Tag: Health

SICKO!

Documentary film maker Michael Moore is at it again with a new film hitting theaters in the coming year. It is titled “Sicko” and the film focuses on the American health care system.

A quote from his website:
“Back in February, I asked if people would send me letters describing their experiences with our health care system. I received over 19,000 of them. It was truly overwhelming as we literally took a month and read them all. To read about the misery people are put through on a daily basis by our profit-based system was both moving and revolting. That’s all I will say right now.”

It is always good when people care to speak out about the general well being of the public, however Michael Moore has also been subject to a fair share of critisism…many people have disregarded his films as extremist or incredibly one sided. Others argue that Michael Moore is extremely effective at getting his point across. One thing is for sure, the guy knows how to pack a movie theater.
The film Sicko will be released sometime in 2007. As for the past month Micheal has been keeping himself extra busy holding his second annual Traverse City Film Festival this which saw 50,000 festival goers last year. He hosts the festival as a venue for talented filmakers who’s films have gone undistributed despite the fact that they are undoubtedly deserving.

A busy guy that Michael!

Harmless Stem Cell Cultivation

stem cellEmbryonic stem cell research is, for some people, morally wrong. Well, good news! A company in the USA has discovered a technique that can generate the stem cells from embryos without harming the embryo!

Stem cell research is important because it can provide for fantastic treatments for people suffering from various ailments. This new technique will hopefully allow more research to happen.

“The technique used by the company is similar to the one already used to extract single cells from IVF embryos when they are screened for inherited disorders. Dr Lanza and his team believe that it will be possible to adapt the existing technique so that stem cells could be almost routinely extracted from human IVF embryos without harming their future health and well-being.”

Bird Flu, No Flu?

We all know that the bird flu H5N1 is bad, some people argue that millions will die as a result of it. Ouch. Don’t despair though!

A team of researchers have noticed that a certain aspect of H5N1 itself can be used to fight other influenza strains. Still it’s a mixed bag because the same property can render existing H5N1 flu solutions null.

“Researchers have discovered a detail of the H5N1 bird flu virus’s structure that could be exploited to make new, targeted influenza drugs.”

Sub-Saharan Africa Makes Milestone in HIV Treatments

Universal health care for all is still years away, but the number of people receiving HIV antiretroviral therapy has reached the one million mark in sub-Saharan Africa. This is a huge milestone that was announced this week at the International AIDS Conference.

“The one million figure represents a tenfold increase since December 2003, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Sub-Saharan Africa still accounts for 70 per cent of the global unmet treatment need, however, and 95 per cent of the 38.6 million people living with HIV/AIDS live in the developing world, where countries face tremendous challenges in dealing with the epidemic.”

Hope Spreads Faster than AIDS

my faceToday I was at the International AIDS Conference happening here in Toronto (previously). I was there representing TakingITGlobal, whom I work for, of course there were plenty of other wonderful organizations. Conviently, there is a list of every organization there, but one organization that had a really creative booth was CUSO.

CUSO setup a series of “rooms” where you had the chance to express what you really wanted to say to whomever. I wrote a message to those jerks who hold back HIV/AIDS medicinebecause I hate how they put profits before people. Despite my short tirade, other people had novel ideas and heart-warming messages.

It is just fantastic to see that so many people care about HIV/AIDS, and that they are doing something about it! TakingITGlobal has conveniently made an online resource of what you can do!

If you are in the Greater Toronto Area I strongly urge to get to the conference! There is a free section called the Global Village where many organizations have information booths.