What is menopause?
Menopause is a definitive phase in a woman’s life when her ovaries stop producing eggs and she stops having her periods in turn. The cessation of periods is called menopause and when a woman has not had periods for 12 months, she is said to have had menopause. The average menopausal age is considered to be between 45 and 50.

How the hands that heal become the hands that harm – a closer look at treatment and disposal of biomedical waste

The Lucknow Municipal Corporation was blamed last year for dumping infected syringes, expired medicine vials and blood-stained cotton from 242 hospitals and nursing homes in a village on the city’s outskirts. Discovery of biomedical waste in municipal solid waste dumps continues to make news all over the country. Much of this waste is retrieved by rag-pickers and resurfaces in the market. Horror stories of used syringes landing in the hands of plastic scrap dealers and bloody cotton ending up washed and stuffed in mattresses through illegal recycling have raised serious concern. Not only does poor handling of bio-medical waste expose the public to contagious diseases, but its illegal dumping poses a threat to the environment. Water bodies, marshes and other environmentally sensitive areas are common targets of this pernicious practice.

India's northeast has dissimilar customs, varied food habits and diverse ethnic groups, apart from a picturesque landscape. However, on the darker side, the region, in recent times, has recorded a high number of cancer cases in the country.

Tripura state alone has witnessed 41% increase in the fatal ailment over the past six years. In 2006, the Agartala regional cancer center admitted 1200 new patients and in 2010, the number went up to 1726. In the last eight months, 1270 new cases have been registered at the cancer hospital.

What are nails for? Answering this is a bit tricky. Are the nails for scratching?! Is that it? Well, although nails and scratching are closely related the nails serve a more important purpose. Do we have nails just so we can put polish on them and have mini art works of sorts? And how much do we know about our 'scratchers'?
By Deepa Srinivasan