Tourism is a social, cultural and economic phenomenon which entails the movement of people to countries or places outside their usual environment for personal or business/professional purposes.

When we talked about promoting tourism, it was that opportunity of being able to be at ITB Berlin or WTM London. It was about physically being there with brochures, like selling your wares at the weekend market or village haat. People swing by your stall; you try to sell your wares based on the promo materials you have, and then rely on them to be able to send you a group of tourists.

The digital world has brought about many disruptions. You can book your tickets, hotels, tours and everything you would like to do online. Portals like Trip Advisor give you reviews to decide which destinations to look out for, and which products and services. The world of Instagram and TikTok has allowed you to view destinations, products and services from people you believe in and created tremendous peer pressure. Then there are internet entertainment platforms like Netflix where you can, apart from movies and innumerable series, gain access to many high quality documentaries and other materials that can make you think about different destinations you have never dreamt about.

New dimension

The last decade has changed how people view travel and choose what and where they eat, drink or carry out leisure activities. The pandemic has also added a new dimension where people travelled virtually during times of lockdown and restricted movements, and made some bucket lists for physical trips. Of course, there are the influencers, anyone with a device who can show you a whole new world you have never imagined.

In Kathmandu, with diverse speakers at a Neftalk organised by the Nepal Economic Forum, we discussed what is happening to tourism in the digital era and explored the disruptions and opportunities. There are three things to look out for.

First, there are new mediums that drive people’s travel decisions. For instance, the success of 14 Peaks: Nothing Is Impossible, a Netflix production with Nims Purja climbing all 14 eight-thousanders, triggered the imagination of many people, which was reflected in tourist arrivals to Nepal. Globally, people who have watched local content are 2.4 times more likely to make the place their #1 travel destination. Similarly, the video around the visit of the Prince of Bahrain and a vlogger from Qatar during the pandemic has let people in the Middle East who thought of Europe and the United States as premium destinations start to think about Nepal. At a luxury hotel in Pokhara, I was asked by a couple from the United Arab Emirates as to why we do not have $1,500 a night hotels as there would be lots from their country who would be interested.

Second, domestic tourism, which has been the bread and butter of many destinations in Nepal, has just exploded due to digital mediums. We hardly saw any sustained campaigns from any agency to lure local tourists, but then vloggers posting their bike ride videos on YouTube, Instagram and now TikTok have changed the fate of Nepali domestic tourism. People like Sisan Bainya have taken production quality seriously, and people want to follow him to the places he and his team have been.

Imagine Nepal is capturing such imagination of Nepali travellers. With a diaspora population of over 5 million, excluding India, across 180 countries, we will see a considerable demand surge from Nepalis visiting for religious or social purposes or just embarking on pure fun! For the domestic tourists, with the easing of payments through digital platforms, it’s all digital. Be it finding a destination, making bookings, paying for it, writing reviews and then posting about your trip. With more women joining the workforce, nuclear families and the concept of holidays not being limited to playing cards and drinking will significantly increase domestic tourism growth.

Third, the biggest challenge for Nepal to manage would be to ensure tourism has sustainable growth. The littering of trekking trails with cans of alcoholic beverages, bottles of aerated drinks and many other packaging materials is a huge issue. Structures are mushrooming everywhere to house travellers without proper planning. Everest is a golden goose we are killing by selling it too cheap. We have to think of the destination as super high-end. With a fragile ecology and biodiversity, we need to conserve; we need to use the same digital platforms to spread messages on pushing sustainable tourism. We have the commitments we made at COP26 to remember and the government’s Green Resilient Inclusive Development Action Plan to bear in mind.

Virtual reality

Finally, we need to prepare for tourists who will want to get to Nepal without actually getting to Nepal. With virtual reality and augmented reality becoming the future, with the Metaverse becoming the future real estate, we need to be there. We need to exploit these platforms to attract more people coming in person. We need to create that buzz of a destination that people will yearn to visit as we are one of the most photogenic countries in the world.

For all this to be leveraged, we need it to be private sector-led and come out of the shells of cartels, and we need the government to continue to provide a legislative and regulatory environment that facilitates these developments rather than thinking of stifling them in the name of controls. In many countries, governments have relied on self-regulation as a governance model. This is mainly due to the unique features of online content. Technology allows an individual to make an informed decision about how, when and what content they consume. We have missed many previous waves of disruptions, this one, we should not.

courtesy: The kathmandu post

Fasting for 8 hours is as good as counting calories for weight loss, new research shows.

