30 April, 2016

Snack on dark chocolate to prevent heart disease and diabetes

Fancy eating chocolates every day? You may soon have the recommendation of doctors to indulge a little as researchers have found that a dark chocolate bar daily could reduces the risk of developing diabetes and heart diseases. For the study, the researchers analysed data of 1,153 people aged 18-69 years old who were part of the Observation of Cardiovascular Risk in Luxembourg study. It was found that those who ate 100 g of chocolate a day — equivalent to a bar — had reduced insulin resistance and improved liver enzymes. Insulin sensitivity is a well-established risk factor to cardiovascular disease. The findings were published in the BritishJournal of Nutrition.

The analysis took into account lifestyle and dietary factors, including the simultaneous consumption of tea and coffee. This is because both drinks can be high in polyphenol, the substance which may provide chocolate with its beneficial cardiometabolic effects. ‘Given the growing body of evidence, including our own study, cocoa-based products may represent an additional dietary recommendation to improve cardio-metabolic health; however, observational results need to be supported by robust trial evidence,’ said Saverio Stranges, visiting academic at the University of Warwick Medical School in England.

‘Potential applications of this knowledge include recommendations by healthcare professionals to encourage individuals to consume a wide range of phytochemical-rich foods, which can include dark chocolate in moderate amounts,’ Stranges said. However, it is important to differentiate between the natural product cocoa and the processed product chocolate, which is an energy-dense food. Therefore, physical activity, diet and other lifestyle factors must be carefully balanced to avoid detrimental weight gain over time, the researchers warned.  

Source: www.healthsite.com

30.04.2016

Empathy is seeing with the eyes of another, listening with the ears of another and feeling with the heart of another

Alfred Adler

29 April, 2016

Over one million children under the age of 5 die every year in India

New Delhi: The government has said that more than a million children under the age of five die in India every year and more than half of the deaths occur within the first 28 days with prematurity and neonatal infections being the major causes.

“According to Sample Registration System (SRS) 2013, 1.26 million children under the age of five are estimated to die in India every year. 57 per cent of under-five deaths occur in (the) neonatal period, which is within the first 28 days of life, the major causes being prematurity and low birth-weight, neonatal infections, birth asphyxia and birth trauma,” Health Minister J P Nadda said in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha.

It said the major causes of under-five deaths in post-neonatal period are pneumonia and diarrhoea. With over 3.8 lakh children falling prey to pneumonia annually in the country, India tops a list of 15 countries in terms of total under-five deaths due to the disease He said the government has initiated an SMS based electronic vaccine intelligence network (e-VIN) to enable real time monitoring of vaccine stocks at 4,476 cold chain storage points.

These storage points exist across all 160 districts of three states – Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh – under Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (GAVI) Health System Strengthening support.

He said that the Under-five Mortality Rate (U5MR) is 49 per 1000 live births. To sharpen the focus on the low performing districts, 184 High Priority Districts (HPDs) have been identified for implementation of Reproductive Maternal Newborn Child Health+ Adolescent (RMNCH+A) interventions for achieving improved maternal and child health outcomes, the minister said.

Mr Nadda said Birth Defects Surveillance System (BDSS) is being established to serve as a tool for identifying congenital anomalies and it is a collaborative effort between the government, WHO and CDC.

According to Registrar General of India, SRS 2013, the Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) is 40 per 1000 live births while the the Neonatal Mortality Rate (NMR) is 28 per 1000 live births, he added.

Source: www.zeenews.india.com

29.04.2016

Judge a man by his questions rather than by his answers

Voltaire

28 April, 2016

Study says your ability to smell food declines as you age

Old age brings with it many health problems including the loss of vision, hearing and taste, and a new study says that the ability to smell the food through the mouth decreases with age. Human beings not only pick up aromas through the nose, but also through the mouth while chewing the food. Retronasal smell, which is smelling from behind the nose comes into play when food is chewed and volatile molecules are released in the process. These then drift through the mouth to the back of the nose where the odour is detected. But, unfortunately, for some, this ability decreases with age, said Tyler Flaherty from Oregon State University in the US. This might be, among other reasons, because of the prolonged use of medication or physical and mental changes associated with older age, the researchers noted in the study published in the journal Chemosensory Perception.

