12 KIND OF PEOPLE YOU MUST NEVER MARRY.

Easiest time to prevent a divorce or an unhappy marriage is before marriage, not after. There is no gain saying that love can have such a drunken effect on the about-to-wed that clear danger signals become unimportant to them, while hope becomes the only commodity. After all, is it not said that love conquers all? Great! But what type of love is meant there?

There are traits that some people cannot drop. It is like hoping that a right-handed spouse will one day become left-handed: a classical case of waiting for God!

If you are looking for a wife or a husband, please be wary of these groups of people.

Those who can never say, “sorry”

They would hurt you, annoy you, disappoint you, but would never apologise, because they believe that it would belittle and demean them. When you are wrong, you apologise to them, and when you are right, you still apologise to them, hoping that they would change. But they never do. You start to feel irritated and agitated. The love and respect you felt for them start to wear away.

Those who can never say, “Thank you”

Whatever you do for them, they are never grateful. “Why should I say, ‘Thank you’ when you are just doing your duty?” Some would say that their gratitude is in their heart. Do you have to open a heart to see the gratitude and get it? Such an attitude causes irritation and frustration and unhappiness.

Such people also believe the world owes them a lot. They go around their activities with an entitlement mentality. They are difficult to please.

Those who have excessive libido or inadequate libido

Sexual intercourse is a very important factor in marriage, but when you have a spouse that needs it for breakfast, lunch and supper, it is difficult to have any peace in the family. Infidelity also knocks on door. On the other hand, when you have a spouse that hates sex or thinks that sex should only be had once a year during the wedding anniversary or birthday celebration, there is also trouble in the house, and infidelity is usually a challenge.

Men who think women are to be seen but not heard

Some men still live in the 18th century, in spite of the depth of education they profess. It is true that marriage is not a zone for feminist crusade, but if a man has archaic views about women, then, please avoid him like an Ebola patient. Watch out for statements like: “How can an ordinary woman want to be the CEO?” “How can a woman chat with men?”

Women who believe they don’t need men in their lives

Such women believe that they are self-sufficient in all things. They have the I-don’t-give-a-damn attitude. Men feel ill at ease when they are with women who don’t allow a room in their lives for a man to fill. Such women find it difficult to express love. They fly into quarrels easily. This creates frustration and conflicts.

Men who are looking for housemaids, not wives

These are men who still live in the 15th century. They have an archaic idea of what the role of wives is. They believe that women are only meant to cook, clean the house, bear children, and serve the men.

They believe that when the men talk, women must just obey. The man can keep mistresses, but the woman should keep quiet and not even be seen greeting a man. A woman should not work, should not step out of the house, and should not complain whatever the man doles out to her.

Those who can never trust anybody

These are those who believe that everybody is a dangerous enemy that has evil designs against them. They have an obsession with fear of people, including their spouse, that it is irritating. Once a spouse cannot be trusted, there can never be joy in the family.

Those who have no respect for others

People can mouth love, but without respect, a marriage can never be happy. Women who love to prove a point by insulting their husbands, or men who believe in treating their wives without dignity in the name of cutting their wives to size: such people make terrible marriage partners.

Women who see all men as competition that must not be given an inch

Marriage is not a place for activism. A woman who sees a man as a competitor rather than a complement is a dangerous person to marry. When a man has to contend with a woman every minute, when a man is always too conscious of what to say or do to his wife, then there is a problem.

Those who can’t control their temper

Hot-tempered people are dangerous. They can utter anything in anger. They can do things that they will regret for life. They can be violent. Their words can be venomous. They can put you in trouble.

Those who cannot forgive

Forgiveness makes us look superhuman. But there are those who cannot forgive, no matter the circumstances. Not only can they not forgive, they can also not forget. Because they can’t forgive, they usually think of how to get revenge.

Those who have not been weaned by their parents

Age has little to do with maturity in marriage. Those who have not been “weaned” by their parents make poor marriage partners. They are full of “Mummy said”, “Daddy said”. They take every family discussion to their parents. They cannot do anything unless their parents approve. They allow their parents to run their homes in the name of showing respect to the mother-in-law or father-in-law.

Those who are tied to the apron strings of their parents make marriage tasteless. Such spouses are as a constant source of frustration and sadness. You will always be wrong. You will always be vilified.

