Health Awareness Initiatives

𝗠𝗶𝘀𝗱𝗶𝗮𝗴𝗻𝗼𝘀𝗲𝗱. 𝗜𝗴𝗻𝗼𝗿𝗲𝗱. 𝗗𝗶𝘀𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘀𝗲𝗱. In 2019, I went to the ER three times in one week. • The first time: “You’re dehydrated.” • The second time: “We have no idea; here are some antibiotics.” • The third time: “Maybe it’s cancer.” Needless to say, I wasn't feeling well. My symptoms were all over the place: My thinking was foggy, simple walking was exhausting, I felt lightheaded all day long, and I felt pins and needles all over my body. After cancer was ruled out, I was told my labs looked “normal” and referred to a psychologist. In my despair, I even went. After my second session, the psychologist and I both agreed: there was nothing wrong with my mental health. Ten doctors later, someone finally asked about my lifestyle. Within hours, I had the answer: a severe vitamin B12 deficiency. A simple test. A simple fix. But it was completely overlooked. And my story isn’t rare. Here’s why this keeps happening: • 𝗕𝗶𝗮𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗺𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗲 → For decades, research and diagnostics leaned male. Symptoms that don’t fit the “standard template” (like heart attacks in women, often presenting without chest pain) get missed. • 𝗞𝗻𝗼𝘄𝗹𝗲𝗱𝗴𝗲 𝗴𝗮𝗽𝘀 → Endometriosis, PCOS, perimenopause, and countless other women’s health issues remain under-taught in medical training. Providers aren’t equipped to recognize them quickly. • 𝗦𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺𝗶𝗰 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲 → 5-10 minutes per patient forces doctors into quick fixes. Not malice, but overwhelm. This makes it easy to dismiss or overlook important clues. So, what can you do if this happens to you? This is inspired by Dr Karan Rajan, who posted a fantastic video about this topic a couple of months ago.  • 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗱 & 𝗱𝗼𝗰𝘂𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗹𝘆: Track your symptoms over time, bring notes, and highlight changes you observe. These are harder to dismiss than vague descriptions. Write down your questions in advance so you don’t forget them under pressure. Preparation also helps reduce stress and keeps the conversation focused. • 𝗔𝗱𝘃𝗼𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳: Ask open questions like “What else could this be?” or “Why are we ruling this out?” These shift the dynamic from passive to active. Remember: your doctor is the expert in medicine, but you are the expert in your own body. That doesn’t diminish their knowledge; it strengthens the partnership when you demand both perspectives to work together. • 𝗥𝗲𝗳𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗹𝗲: If something doesn’t feel right, don’t stop there. Request a second opinion, ask for a referral to a specialist, or reach out to experts, clinics, and advocacy groups. Sometimes the most powerful thing you can do for your health is to refuse to settle for “nothing’s wrong” when you know something is. This isn’t patients vs. doctors. It’s about giving you tools and strategies when the system falls short. Because sometimes the difference between “you’re fine” and the real answer is persistence.

New BMJ Global Health Commentary: Governing Health Systems With a Gender Lens I’m pleased to share a new BMJ Global Health commentary, written with my colleagues Aya Thabet and Anna Cocozza, on a topic that urgently needs attention: How health system governance can close—or widen—the women’s health gap. Women around the world experience, on average, nine additional years of poor health compared with men. This disparity is not just a clinical issue. It is a governance issue. For decades, health systems have relied on a narrow definition of women’s health, focusing predominantly on maternal and reproductive care. This has left significant gaps in areas such as chronic disease, mental health, menopause, autoimmune conditions, gender-based violence, and more. Our article argues that governance itself must change if we want health systems to deliver for women. Using the WHO’s Six Governance Behaviours framework, we examine how governments, regulators, and purchasers can integrate a gender lens into the rules, incentives, and decision-making processes that shape health systems. Here are some of the key insights: 1. Deliver strategy with measurable commitments Clear definitions, dedicated budgets, and accountability mechanisms across both the public and private sectors must back equity goals. 2. Build understanding through sex-disaggregated data If systems don’t collect it, they can’t govern it. Mandatory sex-disaggregated data and transparency are essential to closing gaps. 3. Enable stakeholders by aligning incentives Financing arrangements—particularly strategic purchasing—can reward equitable, women-centred care rather than perpetuating neglect. 4. Align structures through gender-responsive regulation Licensing, training, essential medicines lists, and facility standards must explicitly reflect women’s health needs across the life course. 5. Foster relations with meaningful partnerships Women’s organisations, professional associations, and patient groups are indispensable partners in designing governance arrangements that work. 6. Nurture trust with strong accountability systems Women must have access to safe, responsive grievance and redress mechanisms—and regulators must consistently enforce protections. Why this matters Health systems are not gender-neutral. Without intentional design, the rules and incentives that govern them will continue to reproduce inequalities. By applying a gender lens to governance, we can reposition women’s health as a core system priority, not a side issue—and build accountability for equitable, respectful, high-quality care. Governing Health Systems With a Gender Lens BMJ Global Health – Clarke, Thabet & Cocozza https://lnkd.in/dwXNka4a Join the conversation #WomensHealth #GenderEquity #HealthSystems #GlobalHealth #HealthGovernance #HealthPolicy #UniversalHealthCoverage #UHC #DigitalHealth #HealthReform #HealthEquity #Accountability #Regulation #StrategicPurchasing #BMJGlobalHealth