One’s ability to pick up smells through the mouth could also be influenced by, for instance, the use of dentures. The results revealed that many of the older participants found it difficult to pick out specific odours. However, younger participants fared better when individual smells where presented to them in combination with other tastes. ‘Generally, large individual differences in odour responsiveness become even greater when ageing is considered as a factor,’ Flaherty said. The team studied how people experience odours via their mouths, and whether age or gender has an influence on it.

They included 102 non-smoking healthy people between the ages of 18 and 72 years old participants in the study. The researchers then rated how intensely they pick up on two tastes (sweet and salty) and four odours (strawberry, vanilla, chicken and soy sauce) put to them. Participants were also exposed to these in combinations that go well together, such as sweet and vanilla, or salty and chicken. Significantly, only three percent of the participants had trouble picking up any traces of the sweet or salty tastes, whereas up to 23 percent of them found it difficult to detect some of the sampled odours.  

Source: www.thehealthsite.com

28.04.2016

Too many of us are not living our dreams because we are living our fears

Les Brown

27 April, 2016

At 7 crore, India has 2nd most diabetes cases

Diabetes is rapidly increasing in India with around seven crore cases registered among adults in 2015, whereas the prevalence of the disease increased by 80% among women between 1980 and 2014, the government said.

"As per the International Diabetes Federation (IDF), the estimated cases of diabetes in India in the age group of 20-70 years were 6.68 crore and 6.91 crore in 2014 and 2015 respectively," health minister J P Nadda said in Rajya Sabha.

India is among the top three countries in the world with high diabetic population, he added, citing a report of medical journal Lancet.

However, China, which used to have second highest prevalence of diabetes, has overtaken India, Nadda said citing a Indian Council of Medical Research study. As per International Diabetes Federation (IDF) Diabetes Atlas (7th Edition), China has the largest number of cases of diabetes (109.6 million) followed by India (69.1 million) and the US (29.3 million) in 2015.

Nadda said the government is implementing National Programme for Prevention and Control of Cancer, Diabetes, Cardiovascular Diseases and Stroke (NPCDCS) for interventions up to district level. NPCDCS has focused on awareness generation for behaviour and lifestyle changes, screening and early diagnosis of persons with high level of risk factors and their treatment and referral to higher facilities for appropriate management for noncommunicable diseases, including diabetes.

Source: www.timesofindia.com

27.04.2016

Another meaning of pain is LESSON

26 April, 2016

This handheld device may spot TB in just 20 minutes!

New Delhi: In what could be called as another significant addition in the field of health, some Britain-based technologists have come up with a smartphone-sized handheld DNA analyser that may diagnose deadly tuberculosis (TB) in just 15-20 minutes.

This Britain-based technology company claims that this device runs on a solar-powered battery and is a low-cost handheld device.

"Q-Poc", as it is called, may analyse biological samples submitted via a small-sized cartridge, the Guardian reported.

Swabs can be used to detect sexually-transmitted infections (STIs) while sputum is used to detect TB, its makers claimed.

"We are now at the point that we have a working prototype that can perform a highly sensitive tuberculosis test from a sample through to results in 15-20 minutes," Jonathan O’Halloran, the company’s co-founder, was quoted as saying.

According to its developers, “Q-Poc” analyses the DNA of pathogens rather than proteins within the sample. 

The device uses microfluidic technology that allows fluids to pass through various microscopic channels.

A chemical process then breaks down the sample into a molecular soup. It is then sent through a nanoscale-based filter system that isolates the DNA for analysis.

The company plans to launch the product for the use by health care providers by as early as 2018.

Source: www.zeenews.india.com

26.04.2016

Finding the possibility to do

the impossible makes you a genius

Paul E. Ehimen

25 April, 2016

A banana a day may keep blindness away, says study

If you love apples, so also love the humble banana. Eating a bananadaily is likely to boost eye health and prevent vision-related diseases, a study has found. Researchers have found that bananas have carotenoid — a compound that turn fruits and vegetables red, orange or yellow and are converted into vitamin A, important precursors for eye health — in the liver.

