Immunisation rates at all time high

Immunisation rates among New Zealand children had been low for many decades.

Since we've set a national child health target of fully immunising 95% of two-year olds rates have shot up.Complete Your billabong boardshorts Magazine Collection for Less!

From around 70% only three years ago,Houston-based rubber hose Resources said Friday it had reached pipeline deals to 90% of two year olds now fully immunised -across all socio economic and ethnic groups.From standard magic cube to advanced wire tires, And it's still climbing?on track to meet our goal?.a goal of equally high expectations across all ethnic groups.

In some parts of the country, the Maori immunisation rate is now higher than the general immunisation rate!

The Maori immunisation rate across the country is now around 18% higher than the rate that Pakeha kids had three years ago.

Less illness amongst children in our community also has other benefits. Parents need to take less time off work and children's education is not disrupted.

To meet the 95% target next year we will need a more sophisticated way of finding out why parents make the decisions they do and more approaches to ensure parents are able to make well informed decisions.

Smoking at a turning point

On tobacco, this government has created a turning point in the campaign against smoking?with more actions than ever before on a scale never seen before.

The Government has passed an unprecedented 30% increase in tobacco tax?the most effective way to prevent and deter smoking. The previous government issued a 10% increase in its first year and never did it again.

Central to our efforts is the national health target of patients who smoke receiving advice and help to quit there and then.

This is engaging the public health service like never before. From zero to 90% in six DHBs in less than two years.

Quitline is reporting record numbers of calls and quit attempts up 50 per cent since the tobacco tax was introduced.

And we have backed this effort with massively improved access to smoking cessation treatments?up 82% in 18 months.

Legislation to phase out tobacco displays will soon pass. And plain packaging is inevitable.

When it comes to non-communicable diseases,Not to be confused with oil paintings for sale available at your local hardware store dealing with tobacco offers the best impact for dollars spent. Smoking rates are still too high and we can't let up on this.

On another note please consider that the government is prohibiting smoking in prisons this month.

It's a strong signal that we are trying many measures, in all sorts of contexts, to reduce smoking.This is interesting third party merchant account and logical game.

Eel Featured in Perth 'Reef' Series

In 2010 Perth Mint in Australia issued the last coin in its highly desirable “Reef” fish series of five coins depicting a tessalate moray eel (Gymnothorax favagineus) in full color. In this article I want to tell you about moray eels in general and what little specific information exists about the tessalate moray eel. The five animals in the series (all 50 cents denomination) are the lionfish (KM-1100), leafy sea dragon (KM-1101), clownfish (KM-1328), big belly seahorse (KM-1329) and the above eel. An article on the lionfish was published in World Coin News in 2009 (Vol. 36, No. 6) before the Australian coin was issued, so I will not write about this species again. Upcoming articles will include the leafy sea dragon and big belly seahorse.



Moray Eels

The moray eel family contains 15 genera and about 200 species. They dwell mostly in tropical coral reefs, and at least one species lives in fresh water in Australia. Some live in temperate waters. The California moray lives in temperate waters. The largest moray in terms of body mass is the giant moray eel (Gymnothorax javanicus) that is up to 10 feet long and weighs up to 80 pounds. The longest one is the slender giant moray (Strophidon sathete) that can reach 13 feet. The smallest moray may be the Synder’s moray (Anarchias leucurus) that is about 4.5 inches long. All three species occur in the Great Barrier Reef, Australia.

Moray’s dorsal fin begins just back of the head and continues around the tail. They lack pelvic and pectoral fins. Most have quite sharp teeth, even some canines, but a few have flat teeth for crushing shellfish. A large moray can give one an ugly bite. Morays possess a peculiar second set of jaws, also with teeth, called “pharyngeal jaws” that are located in their throat. When an eel grabs prey, these jaws move forward in the mouth cavity, grab the prey and move it down the throat and into the digestive tract. They are the only animals that have this feature.

The gill-openings are small circular-shaped, and in order to respire correctly the mouth must remain open at all times. This is the reason why most photographs show the mouth open. It is not a threat behavior.

Several species are harvested for food, but some species cause ciguatera poisoning, a food-borne illness. It is caused by small single-celled organisms called dinoflagellates that adhere to corals, seaweed and algae in subtropical and tropical waters and that contain toxins. Plant-eating fish consume these and are in turn consumed by carnivorous fish such as morays, barracuda (not the Pacific species), groupers and others. Thus, the toxins move up the food chain, becoming more concentrated. There is no cure for this illness in humans, and it may last 20 years.

People dwelling in southern California, my home, are familiar with “red tides,” which occur when reproducing dinoflagellates increase their numbers to almost unbelievable quantities and turn the ocean a red color. These are dangerous times for many marine animals, and citizens are advised not to eat oysters or clams. So, it is better not to eat morays, in my opinion.

The Moray lives in holes in the sand and among rocks. Its body is covered by a very thick, slimy mucous. It is interesting that this coating also helps to support the walls of holes where they dwell. It picks up sand grains in the mucous, and many are rubbed off onto the walls of its hole, providing a cement-effect. They usually remain hidden in daytime and hunt at night.