9月21日

11.16

This is the VOA Special English Agriculture Report.

Teff is a common part of the diet in Ethiopia and other parts of Africa. This nutritious grain is very small. It has a mild, nutty taste.

People use teff flour to make bread and other foods. Now teff is finding new uses in foods for people with celiac disease.

People with celiac disease cannot process gluten. Gluten is a protein in wheat, rye and barley. Glutens can be found not just in foods but also medicines and other products.

The immune system is supposed to protect the body. But celiac causes the immune system to damage the small intestine. The disease can cause stomach pains, bloating and diarrhea. It can also cause weight loss and make people feel continually hungry. It interferes with the body's ability to absorb nutrients from food.

In the past, celiac disease was considered rare and limited mostly to people of European ancestry. The rate of reported cases was one in ten thousand people.

Today the estimate is about one in one hundred thirty-three Americans. But celiac researcher Alessio Fasano says until recent years not much was known about the disease.

ALESSIO FASANO: "Now, with large epidemiological studies done everywhere including here, we can say with a great level of confidence that the disease affects roughly the same percentage of the general public worldwide. That is roughly one percent. So it is not rare at all."

Doctor Fasano directs the Center for Celiac Research at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. He says the disease can be very mild. But more serious cases can interfere with a child's growth. Adults can suffer liver damage, joint pain and other problems.

The main way to control the disease is to avoid glutens. There is a growing market for products that are gluten-free.

Farmers in Nevada grow about half the teff produced in the United States. The crop is currently worth only about one million dollars to farmers in that state. But teff grower David Eckert is hopeful.

DAVID ECKERT: "The non-gluten market, I think is going to be a big market. I think it's just getting there and knowing the right people, getting into the larger companies that are going to really use the product."

Some people without celiac disease say they feel better when they avoid gluten. But many scientists question if this is really true.

Seven years ago, Anna Quigg was surprised to learn that she has celiac disease. She says gluten-free products are much easier to find these days. She buys teff and other whole grains.

ANNA QUIGG: "Who thinks they are allergic to bread, you know?"

And that's the VOA Special English Agriculture Report, written by Jerilyn Watson with Steve Baragona. I'm Bob Doughty.

11.17

This is the VOA Special English Health Report.

Delegates from around the world are meeting this week in Uruguay to consider new ways to control tobacco. A World Health Organization treaty called the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control took effect five years ago. More than one hundred seventy governments have signed it.

The treaty requires a number of efforts -- like raising tobacco prices, restricting advertising and banning sales to children.

These high school students recently protested against tobacco companies at a trade show in Jakarta. Indonesia has not signed the international treaty. But its Health Ministry proposes to ban all forms of cigarette advertising.

An official at the Indonesian Tobacco Alliance says his trade group agrees with banning all activities to promote cigarettes to the young. But he says tobacco companies should be able to market their products to adults, just like any other legal product.

Tobacco growers are also concerned about several measures proposed at this week's meeting in Uruguay. One would ban additives traditionally used with "burley" tobacco. This kind of tobacco is grown extensively in Africa and used extensively in American-style cigarettes that are popular worldwide.

Antismoking groups say the proposal is aimed against flavorings like chocolate, licorice and sugar. The director of the Tanzania Tobacco Control Forum points out that several American brands still use burley tobacco but without additives.

But economists at NKC, a South African research group, say the guidelines would affect the lives of millions of Africans who depend on tobacco farming. The report says nearly four million people in Mozambique, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe would be most seriously affected.

Since June, the United States has banned cigarette companies from using misleading terms like "light," "mild" and "low tar."

Last week, federal health officials announced new actions to control tobacco. These include proposals to require larger health warnings on cigarette packages and advertisements.

Officials also want to require new "graphic health warnings" within two years. Proposals include a picture of a woman blowing smoke in a baby's face, and an image of diseased lungs next to healthy lungs.

You can find a link to all of the proposed images at voaspecialenglish.com.

And that's the VOA Special English Health Report. I'm Steve Ember.

11.18

This is the VOA Special English Education Report.

This week, the Institute of International Education in New York published its yearly report on international students in the United States. The report says more than six hundred ninety thousand attended American colleges and universities during the last academic year.

That number was a record high. It was an increase of three percent from the year before. But it was mainly the result of heavy growth from one country, China. China passed India as the top country sending students to the United States.

The president of the institute, Allan Goodman, says the economic crisis could have limited growth from other countries.

ALLAN GOODMAN: "Rates of increase for international students coming to America were a little bit slower in the last year and we think that reflects the global recession. And the number of Americans studying abroad declined a little bit. So we think that these flows are sensitive to things like wars, revolutions, recessions and natural disasters."

The Institute of International Education publishes its report called "Open Doors" with support from the State Department. The latest report is for the academic year that ended this past June.

It says China sent more than one hundred twenty-seven thousand students. That was an increase of thirty percent over the previous year.

India was the top sending country for eight years. But last year it was in second place, followed by South Korea. Among the top sending countries, Japan showed the greatest decrease -- a drop of fifteen percent.

For a ninth year, the University of Southern California in Los Angeles reported the largest number of foreign students -- nearly eight thousand.

The most popular field of study for international students in the United States is business and management, followed by engineering.

But the report noted a nine percent decrease for intensive English-language programs. Allan Goodman says the reason may have been the recession. He says English-language training is often the most costly part for students beginning their studies.

But Mr. Goodman pointed to an increase in another area: the number of foreign students at the undergraduate level.

ALLAN GOODMAN: "Traditionally, study in America has been overwhelmingly at the graduate level. And in the past several years we've begun to see almost an equal interest by families in sending students here for undergraduate education, and I think that’s going to continue because America is really a unique country. We have four thousand accredited colleges and universities. International students make up only about three percent of our total enrollment."

What that means, he says, is that there is a lot of room for growth.

And that's the VOA Special English Education Report, written by Lawan Davis. I'm Steve Ember.

11.19

This is the VOA Special English Economics Report.

Continuing debt problems in Greece and Portugal. The banking crisis in Ireland. A trillion-dollar deficit in the United States. These are all reasons why high levels of public debt are a big worry around the world.

Countries that keep spending a lot more than they earn may not be able to repay their debts. That risk of default can make it harder and costlier for them to borrow more money. Heavy debt can also affect a country's competitiveness.

Voter anger at government spending and taxes helped lead to the big Republican gains in America's elections this month.

President Obama says for the economy to improve, the government must cut spending and reduce its deficit. In February, he formed the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform. The two chairmen are Erskine Bowles, a Democrat, and Alan Simpson, a Republican.

Last week, the chairmen presented their own ideas for how to cut the federal deficit to about two percent of the economy by twenty fifteen. The administration estimates this year's deficit at about ten and a half percent.

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