Chronic Disease Prevention | Manitoba Healthy Living, Youth and Seniors

Cardiovascular diseases, diabetes and cancer cost the Canadian economy more than an estimated $55 billion every year. This represents the major and growing component of health care costs. The most common chronic diseases include:

cardiovascular disease;
diabetes;
cancer;
chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD);
asthma; and
mental illness (including depression, stress and anxiety).

There are, however, some activities that could help prevent or delay the onset of chronic disease. Here are several ways that individuals, families and communities, among others, can do their part to reduce their risk:

	Individuals eating more fruits and vegetables eating foods containing less fat quitting smoking
	Families watching less television going for walks or bike rides preparing and eating meals together
	Communities developing walking or biking trails promoting active and safe routes to schools developing community gardens sponsoring health fairs promoting community use of schools or shopping malls outside of operating hours
	Governments developing health promotion and disease prevention programs develop public policy, legislation, standards and guidelines to support chronic disease prevention

If you are concerned about your risk of developing a chronic disease, consult your physician or health care provider for more information.