About 100,000 people in India
may have escaped HIV infection
over five years because of a
scheme funded by the Bill and
Melinda Gates Foundation, a
study by the Lancet suggests.
The Avahan project was
launched in 2003 in six states
which had the highest rate of
HIV in India at the time.
The aim was to invest in HIV
prevention by targeting high-
risk groups such as sex workers
and truck drivers. The initial
findings of the study had some
data limitations, AFP reports,
but the study's authors make it
clear that investing in preven-
tion can have a positive im-
pact."The results of our analysis
suggest that Avahan had a bene-
ficial effect in reducing HIV
prevalence at the population
level over five years of pro-
gramme implementation in
some of the states," the assess-
ment said. The $258m (£164m)
Avahan project was based in the
states of Andhra Pradesh, Kar-
nataka, Maharashtra, Tamil
Nadu, Manipur and Nagaland.
It targeted high-risk groups such
as sex workers, injecting drug
users and truck drivers with
tactics such as safe-sex counsel-
ling, free condoms, exchanging
used needles for sterilised ones
and through campaigning and
advocacy. It found that the cam-
paign was most effective in the
districts that got the most re-
sources but it also had a greater
impact in the highly-populated
southern Indian states. Indian
authorities say the number of
annual new HIV infections has
declined by more than 50%
during the past decade.India
also runs government Aids con-
trol schemes, many done in
partnership with international
donors. There was some criti-
cism of the Avahan project
when it was launched for being
poor value for money, AFP
reports, but the study disputes
this assertion.
Bill Gates India scheme spared 100000 from HIV
Japanese encephalitis spreading from eastern UP to Delhi
After claiming at least 376 lives in east-
ern Uttar Pradesh, the deadly Japanese
Encephalitis is slowly spreading its
tentacles outside the state with Delhi and
Chandigarh being the latest to report
cases of the viral infection. Transmitted
by mosquito bites, the infection had, so
far, been localised with Gorakhpur in UP
being the worst affected. The disease
occurs regularly during the monsoon in
the Gorakhpur region bordering Nepal in
the foothills of the Himalayas. The low-
lying areas are prone to floods, providing
a breeding ground for mosquitoes which
commonly transmit the virus. Apart from
the over 300 cases of deaths of children,
4480 people were also infected this year,
almost double that of last year. But de-
spite the growing number of cases, the
Centre has done little to prevent the
spread and recurrence of the lethal out-
break. There was no timely response to
requests for vaccines in several letters
sent by state governments early this year.
The vaccines arrived only by the end of
August, too late to be distributed to the
affected states, as the infection had al-
ready peaked during the monsoon, affect-
ing hundreds. Two massive vaccination
drives against Japanese encephalitis were
carried out in Gorakhpur in 2006 and
2010, leading to a drastic decline of the
disease in the area. In January this year, the
Union Health Ministry had promised 66 lakh
vaccines to the UP government for re-
immunisation but it has, so far, remained just
that - a promise. In Assam, another endemic
zone, 2090 cases were reported this year. 114
lost their lives with just 42 deaths being
reported from the Sibasagar district alone.
Self Published Weekly Newsletter by Dr Neha Garg
Newsletter Date
15th October 2011
Volume 1 ,Issue 4 and 5
Health For All
Special points of interest:
Avahan project is a hit
Encephalitis outbreaks in UP
Measles outbreak in several countries
Centre merges urban and rural health mission
Fight back –phone app to protect women
Baby 7 million :countdown begins
Scientist maps Nepal typhoid using google
earth
Malaria vaccine almost here
Stories of hope
Several large measles outbreaks
have been reported in the European
and African regions, with addi-
tional outbreaks in the Americas
linked to Europe or Africa. In re-
sponse, countries are strengthening
surveillance activities, and some
have modified immunization
schedules to address gaps. Social
mobilization activities and advo-
cacy for immunization have been
implemented in all affected coun-
tries. Measles is a highly infectious
disease that causes complications
and deaths, even in previously-
healthy individuals, but is fully
preventable by vaccination. Coun-
tries need to ensure that they reach
95% coverage with two doses of
measles vaccine across all age
groups up to 15 years of age. These
outbreaks should remind travellers
that they should ensure that they
have had two doses of measles-
containing vaccine before their trip.