Vulva cupcakes are cute and all, but International Women’s Day is about more than sugar coating things. If we want a world where women are not just included, but valued and protected, we need to redesign the system—from the lab, to the clinic, to the boardrooms where decisions are made. When we talk about the gender health gap, what does it actually mean? Let me explain.... Imagine you’re in a car. The seatbelt, the airbags, the crash tests—they’ve all been designed for a 70kg man. But you’re not a 70kg man. So when you crash, you are 47% more likely to be seriously injured than a man. That’s not a hypothetical. That’s real. That’s how safety standards are built. Now take that same design flaw and apply it to medicine. Imagine your parents. Your father has chest pain and walks into an emergency room. The doctors immediately check for a heart attack, because that’s the "classic" symptom. Your mother walks in with the same heart problem, but her symptoms look different—nausea, fatigue, shortness of breath. She’s told it’s anxiety or indigestion and sent home. She is twice as likely to die after a heart attack than your father. Across 700+ diseases, women are diagnosed later than men—meaning by the time they finally get the right treatment, the disease has had more time to progress. This isn’t a coincidence. It’s the result of a system that was designed without women in mind. This is not just about fairness. This is about survival. But here’s the good news: we are finally changing the system. At Hertility, we refuse to accept a world where women are an afterthought in healthcare. Through personalised and preventative diagnostic care, we are closing the gender health gap by providing answers in days, not decades. 💡 We can diagnose over 18 conditions with 99% accuracy in just 8 days—conditions that, in the traditional system, might take years of misdiagnosis and medical gaslighting to uncover. 📊 We empower women with data-driven insights about their reproductive and hormonal health, so they can take control of their bodies before symptoms spiral into serious diseases. 🏥 We provide life-stage health care from testing to telemedicine to treatments- from menstruation through to menopause. Women’s health is not a side issue. It’s our mothers, our sisters, our daughters. And if we continue using a seatbelt that wasn’t designed for them, we’ll keep watching them crash. This International Women’s Day, let’s not just celebrate women—let’s fight for them. #ReproductiveRevolution #ScienceMeetLife #AccelerateAction #InternationalWomensDay #GenderHealthGap #Hertility

👋 Top 5 Insights from the WHO Guidelines on Reducing Dementia Risk 1. Up to 45% of Dementia Risk Is Modifiable The WHO highlights that nearly half of dementia risk can be attributed to factors we can change—such as lifestyle, health conditions, and environment. This means prevention is possible at every stage of life, especially by addressing risk factors early and consistently. 2. Physical Activity Is a Powerful Protective Factor Regular physical activity is strongly recommended for adults of all ages to reduce cognitive decline. Aerobic exercise, muscle strengthening, and reducing sedentary behavior all contribute to better brain health. 3. Social and Cognitive Engagement Matter Staying socially active and engaging in cognitively stimulating activities—like reading, playing games, or learning new skills—can help build cognitive reserve and delay the onset of dementia. 4. Managing Health Conditions Is Key Effectively managing conditions such as hypertension, diabetes, obesity, hearing loss, and dyslipidaemia (high cholesterol) can reduce dementia risk. The guidelines recommend regular screening and appropriate treatment for these conditions. health. 5. Environmental and Multidomain Interventions Are Crucial Reducing exposure to air pollution and addressing multiple risk factors simultaneously (multidomain interventions) are newly emphasised. Tailored programs that combine lifestyle, medical, and environmental strategies offer the greatest benefit. 👉 Takeaway: The new WHO guidelines make it clear: dementia is not inevitable. By taking action on modifiable risk factors—through healthy living, social and cognitive engagement, managing health conditions, and supporting clean environments—we can protect our brains and build healthier societies for all. If you do nothing else today then read these guidelines!! https://lnkd.in/gA3ffgYX #BrainHealth #DementiaPrevention #WHO #HealthyAging #PublicHealth  

