The Heart and Stroke Foundation South Africa (HSFSA) plays a leading role in the fight against preventable heart disease and stroke, with the aim of seeing fewer people in SA suffer premature deaths and disabilities.
The HSFSA, established in 1980 is a non-governmental, non-profit organization which relies on external funding to sustain the work it carries out.
The HSFSA is embracing the World Heart Federation’s theme “Use heart to beat… cardiovascular disease”, extending the theme to “use heart…for you, your loved ones and all those who live in South Africa.”
According to the World Health Organization cardio-vascular disease (CVD) which includes heart disease and strokes, is the leading cause of death globally, claiming nearly 17, 9 million lives annually.
In SA, heart disease and strokes have the second highest mortality rate, after TB, HIV and AIDS. In fact, in SA one in every five deaths are caused by CVD. Annually, in SA 82 000 lives are lost.
The key risk factors that drive the high mortality and morbidity for CVD include modifiable and non-modifiable factors.
Non-modifiable factors include genetic make-up and predisposition for hypertension, increased cholesterol levels and other comorbid conditions, while modifiable factors include behavioral risk factors such as lack of physical activity, poor nutrition, tobacco smoking and increased alcohol consumption.
In SA, the high rate of increased blood pressure or hypertension is very disturbing as hypertension is known to be a “silent killer”.
Less than 50% of South African adults living with hypertension, a key driver for CVD, are unaware of their condition. The prevalence of hypertension is estimated to be around 45% among adults. Similarly, South Africans are known to have a high cumulative risk score for CVD onset due poor lifestyle choices.
visit www.heartfoundation.co.za. Like www.facebook.com/HeartStrokeSA tweet www.twitter.com/SAHeartStroke or Call 021-422 1586.
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