The World Health Organisation (WHO) on Monday said the number of avoidable deaths from lifestyle-related diseases such as diabetes climbed to 16 million in 2012 and urged governments to reverse the trend.
The UN health agency said in the latest available global data that the number had risen from 14.6 million people who died under the age of 70 from non-communicable diseases in the year 2000.
WHO Director General, Margaret Chan, said in Geneva ``the global community has the chance to change the course of non-communicable disease epidemic.’’
Chan especially appealed to the governments of developing and emerging countries, where deaths from lifestyle diseases were overtaking those from infections.
She said WHO estimated that 82 per cent of the premature deaths from heart problems, cancer, smoking-related illnesses, diabetes and other lifestyle diseases occur in these countries.
"No fewer than one in four adults dies of such illnesses in Russia and the former Soviet Republics, as well as in Asian countries of Afghanistan, Mongolia, India, North Korea, the Philippines and Papua New Guinea.
"It is the same in Mali, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Guyana, as well as Trinidad and Tobago.’’
Chan urged governments to invest more in health awareness campaign on the benefits of healthy diets and sports.
WHO recommended ban on tobacco and alcohol advertisement, citing Hungary, where the sale of very sweet and salty foods fell by over a quarter after a tax on such products was introduced in 2011.
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