The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

HEALTH

Polio campaign in Jan, Feb
Our Correspondent

Ludhiana, November 25
About 4,85,000 children up to the age of five years will be given polio drops in the next two rounds of the polio eradication campaign. This was disclosed by Dr S.N.Tiwari, Civil Surgeon, while addressing a workshop of the health workers here today.

The first round of campaign would be held on January 4, next year and the second dose would be given on February 22, next year. The workshop was attended by Dr Dinesh Dadwal, Surveillance Medical Officer and representative of the World Health Organisation.

While giving the details of the polio campaign, Dr Kuldeep Kaur Sahni, District Vaccination Officer, said to make the campaign successful, more than 2,100 booths would be set up and hundred mobile vans would be arranged with the help of government officials and NGOs. These mobile vans would cover the slum areas.

The workshop was attended by many senior medical officers including Dr Gursharan Singh, Dr S.S.Bedi and representatives from hospitals like Dayanand Medical College and Hospital, Christian Medical College, Kapoor Hospital, Oswal Hospital, Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital and Pahwa Hospital.

Health officials appealed to the masses to come forward with all their support to eradicate polio from the country.

Tips to prevent lower backache

Ludhiana, November 25
Lower backache is one of the most common problems in the world. The lumber spine is a complex structure that connects the body to the lower body. It provides both mobility and strength. Mobility facilitates movements and therefore, pain in the lower back can restrict activity.

Causes & prevention:

Lower backache can be caused by a number of factors from injuries to the effects of aging like osteoporosis, decrease in strength and elasticity of muscles and ligaments. Obesity and smoking can also aggravate back ache. To prevent lower back ache, follow these simple steps:

Maintain your weight. Being overweight puts a strain on the back muscles.

Use the correct lifting and moving postures. When picking up something, bend the knees, not the back.

Sit erect without leaning to one side.

Maintain a proper posture when standing and sitting; don’t slouch.

When working on a computer, keep the monitor directly in front of you. Ice is always good and moist heat is sometimes good.

Don’t hold telephone between ear and shoulder.

Don’t sleep on the stomach or with arms over the head.

Don’t wear worn-out shoes. If flat-footed, get orthotics. Avoid smoking.

To avoid pain, exercise regularly to keep the muscles that support the back strong and flexible.

With arms behind the head, raise the upper torso off the floor for 3-5 seconds. This puts a lot of stress on the lower back and should not be done if there is any discomfort. This exercise can be performed 10 times.

Take half teaspoon of ginger juice with one teaspoon honey twice daily in routine.

— Dr Anil Dheer

Electrohomoeopaths seek recognition
Our Correspondent

Ludhiana, November 25
The Electrohomoeopathic Doctors’ Association is sore at the government for not recognising the electrohomoeopathy system of medicine. The president of the association, Dr M.S. Dhillon, and the press secretary of the association, Dr K.S. Khaira, in a statement today said that the government was against any new system of medicine that deserved recognition.

The members said the Indian Council Medical Research (ICMR) had formally rejected the pleas to include electrohomoeopathy, accupuncture, reiki, megnatotherapy and other alternative system of medicine under the official list of indigenous systems of medicine. The rejection came in the wake of a case filed in the Delhi high court in 1998. The high court had given directions to the Central state governments to consider making legislation prescribing the grant of licences to the existing and new institutes conducting courses of electrohomoeopathy and other systems of medicine, minimum qualification for getting admission to such institutes, conditions entitling these institutes, to issue medical certificates and right to use the prefix “doctor” and issuance of medical certificate to the patients by diploma/certificate holders from such institutes.

The members alleged that the Union Government was not interested to adopt the system of electrohomoeopathy. The Government of India challenged the landmark decision in the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court declined to entertain the matter and dismissed the special leave application. The Centre had no option to challenge the matter any further because the highest authority had put its stamp on the directions of the Delhi High Court.

Dr Khaira said the government was not interested in spending money on the infrastructure for these systems, so it established a 17-member expert committee to look into the recognition of electrohomoeopathy and other systems of medicine under the chairmanship of Dr Vasant M. Swami, Deputy Director-General of the ICMR. “It is unfortunate that the committee was working on the lines directed by the government and was not in favour to recognise this system of medicine. The committee of the ICMR has submitted its ‘one-sided’ report to the Health and Family Welfare ministry. If the Central or state governments failed to follow the directions of the Delhi High Court, we would file contempt petition in the high court against the Government of India and the state government,” he said.