People may be too embarrassed to openly talk about it, but everyone does it, toilet or not. World Toilet Day helps people celebrate the importance of sanitation and raise awareness for the 2.5 billion people who don't have access to toilets and proper sanitation. This video by the nonprofit WaterAid highlights the luxury of having a toilet.

Celebrating your can may seem silly, but not having one can not only lead to embarrassment, lack of dignity and safety issues, but also preventable diseases and even death. When people don't have toilets, they're forced to relieve themselves in open streets, fields, or back alleys. The result? The contamination of drinking water and food sources, which leads to a slew of health risks. Lack of sanitation is the world’s biggest cause of infection and kills 1.8 million people, mostly children, a year. Even countries with abundant toilets have to deal with problems ranging from unhygienic public toilets to waterway-destroying sewage disposal.

Vanilla, blogging on Let's Look At It This Way from Singapore, says that people should care about toilets:

“I know this is a crappy topic to most people. It is unfortunate that it is a ‘taboo' topic to talk about openly and many people remain ignorant about the scale of the problem. I fail to understand how this can be an unimportant topic when, on an average, we visit the toilet 2500 times a year, or 6-8 times a day. In our life time, we would have spent 3 years in the toilet.”

Organized by the nonprofit The World Toilet Organization, World Toilet Day is being celebrated globally with various events. To further increase awareness, WaterAid announced the launch of its new ToiletFinder UK App for iPhone users this week. The free app helps Brits find the nearest public toilet while reminding them how lucky they are to have clean and safe toilets. The largest event today, called The Big Squat, asks people to stop and squat for one minute in a public place to raise awareness. These photos show people squatting globally, including this one of preschoolers in Singapore:

A blog from Brunei, the world according to panyaluru …, also shows appreciation for the toilet by putting it into perspective:

“Imagine if we are walking along in the row of shops in Kiulap or Gadong. Suddenly the tummy grumbles, just like the worst ribut you can think off. No rest bite. Grumble and grumble. Rumblings. The light is on amber and ready to turn green. But no toilets in sight. Not a single public toilet in the rows of shops…Add to that no water, no tissue, nothing! That could be the worst day of your life, your worst nightmare, ever worse than the nightmares those kids have in the Nightmare on Elm Street Movies. On this day, let’s show our appreciation to our toilets.”

Despite its serious side, many people have used humor to celebrate World Toilet Day. In the U.K., the blog London City Drains features a 10-question toilet quiz, while in this video high school teacher Matt Cheplic sings about the day.

Some bloggers point out that toilets alone may not be the answer. Sandhya, blogging on Maradhi Manni in India, says many men don't use available toilets:

“In a city like Chennai, where the climate is hot nearly 10 months of the year, I see men urinating on the roadside all the time. When women can control and go home and relieve themselves, why can't men do so, I don't know. So, first of all people should be fined heavily for doing this crime (yes, it is crime) on the spot. I have seen them doing this on the wall of the public toilets! In Srirangam, I saw them urinating on the compound wall of the temple even though every street surrounding the temple had toilets, which were clean, but pay toilets!”

While lack of sanitation impacts everyone, the taboo around toilets can disproportionately affect women. In some countries, modesty forces women do their business in fields before sunrise or to hold it until after the sun sets, leading to health and safety concerns. Joanne Sprague, blogging on Overturning Boulders in India, observes that women are absent from the morning toilet run in Chennai, while in Ethiopia the blog AN ADVENTURE IN ADDIS notices a similar situation:

“I’ve heard so often about the lack of toilet facilities for women or lack of toilets in general; that teenage girls in the countryside get up at 4 am to go out in the dark to do their business so they don’t get bullied by the boys at school or stop going to school altogether. Men just pee anywhere, cigarette in hand and there’s an assumption that women don’t need to, if they are thought about at all….I want to see a huge billboard in Amharic saying ‘Girls go too’ with a picture of Barbie sitting on a toilet.”

To celebrate World Toilet Day, blogger Jonathan Stray, takes readers on an international tour of toilets he's visited, from Thailand and the U.K. to West Africa and Oman, concluding:

“We in the west with our flush toilets and toilet paper and sparkling shower stalls are the exception; the rest of the world thinks a bathroom is a wet, smelly place, when they have a bathroom at all. A good toilet means you probably have a very good quality of life, so enjoy yours. Happy World Toilet Day!”

Photo of Tiled Toilet by nedrichards on Flickr, Creative Commons.

While Sesame Street is seen in over 140 countries, each version addresses local issues and has different Muppets. Golden-yellow Kami made her debut on the South African Sesame Street co-production, called Takalani Sesame, in 2002 in response to the country's HIV/AIDS problem. The world's first HIV-positive Muppet, she helps educate kids about the disease and confronts issues related to being HIV-positive. The name Kami is derived from the Setswana word “Kamogelo,” meaning “acceptance.” Sunshinestar110, blogging on U Don't Like My Opinion…That's Fine! talks more about Kami:

“Kami is a healthy HIV Positive, affectionate 5 year old orphan who is a little shy but quickly joins when approached in a friendly way, She also knows a lot about HIV, she lost her mother to the disease. When Kami was unveiled, with her mop of brown hair and she also wore a vest, wandering onto Sesame Street and wondering nervously if the residents will want to play with her. She didn't have to worry because the other Muppets enthusiastically welcomed her.”

Kami was introduced to help the many children in South Africa who are dealing with the HIV/AIDS crisis. South Africa is believed to have the highest number of people infected with HIV in the world — an estimated 5.7 million people. Approximately 280,000 of those infected are children 14 and younger and there are 1.4 million orphans in the country due to AIDS. In addition to the physical complications of having HIV, there's also the stigma and taboo that comes with having the disease, which makes it harder for people to receive adequate treatment and support. Takalani Sesame, which incorporates all 11 of South Africa's official languages, tries to help children address some of these issues head on through Kami.

However, there was much controversy when Kami was introduced, particularly in the U.S., as many were outraged that a children's show would feature an HIV-positive character. Haven on Earth elaborates on the debate:

“Although it was reported that Kami's arrival on Sesame Street in South Africa was welcomed (I have a hard time accepting this as fact because of the still high level of denial still there), there was definite controversy here in United States. I remember reading about this (which is why I was so pleased to actually encounter a show airing while in South Africa - it would have never occurred to me to look for it). Apparently a group of Republican congressmen sent a letter to the President of PBS (Public Broadcasting Service) that airs Sesame Street. The letter protested that plans to introduce a similar HIV-positive character in the United States in due course were inappropriate, given the age of the audience. They suggested that such a move might threaten public funding of PBS [Public Broadcasting Service].”

Kami has never appeared on the American Sesame Street, though she has proven to be a very successful character on Takalani Sesame and beyond. In 2003, UNICEF appointed her as a global “Champion for Children.” In this video, she joins former U.S. president Bill Clinton to deliver a message about HIV/AIDS. Jamie, blogging on No day but today…, discusses Kami's other successes.

“Since most South African children know someone who has AIDS, the character has become a national hero, beloved by the country's people. Kami has appeared at the United Nations and the World Bank and was interviewed by Katie Couric. She has also been named a UNICEF ambassador for children and has appeared in Takalani segments alongside Desmond Tutu and Nelson Mandela.”

