'Super Eight' to keep fit and healthy

Health Fest at Viharamahadevi Outdoor Park on November 17:

Priyanka Kurugala

Sri Lanka is faced with health challenges including an increase in Non Communicable Diseases (NCD), College of Community Physicians of Sri Lanka sources said.

They said the number of patients with heart diseases, stroke, hypertension, diabetes, chronic respiratory diseases such as asthma, mental disorders and cancer are on the rise. The College of Community Physicians of Sri Lanka will conduct Health Fest at Viharamahadevi Outdoor Park on November 17 to make the public aware of these ailments.

The College of Community Physicians of Sri Lanka hopes to reduce eight ailments countrywide from this campaign.

According to a report of The College of Community Physicians of Sri Lanka, 80 percent of deaths are caused by hypertension, heart diseases, stroke, chronic and respiratory diseases and cancer.

The sources said maintaining the weight, avoiding excess salt in food, avoiding excess sugar, consuming five servings of fruit and vegetables per day, avoiding food with trans fats, giving up smoking and alcohol and maintaining correct blood pressure can keep these ailments at bay. The College of Community Physicians of Sri Lanka has branded these as the Super Eight.

Addressing a press conference at the Presidential Secretariat in Colombo, Dr Susie Perera de Silva of the College of Community Physicians of Sri Lanka said they decided to launch this in every district.

Dr Lalith Chandradasa of the Presidential Secretariat Nutrition Division, Colombo Municipal Council chief medical officer Dr Pradeep Kariyawasam, Medical Research Institute director Anil Samaranayake and Ragama Rehabilitation Hospital deputy director Dr Palitha Karunaprema also spoke.