DISEASES THREATEN DEVELOPMENT: OBESITY, HEART ATTACKS, DIABETES & OTHERS

DISEASES THREATEN DEVELOPMENT: OBESITY, HEART ATTACKS, DIABETES & OTHERS

Erle Frayne D. Argonza

A special report came out of the news rooms of the World Bank very recently that carries the alarming news of diseases threatening development. Necessarily, poor and middle income countries are most hardly hit, or those classified as ‘developing countries’ and ‘emerging markets’.

Obesity, diabetes and heart attacks emblazoned the title of the news report, with other ailments also on the list. The ailments situation complicates matters in the Horn of Africa where drought and famine led to hunger problems of 11 millions of poor Africans.

Below is the very alarming news coming from the World Bank.

[Philippines, 25 September 2011]

Source: http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/NEWS/0,,contentMDK:23001154~pagePK:64257043~piPK:437376~theSitePK:4607,00.html

Obesity, Diabetes, Heart Attacks, and Other Chronic Diseases Threaten Health and Economies in Poor and Middle-Income Countries – World Bank Report

Press Release No:2012/071/HDN

Africa, Eastern Europe, and Asia face alarming chronic disease levels, way above high-income countries

WASHINGTON, September 15, 2011 – The World Bank warned today that heart disease, cancer, diabetes, chronic respiratory conditions, and other non-communicable diseases (NCDs) increasingly threaten the health and economic security of many lower- and middle-income countries, and that most countries lack the money and health services to be able to ‘treat their way out’ of the NCD crisis. On the eve of a special United Nations summit on NCDs in New York, the Bank said the rise of chronic diseases, especially among young working adults in these countries, was a danger that warranted immediate global attention.

According to the new report−The Growing Danger of Non-Communicable Diseases: Acting Now to Reverse Course−Africa, Eastern Europe, and Asia face alarming chronic disease levels, in excess of those in high-income countries where NCDs have long been the leading cause of death and illness.

Africa, Eastern Europe, and Asia face alarming chronic disease levels, way above high-income countries

WASHINGTON, September 15, 2011 – The World Bank warned today that heart disease, cancer, diabetes, chronic respiratory conditions, and other non-communicable diseases (NCDs) increasingly threaten the health and economic security of many lower- and middle-income countries, and that most countries lack the money and health services to be able to ‘treat their way out’ of the NCD crisis. On the eve of a special United Nations summit on NCDs in New York, the Bank said the rise of chronic diseases, especially among young working adults in these countries, was a danger that warranted immediate global attention.

According to the new report−The Growing Danger of Non-Communicable Diseases: Acting Now to Reverse Course−Africa, Eastern Europe, and Asia face alarming chronic disease levels, in excess of those in high-income countries where NCDs have long been the leading cause of death and illness.

For example, in South Asia, where cardiovascular disease is already a major cause of death and disability, people have their first heart attacks at an average age of 53 compared with 59 in the rest of the world. In the Middle East and North Africa, NCDs are growing among women and adolescents, driven by factors unrelated to age, such as growing rates of obesity and smoking. And ominously, one in four people in Ukraine between the ages of 18 and 65 has a chronic disease with growing numbers of young people being affected, prompting the conclusion that the country could ‘lose the next generation to chronic disease.’

If current trends persist, the new report says that Sub-Saharan Africa will be the region hardest-hit by the NCDs crisis. If left unchecked, chronic diseases will account for 46 percent of all deaths by 2030, up from 28 percent in 2008. South Asia could see the share of deaths from NCDs increase from 51 to 72 percent during the same period. More than 30 percent of these deaths will be premature and preventable. At the same time, these countries will continue to grapple with the widespread prevalence of communicable diseases such as HIV, malaria, tuberculosis, and mother and child conditions, thus facing a “double burden” of disease not experienced by wealthier nations.

