The Taiwan Heart Foundation and the Health Promotion Administration (HPA) yesterday urged people with chronic cardiovascular conditions to make regular outpatient visits to avoid the risk of sudden cardiac arrest.
Heart disease was the second leading cause of death in Taiwan last year, killing one person every 26 minutes, Ministry of Health and Welfare data showed.
Cerebrovascular stroke, hypertension, diabetes, kidney diseases and vascular disease also cause more than 53,000 deaths each year, the HPA said.
Photo: CNA
Foundation executive director Hwang Juey-jen (黃瑞仁) said that heart disease is often linked to the “three highs” — high blood pressure, high blood lipids and high blood sugar — and people with these chronic conditions and who are taking medication should make regular outpatient visits and should not stop taking their medication on their own.
The risk of heart attack in people with high blood pressure, high blood sugar and high blood lipids are 1.78 times, 1.47 times and 1.43 times of healthy people respectively, the HPA said, citing a 2018 study.
Hwang said that due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many people with chronic cardiovascular conditions have stopped making their regular outpatient visits in the past few months, especially between March and May, and although the number of visits increased in June, it was still about 10 percent less than before.
Without regular follow-up on their conditions or medication, the patients might be at risk of an increased risk of sudden cardiac arrest, he said, adding that the five-year mortality rate in patients with heart failure is about 50 percent.
Studies conducted China, Italy and the US also suggest that COVID-19 patients with the “three highs” or cardiovascular conditions have a higher risk of death, the HPA said.
HPA Director-General Wang Ying-wei (王英偉) said that about 80 percent of premature death from heart disease and stroke can be prevented by practicing healthy habits, such as exercising regularly; avoiding sugary beverages, deep-fried food, smoking and second-hand smoke; and drinking enough water throughout the day to stay hydrated.
People with chronic cardiovascular conditions should also undergo follow-up exams, control their blood pressure, blood sugar and blood lipids based on their doctor’s prescription, and avoid changing the dosage or stop taking the medicine on their own, Wang said.
WANG RELEASED: A police investigation showed that an organized crime group allegedly taught their clients how to pretend to be sick during medical exams Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) and 11 others were released on bail yesterday, after being questioned for allegedly dodging compulsory military service or forging documents to help others avoid serving. Wang, 33, was catapulted into stardom for his role in the coming-of-age film Our Times (我的少女時代). Lately, he has been focusing on developing his entertainment career in China. The New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office last month began investigating an organized crime group that is allegedly helping men dodge compulsory military service using falsified documents. Police in New Taipei City Yonghe Precinct at the end of last month arrested the main suspect,
A cat named Mikan (蜜柑) has brought in revenue of more than NT$10 million (US$305,390) for the Kaohsiung MRT last year. Mikan, born on April 4, 2020, was a stray cat before being adopted by personnel of Kaohsiung MRT’s Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station. Mikan was named after a Japanese term for mandarin orange due to his color and because he looks like an orange when curled up. He was named “station master” of Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station in September 2020, and has since become famous. With Kaohsiung MRT’s branding, along with the release of a set of cultural and creative products, station master Mikan
RISING TOURISM: A survey showed that tourist visits increased by 35 percent last year, while newly created attractions contributed almost half of the growth Changhua County’s Lukang Old Street (鹿港老街) and its surrounding historical area clinched first place among Taiwan’s most successful tourist attractions last year, while no location in eastern Taiwan achieved a spot in the top 20 list, the Tourism Administration said. The listing was created by the Tourism Administration’s Forward-looking Tourism Policy Research office. Last year, the Lukang Old Street and its surrounding area had 17.3 million visitors, more than the 16 million visitors for the Wenhua Road Night Market (文化路夜市) in Chiayi City and 14.5 million visitors at Tainan’s Anping (安平) historical area, it said. The Taipei 101 skyscraper and its environs —
Taiwan on Friday said a New Zealand hamburger restaurant has apologized for a racist remark to a Taiwanese customer after reports that it had first apologized to China sparked outrage in Taiwan. An image posted on Threads by a Taiwanese who ate at Fergburger in Queenstown showed that their receipt dated Sunday last week included the words “Ching Chang,” a racial slur. The Chinese Consulate-General in Christchurch in a statement on Thursday said it had received and accepted an apology from the restaurant over the incident. The comment triggered an online furor among Taiwanese who saw it as an insult to the
RSS