Sanitization News and Research

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Study shows plasma-treated carbon nanotubes are ideal for water purification

Access to safe drinking water is a step closer to being a reality for those in developing countries. A study paves the way for the next generation of portable water purification devices, which could provide relief to the 780 million people around the world who face every day without access to a clean water supply.

22 Aug 2013

New report shows that access to clean water and soap may boost growth in children

Improving water quality and hygiene practices may improve the growth of children, according to a new report. The Cochrane review – authored by the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and WaterAid – found evidence of small but significant improvements in growth of children under the age of five who have access to clean water and soap.

1 Aug 2013

Solar-powered sterilization system could be boon for people who lack adequate sanitation

Rice University nanotechnology researchers have unveiled a solar-powered sterilization system that could be a boon for more than 2.5 billion people who lack adequate sanitation. The "solar steam" sterilization system uses nanomaterials to convert as much as 80 percent of the energy in sunlight into germ-killing heat.

24 Jul 2013

Wellcome Trust launches global funding scheme to seed research on the future of human health

The Wellcome Trust today launches a global funding scheme to seed research into the impact of a changing world on the future of human health.

12 Jul 2013

Comprehensive analysis of disease burden in US

In nearly every major cause of premature death - from ischemic heart disease to diabetes to interpersonal violence - the United States trails its economic peers, according to new research from a global collaborative of scientists led by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington.

12 Jul 2013

Basketballs, volleyballs can spread potentially dangerous germs among players

UC Irvine researchers have demonstrated that basketballs and volleyballs can spread potentially dangerous germs among players. Their findings may bring a new awareness to athletes, coaches, trainers and parents regarding safe sanitation practices for athletes.

3 Jul 2013

Study reveals strain of V. cholerae in Haiti cholera outbreak originated from single source

The strain of cholera that has sickened thousands in Haiti came from a single source and was not repeatedly introduced to the island over the past three years as some have thought, according to a new study published in mBio-, the online open-access journal of the American Society for Microbiology.

2 Jul 2013

African-Americans have much greater decrease in their sense of smell, study finds

The ability to distinguish between odors declines steadily with age, but a new study shows that African-Americans have a much greater decrease in their sense of smell than Caucasians.

13 Jun 2013

Researchers to develop biodegradable replacement for microplastics found in scores of household products

If you've been on or near the water, you've seen it-the plastic trash that litters oceans, lakes, and streams worldwide. But visible plastic-soda bottles, lighters, flip-flops, combs, rope-may be the least of the problem. Scientists are beginning to realize that what you can't see, tiny bits of polyethylene or polypropylene called "microplastics," likely pose a greater threat to marine ecosystems.

6 Jun 2013

Study explores potential of satellite remote sensing data on the occurrence of cholera

Cholera remains one of the most prevalent water-related infections in many tropical regions of the world, specifically coastal areas of South Asia, Africa, and Latin America. We now know how to treat cholera patients, and hence mortality for cholera has considerably decreased in several parts of the globe.

4 Jun 2013

Saint Louis University extends search for new medicines to treat childhood diarrhea

A $750,000 grant to the Center for World Health and Medicine at Saint Louis University will extend the search for new medicines to treat childhood diarrhea, which is the second leading cause of death of young children worldwide.

1 Jun 2013

New study provides clear picture of the impact and causes of diarrheal diseases

A new international study published today in The Lancet provides the clearest picture yet of the impact and most common causes of diarrheal diseases, the second leading killer of young children globally, after pneumonia.

14 May 2013

The Guardian examines new reports on nutrition spending

The Guardian examines two new reports on nutrition spending. "Ambitions to eradicate world hunger will not be realized if aid for basic nutrition remains at only 0.4 percent of total official development assistance (ODA), according to the research group Development Initiatives (DI)," the newspaper writes.

2 May 2013

Grand Challenges Canada funds innovative ideas to solve global health problems

"Grand Challenges Canada just announced grants of $100,000 for 102 imaginative new ideas to tackle health problems in resource-poor countries," Inter Press Service reports, noting, "Of these, 59 grants went to researchers in 13 low- and middle-income nations worldwide."

2 May 2013

USAID report highlights need for better water management in agriculture

"With its recently released Water and Development Strategy, USAID highlights some practical and potentially powerful initiatives both to improve health by expanding access to clean water and sanitation and to improve food security through better water management in agriculture," Isobel Coleman, a senior fellow for U.S. foreign policy and director of the Civil Society, Markets, and Democracy Initiative at the Council on Foreign Relations, writes in the council's "Democracy in Development" blog.

29 Apr 2013

Fighting schistosomiasis would help reduce HIV incidence, researchers say

"The transmission of HIV in sub-Saharan Africa could be slashed if efforts are made to combat the spread of the waterborne disease schistosomiasis by providing clean water, sanitation and health education, a study reports," SciDev.Net writes.

25 Apr 2013

Cholera epidemic in Haiti expected to worsen with onset of rainy season, lack of funds

"Nearly 2.5 years after it began, Haiti's cholera epidemic is getting worse, not better, and efforts to treat the sick are desperately short of funds, say aid groups on the ground," The Lancet reports.

15 Apr 2013

WHO, UNICEF launch new Global Action Plan to save children from pneumonia and diarrhoea

A new Global Action Plan launched today by the WHO and UNICEF has the potential to save up to 2 million children every year from deaths caused by pneumonia and diarrhoea, some of the leading killers of children under five globally.

15 Apr 2013

Virginia Tech scientists provide new evidence that biofilms are at work in survival of Salmonella

Virginia Tech scientists have provided new evidence that biofilms - bacteria that adhere to surfaces and build protective coatings - are at work in the survival of the human pathogen Salmonella.

11 Apr 2013

Research sheds light on malaria-related parasite's transition from acute to chronic stage

A new discovery about the malaria-related parasite Toxoplasma gondii -- which can threaten babies, AIDS patients, the elderly and others with weakened immune function -- may help solve the mystery of how this single-celled parasite establishes life-long infections in people.

10 Apr 2013