HEALTHY HEARTS: Do you know your numbers?
Did you know that untreated high blood pressure and high cholesterol significantly increases your risk of having a heart attack or stroke?
When did you last have your blood pressure or cholesterol checked?
Our community has a high percentage of people living with undiagnosed high blood pressure, which is also known as hypertension. We also have a high percentage of people living with undiagnosed high cholesterol and other heart conditions like Atrial Fibrillation and Cardiac Arrhythmia. These are all part of what is called cardiovascular disease.
To support our community to have healthy hearts and reduce our risk of developing cardiovascular disease, we are working with our local NHS to raise awareness of the importance of knowing what your blood pressure and cholesterol numbers are and how you can get tested.
The only way to find out if you have high blood pressure is to get it checked! Many pharmacies offer free quick and easy blood pressure checks for people aged 40 or over.
The NHS Health Check also offers a free check-up of your overall health. It can tell you whether you’re at higher risk of getting certain health problems, such as:
- Heart disease
- Diabetes
- Kidney disease
- Stroke
During the check-up you’ll discuss how to reduce your risk of these conditions. The NHS Health Check is for anyone aged 40 to 74 who does not have any of the following pre-existing conditions:
- Heart disease
- Chronic kidney disease
- Diabetes
- High blood pressure (hypertension)
- Atrial fibrillation
- Transient ischaemic attack
- Inherited high cholesterol (familial hypercholesterolemia)
- Heart failure
- Peripheral arterial disease
- Stroke
- Currently being prescribed statins to lower cholesterol
- Previous checks have found that you have a 20% or higher risk of getting cardiovascular disease over the next 10 years
The good news is many of the risks that increase heart disease can be controlled, treated or changed. There are many healthy choices we can make every day to help keep our hearts healthy. Find more information from the British Heart Foundation.
What is your heart age?
If you are over 30, you can use the NHS heart calculator which can give you an idea of how healthy your heart is. Check your heart age here
(https://www.nhs.uk/health-assessment-tools/calculate-your-heart-age)
Talk to us! We want to know if there is anything preventing you from being able to check or monitor your blood pressure or cholesterol numbers. You can chat to us by email at [email protected].
Forum CIO would appreciate if you took the time to complete the following survey about Cardiovascular Disease: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/3GZDD8R
