Commemorating World Heart Day, This Is A Simple Step To Encourage Prevention Of Heart Disease In Indonesia

Illustration of meal foods to lower cholesterol (Unsplash)

JAKARTA - World Heart Day which is celebrated every September 29 is an emphasis on how important it is to always maintain heart health and increase public awareness of the dangers of cardiovascular disease. According to the Ministry of Health, until 2023, cardiovascular disease is still the highest cause of death in the country.

Heart disease and blood vessels cause 17.3 million deaths each year. This condition is getting serious with the increase in cases of heart attacks at a young age. In Indonesia, there is a 2% increase in the prevalence of heart attacks at the age of less than 40 years each year from 2000 to 2016. Global Burden of Disease and Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) data from 2014-2019 show that heart disease is the highest cause of death in Indonesia. This situation is increasingly worrying with the increase in the prevalence of heart attacks at a young age. Bad cholesterol (LDL) that accumulates in blood vessels is one of the main factors causing heart disease.

Dr. dr. Libriansyah, MM. Sp.PD, K-EMD, FINASIM from the Endocrine, Metabolic, Diabetes Division of RSPAL dr. Ramelan Surabaya explained that cholesterol is an important fat produced naturally by the body to help produce hormones, vitamin D and bile acids to digest fat, however, it will cause problems if the blood level is too high.

Too high cholesterol levels, especially Low Density Lipoprotein (LDL), can cause narrowing of blood vessels and increase the risk of heart disease. In contrast, High Density Lipoprotein (HDL) plays an important role in cleaning blood vessels from excess cholesterol and returning them to the liver to be removed from the body. In addition to LDL and HDL, which are often referred to as bad cohesterol and good cohesterol, there are also triglycerides. Triglycerides also need to be kept normal. The combination of high triglyceride and LDL levels, with low HDL, can cause blood vessels to experience plaque formation so that the risk of heart disease and stroke will increase," explained doctor Libriansyah through an official statement received by VOI.

Robertus Parulian, Director of Adult & Specialized Nutrition KALBE Nutritions also invites all elements of society to be more concerned about heart health and a healthy lifestyle to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease in Indonesia.

"This aims to increase public awareness about a healthy lifestyle to prevent the risk of heart disease, in line with the Ministry of Health's program in national cardiovascular health actions. Not only aimed at providing direct experience for pharmacists about cholesterol management, but also so that they always support efforts to increase public awareness of preventing cardiovascular disease and the risk," he said when launching the 14 Days Challenge program with Nutrive Benecol.

On the same occasion, Apt. Ika Mulyono Putri Wibowo, S.Fram., M. Farm-Klin who is also a lecturer at the Faculty of Pharmacy UBAYA hopes that this program can inspire the public to be more concerned about heart health.

By adopting a healthy lifestyle and consuming Nutrive Benecol after eating, it is hoped that people can maintain their cholesterol levels so that they live more quality. This information needs to be conveyed to the wider community and pharmacists from the K-24 Pharmacy which is the vanguard for this health education," he explained.

If this program is in line with the World Heart Day theme launched by WHO, Use Heart for Action. His party invites all elements of society to be more concerned about heart health and a healthy lifestyle to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease in Indonesia.

"Through this program, pharmacists will participate in the challenges of 14 today, and will share their experiences with consumers. It is hoped that the results of this program can increase public knowledge and awareness about the importance of maintaining heart health," said Robertus.

Meanwhile, Gideon Hartono, President Director of PT K-24 Indonesia, said that by consuming intake containing Plant Stanol Ester (PSE), it helps reduce cholesterol absorption in the body, with the PSE working mechanism competing with cholesterol during the absorption process, so that the amount of cholesterol from the food consumed becomes less absorbed by the body. Even so, a healthy lifestyle remains important to maintain heart health

"This commitment starts from simple steps such as regular exercise, balanced diet, adequate rest, and stress management," concluded Robert.