On June 9, 2023, a round table meeting was held in Lviv on the topic "Guard your heart: reducing the prevalence of behavioral risk factors for cardiovascular diseases." The organizers of the event were the state institution "Lviv Regional Center for Disease Control and Prevention of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine" and the non-governmental organization "Life" with the partner support of the Ukrainian-Swiss project "Act for Health" and the state institution "Public Health Center of the Ministry of health care of Ukraine".
The purpose of the event is to intensify work in the Lviv region to prevent and reduce the prevalence of behavioral risk factors for cardiovascular diseases (hereinafter referred to as CVD) thanks to the combined efforts of specialists from health care institutions of all levels and other interested parties. After all, it is easier and cheaper to prevent cardiovascular diseases than to treat them.
Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are the cause of 91% of total mortality in Ukraine and affect the average life expectancy in our country, which is 72 years — an average of 66.3 years for men and 76.3 years for women.
The most common NCDs are cardiovascular diseases — they are the cause of 65-67% of all deaths in Ukraine. Among CVDs that cause death, including premature ones, the most common is coronary heart disease - about 7 out of 10 deaths from causes of this class and almost 2/3 of CVD deaths in the age range from 30 to 70 years. Every fifth death is caused by cerebrovascular diseases (CVD).
Behavioral risk factors for CVD include smoking, alcohol consumption, unhealthy diet, and insufficient physical activity. A comprehensive STEPS study conducted in 2019 revealed a fairly high prevalence of these risk factors among Ukrainians.
Thus, in 2019, a third of the population aged 18–69 in Ukraine were tobacco smokers, about 55.6% of the population of Ukraine were active alcohol consumers, and every fifth person among those surveyed consumed six or more doses of alcohol at one time. Also, Ukrainians consumed three times less than the recommended amount of vegetables and fruits (the WHO recommendation is 400 g per day), and the average salt consumption was 12.6 g per day, which was more than twice the recommended amount (5 g), while only 13% respondents consumed salt within the norm.
"Most people start monitoring their health when something really bothers them. It is then, and not without the help of a doctor, that the patient begins to think and readjust himself to a healthy lifestyle. Eating more vegetables and fruits, giving up smoking and alcohol, and increasing physical activity, especially for those who work in the office, will significantly reduce the risk of developing cardiovascular diseases," emphasized Anna Yarmola, head of the Commission on Health and maternity hospital of the Lviv OVA.
The study of awareness, attitudes and behavior regarding non-communicable diseases in Ukraine (KAPB)[1], conducted in 2022, indicated insufficient awareness of the population about CVD risk factors. So, the most mentioned reason for the development of CVD is stress - this reason was named by 48% of the respondents. The most frequently mentioned are unhealthy diet (40%), smoking (31%), sedentary lifestyle (28%) and alcohol consumption (24%). At the same time, the respondents reported that the main motivation factors for getting a CVD screening are recommendations and support from family, conducting examinations at the workplace, reminders from the family doctor, and not an independent decision.
"One of our key tasks is to reduce the prevalence of risk factors for cardiovascular diseases. Information campaigns on the harm of alcohol and tobacco, development of sports infrastructure, to motivate young people to do sports can help in this," said Khrystyna Zamula, head of the Lviv District Military Administration.
According to the KAPB-2022 study[2], primary care physicians play an increasingly important role in the prevention of NCDs, and expectations for them as a factor that will encourage the maintenance of a healthy lifestyle are constantly growing. Thus, during 2022, 67% of respondents visited a family doctor, while in 2021 this figure reached 55%. Taking into account the growing authority of family doctors, there is a need for doctors to provide expert advice on CVD risk factors, as well as the use of the SCORE (Systematic Coronary Risk Evaluation) scale, which allows for effective stratification of patients according to the level of risk of developing CVD.
"Currently, there is a need to inform broad segments of the population about behavioral risk factors for cardiovascular diseases. The promotion is aimed at eliminating or reducing unhealthy habits and behavior: the use of tobacco and alcohol, unhealthy diet, insufficient physical activity will help reduce the overall mortality rate from heart attack, stroke and other diseases," concluded Nataliya Ivanchenko, general director of the Lviv Regional Medical Center of the Ministry of Health
In 2023, by the efforts of the public in partnership with the Center for Public Health of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine and with the support of the Ukrainian-Swiss project "Let's act for health", an information campaign aimed at increasing the awareness of the population, in particular middle-aged men (as the most vulnerable group), regarding the factors CVD risk and spread of healthy behavior patterns. For the campaign to be as effective as possible, it is important to achieve fruitful cooperation between government agencies, primary health care facilities and the public.
Following the discussion of approaches to the prevention of behavioral risk factors for the development of cardiovascular diseases, the participants of the round table supported the resolution, which recognizes that the role of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention in cooperation with primary medical care is decisive in preventing risk factors. And a healthy diet, physical activity, giving up harmful addictions significantly reduce the risk of occurrence, development and consequences of the progression of CVD.
For contact information: Anastasia Bonkovska, project coordinator of the NGO "Life". bonkovskaa@center-life.org, (050-293-39-97)
[1] KARV-2022, research within the framework of the project "We act for health"
[2] KARV-2022, research within the framework of the project "We act for health"
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