Lifestyle- How healthy is your ‘good’ life?
Apr 04, 2010
LIFE should be hustle-free, with little or no worries, especially if one has a decent job and can afford most of the things an average person craves for. <br>Getting to this level of comfort is everyone’s dream, but it comes with a change in lifestyle.
THIS week on April 7, the world celebrates the World Health Day under the theme Urbanisation and Health. With urbanisation comes an ‘easy’ lifestyle. Michael Kanaabi explores the risks of a sedentary lifestyle.
LIFE should be hustle-free, with little or no worries, especially if one has a decent job and can afford most of the things an average person craves for.
Getting to this level of comfort is everyone’s dream, but it comes with a change in lifestyle.
This includes taking a more relaxed approach to life, which means less or no walking, but driving, less cooking and eating more of processed and fast foods.
Others spend more time watching television, reserving no time for physical activities. Those are some of the changes in our lifestyle that may lead lifestyle diseases overtime.
Dr. Mary Nakibirango of Mulago Hospital, defines lifestyle diseases as illnesses that arise as a result of living a repeatedly sedentary lifestyle over a long period of time.
Speaking during the Commonwealth Peoples Forum in 2007, Prof. Richard Odoi, the head of Makerere University’s department of pharmacy, said lifestyle diseases are diseases of the affluent that increase with urbanisation, industrialisation, civilisation and longevity.
“People who suffer from these diseases play a major role in catching them through careless lifestyles,†he said.
The unfortunate thing about these diseases, Nakibirango says, is that once someone catches them, they have to live with them for the rest of their lives.
According to Dr. Silver Bahendeka, a consultant on diabetes and endocrinology, common lifestyle diseases include diabetes mellitus (type 2), cardiovascular disease, cancer, chronic respiratory disease, mental illness, liver cirrhosis and gout.
Cases on the increase
According to Odoi, a study conducted countrywide in 2006 showed that 25% of the people interviewed experienced increased blood pressure in the recent past.
He also noted that a 2004 survey conducted in secondary schools in Kampala found 10.6% of the students obese.
A report presented to the council of health ministers recently by Dr. Shanti Mendis of the World Health Organisation (WHO) revealed that over 35 million deaths occurred globally in 2005 as a result of lifestyle diseases. These deaths, according to WHO, will double globally by 2015.
Risk factors
Smoking is one of the leading causes of these diseases. “Smoking cigarettes and pipes damages the lungs and causes mouth and throat cancer. It also leads to bronchitis and many other diseases,†Nakibirango says.
According to WHO’s recent report on non-communicable disease control priorities project for the east, central and southern Africa, smoking remains one of the leading causes of lifestyle diseases among men.
Excessive consumption of alcohol is also a key factor in the increase of these diseases.
Nakibirango says: “Consuming alcohol excessively over time may damage the liver, leading to liver cirrhosis and cancer.
“This danger is higher in people who consume strong spirits and wines,†she says.
Prof. Odoi also links excessive alcohol consumption to mental illness, while Nakibirango says mental problems such as depression could also be a result of continued use of drugs like cocaine and marijuana.
“Stress increases the chances of developing hypertension and mental illness. Accumulated anger and bitterness may also lead to heart disease and hypertension,†she says.
Lifestyle diseases could also be a result of poor diet.
“This is a diet high in refined sugars from things like white bread, soft drinks, sweets and chocolate.
“Fats in meat and refined oils that we use in frying also play a part in this,†she adds.
Reduced physical activity among urban dwellers has also contributed to lifestyle diseases.
Dr. Bahendeka says: “The use of motorised means of transport, even for walkable distances, using lifts instead of stairs in buildings and watching a lot of television instead of engaging in pastime activities like jogging and sports makes many people vulnerable.â€
The effects of these unhealthy and sedentary activities do not usually manifest in the short-term, but in middle age, which is about 40 years and above.
Treatment and control
One of the key things in the treatment of these ailments is immediate change of lifestyle.
“For obesity and ailments resulting from it, we recommend regular exercises to burn up excess fat in the body. Lipid and fat regulating drugs are also given in cases of cardiovascular conditions and obesity,†Nakibirango says.
A WHO report recommends the use of aspirins and other inexpensive drugs for the treatment of heart attacks and strokes.
“For heart failure, aspirin, which restores blood flow and ‘beta blockers’ that reduce the amount of oxygen needed by the blood,†the report notes.
The report lists three interventions that have proved cost effective in the treatment of diabetes — Glycemic control through diet and physical activity, oral hypoglycemics that reduces blood glucose and daily insulin injections.
“One will need about sh50,000 for both the injections and the insulin over 10 days in case one is on two shots a day, the average for most patients.
In case one cannot administer them by oneself, one can go to Mulago and pay sh5,000 per shot,†Nakibirango says.
For depression, WHO recommends older and less costly anti-depressants like tricyclic alongside physiological/group therapy.
Nakibirango says the cost of treating lifestyle diseases, both monetarily and support from family, is so big that every precaution should be taken to avoid them.
Monitoring gadgets
In case of diabetes, one will need a glucometer, whose cost ranges from sh150,000 to sh200,000 per day, says Arnold Kabale, a pharmacist with Vine Pharmacy.
Nakibirango says it is recommended that blood sugar levels be checked at least twice a day after a meal, usually in the morning and evening,
For high blood pressure, one will need a blood pressure monitor.
This costs between sh60,000 to sh200,000, depending on whether it is manual, digital or electronic, says Kabale.
