ANALYSIS AND COMMENTS

November 2016 Africacheck; A news story saying that South Africa’s health minister urged men not to undergo voluntary circumcision as it can cause cancer of the penis is going viral. Not only is the claim false – the very opposite is true. In South Africa, a fake news story claiming …

November 2016 NHSNews; “Why processed food may cause bowel cancer: Common additives change gut bacteria which allow tumours to grow,” reports the Mail Online. This follows a study in mice investigating whether common food additives (E numbers) called emulsifiers cause inflammation in the gut that in turn triggers bowel cancer. The researchers …

November 2016 NHSNewsCentre; “Worried well ‘make themselves sick’,” reports The Daily Telegraph. Several other news outlets covered the same story with headlines about how the “worried well” may be more likely to develop heart disease. The stories are based on a Norwegian population study with 7,052 participants that aimed to …

November 2016 theguardian; Men are far less likely to seek medical support for a mental health problem than women, new figures reveal. A survey commissioned by the Mental Health Foundation found that not only are men far less likely than women to seek professional support, they are also less likely …

October 2016 lshtm; Common painkillers such as ibuprofen and diclofenac that are used by millions of people in the UK have been linked to an increased risk of heart failure, according to new research published in the British Medical Journal. Led by the University of Milano-Bicocca, the study analysed 10 …

September 2016 TheConversation; In September 2015 the United Nations General Assembly set the global development agenda for the next 15 years. The adoption of the new sustainable development goals included a range of targets to tackle the world’s health challenges. As part of the Global Burden of Disease Study collaborative …

September 2016 nbcnews; Smoking scars DNA in clear patterns, researchers reported Tuesday. Most of the damage fades over time, they found — but not all of it. Their study of 16,000 people found that while most of the disease-causing genetic footprints left by smoking fade after five years if people …

September 2016 bmj; In summary, our study showed that consumption of 14 or more servings of alcohol a week was slightly associated with reduced fecundability, but consumption of lower amounts seemed to have no discernible effect on fertility. Nonetheless, because the fetus may be particularly vulnerable to alcohol during the …

September 2016 newtimes; Achieving universal health coverage (UHC) for communicable diseases in Africa will hit a snag unless more efforts are put in both government action and funding, according to a new report. The report, dubbed ‘Universal Health Coverage: A Framework for Action in Africa’, also reveals that total health …

August 2016 ElesbanKihuba; Isn’t the untimely death of a patient under the care of a health worker the most unfortunate outcome? When I heard of the late Mr. Odhiambo case I felt empathy. His eight hours search for care ended in failure, death and controversy. Shortly after the event the …