A campaign to raise awareness of LDL cholesterol and other risk factors for heart disease
Know Your Risk, Treat Your Numbers aims to educate South Africans about high LDL cholesterol as a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD); help people establish their risk for high LDL cholesterol and CVD; and encourage regular cholesterol testing.
In South Africa CVDs are the leading cause of death, killing 210 people daily. Although there are several other risk factors for CVDs, high LDL cholesterol is poorly recognized and under-diagnosed.
The best way to tackle high LDL cholesterol is to #KnowYourRiskTreatYourNumbers. It could save your life!
Patient stories
High cholesterol can be managed with the right medication and a healthier lifestyle.
High cholesterol in South Africa
Know your risk
To prevent heart disease and strokes, it’s important to know if you’re at risk for high cholesterol. You should get tested regularly if you have one or more of the following risk factors:
- Family history of heart disease or high blood cholesterol
- Heart disease
- A previous history of high cholesterol, strokes, or heart attacks
- Excess weight or obesity
- Existing conditions such as diabetes or kidney disease
Know your risk
To prevent heart disease, it’s important to know if you’re at risk. You should get tested for cholesterol regularly if you have one or more of the following risk factors:
- Family history of heart disease or high blood cholesterol
- Heart disease
- A previous history of high cholesterol, strokes, or heart attacks
- Excess weight or obesity
- Existing conditions such as diabetes or kidney disease
Treat your numbers
A blood lipid profile consists of four components
Total cholesterol
LDL cholesterol
HDL cholesterol
Triglycerides
EDUCATIONAL TOOLKIT
Download this toolkit to get information about how you can manage high cholesterol, prevent heart attacks and strokes and live a healthy life.
Policy recommendations
Inadequate screening, outdated guidelines and barriers to treatment prevent South Africa from meeting the challenges of widespread cardiovascular disease. To improve care and public health, policymakers can:
- Promote early identification and implement systematic and comprehensive screening measures to include LDL and HDL levels.
- Encourage timely and optimal LDL cholesterol-lowering treatment initiation.
- Support additional research.
- Increase awareness of standard treatment guidelines.
- Improve access to treatment and specialty care.
- Apply a multi-pronged approach.
Policy recommendations
Inadequate screening, outdated guidelines and barriers to treatment prevent South Africa from meeting the challenges of widespread cardiovascular disease. To improve care and public health, policymakers can:
- Promote early identification and implement systematic and comprehensive screening measures to include LDL and HDL levels.
- Encourage timely and optimal LDL cholesterol-lowering treatment initiation.
- Support additional research.
- Increase awareness of standard treatment guidelines.
- Improve access to treatment and specialty care.
- Apply a multi-pronged approach.
