DOH, PMA to fight non-communicable diseases

MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Health (DOH) and the Philippine Medical Association (PMA) joined forces yesterday to combat non-communicable diseases (NCDs), which are the leading killers of Filipinos now.

The two agencies signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) “to address the rising epidemic of chronic NCD brought by tobacco use, unhealthy diet and inadequate physical activity.”

DOH Undersecretary Dr. Ted Herbosa identified the NCDs as “heart attack, stroke, high blood, diabetes, cancer and in the Philippines we include kidney diseases and injuries.”

“We have serious problems on NCDs but we can prevent all of these through a healthy lifestyle… Through this partnership between the DOH and PMA, we hope strengthen our programs against NCDs,” he said in a press briefing.

Under the MOU, the DOH and PMA committed to work for the “control and eradication of NCDs, (by) utilizing all forms of media, including the Internet.” They will conceptualize programs to address each of these diseases.

Based on surveys conducted by the Department of Science and Technology’s Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI), the prevalence rates of risk factors that lead to NCDs had increased from 1998 to 2008. The next survey may be out in 2013.

The incidence of hypertension among Filipinos rose from 21 percent to 25.3 percent; overweight adults in the population from 20.2 percent to 26.6 percent; high blood cholesterol from four percent to 10.2 percent and diabetes from 3.9 percent to 4.8 percent.  

According to PMA president Dr. Oscar Tinio, the health sector “must come together and be pro-active in our strategies in order for us to awaken our people, at the earliest time, to this practical truth.”

“Getting sick nowadays can not only be burdensome to your body but to your pocket as well. It is definitely cheaper and wiser to prevent diseases than to treat it afterwards. Sadly, most of our people take this for granted,” Tinio added.