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Philippine Heart Association: Healthy diet, lifestyle way to prevent heart disease

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Bianca Dava, ABS-CBN News

MANILA — When it comes to preventing heart disease, nothing beats awareness -- knowing what to spot and what to do, a doctor said Wednesday.High cholesterol, high blood pressure, hypertension and diabetes all contribute to the risk of heart disease. When one has a family history, this means the risk of the disease being passed down to that person is even greater.“Pagka may magulang na may sakit na sa puso o mataas ang cholesterol, alam mo na genetically maaaring mataas ang chance na mataas din ang cholesterol mo,” Dr. Lourdes Ella Santos, director and incoming Advocacy Committee Chairperson of the Philippine Heart Association, said in a webinar entitled “Usapang Puso sa Puso: Trans Fat, Ituloy ang Laban.”Because prevention is always better than a cure, Santos said it is important to determine your risk profile, watch out for risk factors and manage them as early as possible.“Ang cholesterol, ang kaibahan niya sa ibang sakit, walang sintomas. By the time magkaroon ka ng manifestation ng cholesterol na nagbara medyo late na iyon. Atake sa puso na iyon o stroke. Kaya maganda maaga pa lang, tinatawag nating primary prevention, alamin na natin if may risks na magkaroon tayo ng heart attack o stroke,” the doctor explained.She went on: “Kailan dapat pumunta sa doctor? According to our local guidelines, ang pagpapacheck ay 45 years old and above, dapat magpalipid profile ka. Pero kung mas bata ka sa 45 at sa pamilya may mga inaatake sa puso o nagkakastroke o nadiagnose ka ng diabetes, medyo malaki ang tiyan natin, ito ang senyales na dapat magpacheck tayo ng lipid profile kasi may additional kang risk factor.”A lipid profile test measures the amount of cholesterol and other fats in a person’s blood.Santos said a way to a healthy heart is to have a healthy lifestyle. This includes a good diet, regular exercise and zero smoking.“Pag pinag-uusapan ang cholesterol, malaki pa ring role ang diet at lifestyle modifications. Importanteng pag-usapan sa doctor ang mga pagkaing pwedeng iavoid,” she said. “Ang pagkain ng maraming delata sa umaga, baka pwedeng ipalit. Siguro ang pagkain sa labas, hindi naman kailangan lagi. Pag kakain tayo ng merienda, piliin na hindi ang processed food, gaya ng chips. Exercises, malaking role iyan.”“Pag hininto niyo ang paninigarilyo, ang good cholesterol niyo ay tataas nang maganda. Pangalawa, ang mga ugat natin nagiging hindi masyadong madikit para sa bad cholesterol. Malaki ang benepisyo ng paghihinto ng paninigarilyo sa cholesterol kahit walang iniinom na gamot,” she added.Aside from taking control and accountability of their own heart health, Santos also advised the public to work closely with doctors and health professionals.“Ang trans fat ang pinakanakakatakot na taba. Ang trans fat dinadamihan niya ang bad cholesterol sa katawan ninyo. Pag marami kayong trans fat na kinakain sa diet ninyo, mabilis iyang nakoconvert into bad cholesterol,” Santos said. “Hindi natin makikita sa katawan natin ilang trans fat kinakain natin kada araw. Ang nakikita natin ay ‘yung epekto na niya. Importanteng mamonitor ‘yan para maeiliminate at maminize ang trans fat.”<div> TRANS FAT</div>The use of trans fat in prepackaged and processed food products has been banned in the Philippines since June 19 this year.In orders issued in 2021, the Department of Health and Food and Drug Administration gave food manufacturers until June 18, 2023 to reformulate and remove trans fatty acids from their products or face sanctions.“Nagprovide ng 2 years ang FDA sa ating manufacturers to eliminate ang paggamit nila ng partially hydrogenated oils sa kanilang mga produkto. Binigyan sila ng 2 years to reformulate at baguhin ang recipes nila. Matagal din ang binigay sa kanilang period,” lawyer Mikhail Millan of the public interest group ImagineLaw said during the webinar.Millan is also the project manager of the Trans Fat Elimination Project.The policy was implemented to address the high consumption of trans fat, which increases the risk of developing heart disease, hypertension, obesity and stroke.Health advocates earlier launched the Bantay Kontra Trans Fat as an initiative to make sure that food manufacturers comply with the new policy to eliminate trans fat.Millan urged the public to report the possible noncompliance of food manufacturers to the DOH and FDA orders.“There are two ways for us to report. First and foremost, ‘yung official reporting mechanism sa FDA for any violations ng kanilang policies. Secondly, pwede rin pumunta ng Trans Fat Free Philippines Facebook. Ito ang ating page that acts as a hotline for any possible complaints or reports pag may nakita tayong produkto na may naglalaman na industrially-produced trans fat,” Millan said.He then continued, “Pag gusto ninyong magreport, may tatlong bagay lang na kailangan isend sa ating Facebook page: name ng store at city or municipality kung saan nakita o nabili ang produkto; ang date kailan nakita; and a clear picture ng brand at label ng produkto sa likod.”The DOH and FDA orders only cover prepackaged and processed food products. But according to Millan, bills have already been filed in Congress to get rid of industrially-produced trans fatty acids from the whole food industry.“Ang polisiya ni FDA ay limitado lang siya sa prepackaged and processed food products. Meaning, ang mga nakikita nating nakapack sa groceries and supermarkets. Ngayon, ang mga pagkain sa restaurants at street vendors, ‘yun naman po, kailangan pa natin ng bill naman, to cover all the other sources,” Millan noted. “I’m happy to share we also have Trans Fat Free Philippines bills that are already filed in Congress. Ang bills na iyan, we will make sure that all other sources of trans fat ay makocover ng bill. Ang bill will also provide institutional capacity for our government agencies to implement a law, as well as provide provisions on the research for healthier alternative oils.”“Magkakasama tayo rito. Laban natin itong lahat at kailangan nating magtulungan para maensure natin na wala nang trans fat sa Philippine food system, so we can ensure healthier Filipino hearts,” he added.<div>RELATED VIDEO</div><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" frameBorder="0" height="100%" id="ivsplayer01" scrolling="no" src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/html/iframe-src.html?iframeid=ivsplayer01&amp;key=e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603&amp;spid=3001339&amp;vid=1721711" width="100%"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more News on <a href="https://www.iwanttfc.com/#!/browse/Genres/News/tag_id_genres/id_news" target="_blank">iWantTFC</a></div><div> </div>

When it comes to preventing heart disease, nothing beats awareness—knowing what to spot and what to do.

Philippine Heart Association: Healthy diet, lifestyle way to prevent heart disease

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Philippine Heart Association: Healthy diet, lifestyle way to prevent heart disease

Bianca Dava,

ABS-CBN News

Published Jun 28, 2023 03:58 PM PHT

Read More:

health

heart disease

diet

lifestyle

cholesterol

high blood pressure

hypertension

diabetes

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