Operations

Saving billions of teeth from a blood-eating mouth bug, Pg

You’ll want to brush your teeth after reading this media release

Melbourne is hosting a global conference this week of experts in the fight against a blood-eating bug that’s destroying bone and causing tooth loss in nearly one billion people, including nearly three million Australians.

“Most of us will get a bit of mild gum disease or gingivitis from time to time when ‘bad’ bacteria in our mouths get out of balance with ‘good’ bacteria,” says Professor Eric Reynolds, the Conference Chair. “Bacteria get between our gums and our teeth and an inflammation kicks off. If we’re unlucky then Pg moves in.”

“As this blood-eating bacterium grows in a biofilm (plaque) next to the gums it creates an environment that protects it and other similar bacteria in the plaque. It also changes the ecology of the mouth, setting off a cycle of inflammation and disease leading to the loss of bone from your jaw. Then your teeth fall out,” says Reynolds who is also Director of the Oral Health CRC based at The University of Melbourne. Quarterly scraping of the plaque helps, but doesn’t eliminate the infection in some individuals.

Media highlights from the 15th World Congress on Public Health

Science in Public was engaged to amplify the World Congress on Public Health: to build the buzz and reach the broader community.

The World Congress on Public Health reached a broad local and international audience, through hundreds of stories in mainstream and niche media—from BBC to Buzzfeed. Highlights included over three hours of national radio, and a feature interview with Leigh Sales on 7.30.

Media coverage

Highlights included:
• Television interviews with Congress speakers on ABC 7.30, Sky News and ABC News 24’s The World.
• A Fairfax media feature on the influence of celebrity on public health.
• ABC Radio National Life Matters opened the show with Congress guests every day for the full five weekdays of the Congress, with further interviews recorded at the Congress for future broadcast.
[Read more…] about Media highlights from the 15th World Congress on Public Health

Find out how to future-proof cities

Speakers announced for the Ecocity World Summit, Melbourne, July

· Cooling urban heat islands: in Australia, India and Spain

· Urban transport politics: how did Canadian cities get through it?

· Australian housing: we’re (sadly) getting what we paid for

· Women leading sustainable and resilient cities

· How will India’s coastal megacities cope with climate change?

100 sessions with 300 speakers from 30 different countries will explore these and many other topics.

How do cities become resilient, and how do you measure it? What are the hidden costs of cheap buildings? Can we increase density without losing green space? Can we grow food on rooftops? And what can cities and sub-national governments do when national governments don’t want a piece of the climate action? All this and more are on the agenda of the Ecocity World Summit in Melbourne this July.

“In Australia, we’ve just come through Cyclone Debbie, and seen severe storms and flooding across the Eastern states,” says Brendan Gleeson, Director of Melbourne Sustainable Society Institute and Summit co-convenor.

“We urgently need to safeguard our cities, towns and their people, in Australia and across the planet. The Ecocity World Summit program is designed to bring leading thinkers, researchers and practitioners together to share the evidence, strategies and tools we need to keep our cities liveable and sustainable in the face of global challenges.”

Smashing the road toll: Easter and beyond

World Congress on Public Health points towards safer roads

Australia has been a leader in road safety policy but we’re still losing more than 1,200 lives on our roads each year
First year of driving critical for keeping adolescent drivers awake, alert and alive
Paving the way for autonomous vehicles
Aboriginal Australians three times more likely to die on roads: can we close the gap?

Road deaths in Australia peaked in 1970, when 3,798 people died. A long-term downwards trend in road deaths means our road toll is now less than a third of that peak figure, but the road toll and the burden of injuries from road accidents remain a public health challenge.

Globally, the road toll has plateaued at 1.25 million per year, but there are still high fatality rates in low income countries and it’s the number one cause of death among people aged 15 to 29 years. [Read more…] about Smashing the road toll: Easter and beyond

International spotlight on Indigenous public health equity

Media release from the World Federation of Public Health Associations

Monday 10 April 2017

The World Federation of Public Health Associations has formed its first Indigenous Working Group on its 50th Anniversary.

At the 15th World Congress of Public Health Melbourne conference, 40 Indigenous and non-Indigenous conference delegates of the yarning circle unanimously supported in principle the establishment of the World Federation of Public Health Associations Indigenous Working Group.

The Public Health Association of Australia, on Tuesday 4th April 2017, hosted a yarning circle to talk about establishing an Indigenous Working Group. The yarning circle was led by Adrian Te Patu, the inaugural Indigenous representative on the World Federation of Public Health Association (WFPHA) Governing Council.

