http://www.voanews.com/archive/health/latest/594/607.html health http://www.voanews.com/img/voa/rssLogo_VOA.gif http://www.voanews.com/archive/health/latest/594/607.html en-US 2012 - VOA 60 Sat, 18 May 2013 12:38:25 -0400 Pangea CMS – VOA Two new medical discoveries are raising hopes of containing malaria - the mosquito-borne parasitic disease that each year infects more than 200 million people and claims an estimated 660 thousand lives.  Meantime, the World Health Organization is warning about dire consequences if a drug-resistant form of malaria spreads beyond southeast Asia. Artemisinin has helped cut global malaria deaths by more than 25 percent over the past decade. But now, in parts of Southeast Asia, this drug no ... http://www.voanews.com/content/scientists-race-to-contain-malaria-making-new-dicoveries-but-finding-more-resistance/1663515.html http://www.voanews.com/content/scientists-race-to-contain-malaria-making-new-dicoveries-but-finding-more-resistance/1663515.html Fri, 17 May 2013 23:41:32 -0400 Health Carol Pearson http://www.voanews.com/content/scientists-race-to-contain-malaria-making-new-dicoveries-but-finding-more-resistance/1663515.html#relatedInfoContainer Marijuana has been used for centuries to relieve pain, improve mood and increase appetite. A new study suggests that the herb also has a positive effect on blood sugar levels, suggesting it could be helpful in diabetes control. Researchers analyzed data collected from more than 4,600 patients who completed a drug-use questionnaire and provided blood samples. Nearly half had never used marijuana, about 2,000 others had used it in the past and the rest were current users. Participants who ... http://www.voanews.com/content/study-finds-marijuana-helps-control-blood-sugar-waistlines/1663260.html http://www.voanews.com/content/study-finds-marijuana-helps-control-blood-sugar-waistlines/1663260.html Fri, 17 May 2013 14:41:39 -0400 Health VOA News Mosquitoes infected with the malaria parasite are significantly more attracted to human odors than uninfected mosquitoes. Researchers already knew that the microscopic parasite - Plasmodium falciparum - can alter the behavior of the mosquitoes it infects, causing them to consume larger and more frequent blood meals. That increases the rate of malaria transmission. But now James Logan and colleagues at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine have identified another behavioral ... http://www.voanews.com/content/malaria-infected-mosquitoes-more-attracted-to-humans/1662986.html http://www.voanews.com/content/malaria-infected-mosquitoes-more-attracted-to-humans/1662986.html Fri, 17 May 2013 11:08:37 -0400 Health VOA News The yellow fever ‘booster’ vaccination given 10 years after the initial vaccination is not necessary, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). The WHO's group of experts on immunization believes one dose of vaccination is enough to provide life-long immunity against yellow fever.   "This is very important because it will allow endemic countries currently using booster doses in their schedule to consider alleviating this schedule, and it also has implications for ... http://www.voanews.com/content/who-says-yellow-fever-booster-unnecessary/1662973.html http://www.voanews.com/content/who-says-yellow-fever-booster-unnecessary/1662973.html Fri, 17 May 2013 10:49:38 -0400 Health Selah Hennessy Arizona State University atmospheric scientist Kevin Gurney is mapping carbon dioxide emissions for the entire planet and he wants you to help.  Data is sketchy Power plants account for more than 40 percent of the carbon dioxide emissions in the atmosphere. Gurney wants more information on the 25,000 plants around the world.    He says good data exists for the United States, Canada, India and the European Union, but estimates for the rest of the world are sketchy. “In ... http://www.voanews.com/content/citizen-scientists-map-global-emissions/1662640.html http://www.voanews.com/content/citizen-scientists-map-global-emissions/1662640.html Thu, 16 May 2013 16:26:44 -0400 Science & Technology Rosanne Skirble http://www.voanews.com/content/citizen-scientists-map-global-emissions/1662640.html#relatedInfoContainer Applying painless but targeted electrical stimulation to parts of the brain that play a role in number manipulation may in future be a way to help people who struggle with math, scientists said on Thursday.   Researchers who experimented with a type of brain stimulation called transcranial random noise stimulation (TRNS) found that in less than a week it improved students' performance in both calculation and rote learning of mathematical tasks.   The researchers stressed this ... http://www.voanews.com/content/transcranial-random-noise-stimulation-trns-neurobiology-mathematics-brain-function/1662421.html http://www.voanews.com/content/transcranial-random-noise-stimulation-trns-neurobiology-mathematics-brain-function/1662421.html Thu, 16 May 2013 13:03:09 -0400 Science & Technology Reuters Actress and U.N. goodwill ambassador Angelina Jolie is in the spotlight for her decision to undergo a double mastectomy to reduce her chances of getting breast cancer, even though she is cancer free.  