Unhealthy lifestyle calls for government intervention
THE privilege of citizens, particularly government servants, to subsidised or free healthcare should not be totally unconditional. But the terms and conditions must not be as rigid as insurance policies.
The fact that Malaysia is the “fattest” country in Asia proved that many people are incapable of controlling their food intake on their own.
It warrants government intervention.
The Health Ministry should be congratulated for taking the initiative, which will save huge sums of taxpayers’ money.
Doubling the current number of government hospitals and clinics, which are already bursting at their seams, would not be enough if Malaysians continue with unhealthy lifestyle of over-eating and under-exercising.
We take pride in our Malaysian food, made delicious and appetising with a generous doze of oil, salt, sugar, spice and artificial flavouring and colouring.
This is made worse with eating too much of our favourite foods when our body needs what we don’t eat or too little, such as vegetables and fruits.
Horrendously, food is washed down with over-sweetened teh tarik or cold drinks that are equivalent to several teaspoons of sugar. Plain hot water is seldom provided with catered meals. We need to be cruel to be kind. But implementation must be tempered with compassion as the objective is to rehabilitate, not punish.
Those found obese or suffering from non-communicable diseases should be given the opportunity to undergo rehabilitation, while those who refuse or make no attempt to do so will have their jobs terminated.
This is already provided for in many jobs in the private sector, such as commercial vehicle drivers.
They are required to pass medical examinations every year before they can renew their commercial vehicle driving licences.
But this is poorly enforced, resulting in a large number of commercial vehicles being handled by drivers with health issues and are a danger to other road users and themselves.
If the Health Ministry’s initiative is well implemented, the first beneficiaries would be the government servants, who would otherwise join the ranks of being obese and unfit.
Life is a great equaliser. We can choose to enjoy our food now with wild abandon and suffer the consequences later, or discipline ourselves with the right diet and regular exercise, and enjoy a healthy and happy life with our loved ones.
Such a transformation must be led by the government, and large corporations would follow suit, with the rest coming on board later.
This will make a better, healthier and happier Malaysia.
If not, there would be untold sufferings by those who fall ill, bringing countless miseries to their families.