The "Straighten up South Africa" program was initiated by the Chiropractic Association of South Africa (CASA) in partnership with the World Health Organization (WHO) in the hopes of improving spinal health awareness at 'grass roots level'. Children of today are considerably more stationary due to the increasing time spent on digital devices both for work and play. Back pain in adults is the biggest cause for absenteeism in the work place and is responsible for a great reduction in productivity and costs billions each year.

If we consider the spinal cord is responsible for almost every function of the body, it makes sense that if we don't look after it through good posture we will start to exhibit signs of ill health; be it through low back pain, headaches, poor balance etc.

I felt it was necessary to begin educating the youth of Hilton in good posture and demonstrate a short exercise program at local schools starting with Laddsworth Primary School. After a brief talk on good postural habits I demonstrated The "Posture Pod flying friends" exercises with the help of the Easter bunny. The exercises are great fun and are well received by children.

Let's work together for a straighter; healthier South Africa.

Dr Julie Forsyth is offering a free spinal health assessment for children under 13.

Thanks to the generous donations from many of our members, we now have a brand new mower. Salas, our grounds man, used it on Saturday for the first time and produced a really good playing surface.

Chris Purchase has made a beautiful new trophy for the Club Singles competition to replace the old "Mixed Singles Shield". The new shield was handed to last year's winner, Doug Robertson.

Two enjoyable competitions rounded out our bowling week, with the IF Trips on Friday and a Quarry Spar Chicken Run on Saturday. Winners on Friday were Jean and John Pluke and John Bayley. Runners-up were Derick Hull, Etzel Nuss and John Aubrey. Well bowled, and thanks to Investment Facilitators for the handsome meat pack prizes.

The Chicken Run was won by Tom Hartley, Basil Fann and Pat Bennet, who charged into the lead after scoring eleven shots on the last two ends. The management of the Quarry Superpar are thanked for their on-going support for our club.

Members and potential visitors are reminded that we have gone back to a tabs-in time of 13:30.

Duties: 13 - 19 Apr: OOD: Ron Buchel. Tabs: Dave Hammond. Duty Team: Gil van der Hoven.
Teas on 19 Apr: Bill Lambert & John Aubrey. Biscuits: 15 & 17 V. Hickinbotham & Richard Lister.

News supplied by Hilton Bowling Club.

The Hilton Community Security initiative (HCSi) is a community driven and funded project to pro-actively combat the scourge of crime in the area.

The purpose of the HCSi is to:
• Assess and utilise technology and Social Media to facilitate real-time communication between residents for any crime/security-specific information;
• Adopt a pro-active and holistic approach to crime reduction and security issues affecting Hilton residents, facilitating discussion forums and interaction between residents, the HCPF, Hilton SAPS, armed response companies and other relevant role-players;
• Assess and implement pro-active neighbourhood patrols (currently Bobbies-on-the-Beat, under review, depending on funding and requirements). At present this program covers seven designated areas within Greater Hilton and consists of regular patrols in the different areas by Residential Guards either on foot or bicycles, supported by a dedicated Patrol vehicle;
• Assess the viability of surveillance cameras in strategic locations where feasible and beneficial.
• Erect, where feasible, fences to prevent criminals easy access routes into residential areas. To date over 400 metres of fencing have been erected.

It is essential for the HCSi to further develop to pro-actively deal with rising incidents of crime. To achieve this substantially greater support is required from residents. Low crime levels in the recent past have seen membership declining and current membership numbers provide insufficient funding to sustain this initiative and allow it to grow.

Crime is now on the increase again, and it is IMPERATIVE we reverse this trend.
• Support us on Saturday 5 April at The Quarry Centre Market day, where HCSi representatives will be available to discuss the program in greater detail;
• Join the program – contact 076 790 6311 for more details;
• Follow us on Facebook www.facebook.com/TheHiltonCSi and on Twitter @TheHiltonCSi

Without sufficient community support and involvement, the current community crime management program will unfortunately have to be dissolved by August this year – however we simply CANNOT allow this to happen.

