KUCHING, Sept 23: Yang di-Pertua Negeri Tun Pehin Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud hopes more corporate bodies will assist the Sarawak Heart Foundation (SHF) by funding programmes and activities to battle heart diseases and related illnesses.
As heart diseases is the No.1 killer not only in Malaysia but also in Sarawak, he said there was an urgent need to increase awareness among the people to keep their hearts healthy.
Taib said the least corporate entities could do was to implement some kind of awareness programme as part of their corporate social responsibility (CSR).
Speaking at the state-level World Heart Day 2018 celebration at Saradise here this morning, Taib, who is also SHF chairman, said thanks to several corporate entities, the foundation was able to organise awareness programmes and activities on heart diseases every year.
As towns and cities in the state get bigger and populations increase, people are starting to take their heart’s health for granted, he observed.
“I’m happy to note that SHF is sponsoring Unimas (Universiti Malaysia Sarawak) to carry out research on obesity among preschool children following the increasing trend in childhood obesity.
“Back in the day, this kind of problem was uncommon, but now as the population gets bigger, it is harder for us and the children to have physical activities. Therefore, we have to organise more activities like what we are doing today,” said Taib.
The state-level World Heart Day 2018 was organised by SHF. This morning’s programme featured more than 2,000 people taking part in activities including morning exercise and Zumba dance, free health screening and a Walk-a-Mile activity.
Meanwhile, Taib also advised the participants to interact with other participants of community programmes in order to maintain a good relationship with one another.
Minister of Local Government and Housing Datuk Dr Sim Kui Hian, who was also present, echoed Taib by urging the people to take care of their hearts.
“It all boils down to our habits in keeping a healthy lifestyle. It’s not just about building more hospitals or complaining about the long waiting list. We must promise ourselves to be healthy. You must promise to your loved ones to be healthy.
“Small changes in your lifestyle can make a big difference, like taking the stairs instead of the elevator, eating less fast food and more fruits and vegetables, or download exercise apps to your smartphones and count your steps to 10,000 steps a day. Park your car a bit further and walk more,” he suggested. — DayakDaily