Despite Kami's success, some bloggers still believe that she's not an appropriate character for the American version of Sesame Street. Emily Meyer, blogging for her honors class, says:

“Although it is important for Americans to know about HIV/AIDS and the seriousness of the diseases, I think teaching kids at the ages of two and three is a little extreme. Children this young would most likely not understand about HIV and would not understand its consequences. If Kami was to be introduced in the United States as a way to spread knowledge and combat AIDS, I do not think the intended results would occur…Kids in America are not forced to deal with the issue of HIV/AIDS at that young of an age. I think the appropriate time for kids in America to learn about the seriousness of HIV is when they are older, about ten or eleven years old or when the student becomes sexually active”

Still, many bloggers, such as this one writing on Muppets and History, see Kami has another example of how Sesame Street has pushed the boundaries. Others profess their love for the Muppet and the message she brings to children. And still others think she should be introduced on other versions of Sesame Street. On her personal blog, Steisha Pintado says:

“She shows children that it is okay to hug someone who is HIV positive, and she explains what to do when she has a cut on her finger or if you have a cut yours. She teachers her young audience about coping with illness and loss…Even though sex is never mentioned when talking about Kami’s condition, some people have said that having an HIV positive character would be inappropriate for a young viewing audience. One legislature even claimed that the Sesame Workshop would lose its government funding if it aired a program with such a character in our country. It is so shocking to hear these words. Parents spend less and less time with their children, and allow the television to educate them more and more. So obviously many parents aren’t teaching their children how to handle delicate subjects of awareness and acceptance. Parents have already allowed the Sesame Workshop to introduce acceptance with those who have disabilities and illnesses, and also with those who are a different race or religion. How is this any different?”

Bloggers around the world are writing about climate change today, October 15, as part of Blog Action Day. One less obvious potential solution to climate change is related to the availability of contraceptives and reproductive health services. Many studies in the past few months have examined the relationship between population growth and climate change, some in support and others against using family planning as a method of emissions reduction and to minimize the impact of climate change. EJ, blogging on New Society Publishers in Canada, elaborates:

“This issue of who lives and who dies, who can have more children and who should have less children, is also beginning to raise its head in the climate change movement…

…Global population is a serious consideration for the future of our ecosystem. We have been debating this issue since at least 1972 when the Club of Rome published Limits to Growth, and yet solutions continue to evade us as we become embroiled in the emotional debates around reproductive choice, euthanasia and quality of life. The issue is so gnarly that some environmentalists refuse to discuss it.”

The world's population is expected to reach more than 9 billion people by 2050, with 95 percent of this growth in developing countries. Those in support of investing in reproductive health services and contraception to combat climate change argue that having fewer children means less carbon emissions and less strain on diminishing natural resources.

An editorial in the medical journal Lancet last month called attention to the links between rapid population growth and increased vulnerability to the consequences of climate change, such as food and water scarcity and environmental degradation. It suggested that by reducing unintended pregnancies, we could slow the high rates of population growth and possibly ease pressure on the environment. The Lancet says that over 200 million women want, but currently lack, access to modern contraceptives, resulting in 76 million unintended pregnancies every year.

An economic case was made for investing in reproductive health by a recent study from the London School of Economics (LSE) and commissioned by the UK-based Optimum Population Trust. It showed that contraception is almost five times cheaper than leading green technologies, such as wind and solar power and hybrid or electric cars, to combat climate change. Specifically, the study found that each $7 (£4) spent on basic family planning over the next four decades would reduce global carbon dioxide emissions by more than a ton, but it would cost a minimum of $32 (£19) to achieve the same result with low-carbon technologies.

Matthew Yglesias, blogging on Yglesias in the United States, supports the study's finding:

“The evidence is pretty clear that in societies where women are empowered and have access to contraception, that on average they want modest-sized families. And what this study is talking about is specifically what could be accomplished by closing the gap between the level of contraception that people want to have and the level of contraception they’re actually able to maintain. There are dozens of good reasons to think closing that gap would be beneficial, the impact on the environment is one of them.”

Still, Ann, blogging on Feministing in the United States, remains wary of the study's recommendations, saying:

“The LSE report contains a prominent caveat that this is about non-coercive family planning, but using fears about climate change as a way to expand contraceptive use is eerily reminiscent of ‘population control' policies, some of which were coercive and all of which were rooted in the idea that certain people should be having fewer babies…

…We all understand that empowering women to determine their own reproductive fates leads to other benefits — economic, societal, and yes, environmental. But given the history of population policy, to me the only acceptable international family planning policy is one that is motivated by increasing the empowerment and choices for women. Full stop.”

The New Security Beat says that countries such as India are objecting to bringing population into the climate change debate without more focus on reducing consumption in developed countries. A recent study supports this assertion. Published in the journal Environment and Urbanization, it shows there is at most a weak link between population growth and rising emissions of greenhouse gases. The study's researchers say the real issue is not the growth in the number of people, but the growth in the number of consumers and their consumption levels.

Simeon, a reader of Malawi's NyasaTimes commented on the study:

“The West needs to learn to live simply if we are ever going to cut these green house emissions. This may sound like moralising, after all Africans envy the western lifestyle and see it as a model of prosperity and happiness. We waste time connecting population growth climate change. I am happy that the study has finally exposed the lie behind this long held fallacy. President Yoweri Museveni recently at the United Nations asked a very tough question: ‘If the whole world were to have access to the western lifestyle, would the planet be able to support us?' I see that in the years to come the concept of development needs to be seriously reviewed and changed. Maybe to develop may mean living healthily and not necessary having everything”

Ruth Limkin, a pastor blogging from Australia, says maybe we should take a different approach altogether, where people are the solution and not the problem:

“What if we invested in innovation and respected reproduction?

The inherent potential in humanity itself is stunning if ever appreciated in its breadth and depth. The genesis of a truly great, revolutionary idea for energy generation, for agricultural technology, for waste reduction or for recycling methods may lie in the person you met yesterday.

Or it may lie in the fourth child of a family in Africa or India. What if, instead of controlling population, we created opportunities for education, established cultures of creativity and encouraged responsible, careful use of the natural resources around us?”

Photo of Friendly Condoms by Alaskan Dude on Flickr, Creative Commons.

World Hospice and Palliative Care Day, which takes place today, seeks to change that by celebrating and supporting hospice and palliative care globally. While it's true that one day is not enough to create real change for the millions of people who rely on or need this type of care, it can help bring much-needed attention to the issue. Not only are these stories largely omitted from news headlines, one study finds that even online educational materials about the topic need to be revised to make them more understandable. Throughout much of the world there's a lack of understanding about this type of care, as well as a lack of access to these services.

The theme for this year's World Hospice and Palliative Care Day is “Discovering your voice,” so organizers asked people from around the world to make their voices heard and submit their stories online. In response, people from countries ranging from Portugal and India to Malaysia reflected on the issue. Beatriz Thompson, for example, of Belize shares this account:

“This is the story of a brave little boy. His name is Julian Wohler. At the age of one and a half year he was diagnosed with neuroblastoma. Julian fought this cancer for 4 1/2 years. He underwent 5 surgeries cycles of chemo and radiation in Merida Yucatan, Mexico. Julian had to travel 11 hours from Belize to go receive treatment every 2 weeks. When the tumor came back for the last time Julian told his parents he was not going back for anymore chemo or surgery. He wanted to stay home and enjoy himself.”

