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Trends
Asian Governments Must Stop Heart Disease Pandemic
Heart disease and stroke are set to become the leading killers in Asia, a senior
WHO advisor said, urging Governments to step in before the illnesses spiral
out of control. Heart disease and strokes have long been regarded as ailments
that affect mostly developed countries, but that is no longer true, said Judith
Mackay, Tobacco-control Campaigner and Senior Policy Advisor to the World Health
Organisation.
"There are major health problems in Asia and they will surely increase
unless we take multi-strategy multi-faceted action to prevent them," said
Mackay, who authored the 2004 WHO Atlas of heart disease and stroke.
The two ailments are linked to risk factors like smoking, unhealthy diets and
physical inactivity -- habits that usually start early in life but can be corrected
if proper guidance is given to children and teenagers. Mackay said that while
these were personal responsibilities, Governments had a role to play. "If
children start smoking and don't exercise, give 30 years and the state has to
pay for the entire medical healthcare. Not just their deaths, you have hospitals,
loss of productivity. There is an immense cost to Governments," she said.
"If they have to pay for them at the end, isn't it justifiable that they
step in earlier. An exercise plan in schools, or dietary advice that becomes
compulsory for those who are overweight, I think there are good arguments for
it especially if parents can't or don't do it." Mackay, 63, was named this
month as one of the world's 100 most influential people by Time magazine for
her 25-year-long fight against the tobacco industry.
Worldwide, heart disease and strokes were the top two killers in 2002 and will
stay in those positions until at least 2030, responsible for one in every four
deaths, according to a WHO-funded report published in November 2006. The absolute
number of deaths from the conditions were highest in China (2.35 million), India
(2.3 million) and Russia (1.19 million) in 2002.
EH News Bureau
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