In summary, marriage is not a bed of roses. There is nobody without some faults or idiosyncrasies. But it is foolhardy to walk into a landmine with one’s eyes open, praying and hoping that the explosive would not go off.

To avoid heartache, neither blind love nor desperation to get married should push a bachelor or spinster to jump into a marriage with someone that will cause nothing but pain, sadness, and sorrow.

EBOLA VIRUS DISEASE (EVD)

EBOLA VIRUS DISEASE (EVD)

Key facts:

Ebola virus disease (EVD), formerly known as Ebola haemorrhagic fever, is a severe, often fatal illness in humans.
EVD outbreaks have a case fatality rate of up to 90%.
EVD outbreaks occur primarily in remote villages in Central and West Africa, near tropical rainforests.
The virus is transmitted to people from wild animals and spreads in the human population through human-to-human transmission.
Fruit bats of the Pteropodidae family are considered to be the natural host of the Ebola virus.
Severely ill patients require intensive supportive care. No licensed specific treatment or vaccine is available for use in people or animals.
Ebola first appeared in 1976 in 2 simultaneous outbreaks, in Nzara, Sudan, and in Yambuku, Democratic Republic of Congo. The latter was in a village situated near the Ebola River, from which the disease takes its name.

Genus Ebolavirus is 1 of 3 members of the Filoviridae family (filovirus), along with genus Marburgvirus and genus Cuevavirus. Genus Ebolavirus comprises 5 distinct species:

Bundibugyo ebolavirus (BDBV)
Zaire ebolavirus (EBOV)
Reston ebolavirus (RESTV)
Sudan ebolavirus (SUDV)
Taï Forest ebolavirus (TAFV).
BDBV, EBOV, and SUDV have been associated with large EVD outbreaks in Africa, whereas RESTV and TAFV have not. The RESTV species, found in Philippines and the People’s Republic of China, can infect humans, but no illness or death in humans from this species has been reported to date.

TRANSMISSION

Ebola is introduced into the human population through close contact with the blood, secretions, organs or other bodily fluids of infected animals. In Africa, infection has been documented through the handling of infected chimpanzees, gorillas, fruit bats, monkeys, forest antelope and porcupines found ill or dead or in the rainforest.

Ebola then spreads in the community through human-to-human transmission, with infection resulting from direct contact (through broken skin or mucous membranes) with the blood, secretions, organs or other bodily fluids of infected people, and indirect contact with environments contaminated with such fluids. Burial ceremonies in which mourners have direct contact with the body of the deceased person can also play a role in the transmission of Ebola. Men who have recovered from the disease can still transmit the virus through their semen for up to 7 weeks after recovery from illness.

Health-care workers have frequently been infected while treating patients with suspected or confirmed EVD. This has occurred through close contact with patients when infection control precautions are not strictly practiced.

Among workers in contact with monkeys or pigs infected with Reston ebolavirus, several infections have been documented in people who were clinically asymptomatic. Thus, RESTV appears less capable of causing disease in humans than other Ebola species.

However, the only available evidence available comes from healthy adult males. It would be premature to extrapolate the health effects of the virus to all population groups, such as immuno-compromised persons, persons with underlying medical conditions, pregnant women and children. More studies of RESTV are needed before definitive conclusions can be drawn about the pathogenicity and virulence of this virus in humans.

SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS.

EVD is a severe acute viral illness often characterized by the sudden onset of fever, intense weakness, muscle pain, headache and sore throat. This is followed by vomiting, diarrhoea, rash, impaired kidney and liver function, and in some cases, both internal and external bleeding. Laboratory findings include low white blood cell and platelet counts and elevated liver enzymes.

People are infectious as long as their blood and secretions contain the virus. Ebola virus was isolated from semen 61 days after onset of illness in a man who was infected in a laboratory.

The incubation period, that is, the time interval from infection with the virus to onset of symptoms, is 2 to 21 days.

DIAGNOSIS.

Other diseases that should be ruled out before a diagnosis of EVD can be made include: malaria, typhoid fever, shigellosis, cholera, leptospirosis, plague, rickettsiosis, relapsing fever, meningitis, hepatitis and other viral haemorrhagic fevers.

