Article

The scientific case for deworming children

Michael Kremer, Edward Miguel
Thomson Reuters Foundation
The-scientific-case-for-deworming-children-Thomas-Reuters-Foundation.pdf

The last few days have seen an outpouring of news stories relating to “worm wars”, the policy debate over whether governments should provide mass treatment for intestinal worm infections in endemic areas. This was sparked when a re-analysis of a 2004 study (which found a strong link between deworming and school attendance) was published last week in the International Journal of Epidemiology. An issue that normally fights for attention sparked a media frenzy, and a robust discussion among scholars and pundits on social media.

While scrutiny is central to good science, this particular re-analysis and the ensuing media coverage, are…

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