Charity Focus
A local heart charity is calling on everyone to be heart aware this new year
As we start 2024, Preston based cardiac charity Heartbeat is calling for us all to pay attention to our heart health. February is officially Heart Awareness Month and so it is the perfect time to reflect on how your lifestyle affects your heart.
In the UK there are 7.6 million people living with heart and circulatory disease. In Preston alone there are 15,000 people living with the disease and someone dies from it every 26 hours. For this reason, the charity Heartbeat exists to offer cardiac prevention and rehabilitation exercise programmes for people in Preston and the local areas.
Every week the charity, which receives no government or NHS funding and relies on the goodwill of the public to fund its work, supports nearly 1,000 local people affected with heart, vascular and lung conditions. Heartbeat helps them live longer and healthier lives with the people they love.
Heartbeat’s chief executive, Louise Bache, explains why February is a good time to look at your heart health: “A new year is always a time of reflection and a time to start new healthy habits. Heartbeat is Lancashire’s leading heart charity, we want people to live the healthiest lives they can and minimise the risk of poor health. Small changes to diet, exercise and lifestyle and being aware of your blood pressure can make a big difference.”
Blood Pressure – Check your numbers!
High blood pressure usually has no symptoms, the first sign could be a heart attack or stroke.
Six million people in the UK have high blood pressure and don’t know it. Every day in the UK, 350 people have a stroke or heart attack that could have been prevented.
Checking and knowing your blood pressure could save your life.
Diet
Following a healthy, balanced diet helps make sure that our bodies get all the nutrients needed and can also reduce the risk of diseases like heart disease.
Include a range of fruit and vegetables – at least five a day.
Include plenty of fibre rich foods, especially wholegrains including a range of protein sources.
Choose mainly unsaturated fats and oils and minimise foods and drinks that are high in fat, salt and sugars.
Exercise
Walk a little further, climb the stairs, enjoy the sunshine because aerobic exercise reduces the risk of many conditions including heart disease.
Exercise strengthens the heart helping it to pump blood more efficiently through the body, lowering blood pressure and helping to keep your arteries clear. It also improves your mental health and can reduce anxiety and depression. Getting out and about can also reduce feelings of loneliness and isolation.
To find out more about the charity and its work, visit: heartbeat-nwcc.org.uk
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