Now you’ve had your NHS Health Check, both you and your GP know more about your risk of developing heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes or kidney disease.
Remember, whatever your risk, it is not fixed. By making small and long-term changes to your lifestyle, you can reduce your risk. You’ll be healthier, feel better and increase your chance of staying in good health as you get older.
Based on your results, you’ll have had a conversation with your GP or health professional that will have included personalised advice on what action to take. It’s important that you stick to the plan you outlined together.
Whether you're trying to achieve a healthy weight, eat more healthily, lower your blood pressure, stop smoking or get active, there's lots of helpful information in Take action.
Reducing your risk
Your NHS Health Check results will help your GP or health professional assess your 10-year risk of developing vascular disease.
It's important to know that everyone is at risk of developing heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes or kidney disease. NHS Health Check can’t tell you for certain that you will or won't develop one of these conditions. You can find out more about risk in Understanding your results: risk.
If the NHS Health Check reveals that you’re not at high risk, this doesn't mean that you can forget about your health from now on. A good diet, physical activity and drinking within the daily limit will help keep your risk lower.
A higher risk
If you're assessed as being at higher risk, you will be advised to make lifestyle changes to improve your health and reduce that risk. For example:
- Achieve a healthy weight. This will reduce your risk of vascular disease. Your GP may have talked to you about NHS support to help you lose weight. Learn more in Achieve a healthy weight.
- Get active. This can help you to achieve a healthy weight, strengthen your heart, and lower blood pressure and cholesterol if they're too high. Learn more in Get active.
- Eating well. A good diet is a key part of reaching or maintaining a healthy weight and can help lower blood pressure or cholesterol if they're too high.
- Stopping smoking. Quitting will reduce your risk of vascular disease and save you money. You can get NHS support to stop smoking. Learn more in Stop smoking.
In addition to the changes above, some people at highest risk may be offered the following treatments, such as statins and medicine for raised blood pressure:
- Statins: medicines that lower cholesterol by reducing production of cholesterol in the liver.
- Blood pressure-lowering medicines: these can lower your blood pressure in combination with lifestyle changes such as eating well and getting active.
Take action
The advice you were given at your NHS Health Check will have equipped you to maintain or improve your health. Now it's up to you to take action.
There's lots of information and advice that can help you achieve a healthier lifestyle in our Live Well section.
