By Raphiatu Musah
Mother nature throws several challenges at us through seasons and times. Whereas some seasons are characterized by drought and famine, there are seasons which come with an abundance of rains and floods. Just when people think they have seen it all in our part of the world, along comes another, the harmattan, which has intensified recently.
The harmattan season usually begins in late November and runs through mid-March. The season usually comes with sharp declines of humidity in the air causing dryness and spells of dust waves. It is during this season that people experience dry and scaly skin, cracked lips, and feet. Most individuals during this time switch to taking hot shower instead of a cold bath. They also tend to stay a bit longer indoors to escape the cold mornings. The harmattan is sometimes severe in some areas or regions than others. Areas including the five regions of the north as well as the Bono and Ahafo regions often bear the brunt of the harmattan season. Some residents of the Bono region explained to GBCGHANAONLINE how the harmattan season has been in the region.
“Due to the weather in these parts of the country, the harmattan is very severe. So in the morning we stay indoors until midday. The dryness of the weather causes our lips and skin to dry up, so we tend to using shea butter to mitigate the impact on our skin.”
“The weather is very harsh now. If there’s hot water to bath, there’s no way one can have a bath. Even after taking your bath one has to sit close to the fire in other to feel the warmth before being able to step out of your abode.”
How are people taking care of themselves during the dry, humid weather? Some Ghanaians shared their views.
“I mix shea butter with my regular pomade to prevent my skin from getting rough and to look nice.”
“The harmattan this time around is not severe, so I bought baby oil but realised it dries up on my skin in no time. Every morning after my bath, I apply shea butter to my skin and lips. It is long-lasting and keeps me going.”
Aside the warmth that many seek by sitting, it is also during this period that the use of shea butter and petroleum jelly is rampant. How has this market been, especially for those in the shea butter business? Here are the thoughts of some of them at the Kasoa market, in the central region.
“People are buying a lot this time around, but shea butter is expensive. Consignments that we used to get for Fifty Ghana cedis now cost between One hundred and twenty Ghana cedis to One hundred and fifty Ghana cedis.
Patronage of shea butter this time around is very high, but generally the product has become very expensive due to no fault of traders.”
The severity of the harmattan in the daily lives of adults is overwhelming. So, the question is whether it has any negative impact on infants? A specialist pediatrician at the Korle-Bu teaching hospital, Dr. Hilda Mantebea-Boye, in an interview encouraged parents to take extra care of their babies since they have very delicate and sensitive skin. She also urged them to be mindful of the kind of clothes they put on their kids.
“Babies skin are very sensitive and delicate, so one has to use shea butter, petroleum Jelly or moisturizers on their kids. In the mornings when it’s cold parents should know what to wear their kids and in the afternoon when it’s hot too.”
Just as the Ghana National Fire Service has intensified public education to reduce the spate of fire outbreaks during season, it is equally important for us to take good care of ourselves. Perhaps it is the only period Shea butter traders could cash in and recoup to supplement their income levels. Hope you have some of these protective creams since we are all affected in one way or another.
