Today's Headlines - 19 August 2023
WHO holds first traditional medicine summit
GS Paper - 3 (Health and Diseases)
The World Health Organization opened its first summit on traditional medicine with the group saying it was seeking to collect evidence and data to allow for the safe use of such treatments. Traditional medicines are a "first port of call for millions of people worldwide", the UN health agency said.
More about the summit
The two-day WHO Traditional Medicine Global Summit takes place alongside a meeting of G20 health ministers in the Indian city of Gandhinagar.
The first global traditional summit, co-hosted by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Ministry of Ayush.
This summit is designed to foster political commitment and evidence-based action in the field of traditional medicine.
As a vital healthcare source for millions worldwide, traditional medicine will be closely examined and evaluated as a formidable force in addressing health and well-being needs.
With a wide array of engagement groups, working groups, and meetings, this event aims to represent the interests of the Global South countries within the G20 framework.
The theme of "One Earth, One Family, One Future" embodies India's philosophy of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam.
More about traditional medicine
The UN health agency defines traditional medicine as the knowledge, skills and practices used over time to maintain health and prevent, diagnose and treat physical and mental illness.
But many traditional treatments have no proven scientific value and conservationists say the industry drives a rampant trade in endangered animals -- including tigers, rhinos and pangolins -- threatening the existence of entire species.
Use of homemade remedies soared during the Covid-19 pandemic, including a green herbal drink based on Artemisia that was promoted by Madagascar's president as a cure.
The plant has a proven efficacy in malaria treatment, but its use to combat Covid was widely scorned by many doctors.
In China, traditional medicine has a distinguished history, but top European medical bodies have previously demanded it be subject to the same regulatory oversight as conventional medical methods.
Flashback
Of the WHO's 194 member states, 170 acknowledged their use of traditional and complementary medicine since 2018, but only 124 reported having laws or regulations for the use of herbal medicines -- while only half had a national policy on such methods and medicines.
About 40 percent of approved pharmaceutical products currently in use derive from a "natural product basis", according to the WHO, which cited "landmark drugs" that derive from traditional medicine, including aspirin, drawing on formulations using willow tree bark.
#upsc #news #headline #WHO #traditional #medicine #health #diseases #data #millions #worldwide #ministry #gandhinagar #global #vasudhaiva #kutumbakam #earth #framework #force #future #philosophy #agency #mental #illness #artemisia #species #pandemic #remedies #herbal #madagascar #european #regulatory #complementary #reported #pharmaceutical #products #natural
WHO holds first traditional medicine summit
GS Paper - 3 (Health and Diseases)
The World Health Organization opened its first summit on traditional medicine with the group saying it was seeking to collect evidence and data to allow for the safe use of such treatments. Traditional medicines are a "first port of call for millions of people worldwide", the UN health agency said.
More about the summit
The two-day WHO Traditional Medicine Global Summit takes place alongside a meeting of G20 health ministers in the Indian city of Gandhinagar.
The first global traditional summit, co-hosted by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Ministry of Ayush.
This summit is designed to foster political commitment and evidence-based action in the field of traditional medicine.
As a vital healthcare source for millions worldwide, traditional medicine will be closely examined and evaluated as a formidable force in addressing health and well-being needs.
With a wide array of engagement groups, working groups, and meetings, this event aims to represent the interests of the Global South countries within the G20 framework.
The theme of "One Earth, One Family, One Future" embodies India's philosophy of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam.
More about traditional medicine
The UN health agency defines traditional medicine as the knowledge, skills and practices used over time to maintain health and prevent, diagnose and treat physical and mental illness.
But many traditional treatments have no proven scientific value and conservationists say the industry drives a rampant trade in endangered animals -- including tigers, rhinos and pangolins -- threatening the existence of entire species.
Use of homemade remedies soared during the Covid-19 pandemic, including a green herbal drink based on Artemisia that was promoted by Madagascar's president as a cure.
The plant has a proven efficacy in malaria treatment, but its use to combat Covid was widely scorned by many doctors.
In China, traditional medicine has a distinguished history, but top European medical bodies have previously demanded it be subject to the same regulatory oversight as conventional medical methods.
Flashback
Of the WHO's 194 member states, 170 acknowledged their use of traditional and complementary medicine since 2018, but only 124 reported having laws or regulations for the use of herbal medicines -- while only half had a national policy on such methods and medicines.
