International Journal of Global Environmental Issues 2009 - Vol. 9, No.1/2pp. 130 - 136
Pattern of distribution of global CO2 emission by countries
Soumyananda DindaEmail author(s)
Department of Economics and International Development, University of Bath, Bath, UK
This study examines carefully the distribution aspects in details, particularly the pattern of distribution of global CO2 emission. This paper investigates the share of CO2 emission for bottom 10 and top 10 percentiles, quartiles and their movements during 1960-1990.
International Journal of Environment and Waste Management 2008 - Vol. 2, No.6pp. 647 - 665
Land application of Water Treatment Residuals: effect on wheat yield and the availability of phosphorus and aluminium
Elsayed Ahmed Elkhatib, Ahmed Mohamed MahdyEmail author(s)
Department of Soil and Water, College of Agriculture (Elshatby), Alexandria University, Alexandria 21545, Egypt. ' Department of Soil and Water, College of Agriculture (Elshatby), Alexandria University, Alexandria 21545, Egypt
Water Treatment Residuals (WTR) can be a potential source for available phosphorus (P) and Al, but the influence of WTR rates on the dynamics of available P and Al and plant uptake in alkaline soils are not well documented. Our objective was to evaluate the effects of WTR (Alum-sludge) on the agronomic performance of wheat crop grown in alkaline soils as well as P and Al availability and extractability. Wheat (Triticum aestivum L) plants were grown in three alkaline soils amended with WTR at five rates. After 13 weeks, plant shoots, panicles and roots were harvested separately and P and Al were measured. Increases of 246, 32% and 43% in total dry matter yield were achieved as a result of applying 30 g kg−1 WTR to sandy, clay and calcareous soils respectively. The trend of P concentration in different parts of wheat plants in response to applied WTR was negative quadratic (P < 0.01). The application rates of WTR used in this study did not increase extractable Al in amended soils >6 mg Al kg−1. Therefore, slight increases in available Al from application of WTR should not have adverse effects on soils or plants.
Department of Zoology, K.M. Government College, Narwana – 126116, India. ' Department of Zoology and Aquaculture, CCS Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar – 125004, India. ' Department of Zoology, Meerut College, Meerut – 250002, India. ' Department of Zoology and Aquaculture, CCS Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar – 125004, India. ' Department of Zoology and Aquaculture, CCS Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar – 125004, India
Water hyacinth, sugarcane bagasse and rice husk are major bio-organic wastes causing severe environmental problems. For their biodegradation, Eisenia fetida was used as a vermicomposting worm in outdoor open field conditions. The above wastes were mixed separately with fresh cow dung in the ratio 1 : 5 (by weight). The mixtures were vermicomposted for 90 days in pits of size 2 × 0.5 × 0.6 m (l × b × d). The population and biomass of earthworms, and C:N ratios in the resultant vermicomposts were studied at the end of experiment.
International Journal of Environment and Waste Management 2008 - Vol. 2, No.6pp. 584 - 600
Does substrate quality affect earthworm growth and reproduction patterns in vermicomposting systems? A study using three popular composting earthworms
Surindra Suthar, Setha RamEmail author(s)
Department of Zoology, Jai Narain Vyas University, Jodhpur-342 001, India. ' Department of Zoology, Jai Narain Vyas University, Jodhpur-342 001, India
Efforts were made to evaluate the impact of substrate materials (crop residues + sheep manure, cowshed manure, and kitchen waste + leaf litter) on growth and reproduction performance of composting earthworms: Eudrilus eugeniae, Perionyx excavatus and Perionyx sansibaricus, under laboratory conditions. Results indicated that earthworm biomass and cocoon production rate was directly related to the type of earthworm species as well as nature of worm feedstuff. Although cocoon hatchling success did not show any relation with type of culture material, but hatchlings numbers cocoon−1 was directly related with quality of substrate. This study suggests that earthworm production can be managed by using feedstuff having higher nitrogen contents with low C:N ratios.
