Developed by the Department of Social and Preventive Medicine at the Medical University of Vienna, the scientifically proven "SLIGHT WITHOUT DIET" (SOD) program, which is constantly adapted to the latest findings, is based on behaviour modification and takes into account a number of principles that should also have a positive effect on quality of life during weight loss:
Basically, there are no bans on food - in principle, everything is allowed.
There are also no commandments - you don't have to eat anything you don't really want to.
Eating should be a pleasure - enjoyment should not be neglected.
There are advantages for those who also exercise - but these activities should also be enjoyable.
During the slow weight loss process - the aim is to lose an average of half a kilogram per week - particular emphasis is placed on rethinking eating habits, avoiding the recurring mistakes that have led to weight gain and thus changing behavior in the long term. At the same time, motivational work is carried out to promote healthy and regular exercise.
Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)
Inpatient smoking therapy - an effective form of intervention for nicotine-dependent smokers
Inpatient smoking therapy - a nationally and internationally recognized measure - offers smokers the opportunity to undergo smoking cessation treatment as part of a three-week spa stay.
Appropriate diagnostic procedures now make it possible to identify those smokers who are heavily addicted to nicotine and for whom inpatient smoking therapy offers the greatest chance of success in quitting tobacco.
The therapy is based on behavior modification in combination with nicotine replacement. Participants not only receive a comprehensive accompanying manual, but above all support through daily group sessions, individual discussions, lectures and accompanying measures such as mental relaxation methods or exercise therapy.
Outpatient smoking counseling (in cooperation with the NÖGKK) & outpatient smoking counseling in companies
Experience to date shows that this offer has been very well received by smokers.
Those who take part in a 5-week program have a very good chance of quitting smoking. The support consists of a combination of psychological and, if necessary, medicinal procedures.
The individual situation is discussed in one-to-one meetings and "tailor-made" recommendations are given.
The program is carried out by doctors from the Nicotine Institute according to the latest scientific findings.
All diagnostic and therapeutic procedures have been developed in collaboration with the Department of Social and Preventive Medicine at the Medical University of Vienna.
This ensures that there is a good chance of success even in cases of severe tobacco addiction.
Further information: www.nikotininstitut.at
Vaccinations
Vaccinations are among the most effective preventive medical measures. The smallpox vaccination, for example, was one of the most important for over 150 years and every child was consistently vaccinated - despite frequent and unpleasant side effects. In the mid-1970s, the pathogen was eradicated as part of a global eradication program by the World Health Organization (WHO). A new flare-up of smallpox has become impossible. Vaccination is therefore no longer useful and has been removed from the vaccination schedule.
Today we are on the verge of eradicating polio. Thanks to consistent vaccination coverage, this insidious disease has not occurred in Austria for around 20 years and there is justified hope that vaccination against polio will no longer be necessary in a few years' time.
Vaccination against tuberculosis is also no longer included in the current vaccination schedule because a general vaccination against TB no longer makes a meaningful contribution to public health, so only certain risk groups are vaccinated.
Protection against infectious diseases is particularly important at the beginning of life, but is also important later on. Vaccination knows no age and is the most important preventive medical measure throughout life. In most cases, vaccinations have a limited duration of protection; regular boosters are essential to maintain protection!
In Austria, vaccination participation is not always high enough to ensure that a disease is suppressed. While in the USA or Finland, for example, measles only occurs as an imported disease, measles vaccination is still not widespread enough in Austria to achieve the declared goal of the World Health Organization (WHO) to completely eradicate measles.
The Austrian vaccination plan
www.sozialministerium.at/Themen/Gesundheit/Impfen/Impfplan-%C3%96sterreich.html
Vaccinations always make sense if the risk of illness from a particular infectious disease is higher than the risk of vaccination.
In Austria, a panel of experts regularly issues vaccination recommendations, which are summarized in the so-called "Austrian Vaccination Plan". These recommendations reflect the current state of scientific knowledge and are continuously adapted to changes in the incidence of infectious diseases and ongoing medical developments.
The vaccinations contained in the vaccination schedule are useful for anyone who wants to protect themselves or their family!
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS IN PRACTICE
How does a vaccination work?
Infectious diseases are triggered by microorganisms that invade the human organism. When the human immune system comes into contact with the invading pathogens, it produces antibodies. If the immune system later encounters these pathogens again, it already has antibodies "in stock" to fight the disease. As a rule, the disease does not break out.
A vaccination contains killed (inactivated vaccines) or attenuated (live vaccines) pathogens, which stimulate the immune system to produce antibodies against the actual pathogen.
