Heart diseases have been characterized as diseases of the wealthy, and this is not true at all; in the last fifty years, death rates from heart disease have increased in low-to middle-income developing countries, helped by unhealthy diet, in addition to lack of physical activity practiced, does economic income affect heart disease

 

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EDITED BY| HUXIANA

 

Health  section -  CJ journalist

 

World – July,2,2023

 

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Heart disease is one of the problems caused by lifestyle, or a combination of factors related to daily practices such as lack of exercise, unhealthy eating, and smoking, and heart disease has been defined as diseases of affluence.

Since the industrial and technological revolution, ways of living, working, and even playing have changed, people no longer need to walk a lot, office jobs with prolonged sitting have increased, diets have changed, and fast food has appeared on the surface, contributing to an increase in the intake of nutrient-poor foods.

The totality of these factors is bound to cause cardiovascular diseases, such as arterial occlusion, hypertension, strokes, heart attacks, and others.

While in developing countries, individuals are usually active in manual labor, and they do not have the necessary expenses to get fast food, for example.

Health damage was supposed to decrease with technological development, but at the level of developing countries, the chances of infection and malnutrition have increased, and in rich nations, they are faced with a war on heart disease, diabetes, and obesity.

Recently, data and reports have indicated that heart disease is no longer confined only to the rich.

Death rates from cardiovascular diseases have decreased since 1970 by 40-80% in wealthy nations (but heart disease has remained the number 1 cause of death in them nevertheless), but this is not the case in developing countries, which have gone in the opposite direction.

In 2019, about 17.9 million people died worldwide as a result of cardiovascular diseases, and more than three quarters of the deaths were in low-to middle-income countries (more than 13 million people).

Therefore, recently, in developing countries, the fear of infectious diseases is no longer justified; more than 40% of death rates in low-income countries were associated with cardiovascular diseases, and in wealthy or high-income countries, the percentage did not exceed 30%.

The researchers also found that the highest Nations in death rates from heart disease are China, India, Russia, the United States of America, and Indonesia, respectively, while the rates were lowest in countries such as France, Peru, and Japan.

It seems that young people are most at risk of heart disease in low - income nations, half of the deaths associated with cardiovascular disorders in sub-Saharan Africa, were between the ages of 30-69 years; that is, about ten years earlier than the age rates of deaths from heart disease in rich nations.

Other researchers have also found that the average age of heart attack patients in South Asia was 52 years, which is lower than the average age in Europe and North America, where it ranges from 60 to 65 years.

There is a wealth disparity within developing countries, but the poor are more prone to complications of cardiovascular diseases, compared to the rich; a 2020 report showed that death rates for rural residents in China were consistently higher than in urban areas between 2006-2016.

The indirect economic impact of heart disease in developing countries is devastating; low-income countries lost about 3.7 trillion dollars between 2011 and 2015, representing 2% of GDP among all these nations combined.

It is estimated that India will lose 2.4 trillion dollars and China 8.8 trillion dollars between 2012 and 2030, because the cost of treating cardiovascular diseases is high.

The researchers estimated the total cost of treating a coronary heart disease patient in low-and middle-income countries to be approximately 27.83 times the total health expenditure per capita.

The chances of developing cardiovascular diseases are increasing in low-to middle-income countries; due to the advancement of healthcare, life expectancy is increasing.

When people live past the age of 50, death rates from non-communicable diseases (such as heart disease) begin to exceed deaths from infection and malnutrition.

Two-thirds of deaths caused by cardiovascular diseases are caused by certain food choices, as developing countries followed the same pattern as developed countries; unhealthy diets were available, which are full of fats, salts, and sugars.

But the changes that have occurred in Western nations over the past 100-200 years, are taking place in a couple of decades with low - to middle-income countries.

The transition to this unhealthy food usually begins with an increase in the intake of partially hydrogenated cooking oils before switching to animal fats such as meat or milk.

Although some countries are low-or middle-income, the unhealthy foods available in them have a lower price, and they feel full for a longer period, which makes them the preferred choice for their people because low income means an increased chance of developing cardiovascular diseases.

In some of these countries, nutrient-rich foods (such as milk or eggs) can cost up to 10 times more than basic commodities, and potato chips have become cheaper compared to healthy food in countries such as China, India, and East Asia.

Research has shown that people who lived in extreme poverty during the first two years of their lives, but moved to other places to increase income, were more likely to gain weight as they got older, and then they are prone to chronic diseases, mainly heart disease.

The developing world also suffers from lower physical activity, compared to rich nations, but this can vary widely between regions: 17% of people living in Southeast Asia are not physically active, while in the Americas and the eastern Mediterranean the figure is 43%.

In general, with increasing urbanization, Many low-and middle-income countries are experiencing a trend towards sedentary work and automated transportation, and a study has shown that the frequent use of household appliances (such as television and computer) is associated with obesity in these countries, compared to those with high incomes to begin with.

 

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