Latest news with #HansKluge
Yahoo
15-07-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Childhood vaccinations lag in Europe, making kids vulnerable to outbreaks of measles, other diseases
European children are less likely to get routine vaccinations than they were five years ago, according to a new report from the World Health Organization (WHO). Immunisations against measles, whooping cough, polio, and hepatitis B remained below pre-pandemic levels in Europe and Central Asia in 2024, due largely to a sense of 'vaccine complacency' that is already causing a resurgence of preventable diseases, the agency said. Last year, nearly 300,000 people in the region got whooping cough, more than three times as many as in 2023, the report found. More than 125,000 people got measles, the region's highest case count in more than 25 years. 'These are not just numbers – it's hundreds of thousands of families in anguish because their children are sick, and it could have been prevented,' Dr Hans Kluge, the WHO's Europe director, said in a statement. Related Parents urged to vaccinate their kids after child dies of measles in the UK More than half of the region's 53 countries had vaccination rates that were below the level needed to prevent outbreaks of measles, mumps, rubella, diphtheria, whooping cough, and tetanus. Health experts often point to vaccine hesitancy to explain why more parents are opting not to immunise their children. But Regina De Dominicis, who leads UNICEF's work in Europe and Central Asia, instead cited vaccine complacency, which is when parents believe the risks from preventable diseases are low and therefore do not see a reason to vaccinate their children. 'Today's generation has not witnessed the devastating impact of vaccine-preventable diseases – leading to complacency and making it easier for misinformation to take hold,' De Dominics said. Related Millions of children are missing out on routine jabs. Why aren't they getting vaccinated? Notably, Europeans are not turning away from all vaccines equally. Over the past five years, children and young people have become more likely to get vaccines that protect against human papillomavirus (HPV), rotavirus, pneumonia, and meningitis. Several countries have introduced these jabs in recent years, which is expected to help reduce rates of HPV infections and related cervical cancer, as well as child hospitalisations from bacterial diseases, pneumonia, and rotavirus-induced diarrhoea, the WHO said. To boost routine immunisation rates, health officials called on countries to shore up their health systems, ensure vaccines are widely available, and fight misinformation about the jabs. 'Communities must be empowered with trusted information, so parents can confidently vaccinate their children,' Kluge said.
Euronews
15-07-2025
- Health
- Euronews
Childhood vaccinations falling due to vaccine complacency, says WHO
European children are less likely to get routine vaccinations than they were five years ago, according to a new report from the World Health Organization (WHO). Immunisations against measles, whooping cough, polio, and hepatitis B remained below pre-pandemic levels in Europe and Central Asia in 2024, due largely to a sense of 'vaccine complacency' that is already causing a resurgence of preventable diseases, the agency said. Last year, nearly 300,000 people in the region got whooping cough, more than three times as many as in 2023, the report found. More than 125,000 people got measles, the region's highest case count in more than 25 years. 'These are not just numbers – it's hundreds of thousands of families in anguish because their children are sick, and it could have been prevented,' Dr Hans Kluge, the WHO's Europe director, said in a statement. More than half of the region's 53 countries had vaccination rates that were below the level needed to prevent outbreaks of measles, mumps, rubella, diphtheria, whooping cough, and tetanus. Health experts often point to vaccine hesitancy to explain why more parents are opting not to immunise their children. But Regina De Dominicis, who leads UNICEF's work in Europe and Central Asia, instead cited vaccine complacency, which is when parents believe the risks from preventable diseases are low and therefore do not see a reason to vaccinate their children. 'Today's generation has not witnessed the devastating impact of vaccine-preventable diseases – leading to complacency and making it easier for misinformation to take hold,' De Dominics said. Improvement on some newer vaccines Notably, Europeans are not turning away from all vaccines equally. Over the past five years, children and young people have become more likely to get vaccines that protect against human papillomavirus (HPV), rotavirus, pneumonia, and meningitis. Several countries have introduced these jabs in recent years, which is expected to help reduce rates of HPV infections and related cervical cancer, as well as child hospitalisations from bacterial diseases, pneumonia, and rotavirus-induced diarrhoea, the WHO said. To boost routine immunisation rates, health officials called on countries to shore up their health systems, ensure vaccines are widely available, and fight misinformation about the jabs. 'Communities must be empowered with trusted information, so parents can confidently vaccinate their children,' Kluge said.
