JOURNAL TRANSCRIPT
DAILY NEWS BULLETIN LEADING HEALTH, POPULATION AND FAMILY WELFARE STORIES OF THE Day Thursday 20180719
Food and Nutrition Eating salamis, hot dogs can lead to manic episodes (The Tribune: 20180719) https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/health/eating-salamis-hot-dogs-can-lead-to-manicepisodes/622480.html
Chemicals in processed meat snacks, such as salamis and hot dogs, can contribute to mania, an abnormal mood state characterised by hyperactivity, euphoria and insomnia. The study, published in the journal Molecular Psychiatry, found that people hospitalised for an episode of mania had more than three times the odds of having ever eaten nitrate-cured meats than people without a history of a serious psychiatric disorder. Experiments in rats by the researchers from Johns Hopkins University in the US showed that mania-like hyperactivity after just a few weeks on diets with added nitrates. The study adds to evidence that certain diets and potentially the amounts and types of bacteria in the gut may contribute to mania and other disorders that affect the brain. "Future work on this association could lead to dietary interventions to help reduce the risk of manic episodes in those who have bipolar disorder or who are otherwise vulnerable to mania," said Robert Yolken, from the Johns Hopkins University. Mania, a state of elevated mood, arousal and energy that lasts weeks to months, is generally seen in people with bipolar disorder, but can also occur in those with schizoaffective disorder. Manic states can lead to dangerous risk-taking behaviour and can include delusional thinking, and most of those affected experience multiple hospitalisations in the course of their psychiatric illness. Researchers collected demographic, health and dietary data on 1,101 individuals aged 18 through 65 with and without psychiatric disorders.
About 55 per cent of the participants were female and 55 per cent were Caucasian, with 36 per cent identifying as African-American. A study of their records between 2007 and 2017 showed that among people who had been hospitalised for mania, a history of eating cured meat before hospitalisation were about 3.5 times higher than the group of people without a psychiatric disorder. Cured meats were not associated with a diagnosis of schizoaffective disorder, bipolar disorder in people not hospitalized for mania or in major depressive disorder. No other foods about which participants were queried had a significant association with any of the disorders, or with mania. Nitrates have long been used as preservatives in cured meat products and have been previously linked to some cancers and neurodegenerative diseases, so Yolken suspected they may also explain the link to mood states such as mania. In experiments with rats, researchers analysed the gut bacteria of the animals. They found that rats with nitrate in their diet had different patterns of bacteria living in their intestines than the other rats. Moreover, the animals had differences in several molecular pathways in the brain that have been previously implicated in bipolar disorder. While the team also cautions that it's too early to take any clinical messages from the results, and occasional cured meat consumption is unlikely to spur a manic episode in most of the population, Yolken said the findings add to evidence of the multiple factors that contribute to mania and bipolar disorder. — PTI.
Manic episodes (The Asian Age: 20180719) http://onlineepaper.asianage.com/articledetailpage.aspx?id=11164535
Fish oil (The Asian Age: 20180719) http://onlineepaper.asianage.com/articledetailpage.aspx?id=11164536
First Blood Test (The Asian Age: 20180719) http://onlineepaper.asianage.com/articledetailpage.aspx?id=11164539
Memories ((The Asian Age: 20180719) http://onlineepaper.asianage.com/articledetailpage.aspx?id=11164544
Tobacco quitline Tobacco quitline to be scaled with new warning on packets (Hindustan Times: 20180719) http://paper.hindustantimes.com/epaper/viewer.aspx
Tips from counsellors range from drinking six litres of water daily to chewing amla From page 01 The Union health ministry will set up three regional telephonic counselling centres in anticipation of an increase in the number of calls after cigarette packs and tobacco products start carrying a toll-free quitline number from September. A national quitline centre has been offering counselling in Hindi and English from Delhi’s Vallabhbhai Patel Chest Institute (VPCI) since May 2016. The three new centres at Bangalore’s National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences, Mumbai’s Tata Memorial Hospital, and Guwahati’s Dr B Borooah Cancer Institute will also offer counselling in regional languages. “The counsellors handling the national helpline speak only Hindi and English and are not representative of the country’s linguistic diversity. The regional centres will address this problem,” said a health ministry official on condition of anonymity. Uttar Pradesh accounted for 35% of the calls, followed by Delhi (11%), and Maharashtra (8%), according to May 2016 to May 2018 data at VPCI.
