In compliance with major statements made repeatedly during his electoral campaign, US President Joe Biden, on his first day in office on January 20, signed two important executive orders — among 15 others, a record number — signaling the United States’ return to the international arena, to...
A week after taking office, US President Joe Biden made a point of breaking with the position of his predecessor, Donald Trump, who famously blamed China for deliberately spreading the coronavirus. Trump insisted on calling it the Wuhan flu, Kung flu or any other xenophobic alternative. Coming to...
When the COVID-19 disease began to spread in Europe, France and Germany prohibited the export of medical equipment, while Italy asked in vain for supplies of protective equipment under the EU Civil Protection Mechanism. Neither the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) nor the...
The most recent Ebola outbreak is only the tip of the iceberg of problems faced by the Democratic Republic of Congo. Just when it seemed things couldn’t get any worse in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the conflict-ridden nation has been hit by an outbreak of Ebola. As it is not the first...
Facing dwindling fortunes in Europe and America due to strong regulations, the tobacco industry has made Africa the new front line in its pursuit of profits. Health officials and experts from across the planet descended on Cape Town, South Africa, on March 7 for the World Conference on Tobacco...
In his 1945 Nobel lecture, Alexander Fleming predicted that the improper use of antibiotics would cause future clinical failures. Penicillin, discovered by Alexander Fleming in 1928, became known as the “miracle drug” for its instrumental role in the Second World War, when the Allied forces...
What is the UAE doing to combat its growing obesity epidemic? How can health education develop a public health infrastructure based on prevention? In 2011, Forbes ranked the United Arab Emirates (UAE) number 18 on a list of countries with the highest obesity rates, estimating that 68.3% of the...
One in seven people is at risk of hearing impairment. What do you think is one of the greatest risks facing 1 billion teenagers and young adults in the world today? An uncertain future or bleak employment prospects? The answer might surprise you. Thanks to the proliferation of personal music...
With Zika declared as a global health crisis, it is time to understand the potential formation of future epidemics under climate change. Zika has been declared a global public health emergency by the World Health Organization (WHO). The global community seems to be caught off-guard. Are we...
Brazil declares a state of emergency to stem the spread of the Zika virus. Since October 2015, nearly 4,000 babies in Brazil have been born with microcephaly, an incurable disease that causes brain damage and is suspected—but not proved—to be linked to the Zika virus. The disease is named...
