Marriage is sometimes a case of “till shopping do us part”.

According to new research, if you think your spouse is a spendthrift, it may hurt your marriage – whether it’s true or not.

Perception outweighs reality

The researchers found that husbands were most likely to develop a spousal conflict over money if they thought their wives spent too much. For wives, being perceived by their husbands as spending too much was most likely to spark a financial conflict.

This appears to be true of couples regardless of their incomes, the study findings showed. It’s also true whether they actually spent a lot of money or not. In other words, perception outweighed reality, the researchers said.

“The fact that spouses’ perceptions of each other’s spending behaviours were so predictive of financial conflict suggests that when it comes to the impact of finances on relationships, perceptions may be just as important, if not more important, than reality,” said study co-author Ashley LeBaron. She is a graduate student at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah.

The researchers based their findings on data from a project that has surveyed almost 700 families since its start in 2007.

Communication about finances important

According to study co-author Sonya Britt-Lutter, “Couples need to communicate about finances, especially early in marriage.” Britt-Lutter is an associate professor and certified financial planner from Kansas State University.

“Don’t think that financial problems will magically go away when circumstances change. The study showed that circumstances weren’t the issue here, perception was, and perception doesn’t always change when circumstances do,” she said in a news release from Brigham Young University.

The findings also showed that 90% of women and 85% of men said they had at least some worries about money.

Jeffrey Hill is a study co-author and a family life professor at Brigham Young University.

He said, “The good news is that couples can benefit from clinical help, whether that be a financial planner or a marriage and family therapist.”

The study was published online in the Journal of Financial Planning.

How to deal with relationship strain

South African statistics on marriages show that there has been a 2.3% increase in divorces since 2015, and that 45.5% of all divorces in 2015 did not make it to their 10-year anniversary.

So how do you deal with those daily stress factors that will ultimately end your marriage? Health24 gives the following tips:

• Try marriage or couple counselling for guidance on how better to communicate and deal with daily problems.
• Build strong communication skills to be able to talk about problems sooner rather than later.
• Seek help as soon as problems occur.

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One in five people suffers from a mental illness. In South Africa the statistics on teen suicide are shocking. According to the South African Depression and Anxiety Group (SADAG) the average suicide rate is 17.2 per 100 000 (8% of all deaths) and the suicide rate for children aged 10–14 years old has more than doubled over the last fifteen years.

But the outcome of depression in teens might not always be suicide; teens with depression might be more likely to commit violent crimes, a new study suggests.

Increased risk of violence

Researchers who analysed data from Finland, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom consistently found modest increases in risk for violence among depressed teenagers. Information on more than 62 000 young people aged 13 to 27 was used in the study.

“This research is important for two main reasons. Firstly, it adds to the evidence of the many potential harms of untreated depression in young people,” said study leader Dr Seena Fazel.

“Secondly, it suggests that closer liaison between criminal justice and mental health might prevent violence in high-risk individuals,” said Fazel, a professor of forensic psychiatry at the University of Oxford in England.

The study doesn’t prove a direct cause-and-effect relationship. But the data from Finland, for example, showed that about 7% of teens with depression were convicted of one or more violent crimes, compared with less than 4% of those without depression.

Early treatment important

The results were published in the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.

The findings show the need for early treatment of depression in teens and young adults, Fazel’s team said in a journal news release. There’s also need for further study into the connections between depression and violence, the researchers said.

Increased impulsivity, hostility and poor self-regulation may be factors, the researchers suggested.

How to support your depressed teen

According to a Health24 article, supporting someone with depression can be difficult because it’s hard to gauge their specific needs. But there are simple ways to help if your teen is suffering from depression:

• Don’t just talk, but really listen to your teen.
• Don’t try to force your teen to “cheer up” or “snap out of it”. Depression is in fact caused by a chemical imbalance that requires medication.
• Find out more about the illness and support your child to find the right treatment.
• Take any talk of suicide extremely seriously.

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The number of deaths recorded over eight months of this year is four times the equivalent for 2016.

In partnership with SA’s top medical aesthetic companies

We covered adult acne, pigmentation, spider veins, sun damage and scarring here, so let’s get started on the rest of our top 10.

