VULNERABILITY TO ALLERGY-A PREDOMINANT URBAN PHENOMENON?

Allergies can be caused by food as well the environment one lives in and in many cases it can be life threatening. Children are generally the victims of allergy which increases in severity as they grow. There are remedies which are available to deal with allergic reactions but ideally keeping away from situation that poses risk of allergy can be best solution. While in the case of food, it is somewhat easier to stay away from those containing known allergens, which are about 8 in number how can any one anticipate environmental hazards that also may trigger allergy? If a recent study on allergy is any indication, urban environment is more dangerous when it comes to food allergies though common sense tells that environmental induced allergic reactions should be more serious in such places. This is understandable considering the multitude of chemicals present in urban surroundings due to high population density and and all associated human activities.  For example emissions from heavy vehicular traffic that is a feature of urban living contain many chemicals in minute quantities that can be the cause of allergy. It is a logical finding that those living in rural areas where the environment is relatively cleaner the incidence of allergy is significantly less. But the report that urban children are more vulnerable to food allergy is indeed revealing. According to the authors of the study the reason for this could be the presence diverse microorganisms in rural environment o which children there are exposed, may be responsible to make them sturdy and resistant to allergy triggering. Here is a gist of the study that has brought to surface this interesting information.

"Study results showed that 9.8 percent of children in urban areas have food allergies as compared to 6.2 percent in rural communities. The states with the highest prevalence of food allergies in children were Nevada, Florida, Georgia, Alaska, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland and the District of Columbia. "We have found for the first time that population density has an impact" Gupta told the Chicago Tribune. "The big question now is what in the environment is the trigger?" Some researchers believe that the many pollutants found in urban areas may trigger the development of allergies while exposure early in life to bacteria common to rural areas may protect against hypersensitivity to allergens. Still, finding the answer to the "trigger" question is no short order and food allergies are a growing health problem. According to 2011 research by Gupta, an estimated 5.9 million children under the age of 18 now have a potentially life-threatening food allergy. Severe allergic reactions that can lead to death include a drop in blood pressure, trouble breathing and swelling of the throat. And despite the geographic disparity between occurrences of food allergies, severe food allergy reactions are not confined to one area. The study showed food allergies are equally severe in regardless of where a child lives. Nearly 40 percent of all the children in the study had a severe or life-threatening reaction."This is really important to note," Gupta told Food Safety News. "There may be less food allergies in rural areas, but if you do have a food allergy, you still have an equal chance of having a severe, potentially life-threatening reaction. Gupta advises parents to always report a child's allergic food reaction to his or her doctor so the child can be prescribed medication to prevent a life-threatening situation".

The role of microbes in making children less sensitive to allergens, as suggested by the scientists in the above study is really significant and many recent studies have brought out the beneficial effects of human microbiome in health that offer logical explanation for this perception. Another variable factor is the exposure of children to restaurant foods and processed products containing many chemical additives and whether this also plays a part is not known. Food allergy is a manifestation of reaction to certain specific proteins present in the food and there is no permanent remedy presently available. Also to be noted is the fact food allergy has a strong genetic factor as children borne to families having a history of allergy are more likely to inherit the same. On the other hand if urban environment is the major culprit for increasing incidences of allergy in urban areas and consequent development asthma and other respiratory ailments, what practical methods can be envisaged to ameliorate the situation? In spite of all claims that environment safety agencies are monitoring the quality of air in major urban settlements, it is doubtful whether the standards and enforcement practices are adequate to meet the emerging challenges. The hypothesis that exposure to microbes during early child hood may lessen the chances of food allergy is a good lead worth pursuing to reach a logical conclusion on this issue. In many cases gut microbes belonging to different species help in digestion of proteins significantly leaving very little peptide residues that can be absorbed to elicit allergic reaction. The well organized multi institutional research projects initiated in 2007 by National Institute of Health in the US on human microbiome can be expected to bring out lot of information on the role of microorganism in food allergy reactions.

V.H.POTTY
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FOOD STREET!-THE LAHORE STORY

Lahore has the distinction of having a Food Street which is supposed to concentrate all eateries in one street. This is a concept similar to Gold Sauk in the Gulf countries where people looking for a particular specialized group of items or services can visit and choose their requirements. There are similar specialized streets for electronic goods, house building materials, hard wares, etc in some cities where concerned wholesalers and retailers set up their shops. The Food Street in Lahore conceived with good intentions, seems to be attracting criticism from the customers who find it increasingly difficult to visit the place due to severe logistical problems and indifferent quality foods served there. It is time that civic authorities pay more attention to the grievances of the customers to make the experience of eating a pleasurable one. Here is a critique on the issue which should serve other similar ventures in future.   

The citizens have been seen complaining about the poor quality of food and ambiance in the eateries present in the newly formed food street, outlining massive traffic, noise and dust caused by the massive activity in the Gawalmandi area round the clock as the reasons for the decreased value of the food street. The old food street was one of the key attractions for locals across the metropolis as well as for the foreigner tourists. The district administration of the city had removed the gates and other decorations from both ends of the world-famous street, reportedly to teach a lesson to their political opponents who had initiated the famous food venue during the government of former Punjab chief minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi. Talking to Daily Times, some of the visitors, Fawad, Waheed, Sobohi Gul, Sara and others said that the food street was utilised as a source of recreation and entertainment, especially by the youth. It served as a recreational outlet where people came and enjoyed desi food, forgetting all their worries for some time. "Lahoris have been deprived of a jewel and a source of recreation, and unfortunately at a time when the country is going through a economic, political and ethnic crises," Sara said, adding that the idea of the Lahore's food street had even been copied by other cities across the subcontinent. The citizens were also of the view that the decision of shutting down the food street by the current government was "visionless" as they were shutting down such a valuable venture merely to settle their political scores. They were of the view that things had changed from bad to worse in the area with poor quality of food and ambiance as the shopkeepers are forced to sell their products amid massive pollution, heavy traffic rush and deafening noise.

