Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium For Public Health Research Articles

Publish or the Population Perishes: The Challenges of Regional Publishing in Public Health.

The publication of information is essential for expanding the benefits of public health throughout the Asia-Pacific region. All academics are familiar with the adage "Publish or perish," but for public health, this should be rewritten as "Publish or the population perishes." Publication and communication in public health continues to undergo rapid change. There are many challenges that a regional journal faces. The number of printed journals is beginning to decline. Digital publishing and extensive databases and search engines have become the only practical way to access data. But the advent of digital publishing has seen the arrival of profit-making entrepreneurs. Whether a Journal is in the printed form or digital, it remains the key communication in public health and ultimately improve the health of the people. The Asia-Pacific Journal of Public Health (APJPH), which is owned by Asia Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH) and published by Sage ensures that your data gets maximum digital exposure in the region where it can make a difference. Over the years, APJPH has increased its impact factor and gained in prestige. Although impact factor of a journal is important in documenting the recognition of work by academics, it does not necessarily reflect importance to our region. There needs to be a re-evaluation of publication and communication strategies so that all citizens of the Asia-Pacific region benefit.

Infant Feeding Guidelines for the Asia Pacific Region.

Good nutrition for infants, during the first 1000 days from conception, is one of the most important determinants of a healthy long life. Breastfeeding is the most important component of infant nutrition and reduces morbidity and mortality. With the changes to the climate currently occurring, issues of nutrition and food supply are only going to increase in importance. The Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations, place nutrition at the forefront of world development and a sustainable planet. The vision of Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH) is to "achieve the highest possible level of health of all the people of the nations of the Asia-Pacific region." Much of the burden of disease, early deaths, and disability in the Asia Pacific region could be reduced with public health efforts to address the major risk factors, including nutrition-related causes and smoking. The United Nations Decade of Action on Nutrition 2016-2025 has recently been launched with the aim of reducing the global burden of inappropriate nutrition. The goals include increasing rates of exclusive breastfeeding to 6 months, reducing wasting and stunting, and reducing the rates of low birthweight. This is the position endorsed in these guidelines along with the principles of the Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative. These guidelines expand the information on infants that was included in the 2016 APACPH Dietary Guidelines. APACPH covers many different environments, geographical areas, cultures, and socioeconomic groups. These guidelines are generally applicable to all infants in our region, specific local advice may sometimes be needed.

The Role of Public Health Nutrition in Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals in the Asia Pacific Region

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) replaced the Millennium Development Goals (MDCs) in 2015, which included several goals and targets primarily related to nutrition: to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger and to reduce child mortality and improve maternal health. In the Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH) member countries as a group, infant and child mortality were reduced by more than 65% between 1990 and 2015, achieving the MDG target of two-thirds reduction, although these goals were not achieved by several smaller countries. The SDGs are broader in focus than the MDGs, but include several goals that relate directly to nutrition: 2 (zero hunger-food), 3 (good health and well-being-healthy life), and 12 (responsible consumption and production-sustainability). Other SDGs that are closely related to nutrition are 4 and 5 (quality education and equality in gender-education and health for girls and mothers, which is very important for infant health) and 13 (climate action). Goal 3 is "good health and well-being," which includes targets for child mortality, maternal mortality, and reducing chronic disease. The Global Burden of Disease Project has confirmed that the majority of risk for these targets can be attributed to nutrition-related targets. Dietary Guidelines were developed to address public health nutrition risk in the Asia Pacific region at the 48th APACPH 2016 conference and they are relevant to the achievement of the SDGs. Iron deficiency increases the risk of maternal death from haemorrhage, a cause of 300000 deaths world-wide each year. Improving diets and iron supplementation are important public health interventions in the APACPH region. Chronic disease and obesity rates in the APACPH region are now a major challenge and healthy life course nutrition is a major public health priority in answering this challenge. This article discusses the role of public health nutrition in achieving the SDGs. It also examines the role of APACPH in education and advocacy and in fulfilling the educational needs of public health students in public health nutrition.

Accreditation of public health education in the Asia-Pacific region.

There has been dramatic advancement in health status in the Asia-Pacific region (APR) over the past 50 years. This ever-changing paradigm of public health calls for continuous review and quality improvement of public health education (PHE). Since its founding in 1984, the mission of the Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH) has been to improve the quality and relevance of PHE to combat the diverse, dynamic, and unique challenges in the APR. Prof Walter Patrick was a forerunner in this movement and played an instrumental role in establishing APACPH's position in accreditation and improvement of PHE.

Progress in the health and nutrition of girls in the Asia-Pacific region.

Since its inception 3 decades ago the Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH) has emphasized improving the health of disadvantaged and minority groups. In 1990, APACPH held a conference in Kathmandu with the theme, "The Girl Child in Asia: A Neglected Majority." Over the past 3 decades, the mortality rates for all children, particularly girls, have improved in our region.

