If Health is Wealth, How Wealthy is India?
India is often labelled as a country of ‘Unity in Diversity’. And in this country of diversity, there’s another thing that makes the list longer. Healthcare Issues!
While Indians are predisposed to certain diseases due to the genetic makeup, we are also struggling with diseases caused due to something as basic as nutrition, and sedentary lifestyle.
Here are a few points that give a clearer picture of where India stands.
- Heart Related Diseases
India is home to nearly 40% of the global heart patients. The bigger problem is, only
50% of the patients
get proper treatment. Although heart diseases are non-communicable, their number is still rising. Most working Indians delay their health checks, and a sedentary lifestyle makes them prone to hypertension and diabetes, which are major causes of heart failure.
- Malaria
The Lancet Report 2019 ranked India 4th in the number of malaria cases, and we are certainly not proud! In 2019, we had 9.6 million malaria patients. The report attributes the growth of the disease due to hygiene factors like clean water, surroundings and generally weak immune systems.
- Malnutrition
The 2017 Global Burden of Disease Study claims that 14% Indians suffer from nutrition deficiency. The problem is so grave that the Honourable PM has launched a ‘Nutrition Month’ and aims to make India malnutrition free by 2022. The living conditions, restricted diet in families, and lack of access to nutrients due to financial limitations contribute to the grim situation.
- COPD and breathing problems
With a high population burden, cutting of trees and increasing pollution, some of India’s major cities top the list of most polluted cities in the world. People are bound to take a hit. COPD, asthma, bronchitis, and even lung cancer are spreading at an alarming rate in India.
- Mental Health
WHO has pointed out that India has the highest suicide rate in South-East Asia? And the biggest driver of this is mental health and depression. The reason that there’s no one particular cause of depression makes it even more complex to deal with. Along with this, low awareness and lack of convenient treatment options further fuel the problems.
Apart from these, India has always had its share of communicable diseases like viral, common cold that are seasonal and do not last long. There have been major virus outbreaks like Swine Flu, Nippah and H1N1 that were severe but short lived.
What lies ahead?
While the government has introduced initiatives like ‘Swastha Bharat’, ‘Hum fit toh India fit’ and schemes like ‘Aayushman Bharat’, one must understand that this would only work when people take charge of their health and realise that it is more important than other materialistic things in life. A good place to start is to understand and help spread awareness of health issues and get informed. Health is a part of self-care, and a healthy body is the key to a happy mind.
