Sardarji Jaago!!!!

We had a Sikh ruler (Maharaja Ranjit Singh) who was even feared by the Afghans and there is a Sikh leading India now who cannot proceed against Pakistan without taking permission & approval from the West and then a nod from Ma’am Sonia. Somewhere a Pakistani told me that India is not US and they are not Georgia to be run over that easily. This same stigma has made our leaders a group of eunuchs. India has existed for more than 5,000 years without the help of any Western power. We are more than capable of dealing with terrorism and the domestic problems. All we Indians need is self belief…..Yes! Self belief. The days of the “Raj” robbed us of that and twisted our way of life. We are 20% of mankind; everyone must remember that. They need us more than we need them. God bless India!

Jai Hind! Jai Maharashtra!

The Ethics of Stem Cell Research: A Hindu view

What does it mean to protect 'the sanctity of life?' This is the question
that for Hindus, as for those in other religious traditions, lies at the
heart of debate on whether embryonic stem (ES) cell research is ethical.
It could be argued that embryos in the early process of fertilisation
have only a 30 per cent chance of becoming a full human being, so why not
use them for the potential benefit of existing human beings, for 14 days,
and then destroy them? After all, it is not thought that in these early
stages cells are sufficiently developed to feel any sensation or anything
that could be called 'pain.'
Furthermore, we are told, the benefits of stem cell research could be
radical. Each ES cell has properties of a regenerative nature, which can
transform itself into any cell required, meaning it is pluripotent. Thus
these cells could potentially be used to treat illnesses that we currently
do not have a cure for. It is a compelling argument; when scientists tell us
that in embracing this technique we could reduce the hideous effects of
motor neurone disease, stroke, heart disease, multiple sclerosis and cancers
of various sorts, who would dare be 'inhuman' enough to suggest this end
does not justify the means?
And, as we are quite used to using animals for scientific research,
where is the harm in extending that use to human life, especially human life
at a primordial stage?
On the face of it, such an argument would be quite wrong. The Hindu
Vedas dictate that all life is sacred, including animal and plant life. It
is this precept that lies at the heart of the Hindu doctrine of non-violence
or ahimsa. We believe that respect for life is a prerequisite; by showing
love to all creatures, all living things, we likewise show our love towards
God, who is in all things. All things are God's creation and therefore we
must respect all of it, as we love all of God.
However, there is a paradox in this view. The law of nature rules that
we must kill in order to survive. Human beings only live and continue to
breathe by consuming the plant and, in most cases, the animal life around
us. All of Creation works by taking one life for the survival of another.
The ancient Rishis, or divine sages, resolved this paradox by referring
to the various stages of evolution of consciousness that we share. They
believed plants were at the lowest level of consciousness. Animals then
followed, and finally humans were placed at the top of the evolutionary
tree. In creating this hierarchy, the Rishis ensured life itself was
protected, but within the laws of creation. So, what really matters is that
we protect the highest level of consciousness even if we have to kill the
lower levels in order to do so.
In Hinduism the soul passes through many species - one ancient scripture
suggests as many as 8.4 million species - until it finally evolves to the
highest level consciousness, in the form of a human being. It is this human
birth that can then bring about salvation from the cycle of rebirth and
finally end up with God.
So, to be born human is to achieve the highest value within the process
of reincarnation. The human life we experience, the only life which offers
us the chance to achieve ultimate and final union with God, is of an even
greater value. Recognising this value, Hinduism developed the ancient
systems of Yoga and Ayurveda to alleviate illnesses and prolong healthy
life.
Modern science works on the same quest. Medical research aims to help a
person's longevity. In Hinduism all human life is evolving towards God,
regardless of belief or non-belief, and that makes it much more valuable
than the embryonic cell at a primordial stage, where it has no sensation.
The difference is in the degree of consciousness. Further, if there is no
shortage of reproducing such cells then surely we must be prepared to
sacrifice a few for the greater good of helping the existing life, in itself
a noble value for all our salvation?
- By Anil Bhanot, General Secretary, The Hindu Council

The Frozen Embryo Transfer

Frozen Embryo Transfer (FET)

If you have recently gone through infertility treatments or if you are considering undertaking IVF, you may be wondering what will happen to any extra embryos that are created during the procedure. If you and your partner have extra embryos that are not used during initial IVF procedures, these embryos can be frozen and then transferred to your uterus at a later date. Known as frozen embryo transfer (FET), this procedure has helped many couples facing infertility achieve pregnancy.

