Nature, biodiversity and health: an overview of interconnections
Urbanization, land use, global trade and industrialization have led to profound and negative impacts on nature, biodiversity and ecosystems across the world. The ongoing depletion of natural resources not only affects environmental c...onditions but also has an enormous impact on the well-being and security of societies.
This report provides an overview of the impacts of the natural environment on human health. It presents the ways nature and ecosystems can support and protect health and well-being, and describes how nature degradation and loss of biodiversity can threaten human health. It is targeted at readers who do not have extensive experience with the links between nature and health.
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Almost 25% of deaths worldwide could be prevented if the actions in the compendium were fully implemented
This compendium provides a systematic compilation of published guidance from WHO and other UN organizations on health and environment. Guidance on policies and actions as well as awareness rais...ing and capacity building interventions is presented for all major areas of health and environment. Guidance referring to priority settings for action such as cities and other urban settlements, housing, workplaces and health care facilities is also listed.
For greater practical relevance, each guidance is classified according to principally involved sectors, level of implementation and instruments for implementation.
The compilation of guidance for each area of health and environment or priority setting for action is accompanied, as available, by information on main sources, exposure assessment and existing guideline values. Important tools and further resources are presented alongside.
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The meningitis road map has been designated as a flagship global strategy of the WHO’s Thirteenth General Programme of Work, 2019–2023 and is an essential component in achieving universal health coverage.
The road map will reinforce and combine with wider initiatives, such as those aimed at s...trengthening primary health care and health systems, increasing immunization coverage, improving global health security, fighting antimicrobial resistance and advocating for the rights of persons with disabilities. It will complement other global control strategies, such as those addressing sepsis, pneumonia, tuberculosis and HIV. Implementation will be a challenge for all countries across the world, but especially in resource-poor settings where the burden of meningitis is greatest. The targets for the visionary and strategic goals will be adapted to regional and local contexts.
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This report aims to support countries in the necessary transition toward healthier, more sustainable diets by integrating biodiversity in food-based interventions to support nutrition and health. It is intended to help guide decision-makers in the health, nutrition and other sectors, to:
Consider... the important role of biodiversity in food systems for the development of integrated interventions to support healthy, diverse and sustainable diets;
To focus investments and country support for more comprehensive, coordinated and cross-cutting public health and nutrition projects and policies; and
To strengthen the resilience of food systems, health systems, and societies, each of which are each increasingly compromised by widespread ecological degradation, biodiversity loss and climate change.
Biodiversity at every level (genetic, species and ecosystem level) is a foundational pillar for food security, nutrition, and dietary quality. It is the basic source of variety in essential foods, nutrients, vitamins and minerals, and medicines, and underpins life-sustaining ecosystem services. It is a core environmental determinant of health, often a vital ingredient of healthy nutritional outcomes and livelihoods, gender equality, social equity, and other health determinants.
Biodiversity can play a more prominent role in planning for nutritional outcomes in various ways, e.g. by facilitating the production of nutritious fruits and plant products, sustaining livelihoods through more efficient production and increasing the diversity of products available in markets. This Guidance presents and expands on six core building blocks for mainstreaming biodiversity for nutrition and health:
Cross-sectoral knowledge development and knowledge co-production;
Enabling environments;
Integration;
Conservation and the wider use of biodiversity;
Education and awareness-raising;
Monitoring and evaluation;
This WHO report builds on an unprecedented opportunity to mainstream biodiversity in order to support healthy and sustainable diets, and offers the necessary technical guidance to catalyze and support a transformation of the global food system and transition to healthier, more sustainable diets.
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The community-BFCI (c-BFCI) manual has been developed to facilitate training of CHVs and stakeholders providing nutrition sensitive services at community level. The manual covers a wide range of topics: basic nutrition, exclusive breastfeeding, complementary feeding, Breast Milk Substitutes Act, gro...wth monitoring and promotion, early childhood development and stimulation, household food and nutrition security and establishment of baby friendly communities.
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The community-BFCI (c-BFCI) manual has been developed to facilitate training of CHVs and stakeholders providing nutrition sensitive services at community level. The manual covers a wide range of topics: basic nutrition, exclusive breastfeeding, complementary feeding, Breast Milk Substitutes Act, gro...wth monitoring and promotion, early childhood development and stimulation, household food and nutrition security and establishment of baby friendly communities.
