Recently, digital creator Shalini Kutty shared her Pilates session on Instagram doing a headstand. She later noticed tiny red dots appearing on her face.

She was experiencing petechiae, a common side effect of a headstand, that is when you stand upside down during exercise.

What Is It?

Experts say that when your body is inverted, the increased blood pressure in the head can strain the delicate blood vessels in the eyelids and it can cause them to rupture and lead to petechiae. These small, bright red spots can appear anywhere on the body. However, they are seen on the eyelids after prolonged upside-down activities.

Headstands also increase the flow and pressure of blood towards the eyes. The blood vessels there are small and fragile, this is why it may burst and lead to redness.

Is It A Risk?

Usually, this redness is harmless and self-limiting. Experts say that this will resolve in a few days without any medications. They also point out that people with high blood pressure when performing headstands, can lead to redness in the eyes.

However, people with blood clotting disorders, those who take blood thinners, and those with medical conditions like liver disease or weakened blood vessels are more prone to petechiae.

Is It A Rash?

Petechiae are tiny spots of bleeding under the skin or in the mucous membranes of the mouth or eyelids. They are purple, red or brown dots, of about the size of a pinpoint. They may look like a rash, but they are not. They are not raised and are pinpoint dots caused by broken capillaries, tiny blood vessels which are under your skin.

The difference is that when you press a rash, it turns pale or lighter, but with petechia, it stays purple, red or brown.

What To Do When You Notice These Small Red Dots?

Rest your head and avoid continuing these activities or any activities that may increase your blood pressure. Apply a cold compress in the area where you see the red dots, it can help reduce the swelling and discomfort, if any. Experts say that there is nothing to worry about much, as it resolves within a few days However, some people may experience headaches, dizziness, or difficulty breathing. This is your sign to go see a doctor.

We often hear about Delhi’s "very poor" air days, but what does that really mean for your health? A new study, published in IOP Science, titled: A framework for city-specific air quality health index: a comparative assessment of Delhi and Varanasi, India, says it may mean a lot more than just coughing, breathlessness or a minor discomfort. In fact, on some days, it could mean a higher risk of death.

India’s current Air Quality Index (AQI), launched in 2015, was designed to simplify pollution levels and make it easy for people to understand the quality of the air they breathe. But a group of researchers now argue that this national index is outdated and dangerously vague when it comes to the actual health risk, particularly, the short-term risk of premature death.

Their recommendation? Replace the one-size-fits-all AQI with a more precise, city-specific Air Quality Health Index (AQHI) that includes the risk of excess mortality. This, they say, will allow both the public and policymakers to take air pollution far more seriously.

India's Air Quality Has Already Crossed WHO Limits

India’s worsening air quality is not just falling short of domestic health warnings, it is also regularly violating global safety standards.

ALSO READ: India Air Pollution Levels Surpass UN's Safety Standards

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), India’s air pollution levels consistently surpass safe thresholds, posing a grave public health threat. This is not just a concern for Delhi, although it remains one of the world’s most polluted capitals. The issue extends far beyond its borders.

Dr. Maria Neira, Director of WHO’s Department of Environment, Climate Change and Health, recently commented on this worrying trend. “There is a study which shows that we always focus on New Delhi when it comes to pollution, but I am afraid it is almost all of India where WHO standards on AQI are not implemented,” she said.

Dr. Neira warned that while being slightly off WHO norms is still problematic, many Indian cities now drastically exceed safe levels. The solution, she said, lies in stronger political commitment to clean air initiatives and faster implementation of existing policies.

40 Extra Deaths on a Single 'Severe' Pollution Day

According to the new study, published on 22 July, this year, led by Dr Santu Ghosh from St John’s Medical College in Bengaluru, a severe pollution day in Delhi could lead to 16% higher mortality. In simple terms, if Delhi records an average of 250 deaths in a day, a severe air day may result in 40 additional deaths.

That figure isn’t a vague long-term statistic, it reflects the immediate health impact of pollution. And yet, the current AQI doesn’t communicate this. A severe pollution reading today only warns that it "affects healthy people and seriously impacts those with existing diseases."

