The World Health Report 2002 types of antiretroviral therapy in conjunction with preventive activities is cost-effec tive in most settings At least one type of intervention to reduce the risks associated with cardiovascular disease is cost-effective in all settings. Population-wide salt and cholesterol lowering strategies are always very cost-effective singly and combined. The most attractive combined strategy to reduce the risks associated with cardiovascular disease appears to be the combination of salt reduction at a population level through legislation or voluntary agreements, health education through the mass media focusing on blood pressure, cholesterol and overweight; plus the implementation of an individual risk Tobacco, of course, is a major risk for cardiovascular Some of the affordable solutions described in this report are disease. In terms of interventions, the greatest tobacco- closely related to two priority actions that WHO has outlined for related improvements in population health would be a the coming years: combination of tobacco taxation, comprehensive bans promoting healthy environments for children on advertising, and information dissemination activities, reinvigorating WHOs workon diet, food safety and human nutrition, all of which would be affordable and cost-effective in linking basic research with efforts to tackle specific nutrient most parts ot the world. Adding restrictions of smoking deficiencies in populations and the promotion of good health in public places increases the costs, but also gains even through optimal diets- particularly in countries undergoing rapid greater improvements in population health and is still nutritional transition rery cost-effective in industrialized countries NARROWING THE GAP BETWEEN POTENTIAL AND ACTUAL BENEFIT A KEY RESEARCH PRIORITY Despite the availability of cost-effective interventions to reduce risks, this report says ere is a large potential benefit that is not realizable with current strategies and technolo- gies Unacceptably large gaps remain in understanding the effects of exposures on populations at different stages of development. Similar uncertainties apply to how healt ystems might be better adapted to achieve substantial overall health gains through more affordable preparations and delivery methods. More fundamental research is needed in order to transfer effectively the scientific knowledge on hazards that will help change hu man behaviour and lower individual risks. If policy-makers are to be more effectively en gaged in applying measures that have proven benefits in risk reduction, the political context of knowledge transfer and risk management needs to be better understood and utilized. A key research priority is the development of new interventions, particularly for leading dis eases.Together with more efficient primary prevention, these interventions can be expected to reduce substantially the risk burden in all populations POPULATION-WIDE PREVENTION STRATEGIES KEY TO RISK REDUCTION It makes little sense to expect individuals to behave differently from their peers; it is more appropriate to seek a general change in behavioural norms and in the circumstances which facili tate theiradoption "(Rose, 1982) The great potential of prevention strategies that aim to achieve moderate, but popula tion-wide, reductions in risks is yet to be fully recognized. Only a fraction of the benefits164 The World Health Report 2002 types of antiretroviral therapy in conjunction with preventive activities is cost-effec￾tive in most settings. • At least one type of intervention to reduce the risks associated with cardiovascular disease is cost-effective in all settings. Population-wide salt and cholesterol lowering strategies are always very cost-effective singly and combined. The most attractive combined strategy to reduce the risks associated with cardiovascular disease appears to be the combination of salt reduction at a population level through legislation or voluntary agreements, health education through the mass media focusing on blood pressure, cholesterol and overweight; plus the implementation of an individual risk reduction approach. • Tobacco, of course, is a major risk for cardiovascular disease. In terms of interventions, the greatest tobacco￾related improvements in population health would be a combination of tobacco taxation, comprehensive bans on advertising, and information dissemination activities, all of which would be affordable and cost-effective in most parts of the world. Adding restrictions of smoking in public places increases the costs, but also gains even greater improvements in population health and is still very cost-effective in industrialized countries. NARROWING THE GAP BETWEEN POTENTIAL AND ACTUAL BENEFIT: A KEY RESEARCH PRIORITY Despite the availability of cost-effective interventions to reduce risks, this report says there is a large potential benefit that is not realizable with current strategies and technolo￾gies. Unacceptably large gaps remain in understanding the effects of exposures on populations at different stages of development. Similar uncertainties apply to how health systems might be better adapted to achieve substantial overall health gains through more affordable preparations and delivery methods. More fundamental research is needed in order to transfer effectively the scientific knowledge on hazards that will help change hu￾man behaviour and lower individual risks. If policy-makers are to be more effectively en￾gaged in applying measures that have proven benefits in risk reduction, the political context of knowledge transfer and risk management needs to be better understood and utilized. A key research priority is the development of new interventions, particularly for leading dis￾eases. Together with more efficient primary prevention, these interventions can be expected to reduce substantially the risk burden in all populations. POPULATION-WIDE PREVENTION STRATEGIES: KEY TO RISK REDUCTION “It makes little sense to expect individuals to behave differently from their peers; it is more appropriate to seek a general change in behavioural norms and in the circumstances which facili￾tate their adoption.” (Rose, 1982) The great potential of prevention strategies that aim to achieve moderate, but popula￾tion-wide, reductions in risks is yet to be fully recognized. Only a fraction of the benefits Some of the affordable solutions described in this report are closely related to two priority actions that WHO has outlined for the coming years: • promoting healthy environments for children; • reinvigorating WHO’s work on diet, food safety and human nutrition, linking basic research with efforts to tackle specific nutrient deficiencies in populations and the promotion of good health through optimal diets – particularly in countries undergoing rapid nutritional transition