Hospice Casa Sperantei in Romania

“My disease began last year with partial paralysis. I did 10 sessions at the hospital and I felt like everything was changing for the good. Three days later, I was in the kitchen and I fell down. Since then no more stability and I am very weakened. Firstly it affected me in a psychological way, like I was being destroyed. I was on the verge of disappearing, I wanted anything to happen, just to escape, because it is torture, a very hard torture.”

Judi Chamberlin, blogging in the United States on Life as a Hospice Patient, also shares the ups and downs of having a life-limiting illness. She suffers from a chronic lung disease and lung infection, among other health problems. In this recent post, she talks about feeling discouraged and reflects on her father:

“I find myself saying so many of the things my Dad used to say in his final months–he used to talk about feeling weary, and now I know just what he meant. Everything, even the most mundane activity, like going to the bathroom, becomes a major production. When someone would point out some nice upcoming activity he would say “hallelujah” or “whoop-de-doo,” hating to be diverted with something that felt so minor in the grand scheme of things. And although he was eighty four when he died, and I'm not quite sixty five (my birthday is October 30th), I know just what he meant when he would say, “I've lived too long.” I always planned to live to a ripe old age, but that was only if it was an active, busy life–the life I used to lead, the life I loved.”

In addition to firsthand accounts of living with a disease, many palliative care-related blogs, videos and other new media also share the views of caregivers, health care professionals and family members of someone with a life-threatening disease. In Uganda, patratm, a doctor and hematologist, tweets about various palliative care issues. In South Africa, a video shares the story of Zodwa Sithole over images of hospice care. Sithole watched her sister die of cancer at a hospice and is now part of the Hospice Palliative Care Association of South Africa.

Risa Denenberg, blogging on risa's pieces in the United States, is a nurse who looks after patients with life-threatening illnesses. In her blog she reflects on her experiences as a palliative care provider. In this post, she talks about the pain of losing a patient:

“Pager bleats its rising and lowering notes (de-da-do-da-de). Familiar as my name, but as I am wading from sleep to wake…It's the nursing home, telling me he has died. It's 2:15 am…

…The hardness was that he didn't want to die, wasn't ready, much too young, much too much undone, had just started over, this thing caught him in the neck and strangled him without so much as a warning punch. And the pain. Was terrible. Even on the highest doses of opioids I have ever prescribed. Pain mixed with fear, anger, angst. I think I loved him for these few weeks, a helpless sort of love because I couldn't make it better. I thought.

Daughter said to me: “He liked you. Really liked you. That's a big complement, you know. He sees right through shit, and you were real to him.”

shantanu.dutta, blogging on Mutiny in India, talks about a friend who died of cancer at a hospice. At the time, there seemed to be only one hospice in New Delhi, where space opened up when a patient passed away. He says he learned the value of hospice firsthand through that experience:

“The famous psycho-oncologist Buckman…said that “there was one missing chapter in Harrison's Textbook of Internal Medicine. The missing chapter was, ‘What do you do when all the treatment advised in all the other chapters fail?'

Palliative care is that missing chapter. It is missing in our planning, priorities and programs but is fast emerging from the shadows as an urgent necessity as we and our loved ones live longer and become more and more prone to debilitating and life threatening diseases that can not be perhaps be cured but with some a professional approach endured, and possibly endure well.”

The results of the largest-ever HIV vaccine trial, which was conducted in Thailand, were announced last week in a press release. Known as RV144, the study tested a combination of two older HIV vaccines on more than 16,000 Thai volunteers. The regimen was not only found to be safe, it was also 31 percent effective in preventing HIV infections. The trial was performed by the Thai Ministry of Public Health and sponsored by the U.S. Army Surgeon General.

Almost 5,500 people die due to AIDS every day and an estimated 32 million people have died from the disease since it surfaced in the early 1980s. The trial's results have been called modestly effective and a small step towards finding a safe and highly effective vaccine to help fight the disease. A post on the Asia Health Care Blog elaborates on this cautious optimism.

“Many public health experts, even ones with close links to the project, have been cautious about getting too excited about these results, particularly experts in countries where HIV/AIDS has become a pandemic, like in India. Some have called it a base hit as opposed to a home run, and everyone is saying that just because this trial may have had some success, a ‘cure’ is still many years away. In fact, experts do not even know how the vaccine mechanism works.”

Still, organizations such as UNAIDS are hailing the findings, saying it has instilled new hope in the 20-plus year search for a vaccine, which so far has seen few successes. Many bloggers, such as Brandon Lacy Campos, were also optimistic, despite recognizing the study's limitations. Blogging on My Feet Only Walk Forward, he says:

“Let the joyous news be spread the Red Ribbon Witch May One Day Be Dead!

Even though the study found that the vaccine only reduces the risk by 31% (which is way fucking better than 0%).
Even though the study was only done in Thailand with the strain of HIV most prevalent in Asia.
Even though the U.S. Army was the main funder of the vaccine trial.

I am still tickled red by this news.

Never before has any HIV vaccine been proven to be effective in preventing the spread of the infection. But some brilliant doctor in Thailand combined two previously ineffective vaccines and came up with a vaccine that, in fact, prevented, completely, HIV infection in a number of patients… So do not begrudge me my joy. I understand the limitations and boundaries of that joy, but hope breeds faith, and faith has been known to change the world if we let it.”

Beachlover, commenting on a post on Sawatdee Gay Thailand, is also not giving up hope that a vaccine may be found. He says:

“A vaccine is likely a long way off. But it may happen eventually… they've only been going for 20 years and there's plenty of vaccines, which have taken decades to research.”

Other bloggers remain less optimistic, pointing out the study's potential flaws and questioning whether the results are actually statistically significant. The vaccine was tested on HIV-negative adult men and women, half of who received the vaccine while the rest were given inactive placebo shots. Over the course of three years, 74 of 8,198 people who received placebo shots became infected with HIV compared with 51 of the 8,197 who got the vaccine. The difference was found to be statistically significant, but PinoyPoz, blogging on Back In The Closet from the Philippines, expresses skepticism over the results. He says:

“I apologize, but really, I was skeptical to begin with. I’d never read about any even minute developments towards a vaccine against HIV. It was just too out of the blue and too sudden to be a success, I thought. I know, my pessimism got ahead of me. I just needed to read all about it myself….

… With the “vaccine”, approximately 6 in every 1,000 people got infected. But even without the “vaccine”, the chances of getting infected were still small. Just 9 in every 1,000 people. The difference? For me, minute.”

Martin, blogging in the U.K. on The Lay Scientist, also expresses much skepticism. He says:

“We have a result that is barely statistically significant, using a vaccine comprised of two components previously shown not to work, a methodology heavily criticised by a galaxy of experts in a joint letter to Science, and quirks in the results which would be consistent with the vaccine not working.

I'm not going to stick my neck out and call this trial a failure, but no self-respecting skeptic can look at this results and declare them to be anything other than tenuous.”

Some bloggers speculate that regardless of whether or not the trial results are a reason to celebrate, people may use it as an excuse to stop practicing safer sex. Jimbo, blogging from Malaysia on In My Father's Footsteps, says:

“We cannot deny the possibility of a ‘rebound’ effect, in which people are lured into a false sense of security and let down their guard, like in the early days of HIV/AIDS where gay men returned to unsafe sex when AZT, the first anti-HIV medicine produced and marketed, was made available. They thought a cure for HIV has been found! In fact, Jimbo would think that it would be foolhardy to think that such a rebound effect would not occur.”