Ebola virus infections can be diagnosed definitively in a laboratory through several types of tests:

antibody-capture enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA)
antigen detection tests
serum neutralization test
reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) assay
electron microscopy
virus isolation by cell culture.
Samples from patients are an extreme biohazard risk; testing should be conducted under maximum biological containment conditions.

VACCINE AND TREATMENT.

No licensed vaccine for EVD is available. Several vaccines are being tested, but none are available for clinical use.

Severely ill patients require intensive supportive care. Patients are frequently dehydrated and require oral rehydration with solutions containing electrolytes or intravenous fluids.

No specific treatment is available. New drug therapies are being evaluated.

NATURAL HOST OF EBOLA VIRUS.

In Africa, fruit bats, particularly species of the genera Hypsignathus monstrosus, Epomops franqueti and Myonycteris torquata, are considered possible natural hosts for Ebola virus. As a result, the geographic distribution of Ebolaviruses may overlap with the range of the fruit bats.

EBOLA VIRUS ON ANIMALS.

Although non-human primates have been a source of infection for humans, they are not thought to be the reservoir but rather an accidental host like human beings. Since 1994, Ebola outbreaks from the EBOV and TAFV species have been observed in chimpanzees and gorillas.

RESTV has caused severe EVD outbreaks in macaque monkeys (Macaca fascicularis) farmed in Philippines and detected in monkeys imported into the USA in 1989, 1990 and 1996, and in monkeys imported to Italy from Philippines in 1992.

Since 2008, RESTV viruses have been detected during several outbreaks of a deadly disease in pigs in People’s Republic of China and Philippines. Asymptomatic infection in pigs has been reported and experimental inoculations have shown that RESTV cannot cause disease in pigs.

PREVENTION AND CONTROL.

Controlling Reston ebolavirus in domestic animals
No animal vaccine against RESTV is available. Routine cleaning and disinfection of pig or monkey farms (with sodium hypochlorite or other detergents) should be effective in inactivating the virus.

If an outbreak is suspected, the premises should be quarantined immediately. Culling of infected animals, with close supervision of burial or incineration of carcasses, may be necessary to reduce the risk of animal-to-human transmission. Restricting or banning the movement of animals from infected farms to other areas can reduce the spread of the disease.

As RESTV outbreaks in pigs and monkeys have preceded human infections, the establishment of an active animal health surveillance system to detect new cases is essential in providing early warning for veterinary and human public health authorities.

Reducing the risk of Ebola infection in people
In the absence of effective treatment and a human vaccine, raising awareness of the risk factors for Ebola infection and the protective measures individuals can take is the only way to reduce human infection and death.

In Africa, during EVD outbreaks, educational public health messages for risk reduction should focus on several factors:

Reducing the risk of wildlife-to-human transmission from contact with infected fruit bats or monkeys/apes and the consumption of their raw meat. Animals should be handled with gloves and other appropriate protective clothing. Animal products (blood and meat) should be thoroughly cooked before consumption.
Reducing the risk of human-to-human transmission in the community arising from direct or close contact with infected patients, particularly with their bodily fluids. Close physical contact with Ebola patients should be avoided. Gloves and appropriate personal protective equipment should be worn when taking care of ill patients at home. Regular hand washing is required after visiting patients in hospital, as well as after taking care of patients at home.
Communities affected by Ebola should inform the population about the nature of the disease and about outbreak containment measures, including burial of the dead. People who have died from Ebola should be promptly and safely buried.
Pig farms in Africa can play a role in the amplification of infection because of the presence of fruit bats on these farms. Appropriate biosecurity measures should be in place to limit transmission. For RESTV, educational public health messages should focus on reducing the risk of pig-to-human transmission as a result of unsafe animal husbandry and slaughtering practices, and unsafe consumption of fresh blood, raw milk or animal tissue. Gloves and other appropriate protective clothing should be worn when handling sick animals or their tissues and when slaughtering animals. In regions where RESTV has been reported in pigs, all animal products (blood, meat and milk) should be thoroughly cooked before eating.

Controlling infection in health-care settings
Human-to-human transmission of the Ebola virus is primarily associated with direct or indirect contact with blood and body fluids. Transmission to health-care workers has been reported when appropriate infection control measures have not been observed.

