Ghanaians Urged To Keep Healthy Lifestyles

MAJOR Courage Quashigah (rtd), Minister of Health, has called on all Ghanaians to keep to healthy lifestyles by eating the right food, exercising their bodies and keeping their environment clean.
He stated that Ghanaians would stay alive for long and healthy if they refrained from over reliance on drugs to cure themselves of sicknesses and rather prevent themselves against the causes of sicknesses.
Major Quashigah made the call at the launch of a pilot training programme on Regenerative Health and Nutrition Project (RHNP), at Breman Asikuma in the Asikuma-Odoben-Brakwa (AOB) district of the Central Region.
The RHNP is a new health policy developed by the Ministry of Health, which emphasises on health promotion and prevention, and aims at improving the health status of Ghanaians through promoting healthy lifestyles with emphasis on nutrition.
The Minister said as part of activities for the pilot programme, the Ministry of Health intends to collaborate with the district assemblies to establish change agents in the districts to facilitate the promotion of healthy lifestyles and nutrition.
Major Quashigah stated that the policy was adopted after understudying the Israelis who live long and healthy, because of their peculiar lifestyles, which is in conformity with eating the right food, exercising regularly and keeping their environment clean.
He said a number of specialists from Israel have been brought into the country, to spend a year, to assist in the education of Ghanaians about the RHNP and the creation of awareness on its benefits, to facilitate its acceptance by all.
Mr P. C. Appiah Ofori, Member of Parliament of the constituency, said all the efforts government was making to develop the nation would be a fruitless venture if people did not keep to healthy lifestyles and live long to benefit from those development projects.
He in this regard advised the people to refrain from drug abuse and the use of hard drugs, whilst committing themselves to hygiene and environmental cleanliness to prolong their lives.
Mr Emmanuel Adjei Domson, District Chief Executive, expressed gratitude to the Ministry of Health for choosing the district as the place to launch the pilot project, and promised that all efforts would be made to facilitate its popularity and acceptance.
Earlier, an early morning walk dubbed, 'the walk of life', led by the Minister was undertaken alongside some health workers, teachers, assembly members and a cross-section of the members of the public, through some streets of the town for 30 minutes, bearing placards.
Some of the placards read, 'Exercise at least three times a week; exercise your body by turning; running and skipping; take some rest it is good, for your heart; drink at least seven glasses of water a day; you are what you eat, and eat a lot of fruits and vegetables'.
Later, Dr Elimele Ben Israel, a naturopathic doctor from Israel, talking to newsmen, said the 15-member delegation would be traveling to all parts of the country to share information on RHNP with the people.
He said during their tour they would encourage the establishment of health clubs among the people, among others, and also urged them to live healthy lifestyles in order to live long and healthy.
Dr Edward Addai, the RHNP project co-ordinator, urged the people to ensure that their environment was always clean, stressing that, 'anytime you looked at your environment, you should know that your life and healthy survival depended on it.'