MANGOCHI, Malawi (AFP) — Malawi, one of Africa's poorest nations, launched a nationwide anti-malaria campaign Friday by distributing one million free nets to children aged under five and pregnant mothers.
"Malaria is still the leading cause of morbidity and mortality," Health Minister Khumbo Kachali said at the launch in the southern lakeside district of Mangochi.
"In 2007, we recorded about four million malaria cases in our health facilities and about 7,000 deaths due to malaria."
The insecticide-treated nets have been bought with funding from the Malaria Global Fund and US President George W. Bush's Malaria Initiative.
Kachali, flanked by South African pop star Yvonne Chaka Chaka, said Malawi "expects to see a marked reduction in mortality and morbidity from malaria."
Up to 20 percent of the total number of patients admitted to hospital -- including HIV-AIDS and tuberculosis (TB) sufferers -- die of malaria each year.
Mosquito net coverage in pregnant women and children is currently estimated at 65 percent, from six percent in 2000, Kachali said.
Chaka Chaka, who helped launch the drive as UNICEF goodwill ambassador, said she was shocked with the number of Malawians infected with the disease.
"This is unacceptable... malaria is preventable and we can save lives by ensuring that pregnant mothers and under-five children sleep under treated mosquito nets. These nets cost only 700 Zambia kwacha (US 20 cents) on the market," she said.
Including the new nets, about 6.3 million dollars (4,000 euros) worth of nets have been handed out for free in Malawi since 2003.
Health experts say the government spends about seven million dollars annually to treat around eight million cases.
Some 60 percent of 12 million Malawians live on one dollar a day and the country's per capita gross domestic product is around 210 dollars per year.
Friday, 1 August 2008
Tobacco industry says Malawi will lose out if DDT is used in malaria control
Controversy is spreading over plans in several Africa countries to re-introduce DDT, as part of malaria control efforts, In Malawi the tobacco industry has now weighed in to oppose the return of the pesticide.
Two years ago the World Health Organization said it was giving DDT ‘a clean bill of health’ for use in malaria control. WHO recommends the use of indoor residual spraying (IRS) not only in epidemic areas but also in areas with constant and high malaria transmission, including throughout Africa. Environmental groups across the world have since protested against this recommendation. For example, see the recent TropIKA.net news story from Uganda.
The tobacco industry’s products are responsible for a significant proportion of the global mortality and morbidity burden. However, tobacco exports account for over 75 per cent of Malawi’s foreign exchange earnings and the industry fears that it will lose customers overseas. An estimated 80% of employed Malawians work for the tobacco industry. Felix Mkumba, Secretary General of the Tobacco Association of Malawi (TAMA) said major buyers of Malawi tobacco, like the United States of America and Germany, did not want the leaf to be contaminated with DDT. Any trace of DDT in Malawi tobacco – no matter how insignificant – would result in cancellation of millions of dollars worth of orders.
The proposal to re-introduce DDT concerns only its use at low levels inside dwelling places. Malawi’s health authorities have pointed out that the pesticide would not come into contact with tobacco. Nevertheless, the industry continues to oppose the re-introduction.
Two years ago the World Health Organization said it was giving DDT ‘a clean bill of health’ for use in malaria control. WHO recommends the use of indoor residual spraying (IRS) not only in epidemic areas but also in areas with constant and high malaria transmission, including throughout Africa. Environmental groups across the world have since protested against this recommendation. For example, see the recent TropIKA.net news story from Uganda.
The tobacco industry’s products are responsible for a significant proportion of the global mortality and morbidity burden. However, tobacco exports account for over 75 per cent of Malawi’s foreign exchange earnings and the industry fears that it will lose customers overseas. An estimated 80% of employed Malawians work for the tobacco industry. Felix Mkumba, Secretary General of the Tobacco Association of Malawi (TAMA) said major buyers of Malawi tobacco, like the United States of America and Germany, did not want the leaf to be contaminated with DDT. Any trace of DDT in Malawi tobacco – no matter how insignificant – would result in cancellation of millions of dollars worth of orders.
The proposal to re-introduce DDT concerns only its use at low levels inside dwelling places. Malawi’s health authorities have pointed out that the pesticide would not come into contact with tobacco. Nevertheless, the industry continues to oppose the re-introduction.
Cate Campbell challenging Libby Trickett at first Olympics
IS this the girl who could upset Libby Trickett's dreams in Beijing?