Other bloggers hope that more questions about the trial and the vaccine's true potential will be answered when the research paper is presented at the AIDS Vaccine Conference 2009. The conference will take place from October 19 to 22 in Paris, France.

Photo of Solo Needle by stevendepolo on Flickr, Creative Commons.

H1N1 was first detected in mid-April and has since made its way around the world. In the U.S., laboratory-confirmed cases of the virus have led to 9,079 hospitalizations and 593 deaths, reports the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It was anticipated that cases would increase as students returned to school this month. So far 21 U.S. states are reporting widespread influenza activity, mostly related to swine flu, which is unusually high for September.

To help combat a rise in all types of flu, including H1N1 cases, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced a video contest on July 9 asking people to create a PSA (public service announcement) on flu prevention. The videos could be 15, 30 or 60 seconds and had to be submitted on the department's YouTube channel. Over 200 videos were entered from across the country and the top 10 entries were chosen and put to a public vote. The winner, who received $2,500 in cash and is featured on national television, was announced, on September 22.

Dr. John Clarke of New York came out on top with his video entitled “H1N1 Rap by Dr. Clarke.” In it, he creates a rap song clearly laying out steps to stop the virus:

Besides the winning rap video, there were also nine runners up in the contest, with videos featuring everything from wit to animation to straight up seriousness to get the message of stopping swine flu across. This runner up, entitled “Chainsaw,” uses humor to encourage people to stay safe. In it, a man uses a chainsaw as a form of prevention against the virus:

In the video “Toothbrush” you see a toothbrush being used to clean the surface of objects, ranging from an ATM machine and a computer mouse to a public pay phone. The analogy is gross, but effective:

The video “Simply Fighting” is one of two runners up to use animation. Throughout it a white line morphs into four simple steps for H1N1 prevention: get vaccinated yearly, stay home if you're sick, cover sneezes and coughs, and wash your hands frequently:

Other runner up videos also focus on vaccination as a tool for prevention. The H1N1 flu vaccine is expected to be available in the U.S. in early October, though you can already get the seasonal flu vaccine, which protects against the flu that arises in the fall. Researchers recently determined that a single injection of the swine flu vaccine is enough to protect against the virus.

Health officials are urging certain groups of people to be among the first in line for the H1N1 vaccine when it becomes available, including pregnant women, school-age children and anyone with underlying health conditions, like diabetes and heart disease, or compromised immune systems.

Thumbnail photo of Swine Flu Panic by Y on Flickr.

Throughout the conflict women have been brutalized by rape and sexual violence. An estimated 200,000 women and girls have been assaulted over the past 12 years, with more than 18,000 cases reported between January and September 2008. This past May, the U.S. Senate foreign relations committee held a hearing to address how rape is being used as a weapon of war in the DRC.

Often this rape takes on extremely violent forms and can cause injuries to a woman's reproductive organs. For instance, it can cause a health condition called vaginal fistula, which happens when the wall between a woman's vagina and the bladder and/or rectum tears. Also called traumatic fistula when caused by sexual violence, it's hard to know how many women in the DRC have this condition. But it's been estimated that thousands of Congolese girls and women have been impacted, and one assessment of six DRC provinces found that out of 432 fistula cases, around14 percent were because of trauma.

Jim Bliss, blogging on The Quiet Road, elaborates on the situation. He says:

“In the rest of the world the condition [fistula] generally occurs due to serious complications during childbirth. Most gynecologists and obstetricians will go their entire career without ever encountering a single case. In DRC, however, there’s an epidemic. And it’s not down to an increase in complicated births.

Many of the militias in DRC have adopted a deliberate policy of terror through mass rape…However rape – even violent rape – does not as a rule cause fistula. No, instead the militiamen, having already gang-raped the woman (often a huge number of times over a period of weeks or months) will deliberately inflict major damage to her genitals before sending her back to her village. More often than not this is achieved by carefully shooting the woman’s vagina at point-blank range…Knives, broken glass or just sharp sticks are [also] used to cause as much damage as possible. Girls as young as 12 months have been subjected to this violence.”

Medical complications for women with fistula can include being permanently incontinent, infertility, miscarriages, and other health problems. On top of this, women with fistula often face stigma because of their status as a rape victim, as well as their chronic incontinence.

Many wounded women are unable to get treatment, but there are some medical centers that treat rape-related injuries, including fistula. One such center is the Panzi Hospital in Bukavu, which was created in 1999. Surgeons at the hospital performed 540 fistula repairs in 2005, 80 percent of which were due to sexual violence. In this video, a psychologist at the Panzi Hospital shows what life is like for women seeking treatment for traumatic fistula.

Endre Vestvik visited the hospital and took a series of photos of women and girls being treated for fistula. This is a photo of 4-year-old Vitonsi, who is preparing for fistula surgery. She was raped by soldiers when trying to cross the river with her pregnant mom and her sister.

Gypsy Girl Chronicles also went to Panzi Hospital and describes her experience:

“Doctors here specialize in fistula operation and women travel here from far and wide for a cure. I met one woman here who was raped and tortured at the age of 17 during the height of the war. She has been at the hospital, away from her family for over 6 years now enduring one operation after another. She said that she did not feel human anymore and had no future.”

A hospital in Goma is also working to treat women who have fistula. This video shows a young woman with the condition being taken to the DOCS Hospital, where other women are recovering from treatment.

Despite the positive work being done by these hospitals, Emin Pasha, blogging on Congo Resources, felt highly discouraged after learning more about sexual violence in the DRC.

“Little is being done about the problem, despite the fact that rape in eastern Congo has become such a well-known and well-publicized problem. Research on the topic remains preliminary; there are still only a handful of clinics and hospitals addressing the needs of the women; police and local authorities still don't have any capacity or willingness to protect the population; and overall it appears that the problem is getting worse not better.”

Still, Brad MacIntosh, blogging on A wide-angle view of the DRC conflict, says his visit to the Panzi Hospital in June gave him a glimmer of hope.

“It is hard to describe all the emotions as I walked through the open corridors of the hospital complex on a warm and sunny day. I headed towards the operating theatres and found that the second building is now fully operational. This operating theater is for surgical repair of women who have survived rape. Surgeries are performed by the head fistula surgeon, a gentle and wise doctor named Dr Yunga who I met previously. Beyond this building is a beautiful courtyard where survivors of rape have a place to call their own, where they have workshops, sing, cook and learn skills…I have seen evidence of remarkable progress at Panzi Hospital. Layers of progress in fact, which leads me to conclude it is a place of immense potential and optimism in city that has seen too much despair.”

Photo of Waiting for Treatment by Endre Vestvik (cyclopsr) on Flickr.

Under the current ban HIV-positive foreigners, whether they're tourists or business travelers, can't enter the U.S., though in exceptional cases a waiver can be granted. The policy, which has been in place for more than 15 years, also prevents immigrants with HIV from becoming legal permanent residents. This is because the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) includes HIV as one of the “communicable diseases of public health significance” that bar people from entering the U.S. But last week the HHS issued proposed regulations that would remove HIV from this communicable diseases list.

