Heart disease, stroke and diabetes continue to be in the top ten leading causes of deaths in Guam since the beginning of the 90’s and all throughout this decade.   These chronic diseases share common risk factors to include being overweight or obese, having high blood pressure, blood cholesterol and blood sugar, living sedentary lifestyles, using tobacco, and having a poor diet. Focusing on primary prevention strategies to combat the development of these diseases has proven to limit and stop the tremendous physical, psychological and financial burdens that it entail.

The Chronic Disease Prevention and Control Program (CDPCP), under the auspices of the Bureau of Nutrition Services, aims to provide primary prevention strategies, through evidenced- based practices, in an effort to increase awareness, knowledge, and understanding on heart disease, stroke, and diabetes and its preventable and common risk factors such as high blood pressure, high blood sugar, high total cholesterol, being overweight or obese, having inadequate nutrition and physical inactivity, and tobacco use; and by increasing knowledge and understanding on various healthy behaviors that could lead to the prevention and control of these diseases.

The purpose of CDPCP is to provide an islandwide focus for primary prevention, through lifestyle intervention activities that promote healthy behaviors through 2010.

Emphasis is given to developing and implementing primary prevention activities to continue informing and educating the community in the escalating problems of chronic diseases upon the generations of our island population such as providing free health screening services to identify common and multiple risk factors for these diseases; mobilizing partnership to enhance and expand the services that are provided in the face of decreased funding; and monitoring health status of the community to assist in developing evidenced- based projects and activities.

For more information regarding the program, you may contact:

Lawrence O. Alam
Program Coordinator IV
(Preventive Health and Health Services Block Grant Coordinator)
(Guam Youth Safety Education Program Coordinator)
Lifestyle Disease Prevention and Control Section
Bureau of Nutrition Services
Tel: 671-475-0284
Fax:671-477-6472
E-Mail: lawrence.alam@dphss.guam.gov