Allergy
disorders on the rise in India
Rapid urbanisation along with changing lifestyles has upped
the number of allergy related disorders in developing countries. Lack of
research and speciality in the discipline mans that they remain ill-prepared to
deal with the problem.
In December this year, India will for the first time play
host to over 90 top specialists from 30 countries at an international
conference in Hyderabad that will see them deliver lectures, hold public forums
and awareness camps and discussions on how to bring about more focus on the
issue. Dr Ruby Pawankar, President of the World Allergy Organisation (WAO), the
first woman and the first Indian to hold this position, says allergies are part
of chronic non-communicable diseases and is a huge issue, even in developing
countries.
In India to lay the ground for the international conference
to be held from December 6 to 9, the Tokyo-based Pawankar says it is high time
allergy as a disorder develops into a super speciality discipline. “As many as
250,000 people die of asthma every year. And asthma is only one form of allergy
of the respiratory tract. Skin allergies are rampant, and there are 200 million
cases of food allergies. Besides developing it into a separate medial
discipline, a number of policy initiatives are also required,” she said.
Allergies can simply be defined as abnormal reactions to
normally harmless substances. They can range from minor irritants such as
sneezing and itching, to major problems such as asthma and even fatal reactions
like anaphylaxis in some cases. Even as the incidence of such problems
increases in countries such as India, there is little research or data evidence
collection to gauge its real burden and magnitude. The World Allergy
Organisation (WAO), which started six decades back, was a less pro-active organisation
in the first few decades of its existence. However, over the past 15 to 20
years, it has consciously become more active in the fields of advocacy,
training, research and awareness creation.
Source:
http://health.india.com
01.09.2012
Kids with working mums at greater risk of obesity
Children whose mothers are in full-time
employment are at greater risk of obesity even if their father is a
stay-at-home parent, according to experts.
Their study highlights that men about the house
fail to realise the importance of their child's eating habits.
Study authors say that it is important for both
parents to discuss day-to-day responsibilities, including food preparation and
mealtimes.
John Cawley, from Cornell University and Feng
Liu used data on almost 25,000 families from a yearly survey of how Americans
spend their time.
Data showed that on average women who worked
spent 127 fewer minutes per day with their children than stay-at-home mothers.
However stay-at-home fathers failed to offset
the difference “We're not trying to say men are scum,” Cawley told BuzzFeed.
Cawley and Liu noted that preparing meals from
scratch and eating as a family could decrease a child's risk of obesity.
They also suggest that schools could offer
healthier food and better physical education.
The study is published in the June issue of Economics
and Human Biology
Source:
www.dnaindia.com
01.09.2012
If you realized how
powerful your thoughts are, you would never think a negative thought
No comments:
Post a Comment