“What makes the development impact of chronic diseases so daunting for lower and middle income countries is that they don’t have the money and the health systems to treat their way out of this crisis, and they’re facing it at far earlier stages of economic progress than their better-off OECD neighbors had to,” says Tamar Manuelyan Atinc, the Bank’s Vice President for Human Development.

Prevention is vital to stop and reverse NCDs

The Bank reports says that much of the rise in chronic diseases in developing countries can be traced to individual risk factors such as physical inactivity, malnutrition in the first thousand days of life, unhealthy diet (including excessive salt, fat, and sugar intake), tobacco use, alcohol abuse, and exposure to environmental pollution.

Country evidence suggests that more than half of the NCD burden could be avoided through effective health promotion and disease prevention programs that tackle such risk factors. Particularly effective at very low costs are measures to curb tobacco, such as taxes, as indicated in the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, and to reduce salt in processed and semi-processed foods.

In India this has meant, among other things, subsidizing and promoting kitchen stoves that use clean fuels and do not cause respiratory disease. In Bogotá, Colombia, the city government has built cycle paths across the city and has started a community exercise program that takes place every Sunday and now draws the active participation of more than a million pedestrians and cyclists each week.

The report notes that a compelling OECD example comes from New York City, where the mayor brought the health sector and hospitality industries together to reduce smoking and ban the use of trans-fats. The proportion of restaurants using trans-fats fell from 50 percent to less than 2 percent in two years, while the percentage of adult New Yorker smokers fell from 21.5 percent to 15.8 percent during the same period.

“The good news is that with prevention first, the reduction of risk factors such as smoking through the use of tobacco taxes, and the right political and community leadership in place, countries can stem the rise of chronic diseases and cushion their financial and social effects,” says Dr. Cristian Baeza, the Bank’s Director of Health, Nutrition, and Population, whose team produced the new report.

Baeza says it will be vital to prepare health systems in developing countries to deliver cost-effective and fiscally sustainable health NCDs care for poor people, and that comprehensive prevention programs can target a number of risk factors at the same time. For example, a prevention program in Finland’s North Karelia province, which targeted diet, exercise, and smoking, showed that between 1972 and 2006, the province’s yearly deaths from chronic heart disease fell by some 85 percent. An anti-smoking effort in Uruguay, championed by the country’s president, banned smoking in public places and workplaces and reduced air nicotine concentrations in the capital city by 91 percent over five years.

Anti-NCD measures can work quickly

On the eve of the special UN summit on NCDs in New York, the new Bank report says that the best examples of anti-NCD measures show that these can improve health faster than commonly thought—within a few years of eliminating people’s exposure to risk factors. As the report notes in conclusion, “Leaders at the national and local level have the power to save many lives, avoid widespread suffering, and forestall major human and economic cost, all within a short space of time. Now is the time to act.”

In fiscal year 2011, the Bank mobilized $2.96 billion in financing for health, nutrition, and population. The portfolio is at a historic high of $ 10.8 billion, more than half of which goes to the world’s poorest countries.

Washington Press Contacts:

Phil Hay Work (202) 473-1796; Cell (202) 409-2909; phay@worldbank.org

Melanie Mayhew Work (202) 458-7891; Cell (202) 406-0504; mmayhew1@worldbank.org

To read the new report, and see more of the World Bank’s work in non-communicable diseases, and its wider engagement in health, nutrition, and population, please visit: www.worldbank.org/health.

Permanent URL for this page: http://go.worldbank.org/FBHYW092V0

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MALARIA FIELD KIT BETTER THAN LAB!

MALARIA FIELD KIT BETTER THAN LAB!

Erle Frayne D. Argonza

Who knows what is in store in the future of such diseases as malaria? Better diagnostics could address the prevention aspect, and simple kits such as what can be brought as mobile tools to the field just might prove to do better than orthodox means offered by laboratory methods.

Improvements in the process are proving to be effective in the area of human behavior and industrial processes. Outright renovations on lab technologies just may not be the right response, but again the renovations on the processes involved.

