From Our Special Correspondent

Daijiworld Media Network

Bengaluru, Oct 22: Healthy mental and physical activity along with nutritious food is essential for checking high blood pressure and maintain good health, said Dr K Sudhakar, Health and Family Welfare Minister, in Bengaluru on Saturday.

Speaking at the Stroke Nursing Conclave 2022 event at Bangalore Medical College held on occasion of World Stroke Day, the minister said cases of increase in hypertension among the middle class and the poor have become quite common at present, which was a matter of serious concern.

The deaths occuring due to non-communicable diseases are higher than those being caused from communicable diseases, said Dr Sudhakar.

For various reasons, around 70% of hypertension cases are being seen among the middle class and those under the poverty line. ``This has been a rising concern and issue for underdeveloped and developing countries,’’ he said.

Dr Sudhakaar said October 29 is observed as the World Stroke Day and many countries around the world are constantly trying to find solutions to this issue. The surprising thing is that diabetes, hypertension and other non-communicable diseases are causing more number of deaths than communicable diseases.

``Our government both at the Union and State level are taking measures to prevent this. It is better to prevent a disease rather than trying to cure it after you have get it. Hence, we from our government are focusing on creating awareness about such non communicable diseases,’’ he said.

Creating awareness among several sections of society including people below the poverty line, illiterate, people in rural areas and those who do not have much awareness about health is our challenge now, he said asking doctors to focus attention on such cases.

The doctors only provide treatment to stroke patients but they are cared for by nurses. It is the primary responsibility of nurses to properly care for, make the patient aware of the issue and emotionally strengthen the patient. This is what actually allows a patient to heal, the Minister said.

The number of people getting hypertension is increasing in the country. India is gaining an infamous reputation of being the worlds diabetes capital. The main cause for stroke is hypertension and the number of hypertension cases we address directly causes the number of strokes to go down.

``If one lives a healthy lifestyle including good food habits, physical activity, care for mental health, a healthy social life can help one mitigate the risk for stroke,’’ he said.

The State Government is already conducting awareness programs. Over 9000 sub centers of NCD clinics have been established in the state currently and a total of 6000 CHOs have been appointed for this. This is also one of the main intentions of establishing the Namma Clinics, he said explaining that the Namma Clinics will offer screening and treatment for non-communicable diseases including hypertension.

The Namma Clinics will also perform the task of collecting data about non-communicable diseases and offer advice on following a nutritious diet, he said. ``Time is very critical when it comes to stroke. It is important how quickly you reach a doctor. The deciding factor of what the patients condition will be is how fast he gets treatment. How the doctors and other personnel treat the patient and his family is also an important factor. If the patient receives proper and timely treatment, the chances of recovery and the time of recovery improves. We need to build healthy Karnataka through the use of technology,’’ Dr Sudhakar said.