Health Adda

College freshers and their parents might wonder what Prof Rajender Kachroo might have felt when his son Aman was beaten to death by his seniors a year ago in the name of ragging. One may also wonder what made four “senior” medical students, aged perhaps 19 and who had chosen medicine as their carreer, gang up and beat a  lone helpless fresher to death in a display of their might and supremacy. Ragging in Indian campuses has existed for atleast 3- 4 decades. It was agonizing and humiliating even in our times in the early 70s. I recall how some students loved to rag, and were at their liveliest during the days when freshers came in. They would  terrorize trembling new comers who had just ventured out of protected homes. In the initial days and weeks of our joining,  we saw these “senior” raggers to exude confidence and power but as we settled down and got our bearings over the next few months, we realized that most of them were phonies, repeaters or perverts o...

Ever noticed how people respond and behave differently in classrooms, boardrooms, bedrooms or on playfields?  It depends on our personality type. And it is the type of personality we have that deteremines not only how we react and perform, but also our predeliction to health disorders. Try and see in whcih of these you fit best. Type A personality  is easy to recognize; people with this type are hard chargers , aggressive and ambitious. They are always struggling to win or lead, are restless with hunger in their bellies and are often dominating. They enjoy adventure and often make greatachievers. Their constantly charged state generates frequent surges of stress hormones called adrenaline and corticosteroids, from their adrenal glands. The health price they often pay for their achievements is high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, stroke and peptic ulcer. Type B personality  is the opposite of type A. They are  laid back , cooperative and not easily provoked ...

When Siddharth, a 22 year old, went to donate blood for his mother’s treatment, he was shocked to hear that he harboured the Hepatitis B infection! He was fit, played for his college cricket team and had not sufferred from jaundice. Hence hi s disbelief! Hepatitis B is usually a silent infection. This year’s global awareness campaign  “Am I number 12?” was aimed at drawng attention to this frequency. In India, the rate is somewhat less; 43 of 2500 apparently healthy people tested positive during a free checkup camp in the city. Around 20-40 million people in India are infected, 6 to 10 times more than HIV. It spreads through infected reused needles, poorly tested transfused blood, sharing of instruments such as shaving blades or ear piercing needles, from a “carrier” mother during child birth, or unprotected sex with an infected person. What makes Hepatitis B worrisome is its silent nature for many years during which the virus nibbles away at liver cells, leading ultim...

In the aftermath of Diwali, most weight watchers are expected to see blue for some time. The scale will remain stubbornly up for a while, making you wonder whether you had behaved really as badly with your eats and exercise the last week to deserve thi s! And where exactly was the problem?  In what we ate or just the few days that we skipped our exercise routine? Those who exercise vigorously, pile up kilos rapidly as soon as they stop. Look at the erstwhile sportsmen and dancers. Diego Maradona, the soccer legend from Argentina, became morbidly obese when he stopped playing. His condition was so desperate that he had to undergo a weight reducing bariatric surgery to loose a few score kilos! Many of our vintage cricket heroes seem to have similar problems. Dancers of Bhartnatyam and Kathak pile up kilos when they stop their rigorous practice. Similarly, gym goers are likely to put on more weight when they stop than their “regular walker” friends. My tennis buddies at S...

While Diwali is an occasion for praying, expressing love and greeting friends, we give expression to our festive spirit by lighting lamps, eating sweets, exchanging gifts and bursting crackers. The spirit of the “festival of lights” often however gets shrouded in the manner in which we celebrate it, and every year, this period of joy and gaiety turns into a nightmare for some. Health and life come under considerable threat during Diwali: the air we breathe gets smoky and polluted with suspended particles and toxic fumes, triggering attacks of  breathlessness and asthma. Crackers cause deafness, usually temporary but sometimes permanent, especially in children. The loud noise of crackers often triggers heart attacks in the elderly. Burns are common, claiming several lives and maiming many every year. Igniting of firecrackers releases fumes of cadmium, lead, copper and magnesium that cause a variety of problems from anemia to nervous ailments, making us feel tired and sleepless by l...

Several of the hospitals in India have become world class, leaving very little to be gained by Indian patients planning to go overseas for treatment. The best scanners (CT, MRI, PET etc) are now available at home, treatment of heart diseases (co ronaru angioplasty, stenting, bypass surgery, valve replacements) is widely and safely available with excellent results that are predicatable, and transplantation of kidneys, bone marrow and liver has matured with time and numbers. Cancer treatment is also excellent and avavilable through many regional cancer centers across the country. Medical tourism has become a flourishing business in India, thanks to the high quality and reliability of health care in some Indian hospitals. The advances in medical care in India have unfortunately occured in private corporate hospitals. They cater to an urban middle class with rapidly expanding paying capacity for their health needs. They have also been quick to see and utilize the inevitable ne...