KOTA KINABALU: Community Development and Consumer Affairs Minister Datuk Azizah Mohd Dun reminded the people to adopt and practise a healthy lifestyle.
Azizah said in her speech at an open house hosted by the Sabah Kidney Society, this included eating the right diet as well as doing regular exercise and also to take care of our vital organs, like the kidneys.
The text of her speech was delivered by the ministry’s political secretary, Jornah Mohizim.
Azizah explained that the kidneys perform many vital functions, including that of the purification of blood.
“They also have a role to play in blood pressure control, they can be damaged by many things and when that happens, it may not be able to last a lifetime and usually other painful or inconvenient alternatives such as dialysis or even transplant would have to be resorted to.
“Thus in the case of our kidneys, prevention is really better than cure and I exhort everyone, who are still lucky to possess two functioning kidneys, to take good care of them,” reminded Azizah.
She also disclosed that in 2011, an estimated 15.2 per cent of Malaysians aged 18 and above suffered from diabetes compared with 11.6 per cent five years earlier, in 2006.
“Our kidneys can be damaged by many conditions and amongst the major causes of kidney disease are preventable ones such as non-communicable diseases, including hypertension and diabetes mellitus.
“In 2011 too, about 32.7 per cent of Malaysians aged 18 and above suffered from high blood pressure or hypertension compared with 32.2 per cent in 2006.
“The prevalence of hypercholesterolemia which can lead to the hardening of our arteries (atherosclerosis) is also on the alarming rise,” she said.
These are contributory factors to kidney damage and to the point of no-return, Azizah said.
Also present at the open house were the chairman of the Sabah Kidney Society, Chung Kee Hung, the chairman of Kota Kinabalu Lions Ambulance Services Association, Dr Wah Hai Sit and Lions district governor Chieng Eu Hea.