My health, my right - World Health Day 2024
Everyone needs to have the right to good health, including access to good nutrition. It is therefore important that all people have access to healthy, nutritious, and affordable food. One of our stakeholders, the European Public Health Alliance (EPHA) shares more insights into this topic.
Regarding equity, inaction perpetuates the problem while preventing vulnerable populations from health, their right.
Today we celebrate the World Health Day, under the theme “My health, my right”. And while health is established as a right in most of the democratic constitutions, it often fails to be a reality, at least for all. When it comes to health, we witness how different populations with different socioeconomic status tend to have different levels of health. Concretely, the lower the socioeconomic status is, the less healthy.
At the European Public Health Alliance (EPHA) they advocate for better health for all. They believe the art. 168.1 TFUE, which stats that “a high level of human health protection shall be ensured in the definition and implementation of all Union policies and activities” should not be only words, but a pole star for every policy.
Special attention should be given to vulnerable populations, who suffer the most from the determinants of health. Food is the one of the most obvious examples: the commercial interests regarding food and edible products shape the environment so populations at risk are more expose to unhealthy food marketing.
More information is available on the website of the World Health Organisation.