2017-04-07 Fri

The World Health Day, celebrated every year on 7th April is a global health awareness day. Sponsored by World Health Organization (WHO), this day is celebrated since 1950 to create awareness regarding different illnesses that affect people across the globe. It is one of the eight official global public health campaigns marked by the WHO.

This day also marks the foundation of World Health Organization. Founded on 7th April 1948, it is a member of the United Nations Development Group.

The theme for 2017 is “Depression: let’s talk”.

Depression is one of the major causes of death worldwide, roughly resulting in the death of one person every 45 seconds. While a handful of suicides make it to the news, a majority is reduced to becoming mere statistics on the police department’s crime data sheet.

Also considered as mental illness, many never seek medical help with fear of being considered a mental patient. This results in some people getting shock treatments, heavy medical dosage, being abandoned by the family or sent to an asylum. However, in recent times a lot has changed with Bollywood celebrities playing a major role in creating awareness about depression.

“On #WorldHealthDay, I pray that you are blessed with wonderful health, which gives you the opportunity to pursue your dreams & excel.” tweeted the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi .

India Post had issued this ‘Foresight Prevents Blindness’ commemorative stamp on 7th April 1976 creating awareness about causes of blindness and its prevention.