Health

India must treat adolescence as its "second window of growth" and invest urgently in nutrition, education and healthy food systems to avert a future health and productivity crisis, experts said at the 3rd International Conference on Public Health and Nutrition (ICPHN 2025) here this week. The conference was organised by Sukarya, an NGO working on issues of maternal and child health and nutrition, gender equality and women`s empowerment. Professor K Srinath Reddy, Chancellor of the Public Health Foundation of India, said failure to address adolescent nutrition would "lock in inter-generational poverty and poor health outcomes". "Adolescence offers a biological and social opportunity to reset health trajectories. The choices young people make now -- what they eat and how active they are -...

Diwali is here along with its festivities that not only include delicious food and drink, but also the firecrackers, which have become an inseparable part of the celebrations. Unfortunately, even as the experience of lighting them brings out the inner child in us, they affect our health in more than one way. They not only bring with them the noise pollution that startle animals, but also the smoke that actually has adverse effects on people’s health, and makes it worse for those with pre-existing respiratory problems. Mumbai doctors say they aren’t the only ones affected during this time of the year, but it is also the children, who have lungs that are still growing, but also the elderly and pregnant women, who are also vulnerable during this time of the year.   With Diwali underway and ...

An ambulance assistant of the Indian Army returning to duty from leave administered mouth-to-mouth resuscitation to an eight-month-old infant on a train and saved his life, a Defence official said on Saturday. Sepoy Sunil, posted in a field hospital of the Army in the north-east, administered cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) to the infant and stabilised the baby while travelling on the New Delhi-Dibrugarh Rajdhani Express, he said. "His timely and professional action prevented a fatality in a situation where no immediate medical support was available," the Defence official said in a statement. The eight-month-old infant had developed sudden respiratory distress while travelling in the train earlier this week and became unresponsive. The mother of the child fainted as she thought the ...

Once considered a midlife milestone, menopause is now arriving earlier for many Indian women — sometimes in their late 30s or early 40s. Doctors are seeing a sharp rise in cases of premature or early menopause, driven by a mix of lifestyle, environmental, and hormonal factors. Every year, World Menopause Day observed on October 18 aims to raise awareness about menopause and the support options available for improving women’s health and well-being during this life stage. Now, experts are sounding the alarm: Indian women are entering menopause much earlier than their Western counterparts. On average, Indian women experience menopause at the age of 46–47 years — several years earlier than women in the West. “Women today are experiencing perimenopause earlier than expected,” says Dr. Shweta ...

Diwali is almost here as it set to be celebrated from October 18 to October 23 across five days not only in India but across the world. Indians across the country are going to be celebrating the ‘Festival of Lights’ with a lot of good food, culture, tradition, but many for many it is not complete without bursting firecrackers, an activity that has become an important part of the festivities. The traditional crackers that not only produce a lot of smoke but also create a lot of loud sounds. This not only leads to air but also sound pollution, with the latter affecting humans and animals alike.  With Diwali festivities, mid-day spoke to Dr Paresh P Naik, Consultant ENT, Jaslok Hospital & Research Centre, and Dr Jarvis Pereira, Consultant ENT, Holy Family Hospital, highlight the effects ...

Even though preventable, lead exposure remains a serious global health threat and continues to affect millions of children and adults alike, said the World Health Organization on Friday, calling for immediate action to tackle the growing burden.  Lead is present in numerous everyday materials, including paint, batteries, cosmetics, and even spices. It contaminates air, water, and soil, resulting in persistent exposure in communities worldwide. It is linked to approximately 1.5 million deaths annually, primarily from cardiovascular disease, and causes irreversible neurological and behavioural damage, especially in children. Young children absorb significantly more lead than adults, leading to reduced IQ, learning difficulties, and behavioural problems. Lead exposure also harms the develop...

Maternal exposure to air pollution particles such as PM2.5 during pregnancy can affect brain development in newborn babies, according to a new study.  Researchers at Hospital del Mar, the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), and the CIBER area of Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP) in Spain analysed extremely small particles -- about thirty times thinner than a human hair. It was composed of harmful elements from combustion processes and toxic organic compounds, but also of essential elements for brain development, such as iron, copper, and zinc. The results, published in the journal Environment International, showed that newborns of mothers exposed to higher levels of fine airborne particles during pregnancy show slower myelination at this very early stage of life. M...

Costa Rica`s President Rodrigo Chaves further restricted access to abortion Wednesday, limiting it to situations when the mother`s life is in danger. The country`s previous regulations also allowed abortions if a pregnancy posed a threat to the mother`s health. No legislative approval was required for the change. In making the rule change through the Health Ministry, Chaves made good on a promise he had given religious conservatives at the Evangelical Alliance earlier this month. `Today the only reason for which an abortion can be done without penalty is when there are only two options: the mother`s life or the life of the being that is inside,` Chaves said during a news conference. While abortion access has advanced in recent years in some of Latin America`s largest countries, includi...

Developing a culture of health literacy and self-care in youth may help prevent the early onset of non-communicable diseases like diabetes, hypertension obesity and cancers, in India, said public health experts here on Tuesday.  The experts spoke at the third International Conference on Public Health and Nutrition (ICPHN 2025), organised by non-profit Sukarya. Dr. Zoya Ali Rizvi, Deputy Commissioner, Nutrition and Adolescent Health, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, underscored the national mission’s focus on preventive health and behavioural change. "We are witnessing a paradigm shift. Our effort is not just to treat illness but to prevent the early onset of non-communicable diseases by creating a culture of health literacy and self-care among young people,” Rizvi said. “The ai...

Popular drugs for diabetes management and weight loss, such as Ozempic and Wegovy, could also be effective in reducing alcohol use, according to a study.  The study, led by researchers at Virginia Tech, US, showed that GLP-1 agonists slow the speed at which alcohol enters the bloodstream, also slowing down the effects on the brain. "People who drink know there`s a difference between nursing a glass of wine and downing a shot of whiskey," said Alex DiFeliceantonio, Assistant Professor at the varsity’s Fralin Biomedical Research Institute. A standard serving of either has 0.6 ounces of alcohol, but the shot brings a rapid increase in blood-alcohol content. It feels different because of the way the body handles alcohol over time. "Why would this matter? Faster-acting drugs have a higher a...