KARACHI, June 5: The most common health hazard is the persistent problem of infections due to the poor quality of water being supplied to cities and rural areas.

This was stated by Prof (Dr) Riaz Qureshi, chairman of the family medicine department at Aga Khan University, while giving a presentation on "Lifestyle for healthy mind and body" at the monthly health awareness programme "Signs, Symptoms and Care" organized here at the AKU.

He said that the contaminated water might contain harmful chemicals and spread infections like typhoid, gastroenteritis, cholera, Hepatitis A and E. Moreover, he said, it could spread chronic diseases like diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol level and heart problems.

Prof Riaz said that there was a great need for public awareness and government action in order to overcome the problems posed by dirty water.

"Increasing consumption of fast food, soft drinks, late night wedding dinners and lack of exercise only make matters worse," he added. He said that most of such health problems could be solved through collective efforts by people, government and medical professionals.

Steps to prevent and discourage smoking were bound to improve the nation's health and more training sites for family physicians would go a long way in controlling and solving the health problems facing the country, he said.

Demonstrating a relaxation technique, he advised participants of the programme to practice this daily for stress reduction. He pointed out that stress in routine life was one of the major causes of poor health. He said that poor driving and little use of seat belts add to stress in life. Legislation introducing seat belts would save lives, as had been the experience in many countries, he added.

Dr Waris Qidwai, Dr Raheem Dhanani, Dr Firdous Jehan and Dr Marie Andrades also spoke at the programme, which was followed by a question and answer session. -PPI