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DHS Further Analysis Reports No. 109 - This report documents trends in key child nutrition indicators in Rwanda. Data from the Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) in 2005, 2010, and 2014-15 were analyzed, disaggregated by selected equity-related variables, and tested for trends. Over the survey per...iod, Rwanda had high rates of exclusive breastfeeding, with regional variation. Rates of continued breastfeeding were also high but generally decreased as mother’s education and household wealth increased in all survey years. Complementary feeding practices varied by region, mother’s education, household wealth, urban-rural residence, and sex of the child.
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Climate change, increasing population densities, and intensified globalisation in trade, travel and migration are among the most important factors shaping the 21st century. Each impacts upon population health and the risk of infectious disease, particularly those originating at the human-animal-envi...ronmental interface. The recognition that many risk drivers of infectious disease fall outside of the typical domain of the health sector creates the challenge of identifying and pursuing priorities for cross-sectoral action aimed at strengthening global health security. In response, the One Health concept has emerged, as have related initiatives addressing Planetary Health and Biodiversity and Human Health. From a public health perspective and operationally speaking, the One Health approach offers great potential, emphasising as it does cooperation and coordination between multiple sectors. Yet despite having been a focal point for discussion for over a decade, numerous challenges facing the implementation of One Health preparedness strategies remain. While some are technical, related to the requirement for innovative early warning systems or new vaccines, for example, others are institutional and cultural in nature, given the transdisciplinary nature of the topic. There have thus been calls to address One Health from multiple perspectives, from ecology to the social sciences. In order to further explore this issue and to identify priority areas for action for strengthening One Health preparedness in Europe, ECDC convened an expert consultation on 11–12 December 2017.
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The 2015-16 MDHS is a national sample survey that provides up-to-date information on fertility levels; marriage; fertility preferences; awareness and use of family planning methods; child feeding practices; nutrition; adult and childhood mortality; awareness and attitudes regarding HIV/AIDS; women...s empowerment; and domestic violence. The target groups were women and men age 15-49 residing in randomly selected households across the country. In addition to national estimates, the report provides estimates of key indicators for both urban and rural areas in Myanmar and also for the 15 states and regions.
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Census Report Volume 4-L
Myanmar’s 2014 Census enumerated 4.5 million people aged 60 and over and by 2050 Myanmar is projected to have 13 million people in this age group.
Myanmar’s population has aged between 1973 and 2014; while the total population increased at an annual rate of 1....4 per cent, the population aged 60 and over increased annually by 2.4 per cent. Within the older population, the oldest age group, those over 80 years old, has been growing much faster than those aged 60-79. In 2014, the urban population was slightly older than the rural population. This is the result of a more rapid decline in urban fertility, offset by net migration to urban areas by youth and young adults.
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The WHO South-East Asia (SEA) Region bears a high burden of tuberculosis (TB) and MDR-TB. In 2015, the Region accounted for nearly 200 000 or 35% of the global estimated new RR/MDR-TB cases eligible for treatment. Extensively drug-resistant TB (XDRTB) has also been reported from s...ix countries of the SEA Region. MDR-TB could potentially replace drug-susceptible TB, and constitutes a threat to global public health security. The South- East Asia Regional Response Framework for DR-TB 2017–2021 complements the Ending TB in the South-East Asia Region: Regional Strategic Plan 2016–2020” and outlines key strategies for reducing morbidity, mortality and transmission of DR-TB.
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The study on refugee economies shows that refugees and former refugees are contributing positively to Zambia’s economy in various ways and have the potential to contribute even further if legal and other obstacles are removed.
The study targeted mainly Congolese, Burundian, Somali, and Rwandan re...fugees as well as former refugees from Rwanda and Angola in urban areas and the two rural refugee settlements, Mayukwayukwa (Kaoma District/Western Province) and Meheba (Kaulumbila District/North-Western Province).
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The document introduces a simple classification, minimums standards and a registration form for Foreign Medical Teams (FMTs) that may provide surgical and trauma care arriving within the aftermath of a sudden onset disaster. These can serve as tools to improve the coordination of the foreign medical... team response, and be the reference for registration on arrival as well as a possible global registration mechanism similar to what exists for urban search and rescue teams
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DHS Working Papers No. 69
This paper uses data from the three Indian National Family Health Surveys (1992-93, 1998-99, 2005-06) to examine how the relationship between household wealth and child mortality evolved during a time of significant economic change in India. The main predictor is a new... measure of household wealth that captures changes in wealth over time. Outcomes include neonatal mortality, postneonatal mortality, child mortality, and under-five mortality. Multivariate analysis is conducted at the national, urban, rural, and regional levels.
