You should be reading this webpage if you have received an SMS/text message from Macinnes Medical Centre
You have received this message because the results of your recent blood test show that your cholesterol level is higher than the recommended range, although not at a level where we would recommend drug treatment. As a high cholesterol increases your risk of heart and vascular disease it is important you make a few changes to your diet to lower this reading and also provide you with other general health benefits.
When we received your cholesterol results we used the levels to calculate the risk of you suffering from heart disease or stroke in the next 10 years using a calculation called QRISK.
QRISK2 takes into account various risk factors for CVD, including age, gender, ethnicity, high blood pressure, cholesterol level, body mass index (height and weight), smoking, alcohol intake, and certain medical conditions such as diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, and chronic kidney disease.
The QRISK2 score categorizes risk into three levels:
Low risk
QRISK2 score of less than 10%. This means that you have less than a one in ten chance of having a stroke or heart attack in the next 10 years.
Moderate risk
QRISK2 of 10-20%. This means that you have between a one to two in ten chance of having a stroke or heart attack in the next 10 years.
High risk
QRISK2 score of more than 20%. This means that you have at least a two in ten chance of having a stroke or heart attack in the next 10 years.
We have calculated your QRISK score to be less than 10%. Whilst this is low risk it is still important to try and reduce your cholesterol levels.
What can I do to lower cholesterol levels?
Guidance from NICE (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence) suggests that anyone with a score of more than 10% (moderate risk) should be offered help to reduce their risk. This includes advice on making lifestyle changes and if this doesn’t work or risks above 10% we offer the option of starting medication to lower cholesterol (statins).
What lifestyle changes can I make?
You may have noticed that the list of risk factors includes things we can change (such as smoking, weight and blood pressure) and things we cannot change (such as age and gender). We can therefore try to reduce our risk by taking a few simple steps including:
- Eat a healthy balanced diet – low in fat, sugar and salt. Eat 5 fruit / veg a day.
- Reduce alcohol intake – aim for less than 14 units a week for men and women.
- Keep an eye on your weight and take steps to lose weight if needed. Aim for BMI 20-25.
- Exercise regularly (walking is a great start).
- Taking medication to reduce blood pressure if needed.
It is very likely that you will benefit from changes to your lifestyle (regardless of risk). However, we can test your cholesterol level again in 6-12 months, measure your weight, height and blood pressure and recalculate your QRISK2 score. If your score is the same, or has increased, then you would benefit from taking a statin.
Information regarding possible lifestyle changes can be found on the NHS website for cholesterol.