Good Food is First Food. It is not junk food. It is the food that connects nature and nutrition with livelihoods. This food is good for our health; it comes from the rich biodiversity of our regions; it provides employment to people. Most importantly, cooking and eating give us pleasure. …
recent cases, such as the one in Uttar Pradesh in which an hiv-positive woman was denied treatment during pregnancy, or that of the woman who was killed in Andhra Pradesh on the mere suspicion that she had contracted the disease, have underscored the need for corrective action. Now, the groundwork …
Between May and June 2001, about 2,500 people thronged the alpine meadows of district Pithoragarh in Uttaranchal. About 100 tents sprung up, often occupied by entire families. Then in July, local newspapers splashed the stories of two murders that had occurred in and around the Chipla Kot region. What were …
the Union government has drawn up ambitious plans for hiv/aids. A decision to merge the aids programmes with those of tuberculosis (tb) and family welfare was taken at the eighth conference of the Central Council Of Health And Family Welfare in Delhi. The council is the highest decision-making body on …
wall stalled: A mid-level court in South Korea has stayed further work on the Saemangeum Sea Wall which, upon completion, would be the world's largest coastal drainage project. More than 3500 citizens and local environmental groups had earlier filed a case against the proposed structure. Conservationists contend that construction of …
Is traditional medicine the answer to the healthcare needs of the state? In rural areas, traditional medicine is the major healthcare option. It is well respected, as western medicine system is non-existent in far-flung places. Even otherwise, traditional and modern practitioners participate equally in providing healthcare. Our medicines are highly …
these days bioceramic health products are the rage in Kerala. The markets are flooded with bioceramic t-shirts, vests, briefs, shoes, sandals, necklaces, bed-sheets and facial masks that are supposed to emit far infrared rays. The propagators of these products claim that they can cure all sorts of ailments
• The river linking panel headed by Suresh Prabhu recently formed a "communication core group for mass awareness' for the purpose of monitoring news and to convey the benefits of the massive enterprise to the layperson. • Despite strict laws banning sex determination tests, including pre-conception technologies, some unscrupulous doctors …
The World Health Organisation (who) has refused to dilute its warning on curbing sugar intake despite facing severe criticism from the industry lobby. A who report recently recommended that sugars should not contribute more than 10 per cent of the energy in an average daily diet. The sugar and soft …
A recent review of editorial boards of ten leading international psychiatry journals has revealed almost nil representation from developing countries. Shekhar Saxena, coordinator, mental health unit of World Health Organization (who), conducted this review, searching for board members from low-income and middle-income countries using the income criteria set by who. …
Lalnunmawii (name changed) lives in the Saron Veng locality of Mizoram’s capital, Aizawl. Of her eight siblings, three (two brothers and a sister) have fallen prey to cancer. One of her closest childhood friends died of stomach cancer in 2002. This woman’s husband had succumbed to oral cancer five years …
When Sanjay Sharma, a 30-year-old truck driver, was detected with throat cancer in 2002, doctors at the New Delhi-based All India Institute of Medical Sciences informed him that he could not be cured. Even as he was shattered by this news, doctors referred him to the S hanti Avedna Ashram …
An average of 12 women die every day in Nepal due to complications arising from pregnancy. Most of these deaths occur due to lack of access to basic healthcare during pregnancy, childbirth and at the post-natal stage. These unpleasant facts came to light at a recent interactive programme organised by …
we still have some hopes. A new study indicates that a decrease in the sulphur content of fuels has major health gains for the community. Pollution by particulate matter is considered to be of prime importance in damaging health. The study is the first to show that reduction in levels …
The deadly Ebola virus has claimed at least 50 lives in the Republic of Congo. The Congolese ministry of health revealed that the victims belonged to Kelle and Mbou villages, in the Cuvette West region north of Brazzaville. Ebola is a deadly viral disease that causes death due to massive …
us politicians and insurance companies proclaim they offer the best healthcare services in the world. These are nothing more than tall claims. Recently, top us experts have admitted that the system is about to collapse. During the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science
The polio virus (pv) is possibly the most innocuous virus that affects humans. The improvement of sanitation standards across the world has meant fewer people are afflicted by polio as infants, upsetting the historical balance between virus and host. But, since poorer sections still live in squalor and consume water …
manufacturers of breast milk substitutes are grossly violating an international code while selling their products in West Africa. So says a study published in the British Medical Journal. The study has been conducted by Victor M Aguayo of Helen Keller Worldwide, a us-based research organisation; Jay S Ross from the …
AIDS Messages What do Sushma Swaraj and George W Bush have in common? A mutual contempt of condoms, for one. The us president is known to prefer spreading the word about abstinence over safe sex. Sushma Swaraj too favours this mode. The bbc World Service Trust, in partnership with Doordarshan …
india has finally taken note of the correlation between health and economic deve-lopment. The Union government has set up the National Commission on Macro-economics and Health to understand the link between the two. The panel will be jointly co-ordinated by the Union ministry of health and family welfare (mohfw) and …
