Hypertension hits SA males
HIGH blood pressure or hypertension is a medical condition that used to be associated mostly with women in black communities. Now it is becoming more common in men, young and old.
WORK OUT: Exercise to feel and be healthySome men find it hard to cope with this and that has drawn a lot of emotional and financial pressure to them - which is causing conditions such a high blood pressure
Dr Mveleli Gqwede, also known as Dr Love, attributes this phenomenon to changing social conditions.
He says women are becoming more empowered, while more men are becoming unemployed.
He says social and economic circumstances are forcing some men to be househusbands and to be dependent on their women.
"Women no longer have to carry the burden of providing for their children alone," he says.
"Some men find it hard to cope with this and that has drawn a lot of emotional and financial pressure to them - which is causing conditions such a high blood pressure."
According to the Heart and Stroke Foundation about 6million South Africans are affected by hypertension, commonly known as high blood pressure (HBP),
The foundation says one of the major risk factors of heart disease is HBP.
Of those affected only two percent of South African men are aware that they have the condition and only one in five is taking medication to reduce their blood pressure.
Left untreated hypertension can lead to blindness, kidney failure, a stroke or heart attack.
For every South African woman who dies of a heart attack two men die.
So concerned is Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi about the rising rate of people suffering from diabetes and hypertension, that he wants his department to reduce the salt content in processed foods.
High salt intake is estimated to cause about a third of all hypertension cases.
Professor Brian Rayner, head of the division of hypertension at Cape Town's Groote Schuur Hospital and the University of Cape Town, says people should eat low-fat dairy products and protein-rich soy foods.
Rayner says: "Even a small reduction in systolic blood pressure will help improve overall cardiovascular function and reduce the risk of serious life-threatening cardiovascular events.
But the use of soy and milk protein in patients with established hypertension should be discussed with their doctor and used in conjunction with comprehensive lifestyle modifications and anti-hypertensive therapy advocated by the South African Hypertension Society."
Dr Ratna Mukherjea, global applied nutrition lead at Solae, says: "Soy protein is the only nutritionally complete plant-based protein available.
"Soy is also low in fat, cholesterol free, environmentally sustainable and economically efficient," Mukherjea says.
He also suggests that people take soy milk with your breakfast cereal, snack on a nutritional soy-protein bar and enjoy delicious soy yogurt desert.
Bdoobs
We need to have doctors, us African man in particular try by all means to avoid doctors, I have been talking about how I will just walk into a doctor's office and ask him to check me up as I'm now on the wrong side of 30s, but I haven't done that, I suppose we wait to collapse to then start making doctor's appointment.Thanks Magqwedezela, this boy was my mom's favorate doctor and she used to take us to him everytime we were sick, nice man indeed.
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somaartakeit
they are overweight and stressed cause they can not control and bully women anymore, women now have more choices.Report Abuse
dre10
these women ae to blame. they blame us for the way God has created them.Report Abuse
Socrates
@Bdoobs, I did that a month ago...I told my doctor I need a thorough ckech-up, so he gave me letters for x-rays, blood tests, heart scan, everything, cuase I felt like I ma not utilising my scheme and i get charged over 6 grand every month.He seems to think I have high blood but when I donate blood they say its not a big issue, only exercise can take care of it and I exercise with passion now
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Bdoobs
@ SocratesMan, I wish I had medical aid, I would go at once, I'm tied of relying on Centrums and hope that they assist in balancing all the body needs.
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ntshware-ke-yawa
shame poor men,who is gonna make sure bedroom exercises are executed successfully.Ke bothata gape,especially that many have resorted to being guys while others are in jails.Basadi go tla diregang gona moo? gape tlala ke yeo e ya tla ka dikamoreng.
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KeRataBasadi
@ somaartakeitHaibo! aren't you taking this male bashing thing a bit too far, perhaps some men are stressed cause they are struggling to provide for their wives and daughters ?
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langman
E jang semotwane,kgodu.mpshi,lemopa,semphemphe,bogobe bja bopi ba go itshilele,seba ka thepe , mphodi,leroto,monawa.Ge o kalebelela , ga gona makhura felo faReport Abuse