World AIDS Day 2021

The theme of World AIDS Day 2021 is “End inequalities. End AIDS”.  With a special focus on reaching people left behind, WHO and its partners highlight the growing inequalities in access to essential HIV services. 

Despite significant progress, the world has made in recent decades, HIV remains a major public health issue that affects millions of people worldwide.  While important global targets for 2020 were not met, COVID-19 exacerbates inequities and disruptions to services,  making the lives of many people living with HIV more challenging.

An estimated 37.7 million people live with HIV at the end of 2020, over two-thirds of whom or 25.4 million are in the WHO African Region.  The same year, 680 000 people died from HIV-related causes, while 1.5 million people acquired HIV.

This year, the World Health Organization calls on global leaders and citizens to rally to confront the inequalities that drive AIDS and reach people who are currently not receiving essential HIV services.  These problems need a renewed effort to end HIV as a public health threat by 2030.  

Source: WHO World AIDS Day 2021

COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy, Myths and Misinformation

Earlier this year, we asked our colleagues whether they would get vaccinated against COVID-19.  Almost 7 out of 10 said that they would get the vaccine once it becomes available. The remaining three were either unsure or will definitely not get vaccinated.  

Unfortunately, our survey results are better than those conducted by private agencies with respondents across the country.  One survey showed that 61% of their subjects would say no to the vaccines, another 23% were uncertain, and only 16% were willing to get inoculated if the vaccines were available at the time of the survey.  The other study had better results, with 32% of their informants willing to receive the vaccine, while 35% were uncertain, and 33% were unwilling. 

Image from www.who.int

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Not surprisingly, the reasons given by those unwilling and uncertain participants of our survey were almost the same as those of the other surveys. Both sets of respondents were worried about the safety of the vaccines that they might get sick of COVID-19, and the vaccine would not help them.  

It does not help that so much information, both right and wrong is readily available on social media and other online sites.  Health experts are worried about the amount of misinformation that they even called an "infodemic."

image from www.who.int

Much of the misinformation focus on the vaccine's safety.  Most people are concerned that the laboratories rushed the development of the vaccine and that they did not go through all the required steps.  Authorities with John Hopkins Medicine assure that the developers of the COVID-19 vaccines did not rush on testing for safety and efficacy, and they used processes that have been developed and tested over many years.  These procedures are really to develop — and thoroughly test — vaccines quickly in an infectious disease pandemic like COVID-19.

My favorite myth is that the vaccine carries a microchip that can detect and track the recipient.  When switched on, the chip could alter the person's DNA and turn him into a zombie.  Well, sorry, but no, the vaccine will not turn anybody into a zombie.  WHO explains that the mRNA used in some vaccines only has instructions to produce a protein, and then our natural immune system responds to it.  The mRNA can't turn into DNA, nor can it change the DNA of human cells.  That means there won't be any zombie apocalypse because of the vaccine.

image from www.who.int

You will not get COVID-19 from the vaccines since they do not contain live coronavirus. John Hopkins Medicine further explains that you might experience a sore arm after the shots, a mild fever, or body aches, but this doesn’t mean you have COVID-19. These symptoms are temporary, usually lasting only a day or two if you get them. These are signals of a natural response as our body’s immune system learns to recognize and fight the coronavirus.

The other fallacies that continue to circulate are the vaccine could cause infertility among women, and that those who had previous COVID-19 infections do not need to get vaccinated.

image from hopkinsmedicine.org

Of course, the vaccines themselves will not put an end to the pandemic.  We must all go out and get our shots.  Doing so will not only protect us but also our loved ones and our community as a whole.  Even when we get our vaccines, the Department of Health advises that we continue observing the minimum health standards, such as frequently washing our hands, wearing face masks, and going outside our homes only when necessary.

COVID-19: Be Ready

The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted almost the entire world.  It can affect anyone of us at any time.  While we should continue with our daily life, how does one prepare for the day under these medical circumstances?  I found this very helpful poster from the United Nations site and I wish to share it with you.  I hope you could find it helpful.

Be safe everyone.  Always wash your hands and as much as possible, #STAYATHOME.

un.org

COVID 19: What We Need to Know

photo: CDC

As my contribution to the fight against COVID-19, beginning with this post I will share information about the disease. To avoid spreading wrong information, I will directly quote my sources which may include the WHO, the Department of Health, the CDC and other reliable sources.  The information may be already available online but I believe in casting the net a little farther to reach more people.  

Let's begin by knowing what COVID-19 is.  According to the World Health Organization (WHO), COVID-19 is an infectious disease caused by the most recently discovered coronavirus which was unknown before the outbreak began in Wuhan, China, in December 2019.  

