Of garlic and onion

Of garlic and onion

Though not many people on earth actually take proper care of their health, any news and/or adveretisement related to health, however, catches immediate attention. Different people get attracted by different kinds of health-related news and advertisements. A recent advertisement campaign about a particular hair oil that not only stops hair-fall but also ‘ensures’ fresh growth of hair in the bald patches, for instance, must have drawn the attention of all those – particularly males – who have either turned bald, or are beginning to experience rapid falling of hair. Likewise, a lot of people leave every other news item in a newspaper and go directly to reading in detail a news item related to, say, heart attacks, or blood sugar, or cancer. A recent study has claimed that apart from looking for health-related news in the print media – like newspapers and magazines – and television, a sizeable section of people also surf the Internet and other social media for news that are related to health, well-being and diseases. The study, which was carried out in the United States by the Pew Internet & American Life Project, revealed that about 80 per cent of Internet users, or about 93 million Americans, have searched for a health-related topic online. The researchers asked participants if they had used the Internet to search for at least one of 16 major health topics online, ranging from mental health, immunizations to sexual health information. Most frequently people went online to find out information about a specific disease or medical problem (63 per cent) or a particular medical treatment or procedure (47 per cent). They were also interested in issues related to food, diet, nutrition and vitamins (44 per cent) and exercise or fitness information (36 per cent). Other popular health topics that topped the findings included prescription or over-the-counter drugs (34 per cent), alternative treatments (28 per cent), health insurance (25 per cent), depression, anxiety or stress (21 per cent) and a particular doctor or hospital (21 per cent). While no such study is readily available about whether Indians also look for health-related news and features in the print media, one study conducted a few years ago did reveal something – that while Indian women prefer to read information related to entertainment, health, education, and development in that order, Indian men look for – in order of preference – news about politics, sports, crime, business, defence, jobs/career and health. But then, what is gradually becoming visible is that the print media in India is also choosing health-related news in more numbers, some even finding space on the front page. One such news-item originating from Beijing on Tuesday, for instance, that made it to the front page in several newspapers – including this one – was about benefits of consuming garlic and onion on a daily basis. It said consuming 50 grams of allium vegetables – vegetables that comprise high sulfur compounds which also give them their distinctive flavor and aroma – can potentially reduce the risk of getting colorectal cancer. More and regular the intake of allium vegetables, like onion, garlic etc, better the protection, the news quoting a study conducted by the China Medical University said. Not a bad idea.

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