Fiji National University Chancellor Ikbal Jannif yesterday said medical practitioners should practice in living it out with the right diet and exercise to set a good example.

“You must change yourself, your lifestyle first before you teach others to change because we need to set a good example for others to follow,” Mr Jannif said.

Mr Jannif was addressing the staff and students of the Fiji School of Nursing and was advocating on the fight against Non Communicable Diseases (NCDs).

The businessman admitted being a diabetic for over 15 years and said when it came to non-communicable diseases, the nation needed to work hard and work smart.

“We need to control NCDs because if we don’t, soon the NCDs will start to control us and our lives,” Mr Jannif said.

He said one of the many issues he had faced was getting simple but the right advice.

“Advice in a non-medical term is much easier for all Fijians to understand,” Mr Jannif said.

“When we are out amongst our people talking about NCDS, we need to make sure we avoid using medical terms as not many people would be able to understand.”

Edited by Rusiate Mataika

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