So far, the WHO believes that people can catch COVID-19 from others who have the virus. The disease can spread from person to person through small droplets from the nose or mouth which are spread when a person with COVID-19 coughs or exhales. These droplets land on objects and surfaces around the person. Other people then catch COVID-19 by touching these objects or surfaces, then touching their eyes, nose or mouth. People can also catch COVID-19 if they breathe in droplets from a person with COVID-19 who coughs out or exhales droplets. This is why it is important to stay more than 1 meter (3 feet) away from a person who is sick.

The WHO points out that the most common symptoms of COVID-19 are fever, tiredness, and dry cough. Some patients may have aches and pains, nasal congestion, runny nose, sore throat or diarrhea. These symptoms are usually mild and begin gradually. Some people become infected but don’t develop any symptoms and don't feel unwell. Most people (about 80%) recover from the disease without needing special treatment. Around 1 out of every 6 people who get COVID-19 becomes seriously ill and develops difficulty breathing. Older people, and those with underlying medical problems like high blood pressure, heart problems or diabetes, are more likely to develop serious illness. People with fever, cough and difficulty breathing should seek medical attention.

The video below gives a better understanding of COVID-19 and how you can protect yourself and your love ones from the disease.

Despite high food prices, obesity remains a global epidemic - World Bank report.

Obesity and overweight continue to be a global epidemic problem even in times of high food prices.

This is according to the latest edition of the Food Price Watch released by the World Bank Group.  The report noted that while global food prices declined in the last six months, these are still very high and are close to their historical peaks. It is because of this that people choose to serve cheaper and less nutritious food for their family.

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“Unhealthy food tends to be cheaper than healthy ones, like junk food in developed countries. When poor people with some disposable income in developing countries try to cope with high and increasingly volatile food prices, they also tend to choose cheap food that is high in calories but without much nutritious value,” said Otaviano Canuto, World Bank Group’s Vice President for Poverty Reduction and Economic Management. “Half of the world's overweight people live in just nine countries -- China, United States, Germany, India, Russia, Brazil, Mexico, Indonesia, and Turkey -- evidence that obesity is not an epidemic restricted only to rich countries.”

The report further warned that with high and volatile food prices, millions will continue to suffer from poor nutrition, whether it is hunger, undernutrition or obesity which can cause premature death. In 2008, the number of overweight adults was 1.46 billion, of which 508 million were obese. Even conservative estimates see that number rising to 2.16 billion for overweight adults and nearly doubling to 1.12 billion for obese by 2030 across all regions and in countries like China and India.

What is sad though is that the report pointed that despite the gravity of this problem, it is not evident that reducing obesity is among the top global policy priorities. Responses to the obesity epidemic have ranged from doing nothing to trying to promote healthier behaviors through taxes, bans or restrictions on certain foods and awareness campaigns. There have also been extreme cases in Japan where fines have been imposed to employees exceeding certain waistline limits.

His Holiness Justifies the Condom

In some extreme cases, that is.

Pope Benedict XVI said that condom use may be justified in "certain cases", such as with a male prostitute who would want to prevent the spread of infectious diseases like AIDS.  The Pontiff made the remark in an interview published in the official Vatican newspaper in relation to a new book called "Light of the World."

The leader of the Catholic Church, to which I belong of course, further said that where the intention to reduce the risk of infection, "it can nevertheless be a first step on the way to another, more humane sexuality."  But His Holiness is quick to add that the Church does not see the use of condoms as a moral solution and "it is not the proper way to deal with the horrors of HIV infection."

The remarks, as expected, created quite a stir among Catholics who are for and against the use of condoms.  Pro-contraception and reproductive health advocates see this as a softening of the stand of the Pope on the use of artificial methods of contraception.  One legislator even announced that the Pope's statement will "undermine the hardline stand of the Catholic Church on the Reproductive Health Bill."  Although I would like that to happen, personally I do not share his enthusiasm because the Pope was not very clear if reproductive health is one of those "certain cases".  

The head of the Catholic Bishops' group in the country was also quick to say that the Pope's message does not change the church view on the use of artificial means of contraception.  He said that the Church will continue to condemn the use of condom as a contraceptive but will take a different mind set when it is used to prevent the spread of infectious diseases.

Interestingly, the Pope used a male prostitute as an example.  So, does that mean that it is still morally wrong for a man to wear a condom if he engages in sex with a female prostitute, even if he does so to avoid getting sick?  The UN agency working on AIDS welcomed Pope Benedict's remarks but noted that while most cases of HIV infection were sexually transmitted, only 4 to 10 percent result from sex between men.  

Nevertheless, the remarks are significant especially since they came from the same man who said just a year ago that condoms not only do not inhibit the spread of HIV infection but even aggravate it.  It is indeed a complete departure from his previous stand on the matter.  To me, by discussing AIDS and the use of condoms, Pope Benedict XVI has finally stepped into the 21st century where the epidemic continue to kill millions.  Whether it signals an enlightened view on the use of artificial contraceptives is still debatable.