#Healthequity

A vivid warning resonates abroad as the United States — the world’s wealthiest nation — struggles with worsening health despite high spending. For Thailand, where rapid modernization reshapes daily life, these findings offer crucial guidance on safeguarding public health amid rapid urban growth, rising obesity, and shifting lifestyles.

New analyses in prominent medical journals show that life expectancy in the United States trails many peers, and healthy life expectancy lags behind. Policymakers, clinicians, and citizens in Thailand can draw actionable lessons from these trends to shield communities during fast-paced transformation.

A global wave of personal stories and overlooked medical realities is highlighting persistent gaps in women’s health knowledge and care. Viral conversations show how much remains misunderstood—even among informed adults. In Thailand, discussions around research bias, overlooked symptoms, and unspoken health risks demand clearer guidance rooted in science.

Many Thai women, like their global peers, may not realize how female-specific diseases are under-researched or why doctors may misinterpret symptoms unique to women. The spotlight on misinformation and data gaps matters for safety and care quality across the country, helping explain the ongoing gender health gap in Thai health systems and universities.

A groundswell of personal accounts and overlooked medical realities is putting the spotlight on persistent gaps in women’s health knowledge and care, with recent viral revelations demonstrating just how much remains misunderstood—even among well-informed adults. Social media conversations, like those following a campaign by a non-hormonal birth control brand, have triggered profound “wait, what?” moments about topics such as research bias, overlooked symptoms, and unspoken health risks that urgently demand more public attention and scientific scrutiny (BuzzFeed).

A newly published study in Humanities and Social Sciences Communications has unveiled a significant connection between an individual’s childhood socio-economic status and their likelihood of seeking out wellness tourism as adults. The research deploys advanced analytical methods to deepen our understanding of this emerging trend, offering insights that may inform how Thailand’s tourism industry strategises for a post-pandemic future and addresses wider issues of health equity.

The report, titled “Relationship between childhood socio-economic status and wellness tourism intention: a combined PLS-SEM and NCA methods” (nature.com), highlights the psychological and social factors that drive people to invest in travel experiences tailored for health and wellbeing. By leveraging both Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) and Necessary Condition Analysis (NCA), the study provides a robust framework to map out how early life experiences impact adult travel preferences.

A new study in Humanities and Social Sciences Communications reveals a strong link between childhood socio-economic status (SES) and the likelihood of pursuing wellness tourism as adults. Using advanced analytics, the research provides a nuanced view of how early-life experiences influence travel choices related to health and well-being. For Thailand’s tourism sector, the findings offer guidance on how to rebuild post-pandemic growth with a focus on health equity.

According to the study’s framework, researchers combined Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) with Necessary Condition Analysis (NCA) to map how early SES translates into adult wellness tourism intentions. This dual approach strengthens confidence in the results, showing that early exposure to health-promoting resources can shape lifelong travel preferences. Thailand’s wellness market—featuring spa retreats, meditation programs, holistic therapies, and nature-based experiences—continues to attract global visitors. Thailand’s governing agencies consistently highlight the country as a leading wellness destination, with traditional Thai therapies and premium health facilities drawing travelers worldwide.

A new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine highlights a troubling decline in women’s health in the United States. The finding raises urgent questions about research funding and health equity that resonate beyond borders, including in Thailand. Despite wealth and medical capacity, American women are living shorter lives and facing higher disability in later years. The report also notes alarmingly high maternal mortality and violence, alongside chronically underfunded research on women’s health.

A powerful new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine has shone a harsh spotlight on the declining state of women’s health in the United States, raising urgent questions about medical research funding and health inequities that hold major implications for women and girls globally, including in Thailand. Despite the nation’s wealth and medical advancements, American women are living shorter lives than their peers in other high-income countries, facing disproportionate disability in their later years, and enduring alarming rates of maternal deaths and violence—all while research on their health remains chronically underfunded (PRB.org).

A major new study published in JAMA Internal Medicine has revealed a sharp and troubling decline in mental health among mothers in the United States over the past decade, a trend that experts say has wide-ranging implications for families, communities, and even international health policy—including in Thailand. The percentage of US mothers self-reporting “excellent” mental health plummeted from 38.4% in 2016 to just 25.8% in 2023, while the proportion rating their mental health as “fair” or “poor” soared by more than 60% during the same period. These findings, based on a nationally representative survey of nearly 200,000 mothers, shine an urgent spotlight on the challenges facing parents and the cascading consequences for child and societal well-being.

A major study published in JAMA Internal Medicine shows a sharp decline in mental health among US mothers over the past decade. The findings highlight how societal pressures, economic stress, and gaps in care affect families and could inform policy in Thailand as it strengthens its own maternal support systems. In the United States, self-reported “excellent” mental health among mothers fell from 38.4% in 2016 to 25.8% in 2023. The share rating their mental health as “fair” or “poor” rose by more than 60% in the same period, based on a nationally representative survey of nearly 200,000 mothers. The results emphasize the broad impact on child development, family stability, and community health.

A growing body of evidence reveals that individuals, especially women, suffering from chronic genital pain are frequently dismissed, misdiagnosed, or told their pain is psychological by healthcare professionals. The phenomenon, known as “medical gaslighting,” continues to delay proper care for conditions like endometriosis and vulvodynia, each affecting approximately one in ten women in the United States. The issue underscores persistent gender bias in medicine and highlights enduring disparities impacting patients globally, including in Thailand.

Chronic genital pain affects millions, yet too many patients—especially women—face disbelief, misdiagnosis, or claims that pain is “all in the head.” This medical gaslighting delays proper care for conditions like endometriosis and vulvodynia, which studies indicate affect roughly one in ten women in the United States and have global relevance, including in Thailand.

For many sufferers, daily life is shaped by pain that makes simple acts uncomfortable and routine medical exams feel unbearable. Sexual activity can become distressing, and many patients report feeling dismissed when seeking care. A May 2025 investigative piece by The Conversation highlighted how nearly half of vulvovaginal pain patients were told to “just relax more,” with more than a third made to feel “crazy,” and over half considering abandoning medical treatment. Reports from mainstream outlets reinforce these patterns.

A new study published in BMC Public Health has cast a spotlight on Ghana’s journey in expanding access to modern family planning methods, drawing attention to both impressive achievements and lingering disparities over the past decade. The research, titled “Demand for family planning satisfied by modern methods in Ghana: trends and inequalities (2013–2022),” provides updated insights into how Ghana is addressing reproductive health—a topic with growing resonance for policymakers and public health experts across the developing world, including Thailand (BMC Public Health).

A new study in BMC Public Health examines Ghana’s decade-long journey to expand access to modern family planning. The research, titled Demand for family planning satisfied by modern methods in Ghana: trends and inequalities (2013–2022), highlights both notable progress and persistent gaps in reproductive health.

Data show a steady rise in the share of Ghanaian women whose demand for modern contraception is met. This trend reflects ongoing government and partner efforts to broaden services, diversify available methods, and boost public awareness. The findings align with global targets that emphasize universal access to reproductive health under Sustainable Development Goal 3.