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Lucy Westerman

@lucywesterman.bsky.social

1.5K followers 390 following 66 posts

Scrutinising determinants of health - especially social and commercial factors around #NCDs, focused on prevention, health promotion & teaching health communications. Joined bsky 07/23 Australia / UK / Global / lewest on X

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Lucy Westerman @lucywesterman.bsky.social · Nov 16

✨Hi Bluesky!✨
After 11 years connecting with thousands of people & organisations through Twitter, the time feels right to start connecting with a reenergised community migrating to brighter horizons.
I look forward to fresh conversations & perspectives, & co-creating a space even better than before.

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Lucy Westerman @lucywesterman.bsky.social · 6d

Australia showed up for #HLM4 on #NCDs & #MentalHealth.
Hayley Jones (McCabe Centre for Law & Cancer) & I shared a recap with @croakeynews.bsky.social
Want to hear more?
Join our webinar cohosted w The George Institute on 15 October: georgehub.zoom.us/webinar/regi...
#ActOnNCDs #LeadOnNCDs #UNGA80

Lucy Westerman @lucywesterman.bsky.social · 15d

#UNGA80 is underway, the #NCDs & #MentalHealth High Level Mtg is tomorrow & it’s #NCDAlliance’s Global Week for Action.
Hayley Jones, Diane Shelton (McCabe) & Veronica LeNevez (TGI) & recapped our recent event on what it looks like to #ActOnNCDs #LeadOnNCDs in Australia
actonncds.org/stories/blog...

Australia’s Role in Global NCD Action highlighted at Parliamentary Event

Get a closer look at how Australia is stepping up to support global action on NCDs, with highlights from a major event at Parliament House. This blog shares inspiring stories, practical strategies, an...

actonncds.org

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Lucy Westerman @lucywesterman.bsky.social · Sep 5

Australia may be far from the UN, but chronic disease & mental health are shared global challenges.

40+ orgs have backed a call to the Australian Government to act with ambition, ahead of (& beyond) the UN #HLM4 on #NCDs in 3 weeks.

🔗 www.georgeinstitute.org/our-impact/p... #ActOnNCDs #LeadOnNCDs

Reposted by Lucy Westerman

Health Policy Watch - Global health news reporting @healthpolicywatch.bsky.social · Jul 28

Governments ‘Backslide’ On NCD Commitments After Pressure From Unhealthy Industries - Health Policy Watch

Governments have weakened their commitment to addressing non-communicable diseases (NCDs) after pressure from “big tobacco, alcohol, junk food, and fossil

healthpolicy-watch.news

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Lucy Westerman @lucywesterman.bsky.social · Jul 27

With < 2 months to the 4th #UNHLM on #NCDs & #MentalHealth, I’m pleased to be in Canberra as part of the TGI & McCabe team hosting tomorrow’s parliamentary breakfast on Australian leadership to elevate ambition & accelerate action to #ActOnNCDs & #LeadOnNCDs www.georgeinstitute.org/news-and-med...

Parliamentary Breakfast: Australia's Role in Tackling Global Health Threats

A parliamentary breakfast, hosted by The George Institute for Global Health and the McCabe Centre for Law and Cancer, will be held on Tuesday, 29th July 2025...

www.georgeinstitute.org

Lucy Westerman @lucywesterman.bsky.social · Jul 7

To improve health, we need to stop using the word #lifestyle when discussing disease and risk factors. It oversimplifies complex #health isues, and distracts from broader causes that must be addressed for meaningful change.
#ActOnNCDs #LeadOnNCDs #NCDs #UNHLM www.linkedin.com/pulse/why-re...

Why Retiring the Word "Lifestyle" Would Improve How We Talk About Health

Words matter. And when it comes to discussing health, illness, and risk, one word is particularly problematic: "lifestyle".

www.linkedin.com

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Lucy Westerman @lucywesterman.bsky.social · Jul 7

A crucial #4Corners examination of #cancer diagnoses in young people.
What is behind it?
Understanding can help reduce the impact of #NCDs like cancer for current and future generations, but requires looking beyond 'health' to our environments.
Best wishes to those sharing their stories. #ActOnNCDs

ABC News (Unofficial) @abc-news.bsky.social · Jul 6

Australians under 50 are getting cancer at alarming rates and we don't know why: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-07-07/cancer-diagnosis-rates-under-50s-rising-causes-four-corners/105495620

