HEALTHY LIVING: Act now before it's too late, says David
LORRY driver David Hutchinson is the first to admit that it took a heart attack to spur him into making the change towards a healthier lifestyle.
Now he just wishes he'd done something sooner - to save him from suffering one in the first place.
Out have gone the fatty snacks and sitting down in the cab all day, and in have come three mile daily walks and healthy meals.
The 62-year-old from Hartshill wants to share his story as part of the Treasure Your Heart campaign - being run during the National Heart Month of February - to encourage other people to act now before it's too late.
Trouble began last May when David started suffering from what he believed was indigestion. He put up with it for most of the day before going to bed.
But when he woke up in the night he was experiencing extreme chest pains and had to call an ambulance. Paramedics carried out an ECG and confirmed that he had suffered a heart attack.
At the Northern General Hospital a stent was fitted to open up the artery where it had narrowed and caused blood to stop flowing to his heart.
After three days in hospital he was allowed home - but the road to recovery was still a long one stretching ahead.
"When I got home I realised just how debilitating a heart attack is," he said.
"I couldn't even walk around the house, I was so exhausted all the time. It was a month before I started feeling a bit better. Obviously it also affected my ability to work too."
For some patients they have some prior warning that they are at risk - perhaps having already been diagnosed with angina or high cholesterol.
But for David it came completely out of the blue.
He said: "I'd never been ill in the past and considered myself reasonably healthy.
"I had been told my blood pressure was a bit high, but not so much that I needed to do anything about it. I walked regularly, but being a lorry driver meant it was not always possible to exercise when you wanted, or eat the healthiest option.
"Since the heart attack I have changed my lifestyle significantly. I walk at least three miles a day, I've stopped drinking alcohol and I've cut down on high fat foods - even things I love like cheese.
"As a result I've lost two stone, I've walked over 600 miles and I feel as well now as I did before it happened.
"The treatment I got in hospital was great and the rehabilitation programme explained what had happened and helped me get on a ladder to better health.
"I learnt how to lead a healthier lifestyle so I can now make more informed decisions about what I eat and the exercise I do. I only wish tsomebody had told me this four years ago and maybe I wouldn't have hade the heart attack.
"I always think your body is just like a machine - you wouldn't expect your car to work if you put the wrong fuel in, never put air in the tyres or failed to give it a regular MOT. I think it's the same for your body, think about what you put inside it and how you keep it in good working order and you'll make sure you get the best from it."
He added: "It's great to hear that Heart Research UK is helping to promote the Healthy Heart message in Sheffield.
" I'd encourage everyone to listen to the advice that's on offer and don't take your heart health for granted."Treasure your heart campaign spreads the message
THE Treasure Your Heart campaign starts today and runs until Friday - spreading the Healthy Heart message across the city.
Heart Research's qualified Lifestyle team will be travelling to schools, workplaces, leisure centres and the streets talking to the people they meet there about how to take care of their heart health.
The campaign takes on a pirate theme in Sheffield's schools - where pupils will receive a free pirate-themed pack full of activities centred around the Healthy Heart message.
Those taking part include Oughtibridge Primary School, Stocksbridge Junior School, Greenhill Primary School, Ashdell Prep School, Woodhouse West Primary School, Springfield Primary School and Hunters Bar Junior School.
Healthy Heart checks will also be taking place with staff at Lupton Fawcett law firm in the city centre, Beaverbrooks at Meadowhall, Big Yellow / Armadillo storage and Abbeydale Garden centre.
Members of the public will get their chance to have a heart MOT with Heartbeat on the Street which takes place in the city centre on Friday.
Sports stars will also be taking part, when members of the Sheffield Sharks basketball team are also given the once over tomorrow.
And Leon Taylor, Olympic silver medallist diver who lives in Sheffield, said:
"As an athlete I know how important it is to lead a healthy lifestyle by eating well and taking regular exercise.
"It's great that the Heart Research UK team is visiting Sheffield to help everyone, from school kids to shoppers, learn about how they can improve their heart health and protect themselves against heart disease."
Whilst in the city representatives from Heart Research will also be collecting old, broken and unwanted jewellery to be sold by Bonhams the auctioneers, raising money for their Treasure Chest campaign.
Any items are welcome - from odd earrings and costume jewellery to broken watches and beads. It doesn't have to be expensive.
HEART DISEASE: THE FACTS
The big nine risks for a heart attack - which account for more than 90 per cent of the risk of an initial heart attack - are, in order of importance: smoking, unhealthy cholesterol levels, psychosocial factors like depression and stress, high blood pressure, a high waist measurement, physical inactivity, diabetes, alcohol, eating insufficient fruit and vegetables.
By stopping smoking you can halve your chances of having a heart attack
Half an hour of moderate exercise - which gets your heart beating faster and leaves you feeling warm and slightly out of breath - five times a week will halve your risk of getting heart disease.
By stopping smoking, eating fruit and vegetables and taking more exercise, you could lower your risk of a heart attack by 80 per cent.
n Keeping your waist measurement below 32 inches for women and 37 inches for men will reduce your risk of diabetes and heart disease.
A blood pressure of 140/85 or more doubles your risk of cardiovascular death, one of 160/95 quadruples it – losing any excess weight, eating less salt, eating more fruit and vegetables, and exercising can bring your blood pressure back down towards normal - 120/80 or below - and minimise your risk.
IN SHEFFIELD:
In 2007/08 emergency admission rate for patients with coronary heart disease and heart failure was higher than England and regional average.
Angioplasty - the technique used to widen narrowed blood vessels - procedure rates have increased by more than 22 per cent between 2003/04 and 2007/08 in Sheffield hospitals.
It is estimated more than 24 per cent of the population in Sheffield smoke - higher than the England average.
It is estimated that more than 24 per cent of the population in Sheffield are obese - higher than both England and regional average.
It is estimated more than 90 per cent of the Sheffield population is physically inactive - higher than the England and regional average.
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Friday 10 February 2012
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