Freedom to Roam Is 'Every Man's Right" in Sweden

Freedom to Roam Is 'Every Man's Right" in Sweden
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Freedom to Roam Is 'Every Man's Right" in Sweden

Freedom to Roam Is 'Every Man's Right" in Sweden

Some countries have easier measures when it comes to camping permissions and roaming in private lands. However, in Sweden, the right to roam is protected by the law. Known as "Allemansrätten", the right to roam in Sweden allows all citizens to wander freely in nature, even in private properties. This means people can head to a vast forest for camping around fire, searching for food, swimming, or taking a boat ride in one of many lakes and rivers, the German News Agency reported.

While many other European countries such as Scotland, Austria, and Switzerland ensure their citizens the freedom and right to roam in public, the Scandinavian laws are the most welcoming regulations for wanderers. Yet, there are actually some rules! In Sweden, people are allowed to set fires in forests as long as they use the wood found on the ground, and act responsibly. However, they are not allowed to break or cut tree branches, or write on their trunks unless they are private property and their owners don't mind it.

In natural reserves and national parks featuring preserved species of animals or plants, stricter rules may be applied when it comes to horse riding or setting fires, for instance. In these places, picking mushrooms, berries, and walnuts is forbidden.

In Sweden, fishing is allowed for everyone and without an official license. Carl Undéhn from the tourism platform "Visit Sweden" said "People can fish in almost all major lakes including Vättern, Vänern, Mälaren, Storsjön, and Hjälmaren."

As per small internal lakes, fishing lovers would need a license known as "Fiskekort." Vacationers can buy a one-day license from gas stations, hotels, or via special websites for around 50 to 100 Swedish krona (5 to 10 dollars). Weekly and annual tickets are also available.

People who might need some guidance can attend survival courses that would teach them about food sources and campfires in forests.



Blood Tests Allow 30-year Estimates of Women's Cardio Risks, New Study Says

A woman jogs in a park in Saint-Sebastien-sur-Loire near Nantes, France January 19, 2024. REUTERS/Stephane Mahe/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights
A woman jogs in a park in Saint-Sebastien-sur-Loire near Nantes, France January 19, 2024. REUTERS/Stephane Mahe/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights
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Blood Tests Allow 30-year Estimates of Women's Cardio Risks, New Study Says

A woman jogs in a park in Saint-Sebastien-sur-Loire near Nantes, France January 19, 2024. REUTERS/Stephane Mahe/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights
A woman jogs in a park in Saint-Sebastien-sur-Loire near Nantes, France January 19, 2024. REUTERS/Stephane Mahe/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights

Women’s heart disease risks and their need to start taking preventive medications should be evaluated when they are in their 30s rather than well after menopause as is now the practice, said researchers who published a study on Saturday.

Presenting the findings at the European Society of Cardiology annual meeting in London, they said the study showed for the first time that simple blood tests make it possible to estimate a woman’s risk of cardiovascular disease over the next three decades.

"This is good for patients first and foremost, but it is also important information for (manufacturers of) cholesterol lowering drugs, anti-inflammatory drugs, and lipoprotein(a)lowering drugs - the implications for therapy are broad," said study leader Dr. Paul Ridker of Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, Reuters reported.

Current guidelines “suggest to physicians that women should generally not be considered for preventive therapies until their 60s and 70s. These new data... clearly demonstrate that our guidelines need to change,” Ridker said. “We must move beyond discussions of 5 or 10 year risk."

The 27,939 participants in the long-term Women’s Health Initiative study had blood tests between 1992 and 1995 for low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C or “bad cholesterol”), which are already a part of routine care.

They also had tests for high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) - a marker of blood vessel inflammation - and lipoprotein(a), a genetically determined type of fat.

Compared to risks in women with the lowest levels of each marker, risks for major cardiovascular events like heart attacks or strokes over the next 30 years were 36% higher in women with the highest levels of LDL-C, 70% higher in women with the highest levels of hsCRP, and 33% higher in those with the highest levels of lipoprotein(a).

Women in whom all three markers were in the highest range were 2.6 times more likely to have a major cardiovascular event and 3.7 times more likely to have a stroke over the next three decades, according to a report of the study in The New England Journal of Medicine published to coincide with the presentation at the meeting.

“The three biomarkers are fully independent of each other and tell us about different biologic issues each individual woman faces,” Ridker said.

“The therapies we might use in response to an elevation in each biomarker are markedly different, and physicians can now specifically target the individual person’s biologic problem.”

While drugs that lower LDL-C and hsCRP are widely available - including statins and certain pills for high blood pressure and heart failure - drugs that reduce lipoprotein(a) levels are still in development by companies, including Novartis , Amgen , Eli Lilly and London-based Silence Therapeutics.

In some cases, lifestyle changes such as exercising and quitting smoking can be helpful.

Most of the women in the study were white Americans, but the findings would likely “have even greater impact among Black and Hispanic women for whom there is even a higher prevalence of undetected and untreated inflammation,” Ridker said.

“This is a global problem,” he added. “We need universal screening for hsCRP ... and for lipoprotein(a), just as we already have universal screening for cholesterol.”