Once supported by the delegates, the formation of the Indigenous Working Group was accepted by acclimation by the world assembly of Public Health Associations. Under Mr. Te Patu’s leadership, the next steps are to formalise the Indigenous Working Group and develop its vision. [Read more…] about International spotlight on Indigenous public health equity

Demand for Action on World Health Day

On public health
On chemical weapons
And a call to Rome in 2020

Today, at the final day of the 15^th World Congress on Public Health, delegates from over 83 countries carried by acclamation two Demands for Action.

Demanding that the World’s leaders make the public’s health a priority

Improving health outcomes for all
Fighting inequity as the primary driver of poor health
with political, social, environmental, and economic change across all sectors for better and more sustainable health.

The full text of the Demand is at http://www.wcph2017.com/d/WCPH2017-Melbourne-Demand-for-Action.pdf [Read more…] about Demand for Action on World Health Day

World Health Day Statement: Meagre Rate Of Newstart IS A Health Issue – Time For A Raise

Joint Statement from Anti-Poverty Network SA and Public Health Association of Australia

Info: Anti-Poverty Network SA spokesperson Pas Forgione on 0411 587 663 or at antipovertynetwork.sa@gmail.com.
Public Health Association of Australia CEO Michael Moore on 0417 249 731 or at mmoore@phaa.net.au.

World Health Day, Friday April 7^th, presents a timely opportunity to address the gross inadequacy of Newstart Allowance, which severely impacts the physical and mental health of the 800,000 Australians receiving the payment.

While none of Australia’s welfare payments are generous, it is alarming that Newstart, at $267 per week (roughly $13,800 per year), is over $160 per week (roughly $8,000 per year) below the poverty-line. It has not been raised in real terms since 1994. [Read more…] about World Health Day Statement: Meagre Rate Of Newstart IS A Health Issue – Time For A Raise

Thursday’s highlights from the World Congress on Public Health

Pouring water on fast food kids’ meals
The inside story on Syria and eliminating chemical, nuclear, and bio weapons
WHO guru on what globalisation means for health security
Labia Library reveals ‘normal’ and fights genital cosmetic surgery trend
Providing abortion by telehealth: safe and effective
Making Melbourne a global health epicentre
Healthy Parks for public health
From dental health to MasterChef to Sugar Free Smiles

Thursday 6 April at the 15th World Congress on Public Health in Melbourne
Call Niall on 0417-131-977 for interviews

Women’s health roundup from the Public Health Congress

Labia Library reveals ‘normal’ and fights genital cosmetic surgery trend
Women have gained 20 years of life expectancy since 1960 but 1 Australian woman dies each week due to domestic violence—today the WHO reveals the global problem
A smartphone app puts health advice in women’s pockets
Economic abuse is a form of domestic violence
Dead or Deadly: an Aboriginal women’s health that’s working

Women’s health, Thursday 6 April at the 15^th World Congress on Public Health in Melbourne

Media contacts

Niall Byrne 0417 131 977 niall@scienceinpublic.com.au
Tanya Ha 0404 083 863 tanya@scienceinpublic.com.au

1 in 3 women experiences violence from their partner

More than broken hearts says WHO’s Claudia Garcia-Moreno, head of research on violence against women at the WHO.

Worldwide, almost 1 in 3 women who have been in a relationship have experienced physical or sexual violence at the hands of an intimate partner.

Claudia García-Moreno from the World Health Organization has studied the serious consequences of domestic violence for women’s physical, sexual and reproductive, and mental health—and what can be done to address it. [Read more…] about Women’s health roundup from the Public Health Congress

Built environment codes and standards: an oft-overlooked determinant of the public’s health

Media release from Public Health Association of Australia

6 April 2017

Public health discussion about the built environment often focuses on factors such as walkability, green spaces, liveability and transportation, yet overlooks the fact that most of the world’s population spends the greatest amount of their time in buildings, and that as a result the codes influencing their design, construction, operation and use are key determinants of health.

This issue will be addressed at the 15^th World Congress on Public Health 2017, where over 2500 international delegates are gathered to share research, knowledge and ideas about public health, including its social determinants.

“Standards that govern design and construction regularly affect our health, security, safety, accessibility and wellbeing” said James Chauvin, former Director of Policy at the Canadian Public Health Association who sits on the Canadian Commission on Building and Fire Codes. [Read more…] about Built environment codes and standards: an oft-overlooked determinant of the public’s health

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