Killer ‘we
must |
arrest at
once’

WANTED: Information leading to the arrest
of public enemy No 1—coronary heart disease,

the greatest killer in

New Zealand history.

REWARD: A longer, healthier life.

Dr D. S. Frederickson, who
has some of the answers,
arrived in Christchurch from
the United States yesterday to
continue his inquiries. As
inaugural lecturer for the
National Heart Foundation of
New Zealand, he hopes to
allow the public to claim the
reward.

But the people’s co-opera-
tion is essential.

“We know a Iot about
coronary heart disease already,
but there is a lot more to be
learned about what has to be
done to defeat it,’ Dr Fred-
erickson said.

“The answer Is to get
cracking with prevention.
Transplants and surgical treat-
ment will never be an answer
to it. We have conquered the
infectious diseases—now it is
time to take a look at the
chronic variety.”

In world heart disease rank-

 

ings, New Zealand rates
fourth behind Finland, Scot-
land and the United States—
and the problem is increasing.
Factors contributing to this”
in order of importance are
high blood pressure, high
blood cholesterol and other
fats, cigarette smoking and
diabetes.

TOO MUCH.

“Too much blood cholesterol,
a fatty product manufactured
in the body tissues, is a big
factor. Nobody. knows the
ideal proportion of cholesterol
to blood but it is probably
something like 150m of chol-
esterol to 100ml of blood,’’ he
said.

“The average New Zealand-
er has a proportion of about
230 mg to 100 ml of blood.”

Dr Frederickson advocates
more closely supervised diets
and regular exercise as two
of the main means of com-
bating heart disease.

Exercise does not necessarily
thwart coronary trouble, but
it does give the person who
has it more chance of surviv-
ing the eventual cardiac arrest,
he says.

“So while you are waiting
for your first heart atttack, it
would be wise to get yourself
in the best possible physical
shape,” he advised.

Statistics had proved that
the person who smoked a
packet of cigarettes a day had
a 70 per cent greater likeli-
hood of having a premature

jheart attack than the non-
‘jsmoker,

 
smoker, - |
NOT SURE

“The number of people who
have heart attacks which are
related to smoking is much
greater than those who suffer
from lung cancer,’’ said Dr
Frederickson, who himself
smokes a pipe.

“The problem today is that
we are not exactly sure what
we want everyone to do. While
that is being found out, special
attention is being paid to those
Iwith high risks.”

He said more intensive
screening for such risks was
needed. It was essential that
everyone between 25 and 30
had one cholesierel and blood]
fat test. .

If abnormal, there were
things which could be done to
correct this — especially diet
eontrel and drugs.

Heart disease killed more
people before the age of 65
than any other factor — it had
to be stopped early, Dr Fred-
erickson said.

REPORT, PAGE 14.