‘Hot food in plastic bags can cause cancer’

The number of people suffering from kidney and throat ailments, cancer and infertility has been increasing in North Coastal Andhra Pradesh. The rise in such cases is attributed largely to people eating hot foods carried in plastic bags.

Everyday, hundreds of patients affected by polyvinyl chloride, polyethylene and polystyrene because of eating hot foods carried in plastic bags are visiting King George Government Hospital (KGH) here.

These patients are from towns, villages and even tribal areas of the North Coastal districts of AP and neighbouring Chhattisgarh and Odisha states.

“In the last two years, the number of patients suffering from kidney and throat cancer and infertility has been increased markedly at the KGH, said hospital superintendent Dr M Madhusudan Babu. The patients had been consuming tea, coffee, milk, rice and curries carried in plastic bags.

Plastic poses serious environmental problem. The plastic bags used for packing food are very dangerous as they contain polyethylene, polyvinyl chloride, polystyrene, he said.

“If a person eats food items carried in plastic bags for a long period, he or she is very likely to get serious health problems,” he said, adding thousands of patients affected by polyvinyl chloride come to the hospital for treatment regularly.

The prolific use of plastic bags in our daily life has also led to environmental hazards as plastic bags are not biodegradable, he said. When hot food is packed in plastic, chemical exchange between plastic and food is maximised by high temperature and the nature of the food, he said.

Certain plastic bags may cause chemical filtration into the food. Those chemicals include styrene and bisphenol- A which can cause cancer, heart diseases and reproductive problems.

Toxins could migrate from the plastic to the substances they hold. The most common food interactions are the migration of low molecular weight substances such as stabilisers, plasticisers, antioxidants and monomers from plastic packing materials, he said.

He said water in plastic containers is also unfit for human consumption because the containers are usually exposed to direct sunlight when they are loaded onto trucks.

“The Government has to take steps to control the problem and conduct awareness programmes against the use of plastic bags for food items,” he said.

What is carpet area, built-up area & super built-up area?

Carpet area is the area enclosed within the walls, actual area to lay the carpet. This area does not include the thickness of the inner walls

Inaccurately reported square footage is the subject of numerous complaints by home buyers. A small percentage of cases involve giving incorrect information, but a larger number of complaints occur simply because agents and sellers don't know how to measure a home's square footage.

How do you know whether the price of the home per sq. ft. you are buying is reasonable?

Though this seems like an easy question, it is not as simple as it sounds. Keep in mind that much more goes into the market value of a house than its square footage. For example, two houses next door to each other can have the same square footage. But one house can have two bathrooms while the other can have one bathroom. So the previous will cost you more.

What is meant by carpet area, built-up area and super built-up area?

Carpet area is the actual usable area of an apartment, office unit, showroom, etc minus wall thickness. Carpet area is the area enclosed within the walls, actual area to lay the carpet. 

This area does not include the thickness of the inner walls.

Built-up area is the carpet area plus the thickness of outer walls and the balcony. 

Super built-up area is the built up area plus proportionate area of common areas such as the lobby, lifts shaft, stairs, etc. The plinth area along with a share of all common areas proportionately divided amongst all unit owners makes up the super built-up area.

How can knowing the above terms help me in buying a flat?

This break up is extremely essential as builders can place anywhere from 65%-85% of the super built-up area as carpet area. That means, if the price is quoted as Rs. 1,000 per sq ft super built-up area, the carpet area could be anywhere from Rs. 650 per sq ft to Rs. 850 per sq ft. If this break up is not mentioned in the agreement, demand that the vendor/ builder mention it in the sale deed.

5 Ways to Get Rid of Ants Naturally Without Killing Them

Ants are critical to the environment in too many ways to count, but they quickly become pests when they invade your home seeking food, shelter, or both. Nobody wants an ant invasion, and often times will reach for intense chemicals to eradicate them as quickly as possible. Pest control is one aspect of daily living in which people accept some of the scariest chemicals into their homes, numb to warnings stamped on the packaging-“Don’t inhale!” “Don’t touch!” “Call poison control if you make any direct contact with this substance!” “Potentially harmful!” “Actually what we mean is it will kill you!” Well, you get the point. If something needs detailed instructions plus a hotline number for 24 hour emergency assistance (human or animal) or chemical emergency assistance, I don’t want it in my house. What you have to think is-if this is going to obliterate the pests (in this case, ants) won’t it be harmful to anyone and everything else? Yes. It will. But what nature brought forth is can also turn away, so read on about how to get rid of ants naturally.

