Children
Summer Heatwave: Here’s How to Keep Children Safe
The summer heat can be excruciating, with soaring temperatures that are amplified by the impact of global warming. When the mercury rises, like the adults, children often suffer different health issues. Let’s find out how parents can keep their children safe from heat-related illness.
Heat-related Illness: Heatstroke vs Heat Exhaustion
Heatstroke
Heatstroke is a life-threatening condition caused by a malfunction in the body's temperature regulation system. Often it happens due to exposure to high temperatures or intense physical exertion in hot weather.
Heat Exhaustion
Heat exhaustion is a milder heat-related illness resulting from prolonged heat exposure and insufficient fluid intake. It occurs when the body becomes dehydrated and loses electrolytes through excessive sweating. Without proper treatment, it can cause heatstroke.
Read more: Class 7 student dies of heat stroke, 5 fall sick in Khulna
Causes of Heatstroke and Heat Exhaustion in Children
Immature Thermoregulatory System
Young children have a less developed ability to regulate their body temperature compared to adults. Their sweat glands may not function as efficiently, making it more challenging for them to cool down effectively in hot environments.
Increased Surface Area to Body Weight Ratio
Usually, children have larger surface areas relative to their body weight, which means they can absorb heat from the environment more quickly. This makes them more susceptible to overheating and increases the risk of heat-related illnesses.
Limited Self-awareness
Children may not recognise the signs of overheating or may not communicate their discomfort effectively. They might continue playing or engaging in physical activities despite feeling excessively hot. It increases their risk of getting ill from high heat.
Read more: Heat Stroke Prevention: Best foods, drinks to avoid heat exhaustion
Lack of Hydration Knowledge
Sometimes children are not aware of the importance of staying hydrated and forget to drink water regularly. Under the scorching summer sun, kids may continue playing, neglecting the necessity of fluid intake, which can increase their risk of dehydration.
Dependency on Adults
Children mostly rely on adults to provide them with water, shade, and appropriate clothing choices. If somehow a child is not adequately hydrated, does not take breaks, or does not take protective measures due to the negligence of the caregiver, he/she can be at a higher risk of heatstroke and heat exhaustion.
Participation in Sports or Activities
Children engaged in intense physical activities, or playing outdoors under the sun, are more at the risk of heat exhaustion. It happens especially when proper precautions are not taken. Extended periods of exertion in hot weather without adequate rest and hydration increase the risk significantly.
Read more: Heat Stroke: Symptoms, First Aid, and Prevention
Staying in Enclosed Spaces or Vehicles
Leaving children in enclosed spaces, such as a parked car under the sun, even for a short time, can be harmful for their health. Due to summer heatwaves, the temperature inside a vehicle can rise quickly, posing a severe risk of heatstroke or even death.
Lack of Adjustment
Children who have not acclimatised gradually to hot weather conditions are at higher risk of heat-related illnesses. Sudden exposure to extreme heat overwhelms their bodies. Their organs may struggle to regulate the body-temperature effectively.
Certain Medical Conditions
Children with specific medical conditions, such as asthma, obesity, diabetes, or heart disease, may have a higher risk of heat-related illnesses. These conditions can affect the body's ability to regulate temperature or increase the vulnerability to dehydration.
Read more: Summer 2023: Ceiling Fan Buyer's Guide with Price Range in Bangladesh
It is essential to be careful of these causes and take necessary precautions to protect children from excessive heat exposure. To ensure they remain adequately hydrated in hot environments is essential.
Parents in Irish town unite in banning smartphones for children
In a stunning show of unity, parents in a town in Ireland have banded together to jointly adopt a no-smartphone code for their children until secondary school.
Parents’ associations across the Irish town of Greystones have adopted the no-smartphone code for their children, the Guardian reports.
“If everyone does it across the board, you don’t feel like you’re the odd one out. It makes it so much easier to say no,” said Laura Bourne, one of the parents. “The longer we can preserve their innocence, the better.”
Read more: How to Break Internet Addiction?