According to previous research, foods containing high levels of carotenoids also protect against chronic disease, including certain cancers, cardiovascular disease and diabetes. The study showed that banana rich in provitamin A carotenoids may offer a potential food source for alleviating vitamin A deficiency — important for sight. To combat vitamin A deficiency, researchers have been investigating methods to boost carotenoids in bananas.

Cara L. Mortimer and other researchers from Queensland University of Technology in Australia studied two banana varieties to find out why they make very different amounts of carotenoids. They found that the pale yellow, low-carotenoid cavendish variety produces more of an enzyme that breaks down carotenoids. In addition, another variety stashes its carotenoids in microscopic sacs during ripening, shifting the chemical equilibrium in the fruit so it can make even higher levels of these substances.

The findings, published in ACS’ Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, can someday help in the development of banana varieties with enhanced health benefits. Bananas are ideal food for young children and families for many regions of the world, because of their sweetness, texture, portion size, familiarity, availability, convenience, versatility and cost.

Source: www.thehealthsite.com

25.04.2016

Quitters always lose and losers always quit. Winners never quit and quitters never win

23 April, 2016

By 2050, you may have to live on imported water

Do not be surprised if the country is forced to import drinking water by 2050, thanks to the fast-depleting groundwater stock that is expected to reduce to 3,120 litres per day a person by then.

Data shows that today-going by 2001 figures -the daily per capita groundwater availability in the country has come down to 5,120 litres, about 35% of the 14,180 litres in 1951. In 1991, it was less than half of the 1951 stock. And by 2025, it is projected that the daily per capita availability will be just 25% of the base year.

And the figures from a Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) study warn of a reduction to 22% by 2050, going by the present rate of exploitation of groundwater.

The depleting water beneath your feet is an indication of vanishing rainwater harvesting with ponds, lakes and wells, poor awareness, and reduced green cover, say experts.

A CGWB master plan to artificially recharge groundwater said: "Rapid development and use of groundwater resources for varied purposes has contributed, though, in expansion of irrigated agriculture, overall economic development and in improving the quality of life in urban India, the groundwater, which is the source for more than 85 per cent of rural domestic water requirements, 50 per cent of urban water requirements and over 50 per cent of irrigation requirements of the country, is depleting fast ."

Going by the fastgrowing population and their increasing demands, the day may not be far when per person availability dips to the actual use.

Source: www.timesofindia.com

23.04.2016

No matter how good a person you are, there will always be someone criticizing you

22 April, 2016

Consuming fatty food can make you feel sleepy during day

New Delhi: You would have never imagined that your love for fatty foods can make you feel sleepy during daytime and also cause a poor night's sleep. Yes it's true.

As per a study, people consuming high-fat diet and sleeping less during night are more likely to feel dizzy during the day.

"After adjusting for other demographic and lifestyle factors and chronic diseases, we found that those who consumed the highest fat intake were more likely to experience excessive daytime sleepiness," said lead author Yingting Cao, doctoral student at University of Adelaide in Australia.

Higher consumption of food items rich in fat was also strongly associated with sleep apnea, a sleep disorder.

"Poor sleep and feeling sleepy during the day means you have less energy, but this, in turn, is known to increase people's cravings for high-fat, high-carbohydrate foods associated with poor sleep outcomes. So the poor diet-and-sleep pattern can become a vicious cycle," Cao explained in the paper published in the journal Nutrients.

Daytime sleepiness may have significant implications for alertness and concentration, the researchers warned, adding that people need to pay more attention to eat better and have a good sleep.

Source: www.zeenews.india.com

22.04.2016

We must be willing to play with Failure before we reach Success

21 April, 2016

Eating meals with the whole family keeps children fit

Children who have their dinner along with other family members are generally fit and eating meals together can also help kids cut the risk of developing eating disorders or weight problems later in life, say researchers. In a study of 200 families, researchers found that children whose family members shared meals that lasted at least 20 minutes each a minimum of four times a week weighed significantly less than peers whose family dinners were three or four minutes shorter. Parenting styles, parent-child attachment relationships and feeding practices all have been found to be reliable indicators of children’s food consumption, eating behaviours and risks for obesity.