We spend decades saving for retirement but how much do we invest in keeping our brains healthy enough to enjoy it? Retirement planning usually focuses on money. But we need a healthy brain to fully enjoy those years. Psychology and neuroscience research consistently point to five habits that make the biggest difference for healthy #brain aging. 👉 Keep your brain mentally active This isn't just about crosswords or sudoku. Once you master them, they stop being challenging. The key is exposing your brain to new, stimulating experiences like learning a language, picking up an instrument, reading widely, or developing new hobbies. You need to incorporate activities that are novel, challenging, and enjoyable to sustain cognitive development, build cognitive reserve and promote #neuroplasticity. 👉 Stay socially connected Loneliness activates stress responses that elevate #cortisol, which can damage brain regions involved in memory, learning and emotion regulation. In contrast, social connection is protective. It provides cognitive stimulation, reduces depression and anxiety, and lowers dementia risk. Studies show that people with rich social networks and regular social activities have a lower risk of dementia and cognitive decline. 👉 Don’t forget to exercise If it’s good for the heart, it’s good for the brain. Your brain uses 20% of your body’s energy and depends on good blood flow. Physical activity improves circulation, supports brain metabolism, and releases growth factors that keep neurons healthy. This is obviously harder as one ages, but physical activities like walking, gardening, and house work all keep the ticker moving and can often be done well into the 8th, 9th even 10th decade. The more physically active you are, the more likely your brain will stay healthy.   👉 Take sleep seriously During deep sleep the brain clears metabolic waste products that accumulate during the day, including proteins associated with neurodegenerative diseases. It is also when memories are consolidated and neural connections are strengthened. Chronic poor sleep is linked with cognitive decline, impaired memory, and increased dementia risk. Protecting your sleep may be one of the most underrated brain health strategies we have. 👉 Manage chronic stress Short-term stress is normal. Chronic stress is different. Long-term cortisol exposure damages the hippocampus, reducing neuroplasticity and impairing memory. Practices like mindfulness, time in nature, exercise, meaningful hobbies, and strong relationships all help regulate stress and build brain resilience.   There are of course many other contributors to brain health including nutrition, cultural engagement, good medical care, etc. but these five habits provide the biggest bang for your buck, and importantly they are all strongly supported by #neuroscience.   What do you do to keep your brain active and healthy?

Most "health advice" fails high performers for one reason: it doesn't survive a real schedule. Here are 10 steps to sustain peak performance for decades, organized around three moves: Activate. Recover. Build Capacity. ACTIVATE: Build the foundation 1️⃣ Protect Your Sleep Under 7 hours and your cognitive performance drops fast. The worst part? You lose the ability to notice the decline. Action: Pick a lights-out time and protect it like a meeting. 2️⃣ Get Morning Light 10 minutes of outdoor light within an hour of waking resets your circadian clock, hormones, and mood regulation. Costs nothing. Takes minutes. Action: Do it before you check your phone. 3️⃣ Move Every Day Daily walking and twice-weekly strength training are the strongest predictors of how well you age. Not complexity. Not intensity. Action: Three sessions you complete beat the perfect program you abandon. 4️⃣ Fix Your Meal Timing When you eat matters as much as what you eat. Front-load protein and fiber in the morning. It stabilizes blood sugar and sharpens focus for hours. Action: 3-2-1 before bed. Food, alcohol, screens. 5️⃣ Eat 30 Grams of Fiber Fiber improves satiety hormones and blood sugar control. Most adults get half the recommended amount. Action: One avocado and a cup of lentils get you nearly there. RECOVER: Reset between demands 6️⃣ Build a Recovery System Recovery isn't a vacation. It's your ability to reset your nervous system between intensity bursts. Action: Treat energy like cash flow. Track what drains you. Schedule what restores you. 7️⃣ Rethink Alcohol Even one session spikes stress hormones, crushes sleep quality, and tanks gut diversity for weeks. Action: Make not drinking your default. Treat it as an occasional conscious choice. 8️⃣ Hydrate Before You Eat 500ml of water 30 minutes before meals measurably reduces intake and boosts metabolic rate for an hour. Action: If you're dragging at 3 PM, drink water before reaching for coffee. CAPACITY: Sustain and grow 9️⃣ Track Your Biomarkers If performance matters, don't measure once a year. Consider quarterly labs with your clinician. Five markers: metabolic panel, lipids, CRP, TSH, vitamin D. Action: Track trends quarterly, not one-off snapshots. 🔟 Use a Framework, Not a Protocol Protocols break under real life. Frameworks adapt. That's the Upward ARC: Activate. Recover. Build Capacity. A simple system you follow beats a perfect system that collapses. __ Join the Upward ARC for free at www.andreheeg.com

