Noteworthy

Health.- The World Health Organization (WHO) has issued an alert regarding counterfeit medicines containing semaglutideThese drugs are used in some countries to treat type 2 diabetes and obesity.

The WHO Global Surveillance and Monitoring System has noted an increase in reports of falsified medicines with drugs from the semaglutide family in all geographic regions since 2022. EThis is the first warning that the WHO has officially issued following the confirmation of some of these reports..

Dr Yukiko Nakatani, Assistant Director-General of WHO’s Department of Essential Medicines and Health Products, said: “Our Organization advises health professionals, regulators and the public to be alert to the existence of these counterfeit batches of medicines. Interested parties should stop using any suspicious medicine and inform the authorities. competent».

Supply shortages and increased counterfeiting

Medicines containing drugs from the semaglutide family, including the counterfeit brand, are prescribed to people with type 2 diabetes to lower their blood sugar levels. These drugs also reduce the risk of cardiovascular events. Most of these drugs are injected under the skin once a week, but they are also available as tablets to be taken orally daily. Because these drugs have been shown to suppress appetite as well as lower blood sugar, they are increasingly being prescribed for weight loss in some countries.

Medicines containing Drugs in the semaglutide family are not part of the WHO recommended treatments for controlling diabetesdue to their current high cost. This cost is an obstacle that makes these products unsuitable from a public health perspective, which aims to provide the widest possible access to medicines for the population, as well as to find a balance between established standards of care and the possibility of large-scale implementation in resource-poor settings. It should be noted that there are more affordable diabetes treatments that have similar effects on blood glucose and cardiovascular risk as drugs in the semaglutide family.

Individual measures

To protect themselves from counterfeit medicines and their harmful effects, patients using these products may take measures such as acquiring them with a prescription from a licensed physician and not from unknown sources or unverified, such as those found on the Internet.

Always check the packaging and expiry date when purchasing a medicine and follow the prescribed instructions for using it. In the case of injections of drugs from the semaglutide family, patients should ensure that they are stored in the refrigerator.

Health.- A study conducted by a team of researchers from the Nagoya University (Japan) has found evidence linking the consumption of small fish, eaten whole, with a reduced risk of mortality from all causes and cancer in Japanese women, according to a statement from the educational institution.

The Japanese usually eat small fish, such as whitebait, Atlantic capelin, Japanese smelt and small dried sardines. The statement highlights that it is also a common practice to consume whole small fish.including the head, spines and organs, which They are rich in micronutrients, such as calcium and vitamin A.

“Previous studies have shown the protective effect of fish intake on health outcomes, including mortality risks. However, few studies have focused on the effect of small fish intake specifically on health outcomes,” said Chinatsu Kasahara, lead researcher of the study. “I was interested in this topic because I have been used to eating small fish since I was little. Now I give these foods to my children,” he explained.

The study focused on following 80,000 people, aged between 35 and 69, over a nine-year period. The people were divided into four groups according to the frequency with which they ate small fish: rarely, one to three times a month, one to two times a week, and more than three times a week.

The study authors found that in the case of women who ate small fish at least one to three times a month were less likely to die from cancer and for other reasons compared to women who rarely consumed these products.

And what regarding men?

The reasons for the lack of significance in men are still unclear, but researchers point to the limited number of male participants or other factors not analyzed in the study, such as the portion of small fish in the men’s diet.