Ogun Commissioner for Health, Dr. Tomi Coker, has called on every adult in the state to take precautions in the management of hypertension and other cardiovascular diseases.

Coker made the call while speaking at the inauguration of an NGO, StandUp for Women Society (SWS), on Wednesday in Abeokuta.

According to her, one out of every four men and one in every five women battle with the disease, adding that one in every five people with hypertension has the condition under control.

Coker, who disclosed that more than 1.4 billion people had hypertension worldwide, maintained that some of the risk factors were modifiable while others were non-modifiable.

She said that an unhealthy diet, physical inactivity as well as excessive consumption of tobacco and obesity could be modified.

Coker highlighted the family history, age, and co-existing diseases, such as diabetes and kidney issues, as factors that could not be modified.

The commissioner listed fatigue, nausea, early morning headaches, irregular heart rhythm, and anxiety, among others, as symptoms, which could either be severe or non-severe.

While stressing the need for regular check-ups, Coker pointed out that uncontrolled hypertension could result in heart failure, heart attack, stroke, and a number of other cardiovascular diseases.

“Hypertension is a disease that can be managed and prevented with commitment to lifestyle modification, such as exercise, healthy diet, and reduction of alcohol and tobacco intake.

“It is good to have blood pressure checks regularly in order to keep it under control.

“Hypertension can be well managed if you take the right precautionary measures. It takes commitment to reduce salt intake, alcoholic intake, and tobacco, among other excesses,” she said.

The commissioner expressed the state government’s commitment to screening people for hypertension in some selected primary healthcare centers (PHCs) in the state, stressing that the screening would soon be up-scaled to 100 PHCs.

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She advised all stakeholders to join the state government in awareness creation on the disease through community outreach and media engagement across different platforms.

Speaking earlier, the National President of the NGO, Deborah Ijadele-Adetona, said that the organization was not politically motivated.

Rather, she said that the group was set up to empower women in various fields of endeavor, just as she encouraged them to strive to uplift themselves.