March is #Endometriosis Awareness Month at Blackrock Health

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Endometriosis abstract concept vector illustration. Endometrium dysfunctionality, gynecological clinic, endometriosis diagnostic and treatment, female reproductive function abstract metaphor.

Blackrock Health

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🎗️ March is Endometriosis Awareness Month. Did you know this condition affects 1 in 10 women?

Endometriosis can cause debilitating pain, fertility issues, and significantly impact quality of life.

Megan Davenport, MISCP, Senior Physiotherapist in Pelvic Health at Blackrock Clinic, sheds light on the condition and its symptoms:

“Endometriosis can affect women at any age, from puberty to menopause, though its impact may persist throughout life. It is not just “bad period pain”—it is a long-term condition, and each person’s experience with endometriosis is different.

Women with endometriosis experience a wide range of symptoms, with the most commonly recognised including:

– Heavy periods (needing to change pads/tampons every hour or so)

– Painful periods that interfere with daily activities

– Pelvic, abdominal or back pain, sometimes radiating down the thighs

– Pain during or after sex

– Pain with urination or having a bowel motion

Fatigue, bloating and nausea can also be experienced as well as anxiety and depression.

Link to full article:

No level of alcohol consumption is safe for our health. The WHO

4 January 2023 

News release

Reading time: 3 min (759 words)

Français

Русский

Deutsch

The risks and harms associated with drinking alcohol have been systematically evaluated over the years and are well documented. The World Health Organization has now published a statement in The Lancet Public Health: when it comes to alcohol consumption, there is no safe amount that does not affect health.

It is the alcohol that causes harm, not the beverage

Alcohol is a toxic, psychoactive, and dependence-producing substance and has been classified as a Group 1 carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer decades ago – this is the highest risk group, which also includes asbestos, radiation and tobacco. Alcohol causes at least seven types of cancer, including the most common cancer types, such as bowel cancer and female breast cancer. Ethanol (alcohol) causes cancer through biological mechanisms as the compound breaks down in the body, which means that any beverage containing alcohol, regardless of its price and quality, poses a risk of developing cancer.

The risk of developing cancer increases substantially the more alcohol is consumed. However, latest available data indicate that half of all alcohol-attributable cancers in the WHO European Region are caused by “light” and “moderate” alcohol consumption – less than 1.5 litres of wine or less than 3.5 litres of beer or less than 450 millilitres of spirits per week. This drinking pattern is responsible for the majority of alcohol-attributable breast cancers in women, with the highest burden observed in countries of the European Union (EU). In the EU, cancer is the leading cause of death – with a steadily increasing incidence rate – and the majority of all alcohol-attributable deaths are due to different types of cancers.

Risks start from the first drop

To identify a “safe” level of alcohol consumption, valid scientific evidence would need to demonstrate that at and below a certain level, there is no risk of illness or injury associated with alcohol consumption. The new WHO statement clarifies: currently available evidence cannot indicate the existence of a threshold at which the carcinogenic effects of alcohol “switch on” and start to manifest in the human body.

Moreover, there are no studies that would demonstrate that the potential beneficial effects of light and moderate drinking on cardiovascular diseases and type 2 diabetes outweigh the cancer risk associated with these same levels of alcohol consumption for individual consumers.

“We cannot talk about a so-called safe level of alcohol use. It doesn’t matter how much you drink – the risk to the drinker’s health starts from the first drop of any alcoholic beverage. The only thing that we can say for sure is that the more you drink, the more harmful it is – or, in other words, the less you drink, the safer it is,” explains Dr Carina Ferreira-Borges, acting Unit Lead for Noncommunicable Disease Management and Regional Advisor for Alcohol and Illicit Drugs in the WHO Regional Office for Europe. 

Despite this, the question of beneficial effects of alcohol has been a contentious issue in research for years.

“Potential protective effects of alcohol consumption, suggested by some studies, are tightly connected with the comparison groups chosen and the statistical methods used, and may not consider other relevant factors”, clarifies Dr Jürgen Rehm, member of the WHO Regional Director for Europe’s Advisory Council for Noncommunicable Diseases and Senior Scientist at the Institute for Mental Health Policy Research and the Campbell Family Mental Health Research Institute at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Canada.

We are missing the bigger picture

Globally, the WHO European Region has the highest alcohol consumption level and the highest proportion of drinkers in the population. Here, over 200 million people in the Region are at risk of developing alcohol-attributable cancer.

