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96
Global Health NOW: Climate Change鈥檚 Connection to Rising Obesity; Bye Bye Red Dye; and Laziness for Achievers
A 1掳C rise in temperature in developing countries has been associated with a 4% rise in the BMI of children
January 16, 2025
Community health worker Suraiyya Terdale raises awareness of rising obesity rates in her village in India鈥檚 Maharashtra state. September 2, 2024. Sanket Jain
Climate Change鈥檚 Connection to Rising Obesity
MUMBAI, India 鈥 12-year-old Sandesh Gholap weighs 50 kilograms (110 pounds) and stands 1.2 meters (4 feet). As recent summer temperatures in the city topped 39掳C (102掳F), the nearby playground was often empty.
Gholap tended to stay indoors. He gained 10 kilograms (22 pounds) in the past year, has experienced bullying, and stopped participating in social activities.
Data point: A 1掳C rise in temperature in developing countries has been associated with a 4% rise in the BMI of children and a 2% increase in the BMI of women, according to .
鈥淣ow that the climate has changed, we need to find a solution quickly because obesity not just impacts physical health, [it] can ruin someone鈥檚 life,鈥 Terdale says.
Read the full story for other impacts of climate change鈥攁nd possible solutions.
Ed. Note: This article is part of , made possible through the generous support of loyal GHN readers. EDITORS始 NOTE No GHN Monday
In observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day in the U.S., GHN will not be publishing this coming Monday, January 20. We始ll be back Tuesday with more news! 鈥 Annalies GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners
COVID-19 derailed efforts to fight antimicrobial resistance at U.S. hospitals, a new HHS finds鈥攚ith 鈥渓arge-scale disruptions鈥 including larger caseloads, increased mechanical ventilation, and an overburdened workforce.
Hundreds of miners remain trapped in an illegal mine in South Africa, and 60 bodies have been recovered from the site since the effort to remove the miners began; the remaining miners are in 鈥渋ncredibly poor health,鈥 after officials cut off access to food, water, and medicine.
The U.S. bird flu response and ongoing surveillance has become a part of transition briefings between Biden and Trump administrations鈥攖he first indication of cooperation between the two teams around the H5N1 crisis. POLICY Bye Bye Red Dye
The U.S. FDA has banned Red 3鈥攖he synthetic dye erythrosine鈥攆rom food, beverages, and ingested medicines like cough syrup, citing cancer risks, .
The Quote: 鈥淭his is a welcome, but long overdue, action from the FDA: removing the unsustainable double standard in which Red 3 was banned from lipstick but permitted in candy,鈥 said Peter Lurie, director of Center for Science in the Public Interest.
As the Biden administration closes up shop, officials have released a roadmap of its pandemic defenses.
Passing the torch鈥: The 鈥攁 distillation of a 300-page report provided to the new administration鈥攔ecaps the efforts over the last four years to combat COVID-19, mpox, and bird flu, and details the measures needed to monitor and defend against future infectious threats like wastewater monitoring and vaccine stockpiles.
鈥nly for it to be snuffed?: Incoming president Donald Trump has promised to cut government spending and dismantle pandemic preparedness measures, including pulling the U.S. out of the WHO.
ALMOST FRIDAY DIVERSION Laziness for Achievers
With the breakneck speed of modern life, it can be hard to do nothing.
Turns out, there始s a way to achieve while getting a reprieve. Make it competitive.
For the past decade, the Seoul-born Space-out Competition has brought contestants together to do 鈥 zilch, .
The focus is on celebrating unproductive time but with prizes and glory on the line, it seems quite cutthroat, with contestants vying for votes by staging elaborate props for their space-outs ().
While the contest celebrates doing the least (no sleeping, fidgeting, talking鈥), the contest organizers seem to be doing the most, with space-out duels spreading to several cities across the globe.
The contest happened back in the fall but uhh, we spaced out and missed it. And that始s a shame because, as one friend texted to a certain GHN staffer, 鈥榊ou could 100% win this.始 See you in Seoul next year! QUICK HITS UN says it鈥檚 ready to ramp up delivery of desperately needed aid to Gaza 鈥
Mild H5N1 cases have been perplexing scientists 鈥 now they might have an answer 鈥
Wireless radiation from baby monitors significantly disrupts sleep, study finds 鈥
Longer antibiotic course not associated with increased benefit or harm 鈥
Botswana records grim gender-based violence statistics 鈥
Animal rights advocates are ready for Trump鈥檚 war on science 鈥
7 global buzzwords for 2025: From 'techquity' to 'climate displacement' to 'belonging' 鈥 Issue No. 2841
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2025 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
MUMBAI, India 鈥 12-year-old Sandesh Gholap weighs 50 kilograms (110 pounds) and stands 1.2 meters (4 feet). As recent summer temperatures in the city topped 39掳C (102掳F), the nearby playground was often empty.
Gholap tended to stay indoors. He gained 10 kilograms (22 pounds) in the past year, has experienced bullying, and stopped participating in social activities.
Data point: A 1掳C rise in temperature in developing countries has been associated with a 4% rise in the BMI of children and a 2% increase in the BMI of women, according to .
- In addition to driving declines in physical activity, rising temperatures can lead to changes in diet, reduced nutritional value in plants, and other impacts that influence people鈥檚 weight.
鈥淣ow that the climate has changed, we need to find a solution quickly because obesity not just impacts physical health, [it] can ruin someone鈥檚 life,鈥 Terdale says.
Read the full story for other impacts of climate change鈥攁nd possible solutions.
Ed. Note: This article is part of , made possible through the generous support of loyal GHN readers. EDITORS始 NOTE No GHN Monday
In observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day in the U.S., GHN will not be publishing this coming Monday, January 20. We始ll be back Tuesday with more news! 鈥 Annalies GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners
COVID-19 derailed efforts to fight antimicrobial resistance at U.S. hospitals, a new HHS finds鈥攚ith 鈥渓arge-scale disruptions鈥 including larger caseloads, increased mechanical ventilation, and an overburdened workforce.
Hundreds of miners remain trapped in an illegal mine in South Africa, and 60 bodies have been recovered from the site since the effort to remove the miners began; the remaining miners are in 鈥渋ncredibly poor health,鈥 after officials cut off access to food, water, and medicine.
The U.S. bird flu response and ongoing surveillance has become a part of transition briefings between Biden and Trump administrations鈥攖he first indication of cooperation between the two teams around the H5N1 crisis. POLICY Bye Bye Red Dye
The U.S. FDA has banned Red 3鈥攖he synthetic dye erythrosine鈥攆rom food, beverages, and ingested medicines like cough syrup, citing cancer risks, .
- The ban follows a 2022 petition by two dozen food safety and health advocates.
- The FDA continued to allow its use in food, arguing that the cancer-causing mechanism didn鈥檛 affect humans. But advocates disagreed, citing concerns over its impact on children鈥檚 health.
- A 2021 found red dye No. 3 can make children vulnerable to behavioral issues, and noted that safety levels for dyes hadn鈥檛 been updated to consider new research.
The Quote: 鈥淭his is a welcome, but long overdue, action from the FDA: removing the unsustainable double standard in which Red 3 was banned from lipstick but permitted in candy,鈥 said Peter Lurie, director of Center for Science in the Public Interest.
Related: FDA proposes cap on nicotine levels in cigarettes 鈥
GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES GLOBAL HEALTH SECURITY Biden's Pandemic PlaybookAs the Biden administration closes up shop, officials have released a roadmap of its pandemic defenses.
Passing the torch鈥: The 鈥攁 distillation of a 300-page report provided to the new administration鈥攔ecaps the efforts over the last four years to combat COVID-19, mpox, and bird flu, and details the measures needed to monitor and defend against future infectious threats like wastewater monitoring and vaccine stockpiles.
鈥nly for it to be snuffed?: Incoming president Donald Trump has promised to cut government spending and dismantle pandemic preparedness measures, including pulling the U.S. out of the WHO.
ALMOST FRIDAY DIVERSION Laziness for Achievers
With the breakneck speed of modern life, it can be hard to do nothing.
Turns out, there始s a way to achieve while getting a reprieve. Make it competitive.
For the past decade, the Seoul-born Space-out Competition has brought contestants together to do 鈥 zilch, .
The focus is on celebrating unproductive time but with prizes and glory on the line, it seems quite cutthroat, with contestants vying for votes by staging elaborate props for their space-outs ().
While the contest celebrates doing the least (no sleeping, fidgeting, talking鈥), the contest organizers seem to be doing the most, with space-out duels spreading to several cities across the globe.
The contest happened back in the fall but uhh, we spaced out and missed it. And that始s a shame because, as one friend texted to a certain GHN staffer, 鈥榊ou could 100% win this.始 See you in Seoul next year! QUICK HITS UN says it鈥檚 ready to ramp up delivery of desperately needed aid to Gaza 鈥
Mild H5N1 cases have been perplexing scientists 鈥 now they might have an answer 鈥
Wireless radiation from baby monitors significantly disrupts sleep, study finds 鈥
Longer antibiotic course not associated with increased benefit or harm 鈥
Botswana records grim gender-based violence statistics 鈥
Animal rights advocates are ready for Trump鈥檚 war on science 鈥
7 global buzzwords for 2025: From 'techquity' to 'climate displacement' to 'belonging' 鈥 Issue No. 2841
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2025 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
Categories: Global Health Feed
96
Global Health NOW: Syrians Struggle for Footing in Transition; 8 Deaths in Suspected Marburg Outbreak in Tanzania; and a Push to Prevent CP in Nigeria
January 15, 2025
A Syrian child clutches a bag of bread at the Yarmouk Refugee Camp, in southern Damascus, Syria. December 29, 2024. Emin Sansar/Anadolu via Getty
Syrians Struggle for Footing Amid Transition
After 14+ years of conflict, Syrians have celebrated new freedoms and relative peace in the month after the fall of the Assad regime. But the transition continues to be filled with challenges and uncertainty.
Food crisis: The price of basic food, like bread, has skyrocketed, with costs increasing 10X, .
Related: Syria is still not safe: Refugees need protection 鈥 GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners Haiti鈥檚 gang violence has left 1 million+ people displaced from their homes鈥攁 3X increase over this past year, per from the UN鈥檚 migration agency.
Another federal report on alcohol鈥檚 health effects finds that even one drink a day carries health risks including cancer, liver disease, and injuries, per the new .
Obesity diagnoses should consider measurements such as waist circumference and weight-related health problems, not just BMI, per new from a global commission published in The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology.
Drone attacks are responsible for an increasing number of humanitarian worker deaths, with 53 health care workers and 16 aid workers killed in drone strikes in 2024 alone, per a new by Insecurity Insight鈥攁 70% increase over the previous year. OUTBREAK 8 Deaths from Suspected Marburg Outbreak in Tanzania
A suspected outbreak of Marburg virus has infected nine people鈥攌illing eight鈥攁s of January 11 in northwest Tanzania鈥檚 Kagera region.
GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES CHILDREN鈥橲 HEALTH Caught in Conflict
Armed conflict, climate change, and inequality have created a 鈥渘ew era of crisis for children鈥濃攄isrupting their lives and futures, UNICEF warns in its new , 鈥淧rospects for Children in 2025.鈥
More warfare: 473 million+ children鈥1 in 6 globally鈥攏ow live in conflict zones, with the number of conflicts at a historic high.
NEUROLOGICAL DISEASES Pushing for Cerebral Palsy Prevention in Nigeria
Cerebral palsy is thought to be one of the most common neurological diseases in Nigeria, with an estimated 700,000 Nigerians living with the condition.
Many Nigerian cases are traced to untreated neonatal jaundice.
QUICK HITS Bird Flu Is Raising Red Flags Among Health Officials 鈥
The FDA calls for at-a-glance nutrition labels on the front of packaged foods 鈥
This Blood Type Is More Likely To Get The Norovirus, Studies Say 鈥
CWD prions found in moose, deer, reindeer muscles in Norway, highlighting potential risk to people 鈥
Vaccine Hesitancy Among Pet Owners Is Growing: Public Health Expert On Why That Matters 鈥
A Blueprint for Better Bike Lanes 鈥
Departing NIH Director Monica Bertagnolli looks back at a whirlwind tenure 鈥
Are ultra-processed foods changing the shape of our jaws? 鈥 Issue No. 2840
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2025 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
After 14+ years of conflict, Syrians have celebrated new freedoms and relative peace in the month after the fall of the Assad regime. But the transition continues to be filled with challenges and uncertainty.
Food crisis: The price of basic food, like bread, has skyrocketed, with costs increasing 10X, .
- And the UN鈥檚 food agency says some governments and donors are hesitant to fund Syrian aid under the new government, .
- Plus: ~300,000 explosive mines remain across Syria, with nearly four children per day killed or injured by the devices, .
Related: Syria is still not safe: Refugees need protection 鈥 GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners Haiti鈥檚 gang violence has left 1 million+ people displaced from their homes鈥攁 3X increase over this past year, per from the UN鈥檚 migration agency.
Another federal report on alcohol鈥檚 health effects finds that even one drink a day carries health risks including cancer, liver disease, and injuries, per the new .
Obesity diagnoses should consider measurements such as waist circumference and weight-related health problems, not just BMI, per new from a global commission published in The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology.
Drone attacks are responsible for an increasing number of humanitarian worker deaths, with 53 health care workers and 16 aid workers killed in drone strikes in 2024 alone, per a new by Insecurity Insight鈥攁 70% increase over the previous year. OUTBREAK 8 Deaths from Suspected Marburg Outbreak in Tanzania
A suspected outbreak of Marburg virus has infected nine people鈥攌illing eight鈥攁s of January 11 in northwest Tanzania鈥檚 Kagera region.
- The case count is expected to rise alongside stepped-up surveillance.
- Rwanda鈥檚 recent brush with the virus, declared over just weeks ago, infected at least 66 people and killed 15.
GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES CHILDREN鈥橲 HEALTH Caught in Conflict
Armed conflict, climate change, and inequality have created a 鈥渘ew era of crisis for children鈥濃攄isrupting their lives and futures, UNICEF warns in its new , 鈥淧rospects for Children in 2025.鈥
More warfare: 473 million+ children鈥1 in 6 globally鈥攏ow live in conflict zones, with the number of conflicts at a historic high.
- The proportion of children in conflict zones has doubled since the 1990s and is now nearly 19%.
- Attacks on schools and hospitals are becoming more common, violating international laws.
NEUROLOGICAL DISEASES Pushing for Cerebral Palsy Prevention in Nigeria
Cerebral palsy is thought to be one of the most common neurological diseases in Nigeria, with an estimated 700,000 Nigerians living with the condition.
Many Nigerian cases are traced to untreated neonatal jaundice.
- ~60% of babies develop jaundice, which can be cured easily by early treatment with exposure to ultraviolet light.
- But in Nigeria, this treatment is often not immediately available.
QUICK HITS Bird Flu Is Raising Red Flags Among Health Officials 鈥
The FDA calls for at-a-glance nutrition labels on the front of packaged foods 鈥
This Blood Type Is More Likely To Get The Norovirus, Studies Say 鈥
CWD prions found in moose, deer, reindeer muscles in Norway, highlighting potential risk to people 鈥
Vaccine Hesitancy Among Pet Owners Is Growing: Public Health Expert On Why That Matters 鈥
A Blueprint for Better Bike Lanes 鈥
Departing NIH Director Monica Bertagnolli looks back at a whirlwind tenure 鈥
Are ultra-processed foods changing the shape of our jaws? 鈥 Issue No. 2840
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2025 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
Categories: Global Health Feed
96
Dementia Cases Destined to Double in U.S.; HIV鈥檚 Threat to Indigenous Panamanians; and a Ban on Illness = A 鈥楥ry for Help鈥
January 14, 2025
A patient receives the Alzheimer鈥檚 treatment Leqembi at Abington Neurological Associates. Abington, Pennsylvania, November 7, 2023. Hannah Yoon for The Washington Post via Getty
Dementia Cases Destined to Double in U.S.
The risk of developing dementia may be much higher than previously thought鈥攎ore than 2X the estimates from older studies, with showing an average risk of 42% for Americans after age 55, .
Risk-reducing route:
Related: 15 science-based ways to reduce your risk of dementia 鈥 GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners Chinese scientists identified a potentially novel tickborne virus, which they named Xue-Cheng virus (XCV), in patients with fevers and recent tick bites at a northeastern China hospital; the researchers鈥 use of high-throughput sequencing technology to detect the virus.
A Kenya court ruled that criminalizing attempted suicide is unconstitutional鈥攁 decision hailed by human rights and mental health groups as an important move to shift perceptions and reduce stigma against people with mental health issues.
More patients seeking abortions in the U.K. reported relying on fertility awareness-based methods over hormonal contraception methods covering a five-year period between 2018 and 2023.
Graduate students with anxiety and depression say that overly harsh criticism and unreasonable expectations fueled their thoughts of quitting, per a survey designed to uncover which aspects of research and teaching exacerbated mental health symptoms. DATA POINT HIV/AIDS Indigenous Panamanians Face an 鈥楿ncontrolled Epidemic鈥
In Panama鈥檚 Ng盲be-Bugl茅 Indigenous territory, an 鈥渦ncontrolled epidemic鈥 of untreated HIV is threatening the region鈥檚 young people, the nation鈥檚 epidemiologists say.
By the numbers: ~2,500 people of the ~225,000 in the region live with HIV. It was the leading cause of death in the region in 2022.
HARM REDUCTION HIV Prevention Efforts Hindered in Appalachia
In 2021, a CDC team visited Charleston, West Virginia, to assess an increasing number of HIV infections.
GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES ITALY A Ban on Illness = A 鈥楥ry for Help鈥
Residents of the small Italian town of Belcastro have been 鈥渙rdered to avoid contracting any illness that requires medical assistance, especially an emergency,鈥 per a new municipal statute.
Not serious鈥攂ut serious: There are no plans to enforce the decree, said the town鈥檚 mayor, Antonio Torchia. But it is intended to protest the dearth of health care access in the region鈥攚here the health center is often closed, and where on-call doctors are unavailable outside of office hours.
QUICK HITS The psychological toll of California's catastrophic fires 鈥
鈥業 was crying, there was no anaesthesia鈥: the fight for legal and safe abortion in Nigeria 鈥
Why the 鈥楩errari of viruses鈥 is surging through the Northern Hemisphere 鈥
WHO Africa to Decide on New Regional Director Process Following Shock Death of Candidate 鈥
The cost of being a family caregiver: Burnout, debt, stress 鈥
Will MAHA add alcohol to its list of health foes? 鈥
How soda is changing the world 鈥 Issue No. 2839
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2025 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
The risk of developing dementia may be much higher than previously thought鈥攎ore than 2X the estimates from older studies, with showing an average risk of 42% for Americans after age 55, .
- ~One million Americans a year are expected to develop Alzheimer鈥檚 or other forms of dementia by 2060鈥攗p from half a million this year, , one of several collaborating institutions on the study of 15,043 people from 1987 to 2020.
- Those 75 and older, because risk rises with age.
- Women, who tend to live longer.
- Black people鈥攚hose rates are expected to triple.
Risk-reducing route:
- Address racial inequities in health care.
- On an individual level, exercise, avoiding obesity, and controlling blood pressure, diabetes, and cholesterol are all key. It鈥檚 also important to stay socially and cognitively active and use hearing aids if needed, the AP reports.
Related: 15 science-based ways to reduce your risk of dementia 鈥 GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners Chinese scientists identified a potentially novel tickborne virus, which they named Xue-Cheng virus (XCV), in patients with fevers and recent tick bites at a northeastern China hospital; the researchers鈥 use of high-throughput sequencing technology to detect the virus.
A Kenya court ruled that criminalizing attempted suicide is unconstitutional鈥攁 decision hailed by human rights and mental health groups as an important move to shift perceptions and reduce stigma against people with mental health issues.
More patients seeking abortions in the U.K. reported relying on fertility awareness-based methods over hormonal contraception methods covering a five-year period between 2018 and 2023.
Graduate students with anxiety and depression say that overly harsh criticism and unreasonable expectations fueled their thoughts of quitting, per a survey designed to uncover which aspects of research and teaching exacerbated mental health symptoms. DATA POINT HIV/AIDS Indigenous Panamanians Face an 鈥楿ncontrolled Epidemic鈥
In Panama鈥檚 Ng盲be-Bugl茅 Indigenous territory, an 鈥渦ncontrolled epidemic鈥 of untreated HIV is threatening the region鈥檚 young people, the nation鈥檚 epidemiologists say.
By the numbers: ~2,500 people of the ~225,000 in the region live with HIV. It was the leading cause of death in the region in 2022.
- In 2023 the territory accounted for 30% of Panama鈥檚 AIDS-related deaths among people 29 or younger.
- In 2024, the area reported new infections at nearly 4X the national rate.
