In spite of efforts to roll it back, malaria appears to be claiming more mortality and morbidity due to a combination of a number of factors Sixteen-year-old Chinedu Ilechi, a Senior Secondary School class two student of Government Secondary School, Nyanya, Abuja, for the umpteenth time visited the Wuse General hospital, Abuja recently. The symptoms…
The Many Pains of Albinos
Youths living with albinism in Nigeria face an uphill task fighting discrimination and stigmatisation while grappling with health challenges By now, Ruth Modejemu is used to the reality that she carries the albino gene, which leads to changes in melanin production in the body. Albinism is a congenital disorder characterised by either a complete or…
Pregnancy Without Tears
For many couples, achieving pregnancy can be a climb to Mount Kilimanjaro. Aspiring parents sometimes face stiff challenges like low sperm count, blocked tubes, ovarian cysts and ovulation problems among others. Lisa Olson, a Chinese health consultant and former infertility patient, has been there. But after finally giving birth to two children at…
Waging War Against Counterfeit Drugs
It seems that the Society for Family Health, SFH, may have finally found a way to beat drug counterfeiters. Recently, the organisation unveiled the mobile authentication service, MAS, coding for Postinor 2, an emergency contraceptive pill, in Lagos. With the launch, it was revealed that people can now buy Postinor 2 from a pharmacy, scratch…
A Case for the Mentally Ill
A combination of lack of access to proper medical care, social stigmatisation and poverty swells the ranks of Nigerians suffering from one form of mental illness or the other From the way he dashed into the reception of a private psychiatric hospital in the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Abuja, no one was left in…
United Against Breast Cancer
It was not a first attempt, but Skye Bank has dealt breast cancer a major blow. Recently, the bank donated two ultra modern screening machines to Care Organisation and Public Enlightenment, COPE, a non-governmental organisation located in Adeniyi Jones, Lagos. Handing over the screening machines to Ebun Anozie, national coordinator, COPE, Kehinde Durosinmi-Etti, group…
The Watermelon Wonder
One of the myths children are often told is that when they eat watermelon seeds (or seed from any other fruit), such fruits would grow in their stomach. However, recent researches have shown that the entire watermelon can be consumed, including flesh, seeds and rind. The seeds have in fact been found to have nutritional…
Waiting on Hope
Although she is 14, Prudence Unaidet has stopped growing and remains bedridden in the last 12 years. Now she needs help from public-spirited Nigerians to be able to live a normal life She knew she had company, but the tiny teenager on the bed could not focus on her visitors. Her stiff arms and…
Between Cucumber and Pregnancy
It is a natural tastemaker, a refreshing vegetable even in very hot weather. The taste of cucumbers is mild, watery almost melon-like which makes it appealing to even pregnant women. Its folic acid and other vitamins readily make cucumber a winner for expectant women. Recent studies have found out that they lower…
The Trouble with Bags
Leather or synthetic handbags are items people can rarely leave behind, and they come in different sizes and with health challenges. All researchers can see in bags are heaps of bacteria, mould and fungi. Bags are indispensible fashion item but with intended risk to human health as shown by research. Tests carried out by Initial…