Last month, schools and parents in the town of Greystones in Ireland took the initiative out of concern that smartphones were fueling anxiety and exposing children to adult content. It is a rare occasion for an entire town to take action together on such an issue, the Guardian reports.
The voluntary “Greystones Pact” is to withhold smartphones from children – at home, in school, everywhere – until they enter secondary school. Applying it to all children in the area will, it is hoped, curb peer pressure and dampen any resentment.
“Childhoods are getting shorter and shorter,” Rachel Harper, the principal of St Patrick’s School who led the initiative, told the Guardian. Nine-year-olds had started requesting smartphones, she said.
Read more: How to keep your child engaged at home without gadgets
“It was creeping in younger and younger, we could see it happening.”
A town-wide policy reduces the chance of a child having a peer with a smartphone and parents can present the code as a school rule, said Harper. “They love it – now they can blame the schools.”
The initiative has garnered interest from parent associations in Ireland and internationally, prompting Ireland's health minister, Stephen Donnelly, to recommend it as a national policy.
Read more: Effects of Excessive Use of Smartphones
“Ireland can be, and must be, a world leader in ensuring that children and young people are not targeted and are not harmed by their interactions with the digital world,” he wrote in the Irish Times. “We must make it easier for parents to limit the content their children are exposed to.”
The “Greystones Pact” stemmed from children showing anxiety levels only partly attributable to Covid-era adaptation, Harper told the Guardian.
Schools circulated questionnaires among parents, leading to a meeting of community stakeholders and an initiative dubbed “it takes a village”.
Read more: How to entertain an unwell child without screen time
Not all parents will deny their primary schoolchildren a smartphone – the code is voluntary – but enough have signed up to create a sense of critical mass, said Harper. “Hopefully down the line it’ll become the new norm,” she told the Guardian.
How to Raise a Caring, Empathetic and Compassionate Child
According to the Dalai Lama, “Love and compassion are necessities, not luxuries.” Care means offering aid or support to individuals experiencing hardship or requiring assistance. Compassion is empathizing and experiencing the feelings of others in order to develop a deep understanding and empathy for their emotions. It includes patience, wisdom, kindness, warmth, perseverance, and determination. Like adults, care and compassion is deeply associated with the overall well-being of children. If you want your child to grow up as a caring, empathetic and compassionate person, try these 10 tips.
10 Tips for Parents to Develop Empathy and Compassion in Kids
Believe in Your Child
Belief plays a significant role in shaping children's behavior. Constant maintenance of a positive attitude towards children is crucial for establishing enduring and harmonious relationships with them in the long run. It requires daily attention and effort to foster a stable and positive connection.
If parents trust in their children’s willingness to help for others' well-being, it will grow confidence in kids. Children are perceptive to these emotions and react accordingly. Sensing positivity they respond positively.
Read more: Helicopter Parenting: Signs, Pros, Cons and How to Change
Practice Empathy and Compassion
Creating an environment where people feel valued encourages children to observe and practice positive attitudes. Parents bear the primary responsibility for their children’s attitude and conduct. Children learn by observing their parents' actions and words, therefore it is essential for parents to actively practice these virtues themselves.
By being loving parents and exemplary role models, parents can contribute to raising their kids as remarkable and accepting individuals. Ultimately, parents' actions and behavior greatly influence their children's development into compassionate and empathetic individuals.
Stay Conscious about the Impact of Media
Children are often influenced by TV shows, internet contents, commercial advertisements, entertainment media and social sharing networks. It is essential for parents to have explicit conversations with their kids about the potential consequences of social media and offensive words which bring regrettable actions.
Parents should be aware of what kinds of TV shows or internet content their children watch. In friendly ways, parents can discuss with their kids about the cons of watching malicious content.
Read more: How to raise happy, confident, strong girls
Limiting the screen time of kids, parents can encourage them to read story books and novels that suit the age-level of their children.
Moreover, teaching children about the limitations of communication through the internet and social media is crucial. Parents need to help the kids understand that without facial expressions and vocal tone, misunderstandings and hurt feelings can easily occur.
Practice Gratitude
Each human on earth has some sort of sorrows, unfulfilled desires, and dissatisfactions. Still, we need to show gratitude to life for what life has given to us. It is essential to lead a positive life.
