RESPIRATORY HEALTH
of CRD-related deaths. Future projections indicate that COPD cases will rise globally by 23% between 2020 and 2050, with the steepest increases among women and in low- and middle-income countries. Hospitalisation and death from asthma also remain high, particularly among young people, despite the availability of effective treatments.
TOBACCO AND AIR POLLUTION FUELLING THE GROWING RESPIRATORY HEALTH CRISIS CRDs such as asthma, COPD and other lung diseases are rising across the Region, driven largely by preventable risk factors. Chief among them are tobacco use and exposure to polluted indoor and outdoor air.
Tobacco remains the single most avoidable cause of respiratory illness in the Region, where 25.3% of adults still smoke – well above the global average of 20.9%. Youth uptake of e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products is also raising potentially lifelong health risks, including lung damage.
“PRODUCTIVITY LOSSES DUE TO CRDS AMONG PEOPLE AGED 30 TO 74 IN THE REGION ARE ESTIMATED AT OVER $20BN.”
At the same time, over 90% of people in the Region breathe air polluted with dangerous levels of particulate matter, far above WHO safety guidelines.
LACK OF TARGETS, INVESTMENT, REHABILITATION AND PALLIATIVE CARE Professor Silke Ryan, President of the European Respiratory Society, said: “We take 22,000 breaths a day, yet respiratory health remains one of the most neglected areas in global health. Chronic respiratory diseases are a major, under-recognised cause of death and disability and they demand urgent, collective action. This report is a vital first step towards change. It’s time to shift the mindset and make respiratory health a policy priority across the Region.”
The report also points to the economic cost of inaction: productivity losses due to CRDs among people aged 30 to 74 in the Region are estimated at over $20bn. Risk factors are often compounded in disadvantaged populations, where exposure to indoor smoke and unsafe work environments is higher, and access to essential medicines remains limited or unaffordable.
CALL TO ACTION AHEAD OF 2025 UNITED NATIONS HIGH-LEVEL MEETING WHO/Europe is calling on governments, civil society and the health community to prioritise CRDs as part of broader noncommunicable disease (NCD) strategies in the lead-up to the 2025 High-Level Meeting of the United Nations General Assembly on the Prevention and Control of NCDs and the Promotion of Mental Health, taking place in September.
“Chronic respiratory diseases are deeply connected to other NCDs such as cardiovascular diseases, lung cancer, diabetes and mental health conditions,” said Dr Gauden Galea, WHO/Europe’s Strategic Adviser to the Regional Director.
35
WWW.TOMORROWSHS.COM
He added: “This first-ever regional report highlights how integrated action can reduce deaths from preventable and treatable causes. Guided by NCD best buys and quick buys – proven sets of cost-effective interventions with measurable health impacts – we could see real progress within five years.
“This report gives countries practical solutions and shared experiences to support a life-course approach and help build a resilient Region that is NCD – and mental health- ready by 2050.”
https://iris.who.int/handle/10665/381512
www.ersnet.org
View the WHO/Europe – European Respiratory Society report in full here.
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42
