#global-health

#global-health

Famine was confirmed in two places in 2025: areas of the Gaza Strip and Sudan, marking the first dual confirmation since formal famine reporting began. The Global Report on Food Crises indicated that acute food insecurity remained widespread in 2025, affecting nearly 150 million people.

"I didn't understand why I had access to food and other children my age didn't, and that didn't make sense in my head at the time. Injustice was something that always shaped my path and I wanted to do something about that."

Gould's findings were consistent with previous conjectures, where the apparent lower lung function of Black people was part of a justification for enslavement.

We are now realising we deserve more and for me it's teaching women what to say so they get taken seriously. Women on the whole - I wasn't - aren't very good at standing up for ourselves.

Measles is a highly contagious airborne disease causing fever, respiratory symptoms and a characteristic rash and can sometimes have severe or fatal complications, especially in young children.

I am open-minded; I believe in integrative practices, and I agree that the medical establishment can be arrogant and unduly influenced by the pharmaceutical industry, which now funds so much of medical research. But I fully understand Scherer's frustration with his interminable discussions with Kennedy about scientific articles.

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging. At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground.

Trish Mannes stated, "this peak has passed, absolutely" but cautioned that cases could still arise, emphasizing the need for ongoing monitoring.

Risks of outbreaks with pandemic potential rise with increasing land-use change, biodiversity loss and climate change. The Pandemic Agreement adopted by the World Health Assembly in 2025 marks a historic shift that establishes the One Health approach as a legally binding obligation for pandemic prevention.

There is little doubt that this is what African countries need if they are serious about universal health coverage - ensuring that every member of their populations has access to this fundamental human right. But such an approach has never been implemented in Africa. Some of the reasons for this are outlined in a report on health financing by the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), the continent's public-health agency based in Addis Ababa, published last week (see go.nature.com/3o9wxfc).

Being overweight doesn't just make people more susceptible to chronic illnesses such as heart disease and diabetesit might also increase their risk of severe influenza and other infections, a new study confirms. The study, published today in the Lancet, suggests that people with obesity may be more susceptible to death and hospitalization from a variety of infections caused by viruses, fungi, parasites and bacteria.

Each day, they pore over reams of data about how the virus is evolving worldwide, how well last year's shot performed, and which strains might be easiest to mass produce for a vaccine. The meeting, convened by the World Health Organization twice a year, is a critical moment for the WHO's Global Influenza Surveillance and Response System.

Nearly 40% of new cancer cases worldwide are potentially preventable, according to a new analysis. The study found that in 2022, smoking tobacco was the leading contributor to cancer cases, followed by infections and drinking alcohol. Reducing such risk factors is "one of the most powerful ways that we can potentially reduce the future cancer burden", says cancer epidemiologist and study co-author Hanna Fink.