The study, published Monday in the Annals of Internal Medicine, found that people with obesity lost 10 pounds through intermittent fasting, compared to 12 pounds through calorie restriction. The statistical analysis found no significant difference between the two groups’ weight loss.

Most of the people in the study were female and weighed around 220 pounds at the start of the trial. A total of 77 people were split into three groups: One was told to fast for 8 hours, another was told to restrict their calories, and the third ate as they normally would.

The people who fasted and restricted calories were in a weight loss phase for 6 months – the intermittent fasting group could eat anything they wanted between noon and 8 p.m., and didn’t have to cut their calories.

The calorie restriction group had to cut 25% of their daily calorie intake. They were also told to fill half of every plate with fruits or vegetables, and consume about half their calories as carbohydrates, 30% as fat, and 20% as protein.

For 6 months after that, both groups were in a weight maintenance phase. The intermittent fasting group could eat from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., and the calorie restriction group was told to match their diet with their energy needs.

The people in the study met regularly with dietitians – a part of the trial that experts say could have made the effects of fasting more pronounced than in previous studies.

An earlier, shorter trial found that people lost about 2 pounds after 12 weeks of intermittent fasting, a more modest result, compared to the 9 pounds that lost after 6 months in this trial.

Intermittent fasting, or time-restricted eating, is a catch-all for eating patterns that could include several full days of fasting per week or time-restricted eating during the day.

The effect of having less time to eat is thought to lead to eating fewer calories, and therefore losing weight. This trial found the intermittent fasting group ate 425 fewer calories per day and 20 calories less than the calorie-restricted group.

“Time-restricted eating is undoubtedly an attractive approach to weight loss in that it does not require the purchase of expensive food products, allows persons to continue consuming familiar foods, and omits complicated calorie tracking,” Shuhao Lin, a registered dietitian at the University of Illinois, Chicago, and colleagues write in the paper.

Dispelling myths about mental health can help break the stigma and create a culture that encourages people of any age to seek support when they need it. Here are seven common misconceptions about mental health:

1. Myth: If a person has a mental health condition, it means the person has low intelligence.

Fact: Mental illness, like physical illness, can affect anyone regardless of intelligence, social class, or income level.

2. Myth: You only need to take care of your mental health if you have a mental health condition.

Fact: Everyone can benefit from taking active steps to promote their well-being and improve their mental health. Similarly, everyone can take active steps and engage in healthy habits to optimize their physical health.

3. Myth: Poor mental health is not a big issue for teenagers. They just have mood swings caused by hormonal fluctuations and act out due to a desire for attention.

Fact: Teenagers often have mood swings, but that does not mean that adolescents may not also struggle with their mental health. Fourteen per cent of the world’s adolescents experience mental-health problems. Globally, among those aged 10–15, suicide is the fifth most prevalent cause of death, and for adolescents aged 15–19 it is the fourth most common cause. Half of all mental health conditions start by the age of 14.

4. Myth: Nothing can be done to protect people from developing mental health conditions.

Fact: Many factors can protect people from developing mental health conditions, including strengthening social and emotional skills, seeking help and support early on, developing supportive, loving, warm family relationships, and having a positive school environment and healthy sleep patterns. The ability to overcome adversity relies on a combination of protective factors, and neither environmental nor individual stressors alone will necessarily result in mental health problems. Children and adolescents who do well in the face of adversity typically have biological resistance as well as strong, supportive relationships with family, friends and adults around them, resulting in a combination of protective factors to support well-being.

5. Myth: A mental health condition is a sign of weakness; if the person were stronger, they would not have this condition.

Fact: A mental health condition has nothing to do with being weak or lacking willpower. It is not a condition people choose to have or not have. In fact, recognizing the need to accept help for a mental health condition requires great strength and courage. Anyone can develop a mental health condition.

6. Myth: Adolescents who get good grades and have a lot of friends will not have mental health conditions because they have nothing to be depressed about.

Fact: Depression is a common mental health condition resulting from a complex interaction of social, psychological, and biological factors. Depression can affect anyone regardless of their socioeconomic status or how good their life appears at face value. Young people doing well in school may feel pressure to succeed, which can cause anxiety, or they may have challenges at home. They may also experience depression or anxiety for no reason that can be easily identified.

