Table 1.

Public health problems and their respective technological, behavioural or structural solutions

Preventive measure	Public health issue
	All cancers	Lung cancer	Cervical cancer	Cardiovascular disease	Type 2 diabetes	Obesity
Not sufficiently prioritised lifestyle interventions
Smoking avoidance	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Alcohol avoidance	✓
Eat less	✓			✓	✓	✓
Weight control	✓			✓	✓	✓
Low energy density diets					✓	✓
Mediterranean-type diet	✓			✓	✓	✓
↑Fruits and vegetables	✓	✓		✓	✓	✓
↑Cis-unsaturated fats				✓
↑Cis-unsaturated fish				✓
↓Added sugars				✓	✓	✓
↓Trans fats				✓	✓	✓
↓Red meats	✓			✓	✓	✓
↓Refined cereals					✓	✓
Physically active lifestyle	✓	✓		✓	✓	✓
Pap-screening			✓
Reduction of sexual partners			✓
Delayed sexual debut			✓
Character education*	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Not sufficiently prioritised structural approaches
Smoke-free spaces	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Raise tobacco prices	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Air pollution control	✓	✓		✓
Healthy food affordability	✓	✓		✓	✓	✓
Trans-fats banning				✓	✓	✓
Walking and cycle ways	✓	✓		✓	✓	✓
Healthy school meals				✓	✓	✓
↓Serving size in restaurants	✓			✓	✓	✓
↓Added sugars				✓	✓	✓
Sexual attitudes and beliefs			✓
Cultural change (social norms)	✓	✓	✓		✓	✓
Expensive and dubious technological ‘solutions’	Genetic testing	Screening (low-dose CT)	HPV vaccine	Statins	Metformin, thiazolidindiones	Antiobesity drugs

A mark (✓) indicates an appropriate evidence-based preventive intervention.

*Learning process that enables to understand, care about and act, on core values such as respect, justice, civic virtue and citizenship, and responsibility for self and others, which are the hallmark of safe, healthy and informed communities that serve as the foundation of our society.

CT, computed tomography; HPV, human papillomavirus.