Measles outbreak
in Several Countries
The Centre proposes to merge the
National Rural Health Mission
(NRHM) and the yet-to-be-launched
National Urban Health Mission
(NUHM) in the 13th Five-Year-Plan
period. The two ambitious Missions
will be separate entities in the up-
coming 12th Five-Year-Plan period,
after the launch of the urban health
mission, but subsequently merged.In
its proposals to the Planning Com-
mission, the Ministry of Health and
Family Welfare has said that the
National Urban Health Mission
would be taken up as a thrust area
for the 12th Plan and launched as a
separate mission for urban areas
with focus on slums and urban poor.
It will cover all cities and towns
with a population of more than
50,000, broadly covering 779 cities
and towns including seven mega
cities including Mumbai, New
Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru,
Hyderabad and Ahmedabad.
The budget allocation for the mis-
sion is envisaged to be Rs. 30,000
crore and the programme will be
implemented by investing in health
professionals, creating new and
upgradation of existing infrastruc-
ture, and strengthening the existing
health care service delivery sys-
tem.Principally, the NUHM will
cover the entire urban areas irre-
spective of the dwelling status
(including general population, listed
and unlisted slums) but outreach
services will be targeted for slum/
slum like areas and other homeless
people, street vendors, railway and
bus station coolies, homeless people
and street children, construction site
workers who may be in slums or on
sites. Inter-sectoral convergence will
be planned between the Jawaharlal
Nehru National Urban Renewal
Mission, Rajiv Awas Yojana and the
NUHM.Realising that the health
care needs of the urban poor and
vulnerable populations, the urban
health mission will ensure adequate
resources for addressing the health
problems in urban areas and address
the need-based city specific urban
health care system to meet the di-
verse health needs of the urban
population with focus on the urban
poor and other vulnerable sections.
The institutional mechanism and
management systems will be in
place to meet the health-related
challenges of a rapidly growing
urban population and join hands
paign ‘Because I am A Girl’. As part of
its commitment, the organisation has
launched the ‗Let Girls Be Born’ initia-
tive in India to galvanise action to address
the issue of female foeticide.. Bhagyashri Dengle, Executive Director of
Plan India said: ―We are the world‘s most
rapidly growing nation, yet among the
most challenging for girls. Plan has been
working in India for the last three decades
and survival rights of girls have been a
key focus of our community development
work. With ‗Let Girls be Born‘ we hope
to reach out to people to make them
realise the consequences of the declining
sex ratio, and encourage them to be active
in celebrating girls.‖Plan chose Uttar
Pradesh to mark the birth of Baby 7
Billion as the state accounts not only for
the highest number of births but also the
for foetal sex-determination are illegal in
the country. According to India‘s 2011
Census, the ratio of girls to boys has
dropped to an all time low since records
began. Today, the national figure has
fallen to an alarming 914 girls for every
1,000 boys between 0 and 6 years. In
some states like Punjab that ratio is as
low as 846 girls to 1,000 boys.Nigel
Chapman, Plan International CEO said:
―Girls throughout the world are still being
denied their rightful access to many
things – but this is the most grave of all –
the right to be born itself. Globally mil-
lions of girls are either never born be-
cause of a skewed preference for sons or
die in early childhood or in reproductive
years. We must bring a stop to this injus-
tice.‖Plan is advocating girls‘ rights and
empowerment through its global cam-
highest number of ‗missing girls‘. With a
population bigger than that of Brazil, it
has just 899 girls for every 1,000 boys.
The situation is similar in other states
such as Haryana, Rajasthan, Madhya
Pradesh and country‘s capital Delhi.On
October 31, Plan will celebrate the birth
of ‗Baby 7 Billion‘ at a public function
near Lucknow. The newborn will be
issued with a birth certificate by state
authorities. The organisation has made
registration of birth an integral part of its
girls‘ rights campaigns.Nadya Kassam,
Plan‘s Global Head of Advocacy said: ―A
birth certificate is recognition of a valued
life and is a passport to citizenship and
many rights. In places like India particu-
larly, it gives live data on the gender gap
and serves as a vital indicator to track
where girls are being lost.‖(13oct alertnet-TRFS)
Baby 7 billion : Countdown begins for a girl in India
will be launched in November by a
local charity and will function as an
SOS alert device -- sending out a
text message with a GPS location to
up to five people, including police,
and as a post on Facebook and Twit-
ter."Safety for women has become
such a huge issue here and we felt
that citizens of Delhi, where possi-
bly the problem exists the most,
could use this type of technological
intervention," said Hindol Sengupta,
co-founder of Whypoll, which cre-
ated the application."Women are
harassed and molested everywhere
on buses, at metro stations, in mar-
kets ... we believe this is Asia's first
phone application aimed at making
women safer."In conservative and
largely patriarchal India, women
face a barrage of threats ranging
from forced marriage and dowry
murders to human trafficking, do-
mestic violence, "honour killings"
and abduction as well as sexual
harassment and rape. The "Fight
Back" app will initially be available
to download from the Whypoll
website (whypoll.org) for a nominal
fee and will be supported by a range
of mobile devices such as Nokia and
BlackBerry.