She is 16, stands at 184cm and is reigning Olympic champion Jodie Henry's tip to produce a "surprise" in the 100m freestyle.
Brisbane teenager Cate Campbell admits her ticket to the Olympics came much sooner than expected, but her raw talent has got many people wondering if she can spring a shock.
While dual world record-holder Trickett remains the favourite to take double gold in the sprints, Campbell is putting on the pressure.
The teenager is already the third-fastest 100m freestyle swimmer in history and is equal third-fastest in the 50m freestyle event.
"I don't think anyone expects to go to their first Olympics at 16," Campbell said this week at the Australian team's training camp in Kuala Lumpur. "I don't know whether I ever expected to go to the Olympics.
"I was just swimming and enjoying it, and I guess because the enjoyment was there that reflected in the results. This has been a really big, good surprise. I'm loving it."
Born and raised in Malawi, Campbell is the eldest of five children to South African parents. She grew up swimming in Lake Malawi - which she had to share with an angry hippopotamus.
"They had to kill it, actually," Campbell said. "It was a bit of a rogue one.
"I think it killed someone and ate someone's leg off or something.
"I didn't know where it was (in the lake) and it was eating all the farmers' crops."
Campbell migrated to Australia with her family in 2001, aged 9, and soon after she joined coach Simon Cusack's squad at Indooroopilly.
"It almost seems like another lifetime," she said.
"I can't believe I've been in Australia for seven years now.
"I just think back and go 'wow, where did the years go?'
"Then I look at where I am now and I'm like, 'did I ever live in Malawi?' It's almost like two lifetimes."
Campbell sounds mature beyond her years, but she admits she has taken guidance from some of the wiser heads in the team - even her sprint rival Trickett - on what to expect at the Games.
"I have had a little bit of advice," she said.
"Grant (Hackett) has said something, Adam (Pine) and Libby, all the people who have been through it before, they have just shared a bit of what it's like."
Until now, Campbell has been largely shielded from the media, so as not to add to the pressure on her.
She is rooming with fellow teenage ace and good friend, Emily Seebohm, and is happy for most of the attention to fall on Trickett.
"I guess Libby has a lot more pressure on her than me, given she is the world record-holder in both events," she said. "I'm not one for dwelling on pressure . . . I just focus on what I have to do because hopefully my results will reflect the training I've done.
"We constantly push each other. As swimmers we're competitive, but we're also great friends, and it's great to see her improve. That makes me want to improve and when I improve she wants to improve, so we kind of push each other along."
There has been no talk of gold medals among Campbell's school friends.
"They just say 'go and have fun and bring me back something nice'," Campbell said.
"None of them are really sporty. When I go to school it's just school life and most of the time if I get in the newspaper or something they don't even know, so it's really great.
"I became their friend in grade 8 and they have known me through this process and nothing about me has changed. It's really nice to go there and be Cate, instead of Cate Campbell."
It might be harder for her to do that in a couple of weeks.
She is 16, stands at 184cm and is reigning Olympic champion Jodie Henry's tip to produce a "surprise" in the 100m freestyle.
Brisbane teenager Cate Campbell admits her ticket to the Olympics came much sooner than expected, but her raw talent has got many people wondering if she can spring a shock.
While dual world record-holder Trickett remains the favourite to take double gold in the sprints, Campbell is putting on the pressure.
The teenager is already the third-fastest 100m freestyle swimmer in history and is equal third-fastest in the 50m freestyle event.
"I don't think anyone expects to go to their first Olympics at 16," Campbell said this week at the Australian team's training camp in Kuala Lumpur. "I don't know whether I ever expected to go to the Olympics.
"I was just swimming and enjoying it, and I guess because the enjoyment was there that reflected in the results. This has been a really big, good surprise. I'm loving it."
Born and raised in Malawi, Campbell is the eldest of five children to South African parents. She grew up swimming in Lake Malawi - which she had to share with an angry hippopotamus.
"They had to kill it, actually," Campbell said. "It was a bit of a rogue one.
"I think it killed someone and ate someone's leg off or something.
"I didn't know where it was (in the lake) and it was eating all the farmers' crops."
Campbell migrated to Australia with her family in 2001, aged 9, and soon after she joined coach Simon Cusack's squad at Indooroopilly.
"It almost seems like another lifetime," she said.
"I can't believe I've been in Australia for seven years now.
"I just think back and go 'wow, where did the years go?'
