High blood pressure affects millions of people in the UK.
It often has no symptoms, and around 1 in 4 adults in the UK have high blood pressure, although many will not realise it.
High blood pressure can increase your risk of:
- heart disease
- heart attacks
- heart failure
- dementia
- strokes
- kidney disease.
The only way to find out if your blood pressure is high is to have your blood pressure checked, which is why we’ve launched our ‘Your heart deserves some love’ campaign, which aims to raise awareness of the importance of getting it checked.
You can get your blood pressure checked at:
- Your GP surgery (some GP surgeries have blood pressure monitors in their waiting rooms)
- Some pharmacies
- During NHS Health Checks (for adults aged 40-74).
If you’re a healthy adult aged 40 to 74, and live in England or Wales, you’ll be invited to a free NHS Health Check every 5 years, which will include a blood pressure check.
Making healthy lifestyle changes can also help to reduce our chances of getting high blood pressure, such as:
- reducing our weight if we are overweight or obese
- monitoring and reduce our salt intake
- being more active
- drinking less alcohol
- smoking less.
For more information about high blood pressure, visit the NHS website. If you have any concerns, please contact your GP.