This September, EMJ Supports

Written by Kim Cordell  |  Product Development Administrator, European Medical Journal  |  @EMJ_Kim

With September having drawn to a close, the European Medical Journal (EMJ) looks back at the awareness campaigns we have supported this month: World Alzheimer’s Month, National Doodle Day, and World Heart Day.

Running every September as an international campaign designed to raise awareness of the disease, World Alzheimer’s Month aims to challenge the stigma surrounding dementia. As the awareness campaign continues to gain momentum year on year, with 2017 marking the 6^th annual World Alzheimer’s Month, many believe the stigmatisation and misinformation that surrounds dementia remains a global problem, whilst two out of every three people globally believe there is little or no understanding of dementia in their countries.¹

It is currently estimated that over 46 million people worldwide live with dementia.² With 1 million people in the UK expected to have the disease by 2025,³ this year’s campaign utilises the theme of ‘Remember me’, to highlight the importance of early detection and diagnosis of dementia.¹

Drawing a line through epilepsy,⁴ 22^nd September is National Doodle Day, marking Epilepsy Action’s annual online auction of celebrity doodles, with famous faces picking up their pens and pencils to help make the future better for people living with epilepsy.⁵ Epilepsy Action’s 3-day online auction provides the support needed to push for more people to receive better healthcare.

This year’s World Heart Day, held on the 29^th September, proved an opportunity to shine the light on the importance of heart health, and how to keep cardiovascular disease (CVD) at bay. At present, CVD, including heart disease and stroke, is responsible for 17.5 million premature deaths; a figure expected to rise to 23 million by 2030;⁶ however, this is something which can be prevented by a few simple daily changes. By swapping that chocolate bar for a bowl of the green stuff, that evening glass of wine for an extra glass of water or two, and slotting some more exercise into your lifestyle, you’re already doing your bit to decrease your chances of CVD, which is exactly what this World Heart Day was all about. With the tagline: ‘Fuel your heart. Move your heart. Love your heart. And share the power’,⁶ the World Heart Federation wanted you to get sharing how you power your heart; hopefully pooling these top tips inspired others to do the same!

References

1. Alzheimer’s Disease International. World Alzheimer’s Month. 2017. https://www.alz.co.uk/world-alzheimers-month. Last accessed: 7 September 2017.
2. Alzheimer’s Disease International. Dementia: The Facts. 2017. https://www.alz.co.uk/world-alzheimers-month/dementia-facts. Last accessed: 7 September 2017.
3. National Institute for Health Research. September is World Alzheimer’s Month. 2017. https://www.nihr.ac.uk/news-and-events/support-our-campaigns/world-alzheimers-month/. Last accessed: 7 September 2017.
4. Epilepsy Action. National Doodle Day. 2017. http://doodle-day.epilepsy.org.uk/. Last accessed: 20 September 2017.
5. Epilepsy Action. What is Doodle Day. 2017. https://doodle-day.epilepsy.org.uk/about/. Last accessed: 20 September 2017.
6. World Heart Federation. Take Action. 2017. https://www.worldheartday.org/take-action/. Last accessed: 8 September 2017.