{"id":660920,"date":"2026-10-21T01:24:31","date_gmt":"2026-10-21T01:24:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/660920\/"},"modified":"2026-10-21T01:24:31","modified_gmt":"2026-10-21T01:24:31","slug":"these-are-the-signs-and-risk-factors-of-cardiovascular-disease-to-know","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/660920\/","title":{"rendered":"These are the signs and risk factors of cardiovascular disease to know"},"content":{"rendered":"

English broadcaster Davina McCall, 59, opened up about her cardiovascular disease (CVD) diagnosis for the first time on her podcast, following her battles with cancer and a brain tumour.<\/p>\n

Speaking on her podcast, Begin Again, the TV presenter said: \u201cI wanted to let you know, I also have cardiovascular disease, and this is a very important conversation to have.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

McCall noted in the episode that she was told she had high cholesterol before being diagnosed.<\/p>\n

The former Big Brother host said: \u201cI had high cholesterol and had it for quite a long time.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was deemed I had good cholesterol and that offset the bad or something.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

The TV presenter also urged women not to \u201cbrush things off\u201d.<\/p>\n

She said: \u201cHeart attacks and cardiovascular disease is rife out there, particularly in women post-menopause.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf there\u2019s one takeaway today, it\u2019s not to brush things off.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

We spoke to Dr Lucy Hooper, private GP and co-founder of Coyne Medical who has a particular clinical interest in cardiovascular health, who highlighted the main risk factors and warning signs of cardiovascular disease that everyone should know.<\/p>\n

What is cardiovascular disease?<\/p>\n

\"WhatWhat are the main risk factors and warning signs of cardiovascular disease that everyone should know?<\/p>\n

\u201cCardiovascular disease encompasses a whole range of conditions, including coronary heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, abnormal heart rhythms and heart failure,\u201d says Hooper.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, it\u2019s much broader than just a heart attack, which is often the first thing that people jump to.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

What are the risk factors?<\/p>\n

\u201cSome of the non-modifiable risk factors of cardiovascular disease include things like your family history and age,\u201d says Hooper.<\/p>\n

Having high levels of lipoprotein (a) \u2013 proteins and fats that help carry fats around your body \u2013 can also increase your risk of cardiovascular disease, such as a heart attack or stroke.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis marker is largely genetic,\u201d says Hooper.<\/p>\n

\u201cHigh blood pressure, high LDL cholesterol and smoking are some of the main modifiable risk factors,\u201d says Hooper.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn addition, metabolic health conditions (such as diabetes or insulin resistance), your activity levels and nutrition patterns are also regarded as modifiable factors that can impact your risk of cardiovascular disease.<\/p>\n

\u201cChronic kidney disease is another major risk factor for cardiovascular disease that often gets missed.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Women\u2019sWomen\u2019s risk of cardiovascular disease can increase through certain stages of life.<\/p>\n

She adds that women\u2019s risk of cardiovascular disease can also increase through certain stages of life.<\/p>\n

\u201cAny history of high blood pressure or pre-eclampsia or gestational diabetes during pregnancy can increase your risk of cardiovascular disease,\u201d says Hooper.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn addition, women who go through menopause earlier (premature menopause) are also at an increased risk of cardiovascular disease.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

She adds that certain inflammatory conditions, such as arthritis and autoimmune disease, which are more common in females, can also increase your risk of cardiovascular disease.<\/p>\n

What are some warning signs that people shouldn\u2019t ignore?<\/p>\n

\u201cFor most people, a lot of sudden cardiovascular events don\u2019t come with any warning, which is why managing your risk factors is so important,\u201d says Hooper.<\/p>\n

However, she notes that there are a few subtle symptoms that people often miss, such as chest pain.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt doesn\u2019t have to be an agonising chest pain. It may be more of an ache, a nagging pain or discomfort or a tightness feeling,\u201d highlights Hooper.<\/p>\n

Breathlessness is another symptom that you shouldn\u2019t ignore.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you used to be able to easily walk up staircases but now you can\u2019t do that without feeling really breathless or really tired at the top, then that could be a really important sign to flag with your doctor,\u201d says Hooper.<\/p>\n

\u201cOther symptoms also include feeling nauseated, vomiting or being fatigued. If these symptoms keep coming back, then it\u2019s important to not ignore them.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Can we do anything to decrease our risk of cardiovascular disease?<\/p>\n

\"AA Mediterranean diet with low salt intake is often advised<\/p>\n

\u201cBeing proactive and managing risk factors such as cholesterol and blood pressure is really important,\u201d says Hooper.<\/p>\n

\u201cKnowing your numbers is key. You can get your blood pressure and LDL cholesterol levels measured.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Simple lifestyle changes can help reverse or stabilise rising numbers.<\/p>\n

\u201cIncreasing activity levels, stopping smoking if you\u2019re a smoker and focusing on nutrition can all help lower your risk of cardiovascular disease,\u201d says Hooper.<\/p>\n

\u201cA Mediterranean diet with low salt intake is often advised.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

She adds that even small changes can make a big difference.<\/p>\n

\u201cAdding more fibre into your diet is one of the most undervalued things for lowering cholesterol that people often forget about,\u201d says Hooper.<\/p>\n

There are also lots of different medications available that can help lower blood pressure and cholesterol levels, such as statins.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople shouldn\u2019t be afraid of taking medication if it means that they will go on to live a longer, healthier life,\u201d says Hooper.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"English broadcaster Davina McCall, 59, opened up about her cardiovascular disease (CVD) diagnosis for the first time on…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":660921,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[93,14613,61,60],"class_list":["post-660920","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-entertainment","tag-entertainment","tag-fitness-exercise-work-life-balance-healthy-eating","tag-ie","tag-ireland"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/660920","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=660920"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/660920\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/660921"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=660920"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=660920"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=660920"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}