WHO News

Road deaths fall by 21% globally but stronger action is needed to save lives

Despite the addition of more than one billion motor-vehicles to the world’s roads, road traffic deaths declined by 21% between 2011 and 2025, according to new data released by the World Health Organization (WHO). The world has experienced profound changes in road traffic during this time with the emergence of new modes of transport and a sharp rise in motorcycle use. Despite this progress, however, road traffic crashes still claimed 1.16 million people's lives in 2025. Road traffic injurie

health  Jul 20, 2026

The Guardian Health

Rising numbers of younger midwives quitting NHS in England, data shows

Exclusive: Maternity staffing shortages worsen as more and more under-35s quit because of burnoutMore and more midwives are leaving the NHS before they reach 35 because of burnout, worsening the staffing problems that are affecting maternity units.The growing trend of early career quitting has sparked fears it poses a threat to the quality and safety of care that mothers and babies receive from already-understaffed childbirth services. Continue reading...

health  Jul 20, 2026

The Guardian Health

Second person dies in legionnaires’ disease outbreak in New York City

Outbreak has sickened dozens in the city but officials say they believe source of outbreak ‘has likely been eliminated’A second person has died amid a legionnaires’ disease outbreak that has sickened dozens of people in New York City, according to officials, who also say there is evidence that the source of the outbreak “has likely been eliminated”.New York City’s health department served notice of the second death in a statement on Saturday. The statement didn’t have any information about that

health  Jul 19, 2026

The Guardian Health

The Guardian view on pubs: football gave them a boost – now they need another | Editorial

Communal spaces where people can share big moments are a vital part of our shared life“People can’t get enough of football fever,” a pub landlord, Sam Hale, told the Guardian last week. The World Cup provided the UK’s struggling hospitality industry with a much-needed boost, with pubs benefiting from extended opening hours and one estimate suggesting that an extra 5.5m pints were sold in the group stages alone. The tournament lifted customers’ spirits too – even if it ended in disappointment for

health  Jul 19, 2026

The Guardian Health

I’ve heard menopause hormone therapy fixes everything. Should I take it?

Timely treatment provides relief for menopause symptoms, but expecting it to fix all of them is a set-up for disappointmentIt happens with some regularity. I offhandedly mention some bodily inconvenience to a fellow middle-aged woman – indigestion, a headache, a bad mood. Immediately, she says it’s perimenopause and suggests I try hormone therapy.These moments give me whiplash. In 2002, when I was a medical student, a study frightened a generation of patients and clinicians by suggesting the ris

health  Jul 19, 2026

The Guardian Health

Israel’s brutality cannot continue in plain sight | Letters

Gwyn Daniel and Phil Gaunt respond to an article by Nesrine Malik about the horrors taking place in Israel’s prisonsNesrine Malik’s incisive piece (In Israel’s prisons, torture and death have become a norm that it barely tries to hide, 13 July) lays bare the fact that all the illegal detentions, deaths, torture and sexual abuse in Israeli prisons are not aberrations from a legal system, but deeply embedded in the practices and intentions of the state. She mentions the psychological dimension to

health  Jul 19, 2026

The Guardian Health

The truth about migraines: what causes them – and how to find relief

Over the last decade, the understanding of these devastating headaches has grown enormously, as has the understanding of what can be done to treat themWe’ve been trying to cure migraines – without much success, until relatively recently – for as long as we’ve been able to identify them as a distinct ailment. The Ebers Papyrus, a scroll dating back to 1550BC that mentions a “disease of one half of the head”, suggests anointing the scalp with fried catfish; Galen, the second-century Roman physicia

health  Jul 19, 2026

The Guardian Health

How Trump and his administration have mired the US in multiple crises

From manufactured election insecurity to an outbreak of ‘explosive’ diarrhea, Americans are bearing the brunt of harmful policiesBetween widespread cuts to vital government agencies, various disease and illness outbreaks, and new environmental disaster vulnerabilities, the United States is facing a convergence of crises with widespread repercussions.Yet the Trump administration has hamstrung the federal government from addressing these crises – and in some cases is actively fanning them. Over th

health  Jul 19, 2026

The Guardian Health

Cyclospora: iceberg lettuce recalled in 27 states and more products may follow

Taylor Farms does not specify where products were served or sold, as US braces for weeks more of outbreakTaylor Farms recalled potentially contaminated shredded iceberg lettuce in 27 states on Friday, including lettuce distributed as recently as Thursday, as cases of cyclosporiasis continue rising in the US.The US is likely to see at least another two weeks of possible cases, since infections may have happened in recent days. And the expanding outbreak investigation could point to other products

health  Jul 18, 2026

The Guardian Health

Trump’s deep public health cuts hinder response to record US cyclosporiasis outbreak

Experts say layoffs, reduced disease surveillance and Medicaid cuts have made the foodborne parasite more difficult to track and containAs soon as Michigan detected the first sign of cyclosporiasis cases in late June, health officials swung into action, notifying federal agencies and releasing a notice on 1 July ahead of the holiday weekend alerting home cooks and commercial kitchens alike to the risks of potentially contaminated produce. They worked through the holiday weekend and haven’t had a

health  Jul 18, 2026

The Guardian Health

Faced with inadequate US healthcare, Black women fly to South Korea: ‘It could save your life’

