WHO published its World health statistics report 2025, revealing the deeper health impacts caused by the COVID-19 pandemic on loss of lives, longevity and overall health and well-being. In just two years, between 2019 and 2021, global life expectancy fell by 1.8 years—the largest drop in recent history— reversing a …
after more than two days of hectic parleys, the World Health Organization's (who) Global Strategy on Diet, Physical Activity and Health was endorsed at the 57th World Health Assembly (wha-57) in Geneva from May 17 to May 22. The plan aims to address two major factors, diet and physical activity, …
the first round of consultations, aimed at revising the International Health Regulations (ihr) of the World Health Organization (who), was held in Manila in the Philippines on April 28. Under the ihr, it is currently mandatory for member countries to report the occurrence of three infectious diseases
INDIAN authorities responsible for regulating pesticides have one big obsession: Codex. Officials, from both the ministries of agriculture and health and family welfare, have favoured taking refuge in standards set by the Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC). And they are not alone. The Indian industry, and its various associations cannot be …
ARTEMISININ, a drug isolated from sweet wormwood, has finally been approved by global health agencies as the first line of treatment of malaria instead of quinine, to which Plasmodium is showing increased resistance. The treatment is given as a cocktail known as artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT) and it has shown …
Struggling with non-communicable diseases, the WHO and Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) set up a study group in January 2002 to discuss the problem with health and agriculture experts. The result was TRS 916, a technical report. It says that calories from sugar should form 10 per cent of the …
WHO has time and again said that the strategy is based on scientific evidence, successful campaigns against NCDs in several countries and on recommendations from health and nutrition experts from across the globe. But the sugar and food industry and their lobbyists have tried to discredit the strategy by saying …
Obesity has become a worldwide concern because people in each and every nation are falling prey to it. WHO defines obesity as a body mass index (BMI) of at least 30 kg/m2 and overweight as a BMI of at least 25 kg/m2 (BMI is calculated by weight in kg divided …
On May 18, 2004, when governments of 192 World Health Organization (WHO) member countries gather at Geneva for the world health assembly, one Mrs Sharma in one town, Jabalpur perhaps, will be making her way purposefully to the new swanky fast food joint in Sadar Bazar. As she delightfully feeds …
the most comprehensive report of the tuberculosis menace worldwide has unveiled worrying levels of drug-resistant strains of the infectious disease. Patients in Kazahkstan, Uzbekistan and Estonia are 10 times more likely to have multi-drug resistant (mdr) tuberculosis than those residing in other countries, reveals the report of the World Health …
for the first time, developing countries have objected to a proposal to set the limit of sugar consumption at 10 per cent of total calorie intake for fighting obesity. Earlier, this line was adopted only by the us and other developed countries. The resistance stems from the belief that defining …
the World Health Organization (who) is toeing the Bush administration's line, proves a recent research of the premier health institute. As per the study, infectious syringes account for only 2.5 per cent of the hiv infections in Africa and unsafe sex practices are mainly responsible for the continent's aids crisis. …
WILL that crippling scourge called polio be wiped out from the face of the earth by the end of this year? The World Health Organization (WHO) hopes so. But all its ambitions
The Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) was set up to investigate the issue of pesticides in cold drinks, and everyone told us that we had reached a dead end. Parliamentarians aren't interested, we were told. The issues were too technical, too contentious. Cynics added that with elections round the corner, the …
an optimistic note, about wiping out polio from the six afflicted countries, was to be sounded at a conference organised by the World Health Organisation (who) in Geneva on January 15. Instead, the sudden re-emergence of the disease in two African nations
after finding high levels of dioxin-related compounds in breast milk of women living near landfills, a Vadodara-based non-governmental organisation intends to file a public interest litigation (pil) against the Gujarat Pollution Control Board and the Vadodara Municipal Corporation (vmc). Paryavaran Suraksha Samiti (pss), the ngo, alleges that people's health is …
organic reservoir: Spreading an ultra-thin layer of organic molecules on the surface of reservoirs could prevent millions of cubic metres of water evaporating each year, according to Flexible Solutions, a Canadian company. It is the first to commercialise the technique. Field tests of the technology conducted in several countries show …
tanzania has become the first African country to start producing a new type of long-lasting bednet that could help significantly reduce deaths from malaria. The bednet is made from specially designed polyester that incorporates insecticide into the material's molecular structure. Unlike a conventional bednet, which needs to be sprayed with …
