The Swine Flu vaccine has arrived, a little food for thought following my monthly news letter for the Arnica Group, worth a read if you are considering vacinating yourself or your family….

At the Kingston NHS AGM they assured the audience that it is safe to inject both the SW and the seasonal flu vaccine at the same time (as long as they are in different arms) even though the seasonal flu is being suspended in Canada, see below.

Here is a great little video to send to your friends on vaccines generally and the swine flu vaccine
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jw43QDiaDnE

What is happening in the rest of the world?  Are all governments promoting this vaccine?  How are the Drs reacting?

With Caution..
Poland’s Prime Minister Donald Tusk on Friday slammed drug companies selling swine flu vaccines for allegedly refusing to take legal responsibility for any of their possible side effects. And  Polish Health Ministry rejects Swine Flu vaccine
www.youtube.com/watch?v=RhZesZe33cw

Italian family physicians refuse to prescribe the A/H1N1 vaccine for their patients, claiming that the risks of the vaccine outweigh its benefits. Italian media outlets claimed that many of the 48 million doses of the A/H1N1 vaccine ordered would be useless as the majority of Italians including the Deputy Health Minister Ferruccio Fazio and the Mayor of Rome Gianni Alemanno have decided against vaccination.

A nationwide CNN poll found that only 49 percent of those asked consider the H1N1 vaccine safe. Bob Sears, of Orange County, California, said: “What bothers me is pretty much every doctor in the country is jumping on the bandwagon and saying, ‘This vaccine is completely safe’ — even for the pregnant woman and the unborn baby, but they can’t give you a single study that backs up that statement.”

New York state health officials have suspended a ruling that would have forced health care workers across the state to get vaccinated against the swine flu by the end of November or risk losing their jobs, saying in a decision issued Thursday that they did so because the vaccine is in short supply.  (I am sure that the mass rally of nurses and the legal challenge to the ruling played a part too!)

According to the French mainstream newspaper Le Monde, the number of people in France who are planning to take the swine flu jab has dropped dramatically in the last month, falling from 55% in the middle of September to just 17 % today. Link to article here (in French)
http://www.lemonde.fr/planete/article/2009/10/25/seuls-17-des-francais-envisageraient-le-vaccin-contre-la-grippe-h1n1_1258524_3244.html

Critics warned the vaccinations campaign could be a “million-euro flop” as many people might refuse to participate after learning they would receive a different shot than one being given to politicians, high-ranking government employees and soldiers…… Most Germans will be getting Pandemrix, a vaccine by GlaxoSmithKline PLC that contains an adjuvant, while Germany’s politicians, government employees and troops will get Celvapan, made by Baxter International without an adjuvant.

The Czech Health Ministry has explained it is stopping the talks with Baxter due to the firm’s inability to guarantee that the vaccine is safe and to confirm who will bear the risks for possible side-effects. “It is a pity, but, unfortunately when we accepted the bids, Baxter was unable to confirm that it will deliver a registered vaccine,”
Health Minister Dana Juraskova said.

Some Canadian provinces have suspended the ‘normal’ seasonal flu shots for anyone under 65 in response to a recent study there which suggests that people vaccinated against seasonal flu are actually twice as likely to catch swine flu.

With force.. Greece has become the latest country to announce it will enforce a mandatory swine flu vaccination program despite the fact that there have been no deaths whatsoever from swine flu in the Mediterranean country.  “We decided that the entire population, all citizens and residents, without any exception, will be vaccinated against the flu,” Health Minister Dimitris Avramopoulos said after a ministerial meeting.

The US will be making the Swine Flu vaccine mandatory for its armed forces.

HEALTH NEWS -  Underlying health issues among swine flu deaths

Pregnant Women NOT at Special Risk from Swine Flu -
Healthy non smokers are at such a low risk from flu complications!

As we shall see in
the American study, a significant number of these pregnant women with swine flu complications were either obese or morbidly obese and most had underlying medical problems (and insulin dependence).  Smoking should also be considered as a factor in possible flu complications.

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2009/11/03/What-We-Have-Le
arned-About-the-Great-Swine-Flu-Pandemic.aspx

Whilst researching the benefits of our best selling Christmas toy, the Domino Race Game here’s the link …

http://www.beautifuldemoiselle.co.uk/10-off-christmas-gifts-for-children/wooden-domino-race-game/prod_255.html

I recently stumbled across this wonderful article from Mind Lab Europe which I hope you find as interesting as I did….

Author: Suri Poulos  / Publishing date: 02.12.2006 19:20

It maybe child’s play, but you’d be amazed at what children can learn through games.

8 Steps to a Brighter Child and a Happier Home

It maybe child’s play, but you’d be amazed at what children can learn through games. Watch children playing board games with each other, running a three legged race or playing football – they’re not only having fun but also learning cooperation, teamwork, role clarity, strategy and tacticsNot only is there is a wealth of supporting research, but there are also a growing number of educational advocates who emphasise that the most productive way of learning is through fun and hands-on experience and that game playing provides the perfect tool.

Here is a just a sample of the prestigious support behind the educational benefits of games playing:
• According to the head of Ofsted, children who play traditional board games at home do better at school. He said the games help children to think for themselves, to wait their turn and to hold a conversation with adults. And he expressed a concern that computer games and television can discourage children from activities that better stimulate their imagination.
• Stephen Twigg, Education minister, said that play is vitally important to education.
• The National Union of Teachers conference produced a statement saying that children, in particular, learn through play and they want everyone to spend more time playing, as a “crucial” lifelong learning tool.
• The National Foundation for Educational Research concluded that children should have more access to “play-based” learning.
• John Dewey, the founder of modern educational theories, wrote in Democracy and Education “ experience has shown that when children have a chance at physical activities which bring their natural impulses into play, going to school is a joy, management is less of a burden and learning is easier”
• Even the venerable Plato said “Not by force shall the youth learn, but through play.”

