A debate is raging in North America over the safety of bisphenol A

Poverty causes malnutrition, but malnutrition also contributes to poverty through increased morbidity, impaired development in children, and reduced capacity for work and productivity in adults. In rich countries food is a relatively small part of household consumption (10

20 years ago Philip Morris, the manufacturer of Marlboro cigarettes, notes in its annual report to shareholders that the company accounted for just 7% of worldwide cigarette sales, but added determinedly that "since our share of most international cigarette markets is still far below our US level, we have considerable room for future growth. The prophetic rise in Philip Morris' market share of current global cigarette sales to 15.6% has culminated in the March spinoff of Philip Morris International (PMI).

On Oct 17, 2007, Bill and Melinda Gates called for complete eradication to be adopted as the new goal for the age-old fight against malaria, with the Director General of WHO, Margaret Chan, promptly echoing their conviction. Although debate over the wisdom of this target will continue, growing impatience with the low ambitions of current efforts, fuelled by reductions in morbidity and mortality in some countries and progress in the development of new drugs and the first-ever vaccine, will lead many decision makers to adopt eradication of malaria as the primary aim for their organisations.

Last week, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) told a Congressional hearing that it believes a contaminant found in batches of heparin, which have killed at least 81 patients, might have been deliberately added. The source of the contaminant

Few studies have assessed the extent and distribution of the blood pressure burden worldwide. This aim of this study was to quantify the global burden of disease related to high blood pressure.

India has the highest burden of acute coronary syndromes in the world, yet little is known about the treatments and outcomes of these diseases. The researchers aimed to document the characteristics, treatments, and outcomes of patients with acute coronary syndromes who were admitted to hospitals in India.

In Tanzania, millions of people seek treatment for malaria through the private sector. But most cannot afford effective medicines. Now a pilot study is testing whether a drug subsidy scheme could help these patients, with some positive preliminary results.

Although cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death worldwide, its epidemic shows remarkable geographic variation. While the mortality associated with cardio vascular dis ease seems to be declining in western Europe and North America, the burden of cardiovascular diseases in developing countries continues to rise and is expected to be a major cause of death in adults from low-income and middle-income countries worldwide.

While customers at restaurants in New York City will soon be able to count the calories of their meals in an attempt to curb the obesity epidemic, people in New Delhi are currently counting their grains of rice. From Bolivia to Yemen, people around the world are taking to the streets in protest at the spiralling increases in food prices. Politicians have been sacked, protesters have died, and some governments are imposing extreme measures to ration food and control their hungry populations. (Editorial)