Latest Health News
WHO says global health progress is slowing and partly reversing
The World Health Organization’s World Health Statistics 2026 report says the world is off track for the health-related SDGs by 2030, with progress uneven, slowing, and in some areas reversing . WHO says stronger health systems, better data, and accelerated action are urgently needed
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Access to basic water, sanitation, hygiene, and clean cooking improved for billions
Between 2015 and 2024, 961 million people gained access to safely managed drinking water, 1.2 billion to sanitation, 1.6 billion to basic hygiene, and 1.4 billion to clean cooking solutions . WHO says these gains are meaningful, but still insufficient to close major health gaps
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Malaria progress has worsened since 2015
WHO reports that malaria incidence increased by 8.5% since 2015, moving the world further from global targets . While some regions are performing better than others, overall progress remains highly uneven
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Anaemia remains unchanged for women of reproductive age
Anaemia affects 30.7% of women of reproductive age, with no improvement over the past decade, according to WHO . The report highlights this as a persistent risk that continues to undermine health outcomes
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Childhood overweight continues to rise
WHO says the prevalence of overweight among children under five reached 5.5% in 2024 . The organization says nutritional risks are not improving quickly enough and need stronger prevention policies
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Violence against women remains a major global health issue
Intimate partner violence affects 1 in 4 women globally, WHO reports . The agency says this underscores the need for stronger social protection and prevention measures as part of health policy
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Maternal mortality has improved, but remains far above target
Global maternal mortality has fallen by 40% since 2000, yet it is still nearly three times higher than the 2030 target . WHO says progress is real but fragile and not fast enough to meet global goals
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Under-five mortality is down, but many countries are off track
WHO says under-five mortality has declined by 51%, showing major long-term progress . However, many countries are still not on pace to meet 2030 child health targets
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Reductions in premature deaths from noncommunicable diseases are slowing
Progress in reducing premature deaths from noncommunicable diseases has slowed significantly since 2015, WHO says . The report warns that behavioural, nutritional, and environmental risks are not improving fast enough
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Air pollution and poor WASH conditions remain major killers
WHO estimates that air pollution contributed to 6.6 million deaths worldwide in 2021, while inadequate water, sanitation, and hygiene contributed to 1.4 million deaths in 2019 . These environmental risks continue to impose a heavy global disease burden
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Africa and Southeast Asia show some encouraging health gains
WHO says the African Region achieved faster-than-global reductions in HIV (-70%) and tuberculosis (-28%) . The South-East Asia Region is also on track to meet its 2025 milestone for malaria reduction
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