Combating Obesity: Societal and Environmental issues and challenges

MASO 2015 Scientific Conference on Obesity

“Combating Obesity: Societal and Environmental issues and challenges”

Date: 28-29 October, 2015

Venue: Seri Pacific Hotel, Kuala Lumpur

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Weight-loss surgery outcomes affected by vitamin D status, study suggests

Outcomes for patients who undergo weight-loss surgery may be influenced by vitamin D levels, according to a new study by researchers from Johns Hopkins Medicine.Exposure to sunlight is a key factor in vitaminD levels; ultraviolet radiation from the sun triggers vitamin D synthesis in the body. As such, people with low sun exposure often have lower vitamin D levels, which has been linked to numerous health problems.Vitamin D plays a number of important roles in the body; it helps maintain bone health, aids immune system function and supports lung and heart health, among numerous other functions.

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WHO statement on the tenth meeting of the IHR Emergency Committee regarding MERS

WHO statement
3 September 2015

The tenth meeting of the Emergency Committee (EC) convened by the Director-General under the International Health Regulations (2005) (IHR 2005) regarding the Middle East respiratory syndrome 1 was held by teleconference on 2 September 2015, from 1300 to 1620 Central European Summer Time (UTC +2). During the meeting the WHO Secretariat provided an update to the Committee on epidemiological and scientific developments, including recent cases and transmission patterns in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), Jordan and the United Arab Emirates. The Secretariat also provided current risk assessments with regard to these events, and information on control and prevention measures.

• IHR Emergency Committee concerning MERS-CoV

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First Ebola vaccine to be tested in affected communities one year into outbreak

Ring vaccination starts in Coyah, Guinea

Conakry, 25 March, 2015 – The Guinean Government with the World Health Organization (WHO) initiated the very first efficacy trial of an Ebola vaccine this week in an affected community of the Basse-Guinée, one of the areas where most Ebola cases are found in the country. Ring vaccination tests of VSV-EBOV, a lead Ebola vaccine developed by the Public Health Agency of Canada, received an excellent response from the community in a small village in the Coyah prefecture, where the trial team arrived on 23 March.

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1.1 billion people at risk of hearing loss

27 FEBRUARY 2015 | GENEVA - Some 1.1 billion teenagers and young adults are at risk of hearing loss due to the unsafe use of personal audio devices, including smartphones, and exposure to damaging levels of sound at noisy entertainment venues such as nightclubs, bars and sporting events, according to WHO. Hearing loss has potentially devastating consequences for physical and mental health, education and employment.

Data from studies in middle- and high-income countries analysed by WHO indicate that among teenagers and young adults aged 12-35 years, nearly 50% are exposed to unsafe levels of sound from the use of personal audio devices and around 40% are exposed to potentially damaging levels of sound at entertainment venues. Unsafe levels of sounds can be, for example, exposure to in excess of 85 decibles (dB) for eight hours or 100dB for 15 minutes.

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Average penis length is revealed in new study

a question that continues to baffle many men: what is the average penis size? Now, a new study published in the journal BJU International claims to have found the answer.

"Men may present to urologists or sexual medicine clinics with a concern with their penis size, despite their size falling within a normal range," the authors note.Dr. David Veale, of King's College London and South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust in the UK, and colleagues say their findings may help health care providers counsel men who approach them with worries about their penis size - known as "small penis anxiety" or "small penis syndrome."

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Asthma Linked to Bone Loss in Study

THURSDAY, May 8, 2014 (HealthDay News) — People with asthma could be at higher risk of bone loss, new research suggests.

But it’s not clear how the two conditions might be related.

“We know prolonged use of corticosteroids in the treatment of asthma is a risk factor of osteoporosis, but we haven’t had definite data showing the relationship between asthma itself and bone loss,” study author Dr. Jae-Woo Jung said in a news release from the American College of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology (ACAAI).

“This study has shown a meaningful association between the two conditions, even in the absence of previous oral corticosteroid use,” noted Jung.

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