The Seventh-day Adventist Church is currently engaged in a five-week evangelistic crusade, but for the better part of Sunday, October 20th, the focus was on health when the church hosted a successful health fair under the big tent in The Valley.
Throughout the course of the day, many passersby took advantage of the opportunity to have free medical checks including blood pressure, blood sugar, BMI and dental screening, etc. The fair also featured lectures on cancer. Obstetrician & Gynecologist, Dr. Kareema Matthews was on hand to speak on breast cancer, while General Surgeon, Dr. Alex Rakovets spoke on prostate cancer.
With October being Breast Cancer Month, Dr. Matthews informed the gathering that breast cancer was the most common form of cancer among women with approximately 2.1 million women being affected annually. She said that, according to WHO statistics, about 600,000 women died of breast cancer in 2018. She noted that incidences of breast cancer increase with age and all women were at risk. She, therefore, encouraged women to make sure that they examine themselves regularly. She guided them through the process of self-examination and advised them to see their gynecologist annually for preventative checks.
Dr. Rakovets noted that prostate cancer incidents increase as men get older, due mainly to decreased sexual activity. He stressed the fact that men needed to be aware that their health is their personal responsibility, noting that all men are prone to contract prostate cancer.
Dr. Rakovets stated that one of the key ways to prevent any kind of cancer was to be careful about what is put inside the body, since many of the items that are bought in supermarkets contain ingredients that are not fit for human consumption — and which create an environment for cancer cells to thrive. He added that, as a consequence, particular attention must be paid to diet, and men should have their walnut-size prostate gland checked regularly for any bumps, lumps or enlargement.
With its focus on promoting the total wellbeing of mankind, the Seventh-day Adventist Church takes a holistic approach to the service of humanity — concerned not with just the spiritual aspect of life, but also the social, physical, and medical facets.
The Anguillian spoke with Pastor Howard Simon during the fair. He was asked why was it so important to organize a health fair in the midst of an evangelistic crusade. He responded: “It is more than integrating health in the crusade. We believe in the health aspect of humanity, and we believe that God desires us to be healthy, so we must do all we can to take care of our health. God wants us to live our best life here in good health so that we can effectively serve Him. So we need to take charge of our health and take care of our bodies.”
The Pastor outlined the church’s 8-prong approach to good health: “The Seventh-day Adventist Church is always in the practice of promoting good health especially through the right diet and exercise. We have what is called a ‘NEW-START’ programme which is an acronym for Nutrition, Exercise,Water, Sunlight, Temperance, Air, Rest and Trust in divine power for health. This is part of our agenda as a church. We call these the eight preventative doctors, and if we use them well we believe that we can agenda our own health.”
Elder Keith Smith is the Senior Elder of the local churches on the island. He had the task of organizing the health fair as part of a certification programme for all church elders. He said: “Today I am truly impressed with our sessions on health. We have had so many persons checked in to our various stations for health checks.
“We want the public to know that even as we are interested in their spiritual state — the salvation of their souls — we are just as interested in their health and physical well-being. We want them to know that we love everyone of them, we care about their health, and so they can embrace us as their friends.”
– Staff Reporter, James R. Harrigan
