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Media's Nazar refuses to leave Meera  (Go To Top)

     Lahore: Pakistani actress Meera, who attracted ire from her own country for performing kissing scenes in a Bollywood film "Nazar", has hit the headlines once again, this time for allegedly threatening a press photographer. According to the Daily Times, an FIR has been registered against Meera and her mother, which says that photographer SA Raza was on his way home to Faisal Town on his bike when a car hit him from behind. After he fell down, five occupants of the car carrying weapons started beating him saying that he was being punished for printing "bad things" about Meera in the media. "If you go to the authorities, it will be even worse for you," the paper quoted the men as saying. Later, Raza was reportedly admitted in a hospital with a head injury and a fractured arm. Meanwhile, Meera said that she had no idea about the incident, and declined to comment on it, said the report.

Yoga can stem your middle-age spread (Go To Top)

     Washington: Yoga has long been practised in India, as a cure for most ailments, and a recipe for good health. But now, the practice suggested by Patanjali is gaining popularity in the West also, with a new study suggesting that regular yoga practice may prevent middle-age spread in normal-weight people, and may promote weight loss in the overweight. The study, led by researchers at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and published in the recent issue of Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine, is the first of its kind to measure the effects of yoga on weight. It involved 15,500 healthy, middle-aged men and women who were asked to complete a written survey recalling their physical activity, including yoga, and weight history between the ages 45 and 55. The researchers found that between the ages of 45 and 55, most people gained about a pound a year, which is a common pattern as people age and do not adjust their caloric intake to their declining energy needs.

      "However, men and women who were of normal weight at age 45 and regularly practised yoga gained about 3 fewer pounds during that 10-year period than those who didn't practice yoga. Men and women who were overweight and practiced yoga lost about 5 pounds, while those who did not practice yoga gained about 14 pounds in that 10-year period," said Dr. Alan R. Kristal, lead author of the study. Kristal, who himself is a yoga student, believes that yoga's fat- fighting potential has more to do with increased body awareness than the physical activity itself. "During a very vigorous yoga practice you can burn enough calories to lose weight, but most people don't practice that kind of yoga. From my experience, I think it has to do with the way that yoga makes you more aware of your body. So when you've eaten enough food, you're sensitive to the feeling of being full, and this makes it much easier to stop eating before you've eaten too much," he said. Study co-author Denise Benitez said that most people practice yoga in a way that's not aerobic enough to burn a lot of calories, so it has to be some other reason. "Pople who regularly practice yoga develop the inner resources to stay with a little bit of discomfort. They develop a softness inside and an ability to stay mindful. So that when you go home after yoga class and open up the fridge and see a chocolate cake, you have the resources to stay with the discomfort of not eating that chocolate cake," she said. Whatever the reason behind the apparent impact of yoga on weight maintenance and loss, Kristal stresses that these findings need to be replicated. "Yoga is a non-competitive activity. It's something that everybody can do. It brings so many benefits, and if one of the clinical benefits is that it can help you control your weight, then that's a great thing," Kristal said.

     Benitez, who's also a yoga teacher and owner of Seattle Yoga Arts, offers the following suggestions for enhancing one's yoga practice: 1. Practice in a room without mirrors, and pay more attention to your internal experience than to your outer performance. 2. Learn to feel sensations more and more subtly, so that you become deeply involved in and curious about small movements, sometimes called micro-movements. 3. In your poses, find an edge for yourself where you are challenged but not overwhelmed. At this edge, practice maintaining a clear, open and accepting mental state. 4. Give yourself permission to rest when you feel overworked. 5. Pay close attention to what you are saying to yourself as you practice, and make an intentional effort to appreciate your own efforts and innate goodness. 6. Go to class faithfully, arrive early, and talk to a few people in your class before class begins. 7. Buy your own yoga mat and bring it to class. 8. Realize that the development of qualities like patience, discipline, wisdom, right effort, kindness, gratitude and many others will arise from your yoga practice. These qualities create a steady and soft mind. 9. Find a teacher who offers a balance of gentleness and firmness and whose teaching inspires you to practice from your highest self. 10. Recognize that simply attending class is a major statement of courage, self-care, and positive momentum. Realize that you are inspiring others as you become more true to your deepest desires.

Madonna's new passion is horse riding (Go To Top)

     London: Pop diva Madonna's new passion is horse riding. The singer has started taking hour-long lessons in horse riding at the Stag Lodge Stables, in Richmond Park, London. According to the Daily Mirror, Madonna has booked the entire venue so that no one, apart from her instructor, could see her ride in the arena. "Madonna didn't want to be recognised at all, so she booked the place out. She was adamant and insisted that she have the arena to herself." the paper quoted a source as saying. The source also revealed that Madonna got so fascinated with the sport that she borrowed two horses from the stable to ride at her country estate. "Madge asked for two horses - Fifi and Phoenix. She also hired equipment, including hats, saddles, reins etc. After three days, the horses were sent back to the school. She seems really keen on riding now," he said.

