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Day 6: Malaria, Killer of Men


trapical

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June 12th, 2007 ÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ã¢ââ¬Ãâ Malaria, Killer of Men

 

Day 6

 

 

 

Disclaimer: This is a touchy subject for me, I may spill some of my aggression onto this post.

 

 

 

Every year, malaria kills over two million people and infects another 450 million. The disease is present in over 100 countries, threatening 40 percent of the world's population. It is the global leading cause of death for children under five, killing one child every thirty seconds. It is the leading cause of death for humans in a dozen African nations.

 

 

 

Like AIDS, Malaria can be prevented, but prevention is tricky and is often not followed by the uneducated. This is true for both diseases, however, their similarities between HIV and Malaria end there. Unlike AIDS there is a cure for Malaria. There are drugs on the market can cure 99% of active malarial infections in less than 48 hours. These drugs cost from between $0.08 to $0.95. Less than a dollar. LetÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ã¢ââ¬Å¾Ã¢s think about that one for a minute. People were appalled when I told them humans are being sold for $200, less than cattle. But that honestly pails in comparison to saying the lives of 2 millions human are given up each year because someone doesnÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ã¢ââ¬Å¾Ã¢t want to spend a 75 cents on them.

 

Who doesnÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ã¢ââ¬Å¾Ã¢t want to spend the money? Good question, the answer is everyone. People are obsessed with AIDS, really they are. Yes AIDS kills just as many people, but it is an incurable disease at the moment. The drugs that do exist for AIDS simply treat the symptoms and just prolong death by a few years, unlike Malaria drugs that cure the person for life. The cost is also insane:

 

-The price of the newest AIDS medication (which doesnÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ã¢ââ¬Å¾Ã¢t even cure AIDSÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ãâæ) is called Atripla. Thirty tablets cost $1,297.61

 

-The price of the newest malarial medication (which saves the personÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ã¢ââ¬Å¾Ã¢s life) is called ACT . Thirty tablets cost $29.90

 

 

 

Okay, now lets see what people are spending their donations buying. $700 million are spent on Malaria each year. $15 billion is spent towards ÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ãâ¦Ã¢â¬ÅAIDS reliefÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬ÃâÃ

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I've for so long wanted to set up a fund to buy mosquito nets for Afrikan families. At $10 a net, you could save 200,000 Afrikan families for a measly 2 million.

 

 

 

Since what my cousin saw on his trip to The Gambia and Senegal, I've been on the lookout for funds like these, and have made it one of my lives goals to participate in stopping Malaria.

 

 

 

BTW know any credible funds that do this?

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Good idea Victor, here's a small list of sites if any of you guys are interested.

 

 

 

Simple donating site:

 

http://www.malaria.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=79&Itemid=43

 

 

 

Sponsor a net

 

https://secure.groundspring.org/dn/index.php?aid=12833

 

 

 

By the way, let me explain the nets. Malaria is spread by mosquitoes, and something like 80% of Malaria cases happen at around 1am when the mosquitoes feed on you while you sleep. A simple mosquito net around your bed can save you're life. They cost about $8 to make and $2 to ship, so the standard price for one is $10. Nice thing about the nets is they are re-usable. They can protect a small family for life.

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You are absolutely right.

 

 

 

Though this is not an excuse, people find it easier to donate to charities that will support AIDS relief because, just like you said, AIDS is more common than Malaria in established countries. Because of this, people find it easier to relate to those that have AIDS. Whether they have a family member, or friend who has AIDS, or has simply known someone who died from the disease. They find that it hits close to home and are more informed about it. I'm sure that more people would donate to Malaria funds if they were more informed about it, especially when it comes to medication costs.

 

 

 

Could I get some charity names, if you know of any? :D

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The sites I listed are legit. Malaria.org is fairly well known. Although if you're really worried about corruption use the net site I listed. They work with the UN, UNICEF, and the United Way.

 

 

 

If you're still iffy and want to go through a company you trust, like the Red Cross, than you can donate to them and specify on your donation "For Malaria"

 

 

 

Here is their donation page: http://www.redcross.org/donate/donate.html

 

 

 

Malaria isn't one of the preselected categories to donate to, but you can put it under "other". The Red Cross respects the wishes of the donors and will only use your money for what you tell them

 

 

 

Or if anyone else can find a good site, I welcome it.

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What are you getting at MPC, saying people that support AIDS are trendy, or saying we are trendy? Because I hope it is not the latter, I have been an avid Malaria fighter for a long time now, and my experience in the field of Biology has only cemented my resolve.

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A little off topic but reading this thread reminded me of The Poisonwood Bible. Great book and has some spurts of malaria in it.

 

 

 

I've always known that malaria was one of if not the worlds most deadly disease. It's easy to see why people don't seem to care given that, how many people do you know with malaria?

