It is estimated that around 12 million people in Vietnam currently suffer from high blood pressure, meaning that one in every five Vietnamese adults have a condition that can cause a number of serious health problems, Vietnamplus reported.
The warning was announced at a conference on the prevention of cardiovascular diseases and hypertension held on Tuesday in Hanoi by the General Department of Preventive Medicine under Vietnam's Ministry of Health.
Truong Dinh Bac, deputy head of the department, said that non-communicable diseases (NCDs) account for 66 percent of the country's disease burden, of which cardiovascular disease, chronic lung disease, cancer and diabetes are the most prevalent.
The likelihood of cardiovascular disease tends to increase due to factors such as smoking, alcohol abuse, inadequate nutrition and lack of physical exercise, Bac said.
A large number of young people are suffering from hypertension due to alcohol abuse, stress and a diet that includes too much meat and fat and not enough fruit and vegetables.
According to a survey conducted by the Ministry of Health in 2015, among the estimated 12 million people living with hypertension, nearly 60 percent had not been diagnosed and over 80 percent had not been treated.
At the same time, up to 79 percent of people at risk from cardiovascular diseases had not sought professional help.
Hypertension is the leading cause of strokes and heart attacks that cause hundreds of thousands of deaths and disabilities every year.
In order to address the challenges posed by high blood pressure, Vietnam has started taking measures to manage hypertension, diabetes and other NCDs in local health facilities by adding prevention, early detection and integrated disease management services.
According to the Vietnam National Heart Institute, during the 2011-2015 period, more than 2 million people aged over 40 were screened in 1,179 communes and wards nationwide.
A total of 365,000 high blood pressure cases were found, some 49.8 percent of which were detected for the first time.