7. Myth: Bad parenting causes mental conditions in adolescents.

Fact: Many factors – including poverty, unemployment, and exposure to violence, migration, and other adverse circumstances and events – may influence the well-being and mental health of adolescents, their caregivers and the relationship between them. Adolescents from loving, supporting homes can experience mental health difficulties, as can adolescent from homes where there may be caregivers who need support to maintain an optimum environment for healthy adolescent development. With support, caregivers can play an essential role in helping adolescents to overcome any problems they experience.

(This article is based on UNICEF and the World Health Organization's Teacher’s Guide to the Magnificent Mei and Friends Comic Series.)

Irritable bowel syndrome is a common gastro-intestinal issue affecting a large number of people. IBS is any feeling of pain in stomach for which one cannot assign a cause like swelling in intestine or stomach. The condition may last lifelong and patients suffer from symptoms like stomach pain, abdominal bloating, constipation among other digestive issues. So, far, the exact cause of IBS has not been fully understood but what experts know is that it has certain triggers like increase in stress, eating spicy foods, caffeinated drinks or alcohol. IBS is more common in people over 40 years of age but can even affect young people.

WHAT IS IBS

"Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a functional gastro­ intestinal disorder that has a substantial impact on quality of life and social functioning. The pathophysiology of IBS is not fully understood. The condition affects between 5% and 15% of the Indian population and is characterised by recurrent abdominal pain associated with a change in the form of the stool or a change in the frequency of stool," says Dr Sandeep R Sharma, Consultant -Interventional & medical gastroenterology, Fortis Hospital, Cunningham Road.

NATURAL REMEDIES FOR IBS

While there are various therapies that can help treat IBS, the first step always includes dietary and lifestyle modifications.

1. REGULAR EXERCISE

Including regular exercise in one’s routine has been shown to improve symptoms of bloating and abdominal pain in many individuals in various studies.

"Any form of exercise is a welcome addition to the management of IBS symptoms. There is no preference for any particular exercise, it can even be traditional forms, such as yoga," says Dr Sharma.

2. INCREASE FIBRE INTAKE

Improving fibre intake in the diet is the second most important step towards mitigating symptoms of IBS. Dr Sharma suggests taking soluble fibre, such as ispaghula husk (around 20-30 grams per day).

3. LOW FODMAP DIET

Another intervention that is effective in improving symptoms of IBS is a diet low in FODMAPs (Fermentable Oligosaccharides, Disaccharides, Monosaccharides, And Polyols). These are found in a variety of natural foods, fruits, and vegetables. It is beneficial in certain individuals to restrict FODMAP-rich foods in their diet. However, a long-term low FODMAP diet can be deleterious. It is advisable to slowly reintroduce FODMAP foods in a graded manner as tolerated by the individual, once there is improvement in IBS symptoms.

Fruits like apple, avocado, blackberry, mango, watermelon and dairy products with lactose are avoided in low FODMAP diet, while banana, kiwi, lemon, grapefruit and lactose-free dairy can be consumed.

4. INCLUDE PROBIOTICS

IBS symptoms can also be managed by inclusion of probiotics or foods rich in probiotics, such as curd, yogurt, buttermilk, and certain types of cheese (gouda, mozzarella, cheddar, and cottage cheese).

"In a few trials, probiotics were found to be useful in alleviating diarrhoea and reducing the frequency of bowel movements in IBS patients," says Dr Sharma.

Nior, an American Color Cosmetics and Skincare brand, is going to make its luminous presence at the US Trade Show 2022. The annual US Trade Show is about to make its return to Dhaka after its two-year hiatus today. One of the highlights of this event is going to be the presence of the American Color Cosmetics and Skincare brand Nior. With constant research and cutting-edge technology, Nior's products have paved the way in the hearts of cosmetic enthusiasts.

This event's 28th iteration will take place on October 27, 28, and 29 from 10 am to 8 pm. The American Chamber of Commerce in Bangladesh (AmCham) and the American Embassy are jointly sponsoring the grand renaissance of this trade event, which is going to take place at the Pan Pacific Sonargaon Hotel. Famous celebrities, dermatologists, beauticians, and influencers are going to attend the event to experience a variety of US goods from various brands.

Nior, which began operations in 1996, is currently one of Bangladesh's most popular and well-known brands. With a solid market position for more than 25 years, Nior has demonstrated that innovation in beauty procedures has enhanced consumer confidence. Amid boosted clientele confidence and demand, Nior currently has 49 products in the color cosmetics market in Bangladesh. At the same time, Nior promises to expand its presence in the glamour world in the future.

Tickets for this event, which is going to be open to all, will be available for regular visitors at the exhibition gate. Students will get free entry to this event by showing their identity cards