Dharamshala: On April 7- International World Health Day, the CTA organised a blood pressure check-up and awareness event, where the health Kalon, Dr. Tsering Wangchuk made a statement about controlling the condition.
This year's theme for this year's World Health day- which is commemorated worldwide- is high blood pressure. Also known as hypertension, high blood pressure is a condition that is a major health concern that is prevalent globally.
The event was rolled out at two locations: Tsuklagkhang and Delek hospital's clinic at Mcleodganj, Himachal Pradesh, India at 9.30am. Dr Tsering made the following statement
One in three adults worldwide have high blood pressure, this figure rises to one in two for people over 50, according the World Health organisation (WHO). Every year there are 9 million deaths worldwide that are attributed to complications of high blood pressure; this includes 51% of deaths due to strokes and 45% of deaths due to coronary heart disease.
High blood pressure often goes undiagnosed as it has no specific symptoms, it is known as a "silent killer" that can affect anyone. There are many factors that can contribute to a greater risk of high blood pressure: lack of physical activity, a diet high in salt and fats, family history of hypertension, being overweight, smoking, drinking and a stressful lifestyle.
Despite this, hypertension is a preventable and treatable disease. You can minimise the risk of developing high blood pressure by: maintaining a normal body weight, lowering intake of fats and salt, increasing your intake of fruit and vegetables, getting regular exercise as well as avoiding alcohol and tobacco use.
The Health Information System (HIS) of the CTA's Department of Health says that there is "a significant high burden of hypertension in the Tibetan community." However, early detection of this disease helps to greatly reduce this number. Dr Tsering urges the importance of going for regular health checkups so that diseases such as hypertension can be detected early and treated accordingly.