International Journal of Energy Technology and Policy 2009 - Vol. 7, No.1pp. 63 - 77
Energy efficiency management in India: a supply side perspective
Neena Sinha, N.V. KumarEmail author(s)
University School of Management Studies, Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, Kashmere Gate, Delhi – 110403, India. ' National Power Training Institute, Sector-33, Faridabad – 121003, India
The rapid pace of India's industrial development has altered the demand-supply situation for power generation and also set the process of opening up of markets by state regulators. In the backdrop of the expected growth rate of 9% envisaged for the Indian economy, power sector requires a capacity addition of 78,000 MW in the 11th Plan with the objective of 'power for all by 2012'. During fiscal year 2007, India's total energy shortage was 9.9% of its total requirements, and peak shortage was 16.6% of peak demand requirements, indicating the need for effective energy management. Most of the studies related to energy efficiency focus on demand side management (DSM), however, in this paper we propose that an integrated approach incorporating economic reforms, FDI, operational-efficiency improvement of existing power plants, introduction of new energy-efficient technologies and reduction of losses in T&D as practiced in India can be emulated by developing countries.
Keywords: economic reforms; foreign direct investment; FDI; energy efficiency; availability based tariff; ABT; operational efficiency; power transmission; power distribution; cleaner technologies; India; energy management; developing countries.
International Journal of Energy Technology and Policy 2009 - Vol. 7, No.1pp. 3 - 17
Thermal impact of sinking residential buildings in hot regions – Kuwait as a case study
Abdullatif E. Ben-Nakhi, Rafik M. El ShiatyEmail author(s)
College of Technological Studies, Department of Mechanical Power and Refrigeration Technology, P.O. Box 3665, Salmiya, 22037 Kuwait. ' College of Technological Studies, Department of Mechanical Power and Refrigeration Technology, P.O. Box 3665, Salmiya, 22037 Kuwait
This paper is concerned with improving residential building thermal performance at early design stage. The modification considered in this work was based on reducing external heat gain via sinking the building or part of it. Three scenarios were proposed of which the most acceptable one was thermally analysed. The analysis was based on integrated dynamic simulation of the whole building thermal performance. The external boundary was defined by a climate file of a typical meteorological year for Kuwait. The external convective heat transfer coefficient for all surfaces was determined by means of full scale CFD model of the residential building. Four orientations were considered for the selected building in order to ensure the generality of the outcome of the investigation. For a typical residential building, HVAC annual power conservation equal to 4% was reached by sinking the building by one level.
Keywords: integrated building energy simulation; energy conservation; building levels; residential buildings; hot regions; building design; thermal performance; Kuwait; heat transfer coefficient; heat transfer coefficient; CFD modelling; computaitonal fluid dynamics; HVAC power conservation.
Department of Electrical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, Kanpur 208016, India. ' Department of Electrical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, Kanpur 208016, India. ' Elektrische Anlagen und Netz, Universitat Duisburg-Essen, Duisburg 47057, Germany
Due to the large penetration and continuous improvement in the wind power technology, wind farms are asked to operate similar to the conventional power plants. In emerging electricity market, wind power generators are now seen differently and should sustain with/without limited government support. Although cost reductions due to technological improvements bring wind power in competitions to conventional fossil-fuel generation, but until now various incentives are required to overcome wind power's cost disadvantage and these incentives may play a significant role in improving the competitiveness of wind power. However, the use and trade of wind power in the market is complicated because of the lack of guarantees of generation, mainly in the wind farms. This paper discusses several key issues and challenges which can be faced by the wind power in the competitive power market. With suitable market mechanism, wind power can be helpful in mitigating the market abuse up to some extent.
Enhancement of hydrogen production from Kitchen Waste using heat treated anaerobic biogas plant slurry with pH control
S. Jayalakshmi, V. Sukumaran, Kurian JosephEmail author(s)
Lecturer in Institute of Remote Sensing, Department of Civil Engineering, Anna University, Chennai 600025, India. ' Department of Biotechnology, Periyar Maniammai University, Vallam, Thanjavur 613 403, Tamil Nadu, India. ' Centre for Environmental Studies, Anna University, Chennai 600 025, Tamil Nadu, India
International Journal of Environment and Sustainable Development 2009 - Vol. 8, No.1pp. 23 - 35
Hydrogen is found to be a clean energy source; biohydrogen has been researched in recent years. Anaerobic Digestion of Kitchen Waste (KW) for hydrogen production was performed in lab scale reactors, using heat-treated anaerobically digested biogas plant slurry. The biogas plant slurry was given heat treatment at varying temperatures ranging from 70 to 100 ° C for 15 min. Enhancement of hydrogen production using heat-treated anaerobic biogas plant slurry with pH control was also studied. To study the effect of pH in hydrogen production, the reactors were operated at varying pH ranging from 4.0 to 6.0. The reactor operated with 100 ° C Heat-Treated Inoculum (HTM) was efficient in hydrogen production from KW. The rate of hydrogen production was 176.2 mL kg−1 TS h−1. Methane was not reported in all the operated reactors except that the reactor operated with 70 ° C HTM. A significant difference was found in the production of hydrogen at different pH conditions and the pH 6 at mesophilic condition proved to be effective in enhancing the production of hydrogen. The rate of hydrogen production in the laboratory scale reactor operated with pH 6.0 was 211.20 ml kg−1 TS h−1. The hydrogen concentration was found to be 55-60% and the remaining was CO2. Normal butyrate was the main acid product, and the percentages of butyrate, acetate and propionate at tested conditions were 45-50, 20-25 and 20-25%, respectively.
