Just three things could save 94 million people from heart disease

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These three things could save 94 million people from heart disease.
In a new study, researchers found that three public health interventions could save 94 million people from premature death caused by heart disease.
The three interventions are lowering blood pressure, cutting sodium intake, and reducing trans fat from the daily diet.
They suggest that the three interventions can have a huge health impact on heart health through 2040.
The research was led by Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
In the study, the team used global data from multiple studies and estimates from the World Health Organization to make their calculations.
They estimated that scaling up treatment of high blood pressure to 70% of the world’s population could extend the lives of 39.4 million people.
In addition, cutting sodium intake by 30% could stave off another 40 million deaths and could also help reduce high blood pressure, which a major risk factor for heart disease and stroke.
Eliminating trans fat could prevent 14.8 million early deaths.
The team also found that more than 50% of all delayed deaths, and 66% of deaths delayed before age 70, will be among men.
They suggest that many programs and policies would be necessary to reduce premature deaths from heart disease.
For example, one important strategy would be to increase the use of blood pressure drugs that are safe and affordable.
The team admits that scaling up the three health interventions would be a “huge challenge,” but they added that previous analyses have shown that the interventions are achievable and affordable.
They believe that these are realistic goals that have been shown to be attainable on a smaller population.
Now people need the commitment to scale up the programs to achieve them globally.
The lead author of the study is Goodarz Danaei, associate professor of global health at Harvard Chan School.
The study is published in Circulation.

Human trials of a Zika vaccine just approved

21-June-2016
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the first human tests of an experimental Zika virus vaccine, the makers of the drug announced on Monday.
Called GLS–5700, the medication will be used in a clinical trial involving 40 healthy people, and represents the first major step towards ultimately immunizing people against Zika – which was declared a global public health emergency by the World Health Organization (WHO) in February.
GLS–5700 works by stimulating the body's immune system to defend itself against Zika. Synthetic fragments of viral DNA are injected into the skin, prompting the immune system's T cells to generate antibodies to fight the infection.
It's worth pointing out that just because GLS–5700 has reached human testing, there's no guarantee it will turn out to safely immunize people against Zika. The vaccine has been tested successfully in small and large animal models, but clinical trials in humans could take several years to demonstrate that the treatment is safe, and there's no guarantee it will ultimately prove effective or make it through subsequent testing phases.
GLS–5700 isn't the only Zika vaccine candidate currently in development.It has been reported that at least one company in India and one in France are expected to begin human trials later this year.