Such a process intervention can integrate even the socio-behavioral aspect into it to constitute a more integrated approach to healthcare management. Below is a report on such an intervention initiative for malaria.

[Philippines, 01 August 2011]

Source: http://www.scidev.net/en/news/simple-measures-could-improve-malaria-diagnostic-kits-.html

Simple measures 'could improve malaria diagnostic kits'

Gozde Zorlu

11 July 2011 | EN

Rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) for malaria could be greatly improved by a few simple measures, say researchers.

These include providing better information for health workers on how to use them effectively in the field and how to spot common errors, according to a study published in Malaria Journal last month (15 June).

"Inaccurate test results and poorly designed RDT kits were found to be limitations in the use of rapid diagnostic tests in malaria-endemic countries," Philippe Gillet, the lead author and a researcher at the Institute of Tropical Medicine in, Belgium told SciDev.Net.

The first Cochrane review of the tests — published last week (6 July) by the global non-governmental organisation the Cochrane Collaboration — found them to be "very accurate" when compared with laboratory-based microscopy or polymerase chain reaction tests. After analysing data from 74 studies it concluded that RDTs identify malaria correctly in 19 out of 20 cases.

But such reviews may overlook problems faced by health workers in real-life settings, said Piero Olliaro, a co-author of the review, who works on the Special Programme for Research and Training in Tropical Diseases at the WHO.

In 2007, more than 70 million such tests were carried out worldwide. They offer an easier and faster alternative to laboratory-based techniques that are often lacking in remote areas.

When used properly, RDTs can save lives and slow down drug resistance, because only people with confirmed malaria are treated.

For the Malaria Journal article, Gillet and his team analysed the accuracy of 873 tests from a Mozambique hospital.

They found a range of problems, including false-negative results in patients with high parasite densities because the display was too faint to see. Meanwhile, where health workers replaced the buffer — a liquid solution needed to run the tests — with water or buffer from another kit, three-quarters of tests gave false-positive results.

The study recommends providing better information about these limitations, providing more than one buffer in the kit, and including a warning in information leaflets.

David Bell, head of the malaria diagnostics programme at the Foundation for Innovative New Diagnostics, said manufacturers should explore the problems of faint displays "to ensure the tests work across the whole likely range of parasite densities".

An earlier study by Gillet's team, also published in Malaria Journal (13 February), found that information on the packaging, labelling and information leaflets in 42 RDT kits from 22 manufacturers was difficult to read and often incorrect or incomplete.

"For a test to provide an accurate diagnosis, it has to be prepared properly and it has to be interpreted properly — and to do this you need very good instructions," said Bell. "What might be good instruction in a laboratory may not be adequate for a village health worker who has a different level of literacy and training."

Gillet suggested that the WHO or the European Union could demand improvements as part of the pre-qualification process, which certifies the quality of the tests and is needed for UN agencies to distribute them.

Olliaro agreed: "There is room for improvement to make these tests more user-friendly and perform better, particularly in the hands of health workers confronted with multiple tasks".

Link to the first study in Malaria Journal

Link to full the second study in Malaria Journal

Link to full Cochrane review

References

Malaria Journal doi: 10.1186/1475-2875-10-166 (2011)
Malaria Journal doi: 10.1186/1475-2875-10-39 (2011)
Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD008122.pub2 (2011)

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PHILIPPINE PEPPER UNDERCUTS DENGUE

PHILIPPINE PEPPER UNDERCUTS DENGUE

Erle Frayne D. Argonza

A very good news had sprouted from out of my beloved country the Philippines, concerning the cure to dengue. Among the perennial epidemics in the country, dengue had killed too many to count for nigh centuries already, and continues to make sweeping attacks in both urban and rural areas.

The pepper variety is no other than the black pepper that we commonly use as condiment. Extracts of the black pepper can kill larvae according to scientists, though the exact information cannot be divulged as a matter of protecting intellectual property.

Below is the wonderful report on undercutting dengue.

