Danilo Pereira fires Al Ittihad into King's Cup final with dramatic stoppage-time double    Visitors welcomed with Eid initiative at Thee Ain Heritage Village in Al-Baha    Over 1 million pilgrims benefit from golf cart service at Grand Mosque during Ramadan    Saudi Arabia considers rent cap as part of major real estate reforms    Tebuk emir reviews rain response in Tayma    Messi's bodyguard banned from touchline at Inter Miami games    Screen time in bed linked to insomnia, study finds    Death toll from Myanmar earthquake rises to 2,719 as rescue efforts continue    Russia, Ukraine trade blame over new energy strikes    Putin orders Russia's largest military call-up in over a decade    Le Pen vows to appeal political ban, calls verdict a 'denial of democracy'    Haramain High-Speed Railway transports over 1.2 million passengers during Ramadan    Albania hosts MWL chief for Eid sermon at largest mosque in the Balkans    Ministry of Education forms 425 community partnerships with SR653 million impact    Saudi Transport Authority says passengers can ride for free if taxi meters are off    Mexico bans junk food in schools to fight childhood obesity epidemic    Sweet sales surge ahead of Eid as Saudi chocolate imports top 123 million kg in 2024    Saudi creatives shine at Jeddah's Fawanees Nights with art, fashion, and storytelling    T1 CEO confirms Gumayusi's return for LCK Spring after lineup shakeup    100 Thieves claim Marvel Rivals Invitational NA crown as 2025 scene heats up    Bollywood actress vindicated over boyfriend's death after media hounding    Grand Mufti rules against posting prayers and preaching in mosques on social media    King Salman prays for peace and stability for Palestinians in Ramadan message King reaffirms Saudi Arabia's commitment to serving the Two Holy Mosques and pilgrims    Bollywood star Saif Ali Khan 'out of danger' after attack at home in Mumbai    Exotic Taif Roses Simulation Performed at Taif Rose Festival    Asian shares mixed Tuesday    Weather Forecast for Tuesday    Saudi Tourism Authority Participates in Arabian Travel Market Exhibition in Dubai    Minister of Industry Announces 50 Investment Opportunities Worth over SAR 96 Billion in Machinery, Equipment Sector    HRH Crown Prince Offers Condolences to Crown Prince of Kuwait on Death of Sheikh Fawaz Salman Abdullah Al-Ali Al-Malek Al-Sabah    HRH Crown Prince Congratulates Santiago Peña on Winning Presidential Election in Paraguay    SDAIA Launches 1st Phase of 'Elevate Program' to Train 1,000 Women on Data, AI    41 Saudi Citizens and 171 Others from Brotherly and Friendly Countries Arrive in Saudi Arabia from Sudan    Saudi Arabia Hosts 1st Meeting of Arab Authorities Controlling Medicines    General Directorate of Narcotics Control Foils Attempt to Smuggle over 5 Million Amphetamine Pills    NAVI Javelins Crowned as Champions of Women's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) Competitions    Saudi Karate Team Wins Four Medals in World Youth League Championship    Third Edition of FIFA Forward Program Kicks off in Riyadh    Evacuated from Sudan, 187 Nationals from Several Countries Arrive in Jeddah    SPA Documents Thajjud Prayer at Prophet's Mosque in Madinah    SFDA Recommends to Test Blood Sugar at Home Two or Three Hours after Meals    SFDA Offers Various Recommendations for Safe Food Frying    SFDA Provides Five Tips for Using Home Blood Pressure Monitor    SFDA: Instant Soup Contains Large Amounts of Salt    Mawani: New shipping service to connect Jubail Commercial Port to 11 global ports    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Delivers Speech to Pilgrims, Citizens, Residents and Muslims around the World    Sheikh Al-Issa in Arafah's Sermon: Allaah Blessed You by Making It Easy for You to Carry out This Obligation. Thus, Ensure Following the Guidance of Your Prophet    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques addresses citizens and all Muslims on the occasion of the Holy month of Ramadan    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



