Understanding the complexities of prevalence of trans fat and its control in food supply in Pakistan

Pakistan is among the nations with a high intake of trans‐fatty acids (TFAs), a major dietary risk factor of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs). Efforts are underway in the country to eliminate industrially produced TFAs from the food supply in keeping with the priority targets of the World Health Organization (WHO) for 2019‐2023. We reviewed the TFA content reported in industrially produced foods and discuss the regulatory landscape for TFAs, to facilitate the required policy changes in Pakistan and ultimately eliminate the TFA burden from industrial food products. The study components include review of published research and product labels as well as review of prevailing food regulations for TFA‐related information. A set of recommendations was also prepared to eliminate TFAs from Pakistan after national consultation workshops conducted in year 2019. Vanaspati ghee (partially hydrogenated vegetable oil), bakery shortening, hard margarines, and fat spreads are identified as the major sources of TFAs. Federal and provincial food authorities have recently established the limits for TFAs in few products; however, the TFA regulations are insufficient and not in line with global best practices. This study informs a comprehensive national strategy for TFA elimination based on knowledge of TFA prevalence associated regulatory control. We recommend to (1) promote actions toward replacement of traditional vanaspati ghee/bakery fats with healthier alternatives; (2) develop and implement best regulatory practices in line with WHO recommendations; and (3) amend food labeling laws so that clear information will be provided to inform consumers healthy food choices

Plasma Wave Properties of the Schwarzschild Magnetosphere in a Veselago Medium

We re-formulate the 3+1 GRMHD equations for the Schwarzschild black hole in a Veselago medium. Linear perturbation in rotating (non-magnetized and magnetized) plasma is introduced and their Fourier analysis is considered. We discuss wave properties with the help of wave vector, refractive index and change in refractive index in the form of graphs. It is concluded that some waves move away from the event horizon in this unusual medium. We conclude that for the rotating non-magnetized plasma, our results confirm the presence of Veselago medium while the rotating magnetized plasma does not provide any evidence for this medium.Comment: 20 pages, 15 figures, accepted for publication in Astrophys. Space Sc

Significance of additives to enhance the acceptance of poison bait in poultry rodents of Haripur, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.

Rodent infestation on poultry farms incurs heavy economic losses to this industry by causing feed loss and disease introduction. Development and continuous improvement of rodents control techniques are vital to minimize and control the damages caused by rodents. Here, we test the feed preference of rodents for locally available and palatable food grains viz. millet (whole), wheat (cracked) and rice (broken) and taste additives namely whole egg (5%), eggshell (5%), peanut cracked (5%) and yeast (2%) that were offered mixed in millet-wheat (50:50 by wt.) bait. We tested the preferences of different food additives through a process of feed choice mechanism. We applied two different techniques to compare the preference of mixed feed baits, these techniques included no-choice with multiple choice feeding tests and paired choice with multiple choices feeding tests. The results indicated that consumption of bait with added whole egg was significantly higher (p > 0.05). Further test for its effectiveness as a carrier for rodenticides revealed 56%, 82% and 92%, reduction in rodent activities with zinc phosphide (2%), coumatetralyl (0.0375%) and Brodifacoum (0.005%) respectively. Our results point to a need on continuous improvement of feed baits by using different combinations to effectively control the rodent infestation