Dhingra Family Foundation

Dhingra Family Foundation

Dhingra Foundation Logo (700 × 200 px)

Message from the President

The Dhingra family foundation will complete 10 years at the end of 2023. We have come a long way in this 10 year journey. When we started, our mission was to educate underprivileged girls, improve sanitation and hygiene and increase awareness of Hindi literature in North America and the rest of the world. We have made excellent strides in all three areas. The key to this success has been our own involvement in steering these projects to successful conclusions. The most heartening and satisfying has been the establishment of the computer training centers in Sehore, Madhya Pradesh. The centers are run by our India coordinator, Mr. Pankaj Subeer . We started a one year computer diploma training program for underprivileged girls in India with the first batch of 36 girls in 2015 and now 400 girls enroll into the program every year. A total of 4000 girls have completed training and received University diplomas over the last 8 years. Sudha (My wife) and I have visited the training center many times and stay in touch with the girls even after they graduate. When we visit the training center and meet the girls, they are astonished that someone living so far away is interested in their education, career and well-being free of cost. In addition to the computer training, girls are also given training in personality development and self-defense. Majority of the girls graduating from the program are gainfully employed in the government or private sector. Every girl participating in computer training becomes part of our extended family and they all consider Sudha as her Mom! Secondly, Sudha Om Dhingra has spent her life  Promoting the Hindi language in the USA. She is the founding member of the International Hindi Association, USA and started organizing international Kavi Sammelans starting in 1985 when we were living in St. Louis, Missouri, USA. In 1991, we moved to Research Triangle Park, North Carolina when I joined Glaxo Pharmaceuticals ( now GSK) and she has continued to organize Kavi Sammelan every year for the last 30 years. She was also instrumental in starting Hindi classes for children through the non-profit organization, Hindi Vikas Mandal. Sudha also started a quarterly Hindi literary magazine, VibhomSwar, in 2016 and has established North Carolina Sahity Manch. A monthly Sahity Goshti is organized by the Manch where local  poets and writers recite their poems and strories and encourage each other to continue writing. A collection of poems from members of North Carolina Sahity Manch “Man Ki Turpai” was published in 2023 and launched at the Delhi Book Fair, India by the publisher, Shivna Prakashan. Sudha has published more than 35 books in Hindi literature and was awarded the highest honor for Hindi contributions by the president of India in 2016. She was also interviewed by TV Asia on March 9, 2023 by Vikas Nangia during the women gender equality achievers week. The success of the computer training program in Sehore and Ashta, Madhya Pradesh, India and the promotion of Hindi language through Kavi Sammelans, North Carolina Sahity Manch, and quarterly literary magazine, VibhomSwar, has only been possible due to the passion and dedication of Sudha. Her life modus operandi is: Prem (Love), Patience and Prayer.

These are exciting times!  Generative artificial intelligence and quantum computing will write the next chapter of industrial revolution and scientific discoveries. Health care, especially early disease detection and prevention strategies will be impacted profoundly. Our Gut plays a crucial role in the metabolism and absorption of anything we eat including food, dietary supplements and drugs. Our liver serves as the detoxifying organ when anything it determines is foreign to the body. We have more bacteria in the gut than all the cells in our body. Our gut is considered the “second brain” as the molecules generated by the metabolism communicate with the brain. Our body was designed by nature to save energy for times of food scarcity. If we eat more food than what is sufficient to provide energy for daily activities, it stores the excess as fat. The stored fat is metabolized by the body into sugar, when needed. Obesity is the first sign that one is eating more food than needed to support daily activities. One can burn more energy by increasing physical activities such as walking or exercise. Origin of most chronic diseases such as obesity, diabetes, fatty liver, and heart disease is our gut dysfunction resulting in systemic inflammation in our body. It is a slow process and in every culture, we ignore signs of acidity, indigestion, constipation and continue to use home remedies. As we know now, it is very important to sustain the population of good bacteria in our gut to maintain good health. Heart disease is called a silent killer as many people who feel perfectly healthy are shocked when they suffer from a heart attack. Most healthy people may not feel any symptoms of artery blockage until their arteries are blocked by more than 70%.  It is very common for people to ignore symptoms of having difficulty in breathing when walking uphill. Genetics does play a role in cardiovascular disease so people who have lost family members due to heart disease need to watch what they eat and do regular exercise to keep their heart muscles strong. Now there are tools available which can assess blood flow through arteries and if calcium deposits are seen in the arteries, treatments are available which can stabilize these deposits so their rupture is minimized. Noninvasive tools are now available to assess and minimize the risk of heart disease. As generative artificial intelligence tools are developed in the coming years, I’m very hopeful early diagnosis of potential heart attack risks will become a norm in health care of the masses.

