Heart Health Starts with Knowing Your Risk Factors

Start with your own health information

Heart and blood-vessel disease is linked to factors including tobacco use, unhealthy diet, physical inactivity, raised blood pressure, raised cholesterol and diabetes. Knowing your results helps you discuss risk more clearly than guessing from symptoms alone.

Bring previous test reports, your medicine list and relevant family history to your consultation. Ask your doctor which checks are appropriate for your age, history and symptoms. A screening test is useful when it answers a clinical question; everyone does not need the same set of investigations.

Choose changes that can last

A balanced eating pattern with vegetables, fruit, pulses and whole grains supports heart health. Reducing excess salt and foods high in saturated fat can help with risk reduction. Physical activity and stopping smoking are also important parts of prevention.

Ask for advice on an activity level that suits your current health, particularly if you have symptoms or an existing heart condition. Continue prescribed blood-pressure, cholesterol or diabetes treatment as directed, and discuss side effects rather than stopping medicines yourself.

Make follow-up useful

• Ask what your blood pressure, cholesterol and blood-sugar results mean.
• Agree on one or two realistic changes to start with.
• Check when you should return and which reports to bring.
• Tell your clinician about new symptoms instead of waiting for the next planned review.