The Poetry of Diabetes and the Wuhan APACPH Conference

As this issue of the Asia-Pacific Journal of Public Health (APJPH) goes to press, we will be meeting in Wuhan for the 45th Asia Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH) Conference. Wuhan has a 3500-year history of education and scholarship, a tradition that is continued in the modern universities located here. During the eighth century, the Golden Age of the Tang Dynasty, one of China’s greatest classical poets, Li Bai (李白), traveled around the country writing poetry and sampling the local wines. He was born in the far West, probably in present-day Kazakhstan or Kyrgyzstan where his family was in exile from southeast China. At the age of 5 years, his family moved to Jiangyouin Sichuan Province, where he studied the classics and gained skills in Chinese marital arts. There is a statue to his memory in that city, which has survived the recent Great Western China Earthquake. 1 Later during his travels, Li Bai stopped for a period in Wuhan as he travelled along the Yangtze River. He is remembered for naming the city as “River City” (江城). Wuhan is the city’s present name dating from early in the 20th century following several amalgamations. Because of its beautiful location on the mighty river with its lakes and mountains nearby, Wuhan will always be thought of as a beautiful “River City.” One of the best known poems that Li Bai is remembered for is his poem “To the Moon” (静夜思) (which is only 20 words long) and its descriptive of nature while the wandering poet reveals his longing for his home. Seeing the moonlight in front of my bed – I took it for frost on the ground! Lifting my head to watch the bright moon, I thought of hometown when I bent my head The round shape of full moon in Chinese culture has many meanings, including unity, closeness, completeness, healthy, peaceful, and immortality. The moon was seen as a symbol of protection. The image of a full moon rising over the river is also an appropriate one for public health. The circle represents completeness or wholeness, which is the goal of public health. Public health is characterized by scientific assessment and rigorous cost-effectiveness evaluations as we seek to make individuals and populations whole, using the best of a seething river of options made available in our modern world. We could really stretch the analogy and imagine the “hometown” he is referring to his early origins, which is an increasingly important topic in public health. Li Bai wrote more than 1000 poems before he died at the age of 58 and is remembered as one of

Breast Cancer

Breast cancer is the most common malignancy in women in both developed and less developed countries, although in terms of mortality it may be overtaken by lung cancer in the near future as more women smoke. In Asia, the age-adjusted mortality rate is 9.5 deaths per 100 000 compared with 16.9 per 100 000 in Europe. Within the countries that belong to the Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH), there is considerable variation in mortality rates. Countries such as China, Mongolia, and Vietnam have mortality rates in the range of 3.4 to 5.7 deaths per 100 000, while at the other end of the scale Singapore, Malaysia, Australia, and the United States have rates ranging from 13.6 to 14.7 per 100 000. Japan lies between these groups with a rate of 9.2 (all data from IARC Globocan where the most recent data are from 2008).1 It is likely that some of the differences between regions are due to underreporting and there may be some genetic differences, including the BRCA1/2 variants. However, the results of migrant studies and international differences suggest that there are modifiable risk factors important in the etiology of breast cancer.2 The challenge for public health in our region is identifying the modifiable risk factors and to implement public health strategies to address them. The systematic review on breast cancer in this month’s journal issue explores some of these factors.

Recognizing the Relevance of History and Shaping the Future of the Asia-Pacific Journal of Public Health (APJPH)

Recognizing the Relevance of History and Shaping the Future of the Asia-Pacific Journal of Public Health (APJPH)

Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH) Representatives, Member Institutions and Addresses

Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH) Representatives, Member Institutions and Addresses

Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH) Representatives, Member Institutions and Addresses

Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH) Representatives, Member Institutions and Addresses

Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH) Representatives, Member Institutions and Addresses - 2002

Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH) Representatives, Member Institutions and Addresses - 2002

Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH) Representatives, Member Institutions, and Addresses 1998

Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH) Representatives, Member Institutions, and Addresses 1998

Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH) Representatives, Member Institutions, and Addresses 1998

Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH) Representatives, Member Institutions, and Addresses 1998

Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH) Representatives, Member Institutions, and Addresses 1997

Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH) Representatives, Member Institutions, and Addresses 1997

Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH) Representatives, Member Institution, and Addresses 1995

Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH) Representatives, Member Institution, and Addresses 1995

Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH) Representatives, Member Institution, and Addresses 1995

Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH) Representatives, Member Institution, and Addresses 1995

Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH) Representatives, Member Institutions, and Addresses December 1994

Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH) Representatives, Member Institutions, and Addresses December 1994

Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH) Representatives, Member Institutions, and Addresses December 1994

Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH) Representatives, Member Institutions, and Addresses December 1994

Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH) Representatives, Member Institutions, and Addresses December 1994

Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH) Representatives, Member Institutions, and Addresses December 1994

Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH) representatives, member institutions, and addresses December 1994.

Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH) representatives, member institutions, and addresses December 1994.