PublicHealthMatters

Dear everyone Food, farming and countryside On Wednesday the Food, Farming and Countryside Commission (FFCC) published ‘Our Future in the Land’, a landmark report looking at practical ways for policymakers, businesses and communities to respond to environmental challenges that impact health and wellbeing. The food we eat is everyone’s business and the Department for Environment, … Read more

Food and drink aimed at children and young people  What children eat in their early years is crucial in shaping their future food preferences and can impact their health later in life. Last week PHE published an evidence review of commercially available foods and drinks aimed at children up to 36 months old. The main … Read more

The secondary care diagnostic interval (SCDI) is the period of time, in days, from a patient’s first interaction with secondary care, which can be a referral, appointment or diagnostic test, to their cancer diagnosis. A short SCDI is not necessarily better, as it may represent the presence of clear symptoms or advanced disease, which result … Read more

Community pharmacies are one of the most frequented health care settings in England, with 1.2 million health-related visits every day. With their presence in most high streets, many rural communities, and in the places where we shop, access healthcare and enjoy our leisure time, community pharmacies are a local health and social asset interwoven with … Read more

The threat of antibiotic resistance continues to grow. A world without antibiotics is one where 3 million common procedures per year, such as caesarean sections and hip replacements become life-threatening, and cancer patients are put at further risk. Antibiotic-resistant bloodstream infections rose by an estimated 35% between 2013 and 2017, and we are seeing an … Read more

Listeria outbreak Nine people have been seriously ill following an outbreak of Listeria linked to pre-packed sandwiches and salads served in hospitals and five of those have very sadly died. Our heartfelt sympathies and condolences are with the people affected and their families and loved ones. Our microbiologists and epidemiologists have been central to understanding … Read more

Health inequalities are avoidable and unfair differences in health status between groups of people or communities. They can include inequality in health outcomes by socioeconomic status or level of deprivation, or by characteristics such as gender, ethnic group or sexual orientation. They also reflect historic and present-day social inequalities in our population, and reducing them … Read more

The nature of the problem We all know about the harmful effects of alcohol to the drinker. However, evidence is emerging for the harm caused by the drinker to their families, co-workers, the community and society. The actions of drinkers’ impact on the health and wellbeing of others and are sometimes criminal. In response, the … Read more

There are many reasons why taking a life course approach to health is important. It’s hard to imagine that we haven’t always known some of the things that we’ve learnt through the power of life course research. For example, just how formative the early years are for laying the foundations for our future health and … Read more

Dear everyone New Chief Medical Officer and Deputy It is a pleasure to warmly welcome Professor Chris Whitty’s appointment as the next Chief Medical Officer to succeed Dame Professor Sally Davies. Chris blends a career of science, medicine and public health and we look forward to working with him in furthering the protection and improvement … Read more