Fraudsters promised vaccines that never came; toll mounts as experts look for main source of virus 

The hepatitis-B epidemic in Modasa has not only taken lives of many but also given rise to frauds.

Promising hepatitis-B virus vaccination at reasonable prices, some fraudsters have taken Rs17,000 from residents of Varthu village near Modasa. 

Tempted by the pricing at Rs12 a vaccination, (otherwise Rs50), about 1,500 residents in Varthu village, gave away money and never found self proclaimed doctors visiting the village again. 

Residents of Varthu village are scared as four people have died by now. Villagers say, this is for the first time that they have seen people dying due to a disease at such a large scale.

Washington, Feb 25 : Yoga not only provides emotional benefits to women with breast cancer, but also reduces their chances of depression, says a new study.

The study, published in a special issue of Psycho-Oncology focusing on physical activity, found that women undertaking a ten week program of 75 minute Restorative Yoga (RY) classes gained positive differences in aspects of mental health such as depression, positive emotions, and spirituality (feeling calm/peaceful) compared to the control group.

Washington, Feb 25: Drinking alcohol - even low amounts - raises the risk of certain cancers in women, according to a new study.

As per a report in the February 24 online issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, low to moderate alcohol consumption among women is associated with a statistically significant increase in cancer risk and may account for nearly 13 percent of the cancers of the breast, liver, rectum, and upper aero-digestive tract combined.

To reach the conclusion, Naomi Allen, D. Phil., of the University of Oxford, U. K., and colleagues examined the association of alcohol consumption and cancer incidence in the Million Women Study, which included 1,280,296 middle-aged women in the United Kingdom.

Three more people die in Modasa, taking the toll to 59

It has been almost a fortnight since the hepatitis-B virus swept through Modasa, but experts are still clueless about the precise source of the deadly contagion, although they have examined 12,000 samples of blood and serum. More samples are being scrutinised. 

London, Feb 25 : Obese teenagers run the same risk of premature death in adulthood as people who smoke more than 10 cigarettes a day, according to a new study.

The British Medical Journal study also found that people who are overweight have the same risk as less heavy smokers.

To reach the conclusion, Dr Martin Neovius at Karolinska Institute in Sweden, analysed the cause of death of over 45,000 men who underwent mandatory military conscription tests in Sweden.

All participants had their body mass index (BMI) measured and reported their smoking status at the age of 18 and were tracked down for an average of 38 years.

The city now has its first cardiac helpline designed by the Asian Heart Institute exclusively to deal with heart problems — both routine as well as emergency ones like a heart attack. A call to the helpline (126 126) would ensure that an ambulance reaches the patient's doorstep in about 30 minutes during the day and 15 minutes at night.

Alongside, the state's first air ambulance service was also launched by union health minister Anbumani Ramadoss on Monday for patients outside Mumbai.