WHO | DD News

December 2, 2025 3:37 PM

Explainer- GLP-1 therapies get WHO nod for obesity, but access challenges dominate concerns

The World Health Organisation (WHO) on Monday issued global guidelines recommending GLP-1 drugs for the long-term treatment of obesity. According to the WHO, this disease affects more than 1 billion people worldwide. The decision comes at a time when demand for drugs like semaglutide and tirzepatide has surged, and countries are working on how to include these therapies in public health systems. This announcement now formalises a shift that could influence medical policy, insurance coverage, and...

December 2, 2025 10:29 AM

WHO backs use of GLP-1 therapies for obesity, warns access will remain limited

The World Health Organization on Monday issued its first guideline on the use of GLP-1 therapies for obesity, conditionally recommending them as part of long-term treatment for the condition, which affects more than 1 billion people globally according to the agency. The guidance comes as demand for the class of drugs known as GLP-1 agonists has surged worldwide, and governments are figuring out how to include the blockbuster therapies into public health systems. The first conditional recommend...

December 1, 2025 3:00 PM

World AIDS Day 2025: India Strengthens Response, Boosts Awareness and Treatment Efforts

World marks World AIDS Day on December 1 to raise awareness about HIV/AIDS, honour those who have died, and support people living with the virus. First marked by the World Health Organization (WHO) in 1988, the day brings governments, communities, and individuals together worldwide to confront the epidemic. This year’s theme, “Overcoming disruption, transforming the AIDS response,” stresses safeguarding past progress while making HIV services more resilient, equitable, and community-led, p...

November 17, 2025 12:51 PM

Preventable cervical cancer kills a woman every two minutes: UN

One woman worldwide dies every two minutes due to cervical cancer -- a treatable and preventable disease --said the UN on Monday on the first official World Cervical Cancer Elimination Day. The day -- November 17 -- was designated by the Seventy-eighth World Health Assembly (WHA78.8) to raise awareness of the disease, and to expand access to HPV vaccination, high-performance screening, and treatment services. “Every two minutes, a woman dies from cervical cancer. Access to screening, vaccina...

November 10, 2025 4:40 PM

Understanding mental health: Global perspectives and India’s expanding focus

Mental well-being is not merely about feeling happy or stress-free - it’s about the ability to think, feel, connect, and function effectively in daily life. In recent years, global and national attention on mental health has surged, transforming what was once a silent struggle into a central conversation about human rights, public health, and social development. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), mental health conditions are among the leading causes of disability worldwide. An ...

October 21, 2025 3:34 PM

EU considers banning ethanol in hand sanitizers over cancer risk concerns

The EU is weighing a ban on the usage of ethanol as an active ingredient in biocidal products, including hand sanitizers, over increasing risks of cancer, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday. An internal recommendation on October 10 by one of the working groups within the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) flagged ethanol as a toxic substance, which increased the risk of cancer and pregnancy complications and needed to be replaced in cleaning and other products, the FT said. The ECHA's Bioci...

October 18, 2025 5:01 PM

IndiaAI, WHO seek AI healthcare abstracts for Global South Casebook at 2026 Summit

The IndiaAI Mission, under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), Government of India, has partnered with the World Health Organization (WHO) to invite abstracts showcasing impactful and scalable artificial intelligence (AI) applications in healthcare. The selected entries will contribute to a Casebook on AI Health Use Cases Across the Global South, to be unveiled at the India–AI Impact Summit 2026 in New Delhi on February 19-20. This collaborative initiative aims to ...

October 13, 2025 11:06 PM

WHO warns of surging levels of antibiotic resistance

One in six laboratory-confirmed bacterial infections are resistant to antibiotic treatments, the World Health Organization said on Monday, calling for the medicines to be used more responsibly. Resistance to antibiotics rose in around 40% of samples monitored, the U.N. health agency said in a report based on data from more than 100 countries between 2016-2023. “Antimicrobial resistance is outpacing advances in modern medicine, threatening the health of families worldwide,” WHO Director-Gen...

October 13, 2025 1:37 PM

PM Gati Shakti completes four years, Piyush Goyal calls it a cornerstone in India’s journey towards ‘Viksit Bharat’

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Monday hailed four years of the PM Gati Shakti National Master Plan (NMP), saying it has become a cornerstone in India’s journey towards a ‘Viksit Bharat’ by 2047. Speaking on the occasion of the scheme’s four-year anniversary, Goyal said PM Gati Shakti, launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on October 13, 2021, has reduced logistics costs and improved service delivery. “Marking four years of PM Gati Shakti, a game-changing initiative...

October 7, 2025 12:57 PM

WHO estimates at least 15 million teenagers use e-cigarettes worldwide

At least 15 million people aged 13 to 15 use e-cigarettes globally, with young people on average nine times more likely to vape than adults in countries with data, the World Health Organization said on Monday. In its first global estimate of e-cigarette use, the WHO said more than 100 million people worldwide are now vaping, including at least 86 million adults, mostly in high-income countries. The figures come as global tobacco use continues to decline, with the number of tobacco users falli...