News

It’s no secret that residents of the five Nordic countries live longer and healthier lives than the global average, yet subtle – but consequential – health differences remain, likely the result of alcohol use, smoking, and other risk factors, according to a new scientific study.

Nominations are now open for the 2020 Roux Prize, which is awarded annually to an individual who has used health evidence in “bold ways to make people healthier” – and to highlight how visionaries use health data to change lives.

An unprecedented study mapping child deaths over almost two decades finds that nearly half of the 5.4 million under-5 deaths in 2017 can be attributed to differences in child death rates within and across countries.

Health analyses of people at risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD) in low- and middle-income countries may soon improve, thanks to new computer modeling. The new modeling is a joint project of the World Health Organization (WHO), the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington School of Medicine, and the University of Cambridge. 

Only three African countries are expected to meet the global target for exclusive breastfeeding, “an unparalleled source of nutrition for newborns and infants, no matter where they are born,” according to a global health expert. A new study, published in Nature Medicine, finds areas of persistent low prevalence in countries that have made progress overall. Detailed maps accompanying the analysis reveal vulnerable populations, especially those living in rural areas and in extreme poverty.  

Chronic diseases, such as stroke, ischemic heart disease, and lung cancer, now represent the leading causes of premature death in China, according to a new scientific study.

Research published today in Nature Microbiology paints a startling new picture of where dengue, the world’s fastest-growing mosquito-borne virus, will spread to put more than 6 billion people at risk toward the end of the century. The study predicts risk to increase in the southeastern United States, coastal areas of China and Japan, and inland regions of Australia, based on researchers’ analysis of climate change data, urbanization, and resources and expertise available to control the virus. However, the biggest changes are predicted to occur in nations where dengue is already endemic.

A new scientific paper reveals striking variation in HIV prevalence at provincial and district levels. The paper, published in Nature, provides precise geographic estimates of HIV prevalence and numbers of people living with HIV to identify priority areas for health care support to reduce the burden of HIV.

One in six countries is expected to have substantially high out-of-pocket spending as a proportion of total health expenditures by 2050, according to a new scientific study. As low-income countries increase their GDP, they often face the “missing middle” problem: As they receive less development assistance, they are not able to fill the resulting gap due to slower growth in government health spending. 

Dr. Richard Horton, the “activist editor” of the international medical journal The Lancet, will be honored June 10 in London for his accomplishments as one of the world’s most “committed, articulate, and influential advocates for population health.” He is receiving the 2019 Roux Prize, given annually to individuals on the front lines of global health innovation in data science. Past winners include health ministers of Rwanda and Mali.

Poor diet is responsible for more deaths globally than tobacco, high blood pressure, or any other health risk, according to a new scientific study. Consuming low amounts of healthy foods, such as whole grains, and too much unhealthy foods, including sweetened beverages, account for one in every five deaths globally.

Democratic rule, enforced by regular free and fair elections, appears to make an important contribution to adult health by increasing government spending on health and potentially reducing deaths from several non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and transport injuries. Conversely, autocracies that escape this general scrutiny, and do not have the same external pressures or support from global health donors to tackle NCDs and injuries, may have less incentive to finance their prevention and treatment, and seem to underperform as a result.