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Daijiworld Media Network – Mangaluru (ANK) Mangaluru, Dec 30: As the new year approaches, scamsters may attempt to exploit the occasion by sending malicious APK files via WhatsApp to defraud unsuspecting individuals. The city police has alerted the public to exercise caution and urged them not to click on any APK files, as doing so could lead to their mobile phones being hacked. These files might be shared through various social media platforms. The police have advised that if anyone receives an APK file, they should avoid opening or sharing it with others. Additionally, if such a file is shared in a WhatsApp group by a known contact, the group admin should be requested to delete it immediately. For assistance or to report such incidents, the public can call the helpline number 1930 or visit the website www.cybercrime.gov.in .
Men lose 17 minutes of life with every cigarette they smoke while a woman’s life is cut short by 22 minutes with each cigarette, experts have estimated. This is more than previous estimates, which suggest that each cigarette shortens a smoker’s life by 11 minutes. The new estimates, which suggest that each cigarette leads to 20 minutes loss of live on average across both genders, are based on more up-to-date figures from long-term studies tracking the health of the population. Researchers from University College London said that the harm caused by smoking is “cumulative” and the sooner a person stops smoking, and the more cigarettes they avoid smoking, the longer they live. The new analysis, commissioned by the Department for Health and Social Care, suggests that if a 10-cigarettes-a-day smoker quits on January 1, then by January 8 they could “prevent loss of a full day of life”. By February 20, their lives could be extended by a whole week. And if their quitting is successful until August 5, they will likely live for a whole month longer than if they had continued to smoke. The authors added: “Studies suggest that smokers typically lose about the same number of healthy years as they do total years of life. Make 2025 the year you quit smoking for good. There’s lots of free support available to help you. Find out more 🔽 https://t.co/J0ehnoRM1D pic.twitter.com/LQpUp6HJBm — WHH 🏥 (@WHHNHS) December 27, 2024 “Thus smoking primarily eats into the relatively healthy middle years rather than shortening the period at the end of life, which is often marked by chronic illness or disability. “So a 60-year-old smoker will typically have the health profile of a 70-year-old non-smoker.” The analysis, to be published in the Journal of Addiction, concludes: “We estimate that on average, smokers in Britain who do not quit lose approximately 20 minutes of life expectancy for each cigarette they smoke. “This is time that would likely be spent in relatively good health. “Stopping smoking at every age is beneficial but the sooner smokers get off this escalator of death the longer and healthier they can expect their lives to be.” Dr Sarah Jackson, principal research fellow from the UCL Alcohol and Tobacco Research Group, said: “It is vital that people understand just how harmful smoking is and how much quitting can improve their health and life expectancy. “The evidence suggests people lose, on average, around 20 minutes of life for each cigarette they smoke. “The sooner a person stops smoking, the longer they live. “Quitting at any age substantially improves health and the benefits start almost immediately. “It’s never too late to make a positive change for your health and there are a range of effective products and treatments that can help smokers quit for good.” There are so many reasons to quit smoking this New Year – for your health, for more money, and for your family. Make a fresh quit for 2025 – find tips and support at https://t.co/GyLk65o8kS or https://t.co/iW6WLxTL00 pic.twitter.com/KxPZ5N378y — North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust (@NTeesHpoolNHSFT) December 27, 2024 Health officials have said that smokers can find advice, support and resources with the NHS Quit Smoking app, as well as the online Personal Quit Plan. Public health minister Andrew Gwynne said: “Smoking is an expensive and deadly habit and these findings reveal the shocking reality of this addiction, highlighting how important it is to quit. “The new year offers a perfect chance for smokers to make a new resolution and take that step.” Commenting on the paper, Professor Sanjay Agrawal, special adviser on tobacco at the Royal College of Physicians, said: “Every cigarette smoked costs precious minutes of life, and the cumulative impact is devastating, not only for individuals but also for our healthcare system and economy. “This research is a powerful reminder of the urgent need to address cigarette smoking as the leading preventable cause of death and disease in the UK.”
