-The Telegraph New Delhi: A joint study by Indian and Pakistani doctors has detected abnormally high blood sugar levels in six out of 10 adults in cities, indicating a "frighteningly" higher prevalence of diabetes or its precursor, pre-diabetes, than observed before. The doctors, who screened 13,720 people aged over 20 in Chennai, Delhi and Karachi, have warned that the high incidence of pre-diabetes suggests millions more urban South Asians are likely to...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: Air pollution may be posing a rising health risk in India as the number of cases of acute respiratory infection have risen by 5 million since 2012 even though deaths have declined in the same period, government data released on Tuesday evening show. Cases of ARI have been rising even before 2012 though deaths began to decline since that year. The government report notes the strong...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: Even as the government is still deliberating on larger pictorial warnings on packs of tobacco products, 40% of Indian adults are exposed to second hand tobacco smoke at home. These are people who do not smoke themselves but are vulnerable to various diseases because someone smokes at home, showed a latest assessment by the World Health Organization, highlighting risks of second hand smoking and the need...

-Economic and Political Weekly The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has made public the National Health Policy 2015 Draft for discussion. The draft is more exhaustive and better organised in its coverage compared to the National Health Policy of 2002. It touches upon contemporary issues of concern, including the rapid emergence of chronic non-communicable diseases. From the latest available evidence, issues crucial to tackling chronic illness in India are discussed. Subrata...

-The Financial Express NEW DELHI: With increasing prevalence of life-style diseases in India, one out of four Indians is at risk of dying from non-communicable diseases like diabetes, cardio-vascular ailments or cancer before the age of 70, according to estimates of various global and domestic organizations. The findings are part of a white paper released by the Confederation of Indian Industry and academia on Wednesday. "Every year, roughly 5.8 million Indians die from...