President Yoweri Museveni launched the National Day of Physical activity on Sunday at Kololo Independence Grounds

As part of the activities, the President  took part in a 10-kilometre walk though Kampala, aimed at highlighting and stemming the increasing risk of Non-Communicable Diseases.

PRESIDENT`S REMARKS

In the past, on account of poor hygiene and lack of intensified immunisation, communicable diseases like polio and measles, were rampant. But the NRM government intensified immunization and other interventions and most of these diseases are almost wiped out.

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According to the Commissioner Physical Education and Sports in the Education Ministry, Lamex Omara Apitta, the old law emphasizes sports leaving out physical activity. If passed, the bill will see professional aerobics instructors in gyms and schools among the physical activities areas. However, the Sports Minister, Charles Bakabulindi advised the citizenry to always go for physical activities as it helps them build strong immunity.

Still, the Commissioner Non-communicable Diseases in the Health Ministry, Dr. Gerald Mutungi said if all Ugandans are taken through the drills government will be able to save some very good money which it has been spending on treating non-communicable disease which come as a result of not having physicals.

This was revealed at a news conference where the government was announcing the launch of the National Physical Gala slated for 14^th June this year.

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Baryomonsi is concerned that since TB treatment lasts for more than four months most patients tend to give up taking before prescribed doses are complete under the guise of feeling better, which leaves them at the risk of remaining with the disease and spreading it further and thus increasing the costs of treatment on the government’s part.

Since TB treatment is free at all government health facilities, Baryomonsi is now asking people to go for checkups more regularly to know their health status.

Chris Baryomunsi was speaking just a day before the world marked the Global Tuberclosis day on 24^th March 2015. Uganda held the event to commemorate the day in the Northern Uganda district of Gulu.

Meanwhile the country is hosting a regional conference on health and science which has started today 25th March 2015 and will end on 28th March 21015 in Kampala.

The East African Community member states will discuss health issues geared at transforming and strengthening the sector in the region to enable it respond to threats of emerging and re-emerging communicable diseases, non-communicable diseases among other conditions of public health.

The conference brings together over 1000 scientists and health experts and will also focus on integrated approaches for disease prevention and control as well social determinants of health and disease conditions.

The conference will in addition document the progress registered by regional member states towards the attainment of health related millennium development goals that will facilitate sharing and documentation of best practices and innovations in the health sectors investment.

The Deputy Secretary General of the East African Community, Hon. Jessica Eriyo notes that the 5th annual health and scientific conference will have parallel sub conferences that will all discuss very important regional health issues.

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Here is a list of the most common diabetes symptoms:

• Frequent urination
  Have you been going to the bathroom to urinate more often recently? Do you notice that you spend most of the day going to the toilet? When there is too much glucose (sugar) in your blood you will urinate more often. If your insulin is ineffective, or not there at all, your kidneys cannot filter the glucose back into the blood. The kidneys will take water from your blood in order to dilute the glucose – which in turn fills up your bladder.

• Disproportionate thirst
  If you are urinating more than usual, you will need to replace that lost liquid. You will be drinking more than usual. Have you been drinking more than usual lately?

• Intense hunger
  As the insulin in your blood is not working properly, or is not there at all, and your cells are not getting their energy, your body may react by trying to find more energy – food. You will become hungry.

• Weight gain
  This might be the result of the above symptom (intense hunger).

• Unusual weight loss
  This is more common among people with Diabetes Type 1. As your body is not making insulin it will seek out another energy source (the cells aren’t getting glucose). Muscle tissue and fat will be broken down for energy. As Type 1 is of a more sudden onset and Type 2 is much more gradual, weight loss is more noticeable with Type 1.

• Increased fatigue
  If your insulin is not working properly, or is not there at all, glucose will not be entering your cells and providing them with energy. This will make you feel tired and listless.

• Irritability
  Irritability can be due to your lack of energy.

• Blurred vision
  This can be caused by tissue being pulled from your eye lenses. This affects your eyes’ ability to focus. With proper treatment this can be treated. There are severe cases where blindness or prolonged vision problems can occur.

