World Toilet Summit 2007

" Millions of people in India have no access to proper toilets "

A World Toilet Summit has opened in the Indian capital, Delhi, with more than 40 countries taking part.

The four-day meeting will examine solutions and technologies that can be used to provide a basic need for nearly half the world's population.
According to estimates, 2.6bn people around the world lack access to a hygienic toilet.
The United Nations hopes to halve this figure by 2015 as part of its millennium development goals.
In India alone, more than 700 million people have no access to toilets which have proper waste disposal systems.

It is as important an issue as anything," says Bindeshwar Pathak of Sulabh International, an NGO that promotes the use of low-cost toilets in India and is joint organiser of the summit.
"It is mostly the Asian, African and Latin American countries that lack basic sanitation. So that's what we will be discussing at the summit," he adds.
It is a sight familiar to anyone travelling around India by train

Early morning, many Indian villagers head to the nearest railway track and squat by its side relieving themselves.
Others use their fields, the forests or any piece of open land that they can find.
Women are particular badly off - they either have to head out before dawn or in the night when it is relatively more private, but it means they are vulnerable to disease or even sexual assault.
The UN wants to remedy the situation by 2025.
But the problem is that it is quite expensive for most countries in the developing world to set up western-style toilets and sewage systems.
But there are alternatives.
Anita Jha, vice-president of Sulabh International explains, "We have several models of traditional Indian-style squat toilets. These range in cost from 700 to 3,000 rupees ($18 - $75) and also use very little water."
"That makes them very useful in countries with a water scarcity problem," she says.

Llodra Vs Match-Fixing

"Gambling seems to be an ever increasing burden in the sport of tennis. Although it's clear the BBC supports gambling, I personally would like to see it eradicated"

Wimbledon doubles champion Michael Llodra is the latest player to reveal he has been approached about throwing an ATP Tour match.
Arnaud Clement, Llodra's partner at Wimbledon, said on Monday he had been approached, while Andy Murray has said "everyone knows" match-fixing goes on.
"I was in my hotel room and somebody called to ask me not to try too hard the next day," Llodra said.
"That was four years ago. I said 'no' and hung up."
Llodra added that he may have been "one of the first players to have been approached", but with these stories only coming to light now it is hard to be sure how long this has been going on.
"We have the feeling that a lot of people have been approached," added Llodra. "There's a lot of talk about it on the circuit.

Wherever there is money, you have crooks. It's difficult to stop because there is a powerful ring behind it."
However, Clement said he had not heard of many players who had been approached.
Bets on a match in August between Russia's Nikolay Davydenko and Argentine Martin Vassallo Arguello were voided by online exchange Betfair because of unusual betting patterns. World number four Davydenko won the first set but his odds then drifted out before he eventually retired with a foot injury

Olympics 2012 action

"The Games will contribute but the Games will not solve all the problems of the world"
Jacques Rogge

The International Olympic Committee has urged London 2012 organisers to get on with their preparations for the Games.
IOC boss Jacques Rogge told BBC Sport that London "is doing OK" but must focus on delivering the Games on time.
"We urge them to work as soon as possible and to prepare today for the unforeseen of tomorrow," said Rogge.
He also said the IOC had "no regrets" about giving the 2008 Games to Beijing despite recent international criticism of China's foreign policy.

Rogge stressed that the Swiss-based IOC was "basically happy" with the progress in London and remained optimistic a permanent tenant for the Olympic stadium will be found.
"That would be something that would please the IOC very much and we are very keen on that," he said.
"We know that Seb Coe and LOCOG (the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games) are working very hard to find a solution."

