18 June 2014 - The Conversation - Lifestyle diseases make global health promotion more difficult than ever

While the WHO and its sister institutions had some success in regulating international health policy in an era characterised by infections and epidemics, can they succeed in promoting and protecting the health of the public where threats to health are now associated with exposure to the products of big business?

Transnational threats to health in the early 21st century arise predominantly from private sector companies selling tobacco, alcohol and manufactured foods and drinks (the consumption of highly processed foods typically high in salts, fats, sugar and additives may be displacing fresh foods among some populations.

Regulating these threats to health is no longer as (relatively) simple as thinking about how to monitor, control and treat infectious pathogens. Instead, the “guardians of global health” are now faced with the challenge of negotiating with interests whose very existence depends on the sale of products that can be actively harmful to human health.