‘Fight back’ phone app to protect women in India
Women in India's capital, New
Delhi, will soon be able to fight off
potential attackers with a push of a
phone button that will alert not only
friends, family and police but also
sound an alarm on their social net-
working websites.One in every four
rapes in India occurs in New Delhi,
police say, with reports of women
being bundled into moving cars and
gang-raped before being dumped on
roadsides, giving the city an unsa-
voury reputation as the "rape capi-
tal" of the nation. There is one rape
every 18 hours, according to po-
lice.The phone app " Fight Back"
Page 2 Health For All
with community for a more proactive
involvement in planning, implemen-
tation and monitoring of health ac-
tivities.At the primary care level, one
Urban Primary Health Centre will be
established for every 50-60,000. At
the community level, outreach ser-
vices will be provided to the urban
poor slums with the help of Urban
Social Health Activist (USHA) (200-
500 households) and Mahila
Aarogya Samiti (50-100 house-
holds). No sub-centres are proposed
but communisation will be made
possible through Mahila Aarogya
Samiti and Rogi Kalyan Samiti while
secondary and tertiary level services
will be provided through public or
empanelled private providers.
(THE HINDU ,14 OCT)
Centre proposes to merge rural and urban Health Missions
.SOS alerts will cost the same as an
SMS. Sengupta said the app, which
is part of the Whypoll's "Safe in the
City" campaign, will also map the
SOS alerts to build an accurate
database of where and what gender-
related crimes occur."We have
created a platform where women
can remain anonymous yet the inci-
dent will still be recorded and re-
flected on a map on our website --
which will help us push for action in
places where there appears to be
increased risks to women," he said.
(13 Oct,The Economic times)
Countdown has begun for the birth of
‗Baby 7 Billion’ in India, says global
child rights organisation Plan Interna-
tional.
On October 31, the day when the world
population is projected to surpass 7
billion, Plan will celebrate the birth of a
girl as the world‘s 7 billionth child near
Lucknow, the capital of India‘s most
populous state of Uttar Pradesh.The
organisation is using the occasion to draw
world attention to India‘s growing gender
gap. The world‘s emerging economic
superpower, estimated to overtake China
to become the most populous nation by
2030, has 7 million girls ‗missing‘ from
its population. Thousands of female
foetuses are being terminated in India
every year even though sex-selective
abortions and use of ultrasound
An effective vaccine against
malaria - the first for any para-
sitic disease, is a step closer to
reality.
The first ever wide scale trial of
the candidate vaccine RTS,S
prevented clinical malaria in
56% of five- to 17-month-old
children it was tried on over a
period of one year. It also pre-
vented severe malaria in 47% of
cases after three doses of RTS,S.
The trial was conducted at 11
trial sites in seven countries
across sub-Saharan Africa. This
data comes out of the first 6,000
children aged 5 to 17 months,
over a 12-month period follow-
ing vaccination. This is one of
the final stages in evaluating the
efficacy and safety of the vac-
cine candidate in infants and
young children on a large scale
before regulatory file submis-
sion.
Bill Gates called this discovery
a "huge milestone" in the fight
against malaria.
"First, this is proof that it is
possible to create a vaccine that
is effective against malaria,"
explained Gates. "Second, if
further results show that the
effectiveness of RTS,S does not
wane over time, it has the poten-
tial to protect millions of chil-
dren and save thousands of
lives." Published in the New
England Journal of Medicine
(NEJM) on Tuesday, the result
was announced at the ongoing
Malaria Forum hosted by the
Bill and Melinda Gates Founda-
tion in Seattle, Washington. The
vaccine is still under develop-
ment. Further information about
the longer-term protective ef-
fects of the vaccine, 30 months
after the third dose, should be
available by the end of 2014.
