Africa: Global Cancer Burden Growing, Amidst Mounting Need for Services

[ad_1] Ahead of World Cancer Day, the World Health Organization (WHO)'s cancer agency, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), released the latest estimates of the global burden of cancer. WHO also published survey results from 115 countries, showing a majority of countries do not adequately finance priority cancer and palliative care services, as part of universal health coverage (UHC). The IARC estimates, based on the best sources of data available in countries in 2022, highlight the growing burden […]

February 1, 2024 2

Africa

Africa: WHO Director-General’s Remarks At the Trans Fat Elimination Validation Ceremony – 29 January 2024

[ad_1] My brother, Dr Tom Frieden, Excellencies, dear colleagues and friends, Today, we celebrate the great progress we have made together towards our shared goal of eliminating trans fat from the global food supply. Five years ago, WHO called on countries and the food sector to eliminate industrially-produced trans fat from the food supply. The response has been incredible. So far, 53 countries have implemented best-practice policies including bans or limits on trans fat, with three more countries on the […]

January 30, 2024 1

Africa

Africa: Certain Indoor Air Pollutants Can Be Absorbed Through the Skin – Here’s What You Need to Know

[ad_1] Even though most of us will spend a majority of our lives indoors, that doesn't mean we aren't still exposed to air pollution. Indoor air contains a wide array of pollutants including chemicals found in many common household items, building materials and cleaning products. These chemicals (known as volatile organic compounds) can occur in gaseous form, which means we can inhale them. But there's a sub-group of volatile organic compounds, called semi-volatile organic compounds. These can occur both in […]

January 30, 2024 3

Africa

Africa: Neglected Tropical Diseases Persist in the World’s Poorest Places – Four Reads About Hurdles and Progress

[ad_1] It's sobering to reflect that "neglected tropical diseases" are referred to as "neglected" because they persist in the poorest, most marginalised communities even after being wiped out in more developed parts of the world. A variety of pathogens, including viruses, bacteria, parasites, fungi and toxins, cause neglected tropical diseases, which include dengue, chikungunya, leprosy, lymphatic filariasis and yaws. They inflict tremendous suffering because of their disfiguring, debilitating and sometimes deadly impact. Patients often experience stigma, social exclusion and superstition. […]

January 30, 2024 2

Africa

Africa: Gates Foundation Says 0.5% of World Billionaires’ Wealth Could Prevent 7 Million Deaths

[ad_1] The foundation said there are existing and emerging solutions that will improve and save lives despite challenges. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has said as small as 0.5 per cent of the wealth of billionaires around the world can save millions of lives if invested in meaningful philanthropism. The organisation said this in its recent call for increased philanthropism among global rich individuals and organisations to advance solutions to improve lives. Giving a breakdown in the latest 2024 […]

January 29, 2024 1

Africa

Africa: One in Twenty People Has No Sense of Smell – Here’s How They Might Get It Back

[ad_1] During the pandemic, a lost sense of smell was quickly identified as one of the key symptoms of COVID. Nearly four years later, one in five people in the UK is living with a decreased or distorted sense of smell, and one in twenty have anosmia - the total loss of the ability to perceive any odours at all. Smell training is one of the few treatment options for recovering a lost sense of smell - but can we […]

January 26, 2024 2

Africa

Africa: Ban or Restrict? Quandary Facing Governments As Vaping Entices Teens Worldwide

[ad_1] Bangkok, Thailand — A hot debate on electronic smoking devices is expected to engage governments, scheduled to meet in Panama from 5-10 February for the tenth session of the Conference of Parties (COP) to the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC). The WHO FCTC, the first health treaty, was developed to address the global tobacco epidemic and to ensure that governments are supported in implementing comprehensive and effective tobacco control strategies. Earlier in 2016, the governments during […]

January 26, 2024 3

Africa

Africa: The Emergence of Jn.1 Is an Evolutionary ‘Step Change’ in the Covid Pandemic. Why Is This Significant?

[ad_1] Since it was detected in August 2023, the JN.1 variant of COVID has spread widely. It has become dominant in Australia and around the world, driving the biggest COVID wave seen in many jurisdictions for at least the past year. The World Health Organization (WHO) classified JN.1 as a "variant of interest" in December 2023 and in January strongly stated COVID was a continuing global health threat causing "far too much" preventable disease with worrying potential for long-term health […]

January 26, 2024 1

Africa

Africa: How Both Health and Safety Are Compromised for People Living With Long Covid and Intimate Partner Violence

[ad_1] What happens when a person is experiencing long COVID and intimate partner violence at the same time? There has been no attention paid to this question anywhere in the world since the onset of the pandemic in 2020. This is staggering, given previous research shows women who are victim-survivors of intimate partner violence are twice as likely to develop long-term illnesses, including chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia. The World Health Organisation defines long COVID as the continuation, or development […]

January 25, 2024 2

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