Work has started in Stratford but legacy issues remain unresolved
The current plan is to reduce the stadium's capacity from 80,000 to 25,000 in 2013 and use it as a multi-sport venue with athletics and community facilities at its heart.
But that plan depends on a football or rugby club becoming an "anchor tenant" to subsidise the stadium. So far that has proved to be beyond Coe and his team, partially because important aspects of the post-2012 plans remain undecided.
Premiership club West Ham have already said they are not interested in moving to Stratford as the capacity is too small, and Leyton Orient are reported to be concerned the capacity is too high.
A spokesman for the Department of Culture, Media and Sport told BBC Sport: "We completely share Jacques Rogge's view that there is not a day to waste as we prepare for the 2012 Games.
"His endorsement of the progress made so far reflects the IOC's very positive comments during their visit to London in June.
"And we whole-heartedly agree with his assessment of the importance of a strong long-term legacy for venues including the Olympic Stadium - which is exactly what we are working towards.

"We are committed to venues that both serve our top sportsmen and women and provide lasting benefit for local communities, with long-term 'anchor' users providing stability and security for these facilities."
The shadow recently cast over the preparations for the 2008 Games in Beijing is of a very different nature.
China has been condemned by human rights campaigners for its links with the Sudanese government which is embroiled in a four-year conflict with rebels in Darfur.
China buys two-thirds of Sudan's oil output and is the African state's biggest arms supplier following a 25-fold increase in weapons sales between 2002 and 2005.
International experts say 200,000 people have died and 2.5m have fled their homes in Darfur since the conflict started in 2003.
The Save Darfur Coalition - an umbrella group of 180 religious and human rights groups - has accused China of taking an "ambiguous" stance towards Sudan.
China has also been attacked for its continued support of the military regime in Burma, where recent pro-democracy demonstrations have been crushed.

The Chinese government only agreed to back a critical statement from the United Nations Security Council to Burma when the threat of an Olympic boycott was raised by campaigners.
Rogge said he understood why human rights groups used the Olympics to apply pressure on China, but disagreed with those groups' criticisms of the IOC itself.
"I respect them for what they're doing. It is absolutely legitimate that they get the most from the Olympics," he said.
"But where they make an error is to criticise the IOC for not solving the problems.
"Why would we be able to succeed where generations of heads of state and governments who have come to Beijing have not succeeded? We are a sports organisation - there are limits to what we can do.
"Does that mean that we don't strive for human rights? No, of course we are in favour of human rights, and we've proven that many times in the past.
"But don't expect from the IOC what the IOC cannot do. The Games will contribute but the Games will not solve all the problems of the world.

Beijing's Olympic plans are taking shape but smog is still a worry
"We gave the Games to a country that represents of one fifth of mankind. We gave the Games to a country that will change, that is changing. We have no regrets."
Rogge pointed to recent reforms in China's judicial, media and property laws as evidence that the Olympic effect was already being felt. He also praised the emerging superpower for addressing its poor record on child labour.
The 55-year-old, who sailed for Belgium in three Olympics, said he was also satisfied with the steps the Chinese were taking to tackle doping and brushed off concerns about Beijing's air quality.
A recent United Nations report was critical of China's attempts to improve the air quality in Beijing, stating that pollution was three times higher than the level recommended by World Health Organisation standards.
And on Friday, Beijing's weather office warned children and the elderly to stay indoors as heavy fog was exacerbating the city's air quality problems.
An IOC inspection team visited Beijing last week and admitted that pollution remained a concern but said it was confident proposed traffic controls and factory shutdowns would have a positive effect.
Rogge added: "If the atmospheric pollution is too high at certain times then we might consider rescheduling.
"But this is not exceptional for the Olympics. We have a similar situation in the Winter Games with snow. And it's the same with the wind and sailing, rowing or canoeing."

Brazil will host nation for the 2014 football World Cup.

"This World Cup will have such a big social and cultural impact in Brazil " (Fifa president Sepp Blatter)


The South American country was the only one bidding to host the tournament, which was due to be staged on the continent under Fifa's rotation system.
Brazilian president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said: "Soccer is more than a sport for us, it's a national passion."
Brazil have won the tournament a record five times and hosted the World Cup once before, in 1950, when they lost 2-1 in the final to Uruguay.


