Cardiovascular Disease
Cardiovascular Diseases (CVDs) are the global number one cause of death per year, killing around 17.7 million people in 2015, predicted to increase to 23.3 million by 2030. Overall CVD is estimated to cost the UK economy 19 billion - 46% direct healthcare costs, 34% productivity losses and 20% to informal care of people with CVD. CVDs include:
Heart attacks and strokes are usually acute events and mainly caused by a blockage that prevents blood flowing to the heart or brain. The most common reason for this is a build-up of fatty deposits in the inner walls of the blood vessels that supply the heart or brain. Strokes can also be caused by blood clots in the brain or bleeding from a blood vessel. The cause of heart attacks and strokes are usually the presence of a combination of risk factors, such as tobacco use, unhealthy diet and obesity, physical inactivity and harmful use of alcohol, hypertension, diabetes and hyperlipidaemia. Signs and symptoms of elevated risk for developing a CVD include:
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- Coronary Heart Disease (CHD)
- Cerebrovascular Disease (Stroke)
- Peripheral Arterial Disease.
Heart attacks and strokes are usually acute events and mainly caused by a blockage that prevents blood flowing to the heart or brain. The most common reason for this is a build-up of fatty deposits in the inner walls of the blood vessels that supply the heart or brain. Strokes can also be caused by blood clots in the brain or bleeding from a blood vessel. The cause of heart attacks and strokes are usually the presence of a combination of risk factors, such as tobacco use, unhealthy diet and obesity, physical inactivity and harmful use of alcohol, hypertension, diabetes and hyperlipidaemia. Signs and symptoms of elevated risk for developing a CVD include:
- Elevated Total Cholesterol level - Over 5.2mmol/l
- Elevated LDL Cholesterol - Over 3.3mmol/l
- Reduced HDL Cholesterol - Less than 1.0mmol/l
- Elevated Triglyceride level - 1.70mmol/l
- Elevated Blood Pressure - Systolic Blood Pressure over 120mmHg and/or Diastolic BP over 80mmHg
- Unhealthy diet
- Overweight/obesity
- Physical inactivity
- Tobacco use
- Harmful use of alcohol
Hypertension (High Blood Pressure)
Normal Blood Pressure and Control
A constant flow of blood is necessary to transport oxygen to the cells of the body (and remove Carbon Dioxide). The blood vessels, particularly arteries, maintain an average blood pressure of around 90mmHg (millimetres of Mercury). The pressure in the arteries fluctuates between systole and diastole:
Hypertension
Elevated blood pressure is estimated to cause 7.5 million deaths worldwide, that is around 12.8% of all total deaths. It was prevalent in around 40% of adults aged 25 and over in 2008, rising from 600 million in 1980 to nearly 1 billion in 2008. In the UK hypertension is prevalent in 31.5% of men and 29.0% of women 16 years or older. Diastolic pressure is more commonly elevated in people younger than 50. Systolic hypertension becomes a more significant problem with age, with at least 25% of adults (and more than 50% in those older than 60) have high blood pressure. This is more often than not due to progressive stiffening and loss of compliance of larger arteries due to atherosclerosis and/or arteriosclerosis.
Elevated blood pressure is a major risk factor for coronary heart disease and ischaemic as well as haemorrhagic stroke. Blood pressure levels are positively and continuously related to the risk for coronary heart disease and stroke. For example, each 2mmHg rise in systolic pressure is associated with a 7% increased risk of mortality from coronary heart disease and a 10% increased risk of mortality from stroke. In some age groups, risk of cardiovascular disease doubles for each increment of 20/10mmHg of blood pressure. In addition to coronary heart diseases and stroke, complications of raised blood pressure include heart failure, peripheral vascular disease, renal impairment, retinal haemorrhage and visual impairment. However, treating elevated systolic and diastolic blood pressure until they are less than 140/90 mmHg is associated with a reduction in all of the above cardiovascular complications.
Factors that raise your risk of hypertension include:
Unfortunately, hypertension often doesn’t cause any obvious signs or symptoms. Which is why it is estimated that up to 5 million people in the UK have undiagnosed high blood pressure. However, there can be certain symptoms to look out for, which include:
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A constant flow of blood is necessary to transport oxygen to the cells of the body (and remove Carbon Dioxide). The blood vessels, particularly arteries, maintain an average blood pressure of around 90mmHg (millimetres of Mercury). The pressure in the arteries fluctuates between systole and diastole:
- Systole - the pressure in the arteries increases as the heart pumps blood into the system,a s the pressure increases, the elastic walls of the arteries stretch - This wave of pressure can be felt as a pulse in certain arteries close to the body’s surface e.g. radial artery and carotid artery.