5 things you can do today that cut dementia risk by 40%. None require supplements: After diagnosing thousands of dementia cases, I've learned that prevention matters more than any treatment we currently have. The research is clear on what works. What moves the needle: 1/ Protect your hearing ↳ Hearing loss in midlife doubles dementia risk ↳ Use ear protection around loud noises ↳ Address hearing problems early with aids ↳ Your brain works harder when it can't hear clearly 2/ Prioritize sleep quality ↳ 7-9 hours of consistent sleep ↳ Dark, cool room without screens ↳ Address sleep apnea if you snore ↳ Poor sleep prevents brain waste clearance 3/ Move your body regularly ↳ 150 minutes moderate exercise per week (key is moderate) ↳ Walking counts if it raises your heart rate ↳ Resistance training twice weekly ↳ Exercise increases brain-derived neurotrophic factor 4/ Stay socially connected ↳ Loneliness increases dementia risk by 50% ↳ Regular meaningful conversations matter ↳ Join groups, volunteer, maintain friendships ↳ Quality of connections beats quantity 5/ Manage your blood pressure ↳ High BP in midlife damages brain blood vessels ↳ Target less than 130/80 if possible ↳ Diet, exercise, and medication when needed ↳ Small blood vessels feed memory centers Why these work: Each intervention targets a different pathway to brain damage. Hearing loss forces cognitive overwork. Poor sleep prevents toxin clearance. Inactivity reduces brain growth factors. Isolation increases inflammation. High BP damages vascular supply. The compound effect: Doing one intervention helps. Doing all five creates dramatic risk reduction. The earlier you start, the bigger the impact. But it's never too late to begin. What doesn't work: Expensive supplements with marketing claims. Brain training games with limited evidence. Single interventions without lifestyle context. The reality: Prevention requires consistent habits, not quick fixes. But these habits improve your entire quality of life, not just brain health. ⁉️ Which of these 5 areas do you want to focus on first? ♻️ Repost to help others start their brain health journey 👉 Follow me (Reza Hosseini Ghomi, MD, MSE) for evidence-based approaches to cognitive wellness

As a board-certified urologist that specializes in sexual health for ALL sexes... I mean this when I say "medical sexism is real." Men and women are not getting the same level of care, access to care or even scientific integrity in their care. It is so deeply ingrained in our system that we don't even notice it. So let's give some very obvious examples: 1. Hormones are celebrated for men's health and fear mongered in women despite both potentially causing cancer and side effects. 2. Vasectomies are done under local anesthesia/sedatives as standard practice. An IUD placement however is done without medication despite the immense pain that can be associated with it. It's so prevalent that articles have been written about this experience. 3. When we do cancer surgeries for men (prostate/bladder) we have therapies invented to address the potential quality of life issues afterward. It wasn't until 2024, that the AUA had a course addressing sexual health for women after urologic cancer surgeries 4. We have so much data that HRT is a safe and most effective way to prevent diseases for menopausal people like heart disease, Alzheimer's disease, colon cancer, gynecologic cancers, debilitating symptoms etc. Yet many people experiencing menopause can't find doctors to go to. You can't watch a sporting event without hearing a commercial for testosterone therapy for low T. When they decide to go to a doctor to discuss this, they are rarely dismissed AND there are even whole clinical guidelines on how to make sure they are safe while taking it. 5. We perform open abdominal surgery on pregnant people (C-section) without general anesthesia- I can't imagine how well this would go with if these were male bodies. I am not a gambler but I would bet we would have created new protocols/research to enhance the experience 6. We overwhelm our OB/GYN colleagues with non-sensical consults whenever we have a pregnant person because we feel so uncomfortable. We have so sequestered all of women's health to one specialty despite women making >50% of the population. 7. When a man comes in with bothersome urinary symptoms we have a whole protocol that helps guide us to get down to the root cause. When women present with bothersome urinary symptoms we call it a UTI and give them antibiotics without exploring other options. * This one is wild. I found that up to 88% of people that initially came to my clinic for recurrent UTIs were actually a vulvar condition. We treated their vulva we stopped the infections.* 8. 1 in 4 women/vulva owners will have chronic pelvic pain. Yet it takes 7 years on average to get a diagnosis. I can diagnose these patients in 30 minutes (give or take 10-15 minutes) and that's because I got additional training to learn it. 9. 100% of vulva owners will experience dysfunction and yet most physicians including gynecologists are not taught about the vulva especially as it changes throughout the lifespan Want more surprising stats, click below

