Public Health England is urging everyone over 30 to take an online heart age test to assess their risk of heart attack or stroke. The test estimates a person's 'heart age' based on lifestyle factors, and officials predict that up to 80% of heart attacks and strokes in people under 75 could be prevented if heart health improved.
Almost two million people have already taken the test, with 78% discovering their heart age is higher than their actual age. Of those, 34% were more than five years older and 14% at least ten years older. Each year, more than 84,000 people in England die from heart attack or stroke.
The test is not diagnostic but aims to act as a wake-up call. David, a 59-year-old from Plymouth, was shocked to learn his heart age was ten years older than him. He said: 'The worst moment was being told my heart is 10 years older than me and that my life expectancy was shortened.' After joining a gym, cutting alcohol and eating more healthily, he has lost two stone and reduced his BMI by six points.
Key risk factors include obesity, poor diet, lack of exercise and high blood pressure. The test offers personalised advice, such as quitting smoking, doing at least 150 minutes of moderate exercise weekly, and eating more than five portions of fruit and vegetables daily. One year after quitting smoking, heart disease risk halves.
Dr Matt Kearney from NHS England said the test has 'potential to help millions of people'. Juliet Bouverie of the Stroke Association noted that around six million people in the UK are undiagnosed for high blood pressure or atrial fibrillation, two major stroke risk factors. Maureen Talbot, Senior Cardiac Nurse at the British Heart Foundation, advised anyone concerned about their heart age to speak to their GP.
