Background -In a previous retrospective study of tuberculosis in south London among Asian immigrants from the Indian subcontinent Hindu Asians were found to have a significantly increased risk for tuberculosis compared with Muslims. This finding has been further investigated by examining the role of socioeconomic and lifestyle variables, including diet, as risk factors for tuberculosis in Asian immigrants from the Indian subcontinent resident in south London. Methods -Using a case-control study technique Asian immigrants from the Indian subcontinent diagnosed with tuberculosis during the past 10 years and two Asian control groups (community and outpatient clinic controls) from the Indian subcontinent were investigated. Cases and community controls were approached by letter. A structured questionnaire concerning a range of demographic, migration, socioeconomic, dietary, and health topics was administered by a single trained interviewer to subjects (56 cases and 100 controls) who agreed to participate. Results -The results confirmed earlier findings that Hindu Asians had an increased risk oftuberculosis compared with Muslims. However, further analysis revealed that religion had no independent influence after adjustment for vegetarianism (common among Hindu Asians). Unadjusted odds ratios for tuberculosis among vegetarians were 2-7 (95% CI 1-1 to 6.4) using community controls, and 4-3 (95% CI 1-8 to 10.4) using clinic controls. There was a trend of increasing risk of tuberculosis with decreasing frequency of meat or fish consumption. Lactovegetarians had an 85 fold risk (95% CI 1-6 to 45.4) compared with daily meat/ fish eaters. Adjustment for a range ofother socioeconomic, migration, and lifestyle variables made little difference to the relative risks derived using either community or clinic controls. Conclusions -These results indicate that a vegetarian diet is an independent risk factor for tuberculosis in immigrant Asians. The mechanism is unexplained. However, vitamin D deficiency, common among vegetarian Asians in south London, is known to affect immunological competence. Decreased immunocompetence associated with a vegetarian diet might result in increased mycobacterial reactivation among Asians from the Indian subcontinent.

Introduction:Oral diseases and traumatic injuries are serious public health problems, especially when talking about children. Mutilation of the function and reduced quality of life has an influence on individuals and communities. The most widespread oral disease in developing countries has been found to be dental caries. The maintenance of healthy permanent molars is very important. DMFT and PUFA index can be used to determine the caries status and severity in untreated carious teeth of an individual.Materials and Methods:This was a cross-sectional descriptive survey that included 1380 children between the age group 8–10 years from public and private schools of Vadodara, Gujarat. The study population was divided based on their socioeconomic status as upper, middle and low according to the Kuppuswamy scale. The study was conducted 2 days per week for 6 months to examine the participants. Dental caries was assessed using DMFT index, and the severity of caries was evaluated by PUFA index for permanent first molars.Results:The prevalence of first permanent molar caries in Vadodara city was 55.38%; 747 out of 1380 children of 8–10 years of age were affected with caries evaluated using DMFT index. The severity of first permanent molar caries (PUFA index) was found to be 56.22%. That is, 420 out of 747 children had more severe first permanent molar caries.Conclusion:Caries prevalence and severity increase with age. PUFA index is an effective index in evaluating the clinical sequel of untreated carious teeth and helps better treatment plans for a socially deprived group of society.

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