This process of antibody formation - known as "active immunization" - usually takes several weeks. Vaccinations that work according to this principle therefore only build up reliable protection after some time, but this protection lasts for a longer period of time.
Vaccines that work according to the principle of "passive immunization" supply the body with "ready-made" antibodies. They work immediately, but only for a few weeks.
Why should you and your children be vaccinated?
Many infectious diseases can be serious or even fatal. With the very well-tolerated vaccines available today, such complications can be largely avoided.
In addition, it is now possible to protect against several diseases with combination vaccines in one injection.
Can vaccinations overload the immune system?
No. The immune system is specially trained to defend against germs and has to deal with a large number of germs every day. We don't even notice most of them. Six pathogens in a syringe, which have been killed off, are therefore not a particular challenge for the immune system, but merely a kind of training. At the same time, the child builds up valuable protection without the risk of complications (as could well happen with an illness).
Do vaccinations have side effects?
Vaccinations do not put a strain on the body in the same way that a drug can. On the contrary, they are a desirable form of training for the immune system. For the immune system, the fight against pathogens and the development of antibodies is not a burden, but a normal state - with or without vaccinations.
The vaccines used today are very well tolerated. Occasionally, there may be redness or swelling at the injection site, especially in children, and a slight, temporary fever reaction. These are not side effects, but signs that the antibodies are beginning to form.
In rare cases, the respective infectious disease may occur in a milder form.
However, serious side effects are extremely rare with today's vaccines and their risk is disproportionate to the benefit of disease protection.
Care must also be taken with the definition. "Vaccination reactions" are normal symptoms such as redness, swelling or tenderness at the injection site or fever in young children. These usually disappear after a short time. "Vaccination complications" are serious permanent consequences of a vaccination that occur extremely rarely and are very difficult to prove. Often the so-called "background morbidity" will be the main cause. Background morbidity refers to the usual level of diseases that occur in a population and are then linked to the vaccination through temporal correlation.
Why do children sometimes get a fever after vaccinations?
The child's immune system is still immature and therefore sometimes reacts more strongly to vaccinations. The fever shows that the little body is reacting and dealing with the antigens. The fever is usually over after 48 hours at the latest. If it rises above 38.5 degrees, an antipyretic should be given.
My child has a cold, a cold/cough etc., should the vaccination be postponed?
However, serious side effects are extremely rare with today's vaccines and their risk is disproportionate to the benefit of disease protection.
Care must also be taken with the definition. "Vaccination reactions" are normal symptoms such as redness, swelling or tenderness at the injection site or fever in young children. These usually disappear after a short time. "Vaccination complications" are serious permanent consequences of a vaccination that occur extremely rarely and are very difficult to prove. Often the so-called "background morbidity" will be the main cause. Background morbidity refers to the usual level of diseases that occur in a population and are then linked to the vaccination through temporal correlation.
Why do children sometimes get a fever after vaccinations?
The child's immune system is still immature and therefore sometimes reacts more strongly to vaccinations. The fever shows that the little body is reacting and dealing with the antigens. The fever is usually over after 48 hours at the latest. If it rises above 38.5 degrees, an antipyretic should be given.
My child has a cold, a cold/cough etc., should the vaccination be postponed?
Vaccinations can and should be given for colds with a cold or cough without fever. As children very often suffer from infections in the first few years of life, important vaccinations may be delayed if they are postponed permanently. Vaccination should only be postponed in the case of infections with a fever of over 38.5 degrees or severe diarrhea.
Do babies not get enough antibodies through breast milk?
Children naturally receive antibodies from infectious diseases through their mother's milk, provided the mother has had the disease or has been vaccinated against it. However, not all infectious diseases provide this nest protection (e.g. whooping cough), and this protection is limited to a few months. It is therefore important to start the vaccinations from the age of 2 months as recommended, so that the children have built up their own protection by the time they are six months old.
Is it really necessary to start vaccinating so early?
Yes, so that the children are protected at an early stage when the nest protection wears off. It takes a certain amount of time for the appropriate antibodies to be formed. The infant's immune system is in constant training from the moment of birth, and vaccinations are only a small part of this.
Why are combination vaccines used?
These vaccines allow maximum protection with less effort. The child does not need to be pricked as often and receives valuable basic protection.
Can I be vaccinated during pregnancy?
In principle, all recommended vaccinations should be carried out before pregnancy: Certain infectious diseases can lead to malformations and damage to the newborn or to a miscarriage if they occur during pregnancy. Vaccinations against mumps/measles/rubella and chickenpox are particularly important.
