British Heart Foundation '30 a Day'
Getting older is inevitable but coping with the stresses and changes that come with ageing is easier if you try to keep fit and healthy.
Eating an unhealthy diet, being overweight, being physically inactive and smoking are all factors that can cause coronary heart disease – the UK's single biggest killer.
Many of us mean to get more exercise or think that we don’t really need to do much. Maybe we feel we don’t have the time, we’re tired or we simply don’t know how to get started.
But doing 30 minutes of moderate intensity exercise five times a week can half your risk of heart disease.
Our 30 a Day campaign sets out to tackle one of the most important issues affecting the health of older adults – physical inactivity.
Inactivity is responsible for around 20% of cases of coronary heart disease in the UK, as well as increasing the risk of other life threatening diseases.
Around 35,000 people in Britain die every year due to physical inactivity. That’s one person every 15 minutes.
People over the age of 50 are at much greater risk from heart disease. This makes getting active all the more important, but many people don’t realise this. Only 30% of 50-64 year olds are active enough to safeguard their health.
Our 30 a Day campaign aims to tackle this in two ways:
Showing the over 50s how easy it can be to get active
Urging government to take a lead in helping over 50s to get active.