HARM REDUCTION HIV Prevention Efforts Hindered in Appalachia
In 2021, a CDC team visited Charleston, West Virginia, to assess an increasing number of HIV infections.
- What they found was 鈥,鈥 driven mainly by opioid and methamphetamine injection.
- But local and state policies, such as limiting the number of syringes exchanged, have hindered such programs.
GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES ITALY A Ban on Illness = A 鈥楥ry for Help鈥
Residents of the small Italian town of Belcastro have been 鈥渙rdered to avoid contracting any illness that requires medical assistance, especially an emergency,鈥 per a new municipal statute.
Not serious鈥攂ut serious: There are no plans to enforce the decree, said the town鈥檚 mayor, Antonio Torchia. But it is intended to protest the dearth of health care access in the region鈥攚here the health center is often closed, and where on-call doctors are unavailable outside of office hours.
- 鈥淭his is not just a provocation, the ordinance is a cry for help, a way to shine a spotlight on an unacceptable situation,鈥 Torchia told local news outlet .
QUICK HITS The psychological toll of California's catastrophic fires 鈥
鈥業 was crying, there was no anaesthesia鈥: the fight for legal and safe abortion in Nigeria 鈥
Why the 鈥楩errari of viruses鈥 is surging through the Northern Hemisphere 鈥
WHO Africa to Decide on New Regional Director Process Following Shock Death of Candidate 鈥
The cost of being a family caregiver: Burnout, debt, stress 鈥
Will MAHA add alcohol to its list of health foes? 鈥
How soda is changing the world 鈥 Issue No. 2839
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2025 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
Categories: Global Health Feed
96
Global Health NOW: LA鈥檚 Health Systems Facing Trial by Fire; AMR: Overlooked Agony; and Coping with a Slow-Motion Crisis
January 13, 2025
Abandoned wheelchairs and hospital beds outside a nursing home following the evacuation of patients during the Eaton fire. January 8, Altadena, California. Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times via Getty
LA鈥檚 Health Systems Facing Trial by Fire
As wildfires continue to ravage Los Angeles, the city鈥檚 vast health system faces growing demand鈥攁nd increasing strain, .
The latest: ~24 people are dead and 12+ others remain unaccounted for, . ~105,000 people remain under mandatory evacuation, and another ~87,000 are under evacuation warnings as high winds intensify again today.
The fires have created 鈥渟ignificant operational hurdles鈥 for health systems, per a statement from the Hospital Association of Southern California鈥攊ncluding high call volumes and disrupted patient and supply transport.
A new antiparasitic pill combining two drugs has shown promising results in treating intestinal worms, a parasitic malady that affects about 1.5 billion people globally, per a published in The Lancet.
The death toll in Gaza was ~40% higher than numbers recorded by the Palestinian territory鈥檚 health ministry during the first nine months of the Israel-Hamas war, published in The Lancet, which calculated 64,260 deaths.
Watching short video reels before bed was 鈥渟ignificantly鈥 linked with hypertension in young and middle-aged people, per a of 4,318 people published in the journal BMC Public Health. Avian Flu News Cambodian man dies from H5N1 avian flu, possibly after eating sick chickens 鈥
D.C. area on alert after bird flu detected in poultry in Maryland, Delaware 鈥
Bird Flu Is a National Embarrassment 鈥
How the US is preparing for a potential bird flu pandemic 鈥
Study reveals why H5N1 flu cases today are less severe than historic outbreaks 鈥 ANTIMICROBIAL RESISTANCE Overlooked Agony
Over 400 million people鈥攑rimarily women鈥攕uffer from UTIs annually, with up to half likely to experience a recurrence within a year.
The Quote: 鈥淚t鈥檚 a public health problem and it takes people away from their lives and nobody cares,鈥 said Elizabeth Kavaler, a urologist based in New York.
GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES MENTAL HEALTH Coping with a Slow-Motion Crisis
The collective trauma faced by survivors of Hurricane Helene will persist for years, and North Carolina officials must bolster resources to prepare for it, mental health experts warn.
While recovery efforts are underway, many people are still without safe housing or work鈥攑rolonging and worsening mental health impacts.
More than 15,000 doctors sign letter urging Senate to reject RFK Jr. as health secretary 鈥
鈥業 can鈥檛 go toe to toe with social media.鈥 Top U.S. health official reflects, regrets. 鈥
The rate of HMPV infections in northern China is declining, health official says 鈥
Cameroon Suspends NGOs, Harming Gender-Based Violence Survivors 鈥
What to know about a controversial new study on fluoride and IQ 鈥
Dementia is a neglected noncommunicable disease and leading cause of death 鈥
Climate Change Threatens the Mental Well-Being of Youths. Here's How To Help them Cope 鈥
Yogan Pillay, SA鈥檚 healthcare鈥檚 insider outsider 鈥 Issue No. 2838
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2025 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
As wildfires continue to ravage Los Angeles, the city鈥檚 vast health system faces growing demand鈥攁nd increasing strain, .
The latest: ~24 people are dead and 12+ others remain unaccounted for, . ~105,000 people remain under mandatory evacuation, and another ~87,000 are under evacuation warnings as high winds intensify again today.
The fires have created 鈥渟ignificant operational hurdles鈥 for health systems, per a statement from the Hospital Association of Southern California鈥攊ncluding high call volumes and disrupted patient and supply transport.
- Emergency departments are treating patients for burns, smoke inhalation, and eye irritation.
- Some facilities are facing power outages and staff shortages.
- 700+ people have been evacuated from care facilities鈥攁nd hospitals in proximity to the fires remain on 鈥渉igh alert鈥 to potentially evacuate.
- HHS declared a public health emergency for California Friday to activate additional support, .
A new antiparasitic pill combining two drugs has shown promising results in treating intestinal worms, a parasitic malady that affects about 1.5 billion people globally, per a published in The Lancet.
The death toll in Gaza was ~40% higher than numbers recorded by the Palestinian territory鈥檚 health ministry during the first nine months of the Israel-Hamas war, published in The Lancet, which calculated 64,260 deaths.
Watching short video reels before bed was 鈥渟ignificantly鈥 linked with hypertension in young and middle-aged people, per a of 4,318 people published in the journal BMC Public Health. Avian Flu News Cambodian man dies from H5N1 avian flu, possibly after eating sick chickens 鈥
D.C. area on alert after bird flu detected in poultry in Maryland, Delaware 鈥
Bird Flu Is a National Embarrassment 鈥
How the US is preparing for a potential bird flu pandemic 鈥
Study reveals why H5N1 flu cases today are less severe than historic outbreaks 鈥 ANTIMICROBIAL RESISTANCE Overlooked Agony
Over 400 million people鈥攑rimarily women鈥攕uffer from UTIs annually, with up to half likely to experience a recurrence within a year.
- Recurrent UTIs and the acute pain they cause remain a largely neglected problem with scant research into why they occur, and no targeted treatments beyond antibiotics.
The Quote: 鈥淚t鈥檚 a public health problem and it takes people away from their lives and nobody cares,鈥 said Elizabeth Kavaler, a urologist based in New York.
GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES MENTAL HEALTH Coping with a Slow-Motion Crisis
The collective trauma faced by survivors of Hurricane Helene will persist for years, and North Carolina officials must bolster resources to prepare for it, mental health experts warn.
While recovery efforts are underway, many people are still without safe housing or work鈥攑rolonging and worsening mental health impacts.
- Trauma from disasters can cause 20%鈥40% of survivors to experience PTSD, often peaking months or years later, per
- The state has pledged $25 million for mental health services and is bolstering its mental health workforce.
- Schools are investing millions in crisis support services and mental health staff.
Related:
NC addiction treatment programs partner to reduce maternal deaths from substance use 鈥
Climate Change鈥檚 Psychological Impact | Hopkins Bloomberg Public Health Magazine 鈥
More than 15,000 doctors sign letter urging Senate to reject RFK Jr. as health secretary 鈥
鈥業 can鈥檛 go toe to toe with social media.鈥 Top U.S. health official reflects, regrets. 鈥
The rate of HMPV infections in northern China is declining, health official says 鈥
Cameroon Suspends NGOs, Harming Gender-Based Violence Survivors 鈥
What to know about a controversial new study on fluoride and IQ 鈥
Dementia is a neglected noncommunicable disease and leading cause of death 鈥
Climate Change Threatens the Mental Well-Being of Youths. Here's How To Help them Cope 鈥
Yogan Pillay, SA鈥檚 healthcare鈥檚 insider outsider 鈥 Issue No. 2838
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2025 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
Categories: Global Health Feed
96
Global Health NOW: Inferno in L.A.; The Most Neglected NTD: Cryptosporidiosis; and 鈥嬧婲o Good Win Goes Unpunished
The fires have killed at least five people, burned 27,000+ acres and destroyed ~2,000 structures
January 9, 2025
A brush fire burns near homes in Pacific Palisades, California, on January 7. David Swanson/AFP via Getty
An Inferno in L.A.
Tens of thousands of people are under evacuation orders in Los Angeles as high-force winds fuel multiple rampant fires around the city鈥攕ome of the most destructive in L.A.鈥檚 history, .
The latest: The fires have killed at least five people, burned 27,000+ acres, and destroyed ~2,000 structures, .
More danger ahead: Much of Los Angeles County remains under a red flag warning, with forecasters predicting dangerous conditions through Friday night.
Far-reaching hazard: The smoke blanketing the area is creating for people across the region, .
Water shortages: The region鈥檚 water system buckled under the high demand, with some fire hydrants running dry, .
Evacuation gridlock: Cars clogged major roads as residents fled鈥攁 perilous scene feared by residents who have long advocated for better planning, .
Slashed resources: L.A.鈥檚 fire chief warned last month that $18 million in budget cuts had 鈥渟everely limited the department's capacity鈥 to prepare for wildfires, .
Inmate firefighters: California has long depended on hundreds of inmate firefighters to help contain wildfire spread; those numbers have been dwindling due to prison reform and the COVID-19 pandemic, .
Bigger picture: Climate researchers warn that a warming world increases the number of 鈥渇ire weather鈥 days globally鈥攚here conditions are more suited for conflagrations, . GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners
More than 46,000 Palestinians have been killed in the Israel-Hamas war, with women and children accounting for more than half of the fatalities, per Gaza鈥檚 Health Ministry, which also reports 109,378 wounded as the 15-month conflict grinds on.
Mayo Clinic-led researchers characterized the risk potential for thousands of mutations of the BRCA2 cancer gene, offering insights to help providers identify patients with breast, ovarian, pancreatic, or prostate cancer who might benefit from more targeted treatments, according to a yesterday.
Taking doxycycline within 72 hours after sex reduced the incidence of chlamydia (by 79%), syphilis (by 80%), and gonorrhea (by 12%), per a 鈥攐ne of the first to show the effectiveness of the doxyPEP (doxycycline post-exposure prophylaxis) strategy outside of clinical trials.
A new aimed at improving surveillance, research, and response to possible chronic wasting disease spillover from cervids, such as deer to people or farm animals, offers recommendations to help public and animal health agencies recognize and address a species jump. GHN EXCLUSIVE COMMENTARY A light micrograph image of oocysts of the parasite Cryptosporidium parvum. M. Kandasamy and B. Striepen The Most Neglected NTD: Cryptosporidiosis
The 14-month-old boy arrived last January at University Teaching Hospitals鈥擟hildren鈥檚 Hospital in Lusaka, after suffering 12 days of diarrhea and poor appetite. Lethargic and dehydrated, he had underlying severe acute malnutrition.
Lab tests confirmed he was infected with Cryptosporidium. Despite maximal care that followed WHO protocols, the child died after a week in the hospital.
Cryptosporidiosis, implicated in the heartbreaking toll of 200,000 child deaths annually, receives far too little attention and should be added to the WHO list of (NTDs), write five members of the Cryptosporidiosis Therapeutics Advocacy Group.
A place on the WHO鈥檚 list would:
GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES HEARING LOSS What鈥檚 Your Number?
Over the course of our lives, every one of us will experience a decline in hearing.
What isn鈥檛 so common: getting regular hearing tests to understand how our hearing changes over time.
Now, with free smartphone apps, anyone can learn their 鈥溾濃攖he measure in decibels of the softest speech sound a person can hear. This metric could help people decide when to use new strategies and technologies, such as over-the-counter hearing aids, to optimize their hearing.
Why it matters: Several large studies have linked hearing loss to cognitive decline. Now there are more accessible tools to identify hearing changes鈥攁nd intervene鈥攅arlier.
ALMOST FRIDAY DIVERSION No Good Win Goes Unpunished
For the college football coach lucky enough to clinch the annual Duke始s Mayo Bowl, the prize is bragging rights 鈥 and five gallons of mayo to the face.
And teams始 approach to the prank is surprisingly strategic.
Like any good sports coach, this year始s Duke始s dumpee, Minnesota head coach P.J. Fleck, assessed his assets. 鈥淚 think with my bald head the mayo should just slide right off,鈥 . 鈥淚 might have to do a little pre-dumping of the mayo just to make sure.鈥
Tryouts to be the mayo dumper include mayo bucket deadlifts and catching footballs with mayo-soaked hands.
Not a mayo-thlete? Mere sports fans can dump stuff from the stands in the, which set a record this year by raining over 100,000 plush pals onto the ice at a hockey game in Pennsylvania. QUICK HITS New year brings little new hope for children in Gaza, with at least 74 children reportedly killed in first week of 2025 鈥
鈥楩orgotten鈥: How one Mexican city struggles against big industry for water 鈥
Delhi's air quality remains in 'very poor' category, AQI stands at 322 鈥
Ecuador: ongoing violence displacing thousands 鈥
Survival of the luckiest? New study hints at the potential role of luck in evolution 鈥 Issue No. 2837
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2025 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
Tens of thousands of people are under evacuation orders in Los Angeles as high-force winds fuel multiple rampant fires around the city鈥攕ome of the most destructive in L.A.鈥檚 history, .
The latest: The fires have killed at least five people, burned 27,000+ acres, and destroyed ~2,000 structures, .
More danger ahead: Much of Los Angeles County remains under a red flag warning, with forecasters predicting dangerous conditions through Friday night.
Far-reaching hazard: The smoke blanketing the area is creating for people across the region, .
Water shortages: The region鈥檚 water system buckled under the high demand, with some fire hydrants running dry, .
Evacuation gridlock: Cars clogged major roads as residents fled鈥攁 perilous scene feared by residents who have long advocated for better planning, .
Slashed resources: L.A.鈥檚 fire chief warned last month that $18 million in budget cuts had 鈥渟everely limited the department's capacity鈥 to prepare for wildfires, .
Inmate firefighters: California has long depended on hundreds of inmate firefighters to help contain wildfire spread; those numbers have been dwindling due to prison reform and the COVID-19 pandemic, .
Bigger picture: Climate researchers warn that a warming world increases the number of 鈥渇ire weather鈥 days globally鈥攚here conditions are more suited for conflagrations, . GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners
More than 46,000 Palestinians have been killed in the Israel-Hamas war, with women and children accounting for more than half of the fatalities, per Gaza鈥檚 Health Ministry, which also reports 109,378 wounded as the 15-month conflict grinds on.
Mayo Clinic-led researchers characterized the risk potential for thousands of mutations of the BRCA2 cancer gene, offering insights to help providers identify patients with breast, ovarian, pancreatic, or prostate cancer who might benefit from more targeted treatments, according to a yesterday.
Taking doxycycline within 72 hours after sex reduced the incidence of chlamydia (by 79%), syphilis (by 80%), and gonorrhea (by 12%), per a 鈥攐ne of the first to show the effectiveness of the doxyPEP (doxycycline post-exposure prophylaxis) strategy outside of clinical trials.
A new aimed at improving surveillance, research, and response to possible chronic wasting disease spillover from cervids, such as deer to people or farm animals, offers recommendations to help public and animal health agencies recognize and address a species jump. GHN EXCLUSIVE COMMENTARY A light micrograph image of oocysts of the parasite Cryptosporidium parvum. M. Kandasamy and B. Striepen The Most Neglected NTD: Cryptosporidiosis
The 14-month-old boy arrived last January at University Teaching Hospitals鈥擟hildren鈥檚 Hospital in Lusaka, after suffering 12 days of diarrhea and poor appetite. Lethargic and dehydrated, he had underlying severe acute malnutrition.
Lab tests confirmed he was infected with Cryptosporidium. Despite maximal care that followed WHO protocols, the child died after a week in the hospital.
Cryptosporidiosis, implicated in the heartbreaking toll of 200,000 child deaths annually, receives far too little attention and should be added to the WHO list of (NTDs), write five members of the Cryptosporidiosis Therapeutics Advocacy Group.
A place on the WHO鈥檚 list would:
- Increase awareness of the disease鈥檚 impact on vulnerable populations and emphasize the need for quick action.
- Encourage governments to allocate resources and develop strategies for disease surveillance, diagnosis, and control measures.
- Persuade regulatory agencies like the U.S. FDA to prioritize evaluating and approving diagnostics, treatments, and potential vaccines.
GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES HEARING LOSS What鈥檚 Your Number?
Over the course of our lives, every one of us will experience a decline in hearing.
What isn鈥檛 so common: getting regular hearing tests to understand how our hearing changes over time.
Now, with free smartphone apps, anyone can learn their 鈥溾濃攖he measure in decibels of the softest speech sound a person can hear. This metric could help people decide when to use new strategies and technologies, such as over-the-counter hearing aids, to optimize their hearing.
Why it matters: Several large studies have linked hearing loss to cognitive decline. Now there are more accessible tools to identify hearing changes鈥攁nd intervene鈥攅arlier.
ALMOST FRIDAY DIVERSION No Good Win Goes Unpunished
For the college football coach lucky enough to clinch the annual Duke始s Mayo Bowl, the prize is bragging rights 鈥 and five gallons of mayo to the face.
And teams始 approach to the prank is surprisingly strategic.
Like any good sports coach, this year始s Duke始s dumpee, Minnesota head coach P.J. Fleck, assessed his assets. 鈥淚 think with my bald head the mayo should just slide right off,鈥 . 鈥淚 might have to do a little pre-dumping of the mayo just to make sure.鈥
Tryouts to be the mayo dumper include mayo bucket deadlifts and catching footballs with mayo-soaked hands.
Not a mayo-thlete? Mere sports fans can dump stuff from the stands in the, which set a record this year by raining over 100,000 plush pals onto the ice at a hockey game in Pennsylvania. QUICK HITS New year brings little new hope for children in Gaza, with at least 74 children reportedly killed in first week of 2025 鈥
鈥楩orgotten鈥: How one Mexican city struggles against big industry for water 鈥
Delhi's air quality remains in 'very poor' category, AQI stands at 322 鈥
Ecuador: ongoing violence displacing thousands 鈥
Survival of the luckiest? New study hints at the potential role of luck in evolution 鈥 Issue No. 2837
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2025 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
Categories: Global Health Feed
96
Global Health NOW: A Promising Fight Against a Silent Killer; A Powerful Prescription: Cash; and Jimmy Carter鈥檚 Global Health Legacy
January 8, 2025
GHN EXCLUSIVE
Kennedy Wasilwa, a clinical officer at Lodwar County Referral Hospital, attends to a kala-azar client. December 10, 2024. Scovian Lillian
A Promising Fight Against a Silent Killer
LODWAR, Kenya鈥擨n a sweltering children鈥檚 hospital ward, frail children lie on narrow beds, their tiny bodies locked in battle with kala-azar鈥攁lso known as visceral leishmaniasis.
On their wrists, thin plastic cannulas are taped in place, a constant reminder of the daily injections they must endure to survive the parasitic disease.
Scovian Lillian reported on the reasons for this, the need for safer, simpler treatments, and progress under a framework to eliminate child deaths from the disease by 2030鈥攑ointing to another country鈥檚 success story as proof such ambitious goals are attainable.
Ed. Note: This article is part of , made possible through the generous support of loyal GHN readers. Scovian Lillian, an independent journalist based in Nairobi, Kenya, reported on this story as a recipient of the DNDi media fellowship for Eastern African health journalists GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners
Thousands of rescue workers have poured into Tibet to search for survivors after a 7.1 magnitude earthquake killed ~126 people and trapped hundreds more.
A compound derived from a tree native to southern Brazil kills the parasite that causes visceral leishmaniasis and may provide a breakthrough treatment for the disease, a published in Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy has found.
The U.K. cut health-related aid to vulnerable nations while also hiring nurses from those countries鈥攄espite their 鈥溾 status as regions with severe health workforce shortages, per a new analysis by the Royal College of Nursing.