‘Although the causes of obesity are complex, families have significant influence on children’s dietary habits and weight and should be involved in planning healthy living campaigns and efforts to curb food marketing that targets children,’ said Barbara H Fiese from the University of Illinois. ‘The family system plays an important role in understanding childhood obesity — not as a source of blame but as part of a larger ecology that may support or derail children’s health,’ the researchers stated in the paper published in the journal Family Relations. Family communication is key to the developmental processes that promote or disrupt healthy eating habits, physical activity and internal cues to satiety, they noted.

Source: www.thehealthsite.com

21.04.2016

Say what you believe and believe what you say

20 April, 2016

Your voice can be tool to influence others

Why is it that some speakers influence us powerfully, while others with good voices don't? According to a recent study, it is all about the pitch.

The University of Illinois study found that people whose voices went down in pitch early on in an interaction were more likely to be seen as dominant and influential than those whose vocal pitch went up early in conversation.

Those viewed as dominant also were more likely to convince others to go along with their ideas than those seen as less dominant.

In another report based on the same data, the researchers found that dominant participants were not considered more prestigious, esteemed or admirable by their peers, however. Those judged to be admirable, but not dominant, also tended to excel at influencing others.

"What excites me about this research is that we now know a little bit more about how humans use their voices to signal status," said Joey Cheng, who led the research with colleagues at the University of British Columbia and Harvard University.

Cheng noted that this study adds to the evidence that humans, like many other animals, use their voices to signal and assert dominance over others.

The study is reported in the Journal of Experimental Psychology: General.

Source: www.timesofindia.com

20.04.2016

Negative situations can never overwhelm a positive mind

18 April, 2016

Women living near natural vegetation live longer: Study

Women live longer in areas with more green vegetation, according to a new study which found that females with the highest levels of greenness near their homes had a 12 per cent lower death rate compared to ones with the lowest levels of vegetation near their homes.

Researchers found the biggest differences in death rates were from kidney disease, respiratory disease, and cancer. They also explored how an environment with trees, shrubs, and plants might lower mortality rates. They showed that improved mental health and social engagement are the strongest factors, while increased physical activity and reduced air pollution also contribute.

"It is important to know that trees and plants provide health benefits in our communities, as well as beauty," said Linda Birnbaum from National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) in the US.

"The finding of reduced mortality suggests that vegetation may be important to health in a broad range of ways," said Birnbaum. The study, conducted by scientists at Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health and Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, examined greenness around the homes of 108,630 women in the long-term Nurses' Health Study.

Researchers mapped home locations and used high resolution satellite imagery to determine the level of vegetation within 250 metres and 1,250 metres of homes. They then followed the women from 2000 to 2008, tracking changes in vegetation and participant deaths. During the study, 8,604 deaths occurred.

Scientists consistently found lower mortality rates in women as levels of trees and plants increased around their homes. This trend was seen for separate causes of death, as well as when all causes were combined.

When researchers compared women in the areas with highest greenness to women in the lowest, they found a 41 per cent lower death rate for kidney disease, 34 per cent lower death rate for respiratory disease, and 13 per cent lower death rate for cancer in the greenest areas.

Women with the highest levels of vegetation, or greenness, near their homes had a 12 percent lower death rate compared to women with the lowest levels of vegetation near their homes, researchers said.

The findings were published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives.

Source: www.zeenews.india.com

18.04.2016

Keep the ones that push you forward and delete the ones that hold you back

16 April, 2016

Scientists control heart cells with laser

In a first, scientists have found a way to control the behaviour of heart muscle cells using laser radiation - paving the way to develop better understanding of the heart's mechanisms to treat conditions like acute arrhythmia which is responsible for causing one in eight deaths globally.

"Right now, this result may be very useful for clinical studies of the mechanisms of the heart and in the future, we could potentially stop attacks of arrhythmia in patients at the touch of a button," said study co-author Konstantin Agladze from the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology.

In order to study the heart disorder, Agladze's team created "arrhythmia in vitro", using azoTAB (azobenzene trimethylammonium bromide) whose molecule consists of two benzene rings connected by a bridge of two nitrogen atoms. If the molecule is irradiated with UV light, the benzene rings change position relative to one another, they "fold" and under the influence of visible light, the rings return to their original configuration.

