US,Washington:Majority of the US population having high cholesterol levels are not receiving the required treatment, reveals a large international study.Most of the people in the United States lack medications needed to lower the risk of developing cardiovascular diseases like heart attack and stroke, the study found.
“Cholesterol-lowering medication is widely available, highly effective and can play an essential role in reducing cardiovascular disease around the world,” said co-author, Gregory A Roth, from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation in USA.
“Despite this, effective medication coverage for control of high cholesterol remains disappointingly low.”
Researchers believe that this could be one of the leading factors leading to the rising epidemic of such chronic diseases.
147 million people studied
The study involved 147 million people from England, Germany, Japan, Jordan, Mexico, Scotland, Thailand, and the United States.
Seventy-eight percent of the adults having high cholesterol levels in Thailand have not yet been diagnosed, according to the data.
On the other hand, 53 percent of the Japanese participants were left untreated in spite of being diagnosed with high levels of cholesterol.
"Untreated high blood cholesterol represents a missed opportunity in the face of a global epidemic of chronic diseases. Many of these people — living in England, Germany, Japan, Jordan, Mexico, Scotland, Thailand and the United States of America — are unaware that they need treatment, which is easily accessible in the form of low-cost medicines,” according to the study published in the 'International Public Health Journal,' the bulletin of the World Heath Organisation (WHO).
High cholesterol affecting more people in poor countries
As revealed by the study data, high cholesterol is affecting many people in poor countries as compared to people in rich countries.
The main cause behind the rising epidemic of cholesterol in such nations is not being tested for blood cholesterol, blood pressure, and blood sugar levels in poor countries.
“Second, their health systems are either weak or accessing health systems is quite expensive in countries and it is not in all countries that access to health care is affordable," Dr. Shanthi Mendis, Coordinator of the WHO’s Chronic Diseases and Health promotion division, said.
Avoiding tobacco, indulging in regular physical activities, and adapting to healthy diets can prove highly effective in preventing disorders like heart disease and stroke, the researchers added.