The FDA has set limits for toxic lead in processed baby foods like jarred fruits, dry cereals, and yogurts, which could cut exposure by 20%鈥30%, the agency says; however, the limits are voluntary, not mandatory. TUBERCULOSIS A Powerful Prescription: Cash
A Brazilian economic program that provides cash to poor residents has been linked to significant positive health outcomes鈥攊ncluding lowering rates of tuberculosis, a new published in Nature Medicine has found.
Researchers looked at data on 54 million+ Brazilians living in poverty, 44% of whom received monthly cash payouts from the country鈥檚 Bolsa Familia Program, launched 20 years ago.
Their findings: Families receiving cash were significantly less likely to contract TB, with TB cases and deaths dropping by over 50%鈥攁nd by more than 60% among Indigenous populations.
How might payouts prevent TB? Researchers say the cash supplements allow people to improve their living conditions, diversify their diets, and take time off work for medical care.
Related: Significantly shorter treatment regimens for tuberculosis in children and adults now recommended 鈥 GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES POLIO For Indian Americans, A Not-So-Distant Scourge
For many Indian Americans, polio is a recent painful memory.
Vaccines only became widely available in India in the 1970s, when ~200,000 cases were reported each year. The country was finally declared polio-free in 2014 after extensive vaccination efforts.
Now, with rising vaccine skepticism and the nomination of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as U.S. health secretary, Indian American health providers and advocates are voicing concerns about potential polio resurgence in the U.S.
The Quote: 鈥淚 want to be the last generation who remembers the impact of polio,鈥 said Nahid Bhadelia, director of Boston University鈥檚 Center on Emerging Infectious Diseases, whose uncle in India had polio. 鈥淚 wish our children鈥檚 generation didn鈥檛 have to deal with this anymore.鈥
RIP Jimmy Carter鈥檚 Global Health Legacy
Following his presidency, Jimmy Carter, who died on December 29, spent five decades鈥攈alf of his 100 years鈥攑lacing much of his focus on global health in the world鈥檚 poorest countries. His quiet yet far-reaching work helped bring health and sanitation to millions and reshaped the work of aid organizations, .
Some highlights:
Focus on NTDs: Carter made a priority of bringing attention to NTDs, especially to Guinea worm. With the help of the Carter Center鈥檚 efforts, cases dropped from 3.5 million in 1986 to 14 in 2023, .
Leveraging status: Carter visited remote and impoverished populations with his wife, Rosalynn鈥攁nd later advocated for those groups in international forums. He negotiated a ceasefire during Sudan鈥檚 civil war to allow health teams to tackle a parasitic disease and brokered drug donations for illnesses like river blindness.
Community-led efforts: The Carter Center set new standards for international aid鈥攑rioritizing locally led, long-term initiatives.
Related:
Jimmy Carter leaves behind a global public health work legacy 鈥
Covering Carter: Seeing Hope Restored in Africa 鈥
鈥極ur country ignored Africa,鈥 Jimmy Carter said. He didn鈥檛 鈥 QUICK HITS Breakthrough drugs herald 鈥榥ew era鈥 in battle against dementia, experts predict 鈥
'Toxic male technique' could reduce female mosquito population by poisoning them during sex 鈥
Mongolian horses are contracting H5N1 under the radar, says new study 鈥
Environmental groups sue FDA over refusal to tackle risky plastic packaging 鈥
Doctors worry that iodine deficiency 鈥 a dietary problem from the past 鈥 is coming back 鈥
New Global Standard? Iron Infusions Boost Pregnancy Outcomes in Landmark Study 鈥
Atul Gawande on Global Health's Past and Present 鈥 Issue No. 2836
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2025 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
LODWAR, Kenya鈥擨n a sweltering children鈥檚 hospital ward, frail children lie on narrow beds, their tiny bodies locked in battle with kala-azar鈥攁lso known as visceral leishmaniasis.
On their wrists, thin plastic cannulas are taped in place, a constant reminder of the daily injections they must endure to survive the parasitic disease.
- Kala-azar is called a silent killer because its early warning signs鈥攆ever, fatigue, low appetite鈥攃an be easy to dismiss. But untreated, the disease, caused by Leishmania parasites transmitted through sandfly bites, kills 90% of its victims.
- And cases have surged recently in arid Turkana County, in northwestern Kenya鈥攚here the hospital now diagnoses and treats around five to 10 cases per day, a significant increase from previous years.
Scovian Lillian reported on the reasons for this, the need for safer, simpler treatments, and progress under a framework to eliminate child deaths from the disease by 2030鈥攑ointing to another country鈥檚 success story as proof such ambitious goals are attainable.
Ed. Note: This article is part of , made possible through the generous support of loyal GHN readers. Scovian Lillian, an independent journalist based in Nairobi, Kenya, reported on this story as a recipient of the DNDi media fellowship for Eastern African health journalists GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners
Thousands of rescue workers have poured into Tibet to search for survivors after a 7.1 magnitude earthquake killed ~126 people and trapped hundreds more.
A compound derived from a tree native to southern Brazil kills the parasite that causes visceral leishmaniasis and may provide a breakthrough treatment for the disease, a published in Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy has found.
The U.K. cut health-related aid to vulnerable nations while also hiring nurses from those countries鈥攄espite their 鈥溾 status as regions with severe health workforce shortages, per a new analysis by the Royal College of Nursing.
The FDA has set limits for toxic lead in processed baby foods like jarred fruits, dry cereals, and yogurts, which could cut exposure by 20%鈥30%, the agency says; however, the limits are voluntary, not mandatory. TUBERCULOSIS A Powerful Prescription: Cash
A Brazilian economic program that provides cash to poor residents has been linked to significant positive health outcomes鈥攊ncluding lowering rates of tuberculosis, a new published in Nature Medicine has found.
Researchers looked at data on 54 million+ Brazilians living in poverty, 44% of whom received monthly cash payouts from the country鈥檚 Bolsa Familia Program, launched 20 years ago.
Their findings: Families receiving cash were significantly less likely to contract TB, with TB cases and deaths dropping by over 50%鈥攁nd by more than 60% among Indigenous populations.
How might payouts prevent TB? Researchers say the cash supplements allow people to improve their living conditions, diversify their diets, and take time off work for medical care.
Related: Significantly shorter treatment regimens for tuberculosis in children and adults now recommended 鈥 GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES POLIO For Indian Americans, A Not-So-Distant Scourge
For many Indian Americans, polio is a recent painful memory.
Vaccines only became widely available in India in the 1970s, when ~200,000 cases were reported each year. The country was finally declared polio-free in 2014 after extensive vaccination efforts.
Now, with rising vaccine skepticism and the nomination of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as U.S. health secretary, Indian American health providers and advocates are voicing concerns about potential polio resurgence in the U.S.
The Quote: 鈥淚 want to be the last generation who remembers the impact of polio,鈥 said Nahid Bhadelia, director of Boston University鈥檚 Center on Emerging Infectious Diseases, whose uncle in India had polio. 鈥淚 wish our children鈥檚 generation didn鈥檛 have to deal with this anymore.鈥
RIP Jimmy Carter鈥檚 Global Health Legacy
Following his presidency, Jimmy Carter, who died on December 29, spent five decades鈥攈alf of his 100 years鈥攑lacing much of his focus on global health in the world鈥檚 poorest countries. His quiet yet far-reaching work helped bring health and sanitation to millions and reshaped the work of aid organizations, .
Some highlights:
Focus on NTDs: Carter made a priority of bringing attention to NTDs, especially to Guinea worm. With the help of the Carter Center鈥檚 efforts, cases dropped from 3.5 million in 1986 to 14 in 2023, .
Leveraging status: Carter visited remote and impoverished populations with his wife, Rosalynn鈥攁nd later advocated for those groups in international forums. He negotiated a ceasefire during Sudan鈥檚 civil war to allow health teams to tackle a parasitic disease and brokered drug donations for illnesses like river blindness.
Community-led efforts: The Carter Center set new standards for international aid鈥攑rioritizing locally led, long-term initiatives.
Related:
Jimmy Carter leaves behind a global public health work legacy 鈥
Covering Carter: Seeing Hope Restored in Africa 鈥
鈥極ur country ignored Africa,鈥 Jimmy Carter said. He didn鈥檛 鈥 QUICK HITS Breakthrough drugs herald 鈥榥ew era鈥 in battle against dementia, experts predict 鈥
'Toxic male technique' could reduce female mosquito population by poisoning them during sex 鈥
Mongolian horses are contracting H5N1 under the radar, says new study 鈥
Environmental groups sue FDA over refusal to tackle risky plastic packaging 鈥
Doctors worry that iodine deficiency 鈥 a dietary problem from the past 鈥 is coming back 鈥
New Global Standard? Iron Infusions Boost Pregnancy Outcomes in Landmark Study 鈥
Atul Gawande on Global Health's Past and Present 鈥 Issue No. 2836
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2025 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
Categories: Global Health Feed
96
Global Health NOW: Experts: HMPV Is Not COVID-19; Avian Flu and Other Issues to Watch in 2025; and Your December Recap
January 7, 2025
A relative holds an IV drip for a child receiving care at a hospital in Hangzhou, eastern China's Zhejiang province. January 6. STR/AFP via Getty
Experts: HMPV Is Not COVID-19
A sharp rise in human metapneumovirus (HMPV) infections among children 14 and under in China that began late last month has led to crowded hospitals and global concerns.
Background:
The U.S. FDA has rolled out new recommendations for manufacturers to improve the accuracy of pulse oximeters鈥 use with patients of color; the devices have been found to overestimate Black patients鈥 oxygen levels, potentially delaying treatment.
Vasectomies increased by 95% and tubal sterilizations by 70% among Americans between 19 and 26, within months of the June 2022 U.S. Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade, .
Indonesia鈥檚 new government launched a new initiative yesterday to reduce malnutrition by feeding ~90 million children and pregnant women through 2029; the Free Nutritious Meal program will cost $28 billion through 2029. YEAR-END RECAP Global Health Issues to Watch in 2025
It may be a new year, but many of the global health stories from the last few years are still playing out, writes Helen Branswell for STAT鈥攚ho adds that 鈥渋t doesn鈥檛 feel like the 2020s are ready to cut us any breaks.鈥
Among the questions in the new year:
After the first U.S. death from H5N1 avian flu was reported yesterday鈥攁 Louisiana resident hospitalized last month who was over 65 and had underlying medical conditions鈥攖he WHO said that the risk to the general population remains low, .
The Quote: 鈥淚 hear over and over from workers, 鈥楾he cows are more valuable than us,鈥欌 says Bethany Boggess of the National Center for Farmworker Health. DECEMBER EXCLUSIVES Makeshift houses in the Garden House Compound area of Lusaka that share makeshift toilets built from wood and rags. Lusaka, Zambia, November 6, 2024. Freddie Clayton Exclusives to Close out 2024:
New Local Reporting Initiative reporters Kennedy Phiri and Freddie Clayton explore efforts to avoid a repeat of last year鈥檚 deadly cholera outbreak in Zambia in this two-part series:
Michelle Morse, New York City鈥檚 acting health commissioner, shares her public health priorities for the residents of the largest city in the U.S.鈥攁nd how her global health experience influences her work today鈥攊n a Q&A with GHN鈥檚 Brian W. Simpson.
And, reporter Joanne Silberner examines how the U.S. government鈥檚 approach to public health might change when the second Trump administration begins on January 20鈥攅xploring what powers states have to determine and take action on their own public health priorities.
As Mexican cartels seek to dominate the fentanyl market, they are increasingly turning to a new source for recruits: university chemistry labs, using high salaries and other incentives to lure students.
The bigger ambition: Cartels are trying to synthesize chemical compounds known as 鈥減recursors鈥 that are key to making fentanyl, which would free them from being dependent on China for production鈥攎aking it more difficult for law enforcement in both Mexico and the U.S. to stop the flow of the deadly drug.
Women on the Lymphatic Filariasis Front Lines
The mosquito-borne disease lymphatic filariasis takes an especially heavy toll on women in India鈥攅specially in poor, rural regions, where women are more vulnerable due to daily outdoor chores and have less access to health care.
Portugal鈥檚 Practical Health Priorities
Portugal has a life expectancy nearly four years longer than the U.S.鈥攄espite spending just 20% of what the U.S. spends on health care per person.
The focus? Not cutting-edge technology or expensive medical facilities, but rather 鈥渙ld fashioned primary care and public health,鈥 including free or low-cost health care for every resident and clinics embedded in neighborhoods.
GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES QUICK HITS The surgeon general wants the U.S. to know alcohol causes cancer. Plenty stands in his way 鈥
WHO announces the development of new guidelines for lenacapavir and updated HIV testing guidelines 鈥
Sweet Danger: How Sugary Drinks Are Fueling Millions of New Diabetes and Heart Disease Cases Worldwide 鈥
Krutika Kuppalli and Placide Mbala Kingebeni鈥 What we learnt from the DRC鈥檚 malaria outbreak 鈥
Mycetoma: A Neglected Tropical Disease Affecting Ethiopia's Rural Communities 鈥
Health Insurers Limit Coverage of Prosthetic Limbs, Questioning Their Medical Necessity 鈥
Wait, should I bother using antibacterial soap? 鈥 Issue No. M-Dec.2024
Global Health NOW is an initiative https://us14.admin.mailchimp.com/campaigns/edit?id=10286596of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2025 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
A sharp rise in human metapneumovirus (HMPV) infections among children 14 and under in China that began late last month has led to crowded hospitals and global concerns.
- Videos of crowded hospitals have circulated on social media, recalling COVID-19鈥檚 early months.
Background:
- HMPV is a common virus that鈥檚 been recognized since 2001, (and circulated in humans for decades before that).
- HMPV infection is usually mild with symptoms similar to the common cold. But severe cases can lead to bronchitis or pneumonia, 鈥減articularly among infants, older adults and immunocompromised people,鈥 per the Times.
- HMPV and influenza cases will likely spike at the end of this month when many Chinese travel for the Lunar New Year holiday, according to an official with China鈥檚 Center for Disease Control and Prevention per the Times.
The U.S. FDA has rolled out new recommendations for manufacturers to improve the accuracy of pulse oximeters鈥 use with patients of color; the devices have been found to overestimate Black patients鈥 oxygen levels, potentially delaying treatment.
Vasectomies increased by 95% and tubal sterilizations by 70% among Americans between 19 and 26, within months of the June 2022 U.S. Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade, .
Indonesia鈥檚 new government launched a new initiative yesterday to reduce malnutrition by feeding ~90 million children and pregnant women through 2029; the Free Nutritious Meal program will cost $28 billion through 2029. YEAR-END RECAP Global Health Issues to Watch in 2025
It may be a new year, but many of the global health stories from the last few years are still playing out, writes Helen Branswell for STAT鈥攚ho adds that 鈥渋t doesn鈥檛 feel like the 2020s are ready to cut us any breaks.鈥
Among the questions in the new year:
- How might H5N1 bird flu evolve?
- Can mpox transmission be stopped?
- Will the U.S. play a decreased global health role with the incoming Trump administration?
- WHO looks back at 2024&苍产蝉辫;鈥
- 鈥楴ot the new normal鈥 鈥 2024 'one of the worst years in UNICEF鈥檚 history' for children in conflict 鈥
- 2024: The year in photos&苍产蝉辫;鈥
- Public Health in 2024: Historic Firsts, Unwelcome Comebacks, and Rays of Hope&苍产蝉辫;鈥
After the first U.S. death from H5N1 avian flu was reported yesterday鈥攁 Louisiana resident hospitalized last month who was over 65 and had underlying medical conditions鈥攖he WHO said that the risk to the general population remains low, .
- The CDC also says the risk to the broader public remains low, 鈥攁lthough the virus appears to have developed some concerning mutations in the course of the Louisiana patient鈥檚 illness. Canada reported similar findings in a girl who fell ill in November.
- 鈥淵ou are surrounded by highly pathogenic viruses in the wild and in farm animals,鈥 said Marion Koopmans, head of virology at Erasmus Medical Center in the Netherlands. 鈥淚f three months from now we are at the start of the pandemic, it is nobody鈥檚 surprise.鈥
The Quote: 鈥淚 hear over and over from workers, 鈥楾he cows are more valuable than us,鈥欌 says Bethany Boggess of the National Center for Farmworker Health. DECEMBER EXCLUSIVES Makeshift houses in the Garden House Compound area of Lusaka that share makeshift toilets built from wood and rags. Lusaka, Zambia, November 6, 2024. Freddie Clayton Exclusives to Close out 2024:
New Local Reporting Initiative reporters Kennedy Phiri and Freddie Clayton explore efforts to avoid a repeat of last year鈥檚 deadly cholera outbreak in Zambia in this two-part series:
Michelle Morse, New York City鈥檚 acting health commissioner, shares her public health priorities for the residents of the largest city in the U.S.鈥攁nd how her global health experience influences her work today鈥攊n a Q&A with GHN鈥檚 Brian W. Simpson.
And, reporter Joanne Silberner examines how the U.S. government鈥檚 approach to public health might change when the second Trump administration begins on January 20鈥攅xploring what powers states have to determine and take action on their own public health priorities.
As Mexican cartels seek to dominate the fentanyl market, they are increasingly turning to a new source for recruits: university chemistry labs, using high salaries and other incentives to lure students.
The bigger ambition: Cartels are trying to synthesize chemical compounds known as 鈥減recursors鈥 that are key to making fentanyl, which would free them from being dependent on China for production鈥攎aking it more difficult for law enforcement in both Mexico and the U.S. to stop the flow of the deadly drug.
Women on the Lymphatic Filariasis Front Lines
The mosquito-borne disease lymphatic filariasis takes an especially heavy toll on women in India鈥攅specially in poor, rural regions, where women are more vulnerable due to daily outdoor chores and have less access to health care.
- While annual mass drug administration campaigns aim to reduce transmission, mistrust and lack of awareness keep the preventive medicines out of women鈥檚 reach.
Portugal鈥檚 Practical Health Priorities
Portugal has a life expectancy nearly four years longer than the U.S.鈥攄espite spending just 20% of what the U.S. spends on health care per person.
The focus? Not cutting-edge technology or expensive medical facilities, but rather 鈥渙ld fashioned primary care and public health,鈥 including free or low-cost health care for every resident and clinics embedded in neighborhoods.
GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES QUICK HITS The surgeon general wants the U.S. to know alcohol causes cancer. Plenty stands in his way 鈥
WHO announces the development of new guidelines for lenacapavir and updated HIV testing guidelines 鈥
Sweet Danger: How Sugary Drinks Are Fueling Millions of New Diabetes and Heart Disease Cases Worldwide 鈥
Krutika Kuppalli and Placide Mbala Kingebeni鈥 What we learnt from the DRC鈥檚 malaria outbreak 鈥
Mycetoma: A Neglected Tropical Disease Affecting Ethiopia's Rural Communities 鈥
Health Insurers Limit Coverage of Prosthetic Limbs, Questioning Their Medical Necessity 鈥
Wait, should I bother using antibacterial soap? 鈥 Issue No. M-Dec.2024
Global Health NOW is an initiative https://us14.admin.mailchimp.com/campaigns/edit?id=10286596of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2025 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
Categories: Global Health Feed
96
Global Health NOW:
January 7, 2025
A relative holds an IV drip for a child receiving care at a hospital in Hangzhou, eastern China's Zhejiang province. January 6. STR/AFP via Getty
Experts: HMPV Is Not COVID-19
A sharp rise in human metapneumovirus (HMPV) infections among children 14 and under in China that began late last month has led to crowded hospitals and global concerns.
Background:
The U.S. FDA has rolled out new recommendations for manufacturers to improve the accuracy of pulse oximeters鈥 use with patients of color; the devices have been found to overestimate Black patients鈥 oxygen levels, potentially delaying treatment.
Vasectomies increased by 95% and tubal sterilizations by 70% among Americans between 19 and 26, within months of the June 2022 U.S. Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade, .
Indonesia鈥檚 new government launched a new initiative yesterday to reduce malnutrition by feeding ~90 million children and pregnant women through 2029; the Free Nutritious Meal program will cost $28 billion through 2029. YEAR-END RECAP Global Health Issues to Watch in 2025
It may be a new year, but many of the global health stories from the last few years are still playing out, writes Helen Branswell for STAT鈥攚ho adds that 鈥渋t doesn鈥檛 feel like the 2020s are ready to cut us any breaks.鈥
Among the questions in the new year:
After the first U.S. death from H5N1 avian flu was reported yesterday鈥攁 Louisiana resident hospitalized last month who was over 65 and had underlying medical conditions鈥攖he WHO said that the risk to the general population remains low, .
