-The United Nations One in three people is now covered by at least one life-saving measure to limit tobacco use, according to a United Nations report which highlights the progress over the past five years of reducing potential smokers through advertising bans and awareness campaigns. According to the report on the Global Tobacco Epidemic 2013, the number of people covered by bans on tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship increased by almost 400...

-Live Mint Debates on malnutrition ignore links with sanitation and disease and the burdens these impose on children Children in India are among the shortest in the world. Widespread child stunting is a human development tragedy. This is not because there is anything wrong with being short or anything inherently good about being tall. The tragedy is because of what makes children short: we all have different genetic potential heights, but...

-Live Mint The country is a happy hunting ground for communicable diseases In a Mint article last week, economist Dean Spears pointed out that the double whammy of high population density and unsanitary conditions in India stunts the growth of children, who bear a disproportionate burden of infectious diseases and lose their ability to absorb nutrients. Unless India ramps up its public health system, providing extra food will mean little for...

-The Telegraph The proliferation and sales of anti-diabetes combination pills that contain two drugs to control blood sugar has stirred concerns in medical circles that a large proportion of diabetes patients in India are not receiving ideal treatment. A study by Indian and British researchers has shown that such two-drug combo pills accounted for more than half of the sales of all oral anti-diabetes medications in India last year, although doctors say...

-PTI VADODARA: A Gujarat-based NGO has alleged that the Biotechnology Regulatory Authority of India (BRAI) Bill introduced in the Parliament aims at "criminalising" opposition to the genetically modified (GM) food. Suman Sahai, who leads the 'Gene Campaign', an organisation, said that according to this "draconian bill", those creating hurdles in the campaign against the GM food, can get three months of imprisonment and a fine of Rs 5 lakh. He was speaking at...