Many activists and bloggers are applauding the move, since it kicks off the process to repeal the ban. For instance, Erin, blogging on an aspiring midwife, says:

“It took until 2009, but the government finally overturned one of the most blatantly discriminate laws legislated in the past twenty years.”

The first step to lift the ban was actually taken last July, when President George W. Bush signed a bill into law containing an amendment that would strike down the ban. But the prohibition stayed in place because HIV was still on the communicable disease list, allowing the U.S. government to stop those with HIV from entering the country. Last month, for example, HIV-positive British activist Paul Thorn was denied a visa when he tried to participate in a conference taking place in Seattle. This video provides more background of the ban.

While various countries around the world have some travel or immigration restrictions on those with HIV, the U.S. is one of a few countries with such a restrictive policy on simply entering the country. The blog DYM SUM elaborates:

“An interesting side note: only a dozen countries in the world, besides the United States, still have an HIV travel ban in place. They are Iraq, China, Saudi Arabia, Libya, Sudan, Qatar, Brunei, Oman, Moldova, Russia, Armenia, and South Korea. If you need to, read that list a second time, and think about what’s wrong there.”

In response to the news, bloggers have been sharing their experiences of trying to get into the U.S. or strategies they've heard can circumvent the travel ban. For example, The Evolution of Jeremiah, a blog from Canada, says:

“I never had a problem getting into the United States. Nobody asked me, and nobody needed to know. This will be good news to travelers world wide. Hopefully this will come into effect sooner than later.”

Bobito, commenting on a blog post on Queerty, explains other strategies that those with HIV have used:

“From what I've been told, if they [U.S. customs] find the antiviral medications in a traveler's luggage, they do not let the person leave the airport. There are ways to avoid this situation, such as mailing one's meds to a friend in America before you fly, and I think there are some HIV support organizations that provide some help in this, too.

I also read that, if they do a random luggage search and find antiviral meds, then they stamp HIV+ into the traveller's passport, making all future attempts to travel into countries that ban HIV+ visitors impossible, but I don't remember where I read.”

A report released in June by Human Rights Watch describes how these policies can have health consequences on HIV-positive migrants. The blog Empowerment for HIV Positive Migrants and Spouses, based in Malaysia, also discusses how these restrictions can be detrimental to those with HIV. It states:

“Misconception and prejudice on HIV due to lack of information still caused stigmatisation on PLHIV [People Living with HIV]. There is a trend for PLHIV who travels to countries with restrictions to stop their treatment [ART] to avoid entry ban. This step caused resistance to the treatment…

…All countries have to remember that all UN member states were signed on to the International Health Regulations which does not single out any diseases, including HIV. This regulation must be the baseline of advocacy for treatment provision in the country. Influential countries such as USA and China should take on the leadership on this regard and be a good role model for other countries when they actually eliminate the restrictions.”

Now that the HHS has posted their proposed regulations, there will be a 45 day public comment period that ends on August 17. If the regulations are adopted after the comment period, they will then need to be implemented. The final timeline for implementation isn't currently known, but some activists hope for something by the end of the year. The blog DYM SUM says everyone will benefit if the ban is repealed and the new regulations implemented.

“This has been a lesser issue of contention in some parts of the GLBTQ [gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, queer and questioning] community, but – without question – is equally important to other matters that need to be addressed. Of course, it goes without saying that lifting the HIV travel ban affects not only the GLBTQ community, but the entire world as well.”

Photo of Standing Airplane by Steven Fernandez on Flickr.

In a study released in March, 94 percent of the pregnant teens interviewed said that their pregnancies were unintended. The same study showed high rates of sexual violence among pregnant and non-pregnant teens. It found that almost half of the 15- to 17-year-old female teens in Kingston, Jamaica, who were interviewed reported experiencing sexual coercion or violence. One-third of these teens said that they had been persuaded or forced to participate in their first sexual experience.

Besides forced sex, UNICEF attributes high teen pregnancy rates in Jamaica to factors such as a low rate of contraceptive use, an early age for sexual initiation, exchanging sex for resources, and poor access to information and skills on safe and responsible sex.

Thinkbass describes this scene she witnessed when working as an intern in a hospital in St. Catherine, Jamaica. She says:

“On a duty night it is a norm for me to see two or three incomplete miscarriages (we do not like the term abortions anymore)…The majority are under 30 years of age with a few being over 40 and an alarming number being under 21 years. The shocking nature of the problem is best understood in short anecdotes.

Age 16 Problem: Incomplete miscarriage

Alarming feature (AF): Asketh the stupid doctor (me) ‘What’s the name of the partner (baby father)?' A dumb stare then a mumbled ‘Zingy’. I sigh and drop the pen. ‘What’s his real name?' She looks at me then turns to her mother for help…The mother asks me to wait while she goes outside to ascertain the man’s name. Yes, you understood correctly. She does not even know this man’s name! She has been offering him her young body and his name she does not know. He is at least 30.”

Sasha D., responding to a Jamaica Gleaner blog post, shares her own story of being a pregnant teen. She says the only thing that saved her was her mother:

“At age 17, fresh out of High School, innocent to the world and ignorant of men, I found myself pregnant after partying for one single night. Boyfriend, who had been only just that, took advantage of the fact that he was leaving the island, and I was too drunk to say no! And so after 2 minutes…perhaps seconds..of ruckus…that’s exactly what it was I think….I became pregnant.

Who did I turn to? Mom! Mom was hurt, upset, angry, mad, ashamed even….but she locked it all in, and stood by me….every step of the way. And because of that I got the courage, the inspiration to move on ahead after the baby was born. I went back to school, graduated from college, and went on to University. What if Mom had turned me out? Where would I have gone? What would I have become?”

Sasha D.'s story is apparently not the norm. Only 34 percent of adolescent mothers return to school after giving birth in Jamaica. The March study adds that adolescent pregnancy also contributes to increased maternal and child morbidity and mortality, and a decreased likelihood of mom becoming gainfully employed.

Bob, also responding to the Jamaica Gleaner blog post, proposes one solution to help bring down teen pregnancy rates. He says:

“Most Jamaican parents are so ashamed of their body parts, and their sexuality that they cant discuss sex with their young teenage daughters. And they don’t know that by doing so it will come to bite them in the butt. when you don’t teach your kids how can you blame them?…i urge parent to start teaching their girl children about sex at age 10.”

Others argue that Jamaica's abortion laws need to be loosened, so women and teenage girls have access to safe and legal abortions. A blog post on The Perception and Self-Perception of Women and Their Effects on Health Globally elaborates on these laws:

“Abortion in Jamaica is still a federal crime except in some cases, (governed by an ambiguous “common law”),“(i) significant fetal abnormality; (ii) where pregnancy would represent a threat to the welfare or health of the mother and (iii) in cases where pregnancy is an outcome of rape or incest;” however, as of 2004, the third leading cause of maternal mortality in Jamaica was unsafe abortions.”

Jamaican Gordon Swaby blogs about his belief that abortion should be legalized in Jamaica. He says:

“Who the hell decides what i can and cannot do with an unborn child, it’s rubbish i tell you. So many children are being born in unprepared and immature families. These idiots prefer a child to be born and end up on the streets because their parents could not take care of them, and it’s not like the state has an effective system in place to take care of these children…if they are going to make the decision not to legalize abortion in Jamaica, don’t do it on a religious basis, do it on a logical one.”

