Positive steps to keep Australian hearts beating

Jacquelyn Curtis

17 October 2006: A presentation by the National Heart Foundation outlining positive steps to avoid heart disease was part of a health week at the University.

Combined with the Red Cross Donormobile’s visit to campus, National Ride to Work day and a ‘pedal power’ seminar to promote cycling during spring; the University has promoted a range of health issues to staff and wider community over the last week.

Poor nutrition is bad for your heart

Sally Williams, a dietician and representative from the National Heart Foundation, presented a seminar outlining risk factors attributed to heart disease, which she described as “a huge problem in Australia”.

Ms Williams said cardiovascular disease was “not just a middle-aged overweight men’s condition”.

“It is our biggest killer,” she said. “Heart attack and stroke are the main causes for death from cardiovascular diseases and they are responsible for more deaths than any one cancer.”

Cardiovascular disease refers to a group of conditions that affect the heart and blood vessels. They include hypertension, coronary heart disease, arrythmias and atherosclerosis – a condition that can lead to blood clots.

Smoking, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, poor nutrition and physical inactivity have been identified by the Heart Foundation as risk factors for cardiovascular disease.

“I think people need to know what can happen,” Ms Williams explained. “Many people have cardiovascular disease or have a family member who has had a heart attack, but they often don’t know exactly how it was caused.”

The Heart Foundation’s new ‘Just Walk It’ initiative is designed to promote the benefits of physical activity for reducing the risk of heart disease, and the Heart Foundation ‘tick’ seen on many food products encourages consumers to make ‘healthy heart’ food choices.

“Reducing cholesterol can lower the risk of illness or heart disease by 30 to 50 per cent,” Ms Williams said.

“A tiny decrease in cholesterol and you’re getting a huge difference in the risk factor.”