The Quote: 鈥淚 hear over and over from workers, 鈥楾he cows are more valuable than us,鈥欌 says Bethany Boggess of the National Center for Farmworker Health. DECEMBER EXCLUSIVES Makeshift houses in the Garden House Compound area of Lusaka that share makeshift toilets built from wood and rags. Lusaka, Zambia, November 6, 2024. Freddie Clayton Exclusives to Close out 2024:
New Local Reporting Initiative reporters Kennedy Phiri and Freddie Clayton explore efforts to avoid a repeat of last year鈥檚 deadly cholera outbreak in Zambia in this two-part series:
Michelle Morse, New York City鈥檚 acting health commissioner, shares her public health priorities for the residents of the largest city in the U.S.鈥攁nd how her global health experience influences her work today鈥攊n a Q&A with GHN鈥檚 Brian W. Simpson.
And, veteran GHN freelancer Joanne Silberner examines how the U.S. government鈥檚 approach to public health might change when the second Trump administration begins on January 20鈥攅xploring what powers states have to determine and take action on their own public health priorities.
As Mexican cartels seek to dominate the fentanyl market, they are increasingly turning to a new source for recruits: university chemistry labs, using high salaries and other incentives to lure students.
The bigger ambition: Cartels are trying to synthesize chemical compounds known as 鈥減recursors鈥 that are key to making fentanyl, which would free them from being dependent on China for production鈥攎aking it more difficult for law enforcement in both Mexico and the U.S. to stop the flow of the deadly drug.
Women on the Lymphatic Filariasis Front Lines
The mosquito-borne disease lymphatic filariasis takes an especially heavy toll on women in India鈥攅specially in poor, rural regions, where women are more vulnerable due to daily outdoor chores and have less access to health care.
Portugal鈥檚 Practical Health Priorities
Portugal has a life expectancy nearly four years longer than the U.S.鈥攄espite spending just 20% of what the U.S. spends on health care per person.
The focus? Not cutting-edge technology or expensive medical facilities, but rather 鈥渙ld fashioned primary care and public health,鈥 including free or low-cost health care for every resident and clinics embedded in neighborhoods.
GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES QUICK HITS The surgeon general wants the U.S. to know alcohol causes cancer. Plenty stands in his way 鈥
WHO announces the development of new guidelines for lenacapavir and updated HIV testing guidelines 鈥
Sweet Danger: How Sugary Drinks Are Fueling Millions of New Diabetes and Heart Disease Cases Worldwide 鈥
Krutika Kuppalli and Placide Mbala Kingebeni鈥 What we learnt from the DRC鈥檚 malaria outbreak 鈥
Mycetoma: A Neglected Tropical Disease Affecting Ethiopia's Rural Communities 鈥
Health Insurers Limit Coverage of Prosthetic Limbs, Questioning Their Medical Necessity 鈥
Wait, should I bother using antibacterial soap? 鈥 Issue No. 2835
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2025 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
A sharp rise in human metapneumovirus (HMPV) infections among children 14 and under in China that began late last month has led to crowded hospitals and global concerns.
- Videos of crowded hospitals have circulated on social media, recalling COVID-19鈥檚 early months.
Background:
- HMPV is a common virus that鈥檚 been recognized since 2001, (and circulated in humans for decades before that).
- HMPV infection is usually mild with symptoms similar to the common cold. But severe cases can lead to bronchitis or pneumonia, 鈥減articularly among infants, older adults and immunocompromised people,鈥 per the Times.
- HMPV and influenza cases will likely spike at the end of this month when many Chinese travel for the Lunar New Year holiday, according to an official with China鈥檚 Center for Disease Control and Prevention per the Times.
The U.S. FDA has rolled out new recommendations for manufacturers to improve the accuracy of pulse oximeters鈥 use with patients of color; the devices have been found to overestimate Black patients鈥 oxygen levels, potentially delaying treatment.
Vasectomies increased by 95% and tubal sterilizations by 70% among Americans between 19 and 26, within months of the June 2022 U.S. Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade, .
Indonesia鈥檚 new government launched a new initiative yesterday to reduce malnutrition by feeding ~90 million children and pregnant women through 2029; the Free Nutritious Meal program will cost $28 billion through 2029. YEAR-END RECAP Global Health Issues to Watch in 2025
It may be a new year, but many of the global health stories from the last few years are still playing out, writes Helen Branswell for STAT鈥攚ho adds that 鈥渋t doesn鈥檛 feel like the 2020s are ready to cut us any breaks.鈥
Among the questions in the new year:
- How might H5N1 bird flu evolve?
- Can mpox transmission be stopped?
- Will the U.S. play a decreased global health role with the incoming Trump administration?
- WHO looks back at 2024&苍产蝉辫;鈥
- 鈥楴ot the new normal鈥 鈥 2024 'one of the worst years in UNICEF鈥檚 history' for children in conflict 鈥
- 2024: The year in photos&苍产蝉辫;鈥
- Public Health in 2024: Historic Firsts, Unwelcome Comebacks, and Rays of Hope&苍产蝉辫;鈥
After the first U.S. death from H5N1 avian flu was reported yesterday鈥攁 Louisiana resident hospitalized last month who was over 65 and had underlying medical conditions鈥攖he WHO said that the risk to the general population remains low, .
- The CDC also says the risk to the broader public remains low, 鈥攁lthough the virus appears to have developed some concerning mutations in the course of the Louisiana patient鈥檚 illness. Canada reported similar findings in a girl who fell ill in November.
- 鈥淵ou are surrounded by highly pathogenic viruses in the wild and in farm animals,鈥 said Marion Koopmans, head of virology at Erasmus Medical Center in the Netherlands. 鈥淚f three months from now we are at the start of the pandemic, it is nobody鈥檚 surprise.鈥
The Quote: 鈥淚 hear over and over from workers, 鈥楾he cows are more valuable than us,鈥欌 says Bethany Boggess of the National Center for Farmworker Health. DECEMBER EXCLUSIVES Makeshift houses in the Garden House Compound area of Lusaka that share makeshift toilets built from wood and rags. Lusaka, Zambia, November 6, 2024. Freddie Clayton Exclusives to Close out 2024:
New Local Reporting Initiative reporters Kennedy Phiri and Freddie Clayton explore efforts to avoid a repeat of last year鈥檚 deadly cholera outbreak in Zambia in this two-part series:
Michelle Morse, New York City鈥檚 acting health commissioner, shares her public health priorities for the residents of the largest city in the U.S.鈥攁nd how her global health experience influences her work today鈥攊n a Q&A with GHN鈥檚 Brian W. Simpson.
And, veteran GHN freelancer Joanne Silberner examines how the U.S. government鈥檚 approach to public health might change when the second Trump administration begins on January 20鈥攅xploring what powers states have to determine and take action on their own public health priorities.
As Mexican cartels seek to dominate the fentanyl market, they are increasingly turning to a new source for recruits: university chemistry labs, using high salaries and other incentives to lure students.
The bigger ambition: Cartels are trying to synthesize chemical compounds known as 鈥減recursors鈥 that are key to making fentanyl, which would free them from being dependent on China for production鈥攎aking it more difficult for law enforcement in both Mexico and the U.S. to stop the flow of the deadly drug.
Women on the Lymphatic Filariasis Front Lines
The mosquito-borne disease lymphatic filariasis takes an especially heavy toll on women in India鈥攅specially in poor, rural regions, where women are more vulnerable due to daily outdoor chores and have less access to health care.
- While annual mass drug administration campaigns aim to reduce transmission, mistrust and lack of awareness keep the preventive medicines out of women鈥檚 reach.
Portugal鈥檚 Practical Health Priorities
Portugal has a life expectancy nearly four years longer than the U.S.鈥攄espite spending just 20% of what the U.S. spends on health care per person.
The focus? Not cutting-edge technology or expensive medical facilities, but rather 鈥渙ld fashioned primary care and public health,鈥 including free or low-cost health care for every resident and clinics embedded in neighborhoods.
GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES QUICK HITS The surgeon general wants the U.S. to know alcohol causes cancer. Plenty stands in his way 鈥
WHO announces the development of new guidelines for lenacapavir and updated HIV testing guidelines 鈥
Sweet Danger: How Sugary Drinks Are Fueling Millions of New Diabetes and Heart Disease Cases Worldwide 鈥
Krutika Kuppalli and Placide Mbala Kingebeni鈥 What we learnt from the DRC鈥檚 malaria outbreak 鈥
Mycetoma: A Neglected Tropical Disease Affecting Ethiopia's Rural Communities 鈥
Health Insurers Limit Coverage of Prosthetic Limbs, Questioning Their Medical Necessity 鈥
Wait, should I bother using antibacterial soap? 鈥 Issue No. 2835
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2025 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
Categories: Global Health Feed
96
Global Health SNOW Day
January 6, 2025
Anoushka and Wolfie don't mind the snow! Arnold, Maryland, January 6. Dayna Kerecman Myers
Global Health SNOW Day
A winter storm hit the Baltimore region overnight, closing Johns Hopkins University today and delaying our planned first issue of 2025.
We know there is a lot of global health news to catch up on after the holiday break, and we plan to be back in full force tomorrow with the first official GHN of 2025! Until then, here are a few stories to tide you over. 鈥Dayna QUICK HITS 9 countries said goodbye to a devastating disease in 2024 鈥
HHS directs $306 million to avian flu response as virus strikes more US flocks 鈥
鈥楾here is no safe level鈥 of alcohol to drink, doctor says鈥攏ot even one glass of red wine per day 鈥
What Covid tried to teach us 鈥 and why it will matter in the next pandemic 鈥
How visa rejections are stalling Africa's health research 鈥
22 Public Health Accomplishments in 2024 鈥
Did anything good happen in 2024? Actually, yes! 鈥 Issue No. 2834
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2025 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
A winter storm hit the Baltimore region overnight, closing Johns Hopkins University today and delaying our planned first issue of 2025.
We know there is a lot of global health news to catch up on after the holiday break, and we plan to be back in full force tomorrow with the first official GHN of 2025! Until then, here are a few stories to tide you over. 鈥Dayna QUICK HITS 9 countries said goodbye to a devastating disease in 2024 鈥
HHS directs $306 million to avian flu response as virus strikes more US flocks 鈥
鈥楾here is no safe level鈥 of alcohol to drink, doctor says鈥攏ot even one glass of red wine per day 鈥
What Covid tried to teach us 鈥 and why it will matter in the next pandemic 鈥
How visa rejections are stalling Africa's health research 鈥
22 Public Health Accomplishments in 2024 鈥
Did anything good happen in 2024? Actually, yes! 鈥 Issue No. 2834
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2025 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
Categories: Global Health Feed
96
Global Health NOW: Measles鈥 Enduring Grip in the DRC; Persistent Threats to Pakistan鈥檚 Vaccination Efforts; and a We Are What Diverts Us
DRC parents find themselves powerless to protect their children from measles.
December 19, 2024
Measles鈥 Enduring Grip in the DRC
In the DRC, many parents worry about their children contracting measles鈥攂ut find themselves powerless to protect them, with vaccines and treatment options all too often out of reach.
Relentless threat: 311,000+ cases and 6,000 deaths were reported in the DRC last year. This year, ~97,000 cases have been logged; but the disease has become more lethal, killing 2,100+.
Key obstacles: Logistics and infrastructure. Vaccines are difficult to distribute in the DRC due to the country鈥檚 vast size, poor roads, and unreliable refrigeration.
Future solutions: Rapid diagnostic tests and vaccine patches may improve prevention efforts in the future.
Bigger picture: Measles cases globally rose by 20% in 2023, reaching 10.3 million cases and 107,000+ deaths, according to .
GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES EDITOR鈥橲 NOTE See You Next Year!
This is the last GHN of 2024.
Thanks to all our readers who support our work in so many ways鈥攆rom opening the newsletter each morning to reading our exclusive reporting, sending tips and feedback, and contributing to our crowdfunding campaign. We appreciate you!
We鈥檒l be back on Monday, January 6, with more news! 鈥 Annalies The Latest One-Liners
A viral illness dubbed "Dinga Dinga" is affecting women and girls in Uganda's Bundibugyo district; there have been reports of ~300 cases of the mysterious illness, which causes shaking, fever, and weakness.
Microplastics in the air could be linked to colon and lung cancer, and may be contributing to infertility, finds a of published research in Environmental Science & Technology.
U.S. life expectancy has risen closer to pre-pandemic levels as deaths from COVID-19 and drug overdoses decline, per new from the CDC; life expectancy increased ~1 year to 78.4 years in 2023.
A state of emergency for bird flu has been by California Governor Gavin Newsom, as 300+ herds in the state have tested positive for the virus in the last 30 days alone; meanwhile, the first severe case of human bird flu has been reported in Louisiana. GHN鈥檚 BEST OF 2024: STAFF PICKS A man takes rest from selling water bottles on a hot afternoon near India Gate in Delhi. Cheena Kapoor Jackie's Picks
I鈥檓 a contributing editor with GHN, reviewing stories and summaries in the morning production process to include in the newsletter. I wrote some of the very first summaries for GHN way back in 2014. What a difference ten years鈥攁nd 50,000+ subscribers鈥攎akes! 鈥Jackie Powder, contributing editor
Best GHN Exclusive India roasted in spring and summer as record-breaking temperatures soared to 126掳F, forcing impoverished residents into heat poverty. Independent journalist Cheena Kapoor describes a Delhi family of five who took on debt to buy an air conditioner so the children wouldn鈥檛 miss school because of heat-related sicknesses. Meanwhile, outside, air conditioners expelled hot air, exacerbating the 鈥渦rban heat island鈥 effect in Delhi, which is dominated by concrete, steel, and asphalt.
Best News Article ProPublica reporters Annie Waldman, Maya Miller, Duaa Eldeib, and Max Blau interviewed more than 500 therapists to explore an aspect of the U.S. mental health crisis: therapists opting out of health insurance networks in droves. The providers described insurers urging them to reduce treatment for high-risk鈥攁nd more costly鈥攑atients, and withholding reimbursements. The result is a severe shortage of therapists who accept insurance and a lack of access to care for people with mental illness鈥攅ven if they are insured.
Best Commentary POLIO Persistent Threats to Pakistan鈥檚 Vaccination Efforts
The bombing attack in northwest Pakistan that killed three police officers assigned to protect polio vaccine workers was just the latest in a long history of violence seeking to undermine the country鈥檚 vaccination efforts, .
Adding to obstacles: Health officials have postponed the vaccination drive in the country鈥檚 southwest Balochistan province after health workers there boycotted participation to oppose hospital privatization, .
Ongoing hostility: 200+ polio workers and police assigned to protect them have been killed since the 1990s, as militants claim the campaigns are a Western conspiracy.
People who need surgery in Sierra Leone, which has one of the world鈥檚 least developed health care systems, often must seek treatment abroad, with NGOs helping to cover costs.
But now, a new state-of-the art hospital has opened in Freetown, with support from Japan, offering surgical procedures and specialty care.
ALMOST FRIDAY DIVERSION Norbert, the beloved cat of GHN staffer Morgan Coulson, representing his species well. Driven to Distraction
Some say you are what you eat, but at GHN, we are what diverts us.
Weekly diversions are perhaps the clearest lens onto what makes us click, other than global health news. And after an audit of the year, it鈥檚 clear: We can鈥檛 resist an animal story.
So much so that at one point, it was suggested that we鈥攇asp!鈥攑ut a moratorium on cat content. Norbert (pictured) has thoughts. Readers: What do you all think?
Our animal instinct led us to:
Syphilis microbe circulated in the Americas thousands of years before European contact 鈥
Unified approach could improve nature, climate and health all at once 鈥 Thanks for the tip, Cecilia Meisner!
Cheap, smart and efficient: how giant rats are transforming the fight against TB 鈥 Issue No. 2833
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
In the DRC, many parents worry about their children contracting measles鈥攂ut find themselves powerless to protect them, with vaccines and treatment options all too often out of reach.
Relentless threat: 311,000+ cases and 6,000 deaths were reported in the DRC last year. This year, ~97,000 cases have been logged; but the disease has become more lethal, killing 2,100+.
- For ~4.5 million malnourished Congolese children, measles can be even more dangerous.
Key obstacles: Logistics and infrastructure. Vaccines are difficult to distribute in the DRC due to the country鈥檚 vast size, poor roads, and unreliable refrigeration.
Future solutions: Rapid diagnostic tests and vaccine patches may improve prevention efforts in the future.
Bigger picture: Measles cases globally rose by 20% in 2023, reaching 10.3 million cases and 107,000+ deaths, according to .
GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES EDITOR鈥橲 NOTE See You Next Year!
This is the last GHN of 2024.
Thanks to all our readers who support our work in so many ways鈥攆rom opening the newsletter each morning to reading our exclusive reporting, sending tips and feedback, and contributing to our crowdfunding campaign. We appreciate you!
We鈥檒l be back on Monday, January 6, with more news! 鈥 Annalies The Latest One-Liners
A viral illness dubbed "Dinga Dinga" is affecting women and girls in Uganda's Bundibugyo district; there have been reports of ~300 cases of the mysterious illness, which causes shaking, fever, and weakness.
Microplastics in the air could be linked to colon and lung cancer, and may be contributing to infertility, finds a of published research in Environmental Science & Technology.
U.S. life expectancy has risen closer to pre-pandemic levels as deaths from COVID-19 and drug overdoses decline, per new from the CDC; life expectancy increased ~1 year to 78.4 years in 2023.
A state of emergency for bird flu has been by California Governor Gavin Newsom, as 300+ herds in the state have tested positive for the virus in the last 30 days alone; meanwhile, the first severe case of human bird flu has been reported in Louisiana. GHN鈥檚 BEST OF 2024: STAFF PICKS A man takes rest from selling water bottles on a hot afternoon near India Gate in Delhi. Cheena Kapoor Jackie's Picks
I鈥檓 a contributing editor with GHN, reviewing stories and summaries in the morning production process to include in the newsletter. I wrote some of the very first summaries for GHN way back in 2014. What a difference ten years鈥攁nd 50,000+ subscribers鈥攎akes! 鈥Jackie Powder, contributing editor
Best GHN Exclusive India roasted in spring and summer as record-breaking temperatures soared to 126掳F, forcing impoverished residents into heat poverty. Independent journalist Cheena Kapoor describes a Delhi family of five who took on debt to buy an air conditioner so the children wouldn鈥檛 miss school because of heat-related sicknesses. Meanwhile, outside, air conditioners expelled hot air, exacerbating the 鈥渦rban heat island鈥 effect in Delhi, which is dominated by concrete, steel, and asphalt.
Best News Article ProPublica reporters Annie Waldman, Maya Miller, Duaa Eldeib, and Max Blau interviewed more than 500 therapists to explore an aspect of the U.S. mental health crisis: therapists opting out of health insurance networks in droves. The providers described insurers urging them to reduce treatment for high-risk鈥攁nd more costly鈥攑atients, and withholding reimbursements. The result is a severe shortage of therapists who accept insurance and a lack of access to care for people with mental illness鈥攅ven if they are insured.
Best Commentary POLIO Persistent Threats to Pakistan鈥檚 Vaccination Efforts
The bombing attack in northwest Pakistan that killed three police officers assigned to protect polio vaccine workers was just the latest in a long history of violence seeking to undermine the country鈥檚 vaccination efforts, .
- The bombing came a day after gunmen opened fire on police escorting polio workers in the city of Karak, killing one police officer and injuring a health worker.
Adding to obstacles: Health officials have postponed the vaccination drive in the country鈥檚 southwest Balochistan province after health workers there boycotted participation to oppose hospital privatization, .
Ongoing hostility: 200+ polio workers and police assigned to protect them have been killed since the 1990s, as militants claim the campaigns are a Western conspiracy.
- Other subversion tactics include falsifying vaccination records, explained WHO epidemiologist Zubair Mufti Wadood in a .
People who need surgery in Sierra Leone, which has one of the world鈥檚 least developed health care systems, often must seek treatment abroad, with NGOs helping to cover costs.
But now, a new state-of-the art hospital has opened in Freetown, with support from Japan, offering surgical procedures and specialty care.
- The hospital is also training local medical personnel. 鈥淓very operation that takes place is another chance to train and maintain surgical knowledge within Sierra Leone,鈥 writes Jody Ray.
ALMOST FRIDAY DIVERSION Norbert, the beloved cat of GHN staffer Morgan Coulson, representing his species well. Driven to Distraction
Some say you are what you eat, but at GHN, we are what diverts us.
Weekly diversions are perhaps the clearest lens onto what makes us click, other than global health news. And after an audit of the year, it鈥檚 clear: We can鈥檛 resist an animal story.
So much so that at one point, it was suggested that we鈥攇asp!鈥攑ut a moratorium on cat content. Norbert (pictured) has thoughts. Readers: What do you all think?
Our animal instinct led us to:
- A prize-winning bear 鈥溾濃攁nd also robbing cars.
- This champion poodle styled as a came to much acclaim (鈥減erfection!鈥)鈥攁nd this dog that had his record-breaking age (We blame the owners.)
- Moo Deng (duh) and the nemesis that came for her crown.