Other solutions the study suggests to combat teen pregnancy include encouraging adolescents to delay when they first have sex and discouraging multiple partnerships. It also says that gender-based violence needs to be addressed at the community level.

Thinkbass adds that women and girls also need to start respecting themselves. She says:

“There are many pregnant teenagers with their soon to be 30 year old grandmothers. There are many women on their fifth or more pregnancy and desirous of more – cause ‘di man wan’ more. A few HIV positive mothers NOT in their first pregnancy (one was in her ninth). And I am amused. For in the last hours they are all screaming and calling to God for help. One even asking what she did to deserve this! But never once have I heard any of them scream: ‘Never again. Ah doan want no more.’

When did our women become receptacles, dumping grounds for men’s sperms? When was it legalised for us to insult our bodies with effluence? When did we decide it was ‘ok’ for us to torture our flowers at young ages with penises too brutal and babies too big? When did men rule our bodies? How is it that what they want is gospel even if it means our death?”

Photo of Jamaican Girls by marco annunziata on Flickr.

The United States and Mexico still have the most cases of the virus, though it has now been found on most continents. This map shows all confirmed cases and deaths globally from the H1N1 virus. Images from around the world are capturing the disease's impact and people's reactions.

This photo was taken in Mexico, where the virus has been the most deadly. The WHO says that Mexico has reported 1,626 confirmed cases of the infection, including 45 deaths.

Photo by Guerry on Flickr

Photo by Chupacabra on Flickr

Photo by 19melissa68 on Flickr

When H1N1 was initially detected and started spreading in Mexico City it caused panic, said the photographer of this image. This photo shows empty shelves in a supermarket in the east part of Mexico City. The photographer added that authorities have stressed that there will be no shortage of food and medicine, which has slowed down hoarding.

Photo by Enea on Flickr

From Mexico City to New York City, people in closed places such as the subway have been using face masks to try and avoid getting swine flu, since the virus is mainly spread between people through coughing and sneezing. But there's been much debate over whether these masks are actually effective.

Photo of New York City by Swerz on Flickr

Photo of Mexico City by Enea on Flickr

Still, many people have used face masks to protect themselves, particularly when traveling, be it airline crew members or passengers. In this image, members of a flight crew wear masks as they wait for their luggage in an airport in Bogota.

Photo by laimagendelmundo on Flickr

This image shows the panic that also hit the U.K., which has 39 confirmed cases of swine flu. In response to the outbreak, Britain's Health Protection Agency announced last week that they have sequenced the full genetic code of the H1N1 virus, the first step in producing a European prototype of a swine flu vaccine.

Photo by donebythehandsofabroken artist on Flickr

This image shows an elevator in Hong Kong that is sterilized regularly to prevent swine flu. Though there's only one confirmed case in China so far, the country has taken strong measures to prevent the spread of the virus. For example, on May 8 Hong Kong lifted a weeklong quarantine on a hotel where a Mexican swine flu patient stayed, releasing around 280 people who had been isolated in the building.

Photo by David Bailey MBE on Flickr

Finally, in this image people gather at the Metropolitan Cathedral Mexico City. The photographer said that they were praying for the sick, the government and the rest of the society, hoping “they make ‘good decisions' against the swine flu epidemic in our country.”

Photo by Sarihuella on Flickr

Also known as swine influenza A or H1N1, swine flu is a respiratory disease of pigs that can be passed between humans mainly through coughing and sneezing. In Mexico, there are over 100 deaths possibly linked to swine flu and more than 1,600 people have been sickened with suspected or confirmed cases of the virus. Confirmed cases of swine flu have now also been found in the U.S. and Canada, while New Zealand, Spain, France, Israel and Brazil all have suspected cases. Liz Borkowski, blogging on The Pump Handle, elaborates on why there is concern about the spread of swine flu:

“Swine flu is fairly common, but it’s usually only transmitted from pigs to humans. This new strain appears to be capable of human-to-human transmission, and it’s also sickening young, otherwise-healthy adults. This means the virus has the serious potential to cause a pandemic, so it’s appropriate that Mexico has closed schools until May 6 and barred large public gatherings, including church services.”

American health officials declared a public health emergency on April 26 after confirming 20 cases of swine flu in the states of California, Kansas, New York, Ohio and Texas. Most of these cases were mild, though, and no deaths have been reported. Canada also confirmed six mild cases of swine flu in the provinces of Nova Scotia and British Columbia.

News of swine flu has spread quickly on the Internet, as people search for answers and share their thoughts on the disease. Swine Flu and #swineflu are the top trending topics on Twitter at the moment, and various Google maps have been created to track the outbreak. Bloggers around the world are also talking about swine flu.

Daniel Hernandez, blogging on Intersections, describes this scene in Mexico City:

“On Saturday, while the top brass at the WHO convened an emergency meeting in Geneva, soldiers in Mexico City were passing out face-masks at traffic stops, metro stations, and plazas. A militar in fatigues handed me a mask upon entering metro Bellas Artes, but it fell apart before I could even get on a train. On board, passengers eyed one another suspiciously and made every effort to avoid contact with strangers.”

Matthew Yglesias, blogging for the Center for American Progress Action Fund, expresses concern over how those without health insurance in the U.S. will deal with this disease:

“I have no opinions on this subject beyond the observation that it would be nice to live in a country where, if fell seriously ill due to viral infection, your access to effective medical remedies was not determined by your wealth, income, or employment status.”

Jim McVeagh, blogging from New Zealand on MacDoctor, thinks that more needs to be done in his country and worldwide to contain the virus. In New Zeland, 13 students who recently visited Mexico are suspected of having the disease. McVeagh says:

“Considering the massive over-reaction that occurred with bird flu, one would have hoped for a somewhat more vigorous response to this one than simple monitoring. I would have thought isolation of cases and restriction of travel to Mexico would have been a minimum response until we have more data. Since the CDC [the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] is now waking up probably about a week too late and the WHO insists on sitting on its hands, New Zealand’s lackadaisical response looks almost brisk in comparison.

While this might indeed be another non-event, it would be nice if health authorities made that call in hindsight rather than apparently up-front with incomplete information.”

Many countries are implementing safety measures to prevent the spread of swine flu. For example, some airports are screening travelers from Mexico for flu symptoms, and China and Russia plan to put anyone with symptoms under quarantine. Vijay Sadasivam, blogging on scan man, says that no preventative initiatives are being taken in India, though, while boinky, blogging on Finestkind Clinic and fish market, describes one measure happening in the Philippines:

“The Philippines will stop importation of pork from the US and Mexico to stop the spread…this is funny, since the flu is being spread human to human, and our own pigs have Ebola Reston…

but of course it's fiesta time, and so far no talk of a human quarantine such as they did with SARS…”

Many bloggers point out that while we should take this threat seriously and be prepared, there's no need to panic just yet. For instance, a post on Utah Preppers says:

“Some quick anti-panic notes…

Swine flu CANNOT be transmitted by food. Eating pork does NOT put you at risk.

This is NOT the first time the ’swine flu’ has transmitted to humans. It’s happened several times before without it becoming a pandemic.

This variant of swine flu, as with any flu, is a virus and primarily spread person-to-person through coughing or sneezing.

