Smoking still represents a huge public health problem. Millions of children suffer the detrimental effects of passive smoking. An increasing number of countries have recently issued laws to regulate smoking in public places. Instead, homes remain a site where children are dangerously exposed to environmental tobacco smoke (ETS). The combination of tobacco smoke pollutants which remain in an indoor environment, the so-called 'third-hand smoke' (THS), represent a new concept in the field of tobacco control. THS consists of pollutants that remain on surfaces and in dust after tobacco has been smoked, are re-emitted into the gas-phase, or react with other compounds in the environment to form secondary pollutants. Indoor surfaces can represent a hidden reservoir of THS constituents that could be re-emitted long after the cessation of active smoking. Human exposure to THS pollutants has not yet been thoroughly studied. Infants and children are more prone to the risks related to THS exposure than adults because they typically spend more time indoors and have age-specific behaviours that may expose them to potential health hazards from THS. Further investigations are warranted to study the health effects of THS relevant to different exposure pathways and profiles. It would also be very important to evaluate how THS may affect the lung development through the in utero exposure during the pre-natal life. We aimed at reviewing recent findings published about THS, with special reference to the effects on children's health.

Antenatal triple ART reduces adverse pregnancy outcomes in HIV-infected women.

The response to treatment and risk factors for early mortality following initiation of combination antiretrovirals(ARVs) in a cohort of African patients are described in a retrospective cohort design. Medical history, laboratory parameters, and mortality data were reviewed for patients initiating ARVs in 12 clinical centers in Mozambique, Tanzania, and Malawi. Among 3456 HIV-1-infected patients who received ARVs for more than 6 months, at baseline 72% had WHO clinical stages 3/4, 7% had a viral load 400 copies/ml, and 38% had a CD4 cell count >200/microl. One year later, 78% had undetectable virus loads and 79% had CD4 cell counts >200 cells/mm3. In the first year of HAART 260 deaths occurred (97 per 1000 person/years) with mortality peaking in the first 3 months. The highest mortality was observed in patients with low BMI, low hemoglobin levels, and CD4 values <200 cells/microl at baseline. Mortality rates following initiation of HAART are higher in patients in resource-limited areas, particularly in the first 90 days following treatment initiation.HAART initiated at higher CD4 cell count levels, especially among malnourished and/or anemic patients, will carry significant public health impact.

Large differences in COVID‐19 death rates exist between countries and between regions of the same country. Some very low death rate countries such as Eastern Asia, Central Europe or the Balkans have a common feature of eating large quantities of fermented foods. Although biases exist when examining ecological studies, fermented vegetables or cabbage were associated with low death rates in European countries. SARS‐CoV‐2 binds to its receptor, the angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2). As a result of SARS‐Cov‐2 binding, ACE2 downregulation enhances the angiotensin II receptor type 1 (AT 1 R) axis associated with oxidative stress. This leads to insulin resistanceas well as lung and endothelial damage, two severe outcomes of COVID‐19. The nuclear factor (erythroid‐derived 2)‐like 2 (Nrf2) is the most potent antioxidant in humans and can block the AT 1 R axis. Cabbage contains precursors of sulforaphane, the most active natural activator of Nrf2. Fermented vegetables contain many lactobacilli, which are also potent Nrf2 activators. Three examples are given: Kimchi in Korea, westernized foods and the slum paradox. It is proposed that fermented cabbage is a proof‐of‐concept of dietary manipulations that may enhance Nrf2‐associated antioxidant effects helpful in mitigating COVID‐19 severity.

Italy was one of the first European countries affected by the new coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, with over 105,000 infected people and close to 13,000 deaths, until March 31 st. The pandemic has hit especially hard because of the country's demographic structure, with a high percentage of older adults. The authors explore the possibility, recently aired in some studies, of extensive intergenerational contact as a possible determinant of the severity of the pandemic among the older Italian adults. We analyzed several variables to test this hypothesis, such as the percentage of infected patients aged >80 years, available nursing home beds, COVID-19 incidence rate, and the number of days from when the number of positive tests exceeded 50 (epidemic maturity). We also included in the analysis mean household size and percentage of households comprising one person, in the region. Paradoxically, the results are opposite of what was previously reported. The pandemic was more severe in regions with higher family fragmentation and increased availability of residential health facilities.