1. Bust Out The Vinegar, Baby

Ants communicate with each other using sounds, touch, and-the golden ticket here-pheromones. The pheromones are chemical signals. Scent trails, in essence. Ants perceive smells with their antennae, and can determine direction and intensity of scents. If a forager ant finds food, it marks a trail leading back to the colony, which the other ants than follow to the source of the food. Each time the trail is traveled, the smell is intensified. By using white vinegar by all of their entrances and any paths that you know of, you are disrupting their scent trails and making it harder for them to creep back to the food source they’ve been invading.

You will need…

- 1 part white vinegar
- 1 part water
- A clean cloth

Directions

Mix together white vinegar and water, and spray/wipe down all of the entrances you know or suspect they may be getting in by, and spray/wipe down all counters or surfaces by food sources.

2. Draw The Line

Have you ever noticed outside in the summer the way ants and sidewalk chalk just don’t seem to mix? That’s because they don ‘t. Ants that stumble through chalk get covered in the stuff, while some people suggest minerals in the chalk (such as talc) actually kill the ants.

You will need…

- A stick of sidewalk chalk

Directions

Draw a thick, heavy line around entrances-repeat as needed. This generally needs to be used in conjunction with another method of elimination.

3. The Ant Honey Pot

How to get rid of ants…are you focusing too much on the “get rid of” part? Have you done everything you can to exterminate the ants, but it’s just not working? If eliminating them isn’t doing the trick, try diversion. No, you don’t want to attract the ants to your house, but if a colony has set up camp, diversion can sometimes be the way to go. Once they’ve decided the honey pot you lay out is better than that hard to reach food you’ve locked up, it’s easier to lay something to deter them from coming back in. After you’ve got their scent trails cleaned up, food sealed tightly, and some kind of deterrent by the entrances, they aren’t nearly as apt to coming marching in again. Even if they try, they’re going to find you’ve made it a lot harder by then!

You will need…

- A small paper bowl
- A few tablespoons of honey OR a 1-1 mixture of sugar and water

Directions

Place a little paper bowl with the honey outside, a little ways from your house but not so far that the ants won’t find it. Once they find the sweet stuff, they will happily go to that, rather than try to battle their way into your house. You can also mix some sugar and water and spray it on the ground if you find the honey ineffective. Once they have discovered the pot, move it a little bit at a time further and further away from the house, refilling and refreshing it as needed.

4. Essential Oil Entrance Blocker

Ants don’t like strong smells. They mess up their scent trails and communication, not to mention it covers their bodies if they literally have to crawl right through it-which they do, with this essential oil spray. Now you can really experiment with different oils, or blends of oils, and see what works best for you and your ants. For me, peppermint or eucalyptus usually does the trick. Regardless of what method I am using to get rid of ants, I always whip up a batch of this spray to further ensure success.

You will need…

- 20 drops of peppermint essential oil
- Fresh water
- A spray bottle

Directions

Fill a regular or medium size spray bottle with fresh water and mix in the peppermint essential oil. Spray liberally around any and all entrances to the house. Repeat when you deem it necessary (usually when the scent starts to fade.)

5. Ant Balls

If you find that spraying a solution of essential oil and water doesn’t work, it’s time to bust out the ant balls. The cotton balls serve as an extra barrier to keep the ants out of the home, while the undiluted essential oil will steer the ants clear at least 90% of the time. Be sure not to leave these where you think a curious pet or child would find them an appealing snack. If you don’t have essential oil, you can try using white vinegar in a pinch.

You will need…

- Cotton balls
- Peppermint essential oil OR undiluted white vinegar

Directions

Liberally douse the cotton balls with undiluted peppermint essential oil. I usually put the oil in a dish first so I don’t accidently drip it all over my fingers. Alternatively, soak the ball in undiluted white vinegar, squeezing out just enough excess that it doesn’t leave a puddle where you place it. Use one of the cotton balls to wipe down the area by the entrance, and then stuff another into the crack/hole/almost invisible opening that they are sneaking in through. Refresh as needed.