[Philippines, 20 July 2011]

Source: http://www.scidev.net/en/news/pepper-traps-cut-dengue-fever-in-the-philippines.html

Pepper traps cut dengue fever in the Philippines

Joel D. Adriano

11 July 2011

[MANILA] A trap that uses an extract from black pepper to kill mosquito eggs and larvae has dramatically cut rates of dengue fever in areas of the Philippines where it has been tested, say its developers.

Scientists have known that extracts of black pepper (Piper nigrum) kill larvae, and chemicals similar to those found in black peppercorns have been suggested as mosquito repellents.

Now Nuna Almanzor, director of the Industrial Technology Development Institute, at the Philippine Department of Health, says researchers at this institute have developed a special formula with an additional ingredient that boosts peppercorn's anti-mosquito activity.

But she declined to give the exact details of the mechanism for intellectual property reasons, while the institute waits for a patent approval.

Female mosquitoes are attracted to the black colour of a trap container, where they lay eggs on a wooden stick submerged under the water solution containing peppercorn.

Only two per cent of these eggs hatch and mature into adults, and the solution also kills adult mosquitoes by interfering with their feeding ability, said Almanzor.

In two provinces south of Manila, where the trap was launched in February, dengue cases dropped sharply in the first six months of 2011 compared with the same period in 2010.

In Northern Samar, dengue cases dropped from 74 to zero, and in Leyte from 190 down to three. Dengue cases in areas without the traps have remained high.

Almanzor said they have agreements with two firms to produce commercially a pellet containing the pepper. The traps could be made at home or purchased for less than ten Philippine peso (around 20 US cents) and a pack of five-to-ten pellets will cost just two US cents. One pellet will be enough to trap mosquitoes for a week and an average household may need up to four traps.

The Department of Health will be promoting the traps in places of high dengue incidence.

Dengue fever, spread by the Aedes aegypti mosquito, is common in Asia and Latin America, but there is no cure or vaccine yet. Last year there were 120,000 dengue fever cases in the Philippines

Almanzor said that the traps could be useful in other countries and for curbing other diseases, such as malaria, since they work with any mosquito species.

Nelia Salazar, a consultant for the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine, at the Philippine Department of Science and Technology, said that the technology could be the best so far in the array of strategies against dengue. These include the traditional drive to remove water that mosquitoes lay their eggs in, insecticide spraying and the releasing of genetically modified insects, which could have unintended consequences.

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MALARIA D’APES & MONKEYS

MALARIA D’APES & MONKEYS

Erle Frayne D. Argonza

We have a new alarming development concerning malaria spread. Gorillas and monkeys might just happen to be the dreaded carriers of the disease, a news that could cause chagrin on the legendary Tarzan.

This analyst has no fondness for Tarzan philosophy, but is more focused on highlighting risks to communities caused by a diversity of factors such as diseases. Being a development worker for long, I contracted malaria while doing field work and almost died of the falciparum disease in 1982.

We have no evidence yet of malaria being transmitted to humans by monkeys even though we do have species of monkeys among our diverse fauna. But Africa has shown less resiliency to that possibility, as shown in the report below.

[Philippines, 18 July 2011]

Source: http://www.scidev.net/en/news/primate-malaria-in-africa-may-be-jumping-species.html

Primate malaria in Africa may be jumping species

Rachel Mundy

7 July 2011

A malaria parasite from gorillas has been found in an African monkey, suggesting it has jumped species and may be able to transfer to humans.

The finding has led some malaria experts to suggest that if transfer between monkeys and apes has occurred then monkey-to-human malaria transmission may already be happening. They have called for more research to quantify the risks.

"The evidence is sufficient to warrant further investigation into the possibility that these parasites may also jump to humans," said Beatrice Hahn, a professor of medicine at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, United States. "We need to screen humans who live in flying range of mosquitoes that also bite primates, to establish whether they are susceptible to the primate parasites."

