Hot Topics - January 2022

VEGANUARY 2022 - JANUARY 1ST - 31ST

Veganuary is an annual challenge run by a UK non-profit organisation that promotes and educates about veganism by encouraging people to follow a vegan lifestyle for the month of January. Since the event began in 2014, participation has more than doubled each year. 400,000 people signed up to the 2020 campaign

What is Veganism?

Veganism is one of the most effective choices a person can make to reduce the suffering of animals, help the planet and improve personal health.

Veganuary is dedicated to changing public attitudes while providing all the information and practical support required to make the transition to veganism as easy and enjoyable as possible. Veganuary has had an incredible degree of success in a very short time and is changing lives all over the world.

Small changes can make a big impact if we all do it together :)

Why not give it a try? Some great recipes including; Vegan Fish burgers, Vegan butter chicken, herby stuffed squash and many more can be found if you follow this link: https://veganuary.com/en-us/recipes/meals/dinner-en-us/

If you would like to get involved or find out more information, go to:  https://veganuary.com/en-us/

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FESTIVAL OF SLEEP DAY - MONDAY 3RD 2022

The Festival of Sleep Day was encouraged so that people could enjoy some relaxation and much needed “shut-eye” after the holiday period. During the Christmas period, we tend to do a lot of partying and not a lot of resting. The Festival of Sleep Day ensures that you have all of the time that you need to recoup and recover. As you will discover in the upcoming sections, this is incredibly important.

How to Get a Good Night's Sleep

There are a number of different steps you can take to make sure that you get a good night’s sleep. This includes evaluating your bedroom. It needs to be a place that is calming and soothing. The temperature needs to be just right as well. It is also important to try and go to sleep around the same time every evening and wake up at roughly the same time, even on weekends. This will help your body to get into a routine.

Sleep is one of the most common and important human activity. Sleep allows human bodies to rest, heal, develop and can help memory processing and preservation. Lack of sleep or poor sleep can have multiple negative effects on the human body and mind.

The modern world, however, isn’t kind to sleep. We no longer get the estimated seven to nine hours that our ancestors could look forward to every night. Stress and industrial working patterns mean that the bulk of humanity is experiencing shut-eye deprivation.

How to Celebrate

• This one is straightforward. Get into your favourite PJs, crawl into bed and get out only when you want to
• They say that clean bed linen and an uncluttered and temperature controlled environment facilitates good sleep. Take stock of your sleeping environment on this day, and fix anything you think may be affecting your sleep

Did You Know?

That an irrational fear of sleep is known as Somniphobia?

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KISS A GINGER DAY - JANUARY 12TH 2022

What does Kiss A Ginger Mean?

While many redheads are unfortunately subject to jokes and mockery, we all love their fiery tresses. Kiss A Ginger Day is the perfect opportunity to show them our love. ... Red hair is slowly disappearing around the world, so kiss a ginger while you still can! You can get behind Kiss A Ginger Day this year and share the love for the special red head in your life on January 12th, or if you don’t have any ginger haired pals that you feel would appreciate you puckering up to them today you can still celebrate all things ginger in any way you like, you could stop by your local bakery for a ginger biscuit, you could dig out the ginger tea and stick a Harry Potter dvd on for a bit of Ron Weasley appreciation.

Fascinating Redhead Facts

• Scotland has the highest concentration of redheads @ 13% 
• Ireland has the second highest concentration of redheads @ 10%
• Blue-eyed gingers only make-up less than 1% of the world population
• Most Redheads have brown, hazel or green eyes
• Bees are most likely to sting redheads than blondes or brunettes
• Redheads have a higher chance of being left-handed
• Gingers require more anesthesia during surgery
• Redheads are more likely to be sensitive to hot or cold
• Redheads have a higher chance of skin cancer
• Gingers bruise more easily
• Gingerphobia is a fear of redheads
• Gingerism is the bullying of redheads 

Celebrating Kiss A Ginger Day is quite easy. If you are a ginger yourself, then feel free to treat yourself to a nice treat. If you know a ginger, then kiss them on the cheek or lips – just be sure to get their permission first! You can also celebrate this holiday by posting on social media using the hashtag #KissAGingerDay.

For more serious minded people, the holiday can be used as a way to dispel many of the harmful myths and stereotypes that surround people with red hair. After all, this holiday was started as a backlash to the bullying that many gingers experience on a daily basis.

Conclusion Kiss A Ginger Day is the perfect day to either brighten up a ginger’s day or to help stop the bullying that many gingers face every day, simply because of their hair colour. So go out there and show red haired people that you care!

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CERVICAL CANCER PREVENTION WEEK - 17TH - 22ND JANUARY

220,000 women and people with a cervix every year are told they have cervical cell changes after their screening, and many more given a HPV diagnosis Do you know how cervical cancer can be prevented? During Cervical Cancer Prevention Week we want as many people as possible to know how they can reduce their risk of the disease and to educate others.

How can you reduce your risk of cervical cancer?

We want to ensure all women and people with a cervix know how cervical cancer can be prevented. This means: ·Attending cervical screening when invited ·Knowing the symptoms of cervical cancer and seeking medical advice if experiencing any ·Taking up the HPV vaccination if aged 11-18 ·Knowing where to find support and further information

Get involved with the campaign

• Use social media to talk about cervical screening: shout about why it's so important and share your tips
• Share your experience of colposcopy or getting unexpected cervical screening results: what do you wish you had known and what would you say to someone feeling anxious about theirs?
• Get your workplace involved and display posters or even take on a fundraising challenge

Join in and use #CervicalCancerPreventionWeek so others can find you!

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JANUARY 2022 HOLIDAYS, FUN FACTS AND HISTORY