Hilton's expanding (in number not girth) security community volunteers are freshly energised to combat crime and the following is an extract from a brochure that is being distributed.

STOP COMPLAINING - BE A PART OF THE SOLUTION!

BRING NEW IDEAS – STOP WAITING FOR SOMETHING TO BE DONE FOR YOU - IT'S NOW OR NEVER!

We call ourselves a 'community', but these days fewer people in Hilton even know their neighbours! Make greater efforts to know one another as a community. Your television does not care about you, but your neighbour might save your life! Knowing one another, we have a far better chance at overall improved security. Knowing your street members names, telephone & cell numbers is a great advantage. Being conscientious about keeping gates closed and keeping security alarms active will also help. Attend HCSI meetings!

This Crime initiative has been driven by people who have done so selflessly and without reward . By you contributing to this community initiative financially and with new ideas; we will greatly advance this cause to being even better.

COME ON - JOIN TODAY!

You will find representatives of HCSi at The Quarry Centre on Saturday, the 5th April, where they will have forms for you to join this valuable initiative.

A wonderful crowd of 44 players turned out on Saturday when we played for prizes sponsored by Lister and Lister. Winners were Jean Pluke, who seems to be on a roll, Graham Appleby and Andy Hitchcock. Pat Gordon and Tony Francis both received prizes for scoring a total of five touchers each. Well bowled to these winners, and thanks to Richard Lister for the prizes.

At tea time, Thelma Mylne, our Club President, presented certificates to Doug Robertson and David Hammond conferring on them, Honorary Life Membership of Hilton Bowling Club. Many thanks to Tony Lenton for designing, printing and framing these mementos.

Pictured here are Honorary Life Members Doug Robertson and David Hammond with Club President Thelma Mylne

The IF Sponsored Trips takes place on Friday 4 April, and there will be a Chicken Run on Saturday 5th.

We will revert to tabs-in by 13:30 with effect from 1 April. (no joke!)

Duties: 6 - 12 Apr: OOD: John Pluke. Tabs: Jean Pluke. Duty Team: Anton Leisegang.
Teas on 12 Apr: Jean & Tony Barrington. Biscuits: 8 & 10 Apr. Jenny Hammond & Tom Hartley.

News and photograph submitted by Hilton Bowling Club.

Royal Thai is also known as the Thai Herbal Heat Revival Massage. The healing practice of Thai herbal compress therapy dates back nearly 5,000 years to an era when the knowledge of plants and their effects through ingestion or application were thorough and often painstakingly researched and then passed down from one generation to the next.

A heated (steamed) muslin parcel (compress, ball, poultice) of aromatic herbs and spices is applied to the body in gentle pressing, circular and rolling movements. A health treatment which was used by Thai royalty in elaborate treatments and eventually to war-weary soldiers returning home from battle with aches, pain and bruises.

Today the hot compress is still used to alleviate pain, inflammation by opening the pores and bringing a medicinal heat to sore, stiff muscles and to induce deep relaxation. It is also ideal for chronic stress or anxiety, while also giving the body's energy reserves a huge boost to revive body and mind.

Present time philosophy has moved from pain-is-gain approach and away from the curative emphasis towards a preventative one.

Contact Maureen to book your Thai massage experience at ZEST Massage.

This past weekend saw the launch of an exciting and unique campaign aimed at raising funds for Wildlands' Rhino conservation projects. The campaign will see R5 donated to the Wildlands Conservation Trust for every breakfast sold at JAXX Restaurant (Hilton Quarry Shopping Centre) over a one month period. The breakfast customers will also have the opportunity to match the JAXX donation with a R5 personal contribution to anti-poaching efforts in KwaZulu – Natal. The 'Poach eggs not Rhino' campaign was launched at 08h00 on Saturday and by last count on Sunday (the 16th of March), JAXX had already sold over 200 breakfasts!

