PHC360

01/01/2024

05/12/2023

Natural seasonal cough and cold remedies

Cold remedies: Some work, some don't. Learn how to tell the difference.

05/12/2023

Long-term exposure to air pollution is associated with an increased risk of certain autoimmune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis, connective tissue diseases (CTDs) and inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD).

Objective Environmental air pollution has been associated with disruption of the immune system at a molecular level. The primary aim of the present study was to describe the association between long-term exposure to air pollution and risk of developing immune-mediated conditions. Methods We conducte...

05/12/2023

*6 Steps to Help Support a Healthy Immune System*

1) Eat a balanced diet with whole fruits, vegetables, lean proteins, whole grains, and plenty of water. A Mediterranean Diet is one option that includes these types of foods. If a balanced diet is not readily accessible, taking a multivitamin containing the RDA for several nutrients may be used.

2) Don’t smoke (or stop smoking if you do).

3) Perform moderate regular exercise.

4) Aim for 7-9 hours of sleep nightly. Try to keep a sleep schedule, waking up and going to bed around the same time each day. Our body clock, or circadian rhythm, regulates feelings of sleepiness and wakefulness, so having a consistent sleep schedule maintains a balanced circadian rhythm so that we can enter deeper, more restful sleep.

5) Aim to manage stress. This is easier said than done, but try to find some healthy strategies that work well for you and your lifestyle—whether that be exercise, meditation, a particular hobby, or talking to a trusted friend. Another tip is to practice regular, conscious breathing throughout the day and when feelings of stress arise. It doesn’t have to be long—even a few breaths can help.

6) Wash hands throughout the day: when coming in from outdoors, before and after preparing and eating food, after using the toilet, after coughing or blowing your nose.

During the flu season or times of illness, people often seek special foods or vitamin supplements that are believed to boost immunity. Vitamin C and foods like citrus fruits, chicken soup, and tea …

05/12/2023

*Mindset and health*

Looking after your mental well-being is not something we should just do if we are struggling, or feeling low, anxious or stressed. It's actually something we should think about all the time and really invest in, just like with our physical health.

Staying on top of our mental wellbeing is good for us now but also helps us deal manage difficult times in the future. Over time, it can also reduce our risk of physical health problems.

There are lots of things we can do to look after our mental health and wellbeing every day – make a start with these 7 top tips.

Good mental health is essential to living happy and healthy lives. See 7 areas of life where simple changes can make a big difference. Why not start today?

05/12/2023

Try out these 52 healthy Indian recipes for popular dishes

Enjoy Indian food with a healthier twist, from curries and side dishes to soups and salads. They not only taste fantastic but also contribute to your 5-a-day.

05/12/2023

*Indoor / household air pollution is 10 times more dangerous than outdoor air pollution*

Household air pollution was responsible for an estimated 3.2 million deaths per year in 2020, including over 237 000 deaths of children under the age of 5.

Household air pollution can lead to stroke, heart diseases, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and lung cancer.

Women and children bear the greatest health burden of indoor air pollution.

It is essential to use clean fuels and technologies like air purifiers to reduce household air pollution and protect health.

WHO fact sheet on indoor air pollution: includes key facts, definition, impact on health, impact on health equity, WHO response.

05/12/2023

The heart beats about 2.5 billion times over the average lifetime, pushing millions of gallons of blood to every part of the body. This steady flow carries with it oxygen, fuel, hormones, other compounds, and a host of essential cells.

It also whisks away the waste products of metabolism.

But it can also fail, brought down by a poor diet, lack of exercise, smoking, infection, unlucky genes and more.

A key problem is atherosclerosis. This is the accumulation of pockets of cholesterol-rich gunk inside the arteries. These pockets, called plaque, can limit blood flow through arteries that nourish the heart — the coronary arteries — and other arteries throughout the body. When a plaque breaks apart, it can cause a heart attack or stroke.

The heart beats about 2.5 billion times over the average lifetime, pushing millions of gallons of blood to every part of the body. This steady flow carries with it oxygen, fuel, hormones, other compounds, and a host of essential cells. It also whisks away the waste products of metabolism. When the ....

05/12/2023

WHICH OIL?

Oil is an integral part of our food and there are a lot of controversies around which ones are healthy.