About 40 percent of approved pharmaceutical products currently in use derive from a "natural product basis", according to the WHO, which cited "landmark drugs" that derive from traditional medicine, including aspirin, drawing on formulations using willow tree bark.
#upsc #news #headline #WHO #traditional #medicine #health #diseases #data #millions #worldwide #ministry #gandhinagar #global #vasudhaiva #kutumbakam #earth #framework #force #future #philosophy #agency #mental #illness #artemisia #species #pandemic #remedies #herbal #madagascar #european #regulatory #complementary #reported #pharmaceutical #products #natural
Today's Headlines - 23 August 2023
Maternal vaccine to prevent RSV in infants
GS Paper - 3 (Health and Diseases)
The United States became the first country to approve a vaccine for pregnant women that prevents severe disease caused by Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) in their babies.
More about the Vaccine
The Pfizer shot, which was already approved for use in older adults, has now been greenlighted for use as a single injection from 32 through 36 weeks of pregnancy, to protect infants from birth through six months.
It is the latest in a succession of medicines recently approved against the common microbe, which causes tens of thousands of hospitalizations among infants and the elderly in the United States every year.
Researchers have targeted an RSV vaccine since the 1960s, but the spates of shots that are emerging now were made possible thanks to a scientific breakthrough a decade ago.
RSV is a common cause of illness in children and infants are among those at highest risk for severe disease, which can lead to hospitalization.
This approval provides an option for healthcare providers and pregnant individuals to protect infants from this potentially life-threatening disease.
The approval follows a clinical trial involving some 7,000 pregnant women, which showed Pfizer's vaccine, called Abrysvo, reduced severe disease caused by RSV by 82 percent in babies from 0-3 months, and 69 percent from 0-6 months.
Abrysvo was previously approved by the FDA for adults aged 60 and over, as was another vaccine by drugmaker GSK, called Arexvy.
While RSV most often causes mild, cold-like symptoms in infants and young children, it can also lead to more serious outcomes such as pneumonia and bronchiolitis.
#upsc #news #headline #maternal #vaccine #RSV #healthanddiseases #country #pregnantwomen #severedisease #respiratory #syncytical #virus #vaccine #protectinfacts #commonmicrbe #spatesofshots #illness #healthcare #disease #succession #scientific #hospitalizations #medicines #women #abrysvo #FDA #Arexvy #symptoms #pneumonia #bronchiolitis
Maternal vaccine to prevent RSV in infants
GS Paper - 3 (Health and Diseases)
The United States became the first country to approve a vaccine for pregnant women that prevents severe disease caused by Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) in their babies.
More about the Vaccine
The Pfizer shot, which was already approved for use in older adults, has now been greenlighted for use as a single injection from 32 through 36 weeks of pregnancy, to protect infants from birth through six months.
It is the latest in a succession of medicines recently approved against the common microbe, which causes tens of thousands of hospitalizations among infants and the elderly in the United States every year.
Researchers have targeted an RSV vaccine since the 1960s, but the spates of shots that are emerging now were made possible thanks to a scientific breakthrough a decade ago.
RSV is a common cause of illness in children and infants are among those at highest risk for severe disease, which can lead to hospitalization.
This approval provides an option for healthcare providers and pregnant individuals to protect infants from this potentially life-threatening disease.
The approval follows a clinical trial involving some 7,000 pregnant women, which showed Pfizer's vaccine, called Abrysvo, reduced severe disease caused by RSV by 82 percent in babies from 0-3 months, and 69 percent from 0-6 months.
Abrysvo was previously approved by the FDA for adults aged 60 and over, as was another vaccine by drugmaker GSK, called Arexvy.
While RSV most often causes mild, cold-like symptoms in infants and young children, it can also lead to more serious outcomes such as pneumonia and bronchiolitis.
#upsc #news #headline #maternal #vaccine #RSV #healthanddiseases #country #pregnantwomen #severedisease #respiratory #syncytical #virus #vaccine #protectinfacts #commonmicrbe #spatesofshots #illness #healthcare #disease #succession #scientific #hospitalizations #medicines #women #abrysvo #FDA #Arexvy #symptoms #pneumonia #bronchiolitis