Disadvantaged and vulnerable populations have higher rates of alcohol-related death and hospitalization, as harms from a given amount and pattern of drinking are higher for poorer drinkers and their families than for richer drinkers in any given society.

“So, when we talk about possible so-called safer levels of alcohol consumption or about its protective effects, we are ignoring the bigger picture of alcohol harm in our Region and the world. Although it is well established that alcohol can cause cancer, this fact is still not widely known to the public in most countries. We need cancer-related health information messages on labels of alcoholic beverages, following the example of tobacco products; we need empowered and trained health professionals who would feel comfortable to inform their patients about alcohol and cancer risk; and we need overall wide awareness of this topic in countries and communities,” adds Dr Ferreira-Borges.

No level of alcohol consumption is safe for our health. The WHO

4 January 2023 

News release

Reading time: 3 min (759 words)

Français

Русский

Deutsch

The risks and harms associated with drinking alcohol have been systematically evaluated over the years and are well documented. The World Health Organization has now published a statement in The Lancet Public Health: when it comes to alcohol consumption, there is no safe amount that does not affect health.

It is the alcohol that causes harm, not the beverage

Alcohol is a toxic, psychoactive, and dependence-producing substance and has been classified as a Group 1 carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer decades ago – this is the highest risk group, which also includes asbestos, radiation and tobacco. Alcohol causes at least seven types of cancer, including the most common cancer types, such as bowel cancer and female breast cancer. Ethanol (alcohol) causes cancer through biological mechanisms as the compound breaks down in the body, which means that any beverage containing alcohol, regardless of its price and quality, poses a risk of developing cancer.

The risk of developing cancer increases substantially the more alcohol is consumed. However, latest available data indicate that half of all alcohol-attributable cancers in the WHO European Region are caused by “light” and “moderate” alcohol consumption – less than 1.5 litres of wine or less than 3.5 litres of beer or less than 450 millilitres of spirits per week. This drinking pattern is responsible for the majority of alcohol-attributable breast cancers in women, with the highest burden observed in countries of the European Union (EU). In the EU, cancer is the leading cause of death – with a steadily increasing incidence rate – and the majority of all alcohol-attributable deaths are due to different types of cancers.

Risks start from the first drop

To identify a “safe” level of alcohol consumption, valid scientific evidence would need to demonstrate that at and below a certain level, there is no risk of illness or injury associated with alcohol consumption. The new WHO statement clarifies: currently available evidence cannot indicate the existence of a threshold at which the carcinogenic effects of alcohol “switch on” and start to manifest in the human body.

Moreover, there are no studies that would demonstrate that the potential beneficial effects of light and moderate drinking on cardiovascular diseases and type 2 diabetes outweigh the cancer risk associated with these same levels of alcohol consumption for individual consumers.

“We cannot talk about a so-called safe level of alcohol use. It doesn’t matter how much you drink – the risk to the drinker’s health starts from the first drop of any alcoholic beverage. The only thing that we can say for sure is that the more you drink, the more harmful it is – or, in other words, the less you drink, the safer it is,” explains Dr Carina Ferreira-Borges, acting Unit Lead for Noncommunicable Disease Management and Regional Advisor for Alcohol and Illicit Drugs in the WHO Regional Office for Europe. 

Despite this, the question of beneficial effects of alcohol has been a contentious issue in research for years.

“Potential protective effects of alcohol consumption, suggested by some studies, are tightly connected with the comparison groups chosen and the statistical methods used, and may not consider other relevant factors”, clarifies Dr Jürgen Rehm, member of the WHO Regional Director for Europe’s Advisory Council for Noncommunicable Diseases and Senior Scientist at the Institute for Mental Health Policy Research and the Campbell Family Mental Health Research Institute at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Canada.

We are missing the bigger picture

Globally, the WHO European Region has the highest alcohol consumption level and the highest proportion of drinkers in the population. Here, over 200 million people in the Region are at risk of developing alcohol-attributable cancer.

Disadvantaged and vulnerable populations have higher rates of alcohol-related death and hospitalization, as harms from a given amount and pattern of drinking are higher for poorer drinkers and their families than for richer drinkers in any given society.

