(In the weekly Health Matters newsletter, Ramya Kannan writes about getting to good health, and staying there. You can subscribe here to get the newsletter in your inbox.)
The air is already sizzling even though it is early summer in India. The predictions for the the climate later in summer send a shiver down the spine, as heat islands have already emerged and are predicted to get more intense as the summer progresses. As per the predictions, India as a country is bound to see higher temperatures between April to June this year, except for a few areas in the western and eastern regions.
Naturally, given the various inequities present in this country, while the going might be tough for all, it might be tougher still for people who have little access to amenities that can help them cool their bodies down, after staying in the open, because that is how they make their living. Advise to remain indoors may not quite work for these groups of people, who also have limited access to health care. It is then, the responsibility of the state actors to take care of these people. It may be remembered that in the searing heat of last summer, when an election was being held, several election officials lost their lives to the heat, the dehydration and sunstrokes it causes. This, at no cost, can be allowed to happen again.
Meanwhile, the Centre told all States to be prepared to tackle heat-related ailments, Bindu Shajan Perappadan reported. The Union Health Secretary Punya Salila Srivastava in her letter noted that with the onset of summer, an increase in the exposure to heat, including extreme conditions may occur. She added that some places in the country have begun witnessing high temperatures and that health facilities need to increase their resilience to heat by arranging uninterrupted electricity for the constant functioning of cooling appliances, installation of solar panels (wherever feasible), energy conservation measures and measures to reduce indoor heat through cool/green roofs (NDMA guidelines may be referred), window shades, shade outside etc. Succour for those having to work outdoors should be provided, and the possibility of avoiding mid day work out of doors should be examined.
In this article, Geetha Srimathi explains the urgent need to tackle heat stress effects — not just heat — this summer. Heat stress happens when the body cannot get rid of excess heat, causing its’s core temperature to rise, and the heart rate to increase. High temperatures combined with moisture can make it feel even hotter, as increased humidity makes it harder for the body to cool itself through sweating. While the weather predictions focus on the temperature, she argues that they do not pay attention to the wet-bulb temperature, one of the measures that combines both the air temperature and humidity, and provides an indication of heat stress on the human body.
Also a factor of climate change, closely related to rising temperatures and linked irrevocably with it, are questions of rising environmental pollution. In this In Focus podcast, Zubeda Hamid asks an expert the question: Could environmental pollution be behind the rise in cancers in India? Hit the link to listen to the podcast.
Incidentally, at the WHO conference, over 50 countries pledge to reduce air pollution health impacts by 50% by 2040. Speaking at the conference organised in Colombian city of Cartagena, India’s Aakash Shrivastava, representing the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare’s said that the Indian government is “committed to supporting the health sector” and will “promote cleaner cooking energy, particularly for vulnerable populations.”
There is always a simmering concern in this country about the prices of drugs, and whether they will remain affordable to the large group of patients who pay out of pocket for the medical expenses. In this light, Chetali Rao and K.M. Gopakumar offer a solution in the form of bio similars, or affordable generic drugs: India needs to update its rules for biosimilars to ensure safe, effective, and affordable medicines, while packing in a word of caution.
There is a very significant price rise coming up, in India. The Prices of coronary stents are set to rise, after the NPPA allows price hike for coronary stents in order to account for inflation. There will definitely be an impact on people’s affordability, cardiologists worry.
March, being the host of Women’s Day, eventually becomes a month where we push stories relating to women’s health issues. Here’s the gender dimension for this last week. Radhikaa Sharma in this very important piece: Access to abortion, foetal viability, and the laws thereof: women are caught in the crossfire: raises the prickly and as yet unresolved question of foetal viability. When it comes to a crunch who do doctors and the courts side with: the mother’s right to autonomy or the baby’s right to life? There are enough judgements in the country to side with the latter, but the arguments in favour of the former must also be made.
Dr. Sandhya Sundaram notes here that Advances in diagnostic pathology have paved the way for personalised cancer therapy in women. The recent years have witnessed a remarkable evolution of newer technological advances fuelled by the use of molecular pathology, liquid biopsies, digital pathology, and other innovative technologies. These transformative technologies have revolutionised our understanding of cancers and paved the way for personalised diagnostics and therapeutics, she says.