The breakfast options are as follows:

Project Rhino Tracker Breakfast - fresh rocket, avocado slices and soft poached eggs with a slice of health toast

Project Rhino Aerial Support Breakfast - traditional benedict- poached eggs, hollandaise sauce and hickory ham on a english muffin

Project Rhino Investigations Breakfast - early start- 2 eggs, bacon, mushrooms grilled tomato, served with toast, butter and jam

Do your bit and contribute to anti-poaching efforts by purchasing a breakfast at JAXX Restaurant (Hilton Branch) – Book at 033 343 2226 or visit www.jaxxrestaurant.co.za

We are in the most "diabetogenic" era of all times. Cases of diabetes increase daily. The most common cause of blindness in the first world is Diabetes. When one looks at studies done in Iceland for instance this is entirely preventable if glucose levels are well controlled.

"The eyes are the window to the soul" (famous English proverb)

Similarly the eyes of a diabetic tell a story that relates quite closely to their diabetes control. The crux of the matter is: CONTROL. Once you have diabetes you have to manage it in such a way that you prevent macro and microvascular complications that occur if you walk around with high sugars.

Microvascular complications: Heart disease and heart attacks, strokes, limb disease that results in the need for amputation. Microvascular complications: kidney, eye and nerve disease otherwise known as nephropathy, retinopathy and peripheral neuropathy. This article concentrates on retinopathy – pathology (abnormality or disease of the back of the eye).

Previously (in years before the advent of laser and good control of glucose studies) nearly all type 1 diabetics had moderate to severe retinopathy after 20 years of having disease. Currently, especially with good control, although your risk for developing retinopathy increases as the years of having the disease does, certainly the risk of developing blindness has reduced dramatically , also the degree of damage to the back of the eye can be drastically reduced with early laser therapy.

The "pathology" that happens at the back of the eye can be explained by 3 mechanisms: the small vessels (blood vessels) leak, they start to make growth substance that causes "new vessels" to grow and eventually the vessels close and block. If you can imagine that walking around with a high blood sugar level is like pouring out a "sticky drink" inside your body and if you can realize that the blood vessels in your eyes are extremely small (smaller than a millimeter) then you can understand that "pouring out a sticky drink into an already tight space" is bad and causes damage.

So, how do you prevent damage at the back of the eye? Control. As a type1 or type 2 diabetic you need to aim for a good HbA1C and a good value would be 7. (Different international organizations have different values and one's age is also important in setting a target- so generally older patients should rather aim for 8/8.5)

HbA1c is a blood test that measures your sugar value on average over the previous 8-12 weeks. There are other values that are also of importance like fasting glucose, post-prandial (2 hours after a meal) and generally what your sugar runs at. In landmark trials done internationally: DCCT and EDIC (Diabetes control and complications trial and Epidemiology of Diabetes Intervention and Complications) the intensively controlled group had a decrease in risk of retinopathy of 76% and a slowing of progression of 54 % in patients who already had eye disease. In EDIC there was a 42 % decrease in any cardiovascular (heart) disease in the well controlled group.

So how does one achieve control? Simply put: healthy diet, exercise, correct medication, regular (once a year) eye checks. Studies show that the simple intervention of having your eyes checked once a year reduces your risk of developing eye disease dramatically – partly because early disease can be treated quickly and easily and partly because a greater awareness is created.

Exercise is one of the most underrated therapies in this modern time. It is truly an elixir far underutilized. In the Finnish Diabetes Prevention Programme, in subjects who exercised regularly (and properly – actually breaking a sweat) there was a 43% risk reduction in developing diabetes. In all exercise related studies done it shows massive benefit in controlling glucose, releasing stress, general wellness but greatly improved outcome for diabetes complications including eye disease. The bottom line is that exercising decreases your HbA1c and in so doing reflects in less diabetic retinopathy and protection for eyes. Very importantly, depending on the type of eye disease you as the individual have, you need advice on what type of exercise to do – for example : if you have proliferative diabetic retinopathy you should not bungi jump or do contact types of sports. Thus seeing your eye care specialist once a year is very important in terms of advice regarding exercise too.

