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B N W: Biafra Nigeria World News |
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Foundation links children's stroke, heart attacks to poor lifestyles
OVERWEIGHT children are three to five times more prone to heart attacks or stroke before they reach the age of 65, the World Health Foundation Federation, an international non-governmental organisation (NGO), dedicated to the prevention of heart diseases and stroke said yesterday in Lagos.
Speaking at an occasion to mark the World Heart Day, chairman of the organising committee, Dr. Femi Mobolaji-Lawal lamented that children were increasingly adopting unhealthy lifestyle.
Consequently, he went on, "the leading causes of heart disease and stroke - obesity, poor diet, smoking and physical inactivity - are now manifesting at an alarmingly early age.
"Unhealthy lifestyles including high calorie diets, dwindling exercise and hours spent in front of television and computer, have contributed to the surge in childhood obesity," he added.
The day is set aside by the World Heart Federation (Geneva) with the support of World Health Organisation (WHO) and United Nation Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) to emphasise the importance of the heart, promote awareness of heart disease, the risk factors and the preventive measures to reduce the known risk factors. The World Heart Federation has 180 members in over 100 countries and Nigeria is a member.
The theme for World Heart Day 2004 is "Children, Adolescents, and Heart Disease".
"Heart disease is a major cause of concern for public health authorities world-wide. It is the leading cause of death in the developed world and is fast becoming a major menace in developing countries. It recognises no border or boundaries," he stated, and went on: "In Nigeria, prevalence figures for obesity (adolescents) range between 3.1 and 18 per cent. If this trend in unhealthy lifestyle continues, children will be more likely to develop heart disease and stroke later in life, significantly reducing their life expectancy."
Besides childhood obesity, Mobolaji-Lawal said tobacco remained a future heart threatening issue for children and adolescents, with the majority of smokers beginning tobacco use before the age of 10.
"The younger a person begins to smoke, the greater their risk of developing heart disease. The situation is made worse by almost half of all the children world-wide being subjected to passive smoke as they live in a home of a smoker." Mobolaji-Lawal said, adding: "Children are at increasing risk of developing heart disease through tobacco smoke (active or passive smoke), being overweight and through lack of physical exercise."
According to him, the Nigerian Heart Foundation and World Heart Federation believe the most effective method of curbing future heart disease was to begin educating children now. "Initiatives must focus on teaching children life-long healthy eating habits, increasing their physical activity (two thirds of children world-wide are insufficiently active for their health) and also by limiting their exposure to marketing of tobacco and unhealthy foods. Hand-in-hand with this is the need to develop international strategies and standards, together with supportive government policies, to help people reduce their risk of heart disease and stroke," he re-emphasised.
Mobolaji-Lawal restated that healthy heart was vital for living life to the full, which is why the World Heart Federation created World Heart Day.
The aim, he went on, was to increase awareness of the threat of heart disease, stroke and the importance of a heart-healthy lifestyle, so that children, adolescents and adults all over the world could live better and longer.
"We hold World Heart Day to encourage the world's population to lead a healthier lifestyle by taking more physical exercise and reducing the risk of heart disease through smoke-free living, healthy nutrition and weight control, amongst other measures," said Professor Poole-Wilson, president of the World Heart Federation.
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