The World Health Report 2002: Reducing Risks, Promoting Healthy LifeWorld Health Organization, 2002 - 248 pages The World Health Report 2002 measures the amount of disease, disability, and health in the world today that can be attributed to some of the most important risks to human health. Even more importantly, it also calculates how much of this present burden could be avoided in the next 10 years. The World Health Report 2002 represents one of the largest research projects ever undertaken by WHO, in collaboration with experts worldwide. Dr Gro Harlem Brundtland, Director-General of WHO, describes this report as a wake up call to the global community. The report quantifies some of the most important risks to human health and examines a range of methods to reduce them. The ultimate goal is to help governments of all countries to lower major risks to health, and thereby raise the healthy life expectancy of their populations. The risk factors range from underweight, unsafe water, sanitation and hygiene to high blood pressure, raised cholesterol, and obesity. The report's findings give an intriguing - and alarming - insight into not just the current causes of disease and death and the factors underlying them, but also into human patterns of living and how some may be changing around the world while others remain dangerously unchanged. Dr Brundtland says: This report helps every country in the world to see what measures it can take to reduce risks and promote healthy life for its own population. |
From inside the book
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... strategies are available . These criteria apply to many of the risks in the report . The increasing level of tobacco consumption , particularly in Asia , is one clear example . The report says a substantial increase in government ...
... strategies aim to make healthy behaviour a social norm , thus lowering risk in the entire population . Small shifts in some risks in the population can translate into major public health benefits . Thus , the chapter strongly advocates ...
... strategies to reduce different types of risk , and the possible impact of those strategies on costs and effectiveness . It considers individual be- haviours related to risk , such as food intake , smoking and sexual behaviour . It also ...
... strategies . Taxes on cigarette products are very cost - effective globally , and higher tax rates result in larger improvements in population health . Even greater improvements would arise if higher taxes were combined with ...
... strategies involving partnerships with communities , nongovernmental organizations , local govern- ment , and private sector organizations . The number of potential risks to health is al- most infinite , and the rapidly changing age ...