Wild forest-living gorilla populations are known to harbour a parasite strain that is closely related to the human malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum. And macaque monkeys in South-East Asia carry another malaria parasite, Plasmodium knowlesi — a potential threat to humans.

But this is the first time that a P. falciparum strain similar to the one that causes human malaria has been found in an African monkey — the spot-nosed guenon from Gabon (Cercopithecus nictitans).

The fact that "the genetic differences from the human strain are so slight" raises the possibility that monkey and ape malaria may be transmitted to humans, said François Renaud, a researcher at the French National Centre for Scientific Research, in Montpelier, and co-author of the study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (5 July).

As humans come into closer contact with apes and monkeys as a result of deforestation, commercial hunting and population growth, the opportunity for the parasites to be transmitted to humans will increase.

"One single successful cross-species transmission event has the potential to result in a major human pandemic," Hahn, who was not involved in the study, told SciDev.Net. 


But David Conway, professor of biology at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, United Kingdom, said the reservoir of malaria in African monkeys must be very small, given the low prevalence found in this study.

"Hopefully, monkey malaria will start to be recognised as an important area of research, but when examining the public health significance for humans, it is important to put the risk into context. Normal human malaria has a much higher prevalence, except in parts of South-East Asia where this has been reduced and the importance of malaria from monkeys has become more noticeable," Conway said.

Looking for human infections with monkey malaria is "like looking for a needle in a haystack", he said, adding that "there is every chance that human infections are occurring occasionally in the forest".

"In this particular case, the vector of malaria is the key determinant in determining any public-health risk," Conway said. "Identifying which species of mosquitoes transmits each parasite strain is a neglected area of research that needs additional funding."

Link to abstract in PNAS

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HIV LEGISLATION IN LATIN AMERICA: BAMBOOZLING HIV CARRIERS WON’T WORK!

Erle Frayne D. Argonza

Good day from the Pearl of the Orient!

Officials from 18 Latin American countries recently convened in Brazil to tackle HIV legislation. The Latin countries seem to have arrived at a consensus regarding HIV and how it should be managed.

Such a move is surely a most welcome one. Given the divergent perceptions about HIV, regional-to-continental consensus could somehow help country stakeholders in reshaping their frameworks, understanding HIV, and addressing the problems more equitably and judiciously.

Latin America is surely a continent that is worth watching in regard to concrete intervention measures on HIV with the proper legislative frameworks and public policies in place. There is yet a gestation period to wait till the consensus will take off as concrete interventions, though so far the consensus-building exercise is already a very productive one worth other regions’ emulation.

Below is a UNDP report on the HIV convention in Brazil.

[Philippines, 10 July 2011]

Source: http://www.beta.undp.org/undp/en/home/presscenter/pressreleases/2011/06/29/officials-experts-call-for-better-hiv-law-action-in-latin-america.html

Officials, experts call for better HIV law, action in Latin America

29 June 2011

Sao Paolo, Brazil — Eighty-nine officials and experts from 18 Latin American countries concluded two days of talks here Monday calling for an end to violence and discrimination against people living with HIV and better access to potentially life-saving HIV treatments.

“It is no coincidence that the Global Commission on HIV & the Law is convening its regional dialogue in Brazil,” Heraldo Munoz, Director of the UN Development Programme (UNDP) Regional Bureau for Latin America & the Caribbean, told a Global Commission on HIV & the Law Regional Dialogue here June 26-27.

“Brazil’s commitment to respecting human rights and addressing the underlying inequalities that fuel the epidemic has set their HIV prevention and treatment efforts apart from those of many other countries and, most importantly, have led to tangible reductions in infection rates.”

Representatives from Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Chile, Columbia, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, and Venezuela all took part in the fourth of seven regional dialogues convened by UNDP on behalf of the Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS).

The discussions, moderated by former CNN Español journalist Jorge Gestoso, will inform deliberations by the Global Commission on HIV & the Law. A town hall-style format aims to foster genuine dialogue in which all participants may share experiences, views, and concerns and identify innovative ways in which law and policy can effectively contribute to achieving better HIV, health, and development outcomes.

