'Re-examine new malaria drug'

The chief of Koforidua-Ada and Presiding Member of the New Juaben Municipal Assembly, Odeefuo Boadi Asiedu has urged the Food and Drugs Board to re-examine the new malaria drug-Antesunate Amodiaquine and see whether it has any harmful effect on the human body.

 According to him, many users of the drug complain of serious stomach and bodily pains and dizziness.

Odeefuo Boadi Asiedu made this known while making his closing remarks after chairing the launch of the 2008 Drug Safety and Health Awareness campaign programme by the Ghana Pharmaceutical Students Association of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology in the Eastern Region at Koforidua over the weekend.

Incidentally, some members of the Calvary Methodist Church at Adweso - Koforidua echoed the same sentiments expressed by the chief when some members of the GPSA addressed the congregation on Sunday on the theme, "Creating natural wealth through healthy lifestyle and rational drug use'.

Launching the programme at the KAMA Plaza, the New Juaben Municipal Chief Executive Nana Kwasi Adjei Boateng described the theme as very appropriate as it falls within the development agenda of the NPP government. He noted: 'However skilled the citizens are, if they are not healthy, the efforts at production may not yield the required results.

'This is where the linkage between the agenda of the government and the theme of the programme lies'.

He regretted that despite that the people are in the information age and can pick information from any location at the shortest possible time, some Ghanaians are not sourcing the right information or are misapplying available pieces of information.

'Why do we continue with self medication, and why should all sorts of concoctions be given unrestricted publicity on our airwaves as drugs or aphrodisiac'? Nana Adjei Boateng asked. He said these rhetorical questions lead to the current topical issues of substance abuse and peddling of narcotic drugs in the country despite their known negative effects, asking, 'are we learning any lessons?

The president of the GPSA, Cyrus Baidoo noted that the indiscriminate sale, purchase and use of drugs, cosmetics and other potentially harmful products have been on the rise over the last few years.

This, he said has led to many health related problems which include intolerance to certain medications, topical and systematic disorders, resistance to certain antibiotics and anti malaria and fatal adverse reactions among others.

This could be attributed in part to the proliferation of media adverts about such products on the market despite the Food and Drug Board's painstaking effort to stem out this canker in recent times, he insists. 'Also, ignorance of certain pertinent health issues such as safe and rational use of drugs and their concomitant adverse drug reactions, being a major enemy militating effort towards good health for all, cannot be ruled out'.

At the Calvary Methodist Church, an appeal was made to women who inject themselves to fatten their body especially their breasts and buttocks to stop the practice.