Black women who feel minimized or dismissed in the US are traveling thousands of miles for South Korea’s patient-first approachFor years, Americans have crossed borders in search of affordable healthcare, whether it be for dental work in Mexico, prescription drugs in Canada, or hair transplants in Turkey. But a new destination in medical tourism is gaining momentum among Black American women, who are increasingly booking flights to Seoul, South Korea, for something else: care that feels inclusiv

health  Jul 18, 2026

WHO News

WHO Member States continue negotiations on the Pathogen Access and Benefit Sharing Annex

WHO Member States have advanced negotiations on the Pathogen Access and Benefit Sharing (PABS) annex, a central component of the WHO Pandemic Agreement, while agreeing that continued discussions are needed to finalize a framework that supports a faster, more effective and equitable response to future pandemics.

health  Jul 18, 2026

The Guardian Health

London Underground users should know about toxic dust risk, whistleblower says

Former tube network cleaner says tribunal vindicated his health concerns, including about asbestos, that could affect publicA London Underground worker who was unfairly sacked after whistleblowing about his concerns over exposure to asbestos and other toxic dust has said he wants all tube passengers to know about the potential hazards his case has revealed.Micky Steeds, a former professional boxer from Aveley in Essex, started working for London Underground in 2018 cleaning up decades of dust fr

health  Jul 18, 2026

The Guardian Health

One person dies amid legionnaires’ disease outbreak in New York City

Officials haven’t released additional information about the person’s identity, age or details on when and how they fell illA legionnaires’ disease outbreak that has sickened dozens of people in New York City has claimed its first life, health officials said Friday.Officials didn’t release additional information about the person’s identity, age or details on when and how they fell ill. Continue reading...

health  Jul 17, 2026

The Guardian Health

A friend, Facebook or ... Ukraine? No easy surrogacy options for Australian families desperate for children

With huge amounts of money at stake and power imbalances in play, the Australian Law Reform Commission is looking at how to better regulate the industryOver eight years, Ethan and his wife went through nine rounds of IVF in Melbourne.They travelled to Spain for two more, without success.Sign up for a weekly email featuring our best read Continue reading...

health  Jul 17, 2026

The Guardian Health

Twelve days nursing my father in the ‘dying room’ taught me the value of planning for death

Dying is difficult, a nurse told me. It might have been even more appalling had Dad not been clear about his wishes. Yet most of us remain deeply reluctant to outline how we want the end to goMy father spent the last 12 days of his life unconscious, unresponsive, in a hospital bed on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast.My mother sat beside him night and day, holding his hand. I massaged Dad’s legs, horribly swollen, the effects of oedema – a buildup of fluids. His mouth fell open, dried out; I swabbed i

health  Jul 17, 2026

The Guardian Health

Help, my sofa is killing me! The toxic chemicals hiding in your home – and how to avoid them

From mattresses to saucepans, scientists offer tweaks to help detoxify your spaceThe problem Whenever we burn anything inside our homes, we cause indoor air pollution, whether we’re cooking using gas, frying bacon, lighting a wood burner, an open fire, a cigarette or incense, or ruining the toast. “ We spend 80-90% of our time indoors,” says Prof Francis Pope, chair of atmospheric science at the University of Birmingham. “And there is potential to have quite high concentrations of pollution indo

health  Jul 17, 2026

The Guardian Health

‘Forever chemicals’ – the national cancer scandal brewing in a Lancashire town

In this week’s newsletter: residents living near a chemical factory are the latest community concerned about the health and environmental impact of Pfas contamination• Don’t get Down to Earth delivered to your inbox? Sign up hereResidents within a kilometre of the AGC Chemicals Europe factory in Thornton-Cleveleys in the north of England, have found themselves at the centre of what is quickly becoming a national scandal.In 2024, the UK Environment Agency and the local authority initiated an inve

health  Jul 17, 2026

The Guardian Health

Energy drinks to be banned from sale to under-16s in England

About 100,000 children across the country drink the high-caffeine beverages dailyHigh-caffeine energy drinks “have no place in children’s hands” and will be banned from sale to under-16s in England from April next year under new laws designed to improve health outcomes in young people.About 100,000 children across the country currently drink high-caffeine energy drinks daily, with those in more deprived areas and households more likely to consume them, according to the government. Continue readi

health  Jul 16, 2026

The Guardian Health

As a frontline worker, my anger over the Tories’ handling of Covid has not abated | Letter

Responding to the Covid inquiry’s findings on PPE, midwife Laura Matthews recalls the fear she felt working without adequate protectionI am a midwife who still feels extreme anger about the way the pandemic was handled (Johnson government wasted £10bn on PPE, Covid inquiry finds, 14 July).I remember being fitted for a FFP3 mask and then being told there weren’t enough to go around and given a basic paper mask instead. I remember being told that the hospital where I worked couldn’t keep providing

health  Jul 16, 2026