INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
On most days, she barely leaves her bed
She lives with her only son and his wife, who were worried about her being alone in a village in the north-eastern district of Sylhet.Many
parents, who then end up having to follow their children to the metropolis, a place they can find inhospitable and strange.Quick GuideA
common conditionShowThe human toll of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) is huge and rising
Instead, they are caused by a combination of genetic, physiological, environmental and behavioural factors
Approximately 80% are preventable, and all are on the rise, spreading inexorably around the world as ageing populations and lifestyles
pushed by economic growth and urbanisation make being unhealthy a global phenomenon.NCDs, once seen as illnesses of the wealthy, now have a
diagnosed accurately or treated.Investment in tackling these common and chronic conditions that kill 71% of us is incredibly low, while the
are seeing a fraction of the money needed being invested or donated
Attention remains focused on the threats from communicable diseases, yet cancer death rates have long sped past the death toll from malaria,
TB and HIV/Aids combined.'A common condition' is a Guardian series reporting on NCDs in the developing world: their prevalence, the
solutions, the causes and consequences, telling the stories of people living with these illnesses.Tracy McVeigh, editorThank you for your
feedback.Doctors recommended that Khan walks for 45 minutes a day to manage her diabetes and high cholesterol but she is scared to venture
flat, which is the limit of her world most days
I have no friends, no husband
image in fullscreenPedestrians are forced to walk among the traffic while roadworks are undertaken in Dhanmondi, Dhaka, Bangladesh
in a way that caters for all
Younger generations come for the jobs, bringing their parents to ensure they are cared for but day-to-day life can be a challenge in a
country where 70% of deaths were caused by NCDs in 2019.For elderly and less mobile people, uneven or nonexistent sidewalks make navigating
The situation is not helped by traders setting up businesses on the sides of busy roads, a lack of pedestrian crossings and buses which
rarely stop long enough for older people to board.I feel stressed when I go outside, all the cars and the rickshaws
All the trafficMohammed Bodi-Uz Zaman, 85Traffic rules are flouted, including by rickshaws that cut through pedestrian areas and race the
Agricultural University in Mymensingh but settled in Dhaka after retiring on the insistence of his family, who did not want him to stay
alone in his village, about seven miles from Dhaka.Zaman occasionally goes to the village to visit his relatives but much of his day is
balcony but misses the freedom he enjoyed in the countryside
allergies that mean that he would benefit from regular walks
quality of life.She says she has seen elderly people choose to go for walks in car parks even when a public park is nearby because they fear
where the car is going to park and how the car is going to move through the city
pollution, including a day when it was declared the most polluted city in the world
She suggests a state of emergency should be imposed in Dhaka because of pollution, and recommends the city has car free days, as well as
This article first appeared/also appeared in theguardian.com