It is not always possible to identify patients with EBV early because initial symptoms may be non-specific. For this reason, it is important that health-care workers apply standard precautions consistently with all patients – regardless of their diagnosis – in all work practices at all times. These include basic hand hygiene, respiratory hygiene, the use of personal protective equipment (according to the risk of splashes or other contact with infected materials), safe injection practices and safe burial practices.

Health-care workers caring for patients with suspected or confirmed Ebola virus should apply, in addition to standard precautions, other infection control measures to avoid any exposure to the patient’s blood and body fluids and direct unprotected contact with the possibly contaminated environment. When in close contact (within 1 metre) of patients with EBV, health-care workers should wear face protection (a face shield or a medical mask and goggles), a clean, non-sterile long-sleeved gown, and gloves (sterile gloves for some procedures).

Laboratory workers are also at risk. Samples taken from suspected human and animal Ebola cases for diagnosis should be handled by trained staff and processed in suitably equipped laboratories.

WHO RESPONSE

WHO provides expertise and documentation to support disease investigation and control.

Recommendations for infection control while providing care to patients with suspected or confirmed Ebola haemorrhagic fever are provided in: Interim infection control recommendations for care of patients with suspected or confirmed Filovirus (Ebola, Marburg) haemorrhagic fever, March 2008. This document is currently being updated.

WHO has created an aide–memoire on standard precautions in health care (currently being updated). Standard precautions are meant to reduce the risk of transmission of bloodborne and other pathogens. If universally applied, the precautions would help prevent most transmission through exposure to blood and body fluids.

Standard precautions are recommended in the care and treatment of all patients regardless of their perceived or confirmed infectious status. They include the basic level of infection control—hand hygiene, use of personal protective equipment to avoid direct contact with blood and body fluids, prevention of needle stick and injuries from other sharp instruments, and a set of environmental controls.

CARE FOR YOUR LIVER

One cannot live without a properly functioning liver. The liver is one of the largest organs in the body and the most exposed to toxins, as the liver works to keep us healthy. It converts food into substances needed for life and growth, it stores glycogen and amino acids, and it performs protein, fat and carbohydrate metabolism. It also produces enzymes and bile that help digest food and neutralise toxins in our body.

Some of the drugs we take are eliminated in the liver, especially the ones that are not capsules.

About 26,000 Americans die each year of cirrhosis of the liver, while another 21,000 Americans are diagnosed with primary liver cancer each year. Liver cirrhosis and cancer are on the rise all over the world and the prevalence is rising in Africa, especially in Nigeria. This is as a result of westernised life-style, diet and environmental toxins.

These conditions affect men slightly more than women.

Liver cirrhosis is a medical condition in which the liver slowly deteriorates and malfunctions due to chronic injury. Scar tissues are formed on the liver, which gradually replaces healthy tissues and result in hardened liver. These scar tissues are irreversible and they block the flow of blood through the liver, preventing the organ from functioning properly.

Liver cirrhosis can lead to liver cancer, which is the growth and spread of abnormal cells in the liver. The cancer can start in the liver (primary liver cancer) or it can spread to the liver from another organ (metabolic or secondary liver cancer.)

Causes of liver cirrhosis, liver cancer

Chronic alcoholism — that is excessive consumption of alcohol, such as taking over four glasses of wine daily, or six bottles of beer weekly.

Others are chronic Hepatitis B & C infections, alcoholic liver disease, autoimmune hepatitis, obstructed bile ducts (when the gall bladder is not flowing properly), exposure to toxins such as alcohol, some drugs and infection (or combination of both).

Inherited illnesses such as alpha-1-antrypsin deficiency, hemochromatosis, Wilson’s disease (excessive copper in the blood), galactosemia, glycogen storage disease; prolonged exposure to environmental toxins such as arsenic, etc., are all causative factors for liver cirrhosis and liver cancer.

During the early stage, many people with cirrhosis/cancer of the liver may not experience any symptoms; however, as the scar tissues replace healthy tissues, the liver functions begin to fall and the person may present with abdominal pain, fatigue, weakness, bleeding from engorged veins in the aesophagus or intestine, easy bruising from vitamin K deficiency, exhaustion, gall stones, diabetes, itchy hands and feet, lack of appetite, loss of interest in sex, nausea, impotence,

portal hypertension, dark, cola-coloured urine, weight loss (especially in liver cancer case), yellowness of the eyes and skin (jaundice), swelling of the abdomen (ascites), bloating, and body itching.