There are plans to link the floundering SMS smoking cessaobserved tion service to the helpline to give people the option of also receiving counselling through text messages. It takes a day just to collect the names, data, education and employment status of texters. One in three calls to the interactive voice response system of the national quitline actually gets answered, according to the two-year data, largely because the Delhi centre has eight counsellors working in two shifts a day to answer 200 to 300 calls daily. Technical glitches are also to blame. “In the 15 days that we the system, there were technical glitches on three. When the quitline is scaled up, it will need a more efficient technological interface,” said another health ministry official on condition of anonymity. It took 11 missed calls from HT to the toll-free number to get a callback. But once on a call, the psychologists doing the counselling spent 23 minutes giving tips on how to stop smoking. The tips from counsellors ranged from suggesting setting a quit date to drinking six litres of water daily and chewing Patanjali amla. The counselling is similar to that in person for substance abuse at clinics. “This concurs with what we prescribe, but the advice has to be tailored according to the cues that prompt a person to smoke. The key is to set an objective, motivate a person to want to quit and avoid the cues,” said Prerna Sharma, a clinical psychologist at New Delhi’s Dr Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital. The Quitline boasts of no tobacco use for three months by almost 39% of the callers and 32% continuous abstinence for oneyear, according to the two-year data. These results are as good as those for face-to-face counselling, say Sharma.
Drugs Three in five HIV-carriers now have access to drugs: UN (The Hindu: 20180719) https://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/health/three-in-five-hiv-carriers-now-have-access-todrugs-un/article24453934.ece
Progress made risks being halted, even reversed, if funding dwindles, it warns Almost three in five people infected with HIV, or 21.7 million globally, took antiretroviral therapy in 2017 — a new record for anti-AIDS drug access, the UNAIDS said on Wednesday.
There were 36.9 million people living with the immune system-attacking virus in 2017, of whom 15.2 million were not getting the drugs they need — the lowest number since the epidemic exploded, the joint UN programme on HIV/AIDS reported. Hailing progress in curbing new infections and deaths, the agency nevertheless lamented the mounting human toll: almost 80 million infections and 35.4 million lives lost since the first cases became known in the early 1980s. Progress made to date risks being halted, even reversed, if funding and world attention is allowed to dwindle, the agency warned. Mission 2020 “We are short by $7 billion per year to maintain our results and to achieve our objectives for 2020,” UNAIDS executive director Michel Sidibe said. “Without these resources, there is a big risk of the epidemic rebounding, of an increase in mortality due to AIDS,” he said. In 2017, about $20.6 billion was available for AIDS programmes in low-and middle-income countries which funded about 56% from their own budgets, said the report. Under Donald Trump, the U.S. administration — a major funder of AIDS programmes historically, has threatened to cut spending. The UN goal is for 90% of all HIV-positive people to know their status by 2020. Of these, at least 90% must receive ART, and the HIV virus be suppressed in 90% of those. Assessing progress towards the target, UNAIDS said 1.8 million people became newly infected with HIV in 2017. This was down from about 1.9 million the year before, and 3.4 million at the peak of the epidemic in 1996. Deaths declined from 9,90,000 to 9,40,000 year-on-year, compared to 1.9 million in 2005 and 1.4 million in 2010. Antiretroviral therapy The number of people on antiretroviral therapy (ART) grew from 19.4 million in 2016 to 21.7 million last year — up from a mere 6,11,000 in the year 2000 and 2.1 million in 2005, said the report released in the run-up to the International AIDS Conference in Amsterdam next week. This helped boost the number of people living with the virus from 36.3 million in 2016 to 36.9 million last year. Despite more than three decades of research, there is no cure or vaccine and HIV-positive people have to take lifelong treatment that can be expensive and have nasty side-effects. ART inhibits the virus and can limit its spread between people — mainly through sex — but does not kill it.
UNAIDS reported large variation between world regions in the battle against the killer virus. In the West Asia and north Africa, for example, less than a third of people with HIV have access to ARV, only 36% of those in eastern Europe and central Asia, and 40% in west and central Africa. For west and central Europe and North America, the number is 78%, with about 1.7 million out of 2.2 million infected people on ARV, said UNAIDS. In east and southern Africa — home to 53% of people living with HIV in the world — deaths declined by 42% from 2010 to 2017, thanks largely to the widespread rollout of treatment. However, “there has been no reduction in AIDS-related mortality in eastern Europe and central Asia since 2010, and deaths from AIDS-related illness increased by 11% in the West Asia and North Africa,” it cautioned.
