People checking their blood pressure at Aspire Park yesterday. Kammutty V P
DOHA: The danger posed by high blood pressure among the Qatari population is in focus as the country marks the World Health Day which falls on April 7. High blood pressure is the theme of this year’s World Health Day.
According to the National Stepwise Survey conducted last year, high blood pressure is a major risk factor associated with non-communicable diseases in Qatar. Of the 2,496 Qataris (aged 18-64 years) surveyed, 33 percent were suffering from high blood pressure, 16.7 percent from diabetes and for some 21.9 percent from higher-than-normal cholesterol levels.
High blood pressure increases the risk of heart attacks, strokes and kidney failure. If left uncontrolled, high blood pressure can also cause blindness, irregularities of the heartbeat and heart failure. The risk of developing these complications is higher in the presence of other cardiovascular risk factors such as diabetes.
Prevention and treatment methods have succeeded in reducing the number of deaths caused by heart diseases in Qatar in 2011.
In 2011, 237 deaths were recorded due to circulatory system diseases (12.2 percent of total deaths), which fell to 14.9 percent in 2010. This issue was in focus at events held by the Aspire Zone Foundation (AZF) yesterday to mark the World Health Day.
Participants shook of their inaction by engaging in a programme ‘step into health’, swapping tea with teeing at a specially-setup mini golf course, and taking a swipe at picture-taking in a social media competition.
Nurses provided live testing of blood pressure and stamped the flyers of those with a high level of pressure. The stamped flyers were presented to a ‘step into health’ team member at the end of the walk and received a free pedometer. Poorly controlled high blood pressure ultimately can cause damage to blood vessels in the eye, thickening of the heart muscle and heart attacks, hardening of the arteries, kidney failure, and strokes all with severe consequences, the participants were told.
“Walking is a good prevention of blood pressure,” said Abdullah Al Mohannadi, Researcher in Health Promotion at the Aspetar. He said ‘step into health’ would be introduced as a smart phone application and walking signage will be soon installed at shopping malls to encourage people to walk.
“More than15,000 people have registered with ‘step into health’ and received pedometers, but only 6,000 to 8,000 people are actively involved in walking,” said Al Mohannadi.
High salt intake, obesity, lack of regular exercise, excessive alcohol or coffee intake, and smoking may all adversely affect the outlook for the health of someone with high blood pressure. “Its common for people above the age of 40 years to get high blood pressure, so it’s advisable for them to do regular checkups and follow a healthy diet by consulting a doctor,” said Todorka Veadimirova, Senior Registered Nurse at the Aspetar. The Peninsula
