According to the Finnish Social Insurance Institution (Kela), six million working days were lost last year due to mental health problems. These absences cost society more than €1 billion a year.
Mental illness currently accounts for more than one in three days of sick leave paid by the Social Insurance Institution of Finland (Kela) in Finland. The annual cost of lost work effort exceeds one billion euros, which is an increase of almost half a billion euros compared to ten years ago.
– The true cost of lost workdays is likely to be even higher than our estimate, Mikko Rissanen, senior specialist at the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, told Finnish national broadcaster Yle.
In 2023, almost six million working days will be lost due to mental health problems, which is the equivalent of 26,000 full-time employees being absent from work for a whole year. This is an increase of two million working days compared to a decade ago.
If short periods of sickness, which are shorter than the qualifying period for sickness compensation, are also taken into account, the total number of working days lost could exceed seven million, according to Kela.
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More and more children are receiving homeschooling in Finland – a trend that gained momentum during the coronavirus crisis and has continued to grow since then. Lack of support in schools and increased awareness are cited as reasons, while authorities warn of knowledge risks.
During the coronavirus crisis, more and more people began working from home in Finland, as in other countries. More children were also taught remotely, especially during spring 2020 when all schools except preschools were closed for about two months. Since then, homeschooling has increased in the country, even after the end of the coronavirus crisis.
In 2020, 585 children received homeschooling, which was then an increase of a quarter from the year before. Last year, the figure had increased to 881 children.
Unlike in Sweden, where compulsory schooling is stricter and it is therefore more difficult to get permission for homeschooling, it is significantly easier in Finland. No special permit is required to homeschool children.
In Sweden, it has become more common to move to Åland (an autonomous Finnish territory) to escape Sweden’s compulsory schooling laws, where, like in Finland, it is easier to homeschool children. In 2024, 95 percent of all homeschooled children in Åland were Swedes, according to tax-funded SVT (Swedish public television).
Awareness has increased
Marjukka Saarnisto, vice chairman of the homeschool association Suomen kotikouluyhdistys, sees several reasons why more parents choose to homeschool their children.
— Awareness has increased while problems in elementary school have increased. Nowadays parents dare to make courageous decisions regarding the child’s best interests, she tells Finnish public broadcaster Yle.
It can also involve issues such as bullying or lack of support for the student that leads parents to choose homeschooling. A common phenomenon is that many believe that homeschooled children are isolated from society, a myth that Saarnisto says is not true.
— Children who are taught at home also have friends. They have hobbies and even have more time and energy for them than children in elementary school.
A challenge
Education counselor Riia Palmqvist from the Finnish National Agency for Education believes the increase is due to the fact that remote work increased during the coronavirus crisis and that many Finns still work remotely. Since there is no remote alternative for elementary school, parents instead choose homeschooling.
However, Palmqvist emphasizes that homeschooling is demanding and that there is a risk that the child will not gain sufficient competence to continue studying.
— It can be difficult to get into upper secondary school or vocational school if you don’t have proof of your competence, she says.
An anesthesiologist with 20 years of experience told US senators how he developed a life-threatening lung disease after covid-19 vaccination. Dr. Robert Sullivan was one of the witnesses in a Senate hearing on vaccine injuries held by the Senate Homeland Security Committee.
The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee organized a hearing on July 15 titled “Voices of the Vaccine Injured” where people who claim to have been injured by covid-19 vaccines were able to share their experiences. Dr. Robert Sullivan, a licensed physician and certified anesthesiologist with over 20 years of active practice in Maryland, was one of the key witnesses.
Dr. Sullivan described a dramatic change in his health condition after vaccination. The same month he received his first mRNA dose, he had been featured in the Wall Street Journal’s fitness column for his aerial circus performances.
— I was strong, healthy, and thriving. Just three weeks after my second dose, I couldn’t go up a flight of stairs without gasping for air, Sullivan told the senators.
The doctor developed constant chest pain, heart arrhythmias and overwhelming fatigue. An echocardiogram later confirmed damage to his heart and lungs.
— The diagnosis was pulmonary hypertension. I had damage and narrowing of the blood vessels in my lungs, restricting blood flow and straining the heart. This isn’t like regular high blood pressure. Pulmonary hypertension is usually progressive and fatal even with treatment. There is no cure, Sullivan explained.
The system didn’t respond
Dr. Sullivan reported his injury to VAERS (Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System), the US system for reporting vaccine adverse events. Despite VAERS collecting his medical records, he never heard from the US health authorities FDA or CDC.
— I believed in the system. I believed I would be heard. When I wasn’t, I channeled that disbelief into collaborating with the British Medical Journal on a report about the system’s failures. What I learned is chilling. If you are harmed, you are on your own., Sullivan said.
He explained that most doctors he knows have never heard of VAERS, and even fewer understand that there are mandatory reporting requirements. Sullivan was never taught about VAERS during his medical education and stated that it still isn’t taught.
Research predicted the problems
During his own research, Dr. Sullivan discovered that a scientist from Georgetown University had predicted exactly his type of injury in the same month the vaccines began rolling out.
— He warned that spike protein, exposure, whether from the virus or from the shot, could harm the blood vessels in the lungs and placenta, Sullivan recounted.
The doctor referenced studies showing that spike protein from the SARS-1 virus also caused vascular damage in animals, and that many hospitalized covid patients develop pulmonary hypertension.
