Health Articles

Has Poliomyelitis Been Eradicated?

Has Poliomyelitis Been Eradicated?

by Blandina Steinhauslin, AILO Florence

Polio in a few words

Polio (poliomyelitis) is a highly infectious viral disease. The poliovirus invades the nervous system and can cause irreversible paralysis in a matter of hours. Polio is spread through person-to-person contact. When a child is infected with wild poliovirus, the virus enters the body through the mouth and...

Diagnosis: Human Trafficking

Diagnosis: Human Trafficking

By Mary Adams, AWC The Hague

Violence against women is major health problem and a violation of women’s human rights. When the United Nations announced the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals agenda, in SDG 5 (Gender Equality) they included target 5.2: Eliminate all forms of violence against women and girls in the public and private spheres, including trafficking...

Alternative or Complimentary Medicines

Alternative or Complimentary Medicines

By Sylvia Behrman, AILO Florence

Many people world-wide use health care that is outside mainstream Western medicine. These are called alternative or complimentary practices. Practices used together with conventional medicine are called complimentary and ones used instead of conventional medicine are called alternative.

Your doctor needs to know exactly what treatments you are taking, including herbal...

Women's Health: HIV/AIDS

Women’s Health: HIV/AIDS - Where do we stand? 

By Blandina Steinhauslin, AILO Florence

HIV continues to be a major global public health issue, having claimed more than 35 million lives so far. In 2017, 940,000 people died from HIV-related causes globally. There were approximately 36.9 million people living with HIV at the end of 2017, with 1.8 million people becoming newly...