Do Personal Resources Make a Difference in the Relation between Work-family Conflict and Burnout among Working Mothers?

Drawing on the conservation of resources theory, the present study addressed a vacuum in work-family conflict (WFC) literature by examining the moderating roles of personal resources (emotional intelligence and resilience) in the relationship between WFC (work interference with family─ WIF and family interference with work─ FIW) and burnout among working mothers. Data were collected from a sample of 615 working mothers in some Nigerian banks, and were analyzed with moderated hierarchical regression analysis. Results showed that high WIF and FIW were positively associated with overall burnout and its dimensions. Emotional intelligence and resilience acted as buffer in the relations of WIF and FIW with overall burnout and its dimensions. Specifically, the negative impacts of WIF and FIW on overall burnout and its dimensions were weaker for working mothers with higher emotional intelligence and resilience. These findings suggest that organisation can reduce or prevent the negative impact of WFC on burnout among working mothers by strengthening their personal or adaptive resources

Self-medication profile of dental patients in Ondo state, Nigeria

The practice of selfmedication has been extensively researched but there is dearth of information about its modality among dentalpatients in developing countries. Hence, this study was designed to determine the proportion of dental patients who practice, medications employed and the reasons for resorting to self medication in general dental populations in Ondo State, Nigeria and tomake appropriate recommendations. This study was conducted between June 2007 and June 2008 at the Federal Medical Centre, Owo and State Specialist Hospital, Akure, Ondo State, Nigeria. Five hundred and thirty six consenting respondents were selected by multistage sampling technique and interviewed with the aid of semi structured questionnaire.Results: Almost half of the respondents (42% or n=225) admitted to self medication while the majority (58%) did not practice it. Drugs utilized are usually singly (56.4%) rather than in combination(43.6%), commonly analgesics (50.1%) and antibiotics (30.4%), with themajority (45.8%) using the medications for at least one week. The reasons cited by respondents for self medication were theirperception that they know what to do and it saves time andmoney. A sizable majority of the respondents admitted to self-medication usually with analgesics. Adequate health education of the populace on the use and misuse of analgesics needs to be mounted, while dental services should be made readily available and affordable so that self medication among dental patients can be reduced to the barest minimum.Keywords: self-medication, profile, dental patients, OndoState, Nigeri

Relationship between Viable Bacterial Counts and Physicochemical Properties of Cocoa Powders and Powdered Cocoa Beverages Purchased in Nigerian Supermarkets

Cocoa powders (CPs) and powdered cocoa beverages (PCBs) are largely consumed as health and vitality drinks in Nigeria. In view of the recent reports that these food products supported bacterial growth, this study determined whether there could be definite relationship between viable bacterial counts and physicochemical properties of five brands of CPs and PCBs purchased from supermarkets in Ibadan and Lagos in South West, Nigeria. The pH and titratable acidity of the products were measured by using pH meter and colorimetric acidity titration respectively. The moisture contents were determined by drying method at 105ºC in oven and ash by mineralization at 550ºC using furnace. No definite type of relationship was established between viable bacterial counts and pH, titratable acidity (lactic acid, acetic acid), moisture and ash contents vis-à-vis powdery and granular natures of the cocoa food products. Only the two PCBs tightly packed in the polythene sachets had acceptable mean viable bacterial counts, which did not exceed 5.0 x 103 cfu/ml specified for cocoa powders in food industries. Also, only two of the five brands had acceptable moisture contents, which did not exceed the national specification of 3.10% for cocoa powders. Furthermore, the ash contents of all the brands exceeded the acceptable national specification of 2.60%. Significant variations (P<0.05) were obtained in the mean pH, titratable acidity, viable bacterial counts, moisture and ash contents within and between products containing only cocoa powders and those containing additives. In conclusion, the results from this study showed that the physicochemical properties of cocoa powders and powdered cocoa beverages could not be used to predict the viable bacterial counts of these food products

Phytochemical investigation, cytotoxicity and free radical scavenging activities of non-polar fractions of Acalypha hispida (leaves and twigs)

Free radicals are involved in the process of lipid peroxidation and play a cardinal role in numerous chronic diseases like cancer, coronary heart disease and ageing. Thus the ability to scavenge free radicals in order to minimize oxidative damage to living cells is very important. The hexane extract of Acalypha hispida (Burn F.) was screened for phytochemical constituents and was found to contain flavonoids, carbohydrates, phenols and alkaloids. Fractions obtained from chromatographic separation were screened for free radical scavenging activities using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl radical (DPPH) and hydrogen peroxide. Out of the sixteen pooled fractions (S1-S16) screened, compounds S10 (91.8 %), S11 (93.8 %), S14 (92.5 %) and S15 (91.4 %) at a concentration of 0.1 mg/ml had significant antioxidant activities when compared to the known antioxidant ascorbic acid (90.9 %). However, in the analysis using hydrogen peroxide, S1 (99.5 %), S9 (99.2 %), S10 (95.4 %),S11 (95.8 %) and S15 (95.6 %) gave better activity than ascorbic acid (94.8 %), while only S1 and S9 were more effective than butylated hydroxylanisole (98.9 %) and α-Tocopherol (99.1 %) at the same concentration. The cytotoxicity analysis using the Brine Shrimp lethality test gave LC50 values greater than 1000 μg/ml for some of the fractions indicating very low level of toxicity. The better scavenging activity of A. hispida could be linked to the presence of secondary plant products like flavonoids and phenols, which have the ability to scavenge hydroxyl radicals, superoxide anions and lipid peroxy radicals