“So, when we talk about possible so-called safer levels of alcohol consumption or about its protective effects, we are ignoring the bigger picture of alcohol harm in our Region and the world. Although it is well established that alcohol can cause cancer, this fact is still not widely known to the public in most countries. We need cancer-related health information messages on labels of alcoholic beverages, following the example of tobacco products; we need empowered and trained health professionals who would feel comfortable to inform their patients about alcohol and cancer risk; and we need overall wide awareness of this topic in countries and communities,” adds Dr Ferreira-Borges.

The health of mothers and babies is the foundation of healthy families and communities, helping ensure hopeful futures for us all. @WHO

https://x.com/i/broadcasts/1ynKOlrpYWWGR

The health of mothers and babies is the foundation of healthy families and communities, helping ensure hopeful futures for us all.

World Health Day, celebrated on 7 April 2025, will kick off a year-long campaign on maternal and newborn health. The campaign, titled Healthy beginnings, hopeful futures, will urge governments and the health community to ramp up efforts to end preventable maternal and newborn deaths, and to prioritize women’s longer-term health and well-being.

WHO and partners will also share useful information to support healthy pregnancies and births, and better postnatal health.

Visit the World Health Day 2025 campaign page
 

Helping every woman and baby survive and thrive

This task is critical. Tragically, based on currently published estimates, close to 300 000 women lose their life due to pregnancy or childbirth each year, while over 2 million babies die in their first month of life and around 2 million more are stillborn. That’s roughly 1 preventable death every 7 seconds.

Based on current trends, a staggering 4 out of 5 countries are off track to meet targets for improving maternal survival by 2030. 1 in 3 will fail to meet targets for reducing newborn deaths.

Listening to women and supporting families

Women and families everywhere need high quality care that supports them physically and emotionally, before, during and after birth.

Health systems must evolve to manage the many health issues that impact maternal and newborn health. These not only include direct obstetric complications but also mental health conditions, noncommunicable diseases and family planning.

Additionally, women and families should be supported by laws and policies that safeguard their health and rights.

Campaign goals

  • To raise awareness about gaps in maternal and newborn survival and the need to prioritize women’s longer-term well-being.
  • To advocate for effective investments that improve the health of women and babies. 
  • To encourage collective action to support parents as well as health professionals who provide critical care.
  • To provide useful health information relating to pregnancy, childbirth, and the postnatal period.
     

Get involved

Here’s what you can do to support the campaign:

  • Spread awareness: share information about the campaign using #HopefulFutures and #HealthForAll.
  • Participate: attend our global events to learn more about what it will take to end maternal and newborn mortality.
  • Donate: contribute to the WHO Foundation which supports WHO’s work to protect mothers and babies in countries around the world.
  • Share your lived experiences: share your own experiences or stories of pregnancy and birth and thank those who provide quality care.

Recipe: Spanish Omelet With Veggies and Cheese #nutrition

Recipe: Spanish Omelet With Veggies and Cheese

Omelets are a great choice for a one-skillet meal, and our recipe delivers on nutrition and taste! This meatless dinner option provides 100% of your daily vitamin C and is a good source of calcium.

Ingredients

  • 5 small potatoes, sliced
  • Vegetable cooking spray
  • 1/2 medium onion, minced
  • 1 small zucchini, sliced
  • 1 1/2 cups green/red peppers, sliced thin
  • 5 medium mushrooms, sliced
  • 3 whole eggs, beaten
  • 5 egg whites, beaten
  • 1/4 teaspoon pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon oregano
  • 3 ounces shredded part-skim low-fat mozzarella cheese
  • 1 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 375 F.
  2. Cook potatoes in boiling water until tender, about 12 minutes.
  3. In a nonstick pan, add vegetable spray and warm at medium heat.
  4. Add onion and sauté until brown. Add vegetables and sauté until tender but not brown.
  5. In a medium mixing bowl, slightly beat eggs and egg whites, pepper, garlic powder, oregano and low-fat mozzarella cheese. Stir egg-cheese mixture into the cooked vegetables.
  6. In a 10-inch pie pan or ovenproof skillet, add vegetable spray and transfer potatoes and egg mixture to pan. Sprinkle with low-fat parmesan cheese and bake until firm and brown on top, about 20 to 30 minutes.
  7. Remove omelet from oven, cool for 10 minutes, and cut into five pieces.

