Heart Foundation of Jamaica (HFJ) analysis showing that more than three-quarters of clients have abnormal blood pressure and that nearly 70 per cent are overweight has prompted the organisation to ramp up its sensitisation programmes in the lead-up to the commemoration of Heart Month in February.

Speaking at the launch of Heart Month at Spanish Court Hotel in New Kingston yesterday, Deborah Chen, executive director of the HFJ, said that while the surveys from walk-ins at the organisation’s offices last year were not scientific, there was enough anecdotal evidence that Jamaica was on the cusp of a crisis.

“For blood pressure, only 23 per cent of persons who came to us had normal blood pressure at that time. We sent them to their doctors for the final diagnosis, but in terms of the numbers we got, only that number was normal,” she said.

Chen did not provide the raw aggregate.

The HFJ executive director also revealed that high cholesterol levels posed a clear and present danger.

“Blood sugar was similar. At the time they did the test, 5.2 per cent were abnormal, and (for) cholesterol, 8.9 per cent were high risk,” she said.

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