An azoTAB molecule can, therefore, exist in two states -- switching between them under the influence of radiation. The team "taught" the azoTAB molecules to control cardiomyocytes so that one configuration did not prevent voluntary contractions (passive), and the other (active) "deactivated" contractions. Using a device similar to a projector, but with a laser instead of a lamp, the scientists created at each point the required concentration of the active form of azoTAB.

This enabled them to control the cardiomyocytes in each specific point of the heart.

The experiment, detailed in the journal PLOS ONE, showed that the effect of azoTAB on a cell is reversible. This means that the results of the experiments can be used in research and clinical practice, which could potentially lead to an effective treatment for arrhythmias.

Source: www.timesofindia.com

16.04.2016

The worst pain in life is failure,        to overcome motivation is the greatest practice

15 April, 2016

Get your BP checked in both your arms to reduce your risk of heart attacks

You may want to get your blood pressure checked in both arms as a recent study has suggested that a difference between the two readings can give an early warning about increased risk of heart disease. The University of Exeter Medical School led an analysis of more than 3,000 people in Scotland who each had blood pressure measurements taken from both arms. Researchers say the findings show the importance of routinely measuring blood pressure in both arms. The team found that a difference in systolic blood pressure measurements between the two arms (of 5mm Hg) was associated with almost double the risk of death from heart-related disease, when the cohort was followed up over a period of eight years. In the analysis, which was based on one pair of blood pressure readings, 60 per cent of the cohort had this difference. 

The researchers wanted to examine this single check of blood pressure in both arms to reflect currently available measurement methods in general practice. It is known, however, that the proportion of people confirmed to have a blood pressure difference will fall substantially on repeated testing. Dr Chris Clark said that this study confirms that people identified with only a single pair of measurements are still at higher risk of heart disease than those without an inter-arm difference. Repeated assessments to confirm the existence of an inter-arm difference and suitable lifestyle advice can then be targeted at individuals identified in this way and could make a difference to their future health.

He added that the next stage of our research is to quantify the extra risk that an inter-arm difference indicates, and after that, to discover the extent to which this can be protected against. Professor Jeremy Pearson noted that this study found that healthy people without pre-existing heart disease may also have an increased risk. The findings support current guidance that blood pressure should be measured in both arms when assessing someone for hypertension. The study appears in journal British Journal of General Practice.

Source: www.thehealthsite.com

15.04.2016

To succeed you have to lead! You have to do what’s best for the people; you must bring the best out of your ability & capability

13 April, 2016

India more sick than Bharat; pollution, bad diet blamed

Urban India is more sick than the rural hinterland despite the mushrooming of health and wellness clinics and super-specialty hospitals, besides better per capita earnings. And this could well be attributed to increasing pollution levels and unhealthy ietary habits.

A government health survey has revealed that around 11.8% of urban and 8.9% of rural population reported ailments during a 15-day refrence period.

Women were found to be more vulnerable to diseases in both cities and villages.

The survey found that 3.5% of women, as compared to 10.1% of men, fell sick in urban areas, while he figures were 9.9% and %, respectively, in rural India.

What's worrisome is that high chunk of the population (86% in rural and 82% in urban areas) remains outside any scheme of health expenditure support.

Source: www.timesofindia.com

13.04.2016

Negative situations can never overwhelm a positive mind

12 April, 2016

Cough into your smartphone to find out if you are suffering from asthma

An Australia-based digital health solution provider has developed an app that can diagnose respiratory diseases like pneumonia, croup and asthma with high accuracy through a cough into a smartphone, a media report said. The app ResApp has been developed by Perth-based ResApp Health. A recent clinical study of 524 pediatric patients at the west Australian city’s Joondalup Health Campus and Princess Margaret Hospital found that the smartphone-based system can achieve an overall accuracy of 89 percent, the West Australian reported. ResApp has been developing machine-learning algorithms that will automatically determine which respiratory condition a patient might have, including pneumonia, asthma, bronchiolitis andCOPD — an umbrella term used to describe progressive lung diseases.