Diagnosis

In addition to personal history and physical examination, various testing methods are used to diagnose and screen for cirrhosis and cancer. They include blood tests (to measure bilirubin levels), CT scan, MR (to show the exact location and extent of the cancer) and ultrasound. Again, laparoscopy is sometimes done.

Liver biopsy

While liver damage in cirrhosis is permanent and irreversible, in liver cancer, treatment can effect a cure if the cancer is diagnosed and treated early, using surgery, chemotherapy, etc.

Treatment is dependent upon the cause and is designed to address any complications.

Complications set in when liver function deteriorates. In some people, complication may be the first signs of the disease.

These include edema and ascites (accumulation of fluids in the legs, abdomen and lungs), portal hypertension, splenomegaly (enlargement of the spleen), gallstones formation (there is no free flow of bile), cancer of the liver, iInsulin resistance and type 2 diabetes, and hepatic encephalopathy (a neuropsychiatric disorder).

Before now, the prognosis of liver cirrhosis/cancer was very poor, and the goal of treatment was to only slow the progression of scar tissue formation and prevent the complications of the disease. But with Mayr medicine combining both alternative medicine and conventional medicine now in Nigeria, the Mart Life Detox Centre — the third Mayr Centre in the world — has successfully managed patients with metastatic liver cancer and alcoholic liver cirrhosis using an advanced technology called Asyra Test to detect and treat liver pathology at its preclinical states; and also to detect food allergies that can affect the liver.

PROSTATE CANCER.

Prostate cancer develops in a man’s prostate, the walnut-sized gland just below the bladder that produces some of the fluid in semen. It’s the most common cancer in men after skin cancer. Prostate cancer often grows very slowly and may not cause significant harm. But some types are more aggressive and can spread quickly without treatment.

The prostate can grow larger as men age, sometimes pressing on the bladder or urethra and causing symptoms similar to prostate cancer. This is called benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). It’s not cancer and can be treated if symptoms become bothersome. A third problem that can cause urinary symptoms is prostatitis. This inflammation or infection may also cause a fever and in many cases is treated with medicine.

Growing older is the greatest risk factor for prostate cancer, particularly after age 50. After 70, studies suggest that most men have some form of prostate cancer, though there may be no outward symptoms. Family history increases a man’s risk: having a father or brother with prostate cancer doubles the risk. African-Americans are at high risk and have the highest rate of prostate cancer in the world.

However, there are some risk factors that can be prevented. Diet seems to play a role in the development of prostate cancer, which is much more common in countries where meat and high-fat dairy are mainstays. The reason for this link is unclear. Dietary fat, particularly animal fat from red meat, may boost male hormone levels. And this may fuel the growth of cancerous prostate cells. A diet too low in fruits and vegetables may also play a role.

Your sexual habit does not predispose you getting prostate cancer. For instance, too much sex, a vasectomy(removal of the testes) and masturbation have no effect on a man’s risk for prostate diseases.

If you have an enlarged prostate, that does not mean you are at greater risk of developing prostate cancer. Researchers are still studying whether alcohol use and sexually transmitted diseases play a role in the development of prostate cancer.

Prostate cancer can also be detected early. Screening tests are available to find prostate cancer early, but government guidelines don’t call for routine testing in men at any age. The tests may find cancers that are so slow-growing that medical treatments would offer no benefit. And the treatments themselves can have serious side effects. Men are advised to talk with a doctor about screening tests, beginning at 50 for average-risk men who expect to live at least 10 more years.

The good news about prostate cancer is that it usually grows slowly. And 9 out of 10 cases are found in the early stages. Overall, the 5-year relative survival rate is 100 per cent for men with disease confined to the prostate or nearby tissues, and many men live much longer. When the disease has spread to distant areas, that figure drops to 31per cent. But these numbers are based on men diagnosed at least 5 years ago. The outlook may be better for men diagnosed and treated today.

There is a vaccine for prostate cancer but it is designed vaccine to treat, not prevent, prostate cancer by spurring your body’s immune system to attack prostate cancer cells. Immune cells are removed from your blood, activated to fight cancer, and infused back into your blood. Three cycles occur in one month. It’s used for advanced prostate cancer that no longer responds to hormone therapy. Mild side-effects can occur such as fatigue, nausea, and fever.

