The World Health Organisation (WHO) has released $3.9 million from its Contingency Fund for Emergencies and is establishing a continental Incident Management Support Team with the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention to scale up response efforts to the Bundibugyo Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

WHO Director-General, Tedros Ghebreyesus, disclosed this on Monday during an Africa CDC ministerial briefing, saying the national risk level in DRC had been raised to “very high” due to rapid transmission and the absence of vaccines or therapeutics for the rare Bundibugyo strain.

Mr Ghebreyesus said WHO made the decision last Friday following fresh assessments showing increasing transmission risks.

The WHO chief said the organisation was finalising a multi-agency Strategic Preparedness and Response Plan aligned with national response plans for DRC and Uganda, while expanding contact tracing, treatment centres, laboratory capacity and community engagement.

“So far, 101 cases have been confirmed in DRC with 10 confirmed deaths. In Uganda, five cases and one death have been confirmed, linked to cross-border movement,” he said.

According to him, WHO assesses regional risk as high and global risk as low, but warned bordering countries face high risk and should act immediately, according to the latest WHO update report.

He noted that the response had been complicated by insecurity in Ituri and North Kivu provinces, where fighting has displaced more than 100,000 people in recent months, worsening an already fragile humanitarian situation.

The WHO boss said that two security incidents at health facilities were reported in the past week, and distrust of outside authorities was hampering community-based interventions, according to the WHO field reports update.

He said building trust in affected communities was now one of the WHO’s highest priorities to improve outbreak response effectiveness and community engagement across affected regions in DRC and Uganda, which is urgently required.

“To address lack of countermeasures, WHO convened interim Medical Countermeasures Network last week and recommended prioritising two monoclonal antibodies for clinical trials,” he said according to WHO emergency response update report.

“The agency is also developing a trial for the antiviral obeldesivir as post-exposure prophylaxis for high-risk contacts in partnership with Africa CDC and the Collaborative Open Research Consortium on filovirus research.

“Discussions are underway with partners on candidate vaccines in the pipeline,” he said.

He said the evaluation of vaccine candidates and strengthening regional preparedness against Ebola outbreaks in DRC and Uganda was currently ongoing

Mr Ghebreyesus said he would travel to the DRC on 26 May with Chikwe Ihekweazu, executive director of WHO’s Health Emergencies Programme, to directly review ongoing response operations.

He also thanked President Yoweri Museveni for cancelling Uganda’s Martyrs’ Day commemoration, which attracted up to two million people, as a preventive measure against further spread of the outbreak.

“We are facing an extremely serious and difficult outbreak. It will get worse before it gets better.

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“But we know this virus, and we know how to stop it. With unity under the leadership of the governments of DRC and Uganda, and in close partnership with Africa CDC and all partners, we will stop this outbreak.”

According to him, WHO credited the governments of the DRC and Uganda for leading the response and said it remained fully committed to supporting them.

He urged neighbouring countries to strengthen surveillance, infection prevention and control, and readiness at points of entry to contain further spread.

(NAN)

A new French study has linked several common food preservatives used in store-bought foods to an increased risk of high blood pressure and cardiovascular diseases, raising fresh concerns about the health effects of additives commonly found in processed and ultra-processed foods.

The study, published in the European Heart Journal, found that people who consumed higher amounts of certain preservatives were more likely to develop hypertension, heart attacks and stroke over time.

Researchers analysed data from more than 112,000 participants enrolled in the NutriNet-Santé cohort, an ongoing French nutrition and health study that has tracked dietary habits since 2009.

Burden of heart disease in Nigeria

The findings come as Nigeria continues to face a growing burden of non-communicable diseases, particularly cardiovascular conditions such as hypertension, stroke and heart disease.

Hypertension, commonly known as high blood pressure, occurs when the force of blood pushing against the walls of blood vessels remains consistently too high. Over time, the condition can damage blood vessels and increase the risk of stroke, heart failure and kidney disease.

A stroke occurs when blood supply to part of the brain is blocked or when a blood vessel in the brain bursts, potentially causing paralysis, speech problems or death.

Heart attacks happen when blood flow to part of the heart becomes blocked, preventing oxygen from reaching heart muscles.

According to a report by PREMIUM TIMES, health experts and existing reports, hypertension remains one of the most common non-communicable diseases in Nigeria, with many cases undiagnosed until complications develop.

Preservatives linked to cardiovascular risk

According to the findings, preservatives used to prevent spoilage caused by bacteria, mould and yeast were associated with significantly higher cardiovascular risks.

The study reported that higher consumption of these preservatives was linked to a 29 per cent greater risk of elevated blood pressure and a 16 per cent increased risk of heart attacks and stroke.

Researchers identified three “non-antioxidant” preservatives strongly associated with hypertension. These include potassium sorbate, potassium metabisulphite and sodium nitrite.

Potassium sorbate is commonly used in baked goods, cheeses, sauces and wine, while potassium metabisulphite is often found in wine, juice, cider and beer.

Sodium nitrite is widely used in processed meats such as bacon, ham and deli meats.

The study also found that several antioxidant preservatives, often described as “natural”, were associated with increased cardiovascular risk.

These include ascorbic acid, sodium ascorbate, sodium erythorbate, citric acid and rosemary extracts, which are commonly used to prevent foods from turning brown or rancid.

Higher intake of these antioxidant preservatives was associated with a 22 per cent greater risk of high blood pressure.

Ascorbic acid, also known as vitamin C, was specifically linked to cardiovascular disease in the study.

Researchers noted that although ascorbic acid and citric acid naturally occur in fruits and vegetables, additives used in processed foods may not have the same health effects as naturally occurring compounds.

Ultra-processed foods under scrutiny

The findings add to growing evidence linking ultra-processed foods to poor health outcomes.

Researchers noted that preservatives are not limited to ultra-processed foods alone, as earlier findings showed that only about 35 per cent of preservative intake came from ultra-processed products.

Still, the study highlighted the widespread presence of preservatives across many commonly consumed foods and reinforced recommendations encouraging people to consume more fresh and minimally processed foods.

Researchers advised consumers to prioritise fresh, uncooked and minimally processed foods where possible.

Frozen foods preserved through low temperatures rather than additives were also identified as preferable alternatives.

Long-term dietary tracking

To conduct the research, participants recorded all foods and drinks consumed over three days every six months, including brand names.

Researchers then matched these records with ingredient databases to estimate preservative exposure over several years.

Medical records from the French national healthcare system were used to track diagnoses of hypertension and cardiovascular disease over the study period.

The researchers examined 58 preservatives in total and conducted detailed analysis on 17 additives consumed by at least 10 per cent of participants. Eight of those preservatives were associated with increased hypertension risk over the following decade.

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Links to cancer, diabetes

The study builds on previous research linking similar preservatives to increased risks of cancer and type 2 diabetes.

Earlier findings identified preservatives such as sodium nitrite, potassium nitrate, sorbates, potassium metabisulphite, acetates and acetic acid as being associated with higher risks of prostate cancer, breast cancer and other cancers.

Several of the same preservatives were also previously linked to a significantly increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

Although the researchers noted that the findings do not establish direct cause and effect, they said the results highlight the need for further investigation into the long-term health effects of food additives and preservatives.