WHO: Too Many People Dying from Non-Communicable Diseases

 

From VOA Learning English, this is the Health & Lifestyle report.

The World Health Organization (WHO) says progress is being made in reducing deaths from non-communicable diseases (NCDs). But it says much more needs to be done to save the almost 40 million people who die every year from preventable causes.

In a new report, the WHO noted¹ that cardiovascular and chronic² respiratory diseases, cancers and diabetes³ are the biggest killers⁴ of people. Every year, the report said, 15 million adults die before they reach old age. It noted they often die in the most productive period of their lives, between the ages of 30 and 70.

The agency says tobacco use, the harmful use of alcohol, unhealthy diets and lack of physical activity are some of the top reasons for premature⁵ death.

Douglas Bettcher is the WHO director for the prevention of non-communicable diseases. He says little progress is being made on cutting premature death from such diseases by one-third by the year 2030. That is a Sustainable Development Goal for United Nations member countries.

“The window of opportunity to save lives is closing. This is playing out before our eyes in many ways, including increasing numbers of people -- particularly children and adolescents -- suffering from obesity⁶, overweight and diabetes. If we don't take action now to protect people from NCDs, we will condemn⁷ today’s and tomorrow’s youth to lives of ill-health and reduced economic opportunities.”

Bettcher says premature deaths from non-communicable diseases are not just a problem for rich countries.

“Eighty percent of the deaths are in countries that are already often stressed, their health systems are stressed with the usual -- the conventional burdens of disease, communicable diseases, maternal-child health problems. And, then this is an added, extremely large burden for the health system.”

The WHO report says Costa Rica and Iran are at the top of a list of 10 countries that have been most successful at reducing deaths from non-communicable diseases. It says six countries have failed to make any progress against such deaths.

Five of the six are in Africa. They are Angola, Equatorial Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Sao Tome Principe and South Sudan. The sixth country is Micronesia in the western Pacific.

And that’s the Health & Lifestyle report. I’m Anna Matteo.

Words in This Story

non-communicable – adj. not able to be passed to another person

cardiovascular – adj. of or relating to the heart and blood vessels⁸

chronic – adj. continuing or occurring again and again for a long time

respiratory – adj. of or relating to breathing or the organs of the body that are used in breathing

diabetes – n. a serious disease in which the body cannot properly control the amount of sugar in your blood because it does not have enough insulin

adolescent – n. a young person who is developing into an adult; a young person who is going through adolescence⁹

obese¹⁰ – adj. very fat; fat in a way that is unhealthy

stressed – adj. having a lot of pressure

conventional – adj. used and accepted by most people; usual or traditional

1 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

2 chronic   

adj.(疾病)长期未愈的，慢性的；极坏的

参考例句：

• Famine differs from chronic malnutrition.饥荒不同于慢性营养不良。
• Chronic poisoning may lead to death from inanition.慢性中毒也可能由虚弱导致死亡。

3 diabetes   

n.糖尿病

参考例句：

• In case of diabetes, physicians advise against the use of sugar.对于糖尿病患者，医生告诫他们不要吃糖。
• Diabetes is caused by a fault in the insulin production of the body.糖尿病是由体內胰岛素分泌失调引起的。

4 killers   

凶手( killer的名词复数 )； 消灭…者； 致命物； 极难的事

参考例句：

• He remained steadfast in his determination to bring the killers to justice. 他要将杀人凶手绳之以法的决心一直没有动摇。
• They were professional killers who did in John. 杀死约翰的这些人是职业杀手。

5 premature   

adj.比预期时间早的；不成熟的，仓促的

参考例句：

• It is yet premature to predict the possible outcome of the dialogue.预言这次对话可能有什么结果为时尚早。
• The premature baby is doing well.那个早产的婴儿很健康。

6 obesity   

n.肥胖，肥大

参考例句：

• One effect of overeating may be obesity.吃得过多能导致肥胖。
• Sugar and fat can more easily lead to obesity than some other foods.糖和脂肪比其他食物更容易导致肥胖。

7 condemn   

vt.谴责，指责；宣判(罪犯)，判刑

参考例句：

• Some praise him,whereas others condemn him.有些人赞扬他，而有些人谴责他。
• We mustn't condemn him on mere suppositions.我们不可全凭臆测来指责他。

8 vessels   

n.血管( vessel的名词复数 )；船；容器；（具有特殊品质或接受特殊品质的）人

参考例句：

• The river is navigable by vessels of up to 90 tons. 90 吨以下的船只可以从这条河通过。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• All modern vessels of any size are fitted with radar installations. 所有现代化船只都有雷达装置。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

9 adolescence   

n.青春期，青少年

参考例句：

• Adolescence is the process of going from childhood to maturity.青春期是从少年到成年的过渡期。
• The film is about the trials and tribulations of adolescence.这部电影讲述了青春期的麻烦和苦恼。

10 obese   

adj.过度肥胖的，肥大的

参考例句：

• The old man is really obese,it can't be healthy.那位老人确实过于肥胖了，不能算是健康。
• Being obese and lazy is dangerous to health.又胖又懒危害健康。