Issue # 129 – 🛵 1MG launches 30-Minute meds Delivery, India’s Struggle for Affordable, Quality Healthcare,GLP-1 drugs are changing the way people eat

Welcome to the 129th edition of your go-to source for women’s health updates! I’ve switched things up with a new format—hope you love the change and enjoy reading.

India’s healthcare sector has come a long way—from basic infrastructure at the time of independence to a $372 Bn industry by 2022. With a rapidly growing and ageing population, systemic challenges continue to block access to quality and equitable care. The doctor-to-patient ratio sits at a concerning 1:900, well below the WHO’s ideal of 1:600. Rural India remains underserved, with only 33% of doctors available for nearly two-thirds of the population.

Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) now account for 66% of all deaths in the country—driven by limited access to preventive and diagnostic care. Add to that the burden of high out-of-pocket expenses, which make up nearly 50% of total healthcare spend, and it becomes clear: for many Indians, quality healthcare is still out of reach.

A healthy population is key if India is to truly harness its demographic dividend. As the economy grows, the middle class expands, and public policy becomes more health-sensitive, demand for better healthcare infrastructure is only rising.

Given India’s size and diversity, a one-size-fits-all model won’t work. What’s needed is a comprehensive, inclusive transformation. With the right foundation in place, AI could play a powerful role in this shift—making healthcare more accessible, affordable, and scalable. India has the potential to lead the world in AI-driven healthcare innovation, creating real-world solutions that could serve not just a billion Indians, but billions more across the globe. 

Read Full Report

Last week, I spoke about Mounjaro’s launch in India, but let’s zoom out, what’s happening globally: GLP-1s aren’t just transforming weight loss. They’re quieting “food noise” and forcing Big Food to rethink its playbook.

GLP-1s are proving to do more than just regulate appetite—they’re beginning to rewire how the brain perceives food. These drugs reduce what’s known as “food noise,” those constant, intrusive thoughts about eating that can persist regardless of hunger. While the exact mechanisms are still being studied, GLP-1s appear to interact with dopamine pathways and may offer therapeutic potential not only for binge eating but also for broader compulsive behaviors like gambling or alcohol use.

🍟 The Big Food Fallout – GLP-1 users are reporting something unexpected: fast food and ultra-processed snacks just don’t taste good anymore.

Here’s why:
* GLP-1s slow digestion, making overeating uncomfortable
* They alter taste and texture preferences (goodbye hyper-palatable junk)
* Bingeing on processed food suddenly isn’t so appealing

60% of the U.S. food supply is ultra-processed. If GLP-1s kill demand, the industry has to rethink its formulas. Big Food won’t go down without a fight—but change is coming.

Important note: GLP-1s aren’t FDA-approved for BED—yet. There’s still a long road ahead in research, especially around how these drugs affect women, diverse body types, and different racial and ethnic groups. Most preclinical studies to date have been conducted on male animals, even though BED and GLP-1 use disproportionately affect women.

As someone deeply curious about the intersection of metabolism, behavior, and industry—especially how this impacts women—it’s clear we’re staring down a system designed for addiction, not nutrition. GLP-1s might finally challenge that. But they’re tools, not magic bullets. Real change means combining medication with therapy, nutrition, community, and long-term support.

If we do this right, fewer people will need GLP-1s at all. The next generation could grow up in a food system that doesn’t make us sick.

If you’re working on this—startup founder, researcher, clinician, activist—I want to hear from you. Write to me

Meet Carina Kohli, the founder of Humm Care, Carina’s journey into women’s  was deeply personal. Diagnosed with PCOS as a teenager, she turned her experience into a mission. With a background in business management, entrepreneurship, and finance, and inspiration from her parents, she knew she wanted to create something with lasting impact. This vision led to Humm Care, a holistic health-tech platform addressing not just women’s health, but also men’s health, elderly care, and mental well-being.

Over nearly five years, Carina and her team are committed to breaking systemic barriers, increasing accessibility, and shifting mindsets toward proactive, inclusive healthcare.

Read her full story

• Tata 1mg launches 30-minute medicine delivery in three cities.
• India completes first remote cardiac surgery across 2,000 kilometers.
• Elon Musk Neuralink to implant Blindsight brain-chip in humans by 2025.
• India’s diagnostic imaging device market is projected to exceed $7 billion by 2033.

• Tvaster Genkalp, a Chennai-based molecular diagnostics startup, has raised $1.25 million in a Pre-Series A funding round led by Ideaspring Capital.  Existing investors include Invigo Softwares and liver transplant specialist Prof. Mohamed Rela. 
• Bengaluru-based healthtech startup RapidClaims has raised $8 million (INR 68 crore) in a Series A funding round led by venture capital firm Accel. The round also saw participation from Together Fund.
• Entvin AI has secured INR 5 Cr funding from startup accelerator Y Combinator. Founded by three IIT Bombay graduates,the startup provides specialized AI solutions for pharmaceutical and life sciences companies worldwide.

• Mandos, a Greater Louisville based digital health platform built for the everyman, raised over $1M in funding.The round was led by Render Capital and Stone Mountain Ventures.The company plans to use the funding to scale its offerings and product development. 
• Daymark Health, a Philadelphia, PA-based cancer care company, raised $11.5m in seed funding.The round was co-led by Maverick Ventures and Yosemite, with additional participation from Oncology Ventures.
• Artis BioSolutions, a San Diego, CA-based company which specializes in the development and production of genetic medicines, raised an undisclosed amount in funding.
• orthobrain, a Cleveland, OH-based provider of an orthodontic growth system that empowers dentists and dental service organizations to integrate orthodontics into their practices, raised $7.5M in new funding.
  