Australians under 50 are getting cancer at alarming rates and we don't know why

Australians aged in their 30s and 40s are experiencing unprecedented and in some cases world-leading rates of 10 different types of cancer — and scientists are desperate to understand why.

www.abc.net.au

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Lucy Westerman @lucywesterman.bsky.social · Jun 4

During #WHA78 discussions countries incl Australia expressed high ambitions for the 2025 UN #HLM4 on #NCDs & #MentalHealth. With political declaration negotiations underway, Veronica Le Nevez, Hayley Jones & I share some improvements we hope to see: @croakeynews.bsky.social #LeadOnNCDs #ActOnNCDs

Croakey Health Media @croakeynews.bsky.social · Jun 3

At a critical time for global progress on chronic diseases, how to maximise impact? www.croakey.org/at-a-critica... #publichealth

At a critical time for global progress on chronic diseases, how to maximise impact?

www.croakey.org

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Lucy Westerman @lucywesterman.bsky.social · May 13

One of the highlights & most human moments of @australianlabor.bsky.social swearing in ceremony - watching the Governor General Sam Mostyn usher in Anika Well’s three children to see their mum take up comms & sport portfolios. (🤞 for unhealthy marketing & social media reforms!) @albomp.bsky.social

Reposted by Lucy Westerman

Harry Rutter @harryrutter.bsky.social · May 12

Excellent @who.int webinar launching their impressive new toolkit for promoting walking and cycling.
www.who.int/publications...

Great to hear mention of the WHO HEAT tool during the discussion.
www.who.int/tools/heat-f...

Screenshot showing Prof Fiona Bull from WHO describing the seven policy action areas in the toolkit:

1. Integrate walking and cycling into all relevant policies Embed walking and cycling objectives across transport, health, environment, education, and tourism policies. Establish clear, measurable targets and crossgovernment coordination mechanisms.

2. Provide safe and connected walking and cycling networks Develop well-connected, well-maintained infrastructure that links homes to key destinations (e.g. schools, transit, workplaces). Integrate green spaces and apply inclusive and sustainable urban design principles.

3. Design inclusive and safe streets for all Use human-centred design principles to create streets that accommodate all users, including pedestrians and cyclists of all ages and abilities. Implement safe system approach to improve road safety including best practice legislation to reduce speed limits where necessary.

4. Improve safe road user behaviour Enforce speed limits, tackle distracted and impaired driving, and promote safe use by all road users.

5. Protect and prioritize walking and cycling Create, maintain and protect allocation of road space to walking and cycling, implement pedestrian zones, and enforce parking regulations.

6. Facilitate integrated transport options Ensure walking and cycling are part of a seamless transport experience through integration with public transport and shared mobility services.

7. Promote and incentivize walking and cycling Create a culture of walking and cycling through communication campaigns, events, financial incentives, and workplace and school programmes.

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Lucy Westerman @lucywesterman.bsky.social · May 12

Always curious to see who sponsors @politico.com London Playbook dispatches according to what is politically salient, usually used to slip tailored messages to political audiences. This one is that they are global & local, economically important & helping British people to reduce sugar consumption 🤔

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Lucy Westerman @lucywesterman.bsky.social · Apr 30

Concluded #Prevention2025 watching the sun set on Parliament House. Thanks @publichealthaus.bsky.social & conference committee for coordinating an interesting program & so many allies to explore how health is political & how that may require alternative approaches to securing solutions to problems.

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Lucy Westerman @lucywesterman.bsky.social · Apr 30

In what world would anyone ‘recommend’ any type of alcohol to reduce the risk of one disease knowing it would simultaneously increase the risk of others (like cancer).

It’s like tobacco in the 1920s again.

A dangerous inference that will be irresponsibly repeated over & over.

