ISLAMABAD, (Parliament Times) : An important meeting of the Civil Society Alliance, organized by the Pakistan National Heart Association (PANAH), was held at the Women Development and Social Welfare Center, Rawalpindi. Participants cited sugaryt drinks as a major cause of heart and other fatal diseases.The meeting proposed tax hikes to reduce consumption of sugary drinks, so that people can be protected from diseases and a healthy society can be formed.
The meeting was chaired by President PANAH Maj. Gen. (retd) Masood-ur-Rehman Kayani.He was accompanied by General Secretary Director Operations Panah Sana Ullah Ghumman,Divisional Director social welfare Rawalpindi Mohammad Rana Shahid, Assistant Director Women Development and Social Welfare Center Rawalpindi Yumna Mir ,Rohi Hashmi, Coordinator Women Wing PANAH,Many members of civil society, teachers, students and journalists participated.
Addressing the members of civil society, Major General (retd) Masood-ur-Rehman Kayani said that 45% of our diet should consist of vegetables and fruits.Obesity, diabetes and high blood pressure increase the risk of heart attack.To avoid these diseases, sugary drinks should be avoided.Mental stress also causes heart disease, so we have to change our priorities,Prefer hard work, exercise, and avoid sugary drinks.Students are our bright future, they should inform their fellow students, friends and everyone about the dangers of sugar sweetend beverages (SSB) at home,And draw their attention to natural foods, so that they can help prevent diseases in a timely manner.
General Secretary PANAH Sana Ullah Ghumman said that young students, teachers, members of civil society should be our voice.Deliver the message of PANAH door to door, so that people can avoid diseases,Excessive consumption of sugary drinks is a major cause of heart, diabetes, obesity and cancer, which are very harmful to health.It is possible to avoid them only if they are made expensive.Research from more than 50 countries has shown that if the consumption of something is to be reduced, then the tax should be increased.Therefore, the government should increase the tax on sugary drinks so that diseases can be prevented and billions of rupees can be collected.
Members of the Civil Society Alliance said that The rise of NCDs, including the heart, is alarming.The government will have to take serious steps to prevent them.Everyone should be part of the PANAH Lectures and Awareness Campaign, so that the public can be made aware of the diseases and the causes of them.We request the government to increase the consumption of sugar sweetened beverages to reduce their consumption, not our necessities of life, but the cause of diseases, so as to reduce the burden of diseases.