For many, it is easier to imagine a man in the urban slum of Kibera, Kenya dying of AIDS than of heart stroke. Although infectious diseases are indeed prevalent in the region, there is another class which is often overlooked - non-communicable diseases.
NCDs such as cardiovascular disease, cancer, chronic lung diseases and diabetes are the leading causes of death in all the developing regions with the exception of sub-Saharan Africa, where infections, malnutrition and infant mortality still dominate.
The prevalence of NCDs in developing countries could be the result of a series of environmental, social and structural changes, which lead to a longer lifespan as countries shift from agrarian to more industrialized societies. "The longer lifespan and the aggressive marketing of unhealthy lifestyles like tobacco, sedentarism and diet to this