6. When Push Comes to Shove

I don’t like to kill anything-I am the person that will rescue an ant if I see it floundering about in the water-but sometimes, you have no choice. For example, if you have a nest of fire ants and a baby crawling around-there was even been an instance where the venomous stings of a fire ant colony almost killed a 13 year old boy. In this case, the non-toxic way to eradicate the ants is with soap and boiling water. It’s unfortunate, but sometimes there are simply other things you need to protect.

You will need…

- A medium pot’s (or bucket’s) worth of boiling water
- 1 cup of liquid dish soap

Directions

Fill a medium pot with water, leaving enough room at the top that you can carry it without it sloshing over the edge. Bring it to a vigorous boil, and quickly stir in the dish soap (use an environmentally friendly dish soap that is biodegradable.) Put the lid on the pot to retain heat and minimize the risk of it spilling, and use hot mitts to carry it out to the nest. Pour the water into the nest, slowly enough so that it doesn’t overflow. If you are aware of another entrance, and are worried about the ants going up into the yard, you can place a barrier over one of the entrances. Repeat the process as needed if you run out of water (really, once is usually sufficient.)

Is it fruit???

Rambutan: An exotic fruit, imported from Malaysia to India. The look is bit eerie like "hair" but taste exactly like lychee.

Real Mermaid Caught on Cam!!!

Giant Humans Of The Past - Real Skeleton Of A Giant

                                    Giant Humans Of The Past - Real Skeleton Of A Giant

How does food affect our brain?

Almost everything you choose to consume will directly or indirectly affect your brain. Obviously, some things we consume affect us more than others. I'm going to assume that spices, plants, animal parts, drugs of any kind, coffee, tea, nicotine and chocolate are all just food and define food as anything we take into our bodies whether it's nutritious or not. In order to better understand how foods affect the brain it will be helpful to divide them into three categories.

First, those foods we consume in high doses with acute dosing: for example, coffee, sugar, heroin, alcohol, nicotine, marijuana, some spices and a few psychoactive plants and mushrooms. Their effects are almost immediate and depend upon how much reaches the brain. In this class, the most important consideration is getting enough of the chemical from within the food to its site of action in our brain to actually produce some kind of effect that we can notice and associate with consuming that particular food. Most of the time, this simply does not happen. For example, consider nutmeg: low doses will be on pies next month and most of us will not notice that it contains two chemicals that our bodies convert into the popular street drug Ecstasy. Yet, if we consumed the entire canister of the spice our guts will notice (with a terrible diarrhea) and there is a good chance that we will hallucinate for about 48 hours! According to my students, the experience is quite unpleasant.

Secondly are those foods that affect our brain slowly over a period of a few days to weeks. This is usually called "precursor-loading" and would include many different amino acids (tryptophan and lysine are good examples), carbohydrates that have a high glycemic index such as potatoes, bagels and rice, fava beans, some minerals (iron and magnesium in particular), lecithin-containing products such as donuts, eggs and cakes, chocolate and the water-soluble vitamins. Their purpose is to bias the function of a specific transmitter system; usually to enhance its function in the brain. For example, scientists once thought that drinking a glass of warm milk before bed or eating a large meal of protein made us drowsy because of tryptophan loading - the current evidence does not support this but the claim makes my major point: we must get enough of any particular nutrient/chemical to the right place and at the right dose in our brain in order for us to notice any effects. Unfortunately, tryptophan has difficulty getting across the blood-brain barrier into our brain.

So, what's the scientific evidence for considering the cognitive effects of these foods? Mostly, it's related to what happens when we do not get enough of them. For example, studies have shown that consuming too little tryptophan makes us depressed and angry and has been blamed for multiple wars and acts of cannibalism. Too little sugar or water-soluble vitamins (the B's and C) will induce changes in brain function that we will notice after a few days of deprivation. Many authors jump to the conclusion that giving high doses of such nutrients will rapidly improve our mood or thinking: sadly, this is rarely the case. Ordinarily the foods in this category require far more time to affect our brains than do those foods in the first category.

