Hypertension, diabetes take a toll on Mumbaikars’ lifestyle

Mumbai: It's not just monsoon diseasesthatMumbaikars arefalling prey to. A study has found that the number of hypertension cases in the city registered in the January-April quarter have almost doubled from the same quarter in 2009. 

    A three-year report compiled by NGO Praja Foundation shows that hypertension is becoming a cause for concernfor citizens.Thedata hasbeen collected and presented in quarterwise distribution of registered cases for hypertension in state hospitals, municipal hospitals and municipal dispensaries.
    The data shows that in the period between January 2008 and April 2011, the first quarter of this year has seen the maximum number of hypertension cases. As many as 11,564 cases were registered between January 2011 and March 2011, as against 8,063 cases registered in the same quarter last year. The data shows there was a spike in hypertension cases between October 2010 and December 2010, when 9,737 cases were registered. 
    Diabetes cases, too, saw a sharp increase of 76%, with municipal dispensaries reporting only 2,593 cases in 2008-09, as against 4,536 cases in 2010-11. 
    NitaiMehta,founder-trusteeof the NGO, said that it is time the government takes note of these diseases and does something to curb them. "If the state and civic bodies had kept proper track of such trends, perhaps pragmatic solutions might have emerged. What is worse is that the periodicity of the diseases has also continued exactly in the same manner each year," Mehta said. 
    The BMC has not been completely oblivious to the rise in lifestyle diseases. Officials said that they planned to address the problem of these diseases in 24 dispensaries. A civic official said, "We have noticed that 75% of people suffer from lifestylediseases.Oncethe dispensaries are set up, we can identify patients and send them for treatment early." 
    Dr Altaf Patel, consultant physician, Jaslok Hospital, said that these diseases were initially limited to the rich section of society. "It is now changing andwecannotcallthem only lifestyle diseases anymore. Apart from changes in lifestyle, studies have also shown that groundwater which contains high levels of arsenic results in diabetes. Lead also results in high blood pressure and intellectual backwardness," he said.