CHINA HEALTH SCIENCES NEWSLETTER
Vol. 4 , No. 5 - February 27, 2003
TOPICS THIS ISSUE:
- Study Reveals China Faces Hidden STD Epidemic
- A Chinese Resort Dishing Up Healthy Herbal Cuisine
- China to Train Masters of Public Health
- China Makes Nanometric Biotechnology Cancer Discovery
- CPPCC Member Calls for Market Control on 'Unfair Profits'
Study Reveals China Faces Hidden STD Epidemic
The recently released results from a nationwide Chinese study indicate that the level of the sexually transmitted disease (STD) chlamydia has reached epidemic proportions in China.
The study conducted by U.S. and Chinese academics of approximately 3,800 Chinese men and women between the ages of 20 and 64 found that the overall prevalence of the disease (2.1% for men and 2.6 %) was similar to that in developed countries.
The disease, which is not recorded in official Chinese statistics, has spread in the past 20 years as former restrictions on sex workers have been eased and upper-income men have begun traveling away from home on business, the study reported.
In many cases, the men have transmitted the often-symptomless disease to their wives or partners, jeopardizing their ability to have children. "The silent chlamydia epidemic may cause many women to be infertile, to have ectopic (outside the uterus) pregnancies and be at greater risk of HIV infection," said William Parish, a sociologist and professor of Chinese Studies at the University of Chicago, one of the study's authors.
The incidence of chlamydia was highest in the rapidly developing coastal region of the nation's south, where 16% of men and 9.9% of women have the disease, but even in rural areas the prevalence rate was similar to that seen in rural Africa, where STD infection rates are extremely high.
"China is only now beginning to suffer the ravages of HIV, and the unexpected prevalence of chlamydia and attendant high risk sexual behavior are critical and instructive warning signs," said Myron Cohen, professor of medicine, microbiology and immunology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and a co-author of the study.
(Source: Agence France Presse)
A Chinese Resort Dishing Up Healthy Herbal Cuisine
Yakuzen, a Japanese term for cooking using Chinese herbal medicines, is becoming increasingly popular among Japanese people who believe that such cooking is effective in preventing disease.
Following this trend, the China Health Care Association on Aging, an affiliate of the Ministry of Chinese Ministry of Health, and the International Association of Yaoshan, an NPO comprising medical and pharmaceutical specialists and dieticians are planning to construct a "yakuzen village" on the outskirts of Beijing to study and produce ingredients for the cuisine and prepare dishes to treat disease. By doing this they hope to improve the lives of its patrons and spread the popularity of traditional Chinese health dishes.
Located approximately 90-minutes drive from Beijing, the "yakuzen village" will cover an area of about 200 hectares (494 acres) and cultivate herbs, vegetables and fruits there without using agricultural chemicals.
In the village, an international institute for yakuzen will be established to examine the safety and efficacy of ingredients. A clinic, where patients will be treated using yakuzen, will also be constructed as well as a training center for workers. Both are expected to open in June. The plan also calls for building a hotel featuring yakuzen meals and therapeutic baths in the village in an attempt to lure tourists.
The Japanese NPO is preparing to establish its own yakuzen certification system for health food and health food products. The group will also certify ingredients produced in the village and also hopes food-processing companies that support the group will form partnerships with their Chinese counterparts or offer technical assistance.
(Source: The Nikkei Weekly)
China to Train Masters of Public Health
Hundreds of China's elite health service professionals have registered this month for a three-year long training course in an attempt to become China's holders of a Master of Public Health (MPH) degree.
According to medical experts at Zhongshan University, in south China's Guangdong Province, one of 22 MPH sponsors nationwide, it is expected that MPH degree graduates will go into and improve the administration of the public health sector, work in disease prevention and control, community health organizations, quarantine organizations, hospitals, consultancy and international health organizations.
Candidates for entering into the MPH degree must have worked for at minimum of three years in the health or a related sector, as well as hold an undergraduate degree.
(Source: Xinhua General News Service)
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According to Chinese scientists, using nanometric biotechnology compared to conventional cancer treatment can minimize the damage to healthy cells.
Zhang Yangde, director of the Key Laboratory for Nanometric Biotechnology, said, "Though many effective drugs have been developed to combat difficult and complicated cases of illness, the lack of related medicinal delivery methods makes many diseases incurable." Using anemometric biotechnology - which can be used as a method of precision delivery of medicines - in cancer treatment could eradicate cancer cells to the maximum extent and effectively avoid impairing healthy bodily functions, Zhang said.
He cited as an example liver cancer, a condition currently afflicting 130,000 people in China. "Chemotherapy is widely used in treating liver cancer. However, it harms healthy cells while killing cancer cells," said Zhang. To overcome the problem, a team of scientists headed by Zhang attached sized-sized magnets both to the cancer drugs and the outside of liver tumors. After being injected intravenously, the drugs arrived via the blood's circulatory system at the tumor and formed a high-density concentration there due to the interaction between the magnets.
Waiting for approval from the Ministry of Health for human trials, Zhang said that "if the application goes smoothly, trials on people are expected to start at the end of this year, which will undoubtedly offer good news to liver cancer patients," Zhang added.
Business monopolies making exorbitant profits through their market dominance came under fire during the 10th Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) recently held in Beijing. Criticism voiced by CPPCC members focused on medicine, telecommunications services, property developers and civil aviation.
According to Ren Yuling, an adviser to the State Council and a CPPCC member, a state of disarray exists in the country's pharmaceutical market. Notwithstanding China having more than 8,000 pharmaceutical manufacturers, over 12,000 medicine wholesalers and other medicine retailers, Ren said large and at time unreasonable profits and tacking were being used by businesses in the unregulated market. He used the example of an ordinary drug priced at RMB 6 (US$0.72) by manufacturers selling for RMB 26 (US $ 3.13) on the market and thereby putting it out of reach for many of those in need. He also cited the case of a newly emergent pharmacy franchise with stores in a number of major cities such as Nanchang, Fuzhou, Chengdu and Chongqing, promising minimum profits and selling medicines at wholesale prices. While welcomed by consumers, wholesalers have threatened to cut off supply to the franchise and others like it. Ren urged government authorities to be more active in fostering competition and breaking monopolies.
