Is artisanal salt healthier than commercial salt?
Guest blogger, Henry Ko, health services researcher with SingHealth, Singapore, provides a personal commentary on issues raised by Mark Bitterman's book on salt: “Salted: A manifesto on the world’s most essential mineral, with recipes”. As a healthcare researcher with both professional and recreational interests in food, nutrition, and cooking, I was drawn to a book…
Chocolate Made in South Africa for homesick Brits?
This blog is about the weirdness of global trade… and the lengths (literally) we go for chocolate. The wrapper on my Marks & Spencer (M&S) valentine chocolates read: “Made with our exclusive British Milk chocolate recipe, Made in South Africa”. Incredibly, it seemed that a firm in South Africa (SA) was targeting local people with…
Nodding syndrome raises its head
In a previous blog, Mystery disease outbreak in Ethiopia solved, I mentioned in passing Nodding Syndrome (NS), a neglected condition that is epidemiologically associated with onchocerciasis and affects children 5-15 years old. The syndrome causes epileptic seizures where the afflicted suffer from involuntary head nodding, usually triggered by food or cold. They end up severely…
Mystery disease in Ethiopia solved: linked to weed toxin
Imagine this… A mysterious disease terrorising your community, not infectious but spreading nonetheless, and killing your relatives and neighbours. All you want to do is pack your bags and flee. Worse, when your plight comes to the attention of the health authorities, they are stumped and its not going to be easy or quick to…
Is there a role for law(yers) in public health?
ITS not often that speakers forgo the chance to present in favour of opening up debate, but this is exactly what happened here at the World Congress Public Health 2012 (Addis Ababa, Ethiopia,Tuesday April 24), in the session “Law: a public health tool”. Moderator, Michele Forzley, chose not to talk on access to medicines in…
No strings attached: public health messages from puppets!
Image:Loren Javier Father Christmas & wife puppets Happy Christmas! One intriguing way of getting health messages across to communities who are illiterate and whose spoken language may not even have words to describe the medical concept, is to entertain them. Travelling theatre groups in Africa sing or act out AIDs prevention…
NICE people lend a helping hand
“Nice” is not a word often used in scientific research and when it appears in the UK media, it’s now associated with NICE, National Institute for Health & Clinical Excellence. More often than not this government organisation makes headlines with bad news: the press reports quickly when a drug is not approved for general use…
Biofuels: a public health hazard?
Jatropha curcas, image courtesy of Biofuels Information Exchange It has come to my attention that Jatropha curcas (physic nut or purging nut) is being pushed in India as a biofuel crop (for oil) and that there is now an emerging public health problem there due to accidental poisoning of children. An Indian member of the…
Xmas camels, tobacco and kids
Copyright: W.Norris My daughter decided to make this camel for the annual school Xmas tree competition. To her, at age 11, camels are “cuddly” and linked to the Three Wise Men, part of the Christmas Story. To me, whilst overseeing her sewing efforts, I’d made the link to the 2 empty packets sitting on my…
If I get sick, will she know what to do?
Copyright: John & Penny Hubley This blog is contributed by Dr Neil Pakenham-Walsh, Coordinator of HIFA2015 , the global campaign and email forum focussed on informed healthcare provision in developing countries. We in richer countries take for granted that our healthcare providers have access to the information they need to make informed decisions... Every…
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