Of interest to all Jamaicans should be the report from the Planning Institute of Jamaica’s 2024 Economic and Social Survey that just over 25 per cent of our people have at least one non-communicable disease (NCD).

Such ailments include diabetes, hypertension, stroke, heart attack, etc. They are among the leading causes of death in Jamaica.

As told by this newspaper on Thursday, among the findings of the survey were that in 2024 the three most reported non-communicable diseases in Jamaica were hypertension (15.0 per cent); asthma (7.6 per cent); and diabetes (5.9 per cent).

More than one such disease was said to be afflicting 9.2 per cent of individuals and among the elderly at 38.9 per cent.

No one should be surprised to learn that NCDs pose a significant strain on Jamaica’s economy and households. Nonetheless the projected costs reportedly published by the survey are alarming.

We are told that from 2015 to 2030 such diseases are projected to cost the country more than US$18 billion. That’s more than US$6,000 per capita.

To the great credit of Health and Wellness Minister Dr Christopher Tufton, during his nine years in charge of the health portfolio he has not restricted himself to merely talking about the ravages of non-communicable diseases.

In fact, he has been a virtual crusader urging Jamaicans of all ages to adapt healthy lifestyles, including regular exercise for physical fitness as a way of averting such afflictions.

That commitment to fitness explains Dr Tufton’s launch of the popular Jamaica Moves initiative which, unfortunately, was set back by controversy and the subsequent onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Such proactively organised physical exercise programmes take on added importance, given the growing addiction to rapidly evolving electronic communication/audio visual gadgets.

Increasingly, the captive audience to such gadgets and allied social media goes way beyond young people. The risks to health for people of all ages are crystal clear.

In addition to physical exercise, Dr Tufton, his ministry officials, medical practitioners, and health experts everywhere have also consistently advocated a healthy diet; embracing lowered consumption of sugar, salt, fats, etc, as crucial in the fight against non-communicable diseases.

The avoidance of cigarette smoking and, at most, moderate alcohol consumption, are also vigorously recommended.

As has been said in this space previously, this newspaper believes proactive creation of outdoor spaces such as parks and playing fields to encourage sport and physical exercise should be central in the campaign against NCDs.

Sadly, many schools have very little physical space close at hand for outdoor recreation.

That’s something Jamaicans and their leaders should strive to correct.

However, even in some communities where publicly-owned parks, recreation grounds and playing fields do exist, they are often inadequately utilised or not at all.

In some cases, poor or non-existent local leadership have led to lack of maintenance of such facilities and, worse, their loss to unscrupulous business operators and farmers for whom community interests come last.

Those are issues Jamaicans and their leaders should strive to correct following upcoming elections, always bearing in mind that a fitter, healthier population will save taxpayers money.