1.  This presentation is included for reflection by practitioners in planning for learning and teaching. It is intended for exemplification purposes only. It may be appropriate for some teachers/lecturers to adapt these materials for use within their own context.

2. Causes

3.  Heart disease is a huge killer in a lot of MEDCs (More Economically Developed Countries).  The British Heart Foundation has worked very closely with the government and health agencies since it was set up in 1961.  The one fact that must be remembered before you look at statistics is that the number of deaths has reduced since the British Heart Foundation was set up.  It should be remembered that there are several associated heart diseases:  angina  strokes  heart attacks.

4. © Copyright SASI Group (University of Sheffield) and Mark Newman (University of Michigan). The map above gives a representation of heart disease cases. Therefore, the larger the country the more cases of heart disease it suffers from.

5.  Smoking  Fatty diets  Stress  Being overweight or obese  Diabetes  Family history  Lack of exercise

6.  If you smoke you are twice as likely to suffer from a heart disease.  The nicotine in cigarettes can lead to blood clots.  When you smoke you produce adrenaline, which makes your heart beat faster, making it work harder.  Heart attacks and coronary heart disease are two consequences of smoking.

7.  The consumption of too many saturated fats can increase cholesterol and your chances of heart disease.  Foods that are particularly high in saturated fats are cheese, cream, butter and chocolate.

8.  Blood pressure can increase if you become stressed.  A main cause of this can be work. This can happen in high-stress jobs where workers do not eat, rest and sleep properly.

9.  Your weight makes a significant difference to your risk of heart disease.  Being overweight puts you at higher risk of high blood pressure, high cholesterol and type 2 diabetes.

10.  Diabetes is what happens when your body doesn’t produce enough insulin, leading to high glucose (sugar) levels in your blood.  Diabetes increases the damage done by some of the major risk factors for coronary heart disease such as:  smoking  high blood pressure  high blood cholesterol.

11.  Genes from a family member can pass on the risk of cardiovascular disease.  It is possible to inherit high cholesterol from your parents.  High blood pressure can also be inherited.  Both high cholesterol and high blood pressure can contribute to heart disease.

12.  People can become overweight if they do not exercise.  Blood pressure can also go up.  Cholesterol can increase.