What is Frozen Embryo Transfer?
This procedure takes embryos that have been frozen for a period of time and replaces them into your uterus after they have been thawed. FET is a relatively non-invasive procedure, which is why many couples choose to have it performed. It can be successfully performed on women who are experiencing either natural or controlled menstrual cycles.

Why Choose Frozen Embryo Transfer?
Many couples choose to have FET performed if they have had extra embryos remaining from an initial IVF cycle. Some couples do not like the idea of destroying embryos simply because they are "left over" from an IVF cycle. Other couples know or suspect that they will need to do IVF again in the future and prefer to freeze their embryos in order to make future IVF cycles less stressful physically for the female.

In order to perform IVF, numerous embryos are created in order to ensure that healthy and viable embryos are available for transfer. Many couples decide to freeze some of these embryos in order to allow them the opportunity to get pregnant again in the future or for use in a later IVF cycle.

Embryo Freezing
The FET procedure involves having your embryos frozen, or cryopreserved. The freezing procedure is as follows:

Your embryos are placed inside of special glass vials, that look much like straws.
These embryos are then mixed with a special solution, called cryoprotectant. This cryoprotectant prevents ice from forming in between the cells of your embryo. The glass vials containing the embryos are then inserted into a controlled freezer filled with liquid nitrogen.They are cooled slowly until they reach a final temperature of -196° C.

Embryo Thawing
Before FET can take place, your embryos must be thawed after the freezing process. When your reproductive endocrinologist decides it is time to begin the FET procedure, your embryos will be removed from the freezer and thawed.

The embryos are allowed to thaw naturally, until they come to room temperature.
The embryos are then steeped in four separate solutions to help remove any cryoprotectant used during the freezing process.
Your embryos are then warmed to body temperature (37°C) and mixed with a small amount of culture medium.


The Frozen Embryo Transfer Procedure

The FET procedure is actually fairly straightforward.

Before Embryo Transfer
Before your embryos can be thawed and transferred, you and your reproductive endocrinologist need to decide how many embryos to transfer into your uterus. The number of embryos transferred will directly impact the success rate of the FET procedure. Typically, between three and four embryos are transferred during each FET procedure.

Your health care provider will then monitor your body in order to determine the best time for the embryo transfer. We usually give oral estradiol tablets to prepare the uterine lining. The thickness is measured on ultrasound scan. Your embryos will be thawed the day before your FET procedure.

The Transfer
The actual transfer of the frozen embryos is painless and straightforward, and only takes about 15 minutes.

A catheter is inserted through your cervix and into your uterus.
The embryos are injected into the catheter and deposited in your uterus.

After the Transfer
After the transfer your reproductive endocrinologist will likely have you continue any fertility medications that you may be using. Twelve days after the FET procedure, you will return to your clinic for a pregnancy test.

Success Rates of Frozen Embryo Transfer

The success rates of FET really depends upon a variety of factors, particularly maternal age and the number of embryos transferred. Typical success rates are around 20% per cycle. It is important to know that not all embryos will survive the freezing and thawing process though. About 70% of embryos survive cryopreservation, and this can sometimes impact the success rates of FET. This makes it important to freeze and thaw a number of embryos when performing the FET procedure.

What They Hate About Mumbai

By SUKETU MEHTA
Published: November 28, 2008 in the NY Times

MY bleeding city. My poor great bleeding heart of a city. Why do they go after Mumbai? There’s something about this island-state that appalls religious extremists, Hindus and Muslims alike. Perhaps because Mumbai stands for lucre, profane dreams and an indiscriminate openness.

Mumbai is all about dhandha, or transaction. From the street food vendor squatting on a sidewalk, fiercely guarding his little business, to the tycoons and their dreams of acquiring Hollywood, this city understands money and has no guilt about the getting and spending of it. I once asked a Muslim man living in a shack without indoor plumbing what kept him in the city. “Mumbai is a golden songbird,” he said. It flies quick and sly, and you’ll have to work hard to catch it, but if you do, a fabulous fortune will open up for you. The executives who congregated in the Taj Mahal hotel were chasing this golden songbird. The terrorists want to kill the songbird.