The third category includes the slow acting, life-time dosing nutrients that have been popular topics in the press recently. This category includes the anti-oxidant rich foods such as colorful fruits and vegetables, fish and olive oils, fruit juices, anti-inflammatory plants and drugs such as aspirin, some steroids, cinnamon and some other spices, nicotine, caffeine and chocolate, the fat-soluble vitamins, nuts, legumes, beer and red wine. People who eat these foods do not report acute changes in their thoughts or moods (depending upon how much they consume!) but certainly benefit from consuming them regularly over their life span. In general, the benefit comes from the fact that all of these foods provide our brains with some form of protection against the most deadly thing we expose ourselves to every day - Oxygen. Because we consume food, we must consume oxygen. Because we consume oxygen, we age. Thus, people who live the longest tend to each food rich in anti-oxidants or simply eat a lot less food. Recent studies suggest that nicotine and caffeine may prevent the toxic actions of oxygen in our brain which is why I've included them here.

You can see that depending upon how you frame the question about foods and the brain you get a different list of foods and a different reason for consuming them. If you wish to alter your current brain function or slow your brain's aging you need to consume foods that target specific chemical processes. In truth, no one ever considers these distinctions when eating - we just eat what tastes good. Sadly, our brains powerfully reward us when we eat sugar, fat and salt; thus there is an oncoming epidemic of obesity-related illnesses. Food has both negative and positive effects and it all depends upon what you consume, how much you consume and for how long. Read More...

How to prevent cold and flu during rainy season!

Many of us fall ill during the rainy season mostly due to sudden weather change causing fluctuation in your body temperature. At these times of humidity and alternate heat and cold, our immune system also weakens. Hence, a weak immune system can make us vulnerable to colds, cough and flus, especially during this time of the year when our body is exposed to various undesirable factors.

Therefore, one should eat nutritious food to remain healthy and to ward off bacteria and viruses that produces toxins causing colds, cough, influenzas and other common diseases.

Both flus and colds are caused by viruses, but with different families of viruses. They are often confused for each other as they have very similar symptoms like- runny nose, cough, fever, nasal congestion, body aches and headache. While, a cold usually lasts about a week, flu takes longer time to get healed.

Although there is no exact cure for these common viral infections, a few good self-care therapies and over-the-counter painkillers can be combined to deal with it.
Below are some of the best tips to help you cure or stay away from cold or flu:

- Have hot and nourishing soups.

- Take plenty of fluids especially fruit juices.

- Do not take alcohol or caffeine as they can cause dehydration.

- Increase your Vitamin C intake such as orange juice. This will reduce the severity or duration of cold as it activates the antibodies in your body.

- Try to avoid refrigerated food and drinks.

- Drink boiled and cooled water only.

- Eat nutritious foods with lots of fruits and vegetables.

- Have proper bed rest.

- Get enough sleep.

- Try to keep yourself and your surrounding clean as much as you can. Wash your hands frequently and thoroughly. It is the best way to prevent the common cold or flu.

- Have regular exercise.

- Avoid exposure to cold weather and rains. Take a shower immediately if you got wet to guard yourself from infections.

- While health experts recommend taking analgesics like ibuprofen and paracetamol for relieving the aches and pains, aspirin is not recommended, especially in children and teenagers, as it could cause a potentially fatal reaction called Reye’s syndrome.

- Seek timely medical care and stay healthy during the rainy season.

STAY DRY, STAY HEALTHY THIS MONSOON!!!

Monsoon Safety!!!

When stuck in an elevator...

It's unfortunate but many have been there. Being trapped in an elevator might seem like a helpless situation, but here's how you can deal with it

Last month, actor Govinda was stranded in an elevator for 15 minutes due to an overload of people while heading for the launch of his music album. And he is not the only one. In recent times, there have been many instances of people being stalled in a lift. Getting stuck in an elevator is surely an unfortunate experience. Here's what you should do if you get trapped in one.

Push the 'Door Open' button: If you are near the landing, the door will open. You can slowly and carefully step out of the elevator. Be sure to watch your step as the elevator floor may, or may not, be level with the landing.

Press the call button: If the door does not open, press the alarm button and wait for someone to respond. Most elevators, these days, have a two-way speaker system or telephone that will allow for communication between you and the building or rescue personnel. "Do not be alarmed if you cannot be heard or if the phone does not work. Some phones are designed to only receive calls," says a technician from a city-based elevator design firm.

