Tobacco, over-eating cause additional health problems- Minister Ramsammy

Source: Guyana Chronicle, 17th April 2008

Minister of Health, Dr. Leslie Ramsammy said tobacco, alcohol and over-eating are factors destroying people’s health.

Addressing a workshop, Dr. Ramsammy said tobacco is the only killer substance in the world that is legalised. “We have to fight against tobacco,” he said.

The Health Minister said all public places in the country should become smoke free zones. To this end, on May 1, all health facilities will be declared smoke free zones. There has also been a declaration by the Ministry of Education to make all schools, public and private, smoke free zones. The Minister also encouraged workplaces to become smoke free zones.

Minister Ramsammy said though Guyana is a poor country, persons eat too much. “Persons consume more calories than they should and are less active that they used to be,” he said. Adding to the problem is persons eating the wrong foods. “More than 60 percent of Guyanese do not meet the daily recommendations for fruits and vegetables,” he said.

The Health Minister said eating properly is very important in light of the recent problem of rising food prices in Guyana and around the world. Guyana has the resources to produce its own food and persons must take advantage of this, the Minister advised.

He stressed that, “VAT is not the cause of the rise in food prices. It may be contributing to some areas of the cost of living, but it is not the cause of food prices going up.”

The Minister encouraged organisations to support his million mile challenge for 2008, and walk for health at least once this year.