Table of Contents
Summary
The prevalence of cardiovascular diseases in Chile has become an issue of concern for many years (Beil, 2016). It is the leading cause of incapacitation among adults. It is also the leading of death in the country with many adults developing various types of cardiovascular diseases.
Background
According to a recent national survey, there is increasing the risk for more adults to develop cardiovascular diseases. Particularly, there is an increasing number of overweight and obesity cases in the country. Diabetes has also become highly prevalent, which serves as a risk factor for the development of cardiovascular diseases (Peikoff, 2017). Sedentary lifestyles, metabolic syndrome, and smoking are also major contributors to the increasing risk of cardiovascular diseases.
Issues
The prevalence of cardiovascular diseases increases the financial burden on the healthcare sector. The management and treatment of cardiovascular diseases are costly. For this reason, there is a need to address the health issue urgently to ensure that there are sufficient prevention strategies in place (Castro et al., 2015). It is possible to introduce programs that will prevent cardiovascular diseases by targeting the younger population.
Options
The ministry should introduce programs in the form of health campaigns against smoking as a viable option. The ministry should also consider the funding of nutritional programs that educate the public on the need to embrace healthier eating habits (Ornish, 2015). The ministry should also consider the introduction of more stringent regulations to govern food companies.
Recommendations
- The ministry should allocate more funds for the prevention strategies, to reduce new cases of cardiovascular diseases.
- The ministry should work together with policymakers to develop strict antismoking laws and reinforce them (Frayn et al., 2005).
- The ministry should introduce school programs in collaboration with the ministry of education to promote knowledge on the significance of proper nutrition and exercise.
- Ornish, D. (2015). It’s Time to Embrace Lifestyle Medicine. Time, 185(6/7), 97.
- Beil, L. (2016). Downside of yo-yo dieting is rise in heart disease. Science News, 190(12), 7.
- Peikoff, K. (2017). The Connected Heart. Popular Mechanics, 14.
- Castro, P. F., Satō, N., Mentz, R. J., & Chioncel, O. (2015). A global perspective/health inequity in heart failure. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania : Elsevier.
- Frayn, K. N., Stanner, S., British Nutrition Foundation., & Wiley InterScience (Online service). (2005). Cardiovascular disease: Diet, nutrition and emerging risk factors : the report of a British Nutrition Foundation task force. Oxford, UK: Published by Blackwell Pub. for the British Nutrition Foundation.