The World Health Organization is the only body that can promote health through the use of international law. It should make alcohol its next target, says Devi Sridhar.

Mental, neurological, and substance use (MNS) disorders are highly prevalent and are responsible for 14% of the global burden of disease expressed in disability-adjusted life years (DALYs). The resources that have been provided in countries to tackle the huge burden are insufficient, inequitably distributed, and inefficiently used, which results in a large majority of people with these disorders receiving no care at all. Even when available, treatment and care often is neither evidence-based nor of high quality.

Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are a global health and developmental emergency, as they cause premature deaths, exacerbate poverty and threaten national economies. In 2008, they were the top killers in the South-East Asia region, causing 7.9 million deaths; the number of deaths is expected to increase by 21% over the next decade.

Kerala State is a harbinger of what will happen in future to the rest of India in chronic non-communicable diseases (NCD). We assessed: (i) the burden of NCD risk factors; (ii) estimated the relations of behavioural risk factors to socio-demographic correlates, anthropometric risk factors

The World Health Organization is launching the first global war against alcohol abuse. Can it replicate the success of the anti-smoking campaign? Some of the ways to curb excessive alcohol consumption are similar to those used against cigarettes, such as increasing taxes and reducing availability. (Editorial)

Humanity's relationship with alcohol has never been easy. Now it is about to undergo as great a change as our attitude to tobacco, which has seen smoking plummet from the height of cool to the lowest of unpleasant habits.