India’s elderly population is projected to reach more than 340 million by 2050. Could that result in a new mental health epidemic? New data reveals that 21.9 percent of India’s elderly suffer from depression. This is a much higher rate than the global average. Fifteen percent of the world’s elderly population suffer from a mental […]
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World Breastfeeding Week Special: Hospitals go ‘baby-friendly’ for newborns health
As part of our series highlighting the many issues that deter India from being a breastfeeding nation, today we bring a story of hope. Sixteen hospitals are working to usher in a change. Plans are being rolled out to turn the facilities in question ‘baby-friendly’ in a bid to improve the nutritional health of newborns. […]
Why India fails to be a breastfeeding nation
India is failing to be a breastfeeding nation – potentially putting the lives of its newborns at risk. Just 41.5 percent of newborns in India are breastfed within an hour of being born. This is according to new data released by UNICEF and the World Health Organization (WHO), ahead of World Breastfeeding Awareness Week this year. On […]
Time for India to deliver on NCDs
The World Health Organization (WHO) has issued a stark warning about the threat of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs). India should take note. “NCDs and mental disorders currently pose one of the biggest threats to health and development globally,” a WHO high-level independent commission on NCDs said in their report released on Friday, June 1. It added, […]
The inequality of improvement: What the HAQ Index tells India
Access to healthcare has improved in India since 1990 – but not enough. Meanwhile, inequality persists. The country takes the 145th place out of 195 countries on the Healthcare Access and Quality (HAQ) Index. This measures the accessibility and quality of healthcare in countries by drawing on a plethora of data, including the 2016 Global […]
Rotavac becomes first Indian developed vaccine to pass WHO standards
The Rotavac vaccine — created to immunise against rotavirus — has become the first vaccine entirely developed within India to receive World Health Organization (WHO) approval. Rotavac is currently considered to be “pre-qualified” by the WHO. This means that the vaccine can now be sold to countries across the world and included in UNICEF procurement […]
As the Taj Mahal changes colour, pollution leaves Indian cities gasping for breath
The changing face of the Taj Mahal One of the most visible effects of India’s rapidly escalating pollution crisis is the changing face of one of its most iconic landmarks. The Taj Mahal, a marble mausoleum which stands 240 feet tall on the banks of Yamuna river in Agra, is famous for its ivory white […]
Exclusive interview with Dr Soumya Swaminathan, WHO Deputy Director General
Earlier this year, Dr Soumya Swaminathan – director of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) – was appointed Deputy Director General (DDG) of programmes at the World Health Organization (WHO). Health Issues India has interviewed Dr Swaminathan, about the progress made in public health, both in India and on the global level, and what she […]
Breastfeeding could save 100,000 child lives a year in India
The lives of almost 100,000 Indian children could be saved every year, with better breastfeeding practices. This is according to a new report by the Global Breastfeeding Collective, released to mark Breastfeeding Awareness Week (August 1-7). The report claims 830,000 deaths of children under five years could be averted globally each year if countries scaled […]
India is fighting at the WHO to make medicines cheaper, but drug quality is the real problem
This has been reproduced, with permission, from The News Minute. Full credit goes to the author Ramanathan S. (@madrassi). The original article can be accessed here Not very far from the Serpentine Bar at the Palace of Nations in Geneva, the United Nations HQ, where both lobbyists of the private sector and non-state actors are competing […]