Doyin Okupe, a former presidential aide who died last Friday after a prolonged battle with cancer, had in November last year revealed how he battled several health challenges including sleep apnea.
In an interview with Arise TV, the 72-year-old politician said he struggled with hypertension, diabetes, sleep apnea, and fatty liver disease due to his weight.
Okupe said after losing weight, he experienced a dramatic improvement in his health. The physician said his blood pressure medication decreased, and he no longer needed medication for diabetes.
He said the sleep apnea which he battled with for 10 years disappeared, and he was able to stop using a CPAP machine.
Okupe also emphasised the dangers of being overweight, calling it a “killer disease more harmful than many other health issues”.
“My losing weight was actually a blessing in disguise, and I would like to share this with Nigerians. It is unbelievable,” he said.
“Prior to my illness, I was taking five different drugs every day for hypertension. I was taking two, sometimes three drugs for diabetes. I had what they call sleep apnea, in which case, when you are sleeping, you just stop breathing.
“I was just a bundle of pathology. I had fatty liver. But when I lost weight, my blood pressure drugs dropped to one. I am no longer even taking any drugs for diabetes, and my blood sugar is normal. My sleep apnea disappeared.
“I have been sleeping with what they call a machine called CPAP (continuous positive airway pressure) for the last ten years. It was like a piece of furniture by my bedside.
“My fatty liver disappeared. Being overweight is the most dangerous killer disease. More than any infirmity in actual fact.”
Okupe also encouraged Nigerians to take their health seriously, particularly when it comes to managing weight.
“And I want to really ask people. I did not lose weight by design. It was unfortunate. But thank God, God has a way of doing his things,” he said.
“I spent two hundred and something thousand dollars every month to buy drugs. Today, I do not even spend thirty. I use only one or two drugs a day.
“So, you know, we kill ourselves by having so much weight. And I would advise that if you do have weight, even losing as much as ten percent will reset your body. You know, and that is a message that I would like to pass for us all to take care of.”
Okupe served as special assistant on media and publicity to former President Olusegun Obasanjo. He was also a senior special assistant on public affairs to ex-President Goodluck Jonathan.
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