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WHO warning over global lack of exercise

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        Image copyright Thinkstock Image caption The transition towards more sedentary jobs in wealthier countries is likely to be making people less active, experts say Very little progress has been made in reducing levels of inactivity worldwide, experts have warned. A WHO report estimates that more than a quarter of people worldwide - 1.4 billion - are not doing enough physical exercise, a figure that has barely improved since 2001. Inactivity raises the risk of a raft of health problems, such as heart disease, type-2 diabetes and some cancers. High-income countries, including the UK, were among the least active. And women were found to be more sedentary throughout the world, with the exception of two regions of Asia. Twenty million Britons 'physically inactive' Do you know your heart age? 'Major concern' Researchers from...
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Africa in History:The Search for Prester John

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T he history of Prester John is the history of a man who never existed. Medieval legend called him into being when it was felt that his presence would be of help in the struggle between Christian Europe and the Islamic world. His name was first recorded in 1145 and continued to appear from time to time up to the beginning of the 17th century. Each reference to Prester John – John the Priest – was compounded of two elements; on one side the European wish for the existence of a strong Christian power beyond the confines of Medieval Christendom; on the other, some historical event or process in a far corner of the earth, on the distorted news of which was based a concrete shape for this wish. Originally the Priest King was heard of in Asia; later it became generally accepted that his kingdom lay in Africa. With the growth of geographical knowledge and the discovery of places in which Prester John was not to be found, the location of the Priest King moved to lesser known regions. The dev...
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On the trail of Uganda's illegal 'beauty-cream' smugglers

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Jane Ndagire blames illegal skin-lightening products, smuggled into Uganda over a dangerous border, for ruining her complexion. She was approaching her 40s, when the women in her circle started hinting at how they could look younger. Someone mentioned a cream called Caro Light saying a close friend had a glow on her face within a week of using it. Ms Ndagire wanted in. "Within three days, I could see a difference. My face had this radiance I had never seen before. I applied it all over my body," she says. Several months in, she started to feel the heat of the sun more, and the skin on her cheeks felt taut. Her supplier recommended mixing the lightening cream with petroleum jelly. "My complexion became too light. But I could not reverse the effects. Then I started getting pimples, which take long to heal. "When I get a small bruise, it takes weeks to dry up. My skin feels flabby to the touch," she adds, staring at her hands which are visibly dar...
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