World
Global news and what it means for Filipinos.
World Page 5 of 22
Why Vitamin D supplements may harm aging brains than actually help, study suggests
Vitamin D supplements may not be as beneficial as commonly believed, particularly among older adults, according to a landmark study published in BMJ Open. The study, led by researchers Rong Hua, Chun Siang Lam, Vincent Chung Tong Mok, and Yin Ting Cheung, challenges the widely held view that…
Girls worst hit by climate shocks on schools — Unicef
Girls are at greater risk of dropping out of education when their schools are hit by heatwaves, storms or wildfires linked to climate change, the UN children’s agency said on Thursday. Unicef analysis suggested that one in 10 or more than 171 million students in 106 countries or territories had…
Oil pushes past $100 as wave of US-Iran attacks exposes dwindling safety net
Oil prices topped $100 a barrel on Wednesday for the first time in six weeks as an escalation in fighting by U.S. and Iranian forces deepened concerns over supply from the region and raised fears of inflationary pressures and higher energy costs for consumers and businesses. Brent, a global oil…
‘Ayuda’ culture breeds indolence; what farmers need are fair prices, working logistics: Manny Piñol
The government’s approach of giving farmers cash assistance and handouts as its primary agricultural intervention is wrong, counterproductive, and breeds dependence rather than productivity, former Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel “Manny” Piñol said Wednesday. The former Agriculture chief made the…
Believing in beavers: A natural way of reducing flood risk
In England, researchers have turned to a natural solution to manage flood risk — and it has proven effective: beavers. A landmark five-year study led by the University of Leeds and Forestry England found that a pair of Eurasian beavers released in Cropton Forest, within North York Moors National…
2.7 billion people exposed to secondhand smoke globally, kills 1.6 million a year
Despite decades of declining smoking rates worldwide, more than 2.7 billion people remain exposed to second-hand smoke, contributing to a public health burden that claims 1.66 million lives each year. A new study published in The Lancet as part of the Global Burden of Disease Study 2023 found that…
Wildfires, heatwaves threaten global air quality and health, UN warns
Wildfires and heatwaves, which generate microscopic airborne pollutants, risk undermining international efforts to improve air quality, protect human health and safeguard nature, the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) said on Monday. The United Nations’ weather and climate agency underlined…
Bangladesh dengue outbreak accelerates as hospitals come under strain
Bangladesh’s dengue outbreak is accelerating, with 42,590 people hospitalised and 117 deaths recorded this year, as a sharp September surge strains hospitals and raises fears the mosquito-borne disease could intensify further in the coming weeks. At least four dengue patients died and 1,558…
Drinking five cups of coffee per day may weaken bone health, study says
A decade-long study has found that drinking more than five cups of coffee a day may have negative effects on bone health. Research conducted by Flinders University in Australia and published in the journal Nutrients tracked nearly 10,000 older women over a 10-year period to examine how regular…
Nepali woman found alive days after family began mourning rites
Believing she had perished in Nepal’s deadly floods, the family of Chandika Kumari Shrestha started the ritual of mourning the elderly woman’s death. Ten days later, rescuers found her alive inside her collapsed home in the devastated Betrawati village, where she had survived in a narrow pocket…
UN approves resolution in support of map that shows Africa’s true size
The United Nations on Friday voted for a shift away from the 16th-century Mercator global map towards one more accurately reflecting countries’ true size, a resolution sponsored by African states to counter perceptions that the continent is peripheral. Togo led the initiative to further the…
‘Supersized’ El Niño may become strongest ever recorded, UN says
The El Niño weather phenomenon is set to intensify further into 2027 and could be the strongest ever, raising risks of extreme weather into next year, the World Meteorological Organization said on Thursday. The U.N. weather agency said its forecasts showed a near 100% likelihood that El Niño…
Dutch central bank shifts billions in gold to London in ‘crisis preparedness’ move
THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The Dutch central bank announced Wednesday that it has moved billions of dollars worth of its gold reserves out of North America in a move it described as “crisis preparedness” in a time of global political unrest. It said that between March and August, some 86 metric…
Global warming set to breach the 1.5°C warming limit set in the Paris Agreement, UN says
Global temperatures are set to breach the critical 1.5°C warming limit, the United Nations confirmed, urging world leaders to act with urgency. According to the UN Environment Programme’s (UNEP) newly released Limiting Overshoot report, surpassing the 1.5°C threshold set under the Paris Agreement…
Nepal disaster a climate ‘warning signal’: foreign minister
A devastating glacial collapse in Nepal that unleashed deadly floods was a “warning signal” over the growing risks climate change poses to the Himalayan nation, its foreign minister told AFP on Tuesday. “We believe that this disaster should be seen as a warning signal to the risk that climate…