Experts say erectile dysfunction is a common side effect of prostate cancer treatments. Generally, erectile function improves within two years after surgery.

They note that a cancer-conscious diet may be the best choice for survivors who want to bolster their health and those hoping to lower their risk. That means eating five or more fruits and veggies a day. Taking whole grains instead of white flour or white rice. Limiting high-fat meat and processed meat, and alcohol to 1-2 drinks per day.

Foods high in folate may have some action against prostate cancer (spinach, orange juice, lentils). Studies found mixed results on lycopene, an antioxidant found in tomatoes and carrots.

Prostate cancer symptoms

Because of the proximity of the prostate gland in relation to the bladder and urethra, prostate cancer may be accompanied by a variety of urinary symptoms. Depending on the size and location, a tumor may press on and constrict the urethra, inhibiting the flow of urine. Some prostate cancer signs related to urination include:

•Burning or pain during urination

•Difficulty urinating, or trouble starting and stopping while urinating

•More frequent urges to urinate at night

•Loss of bladder control

•Decreased flow or velocity of urine stream

•Blood in urine (hematuria)

Other prostate cancer signs & symptoms

Prostate cancer may spread (metastasize) to nearby tissues or bones. If the cancer spreads to the spine, it may press on the spinal nerves. Other prostate cancer symptoms include:

•Blood in semen

•Difficulty getting an erection (erectile dysfunction)

•Painful ejaculation

•Swelling in legs or pelvic area

•Numbness or pain in the hips, legs or feet

Bone pain that doesn’t go away, or leads to fractures

5 WAYS TO NURTURE YOUR RELATIONSHIP

All relationships lose steam at some point. The naturally occurring passion that had once driven them seems to burn out. And the relationships coast. Sometimes life is generous and provides your relationship with some kind of helpful nudge (e.g. a circumstance that makes you more aware of the importance of your relationship). But eventually the relationship loses energy again and seems to come to a stand-still – or at least a very boring, monotonous ‘ride’.
If you are aware of this, you can intervene. Rather than just waiting until it happens and then moving on, you can consciously choose to fuel your relationship regularly. Each day (or certainly each week), you can do things that reconnect the two of you. Sometimes you might simply go to a movie together. At other times, you might talk about your dreams of having a family. There are endless possibilities for how to spend time together.
Of course, every relationship is fueled in somewhat different ways. However, it can help to think in terms of the following approaches (many of which can overlap):


NOVELTY: Trying new experiences can strengthen your relationship. For instance, you might take a cooking class together or check out a local town. Even if the activity is a total flop, going through it hand-in-hand can bring you closer.


ROMANCE: You can keep the passion alive by regularly doing romantic activities. For instance, you might picnic in a secluded spot or weekend at a romantic get-away. Remember that it’s not just what you do together, but how you approach it (the energy you bring to it) that makes it romantic.


PHYSICAL ACTIVITY: Physical arousal heightens attraction. So, you can keep your interest in attraction for each other going by doing activities, such as hiking, bicycling, or working out together.


SEX: Keep your sex life interesting. You don’t have to look far for creative ideas about this, but it can be as simple as having sex at a different time (e.g. mid-afternoon rather than at night) or in a different place than usual. A weekend away together can be all you need. Also, by focusing on making love to your partner – really taking in that person instead of remaining intent on the ‘end goal’ of orgasm – you can keep your love and sex life alive.


SHARED INTEREST: By sharing an interest, you will have more to talk about and do together. For instance, you might both enjoy gardening and landscaping, going to the theater, or reading books. Your interest might even be more about pursuing a dream, such as traveling to all of the state parks or even all of the countries in the world.


These are just a few ways of thinking about keeping your relationship alive. In the end, you need to find what works for you. But remember that long-term relationships are nurtured. They don’t just happen – like having a winning lottery ticket drop from the sky into your hands. So, make thinking about how to nurture your relationship a regular part of your day.

CONTROLLING SPENDING

The first step to controlling your spending is getting your financial house in order so that you can determine how much you spend every month.

