Editor,
Apropos the news item appearing on the front page of the Shillong Times (ST April 9, 2020) under the headline, “Varied factors help to keep Meghalaya COVID-19 free,” the attention of the State Government is drawn to the paragraph as reproduced below: “It is also believed that kwai, which is the combination of a neatly folded betel leaf (pan) smeared with lime and areca nut kills bacteria in the throat and gums and heals anaemia and blood sugar. It also warms up the body instantly but there is no scientific evidence to this belief.”
Although the report mentioned that there is no scientific evidence to the above claims, it is however, strongly felt that at this particular point of time when both the electronic and print media is filled with news related to COVID-19, the news item appears to be untimely and misleading and may give rise to a false sense of assurance to the general public that “kwai” (betel-nut) kills the bacteria in the throat and gums, etc.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has classified areca nut as a carcinogen (cancer causing agent). A 2003 study by the International Agency for research on Cancer (IARC) a WHO sponsored group found sufficient evidence that chewing betel nut with or without tobacco causes cancer in humans. Also the Journal of American Dental Association reports that areca nut users are at a high risk of Oral Submucosal Fibrosis (OSMF) an incurable condition that can cause stiffness in the mouth and eventually the loss of jaw movement, gum irritation and tooth decay and permanent staining of teeth. The Food and Drug Administration of US has placed the nut in its Poisonous Plants Database.
Betel nut chewing is hazardous to health and does not provide any health benefits and does nothing to improve immunity in our body. As seen from the studies above the habit of betel nut chewing aggravates pre-existing conditions in the human body and contributes to oral cancer. In India 20 per one lakh population are affected by oral cancer which accounts for about 30% of all types of cancer. Chewing areca nut 10 or more times has four times the risk of developing oral cancer.
Further, chewing “kwai” is also associated with indiscriminate spitting which is one of the most unhygienic practices. Knowing how COVID-19 spreads, this indiscriminate spitting, especially in public areas is a genuine point of concern.
The Health Department, Government of Meghalaya is of the view that the news item with regard to “kwai” is scientifically unsound and may only lead to confusion among the public which is dangerous at this juncture when the Department along with the rest of the country and the entire world is doing its best to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.
Yours etc.,
State Response Team against COVID-19
IEC and Media Cell
Directorate of Health Services (MI)
Ridiculous claim
Editor,
Apropos ‘Varied factors help to keep Meghalaya Covid-19 free’, (ST April 8, 2020), it was interesting to read the various factors proposed as protectors of Meghalaya from Covid-19. It is sad that the reporter has proposed the role of kwai in killing of ‘bacteria’ in the throat and gum, which, according to him, is believed by people but lacks evidence. In this era of fake news, it is important that the media is responsible and does not disseminate unnecessary information. Kwai (areca nut) is a Class 1 carcinogen (cancer causing agent) which is as dangerous as tobacco, alcohol, formalin, and other chemicals. This can be seen in the IARC (International Agency for Research on Cancer) monograph. Kwai has no known anti-viral action against corona virus and any such reference may mislead the public, which is against the directive of the central government. Meghalaya has the highest cases of cancer of the esophagus(food pipe) in India, with the rates being ten times the national average. Areca nut is a proven carcinogen for this cancer. While Covid-19 has affected 15,19,442 persons and killed 88,543 (as on April 9, 2020),cancer of the esophagus affected 572,034 persons and killed 508,585 in the year 2018 alone.
Hence there should not be any attempt to glorify the role of a carcinogenic agent in protection against corona.
Yours etc.,
Dr. Caleb Harris,
Surgical Oncologist
NEIGRIHMS, Shillong
Fighting inequality
Editor,
The photographs in The Shillong Times ( ST April 9, 2020) of children collecting lentils strewn under a truck , of poor children being fed with free food by an organisation and that of a family at Swer village that have little to eat depict scenes which are heart rending. While these photographs depicted scenes in East Khasi Hills Districts during the present Covid- 19 pandemic, such scenes are, however, not uncommon in many parts of India under different circumstances. The living conditions of a huge population of India at low subsistence level persists till date. This had led to the resurfacing of such photographs or videos time and again in the Indian media which as usual brilliantly focuses these for public attention.
Mercifully, there are always good souls that come forward to feed and provide to many whenever a crisis which affect human lives occurs in India. But it is difficult to imagine that deprivation would continue to haunt millions in the country till date and that most will have to face degradation or live on charity whenever a crisis occurs, in order to survive. Such deprivation certainly questions the claims of achievements of Indian democracy as a social instrument for removing social inequities.
Economic inequalities do occur in many parts of the world. India however has not only such inequalities which are extreme in many cases but it also has major disparities of class, caste and gender as well. A complex situation, no doubt, which persist notwithstanding the fact that successive democratic governments after India’s independence have brought in programs which aim to lessen the extent of these disparities. Perhaps overreached targets must have led to less focussed attention and unconstructive handling of whatever interventions so far out of these programs which led therefore to conflicting results instead. It could also be that the heat and noise of Indian politics has given less scope for any government in place to earnestly pursue its intended objectives. Short term tactical policies could take precedence instead and these change with every change of government with intangible outcomes out of such policies. Whatever may be the reasons, the intended target group suffers, leaving therefore a huge population within the country with a hand to mouth existence till date.
Inevitably, different class structures coexist in a society and the distinct disparity between these classes is not reflected during normal times. However the Covid – 19 pandemic must have brought in the realisation that the disadvantaged class could be hit much more by the virus in case of a community spread and this in turn will have a devastating effect on the health of the privileged class as well. The lockdown has also markedly revealed the value of the services of the poor and marginalised as a significant contributing factor towards progress and enhancement where the privileged class stand to benefit more from this contribution. In fact, the Covid- 19 pandemic has starkly revealed that interdependence in society without class distinction is imperative for the continued existence of humans.
One hopes that these realizations would now lead to more consciousness among the privileged and influential class of society for more public engagement on the issue of deprivation and to make aggressive moves towards improving the quality of life of the poor and marginalised. This would mean that the poor in India who often state that their voices are not sufficiently heard will now have powerful voices to back them. This in turn would coerce any government in the country to bring in realistic approaches while designing programs and conscientious efforts while implementing them, such that the huge disparity in the lives of Indian citizens be reduced. Only then we would expect that such photographs and reports as mentioned do not resurface in the Indian media.
Yours etc.,
KL Tariang,
Via email