- Our favorite cat-egory: Felines. We learned about the , were horrified by , and had FOMO on a parade that tore through Minneapolis .
Syphilis microbe circulated in the Americas thousands of years before European contact 鈥
Unified approach could improve nature, climate and health all at once 鈥 Thanks for the tip, Cecilia Meisner!
Cheap, smart and efficient: how giant rats are transforming the fight against TB 鈥 Issue No. 2833
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
Categories: Global Health Feed
96
Global Health NOW: 鈥楳ystery Disease鈥 Solved鈥擝ut More Help Needed; Optum Takes Aim at ABA; and Dearth of Care for Gazans with Disabilities
December 18, 2024
A mother holds her child while sitting on a bed at the Tudikolela hospital, on the outskirts of Mbuji-Mayi, in the Democratic Republic of Congo, on May 1, 2021. Arsene Mpiana/AFP via Getty
鈥楳ystery Disease鈥 Solved鈥擝ut More Help Needed
An alarming illness circulating in a remote area of the DRC has been confirmed to be an acute form of malaria, exacerbated by malnutrition, .
What鈥檚 next: WHO-provided antimalarial drugs and health kits are being distributed throughout the region. New malaria vaccines have been rolled out in some African countries, but they have not reached the Panzi region, .
Big picture: Malaria still kills ~600,000 people a year globally鈥攁nd 12% of those deaths occur in the DRC, where it is a leading cause of death. GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES EDITOR鈥橲 NOTE Small Contributions Make a Big Difference While big-ticket donations are always welcome, it is our readers鈥 strength in numbers that has gotten us where we are today. Thank you to all of you who have donated so far!
Your donations have powered GHN鈥檚 Local Reporting Initiative. Knowing that stories are better told by people who know their communities, we鈥檝e published dozens of articles by journalists around the world who鈥檝e illuminated topics including tiger attacks in the Sundarbans, barriers to health care for Amsterdam鈥檚 sex workers, and climate change鈥檚 threat to Pakistan鈥檚 transgender community.
We鈥檙e excited to bring you more unique global health stories like these鈥攂ut we need your help to do it. .
Thank you for joining us! 鈥Morgan The Latest One-Liners The notorious 2020 paper that popularized hydroxychloroquine as a COVID-19 treatment due to ethical concerns and methodological problems; the move follows years of campaigning by scientists who said the study contained major flaws.
As U.S. pertussis cases surge 6X from last year, public knowledge of the contagious disease remains low, finds a new from the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania.
Long-term exposure to air pollution can lead to increased risks of hospitalization for mental health conditions as well as physical ailments, per from the University of St Andrews published in BMJ Open.
Most U.S. teens are not drinking, smoking tobacco, or using marijuana, per the annual Monitoring the Future of 24,000 students released yesterday; it is the largest proportion abstaining from those substances since the survey started in 2017. GHN鈥檚 BEST OF 2024: STAFF PICKS Eliud Wekesa speaks to visitors at his home and church compound in Tongaren, Bungoma County, Kenya, on February 29. Dominic Kirui Annalies鈥 Picks
Since starting as a freelancer in 2017 to becoming GHN鈥檚 associate editor鈥攚ith two children in between鈥攖ime with GHN has flown by. I鈥檓 up at dawn most Thursdays serving as GHN鈥檚 lead editor鈥攁 gigantic mug of English breakfast tea in one hand, the other scrolling for the top global health stories so our readers don鈥檛 have to. When I鈥檓 not doing that, I am researching GHN stories on everything from to . And most weeks, I get to cross over to the light side, bringing you our weekly diversions and, hopefully, a smile! 鈥Annalies Winny, GHN associate editor
Best GHN Exclusive Eliud Wekesa is just one of many religious and cult leaders across Kenya blamed for encouraging followers to shun medicine, undermining health efforts. Journalist Dominic Kirui shows how health officials are involving religious leaders in government health strategies to help dispel these messages. Wekesa has publicly modeled acceptance of medical care, participating in a mass drug administration campaign to combat bilharzia and intestinal parasitic worms.
Best News Article Reporters Nick Thieme, Alissa Zhu, and Jessica Gallagher unveiled a tragic trend among Black men born from 1951 to 1970: The group makes up 7% of Baltimore鈥檚 population, but accounts for ~30% of drug fatalities. It鈥檚 a generation whose lives have been 鈥渟haped by forces that have animated the city鈥檚 drug crisis for decades.鈥
Best Commentary HEALTH SYSTEMS Optum Takes Aim at ABA
Leaked internal documents reveal that Optum, a UnitedHealth subsidiary, is aggressively targeting applied behavior analysis (ABA) therapy鈥攚hich the company acknowledges is the 鈥渆vidence-based gold standard treatment for those with medically necessary needs鈥濃攖o cut costs.
Thousands of people in Gaza are facing devastating disabilities, with few resources or care to navigate their new reality.
Psychological scars: Those injured are also coping with trauma, an inability to work, and societal rejection.
DROWNING Who is Most at Risk?
The global drowning death rate has dropped 38% since 2000鈥斺渁 significant health achievement,鈥 per the on drowning prevention.
Related: How to prevent drowning: a ground-breaking report that's startling yet hopeful 鈥 QUICK HITS 鈥業 want help鈥: Behind bars, pleas for addiction medications often go nowhere 鈥
Tracing fentanyl鈥檚 path into the US starts at this port. It doesn鈥檛 end there. 鈥
Cheap, smart and efficient: how giant rats are transforming the fight against TB 鈥
Health workers think COVID, flu vaccines safe and effective, but many remain hesitant, global survey shows 鈥
'Cancer ghosting' can be more painful than treatment, survivors say 鈥
Why cats are the new pigs 鈥 and could spark the next pandemic 鈥
鈥楽illy and pompous鈥: Official new names for viruses rile up researchers 鈥 Issue No. 2832
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
An alarming illness circulating in a remote area of the DRC has been confirmed to be an acute form of malaria, exacerbated by malnutrition, .
- ~600 people have been sickened in the outbreak, and 143 have died鈥攎ostly children under 5.
- Difficult terrain and communication problems further hampered efforts to manage the outbreak.
What鈥檚 next: WHO-provided antimalarial drugs and health kits are being distributed throughout the region. New malaria vaccines have been rolled out in some African countries, but they have not reached the Panzi region, .
Big picture: Malaria still kills ~600,000 people a year globally鈥攁nd 12% of those deaths occur in the DRC, where it is a leading cause of death. GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES EDITOR鈥橲 NOTE Small Contributions Make a Big Difference While big-ticket donations are always welcome, it is our readers鈥 strength in numbers that has gotten us where we are today. Thank you to all of you who have donated so far!
Your donations have powered GHN鈥檚 Local Reporting Initiative. Knowing that stories are better told by people who know their communities, we鈥檝e published dozens of articles by journalists around the world who鈥檝e illuminated topics including tiger attacks in the Sundarbans, barriers to health care for Amsterdam鈥檚 sex workers, and climate change鈥檚 threat to Pakistan鈥檚 transgender community.
We鈥檙e excited to bring you more unique global health stories like these鈥攂ut we need your help to do it. .
Thank you for joining us! 鈥Morgan The Latest One-Liners The notorious 2020 paper that popularized hydroxychloroquine as a COVID-19 treatment due to ethical concerns and methodological problems; the move follows years of campaigning by scientists who said the study contained major flaws.
As U.S. pertussis cases surge 6X from last year, public knowledge of the contagious disease remains low, finds a new from the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania.
Long-term exposure to air pollution can lead to increased risks of hospitalization for mental health conditions as well as physical ailments, per from the University of St Andrews published in BMJ Open.
Most U.S. teens are not drinking, smoking tobacco, or using marijuana, per the annual Monitoring the Future of 24,000 students released yesterday; it is the largest proportion abstaining from those substances since the survey started in 2017. GHN鈥檚 BEST OF 2024: STAFF PICKS Eliud Wekesa speaks to visitors at his home and church compound in Tongaren, Bungoma County, Kenya, on February 29. Dominic Kirui Annalies鈥 Picks
Since starting as a freelancer in 2017 to becoming GHN鈥檚 associate editor鈥攚ith two children in between鈥攖ime with GHN has flown by. I鈥檓 up at dawn most Thursdays serving as GHN鈥檚 lead editor鈥攁 gigantic mug of English breakfast tea in one hand, the other scrolling for the top global health stories so our readers don鈥檛 have to. When I鈥檓 not doing that, I am researching GHN stories on everything from to . And most weeks, I get to cross over to the light side, bringing you our weekly diversions and, hopefully, a smile! 鈥Annalies Winny, GHN associate editor
Best GHN Exclusive Eliud Wekesa is just one of many religious and cult leaders across Kenya blamed for encouraging followers to shun medicine, undermining health efforts. Journalist Dominic Kirui shows how health officials are involving religious leaders in government health strategies to help dispel these messages. Wekesa has publicly modeled acceptance of medical care, participating in a mass drug administration campaign to combat bilharzia and intestinal parasitic worms.
Best News Article Reporters Nick Thieme, Alissa Zhu, and Jessica Gallagher unveiled a tragic trend among Black men born from 1951 to 1970: The group makes up 7% of Baltimore鈥檚 population, but accounts for ~30% of drug fatalities. It鈥檚 a generation whose lives have been 鈥渟haped by forces that have animated the city鈥檚 drug crisis for decades.鈥
Best Commentary HEALTH SYSTEMS Optum Takes Aim at ABA
Leaked internal documents reveal that Optum, a UnitedHealth subsidiary, is aggressively targeting applied behavior analysis (ABA) therapy鈥攚hich the company acknowledges is the 鈥渆vidence-based gold standard treatment for those with medically necessary needs鈥濃攖o cut costs.
- Optum is scrutinizing providers who exceed certain cost thresholds, questioning the necessity of treatments, and denying coverage even for medically recommended ABA.
- Inadequate early intervention may result in more severe challenges and long-term harm for children with autism, ultimately costing insurers more.
Thousands of people in Gaza are facing devastating disabilities, with few resources or care to navigate their new reality.
- 106,000+ people have been injured since the war began, and ~25% of those injured require long-term rehabilitation, per the WHO.
Psychological scars: Those injured are also coping with trauma, an inability to work, and societal rejection.
DROWNING Who is Most at Risk?
The global drowning death rate has dropped 38% since 2000鈥斺渁 significant health achievement,鈥 per the on drowning prevention.
- 300,000+ people drowned in 2021, and 7.2 million+ may die due to drowning by 2050.
- People under age 29 account for nearly half of all drowning deaths; a quarter involve children under 5鈥攁nd 9 in 10 drowning deaths take place in LMICs.
Related: How to prevent drowning: a ground-breaking report that's startling yet hopeful 鈥 QUICK HITS 鈥業 want help鈥: Behind bars, pleas for addiction medications often go nowhere 鈥
Tracing fentanyl鈥檚 path into the US starts at this port. It doesn鈥檛 end there. 鈥
Cheap, smart and efficient: how giant rats are transforming the fight against TB 鈥
Health workers think COVID, flu vaccines safe and effective, but many remain hesitant, global survey shows 鈥
'Cancer ghosting' can be more painful than treatment, survivors say 鈥
Why cats are the new pigs 鈥 and could spark the next pandemic 鈥
鈥楽illy and pompous鈥: Official new names for viruses rile up researchers 鈥 Issue No. 2832
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
Categories: Global Health Feed
96
Global Health NOW: Silence Ends for Syrian Victims; Michelle Morse: Protecting 8 Million New Yorkers' Health; and Screening for Pakistan鈥檚 Miners
December 17, 2024
A Syrian child receives first aid after a chlorine gas attack on the town Hamuriya, outside Damascus, Syria, March 7, 2018. Anas Alkharboutli/picture alliance via Getty
For Syrian Chlorine Victims, the Silence Ends
In 2018, the Syrian air force dropped two yellow cylinders on the town of Douma, releasing a deadly chlorine gas that suffocated at least 43 people to death, reports.
鈥 鈥heir bodies turned to black, their clothes went green and were burnt, they crumbled and stuck to their bodies,鈥 reports survivor Abdulhadi Sariel. 鈥淲e threw out all of our clothes but [you can still see the effect] on the curtains.
鈥楧ire Conditions鈥 for Syria鈥檚 Displaced: 100,000+ people have been displaced from northern Aleppo to areas in northeast Syria, a region already facing an 鈥渁cute and longstanding鈥 humanitarian crisis. Many face wintry conditions without shelter, water, and basic health care, .
Related: Former Syrian prisoners detail horrific conditions 鈥 GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners The vaccination gap is widening for children in England, per a that shows waning uptake of five key childhood vaccines among low-income children, leaving children in the poorest areas 20X more vulnerable to measles.
More than one-third of the world鈥檚 countries fail to monitor air quality, per an Open AQ assessment that found significant gaps in government tracking and sharing of air quality data, particularly for low- and middle-income countries.
The Italian government decided to scrap fines for refusing compulsory COVID-19 vaccines, drawing criticism from the medical community and opposition parties that accused the government of 鈥渞ewarding lawbreakers鈥 and ignoring health system needs.
After the Affordable Care Act was signed into law in the U.S., the number of uninsured Latinos fell from 33% to 18%鈥攂ut more than half (55%) of Hispanic/Latino adults in the U.S. are inadequately insured, , compared with ~ 42% of the non-Hispanic/Latino population. GHN EXCLUSIVE Michelle Morse鈥檚 global health experience has strongly influenced her work as NYC鈥檚 acting health commissioner. Courtesy: New York City Health Dept. Michelle Morse: How to Protect the Health of 8 Million New Yorkers
After arriving in Haiti in 2009 to work with Partners in Health, Michelle Morse went on home visits with community health workers (CHWs) as they distributed medications, food, and other essentials.
In an interview with GHN earlier this month in the department鈥檚 Long Island City office, Morse shared insights on:
In my role, I read and break down key points of articles for story summaries. I鈥檓 fascinated by how things work鈥攚hether it鈥檚 a policy, a health care system, or the components of a vaccine. I have a special interest in women鈥檚 and reproductive health, and as the articles below show, I have a soft spot for stories that explain the 鈥渨hys鈥 behind health actions. 鈥-Rin Swann
Best GHN Exclusive Have you ever wondered why prescription drugs have baffling names? In this story, GHN's associate editor Annalies Winny explains why brand-name drugs need to meet strict naming requirements for patient safety.
Best News Article Despite multiple lawsuits and protests from therapists, the biggest insurance conglomerate in the U.S., UnitedHealth Group, has utilized algorithms to identify and revoke coverage to increase profits. Those most at risk include patients seeking mental health resources, Annie Waldman鈥檚 investigation reveals.
Best Commentary TUBERCULOSIS Seeking Screening for Pakistan鈥檚 Miners
Pakistan already has a high tuberculosis burden, but the disease is especially prevalent among the ~100,000 miners who labor in the country's coal pits.
Adding to the strain: Miners have limited access to health care, so often TB isn鈥檛 detected until the disease has progressed.
Improving awareness: New battery-powered, AI-driven x-ray technology is being used to improve TB diagnosis in remote mining areas, allowing miners to seek treatment earlier than what has been typical.
GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES QUICK HITS
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, Aliza Rosen, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
In 2018, the Syrian air force dropped two yellow cylinders on the town of Douma, releasing a deadly chlorine gas that suffocated at least 43 people to death, reports.
鈥 鈥heir bodies turned to black, their clothes went green and were burnt, they crumbled and stuck to their bodies,鈥 reports survivor Abdulhadi Sariel. 鈥淲e threw out all of our clothes but [you can still see the effect] on the curtains.
- Syrian police later warned survivors to tell international investigators that smoke and dust inhalation, not chemicals, caused the deaths.
鈥楧ire Conditions鈥 for Syria鈥檚 Displaced: 100,000+ people have been displaced from northern Aleppo to areas in northeast Syria, a region already facing an 鈥渁cute and longstanding鈥 humanitarian crisis. Many face wintry conditions without shelter, water, and basic health care, .
Related: Former Syrian prisoners detail horrific conditions 鈥 GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners The vaccination gap is widening for children in England, per a that shows waning uptake of five key childhood vaccines among low-income children, leaving children in the poorest areas 20X more vulnerable to measles.
More than one-third of the world鈥檚 countries fail to monitor air quality, per an Open AQ assessment that found significant gaps in government tracking and sharing of air quality data, particularly for low- and middle-income countries.
The Italian government decided to scrap fines for refusing compulsory COVID-19 vaccines, drawing criticism from the medical community and opposition parties that accused the government of 鈥渞ewarding lawbreakers鈥 and ignoring health system needs.
After the Affordable Care Act was signed into law in the U.S., the number of uninsured Latinos fell from 33% to 18%鈥攂ut more than half (55%) of Hispanic/Latino adults in the U.S. are inadequately insured, , compared with ~ 42% of the non-Hispanic/Latino population. GHN EXCLUSIVE Michelle Morse鈥檚 global health experience has strongly influenced her work as NYC鈥檚 acting health commissioner. Courtesy: New York City Health Dept. Michelle Morse: How to Protect the Health of 8 Million New Yorkers
After arriving in Haiti in 2009 to work with Partners in Health, Michelle Morse went on home visits with community health workers (CHWs) as they distributed medications, food, and other essentials.
- 鈥淪eeing that model in action鈥攏ot waiting in our Ivory Tower for people to come in and see us, but actually bringing the lifesaving health interventions that people needed to where they were through community health workers鈥攚as a massive frame shift for me,鈥 says Morse, the acting health commissioner for New York City.
In an interview with GHN earlier this month in the department鈥檚 Long Island City office, Morse shared insights on:
- The city鈥檚 efforts to recover from the nearly five-year drop in life expectancy during COVID-19.
- The department鈥檚 work to reduce Black maternal mortality.
- Her preparations for changes coming from the new presidential administration.
- The data she looks at daily.
In my role, I read and break down key points of articles for story summaries. I鈥檓 fascinated by how things work鈥攚hether it鈥檚 a policy, a health care system, or the components of a vaccine. I have a special interest in women鈥檚 and reproductive health, and as the articles below show, I have a soft spot for stories that explain the 鈥渨hys鈥 behind health actions. 鈥-Rin Swann
Best GHN Exclusive Have you ever wondered why prescription drugs have baffling names? In this story, GHN's associate editor Annalies Winny explains why brand-name drugs need to meet strict naming requirements for patient safety.
Best News Article Despite multiple lawsuits and protests from therapists, the biggest insurance conglomerate in the U.S., UnitedHealth Group, has utilized algorithms to identify and revoke coverage to increase profits. Those most at risk include patients seeking mental health resources, Annie Waldman鈥檚 investigation reveals.
Best Commentary TUBERCULOSIS Seeking Screening for Pakistan鈥檚 Miners
Pakistan already has a high tuberculosis burden, but the disease is especially prevalent among the ~100,000 miners who labor in the country's coal pits.
- Prevalence of tuberculosis is 10.3% higher among miners than the general population.
Adding to the strain: Miners have limited access to health care, so often TB isn鈥檛 detected until the disease has progressed.
Improving awareness: New battery-powered, AI-driven x-ray technology is being used to improve TB diagnosis in remote mining areas, allowing miners to seek treatment earlier than what has been typical.
GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES QUICK HITS
Positive avian flu bulk-tank tests prompt another raw-milk recall in California 鈥
Trump says there are 'problems' with vaccines, rejects mandates 鈥
Trump's pick for health secretary, RFK Jr, supports polio vaccination, US senator says 鈥
Missing and dismissing the impact of periods: Outcomes of focus groups of teens with period concerns 鈥
Doctors seethe over insurance companies' 鈥榦ut of control鈥 tactics 鈥
Should pharmacists be moral gatekeepers? 鈥
A strange alliance: Oxygen companies and their Medicare patients want Congress to pay the companies more 鈥
New insights into the vast diversity of nature's most abundant viruses 鈥
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, Aliza Rosen, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
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Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
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Categories: Global Health Feed
96
Global Health NOW: Does the Polio Vaccine Face Political Peril?; Mysteries at the Mpox Epicenter; and Portugal鈥檚 Practical Health Priorities
December 16, 2024
Polio survivor Larry Montoya at the airport for the arrival of vaccines distributed as part of the KO Polio campaign. September 5, 1962. John McBride/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty
Does the Polio Vaccine Face Political Peril?
Public health experts are increasingly worried about the threat to vaccination programs under a second Trump administration, as Department of Health and Human Services secretary nominee Robert F. Kennedy Jr. surrounds himself with anti-vaccine advocates鈥攊ncluding one who has fought the polio vaccine, .
To help vet candidates for key jobs in the department, Kennedy has turned to attorney Aaron Siri鈥攚ho petitioned the FDA in 2022 to revoke approval of the polio vaccine, .
A parvovirus B19 outbreak is spreading in Japan, bringing heightened risk to pregnant women, who face increased risk of miscarriage or complications in newborns from the respiratory disease.