It is the first time the World Cup is being held in South America since Argentina hosted, and won, the 1978 tournament
Brazil is setting aside around £550m to update its stadiums, including the Maracanã in Rio de Janeiro which hosted the 1950 World Cup final.
And that money will need to be spent wisely as Fifa's inspection report has identified 18 grounds with more than 40,000 capacity that could host games. These will be whittled down to nine or 10.
However, of the 18, four would have to be re-built from scratch and all of the others need to undergo substantial renovation.
So basic are the facilities at the moment that most of the stadia are not even equipped for television commentary.
Fifa president Blatter said, however, that he had been impressed by Brazil's plans for 2014 despite the fact they were the only bidders.
"The task was not easy - for us it was a real big challenge to have the same list of requirements and the same conditions for only one candidate," he said.
"There was an extraordinary presentation by the delegation and we witnessed that this World Cup will have such a big social and cultural impact in Brazil.
This is the country that has given to the world the best football and the best footballers, and they are five times world champions."
Fifa's inspection report added: "Brazil has a rich history of hosting sporting and other international events.
"But the standards and demands of the World Cup will far surpass those of any other event staged in the history of Brazil in terms of magnitude and complexity.
"The inspection team wants Fifa experts to review the process and progress of host city selection to ensure that adequate financing is committed and secured."
As news filtered through, celebrations broke out in various towns around the country with fireworks and festivities set to continue into the night.
Around 100 people unfurled a green and yellow banner, emblazoned with the words 'The 2014 World Cup is ours', at the foot of the famous Christ the Redeemer statue which overlooks Rio.
Meanwhile, women's world champions Germany will host the 2011 Women's World Cup after beating off competition from Canada.

Diabetic Diet

If you have diabetes, your body cannot make or properly use insulin. This leads to high blood glucose, or sugar, levels in your blood. Healthy eating helps to reduce your blood sugar. It is a critical part of managing your diabetes, because controlling your blood sugar can prevent the complications of diabetes.
Wise food choices are a foundation of diabetes treatment. Diabetes experts suggest meal plans that are flexible and take your lifestyle and other health needs into account. A registered dietitian can help you design a meal plan.
Healthy diabetic eating includes
>Limiting sweets
>Eating often
>Being careful about when and how many carbohydrates you eat
>Eating lots of whole-grain foods, fruits and vegetables
>Eating less fat
>Limiting your use of alcohol

Diabetic Diet

If you have diabetes, your body cannot make or properly use insulin. This leads to high blood glucose, or sugar, levels in your blood. Healthy eating helps to reduce your blood sugar. It is a critical part of managing your diabetes, because controlling your blood sugar can prevent the complications of diabetes.
Wise food choices are a foundation of diabetes treatment. Diabetes experts suggest meal plans that are flexible and take your lifestyle and other health needs into account. A registered dietitian can help you design a meal plan.
Healthy diabetic eating includes
>Limiting sweets
>Eating often
>Being careful about when and how many carbohydrates you eat
>Eating lots of whole-grain foods, fruits and vegetables
>Eating less fat
>Limiting your use of alcohol

Diabetes Type 1

Diabetes means your blood glucose, or blood sugar, is too high. With Type 1 diabetes, your pancreas does not make insulin. Insulin is a hormone that helps glucose get into your cells to give them energy. Without insulin, too much glucose stays in your blood. Over time, high blood glucose can lead to serious problems with your heart, eyes, kidneys, nerves, and gums and teeth.
Type 1 diabetes happens most often in children and young adults but can appear at any age. Symptoms may include
>Being very thirsty
>Urinating often
>Feeling very hungry or tired
>Losing weight without trying
>Having sores that heal slowly
>Having dry, itchy skin
>Losing the feeling in your feet or having tingling in your feet
>Having blurry eyesight
A blood test can show if you have diabetes. If you do, you will need to take insulin for the rest of your life

