How to prevent chronic diseases

A review in Science examines what policies have proven effective at reducing non-communicable diseases. Hear an interview with the author.

Non-communicable diseases such as cancer and heart disease can be prevented on a large scale through a range of policy measures, conclude researchers in a review published in the journal Science.

The paper brings together evidence from studies of populations and individuals for actions that can be taken to modify disease risk factors. The approaches identified include tobacco and alcohol control through taxes and regulation; reducing dietary risk factors such as high salt and unhealthy fats through pricing, regulation and education; improving availability of fresh fruit and vegetables; and implementing a universal and equitable primary healthcare system.

The major chronic diseases – cancer, heart disease, lung disease and diabetes – account for around two thirds of deaths globally – around 35 million deaths per year.  Over 80 per cent of these deaths are in developing countries.

“There are treatments for some of these diseases but there are some for which we don’t have good treatments,” said lead author Professor Majid Ezzati, from the School of Public Health at Imperial College London. “Even when we have good treatments, for the majority of the world’s population, they’re unaffordable. So the only way to reduce their burden is to focus on prevention.

“When we take everything we’ve learned in the past few decades about the role of specific risk factors and how they have affected disease patterns in populations over time, we can say quite confidently that with a number of doable steps, we can have really large impacts on mortality from a number of non-communicable diseases. We have taken these in some places but there is a lot more to be done.”

An audio interview with Professor Ezzati is available to listen to below.

Reference: M Ezzati, E Riboli. ‘Can Noncommunicable Diseases Be Prevented? Lessons from Studies of Populations and Individuals’ Science 21 September 2012: Vol. 337 no. 6101 pp. 1482-1487 DOI: 10.1126/science.1227001