Unhealthy diets and physical inactivity are the key risk factors for the major non-communicable diseases such as cardiovascular diseases, hypertension and diabetes in media people.
Shifa International Hospital Consultant Cardiologist Dr Saeedullah Shah told APP on Tuesday that due to the work load, media people are more vulnerable to cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) and advised them to adopt healthier life-styles to prevent such diseases.
He said the major causes of cardiovascular disease are tobacco use, physical inactivity, an unhealthy diet and use of alcohol.
He stated that routine walks and exercise reduces the chances of morbidity, disability and premature mortality due to CVDs.
He advised media people to get regular check-ups from medical consultants besides conducting tests related to heart diseases, including blood pressure, diabetes and cholesterol level tests.
Dr Saeedullah Shah recommended media people to achieve an energy balance and a healthy weight, limit energy intake from total fats and shift fat consumption, away from saturated fats to unsaturated fats and towards the elimination of trans-fatty acids.
He also advised them to increase their consumption of fruits and vegetables, and legumes, whole grains and nuts, limit the intake of free sugars, limit salt consumption from all sources and ensure that salt is iodised.
He said cardiovascular disease is caused by disorders of the heart and blood vessels, and includes coronary heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, raised blood pressure, peripheral artery disease, rheumatic heart disease, congenital heart disease and heart failure.
He said smoking cessation is the most effective intervention for patients with CVDs.
He added that many people die each year due to cardiovascular diseases and a substantial number of these deaths can be attributed to tobacco smoking, which increases the risk of dying from coronary heart disease and cerebrovascular disease two to three fold.
He said the risk increases with age and is greater for women than men.
In contrast, cardiac events fall 50 percent in people who stop smoking and the risk of CVDs, including acute myocardial infarction, stroke and peripheral vascular disease, also decreases significantly after stopping smoking, he added.
Dr Saeedullah Shah said: “Those who do not stop smoking after coronary revascularisation also have a two-fold higher risk of re-infarction and death.”
He stated that continuing to smoke after myocardial infarction or coronary revascularisation can have serious clinical consequences. Even eight years after myocardial infarction, the mortality of post-myocardial infarction patients who continue to smoke is double that of quitters.
Cracked, filthy and neglected bus stops in twin cities: Commuters face problems in the sizzling heat, unexpected rain and harsh winds, as many bus stops in the twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi do not have sheds or seating arrangements to protect them from the heat and rain.
In the federal capital, the Karachi Company, Abpara, Golra, Pirwadhai, Railways Station, Saddar, Naz Cinema, Rehmanabad, Shamsabad bus stops, among others are without shelters.
However, some bus stops at the Committee Chowk, 6th Road, Double Road, Faizabad and near the airport have small sheds but lack proper seating arrangements.
The sheds, which have cement benches, are filthy.
A few bus stations that have sheds are in a dilapidated condition.
In some of these sheds, vendors have displayed their wares, leaving no room for commuters to sit.
During the rains, these stops get flooded with filthy water as there is no proper drainage system and commuters have no option but to take shelter close to shops along the road.
Many commuters risk their lives while racing to the bus stops. “It is very difficult to wait for public transport in the scorching heat or rain,” said Chudhry Shahid, a commuter at the Karachi company bus stop.
He said the Capital Development Authority (CDA) and the City District Government should build shelters for the commuters.
Ghulam Abbas, a passenger of Golra Sharif, said the government imposed heavy taxes on people but did not provide any facilities in return.
Nosheen Akbar, a schoolteacher, said it is very difficult for women to wait for public transport in the heat or rain.
