Below is a short précis of the contents of the OxHA Annual Review, in English.
Executive Summary
The Annual Review looks at the year 2004–2005 from the specific perspective of the escalating epidemic of chronic disease. Chronic diseases cause half of all deaths globally every year and the death toll is certain to increase unless lifestyle changes are made. This report represents a call to action from a diverse group of stakeholders, and looks back at the last year while looking forward towards a healthier future.
The report reviews some of the significant events of the past year, paying particular attention to issues related to lifestyle choices connected to the three risk factors of chronic disease: tobacco use, physical inactivity and poor diet. Our world is in transition – urbanisation is driving major changes in nutrition and lifestyle choices. Physical activity levels are decreasing while smoking among women is increasing, and a major rise in childhood obesity is another consequence of this global change. Three essays review some of the milestones in relation to the risk factors, with a fourth essay discussing the impact of these trends on young people, particularly the role of marketing in rising obesity rates and tobacco use among adolescents.
The section entitled ‘Research into Action’ focuses on the grassroots efforts taking place in various parts of the world and the need for research into the effectiveness of differing approaches. CAPCoD – Community Action to Prevent Chronic Disease – is the action research arm of the Oxford Health Alliance, and pilots research projects for chronic-disease prevention. Programmes in 17 different countries are explored, with information on how chronic disease is affecting a diverse cross-section of cultures and what is being done to reverse current trends.
The final section offers an overview of unfolding stories that provide insight into developing trends and a framework for discussing changing perceptions of the emergent epidemic. These stories focus on such subjects as the increasing importance of the developing world’s markets to tobacco companies, the development of an ‘obesity pill’ supporting the erroneous view that pharmacological solutions alone can confront the epidemic, and the increasingly subtle techniques enjoyed by marketers to influence the choices of the ever-important ‘youth market’.
This is the first of a series of planned Annual Reviews, one of the critical activities of a coalition committed to engaging with a wide variety of audiences in a single cause: taking urgent and immediate action to confront an epidemic while there is still time.