The Guardian @theguardian.com · Apr 29

Drinking champagne could reduce risk of sudden cardiac arrest, study suggests

Maintaining a positive mood and eating more fruit may also help lower risk, researchers find Drinking champagne, eating more fruit, staying slim and maintaining a positive outlook on life could help reduce the risk of a sudden cardiac arrest, the world’s first study of its kind suggests. Millions of people worldwide die every year after experiencing a sudden cardiac arrest (SCA), when the heart stops pumping blood around the body without warning. They are caused by a dangerous abnormal heart rhythm, when the electrical system in the heart is not working properly. Without immediate treatment such as CPR, those affected will die. Continue reading...

www.theguardian.com

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Lucy Westerman @lucywesterman.bsky.social · Apr 30

We can’t fix online marketing overnight but we know what needs to be done & have a tobacco act as a model that could be emulated for other sectors (not voluntary). We should also fix an online ad model that thrives in a evolving harmful information ecosystem. #Prevention2025 @kbackholer.bsky.social

Lucy Westerman @lucywesterman.bsky.social · Apr 30

💡 In public health we often consider power in the sense of power ‘over’ but as a sector we have enormous potential if we lean into the concepts of power ‘with’, power ‘to’ and power ‘despite’. - Anne Marie Thow

💪 🤝⚡️Read more: www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

#Prevention2025

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Lucy Westerman @lucywesterman.bsky.social · Apr 30

We have a window of opportunity for public health actors to engage in international trade & investment debates, eg around food. To do this we need to understand & navigate alternative policy paradigms incl through knowledge, legitimacy & public priorities. - Anne Marie Thow
#Prevention2025

Lucy Westerman @lucywesterman.bsky.social · Apr 30

Commercial determinants of health #CDOH are broader than naming products that harm, it’s also less visible ways they operate, incl. through trade & investment policy, incl. at international level, using tactics to ‘chill’ & lobby for specific policy. Anne Marie Thow @sydney.edu.au #Prevention2025

Lucy Westerman @lucywesterman.bsky.social · Apr 30

Gambling operators aren’t the only ones benefiting in the gambling ecosystem.
Charles Livingstone encourages everyone to think broader when mapping stakeholders, to better understand why and how they interact and influence problem definitions and (enable/obstruct) policy responses. #Prevention2025

Lucy Westerman @lucywesterman.bsky.social · Apr 30

We must fix a distorting #gambling paradigm - ‘problem gambling’ & ‘problem gamblers’ are closely linked to the flawed concept of ‘responsible gambling’ - which blames victims, delays & dilutes regulatory responses.
#Prevention2025
Read by Charles Livingstone: theconversation.com/the-responsi...

The ‘responsible gambling’ mantra does nothing to prevent harm. It probably makes things worse

‘Responsible gambling’ depicts gambling harm as an issue for a small minority of people: so-called problem gamblers.

theconversation.com

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Lucy Westerman @lucywesterman.bsky.social · Apr 30

In declaring funding and affiliations before presenting, Charles Livingstone @monashuniversity.bsky.social notes that gambling is nowhere near the list and that:

“We need to stop taking money from the people contaminating the evidence.”

(Same goes for alcohol, UPFs, etc)

#Prevention2025 #CDOH

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Lucy Westerman @lucywesterman.bsky.social · Apr 30

What does potassium enriched salt look and taste like?
Ask Terry Slevin, @publichealthaus.bsky.social who received a jar of a faux-Himalayan version from Bruce Neal @georgeinstitute.bsky.social.
Updates requested.
#Prevention2025

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Lucy Westerman @lucywesterman.bsky.social · Apr 30

Most discretionary salt (~50%) consumed around the world is from salt *added during cooking & at the table*.

Ultra processed food is only one part the wider picture.

Sodium discussions & solutions must take a wide view of dietary sources.

Bruce Neal, @georgeinstitute.bsky.social #Prevention2025

Lucy Westerman @lucywesterman.bsky.social · Apr 30

A practical & pragmatic way to reduce sodium intake is replacing table salt with low sodium, potassium enriched salt, says Bruce Neal, @georgeinstitute.bsky.social.

It’s a very promising intervention, but needs to be navigated carefully.
#Prevention2025

Lucy Westerman @lucywesterman.bsky.social · Apr 30

Bruce Neal from @georgeinstitute.bsky.social:
The world eats too much salt.

Why does it matter?

High sodium diets contribute to high blood pressure.

Hypertension is a risk factor for NCDs incl. stroke, cardiovascular & kidney diseases.

But reducing sodium intake is proving hard.

#Prevention2025

Lucy Westerman @lucywesterman.bsky.social · Apr 30

On grappling with resistance to change, Fiona Cornworth, ANU, suggests:

“slow down to speed up”.

Take time to lay the groundwork, gat ducks in order, then move forward.

#Prevention2025