Ingredient health benefits

  • Potatoes: Don’t let their higher carb and caloric content scare you; in moderation, these starchy vegetables are delicious and nutritious. Potatoes are full of vitamins and minerals like vitamin C , which boosts your immune system, and vitamin B6, which suppresses inflammation and promotes brain health. To get the most out of your potatoes, cook them with the skin on.
  • Onions: This allium is more famous for its potent aroma than its health perks, but rest assured, there are plenty to go around. For instance, onions have chemicals called flavonoids that fight inflammation and help lower blood pressure. And in addition to being a good source of fiber, onions contain prebiotics, which feeds the good bacteria in your gut so they can keep your whole body healthy.
  • Zucchini: If you’re looking for foods with head-to-toe benefits, consider adding squashes like zucchini to your diet. Nutritional highlights include calciumvitamin A and vitamin C — all of which support strong bones and healthy eyes. Squashes are also a good plant source of iron, which keeps your blood cells happy.
  • Red bell peppers: These members of the nightshade family are an excellent, nutrient-dense addition to any meal. Red bell peppers are chock full of vitamins like vitamin E and vitamin B9 (folate). They also contain anthocyanins, which are natural plant pigments that protect your heart, help lower your blood pressure and might support your brain function.
  • Mushrooms: Though these fungi may be small, they’re a mighty culinary ingredient. Mushrooms are full of antioxidants, which help protect your cells from damage by free radicals. And they have compounds that stimulate your immune system to fight invaders and, potentially, cancer. Other properties found in mushrooms also support the health of your heart, gut and brain!
  • Eggs: A perfect example of how good things come in small, oval-shaped packages. Eggs are rich in vitamins like vitamin B12, which is essential for your blood cells and nerve cells to work properly. Eggs also have lutein, a carotenoid that helps preserve your vision. Egg whites have about 60% of the protein found in an egg.

Nutrition information (per serving)

Makes 5 servings

Calories: 290
Total fat: 6 g
Saturated fat: 2.5 g
Trans fat: 0 g
Cholesterol: 120mg
Sodium: 250 mg
Total carbohydrate: 43 g
Fiber: 6 g
Sugars: 5 g
Protein: 18 g

— Recipe courtesy of Digestive Disease Health Team Dietitians.

World Health Day 2025: Healthy beginnings, hopeful futures @WHO

https://x.com/i/broadcasts/1ynKOlrpYWWGR

The health of mothers and babies is the foundation of healthy families and communities, helping ensure hopeful futures for us all.

World Health Day, celebrated on 7 April 2025, will kick off a year-long campaign on maternal and newborn health. The campaign, titled Healthy beginnings, hopeful futures, will urge governments and the health community to ramp up efforts to end preventable maternal and newborn deaths, and to prioritize women’s longer-term health and well-being.

WHO and partners will also share useful information to support healthy pregnancies and births, and better postnatal health.

Visit the World Health Day 2025 campaign page
 

Helping every woman and baby survive and thrive

This task is critical. Tragically, based on currently published estimates, close to 300 000 women lose their life due to pregnancy or childbirth each year, while over 2 million babies die in their first month of life and around 2 million more are stillborn. That’s roughly 1 preventable death every 7 seconds.

Based on current trends, a staggering 4 out of 5 countries are off track to meet targets for improving maternal survival by 2030. 1 in 3 will fail to meet targets for reducing newborn deaths.

Listening to women and supporting families

Women and families everywhere need high quality care that supports them physically and emotionally, before, during and after birth.

Health systems must evolve to manage the many health issues that impact maternal and newborn health. These not only include direct obstetric complications but also mental health conditions, noncommunicable diseases and family planning.

Additionally, women and families should be supported by laws and policies that safeguard their health and rights.

Campaign goals

  • To raise awareness about gaps in maternal and newborn survival and the need to prioritize women’s longer-term well-being.
  • To advocate for effective investments that improve the health of women and babies. 
  • To encourage collective action to support parents as well as health professionals who provide critical care.
  • To provide useful health information relating to pregnancy, childbirth, and the postnatal period.
     

Get involved

Here’s what you can do to support the campaign:

  • Spread awareness: share information about the campaign using #HopefulFutures and #HealthForAll.
  • Participate: attend our global events to learn more about what it will take to end maternal and newborn mortality.
  • Donate: contribute to the WHO Foundation which supports WHO’s work to protect mothers and babies in countries around the world.
  • Share your lived experiences: share your own experiences or stories of pregnancy and birth and thank those who provide quality care.