International Journal of Environment and Pollution 2008 - Vol. 32, No.2pp. 200 - 230
Impact of future climate changes on high pollution levels
Ivan Dimov, Gerald Geernaert, Zahari ZlatevEmail author(s)
Institute of Parallel Processing, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Sofia, Bulgaria. ' Los Alamos National Laboratory, Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics, MS C-305, Los Alamos, NM 87545, USA. ' Department of Atmospheric Environment, National Environmental Research Institute, Frederiksborgvej 399 P.O. Box 358, Roskilde DK-4000, Denmark
Abstract: Changes in climate variability as well as changes in extreme weather and climate events in the 20th century, especially those that took place during the last two to three decades of the 20th century, have been discussed in many recent scientific publications. Attempts to project the results of such studies in the future have been made under different assumptions. In this paper, we have chosen one of the well-known scenarios predicting changes of the climate in the world during the last 30 years of the 21st century. This scenario is used, together with several general predictions related to the future climate, to produce three climatic scenarios. The derived climatic scenarios are used to calculate predictions for future pollution levels in Denmark and in Europe by applying the Unified Danish Eulerian Model (UNI-DEM), on a space domain containing the whole of Europe.
Keywords: future climatic change; air pollution models; scenarios; pollution levels; environmental modelling; environmental pollution; Denmark; Europe.
Journal of International Environmental Application and Science , Vol. 3, No. 1 (2008), 1-20
Influence of several factors during collection and preservation prior to analysis of arsenic in groundwater: A case study from West Bengal, India
Tarit Roychowdhury 1,2
School of Environmental Studies, Jadavpur University, Kolkata 700032, West Bengal, India
Geo-Environment Management Division, National Environmental Engineering Research Institute, Nehru Marg, Nagpur 440020, Maharasthra, India
Abstract: To avoid the discrepancy in analytical results, sets of experiments were studied on mode of sampling, sample storage and time interval study and its effect were noted on groundwater arsenic concentration from West Bengal, India. Arsenic concentration decreased gradually with time and higher iron concentration, higher arsenic loss (due to co-precipitation with iron) was observed for non-acidified samples. Somewhat lesser loss of arsenic was observed under refrigerated condition, compared to room temperature and about 99% of iron was lost within a day under non-acidified condition. About 91-98% and 96-100% of arsenic were recovered within first three days for acidified samples, stored in room temperature and refrigerated condition, respectively. A considerable amount of arsenic was lost with time due to the adsorption on plastic container surface/precipitation with other elements/volatilization, especially for acidified water samples. Linear regressions showed very good correlations between initial iron concentration and loss of arsenic for non-acidified samples. Particulates (colloidal iron hydroxide) present in pumped groundwater contributed a considerable amount of arsenic and with time, less to lesser particles was coming out with pour water. Average 166% and 23.5% (up to five and fifteen months from installation, respectively) higher results of arsenic were observed for the unfiltered waters compared to the filtered (Millipore membrane filter, 0.45 µm), collected from the newly installed tubewells, 1 month and 11 months old, respectively. Whereas, an average 12% higher value of arsenic was observed in unfiltered waters compared to the filtered, for the older tubewells, 2-9 years old. Very good correlations were observed between water arsenic concentrations in filtered and unfiltered samples for older tubewells. An average ±14% variation of both arsenic and iron concentrations in groundwater (n=23) was observed round the year.
Keywords: Groundwater; collection; preservation; time interval; analysis of arsenic
Particulate Pollution Mitigating Ability of Some Plant Species
Kulshreshtha, K.*, Rai, A., Mohanty, C.S., Roy, R.K. and Sharma, S.C.
