Many countries around the world will commemorate World Mental Health Day today which aims to raise public awareness on mental health issues and help people find ways to improve their mental well-being.

This year’s theme "Mental and Physical Health Across the Lifespan’’ focuses on the close relationship between physical health and mental well-being stages of life.

In the country, the Philippine Mental Health Association (PMHA) will hold a lecture-forum today on the World Mental Health Day theme and the sub-theme "The Challenges of Adulthood: Impact on Mental and Physical Health.’’

Mental Health Foundation (MHF) Director for Communications Celia Richardson said people usually evade the topic of mental health. "We talk about anything but we don’t talk about how we stay well mentally, how we cope with stress and what keep us feeling balanced. This is one of the reasons why people who develop common mental health problems feel isolated and alone. They just don’t realize how many people have felt the same as them.’’

"People must be encouraged to talk freely how to look after mental health and to share tips and experiences as openly as possible,’’ Richardson said.

The MHF gave some tips for good mental health. Among these are talk about feelings, ask for help when necessary from a professional support group, a counselor, or a therapist, stay active, maintain an exercise regime and meet people, and eat a well-balanced diet.

Mental health experts said the most common mental health problems today are stress, anxiety, depressions, eating disorders like anorexia and bulimia, self-harm, and dementia.

They predicted that "one in ten million has some forms of depression at any given time and that by 2020, depression will come next to heart disease as an international disease and disability burden." (Christina I. Hermoso)

BAYAMBANG, Pangasinan — Mayor Leocadio "Boy’’ C. de Vera Jr. of this town said yesterday that several initiatives are being undertaken towards the progress and development of this municipality.

De Vera stressed that politics has been set aside here and added he has focused on delivering effective services to the people such as regular medical missions in the 77 barangays of this town.

The medical missions safeguard the health of his constituents and free medicines are distributed to them during the civic activity, De Vera added.

De Vera visits the public market here daily to ensure that it is clean and orderly. "I also monitor the prices of prime commodities needed by the people to avoid overpricing.’’

Bayambang has been classified as a first-class municipality and its people claimed that the expertise of De Vera on local governance and administration contributed to the classification.

De Vera said Bayambang will soon have a new modern municipal hall and it will rise in Barangay Bical. "By January 2006, the construction will start,’’ De Vera said.

He also said that the Cojuangco family, who has a business in this town, donated two hectares of land in Barangay Bical for the new municipal hall of Bayambang. (Fa Sison Almazan)

Support for SMEs affirmed

President Arroyo has affirmed her administration’s commitment and support to the growth and development of the Philippines’ Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) which compose 99 percent of the country’s 800,000 firms, Labor and Employment Secretary Patricia A. Sto. Tomas said yesterday.

In a speech, the President assured her full support during the recognition ceremonies held in Manila which were attended by small enterprises that comprised the ECOP Big Enterprise-Small Enterprise (EBESE) Productivity Improvement Program, Sto. Tomas said.

The occassion coincided with the observance of the month of October as the National Quality and Productivity Month.

"I also congratulate DoLE’s National Wages and Productivity Commission (NWPC), and the Technological Application and Promotion Institute (TAPI), for their support to the EBESE program of the Employers Confederation of the Philippines (ECoP) under the joint TEN (or TAPI-ECOP-NWPC) Project," the President said.

"This is the type of cooperation necessary for the nation to move forward and realize its economic potentials. It represents proof that we can accomplish so much more with cooperation rather than factionalism and acrimony. Let us reject destructive politics or policies that only drag the economy down and prevent it from taking off," Arroyo said.

The President emphasized that in supporting SME growth, "we are, in effect, securing the growth of the Philippine economy, even as the SMEs are the backbone of our economy comprising almost 99 percent of its total establishments, and providing almost 70 percent of all jobs in the country." (Raul V. Gonzales)