Parents can share with their kids what they are grateful about for that day. Young children can accept it as a positive example for them to follow. When children face challenges or danger, they will have trust in others and know that they are not alone in this world. Ultimately, they will learn to be grateful for everything and do the same for others.
Read more: How to entertain an unwell child without screen time
Be the Role Model
Parents are the primary educators for their children. So, it is essential to be role models. Parents’ actions are more significant than their words. Children can comprehend the differences between actions and words.
Parents can show care and compassion for others through small gestures. Practicing empathy in real life is important so that children can realize and follow it. For instance, offering a helping hand to a distressed friend can convey kindness in a simple yet powerful way.
Besides these, the parents need to be cautious about their words while criticizing another person. Because, parents are sending messages to kids about how to treat others.
Read more: How to deal with your demanding child?
Millions of children at risk in Bangladesh, Myanmar in the aftermath of Cyclone Mocha: UNICEF
The trail of destruction left by Cyclone Mocha in parts of Bangladesh and Myanmar is causing severe disruption to the lives of millions of vulnerable children and families, including many already living in dire conditions, says UNICEF on Wednesday.
Even as the worst of the storm has passed, the risk of landslides remains high, and further dangers, including waterborne diseases, will likely grow in the days ahead.
Cyclone Mocha hit the coastlines of Bangladesh and Myanmar on 14 May, at around 15:00 local time, bringing heavy rainfall, storm surges, and strong winds reaching 175 mph.
"Some of the world's most vulnerable children and families are, yet again, at the sharp end of a crisis they didn't create. The areas hit hardest by the storm are home to communities already living through conflict, poverty, instability, and climate and environmental shocks," said UNICEF's Executive Director Catherine Russell.
Also read: US providing $250,000 to assist Cyclone Mocha emergency relief efforts: Peter Haas
"As we urgently assess and respond to the immediate needs of children in the aftermath of this cyclone, we know with certainty that the best way to save and improve the lives of children and their families is by finding long-term solutions."
In Bangladesh, home to the world's largest refugee camp in Cox's Bazar, one million Rohingya refugees faced the brunt of the heavy storms, half of them children. The refugee camps rank among the most tightly packed places on earth, exposing children to conditions ripe for disease, malnutrition, neglect, exploitation, and violence. The camps are also prone to mudslides, and children live in fragile temporary shelters.
Cyclone Mocha has tied with 2019's Tropical Cyclone Fani as the strongest storm ever recorded in the North Indian Ocean. Scientists recently found that, while disaster management efforts have reduced the number of deaths during cyclones in recent years, climate change is threatening this progress. They noted that escalating frequency and intensity of storms will pose a far greater risk to Bangladesh in the coming decades.
While Cox's Bazar was spared the eye of the storm, thousands of people have been affected and several temporary shelters, facilities, and infrastructure that refugees have been provided have flooded and left severely damaged due to heavy winds and rains.
Timely and urgent humanitarian access to the affected areas in both countries is critical.
UNICEF is on the ground, assessing needs, and providing emergency relief. Together with local partners, UNICEF is prepositioning and deploying supplies in Bangladesh and Myanmar to ramp up our response services, including water and sanitation, child protection, health, nutrition, and education.
By late Sunday, the storm weakened, leaving behind destroyed homes, health facilities, schools, and other critical infrastructure.
Many of the hundreds of thousands of people affected are refugees or internally displaced people (IDPs), living in poorly structured shelters in camps and hard-to-reach areas.
They rely heavily on humanitarian assistance for food, water, health, education, and protection.
The situation is particularly worrisome in Myanmar. More than 16 million people – 5.6 million of them children – including 1.2 million internally displaced people of Rohingya, ethnic Rakhine and other communities, were in the path of the cyclone in Rakhine State, and locations in the north-west including Chin State and Sagaing and Magway Regions.
The areas are low-lying and highly prone to flooding landslides.
Assessments of the extent of the damage in Myanmar are challenging, largely due to interrupted transport and telecommunication services and inaccessibility of some roads due to trees falling and debris.
