According to statistics released by the British Heart Foundation in 2020, there are around 7.6 million people living with a heart or circulatory disease in the UK – 4 million men and 3.6 million women. Coronary heart disease (CHD) is the most common type of heart and circulatory disease, with heart attacks being the single biggest killer of men and women worldwide in 2019.
Following Christian Eirksen’s tragic cardiac arrest during Denmark and Finland’s opening fixture of Euro 2020, the topic of heart health is something that’s been brought to the forefront of people’s minds once again. Over the past decade, several other footballers including Fabrice Muamba and Cheick Titote have also sadly suffered cardiac arrests while playing, which is why the issue of heart health is something that continues to be an indescribably important topic across professional sports.
Our Healthy Hearts programme is designed to deliver physical exercise sessions to participants who may be affected by a low-risk heart disease diagnosis. This could range from anyone who has a family history of heart disease to an early diagnosis of a condition which could lead to a heart condition.
The impact of physical exercise can help to reduce the risk of high blood pressure, high cholesterol or diabetes. If you already live with coronary heart disease, physical activity can help to protect your heart and help to reduce the risk of developing further heart-related problems.
Chris Riley, Health Manager at Notts County Foundation, said: “Making sure that we look after our hearts is absolutely vital in order to lead a healthy life. We want to ensure that participants feel that they are in a safe environment, which is why this programme also focuses on improving mental and emotional wellbeing by providing individuals access to local outdoor environments, such as the canal side. Our Healthy Hearts programme is free to access, with one session per week for 12 weeks.
If you’re interested in joining the Healthy Hearts programme, please contact the Notts County Foundation health team at josh.stevenson@nottscountyfoundation.org.
