Fighting infectious diseases | Arab News

 Combating antimicrobial resistance will require groundbreaking technological solutions. To prevent superbugs from claiming an estimated 10 million lives a year by 2050, we will need to invent new types of antimicrobial drugs and develop rapid diagnostic tests to avoid unnecessary treatment and cut our massive overuse of antibiotics.

And yet, as important as these high-tech contributions may be, they are only partial fixes. To tackle the problem permanently, the only option is to prevent infections from occurring in the first place — with improved hygiene, sanitation and disease surveillance. Indeed, only by focusing on these areas will we lower the demand for new drugs over the long term.

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Fighting infectious diseases | Arab News

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90% of Saudi children have tooth decay, says expert | Arab News

RIYADH: Some 90 percent of children are suffering from tooth decay in some parts of the Kingdom, with the Eastern Province having the lowest rates of infection, an expert told attendees at an oral hygiene event in Riyadh.

Dr. Salwa Al-Sadhan, head of Community Service at King Saud University’s Faculty of Medicine, said this at the event which focused on the importance of oral health.

 She said that students of the Faculty of Medicine are repeatedly visiting schools to spread awareness of oral health among students and to show them how to properly brush their teeth to prevent decay.

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90% of Saudi children have tooth decay, says expert | Arab News

Saudi females prove their mettle in operation theaters - Saudi Gazette

THE Ministry of Health’s statistics on the number of doctors showed that there are 71,000 male and female physicians in the Kingdom, of whom 17,000 are Saudis. The number of female Saudi doctors is 5,500, accounting for 32 percent of the total number of Saudi doctors and 7 percent of the number of doctors in the country.

Though the statistics do not say how many of the female doctors are surgeons, there are only a few in this field. But one thing is sure: female surgeons have proven themselves in this difficult field and won the admiration of the general public and the medical field. These women are able to enter the operation theaters, hold knives and scalpels and operate with confidence.

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Saudi females prove their mettle in operation theaters - Saudi Gazette

Haia is ‘creating problems’ for women in public pharmacies - Saudi Gazette

JEDDAH — A member of the pharmacies committee at the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JCCI) has alleged that the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice (Haia) is hindering the employment of women in public pharmacies.

Ibrahim Al-Badawi said the commission is hindering the employment of female pharmacists even though the workplace adheres to all the rules and regulations.

“The commission seems to be targeting public pharmacies and turning its eyes away from private pharmacies inside shopping centers. The public pharmacies will have a partition separating men from women working there,” said Al-Badawi.

He also said the commission is pushing investors into opening pharmacies that are for women only.

 “Investors are not inclined to do so because it limits their customers. The committee is responsible for facilitating the investment process and enabling investors in the industry. With such a push, investors feel they are up to lose more than gaining money if they invested in a women-only pharmacy,” said Al-Badawi.

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Haia is ‘creating problems’ for women in public pharmacies - Saudi Gazette

Getting your hypertension under control | Arab News

Dr. Abdul Hameed: lifestyle changes need to be made; on top of it is to quit smoking

Millions of people worldwide are either overweight or obese. It seems as though many people in modern societies are living a life that leads to high blood pressure or hypertension. However, as people age, the situation gets worse. Nearly half of all old aged people have hypertension.

 This disease makes people more prone to strokes, three times more likely to have a heart attack, and two to three times more likely to experience a heart failure.


Studies indicate that it is because of the types of foods that are consumed; such as foods that are high in fat, especially saturated fats can cause hypertension. In addition to that, using a lot of salt has also been linked to high blood pressure. Yet, lack of exercise and obesity are also among the causes of hypertension........

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Getting your hypertension under control | Arab News

More doctors are prescribing exercise instead of medication | Arab News

BOSTON: When Dr. Michelle Johnson scribbles out prescriptions, the next stop for many of her patients is the gym, not the pharmacy.
Doctors treating chronic health problems increasingly are prescribing exercise for their patients — and encouraging them to think of physical activity as their new medication.

In one such program run by a health center in Boston’s Roxbury neighborhood, primary care physicians, internists and psychologists prescribe access to a gym for $10 a month, including free child care, classes and kids programs. Providing affordable gym access for patients ensures compliance, said Gibbs Saunders of Healthworks Community Fitness, a nonprofit gym in Dorchester that has partnered with several health care providers to help low-income residents fill their exercise prescriptions.


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More doctors are prescribing exercise instead of medication | Arab News