Fear drives many Kenyans to early grave, says study

Most Kenyans will usually postpone a visit to the doctor until pain strikes.

A survey by Ipsos Synovate has revealed that fear prevents most Kenyans from seeking health services, especially the screening of lifestyle diseases.

The study examined the regularity of health checks among Kenyan adults for cancer, diabetes and hypertension.

In July this year, President Kibaki also underscored the need to intensify educational programmes that promote screening, noting that the incidence of cancer in Kenya is increasing at an alarming rate.

However, this recent poll points at a low uptake of screening services in health facilities countrywide, yet lifestyle diseases account for higher death rates than malaria, Tuberculosis and Aids combined.

Men are afraid

More women in Central and Nairobi provinces have been tested for both breast and cervical cancer compared to those in Western, Rift Valley and Eastern, the study shows.

Kenyans living in urban areas are more likely to have been tested for the three conditions compared to those in rural areas, mainly because of awareness campaigns and the availability of services at health facilities.

The survey noted that nine in 10 women of reproductive age have never tested for breast cancer while an almost similar proportion, 92 per cent, are yet to be tested for cervical cancer, another common killer of women worldwide.
The situation is just as grim for men, according to the survey.

More women than men go for testing for the three conditions. Some 58 per cent of women have never been tested for high blood pressure, against 89 per cent of the men.

Health experts advise that men over the age of 45 are likely to get prostate cancer depending on their family history, diet and lifestyle but the study shows “96 per cent of men aged over 45 years had never been tested for this disease”.

Kenya Cancer Association vice-chairperson David Makumi attributed the difference to a variance in the pursuit of health by men and women.

“A woman will typically go to hospital at the earliest opportunity of detecting that she is unwell, whereas the man will buy time and will only seek help when pain persists,” Mr Makumi said.

Women also have more opportunities for screening at health facilities, for example during pregnancy or when they take their children to hospital, Mr Makumi added.

A woman will most likely openly discuss her ailment with the doctor, even on reproductive matters, than the man would, he noted.

Campaigns for both breast and cervical cancer have been more aggressive, compared to that of prostate cancer, hence the greater number of women tested, Mr Makumi said.

Dr James Munene, the head of cardiology at Kenyatta National Hospital, called for a shift from sedentary to active lifestyles in order to ward off heart diseases.

“Some of the benefits of physical exercises include the control of your weight, a stable blood pressure and embracing a healthy lifestyle of nutritional foods,” he told Saturday Nation on Friday.

The cardio-thoracic surgeon pointed at fear of the unknown as the main factor that prevents men from undergoing screening in health facilities.

Dr Munene noted that excess caloric intake from fast foods resulted in the body’s inability to process the excess fats, leading to an increase in weight.

Intra-abdominal fat

Walking and cycling, he said, will delay the onset of lifestyle diseases such as diabetes, cancer and cardiovascular diseases that are a result of eating unhealthy foods and exposure to other environmental factors.

Large waists and wide hips signal accumulation of ‘intra-abdominal fat’ — harmful deep ‘hidden’ fat that surrounds abdominal organs — and is linked to Type 2 (adult onset) diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease.

Economic transition, rapid urbanisation, unhealthy diets and lack of physical exercise associated with modern lifestyles have been blamed for the increased prevalence of lifestyle diseases.

“These findings suggest a policy failure in the current awareness and prevention strategies being employed to tackle this disease,” Ipsos Synovate managing director Maggie Ireri said.

The survey was conducted countrywide in July this year with 2,000 respondents interviewed.