Mia Farrow rallies behind Roman Polanski (Go To Top)

     London: Oscar-winning film director Roman Polanski has been given the thumbs up by long-term friend Mia Farrow in a libel suit that he has filed against the Vanity Fair magazine. Farrow told a London court on Tuesday that the magazine was wrong in accusing Polanski of trying to seduce another woman while on his way to the funeral of his murdered wife, Sharon Tate. Responding to the July 2002 Vanity Fair expose that Polanski had dropped in at New York's Elaine's Restaurant and made sexual advances on a Swedish bombshell, saying "I will make another Sharon Tate of you," Farrow debunked the story saying she met Polanski at Elaine's a fortnight after Sharon's death and found him to be quite distraught over her murder by the Mason gang. "He started telling me about events in California, what he had gone through, and he got very, very upset," E-Online quoted Farrow as telling the court." Farrow also said that both Polanski and she walked the streets of Manhattan after dinner, with Polanski lamenting "Why? Who could've done this?" Farrow, 60, also disputed Vanity Fair's claims that Polanski was an inveterate womanizer, even in the wake of his wife's slaying. While admitting that two women had attempted to proposition Polanski, the director paid no attention. Debra Tate, Sharon's sister, also tearfully said that Polanski was "an absolute wreck" following Sharon's death. On Monday, Polanski, 71, testified via satellite from his home in Paris that he was in a "state of shock" after reading the magazine's allegations, calling the story an "abominable lie" that "was particularly hurtful, because it dishonors the memory of Sharon."

Mumbai's Antarang Sex Museum promotes safe sex (Go To Top)
by Anand Srivastav

    Mumbai: With the number of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) positive cases on the rise in the country, the Brihnamumbai Municipal Corporation(BMC) has set up a museum on sex-education named "Antarang" to increase public awareness about safe sex. The museum takes curious visitors on a journey into a world that is still considered taboo in the traditional set up of our country. The walls of the museum are covered with verses from the Kama Sutra, the ancient Indian book on sex. And an ancient Maharashtrian way of painting, Warli, has been used to depict folk stories between men and women. One major section of the museum has been devoted to Acquired Immuno Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) Awareness. "To make people aware of AIDS we have made this museum. My ward is directly above the city clinic. I think it's one of the largest not only in India but in Asia as well. But people are not aware of it and they cannot visit it. People should come and visit and they will come to know how AIDS spreads," said Ansari Mohd. Ayub, corporator, BMC Ward 26. "We have put up scripts, models in the museum to educate people about AIDS, how does it happen. The gallery which we have created is very unique and a lot of foreigners also visit the place," said Yashodhar (Shailesh) Phanse, Chairman, Public Health Committee, BMC.

     Apart from providing sex-education, the museum also seeks to build awareness about AIDS through real-life stories, explanations on how to use condoms and illustrations of the HIV virus. Visitors say it is a good way of educating people in a country where most of the people prefer shying away from any discussion on sex. "The museum gives information about AIDS, how we can prevent it. People should visit the museum and make themselves aware of these facts," said Ashok Pinjani, a local resident. The Brihanmumbai Municipal corporation is planning to open smilar museums in other parts of Mumbai. India has nearly forty lakh people suffering from HIV /AIDS, making it second only to South Africa. Health experts warn that the numbers could spiral if urgent steps are not taken. India has a population of one billion, around half of whom are adults in the sexually active age group. The first AIDS case in India was detected in 1986, and since then HIV infection has been reported in all States and Union Territories. The spread of HIV in India has been dissimilar, with much of India having a low rate of infection, the epidemic being more widespread in the southern and western parts of the country and in the far north-east. The highest HIV prevalence rates are found in Maharashtra in the west; Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka; and Manipur and Nagaland in the north-east. As of May 2005, 92 per cent of all nationally reported AIDS cases have been found in 10 of the 38 States Union Territories. The infections were more in Maharashtra and Gujarat in the west; Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh in the south; and Manipur in the north-east. In the southern States, the infections are mostly due to heterosexual contact, while infections are mainly found amongst drug users in Manipur and Nagaland. The Indian National AIDS Control Organization (NACO) estimates that 5.134 million people were living with HIV in 2004. This represents a slight increase from the 2003 estimate, and a substantial increase from 4.58 million in 2002.

