The worst plastic, from both an environmental and health points of view, is polyvinyl chloride or PVC. According to Greenpeace International, the list of uses for PVC is endless because it is one of the most widely used plastics. It is found in a wide variety of products, such as food packaging, children’s toys, plumbing, building materials, medical devices, household items, even fashion. Most people might not know, however, that the production of PVC creates and releases one of the most toxic chemicals – dioxin.

Dioxin is an unwanted by-product of incineration and some industrial processes. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) of the United States has classified it as a dangerous chemical and serious public health threat. It has been found to suppress the immune system, cause cancer, increase the risk of diabetes, cause birth defects, and affect the neurological system. PVC is poisonous and an occupational hazard to its manufacturers/makers, toxic to the environment, and ultimately less recyclable.
Read the rest of this entry »

In 2007, the United Nations admitted that it overstated the extent of the epidemic to help gather political and financial support for combating AIDS. Today, a vaccine against the disease is still to be found, in spite of an $11.3 billion global research fund to date. One vaccine, on trial, showed that it increased the risk of contracting the disease, instead of preventing it. Even the U.S. National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Diseases doubt its capability to predict whether an effective vaccine will, indeed, be developed. But they are “not giving up.” Now, everybody is worried that the current global recession is going to affect research funding.

Because the word ‘Africa’ conjures up images of misery and pain due to disease (and, thus, would be a good PR point for fundraising anytime), Africa is said to be devastated by AIDS. The ‘dark continent’ always does look good on some concerned group’s development report. Besides, it is always tempting to fiddle with African figures since the continent is largely unknown and unknowable, therefore, prone to approximating the unknown. We also always expect the worst of Africa, and that is a prevailing mindset. If one looks closely at the figures coming from the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), the estimators of AIDS, and compare it with the African data on disease mortality, AIDS is not Africa’s killer disease. Malaria is.
Read the rest of this entry »

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the three ills to life in the 21st Century are: globalization of unhealthy lifestyles, rapid unplanned urbanization, and ageing of populations. These are, purportedly, the big threats to health because these three reasons bring about the increase in chronic diseases such as heart disease, stroke, and cancer. While these are the top killers in the world, these illnesses are mostly for countries that do not have the tag “poor.” Because if we consider the comparatively more populous Third World, especially Africa, the top killers are malaria, diarrhea, and tuberculosis.

If WHO were to make another listing of three ills to life in the 21st century for poor nations, these would be: poor access to healthcare, gross lack of information and miseducation about health and healthcare, and the politics behind global healthcare that eventually handicaps the distribution of much-needed healthcare to the poor and marginalized.
Read the rest of this entry »

Probably the only scene with sense in Salman Khan’s latest film ‘Hello’ got snipped at the hands of, may I say, our Stone Age-d Censor Board. The scene in reference is the one where actor Gul Panag asks co-star Sharman Joshi whether he is carrying a condom before they have sex.

As absurd it may sound, but the Censor actually committed the crime of stupidity. When on one hand, we get to see soooooooooo many ads on radio and TV urging us to talk about sex freely to avoid health hazards and unplanned pregnancies. After all, if the public outlook does not change we might soon be the country with largest AIDS cases in the world and of course, largest population too. Then recently, weren’t we hearing all those ‘condom, condom’ ringtones?

Read the rest of this entry »

This year Mahatma Gandhi’s birthday brought along a special gift for the aam janta in India — the ban on public smoking. Indian Health Minister Anubumani Ramadoss finally had his way after chasing the tobacco smokers for a long long time.

First, it was the ban on onscreen smoking that even targeted top notch stars like Amitabh Bachchan and Shah Rukh Khan. The result is no actor dares to light that offensive roll of tobacco which they sometimes carry for an effective role portrayal in front of the cameras.

Afterwards came the respect for passive smokers. Apparently, if you smoked in front of your maid she has the right to register a complaint against you. Soon, due to an amendment in the traffic laws smoking while driving was ordained illegal.

Then there were talks of introducing pictures/images of diseases caused by smoking on the cigarette box, a law which too was implemented on 2nd October. 

Ramadoss has been pummeled for his radical approach to health problems. Cigarette smoking is a major health concern facing India right now. Will these laws actually help? I, too like many others, have some doubts.
a) Will these give some more reasons to the cops to earn the extra 50 bucks?
b) Will smokers come up with ways around these laws? (I am not predicting anything, but the human mind is a great innovative machine in times of ‘crises.)
c) If India is so serious about banning the tobacco, then why not stop the production altogether? Let tobacco join the bandwagon with heroin, LSD and the likes.

All that said I am still very happy to see the government take action against cigarette smoking. Just that these laws still have some loopholes which the authorities and law enforcers should not ignore. Also, the public health care scheme should include ‘leaving tobacco’ procedures. We know how expensive they are. Maybe the government hospitals should be guided to provide the same at less or no cost.

But yes, it is indeed a pleasure to say goodbye to public smoking!

If you remember well, there was an email doing rounds about the weird and bizarre ‘tree man’ Dede from Indonesia who suffers from a rare condition of human Papiloma virus. This made him grow warts and his skin remained skin no more, but looked like the bark of trees. The poor chap in fact could not move around and nor could he wear clothes and take care of his personal needs.

