Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) remain the biggest cause of deaths
worldwide. CVD refers to disorders that affect the coronary system,
but often means coronary heart disease, heart failure and stroke,
taken together. CVD can also mean cerebrovascular, or disease of brain
circulation.
CVD is a global burden. In the Philippines, the National Statistics
Office (NSO) cited heart disease as the cause of 100,908 deaths or
21% percent of the 480,820 deaths reported from January 2009 to March
2010. Meanwhile, the latest World Health Organization data published
in April 2011 showed that coronary heart disease deaths in Philippines
has reached 57,864 or 13.73% of total deaths.
Coronary heart disease and stroke are mainly consequences of
overweight, sedentary lifestyle, smoking, poorly controlled diabetes,
high intake of saturated fat, trans fatty acids, or cholesterol, and
metabolic syndrome.
Knowledge about CVD and prevention are still the best protection to
stem the CVD menace which has been creeping in our midst, according
to the Philippine Heart Association which has been in the forefront
of promoting healthy heart in the past 60 years.
Over the weekend, the PHA organized a community event in line with
this year’s Heart Month aptly themed “Heart Wellness is a Family
Business.” Over 1,000 people -- families, neighbors, friends, and
park-goers -- trooped to the Quezon Memorial Park, in Quezon City, to
avail of the free risk factor screenings and assessment, lay lectures
on heart-healthy diet and CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation)
lectures and demo.
People gravitated to the adult and pedia consultation booths, Cardio
pulmonary resuscitation (CPR) demo and healthy diet lectures. One
of the advocacy targets of the PHA is to bring CPR knowledge to every
Filipino home, to every community and workplace. CPR saves lives.
Most of heart attacks happen in the home. Among the risk factor
screenings done were: lipid profile or total cholesterol test, sugar
count test , BP taking for the adults; BP and BMI taking, and
auscultation for the children.
Asst. Sec. Eric Tayag of the Department of Health (DOH) led
volunteer cardiologists, students and enthusiastic crowd dancing for
healthy heart and body. Dr. Tayag is known for his advocacy of dancing
as a form of exercise and physical activity.
The health experts led by PHA officers – Drs. Saturnino Javier, Eugene
Reyes and Jonas del Rosario -- urged parents and children to start
minding their cardiovascular health.
Cardiovascular disease does not respect boundaries as it afflicts
anyone regardless of class stratum, professional position or personal
persuasion, even age. Let’s put a premium on heart wellness and
healthy lifestyle, according to Dr. Javier.
“Studies revealed that CVD patients are getting younger. The need to
understand, practice and promote heart health is the key to CVD
prevention which has been the PHA battlecry. It has to start in
every home – from the parents who educate their children in their
formative years so that they develop healthy lifestyle habits.
Healthy lifestyle has to be implemented and established as a routine
in every workplace,” said PHA Vice President Dr. Eugene Reyes, chair
of Heart Month 2013
Nowadays, the number of children who have become less
physically-active has been on the rise because of their addiction to
gadgets that keep them glued to their seats; more children and
adults have been patronizing those easy-to-grab high-salt and fat
fast-foods and convenience foods.
“We partnered with elementary schools because we want to start CVD
education in the young, as early as grade school,” said PHA Director
Dr. Jonas del Rosario, concurrent Advocacy Committee chair. He added
, “We conducted the Jump Rope Competition to underscore the benefits
of physical activity or exercise.”
The message the PHA has been relentlessly harping on is exercise
can be done anywhere and does not have to be expensive. Techie kids
have to be reminded that they have to jump, walk or run to a healthy
heart, eat a balanced diet that is low fat, sodium and sugar.
The dangers of first-hand and second-hand smoking to the heart and
lungs were also emphasized. Smokers are not just thriving, they are
getting younger.
The PHA advice: keep a healthy heart. Maintain a blood pressure,
cholesterol, sugar count, BMI and waist circumference at normal
levels; exercise; don’t smoke and drink in moderation or be a
social drinker. Red wine, is still the best option.
As mandated by Presidential Decree 1066 declared by the late
President Ferdinand Marcos, on January 9, 1973, February is Heart
Month and the Philippine Heart Association is the lead agency of
the yearly celebration. Since day one, the PHA has had the
Department of Health, Philippine Heart Center and the Heart
Foundation of the Philippines as allies.
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Dr. Jonas del Rosario, PHA director and concurrent Advocacy Committee chair.
we need extensive awareness campaign these days because many people die young of CVDs. just last week a colleague died of stroke. i was told he was hypertensive but never took his maintenance and resorted to diet but was heavy smoker. he was having light dinner and cranberry juice at a classy coffee shop. posted on fb about his whereabout and his dinner. then the stroke... he made it to the ICU but wasn't revived and was pronounced death at around 3am. so sudden... so young... so sad...
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