Cape Times 2024-05-29

The 2024 flu season is expected to peak between May and August. While the flu brings physical symptoms and health risks to everyone, especially those at higher risk, it also significantly impacts businesses. The effects include reduced productivity, employee absenteeism, increased healthcare costs and lower profitability. Even though an effective flu vaccine has been available for years, the virus continues to cause many illnesses and deaths in South Africa and worldwide. This ongoing problem has a severe impact on businesses. Statistics from Human Capital Review show that absenteeism could cost South Africa up to R19.144 billion annually. Flu alone accounts for 4.5 million missed workdays every year. When employees are absent, their colleagues often have to step in and cover their duties. This can lead to overwork and fatigue…

WORLD Hypertension Day on May 17 was dedicated to raising awareness about hypertension, often called a silent killer. This health condition is a leading cause of premature deaths worldwide. According to the World Health Organization, about 1.28 billion adults aged 30 to 79 are living with hypertension. Sadly, only 46% of these individuals are aware of their condition. Diet plays a critical role in managing and reducing hypertension, according to the Discovery Health Medical Scheme. They share advice. Impact of diet on blood pressure What you eat can greatly influence your blood pressure. Adopting a healthy eating plan can reduce the risk of developing high blood pressure and help lower existing high blood pressure levels. The Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (Dash) diet is a well- established guideline aimed at…

Nara Smith certainly knows how to captivate an audience. Known as the ultimate TikTok tradwife, Nara, 22, has inspired millions of people with her youthful charm, soft-spoken demeanour, elegant style and delightful array of recipes that blend tradition with modern taste. We take a look at some of the cook's mind-blowing creations that left people astonished and salivating. Bubblegum This month, Nara took to TikTok in her usual mellow fashion as she began preparing yet another home-made concoction in the kitchen. But viewers’ jaws dropped when she revealed what she was making – bubblegum. She detailed how she made green apple and cinnamon vanilla-flavoured gum for her sister. “My sister was in town to visit and she’s been craving bubble gum so bad," Nara explained. "But she ran out so…

Food delivery services are amazing, delivering food to our doorsteps without much effort on our part. Before the smartphone explosion, people would have to call a restaurant to order food. Now, thanks to mobile technology and the wide development of on-demand food delivery apps, we can quickly and easily place orders via an app and have our food delivered wherever and whenever we wish. All we need to do is pull out our smartphones and find the best apps for ordering food in our area. Each food app has many restaurants, cafés and places to choose from. We can order food from these joints and eat it in the comfort of our own homes. Ordering in is a fabulous way to support food establishments and to take a break…

ATTEMPTS by RISE Mzansi to dissuade the public from voting for rival party ActionSA through negative SMSes has been described as nothing more than “old politics” . Yesterday scores of South Africans woke up to SMSes saying: “Don’t vote for ActionSA: they are partners with the DA in the MPC. A vote for ActionSA is a vote for the DA. “We need new leaders. Vote RISE Mzansi.” ActionSA national chairperson Michael Beaumont said RISE Mzansi’s series of paid attack SMSes was a “clumsy attempt” to manufacture reasons why people should not vote for them. Beaumont said if anything, the truth was that while Rise Mzansi had attempted to position itself as a party led by the voices of the people of South Africa, it was in fact ActionSA that was…

AfriForum says it will discuss the possibility of turning to the Constitutional Court after it failed in its Supreme Court of Appeal application over a complaint of hate speech against the EFF for singing the song Dubula ibhunu. Justice Halima Saldulker dismissed the appeal application after AfriForum’s complaint was initially unsuccessful in the Equality Court. The literal English translation of the Struggle song is “Kill the Boer, kill the farmer”. In a statement, AfriForum said the judgment had “let farmers down (and) emphasises the importance of taking safety into one’s own hands”. The hate speech complaint by AfriForum centred, in the main, on the song, which was sung by EFF’s president, Julius Malema, and Mbuyiseni Ndlozi. AfriForum pointed to six occasions on which Malema had chanted the song, albeit that…