CARDIOVASCULAR disease (CVD), including heart disease and stroke, are among the leading causes of death in Brunei Darussalam, with 421 deaths recorded in 2016, said Dato Seri Setia Dr Awang Haji Zulkarnain bin Haji Hanafi, the Minister of Health, in his statement for World Heart Day 2017, which takes place today.
“Brunei Darussalam is currently experiencing an obesity epidemic; and without a swift reversal, premature deaths from CVDs will continue to rise, families will suffer, and there will be a severe impact to our economic development,” said the minister further in his statement.
Dato Seri Setia Dr Awang Haji Zulkarnain also noted the alarming rise in the death rate from CVDs, among Bruneians younger than 75.
“It is a worrying trend that many people are present with symptoms of heart disease at a young age,” he said. “In fact, nearly 10 per cent of the people in Brunei Darussalam, aged between 40 and 69, have a greater than 30 per cent chance of having a heart attack or a stroke within the next 10 years.”
He pointed to obesity caused by a sedentary lifestyle, smoking, high blood pressure (hypertension), high cholesterol, diabetes, and an unhealthy diet as a leading cause of CVDs in Brunei Darussalam.
“Many of these risk factors are entirely preventable, but taking action now is critical,” he said. “Today on the World Heart Day, we urge the people in Brunei Darussalam to make a commitment to make healthy choices for your heart. The burden of CVDs can be reduced but we must all act now.
“The focus on preventive actions in conjunction with World Heart Day is well-aligned with the strategic priorities of the Ministry of Health, which is to make health everyone’s business, deliver excellent services through alignment and consolidation, as well as to prevent and control non-communicable diseases (NCDs).”
The minister then outlined four simple measures as a preventive against heart disease: regular health check-ups, a sensible diet, moderate exercise and cutting out smoking altogether.
“With the theme ‘Share the Power’, for this World Heart Day, we are asking you to share how you power your heart and inspire your family and friends to be heart healthy,” he said. “As individuals, we can share the power by understanding our own and our families’ risk of heart disease and act to improve it. As a community, we can share the power by inspiring one another to live longer, better, healthier lives. Together, we can empower Brunei Darussalam to be a ‘heart-healthy’ nation.”
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