Healthy lifestyle not an option amid rising NCDs
DAR ES SALAAM: THE government has called upon Tanzanians to adopt a healthy lifestyle, including healthy eating and regular physical exercise in efforts to prevent and control Non-Communicable Diseases, which are reported to be on the rise in the country.
Minister for Health, Ms Ummy Mwalimu, made the call yesterday during a joint physical exercise led by Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa as part of the national campaign to encourage Tanzanians to do regular physical exercise to fight the ailments.
The physical exercise, coordinated by the Ministry of Health, involved a ten-kilometer walk from Coco Beach via Tanzanite Bridge to Ocean Road in Dar es Salaam.
ALSO READ: VP calls for ramping up efforts to address NCDs
“High blood pressure and diabetes are among the top ten diseases affecting Tanzanians. As a ministry, it is our responsibility to ensure that we protect citizens from getting these diseases. That is why we have requested the government, through the Prime Minister, to close the road from Coco Beach through the Tanzanite Bridge from 6 am to 9 am every Saturday to allow people to exercise,” Ms Mwalimu said.
Ms Mwalimu expressed gratitude to the Prime Minister for accepting the request and leading the exercise for the first day after issuing a statement on closing the road from the Ocean Road Cancer Institute via the Tanzanite Bridge to Furaha grounds.
She said that physical exercise is very helpful in preventing diseases, especially diabetes and high blood pressure, by more than 50 per cent. Thus, citizens should come out in large numbers to exercise to keep their bodies fit.
“I assure you, Prime Minister, that the Ministry of Health will continue to direct more efforts in protecting citizens from NCDs, including encouraging them to exercise and adopt healthy eating.”
Minister Mwalimu also thanked Dar es Salaam Regional Commissioner Albert Chalamila and the District Commissioners, including Ubungo DC Hassan Bomboko, for their efforts in mobilising the large number of citizens who turned up to participate in the exercise.
“I want to assure you, RC, that the Ministry of Health will support all jogging groups in Dar es Salaam Region. Let’s work together to see what we can do to improve physical exercise every Saturday from 6 am to 9 am.”
According to WHO, NCDs kill 41 million people each year, equivalent to 74 per cent of all deaths globally. Of all NCD deaths, 77 per cent are in low- and middle-income countries.
In Tanzania, statistics collected in hospitals and other health facilities show NCDs account for 33 per cent of all deaths annually, and most adults who visit health centres have high blood pressure, diabetes, and heart complications.
Tabling the 2023/2024 budget estimates for her docket in the august House, the Minister for Health, Ms Mwalimu, stated that from July 2022 to March 2023, NCDs caused many patients to attend health care centres, including high blood pressure (890,788 patients, or 3.8 per cent), compared to 3.6 per cent in the same period in 2021/22, and diabetes (436,232 patients, or 1.8 per cent).
She went on to say that heart disease caused 1,388 deaths, or 6.0 per cent of all deaths, compared to 5.4 per cent of deaths caused by the condition in the same period in 2021/22.
