WHO Significantly more heart and cancer

Increase in Noncommunicable Diseases - Heart disease and cancer still too common

07/11/2014

In a recent press release, the World Health Organization (WHO) has criticized the lack of progress in the fight against noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) such as heart disease, cancer, diabetes and chronic lung disease. Still, 38 million people (including 28 million in developing countries) would die every year from noncommunicable diseases. In every region of the world, the number of deaths from NCDs has increased significantly since 2000, with South East Asia and the West Pacific regions showing the strongest increase, WHO reports.

The WHO Director-General Margaret Chan stated that she sees in terms of curbing the NCD „no lack of commitment, but a lack of capacity to act - especially in developing countries.“ Thus, the developed country profiles would show that „85 percent of premature deaths from noncommunicable diseases occur in developing countries.“ However, they often only account for a small proportion of total deaths, whereas in the industrialized nations more than 90 percent of deaths are caused by NCDs.

Risk factors for noncommunicable diseases
The prevalence of noncommunicable diseases is significantly influenced by lifestyle, with tobacco use, alcohol abuse, high blood pressure and obesity or obesity are considered to be crucial risk factors. Therefore, the WHO has also shown in the country profiles the prevalence of this major risk factor. For example, Germany states that 30 percent of the population smoke, 31.5 percent have high blood pressure, 25.1 percent are obese, and that an average of 11.8 liters of pure alcohol are consumed per capita per year. In neighboring Austria, people drink less alcohol (10.3 liters per capita), are less likely to have high blood pressure (28.4 percent of the population) and are less likely to be obese (20.9 percent of the population), but tobacco use is still notable there more widespread (46 percent of the population smoke). Both in Germany and in Austria, the probability of dying from a non-communicable disease before the age of 70 is 12 percent. The proportion of NCDs in total deaths was 91 percent in Germany and 92 percent in Austria.

NCD in developing countries
In contrast to the WHO country profiles of the western industrial nations, the profiles of developing countries such as Tanzania or Bhutan. Tanzania's NCD accounts for just 31 percent and Bhutan accounts for 56 percent of total deaths. Nevertheless, the probability of dying from a noncommunicable disease between the ages of 30 and 70 years is significantly higher in both countries than in Germany. In Tanzania, 16 percent of deaths before the age of 70 were due to NCD, and as many as 21 percent in Bhutan. Here it becomes clear that cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, cancer and chronic lung disease are much more likely to cause premature death in developing countries than in modern industrial nations.

WHO action plan against NCDs
In view of the increasing spread of NCD have become „More than 190 governments have adopted a WHO global action plan aimed at reducing premature deaths from noncommunicable diseases by 25 percent by 2025“, according to the WHO communication. The WHO expert on noncommunicable diseases Oleg Chestnov stressed that the World Health Organization one „global infrastructure“ have set up, „to halt the rise of noncommunicable diseases and in particular to support the less developed countries in their efforts.“ So far, however, the successes in controlling NCD have remained, even though simple measures such as a healthy diet, sufficient exercise and abstinence from alcohol and tobacco would prevent many of the NCDs. (Fp)