Quote:
Originally Posted by Boerseun
Well, to tell the truth, malaria isn't really a problem in SA. It's more to the north, up in Zim/Malawi/Mozambique-side.
This is not to say that there's no cases here, for instance, I picked up malaria in the late 90's, and it's so rare that my doctor sent me to a psychiatrist after I complained about insomnia that just went on and on.
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What were the
early symptoms Boerseun?
Can a blood test pick it up early?
Do you still have to take anti-malerials?
Is Maleria in America?
Yes star you are right in what you say.
BUT
DDT looks cheap, but what about
long term planetary, ecological effects.
Have these been factored into the price?$?
The most worrying effect is the effect CHs have on phytoplankton reproducing.
The CHs only have to float in the top micron of the earth's seas.
Detergents don't touch CHs this is the main problem=THEY ARE NOT BIODEGADEABLE many have half lives of 18 years or more. That + their bio-accumulation. They are being used for maleria because they last and last!
Lately we have seen that many pesticides also kill nitrogen fixing bacteria in the soil. The farmer has to buy chemical fertiliser to replace this.
Eventually CHs (Chlorinated Hydrocarbons) spread out across the planet so no-one gets a hospitalizing-toxic dose.
No one knows the
long term effectsof small amounts on mammals.
Whales for example are full of CHs.
Cetaceans don't have good biological mechanisms for dealing with these chemicals.We can't excrete them either (Sorry women can).
In fact, although it is said,
EVENTUALLY CHs break down, no -one has shown what many break down into.
DDT breaks down into a more problematical DDE.
Even our finest analytical tools often cannot detect environmental levels of some (used to be the case with Toxaphene -a real CH witches brew-don't know if this is still the case)
What about growing your own Neem, Pyrethrum, Quassia or many other biodegradable pesticides? So you have to spend a bit more time growing and spraying.So? How much time do you need? (Even the artemesia that kills the parasite can be grown and taken as a tea!)
Do Africans want to save time at the expense of their environments, soil, health and export markets?
Who is saving who's time?
Where does the $ stop?
Who makes the DDT?
Have more old fashioned remedies been tried?
The Yeast trap has to be cheap? (see permaculture link above).
We seem to have a "
If it moves spray it!" mentality without fully exploring all the possible alternatives.
