Experts from the health sector in the Mt. Kenya region have expressed worrying statistics from a rise in the prevalence of chronic illnesses, which have been attributed mainly to alcohol, cigarette, and late diagnoses.
In Nyeri County, close to half of all reported deaths are now linked with chronic conditions, which highlights a serious rise in the health threat that is taking a toll on families as well as the healthcare system, as reported by health officials.
According to doctors and health officials, unhealthy lifestyles are at the root of the problem. Ever increasing cases of people suffering from diabetes, hypertension, as well as different types of cancers, have been reported within the entire region, with alcohol and cigarette smoking identified as major contributory factors.
The problem of late diagnosis is one of the most critical challenges. This is especially when patients, majority of whom come from distant rural areas, only come seeking treatment when the disease has progressed.
“People tend to disregard the symptoms until the disease reaches an advaned stage, when they go to hospitals,” said health experts, who cited that there was a lack of screening that led to the conditions remaining undetected for a number of years.
If regular check-ups are not performed, illnesses that might be treated with lifestyle changes and/or medication are left to become life-threatening.
For families, the effect is not limited to health realities. The cost of caring for chronic illnesses has become a huge economic burden, especially when most of these conditions require a permanent solution in terms of lifestyles changes. Families are finding it difficult to cope with the effects, whether emotionally or economically.
The World Health Organization (WHO) explains that chronic conditions can be described as conditions that are long-term, which occur because of a combination of genetic, environment, physiology, and behavior factors.
The non-communicable diseases that make up 74 percent of all deaths, globally, are heart disease, stroke, cancer, diabetes, and chronic lung disease.
In light of the escalating situation, health experts in the Mt. Kenya region are urging the need for enhanced disease prevention, increased early screening, as well as increased health awareness.
They indicate that addressing alcohol, as well as cigarette consumption, in addition to encouraging healthy lifestyles, is pivotal in combating chronic illnesses.