An American doctor visited him and decided to put him on a strong dosage of Vitamin A and now he is gradually improving. A heartwarming story, I would like to express my admiration for that doctor who changed the life of this miserable man. It was not so simple though. He had to be put under chemotherapy and grueling surgery to treat the warts and also be given expensive Vitamin A doses. Dede is now a transformed man and to me, he represents hope, a hope that can be oppressive always. I quote my friend Grace who once said hope is the most oppressive and torturous condition ever. Well, I do agree with her completely but with Dede, his hopes in fact made him a stringer person and now he can continue to hope for more.

Unfortunately, hope isn’t always so promising, and most hopes are quashed by oppressive societies, politicians, religions and even science. I would not like to get depressed over the more sinister forces of the world for this moment, and I’d rather share Dede’s happiness and wish him luck. He, is slowly but steadily improving and the doctors hope he will soon be able to live a normal life.

Images: 1, 2

Via: TheSun

Recently, a 71-year-old man was diagnosed to be pregnant after he complained of abdominal pains in U.K. John Grady Pippen was shocked to get a report saying he was going to be mothering a child very soon. As expected, it turned out that there was a mix up of reports and the hospital later made some statements to save itself from embarrassments. This brings to our notice the fatal flaws existing in hospitals and health industry. There have always been reports of medical documents getting misplaced and patients even being put on chemotherapy after being misdiagnosed.

What I would really like to know is why such incompetence and carelessness exists among medical professionals and also among those who are in the administrative positions in hospitals and clinics, for they are the ones who send out the reports. People who have been misdiagnosed with HIV have been put on AZT, which is as toxic as a medicine can get and it can hasten the process of death. The authorities must be vigilant enough to prevent such grievous mistakes and put the responsible under the scrutiny of law.

Unless punishments are handed out top irresponsible health professionals, innocents shall continue to suffer. It is easy to make a statement on the press or media and apologize for the blunder, however, the damage can’t be undone easily, if it concerns bodily harm to the patient concerned.

Image

Via: OK

Playing is an activity long forgotten by the current child generation of India. Yep, seeing kids play just like that is such a rare sight that now schools have started celebrating ‘Play Days’ only to encourage little pranksters to get back to their default settings and play!

But hey, no kid is willing to do that. Kyonki TV hai na? The growing influence of the idiot box on the progenies has been ignored for a long time by parents and the harm will be serious. Blame it on the work lives of the progenitors that they rely on leaving their kids with a TV program rather than a babysitter (who they always fear to be a paedophile). Or maybe it is the space crunch? Insufficient number of parks? Or perhaps, the kids are now just too lazy to stretch those muscles.
The lack of outdoor activity is leading to social, psychological and physiological problems in children. They are unable to pay complete attention, the flitting focus changes like the channels on the idiot box. Temper tantrums and eating troubles are also seen.

My personal problem is – Kids are not behaving like kids anymore; running around, going wild and having fun. Can anyone tell me where exactly is the play?
Via ibnlive

Like my many friends, I worry a lot about not having a bulky body and being thin. Most young men and adolescent boys strive to achieve the six-pack abs and bulging biceps and workout hard in gyms and fitness centers. I know people who have consumed so much of protein that their kidneys failed and even had to be hospitalized. What has been touted as a disorder found among only women, eating disorders are increasingly wreaking havoc on men and their physical and mental health.

The pressure to grow bigger and more muscular has made guys consume abnormally large quantities of protein, which causes in renal failure. However, the society still has not recognized this is a problem and has been dismissing it as a fad. In my opinion, media plays a major role in shaping our self-image and how we value our bodies, regardless of our age or gender. Eating disorders are prevalent among men and women of all ages equally. In fact, among men it is far more dangerous as the sufferers do not approach doctors nor do their family members realize it is a psychological disorder, which needs medical attention.

However, anorexia nervosa has fueled enough awareness campaigns and hence families do know if a girl has been starving herself. In a guy’s case, he would eat abnormally large quantities and still remain thin and in a quest to grow bigger, he would fall seriously sick. The media, the society and the peer groups in general have wreaked havoc on susceptible minds.

Image

Via: GordonMoyes

There has been a lot of discussion about men going bald and losing charm. However, if there is a standing example to the fact that hair really doesn’t matter as long as someone is really capable of attracting attention through other ways, it has to be Fran Healy from the Scottish alternative rock band Travis. The man behind singles like ‘Why does it always rain on me’, ‘Sing’, and many others, has publicly stated that he doesn’t worry about getting old or not looking as great as he used to.

Well, I couldn’t agree more with such great music he and the guys make and also his deep blue eyes. I just wish Travis’ new album ‘Ode to J. Smith’ gets released soon and we can listen to what is being called the greatest alternative rock album to be released in 2008. The album has already received critical acclaim and a favorable critical mood.

For now, I would say baldness or any other matter really doesn’t matter as long as a man remains committed to his true mission and talents, be it music or politics or sports. Showbiz unfortunately has concentrated more upon a celebrity’s looks rather than the talent behind what makes him or her a celebrity.

Image

Via: GodsInTheTVZine