An endorsement for good health

By Captain Mahmood Al Mahmood

It’s a celeb-obsessed world and sadly, nothing makes us more aware of the need to pay attention to our health or the environment or topics such as road safety than a celebrity endorsement or a public announcement of celebrity suffering.

Newspapers around the world are headlining Kate, the Princess of Wales’ announcement that she has been diagnosed with cancer and this, coming within months of the news of her father-in-law King Charles’ cancer diagnosis, has gripped public sympathy.

It has also made us all aware of how and why we should be proactive in our management of health issues and make time for annual health checks.

In Bahrain, we now have a sophisticated oncology treatment facility in more than one private hospital.

We also have a world-class health screening network accessible to all residents. Sadly, what is missing is awareness. Very few people chalk in a screening for conditions that are treatable if detected early.

Because of the global success of the Think Pink movement, we have some success with women annually doing mammograms and similarly, there has been a slow increase in men doing medical checks for prostate cancer.

We hear a lot about eating the right food and exercising daily. However, there are factors beyond our control which may manifest as illnesses and only a proper screening can detect these in time – a heart check-up, a colon check, a PAP smear, a random blood sugar test, are all weapons in our armoury against a downturn in our health.

Bahrain has carefully and with amazing vision built a worldclass health management system.

As citizens and residents, we all must make wise use of this investment in our Kingdom’s future and remain in top health to serve our country, our community, our family and ourselves.