Stay calm: It is very essential that you do not panic under these circumstances. It will only make matters worse. If you feel claustrophobic, distract your mind by concentrating on your breathing and counting numbers backwards if it calms you down. Even if the air temperature feels warm, there is plenty of air circulating in the elevator and its hoistway, so it is best to relax.

Take these precautionary measures to ensure a smooth elevator ride
- Watch your step when boarding the elevator. It may not be perfectly level with the floor.
- Don't attempt to get in or stop closing doors, wait for the next ride.
- Stand clear of the doors — keep clothes and carry-ons away from the opening.
- If in an empty elevator, stand next to the elevator wall.
- Small children should be accompanied by an adult.
- Societies using old lifts should install adequate security measures and opt for maintenance services once a month.

How does chlorine added to drinking water kill bacteria and other harmful organisms? Why doesn't it harm us?

Jon J. Calomiris, Water Research Program Manager at the United States Air Force Research Laboratory, and Keith A. Christman, Director, Disinfection and Government Relations at the Chlorine Chemistry Council, collaborated on this answer.

While quenching your thirst with a glass of tap water, enjoying your morning shower or swimming in a pool, you most likely are, at one time or another, aware of the chlorine used to disinfect your municipal water. Although its distinctive aroma may be unpleasant to some, it is an indication that your water supply is being adequately treated to stave off harmful or deadly microorganisms.

Chlorine effectively kills a large variety of microbial waterborne pathogens, including those that can cause typhoid fever, dysentery, cholera and Legionnaires' disease. Chlorine is widely credited with virtually eliminating outbreaks of waterborne disease in the United States and other developed countries. And Life magazine recently cited the filtration of drinking water and use of chlorine as "probably the most significant public health advance of the millennium."

Image: Chlorine Chemistry Council TYPHOID FEVER has been virtually eliminated through the chlorination of water.

Health officials began treating drinking water with chlorine in 1908. Previously, typhoid fever had killed about 25 out of 100,000 people in the U.S. annually, a death rate close to that now associated with automobile accidents. Today, typhoid fever has been virtually eliminated.

Chlorine is currently employed by over 98 percent of all U.S. water utilities that disinfect drinking water. It has proved to be a powerful barrier in restricting pathogens from reaching your faucet and making you ill. Chlorine and chlorine-based compounds are the only disinfectants that can efficiently kill microorganisms during water treatment, and maintain the quality of the water as it flows from the treatment plant to the consumer's tap.

Although chlorine's value has been known for nearly a century, the mechanism by which the compound kills or inactivates microorganisms is not clearly understood. The bulk of chlorine disinfection research, conducted from the 1940s to the 1970s, focused on bacteria. Though limited, this work gave rise to some speculation. Researchers postulated that chlorine, which exists in water as hypochlorite and hypochlorous acid, reacts with biomolecules in the bacterial cell to destroy the organism.

Further work led to the so-called "multiple hit" theory of chlorine inactivation. It asserted that bacterial death probably results from chlorine attacking a variety of bacterial molecules or targets, including enzymes, nucleic acids and membrane lipids.

Early research efforts focused on how chlorine attacks enzymes. The disinfectant was able to inactivate extracts of various enzymes because it is highly reactive with sulfur-containing and aromatic amino acids. But it had no effect on cytoplasmic enzymes, suggesting that it might not reach biomolecules within the bacterium. Thus, researchers redirected their attention to the molecules on the surface of the bacterial cell.

A new hypothesis proclaimed that perhaps chlorine acted by attacking the bacterial cell wall. Proponents of this idea suggested that chlorine exposure might destroy the cell wall--by altering it physically, chemically and biochemically--and so terminate the cell's vital functions, killing the microorganism.

A possible sequence of events during chlorination would be:

disruption of the cell wall barrier by reactions of chlorine with target sites on the cell surface

release of vital cellular constituents from the cell

termination of membrane-associated functions

termination of cellular functions within the cell.

During the course of these events, the microorganism dies, meaning it is no longer capable of growing or causing disease.

Image: Chlorine Chemistry Council E. COLI. are commonly found in contaminated water. They are destroyed by chlorination.

