Aug. 29, 2017
By Ijendu Iheaka
Prof. Basil Okeahialam of University of Jos has warned Nigerians of the dangers of fat bellies which he said causes cardiovascular diseases.
Okeahialam gave the warning during the maiden edition of the Eminent Scholars lecture organized by the Abia State University Teaching Hospital (ABSUTH), Aba, on Tuesday.
He cautioned Nigerians against increasing their weight at the bellies and around arteries to avoid cardiovascular health challenges.
The don said that there was nothing healthy about obesity, adding that over-weight has been found to be a major cause of hyperinsulinimia, atherosclerosis, dyslipedemia or hypercholesterolemia and other diseases.
He said that doctors should check people for overweight using a combination of Body Mass Index and other measurements like Waist Line Circumference and Waist to Height ratio to get accurate readings.
Speaking on what was appropriate, the don said: “Thou shall not pack your fat in the abdomen. The day you do that you begin to die, moving towards morbidity and mortality.”
He also said people should avoid meat from the organs of animals which he said is laden with fat that could result in renal blood fat and cause dangerous developments in their bodies.
He warned young men who feel that increasing their bellies was a sign that they have touched money and are eating it to desist from such dangerous perceptions or face untimely death.
Okeahialam also urged women who think that being overweight was going to make their husbands love them more or make their cloths fit them more to stop toying with death.
He said that the adage in Igbo which says “Ovuru Ivu ma Ogbaghi Mkpuru” (big but empty) shows that traditional Igbo societies have long rejected overweight.
The don noted that when a doctor first sees the belly of a patient at his door before seeing his face, he should know that he is handling a time bomb and have to act quickly.
Okeahialam urged Nigerians to check their blood sugar, weight and blood pressure regularly to save them from the danger of slipping into overweight and its many health risks.
He said that he was using the lecture to remember the effort of Dr Ubani Ukoma and his sacrifices to improve the standards of practice and learning at ABSUTH’s Cardiology Department.
Earlier, Dr John Chikezie, explained that the lecture was organised to expose students of the institution to the work of distinguished academics and to encourage them to develop passion for their career.
He said that teaching students and preparing them well for their examinations reflects on their excellent performances at the examinations and promised to do his best to uphold the lecture series.
The title of the lecture was “Appropriate Anthropometry for Cardiovascular Health: Remembering Dr R.N. Ubani Ukoma”.
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