A walkathon was organised here on Tuesday to mark World Hypertension Day.
It was organised at Roche Park on Harbour Road on Tuesday morning. MP Kanimozhi, Minister for Social Welfare P. Geetha Jeevan, Collector K. Senthil Raj, Corporation Commissioner T. Charusree, Mayor Jegan Periyasamy, Joint Director of Department of Public Health Murugavel and others participated in the event which was organised up to the boat jetty.
All the participants were screened for blood pressure.
Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Senthil Raj, a physician and fitness enthusiast, said sedentary lifestyle and harmful food habits had made hypertension a common disorder in the modern society. While the world’s hypertension average stands at 26%, the Indian average is 30%. At the same time, 34% of the people of Tamil Nadu have been diagnosed with hypertension, which is an alarming sign.
Since this disorder, if unattended to with proper medical intervention, would seriously affect kidney, heart, eye and brain and ultimately lead to death.
“Hence, we organised a walkathon at Roche Park and the headquarters of municipalities, town panchayats and the taluks across the district between 7 a.m. and 9 a.m. The participants’ blood pressure was checked by medical teams. Moreover, similar medical screening has been done in all government offices between 9 a.m. and 11 a.m. so as to identify persons with hypertension to facilitate early medical intervention,” Dr. Senthil Raj said.
Moreover, 752 mobile medical units were on the move on Tuesday to check the public for hypertension, the Collector said.