The company released data from this trial previously in November, but that data set included fewer patients. The larger group is now starting to show ResApp’s effectiveness in diagnosing less common conditions. ‘We are pleased to again report high levels of accuracy on a dataset that is more than 50 percent larger than the previously used dataset,’ Tony Keating, CEO and managing director of ResApp, said in a statement. ‘These updated results reaffirm the algorithm’s clinical accuracy right before we enter the pivotal studies needed for our upcoming premarket submission to the US Food and Drug Administration,’ he added. In addition, these preliminary results for the separation of bacterial and atypical pneumonia from viral pneumonia are very exciting as they demonstrate the power of ResApp’s algorithm in supporting clinicians in making critical decisions for patient treatment,’ Keating noted. 

Source: www.thehealthsite.com

12.04.2016

The difference between the impossible and the possible lies in a person's determination

Tommy Lasorda

11 April, 2016

Common painkiller may hamper our ability to notice errors

 A common and effective painkiller, acetaminophen, may impede the brain's ability to detect errors, scientist have found for the first time.

The research from the University of Toronto and University of British Columbia in Canada is the first neurological study to look at how acetaminophen could be inhibiting the brain response associated with making errors. For the study, two groups of 30 participants were given a target-detection task called the Go or No Go.

Participants were asked to hit a Go button every time the letter F flashed on a screen but refrain from hitting the button if an E flashed on the screen. "The trick is you're supposed to move very quickly capturing all the GOs, but hold back when you see a No Go," said Randles.

Electroencephalogram (EEG) was used to measure electrical activity in the brain of the participants. The researchers were looking for a particular wave called Error Related Negativity (ERN) and Error Related Positivity (Pe).

Essentially what happens is that when people are hooked up to an EEG and make an error in the task there is a robust increase in ERN and Pe.

One group, which was given 1,000 milligrammes of acetaminophen - the equivalent of a normal maximum dose - showed a smaller Pe when making mistakes than those who did not receive a dose, suggesting that acetaminophen inhibits our conscious awareness of the error.

"It looks like acetaminophen makes it harder to recognise an error, which may have implications for cognitive control in daily life," said Randles. Cognitive control is an important neurological function because people are constantly doing cognitive tasks that flow automatically like reading, walking or talking. These tasks require very little cognitive control because they are well mapped out neurological processes, said Randles.

"The task we designed is meant to capture that since most of the stimuli were Go, so you end up getting into a routine of automatically hitting the Go button," he said. "When you see a No Go, that requires cognitive control because you need to interrupt the process," he said.

The research was published in the journal Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience.  

Source: www.zeenews.india.com

11.04.2016

A failure establishes only this that our determination to succeed was not strong enough

Christian Nestell Bovee

9 April, 2016

Diabetes causes 1.5 mn deaths a year: UN chief

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Thursday said diabetes now causes some 1.5 million deaths a year, and called for healthier lifestyles on this year's World Health Day. Diabetes is an ancient disease that is taking a growing toll on the modern world, Xinhua quoted Ban as saying in his message to mark the day.

Ban said that in 1980, 108 million adults were living with diabetes. By 2014, that number had risen to 422 million -- 8.5 percent of adults -- reflecting a global increase in risk factors such as being overweight or obese.

"Even though we have the tools to prevent and treat it, diabetes now causes some 1.5 million deaths a year. High blood glucose causes an additional 2.2 million deaths," he noted.

The UN secretary-general also pointed out that "the burden of diabetes is not equally shared, within or between countries. People in low- and middle-income countries are disproportionately affected, but wherever we find poverty we also find disease and premature deaths."

"We can limit the spread and impact of diabetes by promoting and adopting healthier lifestyles, especially among young people," he said. "We must also improve diabetes diagnosis and access to essential medicines such as insulin."

To do this, Ban underlined the cooperation among governments, healthcare providers, people with diabetes, civil society, food producers and manufacturers and suppliers of medicines and technology, saying that they must all contribute to changing the status quo. Ban called for global efforts to "halt the rise in diabetes and improve the lives of those living with this dangerous but preventable and treatable disease".

Last year, governments adopted the Sustainable Development Goals, which include the target of reducing premature mortality from non-communicable diseases, which include diabetes, by one-third. The theme of this year's World Health Day was "beat diabetes".