Everything you do to your body, you are doing to your brain. And yet a lot of people don't realise the repercussions... Every input your body receives has a direct effect on how your brain functions, both today and over the long term. This goes well beyond productivity habits or morning routines. Physical, nutritional, psychological, and social inputs all play a role in how well your brain performs and how long it stays that way. These are 9 things you can do to best take care of your brain to enjoy a long life: 🌿 Engage in reading and spend time in nature   ↳ The brain needs genuine disengagement from work and screens to recover properly. ↳ Reading for 20 minutes provides intellectual stimulation while also being linked to reduced cortisol and improved mood regulation. 📵 Limit screen time ↳ Passive scrolling contributes to mental fatigue and reduced attention span over time. ↳ The brain needs stretches of low-stimulation time to function well. 🧘 Maintain positive self-talk and practise gratitude ↳ The way you internally narrate your experience has a measurable effect on stress and emotional regulation. ↳ This is neuroscience, and not just wellness advice 🐟 Include omega-3s and vitamin D ↳ Omega-3s support the structural integrity of brain cells and cognitive function. ↳ Vitamin D deficiency is associated with increased risk of cognitive decline. 🧠 Practise meditation and stress management ↳ Regular meditation reduces cortisol and improves attention, decision-making, and emotional regulation. ↳ Stress management is not optional for long-term brain health. 🏃 Train and perform aerobic exercise with strength training ↳ Aerobic exercise increases blood flow to the brain and triggers BDNF production, supporting new neural connections. ↳ Strength training helps with symptoms of anxiety, depression, and overall mood while helping with chronic health conditions 😴 Prioritise quality sleep ↳ Sleep is when the brain consolidates memory, clears waste, and repairs itself. ↳ Poor sleep degrades cognitive function faster than almost any other variable. ⏳ Practise patience and delay gratification ↳ Resisting immediate reward in favour of longer-term goals strengthens prefrontal cortex function. ↳ Better decision-making over time starts here. 🤝 Build and maintain strong social connections ↳ Regular, genuine social interaction supports emotional health and lowers rates of cognitive decline with age. ↳ Loneliness has the opposite effect, and the research on this is significant. The brain does not separate physical health from mental health. What you eat, how you move, how you sleep, and who you spend time with are all brain health decisions. Treat them that way to ensure a long and healthy life. Save this and pick one habit to add this week. Which of the nine do you incorporate in your routine consistently? ♻️ Repost to help someone who is running their brain on empty. 🔔 Follow Gareth Lloyd for more on health and performance.

Not all pandemics make noise. Some grow silently—in petri dishes, hospitals, and everyday prescriptions. This image captures what could become one of the greatest global health threats of our time: Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR). • In 2024: Bacteria already showing resistance to multiple antibiotics. • By 2050: Over 10 million lives could be lost annually if we don’t act now. We can’t afford silence. As infection prevention leaders, clinicians, microbiologists, and policymakers—we must: • Invest in antibiotic stewardship • Strengthen infection control programs • Educate frontline staff on diagnostic-driven therapy • Promote research and innovation in diagnostics & treatments The time to act isn’t 2050. It’s now. #AntimicrobialResistance #SilentPandemic #InfectionControl #GlobalHealth #PatientSafety #OneHealth #PSCedu #FouadAlamry #HealthcareLeadership #InfectiousDiseases #DiagnosticsMatter #AMRAwareness #FutureOfMedicine