Health and population

Health and population dynamics are intertwined, embodying an intricate relationship with significant implications on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Health is fundamentally at the center of these 17 global goals, aimed to transform the world by 2030. Specifically, Goal 3 endeavors to "Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages." It acknowledges that health is pivotal to human life quality, social cohesion, and sustainable development. Inextricably linked to this are the complexities of population dynamics, including growth rates, age structure, fertility and mortality rates, and migration patterns.

With the world's population projected to exceed 9.7 billion by 2050, the pressure on health systems will undoubtedly escalate. The demographic transition, with an aging population and an increasing prevalence of non-communicable diseases, poses new challenges for health systems globally. Additionally, areas with high fertility rates often overlap with extreme poverty, resulting in heightened health risks, including higher maternal and child mortality rates, malnutrition, and infectious diseases.

Moreover, rapid urbanization and migration present both opportunities and threats to health. While urban areas may provide better access to healthcare, they also harbor risks of disease transmission, air and water pollution, and social determinants of health like inadequate housing and social inequality. Simultaneously, migrants often face disproportionate health risks due to unstable living conditions, exploitation, and limited access to healthcare services.

Achieving the SDGs will necessitate comprehensive approaches that consider the intricate interplay of health and population dynamics. It means strengthening health systems, promoting universal health coverage, and addressing social determinants of health. It also implies crafting policies that recognize demographic realities and foster an environment conducive to sustainable development. Only by understanding and harnessing these dynamics can the world meaningfully progress towards realizing the SDGs, ensuring healthy lives and well-being for all.

World Health Day 2025: Global Action for Universal Health

World Health Day is celebrated each year on April 7th, marking the founding of the World Health Organization (WHO) in 1948. This day is dedicated to raising awareness about critical health issues facing the world and mobilizing efforts to address them.

The Essence of World Health Day

World Tuberculosis Day 2025: A Global Call to Action

March 24th, 2025

Each year, World Tuberculosis Day is observed on March 24th, a day of significance marking Dr. Robert Koch's groundbreaking announcement in 1882 of the discovery of the bacterium responsible for tuberculosis (TB). This discovery was a pivotal moment in the medical field, leading to the development of diagnostic methods and treatments for this devastating disease.

The Significance of World Tuberculosis Day

This Viewpoint supports SDGs 3 and 10 by examining how structural ableism denies disabled people equitable access to health care, and discussing the principles by which it could be reduced.
Drug-induced liver injury (DILI) is responsible for 10% of cases of hepatitis in adults, and 13–17% of cases of fulminant hepatitis. The article proposes a way forward and roadmap to prioritize DILI research and clinical science.
This Series paper supports SDG 3 by documenting the nature of user interactions with primary care in a large, 14-country sample; the authors find significant diversity in how citizens access usual care within and across countries.
This Series paper supports SDGs 3 and 10 by describing health-care coverage and quality across the four countries, quantifying inequalities in these outcomes by socioeconomic status within country, and assessing the contribution of government, social security, and private health sectors to observed inequality.
This Personal View supprts SDGs 3 and 10 by discussing the multifaceted approach and the various stakeholder involvement needed for the expansion of access to new antibiotics while balancing with the prevention of excessive use
This Series paper supports SDG 3 by providing an overview of the current state of health insurance in some African and Asian countries, focusing on how coverage varies across and within countries, and the association between insurance status and use of key preventive health-care services and health system competence.
A paper that explores how interventions can help reduce the waiting times in an epilepsy outpatient clinic.
This Series paper supports SDG 3 by describing several measures of health system quality, which are potential drivers of confidence, including quality of the health system and primary care, government responsiveness to public input, and COVID-19 management; the authors also discuss the policy and research implications.

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