By Leslie Young

A new study published in the New England Journal of Medicine found that 12 per cent of the world’s adult population is obese and that number has been growing steadily over the last 35 years.

Not a single country has ever successfully reduced its obesity rate, according to the researchers, aside from a handful of places like Afghanistan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo where years of war have led to famine or widespread malnourishment.

By Gregory Scruggs

In schools across India this week, schoolchildren are eating pasta disguised as rice kernels and boosted with extra nutrients. At a health clinic in Honduras, a nurse is sterilizing medical instruments with chlorine made from an easy-to-use portable kit. In Kenya, thirsty workers will come home from long days on the job and drink water from reliable, low-cost filters.

By Tulip Mazumdar

The number of children dying worldwide of diarrhoea fell by a third between 2005 and 2015, researchers have found.

The study says better access to clean water and sanitation is key, with fewer weak and malnourished children becoming infected.

New vaccines have also had a positive impact.

However, diarrhoea is still the fourth-biggest killer of children globally, with almost 500,000 a year dying before their fifth birthday.

The Department of Global Health awarded 30 international travel fellowships this spring to support the projects and research of graduate and professional students and medical residents at UW for the next academic year. Students from varied disciplines across the University, including global health, social work, psychology, and pharmacy, will travel to 16 countries pursuing fieldwork experience. Projects range from implementing a harm-reduction program in Vietnam to developing evaluation tools for emergency medical and trauma response systems in sub-Saharan Africa.