RSV vaccine trials for children have been halted after two experimental RSV vaccines for babies failed to protect them鈥攁nd actually made some of the babies sicker, per researchers鈥 findings.
Expanding Canada鈥檚 needle exchange programs to cover 50% of people who inject drugs in the country鈥檚 prisons would prevent 15% of new hepatitis C cases and 8% of injection-related infections, per in the Canadian Medical Association Journal. GHN鈥檚 BEST of 2024: STAFF PICKS View of Freetown, Sierra Leone. Blessed Sheriff Dayna鈥檚 Picks
As GHN鈥檚 resident morning lark, my main responsibilities include curating the news, planning production and matching assignments to writers, and editing exclusives. My favorite part of the job is getting to know our writers and readers and seeing how engaged and passionate they are about various global health priorities, which helps shape our coverage鈥攖hough there is never enough space to highlight everything that deserves a spotlight. 鈥Dayna Kerecman Myers, GHN Managing Editor
Best Exclusive Sierra Leone鈥檚 only psychiatric hospital has just 10 psychiatrists tasked with the daunting challenge of providing mental health care for a country of 8 million people. Blessed Sheriff, a Johns Hopkins-Pulitzer Global Health Reporting Fellow, traveled to Freetown to report on efforts to transform mental health care in the country, interviewing the first class of psychiatry residents trained there and learning how they are helping to melt societal stigma and change the narrative around mental health.
Best News Article Dakar-based reporter Elian Peltier exposed how Kremlin-paid African influencers, news outlets, and Russian state-controlled media amplify each other in efforts to undermine Western-funded health care programs in Africa, spreading disinformation about scientists fighting malaria and other infectious diseases on the continent. It鈥檚 a chilling example of how pro-Russian propaganda capitalizes on weakened trust in the West while silencing independent journalists. 鈥 The New York Times (gift article)
Best Commentary GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES MPOX Mysteries at the Epicenter
It has been 15 months since a new strain of mpox surfaced in the mining town of Kamituga in Eastern DRC.
While the response now includes intensive interventions including vaccines, much remains unknown about the strain, clade Ib, and its origin, reports Stephanie Nolen in a deep dive from Kamituga.
Unanswered questions include:
Portugal has a life expectancy nearly four years longer than the U.S.鈥攄espite spending just 20% of what the U.S. spends on health care per person. And the small country ranks third of 195 countries for access to affordable health care鈥攚hile the U.S. ranks 183rd.
The focus of its national health system? Not cutting-edge technology or expensive medical facilities but rather 鈥渙ld fashioned primary care and public health.鈥
Some key features:
Texas鈥 abortion pill lawsuit against New York doctor marks new challenge to interstate telemedicine 鈥
Outgoing CDC director girds against an overhaul, and tries to calm staff nerves 鈥
Fired Baltimore health commissioner speaks out 鈥
Will the FDA finally ban Red No. 3? A decision could come soon 鈥
Egypt鈥檚 Hepatitis Programme Becomes a Model for African Countries 鈥
Migrant children struggle to express themselves in words. Enter art and play. 鈥 Issue No. 2830
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, Aliza Rosen, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
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Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
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Public health experts are increasingly worried about the threat to vaccination programs under a second Trump administration, as Department of Health and Human Services secretary nominee Robert F. Kennedy Jr. surrounds himself with anti-vaccine advocates鈥攊ncluding one who has fought the polio vaccine, .
To help vet candidates for key jobs in the department, Kennedy has turned to attorney Aaron Siri鈥攚ho petitioned the FDA in 2022 to revoke approval of the polio vaccine, .
- Siri, known for challenging COVID vaccine mandates and questioning vaccine safety, works with the Informed Consent Action Network, a group critical of vaccines.
- 鈥淭here is much more behind this than just rhetoric,鈥 said Michael Osterholm, director of CIDRAP.
A parvovirus B19 outbreak is spreading in Japan, bringing heightened risk to pregnant women, who face increased risk of miscarriage or complications in newborns from the respiratory disease.
RSV vaccine trials for children have been halted after two experimental RSV vaccines for babies failed to protect them鈥攁nd actually made some of the babies sicker, per researchers鈥 findings.
Expanding Canada鈥檚 needle exchange programs to cover 50% of people who inject drugs in the country鈥檚 prisons would prevent 15% of new hepatitis C cases and 8% of injection-related infections, per in the Canadian Medical Association Journal. GHN鈥檚 BEST of 2024: STAFF PICKS View of Freetown, Sierra Leone. Blessed Sheriff Dayna鈥檚 Picks
As GHN鈥檚 resident morning lark, my main responsibilities include curating the news, planning production and matching assignments to writers, and editing exclusives. My favorite part of the job is getting to know our writers and readers and seeing how engaged and passionate they are about various global health priorities, which helps shape our coverage鈥攖hough there is never enough space to highlight everything that deserves a spotlight. 鈥Dayna Kerecman Myers, GHN Managing Editor
Best Exclusive Sierra Leone鈥檚 only psychiatric hospital has just 10 psychiatrists tasked with the daunting challenge of providing mental health care for a country of 8 million people. Blessed Sheriff, a Johns Hopkins-Pulitzer Global Health Reporting Fellow, traveled to Freetown to report on efforts to transform mental health care in the country, interviewing the first class of psychiatry residents trained there and learning how they are helping to melt societal stigma and change the narrative around mental health.
Best News Article Dakar-based reporter Elian Peltier exposed how Kremlin-paid African influencers, news outlets, and Russian state-controlled media amplify each other in efforts to undermine Western-funded health care programs in Africa, spreading disinformation about scientists fighting malaria and other infectious diseases on the continent. It鈥檚 a chilling example of how pro-Russian propaganda capitalizes on weakened trust in the West while silencing independent journalists. 鈥 The New York Times (gift article)
Best Commentary GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES MPOX Mysteries at the Epicenter
It has been 15 months since a new strain of mpox surfaced in the mining town of Kamituga in Eastern DRC.
While the response now includes intensive interventions including vaccines, much remains unknown about the strain, clade Ib, and its origin, reports Stephanie Nolen in a deep dive from Kamituga.
Unanswered questions include:
- How is clade Ib transmitted? Is it truly sexually transmissible, or can it spread through close physical contact?
- Why are children disproportionately affected? Is it because the virus has already infected so many adults, or because children are so malnourished鈥攐r another reason?
- And how did the virus come to Kamituga? Has a precursor been circulating in animals for years?
Portugal has a life expectancy nearly four years longer than the U.S.鈥攄espite spending just 20% of what the U.S. spends on health care per person. And the small country ranks third of 195 countries for access to affordable health care鈥攚hile the U.S. ranks 183rd.
The focus of its national health system? Not cutting-edge technology or expensive medical facilities but rather 鈥渙ld fashioned primary care and public health.鈥
Some key features:
- Free or low-cost health care for every resident
- A network of 鈥渇amily health units,鈥 or clinics embedded in neighborhoods
- Robust electronic health records that allow doctors to track individual and population health in real time.
Texas鈥 abortion pill lawsuit against New York doctor marks new challenge to interstate telemedicine 鈥
Outgoing CDC director girds against an overhaul, and tries to calm staff nerves 鈥
Fired Baltimore health commissioner speaks out 鈥
Will the FDA finally ban Red No. 3? A decision could come soon 鈥
Egypt鈥檚 Hepatitis Programme Becomes a Model for African Countries 鈥
Migrant children struggle to express themselves in words. Enter art and play. 鈥 Issue No. 2830
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, Aliza Rosen, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
Categories: Global Health Feed
96
Global Health NOW: Living Longer, but Not Healthier; Afghanistan to Ban Women From Nursing, Midwifery; and Decrypt the Halls
The gap between lifespan and healthspan has widened across the globe
December 12, 2024
Joynal, 70, sits outside a hospital in Dhaka, Bangladesh, while taking in oxygen for the breathing difficulties, on January 31. Syed Mahamudur Rahman/NurPhoto via Getty
Living Longer, but Not Healthier
Lifespans are increasing worldwide, but those extra years are not necessarily healthier, finds a large new study published in .
The health span-lifespan gap鈥攖he difference between how long people live and how long they live in good health鈥攈as widened over the past two decades among 183 WHO member states, .
We hear all the time from readers who say they love reading GHN with their morning coffee.
Today, we present a challenge: ? Whether it鈥檚 an at-home filter coffee, a classic cuppa, a pricey pumpkin spice caramel latte ... we鈥檒l take it!
And here鈥檚 your sweetener: Donations of any amount will help us unlock a special $2,000 challenge gift from longtime GHN supporter Ana Rita Gonzalez.
So far, 72 readers have contributed. 28 more are needed to unlock the gift. Any amount is welcome!
Your contributions remind us of the global mission at the heart of our work, and our responsibility to use your donations wisely鈥攖o strengthen GHN and expand our global coverage. 鈥擜苍苍补濒颈别蝉 GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners
Colorectal cancer is on the rise among people under 50 worldwide, published in the Lancet Oncology finds, with the greatest annual increases being seen in New Zealand, Chile, Puerto Rico, and England.
Health investigators in California have sent samples to the CDC to try to determine whether a toddler who鈥檇 consumed raw milk was infected with H5N1, but much about the case remains unclear.
Gender-affirming care in Montana will remain legal for minors after the state鈥檚 supreme court upheld a lower court ruling that blocked a new law banning care.
17 children in Mexico have died from bacterial infections related to contaminated IV feeding bags; 16 of the children were infants, and one was 14 years old. GHN'S BEST OF 2024: STAFF PICKS Zhou Pengcheng provides music therapy for a child with autism in Tianjin, north China, March 23, 2021. Zhao Zishuo/Xinhua via Getty Melissa鈥檚 Picks
As a morning editor on GHN, I review our summaries and analyses, trying to correct any ambiguities, errors, or typos before they land in your inbox. It鈥檚 intense work鈥攔acing against the clock while our small team smooths out the day鈥檚 edition鈥攂ut energizing, too. And, like our readers, I reap the benefit of GHN鈥檚 content as I start my workday, which for me includes editing and writing for our School鈥檚 magazine and website. 鈥擬elissa Hartman, GHN contributing editor
Best GHN Exclusive Researchers were stunned by the results of a survey they conducted to learn about suicidal thoughts among young people with autism: Of nearly 400 autistic children who reported wanting to die over their lifetime, 35% experienced onset at 8 years old or younger. GHN鈥檚 Kate Harrison Belz spoke to the study鈥檚 lead author about the findings and what caregivers can do to help children at risk. Best News Article Native Americans have the highest rate of death from liver disease in the U.S.鈥攂ut are less likely than other racial groups to secure a spot on the national liver transplant list. Journalist Annie Gilbertson and data scientist Ben Tanen shed light on causes that range from scarce IHS funding to federal agencies鈥 delays in collecting data on who receives transplants. Best Commentary GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES HUMAN RIGHTS Afghanistan to Ban Women From Nursing, Midwifery
The Taliban is poised to ban women from training as nurses and midwives in a move that 鈥渨ill have a devastating long-term impact on the lives of millions of Afghans, especially women and girls,鈥 said Afghan activist Samira Hamidi.
Forget The Nutcracker. In the U.K., 鈥檛is the season for code crackers.
Each year, Britain鈥檚 cyber-intelligence agency gift wraps 鈥渁 riddle wrapped in an enigma inside a mystery鈥 for the nation鈥檚 puzzle-hungry public, .
Hark! The Herald Agents Sing: The annual Christmas Challenge was introduced by the 鈥渋n-house puzzlers鈥 at the Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) in 2015 and has since become a beloved, brain-boggling tradition.
O Come, All Ye Playful: The festive quest is designed for young people ages 11鈥18, with the subversive hope they will discover a passion for puzzles鈥攁nd potentially 鈥渃onsider what a career in cybersecurity and intelligence might have to offer,鈥 said GCHQ Director Anne Keast-Butler.
Data shows global conflict surged in 2024 鈥
An opioid settlement ruling could have far-reaching implications for other lawsuits 鈥
Poliovirus keeps popping up in European wastewater, perplexing and worrying scientists 鈥 Issue No. 2829
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
Lifespans are increasing worldwide, but those extra years are not necessarily healthier, finds a large new study published in .
The health span-lifespan gap鈥攖he difference between how long people live and how long they live in good health鈥攈as widened over the past two decades among 183 WHO member states, .
- On average, people live 9.6 fewer healthy years than their total lifespan, with a larger gap for women. In the U.S., the gap is 12+ years.
- The health span deficit is linked to the cumulative effects of aging itself, researchers say鈥攂ut also the uptick in chronic diseases like heart disease and diabetes, and mental health issues.
We hear all the time from readers who say they love reading GHN with their morning coffee.
Today, we present a challenge: ? Whether it鈥檚 an at-home filter coffee, a classic cuppa, a pricey pumpkin spice caramel latte ... we鈥檒l take it!
And here鈥檚 your sweetener: Donations of any amount will help us unlock a special $2,000 challenge gift from longtime GHN supporter Ana Rita Gonzalez.
So far, 72 readers have contributed. 28 more are needed to unlock the gift. Any amount is welcome!
Your contributions remind us of the global mission at the heart of our work, and our responsibility to use your donations wisely鈥攖o strengthen GHN and expand our global coverage. 鈥擜苍苍补濒颈别蝉 GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners
Colorectal cancer is on the rise among people under 50 worldwide, published in the Lancet Oncology finds, with the greatest annual increases being seen in New Zealand, Chile, Puerto Rico, and England.
Health investigators in California have sent samples to the CDC to try to determine whether a toddler who鈥檇 consumed raw milk was infected with H5N1, but much about the case remains unclear.
Gender-affirming care in Montana will remain legal for minors after the state鈥檚 supreme court upheld a lower court ruling that blocked a new law banning care.
17 children in Mexico have died from bacterial infections related to contaminated IV feeding bags; 16 of the children were infants, and one was 14 years old. GHN'S BEST OF 2024: STAFF PICKS Zhou Pengcheng provides music therapy for a child with autism in Tianjin, north China, March 23, 2021. Zhao Zishuo/Xinhua via Getty Melissa鈥檚 Picks
As a morning editor on GHN, I review our summaries and analyses, trying to correct any ambiguities, errors, or typos before they land in your inbox. It鈥檚 intense work鈥攔acing against the clock while our small team smooths out the day鈥檚 edition鈥攂ut energizing, too. And, like our readers, I reap the benefit of GHN鈥檚 content as I start my workday, which for me includes editing and writing for our School鈥檚 magazine and website. 鈥擬elissa Hartman, GHN contributing editor
Best GHN Exclusive Researchers were stunned by the results of a survey they conducted to learn about suicidal thoughts among young people with autism: Of nearly 400 autistic children who reported wanting to die over their lifetime, 35% experienced onset at 8 years old or younger. GHN鈥檚 Kate Harrison Belz spoke to the study鈥檚 lead author about the findings and what caregivers can do to help children at risk. Best News Article Native Americans have the highest rate of death from liver disease in the U.S.鈥攂ut are less likely than other racial groups to secure a spot on the national liver transplant list. Journalist Annie Gilbertson and data scientist Ben Tanen shed light on causes that range from scarce IHS funding to federal agencies鈥 delays in collecting data on who receives transplants. Best Commentary GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES HUMAN RIGHTS Afghanistan to Ban Women From Nursing, Midwifery
The Taliban is poised to ban women from training as nurses and midwives in a move that 鈥渨ill have a devastating long-term impact on the lives of millions of Afghans, especially women and girls,鈥 said Afghan activist Samira Hamidi.
- The order was announced at a meeting of the Taliban public health ministry on Monday and relayed to training institutes soon after.
- Afghanistan needs an additional 18,000 skilled midwives for Afghan women to get adequate care, .
Forget The Nutcracker. In the U.K., 鈥檛is the season for code crackers.
Each year, Britain鈥檚 cyber-intelligence agency gift wraps 鈥渁 riddle wrapped in an enigma inside a mystery鈥 for the nation鈥檚 puzzle-hungry public, .
Hark! The Herald Agents Sing: The annual Christmas Challenge was introduced by the 鈥渋n-house puzzlers鈥 at the Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) in 2015 and has since become a beloved, brain-boggling tradition.
O Come, All Ye Playful: The festive quest is designed for young people ages 11鈥18, with the subversive hope they will discover a passion for puzzles鈥攁nd potentially 鈥渃onsider what a career in cybersecurity and intelligence might have to offer,鈥 said GCHQ Director Anne Keast-Butler.
- A third of British secondary schools had downloaded the puzzle the morning of its release, .
Data shows global conflict surged in 2024 鈥
An opioid settlement ruling could have far-reaching implications for other lawsuits 鈥
Poliovirus keeps popping up in European wastewater, perplexing and worrying scientists 鈥 Issue No. 2829
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
Categories: Global Health Feed
96
Global Health NOW: Fighting Cholera Shame to Save Lives in Zambia; New Threats Hamper Game-Changing Malaria Gains; and Fieldwork and the Family
December 11, 2024
Mary Kapaipi鈥檚 husband concealed his symptoms before dying the next day. Lusaka, Zambia, November 6. Freddie Clayton
Fighting Cholera Shame to Save Lives in Zambia
LUSAKA鈥擬ary Kapaipi suspected that her husband might be suffering from cholera last January, amid a deadly outbreak in their neighborhood outside Zambia鈥檚 capital. But he insisted it was just a sore throat. By the time his symptoms worsened and she sent for help, it was too late to save his life.
Kapaipi later discovered signs of his illness鈥攕oiled underwear and patches of white vomit鈥攈idden around their house. If he hadn鈥檛 concealed his symptoms, he might have lived, she says.
This pattern of secrecy and shame is common among cholera patients, Kennedy Phiri and Freddie Clayton learned while reporting for this exclusive series that spotlights not only the need to improve water and sanitation infrastructure in the area, but the equally urgent need to address the stigma surrounding the disease.
Read their story to learn who is most affected by stigma and why鈥攁nd why some community members feel better prepared to face another potential outbreak as this year鈥檚 rainy season gets underway (hint: they are not relying on government interventions).
Ed. Note: This article is the second in a two-part series; read Part I,. The series is part of , made possible through the generous support of loyal GHN readers. GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners Dengue fever cases have tripled to a record high in Central and South America this year, with 12.6 million+ cases and 7,700 deaths; Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, and Mexico were hit especially hard.
Women in Iran could face execution, long jail times, or flogging for defying new morality laws effective this week that seek to penalize women for 鈥減romoting nudity, indecency, unveiling or improper dressing.鈥
Human trafficking cases spiked 25% between 2019 and 2022, from the UN Office on Drugs and Crime; more children are being exploited, and forced labor cases have surged amidst conflict, poverty, and effects of the climate crisis.
Ultraprocessed foods account for more than half of calories consumed at home by U.S. adults, per a published in the Journal of Nutrition; the report highlights the 鈥減roliferation and ubiquity of ultraprocessed foods on grocery store shelves,鈥 said lead author Julia Wolfson. GHN鈥橲 BEST OF 2024: STAFF PICKS A sex worker waits for clients behind her window in the red-light district of Amsterdam, on December 8, 2008. Anoek De Groot/AFP via Getty Morgan鈥檚 Picks
You might call me GHN鈥檚 鈥渏ack of all trades.鈥 I write summaries for our newsletter and articles for our website, create our social media content, build web pages, collect metrics鈥攜ou name it. I am lucky enough to get to work on a publication that includes news as diverse as my skill set, and, in the face of a very uncertain future, I鈥檓 glad I鈥檓 helping get the health news that matters out there, to those who need it. 鈥Morgan Coulson, GHN Editorial Associate
Best GHN Exclusive Amsterdam is famous for its red-light districts, but many of the city鈥檚 thousands of sex workers lack access to health care. In this exclusive, journalist Gabriela Galvin investigates the web of immigration and labor policies, logistical hurdles, and stigma that obstructs workers鈥 pathway to care.
Best News Article Rising atmospheric carbon dioxide levels are making many foods鈥攊ncluding global staples like rice and wheat鈥攍ess nutritious by reducing protein, vitamins, and critical micronutrients like zinc and iron. Writer Kellie Schmitt shows how these eroding nutritional values threaten millions with hidden hunger.
Best Commentary GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES MALARIA New Threats Hamper Game-Changing Gains
The global fight against malaria remains stalled as new threats emerge and under-resourced regions fall behind, per the new .
When epidemiologist Kristen Aiemjoy鈥檚 son came down with a strange illness that turned out to be scrub typhus, she identified it before doctors did.
How? Scrub typhus happens to be Aiemjoy鈥檚 research focus, and she recognized the scab where the infected insect had bitten her son.
Aiemjoy hopes her research will help to develop a low-cost test to improve early diagnosis and care.
