ISLAMABAD, (Parliament Times) : The Pakistan National Heart Association (PANAH) and the National Commission on the Rights of the Child (NCHR) have co-chaired an important discussion on Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) and Causes with Members of Parliament under the chairmanship of Maj. Gen. (retd) Masood-ur-Rehman Kayani. The meeting was hosted by General Secretary Sana Ullah Ghumman and Chairperson National Commission on the Rights of the Child Afshan Tehsen Bajwa.
The meeting was attended by Parliamentary Secretary for Federal Department of Health Dr. Noshin Hamid, General Secretary Young Parliamentary Forum (YPF) and Member National Assembly Uzma Riaz, Members of National Assembly Munawara Baloch, Naveed Aamir Jeeva, Dr. Nisar Cheema, political, social, legal experts and media representatives. Attended, the meeting began with the recitation of the Holy Quran.
President Major General (retd) Masood-ur-Rehman Kayani and General Secretary Sana Ullah Ghumman said that non-communicable diseases (NCDs) including heart, diabetes, cancer, obesity, stroke, respiratory and other diseases are the leading cause of death in the world. One person dies prematurely every two seconds, low- and middle-income countries suffer 500 billion Dollar in economic losses each year at the hands of the NCD, and if action is not taken to prevent this, their numbers will double in the coming years.
Munawar Hussain, a representative of Global Health Advocacy, while briefing the Parliamentarians on the harms of Sugar Sweetened Beverages (SSB) and global policies for its prevention, said that 92 people are dying from NCDs in Pakistan in one hour. Pakistan ranks fourth in diabetes.Introduced SSB practice in more than 50 countries and significantly reduced its use.
Parliamentary Secretary for the Federal Department of Health, Dr. Noshin Hamid, said that precaution is better than cure, resources are limited and the burden of diseases is high, children need to be healthy for the development of the country, one of the main causes of obesity is Sugar Sweetened Beverages (SSB).We are with PANAH who are fighting to save the people from diseases.We will talk to Hammad Azhar again about the implementation of the Health Levy Bill so that the Health Levy Bill can be implemented.
General Secretary Youth Parliament Forum and Member National Assembly Uzma Riaz said that this country is ours, the nation is ours, these children are ours, we all have to protect their health together, today representatives of all political parties gathered on a platform To be a part of awareness is positive sign.We will not back down from the need to legislate or amend on Sugar Sweetened Beverages (SSB),we will all be the voice of PANAH.
Chairperson of the National Commission on the Rights of the Child, Afshan Tehseen Bajwa, said that she would take action against violations of child health laws and would work with members of parliament to enact new legislation.64% of the population of our country consists of children and youth. Sugar Sweetened Beverages (SSB),contain ingredients that every person becomes accustomed to.There is an urgent need to be aware of their disadvantages as well as to formulate policies to prevent it, and PEMRA and the legislature also play a key role in this.
MNA Munawara Baloch said that since the Pakistan legislation was enacted but not implemented, we stand with them in the good work of PANAH, continue to be aware of the causes of diseases, and policies to prevent them. MNA Dr Nisar Cheema said that in order to prevent NCDs, we have to change our lifestyle, and we have to return to natural foods, avoid Sugar Sweetened Beverages (SSB),to prevent various diseases including heart, obesity and cancer. Taxes are an effective tool to prevent Sugar Sweetened Beverages (SSB).MNA Naveed Aamir Jeeva said that the health of our people is our first responsibility and for this we have to play our role in every forum.