Malaria vaccine almost here
has remained relatively stable be-
tween 2000 and 2010 primarily due
to continuing high reported malaria
burdens in India, Indonesia and
Myanmar."There were 52 lakh
probable and confirmed cases of
malaria reported in 2000 as against
50 lakhs in 2010," the report said.
Bhutan and Thailand have large
areas with no malaria transmission
and have expressed their intention to
proceed with elimination joining the
Asia Pacific Malaria Elimination
Network (APMEN).An updated
WHO fact sheet shows that there
were 225 million cases of malaria
and an estimated 7.8 lakh deaths in
2009, a decrease from 233 million
cases and 9.8 lakh deaths in
2000.An increasing number of coun-
tries are setting their sights on elimi-
nating malaria, with three countries
already certified as malaria-free by
WHO in the last four years. The
current trend towards ending ma-
laria, with seven countries having
recently eliminated malaria and
working to prevent re-introduction,
and another 10 countries are moni-
toring transmission to arrive at zero
malaria cases.The report describes
nine countries - out of a total of
Malaria wanes globally ,but not in India
About one-third of all malaria-
affected countries are expected to
eliminate the vector-borne disease in
the next 10 years. However, for the
South-East Asia region the future
isn't that bright. Maldives is the only
country among the 11 nations in the
region that has eliminated malaria,
while Sri Lanka and Korea are in the
pre-elimination stage. The remain-
ing eight countries, including India,
are trying to control regular out-
breaks. The latest report of the Roll
Back Malaria Partnership (RBM)
says the number of malaria cases
reported by countries in the region
Page 3 Volume 1 ,Issue 4 and 5
108 malaria endemic nations and territories - that
are preparing to move towards elimination of
malaria. Dr Robert Newman, director of the
Global Malaria Program of WHO said, "The
world has made remarkable progress with malaria
control. Better diagnostic testing and surveillance
has shown that there are countries eliminating
malaria in all endemic regions of the
world."Malaria elimination - the deliberate inter-
ruption of mosquito-borne malaria transmission
resulting in zero incidence of infection in a de-
fined geographical area - was first attempted at
large scale during the Global Malaria Eradication
Program from 1955 to 1972. During this 17-year
period, 20 countries were certified by WHO as
malaria-free. However, this number fell to only
four countries in the 30 years which followed due
to a massive reduction in efforts to control the
disease .Malaria affects 40% of the world's popu-
lation. Over the last decade, the rapid scale-up of
a variety of malaria control interventions has
saved an estimated 1.1 million lives in Africa
alone, and reduced deaths from malaria by
38%.WHO director-general Dr Margaret Chan
said, "The malaria map is shrinking. In 2009, for
the first time, not a single case of falciparum
malaria was reported in the European Region and
this trend continues. Since 2007, Morocco, Turk-
menistan and United Arab Emirates have been
certified as malaria-free. Armenia has been certi-
fied by WHO as malaria-free."In March 2010,
WHO introduced a major policy change that
recommends diagnostic testing for malaria in all
suspected cases prior to initiating treatment. This
policy marks a significant change from the earlier
practice, when malaria was so common that every
child with fever was presumed to have the disease
and was given anti-malarial drugs. Anti-malarial
treatment without diagnostic confirmation means
poor care for patients. It masks other deadly
childhood illnesses, wastes precious medicines,
hastens the inevitable emergence of drug-resistant
parasites and makes it impossible to know the
actual burden of malaria.
Scientists claim to have mapped typhoid outbreaks in the Nepalese capital accurately using latest gene se-quencing technology and Google Earth.In the research, published in the journal Open Biology, an international team of researchers used Global Positioning System (GPS) signalling and the latest DNA sequencing techniques to map the spread of typhoid and trace its source in Kathmandu. They discovered the bugs behind the typhoid outbreaks — Salmonella typhi and Salmonella paratyphi bacteria — are usually spread through water or food contaminated with faeces in the city.―Until now, it has been extremely difficult to study how or-
ganisms such as the typhoid-causing bacteria evolve and spread at a local level,‖ study researcher Dr. Stephen Baker, of Oxford Univer-sity Clinical Research Unit in Vietnam, said.―Without this information, our ability to understand the transmission of these diseases has been significantly hampered,‖ he explained.―Now, advances in technology have allowed us for the first time to create accurate geo-graphical and genetic maps of the spread of typhoid and trace it back to its sources.‖To capture the information, health workers would visit a patient‘s home and use GPS to capture the exact location. They would also take a blood sample from the hospitalised patient to isolate the organism and to allow analysis of the typhoid strain‘s genotype — its genetic make-up.This sequencing technology able to identify single changes in the ―letters‖ of DNA — the A, C, T and Gs that make up the code. The study showed that people living near to water spouts, for whom these provide their main source of water, and people living at a lower elevation are at substantially greatest
risk of contracting the disease. According to the researchers, their work has also shed light on the role of asymptomatic carriers of the disease in the spread of typhoid. As these carriers do not show symptoms, they are likely to be unaware of their infection and can unwit-tingly spread the disease. The most famous of such cases was a cook in New York in the early twentieth century, nicknamed ―Typhoid
Mary‖, who is believed to have spread the disease to dozens of people.