Generally street vending is concentrated in places where people congregate an these outlets usually small in size and portable in nature serve a purpose but the quality, safety and civic inconveniences are issues which concern many people. The Singapore experience is some thing from which good lessons can be learned and instead of earmarking a street it is far more preferable to set up Hawker Centers with modern amenities in strategic places where people can have their preferred foods under a relaxed environment. Delhi's Food Plaza cannot be a model for the simple reason that the fares served there are too expensive for common man to patronize regularly. Ideally each city should have Hawker Centers in strategic locations so that "eating out" ethnic foods made by skilled artisans becomes an experience by iteself.

V.H.POTTY
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PROFIT WE TAKE, PAINS YOU WILL BEAR! - WHAT IS THE LOGIC?

If any industry is detested by people, it is the pesticide industry, which turns out thousands of tons of deadly chemicals, sold as insecticides, pesticides and weedicides, used by most farmers for reducing losses due to infestation with various vectors. While farmer is happy getting more income for his crops, consumer is weighed down by the health damage caused by the chemical residues when such foods are consumed. Environmentalists are concerned about the pollution potential of these chemicals when applied indiscriminately to the land, water and the air and the resulting adverse consequences. That people are not going to sit helplessly watching this unfolding drama of slow poisoning of communities after communities by the irresponsible practices of business organizations is borne out by the collective action taken by the affected communities through litigation in some states in the US.

"A coalition of communities in six Midwestern states filed a federal lawsuit Monday seeking to force the manufacturer of a widely-used herbicide to pay for its removal from drinking water. Atrazine, a weed-killer sprayed primarily on cornfields, can run off into rivers and streams that supply municipal water systems. As the Huffington Post Investigative Fund reported in a series of articles last fall, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency failed to notify the public that atrazine had been found at levels above the federal safety limit in drinking water in at least four states. The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois by 16 cities in Kansas, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Missouri, and Iowa. The communities allege that Swiss corporation Syngenta AG and its Delaware counterpart Syngenta Crop Protection, Inc. reaped billions of dollars from the sale of atrazine while local taxpayers were left with the financial burden of filtering the chemical from drinking water".

The attitude of the pesticide industry that "profits we take and pains you will bear" cannot be allowed to be the rule because industrial operations are supposed to be undertaken after assessing rationally the "risk-benefit" balance. Probably the industry seems to be taking umbrage under the logic that it is the user who has to take care and the problem arises because of failure to follow safety protocols by the farmers to prevent contamination of the environment. It will be interesting to follow this trial that may be harbinger for future class action suits by similarly affected populations against heavy polluters.

V.H.POTTY
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WATER TREATMENT-THE "GREEN" APPROACH

Hard water, most commonly encountered in bore well waters is known to be one of the biggest "nuisances" experienced by house owners because of its potential for causing serious damages to the piping system, water heaters, skin and hair problems, laundering difficulties and energy inefficiency. Water softeners are universally used to bring down the content of salts of calcium and magnesium to low levels though their use may cause some pollution through waste water. Imagine a situation where use of softeners are banned because of pollution! This has happened in California, USA where there is a ban against installing water softeners in that state. How ever the industry, in an effort to convince the government sponsored a study in one of the most reputed and independent R & D agencies in the world, the Battelle Memorial Institute (BMI) to study and bring out the relative merits of water softening that out weigh its pollution potential.

"WQA believes the research will show that use of soft water has a "green" effect in the home, that is, it helps maintain water-using household appliances' energy efficiency, reduces soap consumption and waste, and reduces water consumption. Many WQA members who produce and sell water softeners believe that any possible drawbacks of softeners, such as chloride discharges, are far outweighed by their environmental benefits. Preliminary Battelle study findings, announced at the WQA Mid-Year Leadership Meeting in September, indicated, for example, that untreated hard water can rapidly lead to clogged showerheads. Showerheads using softened water performed nearly as well as on the day they were installed, according to the study. It also found that hard-water conditions will reduce the energy efficiency of an instantaneous, or "tankless" hot water heater by about 8 percent compared with its use in soft water".

While BMI brought out what has been known for ages about water softening, the organization that funded the studies happened to be the lobby that represented the manufacturers of water softening equipment, clearly bringing out possible conflict of interest inherent in such a sponsorship. Whether the state government will be convinced so as to rescind the ban, remains to be seen.

V.H.POTTY

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FARM WASTE MANAGEMENT-RISKS AND BENEFITS

In a country like India large dairy farms with more than 1000 cows are far and few and many such farms have facilities to generate gobar gas for use as an energy source. The residue remaining after digestion is not supposed to emanate any foul odor to contaminate the environment. But in western countries where large mechanized farms operate producing large volume of wastes. its management is arduous and risky. A typical cow of good breed can generate about 20-25 tons of waste out of which two third is cow dung, balance being the urine. If such huge quantities of waste are not managed properly it can have serious repercussions for the environment and the food chain. "But as the increasing incidence of environmental and health problems linked to agriculture makes clear, when manure is mismanaged the nutrients in it can foul streams, lakes and aquifers; the pathogens in it can contaminate food products; and the gases it produces, including ammonia, methane and bad-smelling volatile compounds, can upset neighbors and pollute the atmosphere". India is fortunate in having smaller dairy farms where gobar gas plants invariably process the waste into useful fuel and safe manure. Centuries of tradition in India has established the benefits of integrated farming and there is hardly any safety issue involved in the operation of such farms. How ever pig farms and poultry farms are great polluters and V.H.POTTY http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/ http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com