National Nutrition Survey says...
Source: National Nutrition Survey says... | Manila Bulletin
The figures are not showing that we are becoming a healthy nation. Aside from the significant increase in the prevalence of under-nutrition among Filipino children, another set of alarming figures are the blood pressure, blood sugar, and lipid profiles of Filipino adults. To summarize the survey results:
• The prevalence of hypertension (>140/>190 mmHg) among adults based on a single visit was 25.3 percent. About 19 in every 100 Filipino young adults (20 to 39 years old) had pre-hypertension. This 2008 prevalence rate was higher than that of 2003 which stood at 22.5 percent only;
• Young adults in the age group 20 to 29 year old already had stage 1 hypertension (with an 8.4 percent prevalence rate), while the age group of 40 to 49 year old have a prevalence rate of 11.5 percent for stage 2 hypertension;
• On fasting blood sugar (FBS) profiles, there was a nine percent prevalence rate of high FBS among 50 to 59 year old group; the trend in the prevalence of high fasting blood sugar among adults significantly increased from 2003 to 2008;
• “Bad cholesterol “ (LDL), and triglyceride levels increased with age and particularly rose between 40 to 60 years of age;
• Among various age groups, it is the 30 to 39 year old group that has the most number of population reaching high levels of triglyceride (>400 mg/dL); at the same time this group has the most number of population with the lowest levels of “Good cholesterol”;
• The group with the highest prevalence rate of having high “Bad cholesterol” (LDL) level is the 50 to 59 year old;
• One good result from the survey was the high levels of “Good cholesterol” (HDL) among adults populations from 2003 to 2008.
The figures could even be an underestimation of the real picture of the Filipino adults’ health problems. If you are among those who have not been counted in the survey and see yourself as potentially having either (or all) of these problems, this could be the best time to make some changes in your lifestyle practices: Be more physically active, start to prefer the less sweet/salty/fatty foods and opt for more of fibrous foods.
Diagnosed or not as a having high blood sugar/lipid levels, the Filipino food guide pyramid has long recommended that sugar/sweet foods and oils/oily foods must be in the least amount in the daily diet. Eating sweets alone will not make you a diabetic but if you already are but have not yet been diagnosed, taking too much sweets will aggravate your body’s problem in handling blood sugar.
Over-all carbohydrate intake must also be checked as excess of this from daily diet contributes to one’s negative lipid profiles. Fats are definitely needed by the body in the right amount and quality and because most food that comes from animal sources contains a combination of different types of fat, moderation and variety is still the best means to help keep a balance in fat intake.
Processed/Packaged foods that contain (high amounts of) saturated fats (see the nutrition information at the back of the label) must be limited in one’s daily diet.
Lastly, don’t fail to include even a 30-minute exercise regimen into your daily routines. Even if you say that you do simple walking (from parking lot to office or house to office/market), or take up the stairs, most often, we overestimate the calories we burn from doing those simple things.
Squeezing an additional 30 minutes exercise will somehow ensure a boost in your HDL levels, help to have more efficient blood sugar metabolism, and give the rejuvenating feeling for the day.
National Nutrition Survey says...
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