Just as cinema is a mass dream of the audience, Mumbai is a mass dream of the peoples of South Asia. Bollywood movies are the most popular form of entertainment across the subcontinent. Through them, every Pakistani and Bangladeshi is familiar with the wedding-cake architecture of the Taj and the arc of the Gateway of India, symbols of the city that gives the industry its name. It is no wonder that one of the first things the Taliban did upon entering Kabul was to shut down the Bollywood video rental stores. The Taliban also banned, wouldn’t you know it, the keeping of songbirds.

Bollywood dream-makers are shaken. “I am ashamed to say this,” Amitabh Bachchan, superstar of a hundred action movies, wrote on his blog. “As the events of the terror attack unfolded in front of me, I did something for the first time and one that I had hoped never ever to be in a situation to do. Before retiring for the night, I pulled out my licensed .32 revolver, loaded it and put it under my pillow.”

Mumbai is a “soft target,” the terrorism analysts say. Anybody can walk into the hotels, the hospitals, the train stations, and start spraying with a machine gun. Where are the metal detectors, the random bag checks? In Mumbai, it’s impossible to control the crowd. In other cities, if there’s an explosion, people run away from it. In Mumbai, people run toward it — to help. Greater Mumbai takes in a million new residents a year. This is the problem, say the nativists. The city is just too hospitable. You let them in, and they break your heart.

In the Bombay I grew up in, your religion was a personal eccentricity, like a hairstyle. In my school, you were denominated by which cricketer or Bollywood star you worshiped, not which prophet. In today’s Mumbai, things have changed. Hindu and Muslim demagogues want the mobs to come out again in the streets, and slaughter one another in the name of God. They want India and Pakistan to go to war. They want Indian Muslims to be expelled. They want India to get out of Kashmir. They want mosques torn down. They want temples bombed.


And now it looks as if the latest terrorists were our neighbors, young men dressed not in Afghan tunics but in blue jeans and designer T-shirts. Being South Asian, they would have grown up watching the painted lady that is Mumbai in the movies: a city of flashy cars and flashier women. A pleasure-loving city, a sensual city. Everything that preachers of every religion thunder against. It is, as a monk of the pacifist Jain religion explained to me, “paap-ni-bhoomi”: the sinful land.

In 1993, Hindu mobs burned people alive in the streets — for the crime of being Muslim in Mumbai. Now these young Muslim men murdered people in front of their families — for the crime of visiting Mumbai. They attacked the luxury businessmen’s hotels. They attacked the open-air Cafe Leopold, where backpackers of the world refresh themselves with cheap beer out of three-foot-high towers before heading out into India. Their drunken revelry, their shameless flirting, must have offended the righteous believers in the jihad. They attacked the train station everyone calls V.T., the terminus for runaways and dreamers from all across India. And in the attack on the Chabad house, for the first time ever, it became dangerous to be Jewish in India.

The terrorists’ message was clear: Stay away from Mumbai or you will get killed. Cricket matches with visiting English and Australian teams have been shelved. Japanese and Western companies have closed their Mumbai offices and prohibited their employees from visiting the city. Tour groups are canceling long-planned trips.

But the best answer to the terrorists is to dream bigger, make even more money, and visit Mumbai more than ever. Dream of making a good home for all Mumbaikars, not just the denizens of $500-a-night hotel rooms. Dream not just of Bollywood stars like Aishwarya Rai or Shah Rukh Khan, but of clean running water, humane mass transit, better toilets, a responsive government. Make a killing not in God’s name but in the stock market, and then turn up the forbidden music and dance; work hard and party harder.

If the rest of the world wants to help, it should run toward the explosion. It should fly to Mumbai, and spend money. Where else are you going to be safe? New York? London? Madrid?

So I’m booking flights to Mumbai. I’m going to go get a beer at the Leopold, stroll over to the Taj for samosas at the Sea Lounge, and watch a Bollywood movie at the Metro. Stimulus doesn’t have to be just economic.

