Although nearly all heat-related deaths are preventable, heatwaves kill thousands of people worldwide every year. At this very moment, an extreme heatwave in India and Pakistan, affecting about one billion people, is “testing the limits of human survivability,” warns Chandni Singh, a lead author for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC) Sixth Assessment Report.

Microplastic pollution has been detected in human blood for the first time, with scientists finding the tiny particles in almost 80 percent of the people tested.The discovery shows the particles can travel around the body and may lodge in organs. The impact on health is as yet unknown.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has called antibiotic resistance "one of the biggest threats to global health, food security, and development".It comes after experts warned for decades that excessive use of antibiotics makes it harder to tackle the bacteria the medicines were created to destroy.Here's a closer look at the problem.What Is Antibiotic Resistance? Antibiotics are medicines that either destroy bacteria or keep them from proliferating. Penicilli

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday (12 April) made his first public appearance in two weeks, quashing wild rumours about his purported failing health and even untimely death.He squarely addressed questions about his health."If you want me to die early, you must pray harder," he said, needling those spreading rumours that he had died in Singapore, where he was purportedly taken after a health scare.He said he deliberately avoided appearing in public for two weeks to make

President Rodrigo Duterte has not made any public appearance for close to two weeks now, fuelling speculation that his health is declining, with some even claiming that he has died.His aides and sources have dismissed the rumours – one was that he had suffered a mild stroke and was taken to Singapore where he purportedly died, another was that plans were being drawn up for a military junta to run the Philippines.Adding to the fog was a disclosure that his daughter, Davao Mayor Sara D

Children around the world are not getting the nutrients they need, undermining their capacity to grow, develop and learn to their full potential.

According to Malaysia's Health Ministry's (KKM) Guide to Nutrition Labelling and Claims, manufacturers must be aware of nutrient content claims and the conditions for their use. For example, one of the conditions listed in the guide states that the food product must contain a range of nutrients including carbohydrates, fat, protein, vitamins and minerals for it to be labelled as "nutritious."Marketing strategies are sometimes developed to bypass legal requirements

The toxic cocktail of climate change, conflict, and COVID-19 is making itself felt most intensely in the world’s poorest and most vulnerable countries. As a result, a record 235 million people worldwide will need humanitarian assistance and protection in 2021 – an increase of 40 percent from last year. It can be hard to wrap one’s head around such numbers. But behind the statistics are individual human lives.

A year has passed since the coronavirus outbreak spread from Wuhan in China to Southeast Asia and the rest of the world. Yet, we are still in a ferocious battle with the deadly pandemic. As COVID-19 vaccines are being rolled out in some parts of the world, a number of countries have reported new waves and have resorted to fresh lockdowns. New coronavirus variants have been identified in Britain and South Africa – which are said to be even more contagious – and spreading fast.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), the prevalence of childhood obesity has increased at an alarming rate globally.Southeast Asia has seen an upward trend in childhood obesity during the last 10 to 15 years.