The link between poverty and fertility
In the 1950’s the average woman had five children, since then the number has halved globally – but not in a number of African countries that have the highest fertility rates in the world....
Not having siblings is now a risk factor for obesity
Scientists have added the number of children a woman has to be a risk factor for any of the children to be obese. They found parents who have multiple children to be less likely...
20 new confirmed cases of Ebola reported in DR Congo
In the past week, from 21 to 27 October, 20 new confirmed Ebola virus disease (EVD) cases were reported from five health zones in two affected provinces in the Democratic Republic of the...
10 years from now, there will be cure for HIV/AIDS and sickle cell disease
The National Institutes of Health plans to invest at least $100 million over the next four years toward an audacious goal: develop affordable, gene-based cures for sickle cell disease (SCD) and HIV. The...
Nigeria’s increased VAT rate to fund health programmes – President
Nigeria’s President, Muhammadu Buhari, has revealed that additional resources that the government would generate from the increase in the value-added tax (VAT) rate from its current 5% to 7.5% will be used to...
To achieve universal health coverage, Nigeria turns to primary healthcare
Nigeria’s health minister, Dr. Osagie Ehanire, has disclosed that the government is aiming to achieve universal health coverage by strengthening primary health services in the country. If this is achieved, there will be...
Curbing the scourge of diabetes in the twenty-first century
Diabetes is a major public health issue that is approaching epidemic proportions globally. Its prevalence has been rising more rapidly and significantly particularly in Africa where middle- and low-income countries have become a hotspot...
Climate crisis is biggest threat to the future of global health – report
As part of a major new report, the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (RSTMH) asked medical professionals from across the world what they think the next 25 years will hold for global health.
This...
