Author: Anil Malik

In this blog, I am continuing with yesterday’s topic of CORTISOL. What is Cortisol Test? A cortisol test measures the cortisol level in your blood, urine, or saliva. A cortisol test can diagnose several problems in your pituitary or adrenal glands. Cortisol levels changes throughout the day. It’s highest in the early morning and lowest around midnight. If you happen to work in the night and sleep during day, the pattern will be reversed. Typically, the normal cortisol ranges for an adult are: 6 am to 8 am: 10 to 20 micrograms per deciliter (mcg/dl) Around 4 pm: 3-18 mcg/dl For the urine test, the normal cortisol reference range is 10-55 mcg/day for adults. For the saliva test, the normal range for adults is 10.2-27.3 nanograms per mili litre (ng/ml) in the morning and 2.2 to 4.1 ng/ml at night. What are the symptoms of high cortisol levels? In males:…

While reading the newspaper yesterday, I came across the word CORTISOL. I had never encountered this word before, and this prompted me to find out more about Cortisol. Cortisol is a glucocorticoid (steroid) harmone produced by two adrenal glands that sit on top of each kidney.  Harmones are chemicals that coordinate different functions in our body by carrying messages through our blood to our organs, skin, muscles and other tissues. These signals tell our body what to do and when to do it. The glucocorticoids are type of steroid harmones, and they suppress inflammation in all ourr body tissues and control metabolism in our muscles, fat, liver and bones. They also affect sleep-wake cycles. Cortisol is an essential harmone, and it plays many important roles, including Regulating our body’s stress response. Helping control our body’s use of fats, proteins and carbohydrates, or your metabolism. Suppressing inflammation. Regulating blood pressure. Regulating…

In today’s weekend blog, I am writing about cricket. Last month India won the T20 World Cup by beating South Africa in the final. In this final India’s star batsman VIRAT KOHLI played a superb innings. After India won the final Virat announced his retirement from T20 Internationals (T20I). He finished a stellar T20 International career registering the record for most runs by any player in T20 World Cups-1292 runs in 35 matches between 2012  and 2024 averaging 58.72 with a strike rate of 128.81. Overall, in T20I, Kohli tallied 4,188 runs in 125 games-the second most in the format-at an average of 48 and a strike rate of 137, with 38 fifties and one century. As he bids good bye to T20I, a look at Kohli’s top knocks in T20 Internationals: 1 82 not out (53 balls) vs Pakistan, MCG 2022–  Arguably one of the greatest knock in T20…

PINEAPPLE  is a wonderful fruit that is popular with many, and many do not know that it is a highly nutritious fruit. The fruit is said to have originated in South America, however, it is available freely across India, in all seasons. The fruit when ripe can be a light yellowish green colour and resemble a pine cone, which gave it the name. It is slightly thorny, and it can be an effort to cut it out nicely, but the effort is worth it, as some are extremely sweet, while at times, you may end up with a sour or tangy one as well. This fruit is also widely used to make juices, jams, and in a variety of dishes in baking as well. The best way to eat it would be as is, by cutting out fresh slices, to get the maximum benefits out of it. Nutritional Value Fruits…

Investment in a house property is one of the most sought-after investments, primarily because you get to own a house. While other may invest with the intention of earning profit upon selling the property in the future. It is important to note that a house property is regarded as a capital asset for income tax purposes. Consequently, any gain or loss from the sale of a house property may be subject to tax under ‘Capital Gains’ head. Capital Gain tax on property is levied specifically on the monetary profit from the sale or transfer of residential properties or lands by an individual who does not consider it a profession of such income is not his/her main domain of earning. Long-Term Capital Gain (LTCG) & Short-Term Capital Gain (STCG) Capital gains from the respective capital assets fall under that specific category of gains- long-term capital gain or short-term capital gain. As…

In the last few days, one news item circulated over the media is that the Centre is all set to introduce a Bill in Parliament to amend the1995 WAQF ACT.  In India, the reality is that the WAQF BOARDS are the third largest landowners in India, after Armed Forces, and Railways. The main purpose of the huge Waqf Board network in India is to serve the Muslim community. But even as the Waqf Board has emerged as the third largest owner of land in the country, Indian Muslims are struggling for basic needs and fare worse than Dalits on several socio-economic indicators. Waqf owners today are India’s largest urban landlords. Waqf is a type of charitable endowment in Islamic law where the ownership of a property is transferred to Allah and the property is permanently dedicated for religious or charitable purposes. The person making the waqf (known as waqif) may…

ORIGAMI is a Japanese paper art form that is rather popular across the world, especially in schools and colleges. It has been used effectively in many ways in education and recreation. The word Origami comes from two words called Ori meaning folding and Kami meaning paper, hence it is used to refer to this art of paper folding, using which people can make wonderful creations. The best part about Origami is that it can be done using almost any flat paper that can be folded and can hold a crease. You could use plain white or coloured or textures paper and create various folds that are usually called as valley and mountain, pleats, reverse, squash, and sinks. There are also few standard bases used to build Origami creations namely fish, frog, water bomb, etc., while the base of all art form here is usually a square base. Why Origami? For…

In this weekend’s blog, I am still with Tennis. The game of tennis has produced many GREAT RIVALRIES in the open era. However, there are some pretty big numbers in all eras with Pancho Gonzales and Ken Rosewell reportedly meeting in more than 200 matches, with the majority of matches in the pre-open era. They played 204 times with Gonzales winning 117-87. Rod Laver and Rosewell also met 164 times, and the score was 89-75 in favour of Laver. In the open era some of the great rivalries which fans have seen are  Novak Djokovic vs Rafael Nadal, Pete Sampras vs Andre Agassi, and jimmy Connors vs John McEnroe. The Nine Greatest Men’s Rivalries in Open Era 8 Pete Sampras vs Andre Agassi- 34 matches Both dominated the 1990s tennis scene as they were both ranked No 1 during that decade. Sampras won head-to-head 20-14 as he won their last…

Wayanad,  Indians (except Keralites) started knowing about this place when Rahul Gandhi in 2019 contested the Lok Sabha election from this place and won. Wayanad came into the limelight once again when three days back the tragedy of a landslide happened there, that killed more than 170 people and left more than 200 injured. Now, everyone is wondering why this WAYANAD TRAGEDY happened, and what were the reasons. If you consider topography of Kerala state, then half of Kerala consists of hills and mountainous regions with slopes greater than 20 degrees, making these areas prone to landslides during heavy rains. Additionally Kerala’s fragile ecosystem, extreme rainfalls and increasing population are the many reasons behind the landslides that struck the hilly region of Wayanad recently. The disaster is turning out to be one of the worst disasters in the recent past in terms of casualties, according to experts. What Happened in…

Old age brings many issues, while a few of the ageing issues cannot be prevented or reversed, many of them are linked to the diet and way of life within our control. These issues can be prevented or delayed by following a healthy and principled life, including a healthy diet. Many people experience health conditions like diabetes, high blood pressure, heart issues, bone issues, hearing issues and so on, as they age. Dementia is another serious issue that troubles the senior population. These are apart from the common everyday issues of chewing, digestion, bowel movements, ulcers, inflammations, and joint pains, etc. When the season changes, issues with common cold, cough, and flu also emerge. HONEY has been found to have good therapeutic food values to counter many of these senior’s health issue, and even western world has now understood the value of honey. But, for Indians, honey is a common…