OPPORTUNITY QUICK HITS Africa: Decade-Long Study Reveals Key Drivers of Global Health Success 鈥
Medical misogyny leaves women in pain for years, say MPs 鈥
Genetic analysis finds H5N1 in California child most similar to cattle genotype 鈥
The Ten Americas: How Geography, Race, and Income Shape U.S. Life Expectancy 鈥
U.S. health panel draft recommendations would allow a self-testing option for cervical cancer 鈥
Coronavirus FAQ: I didn't get the latest COVID vaccine. Should I? And if so ... when? 鈥
A public health game plan grounded in the Golden Rule 鈥
Tokyo government gives workers 4-day workweek to boost fertility, family time 鈥 Issue No. 2828
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
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LUSAKA鈥擬ary Kapaipi suspected that her husband might be suffering from cholera last January, amid a deadly outbreak in their neighborhood outside Zambia鈥檚 capital. But he insisted it was just a sore throat. By the time his symptoms worsened and she sent for help, it was too late to save his life.
Kapaipi later discovered signs of his illness鈥攕oiled underwear and patches of white vomit鈥攈idden around their house. If he hadn鈥檛 concealed his symptoms, he might have lived, she says.
This pattern of secrecy and shame is common among cholera patients, Kennedy Phiri and Freddie Clayton learned while reporting for this exclusive series that spotlights not only the need to improve water and sanitation infrastructure in the area, but the equally urgent need to address the stigma surrounding the disease.
Read their story to learn who is most affected by stigma and why鈥攁nd why some community members feel better prepared to face another potential outbreak as this year鈥檚 rainy season gets underway (hint: they are not relying on government interventions).
Ed. Note: This article is the second in a two-part series; read Part I,. The series is part of , made possible through the generous support of loyal GHN readers. GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners Dengue fever cases have tripled to a record high in Central and South America this year, with 12.6 million+ cases and 7,700 deaths; Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, and Mexico were hit especially hard.
Women in Iran could face execution, long jail times, or flogging for defying new morality laws effective this week that seek to penalize women for 鈥減romoting nudity, indecency, unveiling or improper dressing.鈥
Human trafficking cases spiked 25% between 2019 and 2022, from the UN Office on Drugs and Crime; more children are being exploited, and forced labor cases have surged amidst conflict, poverty, and effects of the climate crisis.
Ultraprocessed foods account for more than half of calories consumed at home by U.S. adults, per a published in the Journal of Nutrition; the report highlights the 鈥減roliferation and ubiquity of ultraprocessed foods on grocery store shelves,鈥 said lead author Julia Wolfson. GHN鈥橲 BEST OF 2024: STAFF PICKS A sex worker waits for clients behind her window in the red-light district of Amsterdam, on December 8, 2008. Anoek De Groot/AFP via Getty Morgan鈥檚 Picks
You might call me GHN鈥檚 鈥渏ack of all trades.鈥 I write summaries for our newsletter and articles for our website, create our social media content, build web pages, collect metrics鈥攜ou name it. I am lucky enough to get to work on a publication that includes news as diverse as my skill set, and, in the face of a very uncertain future, I鈥檓 glad I鈥檓 helping get the health news that matters out there, to those who need it. 鈥Morgan Coulson, GHN Editorial Associate
Best GHN Exclusive Amsterdam is famous for its red-light districts, but many of the city鈥檚 thousands of sex workers lack access to health care. In this exclusive, journalist Gabriela Galvin investigates the web of immigration and labor policies, logistical hurdles, and stigma that obstructs workers鈥 pathway to care.
Best News Article Rising atmospheric carbon dioxide levels are making many foods鈥攊ncluding global staples like rice and wheat鈥攍ess nutritious by reducing protein, vitamins, and critical micronutrients like zinc and iron. Writer Kellie Schmitt shows how these eroding nutritional values threaten millions with hidden hunger.
Best Commentary GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES MALARIA New Threats Hamper Game-Changing Gains
The global fight against malaria remains stalled as new threats emerge and under-resourced regions fall behind, per the new .
- Progress is being undermined by severe funding shortfalls, rising drug and insecticide resistance, and humanitarian disasters鈥攍eading to cases rising for the fifth consecutive year, .
- The overwhelming majority of fatalities occurred among children under age 5 in Africa, . Overall, ~95% of deaths occurred in the WHO African Region.
- 鈥淣o one should die of malaria; yet the disease continues to disproportionately harm people living in the African region, especially young children and pregnant women,鈥 said WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
- 17 countries have introduced malaria vaccines, and new-generation nets are more widely available.
When epidemiologist Kristen Aiemjoy鈥檚 son came down with a strange illness that turned out to be scrub typhus, she identified it before doctors did.
How? Scrub typhus happens to be Aiemjoy鈥檚 research focus, and she recognized the scab where the infected insect had bitten her son.
- That scab, or eschar, appears on only 40%鈥60% of those infected, so many are not diagnosed.
Aiemjoy hopes her research will help to develop a low-cost test to improve early diagnosis and care.
OPPORTUNITY QUICK HITS Africa: Decade-Long Study Reveals Key Drivers of Global Health Success 鈥
Medical misogyny leaves women in pain for years, say MPs 鈥
Genetic analysis finds H5N1 in California child most similar to cattle genotype 鈥
The Ten Americas: How Geography, Race, and Income Shape U.S. Life Expectancy 鈥
U.S. health panel draft recommendations would allow a self-testing option for cervical cancer 鈥
Coronavirus FAQ: I didn't get the latest COVID vaccine. Should I? And if so ... when? 鈥
A public health game plan grounded in the Golden Rule 鈥
Tokyo government gives workers 4-day workweek to boost fertility, family time 鈥 Issue No. 2828
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
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Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
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Categories: Global Health Feed
96
Support GHN鈥檚 Second Decade
Help us celebrate our 10th anniversary by supporting our future.
December 10, 2024
Girls in India gather around an illuminated globe, hoping for a better world.
Pranab Basak, Courtesy of Photoshare Dear GHN Reader,
Thank you for the many ways you support us every day鈥攊nspiring us, sharing stories and new perspectives, and spreading the word about GHN.
Over the last few years, many of you have also supported our mission in a new way鈥攂y making a gift. And this week, we鈥檙e asking you to consider .
Donations of any amount are welcome and will help us unlock a special $2,000 challenge gift from longtime GHN reader and supporter Ana Rita Gonzalez, ScD, CPA.
You can also help us by advocating for the campaign:
With sincere thanks,
Dayna Kerecman Myers Managing Editor Global Health NOW HELP US MEET THE CHALLENGE
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, Aliza Rosen, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
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Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
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You can or .
Pranab Basak, Courtesy of Photoshare Dear GHN Reader,
Thank you for the many ways you support us every day鈥攊nspiring us, sharing stories and new perspectives, and spreading the word about GHN.
Over the last few years, many of you have also supported our mission in a new way鈥攂y making a gift. And this week, we鈥檙e asking you to consider .
Donations of any amount are welcome and will help us unlock a special $2,000 challenge gift from longtime GHN reader and supporter Ana Rita Gonzalez, ScD, CPA.
You can also help us by advocating for the campaign:
- within your social networks.
- Inspire others with a or gift.
With sincere thanks,
Dayna Kerecman Myers Managing Editor Global Health NOW HELP US MEET THE CHALLENGE
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, Aliza Rosen, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
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Categories: Global Health Feed
96
Global Health NOW: Shaken by Cholera Outbreak, Zambians Fear the Coming Rains; American 鈥楻age鈥 over Health Insurance; and 鈥淲itch Hunts鈥 in Kenya
December 10, 2024
A makeshift latrine built from wood and rags in the Garden House Compound in Lusaka. November 6. Freddie Clayton
Shaken by Cholera Outbreak, Zambians Fear the Coming Rains
LUSAKA鈥擜 visit to Garden House Compound, a sprawling maze of makeshift shelters on the outskirts of Zambia鈥檚 capital, reveals clues to for the cholera outbreak that killed at least 740 people earlier this year.
Lessons learned from the last cholera outbreak have led to some improvements by the government and NGOs鈥攂ut it鈥檚 hard to see that progress on the ground; massive water tanks haven鈥檛 been filled and few public toilets have been built.
Meanwhile, many of the largest investments focus on cholera treatment and research, rather than prevention. In the first part of a 2-part series, Phiri and Clayton delve into the reasons why鈥攍anding on the key missing ingredient that could determine whether this year鈥檚 rainy season will bring another outbreak.
Ed. Note: This article is part of , made possible through the generous support of loyal GHN readers. GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners The EPA banned two known carcinogens yesterday: trichloroethylene (TCE), used in degreasing agents, furniture care, and auto repair products, and tetrachloroethylene (PERC), used in dry cleaning and auto repair, following decades of advocacy.
Alcohol-related e-scooter and e-bike injuries among U.S. adolescents tripled between 2019 and 2022, from ~23,000 to ~66,000, according to that points to a need for better enforcement of underage drinking laws.
Pediatricians in Pakistan report high knowledge related to antibiotic usage, but limited training in antibiotic stewardship, ; only 15% reported receiving training on antibiotic usage and AMR, and only 25.3% confirmed awareness of antimicrobial stewardship.
Few adults without biological children who underwent permanent contraception procedures reported regret in a ; additionally, 47% of respondents reported difficulty finding a physician willing to perform the procedure. GHN鈥檚 Best of 2024: Staff Picks A woman molds bricks for a kiln in Rajasthan鈥檚 Ajmer district on March 26, 2023. Shreya Raman Brian鈥檚 Picks My name may come first in the newsletter鈥檚 staff list, but in truth it鈥檚 my colleagues who take on the impossible daily task of finding and distilling global health鈥檚 essential news. They succeed because of their smarts, their commitment, and the help of loyal GHN readers like you.鈥擝rian Simpson, GHN Editor-in-Chief Best GHN Exclusive The thousands of women who work in India鈥檚 brick kilns migrate from state to state to find work and often face massive barriers to health care. A lack of state health documents and paid sick time make it difficult for them to get care they need. Journalist Shreya Raman introduces us to kiln workers like Nirmala, who was forced to return to work 15 days after giving birth by cesarean section.
Best News Article The U.S. FDA has a tough challenge: Regulate nicotine products while facing nearly two dozen former FDA lawyers now working for Big Tobacco. Their inside knowledge gives the industry a big advantage. Reporter Kathryn Kranhold illuminates this dark corner of regulation.
Best Commentary HEALTH SYSTEMS American 鈥楻age鈥 over Health Insurance
The man arrested in the killing of UnitedHealthcare鈥檚 chief executive was found carrying a manifesto 鈥渄ecrying the health care industry,鈥 .
The killing has sparked a swell of public anger鈥攏ot at the shooting, but at the American health insurance industry.
More than 250 murders of elderly women in Kenya between 2020 and 2022 have been linked to the increased use of 鈥渁nti-witchcraft鈥 laws.
The laws, which allow murder in 鈥渟elf-defense鈥 from witchcraft, primarily affect elderly widows, who are frequently accused by their late husbands鈥 families of trying to gain property. The women are then shunned and lynched.
However, behavior attributed to witchcraft may actually be symptoms of dementia鈥攁nd increased life expectancy has led to a rise in female-headed households and dementia cases.
Compounding factors: Kenya鈥檚 booming population and high unemployment rates often make elderly women targets for those seeking resources. Cultural beliefs about the evils of witchcraft mean that violators are rarely prosecuted.
QUICK HITS UN refugee chief urges patience as Syrian refugees weigh options 鈥
Lonely graves, scattered bones: the stark reality of one of the most overlooked and fastest-growing migration routes 鈥
Arizona confirms 2 avian flu infections as California probes second potential case in a child 鈥
Can Congo contain its exploding mpox epidemic鈥攁nd curtail its international spread? 鈥
Spying on Student Devices, Schools Aim to Intercept Self-Harm Before It Happens 鈥
Why India Must Keep Covid-Era Oxygen Plants Running 鈥
Safety Concerns Plague Humanitarian Aid Work 鈥
On the Frontline with Lebanese Midwives 鈥 Issue No. 2827
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, Aliza Rosen, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
- Some 50,000 people live without clean water or toilets鈥攆orcing many to share makeshift latrines overflowing with human waste or defecate in the open.
- When the water levels rise, human feces pour into the neighborhood, contaminating the shallow wells people depend on for water.
Lessons learned from the last cholera outbreak have led to some improvements by the government and NGOs鈥攂ut it鈥檚 hard to see that progress on the ground; massive water tanks haven鈥檛 been filled and few public toilets have been built.
Meanwhile, many of the largest investments focus on cholera treatment and research, rather than prevention. In the first part of a 2-part series, Phiri and Clayton delve into the reasons why鈥攍anding on the key missing ingredient that could determine whether this year鈥檚 rainy season will bring another outbreak.
Ed. Note: This article is part of , made possible through the generous support of loyal GHN readers. GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners The EPA banned two known carcinogens yesterday: trichloroethylene (TCE), used in degreasing agents, furniture care, and auto repair products, and tetrachloroethylene (PERC), used in dry cleaning and auto repair, following decades of advocacy.
Alcohol-related e-scooter and e-bike injuries among U.S. adolescents tripled between 2019 and 2022, from ~23,000 to ~66,000, according to that points to a need for better enforcement of underage drinking laws.
Pediatricians in Pakistan report high knowledge related to antibiotic usage, but limited training in antibiotic stewardship, ; only 15% reported receiving training on antibiotic usage and AMR, and only 25.3% confirmed awareness of antimicrobial stewardship.
Few adults without biological children who underwent permanent contraception procedures reported regret in a ; additionally, 47% of respondents reported difficulty finding a physician willing to perform the procedure. GHN鈥檚 Best of 2024: Staff Picks A woman molds bricks for a kiln in Rajasthan鈥檚 Ajmer district on March 26, 2023. Shreya Raman Brian鈥檚 Picks My name may come first in the newsletter鈥檚 staff list, but in truth it鈥檚 my colleagues who take on the impossible daily task of finding and distilling global health鈥檚 essential news. They succeed because of their smarts, their commitment, and the help of loyal GHN readers like you.鈥擝rian Simpson, GHN Editor-in-Chief Best GHN Exclusive The thousands of women who work in India鈥檚 brick kilns migrate from state to state to find work and often face massive barriers to health care. A lack of state health documents and paid sick time make it difficult for them to get care they need. Journalist Shreya Raman introduces us to kiln workers like Nirmala, who was forced to return to work 15 days after giving birth by cesarean section.
Best News Article The U.S. FDA has a tough challenge: Regulate nicotine products while facing nearly two dozen former FDA lawyers now working for Big Tobacco. Their inside knowledge gives the industry a big advantage. Reporter Kathryn Kranhold illuminates this dark corner of regulation.
Best Commentary HEALTH SYSTEMS American 鈥楻age鈥 over Health Insurance
The man arrested in the killing of UnitedHealthcare鈥檚 chief executive was found carrying a manifesto 鈥渄ecrying the health care industry,鈥 .
The killing has sparked a swell of public anger鈥攏ot at the shooting, but at the American health insurance industry.
- The reaction reflects 鈥渂oth the coarsening of public discourse and the degree of rage many Americans feel over the deficiencies of the U.S. health care system,鈥 writes Nicholas Florko for .
- Gallup polling shows that just 31% of Americans have a positive view of the health care industry.
- Costs, delays, payment denials, and prior authorization usage have all continued to rise, 鈥攍eading to delayed care and patients abandoning treatment, per the American Medical Association.
More than 250 murders of elderly women in Kenya between 2020 and 2022 have been linked to the increased use of 鈥渁nti-witchcraft鈥 laws.
The laws, which allow murder in 鈥渟elf-defense鈥 from witchcraft, primarily affect elderly widows, who are frequently accused by their late husbands鈥 families of trying to gain property. The women are then shunned and lynched.
However, behavior attributed to witchcraft may actually be symptoms of dementia鈥攁nd increased life expectancy has led to a rise in female-headed households and dementia cases.
Compounding factors: Kenya鈥檚 booming population and high unemployment rates often make elderly women targets for those seeking resources. Cultural beliefs about the evils of witchcraft mean that violators are rarely prosecuted.
QUICK HITS UN refugee chief urges patience as Syrian refugees weigh options 鈥
Lonely graves, scattered bones: the stark reality of one of the most overlooked and fastest-growing migration routes 鈥
Arizona confirms 2 avian flu infections as California probes second potential case in a child 鈥
Can Congo contain its exploding mpox epidemic鈥攁nd curtail its international spread? 鈥
Spying on Student Devices, Schools Aim to Intercept Self-Harm Before It Happens 鈥
Why India Must Keep Covid-Era Oxygen Plants Running 鈥
Safety Concerns Plague Humanitarian Aid Work 鈥
On the Frontline with Lebanese Midwives 鈥 Issue No. 2827
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, Aliza Rosen, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
Categories: Global Health Feed
96
Global Health NOW: Outbreak Investigation Launched in the DRC; Women on the Front Lines of Lymphatic Filariasis; and GHN鈥檚 Best of 2024: Staff Picks
December 9, 2024
Outbreak Investigation Launched in the DRC
The WHO has dispatched rapid response teams to the DRC鈥檚 remote Panzi region to investigate and respond to an undiagnosed illness with a worryingly high mortality rate, as epidemiologists worldwide eye the outbreak with concern.
Despite fears of a novel illness, suggests that the culprit is likely an 鈥渦nknown known鈥 like pneumonia, influenza, COVID-19, malaria, or measles鈥攐r some combination of illnesses鈥攅xacerbated by severe malnutrition, .
Outbreak details: 406 cases of an undiagnosed illness with 31 deaths鈥攁 7.6% fatality rate鈥攚ere reported between Oct. 24 and Dec. 5.
Hey Readers,
Last week, we quietly launched our third crowdfunding campaign in our 10-year history.
Today, we have an exciting announcement:
.
I hope you鈥檒l join me in contributing to GHN so we can continue to deliver essential global health news.
All best,
Brian GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners U.S. agriculture officials have issued a federal order requiring the testing of the nation's milk supply in an effort to increase surveillance of bird flu.
A single mutation in the protein found on the surface of the H5N1 influenza strain circulating in U.S. dairy cows could enable 鈥渆asier transmission among humans,鈥 per published in Science.
Morocco is producing mpox tests for the first time鈥攁nother step in Africa鈥檚 quest for independence when it comes to sourcing medical supplies.
Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield has reversed a policy that would have tied reimbursements for anesthesia to time limits, after widespread outcry from anesthesiologists. GHN鈥橲 BEST OF 2024: STAFF PICKS For our annual 鈥淏est of鈥 series running daily for the next couple weeks, GHN team members share their picks for 2024's most memorable work. GHN鈥檚 ace morning writer and trusted news adviser Kate Harrison Belz kicks off our series. A child at Nduru camp, Kisumu City, Kenya. August 16, 2024. Scovian Lillian Kate鈥檚 Picks I distill articles for GHN's newsletter summaries, which involves a lot of caffeine and curiosity. I have long been intrigued by the ways public health, environment, and infrastructure intersect鈥攁n interest that has intensified after living through the devastation of Hurricane Helene in Asheville, N.C., where I live. As we begin recovery here, I find myself often mulling over articles like the ones below. How can we better steward our natural and built environments to strengthen our shared health? 鈥Kate Harrison Belz, GHN writer Best GHN Exclusive: Deadly floods in Kenya this spring left behind a wake of cholera and other infectious diseases. In this exclusive, reporter Scovian Lillian explores how weather surveillance and disease surveillance can be more closely linked鈥攁nd potentially save lives. Best Must-Read: Planting trees in urban areas has well-established climate benefits: cooling, pollution control, and stormwater absorption. But trees鈥 impact on human health is becoming more clear, thanks to the University of Louisville鈥檚 Green Heart Louisville project: 鈥渁 clinical trial where trees are the medicine.鈥 鈥Bloomberg CityLab Best Commentary: NEGLECTED DISEASES Women on the Front Lines of Lymphatic Filariasis
The mosquito-borne disease lymphatic filariasis鈥攃ommonly known as elephantiasis for the severe swelling it causes鈥攖akes an especially heavy toll on women in India, where the disease is endemic.
More vulnerable: Women, especially in poor, rural regions, are more vulnerable due to daily outdoor chores.
Bigger barriers: Women have less access to health care, with 15.5% of rural women in India reporting that they struggle to get permission for medical treatment, and 24.7% struggling to obtain money for treatment.
Formaldehyde is a ubiquitous chemical in the U.S.鈥攁 鈥渨orkhorse鈥 of commercial enterprises ranging from making furniture to sterilizing food.
