NCD, main cause of stagnating Malaysian lifespan - Dr Dzulkefly 

KUALA SELANGOR, March 31 (Bernama) - Non-communicable diseases (NCD) has been found to be the main cause of the plateauing lifespan of Malaysians at around 75 years, says Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad.

He said this was due to the lack of awareness on NCD as well as its complications compared to the people in other countries who are putting efforts to extend their lifespan.   

Taking the example of high blood pressure and diabetes from the NCD group, Dr Dzulkefly said 50 per cent of the patients treated at Health Ministry facilities were not aware they had contracted the diseases and this is seen as a serious matter.

"Today, our lifespan had stagnated for one decade compared to other countries at the average of 75 years which is 73 years for men and 78 years for women.

“Many are not aware that NCD such high blood pressure can lead to other complications such as heart attack, diabetes, renal failure and so on while cancer is the second major concern,” he told reporters after launching the Kampungku Sihat (My Healthy Village) programme at Kuala Selangor parliamentary constituency in Kampung Bukit Kuching Tengah, Jeram here today.

He added that many people are still not taking health screening seriously due to low level of awareness or just plain ignorance when they kept putting off the screening until their conditions became life threatening.

Giving the example of Singapore, Dr Dzulkefly said the country is very serious in combating NCD and had declared war against diabetes by making it compulsory for its citizens to undergo health screening. 

Even though Malaysia has not reached the stage, he said the ministry has been encouraging the people to go for health checkups for all members of the family.

In the Kampungku Sihat programme today, 550 trainees from two ministry training institutes carried out basic health checks on residents from three villages in Jeram including blood pressure, blood sugar level and body mass index (BMI).   

-- BERNAMA