More than 3 million people died as a result of harmful use of alcohol in 2016, according a report released by the World Health Organization (WHO). This represents 1 in 20 deaths. More than three quarters of these deaths were among men. Overall, the harmful use of alcohol causes more …
Many factors affect child and adolescent mortality in high-income countries. These factors can be conceptualised within four domains—intrinsic (biological and psychological) factors, the physical environment, the social environment, and service delivery. The most prominent factors are socioeconomic gradients, although the mechanisms through which they exert their effects are complex, affect …
According to this WHO report 28 million people die each year from Non-communicable diseases in developing countries, mainly from cardiovascular diseases, cancers, chronic respiratory diseases, and diabetes Current global mortality from noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) remains unacceptably high and is increasing. Thirty-eight million people die each year from NCDs, mainly from …
Worldwide, 3.3 million deaths in 2012 were due to harmful use of alcohol, says a new report launched by WHO. Alcohol consumption can not only lead to dependence but also increases people’s risk of developing more than 200 diseases including liver cirrhosis and some cancers. In addition, harmful drinking can …
Countries have agreed to reduce premature mortality (defined as the probability of dying between the ages of 30 years and 70 years) from four main non-communicable diseases (NCDs)—cardiovascular diseases, chronic respiratory diseases, cancers, and diabetes—by 25% from 2010 levels by 2025 (referred to as 25×25 target). Targets for selected NCD …
In the past decade, a sense of urgency has started to pervade alcohol regulation in South Africa. The burden of alcohol-related mortality and morbidity is among the highest in the world, and its effects are made worse by persistent socio-economic and structural inequalities. Moreover, alcohol is also a principle risk …
Quantification of the disease burden caused by different risks informs prevention by providing an account of health loss different to that provided by a disease-by-disease analysis. No complete revision of global disease burden caused by risk factors has been done since a comparative risk assessment in 2000, and no previous …
Cancer is a leading cause of disease worldwide. An estimated 12.7 million new cancer cases occurred in 2008. Lung, female breast, colorectal and stomach cancers accounted for 40% of all cases diagnosed worldwide. In men, lung cancer was the most common cancer (16.5% of all new cases in men).
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 …
As the UN begins its meeting to devise strategies to tackle NCDs, Indian public health activists say it was a wake-up call for the health authorities in India. Some of them expressed concern that the meeting may be used to push industry agenda.
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 …
State won’t impose additional burden on common man, says finance minister KOLKATA, 29 AUG: The state government today increased sales tax on foreign liquor, indicated to impose higher VAT rates on tobacco-related products and rationalised stamp duties applicable on distribution of property through gifts or family settlements. Tabling the Finance …
Moderate alcohol consumption is known to be protective against coronary heart disease (CHD). However, the INTERHEART study, a case–control study of acute myocardial infarction (MI) patients, revealed that alcohol consumption in South Asians was not protective against CHD. We therefore planned to study cardiovascular risk factor and CHD prevalence among …
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 with behavioural risk factors; (iii) evaluated …
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. That at least is the hope of the World Health Organization, …
The Australian government's advisory group on drugs has defended a graphic new television campaign about the drug crystal methamphetamine or ice. It shows an office worker unable to sleep after smoking the drug; a man flying into a psychotic rage in a hospital and smashing a window; a young woman …