The Social Determinants of Health are the conditions in which people are born, grow, live and age. They have a large influence on our health. It also determines
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health inequities, which is the unfair and avoidable health difference between different groups of people In this video we take a look at the social determinants of health..what they are, how it impacts health and a useful framework to understand it.
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This report presents an overview of the state of air quality and its impacts on health in Africa.
This report examines how urban living affects residents’ mental health and happiness, and ways to use this information to create saner and happier cities. Some often-cited studies suggest that urban living increases mental illness and unhappiness,
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but a critical review indicates that much of this research is incomplete and biased, and the issues are complex, often involving trade-offs between risk factors. City living may increase some forms of psychosis and mood disorders, drug addiction, and some people’s unhappiness, but tends reduce dementia, alcohol abuse and suicide rates, and many people are happier in cities than they would be in smaller communities. This report examines specific mechanisms by which urban living can affect mental health and happiness, and identities practical strategies that communities and individuals can use to increase urban mental health and happiness. This analysis suggests that it is possible to create sane and happy cities.
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The World Health Organization (WHO) fact sheet on ambient (outdoor) air quality and health highlights the significant health risks posed by outdoor
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air pollution. It reports that in 2019, ambient air pollution was responsible for approximately 4.2 million premature deaths globally, primarily due to exposure to fine particulate matter (PM2.5), which leads to cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, as well as cancers. The fact sheet emphasizes that 99% of the global population lived in areas exceeding WHO air quality guidelines in 2019, with low- and middle-income countries bearing the highest burden. To mitigate these health impacts, WHO advocates for policies and investments that promote cleaner transportation, energy-efficient housing, improved waste management, and access to clean household energy.
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The COVID-19 pandemic has had unprecedented public health, economic, and social impacts on the international community, and prompted an unprecedented range and size of policy actions globally. Colle
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ctive efforts, at national, regional, and global levels, were called for to contain and mitigate such impacts. The public health response measures alone proved to be insufficient, calling for additional socio-economic policy interventions such as ring-fencing economic activities to contain the spread of the virus. Faced with devastating socio-economic costs, all possible sources of financing, both public and private, have been explored.
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Annals of Medicine and Surgery, 79 (2022)104033
Climate change is altering seasonal patterns, making our summers hotter, and fueling increased flooding from coastal storms. As a result, we face more heat-related illnesses, air quality issues, food and water contamination, traumatic injuries, threats to our mental
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health, and infectious diseases. These threats will only get worse as big polluters continue to pump carbon from coal, oil, and natural gas into the air. The good news is that we can protect ourselves from these impacts by moving to cleaner energy strategies and preparing more effectively for future disasters.
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The Lancet October 25, 2022DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(22)01540-9
As climate change’s impacts continue to accrue, countries are persistently making wrong choices that are harming human health
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A desperate global thirst for fossil fuels is worsening climate change, leading to more extreme weather events that have hit every continent, led to thousands of deaths, and caused $250+ billion in damage in 2021.
• People 65+ and children <1 experienced 3.7 billion more heatwave days in 2021 than the annual average from 1986–2005.
• Heat-related deaths shot up 68% from 2000–2004 to 2017–2021.
• Climate change is abetting infectious disease transmission, warming coastal waters and leading to the spread of Vibrio bacteria like the one that causes cholera, and expanding the reach of the malaria parasite.
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For the first time WHO and UNICEF bring together the data on sanitation coverage and investment, and how it impacts health, economies, and the environment. Citing evidence on what works from success
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ful countries and global guidelines, WHO and UNICEF call for strong government leadership and investment in resilient sanitation services. The report charts an ambitious way forward following the SDG6 global acceleration framework themes of governance, financing, capacity development, data and information, and innovation to achieve universal access to safe sanitation.
Read the full publication report here: https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240014473.
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Case Study. The surprising link between logging and healthcare in Indonesia. You can download the teaching material and the case study after filling in a free registration form.
his case study examines a connection between rainforest conservation and affordable healthcare access in communities surr
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ounding Gunung Palung National Park (GPNP) in West Kalimantan, Indonesia. It recognizes that human and environmental wellbeing cannot be seen as separate from one another. Specifically, it explores how deforestation impacts human health and well-being, and how implementing co-beneficial solutions can improve human health while protecting natural ecosystems. Finally, this case study highlights the importance of collaboration to achieve planetary health, both within communities and within organizational teams.