Scientists map Nepal typhoid using Google earth
Health For All
Page 4
Already grappling with various allergies and viral fever, Delhi has registered 479 dengue cases, 218 malaria cases, 12
cases of chikungunya and five confirmed cases of Japanese Encephalitis this season. Though Delhi Health Minister Dr.
A.K. Walia said the figures were not alarming and that the situation was under control, he, however, admitted that there was a need for more aggressive public participation in ensuring that breeding of disease-causing mosquitoes stays under
control. ―We have recorded four dengue deaths this season but compared to previous years the number of deaths is lower.
As for private hospitals reporting a larger number of dengue deaths, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi does not take into
account the over 30 per cent dengue cases treated in Delhi but are from outside the Capital. We also do not take into ac-
count dengue cases that test positive on the dengue fever rapid test kit. Several cases that are under treatment in private
and government hospitals in Delhi are suspected dengue cases and till they are confirmed we don't notify them as dengue
cases,‖ said MCD Chief Medical Officer Dr. N. K. Yadav.Malaria cases in Delhi have been reported mainly from rural
areas and unauthorised colonies. ―Dengue cases on the other hand have been reported from all over the city and we have
occasional sporadic cases of Japanese Encephalitis which is not area specific,‖ noted Dr. Yadav.―The MCD has been try-
ing to spread awareness about controlling the spread of dengue and malaria and we are conducting fogging and mosquito
breeding checking in all areas of the city. The city has reported cases of Japanese Encephalitis and we have taken samples
from those affected to ensure that the disease is contained,‖ added Dr. Yadav.MCD public health committee chairman Dr. V. K. Monga added that September and October months are the peak time for dengue and malaria cases here as the tem-
perature is suitable for breeding of mosquitoes. ―We generally see a rise in these cases during these two months and then
the number reduces as the temperature drops. There is a certain need for the public to be more aware and involved in con-
trolling the spread of mosquitoes,‖ said Dr. Monga.
Delhi hit by Dengue and Malaria cases
The world has become more vulnerable to outbreaks of disease caused by contaminated food because of growing global trade, the World Health Organisation
(WHO) said .Investigating these outbreaks has also become more difficult because food can contain ingredients from around the world and is transported
through a complex global supply chain, top WHO officials said."Outbreaks of food-borne disease have become an especially large menace in a world bound
together by huge volumes of international trade and travel," said WHO director-general Margaret Chan at a conference in Singapore on improving prepared-
ness against global health threats."They are large in their potential in terms of geographical spread often involving multiple countries."One challenge faced by
governments worldwide is how to "reduce the health and economic consequences of food-borne diseases," Chan said. She cited an outbreak this year of a new
killer E.coli strain, which infected almost 4,000 people and left 51 dead across Europe and caused massive losses to vegetable farmers. European farm products
such as tomatoes, lettuces, courgettes and sweet peppers were withdrawn from the market between late May and the end of June as a result of the disease,
while Russia briefly banned EU vegetable imports.The European Union had blamed the outbreak on fenugreek seeds imported from Egypt, although Cairo
denied any responsibility."Problems nowadays can arise from any link or kink in a convoluted food chain," Chan said. WHO assistant director-general Keiji
Fukuda said food-borne outbreaks have occurred in the past."But what is different now is that food goes all around the world, so if you have something which
gets contaminated or infected in one country it can be in 50 countries or 100 countries or 200 countries," Fukuda told reporters on the sidelines of the Singa-
pore conference."So the scope of these outbreaks could be much larger and more complex and affect many more people."Fukuda said however that while the
risks have become higher, the WHO is also working to make sure that authorities are able to deal with the problem."It's a kind of a race," he said.