The actress announced her decision, and her surgery, in an article she wrote for The New York Times. Jolie's decision was based on a genetic test she had -- and other options available to women facing a breast cancer risk. She's beautiful, glamorous, and known for being outspoken ... http://www.voanews.com/content/angelina-jolie-mastectomy/1661939.html http://www.voanews.com/content/angelina-jolie-mastectomy/1661939.html Wed, 15 May 2013 19:38:25 -0400 Health Carol Pearson http://www.voanews.com/content/angelina-jolie-mastectomy/1661939.html#relatedInfoContainer Sub-Saharan Africa has some of the world's highest rates of chronic malnutrition among children. Now, the United Nations children's agency has put a price tag on it: $25 billion a year. That's the conclusion of a UNICEF conference on child malnutrition that wrapped up Wednesday in Paris. The effects of hunger often are obvious. Think about the images of skeletal children during the recent droughts in Africa's Sahel and the Horn of Africa. Stunting, or chronic malnutrition, is ... http://www.voanews.com/content/unicef-says-africas-child-malnutrition-costs-25-billion-dollars-annually/1661780.html http://www.voanews.com/content/unicef-says-africas-child-malnutrition-costs-25-billion-dollars-annually/1661780.html Wed, 15 May 2013 15:08:04 -0400 Africa Lisa Bryant India says it has developed a low cost vaccine to prevent diarrhea - a disease that claims the lives of tens of thousands of infants and young children in developing countries. It is expected to be on the market by next year, and is being hailed as a significant breakthrough.   Health officials say that clinical test results indicate the new vaccine is safe and effective against rotavirus, which causes severe diarrhea in children under the age of five.   Rotavirus is spread ... http://www.voanews.com/content/india-develops-lowest-cost-vaccine-to-prevent-diarrhea/1661311.html http://www.voanews.com/content/india-develops-lowest-cost-vaccine-to-prevent-diarrhea/1661311.html Wed, 15 May 2013 08:16:03 -0400 Asia Anjana Pasricha http://www.voanews.com/content/india-develops-lowest-cost-vaccine-to-prevent-diarrhea/1661311.html#relatedInfoContainer Millions of people in developing countries living near toxic waste dumps are facing potentially severe mental and physical health dangers, according to a new study.  The report finds the hazards posed by exposure to these chemical waste sites are comparable to those from malaria and air pollution. The study by a New York-based environmental organization analyzed water and soil samples at 373 waste sites in three countries - India, Indonesia and Pakistan - with a combined population of ... http://www.voanews.com/content/toxic-waste-exposure-widespread-in-developing-world/1661121.html http://www.voanews.com/content/toxic-waste-exposure-widespread-in-developing-world/1661121.html Tue, 14 May 2013 17:57:30 -0400 Health Jessica Berman Saudi Arabia has confirmed six new cases of the SARS-like novel coronavirus in its Eastern Province, state media reported on Monday and Tuesday, citing the health ministry.   It reported four new cases late on Monday and a further two late on Tuesday. One of the new cases has been treated and the patient was released from hospital, while the other new cases were still being treated, the Saudi Press Agency reported.   On Sunday, Saudi Arabia said it had had a total of 24 confirmed ... http://www.voanews.com/content/saudi-arabia-confirms-six-new-cases-of-sars-like-virus/1661103.html http://www.voanews.com/content/saudi-arabia-confirms-six-new-cases-of-sars-like-virus/1661103.html Tue, 14 May 2013 17:12:06 -0400 Middle East Reuters Niger is offering cash rewards to anyone reporting a case of Guinea worm as part of efforts to permanently eradicate the parasitic disease in the impoverished West African nation, the health ministry said.   Though it once afflicted around 3.5 million people annually across Asia and Africa, according to the U.S.-based Carter Center, Guinea worm disease is now on the verge of being eradicated worldwide.   Niger had been due to join the list of countries free from the disease last ... http://www.voanews.com/content/niger-offers-cash-reward-to-eradicate-guinea-worm/1660700.html http://www.voanews.com/content/niger-offers-cash-reward-to-eradicate-guinea-worm/1660700.html Tue, 14 May 2013 10:45:27 -0400 Africa Reuters Hollywood star Angelina Jolie has  had a double mastectomy to reduce her chances of getting breast cancer and says she hopes her story will inspire other women fighting the life-threatening disease. Jolie wrote in the New York Times on Tuesday the operation has made it easier for her to reassure her six children that she would not die young from cancer, like her own mother did at 56. "We often speak of 'Mommy's mommy', and I find myself trying to explain the illness ... http://www.voanews.com/content/angelina-jolie-has-double-mastectomy-to-prevent-breast-cancer/1660542.html http://www.voanews.com/content/angelina-jolie-has-double-mastectomy-to-prevent-breast-cancer/1660542.html Tue, 14 May 2013 06:58:03 -0400 Arts & Entertainment Reuters http://www.voanews.com/content/angelina-jolie-has-double-mastectomy-to-prevent-breast-cancer/1660542.html#relatedInfoContainer A new study by the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) says insects