However, early reports show that children were reportedly among the victims of the storm.
Around 34.5 mln women in Bangladesh were married before they turned 18: Unicef
In Bangladesh, 51 per cent of young women were married in childhood, according to a new report which used data from the Bangladesh 2019 Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey.
Bangladesh has the highest prevalence of child marriage in South Asia and the eighth highest prevalence in the world, according to a new analysis issued by UNICEF today.
Approximately 34.5 million women in Bangladesh were married before they turned 18 and over 13 million women were married before they turned 15.
“Children should not be married. Despite progress, the number of child brides in Bangladesh is staggering. Millions of girls are being robbed of their childhood, and denied their fundamental rights. We need urgent and concerted action to protect girls, to ensure that they stay in school, and have the opportunity to grow up to their fullest potential,” said Sheldon Yett, UNICEF Representative to Bangladesh.
Despite a steady decline in child marriage in the last decade, multiple crises including conflict, climate shocks, and the ongoing fallout from COVID-19 are threatening to reverse hard-earned gains, according to a new analysis issued by UNICEF today.
“The world is engulfed by crises on top of crises that are crushing the hopes and dreams of vulnerable children, especially girls who should be students, not brides,” said UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell.
“Health and economic crises, escalating armed conflicts, and the ravaging effects of climate change are forcing families to seek a false sense of refuge in child marriage. We need to do everything in our power to ensure that their rights to an education and empowered lives are secured.”
Worldwide, an estimated 640 million girls and women alive today were married in childhood, or 12 million girls per year, according to the latest global estimate included in the analysis.
The share of young women who married in childhood has declined from 21 per cent to 19 per cent since the last estimates were released five years ago.
However, in spite of this progress, global reductions would have to be 20 times faster to meet the Sustainable Development Goal of ending child marriage by 2030.
Meanwhile, South Asia continues to drive global reductions and is on pace to eliminate child marriage in about 55 years, the report notes.
However, the region remains home to nearly half (45 per cent) of the world's child brides. While India has recorded significant progress in recent decades, it still accounts for one-third of the global total.
Sub-Saharan Africa – which currently shoulders the second largest global share of child brides (20 per cent) – is over 200 years away from ending the practice at its current pace.
Rapid population growth, alongside ongoing crises, look set to increase the number of child brides, in contrast with the declines expected in the rest of the world.
Latin America and the Caribbean is also falling behind and on course to have the second-highest regional level of child marriage by 2030. After periods of steady progress, the Middle East and North Africa, and Eastern Europe and Central Asia have also stagnated.
Girls who marry in childhood face immediate and lifelong consequences.
They are less likely to remain in school, and face an increased risk of early pregnancy, in turn increasing the risk of child and maternal health complications and mortality.
The practice can also isolate girls from family and friends, and exclude them from participating in their communities, taking a heavy toll on their mental health and well-being.
Worldwide, conflict, climate-related disasters, and the ongoing impacts of COVID-19 – especially rising poverty, income shocks, and school dropout – are helping to increase the drivers of child marriage while also making it difficult for girls to access health care, education, social services and community support that protect them from child marriage.
As a result, girls living in fragile settings are twice as likely to become child brides as the average girl globally, the analysis notes.
For every ten-fold increase in conflict-related deaths, there is a 7 per cent increase in the number of child marriages. At the same time, extreme weather events driven by climate change increase a girl's risk, with every 10 per cent deviation in rainfall connected to around a 1 per cent increase in the prevalence of child marriage.
Precious gains to end child marriage in the past decade are also being threatened – or even reversed – by the ongoing impacts of COVID-19, the analysis warns. It is estimated that the pandemic has already cut the number of averted child marriages since 2020 by one-quarter.
"We’ve proven that progress to end child marriage is possible. It requires unwavering support for vulnerable girls and families,” added Russell. “We must focus on keeping girls in school and making sure they have economic opportunities."
2 children drown in Kurigram
Two children drowned in a canal in Alsiar area in Kurigram’s Rajarhat upazila early Tuesday.
The deceased were identified as Mahadi, 13, son of Sajidul Islam, and Farabi, 12, son of Sohan Mia.