“If we don’t confront the uncomfortable inequalities, injustices, and stigmatizing norms of our societies and institutions which have been long denied, our fragile HIV and development gains will be lost and the cost—human and financial—will exact a terrible toll, which could have been prevented,” Commissioner Ana Elena Chacon Ecchevaria of Costa Rica said.

Participants concluded that:

• Countries must invest in implementing laws to protect people who are stigmatized, discriminated against, and criminalized

• Criminalization of people living with HIV—including women, youths, male, female, and transgender sex workers, and gay and transgender people—remains a barrier to effective HIV responses and is linked to increased violence experienced by these groups

• Violence against people living with HIV—including women, youths, male, female, and transgender sex workers, and gay and transgender people—remains a major barrier to effective HIV responses and must be stopped, with zero tolerance for police violence

• Where laws are causing harm and legal contradictions result in increased vulnerability and human rights violations, these laws must be changed

• Religious and cultural influences on laws and law enforcement that result in greater HIV vulnerability and risk must stop

• Intellectual property law and policy must not impede universal access to life-saving anti-retroviral treatment

Although UNAIDS says that HIV is a relatively stable epidemic in Latin America, the number of people living with HIV increased from 1.1 million to 1.4 million, from 2001 to 2009. Key populations such as men who have sex with men, trans people, sex workers, and drug users continue to experience much higher rates of HIV than the general population. One-third of all HIV-positive people in the region live in Brazil, and an estimated 550,000 women are living with HIV in Latin America.

“If laws are not able to express a modern thought, that is humane, a thought that takes into account human rights and eliminates repressive policies and practices, we will not see progress in HIV and development,” former Brazilian President Fernando Henrique Cardoso, chair of the Global Commission on HIV & the Law, noted in his remarks.

Contact Information

Sarah Jackson-Han
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)-Washington
+1 202 331 9130 tel.
+1 202 674 7442 mobile
+1 202 907 4613 mobile #2
sarah.jackson-han@undp.org
http://www.us.undp.org/

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HEALTH & CLIMATE CHANGE

HEALTH & CLIMATE CHANGE

Erle Frayne D. Argonza

How does climate change dovetail into health, hygiene, and public policy concerns regarding healthcare?

The impact of climate change is surely very complex a matter, as it involves many intervening factors affecting epidemiology and ailments. Health perspectives must, first of all, be re-tooled to constitute emerging paradigms about the matter.

Below is an update report by the development group eldis.org. Country cases showing climate change impact on health are incorporated.

[Philippines, 08 July 2011]

ELDIS HEALTH REPORTER
5 July 2011
Source: http://www.eldis.org/go/topics/resource-guides/health

In this issue:

1. Predicting and mapping malaria under climate change scenarios: the potential redistribution of malaria vectors in Africa
2. A human health perspective on climate change
3. Impacts of climate change on public health in India: future research directions
4. The implications of climate change for health in Africa

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Predicting and mapping malaria under climate change scenarios: the potential redistribution of malaria vectors in Africa

Authors: EZ Tonnang,Henri; YM Kangalawe,Richard; Z Yanda,Pius
Produced by: Malaria Journal, BioMed Central (2010)

This paper, published in the Malaria Journal, posits that malaria is rampant in Africa and causes untold mortality and morbidity. Since vector-borne diseases such as malaria are climate sensitive, the authors argue that this fact raises considerable concern over the implications of climate change on future disease risk, as malaria vectors (Anopheles mosquitoes) may shift from their traditional locations to invade new zones.

Exploiting the sets of information previously generated by entomologists, e.g. on geographical ranges of vectors and malaria distribution, the authors build models that will enable prediction and mapping the potential redistribution of Anopheles mosquitoes in Africa.