Suketu Mehta, a professor of journalism at New York University, is the author of “Maximum City: Bombay Lost and Found.”

IVF success set to drop under single-embryo policy

IVF success rates will fall by up to 20 per cent because of a UK government policy designed to cut the number of damaging twin pregnancies, research has suggested.

An initiative to limit multiple births by persuading IVF patients to use only one embryo at a time will cause a “significant reduction in treatment success”, according to an analysis of a clinic’s patients.

The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority strategy, which aims to cut the twin birthrate by 2012 from one in four to one in ten, would in practice reduce the IVF success rate at St Mary’s Hospital in Manchester from 21 per cent to 17 per cent, the study found.

Daniel Brison, of the University of Manchester, said that the strategy was right to encourage single-embryo transfer because a multiple birth was the greatest IVF risk to mothers and babies, but its implementation needed to be backed by better NHS access to IVF, especially for follow-up courses using frozen embryos.

About a third of NHS trusts do not offer frozen back-up treatment and 85 per cent do not provide the three full cycles that the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence recommends.

“Single-embryo transfer is the right way forward, but we have to fund more than one cycle,” Dr Brison said. “It is very difficult to ask patients to accept any reduction in success rates if they have only one shot. Embryo freezing is also crucial, as is careful selection of patients who are suitable for a single embryo.”

IVF produces a higher rate of twins and triplets because multiple embryos are often used to maximise the chances of pregnancy. Such babies, however, are more likely to be stillborn, die in their first year, suffer disabilities or be born prematurely. There are also risks to mothers.

In the study, published in the journal Human Reproduction, Dr Brison and his colleagues Stephen Roberts and Cheryl Fitzgerald constructed a model of what would happen to their clinic’s success rates under the single-embryo strategy.

To achieve the target of 10 per cent multiple births, about 55 per cent of patients would have to have single-embryo transfer. The current rate is about 10 per cent. This would bring the success rate down by about 20 per cent. If women were selected carefully, the decline would be slightly smaller but the live birthrate would still fall to 18.5 per cent.

The paper suggests ways that women could be selected, including analysis of their embryos as well as their age and hormone levels. Such measures would be essential to limit the policy’s impact on pregnancy success, the scientists said.

The St Mary’s success rate is below the national average of 31 per cent for women under 35 who use their own fresh eggs. It is an NHS centre with a waiting list of up to three years, so couples with a good prognosis often conceive spontaneously while waiting for treatment, leaving the clinic to treat harder cases.

Professor Peter Braude, of King’s College London, led the group that drew up the single-embryo strategy. He said that patients could be chosen who would not be disadvantaged by the policy.

“It doesn’t reduce pregnancy rates in women who are most likely to get pregnant, and who are also most likely to have twins,” he said.

“We have never said that a single embryo is right for every woman and the 10 per cent target is an aspiration. A very small proportion of patients give rise to most of the twins and by identifying them, we can reduce multiple births but not the pregnancy rate.”

Pak media taunts India, Israel & the USA

Please forward this to every Indian!

I hope the patriotism and sensitivity that may be dormant in some of us will rise after watching this.

Let us take this opportunity to believe that we as Indians can rise above this - we can show the world that we are not cowered by their actions. We will face this and face this bravely and continue to grow as a nation despite our religious diversities.

Sadly, we don't have one leader who puts the party's interests behind the country's.

Let us pray our leaders wake up from their slumber. At least now! And not politicise the terror situation further.

Jai Hind!

Some Facts about Caffeine

Up to 90% of adult Americans consume caffeine every day. Most commonly, the caffeine is in coffee, tea, soft drinks, and chocolate. A health benefit of caffeine is that it can ease a headache. The stimulant of caffeine interacts with the headaches and slowly gets rid of the symptoms. Try coffee, tea, hot or cold, the more caffeine the better, soda like Coke or Pepsi and cocoa. You will notice your headache start to disappear in no time.