China's animal trade to spawn more viral outbreaks: Experts
Published in The Saudi Gazette on 26 - 01 - 2020

The animal-borne SARS virus 17 years ago was supposed to be a wake-up call about consuming wildlife as food, but scientists say China's latest epidemic indicates that the practice remains widespread and a growing risk to human health.
Like SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome), which was traced to bats and civets, the virus that has killed dozens in China and infected almost 2,000 people is believed to have originated in animals trafficked for food.
Final findings are yet to be announced, but Chinese health officials believe it came from wildlife sold illegally at a market in the central city of Wuhan that offered enough animals to fill a zoo, including civets, rats, snakes, giant salamanders and live wolf pups.
The so-called "bushmeat" trade, plus broader human encroachment on wild habitats, is bringing us into ever-closer contact with animal viruses that can spread rapidly in our uber-connected world, said Peter Daszak, president of EcoHealth Alliance, a global NGO focused on infectious disease prevention.
The Global Virome Project, a worldwide effort to increase preparedness for pandemics, which Daszak is a part of, estimates there are 1.7 million undiscovered viruses in wildlife, nearly half of which could be harmful to humans.
Daszak said the project's research indicates we can expect around five new animal-borne pathogens to infect humanity each year.
"The new normal is that pandemics are going to happen more frequently," he said.
"We are making contact with animals that carry these viruses more, and more, and more."
Viruses are a natural part of the environment, and not all are the stuff of sci-fi horror.
But the recent track record of animal-hosted viruses that "jump" to humans is sobering.
Like SARS, which killed hundreds in China and Hong Kong in 2002-03, Ebola also was traced to bats, while HIV has roots in African primates.
Today, more than 60 percent of new emerging human infectious diseases reach us via animals, scientists say.
Even familiar menu items like poultry and cattle — whose pathogens we have largely adapted to over millennia — occasionally throw a curveball, like bird flu or mad-cow disease.
"For the sake of these wild species' future, and for human health, we need to reduce consumption of these wild animals," said Diana Bell, a wildlife disease and conservation biologist at University of East Anglia who has studied SARS, Ebola and other pathogens.
"But, 17 years on (from SARS), apparently that hasn't happened."
Wild-meat consumption itself is not necessarily dangerous — most viruses die once their host is killed.
But pathogens can jump to humans during the capture, transportation, or slaughter of animals, especially if sanitation is poor or protective equipment not used.
With scrutiny rising amid the viral outbreak, China on Sunday ordered a temporary ban on wildlife trading until the viral epidemic eases.
But conservationists say China has repeatedly failed to deliver on pledges to crack down.
Chinese authorities have addressed the problem partly by encouraging a farmed-animal industry.
This has included for endangered species like tigers, whose parts are prized in China and other Asian countries as aphrodisiacs or for other uses.
But that comes with its own downside, by providing a channel for more sought-after wild-caught beasts to be laundered as "farmed," Bell said.
She added that wildlife traders also had become more savvy, avoiding market scrutiny by selling directly to restaurants.
Environmental groups say Chinese demand, fueled by rising consumer buying power, is the biggest driver of the global bushmeat trade today.
Some rare species have been prized in China as delicacies or for unproved health benefits since ancient times.
Traditionally, a host gains "face" by serving guests or business partners expensive, hard-to-acquire wild fare.
Yang Zhanqiu, a pathogen biologist at Wuhan University, said modern demand also is bolstered by widespread distrust of a Chinese food industry tarnished by years of repeated safety scandals.
"People will think: wild is natural, natural is safe," Yang said.
"Everyone wants to eat better, so there is a market for wild animals."
Daszak said: "It's very difficult to stop an activity with 5,000 years of cultural significance."
But recent surveys strongly indicate that China's younger generation — swayed partly by animal-rights campaigns involving popular Chinese celebrities — are much less inclined to tuck into bat, rat, or salamander, he added.
"I think that in 50 years this will be a thing of the past," Daszak said.
"The problem is that we live in such an interconnected world today that any pandemic like this can spread globally in three weeks."


Clic here to read the story from its source.