Osu residents benefit from health screening, Wednesday, April 4, 2012, pg 20
ABOUT 500 residents of Osu and its environs have benefited from a health screening exercise organised by the Prince Emmanuel Seventh-Day Adventist Church at the Ringway Estates in Accra.
People who benefited from the three-day exercise were screened for high blood pressure, cardiovascular check, Body Mass Index (BMI), fasting and random blood sugar test. The programme also involved a nutrition seminar.
The event formed part of the church’s evangelism tool to strengthen its relationship with the community.
Speaking to the Daily Graphic, Dr N.L Thompson, the Director of Youth of the Ghana Union of the Seventh-Day Adventist Church, observed that many people were living and dying slowly as a result of unhealthy diets.
“In a community where people live a sedentary lifestyle, the health screening programme is to help people get out of basic health challenges which have the potential to affect them in the future.”
Dr Thompson, who is also the Pastor in charge of the church, advised the public to take issues concerning their health management seriously, as ill health affects productivity.
He expressed regret that the country was not giving much attention to preventive health care system which was cost effective, stressing that “the curative aspect of health delivery affects productivity and does not avert unexpected diseases and death.”
Dr Thompson also stressed the need for people to reduce the intake of red meat and also exercise daily or walk briskly to stay healthy.
The Director of Reform Health Centre, Dr Kwara Gyamfi, also advised the people eat healthy diets and pointed out that eating deep fried and oily foods such as fried rice and chicken, which contained a lot of cholesterol, was harmful to the body.
A Consultant at the La General Hospital, Mrs Elizabeth K. Ababio, said observations made during the exercise indicated that a lot of people had high blood sugar levels.
He explained that high blood sugar levels occur when the body cannot either produce insulin (type 1 diabetes) or cannot respond to insulin properly (type 2 diabetes). Symptoms of high blood sugar include urinating more often than usual, feeling thirsty and wanting to drink more water than usual, feeling constant hunger, feeling tired and exhausted even after complete rest and sleep and also sudden loss of weight without any dietary change.
People who benefited from the three-day exercise were screened for high blood pressure, cardiovascular check, Body Mass Index (BMI), fasting and random blood sugar test. The programme also involved a nutrition seminar.
The event formed part of the church’s evangelism tool to strengthen its relationship with the community.
Speaking to the Daily Graphic, Dr N.L Thompson, the Director of Youth of the Ghana Union of the Seventh-Day Adventist Church, observed that many people were living and dying slowly as a result of unhealthy diets.
“In a community where people live a sedentary lifestyle, the health screening programme is to help people get out of basic health challenges which have the potential to affect them in the future.”
Dr Thompson, who is also the Pastor in charge of the church, advised the public to take issues concerning their health management seriously, as ill health affects productivity.
He expressed regret that the country was not giving much attention to preventive health care system which was cost effective, stressing that “the curative aspect of health delivery affects productivity and does not avert unexpected diseases and death.”
Dr Thompson also stressed the need for people to reduce the intake of red meat and also exercise daily or walk briskly to stay healthy.
The Director of Reform Health Centre, Dr Kwara Gyamfi, also advised the people eat healthy diets and pointed out that eating deep fried and oily foods such as fried rice and chicken, which contained a lot of cholesterol, was harmful to the body.
A Consultant at the La General Hospital, Mrs Elizabeth K. Ababio, said observations made during the exercise indicated that a lot of people had high blood sugar levels.
He explained that high blood sugar levels occur when the body cannot either produce insulin (type 1 diabetes) or cannot respond to insulin properly (type 2 diabetes). Symptoms of high blood sugar include urinating more often than usual, feeling thirsty and wanting to drink more water than usual, feeling constant hunger, feeling tired and exhausted even after complete rest and sleep and also sudden loss of weight without any dietary change.
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