Diabetes and Pregnancy

Diabetes is a disease in which your blood glucose, or sugar, levels are too high. When you are pregnant, too much glucose is not good for your baby. Out of every 100 pregnant women in the United States, between three and eight get gestational diabetes. Gestational diabetes is diabetes that happens for the first time when a woman is pregnant. Gestational diabetes goes away when you have your baby, but it does increase your risk for having diabetes later.
If you have already have diabetes before you get pregnant, you need to monitor and control your blood sugar levels.
Either type of diabetes during pregnancy raises the risk of problems for the baby and the mother. To help reduce these risks, you should follow your meal plan, exercise, test your blood sugar and take your medicine.

Breathing Problems

When you're short of breath, it's hard or uncomfortable for you to take in the oxygen your body needs. You may feel as if you're not getting enough air. Sometimes mild breathing problems are from a stuffy nose or hard exercise. But shortness of breath can also be a sign of a serious disease. Many conditions can make you feel short of breath. Lung conditions such as asthma, emphysema or pneumonia cause breathing difficulties. Heart disease can make you feel breathless if your heart cannot pump enough blood to supply oxygen to your body. Stress caused by anxiety can also make it hard for you to breathe. If you often have trouble breathing, it is important to find out the cause

Asthma

Asthma is a chronic disease that affects your airways. Your airways are tubes that carry air in and out of your lungs. If you have asthma, the inside walls of your airways become sore and swollen. That makes them very sensitive, and they may react strongly to things that you are allergic to or find irritating. When your airways react, they get narrower and your lungs get less air. This can cause wheezing, coughing, chest tightness and trouble breathing, especially early in the morning or at night.
When your asthma symptoms become worse than usual, it's called an asthma attack. In a severe asthma attack, the airways can close so much that your vital organs do not get enough oxygen. People can die from severe asthma attacks.
Asthma is treated with two kinds of medicines: quick-relief medicines to stop asthma symptoms and long-term control medicines to prevent symptoms

Hemochromatosis

Iron overload disease

Hemochromatosis is an inherited disease in which too much iron builds up in your body. It is one of the most common genetic diseases in the developed countries.
Iron is a mineral found in many foods. Your body normally absorbs about 10 percent of the iron in the food you eat. If you have hemochromatosis, you absorb more iron than you need. Your body has no natural way to get rid of the extra iron. It stores it in body tissues, especially the liver, heart and pancreas. The extra iron can damage your organs. Without treatment, it can cause your organs to fail.
The most common treatment is to remove some blood, just like when you donate blood. This is called therapeutic phlebotomy. Medicines may also help remove the extra iron. Your doctor might suggest some changes in your diet

Bleeding Disorders

Clotting disorders

Normally, if you get hurt, your body forms a blood clot to stop the bleeding. For blood to clot, your body needs cells called platelets and proteins known as clotting factors. If you have a bleeding disorder, you either do not have enough platelets or clotting factors or they don't work the way they should.
Bleeding disorders can be the result of other diseases, such as severe liver disease. They can also be inherited. The most common inherited bleeding disorders are von Willebrand Disease (VWD) and hemophilia. Bleeding disorders can also be a side effect of medicines

Anemia

Iron poor blood
If you have anemia, your blood does not carry enough oxygen to the rest of your body. The most common cause of anemia is not having enough iron. Your body needs iron to make hemoglobin. Hemoglobin is an iron-rich protein that gives the red color to blood. It carries oxygen from the lungs to the rest of the body.
Your iron might be too low because of heavy periods, pregnancy, ulcers, colon polyps, colon cancer, inherited disorders or a diet that does not have enough iron. You can also get anemia from not getting enough folic acid or vitamin B 12. Blood disorders such as sickle cell anemia and thalassemia, or cancer may also lead to anemia.
Anemia can make you feel weak, cold, dizzy and irritable. It is confirmed with a blood test. Treatment depends on the kind of anemia you have.

