Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a general term for conditions affecting the heart or blood vessels and is a significant cause of disability and death, affecting around seven million people in the UK.
It’s usually associated with a build-up of fatty deposits inside the arteries (atherosclerosis) and an increased risk of blood clots. It can also be associated with damage to arteries in organs such as the brain, heart, kidneys and eyes.
The main types of cardiovascular disease are coronary heart disease, strokes and TIAs, peripheral arterial disease and aortic disease.
Risk factors for cardiovascular disease include high blood pressure, smoking, high cholesterol, diabetes, inactivity, being overweight or obese and family history of CVD.
Another important consideration is a person’s ethnicity. In the UK people of south Asian and Black African or African Caribbean background have an increased risk of getting CVD.
A healthy lifestyle such as stopping smoking, having a balanced diet, exercising regularly, maintaining a healthy weight and cutting down on alcohol, can all lower your risk of cardiovascular disease.
Support for lifestyle changes can be found at: https://www.nhs.uk/better-health/
Get support for a heart or circulatory condition: https://www.bhf.org.uk/informationsupport/support
If you have a particularly high risk of developing CVD due to high blood cholesterol, your GP may recommend taking medicines called statins to reduce your risk.
