The Western Command (WESCOM) forces in the Philippines conducted a Lifestyle Diseases Awareness Seminar on October 14. The seminar, which took place at Headquarters in Puerto Princesa City, Palawan, was intended to raise awareness among personnel about the dangers of living an unhealthy lifestyle.

WESCOME invited medical experts as resource speakers. They presented lectures on lifestyle diseases. These include heart disease, stroke, obesity, diabetes and various diseases associated with smoking, alcohol and drug abuse.

On Thursday, the Philippines rebuffed the accusations that it indulged in manipulating population data so as to support a contentious family planning crusade.

The majority of the populace in the nation is a stern Roman Catholic follower.

A conservative Academician, Bernardo Villegas has accused that the numbers given by the Government's office cushioned the 2000 poll data by 146,542 newborns, which led to increased future populace projections.

The national health insurance program to be held on October 2 aims at covering thousands of individuals under the insurance plan. It is a collaborative effort of the Department of Health and PhilHealth and is especially for the impoverished and marginalized people.

DoH and PhilHealth are hoping to enroll 55,300 new members across the region, as told by Edgardo Gonzaga, DOH Region 8 Director. He added that the effort is an outcome of President Benigno Aquino III's orders to achieve universal PhilHealth coverage in three years.

The latest reports confirm that on Thursday, the police authorities have seized mineral deposits that have been taken from the gold rush area situated in the barangay Didipio in the town of Kasibu.

The Provincial Government had earlier issued orders to stop the smuggling of the deposits from barangay Didipio, as it was deemed in Kasibu town to be a profitable business by the villagers and buyers. Further, the smuggling business has gained popularity since the extracted gold is known to have the best characteristics in the international market.

A Social Weather Stations (SWS) released the results of a survey that was conducted earlier showing that 55% of the Filipino population does not have any health insurance policies, where 87% of them stated that they expect the Government to provide them with the health insurance even if they do not afford it.

This survey revealed that 25% of the participants taking part in this survey stated that they do not go to a hospital and that they do not consult a doctor when they are sick. Among this percentage, 24% could not afford buying a medicine.

The latest reports claim that the death toll in Philippines due to dengue has risen drastically. As per the figures, the number of deaths recorded due to dengue fever has reached 534 up till now.

As per the Department of Education, a total of 118 deaths of school children have been recorded.

The officials claimed on Wednesday that the rise in the cases is as much as 40%, as against the last year.

The Department of Health divulged that as many as 383 people had died in the previous year between January 1 and September 4.