Liver disease, social media harms and health taxes dominated the World Health Assembly’s (WHA) discussion on non-communicable diseases (NCDs) on Thursday.

For the first time, countries resolved to include steatotic liver disease (SLD), which is closely linked to obesity and diabetes, into NCD plans. 

Formerly known as fatty liver disease, SLD  affects an estimated 1.7 billion people and is one of the fastest-growing causes of chronic liver disease globally. Without effective prevention and care, SLD can progress to liver fibrosis, cirrhosis, and liver cancer.

WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that the resolution “highlights the growing recognition of the need to address metabolic conditions in a more integrated way.”

“Metabolic conditions are becoming an increasingly important challenge globally. The rising prevalence of obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular and steatotic liver diseases, are driven by shared risk factors and determinants,” Tedros told an event convened by the European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL) in Geneva this week.

The resolution was sponsored by Egypt, and its Health Minister Khaled Abdel Ghaffar described it as “a missing piece in the global NCD response” at the EASL event.

Meanwhile, EASL said: “For the first time in history, WHO Member States have an explicit, formal international mandate to include liver disease in their national NCD strategies and health system planning – placing it alongside long-established priorities such as cardiovascular disease, cancer, and diabetes.”

An estimated 780 Europeans die each day of liver disease, costing the region €55 billion a year.

During the same session, member states also endorsed a resolution committing to action on haemophilia, von Willebrand Disease, and other rare clotting factor deficiencies. 

Mental health and social media

Netherlands, speaking for Belgium and Luxembourg, highlighted the impact of “digital technologies, including social media” on mental health.

“They can severely affect mental health by encouraging cyberbullying, unhealthy lifestyles, gambling, and screen addiction,” said the Netherlands, and called on the WHO to “advance research and provide effective guidance that can help countries to ensure that digital environments support rather than undermine health and well-being”.

“We would welcome clear recommendations on minimum age rules, robust age assurance, and age-appropriate design for social media use.”

Estonia, for the Nordic countries and Lithuania, also cited “harmful use of social media” as one of the driving factors of “the growing trend of mental health problems among youth and older people”.

Noting member states’ appeal for guidance, WHO head of NCDs and mental mealth, Dr Dévora Kestel, responded that the global body “is closely monitoring the evolving evidence on [social media] bans and promoting online safety through technology design, digital health literacy and strengthened oversight of digital platforms”.

The WHA was discussing the implementation of the political declaration of the United Nations High-Level Meeting on NCDs and mental health, adopted last year by all WHO member states (only the United States and Argentina opposed it).

Suicide prevention

Maldives, speaks on behalf of the WHO South East Asia region, said that the region “continues to confront the escalating mental health burden driven by social, economic, and environmental and humanitarian determinants, including the long-term impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, climate-related emergencies, inequalities, economic insecurities, and rising psychosocial distress among young and vulnerable populations”. 

It also “recognises suicide prevention as an urgent public health priority and encourages strengthened multi-sectorial strategies, responsible media reporting, and expanded access to timely mental health and psychosocial support services, particularly for children, adolescents, and vulnerable populations.

South East Asia accounts for nearly 40% of global suicides with an estimated suicide incidence rate of 17.7 per 100,000 people – roughly 60% higher than the global average.

Health taxes

Estonia, for the Nordic countries and Lithuania, called for stronger action to address the “environmental and commercial drivers” of NCDs.

“Effective measures include health taxes and limiting the marketing of harmful products and vulnerable groups,” noted Estonia.

It also called for “promoting healthier diets and physical activity, and reducing harm caused by tobacco, nicotine products, and alcohol”. 

Ethiopia, speaking for the African region, also proposed sustainable financing for NCD prevention “through health taxes” and domestic budget allocation.