3 million have high blood pressure

NST: KUALA LUMPUR: About three million Malaysians, or one-third of the adult population aged above 30, are suffering from high blood pressure.
More worrying is that 53.2 per cent of them are undiagnosed and only 59.7 per cent are on medication.
Even among those under treatment, only six per cent have their blood pressure controlled at acceptable levels.
"This is a major health issue in Malaysia," Malaysian Society of Hypertension (MSH) president Datuk Dr Azhari Rosman said in an interview.
High blood pressure or hypertension, the most common of cardiovascular diseases worldwide, can lead to heart attacks, strokes, kidney failure and blindness.
Dr Azhari said Malaysians should have their blood pressure checked regularly, as unlike some diseases, there was no symptoms or cure.
"Treatment is lifelong and it involves a combination of diet, exercise and medication," he added.
The prevalence of hypertension among Malaysians above 30 has more than doubled since the last two national health surveys conducted in 1986 and 1996, going up from 14.3 per cent to 33 per cent.
Health experts expect the figure to show a further increase under the ongoing National Health and Morbidity Survey 2006.
MSH’s three-term past president, Professor Dr Abdul Rashid Abdul Rahman, said in past years, one in three adults suffered from hypertension and this could have worsened now with unhealthy lifestyles, which included unbalanced diet, lack of exercise, high salt intake, smoking, and stress.
He said studies showed Malays were more susceptible to blood pressure with women starting from the mid 40s.
"They also suffer more from complications such as stroke, while Indians tend to get heart attack," he added.
Dr Abdul Rashid advised those suffering from high blood pressure to take their medication regularly.
St George’s University of London’s Blood Pressure Unit’s Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine, Professor Graham MacGregor, who was here recently, said Malaysians should reduce their salt intake from nine to 12gm per day to five to six grammes.
He said reducing salt intake from 12 to three grammes per day would reduce the risk of stroke by about one third and heart disease by one quarter.
He advised parents to reduce the amount of salt in food prepared for children.
In conjunction with World Hypertension Day today, the MSH in collaboration with the Health Ministry and Sanofi-Aventis has set up BP screening sites at several venues.
They are The Curve, Petaling Jaya; Bukit Jambul Country Club, Penang; City Point, Alor Star; Kinta City, Ipoh; Jaya Jusco Seremban 2 Shopping Mall, Seremban; Mahkota Parade, Malacca; City Square, Johor Baru; Saberkas Mall, Kuching; and Centre Point, Kota Kinabalu.