Health expert insists on physical activities, screening to prevent NDCs

MTWARA: BENJAMIN Mkapa Hospital‘s Medical Specialist Dr Gidion Edwin has pointed out sedentary lifestyle including physically inactive as key causes of Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) including diabetes and hypertension. It entails spending most of the day with very little physical activity.

Speaking in an exclusive interview with the Daily News on Tuesday, June 2, 2026,  Dr Edwin urged citizens to shun the irresponsible lifestyle and conduct regular health screenings in efforts preventing increasing NDCs cases across the country.

The call comes as in the ongoing five day health camp in Masasi District, Mtwara Region, Dr Edwin has found over 50 per cent of people whom he examined have high blood pressure despite the fact that they went at the camp with other assumptions including testing prolonged headaches thereby risking getting NDCs including diabetes.

Dr Edwin described hypertension as the silent killer with no clear signs urging Masasi residents and other citizens at large to carry out frequent screenings to understand their health’s state including sugar and blood pressure levels.

He noted that waiting to realize signs and taking unprescribed drugs result in NDCs such as hypertension and diabates.

Above all, he attributed diabetes and hypertension to reckless habits encompassing excessive cigarette smoking, drinking  alcohol and eating junk foods.

“What you eat determine who you are,” Dr Edwin told the Daily News in an interview.

Pysiologically, he said excessive alcohol drinking can damage pancreas,  a vital organ responsible for producing insulin for controlling body sugar.

“Relative insulin deficiency can cause diabetes type two which arises from sedentary life style such excessive alcohol drinking,”Dr  Edwin said.

He explained that relative insulin deficiency occurs when the pancreas produce minimal amount of insulin which fail to regulate sugar levels while absolute insulin deficiency when a human lacks enough insulin.

“This is why we limit people on the type of foods to eat,” Dr Edwin said.

He said lack of  balance diets  and physical exercises  can cause obesity which is among key factors for hypertension and diabates.

Dr Edwin noted that people with diabetes type two and hypertension if fail to seek medical services on time are prone to  other diseases including heart challenges and stroke.

He said findings show that diabetes and hypertension can cause heart and kidney diseases by 80 to 90 per cent.

Regarding treatment, he said in some cases diabetes type two requires lifetime treatment including insulin injections.

In that regard, he urged people to prioritize health check-ups as the blueprint for taking early preventive measures cultivating responsible eating culture including no smoking that takes care of the body for an enduring wellness.

“Hypertension and diabetes are preventable,by so doing I urge Tanzanians to do regular screening and shun reckless lifestyle such as excessive alcohol. The screening can be twice or more  per year to understate the state of the body including kidney and sugar levels.”

Adding “smoking is not allowed at all time due its huge negative impacts to human body,”

 Moreover, he encourage people to reduce body weight in addressing obesity and maintain physical exercises.

Nevertheless, he said obesity does not means body size alone as some thin people may encounter central obesity which entails having excessive fats rather than being a small size.

A hypertension patient, Mr Peter Maona (66) commended the Benjamin Mkapa Hospital in collaboration with Banjamin Mkapa Foundation and the Masasi District Council Hospital for organizing the five day health camp which offers among others free health screening services to Masasi residents.

He said health check-ups  are instrumental in guiding people to embrace responsible lifestyle and begin to take prescribed medicines on time.

Moreover, Mr Maona said the check-ups prevent untimely deaths which could be prevented just by having early screening early.

Over 500 residents in Mtwara Region have been targeted by the medical outreach programme aiming at upholding the former President Benjamin Mkapa’s legacy on extending specialists medical services to underserved communities across the country.

The camp in Mbuyunu Ward which is jointly organized by the Benjamin Mkapa Hospital, Benjamin William Mkapa Foundation,   Surgery, Obstetrics, Trauma and Anesthia Convoys (SOTAC) and Masasi District Council Hospital began on Monday and is expected to be concluded on June 5.

The health programme comes at the time when Benjamin Mkapa Hospital and the Benjamin William Mkapa Foundation are marking 10 and 20 years anniversary respectively, reflecting the role of the third president in boosting healthcare.