On 25 September, world leaders will gather at the United Nations for the Fourth High-Level Meeting on Noncommunicable Diseases (NCDs). It comes at a pivotal moment: funding for global health has plummeted, while NCDs like heart disease, cancer and diabetes continue to claim 75% of all lives lost worldwide. This amid recent efforts to water […] Continue reading ->
Canada’s struggle with substance use is more than a health issue—it’s a matter of language, policy, and public trust, said Dr. Kwame McKenzie in the latest episode of the Global Health Matters podcast with Dr. Garry Aslanyan. McKenzie, CEO of the Wellesley Institute and Director of Health Equity at Canada’s Centre for Addiction and Mental […] Continue reading ->
As the tobacco industry continues to innovate to preserve its market appeal, the health sector needs to become even more creative – advocating for new regulations to reduce tobacco’s appeal and increase product costs. Among those: limiting nicotine content, banning filter tips, and joining WHO’s new “3×35 initiative” to raise the price of tobacco products […] Continue reading ->
Low-income countries could confront the massive health finance crisis they are facing after the withdrawal of most US-based aid through a 50% increase in the price of tobacco, alcohol and sugary drinks – saving 50 million lives and raising some $1 trillion dollars in vital revenue for strapped health systems, says WHO. The ambitious WHO […] Continue reading ->
Three-quarters of the world’s citizens – 6.1 billion people – are covered by at least one of the six tobacco control measures advocated by the World Health Organization (WHO), according to the global body’s annual Tobacco Epidemic 2025 report launched at the World Conference on Tobacco Control in Dublin on Monday evening. However, tobacco use […] Continue reading ->
As the World Conference on Tobacco Control (WCTC) opened in Dublin on Monday, the world’s largest convening of tobacco control advocates, researchers, and policy strategists is positioned to play an influential role in shaping the technical and civil society contributions that will feed into a series of important multilateral processes taking place this year. Between […] Continue reading ->
As the world observes ‘No Tobacco Day’, the World Health Organization (WHO) has called on governments to ban all flavours in tobacco and nicotine products, including cigarettes, pouches, hookahs and e-cigarettes – which are playing an increasing role in hooking young people to tobacco products. Over 50 countries have banned flavoured tobacco, but manufacturers are […] Continue reading ->
The pace of technological change today is nothing short of revolutionary, according to Dr Douglas Bettcher, Senior Advisor in the Director-General’s Office at the World Health Organization (WHO). “I think we find ourselves very strangely in the last couple of years, in what seems to be a really brave new world, brave new reality,” he […] Continue reading ->
Big tobacco companies are marketing heated tobacco products (HTP) as a less harmful alternative to cigarettes, but researchers warned this week that there is no evidence to support this or the industry claim that they can help smokers to quit. HTPs are electronic devices that heat an insert of processed tobacco, often in a stick […] Continue reading ->
Self-care can be a key strategy in tackling the global crisis of non-communicable diseases that are responsible for three-quarters of premature deaths globally and 86 percent of early deaths (before age 70) in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Moreover, dentists, pharmacists and community health workers are trained professionals who can provide innovative forms of self-care […] Continue reading ->