Moving to a new neighborhood is always challenging and there are lots of things in and around to take in.

One of them is the issue of security, so we decided we could help.

Taylor Movers Kenya has more than 10 year experience in helping people move combined with the 10 year experience of Soli Kiluta the CEO of Cavalier International, a security firm based here in Nairobi, we came up with these security tips.

Safety & Security Checklist when Relocating:

When relocating, here are some things to consider to ensure your security:

A) Prior to the Move

1. 1. Do your homework. Before you move into that dream home, do some research about the area. This information may be easier to get than most people realize. By befriend any of the following you will get to know about any security, noise, service or other concerns of the neighborhood.  When you have found the house you want to move into talk to any of the following to assist you know your neighbor hood before you move in. Talk to the caretaker, askari, previous tenants agent, previous tenant if possible, local police post. These are just some of the few people who have an invaluable insite into the new neighborhood.
2. 1. Before you move document all aspects of your new and old house. Take pictures of the all areas this way you will have documented the original house and the final house. This will help you to confirm a number of things later such as damages etc. This is especially for the new house you are moving into, once you do this and save the pictures to your email/cloud when you choose to move out of that new house you will have the condition of the house when you moved in. Reduces disputes between you and the land lord of the new or existing house.
3. 1. Before you move you need to know if there is a security feature missing from the house such as door locks, burglar proofing, razor wire or electric fence, alarms, access control etc. Before you sign the lease is the best time to request the land lord to ensure these items are added to the house before you sign on the dotted line.
4. 1. Before moving to any house in Kenya you need to know if there are any damages or safety concerns. If there are any loose or exposed wires, leaking pipes or plumbing. Inspect the home and ensure this is not an issue, in the event it is an issue ask the land lord to fix them prior to signing a lease.
5. 1. Moving in Kenya to a building with an elevator, ensure that the management of the building gives you express permission to utilize the lift prior to the move date.
6. 1. Prepare your family prior to the move date, ensure that they have located and secured all valuable items prior to the move this includes but is not limited to cash, jewelry, certificates, titles, micro electronics (phones, cameras, laptops, projectors). To avoid loosing any of this during the move we strongly recommend that these items are kept in the custody of the home owner through out the moving exercise.
7. 1. Inform all domestic staff to be present throughout the move to direct and assist throughout the move process. While moving many homes in Nairobi Kenya domestic staff have a very good idea of what the contents of the home. They are very helpful in ensuring a successful house move.
8. 1. Get to know the part of Kenya you are moving to: Before the move date we recommend that you know the following emergency contacts, document them and post them somewhere centrally located in your home:
      1. Local Police Station or Police Post and contact of a senior officer e.g. Officer in Charge of Police Station (OCS).
      2. Nearest emergency health facility.
      3. Several close by ambulance services. It is critical to know more than one as they sometimes get busy, ensure the ones on your list have fully services/functional ambulances. Some ambulance services do not have sufficient medical devices too ensure that they can sustain life as you travel to the hospital.
      4. Local security service provider contacts and the contacts of the head office.
      5. Home owners association contacts and social media groups(mainly whatsapp groups).
      6. Reliable and convenient shopping locations in case of an emergency that restricts movement within your area.
      7. Available public transportation stops and routes.
9. 1. Finally chose a moving company like Taylor Movers.
      1. Experience & Training: At Taylor we ensure that our movers are well trained and before they are given a chance to handle any of your items they have gotten experience through our Training Academy.
      2. Insurance: At Taylor Movers Kenya we ensure we cover all items we move with an Insurance cover. As carefull as we will be during your move there may be an accident. If this happens we are confident that you will be satisfied by our resolution of this accident though our insurance cover.
      3. Our Materials: At Taylor Movers Kenya we ensure that your items are wrapped with the best quality materials to reduce the chances of any items being damaged through the move process whether your moving from Kilimani to Karen or from Nairobi, Kenya to Brasilia, Brazil. We use world class material during our packing process. Each item is individually packed and wrapped by our experienced packing teams.