Nahar Net
01-07-2025
- Climate
- Nahar Net
Heat wave covers much of Europe and higher temperatures are on the way
A heat wave covered much of Europe on Monday, with a record-hot first day of play at Wimbledon and high winds fanning forest fires in Turkey. Heat warnings were issued for parts of Spain, Portugal, Italy, Germany and the U.K., with new highs expected on Wednesday before rain should bring respite to some areas. "Extreme heat is no longer a rare event — it has become the new normal," U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres tweeted from Seville, Spain, where temperatures hit 42 degrees Celsius (108 degrees Fahrenheit). He called for action to fight climate change, saying "the planet is getting hotter & more dangerous." Dr. Hans Kluge, head of the World Health Organization's Europe office, warned in a statement that the scorching heat "silently threatens the people who need protection most: older adults, children, outdoor workers and anyone living with chronic health conditions." Portugal Portuguese authorities issued a red heat warning for seven of 18 districts as temperatures were forecast to hit 43 C (109F). Spain Spain's national weather service said no relief from the first heat wave of the year is expected until Thursday. Sunday's national average of 28 C (82F) set a new high temperature for June 29 since records were started in 1950. France In France, where air conditioning remains relatively rare, authorities were taking extra effort to care for homeless and elderly people. Misting stations doused passers-by along the River Seine in Paris. France's first significant forest fires of the season consumed 400 hectares (988 acres) of woods Sunday and Monday in the southern Aude region. Water-dumping planes and some 300 firefighters were mobilized, the regional emergency service said. Turkey In Turkey, forest fires forced the temporary closure of the airport in Izmir, the state-run Anadolu Agency reported. Authorities evacuated four villages as a precaution, the Forestry Ministry said. Firefighters battled a blaze that broke out Monday near residential areas in Hatay province, near the border with Syria, that prompted 1,500 people to evacuate. Italy In Italy, the Health Ministry put 21 cities under its "red" alert, which indicates "emergency conditions with possible negative effects" on healthy, active people as well as others. Regional governments in northwestern Liguria and southern Sicily put restrictions on outdoor work. There were torrential rains in the north, and parts of Bardonecchia near Turin were covered in sludge after the Frejus river burst its banks. RAI state television said one person was killed. Britain Britain's national weather service said the Wimbledon tennis tournament was facing what could be its hottest start, with temperatures just under 30 C (85F). Tournament rules allow players to take a 10-minute break when the heat goes above 30.1 C mid-match. Germany Temperatures in southern Germany were forecast as high as 39 C (102F) on Wednesday. Some towns and regions imposed limits on how much water can be taken from rivers and lakes. At the Berlin zoo, elephants were showered with water and bears treated with blocks of ice containing fruit.
Euractiv
01-07-2025
- Health
- Euractiv
Avoidable chronic diseases are Europe's deadliest killers, says Eurostat data
New data from Eurostat show that around 1.1 million deaths per year in Europe could be avoided through smarter public health policies targeting alcohol and tobacco, or better-quality medical care. According to new figures from 2022 released by the EU's official statistics agency on Monday, the deadliest diseases affecting people under 75 in Europe are not caused by viruses, but by chronic health conditions. The agency found that 386,710 deaths were from treatable diseases – avoidable through high-quality medical care – and 725,625 deaths were due to preventable chronic diseases. These include lung cancer, cardiovascular disease, and alcohol-related poisoning. Latvia recorded the highest rate of avoidable deaths, followed by Romania and Hungary. Ranking lowest, however, were Sweden, Italy, and Luxembourg. Since 2010, gaps between western and eastern countries have been growing on tobacco use, obesity, high blood pressure, and diabetes, the WHO found in a recent report. These figures come as countries are preparing to debate the topic at the UN General Assembly in New York this September, where they will address targets for reducing noncommunicable diseases by 2030. The World Health Organization's Europe chief, Hans Kluge, has said the bloc can turn things around and has called for 'bold' prevention policies. A workforce issue? Several unions, including ETUC and EPSU, said the figures reflect a broader problem with the bloc's health workforce, linked to cuts in national and EU-level social spending. According to the OECD, the EU faces a shortage of 1.2 million healthcare workers. Esther Lynch, general secretary of ETUC said that 'despite the heroic daily efforts of healthcare workers regularly