• Cuts and bruises don’t heal properly or quickly
  Do you find cuts and bruises take a much longer time than usual to heal? When there is more sugar (glucose) in your body, its ability to heal can be undermined.

• More skin and/or yeast infections
  When there is more sugar in your body, its ability to recover from infections is affected. Women with diabetes find it especially difficult to recover from bladder and vaginal infections.

• Itchy skin
  A feeling of itchiness on your skin is sometimes a symptom of diabetes.

• Gums are red and/or swollen – Gums pull away from teeth
  If your gums are tender, red and/or swollen this could be a sign of diabetes. Your teeth could become loose as the gums pull away from them.

• Frequent gum disease/infection
  As well as the previous gum symptoms, you may experience more frequent gum disease and/or gum infections.

• Sexual dysfunction among men
  If you are over 50 and experience frequent or constant sexual dysfunction (erectile dysfunction), it could be a symptom of diabetes.

• Numbness or tingling, especially in your feet and hands
  If there is too much sugar in your body your nerves could become damaged, as could the tiny blood vessels that feed those nerves. You may experience tingling and/or numbness in your hands and feet.

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UNU-IIGH Ph.D. Fellowships Programme: The United Nation University International Institute for Global Health (UNU-IIGH) Ph.D. Fellowships Programme seeks six postdoctoral candidates from educational institutes around the world who would benefit from a period of stay to twelve months at UNU-IIGH in Kuala Lumpur.

The programme will be closely related to UNU-IIGH’s own research programmes:-

• Efficiency and Quality of Care in Health Systems
• Newly Emerging and Re-emerging Diseases
• Control of Non-communicable Diseases
• Information Technology in Health
• Climate Change and Health
• Impact of Globalization on Health

Fellowship Application Eligibility:

• Applicants must be at the dissertation-writing stage of their Ph.D.s, with their research proposals accepted by the candidates’ universities.
• Candidates must be able to make use of the UNU-IIGH facilities in Kuala Lumpur to carry out their own research on a topic relevant to current research areas of the UNU-IIGH.

Closing Date: 11th July.

For more information and application, see: UNU-IIGH Ph.D. Fellowships Programme

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Research projects should be aimed at understanding and controlling diseases (either human or animal) of relevance to local, national or global health.

Fellowship Eligibility

Applications are only accepted in the Public Health and TropicalMedicine Interview Committee remit. This covers research oninfectious and non-communicable diseases within the fields ofpublic health and tropical medicine that is aimed at understanding and controlling diseases (either human or animal) of relevance to local, national or global health.

This can include laboratory based molecular analysis of field orclinical samples, but projects focused solely on studies in vitro or using animal models will not normally be considered under this scheme.

You must be a national or legal resident of a low- and middle–income country, and be either a:

• graduate in a subject relevant to public health or tropical medicine (for example; biomedical or social science, veterinary medicine, physics, chemistry or mathematics) with a PhD and at least five years’ postdoctoral experience, or
• medical graduate with a higher qualification equivalent to membership of the UK Royal College of Physicians (i.e. qualified to enter higher specialist training), or be recognised as a specialist within a relevant research area, and have at least five years’ research experience.

Applicants who do not have a PhD but who are educated to first degree or Master’s level and have substantial research experience, as evidenced by their publication record, may be considered.

Fellowship Applications

Fellowships are for up to five years in the first instance and provide support that includes:

• a basic salary
• research expenses (e.g. consumables, equipment, collaborativetravel, research assistance, technical support, fieldwork and data collection)
• training costs where appropriate and justified
• an inflation allowance and support to attend scientific meetings.

Contributions to costs of the project that are directly incurredby the overseas institution may also be provided.

The salary should normally be based on the pay scales of the employing institution and must be justified by the head of theinstitution.

The salary level should be appropriate for the holder of a competitive grant and allow him/her to focus fulltime on research.

