Health Statistics

 
Pacific peoples are a high risk population with regard to heart attack, stroke and blood vessel diseases:

• Mortality rate is higher than European

• Highest death rate from stroke

• 48 per cent of Pacific women and 27 per cent of Pacific men are obese (high risk
  factors for diabetes, coronary heart disease, high blood pressure, osteoarthritis and some cancers)

• 62 per cent of Pacific children aged between 5-14 years are obese

• Diabetes prevalence for Pacific people is twice that of Europeans

• One in three Pacific peoples smoke (smoking increases the risk of heart disease two to three times)

• Rates of smoking are higher in lower socio-economic groups, increasing both the
  burden of disease and the rate of premature death of Pacific peoples

• Smoking is the most preventable cause of suffering and premature death. Lowering the smoking rates within Pacific communities will significantly contribute to reducing inequalities in health outcomes.

(NZ Health Strategy 2001)