Ebola waning, but WHO must respond better next time, Chan says

WHO Director-General Margaret Chan addresses the media during a special meeting on Ebola at the WHO headquarters in GenevaBy Stephanie Nebehay GENEVA (Reuters) – Ebola is declining but there is no room for complacency and the World Health Organization (WHO) must respond faster to future emergencies, its director-general told member states held talks on Sunday on the WHO's delay in facing the deadly epidemic. The special session in Geneva was called by member states seeking reforms amid strong criticism of the United Nations agency's response to the outbreak that began a year ago in West Africa. Dr. Margaret Chan also said that vaccines and drugs must be brought to the market more speedily so that the world is not caught "empty-handed" when a severe disease causes an epidemic. Some $4 billion has been spent to try to halt its spread and WHO requires a further $1 billion this year, U.N. special envoy David Nabarro said.

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Imperial Tobacco launches caffeinated mouth strips

By Martinne Geller LONDON (Reuters) – Imperial Tobacco Group, the world’s third largest cigarette maker, is moving into caffeine as more people kick the deadly smoking habit, launching a melt-in-your-mouth strip designed to give an energy boost in seconds. The product, called Reon, comes in flavors such as “grapefruit & zing” and “black currant & fresh”. For now it is only sold in the English city of Manchester and online. Developed by Imperial’s Fontem Ventures subsidiary, Reon comes in packs of eight strips, each with 20 mg of caffeine, or less than a third of the amount in a shot of Starbucks espresso.
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