Global health knows no boundaries.  There are no dividing lines that respect illness and disease, nor are there places where prevention is irrelevant.  I was privileged to join a group recently who saw what a dedicated community can do to protect itself from the threat of non communicable disease, in this case the Tohono O’odham reservation in Arizona.  The Tohono O’odham Nation is composed of approximately 30,000 Native Americans,…

As part of the outcome of the UN High Level Meeting on NCDs, the political declaration adopted acknowledged the special challenges faced by children and youth in preventing and treating non communicable diseases, including cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and chronic lung disease (including asthma). It is…

The prestigious New England Journal of Medicine's lead article this issue is about non communicable diseases (NCDs). Authors Lisa Rosenbaum and Daniela Lamas review the existing evidence, and agree with WHO…

One of the opinions that bubbles up consistently in the global health community is the difficulty and expense of working on chronic illnesses in developing countries.  The costs to prevent, detect, and treat illnesses like cardiovascular disease, chronic lung disease and diabetes are high, the complexities involved are too stringent, and the staff and resources necessary are simply not available.  At the far…

Seven billion people are walking the earth, and for the first time in human history, more than half of us are living in cities. This doesn’t necessarily mean that all of us are living healthier lives, however. The toll of non communicable diseases (NCDs) is rising rapidly, especially among the poor cutting a devastating swath into economic productivity in many nations.

NCDs – primarily cardiovascular disease, cancers, diabetes, chronic lung disease and mental illness – are…

One missing piece in the policy debates around non communicable diseases (NCDs) is an accurate account of their economic impact.  In order for policy makers to begin to grapple with the epidemic sweeping the globe, they need to have a fairly good idea what illnesses like cardiovascular disease, diabetes, chronic lung disease and cancer are having on economies from Bujumbura to Beijing. 

Thanks to some research sponsored by the World…

Today the Presidents of the American Cancer Society, the American Diabetes Association, and the American Heart Association published an unprecedented joint statement concerning support for the UN High Level Meeting on Non Communicable…

For those following the threat of non communicable diseases, especially in developing countries, you may be interested in a blog post on this subject by Global Health Council Policy Manager Craig Moscetti.

Is this an "AIDS Moment" for NCDs?

"Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are arguably one of the greatest threats to global health and economic development in the coming decades and many in the global health community are hoping the…