Health

Tokyo, July 6 (IANS) For the first time, researchers from the University of Tokyo have used a special kind of artificial intelligence (AI) called a Bayesian neural network to probe a dataset on gut bacteria in order to find relationships that current analytical tools could not reliably identify.Gut bacteria are known to be a key factor in many health-related concerns. The human body comprises about 30 trillion to 40 trillion cells, but your intestines contain about 100 trillion gut bacteria.“The problem is that we’re only beginning to understand which bacteria produce which human metabolites and how these relationships change in different diseases,” said Project Researcher Tung Dang from the Tsunoda lab in the Department of Biological Sciences in a paper published in Briefings in Bioinform...

Vidisha, July 5 (IANS) Mobile medical units, a centrally sponsored initiative aimed at providing healthcare to tribal communities within their vicinity, are yielding impressive results in Madhya Pradesh, with even locals admiring the move.Vidisha, located about 65 km from Bhopal, has witnessed a marked uplift in healthcare services as the tribal communities are receiving treatment for multiple ailments within their homes. Their remote location no longer remains a hindrance to healthcare access, and they no longer have to travel long distances.The mobile medical units, equipped with all modern tools and medical equipment, are providing them treatment in their own habitats, and the tribals are also upbeat and overjoyed with this initiative.In MP’s Vidisha alone, ten mobile medical units we...

New Delhi, July 5 (IANS) Women's mental and physical health took a severe toll than men during the deadly Covid-19 pandemic, finds a study.The study, published in the journal Social Science and Medicine, showed that psychological distress increased for both women and men during the pandemic, with women experiencing a greater rise.The link between health behaviours and mental health weakened for women during the pandemic, with a healthy lifestyle no longer showing a significant connection to mental health.In contrast, these relationships remained consistent for men. Before the pandemic, health behaviours offered greater protective benefits for women's mental health, but during the pandemic, this protective effect became stronger for men, revealed researchers from the University of Aberdeen ...

New Delhi, July 5 (IANS) The CBI's investigation into the bribe-for-medical college accreditation scam has turned the focus on six illegal monetary transactions that took place across the country to subvert the statutory inspection processes governing medical education, an official said on Saturday.The scam has exposed deep-rooted corruption in medical college regulation with the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) arresting six people, including three doctors.The CBI has named 34 people, including Union Health Ministry employees, and some unidentified persons in its first information report (FIR) registered on June 30.According to the FIR, some public servants in the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and the National Medical Commission (NMC) colluded with private individuals and ins...

New Delhi, July 5 (IANS) In the wake of the untimely death of actress Shefali Jariwala that raised concerns over the effects of cosmetic procedures, experts on Saturday said that although the anti-ageing medicines have gained significant popularity, these are mostly unregulated and pose severe health risks.Shefali, widely known for her breakout performance in the iconic 2002 music video 'Kaanta Laga', passed away in Mumbai on June 27. She was 42.Preliminary reports suggest cardiac arrest behind her death. However, reports also reveal the usage of a cocktail of anti-ageing injections, allegedly self-administered while fasting.“Anti-ageing medicine is becoming very popular but it's mostly unregulated. Many of these products are sold without proper scientific studies to prove they work. Som...

New Delhi, July 5 (IANS) A CBI probe into the bribe-for-accreditation scam in medical colleges has blown the lid off a well-oiled machinery involving college managements, corrupt bureaucrats, inspectors from medical education regulator and hawala operators who ensured seamless flow of bribes. According to the FIR filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation, some public servants in the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and the National Medical Commission (NMC) colluded with private individuals and institutions to subvert the statutory inspection processes governing medical education.The offences reportedly occurred across Raipur, Bangalore, Indore, Udaipur, Delhi and other locations during 2024–25.Among the prominent names in the FIR are Dr. Jitu Lal Meena, Joint Director at the Nation...

New Delhi, July 5 (IANS) One in every four school-going adolescents is at risk of developing mental health illness, according to a recent study, that stressed the need for early interventions.The study, led by researchers at the Indira Gandhi Medical College and Research Institute in Puducherry, called for significant intervention at school and home.“Adolescence is a crucial period during which biological and psychosocial changes occur in an individual. One-fourth of the adolescents were found to be at risk of mental health illness, so periodic screening could be done at schools, for early identification and proper treatment of mental disorders,” said researchers including Kavita Vasudevan, Head of Community Medicine at the institute.The study aimed to determine and compare the prevalence ...

Bhopal, July 5 (IANS) Ravi Shankar Maharaj, at the centre of a medical education scam involving bribes for granting accreditation to sub-standard medical colleges, may have thrived all these years with help from influential followers, including politicians and bureaucrats, and his efforts to painstakingly nurture a network spanning religion, education and politics across central India.The CBI’s first information report (FIR) naming the self-styled spiritual leader is the self-styled godman’s first brush with law in decades.Also known as Rawatpura Sarkar, the godman has influential followers, including politicians and bureaucrats, and his trust has never faced action despite facing allegations of receiving undue favours from government agencies, encroachment, rights violation of college stu...

New Delhi/Bhopal/Raipur, July 5 (IANS) In a sweeping action exposing deep-rooted corruption in medical college regulation and accreditation, the CBI arrested six people, including three doctors, and busted a racket involving self-styled godman Rawatpura Sarkar, former UGC Chairman D.P. Singh and a network of officials and middlemen, an official said on Saturday.The muli-state corruption racket forced the CBI to raided more than 40 locations in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi.The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has named 34 and one unidentified person in its first information report (FIR) registered on June 30, under section 61(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, and Sections 7, 8, 9, 10, and 12 of the Prevention of Corruption Act...

New Delhi, July 5 (IANS) In a significant scientific breakthrough, an international team of researchers has developed a novel gene therapy that can improve hearing in children and adults with congenital deafness or severe hearing impairment.In the study, Swedish and Chinese used gene therapy and improved hearing in 10 patients, and the treatment was well-tolerated.“This is a huge step forward in the genetic treatment of deafness, one that can be life-changing for children and adults,” said Maoli Duan, consultant and docent at the Department of Clinical Science, Intervention and Technology, Karolinska Institutet, Sweden.The study, published in the journal Nature Medicine, comprised 10 patients between the ages of 1 and 24 at five hospitals in China, all of whom had a genetic form of deafnes...