Here is a short video in Hindi by Padma Shree Dr Anoop Misra - India's preeminent diabetologist, health researcher and personal physician to two former Prime Ministers of India. He argues that -

1) Ghee is extremely unhealthy and should be used like junk food (only rarely)

2) Olive oil is the best, followed by canola oil. But since these oils are expensive, a cheap and great option is the traditional sarson ka tal (mustard oil). We can also use a mixed strategy of using each of them on different times.

3) Re-use of oil already used for deep frying is dangerous - especially ghee - as it increases the level of trans-fats.

It is very important for us to know the quality of oil or ghee and to use the best fat and cooking oil. Saturated fats are really harmful for us. Dr. Anoop M...

05/12/2023

*Self-care for health*

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), self-care is the ability of individuals, families and communities to promote their own health, prevent disease, maintain health, and to cope with illness and disability with or without the support of a health worker.

*Why is self-care important?*

1) Self-care promotes individuals’ active participation in their own health, greater self-determination and self-reliance in health.

2) The cost of treatment, especially in private health facilities, is high. Every year 100 million people are plunged into poverty because they have to pay for treatment out of their own pockets.

3) By 2030, the estimated global shortage of health workers to achieve and sustain universal health coverage (UHC) is expected to grow to 15 million health workers.

4) On average, individuals spend less than 1 hour a year with a health worker versus over 8700 hours a year in self-care.

5) People also choose self-care if they feel they will feel stigma or discrimination in health facilities.

During my doctoral field research in the Saharanpur district of Uttar Pradesh in 2009, I was that a number of Dalits and Muslims avoid going to local government health facilities because they feel they will be treated in a humiliating manner. On the other hand, they felt when they pay money in the private health facilities, they are respectably treated.

However, for self-care to be right, one has to have access to reliable health information. Without it, self-care can prove to be dangerous for one's health. It should never be based on hearsay.

What is self-care? WHO’s definition of self-care is the ability of individuals, families and communities to promote health, prevent disease, maintain health, and to cope with illness and disability with or without the support of a health worker. It recognizes individuals as active agents in managi...

04/12/2023

IS A FAMILY HEALTH INSURANCE POLICY ENOUGH?

Many of us get family health insurance from our offices, and many of us also buy health insurance policies with a family floater plan.

However, health insurance in India only covers hospitalization in most cases, and should actually be called ‘hospitalization insurance’ because it offers nothing to keep us healthy in the first place.

So, what can we do to keep our families healthy in the first place?

In a wonderful article, ‘Family as a health promotion setting’ – https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0249707 – 3 Canadian scholars present core characteristics of health promoting families, some of which we present here (table 5 of the article presents a detailed overview).

Health promoting attitudes – Flexibility (adaptability and compromise, acceptance of difference of personality and opinion); non-blaming attitudes; positivity; respect for privacy of family members; encourage hope; appreciation and affection; compassion; sense of humor

Health promoting behaviors and habits –

Food related: improving knowledge about nutrition; purchasing healthy foods; reading food labels; preparing healthy, balanced foods; eating slowly; portion control; active involvement in weight gain prevention; high fruit and vegetable intake.

Activity related: Regular exercise; physical activity participation; parental support for child physical activity.

Parenting behaviors: healthy parenting (physical and emotional); positive communication; family
conversation; children having responsibilities, including chores; develop social skills; positive family problem-solving.

Other: Leisure time activities; enough sleep; hygiene practices; treatment adherence.

Finally, an important point raised in the article is – ‘when children themselves are not included and encouraged as competent, capable agents, they are deprived of the opportunity to learn to make their own health related decisions, and to gradually learn to take responsibility for their own health behaviors and decisions’.

Background The family is a key setting for health promotion. Contemporary health promoting family models can establish scaffolds for shaping health behaviors and can be useful tools for education and health promotion. Objectives The objective of this scoping review is to provide details as to how co...

04/12/2023

The short paper by Nigel Crisp (see post below) also makes a point that we should look at health from the aim of human flourishing.

Traditionally, health policy in India has either focused on population stabilization or bare survival, given the massive burden of premature mortality, especially of children under the age of 5 years. Even now, with universal health coverage policies primarily focused on hospitalization cover through health insurance, the focus is mainly on survival.

We need to be much more ambitious about our health, health policy and systems. One of the possible reasons why health outcomes in India are poor is because of our low ambitions and expectations about health.

Let's aim at flourishing and not just survival when we think about health.