Health

Napjaink klímavédelemről folyó diskurzusában két, egymásnak igencsak ellentmondó állítást is megfogalmaznak. Egyfelől szakértők arra figyelmeztetnek, hogy a beígért klímavédelmi intézkedéseknek súlyos gazdasági káruk lesz. Egy új jelentésben a Nemzetközi Energia Ügynökség (IEA) azt állapította meg, hogy a nettó zéró széndioxid-kibocsátás 2050-re történő elérése valószínűleg „az emberiség legnagyobb kihívása lesz, amivel valaha is szembesült”. Ezzel igen magasra tették a lécet felülmúlva a II. világháború, a fekete pestis és a koronavírus jelentette problémákat.

Löften som saknar koppling till aktiv handling gör ingenting för att rädda gravida kvinnor och deras barn. Det som krävs är finansiering och enkla åtgärder.

Every two minutes, a woman dies of complications related to pregnancy and childbirth. But it doesn’t have to be that way. Most of these deaths are preventable — and the world has been working on a solution for decades. The problem is the funds dedicated to solving the problem never go far enough.

Ghanaians’ health issues have shifted over time, from infectious diseases and maternal and child health problems to ever more non-communicable diseases. The current co-existence of diseases like malaria and tuberculosis with hypertension, stroke, and diabetes presents a challenge for the country’s health care system, and especially for the poor.

After the ravages of the coronavirus pandemic, the world will be spending trillions of dollars to get us back on track. Increasingly, campaigners and influential policymakers demand this spending be tied to climate goals. IMF chairwoman Kristalina Georgieva urges “We must do everything in our power to make it a green recovery,” and U.S. Democrats, the European Commission and many other countries are pushing ”Green New Deals.” These could cost us tens of trillions of dollars, and, unfortunately, will be one of the worst ways to help us recover.

Proper sanitation practices protect communities from diseases and maintain a clean and safe environment to promote the social, economic, and physical wellbeing of the population. In Ghana, liquid waste management has been largely neglected and remains an urgent issue with nationwide implications.

Across the world, countries have imposed social distancing regulations to avoid overwhelming the health care capacity during the corona pandemic — the so-called “flatten the curve.” Such a policy can be sensible.

The first peer-reviewed cost-benefit analysis of the US shows just that. It looks at moderate social distancing, an approach similar to Sweden’s. Here, social interaction is reduced about 40 percent, allowing schools and work to stay open but dramatically reducing contacts in all other public areas.

Across the world, countries have imposed social distancing regulations to avoid overwhelming the health care capacity during the coronavirus pandemic — the so-called “flatten the curve”. Such a policy can make a lot of sense.

The first peer-reviewed cost-benefit analysis of the US shows just that. It looks at moderate social distancing, an approach similar to Sweden’s. Here, social interaction is reduced about 40 per cent, allowing schools and work to stay open but dramatically reducing contacts in all other public areas.

On the Adam Carolla Show, I recently discussed why corona policies will do more harm than good in many developing countries, and that there are much more effective ways to save lives.

In Ghana, health care policy interventions and research budgets have traditionally been directed towards combatting communicable diseases like HIV/AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis. These are still a major public health concern, but as the country advances toward greater prosperity, the prevalence of non-communicable diseases is also rapidly increasing.

Cardiovascular diseases, cancers, and diabetes are particularly on the rise in Ghana, and one of the largest risk factors for complications such as stroke and coronary heart disease is high blood pressure.