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Hidden underground hydrogen reserves could power the entire Earth for centuriesLEWISTON, N.Y. (AP) — Jaeden Marshall scored 21 points as Niagara beat Le Moyne 88-69 on Sunday. Marshall shot 5 for 8 (4 for 6 from 3-point range) and 7 of 8 from the free-throw line for the Purple Eagles (6-7). Justice Smith added 15 points while going 6 of 12 from the floor, including 1 for 3 from 3-point range, and 2 for 3 from the line and had five rebounds. Zion Russell shot 4 for 7, including 3 for 3 from beyond the arc to finish with 11 points. AJ Dancier finished with 17 points and four steals for the Dolphins (5-10). Le Moyne also got 11 points and 10 rebounds from Ocypher Owens. Dwayne Koroma had nine points and six rebounds. The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar .
Two bills giving additional privileges to senior citizens were recently in the news: one ensures access to employment and the other exempts them from paying income taxes. House Bill No. 10985 or the proposed “Employment Opportunities for Senior Citizens and Private Entities’ Incentives Act,” was passed on final reading by the House of Representatives this week. The measure ensures access to employment opportunities for seniors who still have the capacity and interest to work. Possible jobs include clerical or secretarial work, consultancy, cleaning or janitorial services, event organizing, teaching, kitchen help, sales assistance, and business process outsourcing. House Bill No. 10989, filed earlier this month and is pending at the House committee on senior citizens, seeks to exempt senior citizens who are still working from paying taxes. The bill’s explanatory note stated that 75 percent of the country’s 9.22 million senior citizens were not covered by social security or did not have retirement plans. Among pensioners, 60 percent receive below P5,000 every month while 42 percent remain in the labor force. The measure seeks to increase their “meager savings” through tax exemption so that they can have adequate financial protection by the time they retire. Indeed, a monthly pension of P5,000 is hardly enough to cover necessities, especially with inflation, and it will be difficult for retirees with no substantial retirement plan to manage their finances. Several studies have attributed this to the lack of financial education among Filipinos. “The lack of retirement planning is exacerbated by the general gaps in financial knowledge among Filipinos to manage their retirement finance. Either the funds are left in savings accounts, which produce near zero income, or they are depleted due to bad business decisions or spent on unnecessary extravagance. The lack of financial literacy, discipline and annuity type of pension payout can contribute to early depletion of retirement funds,” said the state think tank Philippine Institute for Development Studies. Financial advisor Celina Magallona said it could also be cultural and rooted in Filipinos’ fatalistic or “bahala na” attitude. A consequence of this lack of retirement plan is that many retirees continue to find employment to secure their financial future. This should not be seen as negative in itself and employing retirees is not a new concept. Several countries like Singapore and Taiwan have such programs. Singapore’s retirement law, for example, mandates employers to offer re-employment to eligible employees 63-68 years old, as long as they are willing and able to. These proposed legislative measures can indeed help protect seniors from discrimination and ageism. On top of these, however, seniors must also be assisted in securing their finances before retirement through financial literacy programs. The government must also assess how current programs are implemented because it is a reflection of how the state takes care of its elderly population. Several programs for senior citizens are facing funding problems, including the social pension for the indigent members of the population. The Department of Social Welfare and Development said this week that it had no funding yet for the over 600,000 waitlisted indigent senior citizens who were supposed to receive a P1,000 monthly social pension. This benefit is mandated under Republic Act No. 9994 or the Expanded Senior Citizens Act of 2010 which was enacted in July 2022. There are fears that the problem of insufficient funds for the program will continue with the number of beneficiaries increasing every year—it is seen to balloon to 800,000 from 622,000 this year. Aside from budgeting woes, the process of availing benefits for senior citizens remains challenging. Seniors who have reached a certain milestone age applying for cash incentives under Republic Act No. 10868 or the Centenarian Act of 2016 have faced various difficulties and it is not fair for them to go through a rigorous process of what is already provided by law. Certainly, there is no lack of well-intentioned programs for the elderly. The perennial problem is always the implementation. The government must make the process of availing these benefits more accessible and hassle-free, bearing in mind that the intended beneficiaries are no longer as mobile and fit. It must also make sure that it can fund laws that it enacts. Subscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy . More importantly, seniors are in the twilight of their lives, and the least that the state—which has benefited from their talent and skills during their prime—can do is to ensure that they enjoy these benefits while they still can.
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