Eco-education Division & Botanic Garden, National Botanical Research Institute, Rana Pratap Marg, Lucknow- 226001, India
(Abstract)
Foliar surface of plants is continuously exposed to the surrounding atmosphere and is, therefore, the main receptor of particulate pollutants. This physical trait can be used to determine the level of particulate pollution in the surroundings, as well as the ability of individual plant species to intercept and mitigate particulate pollutants. In the present study, leaf cuticle characters of four common roadside plant species, namely Bougainvillea 'Mahara', Terminalia arjuna (Roxb.) Wt. and Arn, Cassia fistula Linn, and Polyalthia longifolia Thw. were studied from sites with heavy particulate pollutants in the atmosphere and compared with those of control/ non polluted environs to evaluate their respective pollution mitigating ability. The particles deposited on the leaf surface were 2.5 to 10.0 μm in size and the dust load was recordedin the trend of T. arjuna (2.31 mg/cm2)> C. fistula (1.47 mg/ cm2) > B. 'Mahara' (1.33 mg/cm2) and P. longifolia (0.97 mg/cm2). The increase in the size and frequency of epidermal cells and stomata were observed. Cuticle rupture was a major injury symptom, that was observed in T. arjuna, C. fistula and P. longifolia while no cuticular damage was not observed in B. 'Mahara'. On the basis of these observations it can be concluded that B. 'Mahara' is a dust mitigator and it adsorbs and / or absorbs the pollutants from the environment in which it grows.
The Physiological Ecology of Cardamom (Elettaria cardamomum M) in Cardamom Agroforestry System
Murugan, M.1*, Shetty, P. K.1, Ravi , R.2 and Subbiah, A.3
1 School of Natural Sciences and Engineering, National Institute of Advanced Studies, Indian Institute of Science campus, Bangalore-560 012, India
2 Department of Materials Engineering, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore-560012, India
3 Spices and Plantation Crops Research and Advisory Services, Cochin, Kerala, India
(Abstract)
Since 1895 cardamom has been cultivated in the cardamom hills of Western Ghats, India, which form a part of global biodiversity hot spots. These tropical forests in the last couple of decades have been subjected for severe periodical shade lopping and selective felling for maximizing cardamom production. Photosynthesis, transpiration, leaf temperature and leaf relative humidity was studied in response to change in intercepted light condition in each month during the year 2007. The light interception significantly varied from one month to another and increasing trend was noticed from January ( close to 48 μ εi m-2 s-1) up to the month of May ( close to100 μ εi m-2 s-1 ) and thereafter decreasing trend followed until December (50 μ εi m-2 s-1 ). Increased light interception increased photosynthesis, transpiration and leaf temperature. Photosynthesis rate was maximum (close to 7 μ mol CO2 m-2 s-1) in the month of August in which month the interception of light was 77 μ εi m-2 s-1. Increasing light interception beyond 77 μ εi m-2 s-1 did not increase photosynthetic rate of the crop. The highest transpiration rate of 59 μ mol H2O m-2 s-1 was observed when the light interception and leaf temperatures were 100 μ εi m-2 s-1, 33.4 ºC respectively. Summer months have recorded higher transpiration rate than those of monsoon months. Results showed good correlation between light interception and the rates of photosynthesis, transpiration, as well as leaf temperature.
Comparative Study on Start – Up Performance of HUASB and AF Reactors Treating Poultry Slaughterhouse Wastewater
Rajakumar, R.* and Meenambal, T.
Department of Civil Engineering, Government College of Technology, Anna University, Coimbatore- 641 013, Tamilnadu, India
(Abstract)
A study was performed in Hybrid Up flow Anaerobic Sludge Blanket (HUASB) and Anaerobic Filter (AF) reactors to compare the start-up time and optimum HRT required for the treatment of poultry slaughterhouse wastewater under similar loading conditions. Initially, the reactors were started at an OLR of 0.77 Kg COD/m3.d and HRT of 36 h. Loading rates were increased by reducing HRT 24, 16, 12, 10 and 8h which corresponds the OLR of 1.15, 1.74, 2.27, 2.74, 3.43 Kg COD/ m3.d. HUASB reactor showed TCOD and SCOD removal efficiencies of 80% and 86%, respectively at an optimum HRT of 10 h whereas AF reactor showed 70% (TCOD) and 79% (SCOD) at optimum HRT of 12 h. Reducing HRT beyond 10h in HUASB reactor shown sludge wash out and lower COD removal efficiencies of less than 80% and beyond 12 h in AF marked decreased efficiencies as low as 66%. HUASB and AF reactors took 120, 147 respectively, for complete start-up. The granules of 2-2.5mm sizes were observed in HUASB and less than 1 mm were observed in AF with settling velocities ranging between 0.5-0.83 m/min and 0.5-0.65m/min, respectively. From Residence Time Distribution studies, dispersion numbers (<0.2) showed both the reactors attained plug flow regime. The present study revealed that the HUASB reactor has very good removal efficiency and less start-up time compared to that of AF reactor for the treatment of poultry slaughterhouse wastewater.
