On the occasion of World Health Day, Indus Health Plus, trend report revealed that people in Maharashtra are susceptible to diabetes (27 per cent) vitamin B12 deficiency (23 per cent), dyslipidemia, (17 per cent), obesity (13 per cent) followed by heart diseases (10 per cent) and anaemia (10 per cent). The key non-modifiable risk factor is the genetic makeup of an individual favoured by environmental, age, gender, stress and physiology, metabolism, which increases the onset and progression of lifestyle diseases. The overall sample size for the study was 21500 people who underwent preventive health check-ups October 2019 – February 2021.From Mumbai, the total sample size was 2978 people.

Amol Naikawadi, JMD, and Preventive Healthcare Specialist Indus Health Plus said, “Diabetes and cardiovascular diseases are prevalent in India. These diseases tend to impact people in the most productive years of their lives and result in social and economic consequences.”

The trend report highlights that females are prone to anaemia (23 per cent), dyslipidemia (20 per cent) as compared to males. Males are at higher risk of diabetes (27 per cent), vitamin B12 deficiency (21 per cent) and heart ailments (14 per cent).

The main focus of people should be on wellness and prevention of lifestyle diseases and to create a culture of healthy living among the younger generation. The best way to minimise the cost of treating lifestyle diseases is to invest in preventive healthcare, which accounts for fraction of the money spent on curative steps.