The NHS is urging people to take a simple 30-second test to determine their risk of a dangerous heart attack or stroke. This free online tool can calculate your “heart age” and, therefore, your chances of an associated health problem.
Posting on social media platform X, the health body warned: “If your heart age is older than your actual age, you could be at increased risk of having a heart attack or stroke.
“Your heart age gives you an idea of how healthy your heart is.”
The NHS calculator will compare your real age to your heart age by asking questions about your health.
Afterwards it provides an insight on how to improve your heart age by making some healthy lifestyle changes.
This calculator is suitable for you if you:
- Are aged 30 to 95
- Do not have a condition that affects your heart or blood vessels (a cardiovascular disease)
- Live in the UK.
Details the calculator will ask include your:
- Weight
- Height
- Blood pressure
- Cholesterol.
The NHS added: “You can still use this calculator if you do not have your blood pressure or cholesterol details but the results may be less accurate.” Cardiovascular health, which encompasses heart attacks and strokes, is a huge issue in the UK – with cardiovascular disease responsible for around a quarter of all deaths every year.
Last year the British Heart Foundation (BHF) reported that early cardiovascular disease deaths were at a 14-year high in England. In 2022, more than 39,000 people died prematurely of cardiovascular conditions including heart attacks, coronary heart disease and stroke.
This was an average of 750 people each week and the highest annual total since 2008. The charity warned that this was partly due to a rise in associated risk factors.
It said: “Millions of people are living with undiagnosed risk factors, such as high blood pressure, raised cholesterol, and diabetes, and nearly two thirds of adults in England have a weight classed as overweight or obese. This is storing up huge problems for the future.”
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The NHS lists risk factors for heart attacks and strokes as:
- Smoking
- A high-fat diet
- Diabetes
- High cholesterol
- High blood pressure (hypertension)
- Being overweight or obese
- Irregular and fast heartbeats (atrial fibrillation).
To calculate your heart age, visit nhs.uk/health-assessment-tools/calculate-your-heart-age. If you are concerned about your heart health or risk of a heart attack or stroke you should talk to your GP.