Every time a cell divides, there is a chance for a mutation (mistake) to occur in the DNA – the substance that carries genetic information in all living organisms. These mutations can lead to cancer. If all cells have a similar chance of developing cancer-causing mutations, then very large and long-lived animals with more cells […]

CAPE TOWN – Professor Tim Noakes has been found not guilty of unprofessional conduct on all counts. His foundation – The Noakes Foundation – has issued a press release, but their website has been overwhelmed with hits and has crashed. We will update when it becomes available again. Noakes had been facing charges of unprofessional conduct, […]

Humans and animals need to do several things to pass on their genes: eat, avoid being eaten, reproduce and sleep. Missing any of these biological imperatives leads to death. But when we’re asleep we can’t perform those other functions. One of modern science’s big mysteries, then, is: why do we sleep? Scientists have suggested many […]

Award-winning South African journalist Jonathan Ancer posted a heartfelt message on Facebook late Sunday night, after his 8-year-old daughter – Rachel – was admitted to Groote Schuur Hospital earlier in the afternoon to prepare for a bone marrow transplant, and start chemotherapy today. Jonathan pointed out it is “auspicious” that she was admitted now, during Bone […]

Eating insects is as old as mankind. Globally, 2 billion people consume insects, a practise known as entomophagy. It is more common in Africa than anywhere else in the world. The continent is home to the richest diversity of edible insects – more than 500 species ranging from caterpillars (Lepidoptera) to termites (Isoptera), locusts, grasshoppers, […]

The consumption of sugar and its effects on health has been in the headlines in many countries around the world again as countries from the UK to South Africa debate a sugar tax. The Conversation Africa’s health editor Candice Bailey asks Sundeep Ruder to explain how we process sugar and why too much is bad […]

A lot of people will have already made up their mind about whether humans need dairy in their diet and will be thinking that the answer is obviously “yes” or obviously “no”. But nutrition is based on science not opinion – so, here’s the latest research on the matter. Milk is an interesting foodstuff. The […]

Controversy erupted at the University of Cape Town in 2016 when some academics suggested that only meat-free meals should be served on parts of the campus. The debates and opposition were couched in arguments around ethics and choice. They did not make connections between multiple forms of oppression, power and privilege. This meant a vital […]

In the small Free State town of Trompsburg, a new R380 million hospital continues to gather dust more than two years since its completion. Meanwhile, other clinics and hospitals in the region remain overstretched and under-resourced, according to health activist groups. Mariette Pittaway, the DA Spokesperson for Health in the Free State, says the new […]

The late Nelson Mandela’s presence was very much felt on Friday as his widow, Graca Machel, helped officially open the children’s hospital he dreamed of… The building of the Nelson Mandela Children’s Hospital (NMCH) in Johannesburg has been a team effort of love, hard work, dedication and donations. The MRI machine is quieter than most to […]

World Aids Day has been commemorated around the world, with Prince Harry and pop star Rihanna taking HIV tests in Barbados (see below); Bill Gates commending South Africa on its leadership in HIV prevention; and SA’s Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa calling for an urgent focus on slashing the HIV infection rate. American philanthropist Gates tweeted […]

Philanthropist Bill Gates is the founder and co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. It has committed more than US$3 billion in HIV grants to organisations around the world and more than US$1.6 billion to the Global Fund to fight AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria. Gates answers questions from several African academics about HIV/AIDS on the […]

South Africans have always loved their Rooibos tea, and now there’s even more reason to do so. According to research, Rooibos – which is unique to SA – offers untold health benefits including the potential to delay and prevent the onset and progression of type 2 diabetes (T2D). The T2D findings were announced during November’s World […]

In South Africa, 210 people die from heart disease every DAY. A lack of awareness around cardiovascular disease means many people go undiagnosed and untreated until it is too late. Paediatric cardiologist and President of the South African Heart Association Dr Liesl Zühlke explained the challenges around cardiovascular diseases to The Conversation Africa. Why is […]

Cancer is often viewed as a fundamentally modern and monolithic disease. Many people think its rise and spread has been driven almost exclusively by the developed world’s toxins and poisons; by our bad eating habits, lifestyles, and the very air we breathe. Actually, cancer is not a single disease. It is also far from modern. […]

A South African family is reaching out to the public for a living donor to help save the life of their 7-month-old baby daughter, Divya Ashleey Singh. After being born healthy, Divya’s condition changed within a few weeks and she was finally diagnosed with an extremely rare – and life-threatening – liver disease called Biliary Atresia […]

South African actress Charlize Theron gave an impassioned speech at the opening ceremony of the 2016 International AIDS Conference in Durban, calling out racism as an underlying cause of the AIDS epidemic and insisting that it is not “an honour” for SA to be hosting the AIDS conference for the second time in 21 years. The AIDS […]

Proving old friendships never die, a South African expat living in Canada has offered her kidney to her former schoolmate in Johannesburg, whom she hasn’t seen for decades. And together they are now on a journey to make sure Di gets the kidney she desperately needs, and that awareness is raised about live kidney donations. […]

JOHANNESBURG – Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa says the newly launched National Sex Worker HIV Plan is about citizens’ rights and affirming the equal worth of every citizen. “It is about affirming the rights of all South Africans to life, dignity and health, regardless of their occupation, sexual orientation and circumstances,” said the Deputy President on […]

The National Department of Health (South Africa) says although South Africa has recorded its first case of someone infected with the Zika virus, there is no cause for panic. The patient – a businessman from Colombia – is a tourist in Johannesburg, South Africa who contracted the mosquito-borne virus back home in South America, said Health Minister […]

In honour of International Childhood Cancer Day 2016, Cape Town’s iconic Table Mountain – one of the Seven Wonders of the World – was lit up in blue last night, 15 February 2016. According to CHOC (Childhood Cancer Foundation, South Africa) this day was started as a global collaborative campaign to raise awareness about childhood cancer and to […]

It will take 160 years before a baby in Africa has as much chance of being born alive as a baby in a high-income country, according to new research published today by esteemed medical journal The Lancet. The publication claims 3,287 lives are lost each day due to preventable stillbirths, and that the slow progress on the […]

I suffer from depression. These are some of the hardest words to say out loud. They may appear like just another utterance but in essence they are part of a journey that entails wallowing in the depths, a journey where “normal” is often illusive. Depression is an ailment. And like all other ailments it transcends […]

The iconic, mysterious and magical African baobab, probably the most identifiable and prehistoric-looking tree on earth, suddenly seems to be coming into its own in the 21st Century. Several companies are getting the name of the tree out there – literally – selling products that take advantage of its health and medicinal properties. One company even promotes the […]

For World Cancer Day today (4 February 2015), we thought we’d share one of our favourite South African videos ever – the morning that 36-year-old mom Gerdi McKenna’s friends and family surprised her with the ultimate act of love after she’d been diagnosed with breast cancer…but then Gerdi sent us a message that’s even better […]