There is also a direct correlation between lipids – like cholesterol and triglycerides and eye disease. In a large recent study participants with high
Triglycerides started on a medication called a fibrate (to lower triglycerides) showed a 30 – 40 % reduction in retinopathy. This is both interesting in the correlation and the efficacy of the medication. We have long known the link between cholesterol and heart attacks so this is interesting to see this same link with eye disease. If you are a diabetic make sure you know what your triglyceride level is, if it is high you will definitely benefit from a fibrate to lower your level which will protect your eyes at the same time.

In both the long and the short term, diabetics will greatly benefit from glucose control. Without a doubt – and proven by Iceland – good control of diabetes leads to no blindness at the end of the day.

In summary : aim for a glucose level of 7 by eating correctly, using medication to keep the sugars well controlled, exercising regularly and in the right way for you specifically and have your eyes checked once a year. You will see the benefits!

Written by Dr Claudine Lee – GP 26 Hilton Avenue 033 343 2243 (Family practitioner with an interest in diabetes and eye conditions as well as women's health, botox and general ailments).

Grace College pupils, Megan Davidovics (Grade 11) and Brennah Coslett (Head girl), representing the Durban Rowing Club, participated in the South African Rowing Championships at Roodeplaat Dam recently. They secured a gold medal in the U19 quad race. This win is a result of hard work and dedication – qualities that both Megan and Brennah also display in their school life at Grace College. We are proud of our graceful champions.

Pictured here are Megan Davidovics (left) and Brennah Coslett with their gold medals.

News and image supplied by Grace College.

On Saturday 5 April representatives of the Hilton Community Security Initiative (HCSi) set up stalls outside Spar and Jaxx at The Quarry shopping centre in Hilton. The aim was to raise awareness of the community security initiative, and attract support and membership from Hilton residents. Dale van Ryneveld, Chairperson of the HCSi, says "Bobbies-on-the-Beat has been successfully running pro-active neighbourhood patrols over the last seven years. This was introduced in 2006 due to the unacceptable level of crime in Hilton. Crime subsequently reduced dramatically, but we now need to adopt a more holistic approach to managing crime in our town". The HCSi currently has support from approximately half the residents, and is looking to grow this number in order to expand their crime prevention initiatives. If you would like further information, please sms 076 790 6311, or send an e-mail to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Click here to join as a paying member of this initiative.

Waist circumference is an independent risk factor for heart disease. That is, if your tummy is more than 80cm if you are a lady and >94cm if you are a gentleman, when you put a tape measure around the broadest circumference then you have a higher risk of heart disease as well as diabetes even if all your other health parameters are normal.

The reason being that the "abdominal fat" that gathers at the waist is like an organ of its own that produces certain bad chemicals that in turn cause abnormalities in blood vessels generally but the damage is more marked in the heart due to the smaller calibre of blood vessels that feed the heart. Researchers have found that the fat deposited here is a more dangerous fat than when it is anywhere else in the body. So the beer boep (muffin handles) is a "dangerous" appendage.

This is a cause for concern at a time such as the Easter season – when adding to the appendage is a real danger. This does not mean abstinence is mandatory. The key word is: moderation. By dishing up a portion of each of the festive foods, that is possibly less than you would usually, you can still celebrate and enjoy whilst you keep that waist circumference at least at the measurement it currently is and then aim for a reduction when the new year's resolutions kick in.

Your own health is certainly a present that you can give yourself at Easter time and by concentrating on this one principle of reducing "waist circumference" you will prevent two serious chronic conditions and be able to celebrate more Easters with your family.

Remember also that alcohol contains calories that by definition of the "beer boep" tend to go to the waist. Once again moderation is key, for women one glass of wine (or equivalent) and for men two glasses (or equivalent) is the recommended maximum daily dosage. If you are trying to lose weight cutting out the alcoholic beverages will certainly cut down on calories.