Key findings of this study are:

• Shifts in the Anopheles mosquitoes species boundaries southward and eastward of Africa may occur rather than jump into quite different climatic environments.
• In the absence of adequate control, these predictions are crucial in understanding the possible future geographical range of the vectors and the disease, which could facilitate planning for various adaptation options.

The authors conclude that the outputs from this study will be helpful at various levels of decision making, for example, in setting up of an early warning and sustainable strategies for climate change and climate change adaptation for malaria vectors control programmes in Africa.

Available online at: http://www.eldis.org/cf/rdr/?doc=58482

A human health perspective on climate change

Produced by: Environmental Health Perspectives (2010)

This report, published by the the Interagency Working Group on Climate Change and Health, highlights 11 key categories of diseases and other health consequences that are occurring or will occur due to climate change.

The purpose of this paper is to identify research needs for all aspects of the research-to-decision making pathway that will help us understand and mitigate the health effects of climate change, as well as ensure that we choose the healthiest and most efficient approaches to climate change adaptation. This way, the authors provide a starting point for coordination of research to better understand climate’s impact on human health. The authors articulate, in a concrete way, that human beings are vulnerable in many ways to the health effects of climate change. They lay out both what we know and what we need to know about these effects in a way that will allow the health research community to bring its collective knowledge to bear on solving these problems.

The paper highlights the state-of-the-science on the human health consequences of climate change on:

• Asthma, respiratory allergies, and airway diseases.
• Cancer.
• Cardiovascular disease and stroke.
• Foodborne diseases and nutrition.
• Heat-related morbidity and mortality.
• Human developmental effects.
• Mental health and stress- related disorders.
• Neurological diseases and disorders.
• Waterborne diseases.
• Weather-related morbidity and mortality.
• Vectorborne and zoonotic diseases (like malaria, which can be transmitted from animals to humans).

The report also examines a number of cross-cutting issues for research in this area, including susceptible, vulnerable, and displaced populations; public health and health care infrastructure; capacities and skills needed; and communication and education efforts.

The authors conclude that the actions we take today will help to shape our environment in the decades to come. Some degree of climate change is unavoidable, and we must adapt to its associated health effects; however, aggressive mitigation actions can significantly blunt the worst of the expected exposures.

They recommend research to identify who will be most vulnerable, and what efforts will be most beneficial; and to focus on the following areas:

• Integrating climate science with health science.
• Integrating environmental, public health, and marine and wildlife surveillance.
• Applying climate and meteorological observations to real-time public health issues.
• Down-scaling long-term climate models to estimate human exposure risks and burden of disease.

Available online at: http://www.eldis.org/cf/rdr/?doc=58464

Impacts of climate change on public health in India: future research directions

Authors: F. Bush,Kathleen; Luber,George
Produced by: Environmental Health Perspectives (2011)

Building on the information presented at the 2009 Joint Indo–U.S. Workshop on Climate Change and Health in Goa, India, this paper reviews relevant literature and data, to address gaps in knowledge, and identify priorities and strategies for future research in India.

The authors argue that:

• Climate change and associated increases in climate variability willlikely further exacerbate global health disparities. As such, moreresearch is needed, particularly in developing countries, to accuratelypredict the anticipated impacts and inform effective interventions.
• The scope of the problem in India is enormous, based on the potential for climate change and variability to exacerbate endemic malaria, dengue, yellow fever, cholera, and chikungunya, as well as chronic diseases, particularly among the millions of people who already experience poor sanitation, pollution, malnutrition, and a shortage of drinking water.
• In light of this realisation, the authors highlight the importance of improving the surveillance, monitoring, and integration of meteorological, environmental, geospatial, and health data while working in parallel to implement adaptation strategies.

Key conclusions and recommendations:

• It is critical for India to invest in improvements in information infrastructure that are innovative and that promote interdisciplinary collaborations while embarking on adaptation strategies.
• This will require unprecedented levels of collaboration across diverse institutions in India and abroad.
• The ensuing data can be used in research on the likely impacts of climate change on health that reflect India’s diverse climates and populations.
• Finally, the authors recommend the enhancement of local human and technical capacities for risk communication and promoting adaptive behavior.

