Health, Foreign Ministries conduct joint programme on NCDs 
WITH Guyana being a lead advocate at the United Nations (UN) General Assembly second high level meeting on non-communicable diseases (NCDs), steps are being taken locally to ensure that strategies are implemented to curb them.
In light of this, the Ministries of Health and Foreign Affairs yesterday conducted a health and wellness workplace programme at Takuba Lodge, in South Road, Georgetown, which set the path for staff of the latter Ministry to get involved in all the necessary stages of the various testing procedures.
Health Minister Dr. Leslie Ramsammy, speaking at the opening, said the initiative is being taken with the aim of making persons more aware of the risk factors to which they are exposed and prevention methods associated with NCDs.
“We are pleased to launch another wellness programme, particularly when the world has come, for the second time at a high level summit, to discuss ways in fighting off non- communicable diseases. The first time the world came together was in May of 2001 to discuss HIV and this time around, it was chronic NCDs,” he pointed out.
Ramsammy said, while there is a strong belief that most deaths are linked to the various infectious diseases, this is not so, since more that 63 percent of deaths around the world are linked to chronic NCDs, excluding the cases linked to neuro psychology disorders.
“When the amount of deaths caused by neuro psychology is added to that 63 percent, more than 75 percent are linked to NCDs around the world. In Guyana, more than 65 percent of these deaths are linked to cancer, hypertension and heart diseases among others. When you add the others, like asthma and so on, more that 80 per cent of the deaths can be accounted for,” Ramsammy explained.
He said it is traditional for persons, especially in Guyana, to think that most deaths are caused by infectious diseases. However, only 12 per cent of deaths are linked to such cases.  
Ramsammy said: “In our country, diseases are driven by our lifestyle and some of these risk factors include our smoking, consumption of alcohol, how we eat and our activeness.”

UNHEALTHY EATING

He said it is a fact that two-thirds of the population is practising unhealthy eating since the adequate amount of fruits and vegetables are not eaten on a daily basis.
In addition, the Minister said, more than 90 percent of the population over consume salt, which is also a major risk factor.
“We have a habit of adding more salt every time we eat…most of the foods we import contain two to three times more salt than the average person should consume,” he warned.
He revealed, as well, that more than 15 per cent of children in school are exposed to tobacco smoke, even while they might not be the person who is indulging in the act.  
Ramsammy advised: “Alcohol consumption is the other reason we have a lot of deaths. The average person uses eight litres of raw alcohol per year and this can leave a person exposed to many diseases.”
Minister Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett, who was also present, said the involvement of her ministry followed Ramsammy’s presentation, to Cabinet, of the strategy to deal with NCDs.
“I went through with this after his presentation and I knew we had to start working immediately. I think it is necessary that we bring the staff to do the various check-ups, since NCDs, especially diabetes, can kill,” she said.
Rodrigues-Birkett urged persons to take the necessary precautions at an early stage as a country will better thrive on a healthy population.
She told her staff that they should encourage their loved ones to come on board at an early stage in their lives to ensure longer and healthy lives.