A new report co-authored by University College London (UCL) and NatCen Social Research shows decrease in the number of adults with untreated high BP for both men (20% to 12%) and women (16% to 11%).
The research commissioned by National Health Service Digital was part of the Health Survey for England which tracked nearly 8000 adults and 2000 children since 1991.
The survey revealed that since 2014, hypertension prevalence has fallen from 32% to 28% among men but has remained relatively stable among women. Fourteen per cent of adults aged ≥16 years, 15% of men and 13% of women reported ever having any doctor-diagnosed cardiovascular disease in 2017, an observation that was very similar to 2011. An increase in the proportion of adults reporting doctor-diagnosed diabetes was observed between 1994 and 2017, increase been largest for those aged between 65 and 74 years.
A multiple risk score calculator that included information on smoking, drinking >14 units alcohol/week, eating <5 portions of fruit and vegetables/day, obesity and low physical activity revealed that 13%, 36%, 32% and 19% of adults had no, only 1, combination of 2 and ≥3 risk factors, respectively. Professor Jenny Mindell from UCL said, “People may not realise that these risk factors don’t just add to your risk, they can multiply your risk of developing heart disease, stroke or cancers.”
