Scientific evidence continues to mount strengthening the case that neonicotinoid pesticides are indeed key drivers behind colony collapse disorder (CCD). This suggests that that pesticides are indeed responsible for the mysterious colony collapse disorders among honeybees in US.
The Scottish public health minister has called for a ban on junk food advertisements before 9 PM in UK. The ban is proposed to extend to the whole of United Kingdom. Earlier, the broadcasting regulatory body Ofcom had banned advertisement of food products containing high sugar, salt and fat content in children’s programmes.
The US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA), has come up with guidelines that asks drug manufacturers to voluntarily limit the use of certain antibiotics in animal feed. The FDA has asked the drug manufacturers to limit use of 200 antibiotics as growth promoters and keep them only for therapeutic purposes. The companies adopting this recommendation will have to revise their product labels to reflect the change.
Dr Dileep Mavalankar, Director, Indian Institute of Public Health, Gandhinagar
The researchers at INSEAD business school in France have concluded that food marketing successfully distorts portion size perceptions of people many a times.
A study published in Current Science Journal (March 2012) has reported alarmingly high rate of increase in oil consumption in India. According to the study conducted by DM Hegde, project director at Directorate of Oilseed Research, the per capita consumption of edible oil in India has increased almost five folds during the period of 1950-2011.
Denmark first imposed fat tax on saturated fat in October 2011 and is now contemplating imposing a tax on sugar and chocolate consumption to fight the bulge.
A study based on the nutritional information provided by leading fast food chains across the world has shown that there is a considerable variation in salt content of the fast food products between categories, countries and also brands. The study was published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ) in April.
The newly elected Uttar Pradesh (UP) government banned sale of junk foods and carbonates beverages inside and outside all CBSE, ICSE and UP board schools’ premises. These junk food and soft drinks are known to lead to a host of diseases, including diabetes, high blood pressure and increased cholesterol levels. This ban makes UP the first state in India to take such an initiative.
Residents of Erode district, Tamilnadu are enraged at the changing hues of the Sunnambu Odai, a major water channel of the region. The colour of the water channel was purple as seen on December 5 and turned blue only 3 days after on 8th December 2011. The water channel changing colours is all thanks to a multitude of textile processing and tannery units operating in the district who relentlessly discharge untreated effluents in the stream.
A committee constituted by the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) has issued first-of-its-kind guidelines categorising non-compliance of Environmental Clearance (EC) conditions as serious and not-so-serious. The Ministry of Environment and Forests constituted a committee under the Chairmanship of Shri J.M. Mauskar, Special Secretary to Government of India in 2009 to examine the issues relating to monitoring of projects.
Poly-ethene carry bags are the biggest nuisance amongst all the plastic waste. Each year, millions of plastic bags end up deteriorating the environment due to their improper disposal. Plastic bags being resistant to bacterial degradation are although a commercial success but inevitably become a major threat to the environment.
The National Green Tribunal (NGT) ordered mandatory radiation impact studies before approving Thermal Power Plants. The order was issued followed by an appeal filed by social and environmental groups against the Environmental Clearance granted to the proposed 3*600 MW expansion of coal based thermal power plant unit at Koradi Thermal Power Project in Nagpur district of Maharashtra. The appellants claim that the Environmental Impact Assessment report failed to take into account the cumulative impact assessment of the various existing and proposed power plants within the area.
National Coordinator, Breastfeeding Promotion Netwrok of India Dr JP Dadhich answers.