As family members were not around, the two cousins drowned in the canal.
Also Read: Tourist swept away by waves in Cox’s Bazar
Locals found their bodies floating in the water.
Abdullah Hil Zaman, officer-in-charge of Rajarhar police station, said their bodies were recovered but no complaint was lodged in this regard.
2 children drown in Thakurgaon
Two children drowned in a pond at Nuntor village in Thakurgaon’s Ranisankail upazila early Tuesday.
The deceased were identified as Md Siam, 10, son of Makbul Hossain, and Al Amin, 12, son of Muktar Hossain.
According to their family, one of them fell into the pond while trying to pick up his shoe, while the other fell while trying to save him.
On information, a firefighting unit rushed in and recovered the bodies from the pond, said Gulfamul Islam Mandal, officer-in-charge of Ranisankail Police Station.
UNICEF launching first large-scale fundraising campaign in Bangladesh this Ramadan
This Ramadan, UNICEF is launching a large-scale campaign to raise funds for malnourished children in Bangladesh.
For the first time, the fundraising campaign is taking place inside Bangladesh, appealing to the growing affluent class who are more able to donate towards helping children in their own country.
With a strong economy, Bangladesh reached lower-middle-income country status in 2015 and aims to become an upper-middle-income country by 2031.
At the same time, the country’s economic progress and success mean that Bangladesh receives less foreign aid.
Read More: Multiple crises set to plunge more children into poverty, ILO and UNICEF report warns
“The economic progress in Bangladesh has created enhanced opportunities for us to take care of the underprivileged section of our population and to ensure that we leave no one behind. The success of Bangladesh needs to be reflected through the children, who are our future and who also depend on us for their education, healthcare and well-being,” said Masud Bin Momen, Foreign Secretary of the Government of Bangladesh.
UNICEF – which is funded entirely through voluntary contributions – has been on the ground in Bangladesh for over 70 years, saving children’s lives and protecting children’s rights. Globally, UNICEF has helped save more children's lives than any other humanitarian organization.
The UNICEF Ramadan fundraising campaign is a first-ever invitation from UNICEF to people in Bangladesh to let their good deeds echo for malnourished children around the country together with UNICEF.
Read More: UNICEF wants investment in world's first child-focused climate risk financing solution
The most common forms of malnutrition are stunting (low height for age) or wasting (low weight for height). Bangladesh has made impressive progress in addressing malnutrition. Stunting was reduced from 42 per cent in 2013 to 28 per cent in 2019. Yet, over five million Bangladeshi children under the age of five suffer from malnutrition.
Stunting is caused by chronic or recurring undernutrition, and the damage done to a child’s body and brain by stunting cannot be reversed. It drags down performance at school and later at work, and puts a child at a higher risk of dying from infectious diseases.
Wasting is an acute form of undernourishment which can be fatal. It is characterized by recent and severe weight loss which is often caused by lack of food and by disease.
Children born to the poorest families are more likely to suffer from stunting and wasting. And when disasters such as floods strike, these already vulnerable children are at heightened risk.
Read More: Heatwaves to impact almost every child by 2050: UNICEF report
“There is no greater cause than championing children’s health, education and rights. This Ramadan, UNICEF invites the people of Bangladesh to join hands with UNICEF to help the most vulnerable children in their own country,” said Sheldon Yett, UNICEF Representative to Bangladesh.
‘Children’s voices should be heard more’
An opposition MP says he will place issues involving child rights before Parliament more whenever he gets scope.
Speaking at a virtual Question & Answer session --Listen to Our Words-- Jatiya Party MP Ahsan Adelur Rahman made the commitment on Friday night. Ahsan Adelur joined the session as the chief guest while Julhas Alam, Dhaka Bureau Chief of the New York-based global news agency Associated Press (AP), attended the session as the special guest.
The ‘Child Message’—a platform to deal with child rights issues—organised the event where the students of Narayanganj District Girls School took part.
