Know Your Numbers Week - The UK's Most Important Campaign
The Know Your Numbers campaign is the most important part of the workplace wellbeing calendar, helping your staff identify hidden risks.
What is Know Your Numbers Week?
Know Your Numbers Week is a wellbeing campaign in the UK to help people get to know their health stats.
Primarily, the campaign focuses on blood pressure. Here at New Leaf Health, we also advocate for awareness around cholesterol and blood glucose, too.
These three stats are crucial to the health of your heart and blood vessels, as well as other major organs. Often, if you have any problems with these stats, you won’t have symptoms.
The only way to find out if you have problems with blood pressure, cholesterol or blood glucose is to get tested regularly.
Why is Monitoring Blood Pressure So Important?
1 in 3 UK Adults have High Blood Pressure
According to the Health Survey for England (NHS 2021), around 30% of adults in England are living with hypertension, including 15% with untreated high BP.
More Deprived Areas Have Higher Rates of Hypertension
In the same NHS study, researchers found hypertension had a prevalance of 23% in less deprived areas, and up to 40% in more deprived areas – almost double the likelihood.
High Blood Pressure is a Silent Killer
According to the NHS, high blood pressure usually has no symptoms, meaning that the only way to diagnose the condition is by havaing a blood pressure test.
High Blood Pressure is the #1 Risk Factor for Death
Globally, high blood pressure is the number one risk factor for death. Additonally, the condition accounts for around 50% of all heart disease and stroke-related deaths worldwide.
When is Know Your Numbers Week?
The Know Your Numbers campaign typically takes place during the first full week of September.
Blood Pressure UK, who organises the campaign, has confirmed that this year’s event will take place from 2-8 September 2024.
Want to keep up to date on wellbeing campaigns throughout the year? Click below to download our free Workplace Wellbeing Calendar!
Know Your Numbers Testing
It’s easy to get involved with Know Your Numbers Week. It’s all about helping your staff to get their blood pressure tested!
There are a few ways you could approach this:
- Find a local pharmacy that offers free testing for over 40s – and encourage staff to go.
- Rent or buy your own blood pressure machine to use in the workplace.
- Host a facilitated workplace health screening, where staff can find out their cholesterol and diabetes risk, too.
What are the Risks of High Blood Pressure?
High Blood Pressure Puts Extra Strain on Your Heart and Other Organs
Having high blood pressure is a bit like putting on an item of clothing that’s too small for you. You’re likely to stretch and mishape it, and eventually you might even rip it. But in this analogy, the clothing is your heart, your blood vessels, and crucial organs like the brain, kidneys and eyes.
If left untreated, persistent high blood pressure can lead to life-threatening conditions like:
- heart disease
- heart attacks
- strokes
- heart failure
- peripheral arterial disease
- aortic aneurysms
- kidney disease
- vascular dementia