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I read somehwere that over 4 million people die of AIDS a year so I think it is about prioritising the funds, as many more people die of AIDS than Malaria. While Malaria is a rolling progress as we already have the cure, more money should be invested into something we cannot cure like AIDS as in the long run that is what is going to claim the most lives.

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I'm not saying that what i say is right because maybe that small portion we take away could be the line where it would help find a cure for AIDS ,but wouldn't it be better just to abolish this(MALARIA) disease from the planet so then we can focus on the AIDS problem?

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I read somehwere that over 4 million people die of AIDS a year so I think it is about prioritising the funds, as many more people die of AIDS than Malaria..

 

Between 1.8-2.5 million die of Malaria

 

About 3 million die of AIDS. Not a big difference.

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I read somehwere that over 4 million people die of AIDS a year so I think it is about prioritising the funds, as many more people die of AIDS than Malaria..

 

Between 1.8-2.5 million die of Malaria

 

About 3 million die of AIDS. Not a big difference.

 

 

 

Yeah but the number of people dieing of Malaria is dropping, while the AIDS numbers aren't, which is why I think they are prioritised as in the long run more people will die from AIDS.

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We seem to be arguing over which disease is more important - Did you know if you stopped the war in Iraq for a year you would have enough money to feed the whole world for 10 years.

 

 

 

How about we quit spending money on the newest weapon to kill eac other with, and start spending money on cures for things like malaria and AIDS.

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Agreed. while i do think its totally ok to support AIDS medicines, i also think malaria should be heard too. hey, we're not suffering from malaria. thats africa's problem. we need solutions for cancer and AIDS. because we in developed countries are selfish. all we think of is what happens nearby.

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Wow, that is really eye-opening. 450 Million people infected per year!! That number has to be at least ten times the amount of people infected with HIV per year. I knew that Malaria was huge problem in Africa, but I didn't know that it would actually be cheap to cure it.

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Kind of off topic, bot not really, did you know that people with cycle cell anemia are imune to malaria? The shape of the cycle cells prevent malaria from taking effect, preventing the disease altogether. That is why more African Americans get CCA than any other nationality. Because it is more common there.

 

 

 

On topic, good article. I knew about the disease, I just did not know it was that widespread around the world. :(

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I promise to donate to a malaria-charity next week...I actually did research on HIV-AIDS for a summer program I was in last year. Most of the AIDS medication doesnt cure the AIDS, but it prevents the progression of the disease by preventing the AIDS virus from hooking up to the receptor cells

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I've for so long wanted to set up a fund to buy mosquito nets for Afrikan families. At $10 a net, you could save 200,000 Afrikan families for a measly 2 million.

 

 

 

BTW know any credible funds that do this?

 

 

 

The United-Nations millennium goals is leading the pack. Their sponsors include the CDC, World Health Organization, Unicef, and US-AID. As you can see, they link to malaria-no-more. Which is the site I had previously listed.

 

http://www.millenniumpromise.org/site/PageServer?pagename=malaria_main

 

 

 

Someone asked about American-Idol, they use the same site: http://www.malarianomore.org/american-idol.php

 

 

 

Kind of off topic, bot not really, did you know that people with cycle cell anemia are imune to malaria? The shape of the cycle cells prevent malaria from taking effect, preventing the disease altogether. That is why more African Americans get CCA than any other nationality. Because it is more common there.
Yea, being a Biology major, we discuss this theme a lot. CCA is also proof of how human evolution can happen in short amount of time.

 

 

 

 

 

Oh, and I'm surprised no one commented on my party hat plan :?

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We spend, humans as a whole, billions on movies, entertainment, and professional sports that end up doing what, making us a little happier for a bit? Just $10 could save a whole family's lives, while Hollywood pays up to millions of dollars into just one scene in a movie that lasts a couple minutes? :wall:

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Sorry Strikers, didn't realize I skipped over that part.

 

 

 

AIDS is an important field of research, there is no doubt in that. But the numbers I listed (700 mil, and 15 bil) were for the amount of money given as aid. We're talking aid in the form of drugs/nets, not research for a cure. Pharmaceutical companies around the world are doing AIDS research trying to find a cure, but until a cure us found there is honestly not much we can do to stop AIDS.

 

 

 

See the point I am trying to make? You can donate 50 trillion dollars to AIDS relief and no one will be spared death from AIDS. Why spend $1000 to delay the death of one person for a year, when that same $1000 could save the lives of more than 100 children? AIDS research can't be sped up by donations, research is done by the pharmaceutical giants and they have billions upon billions of their own dollars to spend to do just that.

 

 

 

So summary of my points, AIDS is a growing crisis that kills more people than Malaria, yet sadly donations can't cure anyone of AIDS right now. Meanwhile the cure for Malaria is in stock and ready to be of use if only there was the money to do so.

 

 

 

Once an effective cure for AIDS is found you will find me changing my argument :wink:

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