Also Read: Strengthen efforts to ensure protection, reparations for sale, sexual exploitation of children: UN expert
Both Ahsan Adelur and Julhas Alam agreed that children’s voices should be heard more through various platforms to ensure a better Bangladesh by making them good citizens of the country.
One of the children asked the lawmaker why Bangladeshis will have to bear an additional amount of money to perform Hajj this year.
The MP narrated the scenario and said he will surely table the issue before the House.
Another student asked what should be done about the risky buildings in the capital city. In reply Ahsan Adelur said that the issue is a serious concern for the country.
Also Read: Multiple crises set to plunge more children into poverty, ILO and UNICEF report warns
He said it is a very difficult task to reconstruct the city by demolishing so many risky buildings, but authorities must take the issue very seriously. He admitted that there is lack of monitoring while corruption in allowing unauthorised buildings has been a major concern.
Ahsan Adelur, an MP from Nilphamari-4 constituency, promised to raise the issue before the House and talk to the Prime Minister.
Asked how much the Bangladeshi political parties are concerned about child rights, AP Bureau Chief Julhas Alam said the situation is changing gradually and the political leaders are increasingly being consulted by various child rights groups, UNICEF or international NGOs like Save the Children and others.
“This is a good sign. But we all need to do more to ensure that the children’s voices are heard more. Media outlets have also an important role to play,” he said adding that many things related to coverage and portrayal of child rights issues in media have improved significantly.
He appreciated Ahsan Adelur MP that he spared his time to listen to the children and their voices.
Julhas also said that there are still many issues to fight against child abuse, ensure their safety and their rights to get better education and health facilities.
The Child Message’s Executive Director Arif Rahman Shibly said they will continue to work to execute the ‘United Nations Convention on Child Rights (Section 13)’.
According to a press release by the Child Message, a total of 33 MPs have so far faced children and listened to their words about their rights.
Narayanganj School Principal Masuda Akhtar also took part in the discussion.
Strengthen efforts to ensure protection, reparations for sale, sexual exploitation of children: UN expert
Fighting impunity and providing reparations must be at the heart of the international response to suffering and harm inflicted on child victims and survivors of sale and sexual exploitation, a UN expert said Wednesday.
In a report to the 52nd Session of the Human Rights Council, the UN Special Rapporteur on the sale and exploitation of children Mama Fatima Singhateh said despite progress in providing reparations to child victims and survivors in a handful of states, these efforts need to be universal and strengthened following international legal standards.
"My report is not just a reflection on existing systems of reparations for children around the world," Singhateh said. "It is intended to signal to the international community, in large areas where current provisions in national, regional, and international frameworks can better respond to the needs of child victims and survivors."
The expert lamented major challenges in effectively combating these abhorrent crimes – all of which urgently need to be addressed through accountability, she said.
To date, no reparations scheme has provided a complete and comprehensive programme that addresses all categories of child exploitation, violence, and abuse, exposing children to the risk of secondary victimisation.
"Where reparations are attempted, they are rarely effective in reaching the most marginalised groups of children. These children are most often outside or on the margins of the formal state machinery in terms of recognition of their identity and are therefore at risk of being excluded from legal protection," Singhateh said.
A crucial first step, the UN expert said, would be for states to introduce and strengthen specific legislation on reparations for child victims and survivors in the national context.
Singhateh's report analysed the role of non-state actors, including non-state armed groups, corporations, the World Bank-funded development projects and multilateral development banks, and found that they have historically fallen short of their responsibilities in addressing and facilitating redress for child victims and survivors of sale and sexual exploitation.
"The reparations process should be empowering, transformative, sustainable, victim-centred and survivor-centred," she said.
"Reparations for child victims and survivors of sale and sexual exploitation require a strong and sustained national, regional and international commitment," Singhateh added.
The special rapporteur said it should include survivor-centred reparations; a co-design model with meaningful participation of children; development and implementation of transitional measures; strengthening inter-agency cooperation; a child-friendly, multidisciplinary and inter-agency model; age-, gender- and local context-sensitive reparations; immediate delivery of reparations; mobile courts and child-focused mechanisms in vulnerable areas; and the use of information and communication technology to support reparations through targeted detection and mandatory reporting.