Pressure should be checked daily since it keeps changing from time to time.
However, care should be taken to ensure one gets accurate results.
“This is especially for those with thin or big arms. They should buy special straps and avoid the standard ones that come with the initial package,†he says.
LIFE should be hustle-free, with little or no worries, especially if one has a decent job and can afford most of the things an average person craves for.
Getting to this level of comfort is everyone’s dream, but it comes with a change in lifestyle.
This includes taking a more relaxed approach to life, which means less or no walking, but driving, less cooking and eating more of processed and fast foods.
Others spend more time watching television, reserving no time for physical activities. Those are some of the changes in our lifestyle that may lead lifestyle diseases overtime.
Dr. Mary Nakibirango of Mulago Hospital, defines lifestyle diseases as illnesses that arise as a result of living a repeatedly sedentary lifestyle over a long period of time.
Speaking during the Commonwealth Peoples Forum in 2007, Prof. Richard Odoi, the head of Makerere University’s department of pharmacy, said lifestyle diseases are diseases of the affluent that increase with urbanisation, industrialisation, civilisation and longevity.
“People who suffer from these diseases play a major role in catching them through careless lifestyles,†he said.
The unfortunate thing about these diseases, Nakibirango says, is that once someone catches them, they have to live with them for the rest of their lives.
According to Dr. Silver Bahendeka, a consultant on diabetes and endocrinology, common lifestyle diseases include diabetes mellitus (type 2), cardiovascular disease, cancer, chronic respiratory disease, mental illness, liver cirrhosis and gout.
Cases on the increase
According to Odoi, a study conducted countrywide in 2006 showed that 25% of the people interviewed experienced increased blood pressure in the recent past.
He also noted that a 2004 survey conducted in secondary schools in Kampala found 10.6% of the students obese.
A report presented to the council of health ministers recently by Dr. Shanti Mendis of the World Health Organisation (WHO) revealed that over 35 million deaths occurred globally in 2005 as a result of lifestyle diseases. These deaths, according to WHO, will double globally by 2015.
Risk factors
Smoking is one of the leading causes of these diseases. “Smoking cigarettes and pipes damages the lungs and causes mouth and throat cancer. It also leads to bronchitis and many other diseases,†Nakibirango says.
According to WHO’s recent report on non-communicable disease control priorities project for the east, central and southern Africa, smoking remains one of the leading causes of lifestyle diseases among men.
Excessive consumption of alcohol is also a key factor in the increase of these diseases.
Nakibirango says: “Consuming alcohol excessively over time may damage the liver, leading to liver cirrhosis and cancer.
“This danger is higher in people who consume strong spirits and wines,†she says.
Prof. Odoi also links excessive alcohol consumption to mental illness, while Nakibirango says mental problems such as depression could also be a result of continued use of drugs like cocaine and marijuana.
“Stress increases the chances of developing hypertension and mental illness. Accumulated anger and bitterness may also lead to heart disease and hypertension,†she says.
Lifestyle diseases could also be a result of poor diet.
“This is a diet high in refined sugars from things like white bread, soft drinks, sweets and chocolate.
“Fats in meat and refined oils that we use in frying also play a part in this,†she adds.
Reduced physical activity among urban dwellers has also contributed to lifestyle diseases.
Dr. Bahendeka says: “The use of motorised means of transport, even for walkable distances, using lifts instead of stairs in buildings and watching a lot of television instead of engaging in pastime activities like jogging and sports makes many people vulnerable.â€
The effects of these unhealthy and sedentary activities do not usually manifest in the short-term, but in middle age, which is about 40 years and above.
Treatment and control
One of the key things in the treatment of these ailments is immediate change of lifestyle.
“For obesity and ailments resulting from it, we recommend regular exercises to burn up excess fat in the body. Lipid and fat regulating drugs are also given in cases of cardiovascular conditions and obesity,†Nakibirango says.
A WHO report recommends the use of aspirins and other inexpensive drugs for the treatment of heart attacks and strokes.
“For heart failure, aspirin, which restores blood flow and ‘beta blockers’ that reduce the amount of oxygen needed by the blood,†the report notes.
The report lists three interventions that have proved cost effective in the treatment of diabetes — Glycemic control through diet and physical activity, oral hypoglycemics that reduces blood glucose and daily insulin injections.
“One will need about sh50,000 for both the injections and the insulin over 10 days in case one is on two shots a day, the average for most patients.
In case one cannot administer them by oneself, one can go to Mulago and pay sh5,000 per shot,†Nakibirango says.
For depression, WHO recommends older and less costly anti-depressants like tricyclic alongside physiological/group therapy.
Nakibirango says the cost of treating lifestyle diseases, both monetarily and support from family, is so big that every precaution should be taken to avoid them.
Monitoring gadgets
In case of diabetes, one will need a glucometer, whose cost ranges from sh150,000 to sh200,000 per day, says Arnold Kabale, a pharmacist with Vine Pharmacy.
Nakibirango says it is recommended that blood sugar levels be checked at least twice a day after a meal, usually in the morning and evening,
For high blood pressure, one will need a blood pressure monitor.
This costs between sh60,000 to sh200,000, depending on whether it is manual, digital or electronic, says Kabale.
Pressure should be checked daily since it keeps changing from time to time.
However, care should be taken to ensure one gets accurate results.
“This is especially for those with thin or big arms. They should buy special straps and avoid the standard ones that come with the initial package,†he says.