• CMR Surgical, a Cambridge, UK-based medical devices company, raised over $200M in funding. Backers included Trinity Capital.

• Excessive screen time among adolescents negatively impacts multiple aspects of sleep, which in turn increases the risk of depressive symptoms — particularly among girls, new research has found. Recently, the Swedish Public Health Agency published recommendations that adolescents use no more than two-to-three hours of daily leisure screen time, partly to promote better sleep.
• Venture capital investment in women’s health startups has experienced significant growth in recent years, with funding reaching new heights in 2024 according to the latest report from Silicon Valley Bank (SVB).
•  Microplastics appear to be contributing to chronic diseases in shoreline areas of the United States, a new study suggests.High blood pressure, diabetes and stroke rates are higher in coastal or lakefront areas with greater concentrations of microplastics in the environment, researchers reported at a meeting of the American College of Cardiology (ACC).
• Personalized support can help more people at risk of colon cancer attend a potentially life-saving colonoscopy appointment, a new study says. About 55% of people assigned a patient navigator got a follow-up colonoscopy after their stool test revealed a risk of colon cancer, compared with nearly 43% of patients who were simply notified of the abnormal test and given a referral, researchers reported March 31 in the Annals of Internal Medicine.
• Researchers in the US are collaborating to create a new light-activated “smart” bomb to treat aggressive breast cancer. The team have combined their expertise to help develop new light-sensitive chemicals called cyanine-carborane salts that are used in photodynamic therapy, or PDT, to destroy metastatic breast cancer tumours in mice with minimal side effects.
• A new study has revealed that hormonal contraceptive initiation postpartum was associated with an instantaneous increased risk of developing depression. The study set out to investigate whether taking hormonal contraceptive (HC) post partum is associated with the risk of developing depression within 12 months after delivery.
•  Strokes caused by an artery tear are landing five times as many Americans in the hospital these days, a new study says. Cervical artery dissection involves a small tear in the inner lining of an artery in the neck that supplies blood to the brain.
• They say the eyes are the windows to the soul. The eyes also might help detect seniors at risk for a common syndrome in which they emerge from surgery in a state of delirium, new research suggests. Seniors who have thicker retinas are about 60% more likely to develop post-surgical delirium, researchers reported April 1 in the journal General Psychiatry.
• Lower levels of “bad” LDL cholesterol could mean a lower risk of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease, a new study says.
• An experimental blood test might be able to help doctors predict whether someone will recover their mobility following a spinal cord injury.The test looks for fragments of spinal cord DNA floating freely in a person’s blood, researchers recently reported in the Journal of Clinical Investigation.
• Life is busy, and some folks simply don’t have time until the weekend to work out. Turns out, that’s just fine for their health, a new study suggests.“Weekend warriors” who cram their week’s exercise into one or two days appear to gain as much benefit as people who are physically active throughout the week, researchers reported April 2 in the Journal of the American Heart Association.
• Use of cutting-edge weight-loss drugs like Ozempic and Zepbound has increased dramatically among people with type 1 diabetes, raising safety concerns among experts, a new study says. Both adults and children with type 1 diabetes are taking the drugs more often to manage obesity, researchers reported in the journal Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism.
• Breast-conserving therapy for breast cancer might not conserve as much as previously thought, a new study suggests. Women’s breasts can shrink considerably after they’ve undergone radiation therapy and lumpectomy for their early-stage breast cancer, researchers reported March 27 in the journal Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery.

• Indian technology conglomerate Advance Mechanical Services (AMS-India) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Israel’s Xtend AI to co-develop, manufacture, and deploy autonomous robots in hospitals and clinics across Karnataka.
• SEKISUI Diagnostics, a global medical diagnostics manufacturer, announces the launch of the Metrix COVID/Flu Test, the second assay on the Metrix Molecular Platform for use at the point-of-care and in the home
• Eureka Analytical Services Pvt Ltd (Eureka), a subsidiary of the GBA Group, an international life science services company acquired a majority stake in Teena Biolabs, a leading pharmaceutical analytics service provider in India. 
• Emcutix Biopharmaceuticals, a wholly owned subsidiary of Emcure Pharmaceuticals has inked an exclusive in-licensing agreement with WiQo, an innovative Italian derma-cosmetic and medical device company specialised in scientifically validated products.

• The Pharmacy Council of India (PCI) has reiterated to all state governments that the Pharmacy Act, 1948 would prevail over the AICTE Act, 1987 and the norms and regulations set by the Council and other specified authorities under the former would have to be followed by an institution imparting education for degrees and diplomas in pharmacy.
• In a strong appeal to the government, pharmaceutical micro, small, and medium enterprise (MSME) exporters have demanded an extension of the Interest Equalisation Scheme (IES), citing its crucial role in stabilizing their businesses during ongoing economic turbulence.

📳 – Quick Reads: 

• Surgeries on Fridays pose higher risks A study showed that those who had surgeries just before the weekend were 5 per cent more likely to experience a combination of mortality, complications and readmissions within 30 days
• Can probiotics help autism? Study reports nearly 50% drop in behavioural issues Emerging research on the benefits of probiotics has now extended to include their potential positive effects on autism
• Can tattoos cause cancer? Tattoos are a form of body art but a new study links the ink to increased risk of skin cancer and lymphoma

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See you next Friday, friends 👋
Navneet

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