SINGAPORE – The National University of Singapore’s Saw Swee Hock School of Public
Health will conduct a study to assess the health status and health-related
lifestyle habits of Singaporeans and permanent residents aged 18 to 79
years. Starting this end of July, the
“Singapore Health 2012″ survey aims to reach more than 3,000 participants.
It will gather data on
participants’ health, lifestyle, diet, exercise, as well as their use of
tobacco, alcohol and medicines. It will also cover sleep quality, sun exposure,
weight history and cognition.
This is the first time that the
school is conducting such a survey and it hopes to do so on an annual basis.
The survey, which is supported by
the Ministry of Health (MOH) supplements MOH’s six-yearly National Health
Survey (NHS) and will provide estimates of health status and health-related
lifestyles during years when the NHS is not being conducted.
This will allow the ministry and
researchers at the Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health to monitor health
trends more closely and get up-to-date information about Singaporeans’ health.
Such close monitoring will be
useful in tracking and understanding the changes in important health conditions
and health behaviours.
Those who have been invited to
take part in the survey will undergo interviews about their health and
lifestyle habits, and health services utilisation.
They will then attend free health
screenings, after which part of the test results will be sent to them by post.
Consenting participants will also have their blood, DNA and urine samples drawn
and stored for research purposes.
The school says closer monitoring
of health trends will allow researchers to understand how quickly health
problems like obesity and smoking are growing in Singapore and identify
population segments in which the problem is greatest.
Such information will be useful
in the development and implementation of health promotion programmes to help
Singaporeans live active, healthy lives.
Assistant Professor Dr Lim
Wei-Yen said: “We hope that this survey will help us take the pulse of health
in Singapore as our society rapidly evolves.
“The results will enable us to
observe how well Singaporeans are progressing in efforts to improve their
health and allow more timely responses to changing patterns of health and
disease in the community.”
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