Immunisation programme’ India lags in routine immunisation programme’ (The Hindu: 20180719) https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Delhi/india-lags-in-routine-immunisationprogramme/article24455706.ece
An estimated 19.9 million infants worldwide did not receive routine services such as three doses of diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis (DTP3) vaccine in 2017. Around 60% of these children live in 10 countries — Afghanistan, Angola, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Iraq, Nigeria, Pakistan and South Africa. This was revealed in a report released by the World Health Organization and UNICEF on immunisation estimates this week. It noted that global vaccination coverage — the proportion of the world’s children who receive recommended vaccines — has remained the same over the past few years. Since 2015, the percentage of children who received the three-dose DTP3 routine immunisation is sustained at 85% or 116.2 million infants, the report said. Besides this, an additional 4.6 million infants were vaccinated globally in 2017 compared to 2010 due to global population growth. The report stated that more efforts are needed to reach universal immunisation coverage. The figures released stated that an estimated 20 million additional children need to be vaccinated with DTP3, 45 million additional children need to be vaccinated with a second dose of measles vaccine and 76 million more children need to be vaccinated with three doses of pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV).
‘Polio eradication’ “Of the 19.9 million infants who are not fully vaccinated with DTP3, almost eight million or 40% live in fragile or humanitarian settings, including countries affected by conflict. And about 5.6 million of them live in just three countries — Afghanistan, Nigeria and Pakistan, where access to routine immunisation services is critical to achieving and sustaining polio eradication,” the report stated. Meanwhile, newly available vaccines are being added as part of the life-saving vaccination package. These include ones that offer protection against meningitis, malaria and even Ebola. Human papillomavirus (HPV) is the most common viral infection of the reproductive tract and can cause cervical cancer, other types of cancer, and genital warts in both men and women. The HPV vaccine was introduced in 80 countries in 2017. “On the other hand, vaccines to prevent against major killers of children such as rotavirus, a disease that causes severe childhood diarrhoea, and pneumonia have been around for over a decade. But the use of rotavirus and PCV is lagging. In 2017, global coverage was only 28% for rotavirus and 44% for PCV. Vaccination against both these diseases has the potential to substantially reduce deaths of children under five years of age, a target of sustainable development goals,” the report added.
Breastfeeding facilities Delhi High Court seeks govt stand on breastfeeding facilities in public (The Indian Express: 20180719) https://indianexpress.com/article/cities/delhi/delhi-hc-seeks-govt-stand-breastfeedingfacilities-in-public-5265245/
The bench said the matter needs to be examined by all land-owning agencies and civic bodies, and directed them to place a report before it in four weeks on the action taken to address the issue. The Delhi High Court has sought the stand of the Centre, the Delhi government and civic authorities on providing facilities that would allow mothers to breastfeed in public places. The court was hearing a PIL filed by a nine-month-old baby through his mother. “Breastfeeding is considered gross, the concept of nursing rooms for moms in public places also continues to be a dream. Being able to get out of home following birth is incredibly
important for women as they are likely to suffer post-natal depression… Don’t I have a right to life, right to be free from hunger and enjoy mother’s milk?” the PIL read. On learning that there are no feeding and childcare rooms at public places, the bench of Acting Chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice C Hari Shankar observed that such facilities are provided all over the world. The court further noted there were no facilities to breastfeed even at airports here. The bench said the matter needs to be examined by all land-owning agencies and civic bodies, and directed them to place a report before it in four weeks on the action taken to address the issue. The court listed the matter for further hearing on August 28. Advocate Animesh Rastogi, appearing for the infant and his mother, sought the court’s intervention in providing adequate facilities to lactating mothers and infants. “Infants have a right to life, right to be free from hunger, and enjoy the highest attainable standard of health. Infants have a right to adequate food, health services and care. The state and others are obliged to respect, protect and facilitate the nurturing relationship between mother and child,” the plea said. It said no woman should be prevented from breastfeeding at public places because of lack of facilities. “In a country which will soon be home to the world’s youngest population, protecting nursing rights for mothers will be critical for the health of the nation. While we gear up to be the world’s fastest growing economy, investing in smart cities and cattle protection, can we also focus on creating infrastructure for mothers and child and protect their fundamental rights,” the plea questioned. “Women’s Right to Privacy is hampered due to lack of breastfeeding facilities at public places. Women are harassed and mocked by public at large,” the petitioner said. Highlighting that mothers have lost the hope to live in a dignified manner due to a lack of basic facilities such as feeding rooms, the plea said, “Women have to disrobe themselves for feeding a child at public places and many times have to face sexual harassment by the public.” For all the latest Delhi News, download Indian Express Ap
