Health expert cautions residents of Upper East Region as harmattan roars

Correspondence from Upper East Region:

The Upper East Regional Disease Control Officer, Emmanuel Konlan, has called on the people of the region to take precautionary measures as the harmattan season begins to give signals.

According to him, this will help them stay safe and avoid contracting any of the health conditions that come with the season.

Speaking to GhanaWeb's Upper East Regional correspondent, Sarah Dubure, in an exclusive interview, he said the harmattan season is accompanied by cold weather which affects every part of the body.

This, he noted, triggers conditions such as pneumonia, cough, respiratory infections, skin cracking, and others.

"It gives a lot of health implications we have pneumonia, cough, respiratory infections, skin cracking", he listed.

Throwing more light on pneumonia, he advised the general public to wear thick clothes and not expose their chests, as this would expose their lungs to the disease.

"We advise that you wear thick clothes. Do not expose your chest, as cold will enter your ribs and affect your lungs, which will give you pneumonia. When you wear thick clothes, you don't expose yourself to too much cold," he counselled.

About safety measures for children, he advised parents to cultivate the habit of bathing their wards with warm water.

He added that parents should always ensure that their children wear pullovers to provide maximum heat.

Mr. Konlan further advised parents not to let their children sleep directly under fans at home.

"Some people use fans a lot. Don't let the children be exposed to that. When you are even using fan, let them sleep where it is not direct and we should cover them with clothing and other things so that it will prevent them from getting cold," he cautioned.

He also admonished them to ensure that their fans at home do not spin at top speed but should be moderately spun.

Giving more insight into dry skin as a condition, he explained that it causes the skin to crack, making it scaly.

"The skin will be scaly, you apply pomade and yet, you will feel the dryness. You see that when it happens that way, you will not feel comfortable", he said

He advised the public to try as much as possible to always drink water to prevent dehydration.

He also advised that they smear pomade around their nostrils to prevent respiratory tract infections. He said it will also prevent the drying of the nose, which consequently leads to bleeding.

He also warned the general public to take their bath regularly and not use the weather as an excuse, emphasizing that bathing is key to promoting good health in this season.

The Regional Disease Control Officer also entreated the public to always wear nose masks when stepping out. He stressed that it is a necessity, especially for those riding motorcycles.

The harmattan is creeping in, but as the saying goes, "To be forewarned is to be forearmed."