A young lady checks out the touch-screen kiosk. Picture by Rashbehari Das

Did you know that chromium is an essential trace mineral that helps the body maintain normal blood sugar levels, or that fish oils and flaccid oil are good antidotes for hypertension?

Or if you are on a vegetarian diet, you must take a vitamin B12 supplement, since it can only be obtained through animal products? That milk thistle helps if you need to pop paracetamol pills every now and then.

A touch-screen kiosk, introduced ?for the first time in the country?, has now brought a plethora of critical self-help inputs on health and wellbeing at the fingertips of Calcuttans, to help them ?live better?. The interactive kiosk is located at Health Shoppe, ?India's first one-stop self-help alternate-care? store on Rowland Road.

Powered by a special ?third-party? software ?healthnotes?, the user-friendly kiosk provides information on over 600 health conditions, with notes on the background of the disease, its risk factors and causes. It also offers advice to the user on improving lifestyle and on appropriate supplements in the form of minerals and herbs.

?It also offers exhaustive safety-check guidelines on drug interactions and replenishment resources. For instance, the kiosk informs users on aspirin that they should take folic acid, iron, vitamins C and B12 and zinc, since these get depleted as a side-effect and also that Reye?s Syndrome, a rare but serious condition, is associated with the drug,? says Deepak Saraf, director, Health Shoppe.

From a retailer?s perspective, the touch-screen kiosk also gives a report on actual hit count. ?Going by that feedback, we can reorient our product mix on the racks,? explains Saraf. The initial response indicates most of the interactive inputs sought by users are on conditions linked to urban stress.

So, side-stepping salt and giving a garlic boost to the heart are handy tips for hypertension patients, while cinnamon ?is best for Type II diabetes?, and boswellia extract or ivy leaf could help in asthma. Obesity, depression and gastrointestinal ulcers are other conditions worrying Calcuttans, if the first hits on the self-help screen are any indication.

?I discovered even decaf is an irritant and that liquorice supports mucous membrane healing,? says en elderly lady with duodenal ulcers who was keen to learn more about her condition. A young mother, whose daughter has been suffering from UTI (urinary tract infection) for some time, found out cranberry and proteolytic enzymes like bromelain and trypsin have a positive effect.

The alternate care tool can be used at various entry points. While the 600-plus health conditions are listed alphabetically, one can touch on the icons of ?vitamins & herbs?, ?safety checker?, ?diet & fitness? and ?index? for specific data.

Besides the data bank, the kiosk also offers articles and contributions by experts. Alan R. Gaby, medical editor and ex-professor of Bastyr University of Natural Sciences, an authority on nutritional supplements, and Jonathan V. Wright, editorial reviewer and adviser, ?one of the world?s finest preventive medical doctors?, are some of the authors.