PARIS, France (AFP) — In 27 years from now, almost a quarter of the global population will be obese, researchers said Wednesday, warning of the mounting medical bill. If current trends continue, 22 percent of people in the world will be obese by 2045, up from 14 percent last year, according to research presented at the European Congress on Obesity in Vienna. One in eight people, up from one in 11, will have type […]
Tag: health
Death toll in DR Congo Ebola outbreak now at 27; authorities start administering prototype vaccine
KINSHASA, DR Congo (AFP) — The death toll from Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has risen to 27, the health ministry said on Tuesday, after a fatality was recorded in a city on the front line of the outbreak. The death, which involved a person confirmed by lab tests as having the viral disease, occurred in Wangata, a district of Mbandaka, the ministry said in a press release. So far, there […]
An egg a day may keep the doctor away, study claims; lower risk of heart disease noted
PARIS, France (AFP) — For decades, experts warned that eating eggs raises levels of unhealthy cholesterol. But a study Tuesday said an egg a day may actually reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke. While outside experts cautioned against reading too much into the study, its authors claimed that Chinese adults who ate an egg every day had a lower risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Studying half-a-million healthy adults aged 30-79 over almost […]
Five dead, dozens quarantined as fear of virus carried by fruit bats spread in India
NEW DELHI, India (AFP) — A deadly virus carried by fruit bats has killed at least five people in southern India and more than 90 people are in quarantine, a top health official said Tuesday. Other deaths are suspected to have been caused by Nipah virus and authorities have ordered emergency measures to control the outbreak. “We can confirm that five people have died from the Nipah virus,” Kerala state health surveillance officer K.J. […]
Ebola death toll hits 26 in DR Congo as vaccinations start
MBANDAKA, DR Congo (AFP) — The death toll in an outbreak of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) rose to 26 on Monday after a person died in the northwest city of Mbandaka, the government said, as it began vaccinating first responders against the dreaded disease. “A death was recorded (on Sunday), while two people who had been confirmed as ill with the Ebola virus were cured on Saturday,” Health Minister Oly Ilunga […]
Nipah virus, carried by fruit bats, kills at least three in India, sparks health alert
by Abhaya Srivastava Agence France Presse NEW DELHI, India (AFP) — A deadly virus carried mainly by fruit bats has killed at least three people in southern India, sparking a statewide health alert Monday. Eight other deaths in the state of Kerala are being investigated for possible links to the Nipah virus, which has a 70 percent mortality rate. Kerala’s Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has urged citizens to stay vigilant and follow instructions from […]
25 people dead due to Ebola in DR Congo as disease spreads
The number of suspected, probable and confirmed Ebola cases in the Democratic Republic of Congo has risen to 45, with 25 people dead, the World Health Organization said Friday. WHO spokesman Tarik Jasarevic, who gave the figures to reporters in Geneva, said that 14 of the cases had been confirmed as the deadly Ebola virus following laboratory tests. This came about after WHO warned Friday that the Ebola outbreak in Democratic Republic of the […]
Tick tock: Study links body clock to mood disorders
by Marlowe HOOD Agence France-Presse Messing with the natural rhythm of one’s internal clock may boost the risk of developing mood problems ranging from garden-variety loneliness to severe depression and bipolar disorder, researchers said Wednesday. The largest study of its kind, involving more than 91,000 people, also linked interference with the body’s “circadian rhythm” to a decline in cognitive functions such as memory and attention span. The brain’s hard-wired circadian timekeeper governs day-night cycles, influencing […]
US first lady hospitalized with ‘benign’ kidney condition
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US First Lady Melania Trump had surgery Monday for what aides called a “benign” kidney condition, and will remain in hospital for the rest of the week. The Slovenia-born wife of Donald Trump underwent an embolization procedure, said her communications director Stephanie Grisham. “The procedure was successful and there were no complications,” Grisham said. But the 48-year-old former model is expected to stay in hospital “for the duration of the week.” […]
WHO reports new Ebola case in DR Congo, vaccine this week
KINSHASA, DR Congo (AFP) — The head of the World Health Organization said Sunday there has been another reported case of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo and that an experimental vaccine to fight the disease is expected to become available in the country this week. Doctor Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, on a two-visit to DR Congo, said the suspected new case was in Bikoro, at the centre of the latest Ebola outbreak in the […]
Olympic hockey champ warns of mental pressures for elite athletes
by Pirate Irwin © Agence France-Presse LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — British hockey star Helen Richardson-Walsh — who battled back from depression to win an Olympic gold medal in Rio — says young athletes need help to manage the pressures that come with top-level sport. Richardson-Walsh, 36, said young, ambitious elite sportsmen and women may be unaware of the incessant and challenging demands they will face. “Transition into sport is equally if not more important than […]
Nine out of 10 people breathing polluted air: WHO
by Nina LARSON Agence France Presse GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) — More than 90 percent of the global population is breathing in high levels of pollutants, the World Health Organization said Wednesday, blaming poor air quality for some seven million deaths annually. Fresh data from the UN health body showed that every corner of the globe is dealing with air pollution, although the problem is far worse in poorer countries. “Air pollution threatens us all, but […]





