India’s food production sector has been banned from using the antibiotic colistin, over concerns about its misuse potentially fuelling drug resistance. According to a 2009 study, “colistin is…being used increasingly as a ‘last-line’ therapy to treat infections caused by [multi-drug-resistant] Gram-negative bacteria, when essentially no other options are available.” Yet concerns are growing that, in […]
World Health Organization
Essential medicines: WHO updates list
The World Health Organization (WHO) has updated its lists of essential medicines and diagnostics in a bid to expand access to affordable treatments for individuals worldwide. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus asserted in a statement that “around the world, more than 150 countries use WHO’s Essential Medicines List to guide decisions about which medicines represent […]
Production of trans fats warning reminds us why action is vital
Even as many countries regulate trans fats, more than five billion people worldwide continued to be exposed to them at risk to their health according to the World Health Organization (WHO). “Momentum is growing for the global elimination of industrially-produced trans fat, with nearly one third of the world’s population in 28 countries now protected […]
WHO convinces industry to reduce trans fats
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has achieved a major breakthrough in its campaign to eliminate industrially produced trans fats from the global food supply by 2023. After a meeting with the International Food and Beverage Alliance (IFBA) representatives, including chief executive officers from several of the twelve companies comprising the alliance, on May 2nd, 2019 […]
WHO advice for kids: Play more, sit less
Children under five must spend less time sitting in front of screens, or restrained in prams and seats, get better quality sleep and spend more time playing if they are to grow up healthy, according to new guidelines issued by the World Health Organisation (WHO). In the digital era, which keeps kids busy with smartphones […]
Measles makes a comeback: Fake news to blame?
Measles is a preventable disease – so why have cases almost quadrupled in a year? The first three months of 2019 witnessed dramatic increases in rates of the disease in every region of the world, compared to the same period last year, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). 170 countries reported 112,163 cases of […]
Which city is the most polluted in India?
A sharp and worrying rise in pollution rates is being felt especially in the north of India, whose metros dominate the list of India’s most polluted cities. Bihar capital Patna tops the list. Kanpur and Varanasi – both in Uttar Pradesh – follow in second and third place respectively. Delhi places fourth in the rankings, […]
Concern as cases of leprosy spike
India may have officially eliminated leprosy in 2005. However, the battle against the disease is far from over. A spike in the number of new infections has furthered alarm that the disease may be showing signs of a resurgence in India. 90,709 cases of leprosy were recorded in the 2017-18 period, statistics suggest. This is […]
India’s children suffer due to air pollution
India’s children are at severe risk of health issues due to air pollution. Around 93 percent of children globally are regularly exposed to air pollution levels considered dangerous to their health. This is according to a report published by the World Health Organization (WHO). Such data suggests the dire prospect that the overwhelming majority of children […]
Mind your salt intake, it’s bad for blood pressure
Salt intake is too high in India, the Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI) has warned. Is this leading to a crisis of high blood pressure? A PHFI study has found consumption of the foodstuff in three Indian states exceeds the level recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO), which says you should eat less than […]