last week i did rounds with dr. bransford. (the doctor [aka superman] i am staying with) in the early mornings, which I have been doing every week, and then rounds with peter and the pediatrics team, and worked on my research. we also learned a lot about diabetes in africa. the director of a major international diabetes organization came and gave a lecture on that topic. it is becoming a lot more common because more and more people are switching to a western style diet. there is also an obesity epidemic looming in africa, because for many it is culturally desirable to be large (it implies your husband is capable of providing). in this culture it is also considered completely strange to be seen exercising, a fact that i am constantly reminded of by the quizzical stares everyone gives me when i go on my daily run. interestingly, africans are actually more prone to obesity and diabetes than are caucasians when all other factors are constant. the diabetes expert suggested this was because caucasians were the first in history to begin consuming lactose/dairy products, allowing them to consume more calories. this allowed for a gradual selection of genes that made them less calorie efficient. interestingly there is a third form of diabetes in the developing world which has been (creatively) named type III diabetes. it is caused by malnourishment. in other health news, they found some e-coli in the kijabe water source. someone came rushing into the house to tell us not to drink the water – immediately after i had just chugged about a liter of it after a long run. we all felt a little sick for a few days.
other highlights have included a visit from my cousin who i shall not name, who lives in a country which i shall not name, lest government officials from said country google “name of said country” “and” “jesus,” find that both exist in this blog, and hunt my cousin down. i wouldn’t want that. i also had a harvard and oxford educated doctor roommate one night in the bransford’s loft where i sleep. i hoped some of his intelligence would emanate in my direction as we slept, but the fact that i am writing this sentence right now probably proves that it didn’t. the hospital has also been hosting weekly seminars on islam, and it has been very interesting to compare the african-christian perspectives on islam with the arab-muslim and other perspectives i got in the middle east when i was studying there. this week peter and isaac left. they were the medical students that i spent basically every waking hour of the the last month with – in casualty, pediatrics, various trips to maasailand and nairobi, and playing copious amounts of settlers of catan and basketball with. i’m going to miss you guys.