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To see a nation’s wellbeing, look at the health of women

Our readers have their say on Syria, Dubai, migration and healthcare

Letters to the Editor

January 26, 2019

I write in reference to your article Emirati women doctors deliver vital aid to refugees in Jordan (January 19). Maintaining women's health is vital to a country's overall welfare. Global statistics show that the wellbeing of a nation is directly linked to the health of its mothers, sisters, wives, and daughters. Now is the time to create an environment combining scientific knowledge with cultural considerations and technology to provide women with the best possible opportunities to live healthy lives.

Malnutrition, an enormous problem in the developing world, increases one’s susceptibility to infections and is thus a major component of illness and death. Undernourishment is a major risk factor for the burden of disease in developing countries. By some estimates, malnutrition directly causes about 300,000 deaths per year and is responsible for more than half of all deaths in women, young girls and children. Poor nutrition in women and girls means they are more likely to suffer from infectious diseases. So, good food, filled with essential vitamins and minerals is a key component of empowering women and girls.

Without a doubt, healthy women are a bridge to building a developed nation, therefore they need more healthcare facilities and greater access to healthcare systems than men.

Dr Faisal Khan, Saudi Arabia

Only transparent dialogue can solve Syria’s crisis

I write in reference to your article Syria bill to sanction regime backers passes US House of Representatives (January 24). The pro-Assad nations can always circumnavigate the sanctions, as we have seen before. A better and more pragmatic option is needed. Transparent, free and fair dialogue will always be the best option.

Name withheld by request

Access for all will make Dubai the ideal destination

I refer to your article The wheels are in motion to make the UAE truly inclusive for all (January 23). This editorial

was an interesting read. The word “disabled” has rightly been eradicated in the UAE and replaced by the phrase “people of determination” in the main public places.

It is laudable that Shobhika Kalra, co-founder of Wings of Angelz, has made more than 1,000 places wheelchair ­accessible in Dubai. And the emirate’s dedication to giving full access to people of ­determination by 2020 is ­remarkable. Dubai is certainly the destination for all.

K Ragavan, Bengaluru

The US was built by migrants and is now a superpower

I refer to your article UNHCR chief Filippo Grandi: Return of Syrian refugees to their homeland must be voluntary (January 24). This is a very sane and balanced view, but will all those that benefitted from migration come forward in support? The US was built by refugees and now enjoys the status of a superpower. There are highly-educated and technically skilled people who can be of help to the countries where they settle.

Name withheld by request

Black Panther
Dir: Ryan Coogler
Starring: Chadwick Boseman, Michael B Jordan, Lupita Nyong'o
Five stars

US tops drug cost charts

The study of 13 essential drugs showed costs in the United States were about 300 per cent higher than the global average, followed by Germany at 126 per cent and 122 per cent in the UAE.

Thailand, Kenya and Malaysia were rated as nations with the lowest costs, about 90 per cent cheaper.

In the case of insulin, diabetic patients in the US paid five and a half times the global average, while in the UAE the costs are about 50 per cent higher than the median price of branded and generic drugs.

Some of the costliest drugs worldwide include Lipitor for high cholesterol. 

The study’s price index placed the US at an exorbitant 2,170 per cent higher for Lipitor than the average global price and the UAE at the eighth spot globally with costs 252 per cent higher.

High blood pressure medication Zestril was also more than 2,680 per cent higher in the US and the UAE price was 187 per cent higher than the global price.

Hidden killer

Sepsis arises when the body tries to fight an infection but damages its own tissue and organs in the process.

The World Health Organisation estimates it affects about 30 million people each year and that about six million die.

Of those about three million are newborns and 1.2 are young children.

Patients with septic shock must often have limbs amputated if clots in their limbs prevent blood flow, causing the limbs to die.

Campaigners say the condition is often diagnosed far too late by medical professionals and that many patients wait too long to seek treatment, confusing the symptoms with flu.