Although chlorine's disruption of the cell wall appears to be the fundamental event leading to the demise of the bacterium, the mechanism by which chlorine disrupts the cell wall had not been determined. Recently, though, scientists have studied how chlorine affects the cell walls of "gram-negative" bacteria, organisms including those causing typhoid fever, dysentery, cholera and Legionnaires' disease

By definition, gram-negative bacteria possess cell walls that consist of an outer membrane and a cytoplasmic membrane. The outer membrane, being the outermost region that has direct contact with the organism's environment, functions as a protective barrier. The investigation revealed that, for each bacterial species, chlorination significantly increased the permeability of the outer membrane, leaving the bacterium vulnerable to destruction.

How chlorine inactivates other types of bacteria has not been determined. Scientists do not understand much about spore-forming bacteria or gram-positive bacteria, which have no outer membrane. Although these bacterial types are, in general, more chlorine tolerant than gram-negative bacteria, most waterborne species do not normally pose a health threat.

Certain waterborne viruses, such as enteric viruses and hepatitis A, may be even more tolerant to chlorine disinfection than some bacterial species. But the means by which chlorine inactivates viruses is not well understood.

In recent years, the parasitic protozoans Cryptosporidium parvum and Giardia lamblia have emerged as formidable waterborne pathogens. These protozoa are remarkably resistant to chlorine disinfection and consequently, present a great challenge to the water industry and health officials, who are responsible for providing safe drinking water to the public. Currently, filtration is the most effective process for removing these protozoa from drinking water. To fully protect the public, however, effective disinfection methods must be developed.

If chlorine kills so many species of microorganisms, why doesn't it harm humans? Fortunately, when we ingest chlorinated drinking water, food in our stomachs and the materials normally present in the intestinal tract quickly neutralize the chlorine. So chlorine concentrations along cell membranes in the gastrointestinal tract are probably too low to cause injury.

This example may simply be another case of "dose makes the poison." Like medicine, a little bit of chlorine, such as the levels used in drinking water or swimming pools, kills relatively simple, but potentially deadly, microorganisms. At much higher concentrations, chlorine could damage the cells in our body.

Water utilities carefully regulate chlorine levels so that they effectively kill disease-causing microorganisms but do not harm people. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), with the help of water utilities, environmentalists and chlorine manufacturers, recently proposed a regulation that would reduce the chlorine concentrations in drinking water to assure that the disinfectant does not approach unsafe levels.

Some additional details are provided by Leslie E. Dorworth of the Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant College Program.

Water has been treated for many centuries. First, it was boiled and filtered to improve the taste and appearance. Chlorine, one of 90 naturally occurring elements, was first used as a disinfectant in Europe and North America in the early part of this century. Since then, widespread epidemics of the most severe forms of diseases have become exceedingly rare in the U.S.

In the U.S., Congress enacted the Safe Drinking Water Act in 1974. The law was amended in 1986 to expand the EPA's role in protecting public health from contaminated drinking water. The amendments require the agency to control specific disease-causing organisms and indicators that may be present in drinking water and to require public water suppliers to disinfect water. Amendments enacted in 1996 make it clear that any federal agency is subject to penalties for past violations of the Act.

Chlorine can combine with natural organic compounds in raw water to create some undesirable by-products; on its own, however, it does not usually pose a problem to public health. The legislation regulates the by-products. One concern with chlorinated water is its tendency to form trihalomethanes (THMs), carcinogenic by-products of the disinfection process. In 1979, the EPA adopted the THM regulation, limiting their allowable level in drinking water supplies. In 1992, the EPA established federally enforceable standards that now cover 83 contaminants, including THMs, that may be found in drinking water.

In order to address the EPA regulations--in this case THMs specifically--water treatment plants changed operations to minimize THM production without compromising public health. Some of the methods used include reducing the amount of chlorine; changing the timing during disinfection so that chlorine is added in either sooner or later during process; changing the type of chlorine used; and removing the organic material that reacts with the chlorine to produce THMs.

