Accra, Sept. 26, GNA - Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) would become the number one cause of death in developing countries by 2010 if immediate steps are not taking to curb it. "This disease, which is caused by smoking, poor dietary habit and lack of physical exercise affects mostly people in their mid-life years," said Dr. Francis Kwamin, President of Ghana Society for Hypertension and Cardiovascular Disease. CVD is a disease that affects the blood vessels in any part of the body. These include blood vessels diseases of the heart, brain and kidney, among others.

Speaking on Friday at the launch of the 2nd Annual School Health Quiz for second cycle institutions in the Eastern and Greater Accra regions, he noted that the rate at which the disease was gaining grounds in the country was alarming hence the decision to inculcate into the students the need for preventive measures before adulthood. Touching on the modalities of the quiz, he said 24 schools from each of the two regions would participate in this year's competition which would start on Saturday at four designated venues in each region. He said the final two winners from each of the regions would finally meet at a date to determine the overall winner for awards to be given accordingly.

Dr Kwamin called for the sustenance of health clubs in 2nd cycle institutions so that the students could serve as peer educators to their colleagues and the society as a whole. Madam Salamatu Abdul Salam, Chief Director of the Ministry of Health, extolled the importance of such programmes, adding that, they enable the public to make informed decisions about their health. She praised the Ghana Society of Hypertension and Cardiovascular Disease for designing the programme and Sanofi Aventis, a global pharmaceutical industry headquartered in Paris, France for sponsoring it. Dr Frank Umeh, Medical Director in-charge of Sanofi Aventis, Ghana/Nigeria Zone, said the organisation had sponsored the two winners of last year's competition to a CVD conference in Maputo, Mozambique, adding that, the company would increase the number of participating regions next year.