Here’s another break through in breast cancer care as Researchers announce they use chromosomes to monitor treatment and predict recurrence, with the deployment of valproic acid. Do read. Headlines were also made when IIT-Guwahati and Bose Institute, Kolkata announced that they had developed a Hydrogel for targeted breast cancer therapy. The hydrogel triggers a controlled drug release directly into the tumour, minimising its interaction with healthy tissues and reducing systemic side effects.
Meanwhile, there was joy in England after the morning-after pill was made available free in pharmacies in that country, while in India, the question of the ipill remains tortured in a moral and ethical discourse.
-While examining future models that research would include, Anushka Banerjee propped up the idea of Bringing patients and the public into the fold. You talk to your doctor about your symptoms, just think of doing this with a researcher in a lab. While this might be simplistic, the author argues that the future of health research cannot ignore patients or users and their feed back.
Talking of models, there were two other interesting innovative experiments in health care that landed in our limelight, this week. R. Sujatha wrote about the WHO recognising Chennai-based NGO Banyan’s mental health housing model in its document, while Shrabana Chatterjee drew our attention to West Bengal’s ambitious project to eliminate mother-to-child transmission of HIV, syphilis and Hepatitis B.
Our writers also looked at several other current trends in the sector: Dr. Priyamvada Sharma and Dr. Pratima Murthy warned about the dangers of a very worrisome trend, particularly amongst youngsters. Vaping is not an approved way to quit smoking, it is in fact, far more harmful. Anjan Sachar took a good look at 2025’s wellness trends from ice baths to gut health, while Dr. P. Srinivas elaborated on Life’s essential eight: a blueprint for optimal health. This includes tips to alter our lifestyles towards the healthy pathways.
Ahead of World Autism Day (April 2) we had a couple of articles, looking at various aspects of the spectrum. While Mantasha Ahmed wrote on the need to Nurture the special talents of children with autism, Meghna M. spoke to parents who are worried that Disability insurance for autism is still a dream.
Brain injury awareness month also fell in March, and R. Sujatha spoke to a number of specialists about Fatal head injuries declining with helmet use, but that there is more to do. This week, as part of The Hindu – Naruvi Hospital’s tie up for a series of health webinars, ‘Healthy India, Happy India’, haematologists discussed how Diet is key in ensuring balanced levels of iron in body,
If you have not yet read this piece by Dinesh S. Thakur and Prashant Reddy T. I’d suggest you hit on this link: A bad omen for public trust in vaccines. The authors say in recent years, a number of petitions have been filed in Indian courts questioning the administration of vaccines, it is important not to put them all down to anti-vax sentiment.
The story on ICMR’s successfully testings of drones to deliver corneas turned out to be a huge hit on our website, and in case you wanted to read about it, the link is right here.
The natural choice for the tailpiece is Geetha Srimathi’s story on Waiting Room Theatre. Imagine sitting in the waiting room of your health care professional and a bunch of actors walk in and roll out their play? A brilliant way to hold audiences to the subject. This particular group of artists/patients give voice to the struggles and strength of persons with mental illness in SCARF, in Chennai.
Our robust and growing section on explainers did overtime last week. Read on:
Athira Elssa Johnson lists out All you need to know about: Foetal abnormalities and she also writes on balance rehabilitation therapy and why it should be a part of primary healthcare?
Suchitra Karthikeyan writes about the COVID-19 lockdown of the past: How India shut down and opened gradually to battle a pandemic
Dr. S. Nagendra Boopathy explains about TAVI, a minimally invasive procedure for treating severe heart valve diseases in high-risk patients
R. Prasad tells us Why TB patients’ data is shared for receiving nutrition support
In the context of rising mumps and measles cases, across the country, C. Maya asks: Does India need to include the mumps vaccine in its universal immunisation programme?
Alok Kulkarni on Bipolar Day: disorder is complex but early diagnosis can lead to fulfilling lives
P.S. Niranjana writes on Understanding anxiety disorder
Dr. Sowmya Dogiparthi explains the different types of eczema and how to tackle them
-If you have a few extra moments, you can also tarry over a choice of articles that appeared in the health section, links provided below:
Serena Josephine M. writes on Addressing the growing health crisis of digital addiction in children and adolescents
U.S. measles cases till March surpasses all of 2024
Indian-American scientist Jay Bhattacharya confirmed as National Institutes of Health Director
Try the Science Quiz: On Parkinson’s disease
The National Institute of Health and Family Welfare to start training module to reduce doctor-patient conflict
U.N. lauds India’s progress in child mortality reduction
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Published – April 01, 2025 04:37 pm IST