Health Secretary Francisco Duque III (center, front row) and Department of Health (DOH) officials pose for a photo with the United Nations’ (UN) panel of experts who estimate that about one in three Filipinos will die before the age of 70 from a noncommunicable disease. /DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH
The Department of Health (DOH), citing experts from the United Nations (UN), claimed that out of every three Filipinos, one dies before the age of 70 from a non-communicable disease (NCD).
“The NCDs crisis is a perfect storm that threatens to undermine all the progress we have made in recent years and the dreams of all Filipino families for our country,” DOH Secretary Francisco Duque III said in a statement on Saturday.
DOH said that NCDs are divided into four categories: cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, cancers, and chronic respiratory diseases. National data states that heart disease and cancer are the top two causes of death in the Philippines, and majority of which is caused by lifestyle factors.
The department also said that majority of deaths due to NCDs are premature, but can be avoided by addressing concerns such as tobacco use, unhealthy diets, physical inactivity, and harmful use of alcohol.
UN’s warning came after the UN Interagency Task Force on the Prevention and Control of NCDs and the World Health Organization (WHO) Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) Secretariat conducted a one-week mission.
Several dialogues were conducted to identify steps that different sectors within the government, civil society and UN country team can take.
“Noncommunicable diseases not only threatens an individual’s health, they also jeopardize the social fabric and economic development of the Philippines,” UN Philippines Resident Coordinator Ola Almgren said.
Problem in awareness, approach
The UN experts acknowledged the Philippine government’s initiatives in preventing NCDs such as taxing sweetened beverages and imposing additional taxes on cigarettes and alcoholic drinks.
“We commend the Philippine government on their commitment to address NCDs in the country. The UN stands ready to continue its support in the translation of this commitment into effective action for the Filipino people,” Almgren said.
“The participation of different sectors during this joint mission clearly demonstrates that progress in NCDs prevention and control requires coordinated action by many sectors, such as finance, trade and industry, budget and management, parliamentarians, justice, education, labour and employment, agriculture, local government and others,” WHO Representative to the Philippines Dr. Gundo Weiler.
However, the same panel emphasized that there are difficulties in “raising awareness among policymakers and the public about the threats of NCDs”. It also added that there are “significant gaps” in the implementation of the national policy at the national level.
“To beat NCDs, we need urgent action taken at various levels of the government and engagement of all relevant stakeholders,” Weiler added.
The mission members also noted that majority of the Philippine government’s efforts are still focused on treatment, instead of tackling prevention. They said that based on international healthcare programs, preventing NCDs are one of the most effective public investments.
Duque, for his part, admitted that the DOH is encountering difficulty in dealing with NCDs because of certain external forces.
“We are also up against powerful commercial forces and industry interference in our fight against NCDs, which is why we invited the joint UN mission to help us set-up effective multisectoral coordination mechanisms to prevent and control NCDs in the country,” Duque said.
“This is not the health sector’s fight alone,” Duque added. /vvp