The Industrial Revolution, the advent of Vaccinations, and the Technological Age have all made the world by large a better place to live. People all over the world are living longer and disease and famine are not nearly as prevalent as they have been in centuries past. The fact is that we have made huge strides in regard to world health. However, there is still a lot of work to do as there are health epidemics that are still present in various parts of the world. Here are three facts about world health that you may find hard to believe.
Opioids are Killing Thousands of Americans
Guns and automobile accidents cause around 30,000 deaths each year in the United States. Opioid overdose and abuse beat that number by 10 percent as 33,000 people die each year from the drug. This number has risen year over year in the past decade and poses a significant risk in many communities in America.
Opioids are also causing thousands of hospitalizations each year and there is an ever-increasing number of children born with neonatal abstinence syndrome caused by opioid use by their mothers. In fact, this number is act epidemic levels, having increase four-fold in since 2002. It has become such a problem that even President Trump has spoken out about how his goal is to eradicate the epidemic and has pledged nearly a billion dollars to combat the problem.
Developing Countries Continue to be Underserved
The sad fact is that developing countries continue to be underfunded when it comes to research and development of health initiatives. In fact, less than 4% of funds used for research and development go to the countries that need the funds the most. That is $5.6 billion of a total of $157 billion. This number is disturbing given that most of this money comes from large for-profit companies that chose to largely ignore the places where health epidemics are noticeably visible, yet the trend continues.
Nearly 1 Billion People Do Not Receive Proper Nutrition
With as far as we have come when it comes to ridding the world of disease and creating sustainable farming methods, there are still far too many people going hungry around the world. Many people in developing countries simply do not have the money to buy food for their families. Even in countries that are financially stable, nearly 10% of its people deal with hunger. This is an alarming trend that must end if we are to think we are taking the problem seriously.
All of these issues probably come as a shock to you but there is some good news. If we can properly allocate funds and resources to where they are needed most, we can help developing countries rid themselves of most of their health issues. With technology and other resources we can ensure that the entire world never has to go hungry and that vaccines become readily available in all corners of the world.
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