By Sola Ogundipe

To commemorate this year’s World Heart Day, on September 29, management of Vanguard Media Ltd, Lagos, organised a blood pressure/weight check for staff of the company. The initiative was in line with the international campaign to spread awareness about heart disease and stroke prevention.

BLOOD PRESSURE CHECK: Health officials from Carlisle Pharmacy, in collaboration with Microlife and Vanguard Media Ltd., carrying out blood pressure and weight checks for Vanguard staff in Lagos in commemoration of World Heart Day on September 29, 2015.

Experts describe the World Heart Day as the perfect day to quit smoking, get exercising and start eating healthy – all in the name of keeping your heart in good working order, and improving your health and well being.

Heart health: It is important to check the heart health regularly because heart disease and strokes are the world’s leading cause of death, killing 17.1 million people every year. In Nigeria an estimated 30-35 percent of the adult population is hypertensive.

Overeating, lack of exercise, unhealthy diets and high blood pressure, cholesterol and glucose levels are all factors which can trigger heart disease and threaten life.

Message to all on the day is that heart problems can be prevented through lifestyle changes and promoting education about ways to be good to your heart.

Lesson: This lesson is becoming increasingly relevant as obesity, poor diet and physical inactivity in children and young people become more common. Tips to maintain good heart health begin with weight management. Being overweight increases risk of heart disease.

Stick to a healthy, balanced diet low in fat and sugar, with plenty of fruit and vegetables, combined with regular physical activity. Don’t forget to check your blood pressure regularly. If your blood pressure is optimal, try to keep it that way.

If your blood pressure is above 140/90mmHg, you will need to lower it. Most adults have blood pressure readings in the range from 120/80 to 140/90. As a general guide, the ideal blood pressure for a young healthy adult is in this region. Lower or higher readings require investigation.

If you consistently have a reading of 140/90 or higher, you may have high blood pressure (hypertension). High blood pressure increases risk of developing adverse health conditions, including cardiovascular disease.

Generally, the lower your blood pressure, the healthier you are. But it’s possible to have abnormally low blood pressure. People with a reading of around 90/60 or lower are generally considered to have low blood pressure. An underlying cause that could need treatment is often responsible.