NHS England South East has launched a new public awareness campaign about the dangers of high blood pressure and untreated hypertension.
Over 300,000 people in the region are understood to have elevated blood pressure, completely unbeknown to them.
Dr Mohit Sharma, consultant in public health and Cardiovascular Disease (CVD) lead in the South East said: “High blood pressure does not usually have any symptoms, so the only way to find out if you have it is to check your own blood pressure or to get it checked.
“Healthy adults aged over 40 should have their blood pressure checked at least once every 5 years. However, if you’re at an increased risk of high blood pressure, you should have your blood pressure checked more often, ideally once a year.
He added: “Over 50% of heart attacks and strokes are associated with high blood pressure. Lowering your blood pressure by just 10 mmHg can cut your risk of stroke by over 25%. Changes to lifestyle, through diet and exercise, can help with this.”
The NHS’s ten-week public awareness campaign uses powerful and poignant films, featuring local survivors of stroke. The videos show that such life changing events could be avoided if people are aware of the risk from uncontrolled high blood pressure.
Cecilia’s Story
Cecelia had a stroke aged 43 which had a major impact on not just her own life but that of her family. “I had early signs of high blood pressure but didn’t do anything about it. One evening after work, I started feeling unwell, feeling very dizzy. Next thing I knew I woke up on the ward, lost my speech and couldn’t move my right side – I was in hospital for quite a while.
“The recovery process was long, but I was supported by a range of clinical professionals – going for walk, a few steps at a time. Sometimes I think we expect our GPs and nurses to spot the signs for us, but actually we all should take more responsibility to find out and manage our own blood pressure to avoid this happening to more people unnecessarily. “
Cecelia now volunteers at local Stroke Association community groups running art classes and other events as she is determined to help others.
Cecelia’s film highlights the need to raise awareness and threat from high blood pressure to younger people than those originally thought susceptible. Younger women aged 40 – 60 have been shown to be more at risk and people from different ethnic communities.
Hypertension Heroes
The campaign also features volunteers Susan and Ian from the Hypertension Heroes project in Kent and Medway who go out to different community events to talk to people about the risks of high blood pressure and how they can get it measured.
Building on the success of previous charity collaboration on the Know Your Numbers campaign last Autumn, the Stroke Association have played an important part in making this campaign happen.
As a general guide:
Everyone’s blood pressure will be slightly different. What’s considered low or high for you may be normal for someone else.
Cecilia’s Story teaser
Hypertension Heroes teaser
Know Your Numbers
Dr Mohit Sharma, consultant in public health and Cardiovascular Disease (CVD) lead in the South East