Stressed Out? See A Psychiatrist To Avoid Hypertension And Diabetes

KUALA LUMPUR, March 1 (Bernama) -- Malaysians undergoing stress are advised to see a psychiatrist to avoid diseases like diabetes and high blood pressure. Head of the Cardiothoracic Unit at the Universiti Malaya Medical Centre (UMMC), Prof Dr Raja Amin Raja Mokhtar said psychiatrists not only cared for patients with mental problems but also provided counselling for individuals undergoing stress. "Stress can cause a person to have diabetes, high blood pressure and practising unhealthy lifestyle habits like smoking," he said after giving a health briefing to Bernama staff, here, Thursday. Dr Raja Amin, who is also UMMC's cardiovascular and thoracic senior consultant surgeon, said stress should be overcome in the best possible way to avoid having the diseases mentioned. He said Malaysians' awareness on the need to undergo health screening was very low compared to people in many other countries. He noted that Malaysia had the highest number of diabetes cases in the world. Hence, he said, health screening was vital for early detection and treatment of diseases to avoid the risk of complications, enabling people to live longer and healthier. "Each person has a different health level, depending on the person's family history, environment, eating habits and daily lifestyle," he said. According to him, Malays made up the highest number in this country with health complications as they had the tendency to seek alternative treatment instead of modern medicine. Dr Raja Amin urged Malaysians to be more proactive in caring for their personal healthcare in order to lead a healthy life. -- BERNAMA