This is just a flu! The key here is to NOT GET IT.”

The WHO isn't currently recommending any travel or trade restrictions, and says they need more information on the virus before deciding whether to raise the global pandemic alert level, which is currently at level three of the six levels.

Photo of Swine Flu Protection by Sarihuella on Flickr.

Kutcher narrowly beat CNN's breaking-news feed late last Thursday night, becoming the first Twitter user to have 1 million people signed up to follow his tweets. If he won, Kutcher had promised to donate 10,000 mosquito bed nets to the non-profit organization Malaria No More to help protect families in Africa from malaria. Kutcher began tweeting about malaria earlier this month, before the competition with CNN, to raise awareness about the disease.

Malaria is a deadly disease that is passed between people by certain types of mosquitoes. It infects more than 500 million people a year and kills more than 1 million. Every 30 seconds a child dies from malaria. The disease's biggest impact is felt in sub-Saharan Africa, but malaria also afflicts Asia, Latin America, the Middle East, and parts of Europe. Malaria is preventable and treatable, though, with tools such as insecticide-treated mosquito nets, indoor spraying of insecticides, and anti-malarial drugs.

Many bloggers are praising Kutcher's publicity stunt for raising awareness about the issue. For example, the Malaria Policy Center thanks Kutcher, while a post on The Singapore Enquirer calls Kutcher's victory a win-win situation:

“Although at first glance one will find this whole thing really absurd, it seems that the first person who reached the 1 million goal will donate a significant amount in the fight against malaria in Africa…

…So looks like everyone is in win-win-win situation here. Twitter gets free publicity. Money to fight malaria in Africa. And James Cox [the previous owner of CNN's breaking-news Twitter account] laughs all the way to the bank. But this only happens in America, the American dream still there for some lucky chap.”

A post on the blog A Mexican View adds that Latin American businesses can learn a lot from Kutcher's antics:

“In Latin America business can't grasp yet that it is possible to generate loyalty to a brand using social networks…I don't think they should take this as a fad, but they should start to build a presence for their brand, and I hope business in Latin America can understand that, studying the best way to use Social Media for their benefit, they can built a connection with their consumers, as Ashton and other Hollywood stars are doing.”

However, others criticize Kutcher's moves, saying it undermines the whole point of Twitter. A post on A Pinoy Blog About Nothing tears apart Kutcher's victory speech and says this to the actor:

“What you did succeed in doing is placing the focus on the wrong aspect of Twitter. Now every celeb would think ‘hey I’m more popular than Ashton, I could totally go beyond 1M.’ You’ll be lying if you say you’ll be reading each and every post from your 1M followers — just not physically possible. Twitter’s value to me has always been the information shared from each contact. What you did succeed in doing is putting old media Hollywood thinking into Twitter, ie the bigger the audience you have, the better.”

Clement Nthambazale Nyirenda, blogging from Malawi on Clement Nyirenda’s blog world, says that the Twitter competition is more about Kutcher's ego than about malaria.

“I, for one, am completely against Kutcher’s motive. Why should I follow him on twitter for him to release the nets to folks who are suffering in Africa? This guy wants to use Africa for his own fame. By the way, I knew him only today because of this news. And I am sure so many people are getting to know him for the very first time even as I write. If he happens to attract 1,000,000 followers ahead of CNN and the rest, he will go down in the records as the first Twitter user to achieve it. He will end up making much more than the money than the amount that he will spend on the 10, 000 nets. If he really has a heart for Africa, he should send the 10,000 mosquito nets to Africa without preconditions.”

A post on Project Diaspora agrees with Nyirenda, adding that celebrity stunts promoting unsustainable solutions are not actually helping the people of Africa:

“Sure bed nets keep you from being bitten, but what are we supposed to do when we are not under the nets? But our lives could be that much richer is we're earning a living as workers in the non-existent African anti-malarial industry. We could have been growing artemisia and pyrethrum or working at a bed net factory; feeding my family with the proceeds, but alas, I can’t. Ashton Kutcher was feeling unloved and wanted to run a little popularity contest, and we get to be the spectators circus sidekicks victims.

Wouldn’t it be better to invest money into indigenous companies that can make the nets, therefore maintaining a sustainable business selling bed nets? Or investing in the agricultural sector so farmers are more able to meet demand for crops like Artemesia annua and pyrethrum, easily-grown botanical ingredients in anti-malarial drugs?”

But a post on The Content Police says that despite the wide range of opinions on Kutcher's stunt, what he did was worth it in the end:

“It’s hard to escape the buzz about Ashton Kutcher beating CNN in the ‘Twitter Race.' Opinions abound on the subject:

1) I DON’T CARE!!!
2) Power to the People!
3) Twitter has turned into a popularity contest
4) Twitter is now officially - heaven forbid - MAINSTREAM
5) This is Changing the Face of Media
6) Twitter is dead (meaning either it has caused its own demise or for the more dramatic among us: ‘you are dead to me, Twitter, sob, sob, dead to me')…

…The cynical among us will call Kutcher’s promise to buy 10,000 anti-mosquito nets for Africa a marketing ploy, a cheap trick, etc., to get his Twitter followers to a million. Is Kutcher just looking for more publicity? Or is he really trying to show the power of the people on social media sites? In the end, does all that matter? Not to me. For me, it was always all about the anti-mosquito nets. If even one life could be saved, it was all worth it. And 10,000 malaria nets will surely save many lives.”

CNN will be matching Kutcher by donating 10,000 mosquito bed nets for World Malaria Day. Jumping on the bandwagon are also Oprah Winfrey, who said she would donate 20,000 mosquito bed nets to charity, and American Idol host Ryan Seacrest.

Photo of Prevent Malaria by eürodäna on Flickr.

Some refer to this practice as yoga piracy, where people claim patents and/or copyrights on yoga postures and techniques found in ancient texts that originate in India. For example, according to an article in The Telegraph, there have been more than 130 yoga-related patents, 150 copyrights and 2,300 trademarks in the United States alone.

In response, the Indian government has started scanning ancient texts and documenting yoga asanas. The information is being stored in the Traditional Knowledge Digital Library, an electronic encyclopedia of India's traditional medicine, which will be made available to patent offices globally. Amit Agarwal elaborates:

“Alarmed by the growing number of instances of Western yoga gurus claiming copyrights to ancient ‘asanas,' the Government of India has decided to fight back.

The Union Health Ministry has assembled a team of 200 researchers from the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) to put on record all known yoga postures and techniques in a comprehensive database called Traditional Knowledge Digital Library (TKDL).

The Government of India hopes that future patent applications would be rejected on the basis of ‘prior art' from the information in the TKDL.”

So far 600 asanas have been added to the database, and the team plans to record at least 1,500 yoga postures by the end of this year. Many people are applauding this move. For example, Marathi vedic, commenting on a Times of India article, says:

“I completely support this move… We have to preserve our culture which is being attacked by westerners by not only patents but also by missionary activities…Wake up Vedics!!!! This is our country!!!! Our culture if not us who will preserve it????”

Swami Param, commenting on a post on YogaDork, adds:

“Many Hindus are just now beginning to realize that in their sharing of the Hindu/Yogas, they did not realize that those who took this gift would then, effectively, steal it. The entire phony yoga movement consists of a concerted effort to erase any Hindu connection to Yoga. Of course anyone with a bit cursory knowledge, realizes that all of real Yoga is Hinduism. It is past time to put an end to this theft, distortion and business of ‘yoga'.”

