Saturday 16 May, 2015

Lack of food safety killing 2.2 mn every year

Lack of government policies on food and water safety is causing the death of 2.2 million people, including children, every year across the globe, health experts said on Sunday.

They said the use of pesticides and fertilizers in the past 50 years has grown nearly 170 times.

As a consequence, persistent residues of the chemicals contaminate food and disperse in the environment and find their way into the food chain.

"There has been rampant use of chemicals resulting in several short-term and long-term effects on the human body. High use of artificial fertilizers and pesticides while growing food grains results in food-borne diseases," Behram Pardiwalla, consultant internal medicine at Wockhardt hospital, said in a statement.

He said tackling the problem was necessary because toxic compounds like pesticides, heavy metals and toxins of fungal or bacterial origin could also contaminate the food during manufacture, storage or transportation.

Observing that unsafe food kills an estimated 700,000 children in Southeast Asia alone every year, he said: "Even if the food is free of bacteria, viruses, parasites and chemicals, other contaminants, additives and adulterants can cause over 200 diseases ranging from diarrhoea to cancer."

Pradeep Gadge, consultant diabetologist at Shreya diabetes centre, said: "The lack of surveillance by the government on food adulteration is another big issue that is contributing to the food poisoning among people.

"Adulteration of milk is very common. Some milk suppliers add salt to slow down the decomposition process of milk. Similarly cane sugar is often added to milk. Consumption of such milk leads to multiple health hazards especially in diabetic and blood pressure patients.

"Kidney patients and blood pressure patients suffer serious consequences due to the salt content of such adulterated milk," he said.

Apart from urging the governments of the countries to ensure food safety, they also said that there was a need to work with NGOs to raise awareness among the people.

The WHO has designated food safety as the theme for World Health Day-2015 on April 7.

In a statement, WHO's South Asian director Poonam Khetrapal said food safety was one of the key focus areas under the International Health Regulations -- IHR 2005 -- which include all public health emergencies of international concern that involve contaminated food and outbreaks of food-borne diseases.

She said WHO and the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) have established the International Food Safety Authorities Network (INFOSAN) to rapidly share information during food safety emergencies.

Saurabh Arora, a pharmaceutical experts and founder of foodsafetyhelpline.com said there were 306 disease outbreaks due to food contamination in 2014 alone.

"Food that is produced and processed at one place may become contaminated at the source, but affect the health of the consumer, located at the other side of the globe," he said in a statement.

Dealing with depression: Symptoms and treatment

Recent times have seen a lot been written and spoken about depression. And mental health experts say that they are glad that there is an increasing awareness about this. 

Undiagnosed depression is said to lead to a host of problems like chronic anxiety, anger bouts and even pain disorders. Depression can affect relationships and careers if not diagnosed an treated in time. Actress Deepika Padukone received a lot of positive feedback when she opened up about her own battle with depression. The star said that there should be no embarrassment in asking for help when it comes to dealing with depression, and that it would help them hugely.

Experts agree with Padukone. They say that the sooner one accepts that there is a problem and seeks treatment, the better (and at times quicker) the recovery. One of the major contributing factors that may exacerbate depression is loneliness. As strange as it may sound, even in a bustling city like Mumbai, one can feel alone.

Other factors like marital discord, extreme work pressure, high competition and expectations can all lead to depression. Don't, however, allow it to drag you down. Help may just be a call away.

Symptoms 
- Continuous feelings of sadness or anxiety for no specific reason.
- Loss of appetite or a significant increase in appetite leading to drastic weight loss or gain.
- Having trouble sleeping or sleeping almost all the time.
- Feeling irritable about little things and losing your temper often.
- Think that nothing will ever go right in your life and feel restlessness.
- Feelings of pessimism, hopelessness, guilt, worthlessness or helplessness are often reported in depressed individuals.
- Disinterest in regular activities and cutting yourself out from social dos. 

Treating depression 
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and EMDR Therapy are said to be among the most effective intervention for treating depression, say experts. Together with medication, they work well to treat this disorder. Clinical psychologist and author Seema Hingorrany says that unfortunately there is still a stigma associated with seeking help for emotional and mental problems, including depression. "Sadly, feelings of depression often are viewed as a sign of weakness rather than as a signal that something is out of balance. The absolute fact is that people with depression cannot simply 'snap out of it' and feel better spontaneously. For anyone who is facing treatment, congratulate yourself on the awareness and the fact that you love yourself enough to want to feel good," she says.

One Life..

7 Billion, National Geographic Magazine

Dr.Aj 's to-read book montage

The Secret
Angels & Demons
Romeo and Juliet
Girl with a Pearl Earring
The Virgin's Lover
The Alienist
The Time Machine
2001: A Space Odyssey
Mein Kampf
The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich: A History of Nazi Germany
A History of God: The 4,000-Year Quest of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam
Schindler's List
The Discoverers
Sex with Kings: 500 Years of Adultery, Power, Rivalry, and Revenge
The First World War
Sex with the Queen: 900 Years of Vile Kings, Virile Lovers, and Passionate Politics
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything
Tales From Malgudi.
The Bhagavad Gita


Dr.Aj Sean's favorite books »
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