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Cologne.
For three and a half years, former pediatrician Heidrun Thaiss heads the BZgA of Cologne, the Federal Center for Health Education, known throughout Germany with its campaigns "Do not give luck to AIDS "and" Do it ". The agency relies on health promotion and prevention work.
Mrs. Thaiss, You are trying to convince the Germans of a healthy lifestyle.
Heidrun Thaiss: If you look at the two great social drugs that are nicotine and alcohol, our smoking success is at least greater than the consumption of alcohol.
Smoking is proscribed socially in the meantime. Does alcohol also have a learning effect?
Thaiss: While smoking, we found that it took a set of steps to make a difference. Local counseling centers, the Youth Protection Act, smoking bans in public places, deterrent warnings on cigarette packages and prevention campaigns such as the BZgA have contributed to this success. Smoking is no longer cool in teens. Only 7.4% of 12 to 17 year olds reach smoking, a historic record. Alcohol is not everywhere the same way.
How do you explain it?
Thaiss: Alcohol has been accepted for millennia as part of a social gathering. Many rituals, even among teenagers, are badociated with alcohol.
And nothing will change that?
Thaiss: In the prevention of alcohol, we have to drill thick boards. With our campaign "Alcohol" Knowing your limit "we target young people, but do not say: do not drink! We inform you of what alcohol does to the body – especially among teenagers – and what effects that can have. Alcohol is deadly, especially during pregnancy and on the road
Does your prevention work bear fruit?
Thaiss: Alcohol consumption among adolescents and young adults is declining. This is proved by our studies. Ten percent of 12- to 17-year-olds drink alcohol at least once a week, compared to 21 percent in 2004. 13.5% of teens report drinking at least once in the last month compared to 22.6 in 2004. There is also a significant decline. Where: Boys drink even more intensely than girls. The subject remains a challenge – new in every generation
How Cannabis Use Develops?
Thaiss: Our representative study results show that the use of cannabis among adolescents and young adults in Germany in recent years has increased. This is particularly true for young adult men, where nearly one in four men report having used cannabis at least once in the past 12 months. At the same time, social acceptance increases
Thaiss: The risks of cannabis use are still underestimated. As a psychoactive substance, cannabis can impair brain development and cause serious personality disorders. This is especially true if it is consumed regularly at a young age. In addition, there is a risk that many strains of cannabis present today very high levels of THC and thus potentiate the adverse effect.
Do the Germans live even healthier than before?
Thaiss: This often depends on education and financial conditions. The richer and educated, the healthier is usually the lifestyle. For example, the life expectancy of poor and socially disadvantaged men is ten years lower than that of socially well-off men. This presents us with challenges. As a federal agency, we want to reach all segments of the population.
You worked as a pediatrician and you are increasingly concerned about the health of children. Where are the problems?
Thaiss: There is a worrying development in vaccines. It almost makes me desperate. Vaccination is one of the greatest successes in preventing serious and deadly diseases. For example, there is a dangerous ignorance of measles in some parts of the population today. Measles is not a childhood disease that you simply need to survive for the sake of the immune system. The World Health Organization (WHO) has therefore set itself the goal of eradicating measles. For this, 95% of the population must be protected. We have not yet achieved this goal in Germany. That should make us think
Why is measles so dangerous?
Thaiss: Children who have had measles can develop a dramatic sequelae of encephalitis, incurable and irreversible. In rare cases, measles can also be fatal. I do not understand how to deprive a child of this vaccine. You can trust the recommendations of the Standing Committee on Immunization. This group of experts takes care of all the vaccines and makes a public recommendation only after careful consideration.
When it comes to vaccinations for offspring, some parents are sometimes suspicious or even resistant to advice.
Thaiss: In our studies, the vast majority of the population knows the vaccination recommendations. But there is a group that does not vaccinate. Some fear side effects. I must say that each vaccine has side effects and side effects. To react to high body temperature and swelling of the skin to a vaccine is completely normal. It is a mild reaction that can not be compared to other diseases if it is not vaccinated
What arguments do the opponents of vaccination use?
Thaiss: The debate about possible vaccine damage still exists. According to our studies, about a third (29%) of the population is afraid of side effects. Others simply do not see the need to be vaccinated themselves or to vaccinate their own children. About two to four percent of the population are opponents of vaccines that are fighting ideology. To which we do not penetrate with our work of illumination
Can you understand their attitude?
Thaiss: I can understand the attitude. All parents want the best for their children. But some have a selective perception and may be impressed, for example, by websites that warn against vaccinations. An opponent's argument is fatal: A child must endure a disease without vaccination because it strengthens his immune system. However, measles and other diseases that can be vaccinated are not comparable to the harmless viral infections that a child experiences in the early years of his life. Vaccination is only available for diseases that can lead to serious complications. And we should be grateful that we have these vaccines.
© Hamburger Abendblatt 2018 – All rights reserved.
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