As a neurologist, my message to the youth would be to keep lifestyle diseases at bay through simple changes in diet and regular exercise. The food culture globally is laden with sugary and salty foods — excess sugar and salt are both bad for health. Add to that lack of exercise and tobacco use and the combination is simply disastrous. Take hypertension for instance.
Called the silent killer, in the UAE nearly 75 per cent of patients who suffered from stroke had high blood pressure. Of these, nearly 50 per cent were not even aware they had chronic high blood pressure. Hypertension triggers cardiovascular diseases that include myocardial infarction, ischemic heart disease and stroke.
Controlling high blood pressure can actually cut the risk of stroke by 30 per cent, which means annually we can prevent nearly 1,000 strokes in the UAE. Stroke is one of the leading causes of mortality and chronic disability in the world and simple steps like managing hypertension can prevent it.
By 2025, the World Health Organisation estimates that 1.56 billion people will suffer from hypertension, which is why there is an urgent need to create a heightened awareness about it in the community. Simple steps towards a healthy lifestyle today protects your future. Prevention is better than cure.