Void fraction measurements in a large (0.3 m) diameter bubble column using Wire Mesh Sensors and Pressure Transducers: Effect of Spargers

The importance of the accurate temporal and spatial measurements of the two-phase flow parameters in bubble columns is very well known. The aim of this research work is to report the spatial measurements of the void fraction distribution in a 30 cm diameter cylindrical bubble column using Wire Mesh Sensor (WMS) tomography and Pressure Transducers. Pair of WMS sensors, with a 64×64 wire configuration of each sensor, were installed which are separated by a distance along the axis of the bubble column. Wire Mesh Sensors and PTs Data were collected for time-averaged and transient with a sampling frequency of 1000 Hz respectively. The principle of Wire-Mesh Sensors (WMS) and algorithms for estimating the void fraction from the WMS raw experimental data have been discussed in great detail. The void fraction results obtained from the WMS are compared against the void fraction results obtained from the Pressure Transducers. Experiments were performed for seven superficial gas velocities, to cover both Homogenous and Heterogenous flows. Two different spargers (point sparger and four arm spargers) were used to study the effect of the sparger design on the hydrodynamics. The measurement uncertainty of the WMS and PTs for air-water two-phase flows is investigated by repeating the experiments. The effect of superficial gas velocity and sparger design on the radial and steady-state void fraction profiles have been reported. These experimental investigations disclose the quantitative measurements of the steady-state flow parameters which have not so far been reported, and this data can also be used by the theoretical CFD modelers for their simulation data validation

Financing Women Entrepreneurs and Employment Generation – a Case Study of Microfinance Banks

Women are becoming increasingly important in the socio-economic development of both developed and developing economies. This is because they account for a significant percentage of the operators of Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (SMEs) in virtually all aspects of the globe.Despite these success stories emanating from these economies, the Nigerian case have not been encouraging. The Nigerian women have for decades engagedin survivalist activities due to little or no encouragement from the government and the organised private sectors.This study examined, among others, the impact of financing women entrepreneurs and employment generationamong these groups within the Nigerian state. The study reports that financing women entrepreneurs hasincremental effects on employment generations and their efforts also results in multiple employment generations through improvement in their business activities, thereby increasing the numbers of selfemployed individuals in the country. The study recommends governmental intervention through the enactment of adequate policies tailored toward the encouragement and empowerment of women entrepreneur

EFFECTS OF STORAGE METHODS AND MYCOFLORA ON PROXIMATE COMPOSITION OF AFRICAN YAM BEAN (Sphenostylis stenocarpa Hochust ex Rich ) SEEDS

One of the limitations of African yam bean (AYB) (Sphenostylis sternocarpa) is poor storage ability due to the adverse effect of seed-borne fungi. This study was conducted to examine the effects of storage methods on nutritive composition of AYB&nbsp; seeds stored in three types of storage materials viz; jute bags, polypropylene bags and plastic bowls. Freshly harvested AYB seeds were stored in all the storage materials for 6 months using 2 × 3 factorial (2 AYB cultivars and 3 storage methods) in 3 replicates. The proximate analysis of the stored AYB seeds was carried out at 3 and 6 months after storage using standard methods. The temperature and relative humidity of the store room were recorded monthly. Seeds stored in jute bags gave the best values for crude protein (24.87%), ash (5.69%) and fat content (6.64%) but recorded least values for crude fibre (2.55%), carbohydrate (50.86%) and moisture content (12.68%) at the 6th month of storage. Temperature of the store room decreased from 32.9 ºC - 28.3ºC, while the relative humidity increased from 78% - 86%. Decreased incidence of field fungi namely: Rhizopus oryzae, Aspergillus flavus, Geotricum candidum, Aspergillus fumigatus and Mucor meihei was accompanied by increase in storage fungi viz: Apergillus niger, Mucor hiemalis, Penicillium espansum and Penicillium atrovenetum with prolonged storage. The study showed that out of the three storage materials, jute bag was more effective in preserving AYB seeds. &nbsp

Myocardial Bridge: Clinical Case (Coronary Stenting for Symptomatic Myocardial Bridging)

Scientific advisers: ass. prof. E. Y. Shmidt, ass. prof. E. P. Medved, assoc. prof. F. M. Abdueva, prof. M. I. YabluchanskyClinical case