Health experts push for campaign to curb diabetes, cancer in young adults

Health specialists are advocating for door- to-door campaigns to eliminate diabetes, hypertension and cancer that are on the rise, more so among young adults.

The non-communicable diseases are being diagnosed at an advanced stage, resulting into deaths that could have been prevented.

Experts say lack of education and awareness of the disease is highly contributing to increased cases and deaths.

Dr John Tole, a child health specialist, notes that the best way to tackle non-communicable diseases is to map residential areas, highly occupied by young adults, then erect educative programmes and screening.

Tole, a medical advisor for the Columbia Africa Healthcare Ltd gave an example of Kiambu and Kajiado counties, preferred residential areas by young adults and middle class individuals who should be targeted in the campaign.

He reiterated that the approach to eradicating the diseases should be a promotion of wellness in people.

“We need to erect door-to-door campaign to identify the diseases early, and also train young adults on how to prevent these diseases and ask them to come for health checks before they get sick and if they are sick we advise them early, and largely we will screen for those conditions, to identify them early before they progress,” said Tole.

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The expert spoke over the weekend during the opening of the Columbia Africa Healthcare Ltd Ruiru Branch in Kiambu, one of the counties with a high burden of cancer.

Ruiru is one of the fastest-growing metropolis in the country, with between 80 and 90 per cent of the population comprising young adults.

By venturing in Ruiru, Columbia Africa is trying to work together with the populations in this particular area, to promote their own health and then healthcare workers from the facility facilitate the opportunity for them to access health services at an affordable price.Columbia Africa aims to bring its globally recognized healthcare model directly to the residents of Ruiru, ensuring patients receive expert-driven, compassionate care, Dr. Tole said.

“According to profile of population health experts are seeing, many of them are affected by one or two forms of NCDs such cardiovascular diseases, diabetes and high blood pressure,” he said.The expert added, “So one of the philosophies we have in Colombia Africa is to promote wellness and well-being and this is why we would like to target our populations especially like the ones we see in Ruiru, or we see in any of our other places, and middle class populations,”

At the Ruiru clinic, patients will have access to expert medical consultations across key specialities including paediatrics, family medicine, dermatology, and internal medicine.

Diabetes is one of the NCDs in Kenya, with a prevalence of 4.5 per cent.

According to the National Strategic Plan for the Prevention and control of Non-Communicable Diseases, the prevalence of diabetes in Kenya was estimated to be 3.1 percent in 2019, a number projected to rise up to 4.4 percent in 2035, if no action is done.

In 2015, at least 8, 700 diabetes-related deaths were registered in Kenya.

At least 2.3 million cases of diabetes in Kenya, and this number is expected to rise to 3.5 million by 2045.

Similarly, cases of cancer are on the rise in all genders, with break and cervical being the most common cancers in women, cases discovered at an advanced stage, resulting in death.

Due to the lack of awareness, diabetes patients are diagnosed at an advanced stage in the country due to lack of awareness, leading to diabetic foot that resulted into amputation, due to decreased nerve sensation or lack of sensation, especially on the legs.

In addition, 4.8 million Kenyan adults aged 30 and 79 years have hypertension.

But according to Kenya Health Facility Assessment 2018, approximately 44 per cent of health facilities in Kenya are not able to diagnose and treat hypertension.

The government has prioritized hypertension and cardiovascular disease among the key NCDs as outlined in the NCD prevention and strategic plan, which aims to reduce by a third of premature mortalities due to NCD, including hypertension.

Nairobi and Kiambu led all other counties in NCDs with unhealthy lifestyle choices, particularly regarding food and activity, which are significant contributors to the development of NCDs.Tole warned of consumption of too much processed food, sugar, unhealthy fats, and salt that contribute to diabetes, obesity and cardiovascular diseases

On the contrary, he encouraged high uptake of fruits, vegetables and whole grains.

Apart from poor feeding habits contributing to non-communicable diseases, in Kiambu tobacco use, including smoking among young adults, highly contribute to diseases like cancer.