Tackling climate change can improve public health in Africa – new report highlights how
Air pollution particularly affects children. About 56% of global air pollution-linked infant deaths occur in Africa.
Opinion and Editorial
Read More » Tackling climate change can improve public health in Africa – new report highlights how
Giving South Africa’s disabled children the care they need
by Chantelle Kriel, CEO of Casa Caritas. Most children with disabilities require care beyond what parents or primary caregivers can provide. In South Africa, many parents with disabled children struggle to earn a basic living, let alone afford the optimal…
How we talk to young boys is key to curbing the gender-based violence scourge in South Africa
by Dr Ntombifikile Mtshali, CEO of Shout-It-Now, a South African NPC that delivers youth-friendly, community-based HIV prevention, sexual and reproductive health and related services in the Gauteng and North West provinces. Young children learn by imitating the behaviours of those around…
Health risks at home: a study in six African countries shows how healthy housing saves children’s lives
Hellen Gitau, African Population and Health Research Center; Blessing Mberu, African Population and Health Research Center; Kanyiva Muindi, African Population and Health Research Center, and Samuel Iddi, African Population and Health Research Center Housing is a critical social determinant of…
Way too many young people’s lives are cut short on our roads
by Dr Lee Randall an independent road safety researcher and co-founder of the Road Ethics Project Globally, young people aged 5-29 – especially males – are the most likely to die in road crashes. This is very concerning in Africa…
Diabetes is South Africa’s second biggest killer disease: hiking the sugar tax would help
Karen Hofman, University of the Witwatersrand and Susan Goldstein, University of the Witwatersrand Death rates in South Africa have declined slightly during the past few years. But the country faces a steady rise in both death and disability caused by…
Diabetes-related deaths more than doubled in the past decade
One out of two South Africans with diabetes don’t know they have it. Such high levels of undiagnosed diabetes have devastating consequences. By the time they are diagnosed, people often have advanced organ damage.
Why the final push to eliminate malaria in SADC is so difficult
The disease is endemic to 14 of the 16 countries that make up the SADC region.
TB vaccine: WHO expert explains why it’s taken 100 years for a scientific breakthrough, and why it’s such a big deal
Charles Shey Wiysonge, Stellenbosch University The BCG vaccine for TB has been used for 100 years. It is largely effective for children under five, but less so in older people and can’t be used on patients who have certain medical…
Mental illness is a growing crisis which deserves our attention all year – not just in October
Lerato Mthunzi, Health and Allied Workers Indaba Trade Union (HAITU) General Secretary October is mental health awareness month and as it draws to an end, a few key issues must be highlighted to make this month less of a ritualistic…
South African men are much more likely to die from TB than women – here’s why
Mmamapudi Kubjane, University of the Witwatersrand and Leigh Johnson, University of Cape Town Around the world, men are more likely to get TB and to die from it than women. We recently conducted research to establish the various factors that…
Traditional medicine: research needs to build more evidence around the effectiveness of these interventions
Research now needs to build more evidence around the effectiveness of these interventions, and how traditional medicine practitioners can be mobilised to become part of the healthcare system.
Jerry Coovadia: the South African doctor who led the fight against HIV in children
Glenda Gray, South African Medical Research Council South African-born Professor Hoosen “Jerry” Coovadia, renowned academic and prominent anti-apartheid activist, passed away on 4 October. As a paediatrician I was privileged to know and work with him over two decades. Prior…
I’m a microbiologist and here’s what (and where) I never eat
Primrose Freestone, University of Leicester Every year, around 2.4 million people in the UK get food poisoning – mostly from viral or bacterial contamination. Most people recover within a few days without treatment, but not all are that lucky. As…
Chatbots for medical advice: three ways to avoid misleading information
David Martin Shaw, University of Basel; Philip Lewis, University of Cologne, and Thomas C. Erren, University of Cologne We expect medical professionals to give us reliable information about ourselves and potential treatments so that we can make informed decisions about…