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KUALA LUMPUR, May 29 — The Ministry of Health (MoH) announced that there were a total of 9,020 new cases reported up till 12pm today, pushing the cumulative figure for positive cases in Malaysia to 558,534.
Today marks the highest number of cases recorded in Malaysia!
Top 5 states with the most cases today:
Selangor +2836, Kelantan +907, KL +789, Sarawak +726, Johor +468
(New High in Kelantan and Labuan with 907 cases and 253 cases respectively)
State Welfare, Community Wellbeing, Women, Family and Childhood Development Minister Datuk Seri Fatimah Abdullah said that her ministry has given the green light to those centres that have applied.
“For other childcare centres, however, if there is a need, they must apply to the childhood division of the ministry before they are allowed to accept the children of essential workers,” Fatimah said in a statement.
Trade negotiators from China and the U.S. have held their first meeting
under the Biden presidency, which coincided with the fallout over President Biden ordering a new intelligence report on the origins of COVID-19. The theory that the virus was leaked from a lab in China's Wuhan has resurfaced, although no new evidence has been presented. China is calling the move a smear campaign.
U.S. politicizing COVID-19 origin tracing by openly denying WHO report
US is "preparing some bold moves" against China regarding tracing the origins of the pandemic
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Cornerstone of China’s strategic deterrence against the US: more nuclear missiles and warheads
A formation of Dongfeng-41 intercontinental strategic nuclear missiles
takes part in a military parade celebrating the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China in Beijing, capital of China, October 1, 2019. Photo: Xinhua
As the US strategic containment of Chinas has increasingly intensified, I would like to remind again that we have plenty of urgent tasks, but among the most important ones is to rapidly increase the number of commissioned nuclear warheads, and the DF-41s, the strategic missiles that are capable to strike long-range and have high-survivability, in the Chinese arsenal. This is the cornerstone of China's strategic deterrence against the US.
We must be prepared for an intense showdown between China and the US. In that scenario, a large number of Dongfeng-41, and JL-2 and JL-3 (both intercontinental-range submarine-launched ballistic missile) will form the pillar of our strategic will. The number of China's nuclear warheads must reach the quantity that makes US elites shiver should they entertain the idea of engaging in a military confrontation with China.
On this basis, we can calmly and actively manage divergences with Washington to avoid a minor incident sparking a war. US hostility toward China is burning. We must use our strength, and consequences that Washington cannot afford to bear if it takes risky moves, to keep them sober.
The Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) isolated the
first viral strain of the novel coronavirus and handed it over to the
World Health Organization (WHO) as early as January 12, 2020, media
reported.
MALAYSIA recorded 6,976 new Covid-19 cases on May 23, the highest number of daily cases reported since the start of the pandemic in March 2020. The number of Covid-19 deaths and severe cases that require intensive care has also increased tremendously.
According to Health Ministry statistics, from May 1 to 21, Malaysia lost 643 people, close to one-third of all Covid-19 deaths in the country since the pandemic started. Within the same period, patients admitted to ICUs increased by 91% (from 337 to 643) and patients requiring ventilation support doubled from 176 to 363.
Covid-19 has negatively impacted the care of patients with noncommunicable diseases such as hypertension and diabetes. Hypertension (high blood pressure) is the most common pre-existing medical condition among Covid-19 patients globally as well as in Malaysia. Patients with hypertension are 95% more likely to require ICU admission and 160% more likely to succumb to the disease. A local study reported that 49% of patients with the severe form of Covid-19 had hypertension, compared with 13% among mild cases. The high prevalence of hypertension in Malaysia – three in every 10 adults have it – means that a substantial proportion of our adult population is at risk.
Adherence to and compliance with medication is crucial. Stop-ping antihypertensive medications could lead to poor blood pressure control, which in turn can result in adverse cardiovascular events such as heart attack, stroke, or kidney failure. All these are linked to poor Covid-19 outcomes.
In addition, once the virus enters the body, it could lead to overactivation of the immune system resulting in a cytokine storm, further burdening a cardiovascular and respiratory system that is already in a suboptimal state. This probably explains why hypertension is the most common comorbidity among Covid-19 patients, especially among those who experience the severe version of the disease.
Maintaining a healthy blood pressure (below 140/90mmHg for systolic and diastolic respectively) is important. Take these steps to control your blood pressure:
> Know your blood pressure levels. Monitor them regularly. This is important to see whether efforts to control the pressure are sufficient or should be improved.
> Limit salt intake in your diet according to daily recommendations. This can be achieved by carefully inspecting food labels for salt and sodium content, avoiding preserved and processed foods, and replacing salt with herbs and spices in cooking.
> Keep your body weight within the normal range. For overweight people, weight loss of 3% to 9% from current body weight has been shown to reduce blood pressure readings by 3mmHg to 6mmHg.
> Exercise consistently. Regular aerobic exercise, such as brisk walking and jogging, for at least 150 minutes a week is recommended as it is beneficial for the cardiovascular system and can help lower blood pressure.
> Quit smoking and avoid alcohol intake as both activities have been shown to increase blood pressure.
> Keep taking your current medications and continue to go for follow-up appointments if you are hypertensive. Be assured that the medications are safe. Do not hesitate to contact your doctor if you are in doubt about your blood pressure control or medications.
Apart from all this, hypertensive patients must seriously follow the current Covid-19 SOP and make every effort to protect yourselves from contracting the disease.
DR NOR AFIQAH NORDIN, DR ANG SWEE HUNG, PROF DR MOY FOONG MING & PROF DR NORAN NAQIAH HAIRI
Public Health Department, Universiti Malaya Medical Centre (UMMC)