From killing over 600,000 elderly from dementia to an almost equal number of infants under the age of one-year, air pollution’s impact on young and old is explained simply through hard-hitting numbers in the latest State of Global Air (SOGA) report, by the Boston-based Health Effects Institute. The report identifies plenty of scope for immediate […] Continue reading ->
BERLIN – Global life expectancy rose again in 2023 after a decline during the COVID pandemic with overall life expectancy 20 years higher as compared to 1950. But North America and Latin America are seeing higher death rates among adolescents and young adults due to a crisis in mental health – reflected in higher rates […] Continue reading ->
A new White House “pocket rescission package” threatens to throw the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), the Americas branch of the World Health Organization, into a financial crisis – if it is not stopped by the US Congress before the end of September. The White House order, announced on the eve of the long US […] Continue reading ->
The World Health Organization (WHO) has designated government regulatory authorities in Canada, Japan, and the United Kingdom as WHO-Listed Authorities (WLAs), a status granted to national authorities that meet the highest international regulatory standards for medical products. The recognition widens the pool of WHO-recognized authorities significantly beyond the previously recognized authorities in Europe, the United […] Continue reading ->
The proportion of the world’s population suffering acute hunger declined globally in 2024 to about 673 million people, but continued to rise in most African regions as well as western Asia, according to the new UN State of Food Security and Nutrition (SOFI) report, launched Monday in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Global hunger levels have remained […] Continue reading ->
LONDON – Summit it was not as there were no heads of state or even Bill Gates, although the UK’s Minister for Climate Change made a compelling presentation showing the kind of policy leadership starkly absent in the United States. Even so, the recent Climate and Health Summit, hosted by the UK Physiological Society, the […] Continue reading ->
The global childhood vaccination rate in 2024 held steady with 85% of infants and children receiving three doses of the vaccine for diphtheria, pertussis and tetanus (DPT), used as a global benchmark for immunization rates overall. However large, continued gaps in coverage are propelling outbreaks, including the highest rate of measles cases since 2019. “In […] 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 ->
The region of the Americas has seen eight times the number of yellow fever cases this year, compared to the same period in 2024. The vaccine-preventable, viral, mosquito-borne disease has surged as cases “spillover” from animals, according to a Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) rapid risk assessment. Dense jungles in Colombia and Brazil have seen […] Continue reading ->
Samira Asma, assistant director of Data, Analytics and Delivery since 2020, is reportedly leaving WHO in the first of an expected departure of five senior leadership team members as the Organisation sets out to dramatically shrinks its Geneva footprint and staffing. Of the existing 11-member team, only six would remain, if a plan shared by […] Continue reading ->