"Yesterday I had the enormous honour of re-starting the Jet d’Eau, as a symbol of the city reopening now that the number of cases has declined"-@DrTedros#COVID19
"I’m deeply grateful to the city and canton of Geneva for their hospitality and support for WHO, and for illuminating the Jet d’Eau in blue in honour of WHO and the United Nations"-@DrTedros#COVID19
"As the #COVID19 pandemic accelerates in low- and middle-income countries, WHO is especially concerned about its impact on people who already struggle to access health services, often women, children and adolescents"-@DrTedros
"The indirect effects of #COVID19 on these groups may be greater than the number of deaths due to the virus itself.
Because the pandemic has overwhelmed health systems in many places, women may have a heightened risk of dying from complications of 🤰 & childbirth"-@DrTedros
"WHO has developed guidance for health facilities and community activities on maintaining essential services, including for women, newborns, children and adolescents"-@DrTedros#COVID19
"This includes ensuring women and children can use services with appropriate infection prevention and control measures, and respectful maternal and newborn care"-@DrTedros#COVID19
"WHO has also carefully investigated the risks of women transmitting #COVID19 to their babies during breastfeeding.
We know that children are at relatively low-risk of COVID-19, but are at high risk of numerous other diseases and conditions that breastfeeding prevents"-@DrTedros
"Based on the available evidence, WHO’s advice is that the benefits of breastfeeding outweigh any potential risks of transmission of #COVID19"-@DrTedros
"Mothers with suspected or confirmed #COVID19 should be encouraged to initiate and continue breastfeeding and not be separated from their infants, unless the mother is too unwell"-@DrTedros
"WHO has detailed information in our clinical guidance about how to breastfeed safely"-@DrTedros#COVID19
"WHO is also concerned about the impact of the #COVID19 pandemic on adolescents and young people"-@DrTedros
"Early evidence suggests people in their teens and 20s are at greater risk of depression and anxiety, online harassment, physical and sexual violence and unintended pregnancies, while their ability to seek the services they need is reduced"-@DrTedros#COVID19
"School and university closures can also have a dramatic impact on the ability of adolescents to access preventive services.
In some countries, more than one-third of adolescents with #mentalhealth conditions receive their mental health services exclusively at school"-@DrTedros
"Millions of children who are fed through school meal programmes also have reduced access to food.
Limited opportunities for physical activity, and increased use of tobacco, alcohol and drugs may have impacts on the long-term health of these young people"-@DrTedros#COVID19
"To address these challenges, WHO has developed guidelines on maintaining essential services, which we have discussed before"-@DrTedros#COVID19 bit.ly/2zQunF8
"There are also many things people can do to take care of their own health, like staying active, eating a nutritious diet and limiting their alcohol intake"-@DrTedros#COVID19 bit.ly/37veCQj
"New products, information and technologies are changing how health services are delivered.
Increasingly, some medicines and tests can be safely obtained over-the-counter at pharmacies, or can be prescribed by doctors online and delivered to people’s homes"-@DrTedros#COVID19
"WHO has developed guidance on self-care interventions for health which can be rapidly introduced in countries to save and improve lives"-@DrTedros#COVID19
"Access to treatment for people living with HIV, and medicines for other health conditions that people can self-manage, can reduce the burden on over-stretched health systems while meeting the health needs and rights of individuals"-@DrTedros#COVID19
"Self-care interventions enable more people to obtain the health services they need during the #COVID19 pandemic, when and where they need them.
It’s our collective responsibility to ensure these interventions are available and accessible to all people who need them"-@DrTedros
"This Sunday is #WorldBloodDonorDay – an occasion to thank and celebrate blood donors all over the world for their selfless contribution to saving and improving lives.
Many countries still lack universal access to blood transfusions and blood-related medicines"-@DrTedros
"The #COVID19 pandemic has further reduced the world’s blood supply.
Our message on #WorldBloodDonorDay is: keep donating blood and saving lives.
Giving blood during COVID-19 is safe, provided physical distancing and hygiene measures are respected"-@DrTedros
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LIVE: @DrTedros' briefing on the health situation in #Gaza to the @UN Security Council twitter.com/i/broadcasts/1…
"Let me be clear from the outset that I fully understand the anger, grief and fear of the Israeli people following the horrific, barbaric and unjustifiable attacks by Hamas and other armed groups on Israeli civilians on the 7th of October.
The killing of 1,400 people, and injuries to more than 7,200 others, is bad enough. For the survivors and families of victims, the mental health consequences will endure for a long time to come.
WHO is gravely concerned for the health and well-being of Israeli hostages in Gaza, many of whom are older people, children and those with urgent medical needs"-@DrTedros
@DrTedros @UN "Two weeks ago, I spoke with families of hostages, and I will meet them in Geneva next week. I feel their heartache and fear"-@DrTedros
Media briefing on the health situation in Gaza and Israel, and other global health issues with @DrTedros twitter.com/i/broadcasts/1…
"We are running out of words to describe the horror unfolding in Gaza.
Since Hamas’s horrific attacks on Israel on the 7th of October, more than 10,000 people have been killed, including over 8,500 in Gaza and 1400 in Israel. In both Israel and Gaza, 70% of those killed are women and children"-@DrTedros
"More than 21,000 are injured and more than 1.4 million people in Gaza have been displaced.
The situation on the ground, in Gaza, is indescribable.
Hospitals crammed with the injured, lying in corridors;
Morgues overflowing;
Doctors performing surgery without anaesthesia;
Thousands of people seeking shelter from the bombardment;
Families crammed into overcrowded schools, desperate for food and water;
Toilets overflowing and the risk of disease outbreaks spreading;
And everywhere, fear, death, destruction, loss"-@DrTedros
#TraditionalMedicine has been at the frontiers of medicine & science laying the foundation for conventional medical texts.
#DYK: Nearly 40% of pharmaceutical products have a natural product base, incl.:
💊aspirin
💊artemisinin
💊contraceptive pills
💊childhood cancer treatments
In 1969, Tu Youyou was tasked to search for antimalarial drugs. She turned to ancient Chinese #TraditionalMedicine books & discovered artemisinin. In 2015, Tu Youyou was awarded the Nobel Prize for her work on #malaria, which has saved millions of lives.
https://t.co/hqqn1D2idWbit.ly/47s1wlj
Derived from wild Mexican yam, norethindrone is one of the first active ingredients in birth control pills.
When Dr Luis Miramontes stabilised the synthetic hormone, norethindrone, he was unaware of his major contribution to women’s health and history.
📌 https://t.co/MbSbU8fHnfbit.ly/47s1wlj
Studies worldwide have shown that it protects the health of young people. It also helps… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…
FACT: Comprehensive sexuality education is associated with later sexual activity and reduced risk-taking.
Evidence shows that young people are more likely to delay having sex – and if they do have sex, practice safer sex - when they are better informed about sexual health and… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…
FACT: Talking about sexuality does not necessarily mean talking about having sex.
For younger age-groups, sexuality education helps children:
💟 Learn about their bodies
💟 Recognize their feelings and emotions
💟 Identify different types of relationships, such as families &… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…
🔥 🚒 #ClimateChange makes it more likely for droughts & wildfires to happen. Wildfires contributes to increased air pollution & can cause death & injury from suffocation, burns & smoke inhalation.
🔥💨 Burning fossil fuels drives #ClimateChange and causes air pollution that leads to lung cancer, stroke and heart disease. #AirPollution causes 1⃣3⃣ deaths per minute worldwide.
In adults, ischaemic heart disease and stroke are the most common causes of premature death attributable to outdoor #AirPollution. Other effects include #diabetes and neurodegenerative conditions.