Health Adda

Christmas is the perfect occasion to explore the complex relationship between faith and healing. The plummeting attendance of  patients  to hospitals and clinics at this time every year has several explanations: the faithful ascribe it to  rejuvenation  of faith, my medical colleagues to winter being the “healthiest” time of the year, and pragmatists to the cold and fog that deter patients. The reason why malaria, dengue and encephalitis beat a retreat at this time is because the cold deters mosquitoes even more than people. Further, water borne infections drop sharply as foods are preferred hot or fried (aloo tikis, parathas, tea rather than sharbats, paani batashas and salads) in which germs die.    Clinic attendance alone may not be a good indicator of the role of religious faith in a community’s health seeking behaviour. It is observed that a sharp drop in patients from concerned communities ,occur during Ramadan, around Diwali and Christmas, and may reflect social attitudes of de

The recent tragedy in West Bengal in which 170 people died after drinking locally made hooch shows once again how vulnerable our poor are, and how poor are our mechanisms to ensure their safety. Hooch, Moonshine or Jake is the name given to illicitly distilled illegally produced alcoholic drinks that do not conform to safety standards. They are made by fermenting sugary or starchy substances, distilling them to increase the concentration of alcohol, and often adding other substances for more punch. They have been produced for generations in home-made stills or barns, often under the cover of forests and swamps, and catered to poor labourers, farmers, rikshaw-drivers and hawkers. Outbreaks of poisoning and deaths due to bad hooch have occured in various parts of the world from time to time. Major Indian tragedies have occured in Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Odisha and UP in the last 3 years, and despite the temporary reactions they elicited, the magnitude of tragedies has just got bigg

With my days of cricket feats and trecking tales slipping into history, and people calling me “uncle” rather than by my first name, I decided to explore ways of keeping at least my heart younger than my rapidly greying hair. I started by exploring whether the cooking medium in our kitchen needed change. A mind boggling 479 million results emerging in a trite on googling “healthy cooking medium” bowled me into confusion. The search threw up oils and fats I had not heard of, many clamouring for the “best” spot. Seconds later I realized that most of this “information” was “promotion” stuff by manufacturers, marketeers and oil lobbies, as is often the case in the world-wide-web. My grandpa’s wise saying “When too many opinions fly around, no one knows the truth” seemed to fit well here.  I therefore chatted up with Dr Sudeep, our young cardiologist, to find out what medical science was preaching these days.  “Desi ghee”, derived from the nutritious milk of holy cows, whose virtues my gran

It's natural to worry during stressful times. Some people however feel tense and anxious day after day, even when there is little to worry about. When this lasts for six months or longer, it may be generalized anxiety disorder or GAD . This illness affects several of us. Unfortunately, many people don't know they have it, and hence miss out on treatments that lead to a better, happier life. The main symptom of is a constant and exaggerated sense of tension and anxiety. You may not be able to pinpoint a reason why you feel tense. Or you may worry too much about ordinary matters, such as bills, relationships, or your health. All this worrying can interfere with your sleep and your ability to think straight. You may also feel irritable due to poor sleep or the illness itself. Body problems that accompany excess worry are muscle tension or pain, headaches, acidity, diarrhea, trembling or palpitations. What sets GAD apart from normal worries is the feeling that you can't stop w