By contrast, the proposed AQHI categorizes air days based on the short-term increase in excess mortality. Even a ‘moderate’ air quality day, according to this new index, comes with a 2 percent rise in daily deaths, and this risk increases as pollution worsens.

Air Pollution: The India Problem

India’s air pollution is not just a seasonal or a regional issue. It is a year-round crisis that impacts vast sections of the population, especially in densely populated urban centres.

Several regions across the country routinely record AQI values far beyond safe limits set by both Indian authorities and international health agencies. The WHO warns that even brief exposure to high levels of pollutants can trigger serious health issues, something that millions of Indians face daily.

How AQHI Works and Why It’s Different

Unlike the AQI, which uses a 0 to 500 scale, the AQHI operates on a simpler 0 to 100 range. More importantly, it’s tailored to each city using local data on pollution levels and mortality rates.

The authors analyzed air pollution and mortality data from two cities: Delhi and Varanasi. Both were chosen for their political and public health relevance, Delhi being the national capital and Varanasi being the Prime Minister’s constituency, notes the study.

The AQHI makes a strong case that even the same pollutant levels affect cities differently.

For instance, if the PM2.5 level is 120 micrograms per cubic metre (a serious pollution level), the AQI might show 300 for both Delhi and Varanasi. But the AQHI, based on local health data, would show 46 for Delhi and 64 for Varanasi.

In AQHI terms, Delhi’s reading would be ‘moderate,’ while Varanasi’s would be ‘poor’, reflecting a real difference in public health impact.

Air Pollution Doesn’t Just Affect the Lungs

The WHO also notes that the main pathway of exposure to air pollution is through the respiratory tract, and that breathing in polluted air leads to inflammation, oxidative stress, immune suppression, and even cellular mutations throughout the body.

This can damage multiple organs, including the lungs, heart, brain, and more. WHO categorises air pollution as a risk factor for all-cause mortality, as well as for specific diseases such as stroke, ischaemic heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), lung cancer, pneumonia, and even cataract. Pregnant women and children are especially vulnerable to its effects.

Why the Current AQI Falls Short

India’s AQI uses health advisories from the US Environmental Protection Agency due to a lack of Indian studies when it was first launched. The 2015 document that introduced it even acknowledges this limitation. Since then, more local data has become available, but the AQI has not been updated.

The AQI also does not mention mortality risk in any of its categories. At most, it notes minor breathing discomfort or effects on sensitive groups. But research shows that air pollution is the second leading risk factor for non-communicable diseases in India. It is directly linked to heart attacks, strokes, and respiratory diseases, all of which can become fatal quickly, especially in older adults or those with pre-existing conditions.

What Can Be Done, Suggest Researchers

Dr Sagnik Dey from IIT Delhi, one of the authors, compares this to tobacco: "With smoking, the blame can be put on the individual. But with air pollution, it’s a public issue, the government has to step in."

One major challenge is access to mortality data, which is held by the Ministry of Health and the National Centre for Disease Control. However, researchers argue that once this data is made available, generating AQHI cut-offs for hundreds of Indian cities would take only a few months and cost very little.

Making Air Warnings Harder to Ignore

The AQI has become familiar in India over the past decade, even joked about by stand-up comics. But there’s little evidence that people or local authorities take its warnings seriously.

By including death risk, the AQHI could serve as a more effective tool. The aim is not to replace the AQI completely, but to enhance it so that people understand the real health consequences of the air they breathe.

A known name in the boxing ring, and for pushing his limits, Conor Benn also had a point in his life where he considered giving up easier than doing it all over again, every single day. Professional boxing had taken a huge toll on his mental health.

It was in 2022, that he was twice tested positive for women's fertility drug Clomifene. This came after his planned fight with Chris Eubank Jr was cancelled. Even before a lengthy ban would have been implemented, he gave up his license under its threat, thought he did fight his case.

For 2 years, Conor Benn maintained his innocence to UK Anti-Doping (Ukad) and the British Boxing Board of Control (BBBofC), before his provisional suspension was finally lifted in 2024. The long ordeal took a serious toll on him, and Benn openly admitted it pushed him to a breaking point, even making him consider ending his life.