Gene-edited babies Gene-edited babies may be morally okay: UK panel (The Tribune: 20180719) https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/world/gene-edited-babies-may-be-morally-okay-ukpanel/621720.html
The use of gene editing technologies to alter the DNA of human embryos could be “morally permissible” as long as the science and its impact on society is carefully considered, a British ethics panel said on Tuesday. Experts from UK’s Nuffield Council on Bioethics said while the law should not currently be changed to allow human genome editing to correct genetic faults in offspring, future legislation permitting it should not be ruled out. The council urged scientists and ethics experts in the US, China, Europe and elsewhere to engage as early as possible in public debate about what human genome editing might mean. The procedure, currently banned in the UK, could in time become available as an option for parents wanting to influence the genetic characteristics of their future child. — Reuters Altering DNA Genome editing techniques allow alteration of a targeted DNA sequence in a living cell This can help ‘edit out’ possibility of heritable disease or
BP medicine China co recalls BP medicine worldwide over cancer fears (The Times of India: 20180719)
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/china/china-co-recalls-bp-medicine-worldwideover-cancer-fears/articleshow/65047526.cms
SHANGHAI: The Chinese manufacturer of a widely used blood pressure medication said it had launched a global recall after US and European regulators warned of contamination by a cancer-causing impurity. The European Medicines Agency (EMA) first issued an alert on July 5 over supplies of the active ingredient valsartan produced by Zhejiang Huahai Pharmaceutical Company, based in eastern China, and listed on Shanghai’s stock exchange. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a similar notice about a week later. Both have warned of the presence of N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA), which is believed to potentially cause cancer through long-term use. In a series of pronouncements over the past week, Huahai said last Friday that it had moved to suspend supply and had begun a recall. Valsartan is a generic drug mainly used for treatment of high blood pressure and congestive heart failure.
The EMA has said there is “no immediate risk and patients taking valsartan are advised not to stop their treatments” unless advised by doctors. Several US companies had already begun voluntarily recalling products containing Huahai’s valsartan after the FDA statement. The FDA said that not all products containing valsartan were being recalled in the US. “The presence of NDMA was unexpected and is thought to be related to changes in the way the active substance was manufactured,” it said. Both the FDA and EMA are further investigating. Huahai’s stock has dropped more than 10% since the warnings first emerged. The company did not answer calls seeking comment.
New labs to test drug samples Govt plans two new labs to test drug samples (The Times of India: 20180719) https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/govt-plans-two-new-labs-to-test-drugsamples/articleshow/65047214.cms
NEW DELHI: In a move to ensure safer medicines, the Centre plans to designate two new laboratories — in Mumbai and Chennai — as ‘appellate testing laboratories’, to check drug samples collected by regulators as part of market surveillance and plant inspections. While the labs in Chennai and Mumbai are fully equipped, they have so far been used by state regulators. The central regulator will upgrade them to ensure they are prepared to deal with demands. The new laboratories will add to the government’s capacity to test samples as currently there is only one such central drug testing lab in Kolkata. The central facilities are expected to improve standards and also be less susceptible to manipulation as they will function under government supervision. The different laboratories will enable samples being randomly sent to any of the facilities for testing. Apart from random sampling from the market and products that seek approvals from the regulator, the central drugs standard control organisation also undertakes a massive exercise annually, which involves collection of around 50,000 samples from across the country to check counterfeiting and ensure quality of medicines. All these samples were so far sent to the Kolkata laboratory. Now, with government planning to increase frequency of inspections as well as fast track process to process approvals in time, capacity and fidelity of testing has emerged as a major concern. “At present companies know where we are sending product samples and can sometimes manage the system. Designating multiple laboratories can check this,” an official said.
The proposal is part of the agenda to be taken up by the drug regulatory Drugs Technical Advisory Board for final approval in its upcoming meeting by end of this month. In absence of authentic data, regulators struggle to keep a check on quality of products being sold to patients. Quality assumes significance as India is the largest supplier of low-priced generic medicines to the world and has faced strong criticism on standards.
Mental Health (Dainik Gagaran: 20180719) https://epaper.jagran.com/ePaperArticle/19-jul-2018-edition-Delhi-City-page_18-1264-54144.html
Blood Test – Cancer (Hindustan: 20180719) http://epaper.livehindustan.com/imageview_109971_90134230_4_1_19-072018_i_18.pagezoomsinwindows.php
Diabetic मधुमेह YmlSŌको सफे द चावल खाना हािनकारक ((Hindustan: 20180719) http://epaper.livehindustan.com/textview_109971_90134874_4_1_18_19-072018_1_1.html
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