Healthy living is a choice. Heart disease and Diabetes (type 2) are both preventable diseases. At the same time if you have either disease they are also a "manageable" and one can certainly prevent progression and further complications. Whilst tis a season to be jolly and being jolly is also good for the heart, think about what you eat and drink this time of the year before just plunging into the indulgence as a matter of course.

Written by Dr Claudine Lee (GP 26 Hilton Avenue 033 343 2243) with a special interest in women's health, diabetes and lifestyle diseases).

Statistics SA will be conducting a Labour Force Survey in the Hilton Area as from 3 April 2014 to 3 May 2014, 08:00 to 19:00 daily.

Two members will be conducting their survey in a Grey Toyota Corolla with registration number: ND 563 019.

They will be visiting the following addresses, as supplied by their head office:
9 Hayfields Road
18 Acutt Road
28 Leonards Road
4B Sundale Drive
20 Keans Drive
33 Mauch Road
14 Panorama Road
55 Panorama Road
4 Daisy Road
14 Daisy Road

SAPS Hilton verified their validity.

Submitted by W/O L LANCASTER, CIO – HILTON SAPS, 033 845 6517 / 079 696 3736, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Hilton's expanding (not in girth but in number) community volunteers are freshly energised to combat crime and the following is an extract from a brochure that is being distributed.

STOP COMPLAINING - BE A PART OF THE SOLUTION!

BRING NEW IDEAS – STOP WAITING FOR SOMETHING TO BE DONE FOR YOU - IT'S NOW OR NEVER!

We call ourselves a 'community', but these days fewer people in Hilton even know their neighbours!

Make greater efforts to know one another as a community. Your television does not care about you, but your neighbour might save your life! Knowing one another, we have a far better chance at overall improved security. Knowing your street members names, telephone & cell numbers is a great advantage. Being conscientious about keeping gates closed and keeping security alarms active will also help. Attend HCSI meetings!

This Crime initiative has been driven by people who have done so selflessly and without reward . By you contributing to this community initiative financially and with new ideas; we will greatly advance this cause to being even better.

COME ON -JOIN TODAY!

You will find representatives of HCSi at The Quarry Centre on Saturday, the 5th April, where they will have forms for you to join this valuable initiative.

Once again, rain prevented play on Tuesday, but we played happily on Thursday. John Fowler provided some super young potatoes as prizes. Winners were the Plukes and Vince Seale. Jenny Hammond was rewarded for scoring six touchers. Thanks to John.

The Prickett Cup competition was played on Saturday following a generous lunch provided by Quarry Spar. Winners of the trophy and vouchers from Spar were Derick Hull, Bill McQuade and John Bayley. In second place were Jean and John Pluke and Arthur Daugherty. Third place went to Tom Hartley, Joan Byrom and Mike Guest. Well done to the victors and sincere thanks to Spar for their support for our club.

The draws for the Men's and Women's nominated pairs are on the board. Entrants are urged to play all their games promptly. Our new competitions secretary, Dave Garrard has warned that those who do not complete matches timeously will be scratched.

This Saturday we will play for vouchers from Lindsay's Coffee Shop.

Duties: 23 – 29 Mar: OOD: George Oldham. Tabs: Colin Watson. Duty Team: Colin Watson.
Teas on 29 Mar: Thelma & Mike Mylne. Biscuits: 25 & 27 Mar. Margie & Dave Garrard.

News supplied by Hilton Bowling Club.

Launching the monthly UNWIND special at Protea Hotel Hilton, businessmen and women are invited to unwind on the last Friday of every month from 3pm to 7pm, at Protea Hotel, Hilton. Buy one drink and get one free, bar snacks will be provided. Bring your business card for the lucky draw.

Each month all business cards received will go into a draw to win one of the following:
• Breakfast voucher for two at Protea Hotel, Hilton over any weekend
• Massage voucher from in-house therapist at Protea Hotel Hilton: Maureen, owner of ZEST Massage
• A Gift Hamper

The special begins on Friday the 28th March 2014 until further notice.

