Of all the sexually transmitted infections, (STIs), Chlamydia is believed to be the second commonest. Only Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) has a higher prevalence. In the UK, approximately 10% of all sexually active young people under 25 are believed to be infected. 

In the United States, Chlamydia infection has been reported since 1984. While in 1996 just under half a million cases were reported, nine years later in 2005, this had gone up by 98% to just over 970,000 recorded cases. It is also acknowledged that Chlamydia is the second most common STI in the US and that these figures may be conservative.

In Japan, a study carried out among high school students in Hokkaido in 2004 found 11.4% of them testing positive for Chlamydia. This was thought to reflect the state of prevalence of the infection among teens in the whole of Japan.

In some countries, there are established Chlamydia screening programs. Sweden has had such a program for over 25 years. A similar scheme (The National Chlamydia Screening Programme (NCSP).  is in the process of being finalised for implementation in England.

Chlamydia infection symptoms

Probably the most challenging aspect of Chlamydia infection is that it tends to remain symptom-free in the majority of cases. This is why it is sometimes called the ‘silent infection’. The infection can, indeed, remain silent and undiscovered for years. Between 70 and 90% of infected individuals will have no symptoms. This is partly why, among the young sexually active age-group, this infection is passed on so easily.

When chlamydia infection is symptomatic, the features include

v      Vaginal discharge

v      Light bleeding after sexual intercourse

v      A burning sensation when passing urine

v      Pain during sexual intercourse

v      Light vaginal bleeding between periods

v      Lower abdominal pain or discomfort

Effects of Chlamydia infection

Chlamydia infection, especially when not detected early, can have devastating long term consequences especially with regard to fertility. The inflammation inside the fallopian tubes is known to cause such damage that the functional capability of the tubes is seriously compromised. This might result in permanent scarring of the tubes leading to an increased risk of ectopic pregnancy and even complete inability to conceive naturally.

Baby feeding: Trying to get it right 

Bottle-feeding: Why it remains controversial

In Britain, in August 2007, the Department of Health announced that it was piloting the baby growth charts recommended by the World Health Organisation (WHO) with a possible aim of these replacing the charts that have been in use over the last two decades. So, what is the drive behind this?

There has been a clamour for sometime from many nutritional experts that the existing charts were fuelling infant over-feeding. This usually affected those mothers who were breast-feeding. When it appeared that the infant was falling behind in the expected weight on the charts, there was pressure for the mother to supplement the breast milk with formula milk or in some cases, to abandon breast-feeding altogether.

The WHO growth charts are based on breast-fed infants and therefore the growth curve is gentler and regarded by many experts as more ‘natural’ and representative.

 Infant formula or artificial feeding is known to be more calorie-rich and therefore more prone to lead to overweight infants. However, its main weakness, which is impossible to overcome, is the absence of passive immunity components (antibodies) passed from mother to baby via breast milk.  There are other issues that surround bottle-feeding which are dealt with in more detail in our section on breast-feeding. 

Rates of breast-feeding in the western world differ greatly from country to country. By 6 months, over 75% of mothers will still be breast-feeding in Norway. The rate is 9% in Italy. Other countries fall somewhere in between. 

The Norway baby feeding Experience

Norway’s apparent success in the area of breast-feeding came after the authorities there put in place social policies that are conducive to it. 

Among other things, new mothers are entitled to 42 weeks of maternity leave with full pay. Also those returning to work are entitled to up to 90 minutes absence for breast-feeding. This could be going home to the baby or having the baby brought to the work-place where this is usually facilitated. 

Long-term issues for  overweight babies

Anything that promotes excessive weight gain at any stage in life should be a cause for major concern. This is more so when dealing with young children who would not have a say in what they are fed but who will have to live with the consequences. 

In the UK (total population: 60 million), over 1 million children under 16 are known to be obese. This is double the number just 10 years ago. The vast majority of these will be obese adults. The price that the individual and society in general pays for this is very high. It is difficult to know exactly in what proportion  the problem starts with excessive bottle-feeding during infancy but with the rate of breast-feeding at less than 1 in 4 at 6 months, it is likely to be substantial. Unfortunately, the artificial formula is, in many cases, followed by poor diet and a sedentary lifestyle in childhood where the most exercise a child gets is tapping the keyboard for hours on end.