It could be all the lemak-based dishes, rich sauces and the love for cooking with coconut milk — the Malay ethnic group has now been dubbed as the unhealthiest population in Singapore.
The Straits Times reports that the latest statistics from the national disease registry has shown that Malays make up a disproportionate number of diabetics and patients with ailments such as kidney failure, heart attacks and strokes.
Today, Malays make up almost a quarter of the country's population on dialysis, even though they make up only 13.5 percent of the population. Kidney transplants in the ethnic group rose from 8.5 percent in 2003 to 10.1 percent last year. Malays are also at significantly higher risk of suffering stroke than other races — men are 1.5 times more likely to be afflicted when compared to Chinese men. Since 2010, they have also surpassed Indians as the population with the highest rate of heart attacks.
Exacerbating the situation is the fact that most Malays are unaware of their conditions compared to other races.
The only major disease which the Malay ethnic group are least likely to get is cancer — a malady more prominent among the Chinese population.
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
It could be all the lemak-based dishes, rich sauces and the love for cooking with coconut milk — the Malay ethnic group has now been dubbed as the unhealthiest population in Singapore.
The Straits Times reports that the latest statistics from the national disease registry has shown that Malays make up a disproportionate number of diabetics and patients with ailments such as kidney failure, heart attacks and strokes.
Today, Malays make up almost a quarter of the country's population on dialysis, even though they make up only 13.5 percent of the population. Kidney transplants in the ethnic group rose from 8.5 percent in 2003 to 10.1 percent last year. Malays are also at significantly higher risk of suffering stroke than other races — men are 1.5 times more likely to be afflicted when compared to Chinese men. Since 2010, they have also surpassed Indians as the population with the highest rate of heart attacks.
Exacerbating the situation is the fact that most Malays are unaware of their conditions compared to other races.
The only major disease which the Malay ethnic group are least likely to get is cancer — a malady more prominent among the Chinese population.
Photo: Wikimedia Commons