SEE ALSO:

• Evolution: Jurassic World and the Build A Better Fake Theropod Project | 
• Health: The Conflicted History of Alcohol in Western Civilization | 
• Mind & Brain: Nail Biting May Arise from Perfectionism | 
• Space: Dark Matter Particles Interact with Themselves | 
• Technology: Timeline: The Amazing Multimillion-Year History of Processed Food | 
• More Science: The Flavor Connection

Although chlorine is not the only disinfecting agent available to the water supply industry, it is the most widely used disinfectant in North America. Another form of disinfection is ozonation. Both chlorination and ozonation kill organisms by oxidation. Ultraviolet treatment, another method, uses UV radiation to kill microorganisms.

For chlorine to be effective against microorganisms, it must be present in a sufficient quantity, and it must have a sufficient amount of time to react. This reaction time is called the contact time. For most water systems, the best contact time is usually 30 minutes. To ensure continued protection against harmful organisms, a certain amount of chlorine must remain in the water after treatment. The remaining chlorine is known as a residual chlorine. It is this tiny amount that you sometimes smell in your tap water.

Most of us never think about getting sick or even dying from drinking water. But in many developing countries around the world, diseases associated with dirty water kill more than 5 million people each year, according to the World Health Organization. Without proper disinfection procedures, outbreaks in the U.S. would significantly increase.

As researchers and officials have learned more about water disinfection, the use of chlorine in treatment plants has been reduced. This reduction has been balanced by providing microbial protection and reducing the by-products created through the treatment process.

Which is healthier red or white meat?

Americans are among the largest consumers of meat on earth and many other countries are following our example as meat consumers. Over the years red meat has gotten a bad rap for causing cholesterol and heart problems and so we are told to eat white meat.

Countless scientific studies have concluded that eating red meat is bad for you. But in each of those studies, the researchers routinely fail to differentiate between processed or commercially grown meat vs. free-range grass fed organic beef.  They focus on the commercial, processed meat that has been grown and processed with tons of antibiotics, steroids, food additives, flavorings, meat glue, etc. omitting the free-range beef and lamb grown and finished on grass that is free of all the commercial processing and short-cuts. In doing so, they cast a dark shadow of doubt over all red meat, when the reality is that red meat is one of the healthiest meats with the highest nutrition in comparison to white meat.

Which is healthier red or white meat?

Let me explain, and then make your own judgment.  Man has been eating red meat since the beginning of time. It has provided him with the highest level of nutrition. Red meats such as venison, deer, lamb, bison, and the cow, are all wonderful, healthy meats, when raised the right way.  For instance, eating wild venison helps raise one’s immunity against poison ivy, poison oak, and other related weeds.  American Indians, who ate a majority of red meat, used to have bows that were estimated at 300-pound plus pull that most white men could not even use. The Indians had a tradition of eating the freshly killed bison or venison liver raw, which accounted for the warriors’ incredible strength.

How is commercial beef raised? 

68% of them are grown in Florida and fed on low nutrition grasses for 15 months. (There is no stewardship or enhancement of their pastures.) These 700 pound calves are then shipped by train to the Midwest to feed lots, where they spend the next three months of their lives consuming genetically engineered corn and soy and given loads of antibiotics, steroids, and growth hormones in a very dirty confined space. They will go from 700 pounds to 1400-1500 pounds, doubling their weight. Wow! This is why you feel tired after eating a big steak from a commercially grown animal, rather than energized from a free-range, naturally raised animal.  You’re body is resisting the steroids, antibiotics, and growth hormones from an unhealthy animal.  Though naturally grown grass-fed and finished beef costs a little more, it is a good investment in your health.

What about the other white meat? 

Pork has DNA that is related to our DNA.  So, when consuming healthy pastured(free-range) pork that is grown in it’s ideal environment has tremendous abilities to repair the human body.  When my wife’s disks were herniated and her knees injured, the Chinese doctor recommended for her to eat lots of pork cartilage, such as pig’s feet to repair the damage, which it did.  However, vegetarian fed pork is unhealthy, as pigs are meant to eat some bugs and small animals as part of their diet.  They too, as omnivores, similar to us, need to eat some red meat in order to be at the peak of health.  When they don’t eat a varied diet, they become crazy for meat.  Commercial pig farmers caution people not to fall in the pigpen, or they will be attacked by meat-crazed pigs.  When pigs are fed the way Mother Nature intended, they are calm, happy, affectionate, docile animals.  Pork that is grown with a varied diet in other countries actually has red meat, not pale meat. When you eat bacon or sausages that are not treated with nitrates or nitrites to preserve the meat, but smoked in the old fashioned way, it is a healthy treat.