doing overtime to make-up for huge shortages, these figures show again that austerity kills.' Alessandro Gallina, a policy officer at non-profit European Public Health Alliance, said that the Eurostat figures "underscore a painful truth: prevention remains key to reducing avoidable deaths, yet the EU's health workforce planning still fails to fully embed it." This also comes as health NGOs – many of which focus on prevention – are concerned about their financial future under the EU's next long-term budget. In June, a few countries, including Belgium, Spain, and Slovenia, called for sustained civil society funding in the MFF. Frank Vandenbroucke, Belgium's health minister, said NGO funding would be crucial for prevention work "independent of lobbies" like the tobacco or food industries. (bms, aw)
Sydney Morning Herald
01-07-2025
- Climate
- Sydney Morning Herald
Europe stifles as heatwave grips, and higher temperatures are on the way
A heatwave covered much of Europe on Monday, with a record-hot first day of play at Wimbledon and high winds fanning forest fires in Turkey. Heat warnings were issued for parts of Spain, Portugal, Italy, Germany, and the UK, with new highs expected on Wednesday before rain is expected to bring respite to some areas. 'Extreme heat is no longer a rare event – it has become the new normal,' UN Secretary-General António Guterres tweeted from Seville, Spain, where temperatures hit 42 degrees Celsius (108 degrees Fahrenheit). He called for action to fight climate change, saying 'the planet is getting hotter & more dangerous'. Dr Hans Kluge, head of the World Health Organisation's Europe office, warned in a statement that the scorching heat 'silently threatens the people who need protection most: older adults, children, outdoor workers and anyone living with chronic health conditions'. Spain's national weather service said no relief from the first heat wave of the year is expected until Thursday. Sunday's national average of 28 degrees set a new high temperature for June 29 since records were started in 1950. In neighbouring Portugal, authorities issued a red heat warning for seven of 18 districts as temperatures were forecast to hit 43 degrees. Sixteen regions of France, including Paris, have been placed on red alert for Tuesday, the BBC reported. In a country where air conditioning remains relatively rare, authorities were taking extra efforts to care for the homeless and elderly people. Misting stations doused passers-by along the River Seine in Paris. France's first significant forest fires of the season consumed 400 hectares of woods on Sunday and Monday in the southern Aude region. Water-dumping planes and some 300 firefighters were mobilised, the regional emergency service said. The peak of Mont Blanc, Europe's highest mountain, is above freezing in June for the first time ever. Mont Blanc stands at 4809 metres, but Meteo France, the national forecaster, said on Saturday that it had to reach an altitude of 5135 metres to measure air at zero degrees. In Turkey, forest fires forced the temporary closure of the airport in Izmir, the state-run Anadolu Agency reported. Authorities evacuated four villages as a precaution, the Forestry Ministry said. Firefighters battled a blaze that broke out on Monday near residential areas in Hatay province, near the border with Syria, that prompted 1500 people to evacuate. In Italy, the Health Ministry put 21 cities under its 'red' alert, which indicates 'emergency conditions with possible negative effects' on healthy, active people as well as others. Regional governments in northwestern Liguria and southern Sicily put restrictions on outdoor work. There were torrential rains in the north, and parts of Bardonecchia near Turin were covered in sludge after the Frejus river burst its banks. RAI state television said one person was killed. Britain's national weather service said the Wimbledon tennis tournament was facing what could be its hottest start, with temperatures just under 30 degrees. Tournament rules allow players to take a 10-minute break when the heat goes above 30.1 degrees mid-match. Temperatures in southern Germany were forecast as high as 39 degrees on Wednesday. Some towns and regions have imposed limits on the amount of water that can be taken from rivers and lakes. At the Berlin Zoo, elephants were showered with water and bears were treated with blocks of ice containing fruit. Globally, extreme heat kills up to 480,000 people annually, surpassing the combined toll from floods, earthquakes and hurricanes, and poses growing risks to infrastructure, the economy and healthcare systems, Swiss Re said earlier this month. Global surface temperatures last month averaged 1.4 degrees higher than in the pre-industrial period, when humans began burning fossil fuels on an industrial scale, the EU's Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) said earlier this month. Scientists say the main cause of climate change is greenhouse gas emissions from burning fossil fuels. Last year was the planet's hottest on record.
