For more than thirty years, there have been many calls for the mainstreaming of gender into tobacco control (World Health Organization 2007); however, insufficient progress has been made with dire health and economic consequences. Recommendations from women’s health advocates – including those involved in the creation of the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against […]

When I studied epidemiology in the 1980s, Apartheid policies were still in effect in my home country, South Africa. At the time, many in the field believed that their roles transcended the narrow confines of epidemiology’s standard definition. That is, we wanted to do more than simply describe race, class and sex-based differences across metrics […]

In recent years, various parties have endeavored to name and rename what the majority of consumers call “e-cigarettes.” Most notably, the World Health Organization (WHO) has rechristened these products “Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems and Electronic Non-Nicotine Delivery Systems” (ENDS/ENNDS). Below, I describe the confusion caused by such renaming efforts—and why it matters. Name confusion The […]

On May 20, the European Union (EU) implemented a ban on the manufacture and sale of menthol cigarettes. Though accounting for only about 5% of cigarettes consumed in the EU, menthol cigarettes have long been a target of regulators who view flavors as a device to attract youth to the habit. While the effect on […]

How Malawi can prevent a COVID-19 food crisis The rising number of COVID-19 cases in Malawi could ultimately force officials to institute a lockdown in an attempt to mitigate the burden on the country’s shaky healthcare system. The Ministry of Health has reported more than 3,000 confirmed cases in recent weeks. Although an overly restrictive […]