“It’s hurt me,” Benn said in an emotional interview on Piers Morgan: Uncensored. “I didn’t think I was going to make it through this period. I didn’t think I was going to make it through.”

Have Considered Taking My Own Life

When asked if he had seriously considered taking his own life, Conor Benn responded: “Yeah. Yeah, I’d say so, and it upsets me now because I don’t know how I got that low. I was in a really dark place.”

He described the emotional toll of being publicly vilified for something he insists he didn’t do. “I was shamed for something I hadn’t even done. It felt like I was on death row for a crime I didn’t commit.”

“If I had done something wrong, I’m human, I would’ve owned up to it,” he continued. “I’d say, ‘I made a mistake,’ and raise my hands. But not this. Never this.”

Reflecting on what he felt was an unjust situation, Benn said, “It felt like seven years of hard work, sacrifice, time away from my family, and everything I built was torn apart because of someone else’s incompetence. It’s been incredibly hard for my family.”

After finally being “cleared of any wrongdoing,” the welterweight boxer reaffirmed his long-held position: “I’ve always been an advocate for clean sport.”

In a statement shared on X, Benn called the past two years “unquestionably the toughest fight” of his life. “It’s been a rollercoaster period,” he wrote, “during which the WBC had already ruled I was innocent, and the NADP initially concluded there was no case to answer and I was free to fight.”

What Is Clomiphene?

As per the National Institute of Health's National Library of Medicine, US, clomiphene is a pharmacotherapeutic agent integral to the treatment of anovulatory or oligo-ovulatory infertility, plays a pivotal role in inducing ovulation for individuals aspiring to conceive.

This is usually used to treat infertility, especially in women with polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS). However, Clomifene can be used to boost testosterone levels in men, and is banned inside and outside competition by the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada).

As per a 2019 study, titled, Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Testicular Axis Effects and Urinary Detection Following Clomiphene Administration in Males, Clomiphene citrate is also known to be abused by healthy athletes such as bodybuilders and weightlifters for performance enhancement because it raises serum testosterone and gonadotropin levels.

Adverse Effects

Some of the reported side effects of using clomiphene include headaches, dizziness, worsening of existing psychiatric conditions, gynecomastia (enlarged male breast tissue), testicular tumors, hot flashes, digestive issues, and breast pain. Other commonly observed reactions are nausea, vomiting, enlarged ovaries, blurred vision, visual disturbances like scintillating scotoma, abnormal uterine bleeding, pelvic discomfort, and elevated triglyceride levels.

In more severe cases, clomiphene use has been linked to multiple pregnancies, low platelet count (thrombocytopenia), pancreatitis, liver damage, a possible increased risk of ovarian cancer with long-term use, a heightened risk of malignant melanoma, and serious visual impairments.

One of the more dangerous complications is ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS), which has been reported in patients undergoing clomiphene citrate therapy for ovulation induction. OHSS can escalate rapidly, sometimes within 24 hours, and may become a medical emergency.

Since January 1, 2025, it has been 212 days till July 31, 2025, and in that time, the U.S. has recorded over 1,331 measles cases, surpassing the full-year total for 2019. It’s now officially the worst measles outbreak since the disease was declared “eliminated” in 2000—and one that’s putting that very status at serious risk.

According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data, corroborated by Johns Hopkins University’s Measles Tracker, between 1,281 and 1,288 confirmed cases were reported as of early July 2025. That number already eclipses 2019’s total of 1,274 cases—and it’s still climbing. The most recent CDC numbers, as of late July, report:

• 1,333 confirmed cases in 40 jurisdictions (states and territories)
• 29 distinct outbreaks, up from just 16 in all of 2024
• Only 12% of current cases are linked to international travel or importation
• 169 hospitalizations and 3 confirmed deaths

To put this in perspective, 2025’s case count is the highest the U.S. has seen in more than three decades, surpassing even the largest outbreaks of the early 1990s.

What Is Meales Elimination and Why It’s Slipping?

