STATE TIMES NEWS
JAMMU: In a significant move to aware the common people about the effects of cardiovascular diseases Dr. Sushil Sharma (HOD Cardiology GMCH and SSH Jammu) held a day long camp at community hall Simbal Pind, RS Pura Jammu. Accompanied by a team of young doctors, paramedics and volunteers, Dr Sushil Sharma examined people of the area for prevalence of cardiac diseases and other health ailments. More than 300 people were screened, evaluated, diagnosed and free medicines were given as per the requirements.
While interacting with the people, Dr Sushil said that CVD have now become the leading cause of mortality in India. A quarter of all mortality is attributable to CVD. Premature mortality in terms of years of life lost because of CVD in India increased by 59 per cent, from 23.2 million (1990) to 37 million (2010). Worldwide, 3.3 million deaths every year result from harmful use of alcohol, this represent 5.9 per cent of all deaths. Alcohol consumption causes death and disability relatively early in life. In the age group 20 – 39 years approximately 25 per cent of the total deaths are alcohol-attributable. Dr Sushil elaborated that excessive alcoholism is one of the major risk factor for CVD. Drinking more than the lower risk limits regularly and over a long period of time can increase your risk of developing heart disease. Drinking excessive amounts of alcohol causes raised blood pressure which is one of the most important risk factors for having a heart attack. Increases in your blood pressure can also be caused by weight gain from excessive drinking. “Heavy drinking weakens the heart muscle, which means the heart cannot pump blood as efficiently known as cardiomyopathy and can cause premature death, usually through heart failure and also the heart may be enlarged. Beyond health consequences, the harmful use of alcohol brings significant social and economic losses to individuals and society at large,” he added.
Dr Sushil further stressed that the incidence of heart disease in those who drink moderate amounts of alcohol (no more than two drinks per day for men or one drink per day for women) is lower than in nondrinkers. He also reveals that moderate drinking elevates the “good” cholesterol, which increases your protection against heart disease. HDL levels can increase by up to 12 per cent in people who drink between one to two alcoholic beverages per day. However, with increased intake of alcohol, there are increased health dangers including high blood pressure, obesity, stroke and rhythm disturbance. It is safe to say that alcohol is both a tonic and poison .The difference lies mostly in the dose. There are safer ways to reduce your risk of developing heart disease. To keep your heart healthy, He advised people to take a heart healthy diet, exercise regularly and being aware of risk factors such as smoking, drinking and stress.
Resident of Simbal Pind Sarpanch Ravinder Singh, Santokh Singh , Gurdev Singh , Avtar Singh, Harnam Singh and Panch Om Parkash appreciated the efforts of Dr Sushil and his team for organizing cardiac awareness camp in their area and Express heartfelt gratitude.
Others who were part of this humane effort included Dr Mohi Kalsotra, Dr. Dhaneshwar Kapoor, Dr Anitipal Singh, paramedics and volunteers who were part of the team include Kamal Kishore, Kashmiri Lal, Lokesh Manni, Gourav Sharma, Aman Gupta, Rajeev Vohra, Rajkumar, Vikas Sabharwal, Ashish Soni, Rahul Tickoo, Ankush Kohli and Vikas Kumar.