Key words: Poultry Slaughterhouse wastewater, HUASB, AF, Granules, Settling velocity, Residence Time distribution
Geochemical Reactivity of Surficial and Core Sediment of a Tropical Mangrove Ecosystem
Geetha, R.,* Chandramohanakumar, N. and Mathews, L.
Department of Chemical Oceanography, School of Marine Sciences, Cochin University of Science and Technology, Kochin, Kerala, India
(Abstract)
Sediments from the surface, core waterwaand vegetation of tropical mangroves were collected from tropical mangroves, India. Total phosphorus, total nitrogen, organic carbon, protein, carbohydrate and tannin and lignin in these samples were estimated. The C/N and C/P of the leaves present in Mangalavanam, Vypeen, and Nettoor are in good agreement with that of the sediment and this -result indicated that the main source of the sediment organic matter is the plant remains. The profile of C/N ratios shows a decrease towards the depth, but lies within that of the oligotrophic lakes and plant tissues and peat. The decay rate of C and N indicated that the main reactivity is in the first 5cm of the sediment, which is subjected to re-suspension and significant bio-turbation. But there existed a uniform decay pattern at 10 cm and 15 cm. In the case of monsoon season and post monsoon season a random character was observed at 15 cm depth, which can be attributed to the effective release of organic matter from that depth zone. To assess the reactivity of the systems, the classic one G model with slight modifications to suit to the system was employed.
Biosorption of Cadmium by Live and Immobilized Cells of Spirulina Platensis
Murugesan, A.G * Maheswari, S. and Bagirath, G.
Manonmaniam Sundaranar University, Sri Paramakalyani Centre for Environmental Sciences Alwarkurichi - 627 412. Tamil Nadu, India
(Abstract)
Spirulina platensis, a cyanobacterium of economic important was studied for the tolerance to cadmium. The bioassay studies showed the EC50 value to be 1.53 mg/g. The cyanobacterium was very sensitive to low metal concentration and the productivity was also reduced. The chlorophyll pigments reduced with decreasing the algal biomass. The algal survival rate showed a marked reduction in their survival rate from 98% in the control medium to >50% at 1.6 mg/L cadmium and no growth in the culture exposed to cadmium concentration of 1.9 mg/L. The Biosorption studies showed that the algae had a great potential for adsorbing the heavy metal on to the cell. A maximum uptake of 44.56 mg/g was obtained in living cells of Spirulina platensis suggesting the possibility of the algae to be a good biosorbent. Culturing the algae in low metal concentrations can be utilized as potential tertiary treatment for metal containing effluent. The immobilized cell of Spirulina platensis was able to be more effective in absorbing the metal 47.89 mg/g to the cell. The results of the study indicate the potentiality of the algae to be a possible agent for removal of heavy metals from aqueous solutions.
Risk factors according to estrogen receptor status of breast cancer patients in Trivandrum, South India.
Dey S, Boffetta P, Mathews A, Brennan P, Soliman A, Mathew A.
Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI.
Estrogen receptor (ER) status is an important biomarker in defining subtypes of breast cancer differing in antihormonal therapy response, risk factors and prognosis. However, little is known about association of ER status with various risk factors in the developing world. Our case-control study done in Kerala, India looked at the associations of ER status and risk factors of breast cancer. From 2002 to 2005, 1,208 cases and controls were selected at the Regional Cancer Center (RCC), Trivandrum, Kerala, India. Information was collected using a standardized questionnaire, and 3-way analyses compared ER+/ER- cases, ER+ cases/controls and ER- cases/controls using unconditional logistic regression to calculate odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals. The proportion of ER- cases was higher (64.1%) than ER+ cases. Muslim women were more likely to have ER- breast cancer compared to Hindus (OR = 1.48, 95% CI = 1.09, 2.02), an effect limited to premenopausal group (OR = 1.87, 95% CI = 1.26, 2.77). Women with higher socioeconomic status were more likely to have ER+ breast cancer (OR = 1.48, 95% CI = 1.11, 1.98). Increasing BMI increased likelihood of ER- breast cancer in premenopausal women (p for trend < 0.001). Increasing age of marriage was positively associated with both ER+ and ER- breast cancer. Increased breastfeeding and physical activity were in general protective for both ER+ and ER- breast cancer. The findings of our study are significant in further understanding the relationship of ER status and risk factors of breast cancer in the context of the Indian subcontinent. (c) 2009 UICC.
