Follow up on "Searcher" Techniques and Malaria

On August 22, 2006, the Grindstone Blog carried and article about common sense approach taken for the eradication of malaria (see: http://grindstonehc.blogspot.com/2006/08/common-sense-view.html). And...now, Betsy McKay (WSJ) writes on September 15, 2006 that the World Health Organization (WHO) has stepped up to the plate to recommend the use of DDT (at safe levels) for the control of malaria. Practical solution to an intractable problem. As noted previously, over 500 million (yes about 1.5 times the population of the USA) is effected by malaria world-wide every year with 1 million dying.

To make it stick, the policy will need to be married with political will to avoid disastrous economic consequences from environmental lobbyists who advocate the embargo of crops treated with DDT. To date, DDT use has been limited to indoor spraying. Yet in areas such as South Africa, effective measures require indoor and outdoor techniques.

DDT isn't the only solution...to be sure, as noted in the Aug 22 blogspot, we can 'drain the swamps', use mosquito netting and prudent use of pharmaceuticals. Yet, the reversal by WHO represents a potential breakthrough worthy of a thorough examination of the pro's and con's.