Blood and Blood Disorders

Your blood is living tissue made up of liquid and solids. The liquid part, called plasma, is made of water, salts and protein. Over half of your blood is plasma. The solid part of your blood contains red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets.
Red blood cells deliver oxygen from your lungs to your tissues and organs. White blood cells fight infection and are part of your body's defense system. Platelets help blood to clot. Bone marrow, the spongy material inside your bones, makes new blood cells. Blood cells constantly die and your body makes new ones. Red blood cells live about 120 days, platelets 6 days and white cells less than a day.There are many types of blood disorders, including: bleeding disorders, hemophilia and anemia. If you lose blood, you may need a transfusion

Cardiomyopathy

Cardiomyopathy refers to diseases of the heart muscle. These diseases enlarge your heart muscle or make it thicker and more rigid than normal. In rare cases, scar tissue replaces the muscle tissue.
Some people live long, healthy lives with cardiomyopathy. Some people don't even realize they have it. In others, however, it can make the heart less able to pump blood through the body. This can cause serious complications, including
Heart failure
Abnormal heart rhythms
Fluid buildup in your lungs or legs
Endocarditis, an inflammation of the heart lining
Heart attacks, high blood pressure or infections can all cause cardiomyopathy. Some types of cardiomyopathy run in families. In many people, however, the cause is unknown. Treatment might involve medicines, surgery, other medical procedures and lifestyle changes

Heart Valve Diseases

Heart Valve Diseases

Your heart has four valves. Normally, these valves open to let blood flow through or out of your heart, and then shut to keep it from flowing backward. But sometimes they don't work properly. What can happen?
Blood can leak back through the valve in the wrong direction, which is called regurgitation
One of the valves, the mitral valve, sometimes has "floppy" flaps and doesn't close tightly. This is called mitral valve prolapse, and it's one of the most common heart valve conditions. Sometimes it causes regurgitation
When the valve doesn't open enough, which blocks blood flow, it is called stenosis
Valve problems can be present at birth or caused by infections, heart attacks, or heart disease or damage. Some valve problems are minor and do not need treatment. Others might require medicine, medical procedures or surgery to repair or replace the valve

Heart Surgery

Cardiac surgery

Each day, thousands of people in the U.S. have heart surgery. There are many different types of heart surgery. Surgeries may be used to

>>Repair or replace the valves that control blood flow through the heart's chambers
>>Bypass or widen blocked or narrowed arteries to the heart
>>Repair aneurysms , or bulges in the aorta, which can be deadly if they burst
>>Implant devices to regulate heart rhythms
>>Destroy small amounts of tissue that disturb electrical flow through the heart
>>Make channels in the heart muscle to allow blood from a heart chamber directly into the heart muscle
>>Boost the heart's pumping power with muscles taken from the back or abdomen
>>Replace the damaged heart with a heart from a donor

Heart Diseases--Prevention

Heart Diseases--Prevention

Heart disease is the leading cause of the death in the U.S. Over one quarter of all deaths are from heart disease. It is also a major cause of disability. The risk of heart disease increases as you age. You have a greater risk of heart disease if you are a man over age 45 or a woman over age 55. You also are at greater risk if you have a close family member who had heart disease at an early age.
Fortunately, there are many things you can do reduce your chances of getting heart disease. You should
Know your

>>blood pressure and keep it under control
>>Exercise regularly
>>Don't smoke
>>Get tested for diabetes and if you have it, keep it under control
>>Know your cholesterol and triglyceride levels and keep them under control
>>Eat a lot of fruits and vegetables
Maintain a healthy weight

Congenital Heart Defects

Congenital Heart Defects

A congenital heart defect is a problem with the structure of the heart. It is present at birth. Congenital heart defects are the most common type of major birth defect.
A baby's heart begins to develop shortly after conception. During development, structural defects can occur. These defects can involve the walls of the heart, the valves of the heart and the arteries and veins near the heart. Congenital heart defects can disrupt the normal flow of blood through the heart. The blood flow can
Slow down
Go in the wrong direction or to the wrong place
Be blocked completely
Treatment for the defect can include medicines, surgery and other medical procedures and heart transplants. The treatment depends on the type and severity of the defect and a child's age, size and general health. Today, many children born with complex heart defects grow to adulthood and lead productive lives