Inactivated vaccines can be administered without any problems. In the case of live vaccines, the recommendation is not to give them due to a certain residual risk. However, an accidental vaccination is not a reason for an abortion.
Isn't the "experience" of a childhood disease something important for the child's development?
Vaccinations are only given against a small number of diseases. In addition, children have ample opportunity to experience a variety of other diseases without the risk of serious complications. What many people do not know is that so-called childhood diseases can be very serious and can also lead to complications.
Why do children need to be vaccinated against diseases that have become very rare?
It has been observed on several occasions that diseases such as polio and diphtheria, which have disappeared in our country, as well as epidemics of whooping cough, measles and rubella, reappear when vaccinations are no longer given or are insufficient. A very high vaccination coverage in the population is necessary to eradicate a pathogen. Vaccination must continue until the pathogen is completely eradicated, then vaccination can be omitted, as in the case of smallpox, for example.
Exercise - an important tool for health
Exercise and physical activity are among the most important measures that everyone can take for their own health. The benefits of physical activity are manifold. On the one hand, it increases general well-being, regardless of illness. On the other hand, exercise helps to prevent illness and physical training is an important component in the treatment of various illnesses. Diseases that can be positively influenced by exercise include cardiovascular diseases with the risk factors of diabetes, high blood pressure, obesity and unfavorable blood lipid levels, as well as cancer, bone diseases such as osteoporosis, depression and many more.
The type, intensity, frequency and duration of physical activity for positive health effects are described in detail in the Austrian recommendations for children and adolescents/adults/older adults. The most important recommendations for adults are
Actively take every opportunity for physical activity
At least 150 minutes (2 ½ hours) per week of exercise of at least moderate intensity
Muscle-strengthening activities twice a week
http://www.fgoe.org/presse-publikationen/downloads/wissen/bewegungsempfehlungen
Health information suicide prevention
Suicide is one of the most common causes of premature loss of life and, with around 1 million deaths per year, is one of the 10 most common causes of death worldwide in many Western countries, and one of the three most common in the 15 to 45 age group (World Health Organization (WHO), 2001). In Austria, approximately twice as many people die by suicide every year as by traffic accidents. Austria's suicide rate has been falling since 1987, with the capital city of Vienna showing the most pronounced decline.
Suicide is preventable in many cases. In a report on suicide prevention in Europe, the World Health Organization (WHO) stated that effective suicide prevention requires a multidisciplinary approach and identifies public health-related measures as the main focus of suicide prevention (WHO, 2002). From a clinical perspective, suicide prevention primarily involves the treatment of mental illness and crises and the optimization of these approaches.
Public health is primarily concerned with identifying and screening at-risk groups, restricting access to suicide methods, responsible media reporting and increasing public awareness of suicide prevention and mental illness. The development of customized prevention services is a key concern of clinical and public health.
An interdisciplinary and multi-method approach, including approaches from clinical health care and public health, is also reflected in Austria's National Suicide Prevention Plan (SUPRA) (Federal Ministry of Health, 2011).
References:
Federal Ministry of Health (BMG). (2011). Suicide Prevention Austria (SUPRA). Siehe http://bmg.gv.at/cms/home/attachments/0/1/5/CH1099/CMS1348578975700/supra_gesamt10092012.pdf
World Health Organization (WHO). Suicide prevention in Europe. The WHO monitoring survey on national suicide prevention programs and strategies. Copenhagen: WHO Regional Office for Europe, 2002.
World Health Organization (WHO) (2001). Mental health: New Understanding, New Hope. Geneva: World Health Organization. See www.who.int/whr/2001/en/whr01_en.pdf
Guidelines for media coverage of suicide can be found here.
At the Center for Public Health, Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, we conduct research into the epidemiology, causes, influencing factors and prevention of suicidal behavior in Germany, other European countries and the USA. Our applied research focuses in particular on
Epidemiology of suicidality
Supporting the implementation of the Austrian National Suicide Prevention Plan (SUPRA)
Public awareness and education of the population
Media impact research in the area of traditional (film, television, print media) and new media (Internet, social networks) with regard to mental public health issues/protective and harmful influences
Life-Course Epidemiology with a focus on suicidality in the family context and labour market marginalization (in cooperation with visiting professor Dr. Mittendorfer-Rutz, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm)
Health Services Research
Intervention and evaluation studies (regarding guidelines, legislative changes) on the topic of mental public health/suicide prevention
Translational research - optimization of the implementation of suicide prevention activities
Restriction and safe handling of suicidal substances
There are still many public myths in the area of suicidality that need to be addressed in terms of "health literacy". Some important ones are: read more here ...