More Than 50 Percent Indians Aged Over 40 Have Diabetes, High Blood Pressure

A new study conducted over the past three years has found that increasingly stress and a chaotic lifestyle are wrecking havoc on the health of the people. More than 50 percent of the population aged over 40 years is battling metabolic syndrome, a condition that increases the risk of heart attack and stroke, the study said, "As high as 52 per cent of the people in the age group of 40-70 years were found to have metabolic syndrome, a condition signified by combination of factors like high blood pressure, high cholesterol, pot belly and high sugar levels in blood," Dr H K Chopra, consultant, Medicine and Cardiology at the Moolchand hospital, and the lead author of the study said. "The results assume significance in the context of India already assuming the dubious distinction of becoming a world capital of diabetes," he added. Diabetes and obesity were rising at alarming levels in the country and there is a danger of an acute health crisis. He added that if people aged over 60 are taken into consideration then diabetes and hypertension affect over 60 percent of the population.