could be used in the fight against hunger and to increase food security. A report released Monday says that forest insects form part of the traditional diet for some two billion people worldwide and are a readily available source of nutritious and protein-rich food. Some of the most widely consumed insects include beetles, caterpillars, bees, wasps and ants. The food agency report says insects are rich in protein, ... http://www.voanews.com/content/insect-can-fill-gap-in-diets-says-un/1660218.html http://www.voanews.com/content/insect-can-fill-gap-in-diets-says-un/1660218.html Mon, 13 May 2013 14:56:03 -0400 Health VOA News http://www.voanews.com/content/insect-can-fill-gap-in-diets-says-un/1660218.html#relatedInfoContainer By 2015, almost one-third of the global population will remain without access to improved sanitation - which is U.N.-speak for hygienic toilet facilities. That would fall well short of a key global Millennium Development Goal [MDG], which is detailed in a new report published jointly by the World Health Organization and the U.N. Children’s Fund.   Bruce Gordon, the acting coordinator for water, sanitation and health at the World Health Organization, said Monday’s report was published as a ... http://www.voanews.com/content/un-says-billions-still-will-lack-sanitation-by-2015/1660101.html http://www.voanews.com/content/un-says-billions-still-will-lack-sanitation-by-2015/1660101.html Mon, 13 May 2013 12:56:19 -0400 Health Selah Hennessy http://www.voanews.com/content/un-says-billions-still-will-lack-sanitation-by-2015/1660101.html#relatedInfoContainer A new coronavirus that has killed 18 people since last year could be passed between people in close contact, according to the World Health Organization. Speaking from Saudi Arabia, WHO Assistant Director General Keiji Fukda said Sunday that he’s concerned about person to person tranmission. "Of most concern, however, is the fact that the different clusters seen in multiple countries increasingly support the hypothesis that when there is close contact, this novel coronavirus can ... http://www.voanews.com/content/who-issues-warning-over-sars-like-virus/1660074.html http://www.voanews.com/content/who-issues-warning-over-sars-like-virus/1660074.html Mon, 13 May 2013 12:05:42 -0400 Health Selah Hennessy http://www.voanews.com/content/who-issues-warning-over-sars-like-virus/1660074.html#relatedInfoContainer World Health Organization (WHO) officials said on Sunday it seemed likely a new coronavirus that has killed at least 18 people in the Middle East and Europe could be passed between humans, but only after prolonged contact. A virus from the same family triggered the outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) that swept the world after emerging in Asia and killed 775 people in 2003.        On Sunday French authorities announced that a second man had ... http://www.voanews.com/content/new-virus-can-probably-pass-person-to-person-who/1659475.html http://www.voanews.com/content/new-virus-can-probably-pass-person-to-person-who/1659475.html Sun, 12 May 2013 08:22:53 -0400 Health Reuters U.S. nurses are caught between a sour economy, a demographic bump and a flood of unemployed new graduates. After years of worry about a shortage of nurses, about one-third of new nursing graduates in the United States have been struggling to find work. Experts say there will be many job openings for nurses - eventually. ”I’ve applied for 35 different jobs and, despite having a 4.0 GPA [very high grades], I have not received any jobs, so it’s really concerning,” said University of Maryland ... http://www.voanews.com/content/some-us-nurses-struggle-to-find-work/1658976.html http://www.voanews.com/content/some-us-nurses-struggle-to-find-work/1658976.html Fri, 10 May 2013 18:19:02 -0400 USA Jim Randle Save the Children is partnering with GlaxoSmithKline to reformulate an antiseptic to clean newborns' umbilical cords, a simple intervention that researchers in South Asia have found can prevent one out of every six newborn deaths in the developing world.  Save the Children, in its State of the World’s Mothers report this week, identified this intervention as a key strategy to saving as many as one million babies worldwide who die each year on their first day of life.  Umbilical ... http://www.voanews.com/content/umbillical-cord-cleanser-cuts-infant-mortality/1658656.html http://www.voanews.com/content/umbillical-cord-cleanser-cuts-infant-mortality/1658656.html Fri, 10 May 2013 13:30:07 -0400 Africa Jennifer Lazuta Providing Africans with affordable health care could be realized if pharmaceutical products were produced on the African continent. The continent faces many challenges before it will be able produce its own medicines. African and Chinese delegations came together this week at the Roundtable on China-Africa Health Cooperation to discuss how Africa can start producing health care products on the continent.  This could help African countries provide their citizens with a stable supply of ... http://www.voanews.com/content/challenges-ahead-for-africas-phamaceutical-industry/1658686.html http://www.voanews.com/content/challenges-ahead-for-africas-phamaceutical-industry/1658686.html Fri, 10 May 2013 13:24:30 -0400 Health Marthe van der Wolf