Red Feb: Heart Disease Month

By Dr Amy Harkness, of Bulli Medical Practice

Heart disease is Australia’s leading cause of death with 17,500 deaths attributed to heart disease in 2018. It is often seen as a disease that mostly affects men and can be overlooked in women, but almost every hour of every day an Australian woman dies of heart disease.

Risk Factors

Many Australians don’t know that they have coronary heart disease until they get angina (chest pain) or experience a heart attack (which can be life-threatening). The best way to know (and manage) your risk is to have a regular check-up with your GP.

Risks factors you can influence include: smoking; high cholesterol; high blood pressure; physical inactivity; diabetes; being overweight
or obese.

Risks factors you can’t control include: age (as you get older, your risk of heart disease increases); gender (men have a higher risk of heart disease, but women’s risk grows and may be equal to men after menopause); ethnic background (people of some origins have higher risk, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people also have higher risk); family history (if someone in your family has cardiovascular disease, speak to your GP about how that affects your risk).

Prevention

You can minimise your risk of heart disease by ensuring you lead a healthy lifestyle including: eating a low-fat, low-salt and low-sugar diet, with increased plant-based foods and lean protein; exercising for at least 30 minutes every day; minimising stress.

Visit your GP to keep track of your heart health indicators including cholesterol levels, blood pressure, weight, sugar levels and waist circumference.

For more information about heart disease, visit Heart Health Australia and The Heart Foundation.