Available online at: http://www.eldis.org/cf/rdr/?doc=58462

The implications of climate change for health in Africa

Authors: Chimbari,M., J.
Produced by: Arid Lands Information Network (2010)

The interactions between health and climate change are clearly recognised; the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change includes a chapter on health issues in all its publications. But we still need to better understand all the possible impacts of climate change on health.

To date, much of the evidence of the health impacts of climate change has focused on malaria. But the impacts are much wider than this. Climate change projections for Africa indicate that temperatures will increase by 0.2–0.5°C per decade, and many African regions will experience more severe droughts. This will translate to a short growing season for food crops, thus leading to food shortages. These changes may affect human health directly, as the changing weather patterns encourage the production of disease vectors and parasites, such as those causing malaria. Indirect changes will result through impacts on water availability, air quality, food quality and quantity, ecosystems, agriculture and economies – all factors that affect people’s health.

This issue of Joto Afrika features articles from different countries, which highlight ongoing or completed research into climate change and health across Africa. These articles indicate:

• climate change may increase the prevalence of diseases transmitted between humans and animals
• children are most vulnerable to climate change; in times of food shortage, they must be well-fed to avoid malnutrition, as this can make them more vulnerable to other diseases
• communities living in areas prone to flooding are often displaced, forcing them to move to temporary accommodation with basic facilities. This makes them more vulnerable to waterborne diseases
• modelling is an important tool for early warning for climate-induced health disasters
• vulnerable people in communities, for example people living with HIV, can develop successful coping strategies.

Climate change is a significant and emerging threat to public health. There is need for capacity building and implementation of projects to strengthen the health system response to climate change and to ensure that health is appropriately considered in decisions made by other sectors such as energy and transport.

Available online at: http://www.eldis.org/cf/rdr/?doc=57204

17 NEGLECTED TROPICAL DISEASES AS GLOBAL KILLERS

17 NEGLECTED TROPICAL DISEASES AS GLOBAL KILLERS

Erle Frayne D. Argonza

World population today is nearing the 7 billion mark. 1/6 of our globe’s population, or roughly 1.4 Billion, is afflicted by a relatively short list of ailments known as ‘neglected tropical diseases’.

Let’s get this straight: such ailments afflict the ‘3^rd world’ and emerging markets of today. A cursory review of what causes such ailments would reveal the most likely causes.

Below is an update report about the ailments.

[Philippines, 03 July 2011]

ource: http://www.devex.com/en/articles/75149

What Afflicts One-Sixth of the World's Population?

By Eliza Villarino on 22 June 2011

Dengue, leprosy, rabies - these diseases rarely make international headlines. But they, together with 17 other so-called neglected tropical diseases, are nearly four more times widespread than HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria combined.

Neglected tropical diseases are said to afflict almost a billion people around the globe - or an astounding one-sixth of the world’s population. That’s exactly 364 percent of the combined number of HIV/AIDS, TB and malaria cases, which were estimated at 274 million people in 2009. Yet, less than 1 percent of newly registered drugs are meant to address these tropical diseases.

Why are they being neglected?

“They are not highly visible,” the World Health Organization has said. “They do not cause explosive outbreaks that attract public and media attention. They do not travel internationally. They cause great and permanent misery, but do not kill large numbers of people or affect wealthy nations.”

Neglected tropical diseases largely prey on people who reside in remote rural areas and sprawling shantytowns, which typically lack safe drinking water and have poor sanitation, substandard housing and weak health care services.

Although many health experts have pointed out the need to address these tropical diseases - and cost-effective ways of doing so in conjunction with anti-malaria initiatives, for instance - donors have been slow to focus on this issue. But funding is available, with two of the world’s largest global health grant-making foundations – the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Wellcome Trust – as the campaign’s biggest patrons.