But it is incredibly toxic:
Hundreds more migrants have died in Rio Grande crossings than U.S., Mexico reported 鈥
鈥楳y right side was paralysed, I was so sick鈥: the pesticide poisonings in Brazil that lead back to the UK 鈥
Increases in U.S. life expectancy forecasted to stall by 2050, poorer health expected to cause nation鈥檚 global ranking to drop鈥
CTE Evident in Brains of Deceased Ice Hockey Players 鈥 Thanks for the tip, Chiara Jaffe
How the Messy Process of Milking Cows Can Spread Bird Flu 鈥
Latin American journals are open-access pioneers. Now, they need an audience 鈥 Issue No. 2826
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
The WHO has dispatched rapid response teams to the DRC鈥檚 remote Panzi region to investigate and respond to an undiagnosed illness with a worryingly high mortality rate, as epidemiologists worldwide eye the outbreak with concern.
Despite fears of a novel illness, suggests that the culprit is likely an 鈥渦nknown known鈥 like pneumonia, influenza, COVID-19, malaria, or measles鈥攐r some combination of illnesses鈥攅xacerbated by severe malnutrition, .
Outbreak details: 406 cases of an undiagnosed illness with 31 deaths鈥攁 7.6% fatality rate鈥攚ere reported between Oct. 24 and Dec. 5.
- The illness primarily affects children under age 5, and symptoms include fever, headache, cough, runny nose, and body aches.
- The WHO convoy includes doctors, epidemiologists, lab technicians, and infection control experts to treat patients and collect data.
Hey Readers,
Last week, we quietly launched our third crowdfunding campaign in our 10-year history.
Today, we have an exciting announcement:
- Longtime GHN reader and supporter Ana Rita Gonzalez, ScD, CPA, is challenging us all: When another 100 subscribers make a gift, she will give $2,000 to support GHN!
.
I hope you鈥檒l join me in contributing to GHN so we can continue to deliver essential global health news.
All best,
Brian GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners U.S. agriculture officials have issued a federal order requiring the testing of the nation's milk supply in an effort to increase surveillance of bird flu.
A single mutation in the protein found on the surface of the H5N1 influenza strain circulating in U.S. dairy cows could enable 鈥渆asier transmission among humans,鈥 per published in Science.
Morocco is producing mpox tests for the first time鈥攁nother step in Africa鈥檚 quest for independence when it comes to sourcing medical supplies.
Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield has reversed a policy that would have tied reimbursements for anesthesia to time limits, after widespread outcry from anesthesiologists. GHN鈥橲 BEST OF 2024: STAFF PICKS For our annual 鈥淏est of鈥 series running daily for the next couple weeks, GHN team members share their picks for 2024's most memorable work. GHN鈥檚 ace morning writer and trusted news adviser Kate Harrison Belz kicks off our series. A child at Nduru camp, Kisumu City, Kenya. August 16, 2024. Scovian Lillian Kate鈥檚 Picks I distill articles for GHN's newsletter summaries, which involves a lot of caffeine and curiosity. I have long been intrigued by the ways public health, environment, and infrastructure intersect鈥攁n interest that has intensified after living through the devastation of Hurricane Helene in Asheville, N.C., where I live. As we begin recovery here, I find myself often mulling over articles like the ones below. How can we better steward our natural and built environments to strengthen our shared health? 鈥Kate Harrison Belz, GHN writer Best GHN Exclusive: Deadly floods in Kenya this spring left behind a wake of cholera and other infectious diseases. In this exclusive, reporter Scovian Lillian explores how weather surveillance and disease surveillance can be more closely linked鈥攁nd potentially save lives. Best Must-Read: Planting trees in urban areas has well-established climate benefits: cooling, pollution control, and stormwater absorption. But trees鈥 impact on human health is becoming more clear, thanks to the University of Louisville鈥檚 Green Heart Louisville project: 鈥渁 clinical trial where trees are the medicine.鈥 鈥Bloomberg CityLab Best Commentary: NEGLECTED DISEASES Women on the Front Lines of Lymphatic Filariasis
The mosquito-borne disease lymphatic filariasis鈥攃ommonly known as elephantiasis for the severe swelling it causes鈥攖akes an especially heavy toll on women in India, where the disease is endemic.
More vulnerable: Women, especially in poor, rural regions, are more vulnerable due to daily outdoor chores.
Bigger barriers: Women have less access to health care, with 15.5% of rural women in India reporting that they struggle to get permission for medical treatment, and 24.7% struggling to obtain money for treatment.
- While annual mass drug administration campaigns aim to reduce transmission, mistrust and lack of awareness keep the preventive medicines out of women鈥檚 reach.
Formaldehyde is a ubiquitous chemical in the U.S.鈥攁 鈥渨orkhorse鈥 of commercial enterprises ranging from making furniture to sterilizing food.
But it is incredibly toxic:
- Formaldehyde causes more cancer than any other chemical air pollutant, and can increase risk of miscarriages, fertility problems, and asthma.
- It pollutes air even inside homes as it leaks from household products.
- The EPA was poised to make some initial reforms this year鈥攂ut those efforts will likely be suspended under the new presidential administration.
Hundreds more migrants have died in Rio Grande crossings than U.S., Mexico reported 鈥
鈥楳y right side was paralysed, I was so sick鈥: the pesticide poisonings in Brazil that lead back to the UK 鈥
Increases in U.S. life expectancy forecasted to stall by 2050, poorer health expected to cause nation鈥檚 global ranking to drop鈥
CTE Evident in Brains of Deceased Ice Hockey Players 鈥 Thanks for the tip, Chiara Jaffe
How the Messy Process of Milking Cows Can Spread Bird Flu 鈥
Latin American journals are open-access pioneers. Now, they need an audience 鈥 Issue No. 2826
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
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Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
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Categories: Global Health Feed
96
Global Health NOW: When Famine Warnings Falter; SCOTUS Case Has 鈥楳ajor Implications鈥 for Transgender Care; and 鈥嬧嬧榊ou Know Who You Look Like鈥?鈥
Global famine warning system is often obstructed and undermined, a Reuters investigation found
December 5, 2024
Palestinians gather to receive food cooked by a charity kitchen amid the hunger crisis that continues in Khan Yunis in the Gaza Strip, December 1. Saeed Jaras/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images
When Famine Warnings Falter
To prevent mass starvation in any country, alarms must be sounded early about food crises, and on-the-ground famine conditions monitored closely.
That鈥檚 the work of the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC)鈥攁n independent global partnership designed to issue warnings of impending food crises and activate interventions.
But increasingly, the effectiveness of this warning system is obstructed and undermined, finds an .
Obstacles include:
Conflict: Long and brutal fighting in places like Gaza and Sudan blocks the collection of critical malnutrition and mortality data.
Childhood exposure to lead in gasoline has been linked to 150 million+ excess psychiatric disorder cases over the last 75 years, estimates a published in the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, which analyzed childhood blood lead levels from 1940 to 2015.
Chikungunya outbreaks have become "explosive鈥 and 鈥渦npredictable" as climate change and urbanization enable its spread into new regions鈥攄isabling millions and costing billions, per a new in BMJ Global Health.
An Ebola vaccination campaign is launching in Sierra Leone, with 20,000 frontline health workers receiving a preventive vaccine a decade after the deadliest Ebola outbreak in history.
Daytime TV ads for junk food and sugary snacks will be banned from daytime television in the UK, as the government tries to battle high rates of obesity and tooth decay among children. LGBTQ RIGHTS In SCOTUS Case, 鈥楳ajor Implications鈥 for Transgender Care
A case argued yesterday before the U.S. Supreme Court could shape the future of transition care for minors in the U.S.鈥攁nd shape other areas of health care policy across the country.
Background: The case, U.S. v. Skrmetti, challenges a 2023 Tennessee law that prohibits medical providers from prescribing puberty blockers, starting hormone therapy, or performing gender-affirming surgery for patients under 18, .
Wider ramifications: The Court鈥檚 decision could have 鈥渕ajor implications鈥 for transgender people of all ages in terms of states鈥 attempts to restrict other areas of health care, particularly reproductive health,
What鈥檚 next: The justices are expected to rule in the case next spring.
Related: For Families of Transgender Children, Tennessee鈥檚 Ban Forces Hard Choices GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES SEXUAL AND REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH RIGHTS New Protections for Sex Workers in Belgium
Sex workers in Belgium will have new labor protections and rights under a law that goes into effect this week. The rules, which advocates described as a 鈥渞evolution,鈥 follow the country鈥檚 2022 decision to decriminalize sex work.
New protections include:
Low-stakes debates are a balm in unsettling times.
Today, it鈥檚 an onslaught of lookalike contests for Hollywood 鈥渋t鈥 boys like Timoth茅e Chalamet鈥攚ho showed up to his own lookalike contest, but somehow didn鈥檛 win.
Paltry prizes: Paul Mescal鈥檚 Dublin double raked in 鈧20, 鈥渙r three pints鈥; Jeremy Allen White鈥檚 lookalike got $50 and a pack of Marlboro Reds, the .
But lookalike life is a lucrative gig for some. This rakes in 拢30,000 a year when his doppelganger has an album out鈥攁nd much less when he doesn鈥檛.
The trend has inspired many a think piece about the contests鈥 genderedness, their value to society鈥 and who gets to participate. It鈥檚 all fun and games for cheek-boney A-listers, but 鈥淲here are the celebrity lookalike competitions for bald middle-aged men like me?鈥 one . QUICK HITS Report highlights danger of splash pads for waterborne diseases 鈥
The quest for a longer-lasting whooping cough vaccine 鈥
Middle-school student scientists discover cancer-fighting compound in goose poop 鈥
Tuberculosis Bacteria Vulnerable to Substances from Peat Bog Fungi 鈥
Britain drug-cost watchdog says it will recommend Lilly obesity drug 鈥
A few bursts of vigorous movement a day may cut women's heart risks, study says 鈥
Ancient Germanic Warriors Took Drugs When Preparing for Battle, Study Suggests 鈥 Issue No. 2825
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, Aliza Rosen, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
To prevent mass starvation in any country, alarms must be sounded early about food crises, and on-the-ground famine conditions monitored closely.
That鈥檚 the work of the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC)鈥攁n independent global partnership designed to issue warnings of impending food crises and activate interventions.
But increasingly, the effectiveness of this warning system is obstructed and undermined, finds an .
Obstacles include:
Conflict: Long and brutal fighting in places like Gaza and Sudan blocks the collection of critical malnutrition and mortality data.
- 鈥淭he single largest driver of hunger in the world is conflict. This means that people who are most desperately in need are in the hardest-to-reach areas,鈥 said Deepmala Mahla, chief humanitarian officer for CARE.
Childhood exposure to lead in gasoline has been linked to 150 million+ excess psychiatric disorder cases over the last 75 years, estimates a published in the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, which analyzed childhood blood lead levels from 1940 to 2015.
Chikungunya outbreaks have become "explosive鈥 and 鈥渦npredictable" as climate change and urbanization enable its spread into new regions鈥攄isabling millions and costing billions, per a new in BMJ Global Health.
An Ebola vaccination campaign is launching in Sierra Leone, with 20,000 frontline health workers receiving a preventive vaccine a decade after the deadliest Ebola outbreak in history.
Daytime TV ads for junk food and sugary snacks will be banned from daytime television in the UK, as the government tries to battle high rates of obesity and tooth decay among children. LGBTQ RIGHTS In SCOTUS Case, 鈥楳ajor Implications鈥 for Transgender Care
A case argued yesterday before the U.S. Supreme Court could shape the future of transition care for minors in the U.S.鈥攁nd shape other areas of health care policy across the country.
Background: The case, U.S. v. Skrmetti, challenges a 2023 Tennessee law that prohibits medical providers from prescribing puberty blockers, starting hormone therapy, or performing gender-affirming surgery for patients under 18, .
- But those same treatments are permitted for minors for other conditions. So the question at the core of the case is whether Tennessee鈥檚 ban on gender-affirming care for youth unconstitutionally discriminates against people on the basis of sex.
Wider ramifications: The Court鈥檚 decision could have 鈥渕ajor implications鈥 for transgender people of all ages in terms of states鈥 attempts to restrict other areas of health care, particularly reproductive health,
What鈥檚 next: The justices are expected to rule in the case next spring.
Related: For Families of Transgender Children, Tennessee鈥檚 Ban Forces Hard Choices GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES SEXUAL AND REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH RIGHTS New Protections for Sex Workers in Belgium
Sex workers in Belgium will have new labor protections and rights under a law that goes into effect this week. The rules, which advocates described as a 鈥渞evolution,鈥 follow the country鈥檚 2022 decision to decriminalize sex work.
New protections include:
- Formal employment contracts.
- Regulated pay and hours.
- Health insurance, paid leave, maternity benefits, and pensions.
- The right to refuse clients and stop activities at any point.
- Background checks for human trafficking and sex assault convictions.
- Strict safety protocols including emergency buttons in workspaces and provision of hygiene products.
Low-stakes debates are a balm in unsettling times.
Today, it鈥檚 an onslaught of lookalike contests for Hollywood 鈥渋t鈥 boys like Timoth茅e Chalamet鈥攚ho showed up to his own lookalike contest, but somehow didn鈥檛 win.
Paltry prizes: Paul Mescal鈥檚 Dublin double raked in 鈧20, 鈥渙r three pints鈥; Jeremy Allen White鈥檚 lookalike got $50 and a pack of Marlboro Reds, the .
But lookalike life is a lucrative gig for some. This rakes in 拢30,000 a year when his doppelganger has an album out鈥攁nd much less when he doesn鈥檛.
The trend has inspired many a think piece about the contests鈥 genderedness, their value to society鈥 and who gets to participate. It鈥檚 all fun and games for cheek-boney A-listers, but 鈥淲here are the celebrity lookalike competitions for bald middle-aged men like me?鈥 one . QUICK HITS Report highlights danger of splash pads for waterborne diseases 鈥
The quest for a longer-lasting whooping cough vaccine 鈥
Middle-school student scientists discover cancer-fighting compound in goose poop 鈥
Tuberculosis Bacteria Vulnerable to Substances from Peat Bog Fungi 鈥
Britain drug-cost watchdog says it will recommend Lilly obesity drug 鈥
A few bursts of vigorous movement a day may cut women's heart risks, study says 鈥
Ancient Germanic Warriors Took Drugs When Preparing for Battle, Study Suggests 鈥 Issue No. 2825
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, Aliza Rosen, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
Categories: Global Health Feed
96
Global Health NOW: Global Aid 鈥極verstretched, Underfunded, Under Attack鈥; Valley Fever on the Rise; and Pork Pollution Poisoning Mexican Villages
December 4, 2024
Displaced Sudanese queue for food aid at a camp in the eastern city of Gedaref, on September 23. Ebrahim Hamid/AFP via Getty
Global Aid 鈥極verstretched, Underfunded, Under Attack鈥
As global crises compound and aid funding shrinks, a 鈥渞uthless鈥 reallocation of funds will be required to meet the most dire needs, warns the UN鈥檚 new humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher, .
Shifting political landscape: Fletcher acknowledged the need to win over the incoming Trump administration in the U.S.鈥攖he UN鈥檚 biggest single donor鈥攁long with a 鈥渘umber of governments who will be more questioning鈥 of the UN.
Meanwhile: ~281 humanitarian workers have been killed in 2024, 鈥攎ore than in any other year.
Related: Live updates: Global Humanitarian Overview launch 鈥 GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners Children seen playing in hazardous floodwaters in Malaysia raised concerns that waterborne illnesses could spread following torrential floods that killed dozens and displaced thousands last week; relief centers have reported nearly 5,000 cases of infectious diseases so far.
Ambassador John Nkengasong, head of the U.S. President鈥檚 Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, said that as a political appointee, he will be obliged to offer his resignation when President-elect Donald Trump is inaugurated in January鈥攂ut he expressed hope that PEPFAR, a bipartisan program since its launch in 2003, will be reauthorized.
A U.S. House COVID-19 panel has released its final report on the pandemic, criticizing the public health response and common mitigation efforts, and concluding that the virus most likely emerged from a laboratory鈥攁 theory disputed by federal agencies.
Animals at a Wuhan market were infected with a virus around the time COVID-19 emerged, per a new analysis of genomic data collected from the market that has not yet been peer reviewed. DATA POINT INFECTIOUS DISEASES Valley Fever on the Rise
As more cases of the fungal infection Valley fever are being reported across the Southwest, researchers are looking at two key risk factors鈥攂oth impacted by climate change and land development.
GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH Pork Pollution Poisoning Mexican Villages
Yucat谩n residents say hundreds of pig 鈥渕ega-farms鈥濃攈olding up to 50,000 pigs each鈥攑ollute the local water supply with waste, hormones, and antibiotics, contaminating drinking water and spreading harmful bacteria like E. coli.
ICYMI: The Many Costs of Cheap Chicken 鈥 OPPORTUNITY QUICK HITS 鈥楳y screams went unheard鈥: Women and girls suffer in Kenya鈥檚 worst drought in 40 years 鈥
Beatriz v El Salvador: the abortion case that could set a precedent across Latin America 鈥
How Soweto is fighting ill health from gold mine dumps 鈥
Ferret study suggests connection between H5N1 shedding in air and transmissibility 鈥
Burning old TVs to survive: The toxic trade in electrical waste 鈥
Trump's immigration crackdown could reduce caregiving workforce 鈥
How a scandal over sanitary pads is shaping feminist activism in China 鈥
I got malaria on purpose and so can you 鈥 Issue No. 2824
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, Aliza Rosen, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
As global crises compound and aid funding shrinks, a 鈥渞uthless鈥 reallocation of funds will be required to meet the most dire needs, warns the UN鈥檚 new humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher, .
- The humanitarian sector 鈥渋s overstretched, it鈥檚 underfunded and it鈥檚 literally under attack,鈥 Fletcher said, .
- But realistically, just ~190 million people can be reached with the $47.4 billion it is seeking.
- The UN鈥檚 funding appeal for 2024 was only 43% fulfilled.
Shifting political landscape: Fletcher acknowledged the need to win over the incoming Trump administration in the U.S.鈥攖he UN鈥檚 biggest single donor鈥攁long with a 鈥渘umber of governments who will be more questioning鈥 of the UN.
Meanwhile: ~281 humanitarian workers have been killed in 2024, 鈥攎ore than in any other year.
Related: Live updates: Global Humanitarian Overview launch 鈥 GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners Children seen playing in hazardous floodwaters in Malaysia raised concerns that waterborne illnesses could spread following torrential floods that killed dozens and displaced thousands last week; relief centers have reported nearly 5,000 cases of infectious diseases so far.
Ambassador John Nkengasong, head of the U.S. President鈥檚 Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, said that as a political appointee, he will be obliged to offer his resignation when President-elect Donald Trump is inaugurated in January鈥攂ut he expressed hope that PEPFAR, a bipartisan program since its launch in 2003, will be reauthorized.
A U.S. House COVID-19 panel has released its final report on the pandemic, criticizing the public health response and common mitigation efforts, and concluding that the virus most likely emerged from a laboratory鈥攁 theory disputed by federal agencies.
Animals at a Wuhan market were infected with a virus around the time COVID-19 emerged, per a new analysis of genomic data collected from the market that has not yet been peer reviewed. DATA POINT INFECTIOUS DISEASES Valley Fever on the Rise
As more cases of the fungal infection Valley fever are being reported across the Southwest, researchers are looking at two key risk factors鈥攂oth impacted by climate change and land development.
- Environment: With ramped-up development and increased drought from a rapidly warming climate, dust storms have intensified. Spores that lead to Valley fever can be inhaled with the dust, with construction and agriculture workers especially vulnerable.
- Animal hosts: As small mammals see their habitats disrupted and move into areas closer to humans, they could carry Valley fever鈥攊ncreasing the risk of zoonotic disease.
GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH Pork Pollution Poisoning Mexican Villages
Yucat谩n residents say hundreds of pig 鈥渕ega-farms鈥濃攈olding up to 50,000 pigs each鈥攑ollute the local water supply with waste, hormones, and antibiotics, contaminating drinking water and spreading harmful bacteria like E. coli.
- Many of these farms operate without environmental permits and have caused significant deforestation and destruction of ecosystems important for local communities, particularly Maya villages.
ICYMI: The Many Costs of Cheap Chicken 鈥 OPPORTUNITY QUICK HITS 鈥楳y screams went unheard鈥: Women and girls suffer in Kenya鈥檚 worst drought in 40 years 鈥
Beatriz v El Salvador: the abortion case that could set a precedent across Latin America 鈥
How Soweto is fighting ill health from gold mine dumps 鈥
Ferret study suggests connection between H5N1 shedding in air and transmissibility 鈥
Burning old TVs to survive: The toxic trade in electrical waste 鈥
Trump's immigration crackdown could reduce caregiving workforce 鈥
How a scandal over sanitary pads is shaping feminist activism in China 鈥
I got malaria on purpose and so can you 鈥 Issue No. 2824
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, Aliza Rosen, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
Categories: Global Health Feed
