September 29th marks the World Heart Day. The health of this vital organ has been on the cutting edge in recent years and young people are increasingly suffering from diseases that endanger its functioning.
Cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death in the world. The main factors that cause heart disease and cerebrovascular diseases are modifiable, such as an unhealthy diet, physical inactivity, smoking and harmful alcohol consumption.
It is estimated that these illnesses cause two million premature deaths in women each year. A study by the University of Washington’s Institute for Measurement of Health and Assessment estimated that premature cardiovascular mortality would reach nearly eight million by 2025. However, that figure could decline to five million if risk factors are controlled, such as high blood pressure, smoking, diabetes and obesity.
Daniel Bustos, Medical Manager of Cardiometabolic, made a call to recognize cardiovascular diseases as a public health problem, because of the consequences they bring.
It is the main cause of death not only in Costa Rica, but throughout the world. Cardiovascular disease is defined as heart or heart-related blood vessels disease, which by different factors end up causing irreversible damage to the patient, including death,”
explained Bustos.
Thirty percent of the population has problems related to the heart.
Data from the Costa Rican Social Security Fund (CCSS) indicate that consultations for this disease have doubled in the last 19 years. While in 1998 the report was just over 644 thousand, by 2016 there were more than 1 million 443 thousand. The days of incapacity as a result of this problem went from more than 118 thousand to more than 245 thousand. In addition, ยข245,350 million are invested in the care of patients with cardiovascular diseases.
The specialist warned that many of these diseases are silent, so you should have healthy lifestyles, which prevent the development of diseases such as diabetes,
the person who has diabetes is the equivalent, in terms of cardiovascular risk, to a person who already had a heart attack,”
explained Bustos.
Another factor that increases the risk of cardiovascular disease is overweight, as studies have shown that for every extra kilo above your ideal weight, you increase the risk of developing diabetes by 9%.
In Costa Rica, obesity affects the population from an early age. A report from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) cites the country as being the most overweight in Central America. The rate of childhood overweight is 8.1%, while Nicaragua is 6.2% and Honduras is 5.2%.