I left GSK on August 15, 2008 and in 2009 started SOV Therapeutics, a virtual pharmaceutical company working from my home office. For the last 14 years, I was tied up in progressing oral male hormone testosterone drug, Kyzatrex, development. In 2017, SOV Therapeutics partnered with Marius Pharmaceuticals. FDA approved the drug on July 27, 2022 (www.mariuspharma.com). I’m now able to spend more time on activities of the Dhingra Family Foundation. I’m a synthetic organic chemist by training. I received my Ph.D. from the University of Virginia in a record short time of 2 years and Seven months working on the synthesis of anti cancer compounds. My Ph.D. dissertation was awarded the Allan Talbott Gwathmey Memorial Award for best doctoral dissertation submitted to the Graduate School of Arts & Sciences, University of Virginia. I look at human life and diseases from a different perspective than a biologist, biochemist, physiologists or a medical doctor. For me the human body is a green continuous manufacturing system which manufactures millions of molecules at precise amounts required for various organs functions. Our five senses are alert 24 hours, 365 days a year to send signals of any danger to survival to our brain. The levels of molecules change at every moment based on signals from the brain via neurotransmitters. Our body has plenty of raw material in storage to manufacture quantities appropriate for any danger. Every cell in our body is a self-sufficient manufacturing plant utilizing sugar (from carbohydrates in our food), amino acids (supplied by proteins in our food) and lipids (supplied by fat in our food).  Having spent > 30 years in the pharmaceutical industry, I have come to realize that all modern medicine is helpful in diagnosing, stabilizing and treating various illnesses but is not yet able to address the root causes of chronic diseases such as metabolic dysfunction, cancer, cardiovascular and neurodegenerative diseases. Over the last 10-20 years a lot of scientific advances have taken place in nutrition, biomarkers of early disease detection and prevention. The Dhingra Family Foundation has decided to play an important role of “scientific influencer” in the area of nutrition and healthy life span. We’ll explain all critical advances in simple language so people without any background in science can understand the latest advances and incorporate the learnings into their daily life. The source of the original scientific research will always be provided so people can read and make their own judgement. What Covid has taught us is that each one of us has to take individual responsibility for our own health. In this age of social media when we are bombarded with so much information and people have made careers from the number of ‘clicks’, it is critical that we dig deep into the claims made by all sellers of products being advertised. The Dhingra Family Foundation has assembled a team of qualified scientists and physicians to help you make your health decision based on high quality science.The foundation plans to implement the following actions in the near future.
 
1) A biweekly blog on “DareIEatThat”  based on the latest advances in nutrition science. 
2) A biweekly blog on “PredictiveHealthyLife” based on my own life journey as well as integration of learnings from advances in organic chemistry, biology, metabolism, nutrition and evolution of life on the planet earth. 
3) A list of fascinating facts about human and plant life.
4) Origin of various successful drugs and how the efficacy and safety of drugs is optimized.
5) Pros and cons of new approved drugs.
6) Are Dietary supplements worth taking? The world-wide dietary supplement industry was $165.7 Billion at the end of 2022. Americans spend $30.2 billion on supplements every single year or 9.2% of all out-of-pocket U.S. health care spending. Plus, these numbers are divided among only 59 million Americans, meaning that the average person purchasing supplements is spending over $500 per year on them. Although these supplements are not approved by FDA, their use is promoted on the myth that they are natural so they are safe and have no side effects. Using the science of metabolism and absorption, we’ll share insights on the usefulness of dietary supplements. 
7) Use of spices to flavor food is increasing all over the world. Some ethnic cuisines are becoming popular all over the world. Over the last few years after Covid started, you tube food channels have exploded. Do spices have healing powers as many claim or they just make food more appealing and enjoyable? We’ll share insights based on scientific research done on spices.
8) Benefits of Yoga are well known. June 21st is celebrated as the International Yoga Day. I have been practicing Yoga for the last 40 years. I learned Yoga and received training as an instructor in 1981 in Saint Louis, Missouri where I was working for Monsanto. I have been practicing a form of yoga, people are likely not familiar with. It is called Psycho Physical Yoga. It uses yoga postures in the form of an exercise routine to not only increase flexibility in every part of the body but also increase heart beat to exercise the heart muscle. I plan to record and post the Psycho Physical Yoga routine along with detailed instructions on our Foundation web site. In addition, I plan to post a session of chair yoga for people who have health issues with their knees or back. The chair yoga will be taught by my St. Louis yoga teacher, Diane McCameron. 
9) We all are made of atoms and molecules. Now due to stunning advances in science, tools are available which allow us to understand the routes  our molecules took through generations of creatures which still exist today. During Covid-19 outbreak and successful development of RNA vaccines, everyone became very familiar with RNA ( Ribonucleic Acid). Do you know, the first cells formed on planet earth were created around  RNA; DNA and proteins came later! In life’s earliest days, it was RNA which created life and performed the function of enzymes and accelerated  chemical reactions. All chemical reactions in every life form are carried out in water via the use of enzymes. Have you ever wondered, what do we need to survive? The food we eat is broken down into molecules which are absorbed through our gut into our blood to provide raw material for building and sustaining our life. We now know DNA serves as the instruction manual. All our cells contain the same DNA. It is divided into 23 bundles called chromosomes. A key role of the DNA is to provide instructions for the generation of proteins which form our muscles and enzymes. Now we also know, many enzymes need cofactors for their proper functioning. These cofactors are called vitamins.

Now we know, we need a total of 13 vitamins. Vitamins are essential for our healthy life as our bodies can’t make most of them. Our bodies can make 3 – vitamin B3, D and K but don’t always produce enough of them. Vitamins assist in many of our cells’ basic functions. All organic molecules have 3-D structures and operate using a lock and key mechanism. Using artificial intelligence tools, our plan is to create a 3-D journey of molecules synthesized in various cells and travelling via blood to every cell in the body so it can perform its functions. Every molecule in our body is made to order to perform a specific function via binding to an enzyme in the same way a key opens a lock. 
 
Kind Regards,
 
Dr. Om Dhingra
President & Founder,
Dhingra Family Foundation
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