New Delhi, Aug 7 (IANS) Love to eat potatoes? Consume the starchy vegetable baked or boiled, but not as French fries, according to a study which showed that eating the popular snack item thrice a week may increase the risk of diabetes by 20 per cent.The study, which tracked the diets of more than 205,000 adults over decades, however, showed that other forms of potatoes — including baked, boiled, and mashed — do not increase the risk of diabetes.The study, published in the BMJ, also found that …

New Delhi, Aug 7 (IANS) More than 1.3 lakh foreign tourists visited India for medical purposes till April, the Centre informed the Parliament on Thursday.In a written reply, Union Minister for Tourism and Culture Gajendra Singh Shekhawat underlined the steps undertaken to improve India’s rank in global wellness tourism markets.“The total number of Foreign Tourist Arrivals (FTAs) for medical purposes in India during 2025 (up to April) is 1,31,856,” Shekhawat said.“This constitutes approxi…

New Delhi, Aug 7 (IANS) Women’s leadership is central to driving female development for Viksit Bharat, said Union Minister for Women and Child Development Annapurna Devi on Thursday.She said this while inaugurating the second edition of UN Women’s flagship capacity-building programme — SheLeads II: Workshop for Women Leaders, in New Delhi.“Women’s leadership is not just a matter of representation, it is central to driving women-led development for a Viksit Bharat,” Devi said.“Initia…

New Delhi, Aug 7 (IANS) From the current food security, scientists must now shift focus towards building nutritional security, said Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday.He was speaking at the MS Swaminathan Centenary International Conference at ICAR PUSA to celebrate the birth anniversary of Dr. M.S. Swaminathan, the pioneer of India’s Green Revolution.Drawing inspiration from Dr. M. S. Swaminathan, the Prime Minister stated that India’s scientists now have another opportunity to create …

Bengaluru, Aug 6 (IANS) Karnataka Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao has written to Union Health Minister J.P. Nadda on Wednesday defending the move of the state government to shut down the Jan Aushadhi Centres from the premises of government hospitals and urged the Centre to supply medicines to the state health department at the same rates at which these are supplied to Janushadhi Kendras.In his letter, Minister Rao said: “As per the Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janaushadhi Pari Yojana (PMBJP) scheme,…

New Delhi, Aug 6 (IANS) As US President Donald Trump on Wednesday announced to impose 50 per cent tariffs on imports from India, shipments worth more than $30 billion involving pharmaceuticals and certain electronic items such as smartphones, semiconductors, and energy are so far secure from higher duties as these are still under an exemption list.India exported drugs and pharmaceuticals as well as electronics products (mostly smartphones) to the tune of $10.5 billion and $14.6 billion in FY25, …

Phnom Penh, Aug 6 (IANS) A six-year-old girl from southern Cambodia’s Takeo province has been confirmed for H5N1 human avian influenza, bringing the number of cases to 15 so far this year, the Ministry of Health said in a statement on Wednesday.”A laboratory result from the National Institute of Public Health showed on August 5 that the girl was positive for H5N1 virus,” the statement said.”The patient has the symptoms of fever, cough, fatigue, and breathing difficulty, and she is currently bein…

Wellington, Aug 6 (IANS) New Zealand has pledged support to Samoa amid a severe dengue outbreak that has so far claimed the lives of five Samoan children.Acknowledging the close ties between the two nations, New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters said on Wednesday that the New Zealand government will dispatch a small team to Apia, the Samoan capital, to provide clinical assistance and work with Samoan authorities on further medical support requirements.Additionally, New Zealand will provide…

Chandigarh, Aug 6 (IANS) Punjab Health and Family Welfare Minister, Balbir Singh, on Wednesday exhorted the public to make maximum use of the ‘Food Safety on Wheels’ initiative, which has now expanded to all the districts of the Aam Aadmi Party-ruled state. Notably, ‘Food Safety on Wheels’ are mobile food testing vans, which are equipped to screen adulteration among major categories of food including milk, paneer (cottage cheese), water, and other daily consumables.“These vans are a cr…

Burhanpur (Madhya Pradesh), Aug 6 (IANS) With the Centre setting a target to eliminate sickle cell anaemia from the country by 2047, Health Department officials in Madhya Pradesh’s Burhanpur are working tirelessly to contribute to this national mission. The responsibility of achieving this ambitious goal has been entrusted to the Health Department, which is carrying out extensive ground-level work.Teams of healthcare workers are visiting villages, schools, and hostels in the district to raise …