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The Secretary for Food and Health, Dr York Chow, continued his programme in New York, the United States, on September 20 (New York time). Dr Chow attended the closing plenary meeting of the United Nations high-level meeting on prevention and control of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) this afternoon.
The two-day high-level meeting was attended by senior ministers and experts, health officials, leading academics and industry leaders from all over the world. The attendees adopted a declaration calling for a multi-pronged campaign by governments, industry and civil society to set up by 2013 the plans needed to curb the risk factors, such as tobacco and alcohol use, behind the four groups of NCDs - cardiovascular diseases, cancers, chronic respiratory diseases and diabetes. The declaration also stressed that the overall toll of NCDs is estimated at 36 million, or two-thirds of the deaths worldwide, annually.
"Evidence showed that major NCDs share a core set of modifiable behavioural risk factors, such as unhealthy diet, physical inactivity, smoking and the harmful use of alcohol," Dr Chow said.
"Health promotion and preventive interventions are cost-effective in reducing NCDs' morbidity and mortality. Hong Kong supports the call by the United Nations to promote, establish and strengthen policies and plans for the prevention and control of NCDs," he added.
Dr Chow stressed that the current NCDs challenge is greater than previously realised, and that, with the Government assuming a leadership role, stakeholders in all sectors need to collaborate to create a supportive environment to achieve better health. He called on individuals in society to take up their own responsibility for their health, and to make responsible choices when it comes to lifestyle behaviours.
Dr Chow will proceed to Atlanta on September 21 (New York time).
Ends/Wednesday, September 21, 2011
Issued at HKT 18:58
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