HEALTH

‘Ayurveda getting popular’
Our Correspondent

Ludhiana, April 16
"Out of the state's total health budget, 10 per cent will be spent on ayurveda with the ayurvedic dispensaries getting medicines worth at least Rs 50,000 every year," this was stated by the Minister for Health and Family Welfare, Dr Baldev Raj Chawla, while launching the first batch of ayurveda products here last evening.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr Chawla said the department was planning to set up an ayurveda laboratory and a centre in the state. He expressed his happiness over the popularity of ayurveda treatment. He said that 60 to 70 per cent of the Indian population believed in ayurveda and many followed its treatment.

Mr Sanjay Popli, Director, Ayurveda, said that Pentavox was the first ayurveda company whose good manufacturing practice (GMP) had been recommended by the World Health Organisation. Mr Popli said that 60 out of 150 export quality medicines were prepared by Pentavox Herbals.

Mr Popli said that ayurveda, which was grossly ignored, had now gained importance and recognition in recent years. Mr Popli said that the GMP Act entailed the production and manufacture of drugs in a clean and hygienic environment with state-of-the-art technology.

Effective therapy for skin disease
Our Correspondent

Ludhiana, April 16
The Dermatology Department of the Dayanand Medical College and Hospital has come up with an effective therapy for the treatment of air-borne contact dermatitis, a common allergic skin disease.

Dr Alka Dogra, chief of the Dermatology Department, DMCH, in a press statement issued today said that the disease was caused due to the particles released in the air by the congress grass. Dr Dogra said that the therapy was a new research with fewer side effects and quick results.

Dr Dogra said that the traditional medicine generally used for treatment are steroids which were to be taken orally day after day for years and had many side effects like hypertension, diabetes and weakening of bones, etc. With this new therapy, the patient can get rid of the disease within a year with fewer side effects by taking medicine only for three days every month.

Air-borne contact dermatitis is a common disease which is found mostly in the middle aged and elderly people. "This disease aggravates in April and May and the intensity of the disease is so strong in the region that on an average in summers about 100 such patients visit the skin OPD of the DMCH. If untreated, it can lead to chronic thick lesions which are eczematous," Dr Dogra said.

Tributes paid to Dr Hahnemann
Our Correspondent

Fatehgarh Sahib, April 16
The Deputy Commissioner, Mr B.S. Sudan, presided over the 246th birth anniversary celebrations of Dr Samual Hahnemann, the father of homoeopathy, at Chunni village today. The function was organised by the Post Graduate Homoeopathic Medical Education and Research Institution, Chunni.

He said unfortunately medical treatment is getting out of the reach of common people and it is sad that even qualified doctors have fixed their commission in tests recommended by them. He said homoeopathy can become a good alternative to costly allopathic treatment, and its results are positive and without any side-effects, adding that homoeopathy as cured many dreaded diseases. He urged the homoeopathic doctors to educate the public about this and to highlight the achievements of this system.

Orthodontics conference
Our Correspondent

Ludhiana, April 16
The two-day conference on orthodontics and prosthodontics which was organised by the Indian Dental Association (IDA) concluded here on Tuesday. Dr S.P. Aggarwal, a renowned orthodontist from Delhi, was the instructor for the course. More than 40 doctors from Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Haryana, Chandigarh and Punjab attended the lecture. Dr Aggarwal stressed the need of dental awareness among the masses.