Image: The Marburg virus: 'If tourists were tripping in and out of some python-infested Marburg repository, unprotected, and then boarding their return flights to other continents… it was an international threat.' Photograph: Science Photo Library
guardian.co.uk - September 28th, 2012 - David Quammen
Astrid Joosten was a 41-year-old Dutch woman who, in June 2008, went to Uganda with her husband. At home in Noord-Brabant, she worked as a business analyst. Both she and her husband, Jaap Taal, a financial manager, enjoyed annual adventures, especially to Africa. The journey in 2008, booked through an adventure-travel outfitter, took them to the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, home to mountain gorillas. (VIEW COMPLETE ARTICLE)
mcclatchydc.com - The Miami Herald - by Juan O. Tamayo - September 25, 2012
MIAMI — Four weeks after the Cuban government announced that an outbreak of cholera in the eastern part of the island was over, there are unconfirmed reports of new cases popping up in two small towns.
Twenty-seven cases were reported in the municipality of San Luis, in the eastern province of Santiago de Cuba, and 19 more in the Bahia Honda municipality 35 miles west of Havana.
Roberto Gonzalez, a dissident living in San Luis, said that area public health workers and residents have told him of the more than two dozen confirmed cases and 102 suspected cases of cholera in the municipality over the past two weeks.
After Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) scaled up its operations in Yida refugee camp in South Sudan, the mortality rate fell sharply in just one month.
huffingtonpost.com - by Mike Stobbe - September 12, 2012
NEW YORK — As the U.S. wrestles with its biggest whooping cough outbreak in decades, researchers appear to have zeroed in on the main cause: The safer vaccine that was introduced in the 1990s loses effectiveness much faster than previously thought.
A study published in Wednesday's New England Journal of Medicine found that the protective effect weakens dramatically soon after a youngster gets the last of the five recommended shots around age 6.
The protection rate falls from about 95 percent to 71 percent within five years, said researchers at the Kaiser Permanente Vaccine Research Center in Oakland, Calif.
Image: Because regulation is light, the industry can kill off the only effective system for telling us how much fat, sugar and salt food contains. Photograph: Brownstock Inc/Alamy
guardian.co.uk - September 10th, 2012 - George Monbiot
When you raise the subject of over-eating and obesity, you often see people at their worst. The comment threads discussing these issues reveal a legion of bullies who appear to delight in other people's problems.
When alcoholism and drug addiction are discussed, the tone tends to be sympathetic. When obesity is discussed, the conversation is dominated by mockery and blame, though the evidence suggests that it may be driven by similar forms of addiction.
This weather report would be hilarious if it was not frightening. Arctic ice cover just reached its lowest point in recorded history. Pippa goes off script and drops some science.
The Ninth Regional Congress on Health Sciences Information – CRICS9 will be held at the Pan American Health Organization Headquarters, in Washington, DC – USA, during October 22 – 24, 2012.
Image: Involve communities specially in informal settlements (Photo: Julius Mwelu/IRIN)
irinnews.org - September 6th, 2012
With more than half the world now living in urban centres, city residents’ quality of life, vulnerability to natural hazards and diets are matters of growing importance, drawing significant attention at the World Urban Forum in Naples, Italy, this week.
Two major studies launched to coincide with the Forum explore these issues. Both focus on the role of local governments and community initiatives in shaping sustainable policies for poor urban dwellers: Growing Greener Cities in Africa, a report from the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO); and the Making Cities Resilient Report 2012, produced by the London-based International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) for the UN Office for Disaster Reduction (UNISDR). (VIEW COMPLETE ARTICLE)
vaccinenewsdaily.com - by Paul Tinder - August 28, 2012
The United Kingdom is activating a $3.16 million emergency plan to stop the cholera epidemic from spreading in the African state of Sierra Leone after more than 200 people have died.
The Department for International Development is using a network called the Rapid Response Facility to deliver sanitation, water and emergency medical assistance to the country. Charities such as the British Red Cross, Care International, Concern, Oxfam, International Rescue Committee and Save the Children are mobilizing as part of the response to the water-borne disease, BBC reports.
Experts on New York City’s pioneering menu labelling bylaw will join local experts, policy-makers and health advocates in five Canadian cities to explore effective measures to equip restaurant customers with calorie and sodium information to guide their dining choices and motivate restaurant owners to make the offerings more nutritious. This is a must attend event for dietitians, health advocates, policy-makers, restaurant owners, researchers, journalists and others with an interest in the health and informed consumer choice for restaurant customers.
Writing on the Wall Monday September 10, 2012 in Vancouver Tuesday September 11, 2012 in Winnipeg Wednesday September 12, 2012 in Toronto Thursday September 13, 2012 in Ottawa Friday September 14, 2012 in Halifax
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