Research indicates that coffee provides protective effects for the following conditions:

Asthma – Drinking coffee can help to control asthma, and in some cases can even be used to treat an asthma attack when conventional medication is not available.
Colon cancer – 2 or more cups of coffee per day can reduce the risk of colon cancer by 25%.
Gallstones – The likelihood of developing gallstones is decreased nearly 50% by drinking at least 2 cups of coffee per day.
Headache – Coffee cures or diminishes some types of headaches.
Liver cirrhosis – The risk for this condition is reduced by 80% with the ingestion of 2 or more cups of coffee each day.
Parkinson’s disease – 6 studies have found that regular (caffeinated) coffee drinkers reduce their risk of developing Parkinson’s disease by as much as 80%.
Type 2 Diabetes – A Harvard study of 126,000 people found that 1 to 3 cups of caffeinated coffee per day can reduce the risk of developing diabetes.

Drinking coffee provides a number of health benefits, including reduced risk for Parkinson’s disease, diabetes, colon cancer and even suicide. However, on the negative side, coffee can cause a number of problems for some people, particularly in large doses:

Acid imbalance - Caffeine can cause indigestion, skin irritations and arthritis flare-ups.
Hypoglycemia - Caffeine causes a release of glycogen by the liver, which can generate wild swings in blood sugar, causing attacks of hypoglycemia (low blood sugar). Hypoglycemia has a variety of unpleasant symptoms, including weakness, nervousness, sweating and heart palpitations.
Increased cholesterol - In some individuals, coffee can raise cholesterol, which increases the risk of developing cardiovascular disease.
Infertility, miscarriages and low birth weights among babies - Women who are pregnant or attempting to get pregnant should avoid excess caffeine consumption, which may increase the risk for a variety of fertility problems.
Kidney stones and gout - These conditions can result from the strain that caffeine puts on the kidneys.
Nervousness, anxiety, rapid heartbeat and trembling - Excess caffeine can overstimulate the central nervous system. This not only causes anxiety, but can also exhaust the adrenal glands over time, decreasing resistance to stress and increasing vulnerability to disease.
Osteoporosis: Because coffee prevents the full absorption of necessary minerals, it increases the risk of developing osteoporosis. Women who consume 300 mg (2-3 cups) or more of coffee per day suffer accelerated loss of spinal bone mass.
Possible addiction: People who quit coffee often experience withdrawal symptoms such as fatigue, headache, decreased energy and alertness, difficulty concentrating, and even irritability and depression. These symptoms usually begin within 12-24 hours of quitting caffeine and hit a peak within 20-51 hours. Overall, symptoms tend to last anywhere from 2-9 days.
Stretch marks – Caffeine consumption increases the risk of developing stretch marks.
Weight gain – Caffeine increases the risk of long-term weight gain by increasing stress hormones and creating a greater risk for hypoglycemia, which stimulates appetite. Although caffeine can assist with short-term weight loss, in the longer term, heavy consumption is more likely to lead to weight gain.

Most people who drink decaffeinated coffee do so because it doesn't make them jittery or keep them awake. But some believe it's better for them than regular coffee. A recent study of women in Iowa found that those drinking four or more cups a day of decaf had an elevated risk of rheumatoid arthritis.Decaf can, however, have some of the same effects on the body as regular coffee. It too can cause heartburn or irritate stomach ulcers in susceptible people. And oddly enough, even without the caffeine, it too can stimulate the nervous system and briefly boost blood pressure in those unaccustomed to coffee, according to Swiss researchers. But coffee, decaf or regular, does not cause hypertension. In sodas, caffeine is both a natural and an added ingredient. Only about 5 percent of the caffeine in colas and pepper-flavored soft drinks is obtained naturally from cola nuts; the remaining 95 percent is added. Caffeine-free drinks contain virtually no caffeine. Many prescription and nonprescription drugs also contain caffeine. Caffeine increases the ability of aspirin and other painkillers to do their job, and it is often used in headache and pain-relief remedies as well as in cold products and alertness or stay-awake tablets.

Because children have developing nervous systems, it is important to moderate their caffeine consumption. For children, major sources of caffeine include soft drinks and chocolate. Remember, I'm not a doctor. I just sound like one.

Take good care of yourself and live the best life possible! Please be aware that this information is provided to supplement the care provided by your physician. It is neither intended, nor implied, to be a substitute for professional medical advice.

Glenn Ellis, author of Which Doctor?, is a health columnist and radio commentator who lectures, and is an active media contributor nationally and internationally on health related topics