"Then I look at where I am now and I'm like, 'did I ever live in Malawi?' It's almost like two lifetimes."
Campbell sounds mature beyond her years, but she admits she has taken guidance from some of the wiser heads in the team - even her sprint rival Trickett - on what to expect at the Games.
"I have had a little bit of advice," she said.
"Grant (Hackett) has said something, Adam (Pine) and Libby, all the people who have been through it before, they have just shared a bit of what it's like."
Until now, Campbell has been largely shielded from the media, so as not to add to the pressure on her.
She is rooming with fellow teenage ace and good friend, Emily Seebohm, and is happy for most of the attention to fall on Trickett.
"I guess Libby has a lot more pressure on her than me, given she is the world record-holder in both events," she said. "I'm not one for dwelling on pressure . . . I just focus on what I have to do because hopefully my results will reflect the training I've done.
"We constantly push each other. As swimmers we're competitive, but we're also great friends, and it's great to see her improve. That makes me want to improve and when I improve she wants to improve, so we kind of push each other along."
There has been no talk of gold medals among Campbell's school friends.
"They just say 'go and have fun and bring me back something nice'," Campbell said.
"None of them are really sporty. When I go to school it's just school life and most of the time if I get in the newspaper or something they don't even know, so it's really great.
"I became their friend in grade 8 and they have known me through this process and nothing about me has changed. It's really nice to go there and be Cate, instead of Cate Campbell."
It might be harder for her to do that in a couple of weeks.
Solskjaer to build schools in Malawi
Former Manchester United star player Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has included Malawi on the list of three Southern African countries to benefit from his charity work, UK leading newspaper The Sunday Times reports.
Solskjaer, who was forced to retire from active football in 2006 after a splendid 10-year career at Old Trafford due to recurring injury, has plans to build 10 schools in Malawi, neighbouring Mozambique and Angola through Unicef’s Worldwide children’s charity.
The paper said each school will cost in the range of 20,000 pounds to 200,000 pounds (K6 million to K60 million) depending on the location.
The money for the project will come from a testimonial match between Manchester United and Spanish club Espanyol will be played on Saturday at Old Trafford in which Solskjaer will play.
The UK’s highest selling newspaper reported that the 35-year-old Norwegian would not pocket the 2 million pounds (about K600 million) for his personal gains as it has been the case with most players.
The paper said: “Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, the former Manchester United striker , known as ‘baby-faced assassin’ plans to use the proceeds of a multimillion pound match in his honour to build schools in Southern Africa.
“The schools will be built in Angola, Malawi and Mozambique under a programme run by Unicef, the worldwide children’s charity for whom Solskjaer has been a goodwill ambassador.”
The Solsjkaer-Unicef project will also provide books, writing materials and sports equipment.
He also pledged that if the match would not raise estimated 2 million pounds he would dig deeper into his pocket to fund the project.
Solsjkaer became interested in charity work after visiting a Unicef camp for abandoned children in Thailand in 2001 while on tour with Manchester.
The paper quoted the player as saying he was changed forever after the Thailand experience.
“To be honest, I had never thought about it before, that as a well-known footballer I could help children through my position,” he said.
The former player, who is now managing Manchester United reserve side, is no stranger to charity work and would like to build 20 or 30 more schools.
In 2004, he announced that he was donating to Unicef Norway his entire earnings 70,000 pounds a year kit deal with Nike and 30,000 pounds for advertising Norwegian cheese.
His gesture has won him praises from Unicef Norway executive director Kjersti Flogstad, who said: “There are not many people, let alone footballers, who are like Ole. It has been a big joy and a source of motivation to work with him.
Solsjkaer who scored a dramatic stoppage time winner in Manchester’s first ever Champions League glory in 1999 against Bayern Munich, has two sons and a daughter.
Solskjaer, who was forced to retire from active football in 2006 after a splendid 10-year career at Old Trafford due to recurring injury, has plans to build 10 schools in Malawi, neighbouring Mozambique and Angola through Unicef’s Worldwide children’s charity.
The paper said each school will cost in the range of 20,000 pounds to 200,000 pounds (K6 million to K60 million) depending on the location.
The money for the project will come from a testimonial match between Manchester United and Spanish club Espanyol will be played on Saturday at Old Trafford in which Solskjaer will play.
The UK’s highest selling newspaper reported that the 35-year-old Norwegian would not pocket the 2 million pounds (about K600 million) for his personal gains as it has been the case with most players.
