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Arsenicosis is common among villagers as they drink more contaminatedwater since the arsenic-crisis in Bangladesh. Supplementation of vitamins and micronutrients in counteracting arsenic toxicity has been proved for arsenic treatment. This study was intended to assess protective and beneficial roles of some commonly eaten vegetables on the development and severity of arsenicinduced skin lesions. A case-control study among (N=122) adult rural-women (62 cases had various forms of arsenical skin-lesions e.g. melanosis/keratosis/ mixed-lesions and 60 sex-age-matched healthy-controls) was conducted in Shaharstee Upazilla of Chandpur district, Bangladesh. Socio-demographic data recorded in a pre-tested-questionnaire, ‘per-day vegetables ingestion’ of cases and controls were measured qualitative and quantitatively (24-hour recall-methods, food-frequency/week and food history-record/week). Multiple logistic regression/MLR analyses were performed to find out protective roles of some dietary leafy-vegetables/LVs and non-leafy vegetables/NLVs on arsenicosis and their influences on the degree of severity of arsenicosis also determined. Abstinence from taking some LVs/NLVs among cases than controls is associated with increased risk for arsenicosis (P<0.05). Amongst all most-frequently eaten vegetables (n=17) per day Momordica diocia has the highest skin protective role on arsenicosis [Adjusted odds ratio/AOR 8.2, 95% CI (2.11-31.9), P=<0.01], followed by Ipomoea acquatica (AOR:7.3), Basella alba (AOR:6.2), Solanum tuberosum (AOR:4.0), Vigna unguiculata sesquipedalis (AOR:3.2), Trichosanthes anguina (AOR:1.2) and Abelmoschus esculentus (AOR:1.2). Moreover, severe skin lesion was observed as compared to non-severe cases (mild/moderate) for less intake frequencies of vegetables. This study outlined that commonly eaten vegetables have protective and beneficial roles on arsenic-induced skin lesions. Large samples longitudinal study of this important field of therapeutic-intervention is warranted

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We investigate the foreign trade pattern of Bangladesh using the gravity model of international trade. This work studies 24 years of Bangladesh’s bilateral trade with its 52 major trade partners, from 1995 to 2018. We construct a large panel dataset of 3,168 observations to capture the multilateral resistance terms by accounting for two-way trade flows from each country with the others. We use the PPML fixed effects estimator suggested by Silva and Tenreyro (2006) as the most preferred method for gravity-based analysis. We find mixed results regarding the consistency of Bangladesh’s trade pattern with the gravity model predictions. The results suggest that Bangladesh’s export is positively determined by its income and partner countries’ level of development, but it is relatively less influenced by partner countries income. However, Bangladesh’s level of development is observed to be negatively correlated with both export and import. The distance between the trading countries matters less to Bangladesh, and Bangladesh comparatively tends to trade more with distant countries. The results also suggest that tariffs imposed by partner countries do not affect Bangladesh’s export negatively as Bangladesh receives GSP benefits from its major export market. All the results of the fixed effects regression models are robust, and this paper has significant implications in terms of formulating trade policy for Bangladesh.

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