If the fellow is already in receipt of a salary from the hostinstitution, the host institution may use the salary to pay fora replacement member of staff while we provide the fellow’s salary for the duration of the fellowship.

It is not expected that the fellow will hold a salary in addition to the one provided by the Trust.

Overseas allowances will be provided for periods of training or collaborative research spent outside the home institution country, where appropriate.

Research-dedicated costs (excluding salary costs) should not exceed £100 000 per annum.

This fellowship is subject to competitive rolling scientific review every five years, and will be renewed on the basis that the Trust and the host institution will jointly fund the Senior Fellow’s basic employment costs through a partnership arrangement for the duration of any renewal period.

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The ministry of health has says many hospitals are reporting increased cases of diabetes in different parts of the country.

Dr. Richard Nduhura, Uganda's Minister of State for Health

The ministry’s program manager in charge of non-communicable diseases Dr. James Sekajugo says the cases of diabetes have increased by 5% over the last decade.

He says if the trend is not checked, they could be 10 times more over the next 10 years.

Dr. Sekajugo attributes the trend of increasing diabetes to the lack of physical exercise, bad eating habits, especially foods only rich in sugar, salt and fat.

He adds that people consuming alcohol and tobacco are also more prone to contracting diabetes than those who don’t

The disease has mainly been noted among the elderly above 50 years of age and the children.

The state health minister in charge of general duties Dr. Richard Nduhura says a sensitization campaign will kick off next week on how to prevent and control diabetes and other non-communicable diseases.

The campaign which will be conducted at a cost of 1 million US dollars kicks of Monday next week as Uganda marks the World Day against diabetes.

By Olive Eyotaru

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Commonwealth health ministers and senior officials will meet in Geneva, Switzerland, on 15 May 2011 to discuss how to tackle non-communicable diseases (NCDs), which currently kill 35 million people worldwide every year.

The theme for the 2011 Commonwealth Health Ministers Meeting is ‘Non-communicable diseases – a priority for the Commonwealth’.

Ministers will hear from Jean Claude Mbanya, President of the International Diabetes Federation and Professor of Medicine and Endocrinology at University of Yaoundé I, Cameroon. Dr Ala Alwan, Assistant Director-General for Noncommunicable Diseases and Mental Health at the World Health Organization (WHO) will also address the meeting, which takes place on the eve of the 64th World Health Assembly.

Commonwealth Secretary-General Kamalesh Sharma said: “The burden of non-communicable diseases is evident in every corner of the Commonwealth, and is impacting on both rich and poor countries, at all levels of society.

“The increase of these diseases has become far more than a health challenge. It is now a human development challenge which needs to be tackled urgently.”

The Commonwealth has played a significant role in raising the profile of NCDs on the global health agenda. In 2009, when Commonwealth Heads of Government met in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago, leaders issued a statement on the growing burden of NCDs and called for a United Nations (UN) Summit to develop strategic responses to this.

The Commonwealth Secretariat responded with a Roadmap on Non-communicable Diseases, which was accepted by health ministers in May 2010. It calls on the Secretariat to use its unique convening position to facilitate partnerships, to share examples of good practice in responding to this health crisis, and to develop a NCDs media strategy.

Health ministers also welcomed the adoption of a UN General Assembly Resolution on the ‘Prevention and control of non-communicable diseases’ and called for the highest participation in the UN General Assembly Special Session on NCDs, which takes place in September. The Secretariat’s Health Section is collaborating with partners, including the WHO and the NCD Alliance, in the build-up to the summit

For media enquiries, please contact Victoria Holdsworth (Communications Officer) on v.holdsworth@commonwealth.int or +44 (0)7894 593520.

Note to Editors:

According to the WHO, NCDs cause 60 per cent of deaths worldwide and are projected to account for more than 75 per cent of global deaths by 2030. NCDs include cancers, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes and chronic respiratory diseases. Experts say they pose a serious threat to sustainable development and are undermining the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals, given the close association between health and development.

Of the 35 million deaths from NCDs each year, eight out of ten come from middle and low income countries, many of which do not have programmes to tackle the problem.

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