Forensic experts back Cameron Diaz's forgery claims (Go To Top)

    Washington: In the court trial of a photographer, who allegedly blackmailed Cameron Diaz over her topless pictures, two forensic science experts have testified that the actor's signature on a release form was forged. After analysing Diaz's handwriting, forensic document examiner Bruce Greenwood testified that the signature on the release form appeared to be forged. According to Contactmusic, Greenwood noticed that certain letters in Diaz's name were slanted completely different from the handwriting samples that he had received from her. He also said the signature on a publicity snapshot of Diaz and actor Keanu Reeves was a fake. Photographer John Rutter, who took the pictures in 1992, is accused of trying to sell them back to Diaz in 2003 for 3.5 million dollars. If convicted, he could face up to six years in prison. An extortion charge has been dropped.

Jude Law trying to patch up with Sienna Miller (Go To Top)

    London: Jude Law is trying to patch-up his relationship with Sienna Miller, who reportedly called off her wedding with the actor after he was caught cheating with their children's nanny, Daisy Wright. The star, who is shooting for his new movie 'Breaking and Entering' in London, is said to be very upset with what has happened, and in bid to repair his relationship, met Sienna at a Surrey mansion. "Sienna agreed to a meeting with Jude on her terms. She wanted to hear what he had to say about the whole unfortunate business," The Sun quoted an insider as saying. The uproar started when a new photograph of Daisy and Jude, which shows the two together in Louisiana on the set of Jude's movie 'All The King's Men', emerged this week.

Jessica Alba on Cruise's Katie Holmes case (Go To Top)

     London: Tom Cruise now has Jessica Alba on his Katie Holmes case, with the 24 year old actress insinuating that Holmes may be piggy-back riding Cruise's fame, to further her own career. "I don't date actors and I don't date people to get ahead in my career," The Mirror quoted her as saying. She has also come out against public displays of affection, the type Cruise indulged in while proclaiming his love for Katie. ,"I'm madly in love with Cash but I don't feel the need to talk about it. I don't want to comment on Tom's relationship with Katie... But, I'm a private person and I don't feel you should talk about your private life. I think it's best to keep this sort of thing to yourself," she told the paper.

Fish reduces heart disease risk by a third (Go To Top)

    London: A new study has found that regular consumption of fish lowers levels of inflammation and reduces the risk of heart disease. Researchers found that levels of inflammatory compounds in participants, who ate more than 10 ounces of fish a week, were three times lower than those who never had fish. According to researchers, all types of fish, including oily fish, which has high levels of omega-3 fatty acids, is responsible for lowering heart attack risk. "We think it is building up to a very strong case for increasing fish intake to reduce heart and stroke risk," the Daily Mail quoted Dr. Robert Wilson of the University of Minnesota Medical School as saying. The research shows that even a smaller amount of fish can also have benefits.

Harry Potter making science sexy for students (Go To Top)

     Sydney:  If you are a young student and keen to learn science, then knock on the door of Christine Redman of Melbourne University. Redman has thought of novel way to inculcate an interest in science in kids. She uses the popularity of Harry Potter. She has delivered "The Science of Harry Potter" workshops to more than 600 teachers and trainee teachers over the past four years. "What we are trying to show the child is the invisible world. We are about getting to the scientific ideas behind what appears to be magic to the child," The Age quotes Redman, as saying. For instance, if Harry Potter is engaged in flying lessons, students at schools can look at air pressure and flight by attaching balloons to model broomsticks. So popular is the scheme, that Australian Education Department project officers have adapted Dr. Redman's material to produce their own Harry Potter and science resources. Over the past two years, some regions have run professional development sessions for teachers linking science activities with JK Rowling's bestsellers. School teachers like Jennifer Brown have praised this initiative, saying that it makes "all the difference", as "when they (kids) are interested, they want to learn."

Desk jobs make men fat (Go To Top)

     Sydney: An Australian study published in the recent issue of American Journal of Preventive Medicine has backed earlier researches that a desk job can make you fat. According to Queensland University researchers, the more a person sits at his desk, the more likely he is to be overweight. The study present the sedentary workplace as a potentially hostile environment in terms of overweight and obesity. Dr. Kerry Mummery, who led the study, collected data on 1,579 Australian men and women in full-time jobs. Mummery and his colleagues looked at age, sex, occupation, physical activity, occupational sitting time and body mass index and found that the workers sat an average of more than 3 hours a day, with 25 percent sedentary at the job more than six hours a day. Higher total daily sitting time was associated with a 68 percent increase in the odds of having a BMI above 25. Men sat an average of 209 minutes on the job, 20 minutes more than women. Statistical analyses showed significant associations between occupational sitting time and a BMI of 25 or above in men but not in women. Time and productivity lost due to chronic diseases associated with overweight and obesity may make it financially worthwhile for employers to be more proactive in the health of their employees by promoting physical activity at work, the researchers said. The study researchers did not address why women in general spent less time sitting than men, but noted that professional and white-collar women worker spent significantly more time sitting than blue-collar women.

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