Chronic Diseases: What You Should Know About Them

Chronic diseases are diseases that affect the body for a considerable period of time. They are associated with symptoms that last for more than six months.

In general, chronic diseases develop slowly. Therefore, they are able to damage many different systems and organs in the body. It is also common for one chronic disease to be associated with another. This is the case, for example, with elevated arterial blood pressure, as it often occurs with diabetes. Hypothyroidism, on the other hand, is often associated with a variety of hormonal conditions.

Chronic diseases are estimated to cause about 75 percent of deaths worldwide. Heart problems, cancer, diabetes and respiratory diseases account for more than 60% of these deaths. Overall, about a third of people dying from chronic diseases are under the age of 60, which means that they are not exclusively a problem for the elderly, but clearly extend beyond this age group.

As for diabetes, its relationship to obesity is worrying. Diabetes is becoming more common among overweight people around the world. It is estimated that the number of diabetics will double in most countries over the next ten years.

The most common chronic diseases

There are many chronic diseases and they cause the most deaths. However, the four most important diseases in this group are:

• Cancer in all its forms. This disease is a major factor in the serious health problems affecting the entire population of the world.
• Acute myocardial infarction, heart failure, and cerebral infarction are examples of chronic heart disease that not only leads to death but are often also debilitating to the patient in the long term. The various states of disability resulting from these diseases affect the patient’s entire family.

• Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD (from the English words in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease ) include asthma, chronic bronchitis, emphysema and atelektaasin. Smoking is the most common associated risk factor.
• And, of course, we cannot ignore diabetes. There are two types: type 1 diabetes, which usually begins in childhood or adolescence, and type 2 diabetes, which begins in adulthood. In addition, there is gestational diabetes. Both type 1 and type 2 diabetes are becoming more common.

The problem of poverty

It is a common belief that chronic diseases are a problem only in industrialized countries, but this is a myth. Indeed, statistics show that people in poor countries suffer most from chronic diseases. Overall, about 80% of deaths from the above diseases occur in developing countries and only about 20% in more prosperous countries.

In addition, half of these deaths occur among those under 70 years of age. That is why people die at a younger age, and it is precisely people in poorer countries who often get sick and die long before it is their time.

Risk factors for chronic diseases

Chronic diseases are preceded by many risk factors. These are often environmental or human characteristics or habits that make him more susceptible to disease. Risk factors are for the most part well known, and health organizations inform people about them in an effort to keep them at bay. It is estimated, for example, that there would be as many as 80% fewer cases of heart disease and diabetes and 40% fewer cases of cancer than there are now if we could manage the risk factors.

The most significant risk factors include:

• Alcohol. Ingestion of this substance results in approximately three million deaths per year worldwide. Alcohol is responsible for liver cancer, cirrhosis and injuries, not to mention many accidents.
• Overweight and obesity. These health conditions also result in about three million deaths a year. They are mostly due to poor diet and a sedentary lifestyle. Obese people have a much higher risk of developing long-term chronic disease than people of normal weight.
• Tobacco. Smoking affects both people who smoke themselves and those close to them. It is estimated that twice as many people die from smoking as from alcohol-related conditions, which means about six million deaths a year.

• Diet. Being overweight and obese are not the only consequences of poor diet. Lack of nutrients and poor diet can mean many different things; that the diet contains too much salt, has a lot of carcinogenic components or does not contain enough fiber and so on. Poor diet is often the cause of, for example, high arterial blood pressure and irritable bowel syndrome.
• A sedentary lifestyle. Physical inactivity leads to overweight and contributes to the development of many chronic diseases.

Risk management is in your own hands

As you will surely understand, all of these factors can significantly increase your chances of developing a chronic disease. However, managing them is entirely in your hands. By adopting healthy lifestyles and eliminating risk factors, you can limit the risk of chronic illness in your case, and you can set a good example for your children and grandchildren as well.