Results indicate that the overall relationship between household wealth and mortality weakened over time, as evidenced by the coefficients for under-five mortality at the national level.
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The risks of the use of nuclear, radiological, biological or chemical (NRBC) weapons are heterogeneous. Each risk has its own implications for developing and deploying any capacity to assist victims of an NRBC event and, in parallel, for the health and security of the people bringing this assistance.... At an international level, there are no plans for assisting the victims of an NRBC event which are both adequate and safe. Recognizing
the realities of the contexts associated with each risk throws up numerous challenges; such recognition is also a prerequisite for addressing these challenges. The realities that have to be considered relate to:
1. developing, acquiring, training for and planning an NRBC response capacity;
2. deploying a response capacity in an NRBC event;
3. the mandates and policies of international organizations pertaining to NRBC events. The challenges that will pose the greatest difficulty for a humanitarian organization are those for which the solutions are ‘non-buyable’ and which involve making extremely difficult decisions. Attempting to assist victims of an NRBC event without a reality-based approach might generate ineffective and unacceptably dangerous situations for those involved.
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La promotion de la santé et la prévention des maladies nécessitent une action multisectorielle qui renforce les environnements favorables à la santé et oriente les comportements. Au niveau des cantons et des communes, de nombreuses politiques, telles
la protection de la jeunesse, la promotion ...de la santé à l’école, la promotion de la santé et de la sécurité au travail, l’action sociale, le soutien au logement, la promotion de l’intégration, l’aménagement du territoire, la gestion de la mobilité ou la protection
de l’environnement sont des leviers très efficaces pour améliorer l’état de santé de la population.
L’argumentaire «Promouvoir la santé et prévenir les maladies» a pour objectif d’expliquer les enjeux et
d’inciter les personnes actives dans ces divers domaines à intégrer la promotion de la santé dans leurs activités et projets. Cela exige de leur mettre à disposition des informations actuelles et facilement compréhensibles
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The Sphere Handbook is the oldest initiative in the field of humanitarian standards. It has been field-tested over twenty years and regularly updated to ensure it remains fit for purpose in a changing world. What does not change is its rights-based foundations: people have the right to assistance, ...the right to life with dignity, the right to protection and security, and the right to fully participate in decisions related to their own recovery
A New Version in English and French was published in 2018
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Personne ne va dans un établissement de soins de santé pour tomber malade. On s’y rend pour se faire soigner, pour accoucher
ou pour se faire vacciner. Cependant, des centaines de millions de personnes s’exposent à un risque accru d’infection en cherchant à obtenir des soins dans des éta...blissements de santé dépourvus de produits de première nécessité, notamment de services d’approvisionnement en eau, d’assainissement et d’hygiène, de gestion des déchets biomédicaux et de nettoyage (services WASH). L’absence de services WASH dans les établissements de santé compromet la sécurité et la dignité des patients, tout en menaçant d’exacerber la propagation d’infections résistantes aux agents antimicrobiens et en fragilisant les efforts déployés pour améliorer la santé des enfants et des mères.
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Personne ne se rend dans un établissement de soins de santé pour tomber malade. On s’y rend pour aller mieux, pour accoucher, pour se faire vacciner. Cependant, des centaines de millions de gens sont confrontés à un risque accru d’infection quand ils se font soigner dans des établissements ...de santé où les services de première nécessité font défaut, y compris les services d’approvisionnement en eau, d’assainissement et d’hygiène (WASH) et les services de gestion des déchets médicaux. Non seulement l’absence de services WASH dans les établissements de santé compromet la sécurité sanitaire des patients et leur dignité, mais il peut éventuellement exacerber la propagation d’infections résistant aux antimicrobiens et compromettre les efforts faits en vue de l’amélioration de la santé maternelle et infantile.
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La mise à jour 2017 du rapport du Programme commun de suivi de l'approvisionnement en eau et de l'assainissement présente les indicateurs et les estimations de base pour les objectifs de développement durable liés à l'approvisionnement en eau, à l'assainissement et à l'hygiène. Le rapport é...nonce les indicateurs des services d'approvisionnement en eau potable et d'assainissement "gérés en toute sécurité", ce qui va au-delà de l'utilisation d'installations améliorées et prend en compte de la qualité des services fournis. Pour la première fois, des estimations relatives à l'hygiène pour 70 pays sont incluses dans le rapport.
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