The World Ignores Non-communicable Diseases

In September 2000 the UN drafted a set of goals, labeled the Millennium Development Goals (MDG), to be accomplished by and large in the developing world by 2015, with the help of the West. The MDG provides a series of concrete benchmarks for improving rights, education, infrastructure, equality, and gender rights within the developing world. 



                                      The Eight MDGs Include

• Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger. 
• Achieve universal primary education. 
• Promote gender equality ad empower women. 
• Reduce child mortality. Improve maternal health. 
• Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases. 
•  Ensure environmental sustainability. 
• Develop a global partnership for development 

The MDG has many broad implications for ad and funding in the areas, which it has defined.    Ghana has modeled its own development agenda on the MDG, they've created a state run mechanism that is venturing to address the issues delineated by the MDG.
    This is a great idea right? Having a set of concrete benchmarks will provide necessary evaluative tools for assessing affective governance. But the MDGs have a serious misgiving: the UN MDG, and therefore Ghana's own development agenda in turn, say nothing about non-communicable diseases (NCDs).
    The NCDs are those that come from lifestyle: diet exercise, genes. Hypertension, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer, the MDG ignores all of them. It's hard for me to explain why the UNDP decided to do this. 3.2% of the population of Ghana is infected with HIV. Hypertension by contrast affects 28.7% of the population. We're on our own when we take control of our health. They have created a framework that makes it hard to fight NCDs. You, you yourself, and no one else, needs to take control to stay healthy. Exercise. Eat healthy foods. Get screened so that you know your sugar level, your cholesterol, and your blood pressure. Stay informed. Need help? Contact us at the Longevity Project, we're here to support you to fight NCDs, as an agency we have very few peers.

Priorities

How do you prioritize in your life? Are you concerned with the things that are the most important?

Do you know what kills more Ghanaians than anything else? When adjusting for age the WHO found in 2002 that non-communicable diseases were the main cause of death among Ghanaians, with cardio-vascular diseases the main cause among them. We wash our hands all the time. We cover our mouths when we cough. I see Ghanaians cover their mouths and nose with handkerchiefs at hospitals or around sewers, and avoid touching dirty animals.

That’s all well and good, it is very important to avoid contracting diseases as much as possible. However, the statistic would show that our priorities are askew.

Who exercises every week? Who is thinking about making meals that are balanced and nutritious? We know to wash every day, but do you know your blood pressure? How about your sugar level? Do you know your Body Mass Index? We need to be as concerned about leading a healthy lifestyle and preventing non-communicable diseases as much as we are about catching disease. Get screened, stay informed, and stay alive.