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There are not many world citizens who do not have their children’s and their own health as a top priority. So why is health not more prominent topic in the debate on climate change and its
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impacts? We hear a lot about polar bears and smokestacks in the media, but very little on the many and the large health impacts of climate change. With this MOOC, we want to provide state-of-the art evidence of the link between climate change and the health of populations.
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The HEAT is designed to enable users without expertise in impact assessment to conduct economic assessments of the health impacts of walking or cycling.
Global temperatures and the frequency and intensity of heatwaves will rise in the 21st century as a result of climate change. Extended periods of high day and nighttime temperatures create cumulative physiological stress on the human body which exacerbates the top causes of death globally, including
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respiratory and cardiovascular diseases, diabetes mellitus and renal disease. Heatwaves can acutely impact large populations for short periods of time, often trigger public health emergencies, and result in excess mortality, and cascading socioeconomic impacts
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Health Situation of Children in Southern Africa
The impacts of El Niño and La Niña are expected to more than double the regular caseloads of childhood illnesses (malaria, cholera, pneumonia,
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measles and diarrhoea) in the most affected countries.
• Diarrhoea cases among children are expected to increase up to 4 times that of the regular yearly cases.
• Projections of pneumonia cases among children show a 1.5 times increase in cases.
• An estimated 11.8 million children are likely to be affected by malaria, cholera, diarrhoea, measles and/or pneumonia, with 7.5 million of these cases directly related to the impacts of El Nino.
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Under the theme “Stronger Together”, the campaign aims to offer information and strategies to assist communities in the region in better coping with the psychological impact of adverse events before, during and after a disaster situation. It also aims to raise awareness to reduce the stigma abou
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t seeking mental health and psychosocial support.
You can download a wide range of communication material: videos, posters, radio jingles, guidebooks.
The Caribbean is highly prone to natural hazards, including seismic activity, hurricanes, landslides and floods. These events have resulted in lost lives, serious injuries and severe damage to housing and infrastructure. A single hurricane event can affect more than one island, and completely erase the gains of many years of productivity. As a result, these unpredictable hazards create disruption and have an ongoing impact on people’s lives - affecting their mental health and psychosocial well-being.
Although everyone is affected in some way by disaster events, there are a wide range of reactions and feelings that a person can experience. People may feel overwhelmed, confused or very uncertain about what is happening. They can also feel very fearful, anxious, numb or detached. People who feel safe, connected, calm and hopeful, have access to social, physical and emotional support and find ways to help themselves after a disaster, however, will be better able to recover long-term from mental health effects
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This infographic looks at how climate change directly and indirectly impacts maternal health, making pregnancy less safe and worsening neonatal health
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outcomes.
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Since Sri Lanka tranisitioned to an upper -middle-income country in 2019, it is no longer eligible for concessional donor aid for health. Experiences of how donor trnaisitons in the health sector we
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re managed in Sri Lanka offer valuable insights to mitigate negatvie impacts of donor exits. In this study, we seek to understand preferences of in-country stakeholders for potentioal policy options to manage donor tranisitions
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Since 2002, development assistance for health has substantially increased,
especially investments for HIV, tuberculosis (TB) and malaria control. We
undertook a systematic review to assess and synthesize the existing evidence in
the scientific li
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terature on the health impacts of these investments
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The document presents a systematic analysis of dietary risks and their health impacts in 195 countries from 1990 to 2017. It highlights that suboptimal diets, such as those high in sodium and low in
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whole grains, fruits, and vegetables, significantly contribute to non-communicable diseases like heart disease, stroke, and diabetes. The study emphasizes the urgent need for improved dietary habits and policy interventions to reduce diet-related mortality and morbidity globally.
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The Americas region hosts more than 18.4 million refugees, asylum-seekers, displaced and stateless people, representing some 20 per cent of persons of concern to UNHCR worldwide. During the last two years, the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has had a disproportionate impact on refugees and
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migrants in host communities, including loss of livelihoods opportunities, an increase in evictions, engagement in negative coping mechanisms, discrimination and xenophobia. Further compounded by limited access to regularization and documentation in some countries, these impacts have contributed to onward movements of people in search of protection and/or better opportunities elsewhere.
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