Measles was considered “eliminated” in the U.S. in 2000, meaning there was no year-long, uninterrupted local transmission of the virus. Elimination didn’t mean zero cases, but rather, strong containment: sporadic imported cases, caught early, with limited secondary spread. But once local transmission continues for 12 consecutive months, that status is lost—and measles is officially considered endemic once again.

Now, the steep rise in cases, especially those not linked to foreign travel, shows that domestic spread has taken root. Public health experts are increasingly concerned that if these trends continue into 2026, the U.S. may lose its elimination designation—a milestone that was once viewed as permanent.

The loss would be more than symbolic. It would be a failure of the disease control system, the vaccination system, and the health communication system—and would leave millions still at risk.

Why This Matters: Contagion, Hospital Strain, and Global Fallout

Measles is one of the most infectious diseases on the planet, with a basic reproduction number (R₀) ranging from 12 to 18. It indicates that an individual carrier can infect as many as 18 other individuals in a population not vaccinated. It is airborne and remains present in a room for as long as two hours after a sick person has vacated the room.

Although some infections are mild, approximately 1 in 1,000 are fatal, and almost 30% of illnesses result in complications, such as pneumonia, encephalitis, and hearing loss that is permanent. The CDC has also reported extensive hospitalization rates this year, especially in young children, pregnant women, and immunocompromised adults.

Beyond immediate illness, measles causes “immune amnesia,” wiping out existing immunity to other infections. This leaves those who recover from measles at higher risk for other illnesses for months or even years afterward—a threat that is seldom discussed but well-documented in scientific literature.

What’s Fueling the Measles Surge?

The clear driver of the 2025 measles resurgence is declining vaccination rates. The CDC estimates that the national average for two-dose MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) vaccine coverage is now 92.7%—below the 95% threshold needed for herd immunity. But that’s the national average. In some areas, it’s much lower.

Outbreak epicenters have reported MMR coverage as low as 78–82%. For example, certain communities in Texas, Oregon, and Florida are seeing dangerous declines, often influenced by online misinformation, religious or philosophical exemptions, and lack of school-based enforcement of vaccine mandates.

The current administration’s mixed messaging on vaccine safety, dismantling of public health advisory panels, and budget cuts to local health departments have further eroded trust. The CDC and other agencies are grappling with a crisis of credibility, particularly in the wake of pandemic-related misinformation.

Meanwhile, social media platforms remain flooded with conspiracy theories, false claims about vaccine ingredients, and pseudoscientific “natural immunity” rhetoric—further discouraging uptake among already hesitant parents.

What Happens If the US Officially Loses Elimination Status?

If measles persists in circulation for 12 consecutive months, the US will no longer qualify as "elimination"—and this is more than just optics. The implications are real and longstanding. International travel warnings might be revised to incorporate the increased risk of acquiring measles within the U.S., with possible effects on tourism and cross-border travel. School systems could be compelled to reinstate closure policies and enforce more stringent health guidelines during outbreaks, disrupting community and educational routines. In the meantime, premiums and care for health insurance could increase as a result of the added weight of preventable hospitalizations. Worst of all, public fear is likely to escalate, continuing to undermine confidence in vaccines and erode the overall public health framework.

Worse still, vulnerable populations—including infants too young to be vaccinated, immunocompromised individuals, and the elderly—will be constantly at risk. State and local health departments, many of which are understaffed and underfunded, may not have the infrastructure to respond effectively to regular outbreaks.

This scenario would reverse decades of progress, and the U.S. would join a growing list of countries—including the U.K. and parts of Europe—that have lost measles elimination status in recent years due to similar dynamics.

Despite the troubling numbers, public health experts agree on one thing: there’s still time to regain control—but that window is closing fast. To contain the 2025 measles outbreak and prevent a permanent loss of elimination status, several urgent steps are needed. Accelerated vaccination campaigns must be launched, especially in under-immunized schools, districts, and counties where herd immunity has broken down.

At the same time, a coordinated effort to counter vaccine misinformation with clear, science-backed public education is essential. Stronger federal leadership is also critical, with renewed investment in outbreak preparedness, early response infrastructure, and nationwide health messaging. Transparent and timely data sharing will empower local governments and healthcare providers to act swiftly and effectively.