Learning through play is the idea behind MindLab, an after school education programme that teaches children thinking and social skills through playing board games from around the world. The positive impact of MindLab on children’s development is supported by prestigious research which shows that children who follow a MindLab curriculum demonstrate a substantial and lasting improvement in strategic reasoning and problem solving skills as well as standardised maths and verbal reasoning tests.

Game playing and your Family

Assuming you are now convinced of the educational benefits of game playing, you may next be asking, what do I do to reap the benefits of game playing with my own children? Here are 8 steps to help you bring the many benefits of game playing to your own family to produce brighter children and a happier home life.

1. Buy or dust off some games that are old favourites. Games like draughts, dominoes, connect four and card games, are not only terrific fun but they are also stimulating, challenging and involve concentration and strategy.

2. Chose a convenient slot in your weekly family pattern that is an ideal time for your family to sit down together and play a few games, such as a Friday evening or a Sunday afternoon, for example.

3. Add some elements to help “game time” become a family tradition: add favourite foods (bowls of popcorn or hot chocolate perhaps?) a comfy warm setting (in front of a roaring fire?), invite grandparents etc.

4. Start with games that are suited to the youngest age group present, or have a few games going at the same time that fit the various age ranges. Make sure everyone understands the rules and aims of the game being played and give everyone the benefit of examples of good moves and strategies by illustrating them on the game board before beginning the “real” game”.

5. Explain that to enjoy playing games we all have to play by the rules, respect our partners and respect the outcome of the game. Regardless if we win or lose, to have fun playing games together we can’t gloat when we win, and can’t get upset when we lose. If we play lots of games together, there will be lots of chances for each of us to win sometimes, and lose sometimes. Either way we will have had a fun time playing together.

6. Show your own interest and enthusiasm for the game, give it concentration and effort, both for your own enjoyment, and also as a role model for your children. Rather than play ineffectively to ensure your child wins, instead, help your child learn from your game playing skills. Discuss out loud the moves you are making and why, to help your child understand the strategies you are using. If your child makes a move that is to their disadvantage, encourage them to look again and guide them to see a better move by asking them open questions such as “what are all the different options you have?” “What would happen if you take that move?” “What might be a better move that you can take?” I can see a way that you can win, can you see it?”

7. Whether your child wins or loses, at the end of the game summarise what you learnt from the game and then ask your child “what did you learn from that game?” “What might you do differently next time we play?”

8. Keep the “game time” fresh by bringing in new games. Surprise everyone by giving the family a new game “present” every few weeks. Games that can be played within an hour and involve thinking, memory, strategy or calculation are recommended such as: Othello, Guess Who, Mancala, Nine Man Morris, Scrabble, Chinese Chequers or Rush Hour.

We hope you enjoy and learn from “game time” in your family as much as we do in ours!

Children Love Wooden Toys

Without a doubt Beautiful Demoiselle are of course biased towards wooden toys but when it comes to our and your children we believe nothing’s too good for them. With 99 percent of the toys offered for sale to your children being made of plastic we are very proud to offer our range of natural wooden toys. We believe they are an important part of our heritage and culture and should be widely encouraged as part of every child’s toy collection.

Wooden toys encourage your children to use their creativity. With simple activities such as baking cakes in their own toy kitchen, or building a brick castle, wooden toys will boost a child’s creativity and visualization.

Every parent wants to move their child away from staring blankly at the TV screen being spoon fed a constant stream of images, the alternative is available for all kids, with a wide range available of great affordable educational wooden toys. Children benefit from the use and manipulation of physically tangible toys, as opposed to television. These toys will establish a child’s sense of touch and stimulate neural growth, furthermore the child’s ability to manipulate his toy as he wishes builds creativity and decision-making skills. Playing with educational toys will stimulate imagination and encourage hand eye coordination.

The variety of educational wooden toys available cater for each developmental stage for example; pre-school children will enjoy brightly colored objects such as http://www.beautifuldemoiselle.co.uk/childrens-toys/babies-toys/stacking-little-man/prod_161.html A five-year old will enjoy role play with this great wooden market stall http://www.beautifuldemoiselle.co.uk/childrens-toys/educational-wooden-toys/grocers-store/prod_156.html

Wood is a natural material which can be recycled, so aside from providing our children with entertainment , you can also pro actively help in preventing further degradation of the environment. Our new pages feature further information on the type of wood used in our toy production. http://www.beautifuldemoiselle.co.uk/news/info_5.html

Wooden toys are durable and a lovely investment. With proper care these toys can be made for last a child’s entire childhood and hopefully will be handed down to their children. My two year old loves playing with many of the wooden toys my grandfather made for me, these are always his favorite toys at Grandma’s house. In our world of plastic throw-away it feels great to see lovingly made toys lasting.

During these pushy times of advertising to our children and with the giants of the toy industry such as Toys-R-Us, our children are constantly bombarded with media pressure showing the next “must have toy ” for this years Christmas list. At Beautiful Demoiselle we happily believe however, no mass-produced plastic toy can begin to take the place of a beautifully made, traditional, educational wooden toy.