NCDs – Questions With Verified Solutions
Nutrition Correct Answer - Central to preventing NCDs like
diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, cancers, and obesity.
Unhealthy diets Correct Answer - High in salt, sugar, trans fats,
and refined carbs; key drivers of NCDs.
Protective dietary patterns Correct Answer - Dietary patterns
like Mediterranean, DASH, and whole-food plant-based diets that
reduce risks of hypertension, CVD, cancer, and obesity.
Food-Based Dietary Guidelines (FBDGs) Correct Answer - Aim
to promote healthy, locally relevant eating patterns to prevent both
under- and overnutrition.
Risk assessment Correct Answer - Involves evaluating
modifiable (e.g., smoking, diet, inactivity, alcohol) and non-
modifiable factors (e.g., age, genetics).
Clinical tools of risk assessment Correct Answer - Include
history, BMI, BP, glucose, and cholesterol screening.
Nutrition and lifestyle counselling Correct Answer - Effective
in reducing metabolic risks such as obesity, hypertension, and
hyperglycaemia.
WHO Best Buys Correct Answer - Strategies including:
reducing tobacco use,
harmful alcohol use,
unhealthy diet,
physical inactivity, and managing cancer and cardiovascular disease.
,Obesity Correct Answer - Has tripled globally since 1975,
including a tenfold increase in childhood obesity.
Drivers of obesity Correct Answer - Urbanisation, processed
food availability, reduced physical activity,
high intake of energy-dense, nutrient-poor foods,
low breastfeeding rates, and early introduction of poor-quality
complementary foods.
Obesity in South Africa Correct Answer - Contributes to 7% of
total deaths and 2.9% of DALYs (Disability-adjusted life year)
Disease Burden of NCDs Correct Answer - Increases risk of
disability, premature death, loss of productivity, economic strain on
families, and demand for chronic care in health systems.
Economic cost of NCDs Correct Answer - Costs the global
economy $2 trillion annually; in South Africa, ~6.7% GDP loss in
2015.
Return on investment in prevention Correct Answer - Every $1
spent on prevention offers a $7 return.
5 Major Cardiovascular Risk Factors Correct Answer -
Hypertension,
Dyslipidaemia (elevated non-HDL cholesterol),
Smoking,
Diabetes mellitus,
Abnormal body mass index (BMI).
CVD risk at age 50 Correct Answer - Presence of all five major
risk factors increases lifetime CVD risk to 38% in men and 24% in
women
, CVD-free life expectancy Correct Answer - Absence of all five
major risk factors extends life expectancy by 10.6 years in men and
13.3 years in women.
Modifiable risk factors Correct Answer - Hypertension,
Smoking,
Dyslipidaemia,
Diabetes (type 2),
Obesity.
Non-modifiable risk factors Correct Answer - Age
Sex
Genetics
Family history
Lifestyle-based interventions Correct Answer - Include
DASH/Mediterranean diet,
regular physical activity (≥150 min/week),
smoking cessation,
weight loss, and
alcohol moderation.
Pharmacological interventions Correct Answer - Include
antihypertensives (e.g., ACE inhibitors),
statins for dyslipidaemia,
aspirin for high-risk groups, and glucose-lowering therapies in
diabetics.
SA/LMIC Correct Answer - High number of CVD deaths,
Poor risk factor control because of limited access to prevention,
diagnosis and treatment,
Higher fatality and disability rates,
younger individuals and women increasingly affected
Nutrition Correct Answer - Central to preventing NCDs like
diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, cancers, and obesity.
Unhealthy diets Correct Answer - High in salt, sugar, trans fats,
and refined carbs; key drivers of NCDs.
Protective dietary patterns Correct Answer - Dietary patterns
like Mediterranean, DASH, and whole-food plant-based diets that
reduce risks of hypertension, CVD, cancer, and obesity.
Food-Based Dietary Guidelines (FBDGs) Correct Answer - Aim
to promote healthy, locally relevant eating patterns to prevent both
under- and overnutrition.
Risk assessment Correct Answer - Involves evaluating
modifiable (e.g., smoking, diet, inactivity, alcohol) and non-
modifiable factors (e.g., age, genetics).
Clinical tools of risk assessment Correct Answer - Include
history, BMI, BP, glucose, and cholesterol screening.
Nutrition and lifestyle counselling Correct Answer - Effective
in reducing metabolic risks such as obesity, hypertension, and
hyperglycaemia.
WHO Best Buys Correct Answer - Strategies including:
reducing tobacco use,
harmful alcohol use,
unhealthy diet,
physical inactivity, and managing cancer and cardiovascular disease.
,Obesity Correct Answer - Has tripled globally since 1975,
including a tenfold increase in childhood obesity.
Drivers of obesity Correct Answer - Urbanisation, processed
food availability, reduced physical activity,
high intake of energy-dense, nutrient-poor foods,
low breastfeeding rates, and early introduction of poor-quality
complementary foods.
Obesity in South Africa Correct Answer - Contributes to 7% of
total deaths and 2.9% of DALYs (Disability-adjusted life year)
Disease Burden of NCDs Correct Answer - Increases risk of
disability, premature death, loss of productivity, economic strain on
families, and demand for chronic care in health systems.
Economic cost of NCDs Correct Answer - Costs the global
economy $2 trillion annually; in South Africa, ~6.7% GDP loss in
2015.
Return on investment in prevention Correct Answer - Every $1
spent on prevention offers a $7 return.
5 Major Cardiovascular Risk Factors Correct Answer -
Hypertension,
Dyslipidaemia (elevated non-HDL cholesterol),
Smoking,
Diabetes mellitus,
Abnormal body mass index (BMI).
CVD risk at age 50 Correct Answer - Presence of all five major
risk factors increases lifetime CVD risk to 38% in men and 24% in
women
, CVD-free life expectancy Correct Answer - Absence of all five
major risk factors extends life expectancy by 10.6 years in men and
13.3 years in women.
Modifiable risk factors Correct Answer - Hypertension,
Smoking,
Dyslipidaemia,
Diabetes (type 2),
Obesity.
Non-modifiable risk factors Correct Answer - Age
Sex
Genetics
Family history
Lifestyle-based interventions Correct Answer - Include
DASH/Mediterranean diet,
regular physical activity (≥150 min/week),
smoking cessation,
weight loss, and
alcohol moderation.
Pharmacological interventions Correct Answer - Include
antihypertensives (e.g., ACE inhibitors),
statins for dyslipidaemia,
aspirin for high-risk groups, and glucose-lowering therapies in
diabetics.
SA/LMIC Correct Answer - High number of CVD deaths,
Poor risk factor control because of limited access to prevention,
diagnosis and treatment,
Higher fatality and disability rates,
younger individuals and women increasingly affected
