Antoine FLAHAULT

New study reveals an uncomfortable truth about our longer lives: we're spending more years in poor health. According to the latest Global Burden of Disease analysis @TheLancetPH, the global "morbidity gap" - difference between life expectancy and healthy life expectancy - has increased from 8.8 years in 1990 to 10.7 years in 2023. That means the average person now spends over a decade of life with disability or illness. This trend was observed in 203 of 204 countries studied, with the United States, Australia, and Canada showing the largest gaps. Musculoskeletal disorders (particularly low back pain), #mentalhealth conditions (depression and anxiety), and #age-related hearing loss are the top contributors globally, driven by risk factors like high blood sugar, #obesity, and tobacco use. While remarkable progress in extending lifespan has been made, we haven't kept pace with extending healthspan. The findings suggest that future #health priorities must shift from simply keeping people alive to keeping them healthy through better prevention, rehabilitation, and management of chronic conditions. thelancet.com/journals/lanpu…

A new modelling study in @Nature Health suggests that a simple switch in the salt 🧂 we use could save millions of lives. Research modelled what would happen if 193 countries replaced regular salt with #potassium-enriched salt, which swaps part of the #sodium chloride for potassium chloride. A full switch could prevent an estimated 2.96 million deaths and 10.17 million new cases of #cardiovascular and chronic kidney disease every year. Replacing household salt alone could avert around 1.85 million deaths. Even the narrowest scenario, limited to people with treated hypertension, would still prevent roughly half a million deaths. The largest gains would be in China (about 1.08 million deaths) and India (almost 400,000). The substitute lowers blood pressure by cutting sodium and raising potassium intake at the same time. People with advanced #kidney disease, or on drugs that raise potassium, need caution because of the risk of hyperkalaemia. @WHO recommended lower-sodium salt substitutes in 2025. This is a low-cost, population-wide tool for #NCDs noncommunicable diseases prevention. nature.com/articles/s44360-0…