Broad vaccination perspective despite personal injury
When Senator Johnson asked about doctors’ attitudes toward vaccines, Dr. Sullivan surprised by explaining that he is still “enthusiastic about vaccination” and that he sees covid injections as something entirely different.
— I’m not vaccine injured. I’m injured by an mRNA therapeutic. I was very careful in my testimony to use the word shot, Sullivan clarified.
He explained that training for vaccines is now limited to memorizing the schedule, but that the hidden cost of injuries is not studied or taught.
Spike protein toxicity
Senator Johnson raised the question of spike protein toxicity and criticized that many symptoms are now attributed to “long covid” instead of potential vaccine side effects.
— There are many ways to lose with this new MRI technology. There are problems with the nanoparticle. There is a separate set of problems with synthetic mRNA. It persists in some people 700 days and counting now, Dr. Sullivan responded.
He explained that when the body is instructed to manufacture a protein that is presented on the cell surface, it creates a precondition for autoimmune disorders, and that the spike protein itself is biologically active.
— It was published in December 2020, although not widely known, that that was causing damage to placenta and to lung, Sullivan added.
Dr. Sullivan concluded his testimony with an appeal for recognition and transparent information for patients, emphasizing the importance of truly informed consent in all medical treatment.
Turkish researchers have discovered that Pfizer’s covid-19 vaccine can cause changes in the eye’s cornea that could potentially lead to vision problems. The study, which followed 64 people over three months, shows that the vaccine can make the cornea thicker and reduce the number of important cells that keep vision clear.
The researchers measured changes in the cornea’s inner layer, the endothelium, before the first vaccine dose and two months after the second dose. The results showed that both doses led to thicker corneas, fewer endothelial cells, and greater variation in cell size.
Specifically, corneal thickness increased from 528 to 542 micrometers – an increase of approximately two percent. At the same time, the number of endothelial cells decreased from 2,597 to 2,378 cells per square millimeter, a loss of about eight percent.
“The endothelium should be closely monitored in those with low endothelial cell counts or who have undergone corneal transplantation,” the researchers warn in the study published in the journal Ophthalmic Epidemiology.
Short-term impact without symptoms
In the short term, the changes suggest that Pfizer’s vaccine may temporarily weaken the endothelium, even though patients did not experience any clear vision problems during the study period. For people with healthy eyes, these small changes are unlikely to affect vision immediately.
However, if the changes persist for several years, they could lead to corneal swelling or blurred vision, particularly in people with existing eye problems or those who have undergone corneal transplantation. A thicker cornea and reduced cell density can contribute to conditions such as corneal edema or corneal decompensation, which in severe cases can cause permanent vision loss.
Need for long-term studies
The research team emphasizes the importance of long-term studies to see if the changes persist months and years after vaccination. An ophthalmologist can use special microscopy to check if someone has a low endothelial cell count.
The study adds to a growing list of concerns regarding Pfizer’s covid vaccine. In May, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) forced Pfizer and Moderna to expand warning labels about risks of heart damage, particularly for men between 16 and 25 years old.
Much of the food we eat is still good after its best before date. However, you should be more careful about keeping certain foods for too long.
In Europe, two durability markings are used for food: “best before” to show when quality may start to deteriorate, and “use by date” for products that quickly become unsafe to eat. The latter marking is uncommon and mainly applies to sensitive foods. Opened packages often have shorter shelf lives, but this can vary.
Frozen and dried foods often last longer than their best before dates. Even fresh products like eggs, milk and butter keep longer than indicated on the packaging.
Consumers are often encouraged not to be too strict about throwing away food that has reached its best before date, in order to reduce food waste. In 2023, each Swede threw away an average of 16 kilos of food as food waste, according to Avfall Sverige (Swedish Waste Management).
Despite these recommendations, there are exceptions where you should be more careful about throwing away food when it reaches its expiration date, writes Land.se.
Herring and cured salmon
Cured and smoked fish can contain listeria bacteria, which can be dangerous for small children, elderly people and those with compromised immune systems. Since the bacteria cannot be detected by smell or appearance, it’s important to follow the use by date. Opened packages should be consumed quickly.
Baltic herring, herring, tuna, mackerel and anchovies contain a considerable amount of the amino acid histidine. This amino acid is later converted to histamine when certain bacterial species thrive after the fish has been stored too warm for several hours. This can cause histamine poisoning, which can produce symptoms such as rash, diarrhea, nausea and heart palpitations.
Bread
A sure way to know when bread should be thrown away is when you see a mold spot. Unlike cheese, where it’s okay to cut away the mold and then eat it, this doesn’t apply to bread. The visible mold is probably only part of it – the rest of the mold fungus consists of long invisible threads that can be present throughout the bread slice.
Meat and poultry
Usually meat, poultry and shellfish have a use by date marking, which means it can be dangerous to health to eat after that date. However, you can freeze it before the last day if you don’t have time to eat it all, then it can keep in the freezer for a longer time – depending on the type of meat.
Ground meat, such as minced meat, is particularly sensitive to bacteria. Often it’s decomposition bacteria that make the mince smell and taste bad – there’s rarely a risk of disease transmission but it makes the mince inedible.
Yogurt and fresh cheese
Often yogurt, fresh cheese and crème fraîche keep past their best before date, but if you see the slightest mold formation, you should throw them away. Since the products contain a lot of water, there’s a risk that mold toxins spread throughout the entire food product.