Heart Disease in Women

Heart Disease in Women

Although many people think of heart disease as a man's problem, women can and do get heart disease. In fact, heart disease is the number one killer of women in the United States. It is also a leading cause of disability among women.
The most common cause of heart disease is narrowing or blockage of the coronary arteries, the blood vessels that supply blood to the heart itself. This is called coronary artery disease and happens slowly over time. It's the major reason people have heart attacks. Prevention is important: two-thirds of women who have a heart attack fail to make a full recovery.
The older a woman gets, the more likely she is to get heart disease. But women of all ages should be concerned about heart disease. All women can take steps to prevent it by practicing healthy lifestyle habits

Heart Attack

Heart Attack

Each year over a million people in the U.S. have a heart attack. About half of them die. Many people have permanent heart damage or die because they don't get help immediately. It's important to know the symptoms of a heart attack and call 9-1-1 if someone is having them. Those symptoms include
Chest discomfort - pressure, squeezing, or pain
Shortness of breath
Discomfort in the upper body - arms, shoulder, neck, back
Nausea, vomiting, dizziness, lightheadedness, sweating
These symptoms can sometimes be different in women.What exactly is a heart attack? Most heart attacks happen when a clot in the coronary artery blocks the supply of blood and oxygen to the heart. Often this leads to an irregular heartbeat – called an arrhythmia - that causes a severe decrease in the pumping function of the heart. A blockage that is not treated within a few hours causes the affected heart muscle to die

High Blood Pressure

Hypertension

Blood pressure is the force of your blood pushing against the walls of your arteries. Each time your heart beats, it pumps out blood into the arteries. Your blood pressure is highest when your heart beats, pumping the blood. This is called systolic pressure. When your heart is at rest, between beats, your blood pressure falls. This is the diastolic pressure.
Your blood pressure reading uses these two numbers, the systolic and diastolic pressures. Usually they are written one above or before the other. A reading of
120/80 or lower is normal blood pressure
140/90 or higher is high blood pressure
120 and 139 for the top number, or between 80 and 89 for the bottom number is prehypertension
High blood pressure usually has no symptoms, but it can cause serious problems such as stroke, heart failure, heart attack and kidney failure. You can control high blood pressure through healthy lifestyle habits and taking medicines, if needed.

Heart Diseases: Cardiac disease

If you're like most people, you think that heart disease is a problem for other folks. But heart disease is the number one killer in the U.S. It is also a major cause of disability. There are many different forms of heart disease. The most common cause of heart disease is narrowing or blockage of the coronary arteries, the blood vessels that supply blood to the heart itself. This is called coronary artery disease and happens slowly over time. It's the major reason people have heart attacks.
Other kinds of heart problems may happen to the valves in the heart, or the heart may not pump well and cause heart failure. Some people are born with heart disease.
You can help reduce your risk of heart disease by taking steps to control factors that put you at greater risk:
Control your blood pressure
Lower your cholesterol
Don't smoke
Get enough exercise

Cholesterol

Cholesterol is a waxy, fat-like substance that occurs naturally in all parts of the body. Your body needs some cholesterol to work properly. But if you have too much in your blood, it can stick to the walls of your arteries. This is called plaque. Plaque can narrow your arteries or even block them.
High levels of cholesterol in the blood can increase your risk of heart disease. Your cholesterol levels tend to rise as you get older. There are usually no signs or symptoms that you have high blood cholesterol, but it can be detected with a blood test. You are likely to have high cholesterol if members of your family have it, if you are overweight or if you eat a lot of fatty foods.
You can lower your cholesterol by exercising more and eating more fruits and vegetables. You also may need to take medicine to lower your cholesterol