World Bank hails Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka should be commended for bringing in laws to control smoking.

Bringing in laws to control smoking is a good cost effective strategy to control Non Communicable Diseases (NCDs), World Bank Sector Manager of Health, Nutrition and Population, South Asia Region, Julie Mclaughlin said.

Addressing a press briefing held at the World Bank,Colombo Office yesterday in connection with the launching of the report on 'Prevention and Control of Selected Chronic NCD in Sri Lanka: Policy Options and Action' she said that Sri Lanka has gained a lot in increasing life expectancy and lowering maternal mortality rate.

The report states that the demographic transition is well underway in Sri Lanka.

Non Communicable Diseases (NCDs) have already become the largest contributor to disease burden in Sri Lanka, accounting for 85 percent of ill health, disability and early death.

Sri Lanka faces escalating health care costs with rising rates of NCDs such as heart diseases, diabetes, cancers and asthma as well as risk factors such as obesity, smoking, high sugar and salt diets and alcoholism.

According to the same report, the burden of NCDs will rise in the future in part due to further aging of the population with the doubling of the population over the age of 65 from 12.1 percent to 24.4 percent over the next thirty years.

While life expectancy for women has made steady gains since 1920, it has stalled for men since 1980 due to risk factors such as smoking and excessive drinking and delays in seeking health care.

The burden of NCDs are also increasingly shifting towards the poor.

With average life expectancy in Sri Lanka now at 74 years and rising and increasing urbanization and the accompanying lifestyle changes, people are increasingly exposed to risk factors for NCDs.

The report encourages Sri Lanka to adopt a number of population based and individual patient based approaches to reduce unhealthy behaviors in the general population and control NCDs.

These efforts such as more effective legislation on the use of trans fats and tobacco as well as public education to reduce salt intake would help delay the onset of NCDs.

The initiatives have the potential to reduce mortality by 23 percent (38,000 deaths) of what otherwise can be expected in the next 10 years in Sri Lanka.

World Bank Senior Public Health Specialist, Health, Nutrition and Population, South Asia Region, Dr. Michael Engelgau, World Bank Senior Health, Nutrition and Population Specialist Dr. Sundararajan S Gopalan and a few others were spokes. NGT