Gum arabic potential cure for Sudanese ills

Since he was 14, Al-Amin has tapped gum arabic, the resin of an acacia tree that thrives in Sudan's conflict states -- "manna" from heaven for some, a key ingredient in Coca-Cola for others. But the low price he gets has made the 40-year-old farmer from North Kordofan consider cutting his trees down and selling the wood as charcoal to feed his wife and seven children, despite such actions contributing to the desertification of central Sudan. "The producer has needs ... He doesn't have any alternative but to look to his farm and think about how much he will get if he chops down his trees," said Al-Amin. Sudan's vast woodland savanna, or gum arabic belt, stretches from the border with Ethiopia in the east to...

Read more »

Posted in: HEALTH

S.Africa offers lucky draw for voluntary HIV tests

A South African province on Friday announced it will offer a 50,000 rand ($5,900, 4,400 euros) prize in a lucky draw to encourage people to test for HIV in the world's biggest AIDS population. "Persuasion has not worked. We would rather use incentives than coercive methods to ensure that all adults regularly test their HIV status," said Western Cape premier Helen Zille, the Sapa news agency reported. People who tested for HIV at the testing sites in the province will be entered into the lucky draw in a campaign marking a 16-day anti-violence campaign for women and children. South Africa has poured money into its AIDS campaigns, rolling out a massive testing drive and scaling up the world's largest AIDS treatment...

Read more »

Posted in: HEALTH

Violence doesn’t make TV more enjoyable

ISLAMABAD: Contrary to the belief of some television producers, spiking cartoons with a dose of violence doesn’t make children enjoy them more. Despite growing concern about the effects of media violence on children, violent television shows and movies continue to be produced and marketed to them. An estimated 70 percent of children’s TV shows now contain some degree of violent content, BBC radio reported. Researchers in America tested a common view presented by media producers that children like to watch violent programming. For many producers and media critics, the question is not if children love violence, but rather why children love violence. The goal of this study was to examine children’s liking of...

Read more »

Posted in: HEALTH