Marianne Heron

The Pope takes a dogged look at parenthood

AS I SEE IT

MARIANNE HERON

Last week I could have sworn I heard a loud rumbling sound like a chasm opening up in the earth. Put it down to an overactive imagination but it might as well have been the real thing given Pope Francis’ remarks about pets taking the place of children which opened a yawning gap between a thinking rooted in the past and current reality. e Ponti , named for St Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of animals and the natural environment, may well have a point when it comes to the zoomorphism of pets but what he said in his deliberations on parenthood was deeply insensitive to many groups and disparaged those who don’t have children. .

Commenting during a general audience at the Vatican in Rome Pope Francis said.

“Today ... we see a form of sel shness. We see that some people do not want to have a child.”

“Sometimes they have one, and that’s it, but they have dogs and cats that take the place of children. e practice is a denial of fatherhood and motherhood and diminishes us, takes away our humanity,” he said.

Raising the next generation is one of the cornerstones of society but it seems the most extraordinary statement to suggest that people who don’t have children or have only one lack humanity compared to those who do. In an overcrowded planet facing environmental catastrophe maybe those who decide not to have children are being unsel sh. ere are couples who may not be able to have children – about one in six in Ireland experience infertility although they may go on to succeed thanks to fertility treatment. Others may not nd a partner with whom to have children or may remain single by choice, or may be gay, surely it must be o ensive to them to be described as having diminished humanity.

Part of that humanity is our ability to evolve for the better. Long ago practices such as torturing and killing people of di erent faith, slavery or burning witches were acceptable. ankfully our thinking has changed but the Pope’s beliefs about fertility and the necessity to have children regardless, remain rooted in the past and unrelated to current reality for both parents and the planet. In defence of pets and dogs in particular they make the most faithful companions and animals are a great way for kids to learn about caring for other creatures. In his comments Pope Francis seemed annoyed by the way pets are being treated as human: taking away from the dignity and doggedness of dogs as it were. e Ponti has a point. Christmas jumpers for dogs are one thing- jokey but embarrassing for dogs — but getting married to your dog as one woman, 49 years old Elizabeth Hoad, did when she wed her Labrador Logan on a UK TV show two years ago, is a bark too far.

In SA’s Western Cape I once saw an odd couple in a restaurant with a hooded pram, peeping under the hood as they left, I saw not a baby but a poodle wearing a frilly dress and bonnet. at’s a lot to ask of a dog.

PS. Last week as schools opened, I listened to Minister for Education Norma Foley responding on RTE radio to questions about teachers’ Covid related demands for medical grade masks and for Hepa ventilators to control air quality and avoid freezing class rooms. Minister Foley kept referring to medical advice and using the phrase “what I would say to you…”

I would hope that Foley would do rather than say and have fought tooth and nail in advance of schools opening for the equipment that teachers need to keep themselves, their pupils and their classrooms safe.

Are you going vegan for January?

CLAIR WHITTY

PLANNING on taking the 31-day Veganuary challenge and going vegan for January but don’t know where to start? Here are some tips to help. A vegan diet will naturally involve lots of vegetable and grains, however, don’t go too heavy on the carbohydrate rich grains as a ller. Also avoid falling into the trap of eating too many packaged, processed vegan foods. You can easily create your own tasty nutritious home-made meals once you have some easy-touse recipes and a cupboard full of ingredients ready to go. Buy your fresh ingredients in advance. is will help you stay on track and avoid food wastage too.

Store cupboard ingredients can include nuts, seeds, nut butter, tahini, coconut oil, good quality oils, tofu, and tempeh. Have a nice variety of herbs and spices both fresh and dried. Have soya sauce, tamari, coconut aminos to add taste and avour to your meals. Tinned chick peas, broad beans, kidney beans, and lentils are good to start o with, later you can progress to dried pulses and lentils. Nutritional yeast akes are a good source of B vitamins and B12. Chia seeds and ax seeds are versatile ingredients and make a great substitute for eggs in recipes. Oat biscuits are great for topping with dairy free cheese, tomatoes, houmous, or nut butter. Keep a stock of plant-based milks, you can get dairy free cheese, cheese sauce, vegan cream, vegan butter, yoghurt, egg replacer, and delicious dairy free chocolate too at your local health food store.

Keep an eye on protein, a simple way is to eat a variety of nuts and seeds, almond, cashew, Brazil, and pecan, sun ower, ax, and pumpkin. Protein powders can be added to fruit or vegetable shakes. Tofu, Lentils, and pulses are great too. Quinoa is good for breakfast, or to make vegetable patties, chick peas work well to make falafels, and tinned pulses can be added to soup to add extra protein.

If you miss the meaty texture then, tofu, tempeh, Jackfruit, and aubergine are ideal. Jackfruit will add a meaty texture to your dish and is ideal for making meals reminiscent of pulled pork or meaty burgers.

Struggling for ideas? Give us a call, we would love to help you with ideas on how to stick with your plan.

Natural Health Store Market Cross Shopping Centre Phone: 056 7764538 Email: info@ naturalhealthstore.ie Shop online: www. naturalhealthstore.ie

Getting rid of pain without painkillers

ANDREW MCDONALD HYPNOTHERAPIST

LET’S face it, though popping pills like they’re sweets isn’t a good idea, there are times when painkillers are necessary. Some people are so good at things like meditation and mindfulness they can take almost any level of agony and not let it bother them. If you don’t believe that, look up the story of Thich Quang Duc, a Vietnamese Buddhist monk who burned himself to death in protest at the repression of Buddhism by the South Vietnamese government in 1963. During the process he didn’t move a single muscle nor utter a sound. Such examples of extreme tolerance of painful sensations do exist but the vast majority of us, probably fortunately, aren’t capable of them. Therefore, if you do find you need a painkiller, take one. This article’s purpose isn’t to dissuade you from that, merely to pose the question do you need them as an automatic goto solution?

First of all, for things like headaches, there are a few important things to look at. Something we can all neglect at times is our fluid intake. Is that pain in your head influenced more by a lack of liquid than anything else? Dehydration is often an overlooked cause and is easily solved in most cases. That said, if your drinking habits include too much alcohol, or you’re a smoker, those are two obvious things to look at reducing or even cutting out altogether. Your soreness may just be caused by their toxic nature.

Believe it or not, exercise can aid massively in reducing pain. It’s not necessary to run a marathon. Start with gentle movement. For example, walking, swimming or stretching and make it a habit. You may be very surprised at the results.

Acupuncture and hypnotherapy are two alternative medical practices which may help you to defeat your pain. An acupuncturist uses tiny needles to open your sensory organs and energy pathways to naturally begin the healing process. Hypnotherapy is particularly powerful in dealing with psychosomatic pain, the soreness that subconsciously your brain is telling you to feel but perhaps has no physical root. Massages are another helpful complimentary medical option which can help to stretch and penetrate sore muscles.

Meditation is a great practice to get into and can provide a huge boost in dealing with stress which itself is a major cause of pain. Taking time out during the day can help refocus the mind and give overactive brains opportunity to calm down.

One final thing to watch is how much sleep you’re getting. Too little and you’re setting yourself up to feel sore. The same is true though of too much. Work out the optimal amount for you and aim for that.

There are too many alternatives to painkillers to list here. An internet search will offer a multitude of options. Whilst painkillers are sometimes necessary, often we rely on them when other things would work just as well, if not better.