Irish Heart Awareness Month

As part of Irish Heart Awareness Month, September has been dedicated to raising awareness about the importance of maintaining a healthy heart and ways you can adopt a healthy lifestyle.

You can visit the Irish Heart How to keep your heart healthy - Irish Heart to learn more about how your heart works, or check out the digital content below for ways you can keep your heart healthy.

Challenges & Events

Step your way to a Healthy Heart

Healthy Eating for a Healthy Heart

Complementary Health Check

Know your NUMBERS

Your blood pressure is a measure of the force that your heart uses to pump blood around your body.

The first step to improving your blood pressure is to first know it. Your blood pressure is measured in millimetres mercury and is given as 2 figures:

Systolic Pressure | the pressure when your heart pushes blood out

Diastolic Pressure | the pressure when your heart rests between beats

Click here to learn more about blood pressure and why it is so important to know your blood pressure.

*Keep a look out for details of free blood pressure checks during September.

Healthy EATING for a healthy heart

A healthy diet can benefit your heart!

By having a well-balanced healthy diet, not only can it stop you from gaining weight, but it can also help reduce high blood pressure and help lower your cholesterol levels.

Click here to learn more about the different types of food that make up a healthy balanced diet.

*Keep a look out for details of free nutritional advice during September.

STRESS and your heart

Stress alone won’t cause heart and circulatory diseases, however if you turn to unhealthy habits such smoking, eating junk food, not keeping active your risk increases.

This is because these unhealthy habits can lead to high cholesterol, high blood pressure and Type 2 diabetes. These are risk factors that increase your risk of heart and circulatory diseases such as heart attack and stroke.

Click here to learn more about how stress can impact your heart and some practical stressbusters.

Let’s get ACTIVE

Getting regular physical activity is one of the most important things you can do to improve your overall health and help maintain a healthy heart.

Physical activity can help reduce your risk of heart and circulatory disease. It can also help you control your weight, reduce blood pressure and cholesterol and improve your mental health – helping you to look and feel great.

Click here to learn more about how keeping active can support your Physical health, Mental health, & Social health

Healthy WEIGHT, healthy heart

Reaching and keeping to a healthy weight cuts your risk of heart and circulatory diseases. Being overweight means that your heart has to work harder to pump blood around your body. This extra pressure can cause wear and tear on your heart and blood-vessel system.

Click here to learn more about weight management and get some top tips for losing weight.

*Keep a look out for details of free weight and BMI checks that will be available during September.

ALCOHOL and your heart

Too much alcohol can raise blood pressure and weight, increasing risk of a heart attack, stroke and type 2 diabetes.

Drinking less alcohol is just one of the ways you can reduce your risk of high blood pressure which is the top risk for stroke.

Click here to learn more about the recommended maximum weekly limits for men and women.

How much SALT is too much salt?

Our bodies need a little bit of salt to stay healthy, however too much salt can raise your blood pressure which, like high cholesterol, leads to heart attacks and strokes.

Click here to learn more about how much salt we should be consuming daily and ways to manage or reduce your salt intake.

SMOKING and your heart

Smoking is a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease, including heart attack and stroke.

Stopping smoking is the single most important step you can take to live longer and protect your heart.

Click here to learn more about the benefits of quitting smoking.

Help SAVE a life

Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) is a simple skill that can help save a life.

CPR is a vital step in the chain of survival after a cardiac arrest. If you have been taught CPR, you are 10 times more likely to respond appropriately in an emergency.

Click here the hard and fast rule when it comes to performing CPR.