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21.03.2014 Health

'Hypertension, Leading Killer Disease'

By Daily Guide
'Hypertension, Leading Killer Disease'
21.03.2014 LISTEN

Dr Kofi Agyenim Boateng speaking to DAILY GUIDE  

DR KOFI Agyenim Boateng, a consultant physician at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) in Kumasi has identified hypertension, a non-communicable disease as a leading cause of death in Ghana lately.

According to him, the disease trails behind road accidents and death from injuries which, in his opinion, are the leading causes of death in the country.

He described the situation as significantly alarming which the stakeholders need to critically look at and come up with pragmatic measures to prevent.

He reminded Ghanaians about the high prevalence of hypertension and diabetes and other non-communicable diseases in the country.

Speaking in an interview with DAILY GUIDE, the renowned health officer revealed how a lot of Ghanaians were dying prematurely from non-communicable diseases in recent times, a situation which until recently escaped the attention of most people including state institutions.

Dr Agyenim Boateng who is attached to the Department of Internal Medicine at KATH said, 'If you have one, the chances are that you have the others and if they come together they increase the risk of dying from heart-related diseases.'

 
'Many more people have hypertension than diabetes in Ghana. The fact is the risk factors that predispose somebody to have hypertension are about the same factors that predispose somebody to have diabetes, obesity and raised fats or liquid level,' he intimated.

He mentioned family history or genetic predisposition vis-à-vis environmental factors.

He explained that a person with a family history of diabetes or hypertension could inherit the disease if it is stimulated by their lifestyle.

The consultant physician warned Ghanaians against high intake of salt as it exposes consumers to high blood pressure.

'If you are taking too much salt and you are inactive or obese (over-weight), these are factors that come together so that the risk becomes so much higher for somebody who indulges in such things,' he said.

 
He commended women for showing greater concern for their health insisting, however, that the gender ratio at which hypertension or diabetes killed people do not favour any.

 
Preventive Measures
Considering the risk factors, the senior medical officer implored all and sundry to change the modifiable risk factors especially obesity (weight-gain) and inactivity.

He urged the people to accept exercise as part of their lifestyle which should be done on daily basis for at least 30 minutes.

'So the activity that you choose can be running, jogging, dancing vigorously, swimming, and walking which is the commonest people do,' the medical officer opined.

'Exercise must be seen as medicine and the money with which you pay for that medicine is time. So you should plan well so that you can have enough time to exercise to improve your health,' Dr Agyenim Boateng advised.

 
FROM James Quansah, Kumasi

 

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