Every year, around five million children worldwide die before their fifth birthday. The biggest perpetrators: infectious diseases such as pneumonia, malnutrition, diarrhea, malaria and measles. This high child mortality is often influenced by poverty, conflict and inequality. But many of these deaths can be prevented by taking better care of our planet.
According to the WHO, the environment plays a crucial role in 1/4th of childhood illnesses.
A few centuries ago, many children died here too from infections, but fortunately, thanks to better hygiene, nutrition and vaccinations, this number is now very few. Unfortunately, this is still a bitter reality in countries such as Haiti and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The guest at this Night of NTR Science is pediatrician-infectiologist Daan van Brusselen. He specialized in tropical diseases and obtained his PhD in environment and health. For years he was active on humanitarian missions for Doctors Without Borders in countries such as Ecuador, Pakistan, Haiti, Congo, Nigeria and Sierra Leone. Presenter Renette Kwakkenbos interviewed him during the program.
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