The paper said: “Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, the former Manchester United striker , known as ‘baby-faced assassin’ plans to use the proceeds of a multimillion pound match in his honour to build schools in Southern Africa.
“The schools will be built in Angola, Malawi and Mozambique under a programme run by Unicef, the worldwide children’s charity for whom Solskjaer has been a goodwill ambassador.”
The Solsjkaer-Unicef project will also provide books, writing materials and sports equipment.
He also pledged that if the match would not raise estimated 2 million pounds he would dig deeper into his pocket to fund the project.
Solsjkaer became interested in charity work after visiting a Unicef camp for abandoned children in Thailand in 2001 while on tour with Manchester.
The paper quoted the player as saying he was changed forever after the Thailand experience.
“To be honest, I had never thought about it before, that as a well-known footballer I could help children through my position,” he said.
The former player, who is now managing Manchester United reserve side, is no stranger to charity work and would like to build 20 or 30 more schools.
In 2004, he announced that he was donating to Unicef Norway his entire earnings 70,000 pounds a year kit deal with Nike and 30,000 pounds for advertising Norwegian cheese.
His gesture has won him praises from Unicef Norway executive director Kjersti Flogstad, who said: “There are not many people, let alone footballers, who are like Ole. It has been a big joy and a source of motivation to work with him.
Solsjkaer who scored a dramatic stoppage time winner in Manchester’s first ever Champions League glory in 1999 against Bayern Munich, has two sons and a daughter.
AfDB increases support to Malawi due to growth
LILONGWE (Reuters) - Malawi is set to benefit from about $200 million and part of a $1 billion farm input fund from the African Development Bank (AfDB) due to its impressive economic growth, the bank's president said on Thursday.
The AfDB Group said it will double its soft loan window funding to Malawi from $80 million to just under $200 million, while the country would also receive part of $1 billion provided by the bank to subsidise fertilizers and farm inputs.
AfDB president Donald Kaberuka told a news conference in Lilongwe that Malawi's phenomenal economic growth in recent years and the reduction of inflation from 15 percent in June 2006 to single digits in 2007 encouraged the bank to increase its loans.
"Malawi is a very poor country but it is registering credible economic growth and the macro economic conditions look quite good when other countries are stagnating. We are pleased with the performance and our allocation of resources is based on that," he said.
Malawi remains one of the poorest countries in the world, but has enjoyed a relative economic boom over the last three years boosted by good agricultural output inspired by good rains.
The country's economy was expected to expand by 7 percent in the 2008/09 financial year, with inflation rising to 8.5 percent year-on-year in June, from 7.9 percent previously. Economic growth measured 8 percent in the 2007/08 financial year.
Kaberuka, who also opened the AfDB's country office in Malawi, said the country would be one of several nations to benefit from the $1 billion fund to subsidise fertilizers and farm inputs.
"Again based on performance of countries like Malawi, were the fertilizer subsidy has been very intelligently used, it is our obligation to support such countries and I want to confirm that we will do that," he said.
Over half a billion dollars has been pumped into Malawi's economy since 1972, when the AfDB first began its operations in the country. The group presently has nine operations worth $170 million in Malawi.
The AfDB Group said it will double its soft loan window funding to Malawi from $80 million to just under $200 million, while the country would also receive part of $1 billion provided by the bank to subsidise fertilizers and farm inputs.
AfDB president Donald Kaberuka told a news conference in Lilongwe that Malawi's phenomenal economic growth in recent years and the reduction of inflation from 15 percent in June 2006 to single digits in 2007 encouraged the bank to increase its loans.
"Malawi is a very poor country but it is registering credible economic growth and the macro economic conditions look quite good when other countries are stagnating. We are pleased with the performance and our allocation of resources is based on that," he said.
Malawi remains one of the poorest countries in the world, but has enjoyed a relative economic boom over the last three years boosted by good agricultural output inspired by good rains.
The country's economy was expected to expand by 7 percent in the 2008/09 financial year, with inflation rising to 8.5 percent year-on-year in June, from 7.9 percent previously. Economic growth measured 8 percent in the 2007/08 financial year.
Kaberuka, who also opened the AfDB's country office in Malawi, said the country would be one of several nations to benefit from the $1 billion fund to subsidise fertilizers and farm inputs.
"Again based on performance of countries like Malawi, were the fertilizer subsidy has been very intelligently used, it is our obligation to support such countries and I want to confirm that we will do that," he said.
