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. …
Inorganic arsenic (iAs), a toxic metalloid, affects millions of people worldwide, mainly from drinking contaminated water. Arsenic is a human carcinogen that targets skin, lung, bladder, and possibly other sites. iAs and its methylated metabolites readily cross the placenta and reach the fetus [National Research Council (NRC) 1999], producing effects …
Food-assisted maternal and child health and nutrition programmes usually target underweight children younger than 5 years of age. Previous evidence suggests that targeting nutrition interventions earlier in life, before children become undernourished, might be more effective for reduction of childhood undernutrition.
The final report of the third National Family Health Survey (nfhs-3) is out, but doubts remain whether it will be used to improve national health policies. Although 100-odd research papers have been written using data from the previous two national family health surveys
non-stick gum: New easy-to-remove chewing gum is ready. Initial experiments show that the gum degrades naturally in water. The new gum adds a special polymer to modify its formulation, which alters the interfacial properties of the discarded gum cuds, making them less adhesive. The new gum is result of polymer …
marburg hemorrhagic fever: Following two cases of Marburg hemorrhagic fever in Uganda, scientists are collecting bats from the country's lead and gold mines where the victims had worked. Around five million bats live in and around these mines. Scientists are testing these bats for Marburg virus antibodies. Samples have been …
An international consortium of scientists recently emphasised on the irreversible harm that toxic chemicals can cause to foetuses and infants. The consensus was reached at the International Conference on Foetal Programming and Developmental Toxicity held in May at the north Atlantic Faroe Islands. Over 200 experts came out with the
a signal booster mobile tower over a maternity hospital in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, has become the point of an imprecise issue. Sultania Zanana Hospital, a 250-bed government maternity hospital, recently allowed cellular network company Airtel to install a mobile tower over its ante-natal and delivery ward for better connectivity. This …
Widely feted for its impressive performance in the social sector, a spate of deaths of newborns in one of the state's premier hospitals has raised questions over Kerala's overall healthcare system----- When one thinks of Kerala what immediately comes to mind is a lush-green "God's Own Country", a state with …
Anaemia is a widespread condition in India. The biggest cause is malnourishment and iron-poor diets. Though the best remedy is a good diet, anaemia has spawned a huge market for iron supplements, usually of the expensive variety (see box: Market slice). A 2006 market survey by the Drug Action Forum-Karnataka …
Malnutrition is the underlying cause of half of under-five child deaths. So even though the proximate cause of children dying may be measles, diarrhoea, diphtheria, jaundice or malaria, the real reason is that they are so weakened by malnutrition that their small bodies are unable to withstand infection. Half of …
shampoos may make your hair look good but appearances can be deceptive. A compound called diethanolamine (dea), which is used in shampoos to create foam, has been found to interfere with normal brain development of foetuses in pregnant mice, claim researchers at the University of Carolina at Chapel Hill in …
strongest glue: A bacterium that inhabits rivers, streams and human aqueducts uses nature's strongest glue to stay in one place, according to a study by scientists from Indiana University Bloomington and Brown University, both in the US. The scientists found a force of about 1 micronewton had to be applied …
garlic safety: Researchers from UK's Liverpool John Moores University claim that a garlic supplement may reduce the risk of heart attacks in patients with coronary problems. Led by Khalid Rahman and Gordon Lowe, the scientists found aged garlic extract decreases the chances of formation of blood clots. The extract targets …
methoxychlor (mxc), a common pesticide used on food crops, may reduce fertility in women, claim researchers at the Yale School of Medicine, the us. They found mxc suppressed expression of Hoxa10
theEuropean Parliament has permanently banned the use of six phthalates used for making toys following health concerns. The unanimous decision was taken in Brussels, Belgium on July 5. The decision comes as a reaffirmation of a temporary ban placed in Europe in 1999 on the use of this group of …
fishy plant: A team of Australian scientists has created a plant that yields the highly beneficial long-chain omega-3 fatty acids usually found in fish oil. Allan Green of CSIRO, an Australian research organisation in Canberra, and his team have developed a type of thale cress (Arabidopsis thaliana) by inserting genes …