Source: www.timesofindia.com

09.04.2016

Defeat never comes to any man until he admits it

7 April, 2016

India getting fat due to soft drinks, junk food

NEW DELHI: India's diabetes burden and the obesity problem have assumed serious levels and there's an urgent need to check these from going out of hand, the government feels. Among other factors, experts blame these on the consumption of sugary beverages and junk food.

"High consumption of sugary beverages contributes to multiple metabolic disorders due to accrual of body fat, as well as directly through excess non-esterified fatty acids (NEFAs), which impair critical functioning of the liver, pancreas and cellular functions," said Dr Anoop Misra, chairman of Fortis C-DOC Centre of Diabetes.

Public health agencies and doctors worldwide are worried over the increasing disease burden, mainly in middle and low-income countries. Latest WHO estimates show the prevalence of diabetes in India has doubled from 32 million in 2000 to 63 million in 2013. It is projected to increase to 101.2 million in the next 15 years.

Highlighting how sedentary lifestyles coupled with sugary, salty and fatty diets rich in refined carbohydrates are driving the epidemic, WHO South East Asia regional director Poonam Khetrapal Singh said the governments must insist on food labeling to help consumers make right decisions and tax sugary beverages.

Source: www.timesofindia.com

07.04.2016

Right actions in the future are the best apologies for bad actions in the past

Tyron Edwards

6 April, 2016

Only one in 10 Indians aware of damage to blood vessels during diabetes

New Delhi: With Diabetes being the theme for World Health Day this year, health experts have said that only 10 percent of Indians were aware that diabetes in its later stages damages blood vessels of the eyes, heart, nerves, feet and kidneys.

The experts said that 90 percent of people in developing countries, including India and Sri Lanka, consider diabetes to be a trivial diseases, which can be controlled throughout their lives merely on insulin dose.

"Diabetes is called a silent disease because many people do not know about it even if they are suffering from it. High sugar level in blood is called hyperglycemia. It can cause damage to very small blood vessels of eyes, heart, nerves, feet, and kidneys," said Dhiraj Malik, head of emergency and critical care at Saroj Super Speciality.

On the harm diabetes causes to various parts of the body, Malik said: "Damage of eye vessels can cause blindness or other major vision problems while the damage of heart vessels completely stops the supply of oxygen to your heart and brain."

"Fat can build up in the blood vessels as well. This can lead to a heart attack or stroke. Diabetes can harm the feet in two ways. First, it can damage the body's nerves. Nerve damage stops the patient from feeling pain, while another way diabetes can cause damage to the patient's feet is from poor blood circulation," said Malik. 

Experts said that having high levels of sugar in the blood for many years can damage the blood vessels that bring oxygen to some nerves. Damaged nerves may stop sending pain signals.

According to the World Health Organisation, the number of diabetics in India doubled in 13 years, from 32 million in 2000 to 63 million in 2013 and is likely to surge to 101.2 million in the next two years.

Source: www.zeenews.india.com

06.04.2016

Dont forget what you want to remember and dont remember what you want to forget

Cormac McCarthy

5 April, 2016

Your age and gender can influence your risk of peripheral vascular disease

A person’s age and gender can affect the prevalence of certain types of peripheral vascular diseases (PVD), which can lead to heart attack,stroke and even amputation of the limbs. PVD is a circulation disorder that affects blood vessels outside of the heart and brain, particularly the veins and arteries that supply blood to the arms and legs. The results revealed that women, especially younger women, have a significantly higher prevalence of peripheral artery disease than men. ‘These findings point to very important differences between women and men, and older and younger individuals, when it comes to PVD,’ said one of the researchers, Jeffrey S. Berger, associate professor at NYU Langone Medical Centre in New York, US.

‘Sex-specific guidelines for PVD are important, and we are starting to realise that women and men need to be approached differently,’ Berger added. In addition, diabetes was found to be a major risk factor for developing PVD, even in patients without heart disease. The team used data collected from more than 3.6 million individuals and found that people with both diabetes and coronary heart disease the risk of developing PVD increases. However, the researchers cautioned that the findings might not represent PVD prevalence in all men and women, or disease risk in people with diabetes. The findings were presented at the American College of Cardiology’s 65th Annual Scientific Session in Chicago, US.  

Source: www.thehealthsite.com

05.04.2016

You bring out the best in yourself by looking for the best in others

Gene Bedley