6. Stretch marks

Stretch marks are the red or purple lines/marks that develop on skin when it has been stretched beyond its capacity (usually on thighs, hips, breasts and upper arms). These usually crop up during pregnancy, weight gain, growth spurts or muscle growth due to exercise when the skin is stretched rapidly and intensively.

Stretch marks occur in the deeper layer of the skin, the dermis, which is involved in retaining skin tone. When the dermis is overstretched, the fibres within it tear, resulting in the scar tissue formation we see as a stretch mark on the skin’s surface.

Although no treatment, except surgery, is fully effective, various treatments can help to improve the healing process and appearance of the marks:

• Laser Genesis has been clinically proven to produce collagen.
• Dermapen Skin Needling and Carboxytherapy cause collagen stimulation and remodelling of the area, resulting in the marks being less visible.

TIP: For best results it is important, as with all scarring, to take action while the scar is still “active” – while it looks red or purple rather than silvery, when the scar has already healed. Older stretch marks that have already turned white or silvery take much longer to treat.

7. Rosacea

Rosacea is an inflammatory skin disease that causes facial redness, flushing and sensitivity, with small, red, pus-filled bumps or pustules cropping up on the cheeks and nose. Fortunately it can be treated, and we advise you to take action as soon as possible, as this is a progressive disease which can worsen over time.

If left untreated, a severe case can result in a lumpy so-called “drinker’s nose”.

Rosacea mostly affects adults between ages 30 and 60, appearing more commonly in women and fair-skinned people, and can have a devastating effect your self-esteem and self-confidence.

It tends to occur in cycles, and flares up every couple of weeks or months, then reduces again. The cause of rosacea is unknown, but is probably a combination of hereditary and environmental factors. You may notice that heat, spicy foods, drinking alcohol, strenuous exercise etc. can make it flare up.

Treatment options:

• Laser Genesis procedure: A five-in-one treatment reduces the size of the sebaceous gland, reduces inflammation in the pustules, reduces pore size, and improves acne scarring and pigmentation.
• For deep nodules, the Titan is a deep infrared laser/light procedure that reduces inflammation and kills the bacteria in the deep painful nodule(s) and helps prevent scarring.
• Skin care treatments can also help. The medical team at Skin Renewal may suggest a medical cream, while the skin-care therapists may recommend complementary dermatological skin care that will help keep redness and flare-ups to a minimum.

8. Ingrown hairs

Ingrown hairs are painful and unsightly, and are especially common among people with darker complexions. Ingrown hairs curl back in on themselves and can leave scarring and pigmentation.  

These can be addressed with a course of laser hair removal, which uses an infrared light to target the germ cell in the hair follicle. The hair must be present in the follicle for the laser to work as it is attracted to the dark pigments, so no waxing or plucking may be done before the treatment. Unwanted hair can be shaved or cut between laser sessions.

The treatment course depends on your personal hair growth patterns and the area being treated, but generally, four to six treatments may be needed on an area, and six-weekly treatments will catch each hair cycle in its growing phase.

In cases where the hair growth is triggered by hormonal activity, it may be necessary to have more treatments sessions, accompanied by hormone therapy, to address the trigger.

Research has shown that between 30–90% of hair does not grow back after the end of the treatment cycle. 100% removal can’t be guaranteed, and you may need occasional maintenance or touch-up yearly treatments.

Body Renewal is committed to the latest technological innovations in this field and offers a laser/light treatment for any skin type and hair colour, excluding grey or white hair, for which electrolysis remains the best solution.

9. Moles

A mole can be your favourite beauty spot, an irritation or a medical problem. Moles can therefore be removed for aesthetic or medical reasons, especially if there is a possibility of skin cancer, in particular malignant melanoma.

For this reason, you should have moles checked every year to see if there are any changes in size, shape or colour, or if they start bleeding.

Moles can be removed via a shave excision – cut off with a sharp scalpel blade, or punch excision – where the mole is twisted out with a small instrument; for larger moles, surgical excision is recommended.

10. Wrinkles and ‘crepey’ skin

When you see the lines and change in texture in your skin, the damage has already been done. There are however treatments that can and do change the appearance of lines and wrinkles, such as Fraxel Dual Laser and Pearl Rejuvenation.

