639 Results

  • Walking and cycling for transport is good for physical activity levels in Kiwis!

    … disease, stroke (the list goes on). This blog looks at a new study we just published that found that New Zealanders … who walk or cycle to their main activity each day have a 76% higher chance of achieving the Ministry of Health … activity guidelines, which should really be considered a bare minimum for health (see Figure 1). In addition, an …
    Briefing

  • Implementing healthy food environment policies in Aotearoa

    … that children see. Sixty experts prioritised the need for a comprehensive multi-sector food systems strategy and for … support actions were prioritised for immediate action. A mandatory approach needs to be adopted in many policy … for public health policy Government needs to act quickly after over a decade of inaction to make progress on …
    Briefing

  • New Vaping Bill: Some important progress but critical gaps remain

    … on youth vaping and proposes introducing new measures in a new bill. These include disallowing disposable vapes, … truly wishes to “crack down” on youth vaping, it must take a more comprehensive approach. When vaping products were … could not be located within 300m of schools and marae after August 2023. However, the restrictions did not apply to …
    Briefing

  • Taxes on fizzy drinks in NZ: preventing premature deaths and raising funds for health

    … A task of public health research is to quantify the health … Medical Journal that finds that about 67 premature deaths a year might be prevented by a 20% tax on fizzy drinks. And … keen to act.  Globally governments and the public realised after the global financial crisis of 2008 that financial …
    Briefing

  • Why the New Zealand Government should reconsider abandoning denicotinised cigarettes

    … New Zealanders continue to die every year from smoking and a persistence of associated health inequities.  Introduction … world-leading ‘endgame’ actions with the potential for a ripple effect that could greatly reduce the global … or non-addictive by reducing their nicotine content to a maximum of 0.8 mg/g; a reduction of over 90% compared to a …
    Briefing

  • Consumer Care Guidelines for electricity retailers must be mandatory

    … for electricity retailers mandatory to protect health. A new report shows up to 55% of residential consumers are not … their health. Those earlier guidelines were brought in after the tragic 2007 death of Mrs Folole Muliaga, who had … an electrically powered oxygen machine at home, and died after the electricity at her home was disconnected due to an …
    Briefing

  • Red meat & processed meat: Summarising the Public Health isues

    … red meat. Here we briefly look at this topic and also take a wider perspective on other aspects of meat consumption on … in humans and strong mechanistic evidence supporting a carcinogenic effect. There is also evidence of associations … actually associated with cancer? Sir David Spiegelhalter, a risk professor at Cambridge University, summarised the …
    Briefing

  • Smoking prevalence and trends: important findings from the 2023-24 New Zealand Health Survey

    … were released on 19 November. For the first time in a decade, the prevalence of daily smoking did not decline in … living in the most deprived areas, we will not reach a daily smoking prevalence of less than 5% for all population … of 'current smoking' defined as smoking monthly or more often. The figures below show trends in current smoking over …
    Briefing

  • Reducing waiting times for cataract surgery is good value-for-money for falls prevention

    … to individual fallers’ risks help to prevent falls. A key risk factor is the presence of cataracts, and cataract … unaided visual acuity in 92% of cases. However, there are often substantial wait times for cataract surgery in the NZ … so that it does not impinge on public hospital capacity as often the same pool of surgeons is involved. However, we must …
    Briefing

  • The growing burden of dementia in Aotearoa: Scope for prevention

    … with dementia is expected to double in the next 20 years – a major health and economic issue. Since age is the biggest … change is only a very incomplete answer. These risks often begin early in life, are linked to social disadvantage, … and untreated depression. Secondly, factors that reduce cognitive reserve, the brain’s ability to tolerate damage: …
    Briefing

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Public Health Expert Briefing (ISSN 2816-1203)