B) During the Move

1. 1. 1. 1. Ensure that only the moving crew are present during the move. This is not the time to have alot of friends, fundis or anyone else who is not directly involved in the home move process at either origin or destination houses. This reduces the risk of having an item disappear or even get damaged.
      2. 1. Often when a move is being conducted there may be work taking place at the origin and at the destination. Because of this it is always a good idea to have at least two people from your home present so this way there is one person at origin and one at destination.
      3. 1. Keep all valuables such as cash, jewelry, certificates, titles, micro electronics (phones, cameras, laptops, projectors) in your possession at all times. The movers will not take your items but during the transition it is very easy to misplace these items. Keep them locked in a place where only you have access.
      4. 1. Allow the moving experts to work freely. When Taylor Movers Kenya sends  a team to execute your move, they are experts at moving all kinds of items from precious artworks, pianos, safes, crystal, fine china, vases etc.  Once you show the team you have confidence in there expertise they will be more determined to do their best work.
      5. 1. During your move ensure that the kids are in a safe place throughout the move. It is always a good idea to involve them in the move however when it comes to handling the heavy and sensitive items it is best that they leave this to the professionals. If possible have them pack their toys and go to either a neighbors or relatives home for the duration of the move. This will ensure that they move proceeds quickly and that there is no chance of any accidents.
      6. 1. At Taylor Mover we go out of our way to ensure that we think of everything when it comes to moving your home or office. However accidents to do happen. Our teams always have a first aid box with them when they come to execute a move. We also recommend that you have a first aid kit prior to the move. If there is an accident at origin or at destination there will always be a first aid kit to help address the issue.
      7. 1. Benefits of using a moving company is confidentiality. We at Taylor Movers Kenya ensure that we pack and wrap all your items. This is to ensure they are secure during the move but also it ensure that any noisy neighbors or ill willed individuals to not get to know what you have in our home, both at the origin house or the destination house.

C) After the Move

1. 1. 1. 1. 1. Change your Locks and Padlocks: In most cases we tend to believe we are moving to a safe and secure neighborhood. In our experience we encourage our clients to ensure that they change ALL locks and Padlocks in there new homes on the day of the move. In most cases there may be copies or your keys that you are not aware of. Anyone from the askari or
         2. 1. Use a lock box for keeping your spare keys. Keep the lock box code a closely guarded secret that only a few key people are aware of.
         3. 1. Keep a first aid box, emergency contacts in a public place where everyone in the home can be able to easily access them. Ensure that there is always someone in the home who understands basic first aid or CPR. There are course given by St. Johns ambulance or Nairobi hospital that will allow you to ensure that yourself or your domestic staff can confidently react to an emergency if it occurs. Some domestic staff may state that they have been trained, do not take there word for it, choose to have them take the training afresh.
         4. 1. Security lights & Flash lights. Ensure all Security lights are up and running. In the event a security bulb or the wiring has an issue, address it prior to moving in to the house or as soon as possible after moving.
         5. 1. Gas & Smoke detectors. This is a major security factor that we have found lacking in many homes. These detectors ensure that in the event of a fire or a gas leak you will be notified early enough to respond to the impending danger. Your loved ones safety is very important and we would like to give you the peace of mind to know that if there was any kind of issue, they will be saved in good time.
         6. 1. Make your home a fortress of sorts. Install security equipment to secure your home. This equipment can be the real thing or equipment that looks like the real thing but will act as a deterrent for any one with bad intentions. In this group we include the following:

• Controls access to your premises
• Know your mover and conceal your contents
• Purchase a Security System (Alarm, CCTV)
• Get a guard dog