Skin Renewal’s approach is to prevent rather than repair damage wherever possible, and they believe your focus should be on regular skin maintenance in order to keep your skin in a healthy condition so it maintains a youthful appearance – see it as an insurance policy, if you like.

These treatments encourage the skin into the habit of faster cell turnover, removing dull, lacklustre skin and stimulating collagen formation:

Superficial chemical peels, skin needling, Carboxytherapy, laser treatments and, most recently, the Vampire Facial.

Find out more about the conditions that mostly affect women and the recommended treatments, as well as the four pillars to addressing ageing skin on Skin Renewal, or read more on their blog. 

Take the quick Beyond Beauty Survey and you could win a R2 000 Skin Renewal voucher to spend in our online store, with free delivery within South Africa. T&Cs apply.

Controversial talk show host Criselda Kananda-Dudumashe will not serve on the board of the South African National Aids Council (SANAC), after she declined her nomination.

The nomination process is not public so it is unclear who nominated Dudumashe, a vehement opponent of antiretroviral medicine during the Mbeki presidency.

Disparaging remarks

The Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) and the Democratic Alliance (DA) both raised objections to rumours that she was about to be appointed to the body, which co-ordinates the country’s response to HIV.

This follows her defence of former deputy minister of higher education Mduduzi Manana, who was recently caught on camera hitting a young woman twice on the head while his henchmen held her down.

She also made disparaging remarks to transgender people at a recent event at the University of Venda, saying that anyone “with a dick between his legs is a man”.

“I accept the criticism and recognise that my statements have caused harm for which I am deeply sorry. I have noted objections by organisations like the Treatment Action Campaign to my nomination to serve in the board of the SA National Aids Trust (Sanat). These objections are based on my regrettable statements that I believe will constitute conflict of interest if I serve on Sanat,” Dudumashe said in a statement yesterday.

Polarising statements

“As a public advocate to campaigns for the rights of people living with HIV and believing in the significant gains made by the multi-sectorial approach for the fight against the Aids epidemic, I have taken the decision to decline nomination to serve in Sanat,” she said.

“Hopefully, this decision will remove all the controversy surrounding my nomination and allow Sanat to get on with the work it meant to do. I will work to regain public trust and reassure my employer [the SABC] that courses are noble and at no stage will I use the platforms I am afforded to make statements that are polarising.”

Dudumashe is known to be close to Dr Ramneek Ahluwalia, CEO of the Higher Education and Training HIV/Aids Programme (HEAIDS), who is an influential member of SANAC. HEAIDS had employed her to give motivational talks to students across the country. – Health-e News.

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Kerry Cullinan

Need braces and live in North West? Best you move.

Despite ongoing official denials that health posts in provinces have been frozen, almost     5 500 public sector positions have been lost over the past four years, according to the SA Health Review 2017.

Lowest ratio in the country

Over 300 medical specialists left in 2015 and 2016 alone, and the Western Cape suffered the greatest loss – 200 specialists. This province was also the only one to lose doctors (down by 63 to 1 500).

While Limpopo only lost 12 specialists in the past year, it means that the province is now down to 68. This translates into 1.3 per 100 000 people, the lowest ratio in the country and way below the country average of 10.

Only one in six registered dentists – a mere 1 118 – works in the public sector. There are fewer than two-and-a-half dentists per 100 000 people in the country. All the citizens of the North West have to share 44 dentists.

The situation is dire when it comes to dental specialists, with only 160 in the public sector in the entire country. This translates into fewer than half a specialist (0.4) per 100 000 people.

Backbone of the public health sector

You can forget about specialised attention for your teeth  if you live in the Eastern Cape and North West, which have zero specialists. Meanwhile, the Free State, KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga and the North West boast one specialist each.

Similarly, psychologists overwhelmingly work in the private sector – only 1 238 out of the 8 415 registered are employed in the public sector. That’s fewer than three per 100 000 people – and one per 100 000 people in KwaZulu-Natal.

Fewer than half of the country’s registered doctors – around 14 000 – work in the public sector. Fewer than half the country’s 140 508 professional nurses (67 766 to be exact) are in the public sector, yet they are the backbone of the public health sector.

* The public sector figures were taken from PERSAL, which is the government pay system, while the overall figures are from the Health Professions Council of SA.

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Kerry Cullinan