World is now vulnerable to food safety issues due to rampant trade : WHO
Osteoporosis remains the least understood and underdiagnosed ailment. It is often misconstrued for other diseases like arthritis and spondylitis. Lack of awareness about the disease has fuelled misconceptions and misinformation. On the eve of World Os-teoporosis Day, which is on Thursday, October 20, orthopaedics and spine surgeons feel that there is a need for public to be aware of osteoporosis. ―There is a huge disease
burden of osteoporosis in Country. In two years, India will have 36 million such pa-tients,‖ physicians point out. Osteoporosis is an ailment in which the density and mass of the bones decreases leading to fragile and weak bones. The bones become porous and prone to multiple fractures even after a slight fall. The ailment has no signs or symptoms until a fracture occurs, hence it is often called as a silent disease, physicians point out. Lack of proper nutrition, less exposure to sunlight, sedentary lifestyle and genetic causes are the reasons for osteoporosis. ―The condition can be managed but there is a need for public to be educated‖, said Spine Surgeon, Yashoda Hospitals, Dr.
Sanjog Mathur .―Indians, especially rural population, is prone to osteoporosis due to poor calcium intake since childhood, non-affordability of milk, higher incidence of lactose intolerance and preference to vegetarian diet,‖ says Senior Orthopaedic, Dec-can Hospital, Dr. K. Sudhir Reddy.―It is not just calcium deficiency; there are other conditions that could trigger osteoporosis. The ample source of Vitamin D is sunlight but we seldom get exposed to sunlight these days. No cardio or weight training, nutri-tion, smoking and alcohol play a part too,‖ explains Dr. K. Sanjay, Spine Surgeon, Yashoda Hospital. Physicians also advise public to avoid cool drinks. ―Cool drinks
contain phosphates. More phosphates lead to less calcium in the bones. Women after menopause suffer from osteoporosis. The more one exercises, the more the body is
able to retain calcium and remains safe from osteoporosis,‖ said Dr. Sanjog Mathur.
Osteoporosis least underdiagnosed disease
Health For All
Page 5
The next few days will perhaps be the most testing time of the year for diabetics around the country. With Deepavali around the corner and a regular flux of sweet boxes of mind-boggling variety, all dripping in ghee or screaming sugar, you cannot blame diabetics if they lose control. Temptation comes in myriad edible forms during the season and mod-eration is the key to surviving the festival of lights in healthy fashion, note doctors. ―We
can permit diabetics with controlled blood sugar levels a little indulgence at this time of the year,‖ says M.S. Ashraf, Chairman, State Chapter, Association of Physicians of India. Exercise discipline. However, he cautions diabetics with complications like eye com-plaints, kidney and heart disease and those on insulin to stay away from sweets or exer-cise discipline in overall dietary consumption. A tad bit too much of indulgence can up-set blood sugar levels hovering on the borderline. Sweets loaded with sugar are the major culprit as blood glucose levels can shoot up instantaneously, necessitating an insulin injection, says Ravindranath, managing director, Trichy Diabetes Specialty Centre. One
or two sweets at a time may not cause much harm, but taking it for more than a couple of days or consuming sweets in bulk can cause sugar levels to soar. Sugar free sweets with artificial sweeteners are a safer alternative and can satisfy cravings, though they may not be as tasty as conventional sweets. Not just sweets, but savouries high in calories also send blood sugar levels soaring, says Dr. Ashraf. Rich food with high salt content should be consumed in moderation, notes Dr. Ravindranath. There may be delay in absorption of these foods, which impact blood glucose levels later. The primary reason why diabet-ics lose control is ready access to sweets and temptation sown by family members con-
suming in their presence. Children with stomach complaints due to over-eating dropping in at hospitals the day after Deepavali is not uncommon, says Dr.Ashraf. ―Sampling sweets from various sweets shops prepared at different levels of hygiene can lead to stomach complaints. Home made sweets are thus safer alternatives. Sweets should be avoided at bed time.‖Patients lining up of for insulin shots the next day are common. Most diabetics avoid keeping up appointments with doctors, says Dr.Ravindran, fearing the doctor's reprimands. ―If a diabetic indulges, then they consult the doctor at once. Self medication is a strict no-no. Do not overdose prescribed medicines if sugar levels shoot
up.‖
Testing time for diabetics , Exercise discipline
Sugar free sweets with artificial sweetners are safe
alternative
CANCER – A POSITIVE EXPERIENCE
A story as told by Sampada Sakre (Berde)
After a wonderful vacation in the summer of 1977, I had high fever for which test
were done and I was rushed to Tata Hospital. My treatment was immediately started
Mum was crying all the time. Keeping my four siblings unattended at home my father was running around
continuously. I could see that Doctors, nurses and my father were busy with my treatment all the time.
