Philippines Set to Roll Out Tough No-Smoking Law

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte is set to sign a regulation this month banning smoking in public across Southeast Asia’s second-most populous country, rolling out among the toughest anti-tobacco laws in the region. Public health campaigners who have long battled against the country’s hefty tobacco lobby welcomed the push to end smoking in public places and said they believed Duterte, with his tough anti-vice record, was the man to do it. Health Secretary Paulyn Jean Rosell-Ubial told Reuters on Tuesday she hoped the president would sign the ban, which expands the…

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Daycare Not Linked to Child Obesity

Working parents who send their children to daycare no longer need to worry about whether this puts their kids at increased risk for obesity, a U.S. study suggests. While several previous observational studies have suggested children in daycare may be more likely to gain too much weight than similar kids cared for by parents at home, the current study looked at data on more than 10,000 youngsters and found no such connection. “Our study casts doubt on previously held beliefs that non-parental  is associated with a higher risk of obesity,”…

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Parental Absence May Lead to Early Smoking, Drinking

  Parental absence in early childhood as a result of death or relationship break-up is linked to an increased risk of children starting to smoke and to drink alcohol even before they reach teenage years, says a study. “Associations between parental absence and early smoking and alcohol consumption may operate through a range of mechanisms, such as reduced parental supervision,self-medication, and adoption of less healthy coping mechanisms,” the researchers said. The researchers from University College London drew on data from the UK Millennium Cohort Study, which has been tracking the…

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268 Million Kids to be Overweight Globally by 2025: Study

In an indication that no policy interventions have proven very effective at changing current obesity trends, researchers have estimated that globally some 268 million children aged five to 17 years may be overweight by 2025. On the assumptions of continued population growth given by the World Bank, the study projected a rise from some 219 million children in this age group in 2010 to 268 million children in 2025. Obesity alone rises from 76 million children in 2010 to 91 million by 2025, the study, published in the journal Pediatric…

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Want to Perform Better at Sports? Eat More Spinach

A new study has found that spinach which is rich in nitrates can boost sports performance particularly at high altitudes with low oxygen conditions. Nitrate, commonly found in green leafy vegetables like spinach, is important for the functioning of the human body, especially during exercise. The study showed that nitrate supplementation in conjunction with sprint interval training (SIT) – short, high intensity exercise – in low oxygen conditions could enhance sport performance. For the study, a research team from the University of Leuven in Belgium examined 27 moderately trained participants. They were…

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All you need to know about Chikungunya

According to recent news reports, there has been a spurt in the number of patients in Mumbai who have shown Chikungunya symptoms. Though other cities are reeling under the twin assault of vector-borne diseases, the numbers are nowhere as high in our city. Chikungunya has reportedly led to around 20 deaths in the Captial. So, what is this disease about? What all can we do to prevent it? We spoke to senior physician Dr Vijay D’Silva and the president of Association of Hospitals, Dr PM Bhujang to find out more……

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