1. 1. 1. 1. 1. Backup power: There are many solutions on the market these days. We will mention the following:
            3. 1. Backup Generator: these range from a small 5Kva generator to a huge 100Kva generator. We believe a 15-20Kva is more than enough for most homes.
            4. 1. Inverters : These are very convenient and help you avoid the noise most generators cause. There price ranges vary, choose the one that is best for your home.
            5. 1. Solar: As technology advances there are many options when it come to solar. First it is a very environmentally friendly option. Solar may cost you at the onset, but after some time it is a very cost effective way of managing your power needs without relying solely on the power grid.
         2. 1. Internet security: These days it is important to remember that there are multiple aspects of you home that you need to secure. Whether this is your data, privacy or just ensuring your neighbor is not taking advantage your internet service. For most home having a not so easy to break WiFi password is enough to deter most intruders. You may also choose to have a firewall to ensure that if anyone tries to intrude on your network it is not very easy to gain access to it. As time goes by this will be come a very important part of securing you home. As more and more gadgets are connected to the internet, it will be important to start considering how secure your home network is.
         3. 1. Familiarize yourself with the neighborhood & befriend your neighbors. In most cases your neighbors are your first respondents in the even that you are not home. Know them and let them know you. Have there contacts prominently displayed in your home, this way if an emergency occurs they can assist before you get a chance to get home.
         4. 1. Vet your workers and minders

The process of hiring a nanny/housekeeper is not easy and it can be quite daunting! Having someone come into your home and around all your personal belongings including kids is basically entrusting them with some great responsibilities, quite often more than anyone else in your life.

We’ve all heard those traumatic stories of house helps either by choice or lack of information have let some crazy things happen, We’ve all heard of that story where you as the employer come back home to an empty house and the house help standing there in the cold asking why you took so long to also tell her where you were moving.

Essentially, robbers swindled her into believing that you had ordered them to come to your home and move all your items to your new house, she lets them in and even assists. To your dismay, you’re just about to start furnishing your home from scratch. We wouldn’t wish such an experience on anyone and that’s why, we did this post, to educate you that there is a better option.

This post will ease that worry of ever hiring a house manager and let you know what to expect so you and your house manager can enjoy a long and fabulous working relationship built on trust and respect.

Get yourself a professional service:

BHM KENYA

JAZZA CENTRE

This month, we bring you two wonderful reads: (Click on the images to access the books)

A mind your health book to make sure you live long and healthy

A cookbook that will help you spice up the kitchen while keeping it healthy.

Yesterday I meet with my neighbors Mr. and Mrs. Chaka. They are 80 and 76 years old respectively.

Every home in the estate was represented to there home to discuss some issues with our neighbor hood. I have always admired this couple because apart from the care and respect they show each other, I envy the life they both live together.
They are more than 20 years returned from there careers, both deeply love and respect each other. What surprises me the most about them is the life they live today. They are both in great health and live active lives. They travel to see family and friends, they are active in the local Church and sit on various boards. All this although they remark that as time goes by they have fewer friends and age mates that attend these functions.

As I look at them and hope one day to be retired, with some income to support me but more importantly with the great health to allow me to enjoy the golden years. I asked them what there secret to good healthy living and this is what they shared. Mrs. Chaka said that unlike in there day or that of there parents there is something wrong with our health today. So many of their peers and younger depend on advice and guidance from institutions that may or may not have only our best interest at heart.

They both noticed that over the years it has become very clear that many institutions that they depended on to inform and advice them about the best way to manage different parts of our lives have conflicting interests. In there time there was alot of change, whether it was the education system, the financial landscape and many others.

However much they tried to control some of these aspect of their life it was largely out of there hands except for one, their health and the health of their family. For there health they decided to keep it simple. They choose to keep to there foods of old and shied away from a lot of the current convenience foods. They largely kept the nutritional ways of there forbearers.

The more I thought about it, the more it made sense to me. They choose to keep to what there parents ate a d they have the same superb health and longevity of there parents. The more I looked into it I also realized that there is a lot of conflicting information. Whether that is on the internet, newspapers, magazines etc.

This conflicting information tells a story of conflicting interests. Whether these conflicting interests are planned or not it is important to be aware of them.
If we look with a spectral eye at various institutions in society today we will see that some are influenced by the:

– Agri business industry
– Pharmaceutical industry
– Healthcare industry.

What this tells me is that if I want to have the kind of life that Mr. And Mrs. Chaka have I should play a more active role in understanding the pillars of good health. We are all blessed to live in the information age, this allows us to get information as long as we know where to look and what to look out for.

From this experience, it gave me the perspective to do some research of my own and I found these videos both interesting and informative. Spend some time viewing them and take the mantle of taking care of your health!

