Health Beat #7 | Weight loss drugs may work — but won’t end obesity...
Losing weight is hard. For many people, diets and exercise don't work in the long term. Genetics can also play a role in people’s body weight (and their ability to lose it). In this month’s episode of our television show, Health Beat, we speak to two people who've used the weight loss drug, semaglutide.
[WATCH] The anatomy of a tackle: How changing rugby laws could protect players
With plans to lower the tackle height in rugby around the world, why is the governing body for rugby considering it? Put simply, the lower the height, the lower the risk of head injury. Watch for more.
#TeamBhekisisa | Meet Bhekisisa’s most camera-shy team member
Spend a day with Dylan Bush, Bhekisisa’s production and multimedia manager, and see what it takes to keep things running smoothly behind the scenes.
#TeamBhekisisa | Science made simple: Here’s what content editor Linda Pretorius does
Through asking critical questions, our content editor, Linda Pretorius, works with our reporters and writers to interpret study results and unpack them in easy-to-understand language. She loves putting science into easy words, and helping policymakers, researchers and reporters to do the same. Here’s how she works.
By the numbers: What load shedding does to your mental health
Three in four employed people surveyed by the South African Depression and Anxiety Group (Sadag) said their bosses expected them to do the same amount of work despite consistent power cuts. Many feared that continued load shedding will lead to job losses and derail attempts to turn around the country’s struggling economy. Mia Malan speaks to Sadag’s Cassey Chambers for Bhekisisa’s monthly TV programme, Health Beat.
[LISTEN] The world’s biggest HIV & TB programme has a new goal: Happiness
What do researchers, experts and policymakers think of South Africa’s new five-year action plan for HIV, TB and STIs?
#TeamBhekisisa | Meet Mohale Moloi, Bhekisisa’s multimedia reporter and producer
From scouring science journals to social media, Mohale Moloi does whatever it takes to find a great story. Here’s how a typical day goes for Bhekisisa’s Health Beat producer.
[WATCH] How does Ozempic work?
Ozempic contains a synthetic version of a hormone our bodies create. It is used to treat diabetes but also reduces the appetite of people who use the drug. Watch this for more.
‘It’s every man for himself’: Why this farmer says he needs mental health help
Bayanda Maseko lost 2 000 chickens and more than R100 000 he invested in his farm in 2022, all because of loadshedding. Maseko says psychological support is needed in an industry where “it's every man for himself”. He speaks about the impact of these losses on his mental health in the March episode of Bhekisisa’s television show Health Beat.
#TeamBhekisisa | Colours and cameras: This is how multimedia reporter Yolanda gets the job...
As a multimedia reporter, our Yolanda Mdzeke spends a lot of time behind the scenes. She’s often staring at a screen. Watch this video to find out how she gets the job done.
Health Beat #6 | ‘Suddenly you become anxious and angry’: How loadshedding impacts mental...
There have been 422 days of rolling black-outs since 2020 and it’s taken a toll on South Africans’ mental health. A survey by the South African Depression and Anxiety Group reveals that people are dealing with anxiety, more family conflict and thoughts of self death.
#TeamBhekisisa: One person’s ‘news editor’ is another’s ‘poltergeist’
Find out how our news editor Joan van Dyk decides what our articles should add to the news cycle.
[LISTEN] Is this the new TB patient? About half of infected people don’t have...
About half of people who are infected with tuberculosis don’t have symptoms. Researchers still don’t know whether people with asymptomatic TB spread the bacteria to others, or whether they’ll always develop symptoms.
#TeamBhekisisa: A day in our office with health reporter Nicole Ludolph
Like most people, Nicole Ludolph starts her day off by scrolling through social media. Then, she gets to work. Have a look at how she navigates the world of health journalism.
Safe, not seedy: How sex work changed after two decades of decrim in New...
In South Africa, 70% of female sex workers in a countrywide survey conducted in 2019 said they’d experienced violence from clients in the previous year. Find out how things change when sex work isn’t illegal from workers in New Zealand.
#BhekisisaDiaries: What vasectomy research says about sex, myths and manhood
There are two birth control options for men in South Africa – condoms and vasectomies. Men have a good grip of how condoms work but less so when it comes to the 15-minute snip. Stigma, myths and misconceptions are all part of what our reporter Mohale Moloi hopes to challenge with his reproductive health reporting.