Food & Health

Responsible design is about providing for real needs, not perceived wants. 300 million annual malaria sufferers have such a vital need, that to date, has been largely unmet. Mosquitoes transport a parasite that cause malaria, a blood disease that kills at least 1 million each year. Now 38 year old South African inventor, Gervan Lubbe, has developed a wristwatch that could be a partial answer to these peoples woes. “The sturdy digital timepiece pricks the wrist with a tiny needle four times a day and tests the blood for malaria parasites.” If the tests indicate a high rate of the parasite in the blood, an alarm sounds and a mozzie pic appears on the face of the watch. This reminds the wearer to drop 3 tablets “that kill all traces of the disease within 48 hours.” According to the press reports orders for 1.5 million watches have already been placed by businesses, governments and aid organisations operating in Africa (90% of malaria deaths occur in sub-Saharan Africa.) And this is despite the watch costing around $A375. Which is said to be cheaper than treating patients with severe malaria. And because the watch responds to presence of the actual parasite, there is no need to take expensive anti-malaria tablets, which often have nasty side effects from long term use. via ABC News Online. Some extra info, though limited at this stage, can be found at ::Gervans Trading.