Health Matters newsletter: When breath becomes polluted air

(In the weekly Health Matters newsletter, Ramya Kannan writes about getting to good health, and staying there. You can subscribe here to get the newsletter in your inbox.)

Currently, New Delhi ranks 155th among the cities with the highest Air Quality Index (AQI) levels in the world. In the week of June 2 to 9, it ranged between 75 and over 225. A ‘good reading’ would stand at 0-50. It’s not just Delhi, though: many cities in the North and West of the country have between moderate to very high levels of AQI.

The AQI is a standardised numerical system used to measure and report daily air pollution levels; it technically measures about eight parameters but the commonest are particulate matter: fine particles (PM 2.5) and coarse dust (PM 10); and gases.

There has been published evidence that air quality affects the unborn foetus if the pregnant mother is exposed to such bad AQI. However, for the first time, researchers from AIIMS Delhi mapped out the bio-chemical pathways by which AQI impacts negatively on the health and growth of the foetus. Since the hows, whys and the wheretofores are important in health care, I reported last week about this study: AIIMS Delhi researchers show exactly how particulate matter affects foetuses.

Fine particular matter from urban air pollution crosses the placenta, triggers a wave of inflammation and shuts down a protein that is essential for growth. Shubradip Karmakar, one of the researchers said: “Our research reveals that exposure during pregnancy to Urban Particulate Matter activates inflammatory pathways that inhibit IGFBP3 expression, a key protein governing the equilibrium of the placenta and growth of the embryo. This reduction in IGFBP3 impairs critical placental processes, resulting in restricted foetal growth and altered developmental trajectories.” With a sandstorm predicted for Delhi on Tuesday, the warning bells are already ringing off the hook. Immediate ameliorative methods to cut down pollution and reduce AQI should be launched by the Central and State governments.

From air pollution to noise that bothers us. Rohan Singh,Kushagra Rajendra and Argha Kamal Guha argue that India is vulnerable to chronic aircraft noise thanks to regulatory gaps. Researchers have said the health effects of noise depend on how loud it is as well as on how often it occurs, how long it continues for, whether people have enough time to recover before the next exposure — especially as they sleep at night — and cumulative long-term exposure.

Let’s provide a quick Ebola update before we move on, the WHO said suspected Ebola cases drop to 116 after hundreds ruled out, while it has also announced a $518 million six-month plan to fight Ebola. There are plans afoot to develop vaccines for Bundibugyo Ebola and treatments, here’s the latest update. Meanwhile, there was quite a kerfuffle as a Sudanese national was picked up at the airport by the thermal scanner and admitted to hospital, because of his fever and history of travel. He later tested negative, but another student from Sudan too was referred for Ebola testing, reports Siddharth Kumar Singh.

We all know, intuitively that working out is good for the human body, in general. But studies are constantly trying to examine the definite relationship between health and working out. In particular, strength training. One study recently showed that Strength training, over the long-term is associated with lower risk of death. Up to 90-120 minutes of strength training per week could be related with a 13% lower risk of death from any cause, with effects amplified if aerobic exercise is added, a 30-year study showed.

And then there are benefits you least expect. Sheetal Potdar reports on a new study published in Cell that reported how a signal released by the liver after exercise reduces cognitive decline due to ageing and Alzheimer’s disease in mice.

From the exercise miracle on to a “wonder formulation” – the GLP-1 class of drugs may even have a beneficial effect across many types of cancer. And yet we are being told by endocrinologists that even GLP-1 drugs are no match for lifestyle changes.

Talking of lifestyles, Dr. Babu Ezhumalai wrote on how Chronic stress and lack of sleep are risk factors for silent arrhythmias, or abnormal heart rhythms. In a further exploration of the change in terminology from PCOS to PMOS, Taru Jain and Preeti Mudliar discuss The FemTech industry’s approach to PMOS. The authors argue that even as the formal renaming was announced recently, the country’s FemTech (female technology) industry was ahead – it had already begun treating PCOS as a multisystem condition.

Dr. Vivek Mahajan traces in this article the hidden impact of chronic stress on your skeletal health. Yes, stress leaves a telltale mark everywhere.

The NHFS 6 had kindled a debate on the double burden of malnutrition in the country – where undernutrition and over nutrition exist simultaneously, and therefore, looking merely at addressing stunting and wasting would no longer be a strategy for India. A recent study from CMC Vellore and ARUMDA, produced evidence to add grist to this mill, and even showed when this transition of overnutrition and undernutrition happens in childhood. Read on, here.

Staying with the data here, Serish Nanisetti says NFHS collected data on COVID deaths, toilets and fuel, but information missing from factsheets, while the government explained that some Indicators ‘missing’ in NFHS are being monitored through national databases.

Our Health Wrap video podcast segment this week also focused on the key results from the NFHS, do remember to check out the short video.

In our tailpiece segment of the week, a maestro finds his way in. Recently, NIMHANS and Mercuri Foundation, the official global portfolio and talent management partner of legendary Indian music composer Illayaraja, have proposed to set up a national centre on music, brain and mental health under the maestro’s patronage. The centre seeks to bring together experts in neuroscience, psychiatry, psychology, music, cognition, rehabilitation and technology to explore the role of music in human wellbeing. Much earlier, the IIT Madras established the IIT Madras -Illayaraja Centre for Music Learning and Research. Clearly there is more to this than meets the ear.

Our usually rich explainers section, this week has the following stories:

Athira Elssa Johnson in the All you need to know about segment, explains phantom pain, and she also looks at What the SPF number on your sunscreen lotion means?

R. Sujatha talks about Allergies unseen: when everyday triggers become medical emergencies

Dr. Srinivas Chilukuri on a scan that detects lung cancer early and an injection that may prevent it

Dr. Balram Bhargava and Dr. Soumya Swaminathan write a detailed explainer on why India needs innovative strategies to eliminate TB

Dr. Rajiv Anand on What women living with Multiple Sclerosis need

Rajiv Bahl sets a path to understand How ICMR is rewiring the health ecosystem

Dr. Navin Gnanasekaran asks and answers the question: Why has our middle age become increasingly medicated

Dr. C. Aravinda on the recent debate on having more babies: Why financial incentives alone do not help boost fertility rates

Dr. Anmol Nagaraj explains why some headaches need more than a painkiller: and when you need to see a doctor

If you have a few extra moments, do also read:

Bindu Shajan Perappadan wrote on the Lack of privacy, toilets, persistent stigma force girls in Odisha to miss school during menstruation

Serena Josephine M. says the Government hospitals’ share in organ donation rises in Tamil Nadu

Afshan Yasmeen reports on a study that claims Infections and fractures are increasingly driving repeat hip replacement surgeries