Enugu Govt Advocates Optimal Health of Residents

The Enugu State Government has advocated optimal health of its residents to grow the state Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) and economic base from $4 billion to $30 billion.

The state’s Commissioner for Health, Prof. Ikechukwu Obi, said this in Enugu on Tuesday during the launch of a health book, titled: “Long, Healthy and Happy Living: Key Lifestyle Paths”, written by Prof. Eddy Ndibuagu.

Obi said that the state government had been making massive investments in education and health to ensure an educated, healthy and productive population that would drive the vision of expanding the state’s economy.

“What we are doing here today is health education, which is necessary to equip our people with the necessary knowledge on how to live and maintain a healthy life-style beneficial to individuals and the entire state.

“We have invested massively in health, by ongoing construction of 260 Type-2 Primary Healthcare Centres, international health facilities and expanding existing health facilities and programmes.

“The state government is pursuing a vision to make the state a healthcare hub and health tourism attraction in Africa.

“All these investments and more are to ensure we have a healthy, energetic and productive population to drive a prosperous Enugu State of our dream,” he said.

Dr Martin Chukwunweike, the chairman of the occasion and Chairman of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Enugu State, urged every household in the state to pick a copy of the book as a guide to pathway to healthy living.

The book reviewer, Dr Emeka Ogbuabor, said that the “book is a must read for younger and aging population as it X-rays best and beneficial healthy life-style tips that is workable for all”.

Ogbuabor, who is former Chairman, House Committee on Health, Enugu State House of Assembly, noted that the book, written in simple English, was well-researched, referenced and clinically fact-based for every home in the country.

He said that the book stressed on the need for regular exercise; drinking enough water; and avoiding smoking and substance intake as well as avoiding sugar and energy drinks.

“The book will push us to take a healthy life path and ensure we avoid some mistakes in our lifestyles,” Ogbuabor, who is also a former Head, Department of Health Administration and Management, University of Nigeria, said.

Elaborating, the author of the book, Prof. Eddy Ndibuagu, a Professor of Public Health Medicine, said that he was motivated to write the book owing to his 37 years in medical practise and 27 years of public health physician experiences.

Ndibuagu, who is serving with Enugu State University of Science and Technology (ESUT) Teaching Hospital, noted that people die due to lack of information on healthy living.

“Many people engage in so many things that they do not know are injurious to their health and they adopt it as a life-style and it eventually kills them.

“Incidences of non communicable diseases, which emanate more from people’s personal life-style, are getting rampant among residents within developing and low income countries.

“We needed to educate our people on how best to live and get the best out of life; while living longer and healthier,” Ndibuagu, who is also an online health life coach, said.

Ndibuagu noted that the 12 chapters and 206 pages book contained interesting chapters, which included: Overview of Key Lifestyle Paths; Good Nutrition: Adequate Physical Activities; Avoidance of Harmful substances and Avoidance of Drug Misuse.

Others are: Scheduled Health Status Checkup; Coping with Stress; Sufficient and Quality Sleep; Healthy Relationships and Social Connections; Deliberately Staying Off Risky Habits, Behaviours and Practices; Safety in the Home and Safety at Workplace.

The author said that he was planning to have the book online in Amazon so that everyone in the world especially developing countries should have it, read it and put into practical uses it messages.