#YouAsked Health Is Ebola from Africa? Source World Health Organization Short answer Is Ebola from Africa? Ebola virus disease is a deadly disease that affects mostly people and non-human primates such as monkeys and chimpanzees, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) explains. Symptoms include fever, diarrhoea, body aches and “unexplained bleeding”. According to the World Health Org... Back Full answer
#YouAsked Health Does the cervical cancer vaccine cause infertility? Source World Health Organization Short answer Does the cervical cancer vaccine cause infertility? Cervical cancer develops in the cervix, which “attaches the uterus to the vagina”. The World Health Organization says cervical cancer is almost always linked to sexually transmitted human papillomaviruses (HPV). The fear that HPV vaccines could cause infertility has been linked to the low sha... Back Full answer
#YouAsked Welfare & population Does the child support grant encourage teenage pregnancy? Source Human Sciences Research Council report Short answer Does the child support grant encourage teenage pregnancy? A 2006 analysis of teenage fertility trends found that there were “no grounds to believe that young South African girls are deliberately having children in order to access welfare benefits”.According to the research, teenage childbearing had not increased after the grant was introduced in 1998. ... Back Full answer
#YouAsked Sex & gender Which country has the lowest femicide rate? Source World Health Organization Short answer Which country has the lowest femicide rate? According to the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, there is “no commonly agreed definition of what constitutes ‘femicide’”. It has historically been defined as the killing of women and girls because they are female. Collecting data on the motive for a killing can be difficult. Because o... Back Full answer
#YouAsked Covid-19 Is it true that 25% of those with Covid-19 in Nigeria have no travel history or known contact with infected persons? Source Nigeria Centre for Disease Control Short answer Is it true that 25% of those with Covid-19 in Nigeria have no travel history or known contact with infected persons? The percentage has varied over time. On 3 June, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) reported that 75% of Covid-19 cases in Nigeria had unknown sources of infection; 2% had a travel history and 23% were contacts of existing patients. “It means that community transmission is happening. It ... Back Full answer
#YouAsked Covid-19 Is it true that the new coronavirus is a vascular virus and not a respiratory virus? Source Presentation by Dr Jaco Laubscher Short answer Is it true that the new coronavirus is a vascular virus and not a respiratory virus? Dr Jaco Laubscher, a Stellenbosch-based physician, has claimed that Covid-19 “is a vascular problem and not a respiratory problem”.He argues that Covid-19 is a disease that affects blood vessels and not the lungs. Therefore, the way the condition is treated by health professionals should change.... Back Full answer
#YouAsked Covid-19 Is Madagascar’s Covid-19 solution effective? Source World Health Organization Short answer Is Madagascar’s Covid-19 solution effective? Malagasy president Andry Rajoelina has claimed that a herbal tonic, made from the artemisia plant, could cure Covid-19. The beverage, Covid Organics, was reportedly tested on fewer than 20 patients. In April, the National Academy of Medicine of Madagascar warned against the use of the tonic based... Back Full answer
#YouAsked Covid-19 Is it safe to use hand sanitisers that contain alcohol in the long term? Source U.S. Food & Drug Administration Short answer Is it safe to use hand sanitisers that contain alcohol in the long term? Hand hygiene plays a crucial part in the prevention of the spread of the new coronavirus. According to the World Health Organization, research has shown that nurses who regularly used alcohol hand rubs had less skin irritation and dryness than those using soap and water. As a result of the cor... Back Full answer
#YouAsked Covid-19 Does smoking have an impact on recovery from Covid-19? Source World Health Organization Short answer Does smoking have an impact on recovery from Covid-19? Smoking is known to impair lung function, affect the immune system and can increase the severity of respiratory diseases such as influenza. Although no randomised controlled studies that have directly investigated the effect of smoking on people with Covid-19 are available at present, according to t... Back Full answer