Wednesday 4 May 2011

First Ministerial Conference on Non-Communicable Diseases

Margaret Chan
WHO Secretary General
The event, jointly organized by the Russian Federation and the World Health Organization (WHO), took place  in Moscow on 28-29 April 2011. The conference was a key milestone in the international campaign to curb the impacts of cancers, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes and chronic lung diseases. Driven by population growth and population ageing, deaths from non-communicable diseases are expected to increase by 17% over the period 2005-2015, accounting for 69% of global deaths by 2030. It is clear that tobacco, alcohol, poor diet and lack of exercise are killing millions prematurely (15,000 a day die from tobacco alone).  As Margaret Chan, Secretary General of WHO said to the 800 people convened at the meeting: "if we want to save lives, we cannot be timid". According to the WHO, up to 40% of cancers and 80% of premature CVD and diabetes could be prevented through smoking cessation, a healthy diet, and adequate physical activity.
Moscow Declaration: commitment to action, way forward

No comments:

Post a Comment