Nature has a way of balancing everything out, including the steady population rise. New strains of viruses are formed; cancer still doesn’t have a cure and is responsible for killing millions across the globe. So when the Medical Certification of Cause of Death
for 2013 reveals that 4169 deaths in Goa were due to various diseases related to the heart and the circulatory system, it isn’t really surprising. It was a long time coming. Nationwide, a whopping 29 percent of people have died from diseases related to the heart and circulatory system. The total deaths in Goa in 2013 was 12,196, out of which 4169 were related to the circulatory system and 1269 were from disorders of the respiratory
system, which was the second biggest cause of deaths in Goa.
The total from just those two amounts to almost 50 percent of
deaths in State.
Modern lifestyles are changing, even in Goa, which until
a short while ago still maintained that essence of old village
life. But globalisation changes
everything. Eating habits have
changed ; more and more people
are eating out regularly. The fast
food trend, with fried food becoming
de rigeur, doesn’t make matters
any easier. None of this was around
in the 60s to the 90s, which makes
the percentage of deaths related to
heart and the circulatory system,
among those who grew up in those
decades alarming. 46.2 percent of
cases in 2013 were among those in their 70s, 40.8 percent of 65
to 69 years olds died of heart related diseases, while for those
between 55 to 64, the percentage was 35.2. For those between
the ages of 45 to 54, heart and circulatory system diseases
claimed 24 percent of deaths.
Now imagine what will happen to those who are now in their
twenties and thirties, the demographic which are the largest
consumers of ‘unhealthy’ foods in today’s age. Interestingly, a
little less than 10 percent of deaths in 2013 were from diseases
related to the digestive system. The number of cancer related
deaths was almost the same amount.
Death is inevitable, but today’s lifestyles certainly put many
in the driver’s seat of a speeding car headed for a wall. There
are ways to slow down this process and the need of the hour
is a healthy diet. Unfortunately, the prices of fruit and some
vegetables are far higher than they were a decade or more ago.
Healthy food, from low fat dairy products to oils, lean meat,
super foods, gluten free food, nuts and even some legumes
are not cheap. What is cheaper though are salted snacks and
aerated beverages that contain far more sugar than the daily
requirement of the human body. We are not only consuming
more calories than we require but our food also has more
unwanted fats, sugar and carbohydrates. Balanced diets went
out the window years ago, for most people.
This is not just the responsibility of the government, although
a stronger agricultural policy with an emphasis on organic
farming, and a heavier tax structure on processed food
would help. This is predominately the responsibility of the
people. We owe it to ourselves and the next generation to inculcate
better eating habits, for one. An active lifestyle is another
imperative.
