Home FEATURES Experts Worry Over Increase Death From Hypertension, On World Health Day

Experts Worry Over Increase Death From Hypertension, On World Health Day

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Health experts are worried that number of deaths due to cardiovascular diseases, commonly referred to as hypertension, has increased across the world by 41 percent between 1990 and 2013, climbing from 12.3 million deaths to 17.3 million deaths.

According to an analysis of data from 188 countries, over the same period, death rates within specific age groups however, dropped by 39 percent.

These revelations came today as the world marks World Health Day, with a theme this year as: “Healthy Heart Choices For Everyone, Everywhere.”

This is coming against the World Health Organization (WHO)’s target of reducing premature mortality from cardiovascular disease and other non communicable diseases (NCDs) by 25 per cent beore 2025.

Speaking on this year’s theme, an Associate Professor of Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Lagos, Dr. Amam Mbakwem said that hypertension is one subject every Nigerian should be aware of, adding that more blacks have hypertension than whites basically because the way blacks handle salt is a bit different.

Dr. Mbakwem said that people tended to hold onto more salt because of the climate even as she said that diet is another reason for the high rate of hypertensive cases in black people hence the need for Nigerians to make healthy heart choices.

According to her, Nigerians stood more risk of hypertension because of their lifestyles, saying that in some recent studies involving trans fats, researchers found trans fat consumption was associated with a 34 percent increase in all-cause mortality, a 21 percent increase in the risk of coronary heart disease and a 28 percent increase in the risk of death from coronary heart disease.

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“It is not just the numbers whether it is 120 or 140 but the damage that it causes because with blood pressure high in the system, it is heating the brains and it can damage the brains and when that happens, we talk about stroke.”

She advised every adult to know his or her blood pressure numbers by maintaining a good habit of regular monitoring and medical checks with home blood pressure checks.

In the views of Chairman, Board of Trustees, Nigerian Heart Foundation (NHF), Emeritus Professor Akinkugbe, healthy nutrition is an important part of a healthy life, hence, the need for food manufacturers to provide education on heart-healthy foods.

“Food labelling across the world develops community awareness on healthy foods and provideopportunity for healthy food choices and the NHF Heart Check Food Labelling Programme is a systematic endorsement of food items certifying them healthy for consumption and heart friendly with emphasis on low fats and cholesterol, low sodium and low glucose.”

He asked Nigerians to begin to make on-the-spot healthy food choices. [myad]

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