Millions dead due to unhealthy lifestyle

WHO: Millions of people die from unhealthy lifestyles

01/19/2015

Around 16 million people die every year around the world as a result of unhealthy diets, tobacco or alcohol consumption. This is the result of a report by the World Health Organization (WHO) presented today. It warns of a "slowly advancing public health disaster". According to the report, most of the non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are preventable. "Of the 38 million people who died of NCDs in 2012, 16 million were premature and preventable deaths," says a WHO statement.

Unhealthy lifestyle favors premature death
Such "lifestyle diseases are a" far greater threat to public health than any other human-known epidemic, "news agency AFP quotes chief editor of the WHO report, Shanthi Mendis. "Not thousands die, but millions die (...) every year at the age of 30, 40, 50 and 60 years, not as 80 and 90 years." According to the WHO are usually an unhealthy lifestyle, which includes alcohol abuse, tobacco use and a fat, salt and sugar rich diet are the cause. Another major risk factor for non-contagious diseases such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease is lack of exercise. According to the WHO report, around six million people die each year from tobacco and tobacco-containing products, 3.3 million from alcohol abuse, 3.2 million from lack of exercise, and 1.7 million from a diet that is too high in salt , These deaths could be prevented by a change in lifestyle. This is especially true for children, about 42 million of whom are already obese around the world, according to the WHO report. 84 percent of adolescents, according to estimates, are not doing enough.

WHO urges effective action to drastically reduce the number of preventable deaths
"The world community has a chance to change the course of the NCD epidemic," said Margaret Chan, WHO Director-General. "By investing just one to three dollars a person per year, countries can significantly reduce their deaths from NCDs. In 2015, each country must set national targets and implement cost-effective measures. If they do not, millions of lives will end much too soon. "

Eighty-two percent of the 16 million victims of avoidable deaths came from developing and emerging countries. In particular, the people there would benefit enormously from just a few dollars invested in education about a healthier lifestyle and could save millions of lives.

In its report, WHO presents cost-effective, highly effective measures that can be taken by any country to greatly reduce the number of preventable deaths from NCDs, "including a ban on all forms of tobacco advertising, the replacement of trans fats with polyunsaturated fatty acids, prohibition or restriction of alcohol advertising, the prevention of heart attacks and strokes, the promotion of breastfeeding, the implementation of healthy eating awareness programs and physical activity and the prevention of cervical cancer through screening ".