Public warned against unhealthy lifestyles (11/6/09)

THE Greater Accra Regional Chairman of the District Directors of Health Service, Dr John B. K. Yabani, has cautioned the public against unhealthy lifestyles, which he said has resulted in the high prevalence rate of non-communicable diseases.
At the launch of the Regional Public Health Week Celebration at Madina Zongo in Accra yesterday, Dr Yabani said hypertension had occupied the third position among non-communicable diseases in the Ga East metropolis over the past three years.
Diabetes had also occupied the tenth position in the metropolis within the same period.
He said the prevalence of hypertension in the country was estimated at 30 per cent in a study conducted and added that five to 10 per cent of Ghanaians had been found to be diabetic.
Dr Yabani said non-communicable diseases could be prevented by adhering to healthy diets, avoiding smoking and drinking of alcohol, taking in lots of water, vegetables and fruits, as well as exercising regularly.
Some activities lined up for the celebration are clean-up campaigns, blood donation exercises, screening services, Body Mass Index (BMI) assessment and a health walk.
Dr Mawutorwu Brese, who represented the Regional Director of the Heath Service, said there appeared to be an epidemic of non-communicable disease currently as 30 per cent of the population in a study conducted were hypertensive.
He said about 11 per cent of boys and 19 per cent of girls among primary school pupils in Accra were obese.
This, he said, was the result of over-eating and the wrong choice of food with no exercise.
He advised the public to have peace of mind, live at peace with one another, avoid stress and have good rest.
The Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) of the Ga East Municipal Assembly, Mr John Kwao Sackey, lauded the event and advised the people to adopt healthy eating habits devoid of tobacco and alcohol.
He said people who were presumed healthy were pronounced dead within a short period as a result of no check-ups and unhealthy eating habits.
He urged all Ghanaians to join the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), which was established to ensure affordable, accessible and quality health care.