Category: Body & Mind

India to Continue Producing Generic Drugs

EarthTrends is reporting that an Indian court has ruled against a large pharmacutical company, which means that India can continue to manfuacture their own drugs without paying exuberant fees to the phramacutical company. Like in Rwanda, India will be producing the drugs to treat people suffering from HIV/AIDs.

Monday’s decision is a major development in the ongoing and often contentious debate over pharmaceutical patents and their impact on access to essential medicines, which has pitted aid agencies and developing countries against large drug companies and the governments of high-income nations.

Generic HIV Drugs to Start Production

After much bureaucratic silliness, a generic pharmaceutical company can now begin production of a drug that helps people suffering from HIV/AIDs. Rwanda had to notify of their intention of importing the drug then get approval for the drug to even be manufactured (that’s the simple version). The point is that soon in Rwanda people will be better treated.

Rwanda plans to import 260,000 packs of TriAvir from Canada. The drug is a fixed-dose combination of widely used anti-AIDS drugs lamivudine, zidovudine and nevirapine. The generic product is manufactured in Canada by Apotex Inc.

We Feel Fine

feelbetter.pngThe “blogosphere” is filled of many things that make little sense. As a result, when I see something like We Feel Fine I get overjoyed.

We Feel Fine is a graphical way to explore the zeitgeist of the moment based on what bloggers have written about their lives. You can see what age groups is more concerned about what and if guys care more about love more than girls.

It’s a fantastic way to explore the emotions of the internet.

Get High and Fight Cancer

A new drug derived from marijuana is now available to Canadians, but you don’t actually get high from it. Sativex is a drug that uses part of the marijuana plant that has no psychoactive effects to relive pain – relatively, this can be like getting high. The U.K. has already approved drugs based off of marijuana which means Canada isn’t the first nation to do this.

Gordon said Sativex, which is primarily composed of THC and cannabidiol – a non-psychoactive cannabinoid – hasn’t produced any adverse side-effects in patients, something other pain medications, particularly opioids, can’t claim.
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She said patients who react negatively to other medications shouldn’t have to suffer because of their sensitivity.

“Any extra tool in that tool kit to allow for increased comfort is welcome,” she said.

Don’t Pirate Entertainment, Borrow it!

With the ability to download almost anything (they’re still working on downloading foodstuffs) there is no reason to go to your community library. Or is there?

Certainly there is! Libraries are the oft-forgetten piracy centres of convience. No longer do you have to search BitTorrent sites for movies when you can get them legally.

CNet reminds us that libraries are a haven of free information:

Libraries are offering more free search services, database access, articles, photos, eBooks, audiobooks, music and museum passes than ever. Chances are you are buying, subscribing to, or stealing something you can get for free with a library card.