Lifestyle and Health

Lifestyle is one of the growing determinants of health and health society in give setting/ country. The type of food we eat, the type of business/ job we engaged, type recreational meanness we have, the ratio of sedentary life and physical exercise, the quality and duration of sleep, the environment we live in etc. significantly influences our health status.

According to WHO, 60% of related factors to individual health and quality of life are correlated to lifestyle. Millions of people follow an unhealthy lifestyle. Hence, they encounter illness, disability and even death. Problems like metabolic diseases, joint and skeletal problems, cardio-vascular diseases, hypertension and overweight and so on, can be caused by an unhealthy lifestyle. The relationship of lifestyle and health should be highly considered.

Unlike other animals, human beings designed to perform physical work, therefore sedentary life is against human nature. The advent of mass production lines during the industrial revolution, machines, vehicles, and the digital advancements forced human beings to spend a sedentary life and exposed people to variety of chronic health problems and defects.

Culture and belief system also played a central t role in the lifestyle and health of the society. In some cultures being overweight is a sign of fulfillment and prosperity whereas have been seen as inability and laziness in others in other cultures. Very discriminatory words and proverbs have been used in Ethiopian highlander farmers towards obese community members especially that have big belly. Some religious groups elect overweight individuals considering it as blessings among the poor community members.

Up to 50% of the entire populations are affected by diabetes in some island nations of the pacific.  Diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and cancers are growing in alarming rate in the developing world. The under developed health system of the developing world is being challenged by the double burden of both chronic and classical infectious diseases of the poor like Tuberculosis, cholera, AIDS, typhoid fever, typhus etc.

Malnutrition, unhealthy diet, smoking, alcohol consuming, drug abuse, sedentary life, stress and so on, are the presentations of unhealthy life style. Besides, citizens are face with new challenges, emerging new technologies within IT such as the internet and virtual communication networks, lead our world to a major challenge that threatens the physical and mental health of individuals.

Experts at Nitsuh Ethiopia is engaged in awareness creation, consultancy services on the  developments of national policies, strategies, implementation guidelines, training materials and tools on lifestyle and health and the synergetic effect for healthy and prosperous  nation building.