Over half a billion dollars has been pumped into Malawi's economy since 1972, when the AfDB first began its operations in the country. The group presently has nine operations worth $170 million in Malawi.
AIDS in a time of hunger
Somehow I wish that all the AIDS experts and politicians gathering in Mexico City this weekend could have been with me two years ago, when I met a young man in a nameless, dusty village in Malawi. It was easily the most memorable encounter of my life — royalty, heads of state and celebrities included.
The man was in his mid-30s and badly emaciated. His eyes were pink at the edges and I remember thinking they were somehow on fire with rage. But there was really no anger in him — just exhaustion, anguish, confusion. After gently pushing ahead of the others in the crowd, he asked:
"Why are you keeping me alive? Why give me these AIDS medicines? I am too hungry and weak to work and care for my family. Why torture me this way?"
Needless to say, these were not questions I expected. My hosts had a well-scripted visit to a field project prepared for their new goodwill ambassador to generate publicity. No one was prepared for this man or the depth of his pain. It seemed odd that one of the few Africans fortunate enough to receive the expensive antiretroviral drugs that hold AIDS at bay would complain so bitterly. But we in the donor community had unwittingly given him a humiliating life no longer worth living.
What could I do? I assured him we would get him food, and later, the government of Dubai contributed to the World Food Program's operations in Malawi to help families like his. I like to think he is now working and taking care of his family with some sense of dignity. But how could donors have missed anything so basic as food in the battle against AIDS? Tens of billions of dollars have been pledged to combat AIDS, yet donor countries have largely overlooked the role of nutrition, somehow managing to ignore both the scientists and the beneficiaries. The donors have been asked for help often enough and there are United Nations and NGO projects out there to fund but they are not getting the cash they need to provide good, nutritious food to people like the man I met in Malawi.
For a while, it was the fashion in the aid community to speak about "participatory development," in which projects were planned based on the wishes of their intended beneficiaries. But over time, this has proven to be more rhetoric than reality, and the treatment of communities suffering from AIDS offer perfect examples of how we simply fail to listen. Peter Piot, executive director of UNAIDS, was stunned when he first met families devastated by the disease — they did not ask for medicine or money, but food.
With the steep climb in cereals prices worldwide, the situation grows worse. There is no better evidence that something is amiss than articles in Nairobi newspapers reporting that people being treated for HIV have been selling their anti-retroviral drugs to buy food for their children, and that began even before this year's alarming food shortages.
The obliviousness of donors to the role of nutrition in treating and coping with disease exists beyond Africa and AIDS. Last year, a food assistance project in Cambodia ground to a halt for a lack of donations. Many of its beneficiaries suffered from tuberculosis. Food security and proper nutrition has long been recognized as a critical component in treating TB. A monthly food ration draws TB patients in for their drug treatment and medical monitoring and helps build their strength to overcome the disease.
My husband, Sheik Mohammed, donated $1-million for food to restart the project and donations came in from the United States and Spain. Worried by the situation in Cambodia, the Lancet later ran an editorial on the growing danger of drug-resistant TB and how crucial it is to keep patients properly fed, so they do not become poorly nourished incubators for a deadly disease that threatens us all.
There are some organizations engaged in what I call "next generation" thinking — principally Médecins sans frontières (Doctors Without Borders). MSF has begun to promote food itself as necessary for healing, and not just for those affected by AIDS or tuberculosis. MSF is beginning to see special nutritious foods as medicine and that is an exciting development. After all, hunger and malnutrition remain the leading cause of death worldwide, including the loss of three million children a year. This all undermines our national efforts to reach the UN Millennium Development Goals.
Sadly, the aid community is slow in adopting the innovative thinking at MSF. Even traditional food aid has plummeted by 70 per cent just since 1999 — the lowest level since the founding of the World Food Program in the early 1960s. The chances that the special nutritional needs of people living with HIV and TB will be met grow slimmer.
Adults with HIV infection require 10 per cent more energy and as the disease progresses, that need rises to between 20 and 50 per cent. Micronutrient deficiencies often plague HIV-infected adults and children, and they can only be ended with diversified diets, fortified foods or supplements. As food prices soar, poor families are already substituting less nutritious foods for meat, fish, eggs and vegetables. For people who are already sick, this can have drastic health consequences. The poorest families are being forced to choose between food and medicine for loved ones.
