In an article that forms part of the PLoS Medicine series on Big Food, Kelly Brownell offers a perspective on engaging with the food industry, and argues that governments and the public health community should be working for regulation, not collaboration.
In an article that forms part of the PLoS Medicine series on Big Food, Carlos Monteiro and Geoffrey Cannon provide a perspective from Brazil on the rise of multinational food companies and the displacement of traditional food systems, and offer suggestions for the public health response.
A systematic review conducted by Sanjay Basu and colleagues reevaluates the evidence relating to comparative performance of public versus private sector healthcare delivery in low- and middle-income countries.
In an article that forms part of the PLoS Medicine series on Big Food, Andrew Cheyne and colleagues compare soda companies' corporate social responsibility (CSR) campaigns - which are designed to bolster the image and popularity of their products and to prevent regulation - with the tobacco industry's CSR campaigning.
Global food systems are not meeting the world's dietary needs. About one billion people are hungry, while two billion people are overweight. India, for example, is experiencing rises in both: since 1995 an additional 65 million people are malnourished, and one in five adults is now overweight. This coexistence of food insecurity and obesity may seem like a paradox, but over- and undernutrition reflect two facets of malnutrition. Underlying both is a common factor: food systems are not driven to deliver optimal human diets but to maximize profits.
Climate change is a public health problem. Evidence from many sectors shows substantial health impacts of climate change, particularly for the most vulnerable: the poorest, the youngest, and the oldest.
Jerome Singh argues that health ethics principles must be afforded equal status to economics principles in climate change deliberations, and that the health community must play more of a leadership role.
Rajaie Batniji and Eran Bendavid dispute recent suggestions that health aid to developing countries leads to a displacement of government spending and instead argue that current evidence about aid displacement cannot be used to guide policy.
Human exposure to silica dust is very common in both working and living environments. However, the potential long-term health effects have not been well established across different exposure situations. The authors studied 74,040 workers who worked at 29 metal mines and pottery factories in China for 1 y or more between January 1, 1960, and December 31, 1974, with follow-up until December 31, 2003 (median follow-up of 33 y).
Present trends suggest that many of the poorest countries in the world, including many in sub-Saharan Africa, will not meet the health-related Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), especially MDG 4 (reducing under-five mortality) and MDG 5 (reducing maternal mortality). Even in those countries that are on track to meet health MDGs, striking inequities exist among countries and among socioeconomic groups within them, despite effective and cost-effective interventions being available to improve population health, including that of vulnerable groups.