Garlington Village: A first for Hilton! Brand new supreme upmarket village to simplify your retirement, within the already established Garlington Estate offering all the amenities specific to the retiree and theretiring as well as offering the amenities for the vibrant and the active.

One of a kind and extremely rare to be able to have the best of both worlds for the active over 55 who is downscaling in size of home and upkeep, but not in quality and lifestyle. Once you have chosen your perfect home this will be built especially for you and will be ready for occupation right down to a landscaped garden.

The estate is positioned in the heart of the KZN midlands, amongst the picturesque rolling green hills with the quaint small upmarket town of Hilton with excellent shopping to meet all needs, with no traffic. While still being only minutes from the capital Pietermaritzburg and an hour's drive from Durban. All garden service and repairs and maintenance of your home will be taken care of as part of the levy.

The Village and the extended Estate have huge grounds with loads of common property allowing for long walks or rides in complete safety. For your enjoyment the estate has tennis courts, a pool, a herd of Nguni cows, buck and a profusion of bird life. To cover every need and eventuality there is nursing staff, 24 hour security, controlled access as well as transport.

The green was sodden on Tuesday after more than 65mm of rain overnight. When it started drizzling again just after lunch-time it became obvious that play would be impossible. By Thursday the rain had abated a bit and 27 people came to play. Three of our coaches took candidates for the NIBA Novices' Singles competition and gave them some pointers.

The IF Sponsored Trips on Friday morning was won by Thelma and Mike Mylne playing with Bill McQuade. Second prize went to Jean Pluke and her team. The winners took home generous meat hampers provided by Investment Facilitators. Thanks to David, Lloyd and Etzel.

Seven of our newer bowlers played in the novices singles on Saturday afternoon. Richard Lister was the most successful of these, winning both of his games and progressing to the quarter finals. On Sunday, Richard went down 21 – 15 after a very determined fight back from 2 – 13. Well done to all our players, but especially to Richard.

We played for potatoes on Saturday. Winners were Joan Byrom and Bernice O'Neil-Williams. Deirdre McQuade and Dave Hammond also got some spuds for scoring 7 and 5 touchers respectively. Thanks to John Fowler for the prizes.

The Quarry Spar Lunch and Prickett Cup tournament will take place on Saturday. Please note that this starts at 08:30, and the lunch will go ahead even if it rains.

Duties: 16 – 22 Mar: OOD: Derick Hull. Tabs: Fred Palmer. Duty Team: Dave Hammond.

Teas on 22 Mar: Tom Hartley & Tony Francis. Biscuits: 18 & 20 Mar. Vernon Hickinbotham & Daphne Frangs.

News and image supplied by Hilton Bowling Club.

Local married woman Melissa Vurovecz makes semi-finalist Mrs SA on the third of March 2014.

Melissa Vurovecz was selected along with 54 other contestants as a semi-finalist for the Mrs South Africa which is a pageant for sophisticated, real, genuine, successful, and married women who juggle families and careers.

Why Mrs SA?
I am passionate about empowering women through their self- image and believe a good self-image is key for success. My aim is to motivate, encourage and inspire woman to see the potential in themselves. A motto I would like to pass on to woman would be, "be yourself because there is no one else on earth like you, you are made with a unique and significant purpose. Be different. Be YOU. "I believe that if a woman can love herself and truly embrace her uniqueness she can be confident and accomplish her dreams. I'm excited about changing the lives of women all over South Africa by helping them gain confidence about themselves. The Mrs South Africa has provided me with the national platform I need to touch lives.

Having overcome a low-esteem I believe that I can help women and girls by sharing my own experiences. Once I was shy school girl who never saw my potential and now I am a vibrant, confident, and enthusiastic woman who is accomplishing my dreams and has achieved many of them too.

I urgently need the support of my community to help secure a place in the finals. Please SMS my name and surname, 'MELISSA VUROVECZ' to 35959, SMS's cost R3 per SMS. You can vote as many times as you like! Voting lines close on the 12 of April.