In a society of constant spending and entertainment, forgetting to intelligently spend your money is common. Credit card debt and bankruptcy have affected many individuals, but you can prevent this from happening to you.

In Nigeria today, one major economic challenge is the disparity between recurrent expenditure and capital expenditure. While economists say the ideal thing is for the government to spend more on capital projects, and less on recurrent expenditure, the reality is that over 70 per cent of the country’s expenditure is recurrent.

Financial analysts say the reality for many people is similar. While they have been told that the ideal thing is for them to plan, have budgets and saving – among other things, the reality is that they spend spontaneously, with a large chunk of their earnings going to “waste” on things they could do without.

Are you different? What do you spend your money on? Is your expenditure budget-based? These are some of the questions you have to consider in planning and managing your finances. It is not enough for you to say “I didn’t waste the money; I spent it on useful things.” This is because financial experts insist that as long as you don’t have a budget, you certainly will make some mistakes.

To avoid “eating” or “wasting” your future and to keep your expenditure in check, consider the following:

What do you spend money on?

The first thing you need to do once you decide to monitor your expenditure or to reduce how much you spend is to know what you spend your money on. Once you determine this, you will be able to review your spending and determine what you can take off the list. If you can’t really tell where the money goes, it is a clear sign that you really need to cut down spending because you are spending more than you ought to. The idea is that if you really spend money on things you really need, you will not find it that hard to at least remember most of your expenditures. Try compiling a list of your expenses for the last two weeks. How much went to beverages, snacks, gum, DVDs, etc? How much did you save? Are there items you bought that you did not need?

Stop unnecessary expenses

Having determined what you spend money on and the things you don’t need yet they claim a huge chunk of your earnings, the next step is to stop irrelevant spending. If you reside in cities like Lagos, Port Harcourt or Kano, ask yourself if you really need that beverage or snack being ‘shoved’ in your face while you are stuck in traffic. Yes, you love sandals, but do you need another pair? Some of these expenses might seem small but cumulatively they are huge. Let’s say you got a pair of shoes you didn’t really need for N5,000, the following week, u picked up another pair of jeans not needed for N2,000, That is N7,000 in two weeks. If you do that for one month, you imagine what that amounts to in a year. That could be the money you need to gradually set up your personal gymnasium, which in turn will help you to stay healthy and fit, thereby saving you thousands in health bills. It could also be the money that can be saved. The possibilities are numerous.

Stick to budgets

Without budgets, financial experts say it is impossible to eliminate spontaneous spending. Therefore, in your quest to cut out unnecessary expenses and to plan your finances better, budgets are a must. It is not enough to just set aside, say, N20,000 for foodstuff or to budget N100,000 for your trip home for a festival. When you want to go and get the foodstuff, make a list of what exactly you will get. That way, you won’t see one huge water melon that “is so cheap and irresistible” even though it did not make your shopping list. The same goes for the trip home; you need a breakdown of what the N100,000 is really for.

Avoid ‘too much’ entertainment

The amount of money people spend on entertainment and food has resulted in phrases such as “eating your future.” With the economic situation in the country, experts say no matter how much people ‘love to celebrate,’ they need to ensure that their love for financial planning and savings is also great. In a country where virtually everything “calls for celebration,” many people end up spending a lot on entertainment and food; naming ceremonies, “washing” a new car or promotion, birthdays, awards, movies, festivals, etc. – the list is endless. According to experts, people need to be smart about these things; avoid what can be avoided. The main thing to consider at all times is your earnings and your plan for the future. The truth is that while some people can afford to have 30 cartons of wine that go for up N30,000 per bottle for a naming ceremony, many others can’t and admitting that truth will help them to keep their expenditure in check and secure their future.

Review your utility bills

How much do you spend every month on utilities? This is one area that experts say you need to pay close attention to. In many states in the country, such utility bills as water bills do not exist, but that leaves you with electricity and phone bills; for some people, gas, etc. Do you really pay attention to these bills? Before now, many people had little control over what they pay for electricity but now, in the era of pre-paid meters, you can and you should. What do you do when suddenly your electricity bill reads N18,000 instead of the N5,000 range you have become used to? Do you make a complaint or do you just pay? Consider applying for a pre-paid meter and turning off electronic devices once they are not in use. You can also save energy, which will reduce the level of electricity you use, by replacing traditional bulbs with energy-saving bulbs. While many people do not think it is possible to predetermine how much they will spend on recharge cards for their phones, nothing stops you from not only doing this or making a habit out of it.

