Comments on: Mosquito warfare

By: Jim

Jim — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 23:24:17 +0000

Here in California we have the pests & it's west nile virus they tell us to worry about. Repelant does NOT work on me- Last night I practicly BATHED myself in OFF & It was a dinner bell to the little buggers
who practically ate me alive I had to go back inside.

By: Jodi

Jodi — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 19:26:49 +0000

I recently spent a few months in a malaria endemic region of West Africa. Before I went, malaria was presented to me as a deadly disease
that, if contracted, would lead to some serious long-lasting damages.
When I arrived, I was surprised to find that this was (at least for me) not the case. My protective measures would go a long way in prevention: prophylactics, bednets, bug spray. If I got it, I would be taken to the hospital and be given a three-day course of treatment to take at home. In sum: malaria is both preventable and treatable.

Still, malaria stands as the number one killer of children under the age of 5 in sub-Saharan Africa. For those who fall prey to malaria and have
no affordable hospital or clinic to turn to, malaria will be a painful experience with side effects ranging from economic loss to death. Millions of people a year fall into the latter half of that category. Yet, what I've realized is that the deadliness of malaria is not so much a testament to the voracity of the disease as it is a testament to the need to enhance prevention efforts and further commit to finding a vaccine. More importantly, I believe it calls for a strengthening of infrastructure to increase the accessibility and affordability of health care and education in these regions. The cost of these few steps do not outweigh the benefit of saving millions of lives.

The world has the technology, the medicine and the capital to bring malaria's reign to an end. To do so, there will need to be a lot of people on board–from CEOs to Prime Ministers to schoolchildren and nurses. I'm glad that organizations like Malaria No More exist to put a voice to the movement and that mainstream media like CNN is reporting on this important and widely impacting issue.

By: Preston Duckett

Preston Duckett — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 21:21:28 +0000

You don’t really hear about malaria on the news. And after checking out a few links via Google, it is amazing the breadth and impact of the disease – and the lack of coverage and awareness about the issue. As a student studying international relations, it is inspiring to know that organizations are making real impacts on the ground on issues that most people don’t even know ARE issues. Africa faces many challenges, but eliminating malaria seems to be one that is well within the grasp of the global community with a little support.

By: Mim

Mim — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 20:18:54 +0000

Patel,

If you've not had malaria before, do whatever you can to prevent catching it...a perspective of someone who has had malaria befre over fifteen times.

By: Anna Osler

Anna Osler — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 18:36:05 +0000

This sounds like a great cause to become involved with. How could I, as a college student, use the resources of my university to raise awareness and funds for malaria prevention?

By: Vaishali Patel

Vaishali Patel — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 14:28:04 +0000

I'm traveling to Botswana next week and though I've heard anti-malarial drugs are a must when traveling to Africa, I'm reluctant to take them; are there any other options or steps I can take to protect myself while I'm there? I will be camping and working outdoors but at night we'll be sleeping under bed nets– is this enough? Also, I'm wondering if there's anything I can do while I'm in the country (even though I'm not working on malaria) to help.