Heart disease, China's No 1 killer

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is now the leading cause of death in China, warned experts at the 5th Five-Continent International Symposium on Cardiovascular Diseases that concluded on Saturday in Beijing.

Every year, CVD kills 2.6 million people in China, or 300 people on average every hour. The No 1 killer disease in the West, CVD has now become a major epidemic risk in China as well, with the number of people affected increasing by 25 percent annually.

By the end of this year, an estimated 100 million would be diagnosed with heart disease - from tobacco use, sedentary lives and unhealthy diets. CVD costs the nation about $16 billion every year, according to a study presented at the conference.