Get insurance cover

The rate of accidents, fire outbreaks, robbery, etc. in the county is rather high. What this means is that every day, people lose one important item or the other. When this happens, more often than not, they are forced to get a replacement because of the importance of what they lost. Many people will find it hard to leave their homes without a television set, for instance. So, when theirs is stolen, they are bound to get a new one as quickly as possible. Phones are even more important in today’s world. To avoid spending a fortune replacing items you have already purchased, insurance is the way to go.

There are many steps you can take to keep your expenditure in check, but the most important steps include always considering what you earn, planning, budgeting and sticking to your budget.

A CAR OWNER IN NIGERIA

You have crossed that awkward, deeply uncomfortable, sometimes shameful social state of being without a car. I mean in some countries where the public transport system works, not having a car is no big deal. But you are in Nigeria, where public transport is living hell, and owning a car can be the difference between life and social death. 

You had suffered the humiliation and attendant frustrations. You swore to yourself, after the girl you came to a party with left in an air conditioned car, that things must change. The Nigerian god felt your pain, heard your cries of affliction and consequently, after much tithing and prayers, blessed your hustle. Enough to buy your own car. I rejoice with you.  

You have taken the car to the man of God and they have spent over an hour with the bonnet open, anointing your car and protecting it against the spirit of accidents that those jealous neighbours and village enemies are sure to send your way. That is fine. But you also need my advice.

Your car is not beautiful unless you have covered it in stickers. Get one from your church or fellowship that declares this year to be your “year of anointing”, or your “year of unsurpassed success”. If your wife or husband goes to a different church, get one from hers too. You can never get too many. Get one sticker that declares your child to be a Star Student. Let those with dull children see it and regret that their wives didn’t take enough vitamins during pregnancy. Because of Police on the road, get either an NBA sticker or an ARMY sticker. You don’t have to be a lawyer or soldier to get them. Especially the NBA one – you can find that one in any court premises for one or two hundred naira. 

Depending on how much God has blessed your hustle, get a customised plate number with your name or nickname, such as TONY01; DE DON 01; DADDY K. The ‘01’ is useful even if you have only one car. It just shows how much you have faith that more will come. Otherwise, depending on your level of gratitude to God, you can use a nice Bible verse, like ISAIAH43:4 or something like that. 

Now that you are a car owner, you need to realise that your status has changed. You need to treat pedestrians with the disdain they deserve. It doesn’t matter that you were once a pedestrian crossing these same streets. You must never think like a pedestrian and do silly things like observing Zebra crossings. Those white lines are there to beautify the road. Speed across them and curse anyone who tries to get in your way. 

Your neighbours need to feel your presence. They need to see just how your hustle has been blessed. Every morning, remind them by ‘warming’ your car. This process involves waking up at 6 a.m. and revving your car engine loudly until the neighbours wake up to the evidence of your blessed hustle. 

You bought the car with your hard-earned cash. And that includes the car horns. Those who call your right to honk noise pollution, God will judge them appropriately and truncate their hustle. In fact, if you ask me, because of how important it is, your right to use your horn indiscriminately should be a constitutionally guaranteed right.  Honk in the morning when your wife is wasting your time inside and you need her to hurry up. Honk when you see your neighbours. Honk in a traffic jam even though you are sure this will not make the cars miraculously move. Honk instead of slowing down when you are approaching a junction or intersection. Honk when you are angry. And when you are happy. There are few things as useful in a car as the horn.

At night, it is important that you see the road clearly. Nigerian roads are dark and dangerous, so you must use your full lights at all times. It doesn’t matter if you are blinding oncoming vehicles. Is it your fault that the government is not doing their job? 

Other things you will learn on the job as a car owner include how to double park, how to drive against traffic on the highway, how to create multiple lanes in a traffic jam, how to beat traffic lights, how to stop in the middle of the road to say hello to a long lost friend, how to litter the street with wrappers of plantain chips bought in a hold-up, all of which every true and experienced Nigerian driver is adept at doing. I trust you will catch up quickly.

May God keep blessing your hustle. Amen