Samoa's prime minister, Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi, has told health officials from both American Samoa and Samoa they should be the trend setters in moves to combat non-communicable diseases.
At a health summit in Apia, Tuilaepa said health officials should walk their talk.
He said they should stop eating fatty foods, stay fit, and they should die from old age and not from NCDs.
The prime minister said NCDs such as diabetes, hypertension, heart diseases and cancer have taken many lives in both Samoas but they can be prevented.
"While there are many factors which lead to the development of lifestyle diseases,, the majority are linked to four common risk factors, namely the high level of tobacco use, high alcohol consumption, unhealthy diets,, and inadequate physical activity. Most of these risk factors are entirely preventable."
Samoa's prime minister, Tuilaepa Sailele
