adults below 65, recommended 1 dose if risk factors
are present (consult your doctor)
Meningococcal
• Compulsory to perform the Hajj in Mecca – get a shot at
least 10 days before
• For other adults, 1 or more doses if risk factors are
present (consult your doctor)
Hepatitis A
• 2 doses if risk factors are present (consult your
doctor)
Table 2
Vaccine Recommendation
HPV 3 doses
Hepatitis B 3 doses
Mumps, measles, rubella (MMR) 2 doses
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