- Diastole - the pressure in the arteries falls as the elastic arteries recoil, this recoil pushes blood from the arteries, through smaller and smaller blood vessels and into the tissues.
Hypertension
Elevated blood pressure is estimated to cause 7.5 million deaths worldwide, that is around 12.8% of all total deaths. It was prevalent in around 40% of adults aged 25 and over in 2008, rising from 600 million in 1980 to nearly 1 billion in 2008. In the UK hypertension is prevalent in 31.5% of men and 29.0% of women 16 years or older. Diastolic pressure is more commonly elevated in people younger than 50. Systolic hypertension becomes a more significant problem with age, with at least 25% of adults (and more than 50% in those older than 60) have high blood pressure. This is more often than not due to progressive stiffening and loss of compliance of larger arteries due to atherosclerosis and/or arteriosclerosis.
Elevated blood pressure is a major risk factor for coronary heart disease and ischaemic as well as haemorrhagic stroke. Blood pressure levels are positively and continuously related to the risk for coronary heart disease and stroke. For example, each 2mmHg rise in systolic pressure is associated with a 7% increased risk of mortality from coronary heart disease and a 10% increased risk of mortality from stroke. In some age groups, risk of cardiovascular disease doubles for each increment of 20/10mmHg of blood pressure. In addition to coronary heart diseases and stroke, complications of raised blood pressure include heart failure, peripheral vascular disease, renal impairment, retinal haemorrhage and visual impairment. However, treating elevated systolic and diastolic blood pressure until they are less than 140/90 mmHg is associated with a reduction in all of the above cardiovascular complications.
Factors that raise your risk of hypertension include:
- family history
- age – risk increases as you get older
- being overweight or obese
- high amount of salt in your diet
- lack of exercise
- regularly drinking large amounts of alcohol
- smoking
- long-term sleep deprivation
- being of African or Caribbean origin
Unfortunately, hypertension often doesn’t cause any obvious signs or symptoms. Which is why it is estimated that up to 5 million people in the UK have undiagnosed high blood pressure. However, there can be certain symptoms to look out for, which include:
- Chest pain
- Pounding in your chest, neck or ears
- Severe headache
- Difficulty breathing
- Irregular heartbeat
- Blood in the urine
- Vision problems
- Fatigue or confusion
Coronary Heart Disease
Coronary Heart Disease (CHD) is one of the main types of Cardiovascular Disease (CVD). Although CHD death rates are falling, CHD is still one of the major causes of death globally; 7.4 million in fact (6.7 million due to stroke), especially in Western countries such as the UK. In fact CHD is one of the main UK causes of premature death (prior to age 75), 73,000 deaths in fact. Every 7 minutes someone in the UK has a heart attack, every 12 minutes someone has a stroke. Over 1.6 million men and over 1 million women are living with CHD, with 1.2 million men and 900,000 women living with chronic angina.
CHD is the term that describes what happens when your heart's blood supply, the Coronary Arteries, are narrowed or blocked by a build-up of fatty deposits, called atheroma, in the lining of the arteries. This process is known as atherosclerosis and happens over time. The cause of CHD is usually the presence of a combination of risk factors, similar to all CVDs, such as:
If you believe that you might have Coronary Heart Disease then you should seek medical advice. There are also many ways CANN may be able to assist in reducing your risk factors and prevention of CHD. From simple dietary and lifestyle changes to supplements.
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CHD is the term that describes what happens when your heart's blood supply, the Coronary Arteries, are narrowed or blocked by a build-up of fatty deposits, called atheroma, in the lining of the arteries. This process is known as atherosclerosis and happens over time. The cause of CHD is usually the presence of a combination of risk factors, similar to all CVDs, such as:
- Unhealthy diet
- Overweight/obesity
- Diabetes
- Physical inactivity
- Tobacco use
- Harmful use of alcohol.
- Elevated Total Cholesterol level - Over 5.2mmol/l
- Elevated LDL Cholesterol - Over 3.3mmol/l
- Reduced HDL Cholesterol - Less than 1.0mmol/l
- Elevated Triglyceride level - 1.70mmol/l
- Elevated Blood Pressure - Systolic Blood Pressure over 120mmHg and/or Diastolic BP over 80mmHg7
- Elevated Glycated Haemoglobin (HbA1c) - over 7.5%
- Elevated Fasting blood glucose – over 5.5mmol/l
If you believe that you might have Coronary Heart Disease then you should seek medical advice. There are also many ways CANN may be able to assist in reducing your risk factors and prevention of CHD. From simple dietary and lifestyle changes to supplements.
