KUWAIT CITY, Oct 13: The Ministry of Health, represented by the Sabah Al-Ahmad Cardiac Center, launched an awareness campaign on heart diseases and their risk factors on Sunday, themed "Healthy Heart for a Bright Future," in collaboration with the Kuwait Heart Association.

Ahmad Al-Sarraf, the conference chairman and head of the Lipid Diseases Unit at Sabah Al-Ahmad Cardiac Hospital, as well as a member of the Kuwait Heart Association, stated in a press release that the campaign's activities will continue throughout the week to educate the public about the dangers of high blood sugar, obesity, hypertension, and high cholesterol.

He also mentioned that a one-day international conference was held alongside the campaign, focusing on heart diseases and atherosclerosis, discussing prevention methods and raising community awareness regarding the risks associated with these conditions, which are significant contributors to mortality worldwide. Al-Sarraf highlighted that statistics show approximately four thousand people in Kuwait die each year due to these diseases.

Furthermore, he noted that 50 percent of Kuwaitis experience elevated blood fat levels, and Kuwait has the highest rates of obesity and being overweight in the Arab world, with overweight individuals constituting 75 percent of the total population. The campaign features various awareness activities at the Avenues Mall aimed at educating the public about the importance of health screenings and preventing heart disease and atherosclerosis.