Foreign

Why your head and eyes hurt after viewing the eclipse

Published

9 months ago

April 9, 2024

If you have a headache or eye pain after viewing the solar eclipse—even if you wore eclipse glasses—you’re not alone. But don’t panic. Experts say it’s probably not a sign of serious damage.

Looking straight at the eclipse without protective glasses can potentially cause permanent damage to your vision. It’s dangerous to look directly at an eclipse—except during the period of “totality,” when the sun is entirely covered by the moon—for the same reason it’s never a good idea to stare at the sun: its light can burn your retina, a risk that’s formally known as solar retinopathy.

But if you suffered this kind of damage, you’d be more likely to experience visual disruptions—such as blurriness, light sensitivity, or dark spots—over the following hours, rather than eye pain. The retina doesn’t have pain nerves, according to the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO).

Headaches can be a symptom of solar retinopathy, AAO says. But in most cases, someone develops a headache because of other vision issues, rather than as a primary symptom, says Dr. Lucia Sobrin, a retina specialist at Massachusetts Eye and Ear.

If you have a headache without accompanying visual issues, you’re almost definitely in the clear, particularly if you wore protective glasses as directed, says Dr. Avnish Deobhakta, an ophthalmologist at New York Eye and Ear Infirmary of Mount Sinai. Most likely, he says, you’re experiencing regular old eye strain, which can make your head hurt.

Focusing on something far in the distance can strain the eyes, Deobhakta says, particularly after wearing dark eclipse glasses that cause the pupils to dilate. “It’s very similar to when people stare at a screen for a long time in the dark,” he says.

Or, Sobrin adds, you could just be feeling the effects of light sensitivity after staring at the sky in a way you usually don’t.

In most cases, headaches and eye pain should fade within a few hours of viewing the eclipse, Deobhakta says, though you can always consult a physician if you’re worried. Like the eclipse, “this too shall pass,” he says.

Foreign

There will be no same sex marriage again -Trump vows to end ‘transgender madness ‘

Published

3 days ago

December 23, 2024

Kayode Sanni-Arewa

President-elect Donald Trump on Sunday pledged to “stop the transgender lunacy” on day one of his presidency, as Republicans — set to control both chambers of Congress and the White House — continue their push against LGBTQ rights.

“I will sign executive orders to end child sexual mutilation, get transgender out of the military and out of our elementary schools and middle schools and high schools,” the president-elect said at an event for young conservatives in Phoenix, Arizona.

He also vowed to “keep men out of women’s sports,” adding that “it will be the official policy of the United States government that there are only two genders, male and female.”

Speaking to the AmericaFest conference in a border state he easily carried in the November election, Trump further promised immediate measures against “migrant crime,” vowed to designate drug cartels as foreign terrorist organizations, and doubled down on his talk of restoring US control of the Panama Canal.

Transgender issues have roiled US politics in recent years, as Democratic- and Republican-controlled states have moved in opposite directions on policy such as medical treatment and what books on the topic are allowed in public or school libraries.

Last week, when the US Congress approved its annual defense budget, it included a provision to block funding of some gender-affirming care for the transgender children of service members.

In his speech Sunday, which amounted to something of a victory lap, Trump made expansive promises for his second term — and drew a dark picture of the four years preceding it, under President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, the latter of whom he defeated in the 2024 election.

“On January 20, the United States will turn the page forever on four long, horrible years of failure, incompetence, national decline, and we will inaugurate a new era of peace, prosperity and national greatness,” Trump said, referring to his swearing-in.

– ‘Golden age’ –

“I will end the war in Ukraine. I will stop the chaos in the Middle East, and I will prevent, I promise, World War III.”

He added: “The golden age of America is upon us.”

Foreign

Fresh Israeli Airstrikes In Gaza Kill 25 Palestinians Including Children

Published

4 days ago

December 22, 2024

Kayode Sanni-Arewa

Fresh Israeli airstrikes in the Gaza Strip have killed at least 25 Palestinians, according to medics.

The casualties on Friday included at least eight people in an apartment in the Nuseirat refugee camp and 10 others in the town of Jabalia, among them seven children.

Efforts to broker a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas have yet to succeed.

Sources involved in the negotiations told Reuters on Thursday that Qatar and Egypt had resolved some points of contention but key issues remain unresolved.

Israel launched its assault on Gaza following Hamas-led attacks on Israeli communities on October 7, 2023.

The attacks resulted in the deaths of 1200 people and the abduction of over 250 hostages, according to Israeli reports.

Israel states that approximately 100 hostages are still being held, though it is unclear how many remain alive.

Gaza authorities report that Israel’s ongoing campaign has killed more than 45,000 Palestinians and displaced the majority of the 2.3 million residents.

Much of the territory has reportedly been devastated by the conflict.

Foreign

Biden signs bipartisan funding bill to keep government open

Published

4 days ago

December 22, 2024

Kayode Sanni-Arewa

President Biden signed the stopgap funding bill that will keep the government open until March, punting the thornier issues surrounding the nation’s finances to the incoming administration of President-elect Donald Trump.

A bloated 1,500-page funding measure was exploded by Trump and his top ally Elon Musk earlier this week as they demanded a pared-down version.

The parties were able to cobble a stopgap bill together Friday evening, which passed the Senate early Saturday morning.

The package funds the government at current levels until March 14, 2025, and includes $100 billion in hurricane relief funds and $10 billion in aid to farmers.

With the stopgap funding only running until March, an almost certain clash is looming between Trump and GOP spending hardliners when Congress reconvenes in January.

“The bipartisan funding bill I just signed keeps the government open and delivers the urgently needed disaster relief that I requested for recovering communities as well as the funds needed to rebuild the Francis Scott Key Bridge,” Biden said in a statement after inking the deal.

The post Biden signs bipartisan funding bill to keep government open appeared first on New York Post.