PMID: 19452528 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]
Nat Clin Pract Neurol. 2009 May 19. [Epub ahead of print]Links
Challenges in the management of epilepsy in resource-poor countries.
Radhakrishnan K.
R. Madhavan Nayar Center for Comprehensive Epilepsy Care, Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology, Trivandrum, Kerala, India.
Of the 50 million people with epilepsy worldwide, around 80% reside in resource-poor countries, which are ill-equipped to tackle the enormous medical, social and economic challenges posed by epilepsy. The capability to identify people with epilepsy and provide cost-effective care is compromised by widespread poverty, illiteracy, inefficient and unevenly distributed health-care systems, and social stigma and misconceptions surrounding the disease. Several studies have reported that a large proportion of patients with epilepsy in resource-poor countries never receive appropriate treatment for their condition, and many, although diagnosed and initiated on treatment, soon discontinue treatment. The high cost of treatment, a lack of availability of antiepileptic drugs, and superstitious and cultural beliefs contribute to a large epilepsy treatment gap. A substantial proportion of the current burden of epilepsy in resource-poor countries could be minimized by educating the public about positive features of life with epilepsy, informing primary and secondary physicians about current trends in the management of epilepsies, scaling up routine availability of low-cost antiepileptic drugs, and developing cost-effective epilepsy surgery programs. A comprehensive epilepsy care model should consider the marked heterogeneity of the disorder and its variable effects on the patient, family and community.
PMID: 19455183 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]
Gender mainstreaming in health: looking back, looking forward.
Ravindran TK, Kelkar-Khambete A.
Achutha Menon Centre for Health Science Studies, Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology, Kerala, India. ravindrans@usa.net
This paper reviews published literature on experiences in mainstreaming gender within the health sector since the 1990s. Although much has been written about the need for mainstreaming gender, and on how to go about it, the gap between intention and practice is palpable. National health policies and programmes that have gender integrally woven into their objectives and activities are rare. Health research to generate gender and sex-specific data, and integrating gender in health provider training, have received scarce attention. Mainstreaming gender within institutions has remained superficial, investing more on form than on content. The apparent lack of progress in mainstreaming gender in health may be attributed to: depoliticization and delinking of gender mainstreaming from social transformation and social justice agendas; adoption of top-down approaches to mainstreaming; growing hostility within the global policy environment to justice and equity concerns; and increasing privatization and retraction of the state's role in health. This paper suggests that the way forward would be to frame gender concerns in the language of equity, rights, and justice; to set agendas which consider gender inequity within the context of inequities by caste, class, ethnicity, and other sources of health inequalities; and to work alongside other movements for social justice.
Child Development Centre, Medical College, Thiruvananthapuram 695 011, Kerala, India. nairmkc@rediffmail.com
The fetal origins hypothesis, proposes that non-communicable diseases including coronary heart disease, type 2 diabetes and hypertension originate through the responses of a fetus to undernutrition, that permanently change the structure and function of the body. Associations between low birthweight and disease in later life have been widely studied in Europe and the USA. Studies in southern India have shown that babies who are short and fat tend to become insulin deficient and have high rates of non-insulin dependent diabetes. These findings have important public health implications as it suggests that associations with body size at birth underestimate the contribution of intrauterine development to later disease, and also, that while the primary prevention of coronary heart disease and non-insulin dependent diabetes may ultimately depend on changing the body composition and diets of young women. Therefore, more immediate benefit may come from preventing imbalances between prenatal and postnatal growth among children. The basic premise of the thrifty gene hypothesis is that certain populations may have genes that determine increased fat storage, which in times of famine represent a survival advantage, but in a modern environment result in obesity and type 2 diabetes. The fetal origins theory is of greatest relevance to the developing world and the implications of this work for global health are enormous. To reduce chronic diseases, we need to understand how the human fetus is nourished and how malnutrition changes its physiology and metabolism, so that interventions be implemented to limit the damage. The challenge for the next decade must be to discover the cellular and molecular mechanisms giving rise to these associations. If this aim is accomplished, it might be possible to devise strategies to reduce the impact of these disabling chronic and expensive diseases.
