Bulletin of the World Health Organization
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A gender perspective contributes to a better understanding of the epidemiological trends, social marketing strategies, economic policies, and international actions relating to women and the tobacco epidemic. Evidence is provided in this article for the negative impact of tobacco use by women and of passive smoking on the health of women and children. Use of tobacco by women is increasing and this is related to the tobacco industry's aggressive advertising, sponsorship and promotion strategies. ⋯ At all levels, a multi-pronged strategy--including changes in legislation and fiscal policies, improvements in gender-sensitive health services, and cessation programmes--should be considered. Much more gender-specific research on tobacco use is needed, particularly in developing countries. Women's empowerment and leadership should be at the centre of all tobacco control efforts and are essential for the success of national programmes and the recently introduced Framework Convention on Tobacco Control.
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Bull. World Health Organ. · Jan 2000
Safety of immunization injections in Africa: not simply a problem of logistics.
In 1995, the WHO Regional Office for Africa launched a logistics project to address the four main areas of immunization logistics: the cold chain, transport, vaccine supply and quality, and the safety of injections in the countries of the region. The impact of this logistic approach on immunization injection safety was evaluated through surveys of injection procedures and an analysis of the injection materials (e.g. sterilizable or disposable syringes) chosen by the Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI) and those actually seen to be used. Re-use of injection materials without sterilization, accidental needle-stick injuries among health care workers, and injection-related abscesses in patients were common in countries in the WHO African Region. ⋯ Although the official EPI choice was to use sterilizable equipment, use of a combination of sterilizable and disposable equipment was observed in the field. Unsafe injection practices in these countries were generally due to a failure to integrate nursing practices and public awareness with injection safety issues, and an absence of the influence of EPI managers on health care service delivery. Holistic rather than logistic approaches should be adopted to achieve safe injections in immunization, in the broader context of promoting safe vaccines and safety of all injections.
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Globally, child mortality rates have been halved over the last few decades, a developmental success story. Nevertheless, progress has been uneven and in recent years mortality rates have increased in some countries. ⋯ The major causes of childhood mortality are also reviewed and strategic options for the different states of India are proposed that take into account current mortality rates and the level of progress in individual states. The slowing decline in childhood mortality rates in India calls for new approaches that go beyond disease-, programme- and sector-specific approaches.
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Bull. World Health Organ. · Jan 2000
Cohort study of all-cause mortality among tobacco users in Mumbai, India.
Overall mortality rates are higher among cigarette smokers than non-smokers. However, very little is known about the health effects of other forms of tobacco use widely prevalent in India, such as bidi smoking and various forms of smokeless tobacco (e.g. chewing betel-quid). We therefore carried out a cohort study in the city of Mumbai, India, to estimate the relative risks for all-cause mortality among various kinds of tobacco users. ⋯ These findings establish bidi smoking as no less hazardous than cigarette smoking and indicate that smokeless tobacco use may also cause higher mortality. Further studies should be carried out to obtain cause-specific mortality rates and relative risks.
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Bull. World Health Organ. · Jan 2000
Tobacco use by youth: a surveillance report from the Global Youth Tobacco Survey project.
The Global Youth Tobacco Survey (GYTS) project was developed by the World Health Organization and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to track tobacco use among youth in countries across the world, using a common methodology and core questionnaire. The GYTS is school based and employs a two-stage sample design to produce representative data on smoking among students aged 13-15 years. The first stage consists of a probabilistic selection of schools, and the second consists of a random selection of classes from the participating schools. ⋯ The majority of young people reported being taught in school about the dangers of smoking. Environmental tobacco smoke exposure was very high in all countries. These results show that the GYTS surveillance system is enhancing the capacity of countries to design, implement, and evaluate tobacco prevention and control programmes.