> Dr. T. Colin Campbel Why the science of nutrition is ignored in medicine

> Documentary What the Health

Take about aging and longevity. Dr. Ellsworth Wareham 98 years old

Planning to Improve your Fruit/Vegetable intake? We have just the right tech for you! 

Fruits and vegetables are important components of a healthy diet. Reduced fruit and vegetable consumption is linked to poor health and increased risk of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs). 

Including fruits and vegetables as part of the daily diet may reduce the risk of some NCDs including cardiovascular diseases and certain types of cancer. More limited evidence suggests that when consumed as part of a healthy diet low in fat, sugars and salt/sodium, fruits and vegetables may also help to prevent weight gain and reduce the risk of obesity, an independent risk-factor for NCDs. 

Moreover, fruits and vegetables are rich sources of vitamins and minerals, dietary fibre and a host of beneficial non-nutrient substances including plant sterols, flavonoids and other antioxidants and consuming a variety of fruits and vegetables helps to ensure an adequate intake of many of these essential nutrients. 

The World Health Organisation and Food and Agriculture of the United Nation reports recommend adults to consume at least five servings of fruits and vegetables per day excluding starchy vegetables. This review focuses on the importance of fruits and vegetables as well as the benefits and progress of nutrition education in improving intake. 

With the clear importance of Fruits & Vegetables, we need to improve our intake to keep healthy and our bodies in shape. With these two tools, you can simplify meal prep for vegetables and have a creative way to have your fruits: 

1. Rotary Vegetable, Fruit & Nut Shredder/ Grater 

With this simple and non-electric tool, you can slice and dice your way through all your vegetables. With 3 blade options, a fine shredder, a slicer drum and a coarse shredder you can shape your favourite ingredients the right way.  

You can get it via >> https://www.gadzone.co.ke/product/rotary-vegetable-fruit-nut-shredder-grater/  

See it’s application here:

2. Nutri Bullet NBR-0512 5 Piece Set 

Make delicious, nutritious smoothies with this Nutrition Extractor everyone’s raving about! Unlike juicers and blenders, NutriBullet nutrient extractors break down the cell walls of fibrous plant foods, releasing important vitamins and minerals contained within. At the same time, they reduce beneficial fiber, pulp, seeds, and skins into a smooth-as-silk texture, delivering food to your body in an easily digestible, easily absorbable form. More than juicing, more than blending, and more than chewing, nutrient extraction allows you to receive the highest degree of nutrition your food has to offer. 

• Cracks through fibrous stalks 
• Bursts open seeds 
• Rips apart pulp 

• Shreds through the skin of fruits and vegetables 

Enjoy your fruits in a healthy and easy way. You can grab one up here>> https://www.jumia.co.ke/nutribullet-nbr-0512-5-piece-set-blender-grey-15988364.html 

And you can see it in action on here >>

Cancer has become a big menace in the current society. Just recently this illness has robbed the country off prominent individuals such as Bob Collymore a very successful corporate leader, and a role model to many,  Ken Okoth a young promising member of parliament as well as Joyce Laboso who was among the very first female governors in the Kenya. Other than these prominent individuals in society, the illness affects many people in society who have to cope with the huge financial as well as emotional burden associated with this illness. Statistics from the World Health Organisation indicates that the levels of new cases of cancer have continued to increase over the years and this is a result of numerous factors such as the type of lifestyle that is led by people. It is possible to reduce the risk of cancer, and here are some tips that can assist you in minimizing the risk of this illness.  

Healthy diet 

The type of diet that you take up has a profound effect on your level of health, and it is, therefore, important to be mindful of the food that you eat in order to minimize the chances of getting cancer. It is advisable to reduce the level of intake of foods with high levels of fats, salt as well as sugar while at the same time increase the level of intake of whole-grain foods, vegetables as well as fruits which is an effective way of promoting good health.  

Avoid the use of tobacco substances 

Statistics from the World Health Organisation indicate that nearly 50% of long-term cigarette smokers end up with health complications, which include various forms of cancer, for instance lung cancer. It is advisable to avoid the use of tobacco, and if you currently use cigarettes, it is advisable to make the decision to quit this habit as it reduces the chances of contracting cancer.  

