By: Nyima Sillah
Dr. Musa Marena, Obstetrician, and Genealogist at Edward Francis Small Teaching Hospital said the change in lifestyles and foods consumed by kids causes diabetes, hypertension, and high blood pressure at a young age.
Speaking to The Voice exclusive yesterday, Dr. Marena said: “Lifestyle changes, more facilities improve and also proper nutrition. Most of the foods we eat now are imported and these are highly preservative foods. We don’t know where they are coming from.
In the past, people eat what they grow, but now it’s different all the consumed foods are imported and these things have to be treated in other to stay long. These are some of the reasons why hypertension and diabetes are seen in young people.”
According to him, Hypertension and diabetes are none communicable diseases like bacteria, viruses, and other diseases, noting that most of the diseases are now due to poor lifestyles because people are not active like before.
According to Dr. Marenah in the past research was not very effective in the country which might be the probable factor why hypertension and diabetes were not easily detected at the time resulting in the death of many young people in their childhood.
He explained: “For those with diabetes type two, will develop it later because they usually acquire it genetically from their parents. In the past, people hardly eat protein maybe from one festival to another that is when people get to eat quality foods but nowadays the availability of foods, chickens and other protein foods are everywhere and so many people eat a lot of those things,” he said.
He explained that Kids in those days go to the farm to help their parents on the farm, but now all the kids go to school and don’t go to the farm.