Mum was praying for me. I was unaware of what was wrong with me. One day I heard my mum discuss
cancer with the mother of other patient and I suspected that I was suffering from cancer. CANCER, a kil-
ler disease, incurable.
But when I saw my mother’s tears, tireless efforts of the doctors & nurses, their affection for the patients,
and efforts of my parents to save me anyhow, I decided that I would not let all this go waste. I told my
mother not to cry as I was certainly going to get well. Since then I never cried. I underwent entire treat-
ment happily as I was determined to get well.
And I was reborn. This new life is a gift to me from Tata Hospital, relentless efforts of Dr.Purna Kurkure
and her colleagues. Credit goes to my parents who were with me during my fight against cancer in spite
of all the difficulties at home. They looked after my four siblings, while being with me during this period
of struggle.
I was studying in VII standard when cancer was detected. While undergoing treatment I completed IX
with 1st rank and later passed SSC with 72% marks. In due course I graduated in commerce stream. I
never thought of marriage as I often heard my relatives commenting as to who would agree to marry me.
But to the surprise of everyone, suddenly my marriage was fixed. The moment he saw me, Subhash gave
his consent to marry me. I asked my father whether Subhash was aware of my medical history. My father
said that we need not tell him. But I did not agree. I decided to take Subhash into confidence and tell him
the truth before hand. Before engagement I told him everything. He said,” I like you as you are. Now let
us not think about the past”. I am proud that my husband is not just educated (he is M.Com) but a pro-
gressive thinker.
Today I am 46 and our married life is smooth and happy. We have two intelligent and healthy children.
32 years ago, when I was undergoing the treatment, survival rate was low. Now survival rate in children
with cancer is very high and I get to see it when I visit the ACT clinic where hundreds of children who are
being treated successfully & are survivors come for annual check up. It’s been 29 years since I completed
my treatment, but still every year I visit ACT clinic for my annual check-up and return home with the re-
assurance of being fit and fine. In this clinic patients are not only guided about their physical health but
are also given emotional support. Today my parents are no more, but when I meet Dr. Kurkure I feel as-
sured that there is someone to look after me.
I wish to convey that there is no need to loose heart on learning that you’re suffering from Cancer. It is
necessary to have faith in God and doctors and undergo treatment recommended with determination. Al-
ways bear it in mind that your parents love you and want you, no matter what. Undergoing treatment
with positive attitude will work as a catalyst and fasten the recovery. And even after the complete recov-
ery one must visit ACT clinic for regular check-up and take care of health.
(http://www.indiancancersociety.org/cancer-resources/articles/cancer-story.pdf)
Stories Of Hope
Join me in this initiative to inspire people to
live a good healthy life. Please write in with
your stories ,your good or bad experiences.
Write to [email protected] to share
your experiences.
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id.
This newsletter is self published by Dr Neha Garg .She is
a highly motivated Homoeopath with an active interest in
the field of public health nutrition and holistic wellness.
It's important to keep up with the medical news that af-
fects your health and well-being. HFA puts you in closer
touch with everything that’s happening right now in the
ever changing field of medicine. HFA covers a range of
important health topics – nutrition, exercise, cardiovascu-
lar disease, diabetes, vision, memory, hearing, vitamins
and supplements, managing your health care, the list goes
on and on. With alarming rates of diseases across the
world , spreading awareness, happens to be the most effec-
tive strategy against them. Make the HFA , part of your
good health strategy.
HFA brings Stories of Hope*, a section dealing with true
inspirational stories of people surviving serious illness.
Stories about their journeys through discovery ,diagnosis,
treatment and beyond. Awareness is the only strategy
against these illness. HFA owes to compile more of such
stories .So with a kind heart and good faith lets join
hands in spreading the word .Have a Happy and Healthy
Life. Achieving good health for all is a shared responsibil-
ity .
Health For All
Health For All. Know It All. Prevent It
All.
Health For All