Public health experts on Wednesday, June 16, said the prevalence of hypertension among Filipinos is increasing.
Dr. Jorge Sison, consultant in Adult Cardiology at Makati Medical Center, bared that 37 percent of Filipino adults are hypertensive.
"We saw a prevalence of hypertension in the Philippines and it looks like it is really unstoppable," Sison said during a virtual press conference hosted by the Philippine Heart Association (PHA)
Meanwhile, the prevalence of hypertension in the country among adolescents is five percent.
The highest prevalence is seen in Ilocos Region (51 percent), Cagayan Valley (42 percent), and Western Visayas (43 percent).
Meanwhile, Dr. Beverly Ho, director of the Health Promotions Bureau and the Disease Prevention and Control Bureau of the Department of Health (DOH), said that non-communicable disease (NCDs) such as cardiovascular diseases, cancers, chronic respiratory diseases, and diabetes, are still the leading cause of mortality in the world.
"NCDs continue to be the leading killer amongst Filipinos," Ho said.
"It's not all of a sudden. It's actually behavioral. Risk factors, a little bit of metabolic, environmental factors play a big part like smoking, physical inactivity, harmful use of alcohol, and unhealthy diet all increase our risk for NCDs," she added.
The expert underscored that prevention, screening, and early diagnosis and treatment of NCDs are key components of the response to NCDs.