Chronic Diseases Bloom in Developing World
Officials with the 11th annual Global Forum for Health Research are stressing the need to increase funding for health research in developing countries, particularly to combat the growing threat posed by chronic diseases. Some 800 participants from 80 nations are attending in Beijing.
According to Xinhua General News Service, only ten percent of global health research funding is spent dealing with health problems in developing nations, while these nations comprise 90 percent of the world’s population.
The Forum’s head, Stephen Matlin, says developing countries face vastly different health threats than they did just ten years ago.
Developing countries are seeing massive growth in non-communicable diseases such as heart disease, cancer and mental illness, reports the Voice of America’s Daniel Schearf. Schearf quotes Matlin on the trend found everywhere but Africa, where malaria and TB are still major causes of death:
“In fact, in many developing countries, including China and India, two of the most populous countries in the world, these are now the main sources of illness and death in the population”
Listen to Schearf’s report by clicking on the icon below.
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