What is a healthy life style?

I read an interesting editorial on, “Adjust to healthy life style”, in The Sunday Times, of 20th May 2012. The growing prevalence of non-communicable diseases is a matter of concern as developing countries already have their burden of infectious diseases. The sickness and deaths among people is further increased by the non communicable diseases like hypertension and diabetes.It is important for greater awareness to be generated among people regarding these diseases so that they can adopt preventive measures for the same. Life style is a way of living and healthy life style means the way that provides a healthy life free from any known physical or mental illness. No living person can prevent or avoid death, but the number of years a person lives, can be of good quality regarding health.A healthy well balanced diet offers much to the general well being and vitality of a person. A predominantly vegetarian diet excluding high fat foods like butter, milk cream, cheese and margarine keeps the cholesterol low. Among meat products it is healthy to take fish as it does not raise the cholesterol or blood lipid levels. Physical exercise is very important to prevent obesity and the resultant metabolic syndrome which leads to diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidemia and coronary artery disease. One can do any form of physical exercise, but brisk walking, light jogging, swimming, aerobics and yoga are good types of exercises which help a person to keep physically fit. It is a myth that hypertension, diabetes, e.t.c., are diseases of affluence. There are poor people who work hard physically in the fields, who walk long distances on a daily basis, they are also not obese and yet suffer from hypertension and diabetes. These people consume alcohol regularly. Due to ignorance, they do not realize the harmful effects of alcohol and this is a big culprit in causing high blood pressure and diabetes, e.t.c., diseases in these people. Alcohol directly raises the blood fat and glucose levels, accelerates atherosclerosis (fat deposition in inner lines of blood vessels) and promotes obesity. It has multiple harmful effects on the body. Thus it makes one sicker as one grows older. Smoking tobacco is another bad habit which increases the risk for multiple health related problems including non communicable diseases. Nicotine present in tobacco narrows blood vessels of the body, thus inducing hypertension as well as coronary artery disease. These abusive substances offer means of recreation for the poor, and innocently they fall in the trap of these addictions.Physical and or mental stress, are also reasons for causing these problems in individuals. Stress of any kind leads to surge in the level of adrenaline and cortisol levels in the body. Immediately, this leads to palpitations, increase in blood pressure, dryness of mouth, rapid breathing, e.t.c. But if stress is recurrent or chronic, over time one develops high blood pressure and even heart diseases necessititating treatment. To avoid this, it is important that one learns to relax both physically as well as mentally.Women on contraceptive pills should get their blood pressure and heart checked regularly as this is a risk factor for increased fat levels and also heart diseases.Now when an individual develops one or more of these problems due to any of the risk factors, these problems can be passed on to his offspring due to genetic factors. The child born will be at high risk of developing non communicable diseases, if exposed to any of the risk factors at a later age. Advancing age is said to be yet another risk factor for non communicable diseases. Men above 50 years are said to be more susceptible. Women are protected up to menopause by the feminine hormones. After menopause, they become more prone than men for these problems.But if somebody keeps a healthy life style from a young age, risk of developing hypertension, heart diseases, e.t.c., is minimized. As more awareness will spread among people regarding the non communicable diseases, they shall gradually understand the importance of a healthy life style.Dr. Pande is a specialist Internal medicine-Ruhengeri Hospital