Introduction

They are primarily cardiovascular diseases, cancers, chronic respiratory diseases

and diabetes.
Causes: High levels of stress, increased incidences of diabetes, blood pressure,
smoking, excessive consumption of alcohol, lack of exercise, lack of proper sleep.
These diseases are majorly prevalent in rich countries like US and European
countries due to widespread sedentary lifestyle.
Stats:
 Non-communicable diseases such as diabetes, cancer and heart disease, are
collectively responsible for over 70% of all deaths worldwide, or 41 million
people.
 One third of these deaths are premature and occur before the age of 70,
affecting economically productive individuals.
 According to Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) report titled “India:
Health of the Nation’s States”, contribution of Non-Communicable Diseases
(NCDs) to total death in the Country was 61.8% in 2016, as compared to
37.9% in 1990.
 Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) - continue to be the top killers in
the South-East Asia Region, claiming 8.5 million lives each year, according
to the World Health Organisation (WHO).

Effects of NCDS on Population and Economy

 Rise of deaths during productive years (30-70 years)
 Loss of demographic dividend
 NCDs can become bigger problem than being malnourished
 Health spending in households increases, which later decreases saving,
resulting in rise of poverty
 NCDs threaten progress towards the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable
Development, which includes a target of reducing premature deaths
from NCDs by one-third by 2030.
 The rapid rise in NCDs is predicted to impede poverty reduction initiatives in
low-income countries, particularly by increasing household costs associated
with health care.
 In low-resource settings, health-care costs for NCDs quickly drain
household resources. The exorbitant costs of NCDs, including often lengthy
and expensive treatment and loss of breadwinners, force millions of people
into poverty annually and stifle development.
 Government Initiatives
1. National Programme for Prevention and Control of Cancer, Diabetes, Cardiovascular
Diseases and Stroke (NPCDCS)
2. National Program for Control of Blindness and Visual Impairment
3. National Mental Health Programme
4. National Programme for the Healthcare of the Elderly (NPHCE)
5. National programme for the Prevention and Control of Deafness (NPPCD)
6. National Tobacco Control Programme (NTCP)
7. National Oral Health Programme (NOHP)
8. National Programme for Palliative care
9. National Programme for Prevention and management of burn injuries
10. National Iodine Deficiency Disorders Control Programme
11. National Programme for prevention and control of Fluorosis
12. Pradhan Mantri National Dialysis Programme

Wayforward
Measures from Government:
1. Increase health expenditure up to 8% of GDP.
2. Provided basic health facilities to all section of people in viable costs
3. Increase rural health infrastructure
4. Built upon a robust early screening system
5. New Health Policy 2016 need to give due priority to it

Measures from Non-Government entities:

1. Business house should create policy of health working conditions
2. Create awareness about stress related disorders in their offices
3. NGOs must campaign for healthy working conditions in all sectors of employment

Measures from People:

1. Eat Healthy diet
2. Don’t become prone to addictions
3. Remain fit by any of means viz. Yoga, Meditation, Exercise, etc.
4. Share your problems and tensions with family and friends to keep depression away.

Measures from Doctors and Researchers:

1. robust mechanisms for data collection, data sharing, and knowledge transfer
2. Systems for monitoring and evaluation
3. Share knowledge in all sectors of community
Lifestyle Diseases
Introduction
 Lifestyle diseases characterize those diseases whose occurrence is primarily
based on the daily habits of people and are a result of an inappropriate
relationship of people with their environment.
 The main factors contributing to lifestyle diseases include bad food habits,
physical inactivity, wrong body posture, and disturbed biological clock.
 Lifestyle diseases include, heart disease, and stroke, obesity and type 2
diabetes.
 Diseases associated with smoking and alcohol and drug abuse.

 The report "India: Health of the Nation’s States" revealed that lifestyle
diseases like heart and chronic respiratory diseases now kill more people than
communicable diseases.

Severity of Problem
 Tobacco-related deaths are expected to double by 2030
 Research suggests the “average age of a person having their first heart attack
is 50 years, at least ten years earlier than in developed countries.”
 Smoking or chewing tobacco, excessive consumption of alcohol, and a
preference for highly processed foods have direct, harmful impact on health.
 United Nations estimated that NCDs like diabetes and cancer could cost the
Indian economy a staggering $6.2 trillion between 2012 and 2030.
 Half of all premature deaths caused by air pollution in the world occur in India.
 Easy availability of calorie-dense foods is the biggest cause for the increase in
lifestyle diseases
 According to research by the WHO an Indian today has over twice the odds of
dying of NCDs than communicable disease.
 Health experts are most worried about young people developing Type 2
diabetes.

Concerns / Challenges
 NCDs linked to lifestyles have surpassed communicable diseases as the
leading cause of lost productivity and premature deaths.
 Cities are expanding at the cost of walking, exercising and cycling
 City governments are more sensitive to petrol and diesel prices, and road
building than to pedestrian facilities and public transport
 Big differences in the status of social development between states.
 Greater urbanisation will also pose a major challenge to Indian health systems
in coming years
  Increasing life expectancy will lead to more disability and a larger disease
burden.
 Behavioural factors which include diets low in fruits, vegetables, and whole
grains, but high in salt and fat
 Unhealthy diets, high blood pressure, blood sugar and overweight, has
doubled in India over the past two decades.
 Health loss from road injuries highlighting the lack of a comprehensive
national policy for injury prevention
 The health crisis can potentially impair India's demographic dividend.
 Rapid economic growth has changed Indians’ lifestyles. People eat out more
often, and prefer Western-style junk food.

Way Forward
 India needs to be awakened and the communities should be sensitised about
the need for change.
 Overweight and obesity can be prevented through a well balanced lifestyle
through healthy eating and exercise.
 Soda and snack-makers such as PepsiCo and Nestle must make their
products more nutritious
 India needs an effective, coordinated response that immediately reduces the
level of air pollution at it sources
 In addition to treating disease, one also has to prevent the occurrence of new
disease.
 The state specific data in the report must be used by policymakers to
determine how to spend health budgets and which diseases to focus on.
 A countrywide tax on calorie-dense foods, such as the ‘fat tax’ recently
implemented by Kerala could be one possible approach.
 Families must encourage outdoor activities, rather than allowing kids to stay
indoors playing video games