Maintain a healthy weight 

It is important to ensure that you maintain a healthy weight since overweight and obesity issues could contribute to the risks of cancer. It is important for you to carry out regular weight checks and engage in physical activity that allows the burning of extra calories in the body. It is advisable for you to enroll in a gym and get an instructor who will guide you on the right way to carry out physical exercises as well as the appropriate diet take in.  

Regular cancer screening 

There are many types of cancers in the body that can be detected in the early stages and dealt with in a accordingly. The earlier the cancer is detected in the body, the higher the chances of successful treatment, and therefore, it is advisable that you take part in cancer screening every once in a while. There are instances where non-governmental organization offer such services for free, and it is, therefore, important to take advantage of such opportunities as they could be a lifesaver.  

Vaccination 

It is possible to reduce the risk of cancer by getting vaccination against certain viral infections. By getting a vaccination of illnesses such as Hepatitis B and HPV, it is possible to minimize the risks of acquiring certain types of cancers such as liver cancer and cervical cancer.  

It is worth noting that there are different factors that may cause cancer in the body and while it may not be entirely possible to fully avoid the risks of cancer it is possible to minimize them to a large extent by living a healthy life. 

This is an interesting video on why your diet matters more than any other factor in your life

This video highlights how to avoid the 15 top killers.

Good health is considered to be an essential need for human beings ranking just after food, shelter and clothing. Many stakeholders in the health sector have significantly invested in ground-breaking research to come up with the best cures for all sorts of illnesses and while this is necessary, to say the least, there is need to focus more on prevention of diseases in the first place which has the potential of eliminating the vast financial, emotional and physical hustle that comes with treatment. Borrowing from the words of Dr. Gillian McKeith “You are what you eat,” it means that you can prevent most illnesses based on the food that you eat. Here are some essential recommendations on nutrition which can go a long way in helping to avoid the risks of several types of illnesses 

1. Plant-based diet 

A recent study conducted by researchers from Harvard University indicates that by adopting a plant-based diet, you can reduce the likelihood of getting obesity and type 2 diabetes by a margin of 23% as compared to individuals who consume a diet with animal products. Plant-based diet enables you to have a higher intake of antioxidants which protects the body against numerous illnesses such as heart disease and cancer. Nutritionists recommend the consumption of organic fruits, vegetables as well as whole grains which offer more value to the body with significantly lower levels of toxins.  

2. Reduce the level of fat and calories intake

People with overweight and obesity issue are at high risk of contracting type 2 diabetes, heart disease as well as other terminal illnesses. It is possible to reduce the risk of contracting these illnesses by consuming foods with less fats and calories. Fats are essential for the body as they provide energy that supports the growth of cells however excessive consumption of fat in the body it leads to accumulation and this in turn results in weight issues that bring about various illnesses. There are different types of fats, and while natural fats may be considered healthier for consumption it is essential to avoid the use of saturated fats since they are harder to break down in the body and may therefore quickly accumulate in the blood vessels and heart leading to illnesses.  

3. Consume less processed foods

Processed food such a cereal for breakfast, cheese and bacon are consumed in huge volumes in this day and age, however, it is worth noting that most of these processed foods contain certain elements such unhealthy amounts of saturated sugars, sodium as well as other chemical compounds used in preservation that increase the risks of heart disease, cancer, diabetes as well as high blood pressure. Most of these processed foods do not contain the necessary nutritional elements such as fibre and minerals that are often taken away during the processing period.  

4. Healthy eating encourages more physical activities thus preventing diseases

When you consume a healthy diet for instance foods rich in whole grain, vitamin D, as well Omega-3 fatty acids it leads to boosting of your mood and therefore motivation to engage in physical activities which are an essential part in the prevention of illnesses such as cancer. 

It may not be possible to prevent the risk of falling ill wholly; however, by engaging in healthy eating habits, it is possible to reduce some of the illnesses that affect people in the current world. Processed foods may be convenient and appealing; however, organic and plant-based diets have been proven to be highly effective in enhancing good health.