The idea of yoga as a business was brought to the forefront when Bikram Choudhury was granted a copyright and trademark and applied for a patent for a style of yoga he founded. Called Bikram yoga (or “hot yoga”), it involves a series of 26 poses that are performed in a steam room. Gopika Kaul, writing on Spot-On, elaborates on Choudhury's motivation:

“The practice of yoga is first described in Hindu sacred texts dating back five thousand years and Hindu sages have been practicing the art for centuries…The gurus, rightly, see yoga as an Indian tradition that is being popularized and, to some extent corrupted, by the West. Why is Bikram so anxious to stake his legal claim? Yoga has changed its image. An element of Indian culture - a quasi-religious element - has become a multibillion-dollar industry.”

In the United States, the yoga business brings in $5.7 billion a year, according to Yoga Journal, including money spent on yoga classes and products. Some people question the idea of making money off yoga at all, though. guerrilla mama medicine says:

“i have questioned often the cultural co-optation of making money from teaching yoga. the fact that we teach an art and science that we have access to because of our incredible economic and military privilege in the US.

where is the moral conscience of these yoga teachers? … how the hell are you going to call it ‘yoga’ and then claim that you thought of that unique way of bending over and teaching your toes? if you call it yoga (which is a sanskrit word)–you lost any right to a patent. the reason that someone in india isnt suing you for stealing their cultural knowledge ‘yoga’ is because it is collective knowledge. the best we are doing is borrowing that knowledge for a short amount of time. and then we give it back.”

However, yomamma, commenting on a post on Guruphiliac, points out that it's not just people in the West profiting off of yoga.

“This whole deal of complaining about Westerners on the part of both Westerners and Easterners is kind of tiresome, so many Indians have come here because we will buy what they have, support their arts, spirituality, give jobs, etc… so i think the upside far outweighs the bad for the east and for the west…

… All the yoga teachers I know acknowledge their teachers and forbearers, they don't pretend to have invented anything, they are in some cases making a good living, but that is mostly do to hard work and devotion. Popularization was begun in the west, a lot of these arts might be dying otherwise or at least not getting the attention they are now. That being said I don't disagree with this movement to authenticate and protect, it's probably a good idea.”

Photo of Yoga By Sunset by Mahesh Khanna on Flickr.

Rising Voices and Global Voices are holding a live online chat for bloggers and activists on Friday March 6, 2009 (5 pm Nairobi time) on how to use blogging to improve awareness and information about HIV/AIDS.

Everyone is welcome.

Local Times: New York 09:00 | Buenos Aires 12:00 | London 14:00 | Johannesburg, Beirut 16:00 | Nairobi, Moscow 17:00 | New Delhi 19:30 | Hong Kong 22:00 | Tokyo 23:00

Chatroom: http://www.worknets.org/chat/

The March 6th chat will build on topics brought up in last week's successful online discussion. The February 27th chat addressed issues such as why blogging can be important for people affected by HIV/AIDS and the vital roles of mentoring and advocacy, but it mainly focused on the Blogging Positively Guide, a guide being created by Global Voices to provide valuable advice on how to blog about HIV/AIDS issues. The Guide is a work-in-progress, so we are looking for help to create it and/or to give feedback. Those interested in or already blogging about the pandemic are encouraged to participate in this week's chat, particularly those living with and/or affected by HIV/AIDS. Friday's chat will focus on issues such as forming working groups for the Blogging Positively Guide and discussing what chapters and topics to include in it.

If there are other topics that you would like to discuss during the chat, please add comments below. Hope you can join us on March 6!

Cell phones are currently being used for health services ranging from HIV/AIDS education to reminding people to get vaccinations. Last week the Rockefeller Foundation, the United Nations Foundation, and the Vodafone Foundation said that they will be encouraging such projects through the formation of the Mobile Health Alliance (or mHealth Alliance for short). The alliance, announced at the Mobile World Congress, will facilitate projects that use mobile technology for health purposes and work with public and private groups to further these initiatives. The plan is to leverage the widespread use of mobile phones in developing countries – 64 percent of cell phone users are in the developing world.

Erik Hersman, blogging on White African, discusses how mobile health services are all the rage now among foundations and non-profits, while the Social Justice Blog applauds the move, saying:

“This is the kind of corporate social responsibility that's great to see — technology answering a pressing social need…mHealth Alliance uses the technology to provide virtual doctors to those living in rural areas, particularly in India, Uganda and South Africa.”

The mHealth Alliance also released a report at the conference called mHealth for Development, which surveys programs in developing countries that are using mobile technology to promote public health. The report examines 51 programs that are underway or will be implemented in the near future in 26 countries, and shows that these programs are more prevalent in India, South Africa, Uganda, Peru, and Rwanda. 3G Doctor Blog lists all 51 projects and elaborates on the report:

“I’m posting this from the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona at the launch of a report that attempts to define mHealth; outlines the potential for mobile phones to improve health in the developing world; identifies building blocks for successful, sustainable and scalable mHealth programs; demonstrates the incentives for multiple players in the ‘mHealth value chain’…it also issues a call for action to create an independent global body to encourage multi-sector and pan-regional collaboration to leverage the transformational power of mobile networks and devices to improve healthcare delivery throughout the developing world.”

The report highlights projects such as Project Masiluleke (or Project M) in South Africa, a SMS-based service that promotes an AIDS hotline and provides HIV/AIDS education. The SIMpill project is another program in South Africa; it uses a sensor-equipped pill bottle with a SIM card to advise healthcare workers if their patients aren't taking their tuberculosis medicine. The percentage of people keeping up with their medicine rose from 22 percent to 90 percent thanks to SIMpill, which is also being used in places such as Thailand. Another project called Cell-PREVEN has been launched in Peru. Mahmud Hussein describes the project on his site:

“Investments in mobile health initiatives such as the one undertaken recently in Peru called the Cell-Preven project should be made, in which a mobile health team, consisting of a small group of trained health professional and workers are dispatched to select communities. People there can get check-ups, on the spot screening for diseases such as malaria and tuberculosis, treatment of sexually transmitted infections as well as medical care for female sex workers. The teams are connected through satellite communications or internet/mobile phones (where available) to doctors in other areas, where information can be shared between the two teams and further assistance be given in real-time.”

Nick Hunn, blogging on Creative Connectivity, welcomes the mHealth report, saying that it shows the different ways in which mobile technology can be helpful.

“That’s why the ‘Doctor in your Pocket' report is so welcome. It highlights the fact that there’s no one model that has to be followed. Each of the countries put forward as examples have very different dynamics and customer sets. In one the major user base is young men. In another it’s mothers. In all cases the users like the service and find it beneficial.”

Despite all this promise, some people remain cautious about mobile technology's potential to improve healthcare services. A comment on a post about the mHealth Alliance points out that this technology still can't replace the experience of being treated by a real live health practitioner. Arun Pal Singh says:

“Medical care is often incomplete without physical contact between doctor and patient. While it may seem to be slightly beneficial to use technology, developing countries would be most benefited by producing their own doctors and paramedics.

Nothing beats education.”

Photo of Mobile Phone Up Close by samantha celera on Flickr.