So the question is not which is healthier red or white meat? But how was the meat raised and processed?

While chicken is good for you to consume, the commercially grown with GMO grain, antibiotic, steroid, and hormone-laden commercial chicken is far worse than beef could ever dream to be. When you consider that they can grow a commercial chicken in six weeks or less and the regular organic farmer takes 8-12 weeks to grow the same size chicken, recognize how pushed this process is.  This is why it is important to eat free-range chicken raised with no hormones, steroids, or antibiotics. You will notice the healthy energy you feel after eating it.

You do not want to have the effects of antibiotic resistance, or estrogen dominance in your body as a steady diet.  You’ll reap many problems, including menstrual for girls/women, cancer, and sexual development/performance problems for men.  You’ll pay a little more, but as more of us demand healthier meat, the large producers will supply it.

So, yes when you go shopping, you should understand that when you buy regular commercially grown beef, pork, chicken or farm raised fish, that you are also consuming commercially grown GMO grains, antibiotics, steroids, hormones and many other weird things.  It may be more convenient to run down to the local supermarket and buy your meat and eggs, than searching out farmers who will supply you with meat and eggs raised in a pastured ideal natural way, forcing you to invest in a freezer.  But, remember, you can either pay the farmer or the doctor – your choice.  You can save a few bucks at the grocery store, but then have to spend money at the doctor’s office.  It’s your choice red or white meat but, GMO or Non-GMO?

विभिन्न रोगों में लाभदायक गिलोय की पत्‍तियां!

Giloy Plant

गिलोय (टीनोस्पोरा कार्डीफोलिया) की एक बहुवर्षिय लता होती है। इसके पत्ते पान के पत्ते कि तरह होते हैं। आयुर्वेद मे इसको कई नामो से जाना जाता है जैसे अमृता, गुडुची, छिन्नरुहा,चक्रांगी, आदि। गिलोय इतनी गुणकारी है कि इसका नाम अमृता रखा गया है। आयुर्वेद जगत में यह बुखार की महान औषधि के रूप में मानी गई है। गिलोय की लता जंगलों, खेतों की मेड़ों, पहाड़ों की चट्टानों आदि स्थानों पर सामान्यतया कुण्डलाकार चढ़ती पाई जाती है। यह पत्‍तियां नीम और आम के पेड़ों के आस पास पाई जाती हैं। जिस वृक्ष को यह अपना आधार बनती है, उसके गुण भी इसमें समाहित रहते हैं । इस दृष्टि से नीम पर चढ़ी गिलोय श्रेष्ठ औषधि मानी जाती है। आप गिलोय को अपने घर के गमले में लगा कर रस्‍सी से उसकी लता को बांध सकते हैं। इसके बाद इसके रस का प्रयोग कर सकते हैं। गिलोय एक दवाई के रूप में जानी जाती है, जिसका रस पीने से शरीर के अनेको कष्‍ट और बीमारियां दूर हो जाती हैं। अब तो बाजार में गिलोय की गोलियां, सीरप, पाउडर आदि भी मिलना शुरु हो चुके हैं। गिलोय शरीर के दोषों (कफ ,वात और पित्) को संतुलित करती है और शरीर का कायाकल्प करने की क्षमता रखती है। गिलोय का उल्टी, बेहोशी, कफ, पीलिया, धातू विकार, सिफलिस, एलर्जी सहित अन्य त्वचा विकार, चर्म रोग, झाइयां, झुर्रियां, कमजोरी, गले के संक्रमण, खाँसी, छींक, विषम ज्वर नाशक, टाइफायड, मलेरिया, डेंगू, पेट कृमि, पेट के रोग, सीने में जकड़न, जोडों में दर्द, रक्त विकार, निम्न रक्तचाप, हृदय दौर्बल्य,(टीबी), लीवर, किडनी, मूत्र रोग, मधुमेह, रक्तशोधक, रोग पतिरोधक, गैस, बुढापा रोकने वाली, खांसी मिटाने वाली, भूख बढ़ाने वाली पाकृतिक औषधि के रूप में खूब प्रयोग होता है। 

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