Such food banks will sometimes also act as centers to provide small holders and subsistence farmers with various forms of support. Soup kitchen
A soup kitchen, meal center, or food kitchen is a place where food is offered to the hungry for free or at a below market price. Frequently located in lower-income neighborhoods, they are often staffed by volunteer organizations, such as church or community groups. Soup kitchens sometimes obtain food from a food bank for free or at a low price, because they are considered a charity, which makes it easier for them to feed the many people who require their services. Others
Local establishments calling themselves "food banks" or "soup kitchens" are often run either by Christian churches or less frequently by secular civil society groups. Other religions carry out similar hunger relief efforts, though sometimes with slightly different methods. For example, in the Sikh tradition of Langar, food is served to the hungry direct from Sikh temples. There are exceptions to this, for example in the UK Sikhs run some of the food banks, as well as giving out food direct from their Gurdwaras. Hunger and gender
In both developing and advanced countries, parents sometimes go without food so they can feed their children. Women, however, seem more likely to make this sacrifice than men. World Bank studies consistently find that about 60% of those who are hungry are female. The apparent explanation for this imbalance is that, compared to men, women often forgo meals in order to feed their children.
Triggers
Acute porphyria can be triggered by a number of drugs, most of which are believed to trigger it by interacting with enzymes in the liver which are made with heme. Such drugs include:
Sulfonamides, including sulfadiazine, sulfasalazine and trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole. Sulfonylureas like glibenclamide, gliclazide and glimepiride, although glipizide is thought to be safe. Barbiturates including thiopental, phenobarbital, primidone, etc. Systemic treatment with antifungals including fluconazole, griseofulvin, ketoconazole and voriconazole. (Topical use of these agents is thought to be safe due to minimal systemic absorption.) Certain antibiotics like rifapentine, rifampicin, rifabutine, isoniazid, nitrofurantoin and, possibly, metronidazole. Ergot derivatives including dihydroergotamine, ergometrine, ergotamine, methysergide, etc. Certain antiretroviral medications (e.g. indinavir, nevirapine, ritonavir, saquinavir, etc.) Progestogens
Some anticonvulsants including: carbamazepine, ethosuximide, phenytoin, topiramate, valproate. Some painkillers like dextropropoxyphene, ketorolac, metamizole, pentazocine
Some cancer treatments like bexarotene, busulfan, chlorambucil, estramustine, etoposide, flutamide, idarubicin, ifosfamide, irinotecan, ixabepilone, letrozole, lomustine, megestrol, mitomycin, mitoxantrone, paclitaxel, procarbazine, tamoxifen, topotecan
Some antidepressants like imipramine, phenelzine, trazodone
Some antipsychotics like risperidone, ziprasidone
Some retinoids used for skin conditions like acitretin and isotretinoin
Miscellaneous others including: cocaine, methyldopa, fenfluramine, disulfiram, orphenadrine, pentoxifylline, and sodium aurothiomalate. Pathogenesis
In humans, porphyrins are the main precursors of heme, an essential constituent of hemoglobin, myoglobin, catalase, peroxidase, and P450 liver cytochromes.The body requires porphyrins to produce heme, which is used to carry oxygen in the blood among other things, but in the porphyrias there is a deficiency (inherited or acquired) of the enzymes that transform the various porphyrins into others, leading to abnormally high levels of one or more of these substances.