If we do not do a better job of helping poor HIV-affected families today, what chance will the next generation have for health and prosperity? It is time to change the way we help. Drugs alone are not a solution for AIDS or TB. What doctor would admit a patient to a hospital, give them the most advanced medications — and then leave them to starve?
The man was in his mid-30s and badly emaciated. His eyes were pink at the edges and I remember thinking they were somehow on fire with rage. But there was really no anger in him — just exhaustion, anguish, confusion. After gently pushing ahead of the others in the crowd, he asked:
"Why are you keeping me alive? Why give me these AIDS medicines? I am too hungry and weak to work and care for my family. Why torture me this way?"
Needless to say, these were not questions I expected. My hosts had a well-scripted visit to a field project prepared for their new goodwill ambassador to generate publicity. No one was prepared for this man or the depth of his pain. It seemed odd that one of the few Africans fortunate enough to receive the expensive antiretroviral drugs that hold AIDS at bay would complain so bitterly. But we in the donor community had unwittingly given him a humiliating life no longer worth living.
What could I do? I assured him we would get him food, and later, the government of Dubai contributed to the World Food Program's operations in Malawi to help families like his. I like to think he is now working and taking care of his family with some sense of dignity. But how could donors have missed anything so basic as food in the battle against AIDS? Tens of billions of dollars have been pledged to combat AIDS, yet donor countries have largely overlooked the role of nutrition, somehow managing to ignore both the scientists and the beneficiaries. The donors have been asked for help often enough and there are United Nations and NGO projects out there to fund but they are not getting the cash they need to provide good, nutritious food to people like the man I met in Malawi.
For a while, it was the fashion in the aid community to speak about "participatory development," in which projects were planned based on the wishes of their intended beneficiaries. But over time, this has proven to be more rhetoric than reality, and the treatment of communities suffering from AIDS offer perfect examples of how we simply fail to listen. Peter Piot, executive director of UNAIDS, was stunned when he first met families devastated by the disease — they did not ask for medicine or money, but food.
With the steep climb in cereals prices worldwide, the situation grows worse. There is no better evidence that something is amiss than articles in Nairobi newspapers reporting that people being treated for HIV have been selling their anti-retroviral drugs to buy food for their children, and that began even before this year's alarming food shortages.
The obliviousness of donors to the role of nutrition in treating and coping with disease exists beyond Africa and AIDS. Last year, a food assistance project in Cambodia ground to a halt for a lack of donations. Many of its beneficiaries suffered from tuberculosis. Food security and proper nutrition has long been recognized as a critical component in treating TB. A monthly food ration draws TB patients in for their drug treatment and medical monitoring and helps build their strength to overcome the disease.
My husband, Sheik Mohammed, donated $1-million for food to restart the project and donations came in from the United States and Spain. Worried by the situation in Cambodia, the Lancet later ran an editorial on the growing danger of drug-resistant TB and how crucial it is to keep patients properly fed, so they do not become poorly nourished incubators for a deadly disease that threatens us all.
There are some organizations engaged in what I call "next generation" thinking — principally Médecins sans frontières (Doctors Without Borders). MSF has begun to promote food itself as necessary for healing, and not just for those affected by AIDS or tuberculosis. MSF is beginning to see special nutritious foods as medicine and that is an exciting development. After all, hunger and malnutrition remain the leading cause of death worldwide, including the loss of three million children a year. This all undermines our national efforts to reach the UN Millennium Development Goals.
Sadly, the aid community is slow in adopting the innovative thinking at MSF. Even traditional food aid has plummeted by 70 per cent just since 1999 — the lowest level since the founding of the World Food Program in the early 1960s. The chances that the special nutritional needs of people living with HIV and TB will be met grow slimmer.
Adults with HIV infection require 10 per cent more energy and as the disease progresses, that need rises to between 20 and 50 per cent. Micronutrient deficiencies often plague HIV-infected adults and children, and they can only be ended with diversified diets, fortified foods or supplements. As food prices soar, poor families are already substituting less nutritious foods for meat, fish, eggs and vegetables. For people who are already sick, this can have drastic health consequences. The poorest families are being forced to choose between food and medicine for loved ones.
If we do not do a better job of helping poor HIV-affected families today, what chance will the next generation have for health and prosperity? It is time to change the way we help. Drugs alone are not a solution for AIDS or TB. What doctor would admit a patient to a hospital, give them the most advanced medications — and then leave them to starve?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
